One of those days!

Yes, today was one of those days.

The freezer wasn't freezing ice cubes.

The refrigerator temperature is not cold enough and is running all the time, so I am going to have to throw out some food.

I have hurt my right elbow somehow, and in certain positions, it is very painful. No ice cubes makes it difficult to ice the elbow. ;o)

The birthday card I was making had to be remade, and once finished, it still was not "perfect."

Basically, it has been a day of redoing and figuring out how to resolve the challenges that kept surfacing.

Finally, I decided I needed to create something "just because," so I made the two mandalas I have posted here.

I titled the first mandala, "Hearts & Flowers" for obvious reasons. ;o) The picture I used was taken on a lovely September day just about the time the sun was setting, which gave the flower a very vibrant appearance.

The second mandala is called "Morning Glorious" and was taken on the same September afternoon.

I do love the wide open loveliness of morning glories. This perky blossom was surrounded by a sea of green leaves and other buds here and there. She seemed to be saying--"Hey! Look at me! I'm happy here, blooming in my little corner of the world!"

Making these mandalas was a challenge because of my elbow, but I loved the surprise they brought me when I finished them. Perhaps the message for me is that "one of those days" is like a slice of a digital mandala. You never know what the final result will be just by looking at the first slice.

Any today is just a slice of Life. When it is pieced together with all the other slices, then I will be surprised with the amazing results and with what hidden pictures I can see.

So the next time one of those days comes my way, I'll do my best to accept it just as it is and realize that a new "today" is just a sunrise away. ;o)

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Hearts & Flowers" Mandala
"Morning Glorious" Mandala
Digital mandalas created using Photoshop
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Mushroom Star

I am posting a new digital mandala along with the source image I used. I took this picture in September while taking a walk near our apartment. The day was lovely and I actually remembered to bring my camera with me. ;o)

What I love about the process of creating these mandalas is the unknown factor. When I pick the slice I will use, I am only seeing 1/5 or 1/8 of the final result. In the case of the Mushroom Star, I didn't know there was going to be a star until I had made 3/5 of the mandala.

The other interesting occurrence is how my perception of what I am seeing changes. For example, in this mandala, I kept feeling like I was looking shells from the ocean, which made me wonder if mushrooms are the shells of a grass sea or a dirt sea. Just a different way of "seeing."

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Mushroom Star of the Sea Mandala
Digital mandala created with Photoshop
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Walking in the Forest of Mystery

The mandala posted here is my first attempt at a digital mandala. It was so exciting to make since I pieced it together section by section. The final result stunned me--the geometric designs, the hidden pictures I see, the flower design made by a tree branch. All so amazing and such a feast for the eyes. What do you see hidden in the greenery of this mandala? What message do you hear when looking at it?

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Forest of Mystery Mandala
Digital mandala created with Photoshop
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

A Few Words about The Artist: Me! ;o)

I brought my greeting cards to sell on consignment in an angel store here in Montréal. The name of the store is Ange Neige. Along with the cards, I brought an artist card that shares a bit about me. I have posted it here for readers of my blog, so they can learn a little more about me and my art. :o)



I have also created my own set of marketing bookmarks. You can see the 5 designs I made below. I had great fun making these bookmarks. I took parts of different collages, doodles, and Life Stamps to make the individual designs. And, of course, there is one that is more traditional, featuring the logo of Blue Heron Visions and Two Chairs and A Window Greeting Cards.



--Vicky Lynn :o)

Artist Card, Bookmarks
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

All About Seeking

Here is an interesting video about "seeking" that someone I follow on Twitter mentioned. I really love what the narrator has to say about the idea of seeking much more than I like the actual video--with one exception: when the words "This Is It" show up on the screen. That phrase really caught my attention. And the phrase showed up again in my life a few days after viewing the video when I noticed that the title of Michael Jackson's posthumous new single: "This Is It."

This video inspired me to make the mandala seen in this post. I call it "Eternal Seeker" and it shows the struggle and entanglement that happens to me when I get caught in the idea of seeking and searching and striving to find the Answers.

