Saturday, January 29, 2011

Link to my Etsy shop..............

Hey friends, here's a link to my new Etsy shop! Enjoy!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/carolynspaintedladys?ga_search_query=carolynspaintedladys&ga_search_type=seller_usernames

Whew, now that that's done I can go back an enjoy my grandchildren!


I picked up Molly this morning. We made cupcakes and a yummy dip for tomorrow night's home fellowship, then we made crafts. Luke arrived this afternoon and has been playing with Grandpa while I've been playing on here. It's a lot of fun, but a lot of brain power for me! Now it's time to relax....aaaaaaaaah. Molly and Luke are spending tonight and tomorrow night. I'm so happy! Blessings!
PS I decided to try ONE more time to add the link to my Etsy shop on the side bar (is that what you call it?) of my blog.  I'm there right along with "Where Women Create" now!  Yay!  Good night all!

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Exciting news................

I have exciting news!  I'm an official seller on Etsy!  My girlfriend, (I'd tell you her name but she may want to remain anonymous), came over yesterday and spent 3 hours getting me all set up.  She's such a jewel!!!!!!!!!  Thank you!!!!!!!!  She helped me get the "shop" going with 2 items, then I put 3 more on there today ALL BY MYSELF!  Yay!  Here's a sampler...............

 



What young lady wouldn't love this sweet and lovely Princess wall art hanging in her bedroom?  She is approximately 3  1/2' tall from the top of her glittery, ivory organza bow to the bottom of her tulle skirt.  She is painted with ivory acrylic on the back and hips, and the bodice is decorated with an ivory fabric that has a white and silver floral design. It is embellished with fancy white and silver dimensional chipboard, and  little faux pearls.  Around the bodice is white ruffled velvet ribbon. Across the front of her bodice is a sash that says "princess" in glitzy bling. Her skirt is made of ivory tulle, glittery ivory organza ribbon, and light tan double face ribbon.  Around her waist is light tan double face ribbon, and white and silver metalic ribbon with a bow.





This unique, hand-crafted, hand-painted adorable jewelry and accessory display mannequin would add just the right touch to any boutique or store countertop. She would look adorable modeling any scarf, or necklace. She would also add a special touch to any dresser or vanity in your home. This lovely little lady is mult-purpose. Not only is she a cute model, but she has a mirrored face, perfect for customers to check themselves out in a trendy new pair of sunglasses, or for the lady of the house to use while putting on makeup. She is 26 1/2" tall, by 12" shoulder to shoulder. Her base color is white and her hair is blonde with highlights. Her torso is dressed in a bright hot pink and white polka dot print, trimmed with white ruffled ribbon down her sides, and a pink and hot pink polka dot ribbon around her neck.

Well, that's my exciting new for today!  Off to make Jim and Molly dinner, then it's off to church!  God bless your evening!

 

Monday, January 24, 2011

Prayer...........

Do you ever have one of "those" days?  That's the kind of day I had today.  Nothing really went wrong, I just felt blah.  I woke up not feeling all that great, then it rained all day which didn't help my mood any.  I was caught up in all kinds of "feelings."  I had a battle going on in my mind and all I wanted to do was crawl in bed and go to sleep......but the sheets were in the dryer.  I decided to take a peek at my e-mail and mentally check out for a while.  The following prayer was in my inbox.  It came at the perfect time and says exactly what I needed to hear...............

Prayer of Help, Protection, and Deliverance

Lord, I thank you that You are a Warrior, and You never know defeat; You are a Conqueror and every enemy is under Your feet; You are a Deliverer and every foe will sound retreat.

I thank You, O God, that you preserve me. I take refuge in You and I am safe from every cloud of darkness, from every voice of condemnation, from every thought of defeat and despair. I put my trust and confidence in You alone. I lean on You, for You will not falter or faint. You are my support and keep me from falling. You are my high tower and keep me from fleeing. You are my confidence and keep me from fearing.

Thank You, God, for being with me, beside me, behind me, and before me. You are always at my right hand and keep me secure. What joy it brings to know that when I call to You, You answer me. You are my perfect refuge from every storm and battle.

