Deck the Halls

Well, our halls are currently decked with assorted Thanksgiving fare - edible fare, of course. My now-famous Dressing, which is nothing more than an elaborate version of Mrs. Cubbison's dressing recipe {on the back of the box}, and pumpkin pies. No, we did not grow the pumpkins {we grew Jack O'Lanterns this year, but not eating pumpkins}. I did use the cutest darn cans of Evaporated Milk, though -- since this is my creative blogspot, Princess Magpie will now share with you a photo of those cute cans:

Aren't they the best?!

And the pumpkin pies turned out absolutely beautiful this year -- even the crusts, which I ususally "over-brown" {my nice way of saying BURN} ... are perfect. Photo can follow later. If you're still searching for that one fool-proof PUMPKIN PIE RECIPE, especially if you are a beginner in the kitchen -- trust me: you can trust LIBBY's. Do it exactly like it says on the label, and you will have success.

As for the Christmas Cards that have bedecked our dining room & breakfast nook for close to a week now, here's another sneak peek:

Happy Thanksgiving to you all,

Princess Magpie, aka DAH

ARTISTICALLY Paying it Forward

So there is this cool magazine, beautifully edited and published, and oh-so-inspiring, and it is called ARTFUL BLOGGING: Visually Inspiring Online Journals {it is a Somerset Studio / Stampington & Company publication - visit them at http://www.stampington.com/ for more info on ALL their cool publications!). ARTFUL BLOGGING {the magazine}, in their own words, is where "Innovations in technology provide new and exciting platforms for artists and writers to share their creative work with the world."

In the Winter 2009 edition, there is a very sweet "post" on page 111 called "Pay It Forward", and it is dated August 12, 2008 -- it comes from the blog known as The Land of Lost Luggage, by Julie Prichard, which can be found at: www.lostluggage.typepad.com and I most highly recommend you VISIT her blog and look in her Archives for August 13th's entry -- you will love how Julie and her niece put together an Art Journal together, when gathered for days on end, preparing for a family wedding.

Introducing someone to ART, especially a child, can be life-altering -- for them, and for you; for us all. READ JULIE'S LITTLE STORY about "Paying It Forward" and I think you will agree with me -- it is SO worth it to take the time to do art projects with children. And grown-ups. And grown-ups who act like children, too!

-- Davi, aka, Princess Magpie

in case you forgot ...

... what a MAGPIE looks like ... this is a baby.

I can't resist posting MAGPIE images for everyone to enjoy!

Happy Sunday, friends.

-- PM / dah

Proof of Progress from Princess Magpie

Okay, so my friend Lyn and I have determined that not only am I a bit of a MAGPIE, but I seem to be a MAGPIE who has ADD {attention deficit disorder}.

This came to light when she told me she has her Christmas Card design all figured out, and has done the shopping for the materials to make said cards ...

and I sat here wondering ...

What in the world is the matter with me?! I can't settle on ONE card design per season, I have to make MULTIPLE designs?!".

a few of the first two batches, standing all happy in their cute little boxes ...

But you know, variety can be the spice of life, so that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

And speaking of STICKING to it, I went to Mass at St. James last night ... with GLITTER on my face. Yes, I did. And Mark didn't even care!

my trusty XYRON, which can turn many things into ... STICKERS. including ribbon, which I have my friend Lyn to thank

for teaching me !!!

So here are a couple photos of the Princess Magpie Christmas Card weekend

{so far - there's plenty more to come}:

one design ...

and my Musical Inspiration ...

Time to get back to cracking !!!

-- Davielle, aka, PRINCESS MAGPIE

Progress is Being Made

It is mid-day on Saturday, and God is smiling on me, that's for sure. I asked for RAIN, but since that's clearly (pardon the pun) out of the So Cal Question, He is giving me -- overcast. Nice. That, and some assorted Christmas music, is keeping me motivated ...

So by 11:30, I was partly finished with the first fifteen (yes, just 15) Christmas Cards ... the first batch is for our cycling friends, so a definite theme was the plan, and a design had to be worked out. By the time I got all the elements together, it was a cinch, putting those cards together.

Photos to follow.

Now, lunch is brewing (spaghetti squash as "pasta" and meat sauce - YUM !!!) and Mark is due home -- well, he was due home an hour ago. Whatever, more time to design the next batch of cards - lunch can wait!

Yours in getting ready for the holidays,
Princess Magpie (aka, Davielle)

Fa la la la la ...

