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Good morning blog friends! More teal! And the blog pendulum swings back the other way today to no ribbons or bows. Just a very simple card, but I really like the way it came out. I cut the Samantha Walker Twisted metal die out of my teal card. I kept the die in place and moved the entire piece on to my Grand Impressibilities and embossed it all. Since I wanted the negative piece as my background, I removed the actual die cut (and saved it for another time). I sanded my background to bring up the detail of the embossed background and edged the entire piece with Black Soot distress ink. You can see the detail in the close up picture below. Then I put sticky foam mounting pieces all over the back of this piece and set it aside for a bit. I cut the Twisted metal die again in black card. This time, I took the die out and then taped the outer fine scroll piece back in to the background. I mounted this under neath my background piece so that it created a black edge on the inside. I stamped my sentiment on white card and centred it into the middle of the opening in the background. The card was finished with a bit of piercing (as I do) and some matting and layering with both black and white card for contrast. I hope you like it! All for now, Sue x
A daily papercrafting blog which features my handmade cards showcasing Creative Expression's products including my own line of cutting dies and embossing folders, Cosmic Shimmer, Ranger and more which use various techniques and ideas to hopefully inspire the creativity in you.
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Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
Ribbon Overload
Good morning to everyone! You were warned yesterday about the ribbon/bow overload! This is probably the most OTT card that I have done lately so it just had to be posted today. I did this entire card just so I could demo the gold crochet ribbon rose, then we sold out of the ribbon, go figure! I just wanted to show that this ribbon makes the same kind of rose that the cream crochet ribbon makes. The version that I did demo of this card involved using the Grand Impressibility to emboss the gold Labels 20 die. I really liked the way that came out, but I didn't get a picture of it before they whisked it away to be sent out to the email recipient. Under the heading of "you just never know", I was not going to show this card as I wasn't crazy about it, when one of the stage hands went absolutely nuts over it. I thought who knows, maybe it is someone else's cup of tea so to speak, so here it is. It is out of my comfort zone somewhat as I don't use metallics a great deal, but I was itching to use the background paper that I have had in my stash for some time.
Well, it seems that I spoke to soon as we had a day of rain here on Monday! However, judging by the comments that were left yesterday, I will take the rain over the weather that some of you back in England are having (gale force winds, snow, etc.)! I hope today brings some nicer weather for all of us! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 92 comments:
Monday, 28 November 2011
Happiness Is A Butterfly
Good morning all! I have made it through Thanksgiving weekend (including Black Friday!) here in Florida. The weather has been lovely and I am enjoying my time with my Mom and Dad! But I still have more cards to post so here is today's card. Yes, more teal... but not a ribbon in sight! I may go through withdrawl symptoms so I am just warning you now, tomorrow could be ribbon overload! LOL How is this for a truly simple, quick and effective card? Three panels of teal card mounted on to a piece of white card, then a small mat of black glitter card (for bling) then a final mat of black card. I cut the large butterfly from plain black card using the gorgeous butterfly die from the Fanciful Flight set. I used the smaller butterfly from the set and cut three of them from black glitter card. I added some black rhinestone swirls to look like the flight path of the large butterfly. Stamped the lovely saying from the Garden Sayings set and embossed it with clear powder over black archival ink. Fini!
I have been enjoying all the comments you have been leaving on the blog, thank you so much. As requested, I will do a photo tutorial for the flowers (crocheted and otherwise) as they all work the same way, but it is different than the flowers on my DVD. I will also try to get a tutorial done on the Spellbinders that was cut half way but completely embossed. I have been working on some new cards while I am here, but I haven't done either of those things yet. The next card that I make using them, I will take step by step photos for you I promise. All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 99 comments:
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Crocheted Ribbon Flower
Hi blog friends! Red, cream and blue today for a simple card with another one of my ginormous bows! I used the edgeability dies to give a decorative edge to the background and used a little Antique Linen to bring out the detail. I cut a frame using Labels 20 and embossed it with the polka dot mask, to match my blue polka dot paper. I stamped my sentiment and cut it out with one of the fancy tags. The bow was made more focal by the use of the red frilly edged ribbon and the steam blue vintage ribbon. I topped the bow with a flower that was made with the crocheted ribbon. It's a very simple method, you just need to cut the ribbon in half down the centre, apply redline tape to the cut edge and roll the flower. As you roll, just slightly gather it to create the fullness in the flower. I will try to take some photos the next time I make one of these flowers and do a little tutorial for you if you like.
Here is a close up of the flower for your inspection. It is really pretty I think and the crocheted ribbon looks great done this way. What is really nice is that you get two flowers from this technique since you cut the ribbon down the centre. It's a frilly card, but a really nice way to tell someone that they are special. Don't you think? All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:15 96 comments:
Saturday, 26 November 2011
Wishing You The Best in Teal
Good morning everyone! First things first, we have a winner in the comment game! On the post of Nov.22nd we had over 100 comments so I randomly drew out number 12 which corresponded to Vee Cassidy's comment. Congratulations to Vee! Just email me your postal details to confirm and I will post off your prize to you. Just to let everyone know, since I have been pre-scheduling my posts the announcements of the winners may lag behind the actual post by several days. Don't worry, though, I am keeping track of it and since the comments are time stamped. it is very easy to go back and check!
As you can see, I am going through a teal phase. Teal is just such a soothing colour I think, you may have to endure more of it! I embossed the background using my fretwork mask. Since I wanted to do a background that is larger than the mask size, I cut one edge off the mask. Now I can move it and line it up to do a larger area and it won't leave a line. In essense, you can make the background any size you want. I cut three sizes of the Labels 22 dies and added the matching Nestabling in the black rhinestones. It's a bit much, I know, but it's fun! I cut one of the fancy tags in aqua and cut it in half and added to either end of the largest Label 22 die. It has those "holding hands" swirls that are so versatile. I added a messy bow out of the teal vintage ribbon and a black organza rose for the centre. Two decorative pearl pins were just calling out to me to be added to the bow, so, of course, I had to oblige! Lol A bit of piercing a round the edge and we are finished. What do you think? All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 05:30 88 comments:
Friday, 25 November 2011
A Vertical Thank You
Good morning! What do you say to a pink and teal thank you card? I have used an array of Spellbinders for this one, but what fun it was! Labels Twenty provided the backdrop for the focal element. I then cut out two consecutive sizes of the Fleur de Lis squares and cut them both in half from top to bottom. I mounted them to the outside edge of the teal label twenty die cut, leaving a gap in the centre. I stamped my sentiment on to a pale pink card and cut it with one of the fancy tag two dies. I cut two more of those out of the same pale pink and then cut two more out of a slightly darker hue of pink. The last two die cuts were then cut in half from tip to tip to be used as a shadow for each side of the pale pink die cuts. All three die cuts were then mounted vertically in the centre of the gap left by the square fleur de lis die cuts. I really like this primarily because the tags are almost always used for horizontally placed text stamps (and they are brilliant for that!), but don't let that restrict the way in which you use these dies. Think about cutting them in half so that the two end pieces are in tact and using them as extender pieces for label dies or even as fancy borders around your labels. I used a few matching colours of the vintage ribbon to ruche and make a bow to embellish the bottom of the card. I added some decorative pearl pins and some swirly pearlies to the background to finish the card. Just have fun playing with your Spellbinders and you never know what you will come up with! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 05:30 82 comments:
Thursday, 24 November 2011
Let Your Dreams Take Flight
Hi blog friends! I thought that I would mix it up a bit today and show a card that was made about six months ago using the Spellbinders bird cage die set. I didn't get very much time to play with this die set as it had been added last minute to a show I was doing at the time. I think I have four or five cards total that use this set (mixed in with my backlog of card samples) but it quite lovely. I tried something different here and I was rather pleased with how it turned out. I used the actual die as a stencil for my card. I applied black soot distress ink through the die so that you get the very subtle hint of the birdcage on the background. I used the bird die from the set and mounted it in the centre of the floral doily pieces in the corner of the card. The back piece of background card was embossed using the floral embossing folder and I very lightly inked it around the edges with the black soot to bring the pattern into view. I wanted to bring a bit more of the coral colour in to the card for balance so I ruched the vintage ribbon down the side of the floral doily border and added a scrunched messy bow and a couple of black decorative pins as accents. A fun technique to give a try sometime! All for now,
Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 78 comments:
Wednesday, 23 November 2011
Taupe And Blue Finally Together!
Good morning everyone! One of the things that I love most about crafting is playing with different colour combinations. Today was no exception as I have been wanting to put these two colours together since the day I bought this patterned background paper. The paper (purchased in the States at Hobby Lobby, sorry) has a soft flourish pattern to it in taupe tones and I envisioned it with a very bold blue accompanying it. I always say that I run out of time to do everything I want to do long before the ideas run out. This was no exception, but I decided that I had looked at that paper long enough, it was time to put it into action! I decided to pare it with the Labels twenty one, the Lace Doily Motifs, the Samantha Walker Twisted Metal Tag die and the Fancy Tag two. I really liked the way they all layered up to create the focal element here. I used a very light inking of black soot to frame in the sentiment here. The Lace Doily border provided the border edge for the entire piece and the blue card behind it helps show it off. The edge was pierced this time to help frame the card. The entire piece was finished with a fun bow of both the frilly edged ribbon in champagne layered with the vintage ribbon in sulphur blue and a taupe button and blue bakers twine. This one got a "happy dance" as I really liked the way it tuned out! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 05:30 94 comments:
