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HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Did you have a good holiday? We did alot of travelling to spend time with all of our families, but it was well worth it. My Mum's side of the family had a reunion. The first time we've all been together in over 15 years. One of my cousins travelled for 36 hours straight, from the other end of the country, to join in. It was pretty special.
We wanted NYE to be a big one, seeing as it may be our last chance for a while. But we were so pooped from all the travelling over Christmas (having only gotten home the day before), we ended up just popping down to see the local fireworks, and were all tuckered out, in bed before midnight. Oh well...
The lead up to Christmas was also pretty big. Loads of work. Mr You's mum came and helped me sew my way through half of my Wombat pillowcase orders, meaning I got them sent out in time for Christmas (which was SO awesome)... only 45 to go now. ;)
I also sent out my Thanksgiving Giveaway Prize Pack, and Jacinta seemed genuinely thrilled to receive it! :D
The past few days have been really fun through. Plodding around the house, getting things organised, working on this and that, and finishing each day with a lovely Summer swim.
Now, it's back to work, sewing pillowcases and bags, creating new products for La La Land (more on that soon), a commission, setting up some deals for the coming months, and general pre-baby renno's and preparation. The countdown has begun, I'm hoping to finish everything up before the end of the month, before I become too cumbersome to move, (which on some days feels as though that point is only 15 minutes away).
Hope you had a great few weeks too!
Late last night Mr You cranked out his amazing lotto machine once again, and we watched in excited anticipation as it randomly selected this years winner...
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!
Congratulations lucky you! I shall be in touch to find out which print you would like, and to get your postage address.
Thanks once again SO much to everyone for playing along.
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!
Announcing the 5th Annual Thanksgiving Giveaway!
Yaaaaay!
But wait, for this year's annual giveaway I have some good news and some bad news...
 News Update
I realise this event has become a bit of a highlight for this blog, for me, and I know you look forward to it each year, which makes what I'm about to announce a little hard for me.
The bad news is, after much to-ing and fro-ing, and kitchen table conventions with mr You, I have decided that this year the prize will not be a personalised illustrated commission (as it has been for the past 4 years). With a baby on the way in the new year, and all of the commitments I've taken on between now and then, I just can't see when I would have time to make a commission with the dedication it deserves. I'm so sorry.
The good news however, is I have not cancelled the giveaway altogether, I have just changed the prize...
The Prize
So this year the prize will be a huge pack of flossy-p stuff (and they are all illustrated, so officially it's still an illustration giveaway). Just in time for Christmas, you can either wrap them all up for yourself, or use them to help out with your Christmas gift giving to those you love and adore.
The pack will contain illustrated greeting cards, an illustration print of your choice, one of my brand new colouring books, and a flossy fabric surprise!
What It's All About
I really like the general idea of the Thanksgiving celebration, but we don't celebrate it here in Australia, so I have developed my own tradition, showing thanks to this sweet blogging community by hosting a giveaway.
How To Enter
It's easy, just leave a comment on THIS post anytime between now and the morning of thanksgiving (my time) the 25th Nov. That's just under a week away. One comment is enough, as I'll remove duplicate entries before the draw so everyone gets an equal chance. The draw will be completely random, and I'll be drawing and announcing the winner on U.S. Thanksgiving Day (which according to my calendar is the 25th Nov).
Sorry for the let-down, I hope this excites you all the same. Good luck!
