Gratitude's and Celebration - Week 42 - Gifts

Nothing can compare to the gifts you have to bless the world

Gratitude's Journal - this is how the page started out

But you already know, and you have had a chance to see some of them.  Your gifts that you can sometimes take for granted have been given to you for a purpose.  

The page is starting to take shape!

Whether you teach, encourage, lead, or minister to others you are supposed to use your gifts to bless the lives of others and help others to locate and use their gifts to bless lives and so on until we are all blessing each other around the world, making that difference, being that miracle that someone prayed for, stepping in when there was no one else. 

When you start to use your gifts you will see the life that you are living in a different light and begin to uncover additional gifts which complement the ones you currently using and give you a totally new perspective.  

Whatever life you currently feel you have your gifts are unique to you, there is no one that can bring it in quite the way you can, and you have to be prepared to do more, be more and really be ready to see breakthroughs and successes unfold as you step out! 

I am grateful today for those gifts which reside within me and celebrate the lives of others that I will be able to bless through stepping out and using my gifts.

How will you use your gifts to impact on the lives of others today? 

Gratitude's and Celebration Journal

Have a blessed weekend! If you want to see how I made the journal (click here) Blessings!

Word for the Week - John 16:33

Word for the week - Image by Amanda 

I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world...John 16:33

Gratitudes and Celebrations - Week 41 - Let Go

Let go

Gratitude's and Celebration Journal

We hold on to things, old ways of thinking, acting and being.  It is time to let go, let go of that which doesn't promote life, understanding and peace.  It is time to let go of the negative memories, thoughts and beliefs that you hold about yourself, some that have been with you for a long time, and for some from childhood.  It is time to let go of treating yourself at times as though worthless without an opinion.  It is just time to let go.

You know what you want to do, where you would love to go, experiences that you would like to try that encourages, enlightens and inspires.  Let go of whatever is holding you back from living the best life you can live right now and trust that a way will be made.  

I celebrate the uncertainty that comes with letting go, stepping out and learning to be comfortable in the uncomfortable.  I am grateful that as I let go I can encourage and be an inspiring example.

Letting Go - Gratitude's and Celebrations - Mixed media Art

What out of date and negative thing that has been clouding your life can you let go of this week?

Gratitude's and Celebration Journal

Have a blessed weekend! If you want to see how I made the journal (click here) Blessings!

Tutorial Tuesday - Using your Gelli Plate

On Saturday I shared images of the Gelli Plate that I had made, and thought I would show you how I have been using it.  If you want to make one of your own go to Linsay - The Frugal Crafters site, they are very easy to make, all you need is:

Gelatin

Glycerin

square container to set the mixture

water

2 x acetate sheets to prevent drying

Container to store Gelli plate

Once you have made your gelatin plate you are ready to go.

I decided that I was going to print on some fabric.  I have a mini book that I want to make a cloth bound cover for.  It is a piece of white cotton that I have cut to size of aprox a piece of A4 paper.

I also selected some paints and stencils that I would use for the design

I applied some paint and used the brayer to move it around

 I lay the material over the plate and smoothed over it with my hands.

 This is the first layer of paint, I then added some more paint to the surface of the plate and applied the stencils

 Here is the finished material.  I will let this dry and then show you how it turned out for my mini book.

The Gelli plate is a great way to add interesting backgrounds to your work either on paper or materials, here are a few more designs that I completed on paper. 

You can get some great designs using a variety of stencils

and paint combinations - I can see two dancers in this one..

most importantly, have fun, and share what you come up with.  Blessings!

Word for the Day - Peace I leave with you......John 14:27

Word for the day - Images by Amanda

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27

Gelli Plates - DIY

I thought I would get on board the Gelli Plate train, without the expense of having to purchase one - for this size it would have been around £30, which seemed quite expensive for trying something out and not knowing whether I would really use it often enough.  

I came across Linsay - The Frugal crafters website and YouTube channel and she goes through the technique of making your own gelli plate - the ingredients including - gelatin - (6 sachets) and 2 bottles of glycerin cost me in total £8

Tada! Here is the one I made, measuring approximately  7.5inch x 12inch

Home made Gelli Plate

I managed to find a storage container for it at our local £1 store and I placed an A4 sheet of acetate on the bottom and top of the gelli plate which stops it from drying out.

