a sprinkle of faith

An eclectic mix of life, art & fiction… and a sprinkle of faith.

Flora de la Mode

It’s been a while! About two months, actually. Considering the struggles that I was having with illustrations… it felt much longer.

So, a couple of days ago, I decided it was time to say goodbye to Illustrator (and hello to Photoshop). I also learned how to save my old illustrations so that I could still work with them.

This added a whole new layer to my work and gave me a much needed sense of excitement. Not only can I start working with old and new photographs, but my old illustrations as well! And maybe some new! We will just have to see how that feisty pen tool cooperates.

I started with a simple beach girl from the past, layered her with a flower from our garden, and then added some transparency to my little sun worshipper to add some color changes and shadows. I couldn’t resist a little oil paint effect either.

What I loved the most is that I could get these new effects without having to use other apps. What I also appreciated was that AI helped me come up with the title and it was spot on!

Flora de la Mode translates from a mix of latin and french to mean “Flower of Fashion.” How beautiful is that? It not only works for the image, but it correlates with my mindset these days as well.

During my down time lately, I’ve been obsessed with the show Project Runway. Watching those designers reignited my creativity and motivation!

I’ve been cutting and stitching some clothes that I don’t wear to turn them into clothes… that I may (or may not) wear. Either way… it’s a win-win. Even if I won’t wear the new garments, I gain experience just doing them.

I suppose that my image is not just a bit of Flora de la Mode, but also a depiction of my renewed sense of excitement – something that I was in desperate need of. Hooray!

I’ve also put an indefinite hold on my alphabet series. That was another thing that was holding me back. So… I’m saying goodbye to the stiff, boring letters… and hello to fashion, flowers, and anything else that comes my way.

That’s about all for now. Thank you for viewing… I hope you enjoyed!

Until next time,
Keep Blooming!

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Blogging through the Alphabet in 2025

Abundantia

Gratitude is the seed of abundance.

I’ve decided to go ahead with a new game this year, very similar to one I’ve done in the past – a few times. I’m calling this one…

“Blogging Through the Alphabet, 2025.”

So, here we go! I thought of the word abundance for the letter ‘A’ and I decided to explore it a little, just to see what I could find.  

Abundance means having more than what is needed or expected, and when I stop and think about it, I have everything I need… and then some. Remember my stalled attempts to eliminate some of my excess clutter!?

So, when I think of abundance, and realize I have everything I need, it creates in me a sense of gratitude. It also helps lift some of that fog that fills my brain when I focus on what I think I need.

Like courage for example. There are things I’d like to do, but I’m too afraid to try. Sometimes I try to imagine that negativity as a ceiling that sits near the top of my head. When I want more of an “I can do this” attitude – I tell myself to “break the ceiling.” 

Of course, that sometimes makes me think of the song “The Roof is on Fire,” but that’s a detour we don’t want to take right now. 

Anyway. Thinking of the word abundance helps me imagine that there’s no ceiling at all… just the blue sky above. “The sky’s the limit,” as they say.

Removing that ceiling helps me understand that there are no real limits, only what I have imagined, and suddenly I am fearless.

What made the word even more fun, however, was learning that the word abundance comes from the Latin word abundantia, which means fullness, plenty, or overflowing riches – as that’s when I read about Abundantia… the Roman goddess of abundance, prosperity, and good fortune. 

Abundantia was often depicted carrying a cornucopia (the horn of plenty) on artwork and Roman coins, from the 3rd century CE, and I decided it would be fun to illustrate a modern day Abundantia (also known as Lady Fortune) for the first post of twenty-six in my new alphabet series.

I was going to include the horn of plenty, reflected in her glasses, but it seemed out of character – and possibly out of date. This is 2025 after all, and rarely (if ever) do I see cornucopias lying around.

Then I considered adorning her with diamonds and pearls, but abundance isn’t about having or obtaining these types of things, it’s about being grateful for what you have, and knowing that it’s enough. Or more than enough.

That’s about all for now. Thank you for reading/viewing… I hope you enjoyed!

Until next time,
Peace & Love.

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