fantasy art and tree chatter of aquariann

Did you spot my orange butterfly stowaway? What fun fate that the morning after I post Athenianaire's Real Butterfly Jewelry Giveaway , my friend Melissa shares this photo she took of me when we were on a Delaware Bay cruise last summer. I was so intent on capturing a picture of the Tall Ship at sunset that I had absolutely no idea that my messy, windswept hair had attracted a pretty painted lady butterfly! "Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you." - Nathaniel Hawthorne Flutter to my Wordless Wednesday Directory for a list of blogs that regularly host WW Linky Parties. Grab my button as a reminder to return next week for more photography fun!

EDIT: Giveaway is officially over. Congratulations to Emily Drake for submitting the randomly chosen 217th entry. Spring is fluttering closer, day by day. But you don't have to wait a second more to be surrounded by the beauty of butterflies - just fly to the Winged Art by Athenianaire Etsy shop. Rebecca is giving away a butterfly wing ring to one lucky lady. She's hand crafted sterling silver into a spiral setting, available in any ring size. The amazingly reflective aqua to deep blue color is thanks to a real butterfly wing. After natural death, a Blue Morpho Zephryities is carefully sealed in glass. Not only will the winner get to wear a pretty piece of jewelry - but they can be proud knowing that its creation helped to protect butterfly species. Every preserved butterfly is bought from legal conservation farms in their native lands. The revenue is used to conserve land and help local populations thrive. <a href="http://blog.aquariann.com/2013/02/real-butte...

I haven't opened a chain mail letter since my pen palling days in middle school. Unlatching my mailbox to find a package from Deanna, who makes chain maille from metal rather than paper, was a much more welcome surprise than being threatened with bad luck. In fact, wearing the serpentine, garnet and rose quartz beads in the jewelry she sent me from her You've Got Maille shop might actually boost my positive energy. Isn't the wire ear cuff wonderful?! I've always liked the look of multiple ear piercings, but not the healing time or care that accompanies them. Her fantasy earring cuffs are the perfect way to embellish an entire ear without a single needle. She forms the sculpted wire so it bends around the cartilage of an ear, with no piercing required. And she has tons of wire colors (most made of enameled copper wire) and a variety of beads in her jewelry-making arsenal to design a custom cuff for any fashion taste.

"The sound of a kiss is not so loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts a great deal longer." - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. Once upon a time, a charming pirate courted a shy wench. They fell madly in love and eventually shared a ship, gold and even comic books together. After a starlit romantic engagement proposal , they eternally pledged to be soulmateys through low tide and high in a magnificent marriage ceremony. Yes, the fairytale couple above is Ogre and I! We're off to a wonderful start of living happily ever after. My favorite wedding photo was captured by a bridesmaid on her smart phone. I used it to design the above wedding postcard to mail as thank you notes.

EDIT: Giveaway is officially closed. Congratulations to Laurie Emerson for submitting the randomly chosen 418th entry. As much as I love the icy beauty of winter wonderlands, I am more than ready for warm weather to arrive! For one lucky reader, spring will bloom earlier than the 2013 vernal equinox. Chel of Viridian Muse Designs is giving away a custom fairy art doll and choice of two nature photo prints. I've been on a purple kick this month since amethyst is February's birthstone, so featuring the purple petunia photo above wasn't a tough decision. Chel has several other pretty floral prints, plus a handsome brown toad, to choose from to match your home decor. All fine art photos are printed on 5x7" glossy Kodak Professional Endura paper and come matted to 8x10" for easy framing. Her custom fairy art dolls have even more color options! The winner can choose a hair, shirt and skirt color for each, as shown in the fifth image of the purple fairy ornament l...

