Vintage Family Treasures!

Throughout my family tree is the desire to create something beautiful with paint, paper, pens even pastels! Here are two beautiful drawings by my paternal grandfather, Joseph Willis Farquhar. Born in the 1890's, these are two of several pieces he sketched as a young man (barely 20 years old!) between 1905 and 1913,

Aren't they lovely?

In the picture below, he stands to the far right with his four sons (my dad's on the top step). In military uniforms, three were home on leave during WWII most likely for my parent's wedding ~ June 2, 1945.

"Music Gladdens the Heart" swap

Billie Holiday was one of the top female jazz vocalists of our time. I would love to share a little bit about her.

She was born "Eleanora Fagan Gough" in Philadelphia on April 7, 1915 and died on July 17, 1959 in NYC ~ 48 years ago one day after I posted this! She sang torch songs, blues, ballads, swing, standards that were dreamy and bittersweet! She was influenced by Louis Armstrong, Lester Young & Bessie Smith and performed songs by George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern and Duke Ellington, to name a FEW!!

She was the first popular jazz singer to move audiences with the intense, personal feeling of classic blues and changed the art of American pop vocals forever! She refused to compromise her artistry for either the song or the band. In an age of interchangeable crooners and band singers, her style was all her own, with her spirit shining through on every recording,

Billie moved to New York with her mother (an unwed teenager) helping her with domestic work, but soon began moonlighting as a prostitute for the additional income. According to the legend, her big singing break came during a laughable dancing audition at a speakeasy when she was prompted by her accompanist to ask her if SHE COULD SING! She was singing at clubs all over New York City as early as 1930-31 (at fifteen!) and first gained publicity in 1933, when record producer John Hammond - just 3 years older than Holiday herself - wrote her up in a column for Melody Maker and brought BENNY GOODMAN to one of her performances. She made her commercial debut with his group on November 27, 1933.

After a long, successful career and a protracted battle with a heroin addiction, she died tragically at the age of 44 collapsing in May 1959 of heart and liver disease. Still procuring heroin while on her deathbed, she was arrested for possession and died July 17, her system unable to fight both withdrawal and heart disease at the same time. Her cult of influence spread quickly after her death and gave her more fame than she enjoyed in life! The film Lady Sings The Blues, with Diana Ross illuminated her tragic life and introduced many future fans! By the digital age, virtually all of Holiday's recorded material had been reissued by Columbia, Decca and Verve.

This is just one of six cards that were made for a swap on one of my favorite Yahoo Groups, Paper Traders, and are in the air between CT and WY as I write. I have been a member for six months and this is my very first swap! It is what I call a "juried" group, meaning that you have to be approved by submitting a link to your work. There are several other groups that operate that way, as well. It really does makes "belonging" THAT much more special because we all enjoy being recognized for our efforts!

I appreciate YOU for taking the time to drop in, read THIS FAR and I hope you will return again!

One Fine Morning

As I am a huge fan of alcohol inks, this is just another of many posts where that particular technique has been used to create the background. In this case, I used a standard sized sheet of glossy white cardstock, working on one large area. (You can scroll down to my post on 6/8 for details on the "brayer" technique used).

Then, when finished, I simply cut it up into several ATC's (2 1/2" x 3 1/2") and typically add collage items such as ephemera, embellishments and found items (mostly paper) to create these highly ADDICTIVE Artist Trading Cards!

... and be sure to check back soon for a brief tutorial on my my "mosaic" alcohol technique!

Happy 231st Birthday, America!!

1. 2002-07-03 - Red, White, and Boom Fireworks 2.JPG, 2. Happy Canada Day and Happy 4th of July USA!!, 3. Fireworks!, 4. Fire in the sky, Seattle, 5. night show, 6. painting the sky purple, 7. 4th of July, 8. Bombastic, 9. ny06 150, 10. St. Louis Fireworks, 11. Homage, 12. The Rocket's Red Glare, 13. And the rocket's red glare, 14. Fireworks, 15. Fireworks

These are from flickr.com and are just a few of my favorite firework pics from all over the world! Aren't they just BEAUTIFUL?????

Can you find the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington? The St. Louis Arch? Roebel's Bridge in Cincinnatti, OH (same architect as The Brooklin Bridge)? The Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.?

