Design Team Delights for Challenge #7

I am pleased to say that we had a good turnout for Challenge #7 and it is time for my fabulous Design Team to share their choices with you, regarding their favourites of the bunch.  As always, in each challenge you, the readers, get to voice your opinion by voting for your favourite and so it is only fitting that my Design Team get to do so as well.  That is why we have a special DT Delights post just before we launch the new challenge.

Once again, thanks to all of you who took the time to join along our Path last month for Challenge #7.    While it was definitely a difficult decision, there were three creations in particular that really stood out and inspired us this month...

Julie Gleeson--chosen by Ike and Suze...

Ike said this:

"I loved the colours, the beautiful face was so serene and I could look at it for ages trying to figure out what she was thinking. I especially liked the crumpled flowers and beautiful sentiment.  A very calming and uplifting creation."

This is what Suze had to say:
"I chose #28 as my favourite for the following reasons.  I loved the way the quote tied in with the music paper she used on the project.  I also liked how she built up the face image from something plain to something that is so beautiful.  The idea of using Tyvek for the flowers was such an inspired choice and created a lovely end result."

To see the details of Julie's card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

Annie--chosen by Vicky, Desíre, Samara and Sandy...

Vicky had this to say:
"My favourite is Annie's and it's because of this paragraph, she reminded me with this the biggest reason why we hope... In this case she's had so far another 10 years with her dad.  And of course she also is hoping for a better world for all of those suffering... which is so important":  

"I guess some of us in one way or another have had the horrible experience of cancer, whether in ourselves or our loved ones or friends. My dad, whom you must all know by now, had bowel cancer at the age of 91. As his  MPO I had to make the decision as to whether we operated and took the risk of him dying or let him die with pain within two weeks. I chose the  operation and well, you all know he is alive, happy and relatively healthy, body and mind and is nearly 101. So HOPE is always with us. That's why we all unite on cyber space as Blogging Buddies...it keeps us alive.  Here is my contribution to some challenges in HOPE that those who are suffering get peace of mind, body and soul."

Desíre chose the card because she was moved by the exact same paragraph that Vicky was.

This is what Samara had to say:  
"I  felt Annie showed a brilliance of vulnerability in her post and by doing that really exposed the depth of HOPE to all those who came to comment on her card, and to all those who read her post through entering The Path of Positivity Challenge.  Annie shared her personal challenge with her dad and the challenge she herself faced as his decision maker in the situation.  She not only highlighted the story of one with cancer, but she also highlighted the angst one can go through as a family member of one who is faced with cancer.  She also shared how cancer can journey through to a success story and I felt this was eternally important to see, particularly on our Challenge.  She brought such Positivity to us, in the midst of such a grave initial situation.  That spoke volumes.  Not only did she create a stellar piece of art, without any doubt, but again, she let us into her personal journal with it.  She took us on her map of each piece of her art, her embellishments  etc. by telling us what each piece meant to her.  I could really visualize the art as it was created, not only look at a gorgeous creation.  At the end of reading her piece and seeing her piece, I felt like Annie shared her soul with us, epitomizing the depth of the meaning of HOPE.  A pretty outstanding experience sojourning with her!"

Here is what Sandy had to say: 
"Annie said it all by sharing her story of Hope…her & her family didn’t give up Hope – pretty darn cool…"

To see the details of Annie's card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

Mimi--chosen by Lisa (that's me)...

I found Mimi's album of hope, not only incredibly beautiful but also incredibly inspiring. The recipient, who will obviously be dealing with probably the greatest battle in her life, is sure to be comforted by the amazing amount of detail and love that has gone into the creation of this project.

To see the details of Mimi's project and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

Creative Congratulations to all of you!

Thank you to everyone who played on our Pathway during the month of October.  You all did a wonderful job.  The time and energy that went into each of these creations is evident.  Now if you were chosen as a DT Delight, then we have a special treat for you.   Not only are you eligible for a special DT Delight badge, we will also be having a draw at the end of our first year for a special package of digital goodies.  So, if you are chosen as a DT Delight during any of our challenges, your name will be entered into the draw.  You get one entry per choice; so, if two members picked your card, you will earn 2 entries, three members 3 entries, etc.  The draw will take place around the anniversary of when the Path of Positivity came into existence which will put the draw date sometime in April 2014.  The winner at the time will be notified by email.  In the interim you are more than welcome to copy your framed card above and add it to your blog to share with all your readers; and, don't forget to EMAIL ME for a copy of the special Challenge #7 DT Delight Badge.

Thank you for stopping by today.  We hope that you will join us again tomorrow to learn what the newest theme for Challenge #9 will be.

The People Have Spoken: Winners From Challenge #7

It is time to announce the winners from Challenge #7.  So, without further ado, here they are...

Drum roll, please....BBBbbbrrrrrrrrr pish

The people have spoken and their choice for challenge #7 is once again....

ANNIE

You may or may not remember that for Challenge #7, we were fortunate enough to have two guest sponsors.  Creative Bug Digitals will be taking a break this month from providing the winnings for the person who gets the most votes.  In their place, the awesome Floppy Latté Designs has stepped in to take care of the Voter's Choice prize. 

