All is CALM

It's December 1st.  Yes, it's already here.  And if your mind starts rolling-out lists of things to do the moment you hear "December 1st", we have a little gift for you today.  It's an invitation to just pause, slow down, inhale and breathe a little slower...and remember what the upcoming celebration of Christmas is really all about.

It's the birthday of Jesus Christ, the son of God, our Savior.

The snow-capped, whimsical-house artwork, pictured above, was hidden behind stacks of sketches and doodles in our studio today, and we pulled it out, just so we could read the first few words: 

ALL IS CALM.

Don't you just feel better saying that?  We do.

It's a lovely reminder to let one of the last things Jesus said on this earth really permeate our entire being and settle everything down just a bit:    

"My peace I leave with you..."  John 14:27 

So, slip on a little of His peace today, His calm, His Presence, and watch, just watch, as everything turns bright.

All is calm, all is bright,

The Velvet Lime Girls

Fragrant Gifts

A season of giving is about to be ushered in as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, our Immanuel, our "God with us". We've been thinking a lot about giving and gifts in the Velvet Lime Girls studio. Quite often, the most memorable and treasured gifts are the ones given fully from the heart. Gifts like the one Mary Magdalene gave Jesus, a pint of pure nard in an alabaster jar. Nard was an expensive, lavish, aromatic perfume and many scholars believe this may have actually been an essence of lavender. The Bible records it would have taken a year's salary to pay for the amount of precious ointment given by Mary to Jesus. It was an extravagant gift, poured straight from her heart, filling the senses of all those present, and continuing to touch people today, whenever the story is retold. We've wondered if this gift came from a field of lavender as vast, as beautiful, as costly as the one pictured here, a never-ending field of fragrance. The heady aroma from this lavender field seems to waft off the paper and into our hearts, reminding us of just how beautiful a gift is when it is given from the heart.

We'd like to thank James, our "Platinum Advisor", for bringing this inspiration to us. He picked up his crayons again after 40+ years, and with soft pastels created this fragrant work of art, and we've just been inhaling the inspiration it brings to our souls. The artwork sits on an easel in our studio, it is a work still in progress, but we wanted to share its fragrance, it's reminder to all of us in this season.. that gifts given from the heart last forever.

"Then Mary took about a pint of nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped His feet with her hair.  And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume."  John 12:3

Learning to give from our hearts,

The Velvet Lime Girls

Live Simply

Live Simply.

It's an expression we welcome this time of year.
Just before Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve come rolling in with all the family, memories and significant celebrations.
We know the holidays also come with their bags packed full of lists, programs to attend, presents to buy, packages to wrap, trees to decorate, cookies to bake, and cards to mail.
It can be overwhelming. Especially when we forget what the celebrations are really all about.

So, we'd like to take a little pause beforehand and just reflect on the joy of simplicity.
The joy of living life a bit more carefree and, well...simply.
It's an important thing to embrace just before the full season ahead.

So, take a brief moment with us and treat yourself to a cup of tea, a five minute coffee break, or just a moment of solitude and let our Live Simply artwork bring a little rest to your soul.  You weren't meant to go 100 miles an hour in a day.  We hope our artwork reminds you to just lighten your load a bit and allow yourself to live life a little less encumbered, a little less burdened, a little more simply.

The word "simply" has a few interesting synonyms that include:
easy, effortless, uncomplicated, and child's play.
Hmm... child's play.
We remember someone who encouraged us to be like a child.  To become like little children.
He's the same person who said this:

“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. I won’t lay anything heavy or 
ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
Matthew 11:28-30

and this:
"Don't store up for yourselves treasures on earth...store up treasures in heaven...
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matthew 6:19-20


Live Simply,
The Velvet Lime Girls

The King Who Came for You.

It’s Christmas Eve and we’ve put up our trees, wrapped our packages and stilled ourselves in front of the nativity scenes that grace our homes. These nativity scenes seem to cradle the very essence of what Christmas is really all about ... the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior. And as our spirits settle down and sink into the presence of God that fills our homes, our hearts seem to swell, as if we could somehow hold the love that has been showered on us, in the story of Christmas.

Christmas is really a love story.  A real, love story of a King, the King of Kings, setting aside His throne, His grandeur, His royal garments, and then, clothing himself in ordinary flesh and blood. The Bible says He came down to us and “moved into the neighborhood.”

He came down to us. 

He became Emmanuel, God WITH us.  

He could have stayed in Heaven, but He loved us enough to lay everything aside and become like us… become a baby. Then live a life on this earth, listening to His Father, as He taught us, healed us, encouraged us, and eventually saved us for eternity by His death on a cross.*

Oh, how He loves us. And Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, because we remember just how very much we are loved. Every single one of us … just as we are.

At Christmas ... a King came down to earth for you. 

Blessings to you on Christmas Eve,

The Velvet Lime Girls

* Philippians 2:6-8

Nativity

This slightly crooked and fragile nativity scene is a quiet reminder that the birth of the Son of God was not quite perfect looking at first glance. A long trip, instead of the comforts of home, a manger instead of room at the inn …this was probably not the way they had it planned.

God had a plan though and it was perfect. Nestled within this humble beginning was the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Prince of Peace … our Emmanuel.

This little nativity whispers to each of us that the bent places in our lives, the weathered journeys and the fragile moments of life may not always be perfect looking from the outside … but our God always has a good plan and tenderly reminds us:                        

“...I have come that you might have life and life more abundant.”                      John 10:10

  

Thanking God for each of you this Christmas and for all the shared moments of crooked times, fragile times and good times.  The best is yet to come!

