Friday Freebies - Memorial Day

I thought this was sweet. The verse is definitely ageless, it sort of makes you remember all the men and women who have fought and given the ultimate sacrifice through history.

The rest of these images are by Ellen Hattie Clapsaddle. As some of you know she is one of my favorite post card artist. I think her images are so sweet. She can definitely capture a moment in one post card.






As a daughter of a World War II veteran and Prisoner of War I am asking all of you this weekend to thank a veteran for their service. Those that have had family and friends perish serving in the armed forces I personally would like to thank you for your great sacrifice. And to all of you who have family and friends presently serving in the armed forces, I want to extend my gratitude and hopes for their safe and speedy return home. I celebrate and honor mine and my families freedom this weekend because of the sacrifice of others. Do not think for a minute I will ever forget that. Thank you! I hope every one has a safe and happy weekend!

ATC's - Geisha's

First set of three

Second set of three

These are two sets of ATC's I worked on this weekend. I am in a swap where we are to make three Geisha ATC's for three in return. I thought I would work on these and see where I went with them. I like to start early/they are not due till June/ and experiment a little till I come up with something I like. These are pretty traditional, but Geisha's were part of old traditions, also. I love working with Washi paper. It is so thick and printed so beautifully. Off to make some more arty ones...

Digital Collage - The Whisperer

This morning I awoke at dawn to go riding at a friend's farm. They raise all sort of unusual animals beside the normal farm yard types. It was cloudy and cool and the ride was the best I have had in a long time. The horses could feel the rain in the air and decided to have as much fun as possible before spending a day or two in the barn.

When I got home and showered I decided to make a digital collage for my friend's sister in law. She stayed home and did chores and had a very hearty breakfast waiting for us when we returned. This is what I came up with. She tends almost all of the family pets, chickens, horses, and exotics. She has such a tender way about her. The animals all adore her.

I used two or three texture layers, the zebra is from an old print, the woman is an image a friend from one of the flickr groups gave me, the script is from the Graphics Fairy. I just played with Photo Shop till I was happy. I hope you enjoy!

Art Creations Friday - The Queen's Jester

The Queen's Jester

This week the Art Creations Friday Challenge was this lovely lady. She reminded me of a Lady in Waiting with a bit of humor so I turned her into the Queen's Jester. She is on her way to the country house to entertain the Queen and her Ladies on their girl's weekend.

The background and turtle I got from Holliewood Digitals at Deviant Scrap. The border is from Tumblefish Studio. I bought several of their digital packages and have had a ball playing with them in my spare time. I am a little late to the party this week, but better late than never. Hope you enjoy this digital collage.

The Original Image

Finally Freebies

This is my favorite trade card of the batch. She is like a little thread fairy.

This weekend there is a large quilt show in one of the neighboring coastal towns. I ran into an old acquaintance yesterday while getting lunch who was preparing to show some of her lovely quilt work. We got talking and she asked if I had any old sewing images as she had remodeled her studio over the winter and wanted to hang and use for inspiration sewing ephemera.

I was going to do my freebies totally different this week, but after that encounter I went home and started going through things to see what I couldn't find. I thought I would share some of what I found with you. You might want to be find a place for some of these,also.

Do they make Merrick thread any more? and where is it located? They had very nice trade cards. I made this one into a book mark to use in my sewing books.


This is such a gentle trade card. I love how they call it temptation. What a cute child!

The quilting bee. A time for women to get together and share their love of color and pattern, catch up with each others lives, and come away with some incredible art work. If you haven't read the Elm Creek Quilt series and you enjoy sewing and quilting, you should.


This is such a strange trade card that I just had to include it. I think frog things were very collectible during this time frame....or....it is a great frog though.


No sewing room is complete without a thread holder. I am always on the lookout for one of those thread cabinets that I can afford. My mother has one that we all lust after. The one here is very cool, I also love how the dog is sitting so patient while the little girl plays with him.


Isn't this just darling. I love how they placed the ad inside the spool of thread.

Around the House....

This week has been crazy, crazy, crazy. I have been either in my yard, painting, or cleaning. The only time I have seen my studio is to vacuum the floor in there. Not fun. Everything is starting to look beautiful though. I thought I would share some of the sights around my house with you. Hope everyone has had a great week. I will post the freebies at lunch.

Lady Banks roses I put in a few years ago. I love the way they climb on my fence. They match the color of my house. At night their smell wafts across the yard.


This is Plumeria. It has dark burgundy leaves that are rather shiny on one side and coarse on another. In the Spring they are green on one side with the burgundy undertones. Then as the weather warms up they do to. They turn deep burgundy with these delicate, spidery flowers all over them. I have a hedge along one side of my house of these, and several accent bushes in the back pool area of these. I love the way they are constantly changing. Plus they bloom several times a year.



