inspiration avenue weekly challenge.... pure

it's been quite the busy week ....so much more time on the computer than i usually spend.  i flew all over the world visiting so many really cool people as part of the owoh event.  it was well worth the time & mileage cause i found some folks i want to go back & chat with...maybe stay for a cup of tea!

this week i hosted the inspiration avenue weekly challenge & the theme was pure.  as i was inspired by a baby for the theme, i stayed with that thought for my challenge entry.

this is a photo of my daughter 24 years ago..... i remember the day!

 

the first step was to crop & sepia tone .....

 

i've been wanting to try hand coloring photos so i ordered marshall's oil pencils made just for that purpose.  they haven't arrived yet so i tried some watercolor pencils instead.....

i haven't worked much with watercolors & found they were difficult to control.  i had alot of fun working on this project but need to get more practice.   i can't wait to get my package in the mail!

so here's my entry....my baby....so pure! 

 

sunshine award

i very happily accept this sunshine award presented to me by my two friends, charlie & sharon!

charlie, aka charlotte is a multi talented talented woman who creates gorgeous pendants from old broken china plates, designs digital collage elements, & she's a mixed media artist who works in acrylics & watercolors.  she says her creativity is a gift from God & i believe that.  God is good & charlie is blessed with loads of talent.  she has a shop on etsy......charlottes collection.

sharon is a super sweet lady who heads up the inspiration avenue team.  she is inspiring, witty, fun and a fantastic graphic design artist (& very kind to share free designs from her blog for your blog).  she also designs unique & sparkling jewelry.  she has 2 etsy shops, manamoon studios & plumrose lane.

please take a few moments to check out these wonderful women!


the rules for accepting the sunshine award are not too difficult...

put the flower logo on your blog or within your post
pass the award onto 12 bloggers & link them within your post
let the nominees know about the award by posting on their blog
share the love & link to the person from whom you received the award

that's it.....

i've met so many great people through etsy & blogging but i had to narrow it down to the required 12.... 

so here are my nominees for the sunshine award.....chosen for their talent & spirits!

lulu: a very funny lady who makes beautiful jewelry
annette:  a dedicated animal lover & bunny rescuer talented in collage art & she makes delightful arabella bags
sarah:  i just love her photography & sweet nature
liz:  a wonderful soul who shares her story of adopting a little girl & takes great photos
nicole:  a lover of the earth who makes a variety of eco friendly products
darla:  an angel & talented artist 
ellen:  she has a unique eye & transfers that to her work
betty:   a fantastic illustrator who is always uplifting & inspiring
faerwillow:  great with poetry through her photography
luthien:  she designs & makes unique jewelry & always makes me laugh
sharon: she's a fantastic leader of the pack & a very talented lady in jewels & graphic designs
bonnie:  i love her spirit & life philosophy & she paints & takes great photos too

freeze

 

submitted to jessica rogers photography blog....photo of the week.  thanks jessica!

one world one heart

welcome to my little slice of the pie!

thanks to lisa, a whimsical bohemian i have the opportunity to travel all over the world (my dream come true!!!).  what a cool  adventure & wonderful opportunity to meet worldwide bloggers!  so join me on the one world one heart journey.

first i'll tell you a little about my location on this earth.... i live in connecticut, in new england, in the northeast usa.  i camp out in a little slice of the woods in the country. the ocean is 10 minutes away!  it's an interesting area with nearby attractions such as casinos, colleges, a coast guard academy & a navy base.  it's mostly rural but with small patches of urban.  we experience all four seasons & right now we're having a cold, snowy, icy winter.

my camera goes where i do, always ready to aim at whatever strikes my fancy...

i want to share with you a little bit of the ocean...

 the woods....

& city wall art ....

the prize up for grabs is a set of 6 photo note cards from the above selection.  each photo was taken by me on one of my treks around.  all you have to do to win is to be a blogger & leave a comment here. you can chat until february 14th & the winner will be chosen & posted february 15th.  you can consider it a "non" romantic valentine gift!

thanks for visiting.  so go on...click on the link....take the journey, meet new people, make some friends, win some prizes .......

i'm challenging myself....

i am not working today so am spending a little time blog hopping (is that a politically correct term?).  i came across a woman named jane who just started a project that caught my interest.  52 projects (see the link on my sidebar to get there) is intended to inspire us to try a new project each week & share it on sundays.  what i like about this is anything goes...big or small....not necessarily art which tends to be my focus.....it can be anything!

