Joy to the World…

I’ve always loved angels… stories about them, images of them, the whole concept of them! And I have a small collections of angel figurines that come out at Christmas. A few even stay out all year. But this trio of angels are the result of an online class called Journal Soup with Kate Crane. She taught students how to create interesting mixed media backgrounds, and then how to draw and paint these simple angel figures. I decided to recycle a plain white bag by painting my angels on it. It was fun to make, and I completed it by writing the words for "Joy to the World" around the outside of the image and on the gowns. I continued the recycling theme by tying the bag closed with ribbon and a strip of painted bubble plastic I had used to stamp dots on backgrounds. I filled the bag full of goodies and shipped it off to a friend in Pennsylvania. Below is a photo of what’s inside.




The “small business Saturday” in which shoppers purchase gifts in local shops and small retail businesses is an effort I like to support. So most of the items I’m gifting were found in art and craft galleries and craft stores. The Redbelly notecard came from Cedar Key Arts Center. Below it is a hand-made vintage-look necklace from Artisan’s Way in Melrose, FL. The "Shine" zippered pouch came from She Scrapbooks in The Villages, FL. I don't shop just on "small business Saturday", but pick things up when I visit small communities in the area. Grumpy Cat is the only gift that came from a big-box bookstore, but I couldn’t resist. Do you know Grumpy Cat? She’s featured on posters that say things like “If you’re happy and you know it, get away from me!” A very charming feline-her face just says it all.




And here are a few of my angels to say Merry Christmas, Peace on Earth, Goodwill to All!