Christmas

Christ the Savior is born!

Our Wonderful Counselor.

Our Mighty God.

Our Everlasting Father.

Our Prince of Peace.

Merry Christmas from the Velvet Lime Girls.

Light of the World

Today we're sending you a single-stem, light-filled Christmas tulip to say "Merry Christmas to you" and to remind you of the reason many are so joyful during this season of light. It's the celebration of the birth of our savior, Jesus Christ, "the one who is the true Light arrived to shine on everyone". (John 1:9) 
Laura's husband, James Rhodes, is the artist who created this luminescent tulip that radiates hues of lemon, gold and saffron. When he's not busy at Rhodes Design Group, he finds great joy in bringing "God-colors into the world", (Matthew 5:14), through his pastel paintings.  We're often inspired by his works that hang in our studio, and as Christmas approaches, we wanted to share this light-filled artwork with you as a visual gift and reminder of the "light who has come into the world." (John 12:46)

"What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by.  The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn't put it out..." John 1: 5 - The Message

Celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, the Light of the World, 
The Velvet Lime Girls

PEACE

Peace.  It's wrapped itself all around each one of the Velvet Lime Girls lately. Around Laura, with a husband just coming out of the Emory Hospital ICU, around Marybeth, with a daughter overcoming a concussion, and around Rebecca, as she and her amazing team oversee the 1000+ children at Northpoint Church.
Yeah, we've each experienced a peace that transcends all comprehension lately, and we just had to let you know, if you're facing some kind of challenge or amazing busyness this Christmas season, there really is a peace that can hold you and calm you.  
So, we've created a simple graphic for you today as a gentle reminder that the Prince of Peace wants to come into your life and bring a calm that can settle any storm or any busyness you may be facing today.

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." John 14:27

Wrapped in His Peace, 
The Velvet Lime Girls 

P.S. If you're in need of a little extra comfort today, pour yourself a cup of tea, and settle-in to the words of this Comfort Song.  Even if the music style isn't your cup of tea, the soothing words here promise to bring healing to any heavy hearts out there. There are long pauses, so soak in the whole ten minutes of comfort and peace.

Joy

JOY is the third buoy to safe harbor that we'll talk about during this breast cancer awareness month.  Joy will buoy your spirit and life to a healthy, happy and whole place. For those overcoming breast cancer, finding a little joy each day is an essential daily requirement.
We've found a few simple sources of random joy that can brighten even the weariest of days and we'd like to pass a few on to you right here.

Get out in the sun!
Yes, just stepping out into the sunshine will do wonders for your countenance and, as it turns out, for your health as well. According to Dr. Mercola, the vitamin D that you'll soak up in just a 10-15 minute period can be extremely healing to your whole body, lower your blood pressure and interfere with breast cancer's ability to spread.  Just take a quick look at some of the other benefits of sunshine in this article by Dr. Mercola:  Dr. Mercola on Vitamin D
Another article by Dr. Veronique Desaulniers points out that an 83% reduction in breast cancer occurred when the vitamin D level in the blood was doubled to 50ngml: Dr. V on Vitamin D

So, just stepping out into the sunshine can increase your vitamin D level and start you down a healthier path!  Obviously, a little vitamin D supplementation will need to go along with that sunshine exposure and both Dr. V and Dr. Mercola offer vitamin D suggestions on their sites.  We hope you check these info links out and treat yourself to a little time in the sunshine today.

Laugh!
Yep, just a simple laugh!  It's more powerful that you can imagine. 
According to WedMD. a good laugh can boost your immune system, positively affect blood sugar levels and improve your sleep at night.  So, pull out those old funny movies, joke books and stories that make you belly laugh.  Or just share some light-hearted moments with cute, little ones or people who make you smile.  You'll find some other great health benefits of laughing right here: WebMD on Laughing Benefits

Chocolate!
Mmm... did someone say chocolate?  Yes, you read that right!  In moderation, a little bit of quality chocolate is quite beneficial and will certainly bring a little joy into your day.  Yum! 
Aim for dark chocolate that has a high cacao content for the greatest benefits.  One of our favorite chocolate companies is the Lily brand found at Whole Foods.  Since it's made with stevia, there are no sugar concerns here, just-sheer-chocolate-joy! We bet your antioxidant levels are going up just thinking about this little bar!  For an additional boost, read about some of the amazing health benefits of chocolate right here:  Dr. Axe on Chocolate

Since we're tossing out random ideas on sources of joy, we'll wrap up with one last idea today.  

