Challenge #116 week of 30th December 2014

2013 is almost over and 2014 is just a few hours away which evokes different feelings for many of us.

I find it all a bit sad and depressing but I know that many of you see it as a very positive new beginning!

So I made myself a little reminder that the new year is nothing to feel bad about....

We've had a few different prompts around this time over the last few years - life's turning points; goodbyes; new beginnings.

So let's get a little more traditional and think about goals for the year.

I make a point not to have resolutions. Instead I have a mix - I set myself goals or objectives as well as choosing a word (á la Ali Edwards' One Little Word) and sometimes manage to make a layout for Pam's concept of "The List" of things to complete between one birthday and the next. How about you?

I hope you will share your goal inspired layout or project with us over at our Whimsical Musings Flickr gallery (here) with the tag WM#116.

Here's to a great 2014!

Challenge #115 week of 23rd December 2013

Wow, it only seems five minutes since we celebrated prompt #100 and here we are at #115. Time flies for sure. And slowly, 2013 comes to an end. Just a few more days before we celebrate Christmas and welcome in the New Year.

But just for now, let's all take a breather and relax for a minute or two .... better!

At this somewhat crazy time of year, it's important to just stop for a second from time to time and take a few moments to take it all in. The tree, the lights, the advent candles or calendar, the presents piled up, the list of things still to do - all evidence of fun and magic at this special time.

I'm especially pleased with my tree this year. I've used pale pink and gold with literally hundreds of tiny fairy lights. It sparkles with abandon! It's hard work to get it done, but it's always worth the effort. My tree is always a highlight for me.

Which got me thinking that I'd like you to take inspiration from the Christmas Tree.

There are so many ways to take this prompt. Here are just a couple that spring to mind:

• a story about your childhood Christmas trees perhaps
• your family tradition to drive into the wilderness to cut one down, Griswold family style
• how you come up with your colour scheme
• your favourite bauble
• who decorates the tree and maybe how harmonious that procedure is (or isn't!!!) when you are struggling to get the tree fixed and straight and then fighting with multiple, knotted up light strings
• maybe just how you're a real or an artificial aficionado (reference to the Paperclipping Round Table the other week)
• how about when you put it up - for example, many families here in Germany put theirs up on Christmas Eve and are horrified to find that I have mine up for weeks before the big day

I know that there will be something in this prompt to motivate you to get a little piece of your Christmas magic captured on paper, and we hope you will share your creations over at our Flickr gallery (here) with the tag WM#115

Challenge #114 week of 16th December 2013

Another week and another delightfully lovely Guest Designer.

We are so, so lucky here at Whimsical Musings to have a very close, tight community and I value my WM friends so very much. Lynnette is extra special to me and once again, needs no introduction. If you have spent anytime at all over here, you'll have seen her lovely layouts and no doubt experienced her sweet, kind, thoughtful comments on your pages. And if you want a giggle then you MUST go over to the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog and check out her kit reveal posts. Her creativity in presenting her kits blows us all out of the water!

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City sidewalks, busy sidewalks
Dressed in holiday style
In the air there's a feeling of Christmas
Children laughing, people passing
Meeting smile after smile
And on every street corner you hear

Silver bells, (silver bells) silver bells (silver bells)
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling, (ring-a-ling) 
Hear them ring, (hear them ring)
Soon it will be Christmas day

Well, hello there and Merry Christmas from the Big Apple!  I am thrilled to be featured as a guest at Whimsical Musings and inspire you with our whirlwind trip to New York City.  Bing Crosby truly captured the essence of Christmas in a bustling city with his song, "Silver Bells". Let's take a look at Christmas in New York!

We visited Macy's Herald Square on 34th St. (yes, like the movie "Miracle on 34th Street") to mail a hard copy of our requests for the season.

We were also fortunate enough to arrive at a "slow time" and only had to wait 35 minutes to see the big man himself and to put in a good word that the kids should be on the "nice" list this year.

A "must-see" attraction is the tree at Rockefeller Center.  Wish we had seen it at night, but the weather was too frightful the night prior.

The storefront windows are always fabulous.  Here's a replica of Rockefeller Center at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Store.

So, there's just a sampling of our 24 hours in the big city.  Even though we only live an hour away, we don't always get there and especially not at Christmas, so it was quite a treat to have an overnight trip to savor all of the hustle and bustle.

This week, be inspired by Christmastime in the City.  Whether you have had the opportunity to visit a big city or stay in your own little corner of the world, show us how the spirit of the season comes alive around town.  Be sure to share your layout in the gallery and tag it #114.

Silver bells, silver bells
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling, hear them ring
Soon it will be Christmas day!

Challenge #113 week of 9th December 2013

This week, I'm thrilled to have Leslie (check out her blog here) join us here at Whimsical Musings as Guest Designer. She of course needs no introduction as I'm sure you are more than familiar with her fabulous creations over at our WM Flickr Gallery (here) as well as over at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge.

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'Tis the season to be jolly!

 

It seems that everyone has something special planned at this time of year.

For me December is the season of my Saviour's birth, 

 

but also the month of my wedding anniversary 

& my first grandson's birthday.

What things other than the obvious make this month joyful for you each year?

 Is there something you always do while you have the extra time off?

A special place you always go? Some way that you pamper or spoil yourself?

It doesn't have to be about the season!

Make a page about JOY!

And be sure to link up over at our Flickr gallery with the tag WM#113.

Challenge #112 week of 2nd December 2013

Well, it was Thanksgiving last week for those of you stateside and I feel as though this should be part of our prompt this week. But not the usual "thankful for the blessings in your life" kind of way. You know that's not how we roll round here. We like to take a new direction on familiar ideas.

For example, you will no doubt remember prompt #15 where Pam asked us to be thankful for something about ourselves. What a great idea to take a few minutes to think about ourselves in a positive way at this time of year when the focus is very often on others.

Therefore, I'm going to ask you to think about something you are very thankful/grateful now but for which you haven't always felt that level of affection/gratitude/thankfulness.

It could be something that you didn't want to happen but it had a great, positive outcome. Something you used to dislike, but have learnt to genuinely love. Maybe something quite negative but that opened you up to something new that you could never have imagined.

This layout is in response to prompt #78 - Missing someone or something. It would fit for this prompt too with its positive result that I am thankful for, coming out of a difficult situation over the last 18 months.

And I know exactly what I will be trying to make this time around....

We hope you are inspired by our take on being thankful to create. Make sure you share over at our Flickr gallery (here) with the prompt WM#112