Tuesday, 22 November 2011
All That Glitters!
Today's post is a really simple, but elegant card that can be used for any sort of occasion with a simple change of the sentiment. I have to admit to a strangely odd propensity towards glitter card lately. I really have never used it ever, but I started using black glitter card behind negative cut out pieces, then white glitter card found it's way into my stash. Recently, I found this piece of background card at my local craft shop for 39p for a 12" x 12" and I couldn't resist it! The pink was soft enough and the pattern on it was rather nice so this is where it has ended up! As you can see, I did use some white glitter card as a matting layer between my piercing and bottom layer. I really like it just peeking out as it kind of helps to balance the bold glitterings of the background piece. As for the focal element, it is quite simply a piece of white card that has been die cut with the fleur de lis square die template and then topped with two pieces cut from the fancy tags two die and then mounted diagonally across each other. They form a really pretty scrolly square that just sits a top the fleur de lis square very nicely. I stamped my sentiment and then cut it out with one of the smallest fleur de lis squares, inked it a bit to frame it with the Victorian Velvet distress ink and mounted it in the centre of the focal element. the white frilly edged ribbon made a splendid bow for this creation and I topped it with a pink button and a bit of pastel pink bakers twine. I added a few tiny pink pearls from my craft stash to accent the corners and complete the card. All in all, a very quick, easy card to put together. You could change it to a "thank you" or a "special day" or something similar without any trouble at all. Hope you like it. All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:30 112 comments:
Monday, 21 November 2011
We Have Winners.. A Whole Bunch Too!
Hello blog friends, old (as in friends, not age!) and many new ones too! Thank you ever so much for all your support, I cannot tell you how much it means to me to get such warm and caring emails. I spent most of this morning answering emails and getting caught up before making the several drawings for prizes for today. I am going to work my way all the way through to the Big prize winner at the end of the post.
Firstly, we have had over 100 comments on the blog posts recently so I have randomly picked numbers from the total number of posts and come up with winners for those.
For the blog post of Saturday the 19th, I picked out number 11 and that corresponds to the eleventh comment and that was left by...................................................................................
For the blog post of Sunday the 20th, I randomly picked out number 133 and that corresponds to the comment which was left by ...............................................................
Crafty Loops!!!
Now on to the BIG BLOG CANDY DRAWING. Don't get too excited until the end because I always post third prize, then second prize and then FIRST prize.
Third prize goes to.........................................................................................................................................
Janet Babar!!!!
Second prize goes to.................................................................................................
Vie Carter!!!!
and now, the GRAND FIRST PLACE PRIZE of all the goodies shown in the pic on the blog goes to......................................................................................................................
Drum roll please.............................................................................
You know I love this part.........
keep scrolling....
Congratulations to all the winners today! You will all need to email me to confirm your addresses before I post off your prizes. We will keep the blog candy going and draw names at every new 100 followers. I will get a new candy posted just as soon as I can for you, but please be patient as I am traveling soon.
I have shows today at 4pm and 6pm so I hope you will be able to watch. Thanks again for all your support! All for now, Sue x
Firstly, we have had over 100 comments on the blog posts recently so I have randomly picked numbers from the total number of posts and come up with winners for those.
For the blog post of Saturday the 19th, I picked out number 11 and that corresponds to the eleventh comment and that was left by...................................................................................
For the blog post of Sunday the 20th, I randomly picked out number 133 and that corresponds to the comment which was left by ...............................................................
Crafty Loops!!!
Now on to the BIG BLOG CANDY DRAWING. Don't get too excited until the end because I always post third prize, then second prize and then FIRST prize.
Third prize goes to.........................................................................................................................................
Janet Babar!!!!
Second prize goes to.................................................................................................
Vie Carter!!!!
and now, the GRAND FIRST PLACE PRIZE of all the goodies shown in the pic on the blog goes to......................................................................................................................
Drum roll please.............................................................................
You know I love this part.........
keep scrolling....
Congratulations to all the winners today! You will all need to email me to confirm your addresses before I post off your prizes. We will keep the blog candy going and draw names at every new 100 followers. I will get a new candy posted just as soon as I can for you, but please be patient as I am traveling soon.
I have shows today at 4pm and 6pm so I hope you will be able to watch. Thanks again for all your support! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 12:10 58 comments:
The Simple Things!
I love this card as it is so simple. There is nothing tricky at all, just four small lace doilies cut in black for the background, mounted on to a piece of cream card. Then I cut one large Labels 23 and added the matching pearl Nestabling. I stamped my sentiment then cut it out using the next size smaller in the Labels 23 set, added a bit of Antique Linen distress ink and then mounted the nestabling on it also. Done! Oh and some piercing around the edge, but that's all. I love cream and black together (it looks like it is yellow, but it is truly cream and black in real life) and it always makes such an elegant card, doesn't it? And the sentiment is simple and perfectly apropos for this card too I think. We need more of these reminders in our busy lives sometimes. I am heading off on Wednesday to see my folks for Thanksgiving (a quaint American holiday involving family, friends and way too much food!) but it is one of the simple things in life that I love. I promise to keep the blog busy while I am away if you promise to visit it! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 05:30 91 comments:
Sunday, 20 November 2011
So Grateful
Todays POTW shows are scheduled for 9am, 4pm, 6pm, 7pm and a "walk on" the tool shed sometime between 12 and 2pm if you get a chance to watch.
For today's card I thought I would show you one that I made just recently for the POTW shows this week. It features the lacy circles and the Samantha Walker blossom tags for the focal element. I stamped the sentiment on to cream card and cut it out with the lacy circle die. I then cut two of the scalloped circles from the Samantha Walker set and offset them so they give a more lacy appearance. I backed it with the large scalloped circle from that same set. I cut several of the flourishes from another Samantha Walker set called Twisted metal dies and used them to frame the focal element. The striped background paper was cut at the bottom with the scalloped edgeabilities and a decorative insert. I cut one of the Twisted metal tag dies and then cut it in half and mounted it top and bottom of the card. I added some black rhinestone swirls and a small bow of black vintage ribbon and some piercing to finish the card off. A little different, perhaps even quirky looking, but I rather liked the way it came out. I hope you enjoy it! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 143 comments:
Saturday, 19 November 2011
Blossoming In Nature
Good morning! Through the magic power of pre-scheduling my posts, you should be viewing this about the time I am hitting the road to go to the studio for my early start (but why are you up this early? LOL). I have shows scheduled today at 8am, 1pm, 4pm, 5pm and 7pm. I love the card in today's post, but sorry there is a bit of a shadow on it in the pic. The background was embossed with the hedged maze embossing folder on to cream card. I wrapped two pieces of zircon green vintage ribbon around it, then mounted it atop another piece of cream card that I pierced around the edge. For the focal element I used the square heart die in the back and the lacy circles for the sentiment. I inked through the die with Broken China distress ink to give it a soft frame. I mounted those on to another piece of cream card that I pierced around too. I finished the piece with three spiral flowers made of felt in varying shades. Aside from being a total "me" type of card for the obvious reasons, these are my favourite kind of cards as they could be given for any reason whatsoever and just make the recipient smile. I hope you like it and you will tune in sometime today to see more in the way of cards and demos. All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 114 comments:
Friday, 18 November 2011
All White Again!
Good morning all! As promised a sneak peek at one of the new cards that I have been working on over the past few weeks. This one is probably, if not my absolute favourite, one of my favourites as I love the all white card. It doesn't photograph very well, but it is quite lovely in person. I am loving the Nestabling too! Yes it is on the shows this week, finally! Here we have Labels 23 and Labels 22 nestabling. I have used the Hedged Maze embossing folder on the background, you have to look hard for it, but trust me it is there.
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 113 comments:
Thursday, 17 November 2011
Parisian in Teal
Hi blog friends, I was having a play with the Parisian dies here with this card. They are truly among my favourite die sets that Spellbinders have ever released. While I made this card some time ago for the original release of these dies on Create and Craft, I wanted to let you in on a little secret...... These dies are going to be back on the POTW shows starting on Friday the 18th in case you missed them the first time around. Ideal TV is bringing back a great selection of dies that all sold out very quickly upon their launch so if you missed them then, now is your chance. The bundles will be different as they are based on availability of supply from Spellbinders, but they are all great sets! Just in case you have all of the dies that have been on previously (lucky you), there are going to be a few new Spellbinders dies that have never been shown on Create and Craft before also. The POTW shows kick off on Friday at noon and I have been working hard on new cards and demos for you, with a few surprises thrown in too! I hope you will tune in. I will be back tomorrow with a sneaky peek for you before the shows start. All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:32 80 comments:
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Snowflakes Galore!
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
Peaceful Wishes
