Donna B Miller

Still Shining

In her book, The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron talks a lot about synchronicity or serendipity. She says that when you put your goals, you vision, your dreams out for the world to see and hear, the world will often respond. Well, I had a delightfully serendipitous moment this week when saw the new Shine from Within collaboration at Scrapbookgraphics.

You may remember that my One Little Word for the year is shine. I want to be a brighter, warmer, and more energetic person for 2013. I think about the word every morning when I journal; I've been reading about the topic (loving Marta Monahan's The Courage to be Brilliant), and I'm seeing the theme pop up time and time again in my art.

Well, last week was my birthday, so I have had a little extra cash in my pocket. I popped over to Scrapbookgraphics to see what was new and discovered a whole collection of papers and elements designed around my One Little Word. And it was created by three of my favorite designers, Tangie Baxter, Rosey Posey and Captivated Visions. I felt as if they had created the collection just for me. Needless to say, I wasted no time in spending my birthday dollars.

I have had so much fun playing with the Shine from Within collection. I have already completed two art journaling pages, and will probably do more before the week is out. I love serendipity. 

Valentine Junque

As the end of January nears, our thoughts turn toward hearts and Valentines and all things pink. It's just all so sweet (she says, rolling her eyes). No, I am not a pink kind of girl. You won't find the color in my home or in my closet. That said, there was something about the new Valentine Junque kit from Tumble Fish Studios that spoke to me. 

Maybe it's those charming faces, or perhaps it's those bright splashes of red and purple. In any case, I couldn't wait to create with it.

Here's an ATC, featuring a Valentine's vamp. Doesn't she just look like she's thinking, "I may be kissing him, but I'm thinking of you?"

And then, there's an art journling page featuring the lyrics to Bobby Vinton's song, "Love Me Forever."

She really is sweet. Maybe Tumble Fish will turn me into a pink girl after all. 

 

I'm Going to Let it Shine

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine! Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!

My favorite song from Sunday School still makes me smile, still makes we want to be a better person than I am. A warmer person, a brighter person, a more generous person.

So, humming this song while I fixed my morning coffee, I decided that SHINE would be my one little word for 2013, the one word that I will reflect on throughout the year and that I will let guide my actions as I strive to live a better life.

I've participated in Ali Edward's One Little Word project for the past four years, opting to choose one word that represents my goals for the year instead of making resolutions that I soon break. It has amazed me how powerful the action of choosing and implementing just one little word into my daily routine can be.

And, because this word has become my focus, it's showing up in a lot of my art pages, sometimes intentionally and sometimes sub-consciously. I've noticed that my work is becoming brighter and sunnier, too.

Here's a letter I did as an assignment for Tangie Baxter's wonderful Art Journal Caravan, a year-long workshop filled with prompts, tutorials, and community. I have been a part of the caravan since it started back in 2010 and can honestly say that of all the workshops and tutorials I've purchased, this is absolutely the best use of my crafting dollars. You can check out a worskhop sampler here.

Credits: Tangie Baxter's Collage Fodder Edges and Being Me (flower), Tumble Fish Studio Unpredictable (lightbulb), Crazy Legs (legs and boots), Your Zetti Self (arms); Holliewood Art Journaling 3 (paint), Deviant Scraps Midnight Reverie (background and floor) and Rucola Designs Morning Bird (alpha).

I did another shine page for the January Art Journaling challenge at Deviant Scrap. The prompt was to make a resolution to try something new in 2013.

Credits: Tumble Fish Studio's Lowbrow and Journaling Pieces kits, available at Deviant Scrap.

One of the fun things about this challenge is that you get a free gift, just for participating. Don't you just love that Zetti dress?