WOYWW: Happy 4th Anniversary!

It's been four years since Julia started having crafters and artists show off their desks for What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday!  Happy Anniversary, WOYWWers!  I've been busy finishing off some ATCs for our anniversary swap, putting WOYWW crowns on my handpainted girls.  Aside from swapping with the WOYWWer whose name is after mine on the WOYWW list this week, I'm making extra ATCs.  Let me know if you want to swap and I'll see if I have enough ATCs.

There is only a little space left to work on in my desk.  I still have to clean and put away this vintage Filipiniana blouse that I wore for a family photo shoot.  It belonged to the grandmother of my sister Patsy's husband.

We were in Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, a heritage resort where they reconstructed old Filipino houses:A living museum of Philippine customs and traditions are re-born in a community typical of the 18th to early 20th century Philippines.

And lastly, an illustration from my prayer journal, for all my blog friends and visitors.

Happy WOYWW anniversary, Inspire Me Monday,  Word Art Wednesday and Paint Party Friday!

WOYWW: Goodies from Singapore

Happy What's on your Workdesk Wednesday!  I've just gotten back from a trip to Singapore and here is our cat Truffles inspecting what's new on my desk - a desk mat from Ikea and a folding laptop desk (polka dotted) for when I want to work in bed.  I always come home from a trip with some maps and souvenirs...

and I have a new stamp carving kit from Art Friend (I hope I get to use it!)

 

Here are some Instagram pictures taken in Singapore.  This is the amazing Supertree grove...

the eye catching ION Orchard shopping mall...

and the Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands.

And lastly, some encouragement from my prayer journal illustration for Word Art Wednesday (I hope I remember to link up!)...

Be blessed, dear blog friends!

And the Winner is...

Alexandra of Sunday Sketches!  Congratulations for winning my giveaway!  Thank you, dear blog friends, for your encouragement and for participating in my giveaway!

Easter Blessings and a Giveaway!

Jesus is Risen!  
(This giveaway has ended.  Thank you to all those who joined.)

St. Alphosus de Ligouri, in "The Passion and the Death of Jesus Christ," commented, "St. Laurence Justinian remarks: 'We have seen Him who is wise infatuated through an excess of love.' We have beheld Him who is eternal wisdom itself, the Son of God, become a fool for us, by reason of the too great love which he bore toward us."

I celebrate God's great love and saving work for me!  Oh, what he was willing to go through for me!  

Blessed John Henry Newman, as quoted in Evangelizo,  comments:

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Ps 118[117],24)...

This is Easter Day. Let us say this again and again to ourselves with fear and great joy. As children say to themselves, "This is the spring," or "This is the sea," trying to grasp the thought..., let us say, “This is the Day of Days, the Royal Day, the Lord's Day (Rv 1,10 Gk.). This is the Day on which Christ arose from the dead; the Day which brought us salvation”. It is a Day which has made us greater than we know...

We have had enough of weariness, and dreariness, and listlessness, and sorrow, and remorse. We have had enough of this troublesome world. We have had enough of its noise and din...But now there is stillness; and it is a stillness that speaks... such is our blessedness now. Calm and serene days have begun; and Christ is heard in them, and His “still small voice” (1Kgs 19,12), because the world speaks not. Let us only put off the world, and we put on Christ (Eph 4,22; Rm 13,14)... May that unclothing be unto us a clothing upon of things invisible and imperishable! May we grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, season after season, year after year, till He takes us to Himself... into the kingdom of His Father and our Father, His God and our God (Jn 20,17). 

And to celebrate this "Day which has made us greater than we know..." I'm having an Easter giveaway!  Celebrate with me and let me know if you would like to have the chance to win "Easter Angel," this original  5" x 7" mixed media painting (watercolor, acrylic, colored pencil on paper).  I made it especially for you, my visitors and blog friends.  If you follow my blog through Google Friends Connect (in the sidebar) or Google+ (top of the page) or if you shared about my giveaway, let me know in separate comments and get extra entries to the giveaway.  My giveaway ends on May 19, Pentecost Sunday, which marks the end of the Easter Season this year.

