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    Iron Heart Fall/Winter 2025 Live Reveal - Thursday 12th of June at 1700BST

    Iceland

    Europe
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    • goosehdG
      goosehd
      Mod Squad
      Joined:

      I was chatting with @Oaktavia about his trip and he has a load of pictures to share that we would all enjoy. I can’t wait to see some of the pictures and adventures he was on and look forward to other’s posting too!!

      "I don't give a shit what anyone else is doing, we will do what is best for us and our customers" - Giles P. :)

      last edited by alexxedgeA 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 4
      • alexxedgeA
        alexxedge
        Haraki san Student
        @goosehd
        Joined:

        @goosehd oh lord, like I need another reason to want to go back to Iceland. What an absolutely amazing country.

        last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
        • OaktaviaO
          Oaktavia
          見習いボス
          Joined:

          Thanks Dennis for starting this thread. It was rad to meet you in person in Gosport yesterday. I'm stoked to share my time in Iceland through photos.

          We spend a little time in Reykjavik upon our arrival. Here is a neat mural we found:

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          Here we are at Cafe Loki for lunch nearby the mural. Amanda ordered a traditional Icelandic platter consisting of dried fish, smoked trout, Icelandic lamb, fish mash and (unbeknownst to her) fermented shark. Amanda previously dived with sharks and loves the animals as they are often misunderstood. When she double checked the menu and realized her order included shark, she knew she needed to honor the animal and eat it. I made the mistake of smelling the little white cubes (in the ramikn with the Icelandic flag toothpick) before I was considering trying a bite. The shark is fermented up to three months and smells strongly of ammonia. I drew the line there, but Amanda ate all three pieces. She is usually much braver than I am. As with all of the dishes we ordered, it came with delicious Icelandic rye bread she was able to mask and chase it down with. No sharks were wasted this day. At least in our plate.1000047333.jpg 1000047334.jpg

          1000047344.jpg 1000047346.jpg

          As we made our way out of the city towards our Airbnb, I was constantly blown away by the majesty of Icelandic nature.

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          The flora growing on the lava rocks looked out of this world. I felt a bit of culture shock as we arrived, but while we continued away from civilization, I felt an even stronger "nature shock". It was incredibly inspiring, I took many of these photos to use as references for paintings when I get home.

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          View from of and from our Airbnb:
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          I will continue to post more photos of our trip and caption them the best I can. I hope y'all enjoy a window into this awesome place. Here are a few more from our first day. We were on zero sleep from the overnight flight so please excuse our worn out mugs.1000047406.jpg

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          The other stop we took in Reykjavik was to purchase a lopypesa for each of us. We knew that of course some makers were superior to others, but were clueless where to even start. As with any time we have this dilemma, we resorted to searching on Reddit. All comments then pointed towards the best of the best, known as The Handknitting Association of Iceland. I did not take a photo of the building but I wish I had.

          Lopypesas are traditional hand knitted sweaters constructed with Icelandic sheep's wool. Where makes them unique is their water resistant properties, making them perfect to wear in the environment in which they came from. Icelanic sheep and their wool have adapted to their wet and snowy habitat to keep warm in the environment.

          Nap time, a good place to end this post before it get too long.

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          Oh, and check out this bird called a rock ptarmigan, a member of the grouse family. They sounded like little trolls or gremlins on the tin roof the the house we were in. They scared the shit out of us at first. It was the clicking, gutteral, Hellish sounds made from these glorious bastards. This one is a male, as indicated by the red coloration by its eye. 1000047436.webp

          IG: electricindigowizard

          "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

          WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

          last edited by Oaktavia ARNCA derek111D 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 18
          • ARNCA
            ARNC
            啓蒙家
            @Oaktavia
            Joined:

            @Oaktavia keep ‘em coming!

            Also hoping you’ll share the Iceland series of paintings when they’re ready.

            “Every day that you survive you get a free sunset“

            last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
            • goosehdG
              goosehd
              Mod Squad
              Joined:

              Outstanding start @Oaktavia 🙂 Thank you!!!

              Because every thread should have a theme song… 🙂 I know, I’m old…

              "I don't give a shit what anyone else is doing, we will do what is best for us and our customers" - Giles P. :)

              last edited by goosehd OaktaviaO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
              • endoE
                endo
                見習いボス
                Joined:

                Thanks for sharing @Oaktavia beautiful pictures and report.

                si tacuisses

                last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • OaktaviaO
                  Oaktavia
                  見習いボス
                  @goosehd
                  Joined:

                  @goosehd wait...Immigrant Song is about Iceland?! I had no idea. That's so rad...I've been a huge fan of Led Zeppelin since I was a kid when my dad introduced them to me. I've heard that song so many times and never made that connection. Amanda says that song is going to be stuck in her head all day now hahaha...

                  @ARNC I have painted one already while I was there. I wanted to make an "en plein air" watercolor which is simply a referrs to the practice of painting outdoors.

                  1000047900.jpg 1000047899.jpg

                  Not my best work by a mile, but I'm glad I made it. The colors have been embellished and lots of the landscape left out. The photo with the landscape was taken at a different time of day. Trees are meticulous to paint!

                  I made this drawing on the plane over to Gatwick yesterday. I think I'll add color when I get home. Or maybe just more ink.

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                  A simplified abstraction of this image taken of lake Þingvallavatn, which was a short walk from our Airbnb.

                  IG: electricindigowizard

                  "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

                  WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

                  last edited by Oaktavia goosehdG 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 11
                  • goosehdG
                    goosehd
                    Mod Squad
                    @Oaktavia
                    Joined:

                    @Oaktavia That cloud and sea picture is amazingly surreal!!