Freshly painted wicker on my front porch. We have been painting and sprucing the place up. Nothing speaks more of the Southern lifestyle than a large front porch and some wicker chairs.



This little guy and a couple of his friends have taken up residency on both my front porch and back porch. They sleep all day and croak all night. Very peaceful. I love the vivid green.



These lizards are a constant source of amusement. The males have this wattle at their throats that they puff out and it turns pink when they spot you. Then they sort of do this thing that resembles push ups before they scurry off. Here I think they are having a moment together. Ahh, lizard love.



These are some of my Clematis. I have them growing on my fence. I thought I had lost them this year when we did a major trim during the winter. Low an behold they came back in full force this year.

Art Creations Friday - Dreaming

Dreaming

This week the Art Creations Friday Challenge was the beautiful image of the girl in the straw hat. The first thing I did was use photo shop to color her all up. A pink gown with a yellow scarf, some lovely flowers in her hair. I then use the texture background from a few weeks ago they had given us along with some text, another texture background of my own, and a tree photograph I had taken.

She looks like she is off on a nice walk in the woods, followed up with a picnic and an afternoon with her special someone. Laying on a blanket looking up at the sun dappled trees. Enjoy this wonderful weather.

original image

Friday Freebies!

I love this picture. She has such a look on her. This whole family of little girls is so sweet.

The older sister of the first little one with flowers. This is the season of flowers.

The older sister again at about the same age. I love that they wore flowers in their hair. I wish more people did now.

Love the big straw hat. I don't think she is related to the other two, although you do see her modeling with them. This photographer could really pick them.

She looks like a little gypsy princess.

This week I thought I would use these three little girls. They were so popular during there time. I wish I knew more about them. The last one is my favorite. I must have about 50 different postcards with her on them. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. have a wonderful weekend!

This Weeks Journal Pages

I have started Mary Ann Moss's online stencil class this month. I used to cut stencils in a very traditional manner and decorate people's homes with them a long time ago when it was vogue. I kept quite a bit of my stencils and the cool waxed see through paper I used to make the stencils with. I have been cutting and designing some more updated ones the past week or so. Also, finding everyday objects that I can turn into stencils. I am sure you will see this influence in some of my artwork in the next few weeks.

My journaling the past week has really fallen to the wayside. I have been doing quite a bit of touch up painting, right along with the painters. Thankfully, that will soon be over. I will say though that it really does make a tremendous difference. I don't know why we settle for less in our daily lives.

If you have never danced in the rain I say put that on your bucket list. One of my favorite things to do in the summer is to play in the rain. My children use to get such a kick out of it. Sort, of like letting them jump in mud puddles. It is such a freeing experience.

Life feels so much happier with a song in your heart. So kick up the music.[the hats and crowns are from Tumblefish Studios]

Lately, I have been doing all this "adult" stuff. Cleaning, painting, supervising, at the end of the day I just want to scream..."where is the fun in this?" So, now as I do this I am trying to figure out how to have fun and enjoy it through the eyes of a child. I will confess when I found the large chalk bucket I took a few minutes to chalk a heart or two on my garage floor.

This is a page where I painted the background in my journal and really just sort of hated it. I did not want to stamp. stencil, etc. on it thinking it would be a bigger mess. Instead, I just grabbed a bunch of painted papers I use as masks for other things and made the house and tree. The two girls reminded me of the bond we have with certain friends, the bond a mother and daughter have, the bond sisters have.

Spaghetti Salad

Today I thought I would share an easy basic recipe for Spaghetti Salad with you. I like to make this on a Friday so that I have something quick and easy to munch on over the weekend. I like to have something quick ready, especially if I have a lot on my plate so to speak or company in for the weekend.

Remember, this is a basic recipe for a great lunch or with some soup and some homemade bread, dinner. I am just giving you the basics because there is so much you can do to change this. You can add ham, pepperoni, tuna, grilled chicken or fish. I personally like it with salmon,blue cheese and black olives added. So, I say go for it. Make it your own. It will keep for several days. I actually think it gets better after the first day you make it.

Spaghetti Salad

12 ounces to a pound of thin spaghetti
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese - I like the skim variety
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup diced tomato
1/2 cup thinning sliced then chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped cucumber - I peel mine first
1/4 cup sliced olives - I like both green or black
I also like to add avocado sprinkled with lemon

some kind of Italian dressing/ I use close to a bottle of this
1/2 bottle of McCormicks Salad Supreme/this is optional also

Cook the noodles. Drain well. Put in large bowl. Add salad dressing and McCormicks Salad Supreme. Mix well. Add all of the other ingredients and whatever else you want to throw in. Cover and refrigerate. Serve cold. Enjoy!