You Can Fly!

Let

your

intuition,

inspiration

and

imagination

TAKE

FLIGHT!

We are blessed to have an imagination

that is FREE from external limitations.

It is truly a source of pleasure!

You have the unique ability to form new images

which have never been seen

or

experienced before!

Release your mind ~ awaken your creativity!!

...and I promise your muse will inspire you to great things today.

heavenly body

This collage measures 8.5" x 8" and was made for a swap on one of my yahoo groups. The age-old process seems to always begin with, "where will my inspiration come from today?" Well, I'm happy to report that I soon felt that wonderful RUSH of ideas, followed by a feeling of relief. My guess is, you've been there before? LOVING what you do has everything to do with the ability to connect with your creative juices! So be patient with yourself. Inspiration is waiting for you, if you allow a quiet space for it to fill.

I was clearly inspired by this dark and lovely lady and everything else flowed from there. Next, I came across some amazingly beautiful vintage celestial images, maps and diagrams. A very specific color combination came to me at that point and I just KNEW that I would use a soft shade of lime coupled with deep ruby red!

I made this with acrylics, found paper, ink, foam stamped "swirls" and added a special high gloss finish! ...I hope you like it, Lisa!

Mermaid Swap

These four cards are for a swap on the Yahoo group, Altered Art Obsession. They went postal and are in the air right now, somewhere between Connecticut and Seattle, Washington!

1.) "The Little Mermaid"

2.) "Mirror, Mirror!"

3.) "Song of the Sea" and

4.) "Enchantress of the Tides."

A large part of my love for this theme is due to my love affair with the SEA and everything both in and around it! Therefore, it should come as no surprise that my astrological birth sign is PISCES (Feb 19 - March 20)!! There are many references to water here, such as - it is the sign of the fish, the element is water, ruled by the Greek-Roman god Poseidon/Neptune and the birthstone is "AQUA-MARINE!"

I'm hoping this will inspire you to create something that reflects your true character, hopes, dreams and desires! A journal entry? A collage? Or even a scrapbook page?

NOW I've got you thinking!

Spreadin a Little Love!

Fly Me To The Moon

This ATC (traded in an Ebay swap) is a perfect example of what can result when fellow artists connect, through this wonderful, online community!

I admired this gorgeous lady on Tracy Roo's flickr site and she shared it with me along with two others (THANK YOU, TRACY). The background technique was the result of my ongoing fascination with Kerrie Guinane's artistry, who hails from Down Under! She emailed me a description of how she layers multiple colors of alcohol inks on her brayer, spritzes with water for a watercolor effect and I have to say W.O.W. (THANKS, KERRIE).

These generous and talented artists are among a vast ARMY of dear friends who are all making this very special connection via the Internet on blogs, flickr sites, etsy, ebay, Yahoo Groups and more! It makes the world seem so much smaller when we take the time to reach out to each other and find out how much we are the SAME.

I feel lucky today, as I sit here at my PC at 2 AM and count all of you among my many blessings. I appreciate the time you all take to browse here, leave such positive feedback and touch me in a very special way.

All my love,
- Vicki xo

Fall In Love

This card is the third traded in a "Try Something New" swap. I promised to post them all and the last one, to be shared with you shortly, was done in shades of brown and copper.

Using the same "inky layers" technique, I mixed lime green acrylic paint with clear glaze medium to cover the torn bits of vintage papers. For accent/interest I swiped it with a beautiful dark teal blue chalk ink pad, edged it in the same color and glazed the entire card for my finishing touch!

Tagged!

Well Ute, here it is, my creative mess! Hard to believe anything constructive could come from this clutter.....and where the heck is the workspace? To tell you the truth I was afraid to step back any further because it spreads out like a disease!!

Makes you wonder how we "thrive" in these conditions, doesn't it? It would be fun to learn how many of us cleaned and organized our desks after we were tagged to let the WHOLE WORLD see it!

If anyone reading this is wondering, here's my interpretation: An international group of friends, who met online through several different "Art Groups," have TAGGED each other through blogs, flickr sites, email, etc. to take a photo of their creative work space ....without straightening up!!!!! Aimeslsee, you've been TAGGED!!!!