Here are some of the prints I have made so far...

By using several layers of paint and stencil, masks and tools to make marks I have enjoyed creating the different layers on the papers.

 Some have come out looking quite interesting and I will be taking them a bit further by creating an image from them, or use them as background papers.

If you come back on for Tutorial Tuesday, I will show you how I made and have been using the Gelli Plate, who knows perhaps you can make one of your own and open up new ways for creating backgrounds.

Gratitudes and Celebration - Week 40 - Triumphs and Trials

Trials will come, but then so will triumphs...

Life has its ups and downs, we have problems they are fixed or sometimes not, we ask for help, we find a way, solutions present themselves and sometimes we experience the grief of loss.

After losing my brother to cancer last year and my best friend to a brain tumor three years ago, while continuing to look after my mother with dementia I sometimes felt numb.   I still do feel numb at times, on automatic pilot, not wanting to believe that they are gone.  With the mother I thought was invincible and who seems to be disappearing before me I find that I busy myself in practical activities that ensures her health and well-being are taken care of.  

I am still going through what seems like a trial I never thought I would have to face, I have to learn to navigate the territory that comes with grief and sadness and at unexpected times my thoughts are consumed with the loss and the continued loss that dementia brings. But laughter exists, mums playful spirit prevails and in the midst of it she can bring joy to the situation.

As I deal with each day at a time I find comfort in being grateful for the small things that can bring a smile, as do reminiscing and sharing childhood antics.  I celebrate the gift of healing of what can seem like a broken heart that will come with time. 

What small thing can you find to be grateful for in the midst of whatever situation you are in right now? 

Gratitude's and Celebration Journal

Have a blessed weekend! If you want to see how I made the journal (click here) Blessings!

Spring Cleaning lessons learnt

I have been busy clearing out, cleaning, de-cluttering and decorating all at the same time.  It has been years since I really had a clear out.  I did a mini challenge last year or was it the year before, called 'clearing the clutter' and I overwhelmed myself with what I wanted to do, I wasn't realistic about what I had and what I could do.  I tried to clear a major area every day and the reality is that some of the areas needed a whole month to themselves.

Having learnt the lesson (not) we decided to clear the whole house, decorate all while I was moving my mum into new accommodation and clearing her flat of items - many of which had been there for over 30 years, and I had grown attached to.  My mums move is sorted, still sorted out some of her paper work, she is in a smaller flat adapted to her needs, it is light and spacious, and was the right move for her at this time.

With the place being upside down it was difficult to keep my blog up, my phone broke, my computer crashed and it was very weird not having access to the internet, you really realize just how much you rely on technology.  Rather than get anxious about it I looked at it as a bit of a break and time to reevaluate direction, but also prioritize what was important.

I have been creating and trying to keep up with the creative courses that I signed up for.  With everything happening at once I was forced to also pace myself differently with the courses, you can't paint in dust and with drilling going on.  

I started a book binding course last week, which gets me out of the house one day a week for the next 5 weeks.  It has been a long time since I did a course I had to travel to.  But it has been really great, there is only 4 of us so the pace is good, we cover quite a bit in the 3 hours.  I will show you what I have made next week - I have made two sewn books so far.  I am finding the course very therapeutic and it is great learning the techniques and being able to get feedback straight away.  I think it was what I needed at the moment.  Eventually I want to be able to create bound books filled with memories of my mother and filled with stories that normally get forgotten so that generations to come can be inspired by her journey.

For now back to the clearing as the dust settles, tomorrow I will share some images and get back on track.  Do share what changes you have had to make as you move into a new season.

Gratitudes and Celebration Journal - Week 39 - Your best

You deserve the best for your life

Gratitude's and Celebration Journal

When you think of your life what one thing do you think that you have done that brought out the best in you that celebrated who you really were?

What is your best and what do you think that you deserve out of life?

You get out what you put in and why wouldn't you want to make it your best effort.  Why would you want to give half measures – you would only be cheating yourself so If you are going to do something, do it to the best of your ability.  You appreciate when someone else has done a good job, how far would you go to make sure that your efforts came from a place of giving without expecting anything in return. Wherever you are, whatever you have, If everyone in the world did one act of kindness it would make a big difference around the world.

   

I am grateful and celebrate today that I have something I can give whether through my words, art or physical, and I can make a positive difference in the life of someone else.

