LAND OF MAGNOLIA - HONORABLE MENTION - DANIELLE SHAFFER AND SHANNON CAMERON PICARD

This wonderful story book was created by DANIELLE SHAFFER AND SHANNON CAMERON PICARD   for the LAND OF MAGNOLIA contest. They won Honorable Mention. Please be sure to leave them some love. It is a fantastic project!

LAND OF MAGNOLIA

My name is Tilda and I live in the most beautiful place in the world; The Land of Magnolia! I love it because the sun shines every day, warming everything it touches. With the most beautiful blue sky
and rarely a cloud in it, I wish everyone could spend some time here in my paradise. Each season holds so much excitement and wonder, I can't wait to tell you all about the fun we have, my best friend Edwin and I.  

Summers are always filled with endless sunshine, bright blue skies and so many colors you'd think we lived at the end of the rainbow! Once school is out for the summer, Edwin and I spend a lot of time at the pond. The pond is exactly seventy-three steps from the gate in our yard - Edwin and I counted last summer. Most days, Edwin fishes while I hunt for mushrooms. Sometimes, if it has rained, Edwin and I sneak into Grandpa Alf's garden to dig up worms for fishing. The biggest worms are always under Grandpa Alf's prized pumpkins. Other days we spend in the big field behind Edwin's house.

This year, Edwin got a new bug net and we spent lots of time trying to catch butterflies. Edwin's dog, Rufus, always barked and chased them away before we could catch any, but we sure did have fun! We’re not supposed to play in the garden. Grandpa Alf works hard each summer to grow a great big pumpkin to enter into the fall fair pumpkin competition. He hasn't won yet, but every year his pumpkins get bigger and bigger!

Fall in Magnolia is especially beautiful. The leaves turn different shades of copper, mustard and rust. I love when they fall to the ground and crunch under our boots as we walk to school each day. The fall fair is the last weekend in September and this year I am going to bake my first pie with Grandma Alva for the pie-baking contest and Edwin plans to play his guitar in the talent show. 

Winter in Magnolia brings crisp cool air and snowflakes that blanket the ground and trees like fluffy white icing. I love waking up the morning after a big snow, the limbs of the trees covered in white and the whole yard looking so clean and inviting. When the snow is fresh and sticky, Edwin and I build snowmen and make snow angels. This year we are going to build two snow forts in Edwin's field so that we can have snowball fights! Once everything has frozen over, and the snow is crisp and crackly, we practice skating on the pond. Skating is my favorite winter activity. 

Spring always brings with it a clean slate. The rain washes away the dirty snow and the puddles and brings with it the bright colors of the garden. First the crocus' pop up and then the Tulips. The air warms enough that we can shed our thick winter sweaters and put away bulky hats and mittens.
Every Spring Edwin and I decorate eggs for Easter, and Grandma Alva lets us make some chocolates for the Easter baskets. Edwin and I have to work really hard not to get dirty in the Spring! Sometimes, I forget my umbrella and we have to run home from school. Then we clamor into Grandma's house and warm up by the stove with a cup of hot cocoa. Before we know it, school is almost out and summer is upon us again. 


DANIELLE SHAFFER AND SHANNON CAMERON PICARD

"RIGHT THROUGH MY HEART" CARD CONTEST

Hi.
On Monday, April 19 all 9 our our designers will show a card or project they have made using this Magnolia stamp. We will do a random draw for a Magnoila image of your choice. I will also choose a Grand Prize winner for the best card/project. The gift is a secret but you will love it, I promise.

Our Resident Story Writer has written a tale to inspire you.

The Archery Contest

The day was beautiful; the sun was doing its job, bright, sunny and warm with a gentle slight breeze.  Tilda could hardly contain her excitement, today was the big Archery Contest. She had practiced with her bow and arrows until they had become like an extension of her own arms.  Edwin had come through for her once again, teaching her everything that he knew about archery. First he taught her safety, then how to tune the bow and the most exciting part, how to aim and shoot the arrows.

Tilda had even made her own outfit with a holder for her arrows that would go around her waist instead of carrying them on her back.  When she was shopping, she had found a pair of sandals with leather straps that went up her legs.  She looked and felt like a Greek archer goddess, if there ever was such a thing.