Thank You for being my sure place, and for providing me with the safe place under the shadow of Your wings. Lord, arise and rescue me from all evil, from every lie, and from every bondage. I stand upon You as my rock, I abide in You as my fortress. You are my covering. You are my shield. Thank You for saving me and for rescuing me from my enemies. You always hear my cry for help.

Scriptures: Psalm 16, 17, 18

I'm so glad I know a God that cares for me and meets my every need.  He always speaks to me, even when I don't have my listening ears on!

I pray that you have a restful evening.  I know I will NOW!


Sunday, January 23, 2011

Young Ladies Figural Wall Hanging.........

Two posts in one day!  I guess I'm making up for lost time.  I wanted to share a couple of new Ladies with you. 


This wall hanging would look perfect in any young lady's bedroom.  She is approximately 3  1/2' tall from the top of her black satin bow to the bottom of her tulle skirt.  She is painted with white acrylic on the back and hips, and the bodice is decorated with black and white striped paper, dimensional chipboard, and gemstones.  Her skirt is made of blue tulle, and black and light blue double face ribbon.



The second wall hanging is also approximately 3  1/2' tall from the top of her hot pink organza and black decorative ribbon bow, to the bottom of her tulle skirt.  She is painted with pink acrylic on the back and hips, and the bodice is decorated with a black fabric with flowers and butterflies, aqua colored double face satin ribbon, and a flower button.  Her skirt is made of pink tulle, aqua double faced ribbon, and hot pink organza ribbon.  There is a black ribbon with white decorative daisies on that surrounds her waist. 

I have one more Lady to share with you, but I think I'll save her for tomorrow's post.  Sweet dreams!





Magazine Lady.........

No, I didn't design a Magazine Lady.........now that would be funny.  Actually, I am a magazine lady, at least that's what some people call me.  When I'm not "working" at designing ladies I'm putting out the latest and greatest magazines as a magazine merchandiser.  It's hard work, but I'm thankful for the job.  Not only am I thankful because it's difficult to find a job these days, but I'm also thankful because my job has introduced me to hundreds of women that have inspired me to follow my dream and be an artist.  If I were not a magazine merchandiser I may never have met all of the talented women featured in my favorite magazine, "Where Women Create."  From the moment my eyes fell upon this beautiful magazine I was "in love!"  The magazine features women and their creative work spaces.  With every article I read I thought, "This is what I want to do."  It went from "This is what I want to do" to "This is what I'm GOING to do!"  And the rest is history in the making.   This has been the "up" side to magazine merchandising.

Now for the "down" side........and actually, it's not really a down side, it's the reality side.  Week after week I look at the covers of the magazines I put out and think of all the women that will look at them and think, "I'll never look like that," or "I want to look like that," or maybe, "I'll do ANYTHING to look like that!"  And then I'm sure there are women that think, "I sure don't want my husband (or boyfriend) looking AT that!"  How do we escape the trap of not measuring up?  It's not easy!  For me, knowing that I have a heavenly Father that loves me like no other, and a Creator that made me just like I am, makes all the difference in the world.  I have not "arrived," it's a journey, but the more time I spend looking into the face of my Jesus, the more I like the face I see when I look into the mirror.

While I walk on the treadmill I like to listen to a CD by Mandisa.  I find her music empowering.  I would like to share the words to one of the songs with you.  This is from my heart to yours.  I pray that it ministers to you as it has to me.

The Definition of Me

Everybody's got an opinion of what they want me to be
Everybody's got a condition that I may never meet

So tired of looking in the mirror, it always always says the same thing
I want to be about something different, something more than the mirror can see

Like joy, peace, alive in me
When it comes to my identity

I want the love, I want the light, I want the beauty on the inside
I want the One that you can't see to be the definition of me
More than the face, more than the girl, more than the voice, more than the world
I want the truth that I believe to be the definition of me

Pretty is cool for a minute, but it always fades away
Trends are hot for a second, they'll be gone the very next day
So before you get lost in the moment, let's get one thing clear
Only love will last forever, that's the reason that we're here

It's up to you 'cause everybody's looking
Who do you want them to see?

