What trees know; ripples in a Virginia swamp, a historic battle, a glossy reflection. A sleeping man is always in love.
 
Background photo from 1862, of White Oak Swamp. (During the Battle of White Oak Swamp, in 1862, Confederate General Stonewall Jackson inexplicably fell asleep for over an hour under a spreading oak tree, while an artillery battle raged around him -- giving time for Union forces to join their reinforcements.)

The rooted and the routeless, the intent and the bloody execution, the given and the hoped-for.

Lady Camilla duBloisBlois, lost in wistful contemplation of her newest handsome beau, entirely fails to notice the luminous alien intruder in the skies overhead. Thus are the extraordinary events of our lives overlooked.
 
Thanks to suburbhater, who started the 200 challenge: http://www.polyvore.com/1657_historical_challenge/set?id=20250189. This image is constructed completely of the earliest images I saved to Polyvore. . . quite a challenge in this case, as (since I'm so finicky these days about collecting mostly copyright-safe and public domain items), I only have 217 pages of items. I must say I now have fewer; the project gave me a chance to clean out the old drawers. A challenge like this is perfect -- after all, that's the peculiar beauty of collage. . . it forces you to operate within constraints, which can be one of the most creative conditions. This can be useful in writing, too! Collect an assemblage of words and force yourself to use them all in a poem or tome. My return challenge-gift for you.
 
A collage is often surprising to its creator! But never, I assure you, to Lady Camilla.

Mannerisms and minutiae, etiquette and effort, the wonderful golden horns of the pretender.
 
Pardon the title pun!
 
This one is mostly public domain and copyright-safe images, except for the ram's horns (commercial site), and the faintest hint of texture on her dress. Almost there! The gears I scanned in and altered myself. I've been seeing pale gears every time I close my eyelids. . .

Takin' a stroll on the bright side of the universe.

Emergence, sanity, a chink in the armor, the chink of coins, radiance, surrender. Words made of dirt; redeemed. Danae, hybrid and ecstatic.

Lazy drone of bees, a lapse, a pause, the moment to reconsider.

Hovering, a sense of stillness, a splash of color, poised on the brink of motion between paint and abyss.
 
I just love this photo of model Ashley Howard.