What will you do to improve your circumstances and bring a blessing into the life of another?  Make a list of 12 things and start doing something every month, then increase it to weekly, then daily,  a smile cost nothing to give but can be priceless to the recipients life.

Have a blessed weekend! If you want to see how I made the journal (click here) Blessings!

Gratitudes and Celebrations Journal - Week 38 - Peace Inspires

Gratitude's and Celebration Journal

Peace is possible in your inspired life

We can sometimes be surrounded by the noises of life that we forget what peace is like. From the moment we get up, the alarm clock, the radio, tv, the clatter of the breakfast dishes, slam of the front door, rev of the car, interacting with others, chatter, laughter, dogs barking, cats meowing, cows mooing, birds tweeting, foxes....(well you know what the fox says:) and it never seems to stop!

It seems as if there is always something going on, some crisis to avert, problem to be heard and sometimes all you want to do is shout ‘Peace, Be Still’.

You have to make time to be still, to sit and just listen to the stillness, be calm, to wait and allow your body to find its natural rhythm, as it repairs, restores, refreshes and inspires.  You need to understand what your body is telling you and take action provide the remedy. You have to give yourself the space to unwind and reflect and just be at one with God.  

Finding those pockets of inspiration 

I am grateful that I live in an environment where I can take time out to be still, and I celebrate the renewed me that is present when I have enabled myself to be at peace and to find those pockets of inspiration. 

What can you do differently to create a sense of peace for you? Have a blessed weekend! If you want to see how I made the journal (click here) Blessings!

New art - Courses Update

I have been busy in the studio working away on a variety of courses.  What I realized early this year was that I signed up for too many courses.  It is so important to keep moving forward and learning new things, but if you don't give yourself enough time to process what you are learning it can become stressful, falling behind and getting yourself in a stressful state. 

What I found happened to me was that I just stopped.  I had lost sight of why I was doing the courses as I just tried to churn out images in an attempt to keep up, and also keep up with the events happening around me in my life.  

I decided to change my mindset, I have slowed down and have been taking my time, having given myself a breather and got on with things like moving my mum into a new home, I have come out the other end excited about the new work that I will produce over the course of the next year.

I am very pleased to share with you some of the pieces that I have done over the last couple of weeks from Soul Food and Life Book courses, I will also be sharing over the coming months some larger paintings that I will be working on for the Bloom True - Flora Bowley Course  It is a 5 week course, with access after the course for 6 months, the next course starts May 12th – June 14th, 2014, so go on the waiting list to get more information. 

Here are a glimpse of 3 pieces that I recently finished....

Going to the party

Palette Love

Sweety Pie

If you would like to see the complete image you can check them out here at my mixed media art site

Material Mondays - Crochet and textiles Art Show

It has been a while since I did anything with fabric or wool, so I thought I would share with you the latest thing that I have made.  For a while I seem to be buying a new shade of wool every week, but there is a limit to how fast I can crochet, even on a good day and with all the other priorities that seem to rear their head it has kind of taken a back seat.

Crochet...

I wanted to make something for my 6 year old niece and thought a crochet bracelet would be the nice to try, it could be worn with a variety of outfits and I could make it within a few hours.

Flower and button details

It is made using wool with specks of silver thread, I created 2 flowers one using the grey wool and the other using white as contrast. 

Grey and silver thread running through the wool...

These were then and attached these to another piece of wool that had been crocheted that would fit around her wrist.  A button was added and a button hole in the opposite ends.

Flower button 

A flower button was added in the middle of the crochet flower. The bracelet was straight forward and quite easy to make, yet it looks quite effective.  I have been busy with the flowers and now have a few more to make into bracelets, and maybe a broach or two!

Flowers waiting for a new lease of life

I recently got a couple of tickets to go to the Creative Stitches show, which I am really excited about, as it will also include a look at the Festival of Textile Art.  I have been getting more and more inspired by the many fabric designs, quilting and using textiles in my work.

The Creative Stitches and the Fashion Embroidery show will be held at London, Excel on 3rd - 5th April 2014, and the tickets are £8 in advance and £10 at the door, but it also gives you entry to the Hobby Crafts show at the same venue. It will be a great way to hear some inspiring talks, see new techniques and connect with others, if your going, let me know!