Discovery of a New Artist: Beth Rowley

I love finding new artists. This girl is incredible. I knew as soon as I heard the song "So Sublime" I needed her album!

It really is a wonderful life.....

I watch this movie every year. Take time to think about all of the wonderful things that this year has brought!

Imogen Heap is Uhhh-Mazing

Where will you be 5 years from now....???

Where will you be FIVE years from today?

My friend Emily recently told me about this book. It is on my Christmas list and can't wait to start reading it!

5 years seems so far away, but really it's not long at all. Check it out and Be Inspired...I was!

100 ideas

a work in progress. 1. Go for a walk. Draw or list things you find on the the sidewalk. 2. Write a letter to yourself in the future. 3. Buy something inexpensive as a symbol for your need to create, (new pen, a tea cup, journal). Use it everyday. 4. Draw your dinner. 5. Find a piece of poetry you respond to. Rewrite it and glue it into your journal. 6. Glue an envelope into your journal. For one week collect items you find on the street. 7. Expose yourself to a new artist, (go to a gallery, or in a book.) Write about what moves you about it. 8. Find a photo of a person you do not know. Write a brief bio about them. 9. Spend a day drawing only red things. 10. Draw your bike. 11. Make a list of everything you buy in the next week. 12. Make a map of everywhere you went in one day. 13. Draw a map of the creases on your hand, (knuckles, palm) 14. Trace your footsteps with chalk. 15. Record an overheard conversation. 16. Trace the path of the moon in relation to where you live. 17. Go to a paint store. Collect 'chips' of all your favorite colors. 18. Draw your favorite tree. 19. Take 15 minutes to eat an orange. 20. Write a haiku. 21. Hang upside down for five minutes. 22. Hang found objects from tree branches. 23. Make a puppet. 24. Create an outdoor room from things you find in nature. 25. Read a book in one day. 26. Illustrate your grocery list. 27. Read a story out loud to a friend. 28. Write a letter to someone you admire. 29. Study the face of someone you do not like. 30. Make a meal based on a color theme. (i.e. all white). 31. Creat a museum of very small things. 32. List the smells in your neighborhood. 33. List 100 uses for a tin can. 34. Fill an entire page in your jounral with small circles. Color them in. 35. Give away something you love. 36. Choose an object, draw the side you can't see. 37. List all of the places you've ever lived. 38. Describe your favourite room in detail. 39. Write about your relationship with your washing machine. 40. Draw all of the things in your purse/bag. 41. Make a mini book based on the theme, "my grocery list". 42. Create a character based on someone you know. Write a list of personality traits. 43. Recall your favorite childhood game. 44. Put postcards of art pieces/painting on the inside of your kitchen cupboard doors, so you can see them everyday (but not become deaf to them.) 45. Draw the same object every day for a week. 46. Write in your journal using a different medium (brush & ink, charcoal, old typewriter, crayons, fat markers. 47. Draw the individual items of your favorite outfit. 48. Make a useful item using only paper & tape. 49. Research a celebration or ritual from another culture. 50. Do a temporary art installation using a pad of post it notes & a pen. 51. Draw a map of your favorite sitting spots in your town/city. (photocopy it and give it to someone you like.) 52. Record all of the sounds you hear in the course of one hours. 53. Using a grid, collect various textures from magazine and play them off of each other. 54. Cut out all media for one day. Write about the effects. 55. Make pencil rubbings of six different surfaces. 56. Draw your garbage. 57. Do a morning collage. 58. List your ten most important things, (not including animals or people.) 59. List ten things you would like to do every day. 60. Glue a photo of yourself as a child into your journal. 61. Trasform some garbage. 62. Write an entry in your journal in really LARGE letters. 63. Collect some 'flat' things in nature (leaves, flowers). Glue or tape them into your journal. 64. Physically alter a page. (i.e. cut a hole, pour tea on it, burn it, fold it, etc.) 65. Find several color combinations you respond to in public. Document them using swatches, write where you found them. 66. Write a journal entry describing something "secret". Cut it up into several pieces and glue them back in scrambled. 67. Record descriptions or definitions of subjects or words you are interested in, found in encyclopedias or dictionaries. 68. Draw the outline of an object without looking at the page. (contour drawing). 69. What were you thinking just now? write it down. 70. Do nothing. 71. Write a list of ten things you could to do. Do the last thing on the list. 72. Create an image using dots. 73. Do 3 drawings at different speeds. 74. Put a small object in your left pocket (or in a bag), Put your left hand in the pocket. Draw it by feel. 75. Create a graph documenting or measuring something in your life. 76. Draw thesun. 77. Create instructions for a simple everyday task. 78. Make prints using food. (fruit and vegetables cut in half, fish, etc.) 79. Find a photo. Alter it by drawing over it. 80. Write a letter using an unconventional medium. 81. Draw one object for twenty minutes. 82. Combine two activities that have not been combined before. 83. Write about your day in an encyclopedic fashion. (i.e. organize by subject.) 84. Write a list of all the things you do to escape. 85. Cut a random shape out of several layers of a magazine. Make a collage out of the results. 86. Write an entry in code. 87. Make a painting using tools from the bathroom. 88. Work with a medium that is subtractive. 89. Write about or draw some of the doors in your life. 90. Make a postcard that has some kind of activity on it. 91. Divise a journal entry using "layers". 92. Divise an entry using "layers". 93. Write your own definition of one of the following concepts, sitting, waiting, sleeping (without using the actual word.) 94. List 10 of your habits. 95. Illustrate the concept of "simplicity". 100 ideas pdf

Growing Up.....

