MOTHER: Second Week

VICKI ROMAINE: Fan Closed

Remember this is a three-week challenge this time! The second week begins today, as we move into Mother's Day weekend. I want to send best wishes to all the mothers, grandmothers, aunts who are reading this!

And I invite everyone to enter the challenge... Remember your entry can celebrate moms, grandmothers, fathers too! As well as Mother Mary and mother goddesses. 

Here is more inspiration from the fabulous Lunagirl Moonbeams Design Team...

VICKI'S FAN OPENED!   http://www.cheerfulstamppad.blogspot.com/

CORINNE MARIE  http://digitalbycorinne.blogspot.com/

MICHELE STORMS http://www.artfromthewell.blogspot.com/

Winner of Victorian Flowers & Fans Challenge: Karla B!

Sorry I'm a bit late with the challenge winner this time! It's been a busy day. But I have done the random drawing, and our lucky winner this time is Karla B's perfectly lovely Lady and Fan. Congrats, Karla! Email me at info@lunagirl.com at your convenience. :-)

For winning the drawing, Karla gets to choose as her prize any one of my Lunagirl Collage Sheet CDs ~ each is a collection of 25 digital collage sheets on CD.

My next theme starts tomorrow ~ actually in just a few hours. I hope to see you in the next challenge:  "Let's Hear It for the Boys"

Sunflower: One last reminder for Flowers & Fans!

One last inspiration piece for our Victorian Flowers & Fans challenge, this one created by Michele Storms, featuring a sunflower perfect for August.  I've been seeing big bright sunflowers standing proudly in a neighbor's back yard, and I am resolved to plant some along my fence next year! It's pretty much impossible not to smile when I look at sunflowers. :-)  According to my Victorian Language of Flowers guide, sunflowers stand for happiness and opportunity. (See more flower meanings...)

Just a couple days left to link up your entry in the challenge! You might win the prize drawing!
What's your favorite flower??

Remember to smile... and to play in our challenge

Here is a pretty lady with her fan and rose on a pretty tag created by Vicki Romaine.  She's here to remind you to smile (life is beautiful) and also to remind you to enter your own creation in our Victorian Flowers & Fans challenge!

Here's what Vicki says about her tag:
It has a background tech I learned at Stampaway 2014 in Cincinnati last week.  It uses pastels.  The images on the  tag are Lunagirl.  The flowers in the girl's hand were added to the main image and the main image is dimensional.

Don't miss the challenge and your chance to win the drawing for a collection of 25 Lunagirl collage sheets on CD.  :-)

Vicki has great challenges over at her blog The Cheerful Stamppad as well -- right now her theme is All That Jazz -- check them out!

French Fan Scrap

I've been running around all morning, and now at noon-thirty I'm finally sitting down with a cup of coffee to do some work.  Today I'm drinking Community Coffee from Louisiana with chicory (traditional in New Orleans) and that reminded me of this pretty scrap in the shape of a Victorian fan, from a French chicory manufacturer.  Scrapbooks were popular during the Victorian era, and companies gave away these collectible pieces of ephemera as advertising. I thought someone might need it for my Victorian Flowers & Fans challenge?  (hint hint wink...)

Victorian Flowers & Fans Challenge: Second Week!

MANDY CHILVERS

Our "Language of Flowers & Fans" theme continues all this week, so you have until Sunday to link up your creation(s) for a chance to win!  If your entry wins the random drawing, you'll get to choose one of my ten Lunagirl Collage Sheet collections on CD ~ plus it's fun.  

Don't miss all the lovely entries in the gallery so far, and here are some new inspirational samples from the Moonbeams! 

MICHELE STORMS:
for this joyful lady tag i again used 3 different collage sheets, blossom, lady of the flowers and fans.

Creative Challenge: Victorian Flowers & Fans

Welcome to Lunagirl creative challenge #31 -- Our theme this time is "Victorian Flowers and Fans."  Your entry can be any craft or medium, using flowers and/or fans!

