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Hosting Mesu Andrews at the Inkwell

3/14/2012

I'm hosting Biblical fiction author, Mesu Andrews, at Inkwell Inspirations today.

Mesu is sharing her testimony which includes her love/hate relationship with her mom, discovering the love of her life, finding her faith, and being baptized in the Jordan River. Lots of pics, too.

She's giving away a copy of her new release, Love's Sacred Song, to one person who comments on her Inkwell post before midnight, March 16th. The trailer below is about her giveaway.

If you'd like to comment but aren't sure what to say, here are some questions Mesu has offered for discussion:

- What spiritual positives have evolved from hard circumstances in your childhood?

- If you could visit anywhere mentioned in Scripture, where would you like to explore?

- To which biblical character do you relate and why?

Comments to any www.inkwellinspirations.com post this week are eligible
for our 4 winner prize bonanza
as the Inkwell celebrates its 1000th blogpost.

Part 4 Unusual Sleds

3/6/2012

I'm blogging over at Inkwell Inspirations today about the 4th and final post in my Sleighs and Sleds series. You can find the other parts here:

Part 1 19th century adult and Santa sleighs
Part 2 19th century children's sleighs
Part 3 Royal Sleighs

1878 matted art print - Christmas in Manitoba

It's a Manitoba scene which is the prairie province to the east of where I live in Saskatchewan. I'd like you to note the sled behind the dog team, because this is very unusual and more reminiscent of the sleds called carrivales of Quebec. Actually, the sashes a couple of the men are wearing around their waist were worn by the Metis who were descended from the unions of French fur traders and native women.

At the Inkwell, I'm also introducing the winter sports of snow canoeing, snow kayaking and snow cycling, although the latter one is more like a super kick sled, which I also talk about over there.

Snow Cross Kayak style.

So what do you think... would you like snow canoeing, snow kayaking or snow cycling to become Olympic sports?

50 Year Old Stocking

12/23/2011

I've posted photos of Christmases from my past over on the Inkwell Inspirations blog in a post titled Big Christmas Trees From Logging Country. The photos begin in 1960 and progress up to 1969 although not all years are presented. One thing I wanted to show here however, was the stocking my mom made just after I was born.

She made it using felt sandwiched over a plastic liner which was to stop the candies and Christmas oranges from sticking or staining.

I used this stocking until 2 years ago. That's when I realized it was 50 yrs old - give or take a year or two - and if I wanted it to last another 50 years, I'd better stop using it. Although I hadn't used it for candy and fruit since I'd left home, the wear and tear on the flat opening would soon stretch the felt and allow it to sag.

I made stockings for my husband after our marriage and then our children but the felt and plastic Mom used was far superior to anything I could buy in the fabric stores.

Christmas 1967, Johnny 7, Anita 10, Bonnie 11, Thunder Bay, ON

Christmas 1968, Johnny 8, Anita 11, Bonnie 12. Thunder Bay, ON

Both the above photos show our stockings with a box of
Pink Elephant Popcorn sticking out the top.

Our handmade stockings now hang on one side of the hall as reminders of Christmases past. On the opposite side are our new store-bought stockings - bigger than the old ones, ready for another 50 years of giving.

Look at your own photo of a past Christmas. What do you remember about it? The gifts? The location? The people? Do you remember how you felt as you waited for the 'click' of the camera?

Join us for the discussion at Inkwell Inspirations.

2010 Christmas Backlist Promotion

12/2/2011

If you like Christmas romance, take a look at all the 2010 books I've listed for this year's Christmas Backlist promotion over on Inkwell Inspirations.

I've listed all the books I could find although I'm missing some eBook publishers. Mainly because I can't find a list of their books anywhere.

And if you're interested, the anthologies from Barbour Books are currently on sale at less than 50% off at www.christianbook.com .

19th Century Children's Sleighs

11/22/2011

This is Part 2 of my sleigh series at Inkwell Inspirations and it's all about children's sleighs of the 19th century.

Part 1 was about 19th century adult and Santa sleighs.

This sleigh is my favourite. It's a carriole from Quebec being pulled by a goat and it's from Montreal's McCord online Museum:

Master Corriveau in goat sleigh, Montreal, QC, 1880

Part 2 at the Inkwell includes many photos as well as a video of a miniature horse pulling an older child's sleigh. And yes, of course there are sleigh bells. :)

The questions for discussion today are...
- Have you ever touched snow?
- Do you live where it snows regularly or once in a lifetime?

19th Century Sleighs

11/2/2011

Yesterday, I posted about 19th Century Sleighs at Inkwell Inspirations.

This Portland cutter is a very common design for Santa sleighs, mainly because it's of the light, cutter class built for speed.

Portland Cutter (Photo Courtesy of www.sugarloafmt.com)

Check my post at the Inkwell for many other photos of 19th century sleighs and cutters.

Library Reading at the Inkwell

8/24/2011

I'm blogging over at Inkwell Inspirations today about my first public reading last year.

And yes, although it's last year, the information is very relevant, but what I like best is that it shows my weight loss. Nothing like a visual image for confirmation. :)

Hope you see you there.

I'm Branded

8/15/2011

The complete story of my new logo...

And how my brand evolved...

And thanks to the special person who helped me create it . . .

. . . it's all at the Inkwell.

Victorian Womens Underwear BlogPost

8/9/2011

I'm blogging at Inkwell Inspirations today about a Victorian Underwear Research Workshop I attended at the end of July while at the Romance Writers of America (RWA) conference in New York.

Presented by historical romance author Deeanne Gist, the workshop was described as:

Bottoms Up: a Look at Victorian Women’s Clothing from the Inside Out
Ever wonder what Victorian women wore under all those gowns?
Find out as a best-selling historical author strips down to chemise and bloomers,
and then watch as her lady’s maid dresses her, layer by layer.

It certainly grabbed my attention. If you'd like to know more, head on over to the Inkwell and see for yourself.

Today's discussion accompanying my Inkwell post is about corsets, research, and 19th century fashion in general.

Hope to see you there.