Summer's Goodbye

Summer officially said goodbye a couple of days ago, but like the birds trailing behind this shrimp boat in a never-ending party, we're still living like its summer here in Georgia. 

We haven't even put away our white pants.

We're still slipping around in flip flops and shorts, swimming laps in the sun, snapping photos in the garden and creating artwork in our sun drenched studio. 

Summer girls at heart, we're relishing every bright morsel nature tosses our way... sunny days, blue skies and those porcelain, white puffy clouds. But, we know a change is coming. Fall is here. A new season is being ushered in.

Instead of holding on to this summer season we love with a salty-old-knotted-rope-grip, we're embracing change and setting our eyes on the horizon ...on the good things to come. 

The gentle rippling in of autumn always refreshes us with a new expectation and a promise from Proverbs.

The path ahead can be "brighter and brighter".

"The path of the just is like the morning sun, shining brighter and brighter until the full light of day."  Proverbs 4:18

Hearts swaying with anticipation in the breeze of change, 

The Velvet Lime Girls

Photos captured on the banks of Shallowbag Bay in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Joy

“There are souls in this world which have the gift of finding joy everywhere and leaving it behind them when they go.” Frederick William Faber

Ditto

These little joy bundles are Laura’s granddaughters, Sophia, Lilly and Alexa. They’re often the source of inspiration around here, along with Marybeth’s daughters, Madison and Katie. The effervescent joy they all seem to have bubbling inside is not only contagious,it lingers, long after they’ve buzzed off to brighten a new landscape.

We love it when they are around the studio and their little positive ions recharge the entire spectrum of our lives.

We’re transformed into joy bundles ourselves.

Sunbeams lifting the fog of any day.

All because of a few sparks of joy.

We hope you’ll look for the little joys in life today. Yours may not be the simple pleasure of a swing on a new swingset, or a smile at the first snowfall, but joys are out there, just waiting to turn your plain ordinary, tap water day into a sparkling, effervescent day of seltzer smiles.

The Velvet Lime Girls

New Doors

Doors. They serve as entries and exits. Beginnings and endings. These old doors, along the Outer Banks of North Carolina, have a little history and Laura’s Dad, Clarence Skinner, tells their story best in his own words and photographs:

“These old garage pictures are representative samples that still remain along the old beach road in parts of Nags Head and Kill Devil Hills. The garages were built very close to the road and used wooden ramps to connect the garage to the road. Beach houses were located closer to the ocean, often over three hundred feet behind the garage. Autos of that era, 30’s and 40’s, were two wheel drive and did not do well in sand, without skilled drivers and some preparation, like reducing tire pressure. Normal operation was to avoid getting your car in the sand, thus the wooden pallet type driveways and the garages close to the road. City folks also did not want their cars left exposed to the salt air. Of course, this meant that everything that was taken down by auto had to be hand carried from the garage to the beach house, through loose sand.”

These rough, beaten down, barely standing garage doors, have a rustic, nostalgic beauty about them. Like the tough times and challenges that many people have weathered this past year, these old relics are still standing. And the old doors with their rusty, salt-crusted hinges almost make you think they can still swing open. But, they don’t have to anymore. A new day has come. A better way of doing things. And although the old ways have been put aside for new ways, they have not been put aside.

They stand.

Salty reminders of silent strength.

So, if you’ve weathered a “nor'-easterner” storm of sorts this year, take a good look at these old structures. They stood when times were tough. And they lived to see better days. Days when doors opened to a better way.

“I see what you've done. Now see what I've done. I've opened a door before you that no one can slam shut. You don't have much strength, I know that; you used what you had to keep my Word. You didn't deny me when times were rough.” Revelation 3:8

The Velvet Lime Girls

Run Your Race

“Let us throw off every weight and run with endurance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1

We’ve all been running a lot this summer and that makes us think of feet. Those wonderful workhorses of our body that move us through our journey here on earth. This photo of a magnificent sculpture in south Louisiana had a magnetic pull on me last summer. A swift runner captured in flight. Running her race with determination and tenacity. Sure of her course and the prize ahead. The sculptor fashioned the delicate feet with attention to detail and the layers of weathered years, moss and lichen, now etched into her surface, only added a depth to her message … "Run your race with diligence."

We’ve been running our races with diligence lately. Always checking to make sure we are hearing God clearly and doing exactly what he has created us to do on this earth. (We’re learning a clue to this is usually doing what we find great joy in… kind of what’s already in our DNA from God). This passage has been our running fuel and the sideline cheering force to some of our new artwork. We brainstormed about it recently and Marybeth began creating again … the result is a celadon and sea glass colored palette of artwork that just makes your spirit soar and with the sentiment attached, it is heavenly. It’s kind of under wraps now and will be peeking out in 2012, but you can take its inspiration below today and begin to run your race with new enthusiasm. Especially when you realize that your path has already been marked out for you.

As every runner knows, one of the great things about running is that exhilaration that infuses your entire body at the end of the race. You did it! You finished! What a great feeling! It’s the kind of feeling expressed years ago by a man shortly before he moved to heaven … “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” II Timothy 4:7

So find that path that’s been marked out just for you and enjoy your journey today… really enjoy it. Travel it knowing that it's been pre-arranged just for you. No one else can run this one except YOU.

