so many give aways AND dreaming of being

a designer. For a long time I have loved to look at magazines and dream of decorating my rooms in fanciful styles. Country has been my style of choice mainly. Financial constraints and other priorities have often gotten in the way (things like travel to Australia and Kenya, a couple of other places, and also health issues). But I do try to be surrounded by beautiful things within our budget. After the fire in our home last May I was given the opportunity to redecorate some of the rooms. I did not allow myself to get very brave with colour. That will happen when I decorate in my studio in the months to come. Some of the spaces have just started being in a place I hold proud. This slideshow brings to you some of those new scenarios as well as some older spaces which I treasure.

There are SO MANY give aways happening these days. I'll be announcing my own in the one world one heart give away in the next day or two. One that ends tomorrow is here:

Please check out the beautiful LILY art by Erin Bowe.
Stay tuned for lots more links to the give aways. And please mark yourself as a follower if you have not already done so ♥

taking time for art, occasionally, while preparing for Christmas:
I try very much not to get all wound up in a knot about Christmas preparations but still it is a busy time of year. We are almost done putting the house back together after nearly everything had been removed following the fire in May. The flooring people are actually here redoing the tiny back entrance as what they had done was not quite right.
I am almost feeling that the opportunity to do the major culling and organizing of most of our belongings was really a very wonderful gift. It was extremely time and energy consuming but that is alright.



The above piece was just a simple journal page displaying one of the new stamps I had carved a few weeks ago. I had done a couple more but they will have to wait until after Christmas for some repair.

Please remember to check my "wonders of winterland" blog where I have been making changes over the days.
Angels be with you dear friends as you proceed through this very busy time of the year. I will pray that you might have some moments to "be still" and "be awake" as you prepare for the coming of the Christ child.

Shine:
Kind of a grey day outside and consequently I start feeling grey too. That's worse than blue.
I was thinking about Karen doing a mosaic of a friend's house, which she admired. I thought "Where is anything in our house that would be worthy of a picture?" I found these corners in the china cabinet and a few other things. I decided to share these with you for today.
Hopefully they'll remind you AND me to shine.



Angels be with you.