(I plan to return to the proper-program again next year)
Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! This is SO freakin' exciting. I love doing this. Mr You has spent the better part of the week improving on his incredible lotto machine that randomly draws the winner of this Thanksgiving Giveaway... so he must love it too. Before we begin I want to reiterate that the point of this annual giveaway is to show my thanks to you for your company and friendship. So thankyou each and everyone for taking part, showing your support, and coming back each year for more. Happy Thanksgiving! At 10pm we did the draw. It was great! And although I very much wanted each of you to win, when the actual winner's name was revealed I was thrilled! I know she is going to pee her pants when she realises it's her! I won't say anymore right now because I don't want to spoil the surprise. So without further adieu, go ahead, PRESS START!!!!! :D
Drumroll... Spotlights... Curtains Open... Announcing the 4th Annual Thanksgiving Giveaway!Yaaaaay! Welcome.Those of you who've been visiting for a while will know all about this, and probably have already decided what your prize will be. For those who don't know... What It's All AboutI really like the general idea of the Thanksgiving celebration, but we don't celebrate it here in Australia, so I have developed my own tradition, showing thanks by hosting a giveaway. The prize of the giveaway is an illustration by me that the winner gets to commission. It can be anything you like. Have a look see at the previous winners commissions, and others, in the commission section here. Should you win you could request an illo of anything or anyone you like. It could be abstract, like your favourite song, or specific like a portrait of a loved one (or pet) from a photo. You should keep in mind the style of my work though, because you may be disappointed if you ask for a Rembrandt! How To EnterIt's easy, just leave a comment on THIS post anytime between now and the morning (my time) of the 26th Nov. That's 2 weeks away. One comment is enough, as I'll remove duplicate entries before the draw so everyone gets an equal chance. The draw will be completely random, and I'll be drawing and announcing the winner on Thanksgiving Day (which according to my calendar is the 26th Nov). Spread The WordSeeing as this is such a big event in my blogging calendar year, I have created a button. If you'd like to help me spread the word, go for your life! Use the button all you like! You can add it to a blog post by using this code: - In your blog post entry window enter the following code:
<a href="http://flossy-p.blogspot.com/2009/11/4th-annual-thanksgiving-giveaway.html" title="Thanksgiving Giveaway 2009" target="_blank" ><img src="http://www.flossyparticles.com/images/ThanksgivingGiveaway_Bttn_Wht.gif" alt="Thanksgiving Giveaway 2009" /></a>Or to add this graphic to your side bar...  Using this link: http://flossy-p.blogspot.com/2009/11/4th-annual-thanksgiving-giveaway.html What's Next?Well, enter your comment, and start thinking what you'd like me to paint if you win. Good Luck!!!!! :D
I'm sure you all remember the amazing bouncy ball competition draw tool Mr You made for my Thanksgiving Illustration Giveaway. And I'm sure you remember a lass named Kath was the winner... We'll as I mentioned in my previous post Kath wanted me to paint her a picture along the lines of a few works I've done before. She told me among her favourite flowers and birds were peonies and red cardinals... Neither of which I've ever painted before. This was what I came up with for her. I hope she likes it :)  (It's very pretty, pretty, isn't it? I've been looking at so much wedding stuff, I think it's all starting to seep deeply in).There'll be another traditional Thanksgiving Illustration again this year. I'll give you plenty of notice.
I'm eagerly awaiting news from Kath that her painting has arrived. I posted it at the beginning of last week, so she should be getting it any day now. Kath was the winner of this year's Thanksgiving Illustration Giveaway. She couldn't decide what she wanted me to paint for her, so in January she just let me know that she loves this painting of mine, and asked for something along those lines.  Usually I'm asked to paint a family portrait, so it was really fun to this time be asked to just create. It was completely up to me what I ended up doing for her. I had fun! To get me started I asked what her favourite birds and flowers were, that way I could make it a bit more personalised for her. And soon, when I get to show you the finished picture, you'll be able to find out her answer. I don't want to spoil her surprise, so I can't show it to you just yet, we'll just have to wait till she has received it. Shouldn't be too long now.
At precisely 9.25pm we cranked up Mr You's amazing lotto machine and conducted the draw for the 3rd Annual Illustration Giveaway.
Some notes:
- Mr You's afore mentioned amazing machine uses maths, physics and code (don't ask me anymore than that), to ensure a completely random draw.
- So random that when the names appear at the top, during the testing phases I could see that the placement of names was unique each time.
- The winner was chosen via this tool
- There were 83 entries in the end, each from a unique person (no double ups)
- If two names were the same, the second was called #2
- I have ENORMOUS amounts of appreciation and warm fuzzies for each of you who entered. Thank-You! This year has been really exciting
Okay... enough with the formalities... On with the show!
