Tuesday's Inspiration: Paper Garland

Top Two Pictures

Bottom Three Pictures

Please take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'This Neck of the Woods'

{This Neck of the Woods} Giveaway

All the way from Germany, I'm excited to share the beautiful shop, 'This Neck of the Woods'... Claire, who screen prints all her own papers for her garlands, has generously offered a butterfly garland (of the winner's choice)+ shipping (Worth over 35 dollars)! All the garlands and mobiles in Claire's shop are made using high quality German papers... What a lovely way to add some life to any space! Thank you Claire!

 

{Shop}

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Claire has taken the time to answer a few questions:
What does a perfectly ordinary day in your life look like?
"I generally get up at around 6.15, get to work around 7.45 and stay till 5ish. After that, I come home, check emails, maybe go for a run, and then get down to making orders, reprinting paper or answering emails. We generally have dinner around 7.30, then watch some TV while I work on a garland. At about 9.30 I package up any orders needed to be sent the next day, then watch some more tv or read, and by 10.30ish, I'm in bed!"

What time of year most inspires you?
"I love Spring (because it's finally the end of winter!) and Christmas.. because I love the atmosphere that surrounds that time of year, plus the Christmas markets here in Europe are amazing!"

What do you think of as comfort food?
Hmm well we went to a market today and bought 2 mini caramel pies, a mini cheese cake, a mini apricot pie and some seasoned almonds.. all sounds pretty comforting to me! :)

If you could hop on a plane, without giving one thought to your budget, where would you go?
"Oh that's a tough one, there are so many places I'd love to go! At this very point in time (given the rainy weather here) I'd love to find some sun on an island.. maybe in the Maldives.. yeah."

What are five things you would like to do in the next five years?
"I would like to: travel more, do volunteer work, build a full time business from my crafting, buy/build a house somewhere, to own a dog."

This giveaway runs from August 30th - September 4th at 9pm (EST)

1. Visit 'This Neck of the Woods' and choose your favourite item(s) from the shop... Come back here and leave a comment along with your email address, mentioning your favourite item...

2. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on your blog, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

3. For an additional entry, tweet about this giveaway on Twitter, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

4. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on Facebook, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

5. For even more entries, POST again (Blog, Twitter, Facebook) at any time later in the week, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

* YOU MAY ENTER UP TO FIVE TIMES FOR FIVE CHANCES TO WIN (Entries beyond the fifth comment will not be published)!

The winner will be randomly chosen and posted HERE on the blog on Saturday... Please check the blog on Saturday to see if YOU are the winner! Enjoy... Please help spread the word and a dear thank you again to Claire of 'This Neck of the Woods'!

{Sweet Harvey} Giveaway Winner...

Congratulations to Clarissa, winner of a print from 'Sweet Harvey'! And thank you to Brandi for sharing her lovely work with us all!

And tune in Monday at 12 am for an exciting new giveaway!

August Friday's Inspiration...

1. making it lovely

2. in her hands

3. little ladies' rooms

4. choose joy

5. caste iron bed

6. bedside table

And please, take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'Sweet Harvey'

August Thursday's Inspiration: 'Dancing in the Minefields'

Andrew just has a way of getting to the heart of things... And he certainly doesn't disapoint here... "It was harder than we dreamed but I believe that's what the promise is for"... And my friends, I truly believe that... With all my heart...

And please, take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'Sweet Harvey'

August Wednesday's Inspiration...

1. summer table

2. summer vanity

3. summer sleeping

4. summer sparkler

5. summer life

And please, take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'Sweet Harvey'

August Tuesday's Inspiration: Sweet Silver...

Last weekend, we visited our dear friends, Paul and Georgie in Sutton, a town about an hour north of Toronto... Georgie (who knows me well) took B and I to a lovely little shop full of a multitude of treasures... I've been wanting to start a collection of pieced together silver for some time now... I was so excited to find a lovely assortment of vintage silver forks and spoons and a few other things... They made for perfect photo subjects as well! Enjoy my friends...

And please, take the time to enter this week's giveaway with 'Sweet Harvey'

Giveaway {Sweet Harvey}

I'm excited to introduce you to Brandi, of 'Sweet Harvey'... A lovely and whimsical letterpress shop... Brandi has graciously offered one print of the winner's choice + shipping! How will you choose?

All images from the 'Sweet Harvey' Shop and Blog

{Shop}

{Web-site}

{Blog}

{Twitter}

{Facebook}

Brandi has also taken the time to answer some questions:

What does a perfectly ordinary day in your life look like?

"Generally I am up at around 9am and I do the computer stuff (answering emails, blog, twitter, ect.) Then I usually draw or print til lunch. Then after lunch I draw or print for a few hours until dinner time. Then dinner time is spent with my husband and we either go out or stay in and watch TV. Then it is more computer time & drawing time until about 11:30pm when my hubby and I meet for a night cap. Then off to bed around 1am."

