Saturday, December 31, 2011

happy new year!


Whoo-hoo! We did it! It's another new year and we are here to celebrate it! 2011, you were good to me and I appreciate all the wonderful things that you brought me, but I have a new best friend and her name is 2012. Tonight we will drink a toast, watch fireworks and steal a kiss from our loved ones, like most people in the US.

I thought it would be fun to see what other traditions and customs are celebrated on New Year's Eve around the world. Here's a few of the ones I found.

In Spain - When the clock strikes midnight they eat 12 grapes one with every toll of the clock, to bring good luck for the next 12 months of the New Year.

In Hungary -  they burn effigies or a scapegoat known as "Jack Straw" which represented the evils and misfortunes of the past year on New Year's Eve. Jack Straw is carried around the village before being burnt.

In China - For the Chinese New Year, every front door is adorned with a fresh coat of red paint, red being a symbol of good luck and happiness.

In Denmark - it is a good sign to find your door heaped with a pile of broken dishes at New Years. Old dishes are saved year around to throw them at the homes where their friends live on New Years Eve. Many broken dishes were a symbol that you have many friends.

In Wales - At the first toll of midnight, the back door is opened and then shut to release the old year and lock out all of its bad luck. Then at the twelfth stroke of the clock, the front door is opened and the New Year is welcomed with all of its luck.

From this website.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

happy holidays!

I made this cool sign with the ransom note generator over on letterplayground. Anyone can join in the fun and make some artsy letters to showcase on the site. Pretty awesome, huh? Try it, it's fun!

Sunday, December 18, 2011

free holiday printables



Kristin from papercrave always has the most fun and charming things to blog about. I thought I'd share a link to her roundup of free holiday printables. A one stop shopping trip to printout your holiday gift tags and other fun stuff. She even mentions my group blog, We Love to Illustrate, which really is an honor, considering the line up of super talented designers she showcases. Happy printing, cutting and wrapping!

Thursday, December 15, 2011

fun holiday things


Check out this cool idea for creating some unique packages, using kids art - from Martha Stewart, of course! I also love this pink felt stocking, from Rock Paper Stitch, it's just so cute!

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

holiday gift tags



I thought I'd remind everyone about the holiday gift tags I did last year for We Love to Illustrate, since we are in the midst of gift wrapping season. You can download them right here. They are also available on the freebie page of my blog.

Wednesday, December 07, 2011

artist charity auction


 
Have you heard about fab surface designer Khristian A. Howell's artist charity auction? Each daily auction will run from midnight to midnight (EST), and 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Toys for Tots, American Humane Society, and American Red Cross. What a cool thing to do and so many awesome items to bid on. It only runs through Dec 9th, so go check it out, before it's over!