There's only a few days left of the Thanksgiving Giveaway. If you haven't entered yet, get yourself over here and leave a comment on that post to be in the draw. Thank-you so much to everyone who has entered. The turn out has blown me away!!! Also a BIG thank-you to those of you who have added my button to your blogs :D I had started off coming by and thanking you all individually, but after a while my hand got a cramp, I was gasping for air and calling for first aid, pure exhaustion, I had no idea there'd be so many entries... Last year there were only 10! So forgive me for not stopping by if I didn't get to you, but know that you have my sincere thanks. Yes, we're getting very excited about it here. Mr You has been working for days on a very special way to draw the winners... You'll be impressed, I'm sure. The drawn will be done on Thursday evening, and the winner will be announced either that night or the following morning... depending on how much celebratorial champagne I've drunk, hehehe, hic!. Good luck everyone. _ _ _ In the meantime I wanted to tip my hat in thanks to Three Buttons who hosted the "This Is" meme that I'd been participating in each week. It's now been drawn to a close, and I already miss it. It was a good meme, I'll remember it fondly. Thanks for the good times, sniff sniff. I'll start looking for a new one to play along with. Do any of you play a fun and easy weekly thingo? _ _ _ And finally (for today) thanks for all your great title suggestions for my painting from my last post. So many great ones. It's been hard to choose actually. I think because she didn't have a name to begin with I just can't pin one on her at all... She may just remain Mulberry... after all that :) Mind you there were quite a few name suggestions that have me inspired to create totally new works, so if I do, I'll let you know. So, thank-you. Thank-you's all round today. Good way to start the week. :)
Dum Dulalalump dump dum daaaaaaa - Announcing the 3rd Annual Thanksgiving Giveaway! Welcome.Those of you who've been visiting for a while will know all about this. For those who don't know... What It's All AboutI really like the idea of Thanksgiving, but we don't celebrate it here in Australia, so each year I do my own little thing, showing my thanks by hosting a giveaway. The prize of the giveaway is an illustration by me that the winner gets to commission. It can be anything you like. The past 2 years the prizes have ended up becoming sweet and quirky portraits of the winners sons! However, should you win you could request anything or anyone you like. It could be abstract, like your favourite song, or specific like a portrait of a loved one (or pet) from a photo. You should keep in mind the style of my work though, because you may be disappointed if you ask for a Rembrandt! Having said that, don't feel as though it has to be something for your kids just because the last ones were either. It's completely up to you. Each year the value of my work rises a little (yay!), which means that this year the winner will be getting a prize worth $350 USD. And I'm happy to ship worldwide, so don't be shy. How To EnterSo how do you enter? It's easy, just leave a comment on THIS post anytime between now and the morning (my time) of the 27th Nov. That's 3 weeks away. One comment is enough, as I'll remove duplicate entries before the draw so everyone gets an equal chance. The draw will be completely random, and I'll be drawing the winner on Thanksgiving Day (which according to my calendar is the 27th Nov). Spread The WordSeeing as this is such a big event in my blogging calendar I have created a button. If you'd like to help me spread the word, go for your life! Use the button all you like! You can add it to a blog post by using this code: - In your blog post entry window enter the following code:
<a href="http://flossy-p.blogspot.com/2008/11/3rd-annual-thanksgiving-giveaway.html" title="Thanksgiving Giveaway 2008" target="_blank" ><img src="http://www.flossyparticles.com/images/ThanksgivingGiveaway_Bttn_Wht.gif" alt="Thanksgiving Giveaway 2008" /></a>Or to add it to your side bar, grab the button below and follow the instructions here. But remember to use this button and this URL. http://flossy-p.blogspot.com/2008/11/3rd-annual-thanksgiving-giveaway.html What's Next?Well, enter your comment, and start thinking what you'd like me to paint if you win. Good Luck!!!!! :D  _ _ _ I've now closed the comments at number 83. (Kat just made it in)Sorry entries are now closed, the draw is in progress.
Good Luck everyone. :)
 Waaaaay back in November Anastasia won my 2nd annual Thanksgiving raffle, and this was her prize! She asked if I would paint something for her boys bedroom. She told me they like animals and that she prefers muted colours, and the rest was up to me.... this is what came out. I'm told they are all very happy with it, and the boys think it's so funny that the tiger is eating a sandwich. :) Thank-you Anastasia, I hope your boys enjoy their adventure with their new tiger friend!
I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving, or at least took a moment of general appreciation. I'm sure you're all wondering how the Thanksgiving Illustration Raffle went... Well, this year there were ten lovely people contending (thank-you). See! There you all are...  Then I rolled each of you up, tied you up with a tiny strand of cotton, and jumbled you all about. This year we had a new gracious assistant, who just happened to be in the most perfect playful mood right at the very moment I was about to do the draw. And the selection process played out like this:  Tilli entered right on queue, jumbled all the rolls up, flicked them all about a bit, then to our astonishment, she picked one lucky winner up in her mouth and jumped off the table. She chewed it up a bit, played with it a bit, then dropped it at her feet (sorry, paws).  We unrolled the now moist winning scroll, and the winner was Anastasia! Yaaay! Congratulations!!!! So now Anastasia, you get to choose what you would like me to attempt to paint for you. What will it be? (this bit is exciting for me) I'd sincerely like to thank everyone else who entered. You may not have won an illustration this time, but you definitely have my thanks and appreciation. Your visits and company are like treasure to me. Gold, sparkly, shiny, glitzy treasure! (Especially now that I don't have any friends close by to invite round for a cup of tea, or glass of wine and bowl of olives). Happy Thanksgiving!
