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Well folks, today it didn't get above about 10°F and I'm still sick, so it goes without saying that I did not venture outside to take any pictures. (I barely ventured outside the bedroom, honestly.) So for my last post of the year I did a little digging and found this photo that I took on December 7, 2015 of a cute Victorian on Bijou Street, a block or three east of Wahsatch. I remember that I took it for a specific reason, and that reason now escapes me -- something to do with an old newspaper clipping about someone who had lived there, possibly a WWII soldier. Sorry I don't have more of a juicy story to tell you! At any rate, a little digging tells me that it was built in 1890, and you can see with your own eyes that it's adorable and well loved.

It's New Year's Eve, time to say goodbye to 2018! Here's wishing you a splendid 2019 with lots of great new adventures, dear readers! Cheers!

Sunday Style!

Forgive the terseness of this post -- I've been sick in bed for the past two or three days, and am barely alert enough to blog at the moment! Here are a few more beautiful creations currently on display at the Christian Dior exhibition at the Denver Art Museum. The dress above and directly below may look familiar to you because Nicole Kidman wore it to the 1997 Oscars, and she looked exquisite in it. It was quite extraordinary to see this garment in person. The details are amazing. Scroll down for more Dior awesomeness.

This gorgeous confection was worn by none other than Elizabeth Taylor to the 1961 Oscars, where she won Best Actress for her role in Butterfield 8. Look at that tiny waist!

The gown on the right was worn by Charlize Theron to the 2017 Oscars.

This black number is a replica of a one that was famously worn by Marilyn Monroe.

First Congregational

First Congregational Church is located on the northwest corner of St. Vrain and Tejon, in the neighborhood known as the Near North End. The building was completed in 1889 in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, and until fairly recently the dramatic peaked roof above the sanctuary was metal, which would make it uncomfortably hot in there sometimes! Thankfully the metal was replaced by regular shingles a few years ago. I think the most distinct features of its design are its massive pillars and deep, shady porch. The stained glass windows are also quite beautiful. Oh and there's an amazing, enormous pipe organ in the sanctuary. First Congregational is on the National Register of Historic Places. You can read a little about its history HERE.

Morreale House

Beautiful Morreale House on the Colorado College campus was most notably occupied by the Vanderhoof family starting around 1919, according to Helen Anderson's Historic Homes of Colorado Springs and Vicinity. It was originally built for a mining broker named George Lindley in 1892; Lindley soon sold it to Herbert Johnson, who was in dry goods. I have found that many of our beautiful old homes, built for robber barons, railroad magnates, speculators and the like, were only lived in by their original owners for a few years before being sold. I wonder why that is? Why go to all the trouble and expense of building a custom designed mansion, only to sell it a couple of years after moving in? This is such a puzzle to me. Anyway, Johnson sold it to Dr. Vanderhoof in 1919, and in the 1940s it changed hands again. I imagine it went through the usual merry-go-round of owners and renters over the ensuing years, until it was bought by a retired chaplain named Morreale in 1960. Finally, after his death, CC acquired it in 2000 and now it's used as an administrative building. It is and always has been in beautiful condition. This style of architecture is called Queen Anne, and as far as I know, it's our only Queen Anne with masonry rather than shingles. Morreale House is on the National Register of Historic Places. I've always thought that it was a singularly beautiful home. I especially love the cupola. To see a picture of what it looked like years ago, click HERE.

Corpus Christi

The east-facing facade of Corpus Christi church on North Cascade Avenue, built around 1955-56.

A famous golf course

Ah yes, the world class golf course at the Broadmoor. I was there on Saturday for a wedding and saw a guy checking into the hotel with a golf bag. It's December and there's snow on the greens! But I suppose if you're staying at the five star Broadmoor and you're an avid golfer, no matter what the weather you're going to want to play on this famous course.

Merry Christmas!

Did you have a good Christmas? We did! After sleeping in and opening presents, we went out to eat. I love whipping up a big meal at Thanksgiving, but the weeks leading up to Christmas are stressful for small business owners like me (especially if you're an army of one!), and by the time the big day arrives, I'm too exhausted to cook. So we got dressed up and went out to dinner, then took naps, and it was fantastic.

Here are some pictures I took on Christmas Eve. Pat and I drove around the Old North End, Shooks Run, Patty Jewett and the surrounding neighborhoods to admire all the beautiful Christmas lights. Cheers!