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Eternal Seeker" Mandala
Ink, felt pens on paper
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Final Versions: Angel Message Bookmarks

Here are the final versions of the bookmarks (in English and French) that I made for my friend Karen, the Angel Therapy Practitioner. I created the collage part and she wrote the words. Karen is selling these bookmarks.

You can read more about Karen and get more information on her web site: http://www.angelsconnecttospirit.com/

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Autumn, Falls, and Balances

Happy Autumn! Happy Fall! In one way, it's funny to think of wishing someone a "happy fall"! Falling usually isn't something we want to do. I know because I fell on Sunday while waiting for a light to change. I was on my bike and had to stop for the light. For some unknown reason, I reached for the ground with my left foot instead of my right foot (which is the foot I use almost ALL of the time). I didn't plant my foot well and even though I almost managed to keep my balance, I didn't. And down I went! I have a series of evenly spaced scrapes on my right leg, where my pedal branded me and a bit of a sore left arm and wrist. Just a reminder of how important it is to maintain my balance.

And as I think about my fall, I am also thinking about the autumnal equinox, the second day of the year when a perfect balance is reached between night and day. That happening occurs tomorrow in Montréal where I live.

Isn't it amazing that out of the 365 days that we live each year, there are only 2 days in which night and day find a perfect balance? Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from this natural cycle--equality, more light, equality, more darkness. I don't think I have ever tried applying that cycle to my own life.

As do most people, I try to hold on to what I want in my life and avoid or try to change that which I don't want. But the fact is that everything changes and everything eventually passes away.

The doodle posted shows dawn on the first day of Autumn. I used hues that are mostly red, pink, orange--the colors of Fall. The sunlight of this season is warm and golden yellow, making Life feel rich, full, and abundant. For me, Autumn sunlight is fairy-like, hovering and lingering as it caresses the trees and flowers, coaxing their beautiful colors to emerge before the darkness of winter takes over.

I wish you a Happy Fall. May today bring the balance of the equinox to your life. And may your time of falling leaves, falling rain, and, very soon, falling snow be a glorious one!

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Dawn on the First Day of Autumn"
Ink on card stock, felt pens
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

An Angel with Attitude ;o)

Here is the Angel of Coins & Feathers. I almost decided that I needed to recreate her but then several people told me they loved her exactly as she was. I was going to introduce her, but she would rather do that herself...

"I am the Angel in charge of Coins & Feathers. Are you surprised? After all, some Angel has to be responsible for making sure coins and feathers cross your paths!

I love shaking coins from my shield and sprinkling them on streets and fields, in métros and on staircases, wherever you may “happen” to see them.

I blow the feathers from my sleeve, one by one, so they gently float to the Earth. I want to make sure you get the message that all of us Angels are watching out for you.

The laces on my sleeve reveal my secret passion: I love playing jacks!

You will certainly notice my Whimsical Nature. My face is heart-shaped and radiates my Love for you. My wings are not necessarily positioned in the best place for flying. But because I am a Being of Lightness, I get around quickly and quite nicely, thank you very much!

Remember to keep your eyes open as you walk your journey each day. Receive the messages that we Angels send your way. Rejoice and give thanks each time you find a coin or a feather. Realize that you, too, are a Being of Lightness, which is my special message to you!"

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Angel of Coins & Feathers Mandala
Ink on paper, felt pens
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Angel of Waves comes sailing in

I made a new doodle last night and it became the Angel of Waves that you see here.

She's the angel that does all sorts of things with "waves." Not only does she make sure the ocean does its wave thing (with the help of the moon, of course) but she also makes waves in our lives when we get too settled or too stuck or need a boost of creative energy.

Sometimes her waves are calm and gentle and at other times, she produces large, massive, tsunami-type waves to get our attention, to overflow us with goodness, new ideas, and fresh perspectives.

Her shield combines Her Eye that is always watching and waiting for our call and the Web of Water--a reminder of field of unlimited possibilities where all Life begins, whether human, animal, or plant life or the life of new thoughts and new ways of seeing.