Timeless

This is the second of four cards made for the Try Something New swap mentioned in my Follies Review post, below.

Using the same background technique on all four cards, changing only the colors, I covered several torn pieces of paper from vintage books with a mix of turquoise acrylic paint and clear glaze for the background. Highlights are from two ink pads "dragged" in certain places: "Platinum Planet" Brilliance pigemtn ink and "Red Magic" Versamagic chalk ink, both by Tsukineko. The word "timeless" was typed on my computer and printed on a transparency. A clear glaze finish was added over the entire piece for added dimension.

Thank you American Troops - past and present!!

We're celebrating Memorial Day in the United States today! We are commemorating men and women who have died in military service to their country and dates back to the Civil War.

Volunteers place a U.S. flag upon each gravesite located in a National Cemetary.

Memorial Day is also a time for picnics, parades and family gatherings. We think of it as the unofficial beginning of SUMMER!

A little known fact is that the first celebration was observed in 1865 by liberated slaves at the historic race track in Charleston. The site a former Confederate prison camp as well as a mass grave for Union soldiers who had died while captive. A parade with thousands of freed blacks and Union soldiers was followed by patriotic singing and a picnic. The official birthplace is in Waterloo, New York where they first observed the day on May 5, 1866. (excerpt from Wikipedia)

Follies Revue

This is one of four ATCs I made for a swap titled "Try Something New."

In an earlier post I mentioned a way to create a background from torn pieces of vintage papers mentioned in Bernie Berlin's book called "inky layers." Since I only tried it once, this was my choice to try something new!

Items used were torn from a 1903 almanac, a childrens book from 1930 called "whys and wherefores", a small 1931 brochure "Songs of the Campus" and some vintage advertising that I printed from a collage CD. I used Modge Podge both over AND under each piece.

Next I covered it with acrylic paint mixed with clear glaze (yellow for this card. green, turquoise and copper for the next three) followed by some dragging of a purple cat eye ink pad. Then I layered my final image and words from a Luna Girl collage CD and sealed with 1-2 more layers of my decopage glue.

I will post the other three cards, using the same method, shortly. Please try this....it couldn't be easier and I know you will LOVE the results!

A little history on the title of the card...
"Follies" - Used here, comes from The Ziegfeld Follies which were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 through 1931 and were inspired by the Folies Bergeres of Paris.

"Revue" - A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. Revues enjoyed great success on Broadway from the World War I years until the Great Depression, when the stock market crashed. George Lederer's The Passing Show (1894) is usually held to be the first successful American "review." The English spelling was used until 1907 when Florenz Ziegfeld popularized the French spelling (revue).

"The fragrance always remains in the hand that gives the rose."

This morning I came across a lovely quote by Ghandi and wanted to simply share these words for your contemplation along with two gorgeous Art Nouveau postcards advertising a ladies' hair comb and pearl pendant both titled, "The Jewels." Art Nouveau (New Art) is an international style of art, architecture and design that lasted from 1880-1914.

I'm inspired to make an ATC based on both the quote and the images and promise to share it with you in my next post. Why not combine a favorite image with a favorite quote today, leave a comment and include a link? Or, simply allow this post to inspire your next creation!

Merletto da Roma

The title for my ATC is based on this image from a vintage postcard. It served as an announcement for a type of "fashion exhibition" in Rome, Italy "Dicembre 1907 - Gennaio 1908."

Merletti is Italian for "lace" which is just one of several items that were being exhibited. Others listed are:

gielli - jewels

ventagli - fans

orologi miniature - miniature clocks

profumiere - perfume

cofanetti - ?

coperture di llibre ecc. - covers of books, etc.

My color palette was inspired by the background which is at the top 1/2 of the card PEEKING out from under a transparency grid pattern. There are shades of copper, olive green and dusty pink. I replicated these colors in the brads, the paper image of an italian woman, the prima flowers and on the paper piecing I used at the bottom of the ATC. Almost all of my cards are finished with a textured glaze and beg to be touched!

This card has a different look to it. Maybe a more somber and masculine feel than is my usual style. I loved trying something new and I LOVED the result! I hope you do, too!

Home-made "Page Pebble"

o su

This card began with an alcohol inked background. Then I cut out a brown daisy from some pp I had lying around, edged the card with clear embossing ink & followed with UTEE in copper.