Good morning all! This is one of those cards that I had no clue where I was going when I started and really surprised myself when I finished it! My goal was to use the holiday tag die set, but I didn't want to use it as just a tag. Dies need to have more that the expected use for me, something that justifies it's use (and expense) more than just the obvious. I like the tag set but I thought this "tag" would make a nice embellishment cut out of black glitter card as just a star in the sky. My monochromatic scheme may be a bit boring but there is something about the sereneness to it that I like. I sponged in some background clouds using a torn piece of copy paper and black soot distress ink. I added some hills of black card that just needed something so black PVA glue got the call! I stamped the pine tree and cut them out roughly and added a forest to my card. Stamped the sentiment in black archival, added my star and a tiny black and silver reversible ribbon. The card is matted on white with pearl PVA glue dots then finished with another layer of black. A bit out of my comfort zone, but fun every once in awhile I think! All for now, Sue x
Monday, 14 November 2011
Alcohol Ink Leaves
Good morning everyone! Todays card was a project that I designed for a Dabble Day that I did last weekend in Leighton Buzzard. I didn't think that I had any photos of the projects, but I came across this one so I thought I would post it. We had a great day of "speed crafting" as there were six projects and everyone moves from table to table every 45 minutes. For this card, you drop alcohol ink in various shades (we used butterscoth, ginger, purple twilight and copper mixative) all over your craft mat. You have to work quickly as it dries very fast. You take a piece of gloss white card and with the glossy side to the mat, you pick up the ink by swirling your card in it. It gives a different effect than if you use the tool to apply it. It looks very much like encaustic wax to me. You can do another layer if you want the colour to be more intense. Then we dropped gold mixative on to our mat and used it as an ink for our stamp (we used a stamp off of the wildflowers stamp set that looks like webbing) and stamped it randomly over the piece. It gives the look of gold veins running through the background. Using the anti-static pad over the background first, we then stamped the grape leaf around two sides of the background and clear embossed. We repeated the same steps for our sentiment and then cut it out with Labels 22 and layered it with mounting foam on the background. I added a layer of white card to the background, then a bit of piercing and a final mat of black to complete the card. Total time to complete was under 45 minutes for this one. Hope you like it and if you made this card last weekend, I hoped you enjoyed making it! All for now, Sue x
Sunday, 13 November 2011
Two Colour Ways!
Virtually the same card here, except with red and cream. Although the ribbon does look a little bit pink in the picture it is red and cream. I used Labels 22 for the ornament this time, but I still inked it with antique linen distress ink for interest. The lace is cream this time and I used the pearl PVA glue instead of piercing around the edge. The background was also stamped and embossed with the star and shows up quite a bit better in this picture. What do you say, which one do you prefer? All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:45 114 comments:
Saturday, 12 November 2011
Holly Motifs and Accents
Hi guys! I'm not sure if this technically qualifies as a card since there is not a sentiment on it, but I just could not resist layering these beautiful dies up as soon as I got my hands on them. I love this fine filigree type die, right up my alley. Usually when I first get a set of dies to making samples, I cut them all out of white card and keep them in a file so I can just see how they all look together. This set did not make it that far! I layed them on to a piece of red card and that was it, I had to finish putting it together. So I cut one more of the Holly accent pieces so I could have one on either side of the Holly Motif focal element, and locked their little side pieces together. This is another one of those ''holding hands'' type dies. I cut four corner pieces and added them to my unusually shaped rectangular card. It just needed a bit of paper piercing and some pearls for the centres to complete it and give it an elegant statement. Completely traditional and a far cry from some of the unusual Christmas colours of the recently shown cards, but I really like it nonetheless. All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 07:00 110 comments:
Friday, 11 November 2011
Black and Brown Elegance
Hi bloggers! I hope this one isn't too dark for you as I seem to have moved from my green phase into one that is using quite a bit of brown lately. Although this card was made a while ago, I just realised that I hadn't posted it until now. I really like decorative papers that have patterns that are very muted, tone on tone and that is what I picked for this card. I really like the black and brown together, although, I would imagine it isn't every ones cup of tea. I have used the scallop edge and the heart insert edgeabilities for the four horizontal borders on the card. The focal element was created using the heart square and the Samantha Walker Blossom tag die and just stamping my sentiment in the centre. I did a tiny bit of inking around the edge to frame it. You would never guess it's my card with the ginormous bow, huh? LOL I really like the black organza rose in the middle and the decorative stick pins to complete it. Whatcha think? All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:38 104 comments:
Thursday, 10 November 2011
A Pastel Christmas
Hi blog friends! More Christmas today, but not the usual colour combos you would expect. Can you handle a pastel pink and blue as a Christmas card? I wasn't at all sure where I was headed when I started this one! I originally was going to just keep it to pale pink and dusty rose, but the blue snuck in there as it needed a frosty look to it. I embossed the Spellbinders snowflakes into the background of the card after I had stamped it with the snowflake from our Christmas Filigree stamp set and embossed with white powder. I then used the Spun Sugar distress ink and the Broken China distress ink to lightly add colour to the background. The stamped images acted as a resist while the ink highlighted the die embossed areas. I cut a frame from Labels eighteen and while in the die, inked it with spun sugar distress ink leaving the white edge. I mounted it up over my sentiment for dimension. With a piece of velvet ribbon that had some decorative cording on it (out of my craft stash), I ruched it up the side of the card. I cut out a few of the Spellbinder snowflakes to add to the ruching with some pink Bakers Twine too. I added some pearly swirlies that I coloured with a tiny bit of spun sugar reinker. The entire card was matted on pink card and framed with, you guessed it, what else but pearl PVA glue dots. You know I love them!
Here is a close up that shows the stamping and the embossed card background. Not my usual style, but I like doing things that are a bit different from time to time too. So what is the consensus on this one? Thumbs up or thumbs down? Be gentle.
We have a winner on our ''over 100 comments'' contest too. From the blog post on Tuesday the 8th, I picked number 22 randomly and that coincides with comment number 22 which was left by follower Edwina!!! Please email me to confirm your address before I post off your prize. Thanks for playing!
Don't forget to leave a comment for your extra entries into the blog candy contest. If you have any difficulties, email me! firstname.lastname@example.com All for now, Sue x
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Plaid Poinsettias
Good morning everyone! It was great to see all the wonderful comments left about the blog candy yesterday. remember to keep it up for extra chances in the candy draw! As for todays post, this is a special request from follower Babs, she wanted to see this card up close. I honestly thought that I had already posted this one, but I didn't see it when I had a look see back through the old posts. This is one of the Christmas cards that I made while I was away in Florida in August. It was a bit strange to be designing Christmas cards when it was sweltering heat outside, I have to admit! I did rather like the way it came out though. I used some decorative plaid (tartan?) paper I had to make the three poinsettias on the card. The Spellbinders layered poinsettia die makes a beautiful flower I think. I wanted the centre flower to be larger than the other two so I used the extra single leaf from the set to add larger flower bracts to the centre one. The three flowers were mounted on a white background that was embossed with the Creative Expressions Flourish folder designed by Sam Poole. There is a holly accents border, but I have to admit, it doesn't show up very well in the pic as it is white on white. I added a few swirls which were cut using the Samantha Walker Ornate tag set. The sentiment was stamped and cut out with the Picot edge die and layered on to a lace doily die. The entire card was framed with the dots of the pearl PVA glue. I hope it helps you get in the Christmas card making mood! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:30 111 comments:
Tuesday, 8 November 2011
The Biggest Blog Candy Yet!
Now, you say, what do I have to do to win that lot of crafting goodness? Well, I think this definitely needs to be earned as well as won so here is the plan. This contest will be drawn when we reach the 2000 follower mark on the blog, but to be entered you need to do a few things.
1.) Be signed up as a follower on the blog and send me your postal details. You only have to do this once.
2). After each new post I make, leave a comment. Every comment will earn you another chance in the drawing. Tell me what you like about the post, tell me what you don't like about the post, tell me anything you like, your choice.
3). If you are having any difficulties leaving comments, then just send me an email at email@example.com
I just want to know that you have been by the blog and either of those two ways will do the trick! I want this candy to go home with one of the good blog followers that have perservered with me to get my blog going. It's that simple! I will draw a winner from the names of those who followed the three steps above when we reach the magical number of 2000 followers!
If you have any questions, email me at the address above.
All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 05:00 161 comments:
Monday, 7 November 2011
And The Winners Are....
Hi blog friends! As promised, I am back today with the winners of the blog candy contest. Thank you for your patience as I know you are all eagerly waiting to see your name drawn! If you want to see the card for today's post, just scroll down the page to the post below this one.
The winner of THIRD prize is...........................................
The winner of the SECOND place prize is....................
And (drumroll please) the winner of the GRAND FIRST PRIZE is.....
Congratulations to all the winners of the blog candy contest. Please email me with your postal details at email@example.com so that I may verify the info before posting your candy to you. I will be back soon with new candy for you and since it is a milestone, it is going to be BIG, that's all I'm saying. Stay tuned! All for now, Sue x
The winner of THIRD prize is...........................................
The winner of the SECOND place prize is....................
And (drumroll please) the winner of the GRAND FIRST PRIZE is.....
Congratulations to all the winners of the blog candy contest. Please email me with your postal details at email@example.com so that I may verify the info before posting your candy to you. I will be back soon with new candy for you and since it is a milestone, it is going to be BIG, that's all I'm saying. Stay tuned! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 12:15 35 comments:
Clean and Simple, Really!
