Kingdom Rejoices!!! "The Hobbit" Filming Begins!

The King and Queen are hugging with tears of joy!!! It is like coming home!!! We are sending elven love out from our place in the Shire to yours, with this wondrous news that the team of creative geniuses behind the 'Lord Of The Rings Trilogy' are back! Peter Jackson and the Weta Crew has finally started filming 'The Hobbit.' This will be another beautifully filmed movie in New Zealand with the same incredible attention to detail for everything that was enjoyed by LOTR fans. The amazing artist Alan Lee is back on the set too! His sense of beauty and understanding of the lyrical line of the Art Nouveau movement makes for some gorgeous scenery. Ahhh The Queen wants to stay in Elrond's home!

Since I discovered "The Hobbit" blog dedicated to the new movie,  I wanted to share these sites with anyone who loved the "Lord Of The Rings" Triology. Be sure to watch the new Peter Jackson 10 minute video about the start of production of 'The Hobbit' at any of the following web sites! The Queen is thrilled that you can catch a few glimpses of Rivendell beauty in Elrond's house in this video as well! Go forth and enjoy!!!! I think I will too!!!

UPDATE: December 2012  - The movie is finally out! Part One is epic!

Official 'The Hobbit' movie blog.

Facebook site for The Hobbit. 

Peter Jackson's face book page.

The always popular The ONE Ring.net

The One Ring.net facebook page.

Credits: The matte frame from Shadowhouse Creations was given some Hobbit green love from The Queen.

Trey Ratcliff's View From Hobbiton

We found these wonderful photos taken by HDR photographer Trey Ratcliff of Tolkien's visible world as it looks now. Look closely...there is the party tree just outside the door of Bilbo's Hobbit Hole! Below is a closer look of the tree stretching out in all it's majesty and glory! 

We were thrilled Trey came to our world and took such inspiring photos just to share the beauty of these lands! The Hobbits told us that Trey Ratcliff is an excitable generous soul who happily shares his photos and knowledge of HDR techniques on his Flicker pages and website 'Stuck In Customs.'  You can certainly see by these images why his website is the number one travel photography blog. 

During the Holiday Season in the eternally gorgeous Shire, everyone is very thankful for all that is.  We love to take the time to find a quiet place of reflection and realize what is most important to us... ...each other...... and the unity we can find in peace.

Living in Lothlorian, the beauty is felt within, and reflected outward onto our glorious surroundings. As the lights of the season sparkle and twinkle in the misty light, we hope you relax and enjoy those quiet magical moments in your home...Please remember who you really are in the scheme of all things...a beautiful creation 
of light and love. Share your most valuable gift of beauty...
...the love and peace of your heart, with everyone you encounter.

Let Your Inner Fairy Shine!

Recently I was working on editing the photos I took for a friends wedding. The day of the wedding we were unable to shoot the wedding party in the beautiful wooded glade of the venue. Rain made the ground too soft. So I had the idea of placing some of the wedding portraits on outdoor backgrounds I had already shot at other locations just for fun. Knowing the bride since she was a little girl, I knew how much she loved the idea of a fairy fantasy wedding. Guys do not go for such an idea in reality. I decided to work at making that Fairy dream become virtual reality for our bride. After all she is one of us!

As I went through my photos I was elated to find a photograph of her bridesmaids catching the dress as she moved. Then I added the sparkling gossamer Fairy wings and an ethereal pool of water I had previously shot at a botanical garden. Together this created an enchanted photo reminiscent of a classic Fairy painting! Of course having such a gorgeous bride really helps to make this photo so beautiful! A truly wonderful Fairy Queen!....Oh yes.... she loved it!

I just got married! I want some wings too! Oh boy now I've started it! Just had to create fantasy wings on my own wedding photos. I call these shimmering translucent beauties my Sun Wings! This is fun!!!!

During the Ceremony the King and Queen are surrounded by the spiritual light of the Fairy Realm. A light filled spiritual moment in time. Surely a Crystal Vision has come true in this photo creation!

We are blessed by the Spirit and the Fae on our Day of Love!

A Fairy Queen Bride has all manner of wings at her desire. These are the magical full moon wings filled with sparkling amethyst star light!
 

