WOYWW: Hurried Art

Thank you, What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday, if not for you, my desk would have nothing new!  But since I am supposed to post a picture of my desk, I hurriedly paint and post what I've painted!  Notice the hair dryer? That's so that the watercolors don't run into each other in the rush of trying to get something done for WOYWW!

So this is what I finished today, just in time for Word Art Wednesday!  Sharing this in Paint Party Friday as well.

Paint Party Friday: Word Art

Hello, dear blog friends!  For Paint Party Friday and Word Art Wednesday, here is an illustration I made for my prayer journal.  This verse from 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 reminds me of how God has encouraged me through every challenge I have faced and how I can encourage others who face challenges as well.  Life is full of challenges, but for me, it is so much easier to handle them with God and with the support of people around me.  

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!.

PPF: WIP Angel

Make yourself familiar with the angels, and behold them frequently in spirit; for, without being seen, they are present with you. - St Francis of Sales

Sharing this in Paint Party Friday. Happy painting everyone!

Paint Party Friday: Ang Aking Ina

Happy Paint Party Friday!  Here is the mother and child painting I was working on.  It started out like this...

I wrote part of a poem called Ang Aking Ina (My Mother) on the top right.  It reads...

Gaya rin ng iba, ang ina kong giliw
Ay inang mayumi't lubhang maramdamin,
Inang hindi yuko sa mga hilahil,
Inang mapagbata at siya kong virgen.

Mayrong isang Diyos na kinikilala,
May isang dakilang pananampalataya,
Sa kanya ang madla'y kulay ng umaga,
Ang galit ay awa't sa poot ay tawa.

Siya ang dakilang Batas sa tahanan,
Kamay na masipag, Kampana ng buhay,
Susi ng pag-ibig na kagalanggalang.

Sa kanya ang lahat ay pawang mabuti,
Ang dukha't mayaman ay kapuripuri
Palibhasa'y inang may puso't pagkasi.

I was trying to translate it but there are parts I don't understand and neither does  Google translate!  Besides, I'm already late for the party!  Have you joined my giveaway?

Paint Party Friday: Practice, Practice, Practice!

Happy Paint Party Friday, dear blog friends!  Thank you so much to all those who joined last Friday's Auction Blog Hop to benefit the Sandy Hook Elementary School.  The winning bid was Geralyn's who also offered a wonderfully whimsical Santa for the auction. 

I joined the All Things Mixed Media Art Google+ Community and there, I came across Ardith's post How to Become a Better Painter. She encourages us to "Paint....just go paint and practice, practice, practice."  So I decided to stop making excuses that I don't have time and just do it, even for just a short time every day.  Here's the mixed media piece I'm working on.

Drop by Paint Party Friday and see how other artists are practicing!

Paint Party Friday Auction Blog Hop

The auction has ended.  Thank you so much for participating!

Hello, dear blog friends, welcome to my auction post for The Paint Party Friday's Auction Blog Hop to Benefit the Sandy Hook Elementary School!  We're celebrating our 2nd year anniversary!  

Although I live far away from the USA, events like the shooting incident in the Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14th, 2012, affect all of us.  Twenty innocent children and 6 brave adults lost their lives that day.  It reminds me that life is uncertain.   "Cherish every moment, for you know not what tomorrow brings and life holds many surprises;"  This is a line I wrote in my prayer journal before we found out that my late husband had cancer (my post about this).  And indeed, the challenge is to cherish every moment and "Find joy in the journey."

About the Painting:
This painting is an original mixed media piece (5 3/4" x 9") painted on book paper coated with gesso, with text added using the direct image transfer method.  I used acrylics, watercolors, colored pencils, dimensional paint and it includes bookpaper circles and real lace.

All proceeds from this painting will go directly to a Sandy Hook Elementary Charity.

Auction Details:

This auction will run from Friday March 15th, 2013 until Monday March 18th, 2013. Shipping (anywhere worldwide) is free.  (The buyer is responsible for any duty/taxes/etc.)

How to bid:

1. Please, please please, place a bid (with a way to reach you) in the comments section (any amount is okay and I dread not having anyone making a bid for my painting!)  Do I hear $1?  ;-)

2. Bookmark this page so that you can easily check back to see if you've been outbid or let me know if you want me to email you if you've been outbid.