What time of year most inspires you?
"Definitely fall. I love the colors and the mild temperatures."

What do you think of as comfort food?
"Every food is comfort food. Sugar of any kind is definitely my downfall."

If you could hop on a plane, without giving one thought to your budget, where would you go?
"Europe. I have always wanted to travel there for not only the amazing art history but also the gorgeous scenery. It is as much the money that holds me back - it is more that I hate planes and the flight is SO long!"

What are five things you would like to do in the next five years?
"Stay this happy, continue to work for myself & create. Those are my only goals. Since I have become an artist I really try not to make such long term plans - I live life one day at a time and try to enjoy every minute of it."

This giveaway runs from August 23rd - 28th at 9pm (EST)

1. Visit 'Sweet Harvey' and choose your favourite item(s) from the shop... Come back here and leave a comment along with your email address, mentioning your favourite item...

2. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on your blog, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

3. For an additional entry, tweet about this giveaway on Twitter, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

4. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on Facebook, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

5. For even more entries, POST again (Blog, Twitter, Facebook) at any time later in the week, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

* YOU MAY ENTER UP TO FIVE TIMES FOR FIVE CHANCES TO WIN (Entries beyond the fifth comment will not be published)!

The winner will be randomly chosen and posted HERE on the blog on Saturday... Please check the blog on Saturday to see if YOU are the winner! Enjoy... Please help spread the word and a dear thank you again to Brandi of 'Sweet Harvey'!

{Party Poms} Giveaway Winner...

Congratulations to Nicole-Lynn & Amanda, the winners of this week's giveaway! Thanks to all who entered and thank you especially to Nai of 'Party Poms' for the fantastic poms!

Stay tuned on Monday for a BRAND NEW weekly giveaway!

'The Perpetual Picnic'

'The Perpetual Picnic', a photo series by the talented Samantha Lamb

** Purchase the lovely book HERE (I'm waiting for mine to arrive) **

Don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Party Poms'

A Day at the Farm...

This past Friday, we went to a corn roast (minus the corn, oddly enough) at the Farm... For those of you who don't know, Jay grew up on a third generation dairy farm in Shakespeare, Ontario... His parents still live there, but his dad doesn't keep cows anymore... It's a lovely place...

 

Don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Party Poms'

The Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer...

 

Don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Party Poms'

Inspired by Tissue Flowers...

This week's exciting giveaway with 'Party Poms' has got me thinking... How would you use Nai's lovely poms around our home? How would you? Here are a few ideas... Enjoy!

1. nursery decoration

2. dining room decoration

3. party decoration

4. ceiling decoration

5. table decoration

6. outdoor decoration

7. little lady's room decoration

8. cake table decoration

Want your own Poms? Enter this week's giveaway with 'Party Poms'

And check out another {Ardent Sparrow} Giveaway on the beautiful 'French Larkspur'

Giveaway {Party Poms}

This week's giveaway is from Nai of 'Party Poms'... Nai creates lovely tissue paper flowers in a multitude of colours... TWO winners will receive $25 in store credit to spend in her shop!

This giveaway runs from August 16th - 21st at 9pm (EST)

1. Visit 'Party Poms' and choose your favourite item(s) from the shop... Come back here and leave a comment along with your email address, mentioning your favourite item...

2. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on your blog, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

3. For an additional entry, tweet about this giveaway on Twitter, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

4. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on Facebook, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

5. For even more entries, POST again (Blog, Twitter, Facebook) at any time later in the week, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

* YOU MAY ENTER UP TO FIVE TIMES FOR FIVE CHANCES TO WIN (Entries beyond the fifth comment will not be published)!

The winner will be randomly chosen and posted HERE on the blog on Saturday... Please check the blog on Saturday to see if YOU are the winner! Enjoy... Please help spread the word and a dear thank you again to Nai of 'Party Poms'!

{cuteape} Giveaway Winner...

Congrats to Whitney, this week's winner of $35 in Store Credit for 'cutetape'... And stay tuned for another fantastic giveaway beginning Monday at 12 am!

August Friday's Inspiration...

1. cupcake in a jar

2. lovely tabletop
3. i bought this bowl as a gift for leah's first birthday
4. oh mr. darcy...

And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Cute Tape'

Yesterday Was Quite the Day...

Yesterday was quite an eventful day... Despite a massive headache (bah), there were a few big things that happened...

First, I added some new one-of-a-kind vintage necklaces to the shop... I'm pretty excited about these... I've been feeling awfully inspired lately... It's been really fun to try my hand at something new!

I was featured as this week's staff pick on 'Pingg' (for which I won $50... How great is that?)

I won a month's run of an ad on 'Wedding Chicks'... Scroll down and check out my wee little ad under 'Wedding Essentials'... I'm in some pretty good company over there!

