Project 365 {2015} - Day 10 and 11 Coziness and Christmas

My day 10 pic is one of the coziest spots in our home:

I got this chair from a friend who was moving and couldn't take it.  I intended on taking 

it to school and using it in my reading area.  But once we got it home, I knew it was 

there to stay.  It matches with our decor and is extremely comfy and cozy!

My day 11 pic is our last sign of Christmas:

The hubs brought this poinsettia home from work before 

the holidays.  I love the deep reds (my favorite color).

Christmas Decor at Home {Part Two}

I snagged more pics of our Christmas decor!

I bought these vases and small ornaments from Garden Ridge.  

I was given the adorable Santa by secret Santa!

Here's a shot of the centerpiece without Santa.

Of course I had to try some more bokeh pics!

I couldn't help but take this one!  That shiny red 

ornament was just asking to get in on the action!

Do you have all of your decor up and ready for the holidays?

Christmas Decor at Home {Part One}

I love decorating for Christmas!  The lights, the stockings, the garland - all beautiful!  But my

 favorite - the ornaments.  It's something about the way they shimmer and shine on the tree.

I took this picture last year.  I found this Santa ornament at Kroger.  I know...
the most unlikely place! Its colors are gorgeous.  It even has a bell inside!

Something else I did last year were these artificial poinsettias.  I got the stems from Walmart.  

Each bundle came with the flowers, greenery, pine cones, and ornament balls.  Put three or four 

of them together and you have a beautiful new centerpiece or front porch arrangement!

What's your favorite Christmas decoration?

Christmas Bokeh

Last year I wanted SO badly to master the whole bokeh effect.  I tried with the equipment I had:

This was December 2013.  I was using my 18-50mm lens that came with my Nikon D3000.  I had just taken my first photography class (a 101, four hour class).  I could get the small bokeh, but the lighting wasn't right.  I wanted the fat bokeh!

But this year, I was ready.  I purchased more gear and have tons of practice under my belt.  I took this shot with my 24-70mm lens.  My aperture was 2.8 and used my speedlite.  If you would've asked me last year about a speedlite, Iwould've given you the "deer in headlights" look.

The bokeh is perfect!  It's fat and blends together.  The lighting is just right on the snowman.  I had to turn off the Auto Focus and switch to Manual.  Otherwise, the camera kept focusing on the tree and not the snowman.

Have you tried bokeh pics?