Lance Armstrong! For real!

Hi all,
Sunday on Fathers day I had the best opportunity!
Our little town was holding their annual bike race and lo and behold Lance Armstrong decided to take part this year!!!
I've been following Lances career and life over the years but never
thought I'd get to see him in person, so this was very exciting!
(He's the rider to the right of the motorcycle, in the gold yellow and black, his livestrong colors)

Lance Armstrong has won the Tour de France seven times now and is the current record holder for that event, he's now going to try for an eighth win soon. And if I were a betting woman, I'd place my bets on him, that's for sure!
I've heard the comments here and there that Mr. Armstrong is not always such a polite and sweet guy, but anyone who can raise millions of dollars for cancer research, fight with all his being to survive testicular and brain cancer and also win the Tour de France seven times is an amazing human being and I am without a doubt sooooo thrilled that I got to witness him
in his element.










Thank you Lance Armstrong, for never giving up and giving us all a super Fathers day afternoon.

talk to you soon,
deborah

Thank you Cinderella Moments!

Hi all,
Caroline from Cinderella Moments sent me
this lovely blog award today!
I adore the photo, and it was such a nice surprise to
see that she visits and enjoys reading my blogging
words.
She has a lovely shop on Etsy, so check it out when
you get a chance!
Caroline also creates these amazing art buttons
that totally make me oooohhhh
and ahhhhhh.









Thank you Caroline
for such a wonderful award!!!

talk to you all soon,
deborah

Fans of Marie Antoinette!

Hi all,
Here is my Marie Antoinette pink foo foo box!
It came out looking like a fancy pink wedding cake, maybe even like something that Marie herself would of ordered!

It took many hours to design and create but I had the best time
working with all that pink ribbon and gorgeous lace and pearls.
I also added vintage pink buttons and a vintage crystal clear glass button to the pic of Marie.
Then when I added the clear glass glitter, it just made me dance around the room with delight!

If you are interested in reading more about it, then go to my etsy shop and see more.
Hope you like it too, even if you aren't a pink kind of girl, this just
came out so girly that it will make you say ahhhhhhhh.









talk to you all soon,
deborah

Spiritual side of Van Gogh

Hi all,
I've been reading the book "The Shoes of Van Gogh"
a spiritual and artistic journey to the ordinary.
And let me tell you, it is fantastic!!!

The author of the book is Cliff Edwards who also wrote the book "Van Gogh and God"
and his connection to Vincent van Gogh is totally fierce and touching.
I too have always felt a connection (some say addiction, lol)
to van Gogh because of his spiritual search as well as his artistic journey
and to read the writings of someone who also has such
a passion for this tortured and genius of an artist is such a pleasure to read.

Also at the beginning of the book is a forward written by Henri Nouwen who
has taught several seminars on "The Ministry of Vincent van Gogh".
Here is an excerpt of that forward:
"After all these decades of van Gogh studies, finally someone opens up for us
Vincent's deepest quest and convincingly shows that the art of the "sorrowful, yet
always rejoicing" Dutch painter is of deep theological and spiritual significance.
Cliff Edwards radically dispels the view that Vincent was lost in religious fanaticism
until he found his true vocation as a painter.
He clearly demonstrates that the whole of Vincent's life and work is a rich
source for all those who search for a deeper knowledge of God".

Henri Nouwen later went on to write:
Few writers or painters have influenced me as much as Vincent.
This deeply wounded and immensely gifted Dutchman
brought me in touch with my own brokenness and talents in ways nobody else
could. He painted what I had not before dared to look at; he questioned what I
had not before dared to speak about; and he entered into spaces of the heart
that I had not before dared to come close to. By doing so he brought me in
touch with many of my fears and gave me the courage to go further and deeper
in my search for a God who loves.
And now here is the book: Van Gogh and God.
It almost seems that Cliff Edwards,
in his careful and sensitive study of Vincent's spiritual journey, is telling me that
I was not crazy after all when I spoke of Vincent as one of the main spiritual guides
in my life and when I invited students to discover him as a true source of
theological reflection".

Henri concludes his forward with these words:
"I am deeply grateful that Van Gogh and God has been written. and I am
convinced that those who read it will find in Vincent a lasting spiritual companion".

