Yellow Roses to brighten your day

The other day in the grocery store there was a bunch of yellow roses discounted at the floral counter... couldn't resist them. They brighten up these dreary days of January. So here are some to share with you! (Freebie!)

And then my heart with pleasure fills, And dances with the daffodils.

The daffodils are blooming here in Tennessee, and I thought I would share some with you. :-)  Use these for my March challenge ~ Spring Flowers & Birds!

I tried to find the etymology (word origin) of the name Daffodil, but all I could find is that they were originally called Asphodels, from their Greek name. I've seen that name before, in some old stories I guess, and now I know what asphodels are!

In the Language of Flowers, Daffodils stand for "Regard" or respect. In Chinese lore they are a sign of Good Fortune, in Japan a symbol of Joy and Mirth.

Daffodils are the birthday flower for March! Their strong association with the arrival of Spring (and Easter) has made them a symbol of rebirth and new beginnings...


Here's a famous and beautiful daffodils poem, by William Wordsworth:

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

In such a jocund company:

I gazed—and gazed—but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

A sweet vintage Valentine greeting to you and yours... Enjoy the day with your loved ones.
And help spread the love by joining in my LOVE challenge which continues all through February!

Enjoy this lovely pop-up card by VICKI ROMAINE Cheerful Stamp Pad
(On the left is the outside of the card, on the right you can see the inside!)

Freebie Sweethearts for 'Love' Challenge

It's almost Valentine's Day! But my LOVE challenge for February will continue until the end of the month. And it's Leap Year so that means February 29th!

Here's an early Valentine for you ~ some vintage sweethearts cut from an old postcard. Right-click to download, and use them to create your entry in the challenge!

A Little Messenger to Remind You...

The Angels challenge continues until December 31, so you still have time... Enter up to three creations, and you may win the drawing for $15 store credit at Lunagirl.com!

See the beautiful angels created by my readers and the Lunagirl Design Team so far, and link up your own, HERE.

And here to share with you is a lovely little snow angel with pink wings, helping a little bird friend by protecting her nest. Snow angels are among my favorites, especially this time of year... find many vintage angels ~ majestic messengers, sweet snow angel children, bright holiday angels, and more ~ at Lunagirl!

Freebie: Little Angel with Peace Dove

Don't forget to link up your creations for the Angels challenge!

Here is a little angel and white dove to inspire you.

Free Turkeys! well, pictures of turkeys

As promised, here is another freebie for November/Harvest/Thanksgiving. I found this great-looking big-ole turkey on a vintage style label from my Lunagirl Can & Crate Labels collection, which is now available by download as well as on CD! I love the antique printing on these old labels, but I'm including a version with most of the writing removed as well. Enjoy ~ Create something and enter my November challenge!

Freebie: Pumpkins!

Do you have your pumpkin yet for Halloween? Here are some nice ones on an antique pumpkin seed packet that I've scanned and cleaned up for you. I hope these will help with your Halloween and Harvest cards and crafts, but you'll have to find real ones for your jack-o-lantern!

Autumn Fairy & August Musings

I may be the only one, but I love August. This morning the air is just slightly cool and the sky is a brilliant pure blue. The sunlight has that slanted 'Light in August' sort of melancholy feel, like you can feel something is ending, and the grass on the way to my mailbox is sparkling with dew and spiderwebs. There are still summer locusts whirring (a Southern sound!) but the squawking September blue-jays have already arrived. I guess I just love the shift of seasons, the in-between times. In August the Wheel of the Year turns toward Autumn. It's not here yet, but you can feel sadness of the end of summer, along with the promise of that cool Fall air.

So, it's got me feeling reflective. Autumn always does that!

Here is an Autumn fairy ~ notice the grapes, which are harvested in September and October, I think? She is a hint of my next challenge theme, which starts a week from today!

Freebie Footwear: Shoes/Boots

Here are a couple of free images to get you started in the SHOES challenge.

The first one is a Victorian-era die cut. These little scraps were made just for scrapbooks, which became popular with Victorian ladies and girls. Victorian scrapbooks are filled with pictures clipped from magazines and advertisements, and companies soon began to give away collectible trade cards with pretty or funny pictures on them. Eventually little die-cut scraps came along. I don't know what the deal is with boots or shoes with flowers in them, but our collection includes several so they must have been a popular theme!

