Thursday, February 20, 2014

Delightful Bird Songs to Bless Your Day

 
Good Morning, Friends.. Some very happy sounds to brighten your day~
 
 

 
And if you wish to visit a couple of spring-soaked
blogs, here are a couple of very lovely ones that I
have been blessed and ever-so-delighted to find
in the past couple of days!
 
Enjoy the beautiful photos,
artistic wonder and joy of  Susan Branch!
 
I was also blessed to find the unique and gorgeous work of
 
My heart was leaping for joy when I was strolling
down the lovely lanes of
 these beautiful ladies words,
 images and creative expressions.
 
And I found myself being so
 
truly grateful
 
for being lead
to the places where they share their
lives and wonderful talents.
 
~Truly~
 
Thank you for stopping by.
 And...
 
Blessings to you
on yet another day
 Where Blessings Gather..
 
XXOO Tamara
 
 
 

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Art Inspiration..My Journey to Find, Nurture and Release the Artistic Soul

Hello ... Did you know that you have gifts and talents? It's true. There's a uniqueness of beauty that lies within each soul. And in my opinion, humble as it is, it is something great.

Ralph Waldo Emerson also had thoughts along these lines....

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters,
compared to what lies within us."



In this new season of my life, I have been exploring what that means for myself and others. Because I have felt this need to unleash something inside my heart that expresses beauty.

That inspires and lifts up the souls of today. And I don't believe that I'm the only one who feels that way.


I want my children and grand children to know and understand that desire to:
{And If I could others beyond my family...well that would be a dream come true!}


# Express themselves
# Be free in their unique giftings
# Inspire and encourage others

I had this thought today..

                         {To create is to be alive.}


I stumbled onto Julia Cameron's book called The Artist's Way.  That was several months ago and very recently, was reminded about it. I knew my birthday was coming up ( tomorrow :)  and so I
was waiting. I did finally order it though.. and accidentally ordered the wrong thing but it will work. (I wanted the devotional shown on the link above.)

I love it so far. It's a very spiritual book. Which pleases my heart as I want God to be the centre of my expressions and creations.  Reflections of His light and love. And I believe that all good and perfect things come from Him and so He should really get the credit or glory. However you want to say it.

Here are some quotes from others who evidently feel the same way:

"Straightaway the ideas flow in upon me, directly from God."
                                                             Johannes Brahms

My hope is to begin to share some during this time. Truths that enlighten, confirm or affirm. They will be from various sources. Websites...books.. quotes...music.. etc.

The thing that I read this morning was a truth for me. I'll share the text from The Artists Way by Julia
Cameron. (If you'd like to find out more about Julia Cameron, here's a link to her blog.

"For most of us, the idea that the Creator encourages creativity is a radical thought. We tend to think, or at least fear, that creative dreams are egotistical, something that God wouldn't approve of for us. after all, our creative artist is an inner-youngster and prone to childish thinking. If our mom or dad expressed doubt or disapproval for our creative dreams, we may project that same attitude onto a parental God. (capitalization mine) This thinking must be undone."

Can you relate to this? I can. I don't know that it was my parents, but my own wrong and contradictory thinking. And a lack of understanding. Even though I have always believed that all these good gifts come from God, I never thought that the developing and using a gift or talent was a "real" occupation.

How wrong I was and also mislead by others I might add. I now wonder why I ever believed that God would give a person a gift and then say, " No, you can't use that. It's not practical or useful for my
purposes." I struggled a lot with that one.

But thankfully, I now know the truth and have to trust that it's not too late. For my age of beginning this quest was 51 and am soon to be 53.

And in freedom, my journey began and will continue with many more truths to be found, no doubt.

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Blessings to you on your way...
Tamara  xoxo






Saturday, February 8, 2014

Scrap Fabric and Mixed Media Valentine Book

Good Saturday morning to you. Today I wanted  to share my first "book" that I've made. I'm excited about it and I hope you like it. The desire to use up some of my scraps brought about the
thought of putting this little book together.

With Valentine's Day coming, this theme seemed the natural choice.
I just love the contrast of the warm, rich red and the purity of white together.
Mixing textures is one of my favorite ways to create.
 
And LOVE is:
 
the thread that binds all people together.
No matter the place or circumstance.
 


 

 

 


 
Well, there it is from the front to back cover. 
Do you have a favorite page or something that you would add
or do differently?
 I'd love to hear your suggestions!
 
There is such GORGEOUS work out there and
I know I have A LOT to learn yet and techniques I want to try
and experiment with.
 But at least, this a bit of a start.
 
 
I have to set a limit on embellishments because my mind goes
on and on with what I could do. But I wanted to get it posted a
while before Valentine's Day.
 
Thank you for stopping by. 
A blessed Saturday to you,
Tamara
 
 

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

"Do'nin Stuff"... Creativity And Closeness And Chaos: FAMILY~

Hi friends.. It's a wonderful day; it's a sad day. It's snowing cat and dogs.

Beautiful.. beautiful whiteness floating on angel wings to bring us the goodness that covers the ground.

And the visitors have left us and are on their way back to their other home.

(This is their home away from home.) 

But what a time we had.





It was a wonderful five days of "Do'nin stuff" says little Sydney who just happens to be a bitty two.

                                                  Loads of fun and special family time : 

(These times really do make my heart sing.)  

 Walks...talks.. singing.. dancing.. reading.. painting..
                                                   movies.. baking chocolate chip cookies..
                                                                      (the in-the-container-kind.. ) church.. cooking..
a tea party.. 

                          {roasting marshmallows around a blazing, night-time fire while
                                                  watching the snowflakes disappear    
                                                                           into the flames...}









 














 
 
Color
 
Creativity
 
Closeness
 
Chaos
 
 

                          *********************************************************

 
There were lots and lots of messes. 
 
BUT...
 
Living the beauty of fellowship, family and etching the memories:
 
 hid the chaos and wove togetherness into
 
 our hearts and the forevermore.
 
 
 
And so much more.
 
 A dictionary full of words.
A cup of hot tea.
Homemade pizza and littles to help.
A crackling fire and
an abundance in the woodpile.
God listening to the whispers of my heart.
 
And more yet...
 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
 
The blessings surely have been gathering here.
 
I'm sure you have your own blessings
a' gathering in your midst.
 
May we always be aware.
 
With loving thoughts,
Tamara