Grow Roots & a Giveaway...

i just want to say *thank you* to all your kind words of congratulations on my new adventure...

i haven't had a chance to really play with the new textures...

{between a oldest child turning 9, helping sew up a prolapsed steer, playing monkey man, having a heart attack when a horse went down with 2 of my kids, and herding cattle there hasn't been much time...sheesh..} ;0)

but i can honestly say that i think this is going to be florabella's best set yet!!...

so *thank you* dear girls, you are all SO amazing!..

and i have a little something for one lucky reader...

last week i was contact by lisa leonard...{i know!! eeee!! *love* her designs!!}

she is SO kindly offering a $50.00 gift certificate to one lucky reader!!...

how {fabulous} is that!! right in time for the holiday season!!..

i thought i would share with you a couple favorites...

each one is truly a work of art...and these are just a few of her designs...

the one that is {whispering} to my soul though is the {Grow Roots, Sprout Wings}...

lisa's description of the necklaces design is {stunning}...

"our grow roots, sprout wings necklace captures the beauty of stability and risk, making deep, life-long connections, and exploring new possibilities."

what a perfect reminder for a prairie girl on a creative journey...

not only does it take courage and strength to {sprout} wings but it also takes {roots}, a firm foundation and knowledge of where you wish to journey and who you are along the way...

what necklace or bracelet {whispers} to your soul??...

to be entered in the giveaway for a $50.00 gift certificate {only open to US and Canada}...

~simply leave me a comment...

~follow or let me know you are already a prairie girl...

~blog, tweet, or facebook for an additional entry...

{please leave a seperate comment for each entry, also please leave a link to your blog, tweet or facebook entry...*thanks*}

giveaway ends on Monday the 22nd at 5:00 p.m. {mst}...Good luck!!..

oh and one more thing...

lisa is offering all {faded prairie} readers 15% off their entire order to her site...

simply use the discount code fadedprairie {all lowercase and one word} when checking out...

i don't know about you, but this prairie girl is on her way to do some christmas shopping...enjoy!!....

{giveaway now closed...*thank you*}

On The Prairie...Modern Prairie Girl...

with so much going on here on my little prairie i have been a little slow doing my On The Prairie Feature for the month...

but this one is definitely worth the wait...

Lara with Modern Prairie Girl was so kind to join me here for the month of november...

Lara gives us a glimpse of being a Modern Prairie Girl and shares her creative journey with us...

so may i introduce Lara...

Hello, lovely Prairie Friends! It is so wonderful to be here with you on Kristin’s gorgeous planet. I think we might be fraternal twins separated at birth…for starters, to find another woman professing herself prairie-worthy, was enough in itself! I just find myself in her posts and it is lovely, lovely.

Blogland has been a highlight for me as I go down this creative path I’ve been traveling for quite awhile now.

I think the thing about blogging is that it brings the “Look! Something Shiny” things into our lives. You know…the stuff that ignites your heart and makes you smile the broad, squinty-eyed smiles. I have a lot of these and at times it can be a bit confusing about what kind of artist I am truly. So I thought I’d slink down this little road of defining this..might be fun to see it all in one place

…and introduce you to my “Look! Something shineys” and give my own version of who this prairie girl is.

I think photography is what I was meant to do. It is in all areas of my life as my job and just for the love of it.

Dogs…

People…

Gear…

Dreamy scenes I wish I could jump in to...

It’s like breathing and I have a camera with me at all times because I just don’t want to forget the image before me…especially when it inspires.

I’m a Barn Sale lovin’ diva with friends in that world who I hold very dear to my heart.

Women, in particular, who lift me up and make me feel like I can fly.

My family is my greatest accomplishment and I am very selfish about the time I spend with them. I know the clock is ticking on how cool it is to “hang with mom”, so I’ll take my two lovelies any way I can get ‘em. Not to mention a husband who I adore and admire…he is the Bee’s Knees, so to speak. On 12 acres of country land we make this home together…cruiser bike rides, camp fires, walks down the lane with the dogs. Decorating this house with my antique prairie-inspired treasures…It’s dreamy and wonderful and I could never go back to city of neighborhood life. I love it here in my Modern Prairie World. I feel very blessed and feel immense gratitude for getting to live this life.