The Velvet Lime Girls

Christmas 2012

Season of The King

 

December is here.

Ornaments are coming out of hibernation, Christmas trees are slipping into festive attire and lights are filling the nights with brilliant expressions of joy.  The celebrations of Christmas are unfolding everywhere.

Here in our studio, in the midst of all the anticipation and excitement, we’ve paused a moment to reflect on the heart of Christmas.  We’re remembering that it’s the birth of Jesus, the Son of God, the King of Kings.  This is the moment we wait for all year. Celebrating the One who loved us enough to come to earth and “move into the neighborhood” (The Message- John 1:14)

What a love story Christmas is to all of us. The King of Kings humbling himself and being born as a child in the little town of Bethlehem.  Just for us.

We captured these thoughts and reflections into some artwork a few years ago.  We filled a background with ancient manuscripts telling the story of the birth of Jesus,

 added washes of symbolic red and gold

and then finally sealed the layers with a crown, signifying the royal lineage of the King of Kings.

We like to pull this artwork out each December, just to remember what it’s all about, and we hope it brings a moment of peaceful pause to your day today.

In the spirit of Christmas, we are giving away one archival print of this artwork to one of our facebook “friends” in a random drawing on December 10^th.  To be eligible, simply tell us what word or words capture the heart and the essence of Christmas for you on our facebook page http://www.facebook.com/VelvetLImeDesigns

We’ll be looking for your facebook comments whether they are funny, pensive, insightful, silly, thoughtful or brief. Just a word or phrase will do!

Anticipating Christmas,

The Velvet Lime Girls

 Print also available @ http://www.etsy.com/shop/velvetlimedesigns?ref=pr_shop_more

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas from the Velvet Lime Girls!

Here's Marybeth and family...
And here's the photo that didn't make the card, but is our favorite :-)

Here's Rebecca and family:
And here's Laura and family (she's the one in the back, behind all the children & grandchildren!)

We hope you have a wonderful Christmas!

Lord of lords

Lord of Lords. It’s a term that may bring to mind tales of medieval times, regal lifestyles and rulers of grand estates. Not mangers, humble beginnings and living life with a servant heart.

And yet, that is the life lived by the bearer of this name.

This title contains an unexpected contrast … a juxtaposition of sorts. Juxtapositions are often seen in the design world when a mix of two opposites creates something never before seen and never before expected. Rough burlap paired with soft velvet, or smooth silk layered on textured wool. The combinations are unusual, unexpected, unimagined. The results however explode the lid off of traditional patterns and conventional thinking and open the way for new realms of thought and creativity.

Lord of lords, is a crowning display of juxtaposition. This Lord, the Lord of lords, humbled himself, took on mortal flesh and came and lived among us. His arrival was announced by a host of angels and yet occurred in a manger. Respected intellectuals with lavish gifts welcomed Him as well as hard-working ordinary people. And although He was of royal descent, history records that one of his last acts was washing the feet of his disciples.

He was a servant Lord. A Lord who cared enough to come down and live among us. A Lord who “came down and moved into the neighborhood.” John 1:14

The Velvet Lime Girls

King of kings

This artwork came out of our hearts a couple years ago and we thought it was fitting to share it again as we prepare to celebrate Christmas.

Names say a lot about a person. Parents often spend months selecting a name that will convey the essence of all their hopes and dreams for that child. They know names are important. It’s the manner in which a child will be addressed and referred to for life and often serves as a remembrance long after they are gone.

Sometimes a person can have a descriptive name that kind of sums up what their life is all about. Thoughtful Thomas, Caring Cathy, Insightful Ian, Wise William … you can easily add to the list.

But a descriptive name like the King of kings is an entirely different category. You’ll notice the dictionary even points out that when using this phrase in reference to Christ, that the first King is to be capitalized. It denotes an authority that is higher than any king in history. The KING of kings.

We wanted to weave the historical record of this King’s birth in the background of our artwork, wash it in a symbolic red glaze and crown it with a reference to His royal lineage. We love the way Marybeth took all these ideas and distilled them into this creative birth announcement/name declaration that creates a powerful remembrance.

We have a few more descriptive names we captured in artwork and we will share them over the next few days. Come back and be inspired this week, as you see just how powerful a name can be.

The Velvet Lime Girls

Christmas Seed Story

Christmas Seed Story

This slender seedpod graced our lives this past month. Gathered on a walk with a granddaughter, it found a home among a collection of natural fall decorations. The slim, tight green husk sat silently, in obscurity, among the collection.

Early one morning a silent explosion occurred and the green husk was split from top to bottom, bursting and birthing light, airy seeds too numerous to count. Fine cotton candy puffs, holding rainbows of light in each lash exploded from the gathered grip of each tiny seed. They could no longer be contained inside the tight green husk. Their time had come. Their season had arrived. They were ready to multiply, replenish, and take dominion over their new dwelling places.

It seemed fitting to have this seedpod arrive so close to Christmas. Like the child born in a manger years ago, who carried a unique seed potential within … son of God and son of man, this “seed” also produced a harvest too numerous to count. When he left this earth, history records that like the seedpod, a veil was torn from top to bottom. A new season, a new arrangement, began and endless numbers of seeds like him were born.

We’ll look at seedpods differently now. They echo an eternal love story. God giving his only Son for us … opening the door for us all to join His family … a family of little seeds too numerous to count.

The Velvet Lime Girls

The Word (Christ) became flesh and blood; and moved into the neighborhood.” John 1:14