3. If you are the winning bid, I will contact you.

4.  I will not personally be collecting any money and payment will be made from you to any one of these Sandy Hook Elementary charities. 

https://newtown.uwwesternct.org/

http://newtownmemorialfund.org/

http://www.mainelovessandyhook.com/

5. Once you have made your donation to the Sandy Hook Elementary charity, you will send your proof of donation (a forwarded receipt) to me at: peggyapl (at) gmail (dot) com

6. After I have received your proof of donation (and you have given me your address), I will mail your painting out to you! 

As you make your bids, please keep in mind that all proceeds go to a worthy cause (and that you will make me very happy!)...

Happy 2nd Anniversary PPF and happy bidding, dear blog friends!  Of course, even if you don't bid, please leave a comment to let me know you've dropped by.  I am also linking this to Inspire Me Monday.

You are My Beloved

Visiting the Holy Land and renewing my baptismal vows with water from the River Jordan, where Jesus himself was baptized, continues to fill me with gratitude.  And as I looked back in my prayer journal, I saw this entry about Jesus' baptism, with a quotation from Saint John Chrysostom,

...Why did heaven open when Jesus Christ was baptized? To teach that the same thing invisibly happens at your own baptism: at that moment God calls you to your homeland in heaven and invites you to have nothing further in common with earth... If we do not now see the same signs nevertheless we receive the same graces of which these signs were the symbol.

Then a dove was seen descending... It would also teach each one of us that the holy Spirit comes down on our soul at the moment of baptism.  It no longer comes in visible form because we no longer need it to: faith is enough now...

...This dove also reminds us of an event we read about in the Old Testament: when the earth was inundated by the flood and the whole human race in danger of perishing, the dove appeared to announce the end of the disaster; it carried an olive branch bearing the good news of the restoration of peace in the world. Now all this was a prefiguration of of what was to come... When all was lost, deliverance and renewal came about. What formerly took place through the deluge of water now takes place today as if by a deluge of grace and mercy... It is no longer only one man that the dove calls to leave the ark to repopulate the earth; it draws all men to heaven. Instead of an olive branch, it brings to all humankind the dignity of adoption as children of God.

What an amazing gift the Lord wants to give each and every one of us, no exception.  Just as I shared in my previous post about the River Jordan, even when we are dirty and muddy, God calls us to be holy.  He wants us to be his children.  He wants us to hear him say, "You are my beloved!" Luke 3:22  Thank you, Lord!

Sharing this in Paint Party Friday, In the Studio Sneak Peek Friday and Faith Filled Friday!

Emmanuel, God With Us

Two years ago, I made this set of twenty five Artist Trading Cards for each day of December until Christmas.  It was a sort of Advent calendar based on the tradition of the Jesse tree.  Each ATC has a symbol (like Jesse tree symbols) for a bible character and story which can be read and reflected on for the day and the ATC put in it's place until the whole picture comes together on Christmas Day.

The Bible characters and stories and their symbols for each ATC, from top to bottom row, left to right,

Day 2. - God, Creation, Gen 1:1-2:3 - Tree 
Day 3. - Adam and Eve, The First Sin, Gen 2:4-3:24 - Tree with Fruit or Apple
Day 4. - Noah, The Flood, Gen 6:11-22, 7:17-8:12, 20-9:17 - Rainbow and dove
Day 5. - Abraham, The Promise, Gen 12:1-7, 15:1-6 - Field of Stars
Day 24. - Magi, Worship, Matt 2:1-12 - Star

Day 19. - Habakkuk, Waiting, Hab 1:1-2:1, 3:16-19 - Stone Watchtower
Day 7. - Jacob, Assurance of the Promise, Gen 27:41- 28:22 - Ladder
Day 22. - Mary, The Hope for a Future, Luke 1:26-38 - Mary
Day 20. - Nehemiah, Return and Rebuilding, Neh 1:1-2:8, 6:15-16, 13:10-22 - City Wall
Day 14. - Samuel, The Beginning of the Kingdom, 1 Sam 3:1-21, 7:1-8:22, 9:15-10:9 - Crown

Day 12. - Joshua, The Fall of Jericho, Josh 1:1-11, 6:1-20 - Ram's Horn Trumpet
Day 21. - John the Baptist, Repentance, Luke 1:57-80, 3:1-207:18-30 - Scallop Shell
Day 17. - Hezekiah, Faithfulness and Deliverance, 2 Kng 18:1-19:19, 32-37 - An Empty Tent
Day 25. - Jesus, Birth of the Messiah, Luke 2:1-20 - Jesus
Day 23. - Joseph, Trust, Matt 1:19-25 - Carpenter's Hammer

