Solstice Celebration

Hail, lovely sun!
Praise you for rising!
Yesterday we shivered in darkness
while you were trapped in the mountains.
Now you rise light as a silver bird.
Always rise like this, goddess,
always come back to us like this,
bringing us health and safety,
bringing the game to our arrows,
and fish to our hooks.
Journey now in peace,
go around the earth in safety,
travel in joy, O goddess!
-Finnish Kalevala

There are many things to celebrate at this time of year and the Winter Solstice (Dec. 21st this year) reminds us that the returning of the Sun and the slow increase in light brings us promise of new growth and life. As we build hearth fires, light candles or string lights on a Christmas tree we are honoring the old traditions of welcoming the light back, to bring us warmth and productivity in the new year.

May everyone find their own way to celebrate and light the world!

This is my entry for the 4x4Friday challenge and the TAW challenge.
Imagery credits go to Downunderstudios, e-vint.com and personal photos.

Joyeux Noel

A little digital fun with postal stamps, artist papers and Photoshop.

Imaginings

The world of imagination belongs to children. Not that adulthood strips us of our imaginings but it is hard to recreate the wondrous world of innocent, pure fantasy that occurs in childhood. There is no inner critic, no voice of reason and responsibility to tell us to get back to reality. I love to observe my husband's nieces and nephews lost in their blissful world of fantasy.

"Childhood " is the theme this week at Take A Word challenge and through my "playtime" with digital art came this piece representing the world of imaginary friends and doorways to other places and adventures.
Imagery credits go to Dover, Holliewood at Deviantartscraps and wikimedia.

Native Song

This is my digital postcard for the Sunday Postcard Art challenge "Robins". I recently was looking at new calendars in the bookstore and saw one that really impressed me entitled "Inuit Art". I was attracted to the use of black, white and a touch of orange-red that seem to prevail in most of the scenes from nature and myth, and so used that idea in creating this piece.

Imagery credits go to assorted artist papers, Downunder Studios and wikimedia. The postal stamps are from my collection.

Aurora

This is my entry for the Theme Thursday challenge "Winged People". Imagery credits go to Deviant art scraps (Hollliewood) and (Joelle at Downunder Studios).

Crimson Flower

I had some fun blending and mixing floral imagery here for the Three Muses challenge "Flowers" this week. Main image from Vintage-blog along with botanical prints, script and digital painting filters in Photoshop. Digital blending allows for such great depth and gradation of color and the ability to reduce opacity allows images to merge and become one which I really enjoy doing.

Winter Post

This is my entry for this week's Take A Word challenge "Mail Art". Imagery credits go to Luna Girl (Fairy Tale Images) and deviant art scraps (Holliewood). Clip art postal script added.

I love the fantasy aspect of the Winter Solstice/Holiday season. Most of my decorations are filled with winter fairies, snowy villages and wilderness critters mixed in with natural greenery, winter branches and berries. Despite all of the massive commercialism in the stores I do still enjoy creating a little magic this time of year and remembering the winter tales I learned as a child . This piece tries to capture the wonder of the winter Goddess and her guides on a cold starry night.