As you can see, I barely "touched" the edges of the design and of the card with turquoise acrylic paint, creating a look of PATINA! Looks weather-worn, doesn't it?

Then I added words that I typed, printed & glazed.

The final touch was adding a silver "concho" that I found at my local craft store. They also come round as well as oval. I backed it with a vintage image and filled it many times with my trusty clear "glaze" until it was full, making a raised dome-like shape once it dried. Lots of dimension here!

This card begs to be touched! ::smile::

Transfer Techniques to Share

I combined two NEW techniques to make this card. The first one is from Bernie Berlin's new book "Artist Trading Card Workshop" and she calls it Inky Layers. Very simple. Just tear various paper bits such as sheet music, reprinted vintage ads, pages from old books, etc. Ink the edges of some and decoupage to a blank ATC. Then mix yellow acrylic paint with clear glaze from Making Memories and apply with a baby wipe. For the next step, I added ink using direct-to-paper with my red (colorbox chalk) cat-eye ink pad and a metallic lavender Brilliance ink pad. Note that some papers were brown, to begin with.

Next I took a black & white image that I printed with my Canon Pixma iP6000D inkjet printer using my favorite paper by OptiJet. It's called Photo Resolution Coated Paper - Matte. I actually believe this will work on ANY type of thin white paper. After cutting around the face, I added about 6 layers of gel medium, drying between each application, spritzed water on the back and slowly and carefully rubbed the paper & the "bloom" from the back of the image.

The final touches were gluing on a transparency phrase and adding a dragonfly brad then sealed it with a triple high gloss "glaze" for protection and added dimension. A favorite touch!

FUN...EASY...BEAUTIFUL RESULT! Why don't you try it?

Another gel medium transfer

Title: "Hearts A-Flutter"

FAIRIES!

Through the mists of time, fairies and the like ~ sprites, elves, pixies, brownies and other tiny magical beings ~ have inspired our imaginations, stolen our hearts and populated our bedtime stories. This is an illustration by Eleanor Vere Boyle (British 1825-1916) from a story titled "Thumbelina" in the late nineteenth century children's book, "Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Anderson" published in 1872.

An excerpt from this well-loved fairytale:

"What a lovely flower!", said the woman, and she kissed its beautiful red-and-yellow petals. But the moment that she kissed it, the flower burst open with with a loud snap. Anyone could see it really was a tulip, but there was a tiny little girl, very delicate and sweet, sitting in the middle of the flower on its green center. She was no bigger than your thumb, and so she was called Thumbelina.

She was given a prettily lacquered walnut shell for a cradle, and she lay there on blue-violet petals, with a rose petal coverlet over her..."

I hope this inspires you to include a picture of a vintage fairy in one of your creations this week!

15 years and counting

We are so blessed to have our precious cat, Satch in our lives. He and his brother, Sam were rescued at 4 months old. Satch turned 15 in March and Sam lived to the ripe, old age of 14. He died peacefully in our arms one night in Feb 2006 with all four of us present. We miss you, "little!"

Just a few hours ago, at 10 PM.... and every monday night, we light a candle for little Sam. Read more about the Monday Candle Ceremony. Be sure to scroll down and read "The Rainbow Bridge" story. It's very, very heartwarming!

Our prayer tonight includes all pets that are suffering in ANY way and all pet owners that are newly bereaved or those remembering beloved pets of long ago. As the link above explains, it is celebrated INTERNATIONALLY and it is my hope that you will share this with your friends and pass it on! This weekly tradition continues to be a great comfort to us to know that we are honoring, not only Sam, but ALL pets and their families.

As I turn in for the night with Satch, signing off on my latest blog, I cherish EVERY DAY we have left to spend together! God certainly knew what he was doing when he created companion animals!

(update: 12/8/07 Satch is almost 16 and still THRIVING, diabetes and ALL!)

XOXOXOX

Sam:




The Boys, 1 year old:

2nd birthday card this week!

..the man of my dreams

This ATC was made using a "packing tape transfer" for the image of Marlon Brando. The background text is part of a vintage ad that I printed from a (lunagirl.com) ephemera CD.