Shells and sea flowers decorate her robe and her wings carry the waves of the ocean. She is quite a Free Spirit, and she is waiting to hear from you!

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Angel of Waves doodle
Ink on paper, felt pens, "Web of water" color added in Photoshop
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Angels on My Mind and Under My Pen

Last night I created the doodle posted here.

I had two criteria:

1) Use paper that had been bled through on because I hate to waste paper; and

2) Don't put the doodle in a circle.

About half way through the process, I realized that there were some places in the doodle that were wing-shaped. That idea did affect what doodling designs I decided to use--feathers anyone? ;o)

And in the end, when I had finished doodling all the nooks and crannies, I realized the entire doodle was wing. I titled it "Angel Wing Doodle."

I am still wondering if I want to add color. There is something interesting about having the bleed-through marks be just where they are in the black and white drawing. (You can see the marks more clearly if you click on the picture.)

I wonder why I don't see my life that way. Why aren't the "bleed-through dots"--those effects of previous choices and decisions that still remain as part of the picture of my life--why don't they seem like an interesting addition instead of something I want to evict and erase?

Something for me to think about.

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Angel Wing Doodle"
Ink on paper
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Autumn Leaves and Leaf Doodles

Today, I looked at a blog that was recommended by someone in the mandala egroup. It's called The Doodle Daily. Today's post had a picture of a "doodled" leaf that brought a smile to my face.

Leaves are special to me. Here's why. Almost 9 years ago when I still lived in California, Michel (my boyfriend) sent me a picture of an Autumn leaf from Montréal on which he had inscribed a poem he had written. He sent this to me before we had met in person and only knew each other through our correspondence and chatting on the Internet and by phone. Every year when the leaves start falling here in Québec, I think back to that emailed leaf and what has transpired since I was touched by Michel's gentle and romantic gift.

Here is that most memorable leaf.


--Vicky Lynn :o)

Black & White or Color: Obeying or Breaking Rules

The mandala egroup I belong to has been talking about breaking rules that we, or others, set for ourselves--in art or in Life.

For me, obeying the rules is like seeing in black and white. And I have always been a very strict "rule-follower"! Taking the risk and challenging or breaking a longstanding rule is like seeing in color. All of a sudden the scenery changes. There are nuances that you didn't notice before. There are possibilities that emerge, hidden behind the rules that you obeyed blindly because you were supposed to, because that's what good girls do.

The two mandalas posted here illustrate for me what happens when I can find the inner strength to challenge a rule that some authority figure in the past (sometimes the long-distant past!) decided was good and proper and you better do it or else! I start in the black and white world of shoulds and should nots and open up to the living color world of wonder, magic, mystery, and possibility.

What rules do you long to challenge and break? Maybe today's the day!

--Vicky :o)

"Seeing in Black & White" Mandala

Ink on paper

"Seeing in Color" Mandala

Ink on paper, felt pens
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Another Angel Arrives

Meet the Angel of Comfort. She's also called The Tear Gatherer because she collects in her hands all the tears that we humans shed and stores them in her heart as the precious treasure they are.

Her shield shines like the sun, reminding us that Light and Love can conquer any pain and any sorrow. The flower on her shield represents the blossoming and transformation we experience as a result of difficult times.

Her lamp shines even in the blackest of nights and during Life's darkest hours.

The web on her skirt shows that growth and healing (represented by the color green and the leaves) can happen in the most tangled of situations. She is the one who comforts and brings hope even in the most hopeless of times.

May she shine her comforting, healing, and loving Light on you!

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Angel of Comfort: The Tear Gatherer" Mandala
Ink on paper, felt pens
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Another Dreamcatcher Mandala

I am posting another dreamcatcher mandala I did today. It took a long time but it is quite colorful. I call it "Kaleidoscope." That's what Michel said when he saw it, and I thought that was a perfect name.