Good Monday morning all! You didn't think I could do it, did you? I mean a totally flat card with no ribbon or bows! Surprise, surprise! Not even a nestie on it! Well I didn't think I could do it either! LOL But here it is, my take on a clean and simple Christmas card. I did, however, use a nestie to cut out a large circle out of copy paper as a background that I sponged Broken China Distress ink through. I cut out a smaller circle as a moon for the background too. I dried the ink real well and rubbed my anti-static pad over it before stamping my tree in clear perfect medium and embossing it with silver powder. I stamped my sentiment in black archival ink and I added some snow drops with my Cosmic Shimmer Twinkles. I added a few score lines and then some border punching, matted it on silver card then black card. Voila, fini! Truly a ten minute card. I did have to fight hard to resist the urge to add a bow to it to be honest, but in the end, I think it is okay without any other embellishments. I hope you like it.
On another note, I will be back later on today with the blog candy contest draw and I'll announce the winners. The followers went over the target point on the weekend and I keep everything for the contest at work. So when I get into work later this morning, it will be my top priority to draw the winners names. Check back after lunch for the results! Thanks for your patience. All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 68 comments:
Sunday, 6 November 2011
Autumn Is In The Air!
Good morning everyone! How about an autumnal card for today's post. This card uses the Falling Leaves stamp set. I have stamped the leaves randomly over a piece of white card using a clear perfect medium pad. I embossed the leaves with clear powder. I wanted to show the faux batik technique with this piece so to do that I folded the card randomly all over so that fold lines were going every which way across my background. It is difficult to see in my photo, but you end up with these nice lines running through your background which give the illusion of batik cracks. Once you are happy with all your fold lines, you need to lightly spritz your card with water. Using a brayer, I inked it up with the Spice Big 'n Juicy pad. You do not want stripes on your background so you need to roll your brayer across the card from different angles to avoid this. If you have a stubborn spot that you can't get the ink to go into, then spritz the card again lightly and reapply the ink. I cut an aperture in the card with Spellbinders Labels 23. I then cut another piece of rust card with a smaller die from another label set (the name escapes me, I'm sorry). I stamped my sentiment on a piece of white card so that it was centered in the opening. I made a couple of flowers from the rust card and added some leaves as an accent. I finished the card by paper piercing around the edge to frame it and adding some pearly swirly embellishments. I am just loving the changing of the leaves right now so that was my inspiration for this one. Hope you like it! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 06:30 36 comments:
Saturday, 5 November 2011
No Calories Here!
Good Saturday morning all! Today is the day for Sam's shows and I thought I would show a few more samples that I made for her. The first one is a bright and fun sample using her new candy shoppe stamps. I just love it when I have new designs from Sam to play with! She has been rather busy with her new little one lately though, so this is a real treat! I love colour and these are a perfect excuse for me to pull out some fun decorative paper and go to town! I did colour these with markers as I wanted the brightness.And don't you just love the ''sweets 1p'' label? How old would you have to be to actually remember that?!! The good ole days, huh?
Posted by Particraft at 07:00 47 comments:
Friday, 4 November 2011
A Sample For Sam Poole's Show
Hi blog friends! I want to show you a sample card that I made for Sam Poole's shows on Saturday the 5th. Sam has two new stamp sets called Candy Shoppe and Chocolate. Two of my favourite things, I like the sound of those already! Her shows at at 12:00 and 5pm so be sure to tune in to see what exciting demos she has planned for you. I used her empty candy jar here and stamped it with these chocolate candies by repeating the stamp and masking. I coloured them with my distress inks by swiping them on my craft mat and picking up the colour with a fine paintbrush. I stamped a sentiment on the label and added it to the jar and tied a bit of Bakers Twine around the lid. I mounted it in the Spellbinders Polka Dot frame. I have used some of the decorative papers that will be on the show also. I love the purple and brown combo. The bow is made up of three colours of vintage ribbon, riveria lilac, amber brown and lilac with a button and some more Bakers Twine. I added a bunch of buttons from my craft stash just because I thought they looked fun (and chocolate is definitely fun!) I finished the card with the new purple violet PVA glue since it looks like candy dots itself! Don't forget to tune in! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 07:39 45 comments:
Thursday, 3 November 2011
Gingham And Girlie!
Good morning all! From Steampunk to girlie! I'm just keeping you on your toes, aren't I?! Hopefully between yesterday and today, there will be something to appeal to most. I don't consider myself a ''pink'' person, but every once in a while, I do rather enjoy a spot of pink as long as it's a bit muted. This card is really rather a dusty rose in real life, to be honest. I used the embossing folder called'' Tied Together'' once again for the background and a bit of a pink gingham paper that I had for the top of the card. I edged the gingham with victorian velvet distress ink to mute it a bit and then added a piece of our new pearly swirlies. I dyed some American seam binding using the same distress ink. Once I had dried it well, I ruched it across between the two papers and tied a messy, scrunched bow with it too. I cut my focal element with labels 10 and I used blossoms four for the inside to create a frame. I stamped my sentiment and then cut it out with a smaller die from the blossoms four set and inked it while it was still in the die. Both pieces were mounted using foam pieces to create dimension. I cut out the rose creation dies in all the sizes in coconut white card, then inked them all while in the dies using Victorian Velvet distress ink again. I love the pretty white edge you get. I think it really sets the flowers off nicely. I cut a few of the leaves from that die set and inked them with Forest Moss Distress ink for the same effect. I mounted the two flowers to the side of the focal element and added another piece of the swirl to the bottom right. I pierced around the edge with the Tim Holtz design ruler to complete the card. I hope you enjoy it! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 07:00 45 comments:
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
Steampunk and Flowers? Why Not!
Hello blog friends! More steam punk again today. I hope you like this card as it is one of my favourites and it took me forever to get it to load on to my blog. I kept loading sideways, even though it was the right way up when I started. I have never had that happen before, but I finally decide to try and trick my computer and it worked! I turned it sideways in my photo file and then loaded it, and it came in right way up! Anyways, here it is after much fiddling with it. I love the way the background came out in this. I took my clear perfect medium and swiped it over my time embossing folder, but only in areas randomly. I embossed my card, then I used ancient copper embossing powder over it . It kind of gives it a patina look, I think. I distressed around the edges with my scissors and mounted it on to some lined kraft card that I had. I ran a piece of black craft metal through my Grand Calibur with the metal mask to emboss it. Then I used the alcohol blending solution to remove the colour from the mask in the raised areas, leaving the silver to show through. I mounted that piece in the bottom corner and stamped the vintage inventor on kraft card and mounted him on top. I had some matboard gears that I painted copper and added some beads to and strung some chain through them with a gear. Then I made some flowers for the corner and added some small tickets I stamped. Who says steampunk can't have flowers?! I stamped a few more larger tickets for the top cornerand attached them with a faux screw brad and added a metal photo corner to finish it off. I wasn't sure where I was going when I started this one, but I rather like where it ended up! You just never know sometimes! All for now, Sue x
Posted by Particraft at 05:30 49 comments:
Tuesday, 1 November 2011
A Monochromatic Piece
Posted by Particraft at 06:00 43 comments:
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Yesterday, we told you that a British father and Subaru owner is facing the very stark and devastating reality that his 11-year old son only has weeks left to live. He posted a note on a British Subaru forum saying he was planning a small car show in a week and would love for some cars to show up and brighten his son's day.
That original post about the show has gone viral and now all corners of the car community are coming together to have one last blowout car show for the boy next week. At least 270 cars have already committed.
The father, Scott, made his first post on Tuesday that his son had only a few weeks left to live after he had been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. The little guy, Connor, had already beaten cancer twice before in his short life.
Scott has also made one very important request of anyone attending the event, which is now being called "Connor's Day:"
hi all and again my daily thank you and grattitude to everyone for there kind words and support! i would just like to add for my own piece of mind too so everybody knows the score that my son DOES NOT KNOW the tumour has come back he just thinks he is unwell so please more important than anything is that HE IS NOT made aware in any way thank you all so much again
He doesn't want Connor to find out just how ill he is. Instead, he wants him to enjoy being a kid for a few more weeks. Please honor that request.
And from what we have heard, Connor sounds like one cool little dude. He's apparently a big car fan that knows literally anything and everything about the cars on the road. From a modded Subaru to a Pagani Huayra, he knows what it is. He's definitely one of us.
What began as a small request has exploded across the internet car world. The outpouring has to be overwhelming:
- The original Scooby Net thread has ballooned to 29 pages and more than 840 responses. They have officially registered more than 270 cars from Scooby Net alone to attend the show. It also looks like there are an additional 200 coming from other clubs as well.
- While that is the official registry, threads for this show have been popping up all over the web. Our friends at Piston Heads, M5 Boards, sharing on Facebook (our own post has been shared 114 times), car makers like Ginetta have reached out to give Connor rides, and even a thread on the Subaru Reddit have all been created.
- There have been offers for decals to be created, factory tours, and just about anything you can imagine.
- Scott has set up a Pay Pal account for donations: email@example.com. They would go to a children's cancer fund, as all Scott wants is a ton of cars and a good day for Connor.
- Our friend Alex Roy will be flying over from the USA and taking a Morgan Three Wheeler to the show that Charles Morgan is personally loaning him. He might even be joined by some as yet unconfirmed cool cars and motoring celebrities. Alex also said that if he can find a Gumball Trophy he'll personally give it to Connor. Our other friend Chris Harris cannot make it to the show, but he said he will find a way for his 599 to be there.
Right now, the show is still scheduled to be at the original address, which is Fred Lawton Ltd, Meltham Mills Industrial Estate, Meltham Huddersfield, HD9 4AY. However, if the show gets too large, there is talk of even taking over an airfield for the day.
This is one of those times we're proud to be a part of the car community. There may be some fierce rivalries on the surface of the car world, but when it comes down to it, car people are good people.