One of our favorite Christmas traditions is to drive down Caramillo Street between Wahsatch and Weber. The people who live on this block string lights back and forth across the street, in addition to festively decorating their homes. It's magical!

This house on N. Union is a favorite of ours. It's so cheerful! Actually, this is a little low key for them -- other years have been far more exuberant!

Your guess is as good as mine

On Saturday I was at the Broadmoor to photograph a wedding, and I had just taken a few portraits of the groom next to the lake when this boat sped past behind him. I clicked off a couple of shots. This is very odd. Normally the lake at the Broadmoor is quite tranquil, with only a few stately swans and maybe a couple of paddleboaters floating by. Certainly nothing motorized. I have no idea what these dudes were doing on this weird boat on a half-frozen lake. Your guess is as good as mine!

Sunday Style!

Last week I teased a single photo from the Christian Dior exhibit at the Denver Art Museum; here are several more. I think all the ones you see here are from the 1950s and '60s. I took quite a lot of photos -- more beautiful Dior gowns and dresses next week!

There was an entire, huge wall covered in what dressmakers call muslins -- "practice" frocks meant to work out the kinks in a design or pattern before sewing up the real thing.

One last beautiful ballgown. More next week!

A hundred years

The Broadmoor is celebrating its 100th year, and for Christmas they've put an enormous gingerbread replica of the main building on the mezzanine. Very cool! Sorry this is just a cell phone picture. I was there actually shooting a wedding today, and just had a moment to quickly snap this photo in passing.

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Here's Fountain Creek rushing toward downtown Manitou Springs on December 11th. How's your Christmas shopping coming along? I'm nearly finished, just two more gifts to buy. I heard on the news tonight that tomorrow is called Super Saturday; that is, the last shopping Saturday before Christmas. They are predicting a bit of snow in Colorado Springs, but our hardy shoppers probably won't notice the chill. Let's help our small business owners have a red letter day -- spend your money locally, friends, even if it's just one gift out of all the ones you buy! As for me, I will be shooting a wedding at the Broadmoor. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Casting a long shadow

We don't have a lot of tall buildings in Colorado Springs because we don't want to obstruct our view (true story). I think our biggest one is 14 stories. Lately we've had a couple of new additions, including this one at the corner of Cascade and Bijou. A nondescript bank once stood here, but it was razed a couple of years ago after standing empty for a while. Now we have a nearly finished and equally nondescript retail space/apartment building in its place. I specifically parked on the north side of Bijou Street today so my car would be in the sun, but as you can see, tall buildings cast long shadows, and the sunny side of the street is now just as shady as the other side.

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2432 West Colorado Avenue was once an opera house. Now it houses lofts upstairs and Mother Muffs downstairs. I think all our historic old buildings are beautiful, but they're even more so in dramatic afternoon light.

Crime scene

Today I had to run to Barnes and Noble by the Citadel Mall to pick up a book. As I was driving past the mall, I noticed TV news crews on my right and lots of police cars and yellow crime scene tape to my left. There weren't just a few police cars, there were a lot of police cars. It looked like they were wrapping things up. Indeed, after I got my book I drove back the same way and the crime scene tape was gone, and there were only five police vehicles left. Obviously something bad had happened, so I looked it up when I got home. Sure enough, there had been a shooting. I guess two guys are in the hospital and the shooter got away. Sigh. It's Christmas time, people. Let's be good to each, okay?

Dove Valley

While I was in Denver on Saturday with my friend Jenn, we randomly ended up in Dove Valley, which is where the Denver Broncos train. I'm not sure that this is the main facility (I think it isn't), but it's clearly part of it. I'm a big fan. It'd be cool to see the inside of this place!

Sunday Style!

I'm late getting this post up, it's nearly Monday! I have numerous photos to show you from the Christian Dior exhibit at the Denver Art Museum, but since I'm under the gun I'll just show you one for now. Consider this merely a fabulous teaser for next Sunday, because there were many, many beautiful and simply mind-blowing frocks on display and I took a ton of pictures!