And the first issue of 'Joie' went live... Check out page 48 for my full-page ad...

What a day it was... Did anything exciting happen in your world?

And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Cute Tape'

August Wednesday's Inspiration...

1. i adore this little mint hideaway
2. 'i can see a rainbow'
3. clothesline
4. mason jars make the most lovely vases
5. coconut ice cream sandwiches

And don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Cute Tape'

August Tuesday's Inspiration: A Few Treats...

Good Tuesday morning friends... I have a few little treats to share with you today...

If you haven't done so already, head on over to 'Jen Loves Kev' to enter a giveaway (ends today) for $35 to spend in my shop... Thanks Jen, for sharing my work with your lovely readers... It's been such a pleasure to read their wonderful comments!


And while you're in the giveaway mood, don't forget to enter this week's giveaway with 'Cute Tape'

Up next: I have long been a fan of Matthew Smith... For those of you (like me) who appreciate old hymns, I think you'll be quite fond of his new project, "Watch the Rising Day"... I had the immense privilege of getting a pre-release of "Watch the Rising Day" before it was available to the public... And I thoroughly enjoyed it! Matthew thoughtfully takes old hymns and re-invents them... I deeply appreicate the fact that he stays true to the essence of the original hymns...

If you like what you hear, visit the Matthew's site... Use the code "ARDENT" to get 25% off the Deluxe Edition CD + Download OR the code "ARDENTVINYL" for 10% off the Limited Edition Vinyl + Download (Codes expire August 23rd) Thank you Matthew... For making music that so honours the Saviour! I hope that you too will be deeply encouraged by Matthew's work!

Giveaway {cutetape}

To say that I LOVE paper is a bit of an understatement... I've long been fascinated by the world of Asian paper products... The stamps, the stickers, the decorative tapes... And the journals... How I adore the journals... If you're like me, then you'll be thrilled with this week's giveaway... Meet Glenda of 'cutetape'... She's offering $35 in credit to spend in her shop! Excited? I am!Glenda has kindly taken the time to answer some questions:

What does a perfectly ordinary day in your life look like?
"A perfectly ordinary day would be a quiet day sans kids screaming and kids eating meals when they should. But a regular ordinary day is the complete opposite!!"

What time of year most inspires you?
"Spring time. I enjoy flowers blooming and all the pretty colors, BUT the allergies - I can live without!"

What do you think of as comfort food?
"I love all kinds of food. If I had to choose one...well, I can't haha. It would have to be Korean food and Japanese food."

If you could hop on a plane, without giving one thought to your budget, where would you go?
"Currently, South Korea since I'm interested in their culture - drama, food and language. 안녕하세요 (hello!!)"

What are five things you would like to do in the next five years?
"1. Learn Hangul (speak and write in Korean - just started)
2. Maybe actually make something with the stuff I sell! =)
3. Hope by the end of the 5 years, that my younger one will be old enough to travel to Asia since that's what I would like to do but he's still too young.
4. I would like to be a super mom - like those that are SOOO active in their child's school. (*sigh*, second thought...not sure if I REALLY want to do that...)
5. My ultimate dream is always to move back to Southern California...but I think it'll just remain a dream..."

This giveaway runs from August 9th - 14th at Noon (EST)

1. Visit 'cutetape' and choose your favourite item(s) from the shop... Come back here and leave a comment along with your email address, mentioning your favourite item...

2. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on your blog, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

3. For an additional entry, tweet about this giveaway on Twitter, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

4. For an additional entry, link to this giveaway on Facebook, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

5. For even more entries, POST again (Blog, Twitter, Facebook) at any time later in the week, come back here and post an additional comment with the link and your email address...

* YOU MAY ENTER UP TO FIVE TIMES FOR FIVE CHANCES TO WIN (Entries beyond the fifth comment will not be published)!

The winner will be randomly chosen and posted HERE on the blog on Saturday... Please check the blog on Saturday to see if YOU are the winner! Enjoy... Please help spread the word and a dear thank you again to Glenda of 'cutetape'!

{Leah Duncan} Giveaway Winner...

Congratulations to Ashley of 'Cocoa Green', the winner of one tea towel + one print of her choice from the shop of 'Leah Duncan'... And thank you Leah, for sharing your work with us all! Tune in Monday at 12 am EST for a brand new and VERY exciting giveaway! Happy weekend...

Image from 'Freshly Chopped'

August Friday's Inspiration...

1. turquoise

2. clothespins
3. citrus sorbet

August Thursday's Inspiration...

1. dreaming of this room

2. 'traces'
3. love the lights hanging from the trees
4. oh... this bathroom!

August Wednesday's Inspiration...

1. Oh so colourful flowers
2. Chopsticks
3. I like that Table
4. Bee Happy Print
5. I like those shoes