subset: commoncrawl


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Top 10 Woodworking TipsUpdated: Jul. 16, 2019
We asked our favorite woodworkers to share some of their favorite shop tips. Check out these great pieces of advice to help you work faster and smarter in your own shop.
You might also like: TBD
Reusable sanding blocks
Make your own reusable sanding block
Here's how to make your own reusable sanding blocks. Cut six blocks from scrap 3/4-in.plywood for each sandpaper grit you commonly use. Make them 2-1/2 in. x 4-3/4 in. Spray adhesive on both a square of cork tile and each block. Stick a block to the cork and cut the cork flush with a utility knife. Then spray adhesive on a sheet of sandpaper and stick it on each block cork side down as shown. Cut the sandpaper flush with the cork, and label each block.
Video: Make Your Own Woodworking Sanding Blocks
1-in. crosscutting stop block
Important table saw safety
When you're crosscutting on a table saw, set the cut length with a block clamped to the fence. Don't ever use the fence directly to avoid getting a board kicked back right at you. Instead, clamp a block of wood to the fence before the blade. Then the end of the board will be free of the fence during and after the cut. If you make a block that's exactly 1 in. thick, you can set the fence scale at 1 in. greater than the length you're after. No tricky fractions involved.
Stair gauge cutting guide
Use stair gauges as a crosscut guide
Stair gauges are usually used to lay out stair jacks. You clamp them to a carpenter's square to match the rise and run of a stair jack and then mark the notches. But if you put them both on the same tongue of a carpenter's square, the combination makes a great crosscut guide for circular saws.
No more glue stains
Use tape to catch excess glue
To prevent stains caused by oozing glue along joints, clamp the pieces together without glue. Put tape on the joint, then cut along it with a sharp blade. Separate the pieces, apply the glue and clamp them together again. The glue will ooze onto the tape, not the wood. Peel off the tape before the glue dries.
Woodworking Techniques: Try a drafting square
Use a drafting square for more accuracy
When you need an accurate square in the 2- to 3-ft. range, your options are limited. Drywall squares are notoriously inaccurate and cumbersome. Carpenter squares involve that nagging hassle of having to hook them onto the edge of your workpiece. If you have a drafting square lying around, drag it out to the shop. Or, go to an art supply store and pick one up ($5 or more). They're very accurate and you'll find yourself grabbing it nearly as often as you do the tape measure.
Woodworking Techniques: Clamp small stuff with hot glue
Hot glue holds small stuff better than clamps
When you have to cut, shape, file, sand or finish something small, reach for your hot glue gun and glue the piece to a pedestal stick. The hot glue will hold just about anything as well as or better than any clamp ever could—if using a clamp is even possible. When your project is complete, try to pop it loose with a putty knife, but don't use too much force—you might tear out the wood or break the piece.
Try cold or heat to un-stick it
You have two options for breaking the grip: cold and heat. First, try sticking the work piece into the freezer for an hour or so. Frozen glue will usually give way with very little force. If that doesn't work, try a hair dryer to soften the glue. Still stuck? Reach for the heat gun. But warm the piece slowly and from a distance to avoid scorching the wood or damaging the finish.
"On the level" table saw
Use duct tape to mark a level spot
You've finally got your table saw on a mobile base so it's easy to pull out and put away on the weekend. Finish the job by finding a level spot on the floor that's also convenient for sawing boards without obstruction. Mark the wheel positions with bright-colored duct tape and now you can roll the saw to the same flat spot every time you saw.
Forward-facing hacksaw teeth
Install blade so teeth face forward
Install the blade on a hacksaw so the teeth face forward. The saws are designed so the blade will cut when it's pushed (the forward stroke) rather than when pulled. Some blades have an arrow that shows the correct installation (the arrow points toward the handle). Install the blade so it's tight in the saw and won't bend. When you do a lot of cutting, the blade will heat up and expand, so be sure to tighten it if it starts to bend.


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Guild forum for all things SPARKLY
Free forum : A forum for sister guilds Dawn Breakers and Sparkling Under the Midnight Sun.
free, push, bonfire, sister, guilds, dawn, breakers, #sparkling, under, midnight
A Friendly International Social Meeting Point. Sparkling Sparklers
friendship, socialising, dating, chat, sparkle, communicate, sparklers, #sparkling, expats, south, africa, homesick, afrikaans, talk, road
A friendly Pokemon forum
Favorite artist tubes created in tags, siggys sets, banners and more.
dancingstar's, #sparkling, graphics, favorite, artist, tubes, created, tags, siggys, sets, banners, more
Ever wanted to be a werewolf? Ever wanted to live that secret life? Or do you just, in general, love wolves? Then this is the place for you. (Also included, you can choose to be a vampire that sparkles or a human. )
wolf, wolves, modern, world, werewolf, human, #sparkling, vampire


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The European Union is not the only one antsy about Oracle taking possession of the open source MySQL database should the commercial database giant's merger with Sun Microsystems get final approval. So are MySQL users. (The E.U.'s executive arm has held up approval of the merger, fearing that Oracle's acquisition of MySQL could reduce competition in the database market, as well as harm the open source nature of MySQL. Sun's stockholders and the U.S. Justice Department have approved Oracle's $7.4 billion acquisition of Sun.)
"We've got a fair number of databases and Web applications that use those databases in MySQL. If Oracle does something that sort of makes it look like MySQL's days are numbered or something is going to change that we don't like, we'll probably look at alternatives," says Ernest Joynt, a contractor for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[ Relive Sun's storied history in InfoWorld's slideshow "The rise and fall of Sun Microsystems." | Learn why attendees at the JavaOne conference were skeptical of Oracle's buyout of Sun. ]
Anand Babu Periasamy, CTO of clustered storage technology company Gluster, expresses doubts that Oracle would add enterprise capabilities to MySQL. "I hope that they will retain MySQL. [But] I am doubtful [that] they will ever improve MySQL to take it mid-enterprise level, but at least it will help them compete with Microsoft SQL Server on the low end," he says. (Gluster uses MySQL for its Web site operations.)
Thus far, Oracle has said little about its intentions for MySQL and declined to discuss the issue with InfoWorld. On its Web site, Oracle merely notes that "MySQL will be an addition to Oracle's existing suite of database products."
"I wish that Oracle would broadcast its intentions a little bit more" on the Sun acquisition, says Duane Kimble, a Linux technologist who works in the banking industry. For him, Oracle's ownership of MySQL is a specific cause for caution.
MySQL users start looking at alternatives
A key issue is that Oracle is a main competitor to MySQL, notes Timothy Dion, CTO of mobile and Web apps builder Sensei. "I'm very concerned about what that means," he says. His firm has begun looking at other enterprise-scale open source databases such as EnterpriseDB's Postgres database in case it has to replace MySQL.
Standing to reap a harvest from unease about the Oracle-MySQL pairing are open source database vendors EnterpriseDB and Ingres. EnterpriseDB, which builds its products on the PostgreSQL open source database, has been hearing from concerned MySQL users, says Larry Alston, EnterpriseDB's vice president of product management and marketing. "They're telling us that they're nervous" about the future of MySQL, he says.
Ingres also sees opportunities. "The phones ring a lot," says Ingres CEO Roger Burkhardt.
Doubts remain over the fate of other Sun technologies
Users remain concerned over the fate of other Sun technologies such as Java and Solaris, not just of MySQL. "We are rethinking our Solaris deployments," says Linux technologist Kimble. "We are moving swiftly toward more of an AIX and Linux environment, depending on the size or the scale of the project." Although Kimble notes it is "too early to say whether we'll move off [Solaris] or not," he does say his employer is rethinking its Solaris commitment: "Certainly, we're not going full-bore with Solaris as we were before the merger."
Kimble does see a positive side to the Sun acquisition: "I think it kind of simplifies the platform offering somewhat. Oracle is a strong company and if they keep Sun Java, which I'm sure is what they bought [Sun] for, I think it will make Java a better product."
But Bryce Pier is not so sure. The senior systems engineer at Target sees no benefits of the buyout -- at least not yet. "I'm not really certain that it's going to be good for anybody. Another large company buying another large company reduces competition," he says.
Pier expects the acquisition to cause Target to move away from Solaris to Red Hat's Linux over time. One reason is the uncertainty: "We're just not sure what Oracle's commitment is going to be to the Java stack and to maintaining it as an open source project." Another is Oracle's reputation for extracting revenues from customers: "We certainly fear that all of the subscription fees are going to change for everything from Sun."
At its recent conference, Red Hat sought to reassure customers about the continued openness of Java-based JBoss technology, which Red Hat owns, now that Oracle is buying Java founder Sun. Oracle, said Craig Muzilla, Red Hat's vice president for middleware, was very active in the Java Community Process for updating Java and has strived for openness in Java. "We don't see anything from Oracle that [would indicate that] they would do anything" that would differ with the past, he said.