I too am deeply grateful to Cliff Edwards for writing this wonderful book, and if
you also are a fan of Vincent van Gogh then you will love it too. It has brought
tears to my eyes and touched my heart in so many ways and I have only read
half the book!
So, check it out this summer and you'll be glad you did.

talk to you soon,
deborah

The joy of giving

Hi all,
About a month ago someone contacted me about making my tea
tags for their non profit event, and while doing research on it
I became more and more excited about the opportunity.
The name of the organization is called Enchanted Makeovers
and the founder is a woman named Terri Grahl.
Enchanted Makeovers is a non-profit organization that transforms shelters for women and children into places of peace and possibilities—not just where basic needs are met, but spiritual needs for hope and beauty also.
And they are putting on a celebration of cooking event on June 25th.
The girls will be the belles of the ball and will be treated to a day of music,
flowers, delicious food, gifts and treats.

I know that this day will make lovely memories for all who participate and I am honored
to be able to be a part of this wonderful event.
I pray that my little tea tags will bring joy and fun to each girl as they hold them in
their hands, and that this special day will always remind them that they are loved.

When you get a chance check out the above links and learn more about this wonderful
organization and how it all got started.

talk to you soon,
deborah

Ahhhhh, the ocean......

Hi all,
Last weekend my nephew got married on the northern california coast
and it was sooooo wonderful.
I grew up living near the ocean all of my childhood but then about 10 years
ago moved to the mountains, so any chance I get to hang out near the sea, is a
chance I jump at.
Oh I miss it so much, even
the fog, lol.




Here are a few photos of the trip.









I loved this little church in town.
What a worship service they must have every Sunday, with the waves crashing outside the chapel doors!


My hubby and I stayed in this quaint little red cottage and the view was to die for!!!

Yep, they even had a swing to sit on as you gazed out onto the ocean.









Believe me when I say, it sure was difficult to pull ourselves away.


Here's the wedding party at
the rehearsal.












The ocean and romance, who could ask for anything more?!

talk to you all soon,
deborah

and the winner is.........

Misseskwittys!!!!!
Congrats to you Karen!!
I hope you enjoy all the ZNE goodies.

For those of you that don't know Karen, you must go and check out her shop on etsy
called misseskwittys. She creates the darlingist (is that a word?) birdie bookmarks and other
wonderful cheery items that will make your heart smile.
Here's my fav in her shop right now, french dots bird tags. Aren't they soooo cute!

Hope you all are enjoying the final days of spring. And that each day brings you
much joy and laughter with friends and family.

talk to you soon,
deborah

Yeahhhh, the giveaway has begun!!!

Hi all!

Yes, the ZNE basket giveaway has finally arrived!
And I will be soooo jealous of whoever wins it, because there
are some treasures in it that I would love to keep!!!
The ZNE art retreat was soooo wonderful for many reasons but the best part was meeting some of the most amazing women
artists.
At the vendors fair on Saturday and Sunday I went around to a few of these talented ladies and asked if they would like to contribute to a blog giveaway and they all were so generous and happy to be a part of it.
The five artists who contributed are so talented and on top of the talent they are also wonderful sweet women. I was so blessed in meeting them and now being able to say that we are friends.

During the make and take sessions I had a table next to Ann Denise of the etsy shop whimfancydesigns and she was giving a workshop on these darling girly crepepaper wands!!!
Everyone just were drawn to their whimsy and color and of course the lovely glitter. Ann Denise and I chatted away the whole day and we had so much fun. I was thrilled when she presented me with one of her wands to put in the giveaway basket! Make sure you check out her etsy shop and see all of her wonderful creations :)

Heidi of the etsy shop birdsofafeather makes these super cute crepe ruffled trims and packages them up all so pretty. I knew who Heidi was through Sadie lou and was so happy when I got to meet her in person. She is a sweetie pie! The giveaway basket will include two packages of her trim, pink and lavendar. Make sure you check out Heidis etsy shop for more pretties :)

The next goodie is from Iva of ivascreations. Her creations are works of art. The fairy land lamp shadow box that she taught at the ZNE workshop was amazing!!!! I am not kidding you! it was
beautiful! And whoever wins this giveaway will be so lucky to own one of her creations. It's a petite victorian tussie mussie, that I was so tempted to hide away for my very own!!!