I want the love, I want the light, I want the beauty on the inside
I want the One that you can't see to be the definition of me
More than the face, more than the girl, more than the voice, more than the world
I want the truth that I believe to be the definition of me

This past Friday we had a very special guest come and speak to the students at our school.  She is the reigning Mrs. Washington.  The students were touched by her testimony, but mostly by the warmth and love that she extended to them.  She is definitely beautiful on the outside, but she is defined by her inner beauty which far exceeds what the eye can see.  I'm sure her life will impact many, I know it did our Molly.



Sunday blessings to you all!  I've been painting away and will post pictures either later on today or tomorrow.



Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Photo shoot.........

Over the weekend Jim and I took some photo's of the Ladies.  There is one that you haven't met yet and I would like to introduce you to her.


This Lady of reflection is a shelf sitter, perfect for displaying necklaces, or scarves.  Want to see how you look in that beautiful necklace?  Then simply look into her lovely mirrored face. 

We had fun experimenting with different effects on our photo's.  Here are a few...........


This last one is fun.  I took it on my dining room table.  It's one Lady looking at her reflection in the other Lady's face.


Off to make dinner!  Have a wonderful evening!


Monday, January 17, 2011

Words to live by........


The words of the LORD are pure words. Psalm 12:6 KJV

God’s words are:

Pure words, let them enrich you;
Clean words, let them wash you;
Holy words, let them sanctify you;
Wise words, let them instruct you;
Healthy words, let them feed you;
Powerful words, let them change you;
True words, let them assure you;
Righteous words, let them guide you;
Healing words, let them strengthen you;
Tender words, let them comfort you;
Sure words, let them establish you;
Living words, let them nurture you;
Sweet words, let them delight you.

And with those words I'm going to call it a night. 
May you have a restful sleep tonight!  God bless!









Sunday, January 16, 2011

Blessed Sunday

Sunday is one of my favorite days because we go to church! 


What a blessing it is to live in a free country where we can worship our God and hear from His Word.  Many, many years ago my husband, Jim, and I had the privilege of going to China where we attended the underground church, and met those that had spent years in prison for their faith.  It was an overwhelming and eye-opening experience.  How often I take my freedom for granted.  Thank you to all of the men and women that risk their lives on a daily basis to keep our land free! 

And thank you, Jesus, for setting this child of yours free!  Matthew 18:1-5 says, ".....the disciples came to Jesus, saying, 'Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?'  Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.'"


May your day of rest be blessed!!!!!!!!!!






Saturday, January 15, 2011

New Ladies!

It's been a wonderful day and it's just about time to call it a night......at least here in Blog land.   But before I do I want to introduce you to a couple more or my ladies.  The first one is a "Lady of Reflection."  She is an adorable handheld mirror.  No more excuses for bedhead! 






My "Lady of Reflection" is painted in a soothing shade of aqua blue, and embellished with cream and white paper daisies.  The daisies were then topped with an aqua blue gemstone.  The colors sure do put me in the mood for Spring!

The next lady I'd like you to meet is a "Welcome Lady."  She's the perfect Lady to greet customers at any store door.  She can say "Hello!" or announce a SALE.






This "Welcome Lady" has a skirt painted in sky blue acrylic, and is embellished with red, white and black floral accents.  Her blouse, the upper half of her body, is painted with chalkboard paint.  I painted the words on this particular Lady so that they would clearly stand out in the photos, but a store owner can use chalk and write whatever they would like. 

It's off to grill a chicken breast and make a salad for dinner, then I'm going to relax and begin to read the book I bought today on blogging.  Look out world!!!!!

Sweet dreams....................



         

Morning Scripture


I love the Word of God, and it is important for me to start the day with it.   I wish that I could say that I'm faithful each and every day to dive in, but there are some days that I don't.  Still God is there waiting to spend time with me.  I'm the one that misses out!  Here is one of the passages I read this morning.  I often deal with fear in my life, I'm a work in progress.  This is what He spoke to me this morning.

"Whenever I am afraid I will trust in You.
In God (I will praise His Word),
In God I have put my trust; I will not fear.
What can flesh do to me?"
Psalm 56:3&4

May the Lord bless you day!  Until later......................



Friday, January 14, 2011

I did it by myself!!!!!!!