Creating mandalas gives me lots of time to think while making art. But what is really happening isn't really thinking. I am focusing on the repeated patterns I am drawing and thoughts flit through my mind. I am guessing that I don't become too attached to them because my attention is more intently somewhere else. I do know I often feel more calm after I finish a mandala or a doodle. And the added benefit? I get an inventive and original work of art as well. Now that's a "win-win"! ;o)

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Dreamcatcher: Kaleidoscope"
Ink on paper, felt pens
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Dreamcatcher Mandalas

Here are two new mandalas using the form of a dreamcatcher. A fellow mandala e-grouper said that the one in color reminded her of "a bunch of Tibetan Prayer Flags waving in the wind." A beautiful image, indeed!

Enjoy...

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Dreamcatcher Mandala

Ink on paper

Dreamcatcher: Guiding Eyes

Ink on paper, color pencils

Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Angel Mandala

Meet the Angel of Service. This mandala was inspired by my Angel Therapy Practitioner friend, Karen. Here is a bit about this sweet and loving angel.

As you look at this angel, you see hearts pouring out of her sleeve. They represent all the blessings she gives so generously to others.

The central eye is what alerts her to those who need her help and service.

The leaf at the bottom of her robe represents the growth that she lovingly brings to those who call on her.

Her shield is purple and yellow, reflecting the background colors of her mandala:

• Purple (violet) representing the crown chakra and the purity of Divine Love
  
• Yellow representing the Solar Plexus chakra and the strength she brings to her charge's self-esteem and self-worth.

The Angel of Service is all about Love and helping others to see themselves in their Highest Light and to achieve their Soul's Mission.

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Angel of Service" Mandala
Ink on paper
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

The Angel of Song Comes Along...

She's small and carries a big voice, the Angel of Song showed up under my pens today. Here's what she has to say. (More to come)

--Vicky Lynn :o)


Angel of Song
Ink on paper doodle
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Another Angel Doodle Appears

Meet the Angel of Fire, Light & Second Sight. She speaks in rhyme and always has an inspired message to spur you on your way.

"I am the Angel of Fire, Light & Second Sight.
My Eternal flames forever burn bright.

Creative ideas & a turbo-boost of Will are but two
Of the en-lightening gifts I have for you.

Sparks of Intuition & Insight I inspire;
Flashes of Wisdom & Foresight leap from my fire.

My wings are powered by a Spirit of play,
A reminder that too much "serious" can ruin your day.

A butterfly at my throat reminds you to keep Life "light";
Each moment the Eternal Eyes offer you "Second" Sight.

Love overflows from my Rainbow of Hearts,
It embraces your Soul and enlivens your art.

Never be shy to call upon me
My help & guidance are always free.
My deepest desire is for all to see
The magnificent Divine Spark you came here to BE."

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Angel of Fire, Light & Second Sight"
Ink on paper doodle and poem
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Venus Rising: A Star Is Born

Here is my newest collage mandala and the poem it inspired me to write. Enjoy!

--Vicky Lynn :o)

Venus Rising: A Star Is Born

From the floods of darkness

Where emotions reign supreme;

She finds her Self awakened:

A voice whispers, "You are Queen!"

Her Heart quickens and responds

To this calling of her Soul;

Love pushes her emergence--

"Up! Go up! There awaits your goal!"

Unfolding and stretching,

She reaches toward the Source of Light;

Her wings unfurl, her Self reflected

From watery depths, to star-filled night.

The Love she Is becomes the Light

You see shining at dawn, at dusk, at night;

She whispers to you--truly seeing Who You Are--

"Up! Go up! The world awaits your Rising Star."

"Venus Rising: A Star Is Born"
Mixed media collage and poem
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

New Angel Doodle -- The Guardian Speaks

"I am the Guardian, the Watcher who walks with you and who carries the Highest Vision of You within my Heart. My shield and sword are useful tools not weapons to be abused. My shield protects you from your small self and from your harsh words about your True Self. My sword cuts away energetic cords and attachments that keep you from being All You Are. My wings bring comfort and breezes of peace. My brilliant colors reflect the person I guard and watch over--YOU. Know I am with you every step of your journey, reminding you that the Love you seek is always Within. I am the Guardian, the Protector of your Heart and the Watcher of your Soul."

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"The Guardian"
Ink on paper doodle
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione