Be Humble

I just purchased this book over the holidays called Be: Life is Here and It Is Now to jumpstart the upcoming new year with some positive thoughts and good vibes. Each left hand page in the book has a "be" statement(like beAmazed, beResourseful, etc) coupled with a quote on the right hand page. I've had a set of three long rectangular canvases that I've been wanting to make a set of related pieces out of so I thought I'd do three quotes from the book. This is the first one in my "series" for Be Humble:

(I got this sweet little birdkeeper girl image from an Anahata card I found in the same store as the book.)

This quote is a reminder to me of forces in the universe that are bigger than myself. Wonderous miracles occur; wishes manifest themselves in our lives; new people enter our lives, always with a purpose. These are some of the amazing things happening all around us, leading us toward peacefulness, a sense of calm, new adventures, clarity, personal growth, and a realization of our fullest potential. I try to think about the purpose behind the things that occur in my life and trust that even if I don't understand them now, their purpose will become apparent to me at some point down the road...along my journey of life.

All Through the House

It's looking jolly and bright! What is it about Christmas decorations that just brighten your mood and lighten your spirit? Like most of us would say, holiday ornaments and decorations remind us of Christmases past and memories of special times with our family and friends. They also remind me of the fun times I've had creating many of the mini photo albums and ornaments and of the people who so thoughtfully made some of them for me as well!!!

Here's a cute little Frosty created by Jennifer Murphy...oh, how I wish I could create with fabric and pom-poms as skillfully as she can!!

Here are the bottles I normally have sitting on my mantle. I recently saw a banner on a blog (maybe Rebecca Sower's?) in which they inserted little hints of this and that in each of their bottles to give it some holiday flair. I thought I'd try it this year and I like how it turned out!

Wishing all of you and yours a very Merry Christmas filled with warm spirits, love, and hope.

Angels Around Us

Jump over to Kim Hesson's blog and etsy store to check out some great wood cut ornaments! Here is one of them... a sweet little angel. She also has samples of a different angel cut out, a gingerbread man, and some miniature gingerbread houses.

The angel "spirit" of this cute darling must have been watching over me yesterday!! Sometimes it's when you experience something so scary it shakes you to the core that you realize the strength of faith and the comfort of guardian angels. I found this short poem today about what our angels do for us, especially in our hour of need...(author is unknown):

May angels rest beside your door,

May you hear their voices sing,

May you feel their loving care for you,

May you hear their peace bells ring.

May angels always care for you,

And not let you trip and fall,

May they bear you up on angel's wings,

May they keep you standing tall.

May they whisper wisdom in your ear,

May they touch you when you need,

May they remove from you each trace of fear,

May they keep you from feeling greed.

May they fill you with their presence,

May they show you love untold,

May they always stand beside you

And make you ever bold.

Take a minute to thank all your guardian angels out there...they're watching over you, keeping you strong, maintaining your faith, and sustaining your hope.

Crafting and Feelin' Groovy

I recently finished another project using one of Kim's wooden pieces...this time a wooden box. I have needed something cute to put my CDs in that I listen to while creating. As luck would have it, this box is the exact same width as a CD case! Given the purpose of the box, I then decided to decorate it with a sort "peace, love and rock n' roll" style. I used some images from Papaya to decorate the sides and give it some grooviness.

Speaking of music, I'm in need of some fresh tunes to groove to while in my studio. Does anyone out there have any recommendations of music they've been listening to lately??

Have a great week ahead...if you're here in southern CA, be sure to stay dry!!!!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...

Christmas, of course!! I can't believe it's already the holiday season! Lots to be thankful for this holiday...family, friends, good health, a home full of love, and other small miracles! And it wouldn't be the holiday season without some Christmas cookie baking! I'm in a cookie exchange this next weekend so I'm going to be making an old-fashioned recipe from my grandmother...almond raspberry cookies. You know- one of those standards that you can probably find in a Betty Crocker cookbook from the 1940s, but those are the best because they stand the test of time. I also have to make a recipe page for each of the gals in the group so we can walk away with a book of cookie recipes. Here are some June Cleaver look-alikes that I am going to incorporate into my pages. I sure wish all of these housewife fembots could help me bake the 90 cookies I need!!! Wish me luck- I'm off to start mixing!!

Fall Projects

Happy Fall!!! Sorry that I have been a bad blogger this past month! Work and fatigue and life in general has momentarily interrupted the creative flow, but hopefully we will be back to our regularly scheduled creating soon!

What I wanted to share is some news about the exciting projects being showcased over on Kim Hesson's blog! As many of you know, Kim does the most amazing wood cut outs, by hand! There is no shape she cannot conquer!! I am lucky enough to be on her new design team along with two other amazingly creative souls!! Bonus: we get to play with fun new shapes each month and let our imaginations run wild with all the possibilities.

This past month, I was sent this large plaque shape and maple leaf. Below is what I came up with:

I thought this could be a great way of adding something fresh to a seasonal project each year by having the option of creating new tags yearly. Plus, everyone in the family can participate by making their own tag!

This is only one of many projects featured on Kim's blog so head over and check it out!!! You are sure to be inspired!!!!

Just Bloom

In the middle of some dreary, cloudy, and cool southern California weather, I thought a colorful bouquet of blooming flowers from the local farmer's market would chase away the blues. Life has been really busy lately with hardly a minute to catch my breath. I found this quote to bring me back to what's important...

"The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers."

When we surround ourselves with those who really understand our spiritual and emotional needs, we really do bloom and become better because of that love or friendship. I can name lots of people who have helped me to bloom...I can only hope that I have done the same for them!!