Try something new!
When you are on a healing journey for your health, it's amazing how trying something new will expand your horizons and bring in unexpected joy. We recently tried something quite new and the health benefits have been amazing, so we'll chat about it here for a moment.  After reading about the remarkable health benefits of a hyperbaric-oxygen chamber, we stepped into one for the first time at Lyfewell, right here in Johns Creek, Georgia!  Oh, if you are on a healing journey, you need to stop by this place!  The hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) and the pulsed electromagnetic field therapy (PEMF) increase oxygen levels, enhance blood flows and bring scientifically-proven restorative health benefits to the body.  Yes, you'll begin to notice a nice positive change after a few sessions and you'll be glad you tried something new and so beneficial.  Take a few moments to learn more about this interesting treatment at their site: Lyfewell  

These are just a few of the random sources of joy we've experienced lately.  We hope you'll share some of your little joys, (your "buoys of joy"), that have perhaps brought you into a safer harbor on your healing journey.  We'd love to hear from you and be inspired! 

We've got the joy, joy, joy, joy...down in our hearts,
The Velvet Lime Girls

HOPE

Today we're continuing our focus on Breast Cancer Awareness month with another buoy of hope.

Wouldn't it be great if you could find a way to REALLY detect the earliest stages of breast cancer?  You know, long before a mammogram catches it? A mammogram can certainly detect a suspicious area, but how great would it be to know much earlier and begin an effective healing protocol?  Well, there IS such a test and it is called a thermogram.  The chart below sums up the differences between these two types of tests:


This short video clip of Dr. Veronique Desaulniers discussing thermography sheds a little more light on the benefits of thermography versus mammography: 
Dr. V on Thermography

And this article by Dr. Jockers sums up other benefits of thermograms:
Dr. Jockers on Thermograms

One of the places we've found to have a thermogram done in the Atlanta area is through Atlanta Mobile Thermography.  The technicians are great, and your report will be reviewed by a panel of doctors and then discussed with you.  Each week the thermograms are available in several locations around Atlanta.  Check out their Facebook page to see if a location is near you this week: 
Atlanta Mobile Thermography Facebook

For those of you outside the Atlanta area, this site can direct you to an accredited thermography center near you: Thermography Centers

If you're wondering about the validity of thermograms, take a quick look at this link from Atlanta Mobile Thermography. (The first segment is much of the same info presented above, but scroll down for additional info.)  Thermography Info

We hope you'll take the time to educate yourself on the benefits of thermography and set up an appointment for your first thermogram! You'll be glad you did!

Sending you hope,
The Velvet Lime Girls
"Getting wisdom is the most important thing you can do!" Proverbs 4:7 TLB

Safe Harbor

A safe harbor.  Sometimes that's all you need.  A place to restore, revive and renew yourself.  As we launch into Breast Cancer Awareness Month this month, we'll be identifying some life-lines, buoys and safe harbor suggestions for those  who are navigating the rough waters of a breast cancer diagnosis.  Pass this on to anyone you know facing breast cancer.  It's rough seas out there for many of them, but they can ease into calmer waters with the right compass and buoys. We'll be talking about some of these buoys this month and we look forward to you coming aboard with us.

We know what it's like to be tossed into the overwhelming, tumultuous, open seas of a breast cancer diagnosis.  One of the Velvet Lime Girls, Laura, faced this diagnosis in June of 2015 and everything changed here in our little studio.  The seas were just-pretty-darn-rough for awhile, with our anchor in God holding us down and averting a major shipwreck.  There's just SO much to process with a diagnosis of breast cancer.  Do you go the conventional route? Alternative route? A combination route? What DO you do???  One thing is for sure ... you can't ignore it.  You're in a storm and you need some direction.  You need buoys that will guide you into a safe harbor.  We found some! And when you find buoys that help, you just want to yell out at the top of your lungs, over the crashing waves, to everyone out there adrift in the sea, "We found help!  Here are some buoys to safe harbor!"
So, that's what we're going to do.  We're going to yell out and point you in the direction of a few buoys we've found helpful along the way.  

Our first beautiful buoy is a site called Breast Cancer Conqueror.  
Whether you choose a conventional, alternative or a combination route to overcome breast cancer,  you'll find a treasure of resources, support and compassion here.  It's a great place to start if you just don't even know where to begin.  As their site says,  you'll learn to "Never Fear Breast Cancer Again."  The founder, Dr. Veronique Desaulniers, healed her own breast cancer naturally and documented the journey in her book, Heal Breast Cancer Naturally.  Along the way she left a trail of research-backed medical studies and resources that make this book a big, bright buoy, helping women on their healing journeys and guiding women who want to prevent getting breast cancer.  Go get the book today for yourself and then get one for your daughters, your mothers, and the friends you love.  It's been the biggest buoy out there for Laura and we know it will help guide you into safe waters.  Check out the heart of the healing program right here in this video: 7 Essentials Program. 