This theme is inspired by the Victorian "Language of Flowers" and the "language" of Victorian ladies' fans. During the Victorian era, "flower dictionaries" were popular, and flowers and pictures of flowers spoke a language all their own.  Blossoms, buds, and herbal bouquets were sent to friends and lovers not only for their beauty and fragrance, but also to convey messages -- sometimes messages that the sender dared not speak in words. A Victorian lady's fan could speak volumes as well, especially in a society in which certain sentiments were not properly spoken aloud between unmarried young men and women.

Of course now you want to know some traditional meanings for flowers and fans, yes?  I've created a page just for you!  Check out my Language of Flowers and Fans page at Lunagirl.com!

I would LOVE to see someone use some of the traditional flower meanings for this challenge -- but so to keep things simple let's just require FLOWERS and/or FANS (preferably vintage/Victorian!)     :-)  I have plenty of flowers and fans to inspire you in my Lunagirl.com shop!

Here are the challenge guidelines:

Any craft or medium is OK.

Limit of 3 entries from one person in each challenge, please.

Vintage style is encouraged.

Use a Lunagirl image or element and your entry will count twice in the drawing!

Remember to link to this blog and to Lunagirl.com on your site if you have one.

Prize:  The winner will be selected randomly, to receive a Lunagirl collage sheet CD of your choice! ($25 value).

Challenge ends at noon CST on August 17.

Of course I love if you use at least one Lunagirl.com product, and I hope you'll go take a look at my collection... but that's not a requirement. However, remember that if you use a Lunagirl image, you will be entered TWICE in the drawing! I want to welcome everyone and every style but also give a little something extra to my wonderful customers! 

LINK UP YOUR ENTRIES BELOW TO PLAY (and please don't forget to SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE Design Team creations!)

An InLinkz Link-up

LUNAGIRL MOONBEAMS DESIGN TEAM

MICHELE STORMS:
Card with images from Blossoms, Fans and Lady of the Flowers.

MANDY CHILVERS:
Images from from Blossoms and Fans 

VICKI ROMAINE:
"The background is a double mat.  One is designer paper and the other is solid cardstock.  The images are LG and the flowers are on a dimensional.  The sentiment is heavy chipboard."

The Victorian Language of Flowers & Fans

During the Victorian era, flowers and pictures of flowers spoke a language all their own. Blossoms, buds, and herbal bouquets were sent to friends and lovers not only for their beauty and fragrance, but also to convey messages -- sometimes messages that the sender dared not speak in words.

At parties, sometimes the hostess would decorate with assortments of flowers and plants, from which the guests would select those that expressed their thoughts and feelings. 

Below  are some of the meanings listed in Victorian "flower dictionaries" (a flower displayed upside down would have the opposite meaning).

For more fun info on the language of flowers and also the "language of fans," visit our feature article on the subject!

http://www.summertownsun.com/FEATURE_victorian_language_of_flowers.htm

Red Rose ~ Love, Passion

Pink Rose ~ Admiration

White Rose ~ Innocence, Purity, Humility

Yellow Rose ~ Platonic Love

Pansies ~ Thoughts of You, Thoughtfulness

Violets ~ Modesty

Forget-me-nots ~ Remember me, Faithfullness

Daisies ~ Innocence, I share your sentiments

Lily of the Valley ~ Return of Happiness

Red Poppies ~ Consolation

Dead leaves ~ Melancholy

Rosemary ~ Remembrance

Cedar ~ Strength

Sweet Basil ~ Best Wishes

Ivy ~ Fidelity, Marriage

Zinnia ~ Thoughts of absent friends

Moon Lore: Flower Moon in May

We've been enjoying the flowers in full bloom all around us lately - roses, peonies, iris, azaleas, even the little clover flowers.

It's no surprise that the full moon in May was called the Full Flower Moon! It will be on May 27.

Learn about the Victorian Language of Flowers and Fans in our feature article: http://www.summertownsun.com/FEATURE_victorian_language_of_flowers.htm