A Beautiful Necklace From Cindy at

 Whimsical Musings

This beautiful necklace arrived this week from Cindy. 

I had entered a drawing on her blog

Whimsical Musings and won! 

You might want to check her blog out for other current drawings.   Thank you  for the gift Cindy!

In other news.... check back tomorrow for the post
"A FRAGRANT FRIDAY"
    I will be posting a tuitorial for making your own incense sticks and cones.  I will also have pictures of the packaging I designed for mine on that post.  The tuitorial for the packaging will be on my Brag Monday post that I will be linking up at The Graphics Fairy next Monday. 

   I am in the process of making some gifts for my holiday gifting this year, so keep watching for more tuitorials on new items.   I like to do my gifts up as far in advance as I can when it's possible and since it has turned so hot here the last couple of weeks I have been indoors doing a lot more art and crafting.....
I am enjoying my self immensely!

Until next time......I wish you Peace.........

An Interesting Perspective....Something To Think About......

Would love to hear your comments on this video.....
Until next time.....I wish you Peace.........

Encouragement....

 To   Inspire   with   Courage,   Spirit,   or   Hope

One of the reasons I started  Vision Of Bliss  Blog was not only to express myself and my art to those who visit, but  also as a means of  Encouraging others.  I hope this post

INSPIRES  and  ENCOURAGES

you today...

Times being what they are these days I hope the following (paraphrased) quote helps you to look at the glass as

 half-full...

 and  NOT  half-empty....

Finally Brothers,

Whatever Is True,

Whatever Is Noble,

Whatever Is Right,

Whatever Is Pure,

Whatever Is Lovely,

Whatever Is Admirable,

~  If Anything Is Excellent or Praiseworthy  ~

....THINK ABOUT SUCH THINGS.....

                                 Phillipians 4:8

Today I am linking up at I Owe It All To Him ....To see More  Words Of Encouragement Click Here

May you find encouragement in these inspiring words

today......Until next time.....I Wish You Peace.....

Making Herb Infused

Wine Vinegar

Making Herb Infused Vinegars Is Really Very Easy and 

A Great Way To Recycle Some Of Those Pretty Wine or

 Syrup Bottles You Have Been Saving.

 I Even Found A Way To Recycle The Wire "Cage" That

Was On One Of My Champagne Bottles!  I Thought It Made A Cool Embellishment To The Top When I Added The "Cage" Along With One Of My Custom Galvanized Sheet Metal Tags

 I Thought Some Of You Might  Like To Make Some Herb Infused Vinegar So I Added The Instructions To This Post.

Start By Gathering Up Some Of Those Pretty Bottles You Just Couldn't Bring Yourself To Get Rid Of And Sterilize Them

These Bottles Were From Flavored Waters, Wine 

And Coffee Syrups

Supplies Needed

~ Empty Sterilized Bottles ~

~ Herbs And Spices Of Your Choice ~

(The Herbs and spices I used were - Rosemary, Thyme, Flat and Curly Leaf Parsley, Basil, Black Peppercorns, Garlic and Mustard Seeds)

~ White Wine Vinegar ~

~ Cork  And Optional Champagne Wire Cage ~

~ Labels and or Tags ~
(I found the free graphic for my label at The Graphics Fairy, I used Photoshop To Embellish It and Add The Words)

Useful Tools

~ Small Plastic Funnel ~

~ Long Wooden Chopstick ~

Step 1 ~ Gather Up The Fresh Herbs You Want To Infuse

 Wash And Dry Them Thoroughly

Premeasure Additional Spice Ingredients

I Used About A Tablespoon Each Of  Black Peppercorns And Mustard Seeds and 6 Garlic Cloves

Now You Are Ready For Step 2

 Step 2 ~ Fill The Empty Steralized Bottle By
 First Adding The Spices...

Then The Fresh Herbs

The Herbs I Used In This Infusion Were

~ Curly And Flat Leaf Parsley ~

~ Thyme ~

~Rosemary ~

~ Basil ~

I Used A Wooden Chopstick To Push The Fresh Herbs Down

(Only Use Plastic Or Wood Utensils as Metal Ones React With The Acidic Vinegar)

Step 3 ~ Using The Plastic Funnel Pour The Vinegar Over The Herbs and Fill The Bottle, Leaving About 1  1/2 Inches Headspace At The Top

 Cork The Top And Add Embellishments

 
Add Your Label and You Are Done! 

Wasn't That Easy?

It Is Best To Let Your Vinegar Steep

For 2 To 3 Weeks In A Cool Dry Place Before Use

Enjoy !!

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day.  Until next time.....I wish you Peace.... 

Bottle Labels For My
Herb Infused Vinegar 

Today's project has been all about making labels for the Herb Infused Wine Vinegar I am making From The Profusion Of Herbs In My Garden This Year

My Project Started By Cleaning and Sterilizing Wine Bottles I Had Been Saving To Repurpose To Hold My Homemade Infused Wine Vinegars

I Have Not Finished The Clear Bottle Labels Yet,

But I Plan On Making A Galvanized Silver Sheet Metal Tag For These

 For The Labels  I Went Over To The Graphics Fairy and Picked Up Some Free Graphics To Make My Labels.  Karen Has Soooo Many Cool Graphics To Pick From! 

 I Loaded The Graphics Into PhotoShop and Customized The Labels With What I Wanted Them To Say

 But Of Couse I Couldn't Stop There...

 I Just HAD To Add One Of My Handmade Copper Hang Tags

 I Decided To Make The Copper Tag With The Year On It

 Like A Nice Vintage Style Bottle Of Wine

 I Thought The Copper Tag Looked Especially Good With The

Amber Brown Colored Bottles

 What A Great Way To Repurpose An Old Wine Bottle !