We'll be sharing several other buoys during this Breast Cancer Awareness month and we would like to hear your stories of the lifelines and guiding systems you have used to navigate your course through the rough seas of a breast cancer diagnosis.  Remember, you have a voice and you can use your story to help someone else who may be in distress.  So use your voice and help us tell others about the
buoys that can lead to safe harbor.

"My help and glory are in God - granite-strength and safe-harbor God." Psalms 62:7 

Smooth sailing ahead,
The Velvet Lime Girls

Garland Your Life with Grace

Garlands of Grace draping your life.  Doesn't that sound like a lovely way to live?
Oh, we think so, and these watercolor embellished flowers from our garden seem to convey just what a grace-draped life would look like... relaxed elegance and refinement in the midst of raindrops and watercolor-splashes.  What a beautiful way to live.  When we read this passage below from The Message today it inspired the colorful splatters above and brought some new insights about Wisdom.

"Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom!
Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!
Throw your arms around her—believe me, you won’t regret it;
never let her go—she’ll make your life glorious.
She’ll garland your life with grace,
she’ll festoon your days with beauty.”
Proverbs 4:3-9

So, we're on a little mission around here in our studio to Get Wisdom.
And just like this slender branch of buds, we believe Wisdom will garland our lives with grace.

Getting Wisdom,
The Velvet Lime Girls 

Change of Season

Well, we're still enjoying the beautiful wrap-up of summer here in Georgia, with light breezes, warm temperatures and sunny skies.  Thoughts of fall are not even on our horizon, but today that changed with the arrival of our Hello Fall doormat sample!  Oh, we were just thrilled to receive this beautiful sample from the great team we've worked with at Evergreen Enterprises! Thank-you Evergreen!
Apparently these doormats with our artwork are available at many locations that carry Evergreen doormats and we even found an online Groupon offer for the decorative doormat!  Here's a couple sightings we've had of the Hello Fall doormat.  Let us know if you see one in your area!

Amazon - Happy Fall Doormat

Groupon - Happy Fall Doormat


Happy Labor Day week-end to everyone,
The Velvet Lime Girls 

Whispers of Grace

Pink Speckled Gladiolus - Velvet Lime Girls

Our studio garden is filled with whispers of grace lately. Soft-petaled, dew-kissed flowers greet us each morning with freshly washed faces and delicate smiles. Some arise from dreamy slumber and others meet the day with a nice long stretch.

"Dreamy" Impatiens - Velvet Lime Girls

"Stretching" Impatiens - Velvet Lime Girls

A few wake-up with perky, petite faces. Bright and alert at the first ray of sun.

Asparagus Fern Flowers - Velvet Lime Girls

Miniature Hummingbird Bush - Velvet Lime Girls

And some just saunter around for hours in their pink slippers and pajamas.

New Guinea Impatiens - Velvet Lime Girls

Oh, do they know how beautiful they are?

Even the hardly-ever-noticed-ones, like the diminutive lavender flowers, shyly lifting their faces along sprigs of thyme. Who even knew flowers this exquisite nestled among thyme?

Thyme Buds - Velvet Lime Girls

Thyme Flower - Velvet Lime Girls

Thyme Flower - Velvet Lime Girls

We think The One who created them knew. He knew about every-single-little-detail.  And this attentive care is a mere shadow of the attention to detail that He lavishes on you.  He actually says you are far more beautiful, far more valuable, far more exquisite than any of these flowers.

Even if you wear your pink slippers and pajamas until noon.

Split-Second Morning Glory - Velvet Lime Girls

You are so beautiful wrapped in grace,

The Velvet Lime Girls

"You surround me, front and back... I am beautifully and wonderfully made ..."  

Psalm 139

Living in Full Bloom

Living life in full bloom is the best way to live.
We've been doing just that this summer in our studio! 
The art tables are full of flowers and treasures from the garden and they've been bringing a bounty of nourishment to our souls as well as our palate.
                 

We've also had the lovely hum of grandchildren in the studio this summer. Their petite handprints covered in paint, original works of art and occasional sprints across dew-covered grass have brought in a fresh breeze of giggles and inspiration to our studio.

