She Walks In Beauty

© Sybille Sterk

Do not copy or publish this in any way, shape or form without my written permission.

She Walks in Beauty 
She walks in beauty, like the night

Of cloudless climes and starry skies;

And all that's best of dark and bright

Meet in her aspect and her eyes:

Thus mellow'd to that tender light

Which heaven to gaudy day denies.

One shade the more, one ray the less,

Had half impaired the nameless grace

Which waves in every raven tress,

Or softly lightens o'er her face;

Where thoughts serenely sweet express

How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.

And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,

So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,

The smiles that win, the tints that glow,

But tell of days in goodness spent,

A mind at peace with all below,

A heart whose love is innocent!

Lord Byron, 1814 

Picture taken earlier this year and edited a few days ago. I changed the colours and added the fog, I also edited out the people at the end of the path. I wanted a spooky ethereal image but in the end there was something so hopeful about it that I felt the poem was the perfect companion.

All images/textures/brushes my own or bought. Edited with Photoshop.

All my images are available on Redbubble, Artflakes, Society6and Bluecanvas as prints, cards, posters, skins for laptops, Blackberry, iPhones and other phones (for the skins go toBluecanvas). You can now also get most of my images on cushion covers (go to Society6 for these).

Dissembling - Beauty Pageant

 

 

Second in my new series called Dissembling

dis·sem·ble  (d-smbl)

v. dis·sem·bled, dis·sem·bling, dis·sem·bles
1. To disguise or conceal behind a false appearance. See Synonyms at disguise.
2. To make a false show of; feign.
To disguise or conceal one's real nature, motives, or feelings behind a false appearance.

From The Free Dictionary

The series is about the different guises and masks we wear.

This particular image is about the efforts we make and the pains we are prepared to take to be beautiful and to adhere to the beauty standards and trends of our time. From designer eyes (coloured contact lenses) to makeup to surgery to turning ourselves into animals or vampires (and so on) there are many ways to hide ourselves until we cannot tell where the mask ends and we begin. The saddest thing of all is that we seem to forget that outer beauty is nothing without inner beauty. However, any inner beauty we possess is often overshadowed by the pursuit of outer beauty.

I am not saying that a little makeup is evil or that you shouldn't look after yourself and make the best of your assets, however, in recent years the concerns with our 'outer' shell seem to have taken over any concerns we have with our inner selves, the content as it were. From trying to be size 0 to wearing the latest fashion to cosmetic surgery we seem to have forgotten who we are and where we come from.

Credits

Model

• Portrait by Blair-W

Textures

• NF Texture Set by Shadowhouse
• 6 Faves Texture Sets 1 by Shadowhouse
• Bokeh Set 2 by Shadowhouse
• Another Mixed Texture Set by Shadowhouse
• Rich Tones Texture Set by Shadowhouse

Actions

• Perfect Portrait 3 Action by TheCoffeeshopBlog

Brushes

• Eyelashes Photoshop Brushes by redheadstock
• Stitches and Sutures Brushes by redheadstock

All others images/textures/brushes my own

MCN: CC79G-BQLCU-BAKS5

MyFreeCopyright.com Registered & Protected

Girl With Hummingbird (Photo Manipulation)

Sub Title: The Betrayal

 

 

 

I think I might need to explain the sub title. This image - although very pretty and seductive is actually about the way we 'deal' with beauty. It's more often than not something we use and abuse rather than just admire. The flowers (my own pictures of cherryblossom) symbolise the lure whereas the hummingbird symbolises, the 'vampires' that feed on the beauty. Of course beauty isn't always seen this way, but open a magazine or watch the ads on TV and you know exactly what I mean.... In part it was inspired by Madame Butterfly, a tragic opera by Puccini about a geisha abandoned by her American lover, hence the slightly 'oriental' feel.

Credits

Model 1

• Kimono 31 by Kechake-stock

Stock

• Hummingbird Stock 02 by rml-stock
• Gothic Lace fan by allyekhrah-stock

Backgrounds and Textures

• mr youngstrom by CKdailyplanet
• just gave it to him by CKdailyplanet
• blood red bokeh by DyingBeautyStock
• floral embossed texture by beckas
• BlueTextures by letinhastock
• Oriental Black 1 by inspyretash-stock
• 6 Faves Of Mine Texture Set # 4 by Shadowhouse
• Rich Tones Texture Set by Shadowhouse

Brushes

• 17 Grunge Border Bars Brush Set by Shadowhouse
• Hair brush set by para-vine
• czchagas decorative curlys by caiojosechagas

 All other images/textures/stock/brushes my own.

MCN: CUAUP-CHRBR-2J22E

Shelved - Photo Manipulation

All is not as it seems... this may look like a romantic image, however, it's actually a 'rant' against all the helpless heroines in fairyland who wait for 'true love's first kiss' and Prince Charming to rescue them from a situation they put themselves in.