Kanji - Peaceful

The older I get the more I want my life and the people I fill it with to be easy, peaceful, and enjoyable. So today I am giving you some Kanji for your art work, hoping that you are able to fill your life with peacefulness.

Three Muses Challenge - Maps, Hearts, Wings and Crowns, Music

The Explorers

This past few weeks the Three Muses Challenge was Maps, Hearts,Crowns, and Wings, and throw in a little music. As I sat at the car dealership getting my car inspected this morning I decided to work on a couple of digital collages. I checked the challenge sites and found the past few weeks of Three Muses challenges and decided to do a combo of things from these challenges. I love maps, hearts, wings and crowns and saw this was a great opportunity. My two little ones are off to explore the world! [ps my crown is from Tumblefish Studios]

Last Week's Journal Pages

Last week I bought a bunch of digital images from Deviant Scrap.com. Marsha from Tumblefish Studio has a whole bunch of image packs for sale. I love the whimsy of her work and thought why not? So, this journal page uses her images for my border. The word 'Play' is from her alphabet. The Zetti child is a wonderful freebie from Terri over at Pringle Hill. Thanks so much Marsha and Terri! I hope this page conveys my overwhelming need to Play and do something fun after a grueling day.

This is a scrap page. I like to use regular computer paper as a barrier on my work surface. After awhile a nice layer of paint will build up in various patterns and colors. I used one of these papers to make this page. I did the stencil of the girl on Photo Shop, then just ran the whole page through my printer, printing on landscape. Sprayed the 'joy' girl with her hands out a few times with paint, added some tape and I was set. I then just glued the paper in my journal.


This was another quickie I did in between running to the all night pharmacy last night. Youngest chick aggravated an old sports injury yesterday and was feeling some pain. I just misted away on my pages till I built up a background I liked. Then added the beautiful girl image and went from there. I have been doing a lot of dreaming about different things lately so I guess it just found it's way here.

Freebies - Mother's

I have been lost in the midst of spring cleaning, organizing, throwing out, and donating this past week. It is exhausting but necessary. Everything else in my life has been on the back burner. Any way...This week I am giving you two sets of Freebies. I figure we should celebrate Mother's Day someway. I am very fortunate in that I have a wonderful Mother. We have always had a great relationship. The older I get the more I realize just how lucky I have been. What a gift I was given.

So, these are my gift to you. Cherish your children, thank your mother and grandmother, remember those who have passed on, and those who are mothers, give yourself a little pat on the back.

I had to start these freebies with a Mother and son. Having been blessed with five boys I have a tender place in my heart for these type of pictures. This little one is so well dressed. She looks a bit lost in thought though. Probably going through her to do list.

This Mother has done quite a job getting everyone's hair and clothes organized. I can not imagine making all these clothes on top of everything else.

Now here is a fun one. I love the joy in the little girl, the straight back of the Mother and the unsaid words and look of the grandmother. Such a great photo.

The apple does not fall too far from the tree here. I love the dark outfit with the trim on it of the little girl.

I love little bald babies they are so sweet. This child has great eyes and eye brows. So defined. The pair is quite beautiful.

Transporting the little ones is always important. This young mother looks like she has lost quite a bit of weight. Her child is so sweet with the bonnet on. Great carriage!

Four Letter Words - Baby

Freebies - This is what Mother's Day is all about....

Who could possibly resist this little one's smile?

Roses for Mother! How sweet she is, that little chair, and I love the Indian rug she is standing on.

I think this is such an ageless picture. We see little ones holding on to the chair in almost every picture book album. I know I have several of my boys. How proud they were when they could hold themselves up.

This little one looks like such an old soul. Love the beautifully made gown and the lovely wicker chair he/she rules from.

Now here is a little Buddha boy for you. I love how they posed him in this bowl. This must have been quite popular because I have four or five little ones in bowls posing.

Look at this get up, she must be so warm. obviously much adored!

Here is a pretty one. I love how the photographer just caught her so natural. Her little leg swinging, with the cute little shoes. Darling.


Just one week till Mother's Day. The little known fact is that being a Mother to me is such a privilege. I have learned so much being a Mom. I have learned about myself, what immense love is, protecting your young, patience, the joy in teaching and watching someone learn, hard work, endless hours, endless hopes and fears. Watching them take flight, conquering the bumps of life, then soaring. I have learned who my Mother and Grandmother are, I share a sisterhood of other Mothers. Who knew how rich my life would become.....