 

So Annie, this means you have won a $6.00 coupon to spend over at Floppy Latté Designs.

 

Annie, you will also be getting a cool and awe inspiring personalized badge for your blog as the Voter's Choice for Challenge #7.

In the category of Most Inspiring, our winner is...

MIMI

Mimi, you have won your choice of three images from Ike's Art.

Mimi, you will also be getting a lovely, one of a kind personalized badge for your blog as the Most Inspiring choice for Challenge #7.

  The random winner for this challenge (chosen by Random.com), based on all eligible participants is:

JENNIFER S.

Jennifer, you have won your choice of three images from Fresh Brewed Designs (FBD).

 Jennifer, you will also be getting a neat and unique personalized badge for your blog as the Random Winner for Challenge #7.

We also have a prize available for a random voter who left a comment.

 The random winner for this challenge (chosen by Mini Web Tool), based on all eligible participants is:

Maryann Laursen with her comment:

There´s certainly some really amazing entries all of of them here, but there is a couple of them, that were really struggling to get my vote, but in the end, there was one, who won with a haircut before the other LOL. But all of these are sure worthy to win as they´re all gorgeous creations, so it´s really been a tuff choise to pick just one, as they all deserves to win in my eyes. But good luck to all of you ladies, and I cross my fingers, that the best will be the winner.

Maryann, you have won a Digital Designer Paper from Decosse's Dynamite Doodles.

Big Congrats to...

Annie, Mimi, Jennifer & Maryann

Please click HERE to send us an email with the subject, "WINNER PoP Challenge #7" to make arrangements to receive your prize and badge (where applicable).

All entrant's in Challenge #7 are entitled to a special digital sentiment based on a quote related to the theme for the upcoming challenge.  So, if you were one of the individuals who entered Challenge #7 and would like to receive a free sentiment based on the theme for Challenge #9, which starts Monday, December 2, please click HERE to send us an email with the subject line, "PoP Challenge #7 Entrant Quote Request".

Don't forget, there is still one week left to enter into this month's challenge on THANKFULNESS.  Click HERE for details.  If you haven't linked up already, I hope that you will consider coming over to play with us.  As always, we'd love to have you join our Path!

Challenge #8--Midway Reflection & Voting Reminder

Hello to all our wonderful readers and participants.  It is the midpoint of our current challenge, where the theme this month is THANKFULNESS. Today I am going to share a little introspection with you all that I am also presenting on my own personal blog in my "Motivational Monday" feature. Today, we are going to take a look at the concept of gratitude...

PLEASE and THANK YOU.

Two simple phrases but they pack a lot of meaning.  Unfortunately, these days, we hear them less and less in our day-to-day lives.  People still want things but forget the niceties that go along with their requests. Today I am going to focus on the second phrase--thank you; or more aptly, the concept of thankfulness.

We have so much to be thankful for in our lives.  For some it is health, for others it is the friends and family that they surround themselves with.  For a fortunate few it is monetary wealth.  But what about the little things that are actually big things?  How many of you remember to thank God, your higher power or even the universe itself for things like the air that you breathe or the ground that you walk on; or more importantly, the fact that for most, you have the ability to walk unaided or the ability to breathe freely on your own without the use of a respirator?  Some people aren't as fortunate and many of us tend to take much of what we have for granted.

The act of gratitude is very important.  Being thankful, not just for the larger things but for the little thing too, allows us to fill our lives with love and appreciation.  It reminds us of all the positive things that we have going for us.  Sometimes it is easy to get down and dwell in the negativity but gratitude helps us remember just how much we have in our lives that is positive.  Having a difficult day at work?  Be thankful that you have work in this economy.  Complaining about all the aches and pains as you grow older?  Be thankful that you aren't a quadriplegic and still have the ability to feel.  Feel like you are facing too many challenges?  Be thankful that life isn't boring or that you have a mind smart and capable enough of handling the challenges thrown your way.   Be thankful that getting through these kinds of challenges, makes you a stronger person.

Being appreciative can also bring a little kindness into the lives of those we come across during our busy days.  Whether it is a loved one or a stranger, there is always time to say a quick thank you when someone holds open a door, hands us something, or in response to a compliment they have given us.  The act of saying thanks costs us little but can mean so much to the person on the other end.  It might also mean that person is in turn a little more thankful themselves.

Being thankful reminds us of what is important in life.  If you and your family are healthy and you have money coming in, then it is difficult to get upset over things that are really inconsequential in the larger scheme.  If you are upset over the cost of gas, just be thankful that you have a car.  Kids driving you crazy?  Be thankful that they are healthy enough to be running and jumping all over the place and that they have voices with which to scream.  If you are upset that you don't have enough money to buy something that you really want right at this moment, just be thankful that you have a home that you will be able to bring it to, once you have saved up a little more. When someone passes you the salt at the dinner table, remember to say thank you.  There are many people out there who don't have food let alone a dinner table or a home to put one in.  Even if your circumstances are not the best, I hope that there is still something, even something very small, for which you are able to show your gratitude.