Growing Up from Jr.canest on Vimeo.

Chip Ingram

I wanted to post a short blogget about one of my favorite Christian radio speakers. His name is Chip Ingram and I have truly been blessed by his ministry. Each day you can listen to a 30 minute podcast that downloads through I-Tunes at no cost. He speaks to me every time. I love listening to him early in the morning. You can check him out at www.lote.org. Hope you are blessed, just as I have been!

Love to all!

The Noticer

Last nite was Chick-Fil-A and Bookstore night with my husband. I love a good bookstore night. As I was browsing the New Bestsellers section, I happened upon a book called, The Noticer. It immediatly got my attention. I am really wanting to read this book about noticing influential people in your life. I found a clip on youtube that gives you a deeper look into this intriguing story. Take a Look!

Balancing Acts

We hear the word balance so often...well-balanced diet, balanced literacy, balanced check-books.
We all want balance in our lives. We want to feel as if we are prioritizing our life accordingly.Balance is an essential component of happiness. When all aspects of your life are in harmony, it puts your mind, body, and spirit on an equal level. The definition of balance will be completely different from person to person. It is up to you to find the balance that is right for you. However, living simple will always help you create balance in your life.

This week I am setting out to find ways I can feel balanced in life and still enjoy all my favorite things.
The Plan:

I am going to take 6-7 rocks and write on each of them an area of my life I need to feel more balance...ex- spiritual...financial...ec....these rocks will go on the top of the tower....as I complete a task that is on the top I will take the rock off and place it aside...Hopefully by the end of the week my pile will be gone and I will feel a little more balanced. Any ideas on how you keep your life balanced????

Namaste

Sunday Song- Let the Love by Sandrine

I posted this in an old blog about a year ago and just rediscovered it today. The song is Let the Love, written by Sandrine. It is just right for a Sunday night. Good night to all and happy days ahead!

Fresh

Fresh-: having its original qualities unimpaired: as (1): full of or renewed in vigor : refreshed (2): not stale, sour, or decayed (3): not faded (4): not worn or rumpled b: not altered by processing

What a great word. I like saying it.
These are 10 things that make me feel fresh

1. lemons
2. morning showers
3. Rain chewing gum
4. Acoustic guitar
5. watermelon
6. kissing
7. porch sitting
8. watering my flowers
9. a new white tee
10. the color green

Hope your Sunday is sweet, satisfying, and so very Fresh.

Two Birds On a Wire....

Regina Spektor's new album "Far" is absolutely amazing. And as "Far" as I'm concerned, the song "Birds" is deserving of some listening! Check it out!

Back to Blogging

It has officially been too long since i added a post to my blog. my brain is wedding fried and I am so ready to start blogging about everything and nothing again. so...hi blog....i'm back!

we were featured on ivkweddings.wordpress.com....we love KRISTY!

here is part of it...
Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite holidays of the year! Whether you’re in a loving relationship or a savvy and ultra-flirty single gal like myself…it’s a great way to pamper yourself and those you love! Who doesn’t enjoy a nice dinner, a lovely massage, and oh the chocolate that is just so yummy you can’t resist it! Recently I had the honor of meeting the “2008 Most Stunning Couple of the Year” for an engagement shoot in Mount Holly, NC. Okay, so they aren’t really a title holder of the best couple of anything award, but they are stunning, kept me laughing the entire time, and absolutely in love. Enjoy a fun photoshoot held with these two love birds and Happy Valentine’s Day from me to you here at IVK Weddings. PS- If you have any extra chocolate left over I’ll substitute it for a free photoshoot…okay, maybe not, but it sure is a tempting offer isnt it




Be sure to visit ivkwedding.wordpress.com! Kristy does wonderful work. Check it out!

new website obsession

discovered wordle.net.
you can combine any combination of words and it will randomly make a collage of all the words you would like. It is very cool and I can't wait to incorporate this collage into my bathroom!!!
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alt="Wordle: renew"
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little things

the little things....the little moments.....they aren't little.

i saw this simple quote on a blog and found it fascinatiing.
So true.
Here are a few simple things that seemingly make a Big difference in my life.

1. a sunday in church
2. making breakfast
3. cup of java
4. discovery of a new artist
5. a peaceful friday nite with my fiancee
6. eclectic fabric
7. a new black shirt
8. seeing spring colors in stores in January

that's all for now....more to come later!