                    "I don't give a shit what anyone else is doing, we will do what is best for us and our customers" - Giles P. :)

                    last edited by goosehd 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                    • ARNCA
                      ARNC
                      啓蒙家
                      Joined:

                      @Oaktavia great to be able to capture your memories like this. Wondering if we should have an IH artist in residence (not my decision, of course).

                      “Every day that you survive you get a free sunset“

                      last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • MizmazzleM
                        Mizmazzle
                        見習いボス
                        Joined:

                        @Oaktavia hell yeah dude!! What an incredible first leg of your trip. You and Amanda look great in the new sweaters!! I’ve heard the food in Iceland can be really far out!!

                        Now tell me, has the travel bug set its teeth deep into your soul yet??

                        In the easy chair with my boots on, melted whiskey in my hand. Could'na been asleep for more than three hours...time to go to work again...

                        last edited by OaktaviaO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • T
                          twin
                          見習いボス
                          Joined:

                          @Oaktavia What a great vacation in Iceland for both of you.

                          last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                          • OaktaviaO
                            Oaktavia
                            見習いボス
                            @Mizmazzle
                            Joined:

                            @Mizmazzle said in Iceland:

                            @Oaktavia Now tell me, has the travel bug set its teeth deep into your soul yet??

                            The possibilities are endless now and I definitely won't be traveling with this many fucking bags next time.

                            IG: electricindigowizard

                            "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

                            WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

                            last edited by MizmazzleM 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                            • MizmazzleM
                              Mizmazzle
                              見習いボス
                              @Oaktavia
                              Joined:

                              @Oaktavia hahah. Yeah the bag burden is real. Normally I’m a single backpack guy. When Morgan and I went to Italy for our wedding the bag scenario was an absolute nightmare.

                              New addiction to unlock…passport stamps!!!

                              In the easy chair with my boots on, melted whiskey in my hand. Could'na been asleep for more than three hours...time to go to work again...

                              last edited by OaktaviaO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                              • OaktaviaO
                                Oaktavia
                                見習いボス
                                @Mizmazzle
                                Joined:

                                @Mizmazzle oh my I can't imagine that goodness!!!

                                IG: electricindigowizard

                                "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

                                WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

                                last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • derek111D
                                  derek111
                                  @Oaktavia
                                  Joined:

                                  @Oaktavia those sweaters are incredible! Looks like you two are having an amazing time.

                                  Get outside, feel small

                                  last edited by OaktaviaO 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                  • OaktaviaO
                                    Oaktavia
                                    見習いボス
                                    @derek111
                                    Joined:

                                    @derek111 said in Iceland:

                                    @Oaktavia those sweaters are incredible! Looks like you two are having an amazing time.

                                    I can't wait to wear the sweater back home when it gets cold and rainy. They were perfect for Iceland weather!

                                    IG: electricindigowizard

                                    "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

                                    WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

                                    last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                    • OaktaviaO
                                      Oaktavia
                                      見習いボス
                                      Joined:

                                      1000047828.jpg 1000047824.jpg

                                      I love how many of the homes and buildings there had moss and grasses growing on the rooves. This one was well lit and caught my eye. We were at a gift shop in the middle of nowhere.

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                                      This was a view of a mountain/hill right outside of our Airbnb. There were many of these hills in every direction. We were unable to see how tall they were until this day when the fog subsided.

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                                      These red rocks were on a path next to the lake. I thought the denim looked neat next to it.

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                                      These are Icelandic horses. They are often mistook at ponies but hey are indeed a specific breed of horse native to the country. Icelanders do not like it when you call them ponies. I found a tooth from one of these horses a few miles from these particular horses. I found two actually.

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                                      This lighthouse was both eerie and beautiful at the same time. Nobody was around (aside from the horses) and the lighthouse door was locked. There was a loud calling raven that circled around Amanda and I as we walked around the tower. It reminded me of a scene from Alejandro Jodorowsky's Holy Mountain.

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                                      I quite like this particular photo from standing on the platform of the lighthouse and want to use it as a reference for a painting.

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                                      These are black sand beaches that we visited. I found a good amount of seaglass here! I also found some tumbled ceramic pieces that were really cool looking. Some of the seaglass had words imprinted onto it. We were going to go to the black sand beaches in Game of Thrones, but a group of tourists had to get rescued after a sneaker wave trapped them in a cave. That and it was two hours one way. It turned out there are a lot of beaches with black and in Iceland and we went to two that were closer.

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                                      These candies were left for us to try from our Airbnb host. They were delicious and tasted like Kit Kat bars. 10/10 would recommend.

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                                      Lastly for this post are images of an Icelandic lake inside of an inactive volcano. It looked much bigger in person...if you look at the people down by the water and across the rim of the volcano you can get a better idea of the scale.

                                      I have more photos and will post again in about a week. Hope you enjoy! I miss this place a lot!

                                      IG: electricindigowizard

                                      "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

                                      WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

                                      last edited by Oaktavia goosehdG 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 16
                                      • todyT
                                        tody
                                        啓蒙家
                                        Joined:

                                        Most excellent photos!

                                        last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                        • goosehdG
                                          goosehd
                                          Mod Squad
                                          @Oaktavia
                                          Joined:

                                          @Oaktavia Love it!! Thank you for sharing 🙂

                                          "I don't give a shit what anyone else is doing, we will do what is best for us and our customers" - Giles P. :)

                                          last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                          • OaktaviaO
                                            Oaktavia
                                            見習いボス
                                            Joined:

                                            @tody @goosehd I have edited the post with captions. Thanks!

                                            IG: electricindigowizard

                                            "Possibly splitting hairs, but I consider @Oaktavia to be the beardy, dank High Magus of this denim game…" @neph93

                                            WTB: IHJ-72- XL/XXL

                                            last edited by ROmanR 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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