 People were coming from all over the Land of Magnolia to join in with the games, food and dancing.  Why it was like having their own medieval festival!  The town had prepared a section of the meadow for the contest. They placed bales of hay with bowls of strawberries on top for the contestants to munch on. All this was facing the edge of the forest where they had placed the targets on the trees. In the middle of the meadow, they placed tables with beautiful cloths on top. Each table had a variety of snacks for everyone, muffins, and slices of cake, peaches, and more bowls of strawberries. They even placed baskets of apples by the benches that were set up for people to sit and watch the contest, or just rest. The party area would stretch beyond the back of the meadow, up the beautiful rolling hills that lead down to the lake. Tables were set up there too, along with some swings hanging on the heavy branches, they even put up a bridge deck on the edge of the water for people to lean on or sit on. The bridge deck looked so good; they ended up putting a few more around the lake.  The town had thought of everything.

 Edwin would be playing his guitar and singing as he walked among the crowd of people. There was to be dancing and singing all day and into the night. Yes, Tilda was very excited; not only was she going to be in the contest but she was going to be in one of the plays that would be performing that night. Tilda was going to be the beautiful Spellcaster in a play called “Fairyland Magic”.

Tilda smiles as she hears her name called and said to herself, I have to stop thinking about all of the plans that were made and how it has all come together.  She had blocked out all of the noise and laughter from all the people, now it was her turn ………….. She took a deep breath in and out, relaxed and smiled.  Keeping her left arm straight out with her bow, she pulled her right arm with all of her might letting the arrow fly.  The sound of the arrow hitting the target in the bull’s eye was everything that she had hoped it would be.  She turned and saw Edwin smiling at her, the winner.

Monica Merkel

I hope you will join us in the contest. Send a photo of your entry to magnolia.us@shaw.ca

PRIZE WINNER - LAND OF MAGNOLIA - CISSY TEETER

Tilda’s Surprise!
by Cissy Teeter




It was a beautiful day in the Land of Magnolia! So beautiful that the Maggie's, Edwin, Alf, Alva and their trusty canine friend, Rufus are throwing a surprise party for their friend Tilda! Tilda is everyone's best friend in Magnolia Land and she helps everyone out with anything that they need help with. Her friends decided she needed a huge thank you party, and the whole Land thought so too.

Tilda did not have any idea that her friends were going to have a party for her. She was busy at home cleaning her cozy little cottage. She was also watching her angel of a baby sister, Tingla. Tilda loved her baby sister and they did everything together! Tingla loves going for walks and she loves flowers. She also loves playing with the butterflies that are always flying around the Land of Magnolia.

Alva phoned Tilda earlier in the day and asked her if she would like to have a lovely picnic lunch with her in the garden. Tilda, not knowing it was actually a set up for the surprise, happily agreed to the picnic! Tingla was happy too, because she loved the beautiful garden that Alva takes such great care of.

Edwind, Alf and Alva were decorating the flower garden with lovely decorations such as glitter and flowers and Alva made a gorgeous center piece from a pumpkin. Mrs. Butterfly came by and gave them some lovely flowers she had found flying around on the other side of Magnolia Land. The wonderful sunshine made the flowers and mushrooms look extra bright and happy!

While Tilda was on her way, Rufus was putting the finishing touches on the garden gate. Everything was in place and the whole Land of Magnolia was there for their dear friend Tilda. Rufus was told to keep watch for Tilda.

Edwind suddenly remembered how much Tilda loves snow. He had a magnolialicious idea! They could fill a pail full of daisy petals and as soon as Tilda walked though the garden gate, while everyone was shouting "SURPRISE!” they could throw the petals in the air to make it look like a beautiful snowfall! Everyone got busy putting the little daisy petals in the pail. The worms, Liam and Lia, helped carefully uproot the delicate flowers.

All of a sudden Rufus came running into the garden barking, Tilda was here! Everyone got into their positions and waited...

The garden gate opened and there stood Tilda. "SURPRISE!” shouted everyone. The daisy petals were thrown up into the air and they fell softly down on the ground, making it look like snow. Tilda was surprised and was so happy that she had such magnolialicious friends to throw her such an amazing party!