                                         

These tiny finger-painters, bubble-chasers, feather-finders and gigglers really know how to live life in full bloom! They find joy everywhere and squeal in sheer delight over the tiniest little treasure...like this soft, delicate bird feather nestled in the leaves.

These little ones who dance around so carefree and light have brought new insight into what living life in full bloom is all about.  They find joy, treasures and giggles in the ordinary, everyday rhythm of life.
  
The free and light pitter-patter of these little ones in our studio is a beautiful reminder of one of our favorite quotes:

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion?  Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me - watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly.
Matthew 11:28-30 The Message 

So we hope you'll take a moment today to rest, relax, laugh, (maybe even chase bubbles) ... and begin to live your life in full bloom. You are so beautiful in full bloom.

Living free and light,
The Velvet Lime Girls 

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the great Mom's out there! Yep, you know just how our Mother bird feels in our graphic above. You know the joy that comes in giving to your children ... even when it's the very last worm.


"For it is in giving that we receive."  Francis of Assisi

Celebrating and honoring Mothers everywhere,
The Velvet Lime Girls

Hello May!

Hello May 1st!  We're so glad you're here.
You're the month that slips in with armfuls of spring flowers, refreshing rains, weddings, graduations, and thoughts of the the long summer exhale that is just around the corner.
We're going to enjoy every moment you bring to us this month.  All 31 days of you.
We're going to smell those fragrant, first blooms in the garden, gaze at the deepening shades of green in the grass, inhale the scent of fresh rain on our face and let our spirits soar carefree again like the sparrows that speckle morning skies with light-winged twirls and pirouettes. With our refreshed countenances, we'll celebrate graduations with grateful hearts and joy for the future, witness soft vows at May weddings that awaken our hearts with romance and cause us fall in love again, not only with others, but with ourselves.
We'll make sure to inhale grace and exhale praise for the beautiful days you'll bring us this month and we won't let one moment of your beauty be overshadowed by the even more glorious days of the summer ahead.
Oh, we're going to enjoy you month of May.

Dancing around the Maypole,
The Velvet Lime Girls
"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it..."  Psalm 24:1
   

FUN Grad Card at Trader Joe's!

Do you have a fun-loving grad in your family or circle of friends?   We've created the perfect light-hearted graduation card for them and you can find it at your local Trader Joe's store! Yeah, that's right!  Just look for it in the card section!

The inspiration for this cute little card is easy to find. Marybeth, one of the Velvet Lime Girls, used to zip around in a cute little yellow bug just like this for a few years, and it's bright yellow color always brought a little sunshine into every place it travelled!   And now, with the upcoming high school graduation of Marybeth's daughter, Madison, this fun-loving card will always hold a special place in her heart and ours. Yes, there will be so many wonderful adventures ahead for Madison and for all those other wonderful graduates out there about to begin a new season of life.  

God bless each one of you!
The Velvet Lime Girls

Spanish Products Give-Away!

Hola!  Our storage area is overflowing with Divinity Spanish gift items, so we are doing a give-away!
We are SO appreciative of the generous box of samples we received from Divinity and as most of you know, we do not sell products, we just create the artwork for products, so a give-away seemed like a perfect way to share some of these cute gift items.  We had so much fun creating the artwork for these products and have enjoyed hearing about how well they have been received.  So, here's a give-away for our Spanish-speaking friends, (or for a Spanish teacher, relative or friend).

1. Just SHARE our post and your entered.
2. Winner will be randomly selected on Thursday, April 27th.    
3. Here are the items in our give-away package:
Spanish Clipboard with Matching Pen
Spanish Zip Pouch Purse with Pink Heart
2 Square Boxes of Matching Pad and Pen Set with Spanish verse
Spanish Magnetic Listpad and Pen Set
Spanish Thought of the Week Set

A big thank-you to the team at Divinity for producing a beautiful collection of such heart-felt gift items featuring our artwork and also to all of our Spanish-speaking friends.  We appreciate you!  Friendship has no language barriers. (Amistad no tiene las barriers del idioma)

Dios lo bendiga,
The Velvet Lime Girls
P.S. For our retail friends, here's a link to the wholesale Divinity Spanish products with our artwork, (just scroll to page 110 in the catalog):
Divinity Spanish Products by Velvet Lime Girls 

Easter Blessings

One of the highlights of the year around our studio is the celebration of Easter.  It's much more than bunnies, chocolate and Easter egg hunts for us. Although we do joyfully participate in all these fun traditions, Easter is really a time when we pause, with honor and respect, to remember the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made on our behalf, and on Sunday we celebrate the glorious resurrection of Jesus from the dead. We hope you'll pause to read the full historical account of the first Easter as recorded in the Bible. You'll find it over in chapters 18, 19 & 20 of the book of John. Today we're sending out a lighthearted Easter blessing to you and we hope you'll feel free to pass it along to others. It's a vibrant little graphic to share as we remember the greatest blessing ever given to all of us at Easter.