wow, how great is that?  we all do so many things, try new things, have millions of little accomplishments that tend to get lost in the big world.  i know for myself, i can get bogged down with all the things i want to do & don't get to, but in reality, every day brings something inspiring..... a happy moment.  & i'm all about happy moments!

so i missed last sunday but i'm gonna tell you what i did yesterday.

my husband is quitting smoking.  i wanted to tell him how much i love him for that.  i made a heart in his whipped cream on the chocolate pudding.  the smile in his eyes was that happy moment!

so thanks jane!  i needed this!

spring fresh teal

i'm glad to live in new england!  i do appreciate all the seasons & the differences they bring. 

i get excited when the leaves change color & float through the air, when the fresh new buds appear in the spring & my world is full of sweet bird songs & relaxing with the summer sunshine beaming on my face.  winter has it's place in my heart as the crisp air turns cold & i get to carry in the firewood & snuggle in front of the dancing flames with a cup of hot chocolate

i'm not sure i could pick a favorite time but i do know winter is last!  i adore the first snow! & a couple after that....then i'm done.  i don't particularly enjoy shoveling or treading on ice anxious not to fall.  the layers needed just to keep from shivering make me feel fat!

i'm done with winter & i hope she's almost done with us!

spring fresh teal!!!!

inspiration avenue weekly challenge.... mystique

i love the word mystique.  i say it with the emphasis on "steek".  when i looked up the definition, i found other words i love too.....charisma, charm, magnetism, aura & mystery!

i've been working lately with acrylics & my photos but i'm thinking i'm running out of time to start a challenge....it's due tomorrow!  so i just did a scroll through my photos, which btw are an absolute mess!  i need to form more folders & put trees with trees & so on... on my list of things to do.

i love this shot of the venice canal i took from the rialto bridge.  it's hanging in my stairway along with some other favs from my trip to venice.  i actually think it has old world mystique by itself!

then i found the charming beauty.  i've been experimenting with some simple digital collage so i thought i'd give it a go.  i immediately fell in love. i think it is so "mystique"!

i'm adding this to my etsy shop along with some of my other venice shots already listed.  i wouldn't mind at all if you took a peek!

in the midst of chaos.....

it was my turn to pick the title for the treasury trilogy i do with pey & annette & i was feeling just a wee bit sorry for myself at that moment.  i've been having some health problems & feeling kinda cranky lately & it seems things are just getting a little out of control!  so the title was a reflection of the chaos i'm feeling right now.

then there's the tragedy in haiti!  horrifying! i am weeping for all the people & i can't get the thoughts & images out of my mind....

in preparing for my treasury, i did a search on haiti & i was astounded by the number of people that are promising to donate proceeds to the relief funds.  what a wonderful, generous group!  so i switched gears & did a treasury highlighting some of these shops......

i'm usually a pretty happy, grateful person but definitely have slipped in a little puddle lately.  sometimes it takes looking around to come back to the reality of how thankful i am for my life as it is....warts & all!

inspiration avenue weekly challenge.... pocket full of sunshine

to go with my newest inspirations (collage & acrylics), i combined the two for this weeks' entry to inspiration avenue.  usually it takes me awhile to get the juices going but amazingly i developed my idea & plan in about five minutes!  when i was thinking of sunshine, i knew immediately i wanted to use this really cool brass stencil of the sun.  so i got out the stencil & then my daughter called so i sat down at the computer & scrolled through my albums while we were chatting.  i chose an unusual picture of my daughter.  it has been described as mysterious, beautiful & spooky!  when i finished talking i immediately went to work & everything just flowed!!!  i'm pretty happy with my "pocket full of sunshine"!

inspiration avenue weekly challenge....wonderland

it's been ages since i've sat here to write... i posted a merry xmas & other than that, it's been over a month. life has just been one busy day running right into the next.....  holidays, visitors, cooking, baking, shopping, cleaning, working & did i say shoveling?  we've had more snow so far than i think we had over the last two winters!  this week's challenge on inspiration avenue is "wonderland".

i don't know much about alice but i do know about snow!

my entry is a photo transfer done on a transparency & mounted on a canvas panel.  it's a front yard tree (laden with snow of course!) & my back deck thermometer (reading 22 degrees! oh my!).  a little acrylic snow & here is my "winter wonderland"!

hop on over to inspiration avenue tomorrow to see all the wonderlands!