I didn't doodle classmate or movie star names in hearts across my high school notebooks, oh no. Instead I read Anne Rice novels and daydreamed about Louis de Pointe du Lac appearing to save me from an awkward teen life of being single. I'm eternally glad Ogre eventually found me instead, but I still like to celebrate Valentine's Day with vampires. And this year I'm not alone! This holiday weekend, February 14 - 16, 2013, dark fantasy fans can feast upon a free vampire eBook for Kindle by Ian Hall and April L. Miller. Behind the Masque is a short story of murder, love and revenge. In 1851, a wedding takes place in a small church in the lowland moors of Scotland. Withered from a childhood illness, and banned from the ceremony, Arabella reluctantly watches her mother marry a local businessman. As Arabella settles into her new household, trampled underfoot by her new stepfather and misused by her two stepsisters, she seems destined to a life of drudgery. But then a newly ...

"Perhaps the old monks were right when they tried to root love out; perhaps the poets are right when they try to water it. It is a blood-red flower, with the color of sin; but there is always the scent of a god about it." - Olive Schreiner Ogre loves me so much that he bought me this beautiful bouquet of glittery flowers for my birthday! I was so intrigued by the focal flower that I had to ask around to find out what type it is and was told that the species is a red spider mum from the chrysanthemum genus. Flutter to my Wordless Wednesday Directory for a list of blogs that regularly host WW Linky Parties. Grab my button as a reminder to return next week for more photography fun!

Are you expecting to be showered in shades of red on Valentine's Day? Ogre already bestowed me with a beautiful bouquet of flowers sprinkled with girly glitter for my birthday - come back tomorrow for a photo date with them. The crafty lady of Garance Couture picked several handmade items that may give you a floaty feeling like you're wearing rose-colored glasses. Valentine gift ideas for women include painted rose buttons by Chifonie Boutique, fabric flower bouquet by Happy Dolls By Lesya and my pink fairy print . Treasuries shared by readers between February 12 - February 18, 2013 La vie en rose Say Happy Valentine's Day with Chocolate My Bright Secret A Crimson Day Little Treasures Cool Blue V is for Red The Fairest Rose I've Got Sunshine ... Bold and Bright, a Beacon in the Blizzard! Teamwork Treasury Blue Fantasy Pink Lemonade PIF Shopping Fun GREEN is all A-ROUND! Blue And Purple Hues For My Team Challenge Keeping It Neutral love your sha...

EDIT: Giveaway is officially closed. Check oBo Creations' facebook page for a list of the winners. MAYDAY, MAYDAY, I'm sending out an SOS - please let this plea reach handmade jewelry fans across the globe! My blog sponsor oBo Creations needs your help to win the UniCrea craft fair challenge. I feel so bad for her that the Rafflecopter form is having technical difficulties on her site, so I offered to share it here instead. Please spread the word quickly, as she only has mere hours left! She is offering an amazing SIXTEEN pieces of unique jewelry, one to each winner, in the hopes of generating the most likes for the craft fair's facebook page TODAY. You don't want the code goblins to make her cry, do you?! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Does your heart desire red jewelry for Valentine's Day? Branch out to Life is the Bubbles , Athenianaire , 7PM Boutique , oBo Creations and Beadmask for ravishingly red necklaces and other heart-shaped jewelry gifts. Better whisk Life is the Bubbles's Queen of Hearts necklace away from Wonderland before the terribly terrific tyrant tries to find her magical staff! Her sparkly heart wand has been captured in a glass bottle and sealed with a red rose. The bottle pendant is 1.5" and hangs from a 19.5" silver chain that closes with a heart-shaped toggle clasp. Wear the Alice in Wonderland souvenir proudly but don't let its mad magic go to your head! Athenianaire's real butterfly wing necklace will make your heart flutter. Delias hyparete (Thailand) and Morpho zephryities (Bolivia) wings are safely encased in heart-shaped glass, framed in .925 stamped sterling silver. The glass is smooth, clean, and bubbles out just the right amount for an amazing magnifie...