Gratitude is the best attitude.  It really is.  However, like all things in life being grateful is a choice.  We can choose to show gratitude and take a more positive outlook on things or we can choose to continue to focus on the negative.  Of course, the simple act of being grateful will not make the bad things we are facing go away, it just helps us to look at our lives a little differently.  For some, showing gratitude is not an easy task at all.  If you live in darkness it is difficult to see the light never mind try to grasp onto something that you are thankful for.  However, I believe the end results will be worth the effort.  Everything important in life takes work. Start off with coming up with one thing you are grateful for in your life right now. We are only guaranteed the time we have today. Worry about tomorrow, when it comes.

To help inspire you down the path of thankfulness, check out the wonderful projects a couple of my Design Team had the opportunity to create...

 

Samara used the strong Army Female image from one of our on-going sponsors Ike's Art.  It is part of a bundle called Female Troops. She also used the fabulous sentiment that is in this bundle.  If you are interested in purchasing this cool digi set, click on the watermark to head over to its location in Ike's store.

 Next up is...

Vicky has also used a great image from Ike's Art.  This image is called Fall Kat.  If you are interested in purchasing this adorable image, click on the watermark to head over to its location in Ike's store.

 Finally, that leaves our...

Karin, a DT member with DS4J, is our guest designer for the midway this month...

My name is Karin and I’m from the Netherlands.  I’m 51 years and making cards since 2000.  I started with decoupage, and after a couple of years I have learnt to stamp.  Now I’m coloring with Copics.  I have learnt this in 2010 and I love it. Since last year I’m in the design team from DigiStamps4Joy and that is such a great team and Margy is so wonderful .

My blog address is http://KarinsArtScrap.blogspot.nl

Here is the lovely card she created.  She calls it, "Thank you for being a friend"...

Karen has used the oh so sweet image called Best Friends, from DigiStamps4Joy.  If you are interested in purchasing this digi, click on the watermark to head to its location in the store.

Clicking on the team members name (or in the case of our GDT, the blog name) will take you to their blog where you can check out the details for their inspirational creations!

So if you haven't entered already, what are you waiting for?  Create a project and/or post that is positive AND relates to thankfulness, provide an explanation of how your project and/or post relates to the theme somewhere in your post or come over and leave a comment with the explanation.  Easy, peasy!  You can enter our latest challenge by clicking HERE.

Also, I know that the participants would love for you to go and pay them a visit.  Remember we're creating a Path of Positivity to follow one project at a time and we'd love to see you somewhere on that route even if it just by leaving a comment on an entry from someone who has touched you somehow with their project and/or post!

If you are new to this unique challenge, you can find out the impetus behind why I started it under the 'Introductions' tab and all the details you need to know in order to participate, in the 'Challenge Details' tab (both tabs located at the top of the blog).

Don't Forget...

You still have 3 days to vote on your favourite entry for Challenge #7.  Voting is quick, easy and painless so I hope you will consider casting your vote if you haven't already.  Don't forget, if you leave a comment after voting, you have the opportunity to walk away with a digital paper created especially for you. To check out all the eligible images and cast your vote, click HERE.  You have until Thursday, October 24th at 11:55 pm to have your say in who walks away with the Voter's Choice prize.  If everything goes according to plan, the winners for Challenge #7 will be announced next Monday.

LOOKING FOR ANOTHER MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE ON HOPE?
If you need some motivation to get you started, I've provided another motivational quote free for you to download:

Credit Notes For This Creation:
© 2012, Lisa L. Décosse.  PUO.  However, you are allowed to use the sentiment on handmade projects that you intend to sell on a small scale basis provided credit is given. You also need to include a credit note and a link to this blog should you use any of my images in your creations and post them on your blog. Please be sure to familiarize yourself with my full terms of use found in the 'Download Instructions & T.O.U.' tab at the top of this page.  Of important note:  Please do not share my images with family, friends, etc. Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Box®, 4-Shared®, etc. Instead, please direct people to my blog so they can grab the image for themselves. If you would like to post a watermarked version of the image, please contact me to obtain one. 

You will notice that the sentiment may appear huge depending on what software program you download it into.  You can always reduce the size without distorting the overall look. 

SUMMARY
Whether you are new and need to familiarize yourself with all the details,  or a returning participant and just need to refresh yourself, you can always find out everything you need to know in order to enter this challenge in the 'Challenge Details' tab at the top of the page. You can enter the challenge by clicking HERE to take you to the current challenge post where you can also find a quick summary of the details related to this challenge, towards the bottom of the post. 

GENEROUSLY SPONSORED BY...

Please show your support to our fabulous sponsors by going over and checking out their work and saying hi if you have the chance.  In addition to DS4J, our guest sponsors for the month...

...we also have our regular sponsors:

 

 

That is me and I'd love for you to visit me

on my personal blog.

If you ever have any questions be sure to EMAIL ME or just leave me a comment.

We look forward to seeing you participate!