I Think These Would Make A Great Gift, Don't You?

 

  A Great Way To Use Some Of Those Extra Herbs From Your Abundant Summer Harvest

 I Am Planning To Offer These On Etsy With The Words On The Labels To The Customers Specifications. 

I Think These Would Look Great On A Wedding Wine Bottle Too.  The Label Could Be Customized For Congratulatory Wishes For The Couple or A Table Number With The Wedding Date Stamped On The Metal Hang Tag.

 Each Label Set Will Include Two Printed Labels To Adhere To Your Bottles and Two Handstamped Copper or Galvanized Silver Metal Hang Tags

Custom Stamped To The Customers Requested Message

Guess I Have A Few More Bottle To Go, So Back To Work!  Thanks For Stopping In To See What I've Been Up To.  

I'm linking this post to Brag Monday at The Graphics Fairy and to Between Naps On The Porch ~ Metamorphsis Monday (The Butterfly Box in my sidebar is the link).

 

Until Next Time.......I Wish You Peace.....

      Stone Gable Giveaway!

Yvonne over at StoneGable is having

a giveaway to celebrate her

200th POST

Congratulations Yvonne!!

Here are instructions from her blog for entering her giveaway...

Since we are in the hot DOG days of summer, how about a cool treat of a giveaway?   I am giving away a Cuisinart Ice Cream, Frozen Yogurt and Sorbet Maker. Make your favorite icy treats in 20 minutes in this 1 1/2 quart, fully automatic maker! I love mine and use it all the time! One lucky winner will too!  There are 3 easy ways to enter. You can enter all three times!

 1 ~ Enter by leaving a comment on this post. (At Yvonne's StoneGable Page Here) If you do not have a blog~ please leave a comment~ and check back to see if you have won!

2 ~ Enter by becoming a follower or letting me know that you  already are a follower.


3 ~ Enter by posting this giveaway on your blog!

StoneGable's 200th post giveway ends Wednesday July 14, 2010 at midnight EST and the winner will be announced on Thursday July 15 in the evening.    

 

GOOD  LUCK  EVERYONE!!

Signing off for today.....I will have some new pics of the latest metal tag orders I just filled posted soon.  Until next time.....I wish you Peace....

Let me Entertain You

July.

Let me Entertain you.

A life of entertainment is much like getting in a new york taxi cab on a busy Friday evening. It's a gamble. Taking into account that you may get a sensible driver, or one that you will evidently be risking your life with. Either way, they all speed at a wreckless rate in order to get you to your destination. Sometimes this car ride can be thrilling and you find yourself rolling down the window and enjoying the adrenaline rush of being alive. Other times you find yourself whispering obscenities under your breath and gripping the seat and the door handle praying that you arrive to where you are going in one piece. Sound dramatic? Then we are right on target. Welcome to the world of an artist and entertainer! Through these pages I will give you the highs and the lows of what leaps and obstacles my job brings to my artistry. You may find a connection to what I'm saying and relate that to your own artistic adventures, or you may simply enjoy the intriguing tales of what really goes on "backstage". 

We started off a few weeks back with our rehearsals in Los Angeles, California. Meeting a new cast is a lot like playing cards. You are hoping for a good hand, because what you are dealt is what you will be "playing" next to for the following 6 to 8 months of your life. Luckily I was met with an eager and exciting cast. You may think that everyone involved in performance is passionate and excited about what they do. Sadly there are people out in the entertainment world that are in it for the paycheck and not for the product. Thankfully the cast I am working with is wonderful. We have passion, energy, and emotion that is going to make for an exciting contract on board. 

Rehearsals were rushed as we learned 5 production shows in 2 weeks. Spending 8 hours a day in a room full of mirrors and no windows is a quick way to get to know your fellow cast members. This is just the beginning of a new kind of friendship. In life, many friendships develop over time. A coffee date here, and lunch date there and over the span of about a month you feel like you are starting to get to know someone. We cover that in about a week or less. Not only are you singing about love into the eyes of someone you've just met, you are trying to actually feel the emotion behind the words of the song. It's kind of like going into work for the first day and meeting a work colleague and saying "Hello, my name is Nicholas let's try falling in love with each other today and see how we go". You develop a bond with people you work with so much quicker, because you have to find a way to emotionally connect with them. 

I could say that this life is full of glitz and glamour, but there is such a trade off in this lifestyle of what many call "glamorous". While that may hold true some of the time, there are many sacrifices to be made. Chances of having a life with some sort of stability is slim. I feel like my life is always on the go, and that I am always saying goodbye. In retrospect my job offers a lot of excitement and adventure. The places I have been and the lessons I have learned have taught me some valuable things that have changed my pursuit of my art as well as my life. 

So let's begin our 8 month journey sailing up to Alaska and then down to Hawaii. 5 shows to open in 2 months, performances almost nightly for crowds of up to 1500 a show, and a behind the scenes look at the lifestyle of a singer aboard a cruise ship. Welcome Aboard!

Let Me Entertain You!!

This is our son Nicholas Novak, and the above clip is from some of the shows he has been in on Cruise Ships.


 Once a month Nick is going to be a guest writer on my LET ME ENTERTAIN YOU page.  Nick will update us on his latest adventures in the Entertainment world, where he is currently traveling and about the shows he is in. Until then here is another little clip from his dance reel.
 I am starting a new page, Let Me Entertain You, that you will be able to click on at the top of the blog that will include new pics of Nick in his shows and his articles.
Until next time......I wish you Peace..........