Cissy

LIGHTENING FAST NEW SERVER

We have made the switch and oh my gosh the new site is so fast it is scary...lol. Enjoy shopping!
hugs,

Web site store is down

I am so sorry but as I expect you already know there is a massive problem with our server and the web site has now been down for over a day. Our hands are tied. As soon as this problem is corrected we have plans to move to another server and hopefully much improved service. Please bear with us.....Thank you!

FAIRYTALE COLLECTION IS COMING SOON

I have been able to pre-order the whole FAIRYTALE COLLECTION so we are in for some surprises. You can now PRE-ORDER the new FAIRYTALE MAGNOLIAINK MAGAZINE. This beautiful card was created by one of our Design team, Claudia Rosa - #263 Prom Queen.

Isn't this is a gorgeous card! It was done by our Designer Mindy Baxter - #159  Bride with tiara and Groom.

LAND OF MAGNOLIA - HONORABLE MENTION - JENNY LASZLO

ALTHOUGH JENNY'S ENTRY IS SAD AND BROUGHT TEARS TO MY EYES, IT IS VERY WELL WRITTEN. AS YOU CAN SEE THE PRESENTATION IS BEAUTIFUL!!!

As I look outside the window, watching the snow fall from the dark endless sky, I can’t help but feel an overwhelming sadness. My grandmother is moments away from passing from this world into the next and the family has gathered to give her company and say their goodbyes. It isn’t right for these last moments of hers to have been spent indoors during this wicked cold.  She should have been able to spend her days outside in the garden that she so loved.

I remember spending many hours in that garden with her, when I was a child and I would come visit her during my summer vacation. She taught me all there was to know about the art of gardening. She would grow everything from pumpkins to strawberries and flowers to fruit trees. I remember squealing in horror as my fingers touched a wiggling worm when I was pulling out weeds one day and my grandmother gently explained to me the purpose each worm had to the overall health of her little patch of paradise. Worms didn’t frighten me so much after that.

My grandmother was also a great children’s author and I do believe that she found her inspiration for her stories within the confines of her garden. Her stories were about a magical land called “Magnolia” were tiny little people lived and played. The main characters in her story were a brother and sister named Edwin and Tilda. She described them as little angels the size of a large butterfly. Her stories were very popular and well loved by children and adults alike.  Tilda and Edwin would get into all kinds of mischief, not unlike regular children, the only difference was their small size and that they could fly with little angle-like wings.

According to her stories, the Land of Magnolia is a most wonderful and magical land. The flowers that live in this land are more vibrant then any flower on Earth, and they glitter and shimmer with their own inner light and the hummingbirds that drink from their nectar glow softly as a result.

The little bubbling brooks are filled with beautiful fish painted with every colour of the rainbow and the water’s edge and floor are lined with all sorts of precious stones including, rubies, emeralds, sapphires and diamonds instead of rocks.

Another mystical aspect of this land is that little Edwin and Tilda are able to communicate with all the tiny creatures that inhabit Magnolia. Their puppy “Rufus” is more like a friend to them, then a pet, as are many of the other animals of the land.

One of my favorite stories of hers was the one about Edwin when he tried to prove to Tilda that he was a much better cook then she was. He had discovered a giant mushroom patch and decided he would show off his cooking skills by producing a most delicious homemade mushroom soup. Luckily before he caused too much damage he learned that this was no ordinary patch of mushrooms, but rather a little elf village that housed new found friends Alf and Alva, who had many adventures of their own.

I smiled fondly at the memory and vowed to read each and every one of my grandmother’s books to my own children before they outgrew such tales.

“Catherine?” My mother whispered as she gently tugged me away from the window. “Mom wants to see you now.”

I silently made my way to my grandmother’s bedroom, leaned over and kissed her check. “Hello, Grandma.” I said quietly.

“Catherine,” she smiled sweetly “It’s time to let me go. I know you worry about me, but don’t you fret Catherine, my dear, for I won’t be alone.  My little Edwin and Tilda will be with me, I have been waiting a long time to see them and I am anxious to go.”

“Yes, grandma.” I said and frowned. I had so wished to have a meaningful goodbye, but it appeared as though her mind was slipping as well as her body. She was right about one thing though, I had been holding on to her. She had been sick for a long time now, but I was still unwilling to believe that my time with her was at an end.