The next contributor was claire of glitterandgrunge. Claire and her husband have a website that artists sell their handmade artwork on.
The basket will include a pkg. of glitterandgrunges little birdie cupcake picks. They are sooo cute and of course have lots of glitter on them :)
Claire and Aaron contributed more then art at the ZNE convention, their sweet spirits and enthusiasm made us all feel welcomed and brought pure joy to the weekend! Make sure you check out their website for more fun and talent.

And last but not least is the etsy shop Stafforshiregardendesigns.
Shari is an amazing artist and I felt an instant kinship with her the moment we met. Her creations are so wonderful and whoever wins this basket of giveaways will be the proud owner of one of her sweet charms.

So, there you have it!
I want to say a huge joyful thank you to all the artists who contributed to the giveaway and whoever wins is going to be doing the happy dance for days!!! lol.

I also included a few other goodies that I got from the ZNE convention and it will all come packaged up in this cute kittie tin.

So, if you'd like a chance to win this wonderful giveaway basket, just leave me a comment on my blog and in about a week I will pick the winner.

talk to you all soon,
deborah

I haven't forgotten the giveaway!

Hi all,
Just wanted you all to know that I have not forgotten about the ZNE giveaway goodies. I just have not got caught up on everything yet and can't get a bit of time to put the giveaway together yet, but I will get to it soon!!!
My new goal is to post about it on Monday sooooo don't give up on me.
Okay, here's another sneak peek of some items that may be included :)

Zne giveaway sneak peek!

Hi all,
Just wanted to give out a little sneak peek of my ZNE giveaway!
This crepe paper wand was created by one of the vendors at the
ZNE convention and everyone at the make and take class just left
the table so happy after they were finished with their creations.

I'll be posting the giveaway tonight and bragging about all the
amazing artists!!!
So stay tuned.......

deborah

I'm home!!!! from ZNE

Hi all,
just wanted to post a quick note to let you know I am home safe and sound and had an amazing inspirational, life changing art experience at the ZNE convention! I have lots more photos to show and I'll be posting about a wonderful
giveaway basket full of ZNE things later this week, so stay tuned for the fun.

My car is now back in running order and carried me safely home and
I am soooo full of new ideas and so thrilled with my new artist friends!
I will be telling you all about these new friends and also writing about
my meeting Anna Corba and how her class went! Let's just say for starters "AMAZING"
and that is not just about her class but about her too!!!

Anyway, that's just a sneak peek of what's to come and as soon as I get back
to my somewhat "normal" schedule, lol. I'll post away :)

blessings to you all,
deborah
(PS. I slept for 12 hours last night!!! I was totally exhausted, but it was a wonderful
exhaustion, lol.)

ZNE is here!

Hi all,
Yeahhhh, I made it to the Marriot Pleasanton hotel and then zipped over to the Studio 7 art gallery where the ZNE registration began.
Chel (she's the one in the yellow and white) is the ZNE creator and she is sooooo organized!
We all received huge goodie bags and fun stuff and we enjoyed the most beautiful and delicious chocolate bon bons!!!!
Wonderful guitar player and singer, John Troast, was there to serenade us all as we walked
around the gallery and got to know all the other artists and ZNE attendees.
Then a bunch of us jaunted down the street to a local shop and spent our 5$ gift certificate. Of course, most of us spent more then the 5$, lol.
And the best part of all for me is that I got to meet my etsy forum friend Pam Carriker in person!
She is as sweet and wonderful as I thought she would be :)
Tomorrow starts our workshops with a group of amazing artists (photo below shows 8 of the instructors).
I am taking a class from Anna Corba. I even brought her book along with me so I can get her to sign it. And then the next day I am taking a class from Brandi on creating backgrounds for collaging etc.
The classes will be all day, with a lunch break, so we'll all be pretty tired I'm sure by the end
of the day, but oh so inspired too!
Oh! the only bad part of the day? My car started acting strange after the registration, but happily got me back to the hotel.
So tomorrow, I have to call AAA to come tow it to the autoshop!
Happily, the hotel has a shuttle to take us all to the convention center for our classes so I'm trying not to stress out about it and to just think about the art!!!! lol

Hope you enjoyed the photos, and I'll keep you all posted on all the fun as the days go along.

talk to you soon,
deborah