 Some of you long-time-lurkers may recall that this time last year I conducted a Thanksgiving raffle. The general idea was that because we don't celebrate Thanksgiving here in Australia, (and it seems like such a friendly, well meaning holiday too, I'd hate to ignore it), I came up with a way of my own to express my thanks and gratitude to all you interweb buddies out there. Last year Diane Duda was the winner, the prize being she would receive a custom-made illustration by me, and she could even select the topic. She chose an old photo of her boys when they were younger, one of her favourites, and that little pic there is what came of it. Anyway, getting on with it.... It's on again this year! As Kermit The Frog would say, "yaaaayyyyyy"! Here’s how it will work:
- If you’re interested, please leave a comment on this post. “Count me in” or something like that will do.
- At 7pm next Thursday evening (my time/Sydney), I will put all the names of those who have commented, into an empty bowl and ask my delightful assistant to draw one out randomly (without peeking).
- I’ll post who the winner is on Thursday night and try to contact them via email.
What does the winner win?
- Well it won't be a meat-tray!
- The winner will be able to select a topic for me to attempt an illustration of (e.g. you could send a photo for me to attempt a portrait of you or a loved one, or describe what your thanksgiving is like, or describe a favourite possession and I’ll attempt an imaginary still life, etc).
- I will post the illo here for you all to see, AND mail the original illustration to the winner so they can keep it for their very own. A gift from me to you.
So, you've got a week till Thanksgiving (in the US that is), and to get your names in for the draw. eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-excited!
Tonight was the night that the Thanksgiving Illustration raffle was drawn. Here's a summary of the events as they unfolded... And the nominees are...  It's very sophisticated technology as you can see. All entries folded up, in the bowl and being mixed with a chopstick, (not being hexed by a magic wand as it may appear).  Just to be sure my lovely skellington assistant stirs once again using his own slightly more vigorous methods.  Our breaths are bated as the drumroll sounds and the winning name is selected...  And the winner is....Diane Duda!! YAAAAAY!  Congratulations to Diane of Dudadaze! You get to choose a topic for your Thanksgiving illustration (drawn by me). What'll it be? Feel free to be as descriptive as you please. I am at your very whim :D Thank-you again to all the lovely talented nominees. This has been so much fun so far, I might have to make an event of this each time another country celebrates a holiday that we don't. (heh)
We don’t have Thanksgiving here in Australia. In fact I don’t even really know what it is. I assume it’s an event where it’s traditional to gather up loved ones and share your thanks and gratitude over a yummy meal. I know it involves pumpkin pie, and although I have never tasted pumpkin pie, (I’m not even sure if it’s sweet or savoury), I have a feeling I would like it very much. This weeks Illustration Friday theme is, you guessed it, Thanksgiving. I’ve always liked the idea of Thanksgiving, but I don’t have any clue how I would illustrate something I have no real concept of. This brings me to the bit that follows on from my previous post… As my way of showing you my thanks and gratitude for your company and always being so kind to me (and persevering with my whinging), instead of doing an illustration for IF, this week I’m going to do one especially for one of you! Here’s how it will work:- If you’re interested, please leave a comment on this post. “Count me in” or something like that will do.
- At 9pm on Wednesday night (my time/Sydney), I will put all the names of those who have commented, into an empty fruit bowl and ask my delightful assistant to draw one out randomly (without peeking).
- I’ll post who the winner is on Wednesday night and try to contact them via email.
What does the winner win?- The winner will be able to select a topic for me to attempt an illustration of (e.g. you could send a photo for me to attempt a portrait of you or a loved one, or describe what your thanksgiving is like, or describe a favourite possession and I’ll attempt an imaginary still life, etc).
- I will post the illo here for you all to see, AND mail the original illustration to the winner so they can keep it for their very own. A gift from me to you.
(note: it usually takes me a few days to come up with an illustration, so I’ll keep you posted on the progress as it goes.) Hope that doesn’t seem conceited, it’s meant as a gesture of thanks. I’ve never done anything like this before, it’ll be a challenge, but I’m really excited about this!!!!! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
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