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The Secret Beyond Matter
Once Upon a Time There was Darwinism
Once, There was the Myth of Faulty Characteristics
Oxford University zoology professor Richard Dawkins is one of the well-known evolutionists in the world today. He is known not by his work on zoology, but by his avid championing of Darwinism and atheism.
In 1986, he published his book entitled The Blind Watchmaker, in which he tried to persuade readers that living creatures' complex characteristics were the result of natural selection. His attempts were mostly based on speculation, faulty comparisons and wrong calculations that various scientists and writers have since exposed in detail.66
One of Dawkins' arguments was that of "faulty" or "bad" characteristics in living things. He stated that some structures in living creatures were useless and that, therefore, they were faulty, trying to do away with the fact that a flawless creation reigns. The foremost example he gave was the inverted retina in the vertebrate eyes, including the human eye.
An inverted retina in the vertebrate eye means that photoreceptors are located in the eye backwards, not frontwards where the light enters. The sensory ends of these light-perceiving cells face the back, and the retinal nerves coming out from them form a layer between light and the cells. These nerves converge to a certain point on the retina where they exit the eye. Because there are no photoreceptors at this point, it is the eye's "blind spot," where there is no vision.
Darwinists have adopted this inversion and the blind point as flaws; that the eye came to be through natural selection and that such oddities are to be expected. As said earlier, Richard Dawkins is the well-known proponent of this argument. In The Blind Watchmaker he writes:
Any engineer would naturally assume that the photocells would point towards the light, with their wires leading backwards towards the brain. He would laugh at any suggestion that the photocells might point away from the light, with their wires departing on the side nearest the light. Yet this is exactly what happens in all vertebrate eyes.67
However, Dawkins and those who accept what he says are wrong because of Dawkins's ignorance of the eye's anatomy and physiology.
A scientist who gives a detailed account of this matter is molecular biologist Michael Denton of the University of Otago who is also one of the most prominent critics of Darwinism today. In "The Inverted Retina: Maladaption or Pre-adaptation?," published in Origins and Design magazine, he explains how the inverted retina that Dawkins presented as faulty is actually created in the most efficient manner possible for the vertebrate eye:
...consideration of the very high energy demands of the photoreceptor cells in the vertebrate retina suggests that rather than being a challenge to teleology, the curious inverted design of the vertebrate retina may in fact represent a unique solution to the problem of providing the highly active photoreceptor cells of higher vertebrates with copious quantities of oxygen and nutrients.68
To understand this fact stressed by Professor Denton but unnoticed by Dawkins, we must first recognize that the retina's photoreceptor cells need a high level of energy and oxygen. While our eyes are open to perceive light, these cells are the locus of very complex chemical reactions every second. Photons, the smallest particles of light, are perceived by the cells and, as a result of the highly detailed chemical reactions begun by the photons, perception occurs and is repeated every instant. This reaction is so complex and rapid that, in Denton's words, "the photoreceptor layer has one of the highest metabolic rates of any known tissue."69
To keep up this high rate of metabolism, of course, the retina cells need a great deal of energy. A human being's retinal cells consume 150% as much oxygen as renal cells, three times as much as ones in the cerebral cortex and six times as much as the cells that make up the cardiac muscle. Moreover, this comparison is made on the basis of the entire retina layer; the photoreceptor cells, which make up less than half of this layer, actually need more energy than the whole layer estimates. In his encyclopedic book, The Vertebrate Eye, G. L. Walls, describes the photoreceptors as "greedy'' for both nutrients and oxygen.70
How do these cells, that enable us to see, meet their extraordinary need for nourishment and oxygen?
Through the blood, of course, like the rest of the body.
Where, then, does the blood come from?
At this point, we see why the inverted retina is a perfect sign of Creation. Right external to the retina layer lies a very important tissue of veins that envelop it like a net. Denton writes:
The oxygen and nutrients for the voracious metabolic appetite of the photoreceptors are provided by a unique capillary bed, called the choriocapillaris, which is an anatomizing network of large and flattened capillaries which form a rich vascular layer situated immediately external to the photoreceptors, separated from them only by the retinal cell epithelial cell layer (RPE) and a special membrane—Bruch's membrane—which together form a highly selective barrier which only allows passage into the retina of metabolites and nutrients required for the function of the RPE and photoreceptor cells. These capillaries are much larger than standard capillaries being between 18–50 microns in diameter. This unique network of blood channels gives every impression of being specially adapted to provide the photoreceptor layer with copious quantities of blood.71
In his book, An Introduction to the Biology of Vision, Professor James T. McIlwain writes, "Because of the great metabolic needs of the photoreceptors, the eye seems to have adopted the strategy of 'swamping' the choroid with blood to ensure that supply is never a problem."72
It is for this reason that the photoreceptors are "inverted." Clearly, there is a strategy here. The inverted arrangement of the retina is not faulty as Dawkins claimed, but is proof of Creation for a specific purpose.
In a relevant article, Denton examines whether the retina could have been formed in a different way. His conclusion was that it could not. Dawkins' suggestion that the retina should be flat, with the receptor cells facing the light, would distance them from the capillaries that nourish them and in great measure, would rob them of oxygen and nutrients they need. Extending the capillaries into the retina layer would not solve the problem, because this would produce many blind spots and reduce the eye's ability to see.
Denton comments:
The more deeply the design of the vertebrate retina is considered, the more it appears that virtually every feature is necessary and that in redesigning from first principles an eye capable of the highest possible resolution and of the highest possible sensitivity (capable of detecting an individual photon of light) we would end up recreating the vertebrate eye—complete with an inverted retina...73
In short, the arguments of Dawkins and other evolutionists that "the vertebrate retina is faulty" derive from ignorance. Their conclusions have been vitiated by more informed and knowledgeable investigations of the minutiae of living creatures. Actually, in the history of Darwinism there have been many other arguments arising from ignorance. One is the myth of the "vestigial" organs.
The Myth of Vestigial Organs
You may have read that the human appendix and coccyx, or tail bone, are vestigial organs that once had important functions in our supposed evolutionary ancestors, but lost those functions over the course of time.
The myth started with The Origin of the Species' mention of organs whose functions were lost or reduced. Darwin described these organs as "rudimentary" and compared them with "the letters in a word, still retained in the spelling, but become useless in the pronunciation."74
In 1895, the German anatomist R. Wiedersheim proposed a list of about 100 human "vestigial organs," including the appendix and the tail bone.
But like other Darwinist claims, this too was a myth that thrived because of the unsophisticated level of science at the time. As research advanced, slowly it came to light that the organs that Darwin and his followers thought to be vestigial actually had important functions, as yet not been determined. With the development of science, it was discovered that Wiedersheim's list of organs had very important functions in the body. As their functions were discovered, the long list of "vestigial" organs grew steadily shorter. For example, it was discovered that the appendix, long regarded as vestigial, was a very important part of the lymphatic system that fights germs when they enter the body. An article titled "Examples of Bad Design Gone Bad," referring to some of the basic literature on anatomy, explains:
An examination of the appendix microscopically, shows that it contains a significant amount of lymphoid tissue. Similar aggregates of lymphoid tissue (known as gut-associated lymphoid tissues, GALT) occur in other areas of the gastrointestinal system. The GALT are involved in the body's ability to recognize foreign antigens in ingested material. My own research, in particular, is focused on examining the immunological functions of the intestine.
Experiments in rabbits demonstrate that neonatal appendectomy impairs the development of mucosal immunity. Morphological and functional studies of the rabbit appendix indicate that it is probably the equivalent of the avian bursa in mammals. The bursa plays a critical role in the development of humoral immunity in birds. The histological and immunohistochemical similarity of the rabbit and human appendix suggest that the human appendix has a similar function to that of the rabbit appendix. The human appendix may be particularly important early in life because it achieves its greatest development shortly after birth and then regresses with age, eventually resembling such other regions of GALT as the Peyer's patches in the small intestine. These recent studies demonstrate that the human appendix is not a vestigial organ, as originally claimed.75
In short, the reason why the appendix was famously thought to be vestigial was the dogmatism of Darwin and his followers, thanks in turn to the unsophisticated level of science of their time. With the primitive microscopes at their disposal, they could not observe the lymphatic tissue of the appendix; and because they could not understand its structure, they regarded it as useless and included it on their list of functionless vestigial organs. Once more, Darwinism was abetted by the unsophisticated level of 19th-century science.
This situation also pertained to all the other organs on Wiedersheim's list. As years went on, the tonsils that were thought to be vestigial were discovered to have an important role in protecting the throat from infection, especially before adulthood. It became known that the tail bone at the base of the spinal column supported the bones around the pelvis and therefore, if it were not for it, an individual could not sit comfortably. In addition, this bone was understood to be the point at which the organs and muscles of the pelvic region were held together.
In subsequent years, it was found that the thymus, thought to be vestigial, activates the T-cells and sets the body's immune system into operation; that the pineal gland is responsible for the secretion of essential hormones such as melatonin that controls production of the luteinizing hormone; that the thyroid gland ensures a balanced development of the infant and plays a role in setting the body's metabolic rate; and that the pituitary gland ensures the correct functioning of several hormonal glands such as the thyroid, the adrenals and the reproductive glands, as well as controlling the skeletal development.
The semi-lunar fold in the corner of the eye that Darwin called vestigial was shown to help clean and lubricate the eye.
Today, it has been determined that the organs claimed to be vestigial in past years all have definite functions. In their book titled "Vestigial Organs" Are Fully Functional, Dr. Jerry Bergman and Dr. George Howe set out this fact in detail.
Accordingly, it is accepted that the myth of vestigial organs subscribed to by so many evolutionists is an argument based on ignorance. In "Do 'Vestigial Organs' Provide Evidence for Evolution?," an article in the magazine Evolutionary Theory, the evolutionist biologist S.R. Scadding writes:
As our knowledge has increased, the list of vestigial structures has decreased...Since it is not possible to unambiguously identify useless structures, and since the structure of the argument used is not scientifically valid, I conclude that "vestigial organs" provide no special evidence for the theory of evolution.76
Even though it has taken evolutionists about one and a half century to reach this conclusion, another myth of Darwinism has evaporated.
The Panda's Thumb
The beginning of this chapter invalidated Richard Dawkins' claim that the vertebrate retina is faulty. Another evolutionist, supporting the same ideas, is the late Stephen J. Gould, a paleontologist at Harvard University. Before his death in 2002, he had become one of America's leading evolutionists.
Like Dawkins, Gould also wrote about an example of "faulty" characteristics—the thumb of the panda.
Unlike a human hand, a panda does not have an opposable thumb apart from its other four fingers that lets it hold objects easily. Its five digits extend out side by side. But besides these five parallel digits, there is also a projection in its wrist called the "radial sesamoid bone." The panda sometimes uses this bone as a finger, and so biologists call it the panda's thumb.
Gould claimed that this bone in the panda's hand was non-functional. Gould was so convinced of the importance of his thesis that in 1980, he published a book on the subject.
Like Dawkins' claim, however, Gould's thesis of faulty characteristic was also wrong. Gould's error lay in comparing the panda's hand with that of a human, assuming that the panda's thumb had the same function. On this matter, Paul Nelson makes the following comment:
Although the panda's thumb may be suboptimal for many tasks (such as typing), it does seem suited for what appears to be its usual function, stripping bamboo.77
The authors of The Giant Pandas of Wolong comment as follows:
The panda can handle bamboo stems with great precision, by holding them as if with forceps in the hairless groove connecting the pad of the first digit and pseudothumb...When watching a panda eat leaves...we were always impressed by its dexterity. Forepaws and mouth work together with great precision, with great economy of motion...78
In a research published in 1999 by the magazine Nature showed that in its natural environment, the panda's thumb was extremely useful. This joint project conducted by four Japanese researchers employed computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging techniques and found that the panda's thumb is "one of the most extraordinary manipulation systems"79 in the world of mammals. This following comment comes from the same article, titled "Role of the Giant Panda's Pseudo-thumb":
We have shown that the hand of the giant panda has a much more refined grasping mechanism than has been suggested in previous morphological models. 80
In short, the claims made by evolutionists over the past 150 years of "vestigial organs" and "faulty" biological characteristics have all been proved false by closer investigations of the structures in question.
Evolutionists cannot account for the origins of any biological structure in nature, and their objections to explaining these structures in terms of the fact of Creation have been shown to be invalid.
66- Dawkins'in "kör saatçi" tezinin çürülmesi için bkz. Lee Spetner, Not By Chance: Shattering the Modern Theory of Evolution, Judaica Press, 1997; Michael J. Behe, Darwin's Black Box: The Biochemical Challange to Evolution, The Free Press, 1996; Phillip E. Johson, Darwin on Trial, 199, 2nd.ed., InterVarsity Press, 1993
67- Richard Dawkins, The Blind Watchmaker, London: Penguin Books,1986; s.93-94
68- Michael Denton, "The Inverted Retina: Maladaptation or Pre-adaptation?", Origins & Design, 19:2, Issue 37, 1999
69- Michael Denton, "The Inverted Retina: Maladaptation or Pre-adaptation?", Origins & Design, 19:2, Issue 37, 1999
70- Walls, G.L. (1963). The Vertebrate Eye . New York: Hafner Publishing Company; s.652
71- Michael Denton, "The Inverted Retina: Maladaptation or Pre-adaptation?", Origins & Design, 19:2, Issue 37, 1999
72- McIlwain, T.J. (1996). An Introduction to the Biology of Vision. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; s. 14
73- Michael Denton, "The Inverted Retina: Maladaptation or Pre-adaptation?", Origins & Design, 19:2, Issue 37, 1999
74- Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, III. ed. Chapter 13: Mutual Affinities of Organic Beings: Morphology: Embryology: Rudimentary Organs
75- http://www.cerrah.net/apandist.htm
76- www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Lab/6562/evolution/designgonebad.html
77- S. R. Scadding, "Do 'Vestigial Organs' Provide Evidence for Evolution?", Evolutionary Theory, Cilt 5, Mayıs 1981, s. 173
78- Paul A. Nelson, "Jettison the Arguments, or the Rule? The Place of Darwinian Theological Themata in Evolutionary Reasoning", Access Research Network, 1988, http://www.arn.org/docs/nelson/pn_jettison.htm
79- George Schaller, H. Jinchu, P. Wenshi, and Z. Jing, The Giant Pandas of Wolong , Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986, s.4, 58
80- Endo, H., Yamagiwa, D., Hayashi, Y. H., Koie, H., Yamaya, Y, and Kimura, J., Nature, vol. 397, 1999, ss. 309-310
81- Endo, H., Yamagiwa, D., Hayashi, Y. H., Koie, H., Yamaya, Y., and Kimura, J., Nature, vol. 397, 1999, ss. 309-310