Laura & the Velvet Lime Girls

Leftovers

“Leftovers” … that’s what the salesperson called them. The scraggly end-of-the season flowers left in a corner at the local gardening store. They were dry, brittle, and tossed on a refuse pile. I saw their potential and wanted to rescue them and give them a chance to flourish. I did. These leftovers are now the stars in my garden! Thick dark green succulent stems now hold buttery yellow faces that shimmer in the sunlight. They make me smile each time I look at them, because they remind me of the value and beauty that can be found in every “leftover”.

They also bring to mind a sentiment Marybeth expressed recently.

Marybeth has been a quiet inspiration to all of us over the past few years as she has said good-bye to three loved ones. She has traveled through these valleys of loss with her soul anchored to a strength that comes only from God … and journeyed on to mountains of joy with family, friends, faith and the creative expressions of Velvet Lime Designs. Recently she penned a few thoughts regarding the last good-by and they seem to fit in with the sentiment of finding beauty in leftovers that really matter. Here it is in her own words:

“I recently spent a few days helping go through what I term "the leftovers" -- what you leave behind when you are gone. This is the third time I've had to do it in my life and it never gets any easier. Sure, people make provisions for insurance policies, stocks, homes...that's all written on paper. It's the "leftovers" that bother me the most. Obviously, they meant something or they wouldn't have been kept. What about that high school track medal your son earned in 1974? Will he want it now? Or the mementos of your children's birth? Will it mean anything to them? What happens when you find that envelope with YOUR name on it and it contains mementos of YOU? Sometimes it's a little tough to swallow...these “leftovers." Deciding what stays and what goes.

I've decided when I am old and gray and it's my time to go, I will tell my family to happily throw it all away and remember me for the immaterial leftovers in my life. Keep what you must...but I want to be remembered for those things pertaining to the heart.”

“A good and honest life is a blessed memorial” Psalms 10:7

Marybeth & Laura

THIRSTY

Thirsty

Early each morning before the sun wakes up the elephant ears are still cradling little liquid jewels. They are nestled in the valleys of the broad plains of each green expanse. These diamond drops dance across the surface. Hovering, floating in a mercury motion, their slightly suspended form seems to shimmer a call to anyone who is thirsty … “drink me, I’ll quench your thirst!”

These water drops of morning dew make me thirsty each time I see them and remind me of Rebecca’s favorite verse, “As a deer thirsts for streams of water, so I thirst for you, God.” Psalms 42:1. We like the way The Message says it:

“A white-tailed deer drinks from the creek;

I want to drink God,

deep draughts of God.

I'm thirsty for God”

Thirsty. These little dewdrops carry a refreshing message. Our thirst can be quenched and filled with living water each day as we drink in time with God.

The Velvet Lime Girls

P.S. Thank-you to my sister-in-law, Sarah-Lynne, for reminding me of the beauty of dewdrops (and these photos taken in 2008).

Sweet Inspiration

Sweet Inspiration

Layers. We’ve been creating, dreaming and thinking of layers lately. We’re working on a new collection of artwork and developing the background layers that will accompany each piece. So much fun!

We find ourselves noticing the intricate layers that surround us each day in the ordinary things of life. This one caught our eye. A last vestige of summer that was reluctant to leave. Its slippery lazy layers beckoned us to slow down and enjoy the last moments of a sunny day. In the south, these layers are always sweet, dark and draped in condensation on a porch. Encased in glass with ice cubes lazily melting in a sweet nectar of summer, it’s a layer you just can’t pass up… and we didn’t! We captured it in photos and in long slow sips. Mmm… a glass of ice cold southern sweet tea. Just drink in its layers.

We’ve noticed the layers in ourselves lately too. The wonderful intricate ways in which we have all been created, woven together and formed. We are layers of walking wonders and a psalmist expressed best … "Nothing about me is hidden from you! I was secretly woven together as if embroidered with various colors" Psalms 139:15

So celebrate your layers today and enjoy a sip of some southern sweet tea.

The Velvet Lime Girls

A Season of Greater Things

The seven foot tall swamp flowers in our summer garden are bent over now. All the way to the ground. Along with the other flowers in the garden, they gave everything they had in a show of color and fragrance all summer long. Hosted hummingbird visits, bumble bee sleep-overs, caresses & sniffs from granddaughters.

The flowers in the garden have a burned-out kind of beauty. Their show is over. They gave every drop of color, fragrance, and effort they could give. They think the best days in the garden have passed.

Right in the middle of this weary expanse a fresh new flower emerges. It thinks it’s springtime! It wraps and curls itself around everything in sight and it’s little green bud ends burst into hundreds of delicate white flowers. White puffy clouds of blooms envelope the entire garden. Floating over the skeletons of rose bushes, dried up trellises and anything that hints of fading. This autumn clematis blankets the garden every September bringing a fresh burst of life just when things looked faded and finished.