I used a Making Memories date stamp kit, rubber stamped the right-hand border then glued the text and other paper items followed by a coat of glaze. A black sharpie was used to define the edges.

Be Mysterious!

This is a birthday card I made for a friend by simply mounting an ATC I made last week using clear photo corners. This way it's removable or she can keep the card "as is. I titled it "Be Mysterious" since the face is obscured by clear microbeads. A fun touch to add to artwork. I have also used them to cover an image inside of a bottlecap or colored beads just as an edge detail.

the secret

The law of attraction is nothing new! It simply describes how thoughts create reality. What you think literally becomes your life. A quote from the book, The Secret - by rhonda byrne states "It is YOU placing your order with the Universe. It's really that easy." - Dr. Joe Vitale

Another excerpt:

"There is no blackboard in the sky on which God as written your purpose, your mission in life...your purpose is what you say it is. Your mission is the mission you give yourself. Your life will be what you create it to be..." - Neale Donald Walsch

Personally, I haven't read this book but fully believe in it's message! With close to 1,000 customer reviews on Amazon maybe it's worth dropping by to read a few of them. I've heard it can be life-altering!!

....or maybe just go alter an altoid tin!

Whatever you decide LET YOUR LIFE SPEAK!

A Mid-Summer's Dream

A cherished time of year for me is when the warmer weather (finally) arrives here in New England. Why? Because DH and I will be grilling, napping, reading, watching Red Sox baseball and yes, crafting - on our screened-in porch! Besides the early morning, my second favorite time of day (being the MOLE that I am, ...smile!) is after dark. That is when I light several candles, turn on the "party lights" and listen to the nocturnal chorus of crickets, tree frogs, owls, and the families of raccoons, possums and squirrels that love to forage in our woods! I am counting the days, hours and MINUTES until that time arrives!

I wanted to include this shot that shows the full view up to the rafters in the ceiling (my design), but L-O-L, look closely at the right foreground! All of my papers and things are spread out on the table. That porch is a great resource for inspiration! Why not stop by some warm summer evening? I'll make the marguerita punch, you bring your latest art project to work on!

Selected for Paper Trader's Homepage

It's hard to put into words how I felt this past weekend when I signed in to my Yahoo Group, Paper Traders, and read "Front page art work by member: Vicki Cook." This is the card that was chosen. It really is a place of honor and makes my day every time I visit!!

The central image is from a collage sheet titled "Kodachrome." I loved the vibrant shade of pink and decided to draw attention to it by using a muted color palette for the rest of the card. The background paper is a vintage label, also printed from a collage CD. The phrase was cut out of a "bodice ripper" paperback which I learned are GREAT for cutting up and using on ATCs. (bodice ripper is an american expression for a novel full of unrestrained romantic passion)

After gluing the paper items I added 4 pink sequins, stamped the stars and rubbed the edges with a red "distress" inkpad from Ranger - a product which is a personal favorite of mine. The card was finished by coating it with a high gloss glaze to protect the card as well as adding dimension.

blue bird of happiness!

Looking through my ATC collection, I came across this sweet little card. I hope it will bring a smile to some of my fellow bloggers today!

This shade of BLUE is such an uplifting color for me. I think you'll like it too! (do you see a trend here? yet another alcohol ink background!)

It's nice to take a break from the muted shades and the distressed finishes that so many of us enjoy, myself included.

What shade or hue is your "color inspiration" today? ......I hope this has you thinking!

"adore" ~ alcohol inks on a playing card

This is an example of an alcohol ink background. If you haven't tried this technique yet, you are in for a treat! (I will be blogging a basic "how-to" in the next several days) And trust me, they are IMPOSSIBLE to duplicate! This is also what makes them so beautiful - they are absolutely one-of-a-kind-UNIQUE! Because of this, it was suggested to me, if you want several cards to have a similar "look" - line them up in multiples and layer your colors as if you were working on a single card.

Most of my ATCs are made using playing cards. I find that it not only saves time cutting, but they provide a sturdy base with a nice substantial weight or feel to them.

I've purchased white cardstock "ATC blanks" in sets of 50 - 100 and have been QUITE disappointed with how flimsy they are. I feel the same about patterned scrapbook paper, that it lacks sturdiness. But LOTS of artists use pp with stunning results.

