I'm a lucky girl!

This is the beach bag that Michelle and Alex bought for me 

a few years ago but, being that I rarely get to the beach, 

I find it perfect for holding my crochet projects. 

I love it because it's nice and spacious!

Well, a few weeks ago, I received a lovely gift by mail

from Tracy at Pranalight. 

The colours are so ME!!

 Here it is rolled out. 

Isn't it lovely?!!

It's a crochet hook holder/roll 

and I LOVE IT! 

It's beautifully sewn and just perfect!!

It could be used for pens or brushes too I guess but 

I was in dire need of a crochet hook holder because, up until now, 

I'd been using a small plastic bag to hold my crochet hooks.

How on Earth did Tracy know this was just what I needed?

My crochet hooks are now dressed in style and LOVIN' it! 

Thanks so much for such a lovely and thoughtful gift, Tracy.
It made my day!

By the way, Tracy creates such beautiful things, and
you can check out her online store HERE.

I am also the proud owner of one of her necklaces too which
I bought a couple of years back.

I've been quite busy this past week but will fill you in more in the next post.

~ Love, light and peace ~

An apology to Eden from guilt-ridden me

There I was browsing through the photo files on my computer this morning when I paused to admire a pic I had taken of a Giveaway I had won on Eden's blog a few months ago.   Wait a minute...I had thanked Eden privately when I received the gift but I suddenly realised that I had unintentionally neglected to post about it on my blog.  I'm so sorry, Eden.....I know you never expected a shout-out but I always like to acknowledge such generosity on my blog and I felt terrible that I had let this one slip past me.   So, I guess it's better late than never, right?

Eden's blog is so full of colour and inspiration and well worth a visit. As a matter of fact, I will be popping over there as soon as I've finished this post.

From the giveaway, I won a beautifully designed 'word' of my choosing.
I chose the word - JOY - isn't it gorgeous?!!

Eden was so generous as to enclose an extra word which
suited me perfectly - ART!

I love them and keep them both pinned on the inspiration board in my bedroom so that...

...each morning when I wake, I am reminded to keep joy and art alive in my life.

THANK YOU, EDEN!!!

~ love, light and peace ~

'pay it forward' gift received.....plus a step by step painting

A couple of days ago, Shelly let me know that she received my Pay It Forward gift so I can post a pic now.

Shelly mentioned that her favourite flower was an orange hibiscus so that's what I painted for her.

I took some step by step pics to show the process of painting the piece.

CLICK ON ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Step One - I blocked in the base colour and did some line/vein work

Step Two - I painted in the throat of the hibiscus

Step Three - I blocked in the stamen and applied first layer of background colour

Step Four (final step) - I finished details of the stamen and applied final coat to background.

Orange Hibiscus on 5"x5" gallery-wrapped canvas using Matisse acrylics

© Serena Lewis

Please stay tuned over the coming days as I have some exciting news to share with you all.

~ love, light and peace ~

Pay It Forward gift

I mailed this 'Pay It Forward' gift off to Ben yesterday. Ben is a writer so I thought the handmade notebook and (purchased) pen would come in handy for him. As Ben likens himself to a modern day Plato, I painted a Plato statue on the front of a CD wallet. I figure he can use the wallet to store a hardcopy of his book and other computer data. I hope he likes what I have sent and makes good use of it.

I should have an update on the doggy in a blanket painting for you tomorrow. I've had an asthmatic cough bugggin me all week so it's been a little hard to focus on painting.

I received my Pay It Forward gift from Ro!!!

Am I lucky or what??!!! Thanks so much, Ro!!

For now, the crystal hanger is proudly displayed on the frame of my visionboard and the Herbal teas are sitting on the kitchen shelf beckoning my tastebuds. Romona has an uncanny knack for sending me just what I need. Only a week or so ago, I made a mental note to myself that I badly needed to get myself some decent sewing needles as I didn't have a good variety at all.
As you can see, with the card open, that Ro's gift provided them for me. Cool, huh?

I finished one of my 'Pay It Forward' gifts this past week and will be sending it to Anita on Monday or Tuesday. I will post a pic once she has received it.