A wee pixie flew in for the party! She knew where the fun was happening on that awesome night! Such magic at your fingertips!!!

Oooooo Angelic wings! This photo already had a glow coming from the window that was blowing out the details, so it seemed like a great match for some wings of light! As you can see by these examples there are many styles of fantasy wings! Sparkling wings, dragonfly wings, butterfly wings, angel wings maybe even bat wings! Ewwww

These photos of light filled Fairy and Angel wings have really created quite a sensation! 

"Let Your Inner Fairy Shine!"

My wedding photos were taken by Robert Smith Photography.

My friends wedding photos were taken by me Crystal Visions Art.

Free Photoshop Brushes by Obsidian Dawn

The King Speaks

In December 2007, when I proposed to Crystal, it was a huge moment of happiness and joy between us. Even though we already knew that we were truly soul mates, it was still very powerful to make it official that we would indeed get married.

Now, a year and a half later, we got married, and had that same feeling of being filled to overflowing with blessings and joy. The wedding was simply an outward expression of the commitment we had already made. It was so meaningful to do it in the presence of our family and friends!

The preparations for the wedding and reception were fueled by Crystal’s artistic genius. She has truly brilliant insight into how to design and create things and environments that are beautiful, warm, peaceful, imaginative and playful. Just like her!

There was an aesthetic thread throughout all the items purchased, all the designs conceived and produced. It is a style that she has always had, and it is something I have resonated with from the first day we met. What she creates just feels right to me. I always trust her judgment completely, and support her efforts to the end. All who came to the wedding saw the results. Our house, driveway and garage were transformed. The decorations were gorgeous. It was a stunning setup, yet not stuffy or formal. The atmosphere was fun and relaxed, which was what we were aiming for.

All the guests got into the spirit very easily, meeting, interacting, and having a great time. That’s just the kind of friends and family we have, and we are so grateful for them all.

Crystal also had a vision for herself, and when she came out of the house and walked down to join me for the ceremony, she literally radiated. She was the embodiment of spiritual joy, romance, fantasy and classic beauty. At the heart of it all was that wonderful smile that captured my heart on first sight. I, along with all our guests, felt the deep love and happiness that lives within that smile.

Even though I get to see that beauty every day, this moment was so special, and I was so filled with emotion, I was literally choked up and could barely speak. I have never had an experience like that, where the emotions of love and joy literally took my breath away.

Our ceremony was put together from spiritual sources that were deeply meaningful to us. This was between us and God; we were not going to be worried about what anyone thought about our unconventional readings. Fortunately we found a minister, Rev. Toni Fish, who was not just willing to work with us, but was in fact perfectly in tune with what we were trying to do. She totally got it and loved it, and supported and encouraged us.

Toni was relaxed, funny, and to top it off, she’s a Lord Of The Rings fan! She delivered the readings with tremendous feeling. We were grateful to discover that our ceremony held a lot of meaning for many of our guests, who told us how much they appreciated it and agreed with the thoughts expressed.

Just before the ceremony, I was talking to Crystal’s son Sean, and he asked me how I felt. My answer was the same as it has been from the beginning. With Crystal, I always feel two things – first, amazement and elation at how beautiful our relationship is, and second, a calm and relaxed sense of rightness. How exciting to find someone who I resonate with on every possible level! And at the same time, ahh, what a relief to have set aside all doubt and worry. We revel in the joy of sharing all the moments of our life together, going forth with a unified sense of purpose, interest, passion and fun. We also encourage a peaceful feeling in each other by loving each other completely, and by accepting each other exactly as we are.

I believe there is no greater way to learn spiritual truths than in relationships, and Crystal and I have done our homework. We were ready to find our true soul mates, and that is exactly what happened. We are willing and able to look past egos and see the Spirit that has always been there, to recognize it and say “yes!” That is why I will love her forever; I believe I always have!

Wedding Photos By Robert Smith Photography
Editing by Crystal Visions Art
Rev. Toni Fish Frederick Unity Church

Hay Bales In The Shire

As part of our Wedding day visualization we wanted fields of gold as part of our backyard view. They materialized as ordered! Thank you God! Our neighbor said it was the first time the farmers had ever grown barley in that field! Cool! Evidenced by our gorgeous wedding photos, we had Stings' version of 'Fields of Gold' for real. Day and evening! The barley was green with a glowing yellow cast shimmering within the field. The golden light of the sunset was amazing! They peaked for our Wedding! Our photos were so good they looked fake! haha! When we got back from our honeymoon the fields had dried.