Day 6. - Isaac Offering of Isaac, Gen 22:1-19 - Ram
Day 9. - Moses God's Leadership, Exod 2:1-4:20 - Burning Bush
Day 8. - Joseph God's Providence, Gen 37, 39:1-50:21 - Coat
Day 18. - Jeremiah The Exile, Jer 1:4-10, 2:4-13, 7:1-15, 8:22-9:1-11 - Tears
Day 10. - Israelites Passover and Exodus, Exod 12:1-14:31 - Lamb

Day 1. - Introduction of the Jesse Tree, Isa 11:1-10 1 Sam 16:1-13 - Stump
Day 11. - God, Giving the Torah at Sinai, Exod 19:1-20:20 - Tablets of the Torah
Day 13. - Gideon, Unlikely Heroes, Judg 2:6-23, 6:1-6, 11-8:28 - Clay Water Pitcher
Day 16. - Elijah, The Threat of False Gods, 1 Kng 17:1-16, 18:17-46 - Stone Altar
Day 15. - David, A Shepherd for the People, 1 Sam 16:1-23-17:58, 2 Sam 5:1-5, 7:1-17 - Shepherd's Crook

We, too, have our own faith stories and are part of His story - Emmanuel, God with us.  Wishing all of you, my dear blog friends and visitors from PPF, Studio Sneak Peek, Faith Filled Friday and Inspire Me Monday, a very blessed Christmas season!

What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday: Back to a Mess

Ribbons, tape, scissors - I've been gift wrapping!  But I've also been trading ATCs at ATCs for ALL so my desk is also filled with ATCs I'm trying to finish.  Here is one of them...

Last weekend, I printed out some copies of a Madonna and Child to sell in a charity event and this one printed out in portrait orientation on landscape paper so her halo is cropped.  Anyone interested in a cropped print?  Let me know in your comment!

And for those of you who enjoy it, here is a page from my prayer journal...

This Advent season, we can reflect on the mystery of God's love for us.  As the beautiful song Emmanuel says "What are we that you have loved us so well?"

Look up the WOYWW list and take a peek at other desks and look for more paintings at Paint Party Friday!

Paint Party Friday: Artist Trading Cards

Last Saturday, my sister Patsy and I had a paint party (otherwise called a workshop)!  We introduced some ladies to the fun of making Artist Trading Cards (ATCs).  Here are some of the cards I started then (they aren't finished)...

We cut our faces from magazines and painted over the faces.  Do you recognize which one was Jennifer Lopez?

From a page of my daily prayer journal, an illustration for Matthew 11:28, for those of you who are starting to feel the busyness of the coming Christmas season.

Join other artists in Paint Party Friday!

(JLo is on the upper right)

Paint Party Friday: Madonna

Happy Paint Party Friday, my dear blog friends! Here's a Studio Sneak Peek at my latest Madonna painting.   She is one of my favorite subjects in my art because she is an example to me in the way she said "Yes" to God.  Have a Faith Filled Friday!

I'm giving away one of my artist trading cards.  Please let me know in a comment  in my previous post if you would like a chance to join my giveaway! I will pick a winner by November 20.

Orange Day!

It's Orange Day every 25th of the month.  Please wear orange if you would like to participate in the UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign, raising awareness about the issue of violence against women and girls.  I'm wearing orange today!

Linking up my orange painting with Paint Party Friday.

What's on Your Workdesk Wednesday: Paints

Dear blog friends, thank you so much for dropping by!  I have been quite busy and haven't been able to go visiting so please forgive me if I haven't been able to return your visits.  I will try to do better this week.  I still haven't had the time to tidy up and the pile on my desk is even higher, this time with my paint tray on top.

Here is the Mother and Child I was working on.  I haven't decided if it is finished or if I will go back to it later.  Meanwhile, I started on another painting, just so that I would have something new on my desk to show you...

There's still time for you to join my giveaway.  If you want a chance to win one of my original paintings, please leave a comment in my giveaway post.  

Drop by Julia's Stamping Ground and get a peek at more desks!

Edit:  And because it is now Friday and I didn't have time to make a new post, I thought I'd share my paintings here with blog friends from Paint Party Friday and Studio Sneak Peek as well!

WIP for PPF

Just a quick post to share with you my WIP.  I started out with a piece of Illustration board, glued on some scraps of music sheet images and scrap papers, did some stamping and covered it with a light layer of gesso. And if you have been visiting me for some time, you'll know that the mother and child theme is one of my favorites.

Sharing this with blog friends in Paint Party Friday and Studio Sneak Peek!