Suggestion: buy small quantities of blank ATCs online or in stores, of 10 - 25, and create with them before buying large quantities. (cost is approx $4 per 100) The same goes for matt or illustration board, which could prove to be too heavy or too thick for your liking.

Some artists are quite happy cutting up cereal boxes. I've even tried PIZZA BOXES! All part of the journey!

mini class at the best stamp store in CT!

These are early experiments with alcohol inks. A clear favorite of mine for ATC backgrounds.

I recently signed up for a 3-day book altering class at a G-R-E-A-T local stamp store in Westport, CT called the: "Great American Stamp Store!" It's going really well and the last class will be held in early April.

While taking this class, taught by the ultra-fantastic "kim," (she teaches TEACHERS) I had the opportunity to meet a really fun group of artists: Susan, Nancy, Lisa & Evelyn. Surprise of surprises I learned that Susan was a member of one of my Yahoo online (ATC Trading) groups!! A small, small world.

So we got to talking and sharing our art of course and it was unanimous that Susan and I would share a few techniques with the group on making ATCs... instructor included! I selected alcohol inks & crackle and Monday we'll learn what Susan will be sharing!

Can't wait! I am off to prepare for tomorrow. See you all at 6:15! And for the rest of you, hopefully I've inspired you with these 6 cards, to get out your alcohol inks and GET TO WORK!

.... more from last night!

"pouvez-vous me voir?"....&.... "sun dreams"



"theatre francais" .......&......."party girl"

How Distressing!

I'm on a "kick" ...happens to the best of us! This time it's the shabby / distressed / crackle look.

For me, a KICK usually starts when I come across a new technique, either from my book collection or from a discussion in one of my yahoo groups. This time it all started with crackle (and Marion, you're to blame for that). So, when I can no longer resist the temptation, I make the one hour round-trip to either Michael's or Joanne's (both are sub-par IMO) and buy a new product (crackle medium). That was about 2 weeks ago. Yesterday I ventured out for a second time and bought about 20 bottles of acrylic paint known as SUPPLEMENTAL supplies to feed the growing addiction! (on sale ~ $.50 each.)

Once DH went off to bed (hehe) I spread out the "booty" and this is the result: 2 of the 6 cards that I made!

"Art Fair" was made with two shades of orange acrylic paint with a layer of crackle medium in-between, followed by a stamped "crackle pattern" in black.

"Zig Zag Summer" was made by painting both Plum & Wine acrylic paint separated by a layer of crackle medium. The picture doesn't show much contrast and neither did the original! SO I dabbed on a little bit of white Gesso, and once almost dry and still a little tacky, I sanded it in places.The yellow, star-shaped brads are new, too!

Tutorial from Luminarte, Inc.

Check out this great tutorial on how to combine Twinkling H2Os with your rubber stamps from Leslie Blackburn Ohnstead, president of Luminarte, Inc.

~ how I made this card ~

Supply list: white cardstock blank, Twinkling H2Os, yasutomo waterbrush, black Versamark ink pad, clear embossing powder, collage stamp, clear micro beads, Glossy Accents by Ranger, printed letters, B & W image, glue dots, sharpie, gold paint pen, double-stick tape

The background of this ATC was made by first painting cardstock with Twinkling H2Os in Persimmon. Because there is mica in these shimmering watercolors, the iridescence doesn't completely show up in the scan.

• Next I stamped a collage stamp in black and embossed with clear embossing powder.
• Next I dabbed on a little red & yellow alcohol ink for a softer, more distressed look.
• The same shade of watercolor was used on the slide holder to which I added some cut out letters to spell "INVOKE ART."
• So as not to compete with the rich color palette, I found a pretty black & white photo to take center stage. I attached it to the back of the slide with double-stick tape, using glue dots to adhere it to the card.
• Once the surface was completely dry, I spread Glossy Accents (http://www.rangerink.com/) and dropped clear micro beads into the glaze. Gold paint pen was used to edge the slide and a black sharpie to edge the ATC.

Now go find some room on your desk and MAKE something! I'm headed to my studio to "clear a path" which is sad but, oh so true!