I knew that soon there would be hay bales in those fields. The questions for me were... which type, how many, and how long would they sit in the fields? I had lived on a farm in the past when my children were little. The hay bales where huge, round and glorious! Bigger than my kids! Golden hay bales remind me of old medieval paintings. As it turns out I did not have to wait long for my answers. Within two weeks the machines were in the field cutting down the straw and following up later that same day with a baler. I watched the next day as they continued into the rest of their fields. The farmers seemed extremely efficient. I had the feeling I needed to take the photos that day or miss the opportunity. The sky was grungy and gray.

It stayed overcast and dull all day. Yuk! Not great for exciting light filled photographs. Near sunset hour I could see that a small slice of sky would open up soon. My daughter had arrived to pick up the baby and was busy using my computer. I informed her that I had to go outside, as the God Sky was coming, and I was going to shoot me some hay bales! There was only a ten minute window before the sun returned to the clouds. I took a few shots running quickly about the spiky field. The next morning I awoke to find the hay bales were gone! It sure is good to follow your intuition! Maybe in three years they will plant beautiful golden waves of grain once again for us to enjoy!

Photography by Crystal Visions Art

The Wedding Of The Century

A Dream in the Dream. All the Vision, and All the Love, created a glorious day! Hearts shined and everyone felt the warmth of the Light. How beautiful and how Holy were the souls of All who attended to extend their Love to Our Day! A true Lovefest was had by All! Days of rain broke into pure perfection of sky. God is in the details… and on our day we had every desire. Heaven blue skies, puffy white clouds, gentle sun and no wind. The day ended with a sunset to rival all others.


The evening was filled with sweet country air and music. This is how we wanted it for our guests... a very pleasant day and evening in which to enjoy each other as well as the music and vision of our lives. Friends and family are the reason why we had our backyard celebration. We wanted to share the hope and joy of our love with the people in our lives. And in addition send that Light into the Universe expanded by the Spirit vibration of those in attendance! So cool! We wished we could have invited everyone we knew to share the experience! Unfortunately our little back yard could only hold a limited amount of guests. We know everyone was there in Spirit!

We have received so much positive feedback about our wedding that it made all the effort to create such a day worthwhile indeed. We truly realized our main goal of sharing the warmth of love and friendship we feel. Everyone has commented on how much they enjoyed meeting and spending time with the other guests! So awesome! This has been the most wonderful compliment about Our Wedding of all. The really nice people who were our guests at the wedding celebration...enjoying all the other really nice people. We have fantastic peeps in our life! Thank you for all your love and support! I plan on doing a series of Blogs about our Royal Wedding and honeymoon adventures. A cool surprise is that The King will also be doing guest blogging about Our Wedding as well in this series. For any Brides to be out there I intend to do a how - to series on some of the wedding décor I created that was beautiful and cost effective. Currently I am working on gathering the photos together of our incredible Wedding day and Honeymoon! Oh my goodness the Royal Honeymoon was filled with the kindness of strangers at every turn. How wonderful it will be to talk about all those good people too!

The reason why this Wedding Ceremony and Celebration dream and story exists to be told …is…. the love Ben and I share is one of giving to each other without measure. It is like a quote I heard recently. "What if the Sun that shines it's Light onto the Earth said to the Earth..."You owe me!" That is how many relationships are in this life…they want a price to be paid for what should be given naturally. As we know the Sun shines and asks for nothing in return. It just shines. To find a Love relationship with a fellow soul that shines is a blessing. True spiritual Love knows no boundaries and just exists to give. It is a gift everyday to experience Spiritual Love with Ben. It just IS…and I am grateful.

"The word down here
On the streets tonight
Is the truest music You've heard
So take your share
Of the gifts that are there
They all belong to you
And come what may
At the break of each day
We all begin anew once more
We all begin anew"

Moody Blues/Justin Hayward

The King and Queen's Royal Wedding was a day of Miracles and Love

Wedding Photos by Robert Smith Photography