Casa Bonita

Today I had an errand to run in Denver, so I decided to make a day of it with my friend Jennifer. She offered to treat me to lunch or dinner for my birthday (what do you call it when it's too late in the day for lunch but too early for dinner? linner? dunch?) and the restaurant I chose was... Casa Bonita! This request elicited an eye roll from Jenn, but she gamely went along with my wishes. Let me explain. If you've lived anywhere along the Front Range for as long as we have, which is, in the case of Jenn's, Pat's, and my families, the 1970s, you probably have fond memories of Casa Bonita. And it can only be described as kitschy. Casa Bonita is not known for its food. In fact, the food there is sort of a running joke -- eat there at your own risk, etc. I don't think their cuisine deserves such a bad rap, personally. They do serve hundreds of people on a slow day and probably several thousand on a busy day, so it's not like they're going to earn any Michelin stars. It's cheap and cheerful Mexican food. But I digress. Casa Bonita is known for its entertainment. The interior of the restaurant is completely over the top. You may find yourself eating dinner on a terrace overlooking a two story waterfall, you may find yourself eating in a baroque dining room, or you may find yourself eating in a cave. (Really.) If you're lucky enough to get a view of the waterfall and pool, you'll be treated to skits and cliff divers. Kids LOVE it. We all love it. You don't have to have kids to eat there. I personally think it'd be a great place for a first date, because it's so corny. There's never a dull moment at Casa Bonita and it's always a fun time. Even if you do need a little Pepto Bismol afterward.

Here's a video of one of their famous cliff divers. Sopapillas and cliff divers. It just doesn't get any better than this, folks.

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I've never noticed the roofline of 2502 West Colorado before. It's beautiful. I guess it pays to look up from time to time.

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Today was my birthday! Pat treated me to an afternoon at the Denver Art Museum to see the Christian Dior Show. For someone who's as into fashion as I am, it was mind boggling. Even for Pat, who's not into fashion at all, it was mind boggling. I'll post pictures on Sunday so you can see how incredible it was.

Meanwhile, here's a blurry cell phone shot of the Denver Public Library at twilight, as we were leaving the Denver Art Museum. Such a striking edifice.

Patsy's Candies

Patsy's is a local institution and has been for generations -- it's been around since 1903! They're known for old school treats like saltwater taffy and cotton candy, but they also do gourmet chocolates, toffee, ice cream and even savory snacks like hot dogs to munch on while you're strolling around Manitou. If you've never tried Patsy's, you really should. It's a treat!

Redeeming myself somewhat

Yesterday's photo was comically bad, so I decided to drive to Manitou today to redeem myself by taking better pictures. Alas, I took yet more bad photos there (apparently I'm on a roll) but I did get this one on the way back, as I was driving through Old Colorado City and passed by Bon Ton's again. This photo at least has dramatic lighting and a funny subject! Which just goes to show you that lighting is everything when it comes to photography.

Christmas explosion

Sorry for the unimaginative photo today! Honestly, it was just a quick grab shot as we were walking in to Bon Ton's in Old Colorado City for breakfast yesterday. They always do such nice Christmas decorations every year. They really go for it! This photo doesn't even begin to do it justice. You should go there and see it for yourself! 😊

Sunday Style!

How about this sassy little lass for your fashion inspiration today? I spotted her downtown last weekend, shopping with her pop and big sis. Look at those boot warmers and that stylish coat! Not a stitch of pink or purple for this cutie -- she looks like a tiny New Yorker!

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If I had to pick a favorite church building in town, hands down it would be Grace Episcopal. It's beautiful.

Colorful abode

I don't know if its occupants are happy, but the outside of this house on High Street sure is! A little internet sleuthing tells me that it was built in 1895. This pocket-sized neighborhood is called Deaf and Blind because of its proximity to the Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind, just a block or so from this colorful abode.

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Today was quite chilly and I had clients and lots of other work to keep me busy, so I don't have a current photo for the blog. Looking through my archives I found this moody shot that I took on February 4th at the Colorado College. That's Shove Chapel back there behind the trees.

Say Cheese

I don't know anyone who doesn't like mac and cheese! This whimsical addition to Art on the Streets lives on the southeast corner of Tejon and Boulder.

Ice skating date

What could be funner than going skating with your sweetheart on a sunny winter day? The outdoor ice skating rink in Acacia Park is open until January 21st, make sure to skate while you can!

Facelift completed

Last November I posted a picture of Sacred Heart covered in scaffolding, mid-facelift. Here's her new look. The cupolas have been painted gold, which is a nice contrast to its previous monochrome appearance.