Advent Calendar 2014

My Advent calendar is complete for 2014 with today's Nativity drawing.  As with the other five years, I'm very glad that I did this activity.  At each Advent's beginning, I wonder how I'll ever have enough words and images to fill the page.  It's such a joyful discovery as I enter into the process and wind my way through the days.

My daily drawing spaces are small (about 1-5/8" high), so you may want to click on the image for a better view, especially if it looks a bit fuzzy above.

For more information including template links and prior years' calendars, click here.
For a listing of words, sources of words, Copic colors, and other materials used,  see below (or click on "read more" to see it)

A Scrap of Lace - Pink and Cream

Just a doodle - imagining a scrap of pink and cream lace.  And this time of year, it makes me think of angel wings. 

• Copic marker colors used: YR30, RV13,32,34,91
• Pen: Copic multiliner 0.2 black
• Paper: Neenah, cut down to 3x5.5"

Advent Calendar 2014 - First Day and Notes

My calendar drawing for today, the first day of Advent.  Click here for my explanation of today's words, and why I draw candles for the Sunday dates.  I'll continue to post at least weekly during December, as I fill in the calendar spaces through Christmas. 

Today's drawing is about 1-3/8 x 1-5/8" in size.  You can click on it for a better view. For the template and more information about the calendar, as well as links to past years and to my friend Sybil's Advent calendar drawings, scroll down or click here for my template post.

Warm wishes to all of you for many blessings of the season!

Advent Calendar Template 2014

November 30 will be the first Sunday of Advent, and once again, time to start drawing my Advent Calendar.  After five years of drawing them, I took a break in 2013.  But I'm really looking forward to it again for this Advent season.

I'll be posting my calendar here throughout Advent, at least weekly, and maybe more often. After my first year's Advent calendar, I wrote a post on what I learned from it, and it does a good job of explaining why I've continued.

For my previous Advent calendar drawings, click as follows:

• Here for 2012
• Here for 2011
• Here for 2010
• Here for 2009
• Here for 2008
• Here for all of my Advent and Christmas-related drawings and posts

My friend Sybil also posts her yearly Advent calendars in her prayer-drawing blog, Praying in Color.  Click here for her 2013 calendar, here for 2012, here for 2011, or here for 2010.  I'll also link to her 2014 calendar as it appears.

If you'd like to try this activity for yourself, you're invited to click here for two different templates on Sybil's blog.  One is a variation of the calendar grid I'll be using this year.  The other is a tree with different shapes for the days.  She also shows a few examples, including my 2011 calendar.  You may also enjoy her latest book, The Season of the Nativity, which is filled with ideas and simple activities for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany.

Edited November 30, 2014, to add:  For an additional template on Sybil's blog, click here.  

Bright Circles and L's

Our friends Andy and Sybil visited for the weekend, and of course Sybil and I needed to draw and color something.  We sat on the sofa after dinner and picked "rosettes with circles and L's" as the starting point for our drawings.

My doodle used the rosette steps, sort of, but my end result doesn't have a rosette shape.  It looks more like a mobile to me.  Sybil called it a molecule.  Simple and bright and a nice reminder of all our drawing times together.

• Paper, pen, and Copic marker colors: all from Sybil's travel bag, and I didn't write them down.
• Paper size: 7 x 7"

Leafy Branch with Wine Red

There's a hint of fall in the air this week, so a touch of wine red in my leafy branch. 

• Copic marker colors used: YG95,97, R56
• Pen: Copic multiliner 0.3 black
• Paper: Neenah, 3.75 x 5"
• Mat: Hero Arts grenadine layering paper,  4.25 x 5.5"

Lenten Prayer Calendar (2014) - Final

My completed prayer calendar for Lent.  Updated Easter Sunday, April 20, 2014.  As always, I'm so glad I did the calendar drawings this year.

Click here for more info, including a template link.  Also, each drawing space is small, about 1 inch wide, so you may want to click on the drawing for a better view. 

• Copic markers
• Pen: Copic multiliner 0.3 black; 0.3 cool gray for March 24-28 and April 19; 0.3 cobalt for April 6; 0.3 purple for April 7; 0.3 purple and olive for April 16; 0.3 brown and wine for April 17.
• Paper: Neenah
• Words March 5-8: Ash; Broken; Center, enter in; Peace, be still; 
• Words March 9-15: Prepare with joy; Trust; Renew; In Your mercy; Journey; Fallen; Repent and return
• Words March 16-22: Seek where he is found; Rest; Grace; Healing; Faith; Steadfast; Be born of the spirit
• Words March 23-29: For our sake; Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world; Have mercy on us, grant us peace
• Words March 30-April 5: 40 days/nights; Fasting: Live as children of the Light. Ephesians 5; Hope; So shall all be made alive; Refresh us; Gratitude 
• Words April 6-12: Lord, hear our prayer; Wait for the Lord; (no words); Love-Break-Mend-Repeat; Cast your burdens upon the Lord; Out of the depths have I called to you O Lord; For there is forgiveness with you
• Words April 7-19: Hosanna - Palm Sunday; O Savior of the world; Guide us; Amen; Body blood; Goodness and mercy; (no words)

Lenten Calendar 2014 - Templates

We're in the church season of Lent, starting on Wednesday, March 5.  My friend Sybil created two templates for a Lenten prayer calendar on her Praying in Color blog.  I'm using her calendar box format this year. 

Adding some daily words, colors, and doodles will help me focus and reflect as we move through Lent to the celebration of Easter.  To see my past Lenten prayer calendar drawings, click here.

New Year's Drawing for 2014

A New Year's doodle with bright, simple colors.  Wishing a Happy 2014 to all!

For my husband and me, this will be a year of change - in a good way - and much in our life will be new.  I expect it will sometimes feel sketchy and improvised, sometimes mismatched and a bit too vibrant.  But with all the excitement of colors and a blank piece of paper!

• Copic marker colors used: R35, YR04,21, V17, B24, YG05
• Pen: Copic multiliner 0.3 black
• Paper: Neenah, cut down to A2 size (4.25 x 5.5")
• Words: Behold, I make all things new - Revelation 21:5