The Velvet Lime Girls 

Cultivate Kindness

Spring arrived earlier this week and we are dusting off our gardening tools and playing in the dirt again!  Oh, we just love this time of year around here in the Velvet Lime Girl's studio!  The garden begins to come to life as the little seedlings we nurtured through the previous weeks are planted tenderly into the soil. It's a busy time of cultivating in the garden too and it made us think of other things that we can cultivate in our lives.  Things like kindness... that quality of being friendly, generous and considerate.

Just like garden seedlings, kindness can be cultivated, tended, and developed until it becomes fully developed in our lives. And oh, what a beautiful sight that is!  Far more beautiful than any flower garden or vegetable patch. Kindness brings a beauty to all the terrain around it.

The people touched by kindness are just never the same...they bloom!

So, we hope you'll cultivate a little kindness today into your life and the lives of those around you.

Playing in the dirt,

The Velvet Lime Girls

P.S. Thank-you to Trends International for selecting this artwork to be in their 2018 calendar!

Landscapes

"Split-Second" Morning Glory in Velvet Lime Girls ' Studio Garden

"In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life."  James 1:21

We've been busy in the studio lately...dreaming about spring.  Seed packets are scattered everywhere and little seedlings are beginning to sprout.  We're so eager to fill our landscape with fresh, new life and color!  It always amazes us just how drab the winter garden can be, just before it transforms seemingly overnight, into an explosion of color, life and joy.

Raindrops on Geranium Buds in Velvet Lime Girls' Studio Garden

Spring buds in Velvet Lime Girls' Studio Garden

The hours we spend planning, dreaming and imagining our garden landscape made us think about the landscaping God can do in our lives.  His landscaping can create a transformation that lasts forever.    A  transformation that doesn't fade with any earth-bound season. And like a well-tended garden, our lives, so very loved and tended by God, can become a salvation-garden for all the world to see.

Velvet Lime Girls' Studio Garden in June

So, if the landscape of your life looks a bit drab at the moment, or perhaps you're in a winter season of sorts, we hope you'll pause a moment and let the gardener of your soul begin to landscape you with His Word, His promises, His expressions of love for you. Just a glance of Psalms 139 will show you how much He adores you.  He probably dreams about how beautiful your true colors will be once you let Him water you with His fresh words from the Bible.  Oh, how He loves you and wants to see you bloom. And we can just imagine how beautiful the landscape will be once you let the master gardener carefully nurture the garden of your life.

Anticipating spring in gardens and lives,
The Velvet Lime Girls

Iris announcing Spring's arrival

Be My Valentine!

Here's a little Valentine for you today!  A heart embellished graphic that carries a reminder of just how valuable your heart is!  

It's so important to guard your heart because, as we discovered in a beautiful passage in the Bible, that's where life starts, that's where the issues of life spring from.  We like the way Proverbs 4:23 says it best:

"Keep a vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts.

We've been learning just how important keeping a watch over our hearts really is and it led us to another beautiful discovery... our hearts will follow what we treasure. It's true!  Just listen to the way a man named Matthew said it:

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Matthew 6:21

So we're choosing to re-evaluate what is really important in this life and with God's direction we're discovering true treasures and blissfully letting our hearts follow.

Happy Valentine's Day,
The Velvet Lime Girls

Thank-you to Evergreen Enterprises and FlagsRUs for choosing our Valentine's Day themed artwork BE MINE - My Heart, My Treasure to grace their garden flags and Sassafras Doormats. 
We appreciate you all!

Love Recklessly

Love recklessly.  It's a phrase that surprisingly is found in the Bible and recently inspired us to create this artwork. Here's the source of our inspiration: 

“Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal."  John 12:24-25  The Message             

"Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and muscle and intelligence—and love your neighbor as well as you do yourself.” Luke 10:27 The Message

Loving God with reckless abandon,

The Velvet Lime Girls

P.S. Thanks to Embroidery Online, Embroidery Design Studio and Embroidery Janome for including this artwork in the Lovely Sentiments by Velvet Lime Girls Collection!