One of the things my 4 year old grandson loves to say is, "I do it by myself!"  Oh, to have that kind of determination as I try new things!   Sometimes I do, like today for example, I was determined to add some gadgets to my blog without calling my daughter and bugging her.  Well, quess what?  I did it ALL by myself!  Yay for me!  I added a couple of my favorite websites for you to enjoy..........so ENJOY!  For me it's time for bed.  Tomorrow I'm off to help my friend Pam to decorate "her" shop for Valentine's Day.  I've been creating and painting, so I will also add some more photo's of my work.   Good night.....and God bless!

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Jesus Girl

One thing I'd like you to know about me is that I'm a Jesus Girl!  What does that mean?  That means that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior.  I believe that He died on the cross for my sin, and rose again 3 days later.  By confessing my sin, asking for forgiveness, and inviting Him into my heart I now have eternal life, and one day I will live in Heaven with Him forever.  While on this earth I am called to glorify Him in all that I say and do, and when I don't, I ask Him to forgive me and He faithfully does.  I read the following in my morning devotions and wanted to share it with you because it's content embodies my life.

Now You Have Me, God!

Now You have me, God!
You have me irrevocably.
No reserve
No retreat
No turning back.

Now You have me, God!
All I feel
Dream
Aspire
All I long withheld.
My resistance
Triumphs
Defeats
My stalwart resolves
My crumbling dreams
My glittering awards
My blind alleys.

Now You have me, God!
All which is past
All which is now
All that may yet unfold,
The barriers are broken
The turmoil has stilled
Your Word is my Yes
Your notes are my song.

Now You have me, God!
You knocked
And still knocked
And I opened the door.
Now at last......
At long last
I know:

JOY!!!!!!!
As the rushing sea.
PEACE!!!!!!!
As a meadow at twilight.
STRENGTH!!!!!!!
As a towering mountain.
TRUST!!!!!!!
As a wide-eyed child
Who walks
In the gentle rain
Holding
A father's hand.

It's snowing outside, what a perfect day to paint, and paint, and paint some more!!!!!  Have a wonderful day!






Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Quote for the day................

I found this quote on my daily calendar and loved it!  Here goes......."Creativity comes from trust.  Trust your insticts.  And never hope more than you work."  Rita Mae Brown

Since I worked on my profile today I thought I'd post a photo of myself, it's actually my profile picture too.  It was hard to find a picture of myself because I'm always the one taking the pictures!  Plus, like many women I don't really like having my picture taken.  This one, however is one of my favorites.  It was taken about a year and a half ago while vacationing in Southern California.  We (that's my dear hubby sitting next to me) were dining with dear, dear friends at a restaurant overlooking the beautiful Pacific Ocean.  What a wonderful night we had!



Or course, I can't call myself a Grandma without sharing a picture of my beautiful grandchildren, Molly and Luke.


Seeing Molly and Luke in the pajamas reminds me that it's time to call it a day!  God bless you and peaceful sleep.



Monday, January 10, 2011

Welcome to "Carolyn's Painted Ladies"!

Welcome to "Carolyn's Painted Ladies"........Handcrafted mannequins and more, for every home and every store!!!!!

It's official, I'm a blogger!!!!!!!!!  I'm SO excited!  I'm what you would call a beginner, a novice, a newbie........GREEN!  A BIG thank you to my daughter, Amber, who set up this blog for me.  (If you read this, Amber, please know that I will try not to text or call you everyday with questions......XOXO).  It's all a bit overwhelming, there's so much to learn, but I'm determined to "get it."  If nothing else I can write a post and upload photos.....or is that download photos......sigh.  :) 

Well, since this blog is about my business, "Carolyn's Painted Ladies," let me introduce you to a couple of them.  


These two little ladies were my first attempt at making handcrafted mannequins.  My friend, Pam, manages the gift shop at one of our local hospitals and she was gracious enough to display my girls for me.  They were a sweet addition to the other Christmas decor.


One of the gals modeled the Faux fur holiday vests.  All of the vests sold!  She did a GREAT job!!!!!!!!!!


My "little" lady modeled a Christmas scarf and necklace.  She sure looked pretty!

Thanks for joining me on this journey!!!!!!!!!!  I think it's going to be quite the adventure!