A blessed Easter season, dearest visitors and blog friends!  "May we grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, season after season, year after year, till He takes us to Himself... into the kingdom of His Father and our Father, His God and our God (Jn 20,17)."

Linking up with Paint Party Friday, Faith Filled Friday, Spiritual Sundays, Inspire Me Monday, Share the Shelter and Word Art Wednesday.

WOYWW: Artist Trading Card Mass Production!

Happy What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday!  I've made some progress on my ATCs and it's a good thing since the WOYWW anniversary is coming up soon.  Here's a close up of a few of them...

Considering they looked like this last week...

I am quite pleased...

For Word Art Wednesday, a reminder to take courage, whatever troubles we find ourselves in...

Here's a picture from my Instagram account to wish you a belated happy Mother's Day...

I won a copy of "Life after Art" from Ramona over at Create with Joy and it arrived this week.  Thank you so much, Ramona!  I haven't started reading it yet but it looks like a really great read.  Matt Appling, the author, says, "the art room’s most enduring and timeless lessons are not for kids learning to paint or draw, but for adults who finally want discover how to live the lives they were created for."  You can even read the first chapter here. ( I'm also linking this up with Inspire Me Monday.)

If you haven't joined my giveaway for this original painting...

there's still time to leave me a comment or two!  

Have a great week everyone!

Paint Party Friday: ATCs in Progress

I've been making artist trading cards, painting faces over magazine cutouts pasted over a painted background. I still have a lot more to do...

At least I have finished an illustration for my prayer journal...

and I can link up with Paint Party Friday and Word Art Wednesday.  Reminding you that my giveaway for my original art is still open for comments!.

WOYWW: Painting WIP

The desk is filled with painting supplies this Wednesday for our WOYWW Link Party.  Not much progress on the ATCs though since Instagram and the many iPad photo editing apps have been distracting me from painting.

My Instagram post for today is in honor of "The Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War, an occasion for all States to unite in dealing with new challenges and threats." 

Each year the UN pays tribute to all victims of the Second World War. The UN General Assembly proclaimed this Time of Remembrance in 2004. 

My prayer journal illustration has a verse from Acts 17 that reminds me...

If you are interested, PhotoBook Girl is having "A Year of Photo Books Giveaway" (worth nearly $600)! I would love to win this and get some of my travel pictures in an actual photo book!

Linking up with What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and Word Art Wednesday.

A Prayer

O merciful God, fill our hearts, we pray, with the graces of your Holy Spirit; with love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control. Teach us to love those who hate us; to pray for those who despitefully use us; that we may be the children of your love, our Father, who makes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. In adversity grant us grace to be patient; in prosperity keep us humble; may we guard the door of our lips; may we lightly esteem the pleasures of this world, and thirst after heavenly things; through Jesus Christ our Lord. - Anselm of Canterbury, 1033-1109


Linking up with Inspire Me Monday and Word Art Wednesday.

WOYWW: ATCs and More

It's Wednesday once again, and can you believe it?  It's already the month of May!  The year is going by so quickly!  I'm showing you only a small part of my desk and believe it or not, the rest of the desk is even more messy.  I mean, creative, LOL!

I am working on some artist trading cards (ATCs).  Here is an ATC tutorial I posted some time ago.  This time, I am using magazine cutouts as a base for the faces.

They started out like this...

And I put some flesh paint over the cutouts.  They look horrible right now.  Hopefully I can get them to look better after some shading and embellishments.  

And for some inspiration, here is a page from my prayer journal, reminding us to love one another.

It is Labor Day today in the Philippines, so Happy Labor Day!  May God bless the work of your hands!  Sharing this in Inspire Me Monday, What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday and Word Art Wednesday.  If you haven't yet, there is still time to join my giveaway for a chance to win my originak art!