The second image (below) is clipped from an antique trade card. I tend to think of it as a gentlemen's style, but with the heel I think it may be a lady's shoe as well ~ an everyday little boot, rather than a high boot or fancy slipper!

Right-click to enlarge and save and get busy creating, then link up your creation in our challenge! :-)
More shoes galore if you need them: VINTAGE SHOES

Happy May Day!

Lunagirl Moonbeams by Lunagirl Vintage Images: Happy May Day!:

We really should bring back the tradition of May Poles, don't you think?

Here's a link to a post I did last year, where you'll find several really cool old May Day photos!

Join the Flappers Challenge.. You'll be fashionably late, darling, but there's still time

There's still time to link up your entry in my Flappers challenge! It continues until 2:00 CST ~ almost four more hours. Here are two lovely ladies FREE for you ~ one nice and one naughty? They both look a little mischievous, don't you think?

Another Freebie for Inspiration

Here's another freebie for you to use in the Fruit and Flowers challenge, inspired by the cheerful yellow daffodils in my yard!

See the challenge details here, along with plenty of creative inspiration from some talented folks... and find more botanical fruits and flowers at Lunagirl!

Lady in Red for the Challenge

Don't forget to enter the RED challenge this week! Here is a freebie for you, a pretty fabulous Lady in Red. You'll find more like her on my Victorian Neoclassical Art CD.

A Beautiful Vintage Christmas Freebie from Lunagirl

I thought I would share a freebie with you today, one that will work for the current Holiday Children challenge and also the next challenge starting on Monday (hint: the theme features a famous "jolly old elf").

This is a much-loved image and it's easy to see why! If you love Santa images, there are over 300 vintage Santa Claus pictures on my Victorian Holidays Volume One CD ... the best variety of Santa pictures I know of... or get 100 vintage Santas by instant download!

You have until Sunday to enter the challenge. We already have several charming entries and I want to see yours too. And don't miss the beautiful Holiday Children inspiration by the Design Team :-)

Free Bird Drawings!

I've actually shared these lovely bird drawings before, a couple years ago, but I thought I would post them again for the Put A Bird On It challenge.

There are plenty of beautiful birds here (the names are listed for you too), and I hope you will have fun using them for my challenge this week.

Free Vintage Hummingbird Image

The entries for my Put A Bird On It challenge are coming in and they are looking great!

To inspire you and maybe give you a little nudge to enter, I thought I would share some free bird images in vintage style.

For today, here is a little hummingbird. I originally found him on a Victorian Christmas card of all things. Now he lives on my Lunagirl Victorian Birds CD!

I love all kinds of birds, but hummingbirds are among my favorites -- who could resist them. We get them by the dozens during the summer.

Download this little guy and create something wonderful -- Put a BIRD on it!

"Bathing Beauty" challange starts tomorrow

Don't forget ... 
a new blog challenge starts tomorrow!

Get inspired and share your Vintage Seashore and Bathing Beauty themed creations!

Here are some ladies in the latest French swimsuit fashions from long ago...

May Visitor: Yellow Butterfly

I saw the first Yellow Swallowtail butterfly yesterday -- a messenger of May and a sure sign that Summer is not far behind!  Here is a freebie for you.  And here is a Lunagirl collection of butterflies: http://lunagirl.com/collections/lunagirl-image-collections-on-cd/products/butterfly-images-cd

Happy May Day!

 We really should bring back the tradition of May Poles, don't you think?  They were still very popular in the early 20th century, and here are some Edwardian era photos of ladies and children having May Day celebrations.  Of course, the May Pole has ancient pagan origins way back in the mists of time ... and May Day was the Celtic seasonal festival of Beltane.  Beltane ("bright fire") recognizes the point in the year when the days become longer than the nights (halfway between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice).  May Day traditions include dancing, feasting, bonfires, making love in the fields (really!), and my favorite, leaving out offerings of food and flowers for the fairies!

It's such a lovely time of year, I'm hoping that May Day celebrations make a big comeback!