Bringing a smile to my heart:


The above are more photos I took last week when I was thinking of Chrysti's prompt. My first post about it is here.

Something else which caught my attention last week was the hummingbirds flying around in the garden pausing for occasional samplings from the flowers. I love those beautiful little creatures.

about joy:
Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
Marcel Proust

We shall find peace. We shall hear angels.
We shall see the sky sparkling with diamonds.

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov

CHERISHED SURROUNDINGS:
Chrysti, a much loved artist whom I have encountered over the past couple of years, is running a contest asking participants to blog about something in their surroundings which may at first glance be quite ordinary but with further observation be unique, perhaps even beautiful. I have tried this week to take a few moments to do that even though the week has become very challenging for me.
These are just a couple of images which I have chosen to share. This is an old container which contains an vintage milk bottle. Inside that is
cutting from a scented geranium. I find the whole commotion to be very appealing - the reflections in the tin, the angle of the milk bottle, the shape of the cutting.


What about your surroundings appeals to you, brings you joy? Feel free to take a moment to look around you. Especially take some moments to look at Chrysti's blog. She has created numerous exciting art pieces and been published any number of times. I am so very inspired by her.

I'll try to share some more photos in the next couple of days.
Remember to check the post for the give away winners if you entered.
Angels be with you dear friends

COLLAGE PLAY:
I have started in a new challenge group, collage play with crowabout, which my friend Nance is running. You are presented with collage images and can use in whatever way you want in a piece of art. I chose to use the images and many of their transfers, together with words, to speak of how I'm feeling these days. It was great to take time to do art though I was being crabby with my family about space to do it in LOL.

First step in one of my journal pages - actually an old scrapbook which has a bit of a moisture stain - fine for collage. Watered down paint was applied over papers.


Some written words were added.


The images and transfers were applied. I'm still learning and practicing with the transfers. I'll do a bit of a tutorial with my experience if I ever get to it.



Final collage:


To view this in more detail of large size:
View On Black

Please remember to see my previous post about the give away winners, especially if you entered.
Angels be with you

announcing:
1)the winners of the first giveaway:
Sarascreations wins the first item of the book and bracelet
Suze wins the book and small container
Tammy's studio wins the "right to be me" postcard.
justthesmallstuff wins the small flat canvas
Karen of A scrapbook of Inspiration wins the photo card

I was not able to find links for Sara or Tammy so hopefully they get back to me to let me know where to send their prizes. Tammy, I need your address so hopefully you can contact me from my profile so I can get your address.

I've found Tammy's studio link. Great place to visit. It's here.

I have decided to share a couple of things from when I had a retreat in June. Since then I've not been able to do much creating. I did get a surprise when I went to the Saskatoon Ex. yesterday to see my art displayed there. I actually have the whole day tomorrow without any planned outings so hopefully I can share that with you then.

But back to some things from Manitou. This photograph shows some of the vintage pictures glued to one of the walls of the cabin which my family owns. This one is in particularly bad shape so I probably won't be able to do anything with it.


The following one is how I cropped a photo and worked with it on picasa.

After I played with it a bit on photoshop I got it looking like this. It's not terrific but this is not something I have a lot of knowledge about.


And finally a couple of canvases I was working on at Manitou. I kind of lost interest in them with all the other frustrations but maybe sometime I can get back to them:




Hopefully see you again soon.

ferris wheel:
some days feel
like I'm going round
and around
on a ferris wheel

it seems to stop
when I'm atop
I gaze about
and see
what is happening

at the bottom
it never stops
to let me off
so I might
do something
anything

it just
keeps going
round
and around

© Wendy B Burton



Thanks for all your comments towards the giveaway. Please accept my apologies. I will definitely do it early next week.