Early Morning Thoughts

With a grateful heart....

I haven't been in the blog land for very long, but what little time that I have, I have been blessed with meeting some amazing and talented artist.  I can't believe how giving you guys are.  I ventured out to my mailbox today and was gifted again with another piece of art and this time from Dorthe.   This lady makes some of the most amazing dolls.  Check out her site and see some of her creations...  She made me this card with a doll that she created using driftwood.  The face looks to be out of fabric.  Wow, I love the creativeness that went into this.  Thank you Dorthe, this is an ornament that will be cherish for years to come.

The blessings continue...

I wanted to share with you, what I received yesterday in the mailbox.  The first thing was a gift to my husband, Tom and I.  I have to tell you that the picture doesn't do justice.  This is an amazing piece of art.  It is from JoAnna Pierotti and her husband, Ron.

I hung it onto my old window, hoping to get a better shot of it.  Click onto the image and it will show you better details.  What I love about this piece is, each item on this piece, represents a scripture of the bible.  What alot of people don't know about me, was when I had a surgery 8 years ago, I lost just about all my memory.  Working with doctors, I have gained about 90% of it back over the last 3 years, one of the few things that I still am not able to recall are any of the scriptures of the bible.  So, for Joanna to use scriptures of the bible and show what each represents, means alot to me.   She personally wrote a letter to the both of us, onto a piece of cloth, which hangs on the side of the piece.  In the letter, it explains what each piece means.  This will be a piece that I will treasure for years to come.  Also, along with the gift was a handmade ornament to go onto my tree.

   

The next gift that I received was personally made for me.  Pictures, don't do this justice.  This is one beautiful piece.  This is an handmade book ornament.  She made these for the group that she did the 12 days of Christmas ornament exchange with and I was blessed to be able to have one too. 

 

 

Ok, now the next two items are things that I personally bought.  Each year, I look and buy a handmade ornament to go onto our tree.  This year, I found the perfect one and yes, you guessed it...JoAnna's art.  This ornament will fit perfectly onto my tree.  I love how she used part of a baby's shoes to make this ornament. 

 

The next piece is a gift to myself....lol  I do believe we all need to treat ourselves once in a while and this was my gift to myself.  I love the size of this necklace.  It is so tiny and the fact that she again used part of a baby's shoe is amazing.  This lady is one talented artist and how she incorporates everyday items, amazes me. 

 

 

Blessings...

I wanted to share what I received in my mailbox today.  I received this wonderful handmade ornament from Deryn Mentock.  She handmade this snowman...isn't he the cutest thing!  I love how his body is out of glass and she placed an image, words, glitter and beads inside of it.  If I understand it correctly, the head is made out of paper clay.  He has the tiniest garland and bells wrapped around his neck.  Oh, this will fit perfectly on my Christmas tree, along with the other handmade ornaments that I have received or made over the years.  How creative Deryn is...  I would of taken a picture of the wonderful package that it came in, but I can't seem to remember this whenever I receive a present...it must be the child inside of me, who just wants to tear into the gift.  If you would like to see her other snowman ornaments that she made this year, you can check them out, by clicking on her name above.  She made the cutest necklaces using these snowmen.

                

Time to fly...book

For my next book, "Time to fly", I designed this book around some things that I am going thru Spiritually.  I am asked alot how do I come up with themes, pages, etc., in my books.  Believe it or not, but most of my art is created up with things that I am going thru in my life.  Whether that be good or bad.  I can look back at books that I made up years ago and tell you what I was going thru at that present moment.  We all have a journey that we are on, I just express mine thru my art and books.

So for this book, it is about trusting my inner voice to fly when I am called upon.  Reminding myself to never give up, never lose faith, always see the good in people, that we are all connected to one another somehow, reminding myself that at the end of the day, what really is important...but most of all, remember to continue to love myself, even when I make mistakes. 

  This is one of my favorite angels. I love that she doesn't have a face, for you see, we are all angels in disguises walking around. 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

These are just a few of the pages in this book.  I have listed this also in my etsy, if you get a chance, check it out. 

Twice in one day...

Wow...this doesn't happen often, me blogging twice in one day!!!  Now, don't get me wrong, I would love to, but with the busy life I have, I don't get much time to.   I forgot to show you my newest ornaments.

     

   

I listed these also in my etsy.

I wonder...

Ok, most people who know me, know that I like my art to relay a message.  Now, the message is different for each of us, depending on our Journey that we are on at the moment.  So, my next book, isn't any different in relaying a message, except, it will speak differently to each of us.  I woke up one morning and thought; I wonder, if I had known that today would of led me here, would I still of embraced today as I did upon opening my eyes?

I would like and hope to think that I would... We all go thru life, experiencing good and bad, some days are worst and some are better.  But, what if you knew that today might be the last day with a love one, today was your last day of work, a terrible thing was going to take place today, would you still embrace life with a smile, hope and love upon opening your eyes?  I would like and hope to believe that I would.  Life is a gift, whether something good or bad should happen.  You only get this moment to embrace your love ones, smile at a stranger, help someone in need, etc...So, embrace your life as if today was the last day and you might be suprised how much more you enjoy your day, smiling at a total stranger, kissing and telling your loves ones that you love them and just thankful for the small things...

Now, I still get people who look at my life today and think that I have the perfect one, but what you don't see, is what I had to go thru to get here.  I suffered alot as a child, but one thing that I know is, everyday is a gift and I have always, even in the worst of times, thanked God for my life upon opening my eyes and know first hand how much more my day was brighter for embracing it with a smile.  So, that's enough about my message.  I hope that you enjoyed looking at the pictures  of my book...Now, go forth and enjoy your day with a smile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will be listing this in my etsy today, so if you are interest check it out...Thanks!

What has Nellie been up too???

Well, as I mentioned in a earlier post, I have been working on Christmas gifts for family and friends and since some of them read my blog, I am not able to show you guys those... but I can show you some of my newest ornaments that I have listed in my etsy:

  this is a gift within a gift...I have designed it to be a ornament hanger, but on the back, you will find a pocket.  This is where the second gift comes into play...you can either place a gift card, money or even a letter in this. 

 

 

   

I love how these glass ornaments turned out... Also, then next image is of my back yard...we got about 3 inches of snow today. This is what I see everyday now, as I am working in my studio...I just love the view. The picture was taken in my gazebo, which is just outside of my studio.