The Lovely Cottages and Gardens of Lucy Grossmith

I'm lovin' these delightful paintings by Lucy Grossmith of Heart-to-Art!

They're light and fresh and airy! Every detail is a pleasant surprise.

Her gardens, cottages and landscapes embrace the seasons

and emit a peaceful mood of contentment.

Enjoy Lucy's lovely works of art!

Visit Lucy's website to see more!

Images used with direct permission from Lucy Grossmith.

Vintage Travel Posters ~ Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

adobeinnatcascade

Whether by train, plane, or bus, as these vintage travel posters advertise,

(or even by car!), each and every American history buff should travel to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania!

Its many historical attractions, including Independence Hall,

the Constitution Center, the Betsy Ross House, and the Liberty Bell,

draw folks in from across the country to find out just why Philly is known as

"The Cradle of Liberty" and "The Birthplace of America!"

And yes, I'll admit I'm partial to this great city
in my very own neck of the woods.
Come visit Philadelphia and see for yourself! 

airline artlover

invaluable

dyn1.heritagestatic.com

remodelaholic

google

image.artfact

You might be interested in my other posts on Vintage Travel Posters:

Florida 

Washington, DC

Pittsburgh, PA

and also

Vintage Travel Posters by BLivingstons

Stay tuned! I'll soon be publishing some Philadelphia

tourism posts as I venture into the city!

Handcrafted Blankets & Pillows by Fish Eye Sisters

Jen Manuell, of Fish Eye Sisters, has a good thing going.

The color combinations in her camp blankets are so striking! 

Based in Canada, Jen hand-dyes the wool fabric she uses.

Can't you just feel the cozy warmth?

I was so bowled over by Jen's crafty lineage, I had to share this portion of her bio:

(emphasis mine)

"Jen comes from a long line of talented craftspeople and artisans – 

on both sides of her family. A fourth generation fine craft fibre artist, 

Jen's paternal great-grandfather was a tailor in England, and 

maternal great-grandmother a rug hooker and handspinner; 

her Nanna smocked dresses for her as a girl, and 

her Gramma (Muriel R. Smith) was a rug hooker and painter. 

Jen's mother (Mary Manuell) is best known for her handspinning and weaving."

Now, that's an impressive group of ancestors 
from whom she draws talent & inspiration!

Jen knits, sews, quilts, does rug hooking, embroidery, beading, and applique work.

Hats off to you, Jen! You're a multi-talented artist with tons of creativity!

The blanket above is called Georgian Bay.

I'm excited to show off my favorite Fish Eye Sisters' creations!

Harvest Time

Driftwood & Sand

Black Beauty

In addition, Jen makes fabulous pillows,...

Half and Half, Construction Paper II

Elaine's Steps

...and table mats.

Golden Glow

Where to find Fish Eye Sisters:

Website

Facebook

Instagram

Images used with direct permission from Jen.

Guido Cecere's Curious Collections

Guido Cecere is an accomplished photographer and art director from Italy.

He gathers collections of oddities, then artfully arranges them for photographs.

Guido has created over 60 calendars of his photographs.

His choices of subject matter are fascinating!

I've rounded up some examples of his work from Pinterest.

Take your time looking at the unique items in each one.

The Fabulous Gift Wrap of Norman's Printery

Norman's Printery designs and prints gift wrap so terrific,
it's like wrapping your gift in a piece of art!
Now, that's how to make a special gift for a special occasion, extra-special!
It makes the giving exceptionally memorable, and says,
 "You're so worth the additional effort to give this gift real pizzazz!"

Norman Cordes started the business in Wyckoff, New Jersey in 1974.
Since then, his son Mark and grandsons Brian & Cliff have joined the team.
Their designs are unique and fun!
Check out my favorites, among many!

Plus, there are cards, twine & cool gift tags.

Much more of Norman's Printery here:

Website

Etsy

Facebook

Twitter

Images used with direct permission from Cliff Cordes.

Corrie ten Boom's Embroidery: Despite the Knots & Tangles in Life, by Faith, There is a Crown

Corrie ten Boom used this fabric when she taught about
trusting God's perspective. We can't see what He sees.

What a beautiful, tangible illustration of God's presence in our lives!
The image on the right, as those of us who do stitchery know,
shows the underside of a project. It's where all the knotted thread ends up,
very often in a tangled, chaotic mess!
On the flip side, however, we see the project as it is intended to be;
a beautiful crown, embroidered with love and tender care.

Although~ 
We can't seem to get our acts together.
We're a bunched up, stressed out, tangled mess.
We procrastinate. We choose the easy way.
We stand back instead of standing tall.
We remain comfortable instead of reaching beyond.
We stay silent instead of speaking up or speaking out.
We keep still instead of stepping forward.

We're distracted, disgruntled, disinclined.
We run away instead of running toward.
 We find excuses not to read His Word.
We fret and worry instead of bowing in prayer.
Our trust is in men and not in God.
We look away when we should look to Him.
We get tripped up and stumble.
We fall. We fail.

And yet~
Through our faith in Jesus Christ, we are royalty.
He is a God of forgiveness, of mercy, of love.

We are daughters of a king.

Not just any king.

The King of Kings.

He sees the crown.
"The crown of righteousness..." 2 Timothy 4:8
"The crown of life..." James 1:12
"The crown of glory..." 1 Peter 5:4

Know that in the midst of our knotted, tangled lives, the Lord is always there, 
waiting for us to come to Him to receive our crowns.

With thanks to tenboom.org for sharing a photo of this embroidery, 
which is hanging at the Corrie ten Boom Museum in Haarlem, Holland.

Lovin' Lisa VanMeter's Prints!

Lisa VanMeter, of Indianapolis, Indiana, creates spectacular handmade prints.

She does original work with linocut, woodblock and screen printing.

The processes involved are detailed and time consuming,

but the beautiful results are well worth every minute!

I'm showing off some of my favorites. Enjoy!

The pieces above and below are screenprints: Fall Marigolds and Aspen Forest.

The following two are woodblock prints: Sunflower Blooms and Beachcomber.

These are linocut prints, each with a photo in process.
Aspens

Orange Cosmos

Test the Waters

Find more of Lisa's work here:
Website
Etsy


Images used with direct permission from Lisa VanMeter.