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As a small business, you may feel like you are fighting an uphill battle with your big-shot competition. Your website and blog may seem diminutive and ineffective for pulling sales compared to your big-named competitors.
You've heard that "content is king" and that every business should have a blog and top-of-the-line website content. But how do you compete when you have less manpower, resources, and dollars backing you up?
Fortunately, there are ways to rise and conquer with the heavy hitting competitors in your niche. Here are five tips:
Take Advantage of Your Lack of Barriers
No matter what industry you are in, the case is the same. The bigger the organization, the more approvals are needed – especially in highly regulated industries like healthcare, education, and insurance. It can take up to a month to "route" a blog post, article, or web page in some organizations. Use this to your advantage as a small business "blogger". Your blog posts can be more frequent and more timely when your lead time is so short.
Whether you are tying your blog post to a current event or are going for a high frequency of posting, the lack of barriers is a huge advantage you have over bigger competitors.
Take a Stance
This January at BlogWorld Conference, travel blogger Gary Arndt said it best in his session titled "How to Compete Against Billion Dollar Media Empires and Win Engagement and Traffic." He noted:
"If you want to get heard, share your personality."
People online want to relate to other people, not other brands, so don't be afraid to hide your voice – humor, personality, opinion – in your small business' blog posts. Find a way to let your personality show while also highlighting your business expertise.
Falter on the side of controversial, edgy, and direct, and you will lead potential customers through an open funnel conversion.
Engage, Engage, Engage
Comment on blog posts and utilize social media channels to connect directly with potential and current customers, brand evangelists, and industry leaders.
Create a plan for "getting heard" that includes promotion of your content on various social media networks like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+, and LinkedIn.
Ride on Someone Else's Coat Tails
Guest blogging is an amazing way to project yourself as an expert in your field. Most publications these days offer guest posting opportunities – like Huffington Post and Forbes.
Well known Associate Editor of Copyblogger, Jon Morrow, suggests to use this method to leverage your reach, authority, and visibility.
Get creative
Repurpose FAQs, conduct interviews with happy customers, report on a recent industry news, create a how-to guide, hold a contest, write about a recent company event or create an infographic.
There are a million ways to get ideas for blog posts. Utilize the abundant online marketing and blogging resources on the Internet by doing simple keyword searches on queries like:
"blogging ideas" or "how to generate blog ideas"
You are not alone: There are multiple resources available to you to dominate your content marketing efforts.
Whether you bring on a third party (digital agency, content marketing firm, freelance blogger) or read up on maximizing your content marketing.


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Search the Community
Showing results for tags 'low string volumes'.
Found 1 result
Hi, I'm a new Variav JTV59 (Black) owner. I bought it from Thomann.de and it was B-Stock. First off, its really nice and once I adjusted the action it was lovely to play. Hooking it up to my Hughes and Kettner TRIAMP 100w and 4x12 cab it sounded great, especially with the mag pickups. 2 nights ago I upgraded from 1.82 to 2.00 firmware. Now I'm not sure if it was like this before I upgraded but it now seems that in most models that I try the B and high E strings have very low volume. It was really apparent when I used the guitar on Rocksmith where you can visbly see that playing on those strings does not move the metre as much as the volume from the other strings. So my question is, how do you know that this is a software issue vs. a hardware issue? Is it likely that the piezo pickup is damaged and 2 of the strings are much quieter, or is it a common issue that these strings are effected with the new firmware? If so, can I adjust those two strings anyway, i.e. can I turn the volume up, or do I have to turn all the others down? Thanks, and apologies if its a newbie question !


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Bruno Bouteville is a comic artist who works under the pen names Jaap de Boer, Joop de Boer and simply Jaap. In the 1990s, he illustrated several erotic stories, including 'Les Aventures d'Ankula la Vampire', 'Titi Carapate dans les Carpathes', 'La Fille aux Yeux Rouges', 'Sucette Lollipop', and 'Betty Page', as well as 'La Vie Sexuelle de Blanche-Neige'.
His erotic series 'Loola Bi Bop' appeared in magazine Hot Vidéo. He has also drawn manga stories under the pseudonym Obi Yamoto and for Glénat, he made the adventure one-shot 'Bambou' (1990). He is the artist of erotic parodies on Walthéry's 'Natacha', called 'Nathalie, la petite Hôtesse' and 'Magali la Petite Infirmiere' (1988), with Joop van Linden. For Deirdre Editions, he has illustrated books about mythology, as well as the gag series 'Kalitaï, les Huns et les Autres'.


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Monday, 28 September 2020
Stitch With Me ~ Episode 24
~Baa Baa Black Sheep by The Prairie Schooler
Autumn Prompts:
* Your favourite autumn drink?
* Your favourite autumn food?
* Your favourite Halloween candy?
* Your favourite autumn scent?
* September, October, or November?
* Your favourite autumn colour?
* Your favourite autumn article of clothing?
* Do you remember about the time change?
* Horror movies - yes or no?
* What signifies the start of autumn for you?
~Support the Podcast, Become A Patron
Each week, we create a list on Bookshop of all the books we talk about in that week's episode. Bookshop is an online bookstore with a mission to financially support local, independent bookstores. If you purchase a book from our list, we earn a commission & local, independent bookstores also earn money from your purchase.
~Want another way to help support our podcast? Throughout our website, links to books, tv shows, movies, etc. are Amazon Affiliate Links. We receive a portion of what you spend when you click through our website to shop on Amazon. What we receive helps us with the costs associated with producing this podcast as well as with prizes & shipping for giveaways. Thanks in advance for your support!
If you are in the UK, please click this link, Amazon.co.uk, or the banner below to shop:
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~For any and all giveaways, prizes, competitions, ALs, etc. that we host, the winner(s) have 30 days from the date of announcement (the date the podcast episode in which the winner was announced goes live) to contact us to claim their prize or it will be forfeited. If this occurs, the prize will be used for another giveaway at our discretion. Thanks for understanding!
Find Us Online -
~ on Instagram as CC_JavaPurl
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~ on Instagram as damisdoodles
Pink Purl -
~on Instagram as pinkiepurl
JavaPurl Designs
~ JavaPurl Designs website
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~ email us: firstname.lastname@example.com
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~ Support the Podcast, Become a Patron
Until next time,
Posted by Geeky Girls Knit at 09:39
Location: Bremerton, WA, USA


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Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
2006 July 23
Explanation: Although you've surely seen it, you might not have noticed it. During a cloudless twilight, just before sunrise or after sunset, part of the atmosphere above the horizon appears slightly off-color, slightly pink. Called the Belt of Venus, this off-color band between the dark eclipsed sky and the blue sky can be seen in nearly every direction including that opposite the Sun. Straight above, blue sky is normal sunlight reflecting off the atmosphere. In the Belt of Venus, however, the atmosphere reflects light from the setting (or rising) Sun which appears more red. The Belt of Venus can be seen from any location with a clear horizon. Pictured above, the Belt of Venus was photographed above morning fog in the Valley of the Moon, a famous wine-producing region in northern California, USA. The belt is frequently caught by accident in other photographs.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
Jerry Bonnell
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: EUD at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.