"Christy Girl" - An American Icon

"Vintage Winged Folk"

This is a series I made for an online swap that eventually got lost in the mail! Was my worst nightmare coming true? Thank GOODNESS it eventually turned up ... although a few weeks late for the swap. I was relieved that the hostess was extremely understanding, a sweetheart actually, and quickly returned them to me.

The other good news was that I had more than one artist contact me to trade "Fairy ABCs" (card #5) and "Woman of Mystery" (card #3). Lesson learned ~ all things happen for a reason! Truthfully, sometimes all we need to do is to be a little more patient with ourselves and the true purpose of a particular challenge will reveal itself.

The names of the other 4 cards are, in order: sweet song, *american beauty, vintage angel and love takes flight!

American Beauty has an amazing story behind it. Interested in a little history from the ‘Golden Age of American Illustration’? Grab a cuppa and get comfortable while I spin a little "tale." One that I think you will enjoy reading!

This "girl" was sketched by an American artist named Howard Chandler Christy (1873-1952). At the age of three he was sketching animals and by four his father purchased his first set of watercolors. In 1890 at the age of 17, Christy left his home town of Meigs Creek in Morgan County, Ohio. With $300.00 he set off for New York to pursue a career as an artist. He arrived in New York in 1890 and after some scouting around, enrolled at the Art Students League. William Merritt Chase was his first instructor and also tutored Christy privately at his Greenwich Village studio and later at his summer venue in Shinnecock, Long Island. Chase founded the first "plein air" art school in the country. The artists worked outdoors and were thus able to develop techniques and effects, which created greater ambience in their works. At this time, great technological advances were being made in Publishing. Christy sensed that a new field was opening up for his generation - providing illustrations for the burgeoning number of new periodicals. Reproduction technology evolved to the point where engravings were no longer the sole, tedious and expensive means to reproduce a painting. This inspired the needy young artist to turn to illustration as his profession. Illustration commissions rolled in thereafter and he was soon able to hire models and move his studio to larger quarters.

Established as an illustrator, Christy was moved patriotically by the explosion of the Battleship "Maine" in Cuba and signed on as an artist with the magazines covering the Spanish-American War. He accompanied the United States troops - the Rough Riders - and illustrated articles while under fire, which were published by Scribner's, Harper's, The Century, and Leslie's Weekly. During this campaign, Christy befriended Colonel Theodore Roosevelt and gained an even broader interest in patriotic subjects. Upon his return in 1898, he had become a celebrity from his war illustrations. The experience had been a turning point for him. His fame and reputation were secured with his picture, "The Soldier's Dream" published in Scribners. The girl he portrayed in that and subsequent paintings became known as "The Christy Girl". Like "The Gibson Girl," she was almost a prototype of the ideal American woman.

S. J. Woolf, in an interview, commented on Christy's notion of women: "They represented the awakening female, no longer content to preside over the kitchen, to be forbidden the golf course or the vote. The way Christy drew her, she was popular with the males because of her charm, while the young women liked her because she embodied their dreams of emancipation." Christy also described his image of what this woman was truly like, "High-bred, aristocratic and dainty though not always silken-skirted; a woman with tremendous self-respect. " From this point forward, Christy painted beautiful women for McClure's and other popular magazines. Calendars, book illustrations (some books he authored as well, such as: The Christy Girl, Bobbs-Merrill in 1906; and The American Girl in 1906) and other illustration commissions expanded his audience. Fame and fortune had found the young man from Ohio.

Christy died peacefully in new York at the age of 80 in 1952, in his beloved studio apartment at the Hotel des Artistes. His reputation through-out his life had been enormous and yet scarcely anything remains today, which describes this incredible man and his works.

Excerpt taken from: http://www.americanillustration.org/index2.html

Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience. Ralph Waldo Emerson

This is a cherished photo taken on a vacation to Cape Cod in September 2004.

Whenever I look at it, not only do I reflect on a perfect day of exploring in Wellfleet, MA... but if I really take a moment to clear my mind... I can almost SMELL the salt in the air, HEAR the gentle surf and FEEL the smooth coolness of a pebble in my hand.

I'm truly grateful for these experiences when the two of us have been "at one" with nature. We feel blessed, rejuvenated and ready to tackle anything that life throws our way!

Do your best to maintain an "attitude of gratitude" and there will always be room for more!

~END OF TODAY'S SERMON~