Grow Love Shipping Day

 

Off They Go

 

I am in the midst of printing and packaging the Grow Love archival prints that were bought in support of my weeklong fundraising effort to benefit  Bucks for Bauman. 

 

 

 

I'll be able to make a donation of over $155 to the fund thanks to the people who bought the Grow Love print. I hope, small though it may be, the donation makes things a little easier in the coming days for Jeff Bauman (one of the Boston bombing survivors).  THANKS to everyone who helped me with this effort - you rock!

 

  

It's a good way to start the week, don't you think?

 

 

 

How was your weekend? Ours was good.  Enjoyed Friday evening with the neighborhoodlums. No campfire I'm afraid, our fire warning was too high. We've had very little rain and a good bit of wind making everything too dry. So we opted for a little youtubing.  Saturday would have been better had our Bruins brought their game to the ice, but they were lacking, which was a real shame considering Jeff Bauman made it to the Garden to be the honorary banner captain. He really got the crowd going!

 

 

Big excitement yesterday, I spent most of the day cleaning up concrete dust leftover from the bathroom shower jackhammer demolition.  We did take time to watch the sun go down from our adirondacks.  Ah, the good life.  What were you up to?

 

Ciao for now,

 



Still Life: Wildflower

 

Spring Whites

 

I was out in the yard collecting whatever was blooming for some little vases and a touch of color, when I spied this pretty little flower just over the stone wall in the woods.

 

 

 

 

Lovely, isn't it? I'll have to search around to see if I can find out what it is.

Still Life is one of my Pinterest boards. Sometimes we're rushing and time is going so fast that we forget there is much beauty to behold in still life.

If we're not connected on Pinterest yet, you can find me here.



I also found our lone tulip in bloom. There used to be many more, but the critters have taken care of them in the last couple of years. I guess I'll have to plant some more.

Enjoy this Spring day if you're in our hemisphere, and if you're not, perhaps it's time to start a fire and enjoy what the cooler weather brings.

Make it a good one wherever you are.

Ciao for now,

 

 

PS- one day left to purchase my Grow Love print to support Bucks for Bauman, a fund set up to assist Boston bombing survivor Jeff Bauman. Thank you SO much to all those who have supported this effort. It's nice to do something to help someone who will be facing many challenges in the days ahead, yet still exudes such a positive spirit. 

Take A Walk With Us

 

Scenes From Our World

 

This is some of what's been happening in our corner of the world the last couple of weeks. 

 

 

Forsythia blooming in the front yard.

 

 

Neighbors' little flag blowing in the breeze and daffodils blooming.

 



Lucan napping in the sun.

 

Clear, bright Moon.

 

Trees budding.

 

A Purple Finch, our state bird, visiting the feeder.

 

Forsythia blooming in the backyard by the stone wall.

 

Moon glow.

 

 

 

 

Sunset Meadows

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lots of pretty sunsets lately. Some have been completely blinding.

 

What's been happening in your world?

 

Freeform Friday

 

A beautiful message and song that's worth listening to over and over and over again.  Thank you Mr. Gaye. Click here if you're reading by email.

 

 

 

 

Hope you're all well and have plans for a wonderful weekend. Ours will include, hopefully, the conclusion of the new shower construction. We're nearly there thankfully.  It's a beautiful Spring like day finally, so I'm going to try to get my work done early so I can play hooky outside in the garden later this afternoon. We'll see how that works out.  Tonight, off to the neighbors for cocktail hour. If the weather cooperates, it would be nice to get a campfire in sometime over the weekend. Fingers crossed on that front.

 

Have a good one.

 

Ciao for now,

 

 

PS- In case you missed it, I'm donating all the proceeds of the sale of my Grow Love print through 5/3 to Bucks for Bauman.  You get some wall art and help Boston bombing survivor Jeff Bauman, who lost both of his legs in the explosions.  Thanks to those who have bought Grow Love already this week, much appreciated.

 

9 Ways to Make Your Walls Happy

via bates mercantile co.

 

I Am An Illustrator

Hi there. It's me. Pam.  Again, today is supposed to be link party day here, but I just don't feel very much in the mood.

I'm struggling a bit with the link parties because they are meant to be a way for fellow artists and crafters to reach new people and lately it seems like the participation is getting lower rather than higher, and that I have to almost beg people to participate, which defeats the purpose and just bums me out in general. 

So, instead today, I am answering the call from Andrea from Strong Southerly to see more of my stuff, especially since she answered my call for more elaboration on the 'dunny paper' story. If you don't know what dunny paper is, read this.

As I indicated in the title of this post, I'm an illustrator.  That's just one of the assortment of hats I wear but it's one I really enjoy.

To that end, I can help make your walls pop and here's 9 ways just to prove my point.


1. Chevron V. Circles: this print is one of the first illustrations I created for Bates Mercantile Co. when I opened our shop on etsy.  It's been shipped all over the place, including Onga Onga, New Zealand. I had to throw that in there....I mean, Onga Onga? What a great name for a town.

 

 

2. Bon Courage: Everyone needs a little luck and courage now and then.  I did a little research while designing this illustration and found out that the French consider wishing someone good 'luck' almost rude, as if they couldn't do 'it' without 'luck'.  Who knew. Instead, Bon courage.

 

3. Hello Chevrons: Need I say more?

 

 

 

 

4.Close To The Edge: If you don't like Kurt Vonnegut's writing, I lay odds there is a quote of his that will speak to you.