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Residential Delivery
We understand that it is all about customer service.
Delivering materials for both new construction and home remodeling projects.
As a part of our long-term commitment to excellent customer service, GMS is dedicated to providing efficient, accurate, and timely home deliveries. We make every effort to protect your materials from environmental elements and other sources of damage, and we pledge to leave your jobsite in the same condition as it was when we arrived.
All of our construction materials are unloaded and stocked per each customer's unique requirements. Some of our options for delivery include:
- Off-road drywall carts to facilitate deliveries across sand and grass (for remodels and new construction)
- Pre-delivery of windows before drywall (to 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors if necessary)
- On-site delivery access evaluation
First Class Customer Service
We have an extensive fleet of trucks for each location to make your delivery quick and easy. We also offer walk up, walk down, or hand up service on a per case basis.


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Deer Valley Resort Announces Special Take-Away Menu for Super Bowl Sunday
Just in time for the big game, the resort has announced a take-away menu guests can order from and pick up at Deer Valley~Grocery Café for their Super Bowl parties.
Super Bowl to-go menu options include:
- Chilled cooked shrimp
- Chilled Dungeness and Opilio crab legs
- Housemade tortilla chips and salsa fresca
- Purple, sweet and russet potato chips with caramelized onion and balsamic dip
- BBQ and cilantro lime glazed pork ribs
- Buffalo-style chicken wings
- Pulled pork sliders
- Mini cup cakes
- Assorted half-size cookies
- Assorted brownies and bars
- Mini chocolate éclairs
- Cashew caramel corn
- Football shaped sugar cookies
Additional information and pricing for the take-away menu items can be found at deervalley.com. Orders may be placed by calling 435-615-2400. Orders must be placed by 5 p.m. Saturday, February 1, and picked up at the Café by 7 p.m. Sunday, February 2, 2014.
Deer Valley Grocery~Café serves fresh roasted coffee and espresso drinks, soups, chilies, stews, salads made with seasonal ingredients, Panini sandwiches, creative appetizer and entrée specials, housemade breads, desserts, cakes and other freshly baked items. The café also offers daily soup, sandwich and salad specials. A selection of gourmet grocery items, house prepared take-away entrees, as well as wine, beer and liquor are available for purchase.
Deer Valley Grocery~Café is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. and located in the Deer Valley Plaza building at 1375 Deer Valley Drive, Park City, UT 84060.


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Local stores near Mapleton aren't the only way to shop! You can also find name brands from online retailers and get them shipped right to your door!
The most common mattress types include:
A good quality mattress will last many years, but unlike a diamond - they aren't forever. A general rule of thumb is that you should consider replacing your mattress after 8 years or so. If you find yourself waking up with joint pain, have trouble sleeping through the night, or just aren't feeling rested after a night's sleep, you should definitely think about a replacement.
The firmness of a mattress refers to how soft it feels, and is a somewhat subjective measurement. Don't confuse this with the support it provides, as that's more a measure of how well it holds your back in position. Firm mattresses may provide great or horrible support, and the same is true for softer options. Find a blend that works for you!


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Coffee and cookie stencil is made of food safe acrylic glass, thickness 0.2 cm and diameter 3.4" (8.5 cm).
There is a handle on the side that makes the stencil easier to use.
Hand wash gently with soap and water.
With this stencil you can make unique decorations on cookies or coffee.
All our products are made and shipped from Vojvodina (Europe).
We make delivery worldwide.
Shipment is charged $5 only for the first item in the same order, FOR ANY OTHER PRODUCT IN THE SAME ORDER IT IS FREE.


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Environmentalists in Brazil say they are trying to figure out why more than 80 gray dolphins have died in less than a month on the coast of Rio de Janeiro state.
A statement from the Gray Dolphin Institute says the dolphins died over past 17 days in the Bay of Sepetiba, a coastal district about 70 kilometres west of the city of Rio de Janeiro.
The institute is an NGO that monitors and strives to protect the dolphins.
The institute says it has retrieved five dead dolphins a day from the bay but what has caused their deaths is still unknown. Lab tests are being conducted and the results are expected by the end of the month.


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BOURDON, MARGUERITE, dite de Saint-Jean-Baptiste, Augustinian Hospitaller of the Hôtel-Dieu of Quebec, one of the foundresses of the Hôpital Général; b. 12 Oct. 1642 at Quebec, daughter of Jean Bourdon*, attorney general of New France, and of Jacqueline Potel; d. 11 Oct. 1706.
Marguerite, one of Jean Bourdon's four daughters by his first marriage, was raised by nuns, as were her sisters, Marie, Geneviève, and Anne. She remained with the Ursulines until she was 14. Although the Ursulines would have "very much liked to have her with them," Marguerite returned to live with her parents, who considered that she was too young to make up her mind. Although she was liked and sought after in the society in which she moved – Jean de Lauson*, the governor's son, even asked for her hand – she nevertheless chose to join the Religious Hospitallers of the Hôtel-Dieu. She was received into the order on 23 Jan. 1657 and made her profession on 15 Oct. 1658 under the name of Saint-Jean-Baptiste.
At the Hôtel-Dieu Marguerite played an increasingly important role. Her zeal in the service of the poor caused her to be named several times to the post of second and then of first hospitaller. Because of her piety she was appointed vestry-nun. Finally, her sense of order and exactitude contributed to her being elected assistant superior twice.
The founding of the Hôpital Général somewhat upset this peaceful existence. On his arrival in New France in 1688, Bishop Saint-Vallier [La Croix], who wanted to found a hospital for the infirm, bought a house in the Upper Town of Quebec and entrusted its management to the Congrégation de Notre-Dame. In 1692 the hospice was moved to the convent of Notre-Dame-des-Anges [see Filiastre] on the banks of the St Charles River, and the Hospitallers of the Hôtel-Dieu were asked to take over the running of the new hospital. At first they attempted to refuse, and proposed instead building an annex to their convent where the infirm would be cared for; Bishop Saint-Vallier did not accept this proposal and persisted in his request. Finally the nuns had to accede to the bishop's desires. In 1693, then, they signed the founding deed and appointed four nuns. Marguerite Bourdon was one of those chosen, along with two other choir nuns, Mothers Louise Soumande de Saint-Augustin and Geneviève Gosselin de Sainte-Madeleine, and a lay sister, Sister Madeleine Bâcon de la Résurrection. They moved into their new convent on 1 April 1693; Mother Saint-Jean-Baptiste, although she was not appointed superior, was entrusted by virtue of being the eldest with the task of directing her companions under the authority of the superior of the Hôtel-Dieu, Mother Juchereau de Saint-Ignace [Juchereau de La Ferté]. It was, however, Louise Soumande de Saint-Augustin who was chosen as superior in the first elections, held in 1694.
In this hospice, where there was no lack of work, Mother Saint-Jean-Baptiste exerted herself without stint. In 1699 she had an attack of spitting blood and fell ill with a dangerous lung ailment. As her illness persisted, she was taken to the Hôtel-Dieu where she could receive better care. She came back only after six weeks, a little better but not perfectly recovered, and she had to remain some time without working, which did not prevent her from being elected assistant superior in April 1699.
These elections had increased in importance, since an ordinance by Bishop Saint-Vallier had just separated the two communities of the Hôtel-Dieu and the Hôpital Général, a measure which almost brought about the disappearance of the latter. Indeed, when the religious of the Hôtel-Dieu presented a memoir to the Comte de Pontchartrain to have certain points defined more accurately, the minister ordered the dissolution of the community of the Hôpital Général and the transfer of all the religious to the Hôtel-Dieu. But the authorities of the colony sought a means of lessening the effect of the minister's order and decided to send back to the mother house only the superior, Mother Gabrielle Denis de l'Annonciation, and the novices. Bishop Saint-Vallier himself went to France and succeeded in saving his work and the young community; the religious returned to the Hôpital Général.
Marguerite Bourdon died 11 Oct. 1706. Mother Saint-Augustin paid her this final tribute: "As I have always been responsible for temporal affairs, it was a great comfort for me to have in her example support in maintaining discipline within the house. She set the young sisters great examples of fervour, discipline, and mortification. In the midst of our sorrow we have the consolation of seeing her die as she had lived, bearing the precious mark of predestination."
Juchereau, Annales (Jamet). Casgrain, Histoire de l'Hôtel-Dieu de Québec. Monseigneur de Saint-Vallier et l'Hôpital Général de Québec.
© 1969–2023 University of Toronto/Université Laval
Cite This Article
Nive Voisine, "BOURDON, MARGUERITE, de Saint-Jean-Baptiste," in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 2, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed September 24, 2023, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bourdon_marguerite_2E.html.
The citation above shows the format for footnotes and endnotes according to the Chicago manual of style (16th edition). Information to be used in other citation formats:
|Author of Article:
|Nive Voisine
|Title of Article:
|BOURDON, MARGUERITE, de Saint-Jean-Baptiste
|Publication Name:
|Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 2
|University of Toronto/Université Laval
|Year of publication:
|Year of revision:
|Access Date:
|September 24, 2023


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Sites we like: XOXO, Nick Jones, and Maxvoltar
Three lovely and unique responsive designs in this week's sites we like.
XOXO Festival takes place this September in Portland, Oregon. Atrament's italic makes a bold impression, while Just Another Foundry's FacitWeb is stunning in purple and all caps.
Nick Jones designs and codes with a classy combination of Alternate Gothic No. 2D and Adobe Garamond. Best navigated with your arrow keys.
And Tim Van Damme puts Process Type Foundry's beautiful Elena to the test, with large justified text that's designed to be read.
That's all for this week; share sites that you like in the comments.