“Don’t you frown Catherine, I’ll be just fine, you will understand.” she struggled to speak these last few words and pointed to her desk drawer, “In there is a key. Remember the little piece of my yard that is fenced off, near the back. The key unlocks the gate…” Her voice broke off, but I understood where she meant. I opened the drawer and picked up the key, but when I turned to thank her, she was already gone.

“Goodbye Grandma.” I whispered and stood there for several moments, tears streaming down my face, trying desperately to regain my composure before I went to tell the others that she had moved on.

            I slept restlessly that night and as soon as the sunshine hit my window the next morning I was up and dressed and heading outside; key in hand. The snow crunched beneath my feet as I made my way towards the little iron gate at the far back corner of my grandmother’s property. As a child I had never questioned why I was not allowed to play beyond the fence, I just assumed it was just a patch of grass that she didn’t want little feet to trample on.  When I opened the gate, however, I realized that I was entering a mini cemetery with only two small tombstones marking two small graves. As I approached the graves and read the markings upon them, I finally understood why my grandmother was so anxious to move on to the next world; for Edwin and Tilda were not just characters in her stories, but the children whom she had only known a day and longed to see again in heaven. I then realized that this garden was dearer to her then I could have ever imagined and it was at that moment, that I felt peace.  

Jenny Laszlo

The Day the Stamps Took a Stand

Looking out my window, I knew something had to be wrong.  I saw and fell the bright warm sunshine shining on my face.  While this is not uncommon for any morning, I felt it strange that there was snow on the ground on this warm August morning.  Chicago is known for its crazy weather and they say if you don’t like the weather, just wait for 10 minutes, it will change. In all of my life,  I have never known it to snow in August in Chicago.  Could I have slept through the rest of summer and fall? I know I was very exhausted when I went to bed but this really was strange. I rubbed my eyes and looked again.   While my garden was full of mushrooms and pumpkins,  I could see the worms peeking out from under the snow.  Over the garden gate, I could see the butterflies fluttering by….wait what was that?   As I peer out the window and strain my eyes to get a better  look,  I see it is a person.  No wait it is two people.  They are sitting on the bench in my yard.   They seem to be talking and laughing and having a jolly time.  Who are they and what are they doing here?  Are they friends of my sons?  Who let them in the yard?  I couldn’t contain my curiosity any longer.  I had to go and see who these people were and what they were doing here.

I rushed down the stairs and into the yard to where the strangers were sitting.  I asked them what they were doing in my yard.  “Denise I presume?” said the male person.  “Yes” I replied.  “Who are you and what are you doing in my yard?” “We have been waiting for you” said the girl.  “We are Tilda and Edwin from the land of Magnolia.”  I gasped when they said this because I didn’t recognize them from one of my favorite stamp collections.  I was totally embarrassed and taken aback.  “We had to come outside and get some fresh air” Tilda said.  “Yeah , said Edwin,  We got a bit cramped in that plastic box you store us in.  We haven’t seen the light of day in about six months. We wanted to let you know that we are not happy and we don’t know how much longer we can stand it.  We have heard the other stamps talking and we felt we had to warn you that they are planning a revolt.  They are insisting that you spend more time with them and your craft supplies or they are packing up and leaving.”   With that being said, they rose from the bench and fluttered off towards the sky. 

 

I sat down on the bench in awe of what I had just been told.  Has it really been that long since I have done anything with my crafts?  Have I neglected my hobby?  I returned to the house and sat at my computer.  I browsed the numerous emails I have received and came across one from Diana Crick.  She had come up with a contest using the words of the month in a story.   I can do this I thought.  I might even win a prize….of more craft and stamp stuff I can neglect.  I hope I do win, but I hope this contest has brought about my need and desire to be creative once again.

This wonderful story was written for the contest by Denise Holland
 

Here are two more GORGEOUS St. Patrick's Day cards created by Patricia Garcia. Makes me wish I was Irish....lol

HAPPY ST.PATRICK'S DAY

Happy St.Patrick's Day everyone. This delightful card was created by our mega- talented, Design Team Member, Cheryl Rowley.