 

 

 

 

5. Dream Within A Dream: Because, we've all had those dreams.

 

 

 

6. Hey It's Going To Be A Great Day: An attitude adjustment reminder we can all use now and again.

 

 

 

7. Everything Was Beautiful: I think we all make this wish from time to time for many different reasons. Sure would be nice. Again, Vonnegut.

 

8. Peacock In Blue: It's whimsical and who can't use a little whimsy. It's based on Scandinavian design. There, I gave you two reasons for this one.

 

 

 

 

9.  Live To Create: If you're anything like me, this is what guides you most days. If you're not like me, you can still probably appreciate what creativity brings to our lives.

 

 

 

Bonus!

 

10. Grow Love: When you purchase this print between now and May 3rd, the entire purchase price will be donated to Bucks for Bauman, a fund set up to support Boston bombing survivor Jeff Bauman who lost both of his legs. You can make a difference in someone's life and you'll have a nice reminder for doing so.

 

 

All of these illustrations are available as archival prints, meaning they are museum/gallery quality and will last longer than you or I. They are also available in various sizes. You can see more of my work in our shop.  Did you know I design logos too? Maybe I'll share some of those next time, but you can see those at Bates Mercantile Co. as well.

 

Hope you're all having a great day.

 

If anyone has feedback on how to make the link party work better for all who participate, leave a comment or drop me a line.

 

The sun is shining here and it's about time. Still a bit brisk to say the least, but we'll take it.

 

What's shaking in your corner of the world?

 

Ciao for now,

 

 

What Inspires You Wednesday

 

The Amazing Resilience and Spirit of People

 

So as some of you many already know, Boston is our 'local' city. We're only 50 minutes out of downtown. It's close to our hearts.

 

This has been a very heartbreaking week, but at the same time, heartwarming. When evil rears it's ugly head, good always answers in abundance.  Strength answers in abundance. Caring answers in abundance.

 

I've been keeping up with Jeff Bauman (via facebook), the young man who lost both of his legs in the Boston Marathon bombings. The bombers could not stop this man's spirit from shining bright. Nor could they keep the spirit of ballroom dancer Adrianne Haslet who lost her foot from shining bright. Nor could they keep the spirit of any of the survivors from shining bright, including Celeste Corcoran, who lost both of her legs, or her daughter Sydney (who would have died of injuries to her femoral artery had it not been for the people who jumped in to help and placed a tourniquet on her leg). 

 

This video of a marine amputees who visited the Corcorans, and all of the survivors are what is inspiring me today. 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm not sharing this video to make you sad, but share the inspiring strength and resilience of people. It's amazing. It makes me want to keep everything in perspective. It makes me want to stop letting the small stuff get to me. It makes me want to do something that makes a difference in some way. 

 

To that end, I've decided to focus on helping Jeff Bauman. If I focus on one survivor maybe I can make a difference.

 

Through May 3rd (the end of next week), all money other than shipping costs (not just profits) generated from the sale of my Grow Love print will be donated to the fund set up for Jeff to help in his recovery- Bucks for Bauman. 

 

 

I'm also offering Muse followers a 20% discount on the Grow Love print to encourage you to purchase it now so money can be raised for Jeff.  Enter the coupon code GrowLoveMM at checkout to recieve 20% off. If you want to forgo the discount, so I can give more money to Jeff's fund, just don't enter the code.  I'll also be posting this on our facebook page to try and generate more sales to benefit the Bucks for Bauman fund.

 

I'll keep you aprised of how the fundraising is doing.

 

What these people have been through in the last week has been horrific and yet their spirits are strong in the face of such tragedy. That's what is inspiring me today.

 

What's inspiring you?

 

Ciao for now,

 

 

PS- If you can share this post in any way to help me generate more funds for Bucks for Bauman, I'd be very grateful.

Drum Roll Please & Freeform Friday

 

Spreading The Love

 

Thanks to all of you who commented on Tuesday's post. You words were thoughtful and full of what we're all feeling after the Marathon terror attack. 

 

It's really been quite a week. Very emotional all around from the attacks, to the fertilizer plant explosion in Texas, to the unfolding events in Boston overnight which are continuing as I type. There was an encounter with the suspects and one is dead, an MIT officer dead, another young MBTA officer is in surgery in the hospital in serious condition after a shootout with the suspects.  The second suspect still on the run, more than likely armed and there is a warning that he may be wearing an explosive suicide vest. Boston, the entire city, is in lockdown.

 

What is going on in this world?

 

It's all a lot to take in.

 

I'm glad I can step back, take a breath and do one small thing to make someone's day better and spread some love. I just put all the names in a hat and pulled out Paige.  I'm going to tell you right now, Paige has been an etsy blogging friend of mine for quite awhile and she could use a pick me up today. She's in the Chicago area and her neighborhood was flooded this week and water was seeping into her basement, so rather appropriate that her name came out of the hat. Congratulations Paige.  You are the winner of the Grow Love print. (Kristen, no badgering Paige about her win).

 

 

 

I'll be picking the winner on my facebook page later so I'll get to spread a little more love.

 

No plans this weekend, other than work on the shower reconstruction and work at the desk.  I'm still looking forward to it being the weekend though.

 

 

Freeform Friday

 

I don't know about you, but I really needed a laugh this week to lighten up an otherwise very dark moment in time.  These two really did it for me. God love 'em, they cracked me right up with their many takes and their perfectly wonderful Maine accents. You have to watch through to the end. Classic. Click here if you're reading via email.

 

 

 

 

I hope you have a good day in your corner of the world.

 

Ciao for now,