Writing has become kind of important these days as I pour myself out, sometimes without holding back on the blog…but now it actually counts because I’m writing my first book for Amherst Media on how to create a dog portrait studio…pretty exciting stuff, but also a bit “can I really do this?” “Who am I to tell this story?” blah,blah,blah…I will get over it and be excited to do a signing at Borders…that visual is getting’ me through! I also teach and write curriculum for our “Ignite the Heart” retreats on the Oregon Coast each spring. My artist friend, Elida Field, does the collage teaching part and I do the photography tutorials. It’s just the best time.

I love that weekend!

I’m turning 40 and I believe I’m having some sort of creative awakening…I don’t know what you call it, but it’s sprouting in my heart like a dandelion these days. I created an art-making-only room at the studio and it’s all I can do not to retreat in there as much as I can. For now, the art-making comes only when the photo work is caught up, but it really feeds my soul and I know deep down (what Kelly Rae, our modern hero, would call “the whispers”—I call them the “stirrings”) that I will end up there somehow.

Makin’ stuff.

Loving makin’ stuff.

Showin’ stuff.

Sellin’ stuff.

I just have to be confident that the plan is there and patience is the key (not my strong point). It’s hard when the passion is new…like standing on the porch with that new boyfriend saying “goodnight” for 2 hours..you just can’t get enough..but I suppose that’s the lure of it also…that I just can’t devote the amount of time that I want to right now…

And it’s okay.

It will be.

So that’s me…cowboy boot wearin’ , Tiara Friday sportin’, art makin’ prairie gal who is just thrilled to be here today with you all. Yay for blogging and all that it adds to our lives!

As Kristin would say…

”Big prairie hugs”~Lara

dear lara girl~

*thank you* so much for sharing your journey; you are such an inspiration to me...and yes, i deeply regret being to stinkin' shy to walk up to you at barnhouse and introduce myself...ugh...never again!!

Trust...

sometimes i'm a chicken...

yep...

a big {red} headed chicken...

especially when it comes to putting my creative self {out there}...

i'm afraid...

of failure...

of not being {good} enough...

constantly comparing myself to others...

when i lost my dad years ago, there were many regrets...

that day i vowed to try and not go through life with regrets...

with what {might} have been...

with that in mind...

i entered a photo of mine...

into a contest to become a tester for the new florabella textures that are about to be released...

when i submitted it i instantly regretted it...

i should have done a different one...

i should have done something bigger and more dramatic...

but guess what...

all the self doubting, worry, and something of {embarrassment} for trying...

were for nothing...

i am SO excited....shana rae and her judges picked my photo as one of the 5 winning photos!!

i will be receiving a set of the new textures and will get to play to my {heart's} content!

i've talked about courage and strength on my creative journey...

but it also takes trust...

trust in myself and my {gifts}...

to unfurl my wings and soar to my full potential...

there is no greater feeling...

Taking Flight...

how do i even put into words what this book has done for me on my creative journey...

her introduction begins with a quote...

"When once you have tasted flight, you will walk the earth with your eyes skywards, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return"

~Leonardo Da Vinci

not only does kelly take you on an inspirational journey of yourself but also gives you step by step instructions to creating your own works of art...

places to gather your winged thoughts...

and most important to this prairie girl...

gentle reminding to listen to your whispers...

and follow their truths...

Prairie Wings...

i'm learning to fly again...

i'm aware once more of the wings that are carrying me upon my creative journey...

they are as grey as the storm that is building somewhere along the great divide...

they are branded with the wisdom of the long forgotten...

they are strong and graceful and will bear me along the ups and downs of the prairie winds...

a few of my feathers are ruffled and bent caused by tumbles from my charted path...

they are bruised from being constrained by the bonds of self doubt and constant criticism...

they quake with an eagerness to stretch to their full potential and soar towards that dream waiting on the horizon...

they are humbled to be carried along on the whispers of What Once Was...

they are gaining strength and courage with each new adventure...

what do your Prairie Wings look like that you have released while embarking on your creative journey...