For example, shouldn't Snow White have realised after the poisoned comb that maybe she shouldn't trust gifts from an old hag? Shouldn't Sleeping Beauty have listened to her parents and not run off to get herself into trouble? Shouldn't Rapunzel have worked out that she could cut her hair and climb down that tower all by herself? Not exactly the kind of role models girls need growing up. No get up and go and sort yourself out. Give me Sherazade any day...

Thing is, these role models shape the way we think of ourselves and the way we think we should live our lives. Girls as young as 11 go on diets to look 'thin and beautiful'...

How often do we put ourselves on a shelf, waiting for Prince Charming to make our life worth living, when we have the key to make it special and fulfilling all along...

Credits

Model

• Oldfashioned Stock 9 (currently in storage) by Eli-Stock

Stock

• frame 11 by Meltys
• Frame by lillyfly06-stock
• Old letter stock by rustymermaid-stock
• Stock 016 - Corset by senzostock
• STOCK IMAGE old child dummy by Lamollesse
• teacup01 by Holy-Win
• Nightstock 863 by Nightstock
• Key 1 by matazidah
• Braid by NiennaAlatariel
• STOCK PNG vines by MaureenOlder

Backgrounds and Textures

• wall frame shelf stock 8801 by Moon-WillowStock
• Copper Flower Paper by Siobhan68
• and it was my business by CKdailyplanet
• Fake Old by dazzle-textures
• Another Mixed Texture Set by Shadowhouse
• New Square Texture Set by Shadowhouse
• Vintage Oil Painting Texture Set + Tutorial by Shadowhouse
• Chaos / Grunge Texture Set by Shadowhouse
• Aged and Crackling Effects Texture Set by Shadowhouse

Brushes

• Cloud Brushes HiRes Nr.1 of 5 by leboef
• Cloud Brushes HiRes Nr.2 of 5 by leboef
• Bird Brush Pack by Shadowhouse
• Foliage by spiritsighs-stock
• Foliage 2 by spiritsighs-stock
• Foliage 3 by spiritsighs-stock
• Waterstains Photoshop Brushes by redheadstock
• Spanish Moss Brushes by redheadstock
• Cobwebs Photoshop Brushes by redheadstock
• Ropes -n- Chains Brushes by redheadstock
• Valikva Action by Apples & Sisters

All other images/textures/stock/brushes my own.

MCN: CM79D-XYFL3-96VDU

The Beauty Within - Photo Manipulation

Photo manipulation in my Head Space series.

Others in the series include:

Credits

Model

• Bite Me5 by faestock

Backgrounds and Textures

• Moonchilde Nebula. 29th by Mithgariel
• Frequency by dazzle-textures
• Da Vinci by SolStock
• dragon scales texture by GlamourousAcid-Stock
• Texture set 4 by anamcr

All other images/textures/stock/brushes my own.

MCN: CW76P-TTVM8-12FY1

Blossom

 

 

Another experiment after watching another interesting PS tutorial.

This time I went for a different kind of effect. I've always had a thing about Art Nouveau and the way they create something almost magical but in a simple way with subtle colour and ornamental effects. This is my version of an Art Nouveau poster.

I've used a stock photo by M3ment0M0ri of an actress (I believe) called Maude Fealy and a texture by Dazzle-Textures called Destructive News.

The rest of the images/textures are mine, namely a photo of a cherry blossom and one of my Victorian Wallpaper textures.

Featured on RB in Retro Conglomerate Group:

Currently featured as the challenge avatar for the Retro Conglomerate's Vintage Women challenge:

Perdu - Painting

This is my latest (finished) painting.

Perdu - forgotten, out of sight, French

The painting is about aging and lost beauty (not just physical beauty), which only continues to exist in our memories and thoughts.

It has been inspired by the three fates from Norse mythology: Wyrd, Skuld and Verdandi. Their Roman equivalents are the Parcea: Nona, Decima and Morta. In Greek mythology they are known as the Moirae: Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos.

All three mythologies agree that one of the three fates would spin the thread, the other would measure it and the last one would cut it, measuring out the fates of mortals and defining their destiny.


The two birds are Odin's ravens, Memory and Thought.


The tree necklace pendant is meant to represent Yggdrasil - the world ash of Norse mythology.


Here is the spindle, a tape measure with a Greek reference (alpha for the beginning of a life and omega for the ending of a life) and the scissors used to cut the thread. The scissors are based on a design from the T'ang dynasty.

Although not that many people still know much about the three fates, I've always been fascinated by them and some authors are too: Stephen King's Insomnia and Robin Jarvis' Wyrd Museum trilogy are just two of them, I am sure there are others.

The image is available as a print on RedBubble.