It brings multiple messages. A reminder that there are seasons for everything. Seasons to grow and seasons to rest. We captured this sentiment in an earlier piece pictured above.

A second sentiment has emerged now, with these white clouds of fresh flowers bringing new life to a garden that was spent. The latter state of the garden is far more glorious than the beginning… It’s latter is greater than it’s past.

So if you’ve gone through a weary patch, felt like you’ve given your all and the landscape of your life still looks a bit barren, let our artwork remind you that a new season can come. Good things are still ahead and your latter can be greater than your past. (Job 8:7)

The Velvet Lime Girls

Clematis climbing all over everything is a pass-along plant...originating in Pattie Lee Smith's garden, Laura's great-grandmother, dug up and passed along by Clarence Skinner, Laura's Dad.

Thank-you.

Thank-you.

It’s a word straight from the language of the heart.

When it’s expressed through the creativity of two young girls, it’s as refreshing as a bright open-faced sunflower. Marybeth’s daughters, Madison & Katie, gave me these hand-crafted cards yesterday and I was thrilled! (The girls have been a secret source of inspiration at Velvet Lime Designs on several occasions). As they handed me the cards with a giant bouquet of sunflowers, I was touched by the detail in the cards. The hand drawn letters became a canvas for their tiny drawings of grapes, tomatoes, flowers, and stars. And their color combinations were absolutely spontaneous and inspiring.

We love it when our inspiration comes from places like this … no need for a fancy inspiration conference, expensive get-away, or luxurious vacation (although we would graciously accept any of these) J … our inspiration was carried to us by two little sets of hands.

Inspiration really is everywhere. We hope you find yours in the small things today.

Laura

THRIVE

Thrive … it’s such an encouraging word. It just makes you want to pull yourself up and reach for the stars again … like this little passion flower growing in my garden. She’s growing in a forlorn section of my garden, an area overlooked and covered with weeds. Who would ever think that such beauty could come out of this mess? But here she is, with her perky little head adorned with enthusiasm, dressed and ready to go, as if she’s strolling into a grand gala.

Wow, what an entrance she makes! She barely notices the desolation around her and instead brightens her entire surroundings.

We’re encouraged to live this way. And we can, when our strength finds its roots in the nourishment that comes from connecting with God. Years ago, a psalmist said it this way ... You’re a tree planted by streams of water… your leaf does not wither…whatever you do prospers. Psalms 1:3

So, no matter what surroundings or circumstances you find yourself in, sink your roots down deep, nourish yourself in connection with God... and begin to flourish and thrive again.

Laura

Ballast Rocks

I have a collection of prized possessions in my garden … three ballast rocks from the Outer Banks.

A few years ago, my Dad would regularly dive down and haul these heavy rocks from the waters off Roanoke Island to use as borders in his garden.The rocks are protected today and only the “old-timers” seem to have any in their yards. I admired their beauty and recently my Dad gave me a small collection. According to Dad, ballast rocks were used to stabilize the early ships and counterbalance the stress and strain of wind on the sails, giving the ships stability and enabling them to sail without danger of capsizing. I’m told that these rocks, so essential for safe voyage, had to later be thrown off for safe passage into the new land. The throwing off of the ballast rocks created a lighter vessel that could safely navigate the shallow, rocky waters that encircled the new land and new opportunities. Had the ships held on to the things that had once provided security, they would have never been able to arrive at their destination safely.

Ballast rocks are a great reminder to let go of things…even things that may have brought security… and embrace change. Change that can bring about new opportunities and “new land”. Change that will never come without letting go of the old way of doing things and navigating into new thoughts and new visions.

“Forget the former things.. I will do a new thing.” Isaiah 43:18-19

Laura

Squash Blossoms

Each morning in my summer garden a series of squash blossoms unfurl and show off their bright little faces. They are a fleeting show and by late morning they pull their shades down and close up … the show is over until tomorrow morning when a fresh new group arrives. I’ve learned to respect their timing if I want to catch a glimpse of them in their full glory.

Timing is even more important if they are to be enjoyed as a divine culinary experience … known here in the South as, fried squash blossoms. Umm, just the thought of these lightly crisped, creamy morsels makes me swoon. These beautiful airy blossoms wrap their delicate petals around a savory cream cheese filling, swan dive into an egg batter and then frolic around in a dusting of flour & bread crumbs before they are glorified with a quick olive oil flash fry. Whoa … just brace yourself for the first bite and the explosion of creamy flavor that fills your mouth. There’s just nothing like it … and it’s only found in a rare commodity…fresh squash blossoms.

Timing is everything with squash blossoms. Picked too early, they can’t contain the filling … picked too late, they shrivel and lose the filling.

Squash blossoms are a little like the opportunities God gives us each day… and timing is important here too. Opportunities of giving time, giving a smile, giving an encouragement will present themselves each day and we can fill them if we are looking and don’t let them pass us by. The explosion of flavor from these filled opportunities doesn’t even compare to the fried squash blossoms.

Laura

P.S. Recipes for fried squash blossoms abound on the internet, but if you’d like mine, just send us an email @ info@velvetlimedesigns.com