"I saw young Harry with his beaver on, His cuisses on his thighs, gallantly armed, Rise from the ground like feathered Mercury, And vaulted with such ease into his seat As if an angel dropped down from the clouds To turn and wind a fiery Pegasus, And witch the world with noble horsemanship." - Henry IV, Part 1 by Shakespeare I couldn't decide what picture of "Pegasus" sculpture by Laura Gardin Fraser captured its epic beauty better, so I'm sharing them both! Stroll through more of my Brookgreen Gardens photos - they'll make you want to visit South Carolina, I'm sure. Flutter to my Wordless Wednesday Directory for a list of blogs that regularly host WW Linky Parties. Grab my button as a reminder to return next week for more photography fun!

EDIT: Giveaway is officially over. Congratulations to Mateja Novak for submitting the randomly chosen 359th entry. I have some uplifting news for those whose spirits have been chilled by the cold weather - Dawn of DewDropz Garden and Kelsey of Good Vibes For Sale are giving away the above dreamcatcher shirt from their chakra collaboration line! The "Aloha" shirt has been created with a myriad of greens and yellows to represent and activate the solar and heart chakras. The design has been adorned with turquoise abstract cotton jersey appliqué around the shoulders and back, flattering elastic ruching down the center of the bodice and deep v peek-a-boo cut-outs along the back where the suspended dreamcatcher appears to float. The whimsical tattered fabrics of cotton and poly blends have been gathered and tacked around the waist so the layers shimmy, shake, twirl and whirl when you move! The upcycled shirt is a Juniors/Women size Small/Medium and fits bust up to 36" an...

It's raining purple! Not only is amethyst my February birthstone, but my family's team, the Baltimore Ravens , won the Super Bowl last night. I usually have my nose in an eBook while they're watching football, but am delighted to have an excuse to wear purple on Sundays during game season. Hilly of Hilly's Vintage Nook made a touchdown when she curated this Saturday Night Specials team treasury. Handmade birthday gift ideas for women include amethyst gold bracelet by Saressa Designs, flower stud earrings by Penny and Paper and my purple unicorn magnet . Treasuries shared by readers between February 5 - February 11 Purple Rain Spring Softness Crystal Gayle Photography Treasuries Monoco Blue and Linen Please Don't Break My Heart Tonight Under the Violet Moon Emerald Spring Wear If these hats could talk... Shades of Shamrock Spring Fling Charmingly Simple February is all about... Gold Reflections Valentines Day - Love for Ladies Babbling Brook ...

Since the first (and sadly, only) time I participated in Sketch Fest , the creative jam session has been lengthened from a 24 to a 48 hour event! I still couldn't snag even an hour to pick up my pencils at Sketch Fest #32 because I had blog posts to prepare before vacationing to Williamsburg the next day. That didn't stop me from plucking a prompt from the bountiful bouquet to draw later, though. I had such fun drawing flowers during the Summer of Color challenge that Vikki's Steampunk Rose idea instantly ensnared me. If I lived in an industrial world where roses wouldn't grow, I'd have to craft ones out of metal instead! Steampunk rose drawing is inked with black Sakura Pigma Micron Pens and colored with Prismacolor pencils (White, Deco Pink, Pink, French Grey 20%, Warm Grey 30%, Warm Grey 50% and Black) onto ACEO sized Strathmore Smooth Bristol Paper . Colored pencil steampunk art is linked at Sunday Sketches and Inspire Me Monday .

EDIT: Giveaway is officially over. Congratulations to Stephanie La Plante for submitting the randomly chosen 575th entry. I shied away from heart jewelry until I fell in love - wearing the symbol before I truly experienced it just amplified my teenage angst. Now I'm making up for lost time. At first sight, I knew my readers would desire a lace heart necklace by Lindsay of White Bear Accessories as much as I do. She's such a sweetheart that she's agreed to give away the lace necklace above! The lace heart has been hand painted a metallic reddish pink in anticipation of Valentine's Day. A beautiful black glass bead embellishes the design with a subtle shine. The heart pendant measures 4 x 5 inches and is married to an antiqued silver chain. Using lace to create everyday jewelry is rare - but the combination came to Lindsay naturally. Vintage treasures and romantic eras inspire her sweet style. She puts a modern twist to the dainty material by hand painting her jewel...