... la la la la !!!

It's time to get started making our 2009 Christmas Cards ... and yes, I intend to make them all from scratch. Ambitious? You bet. I quick scribbled The List out last night, while filling the bathtub {okay, so the tub is never FILLED, it's just partly filled - for any of you wondering why I would waste all that precious water - I don't} and The List turned out to be just over 100 people long. I'm sure more names will come to me, but for now, 100 homemade cards is A Lot to Process.

A few weeks ago, I picked up a copy of the little mag, SCRAPBOOK TRENDS, November 2008, "Scrapbooking Gratitude" -- and was totally inspired by pages 52-53, "NOEL", by Kandis Smith. It's a darling, collage-style (with stitching, no less!) card -- and I was off and running {in my head, that is} with card ideas ...

Kandis Smith's NOEL card, the one that inspired all this Christmas magic !!!

Here's a few shots of our dining room table, aka, Princess Magpie's Workshop, with some of the Christmas card elements displayed ...

I'll do a "from this to THIS" photo posting later, when cards are done !

Meanwhile, although Thanksgiving isn't even here yet, I am putting on the new Faith Hill CD of Christmas music and rolling up my sleeves and getting started.

Now if the weather would just cooperate and COOL DOWN some, I'd be happy-beyond-words.

-- DAH, aka, Princess Magpie

Bee Inspired

From sunrise to sunset, each and every day offers us the opportunity to BE INSPIRED. From that inspiration, you might create the next custom greeting card for a special friend, or you may put together an art project to share with your children or grandchildren, or you might be moved to grab your camera and photograph something lovely ... and then share those photos with those who would appreciate them.

Open your eyes. Open your ears. Open your mind. Most importantly, open your HEART ... to the beauty that surrounds you daily. Your "everyday life" is rich beyond measure, but sometimes we get so caught up in our "To Do" lists, we forget to smell the rose outside our back door. We forget to turn on the radio so that music we enjoy can enliven our space. We forget to look for that which will inspire us ---

I admit, I hoard lovely things for "future art projects". But if I am not inspired to pull things together and actually CREATE something, then what is it all for?

PAPER SOURCE, a really fun and friendly chain of retail shops, has the perfect motto: Do Something Creative Every Day. {you can visit Paper Source online at http://www.paper-source.com/ or if you're fortunate enough to live near one, I highly recommend you make it a regular Artist's Date "stop" on your agenda}

This is my pledge. That I will not just dream of projects, I will not just collect ephemera and pretty papers for those projects, but I will FULFILL THE DREAM of those projects, by creating art and sharing it. Here. On this blog.

-- DAH, aka, Princess Magpie

why Princess Magpie?

Welcome to I AM PRINCESS MAGPIE, my new blogspot for all things creative & artistic in my life. From musings to inspirations to actual art created, this is my spot.
Why "Princess Magpie" ??? Let me try to explain ...

From WIKIPEDIA, "Princess is the feminine form of prince (from the Latin princeps, meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or her daughters, women whose station in life depended on their relationship to a prince and who could be disowned and stripped of the title if he so chose. As women have slowly gained more autonomy through European history, the title of princess has become simply the female counterpart of prince and does not necessarily imply being controlled or owned by a prince."

When Mark and I were designing and building our home, there were many times he would question a design element or feature in the plans, to which I would always explain, "Princess would like ..." {fill in the blank with anything ranging from Maytag Neptune stacking washer & dryer to farmhouse sink to limestone kitchen counters to solid walnut floors}. Finally, he sat me down and said "You really must stop referring to yourself as Princess - you're scaring me!".

As for MAGPIE, again, a very basic bit of lore is that "magpies love shiny things, and steal rings and other trinkets." Okay, so I don't steal stuff ...

But I am attracted to and tend to collect lovely things, not always shiny, but always charming, beautiful, and/or lovely -- for current or future art projects.

If one of you is so inclined to do further research on the Magpie, you may discover that they have quite a bit of folklore associated with them that I find ... totally unfair! Of course, had I done all this research on the Magpie BEFORE opting to call myself Princess Magpie, I might have chosen another creature that hoards shiny things.

But being the unsuperstitious gal that I am, I am not not not going to let those other silly ideas about this darling bird -- keep me from my chosen nickname. So there!

Thank you for visiting my new blogspot, I am Princess Magpie. I hope you will return again and again and again.

-- Davielle, aka "Princess Magpie" {but you can just call me Princess, if you like}