I Feel I am Failing You...

Happy Monday everyone! I was wondering if I might be able to share my heart with you for a couple minutes? You see... I've had a lot on my heart recently & feel like if I were able to share it with you, I might be able to answer some questions.

When starting this website, my desire was to create multiple coloring pages & prints & have new items available to purchase often. I wanted to have fresh, new coloring pages each month & inspire you through my art. 

I know you haven't seen any new coloring pages or art prints in my shop since I last updated it with a few fall items 4 weeks ago, & this is where I feel I have failed you. I know many of you follow me on Instagram & see some of my "teasers" I post almost weekly with new seasonal coloring pages or prints with comments saying that they will be on my website to purchase soon. Unfortunately, "soon" hasn't happened, which frustrates me & honestly leaves me feeling like I have failed you & lied to you. Please know that it is not, & never will be, my intention to mislead you! I never want to come across as someone who doesn't keep my word or another artist who couldn't make it in the art world. 

I'm  learning that when starting a new business where you have more than one person to rely on, that it doesn't always go according to how I think it should. Things happen, life happens..... & I'm having to learn how to extend grace in the midst of frustration. I have to remind myself how many times has God given me grace when I most definitely didn't deserve it! And because my desire is to be more like Him, I must choose to renew my mind & try to walk in full, no strings attached grace! (and my goodness... that is hard to do sometimes! can I get an amen?!?!)  

I'm asking for you, if you're willing, to have a lot of grace & understanding with me & my website as this is a completely different world for me! I'm new to the whole idea of blogging & creating a successful website is something I've wanted for a very long time! I can tell you, with confidence, that I am doing all I can to get new products up as quickly as I can because the last thing I want to do is to let you down!  

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your support & understanding through these beginning stages of my new adventure! Even with all the frustrations, I wouldn't trade a single minute of it! Please continue to come back because I have some new opportunities that are coming up in the next week or two that you do NOT want to miss out! I hope you have a wonderful Monday!

~ Valerie

And the WINNERS are....

First of all... I can't begin to tell you how overwhelmed I have felt by all your positive feedback & encouraging words over the past week! Having you on this journey with me makes it even that more fun! I know you all have been waiting anxiously to see if you are the winner of any of the giveaways from last week, so lets get to it.... 

Winner of the Custom 4x4 "You Are Enough" Canvas: Taylor Rucker

Winner of the Custom Art Print: Shannon Knebusch

Winner of the Coloring Book & Crayons: Desiree Carroll

Winner of the Custom Paint Baby: Becca Joy

Winner of my 6 Hand-written Greeting Cards: Shanna Dietz

Winner of the 8x10 "Fall, Family, Friends" Print & the $25 Starbucks Gift Card: Katie H. 

Congratulations to all of the winners!!! I need each of you to email me at valeriewienersart@gmail.com so I can get some information from you in order to get your prizes in the mail (or at least get started working on them!)!

Even though this week of Giveaways is over, I hope you will continue to come back to visit! I will be updating my Store regularly with new Art Prints & INSTANT PRINTABLE Coloring Pages (& who knows... maybe another giveaway!). As a matter of fact, I have a few more Fall & Thanksgiving INSTANT PRINTABLE Coloring Pages that will be perfect to decorate with as well some new Art Prints that will be added very soon! 

Thank you again from the very bottom of my heart! I wouldn't be here with out you! 

You ARE Beautiful, Believe it! 

~ Valerie

BONUS Giveaway...FALL is in the air!

Welcome to the weekend everyone! I know how busy Saturday's can be, so I'm going to keep today's post short & sweet! I decided that I wanted to have a BONUS GIVEAWAY today!!! I love the fall & everything that comes along with it so I thought I a fun way to celebrate would be to giveaway an 8x10 copy of my "Fall, Family, Friends" Art Print (frame not included) along with a $20 Starbucks Gift Card!!! 

How To Enter:All you to do is leave a comment below about what your favorite thing about the Fall is!

***FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES***

#1: Sign up to receive my Exclusive Email Specials! (I promise not to fill your Inbox with needless junk!)

#2: Like & Share my page on Facebook: "Valerie Wieners Art":  https://www.facebook.com/ValerieWienersArt

#3: Follow me on Instagram:  http://instagram.com/valeriewieners

#4: Follow me on Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/valeriewieners/

(So I know to enter your name again, please leave an additional comment below letting me know which ones you did! And like I tell my 5th graders..."Nobody likes a cheater"!)

A winner will randomly be chosen next Monday, October 7th & announced right here on the blog, so make sure you come back to see of you are the lucky winner!

See.... short & sweet just like I promised! I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend & remember to come back on Monday to see if you're the big winner for all of our giveaways!

~ Valerie 

Day 5 Giveaway...You've Got Mail!

Well.... We finally made it to Friday!!! Yea!!! I have to say I'm a little sad that this week of Giveaways is coming to an end! I've had so much fun getting to know all of you & so thankful to you for allowing me to share my heart with you!!! You will never know how much that means to me! 

Today's Giveaway is something that I've absolutely fallen in love with & wish we as a society did more of! Simply put...It's a set of 6 of my hand-lettered greeting cards! Before everyone begins to judge me, allow me to defend my case....

I love making cards and writing letters. I think I should have been born in a time before email because I don't quite understand technology and quite frankly, picking up a pen comes easier to me than trying to figure out how to attach something and forward it. Mail is fun, it's personal, & it's special! It sends a message that says "I care enough about you to take ten minutes out of my day to devote this piece to you!".

Have you ever received a piece of mail that was completely awesome? Maybe a wedding or baby shower invitation that was so beautiful. Maybe a hand-written letter or a home made card from your grandchild? The picture below is my most favorite postcard EVER! It's from my best childhood friend Hattie. Hattie and I grew up in the little town of Bushland, Texas. We did everything together growing up. When we graduated Hattie went to college and I went to Crazyville. She graduated college then went to grad school where she's gotten to travel every where (she's about to head to Paris, France...not Texas!). This postcard is from when she in Scotland. My favorite thing on this postcard was that the message part has little doodles of inside jokes and things we've done together. I keep it by my bed as a reminder to step out of the box every once in a while and live life like she does, care free and happy. I'm a very rigid schedule follower and rarely stray onto the path of the unknown, so I consider this is my reminder just to do something that scares me every now and then. 

Along with fun postcards from life-long friends, I've also received lots of things that are so cool on the inside but the envelope is lacking in the "awesome-sauce" department (insert sad face here). I'm a HUGE fan of color! I love it when I get something in the mail that I can tell the sender took so much time to put the entire thing together so  nicely. I'm a believer that the outside being pretty makes the delivery as a whole so special (kinda like the old saying "you never get a second chance to make a first impression"). I ordered a shirt once and the shop (prince ink co.) wrote my name in calligraphy on a kraft tag, tied it with bakers twine, and wrapped it in paper. Can you imagine the time & effort that went into that packaging.... & just for a t-shirt?! It was magic & I loved it almost as much as I loved my shirt!

My point is, try to take pride in the outside of your envelope. Include something fun to make the receiver want to keep not just the letter but the envelope too. I have stacks of cards, letters, and envelopes that I've received over the years and they are things I look back at when I need a little boost of love!

Making pretty mail art is easy even if you aren't awesome at hand lettering. Draw a picture or doodle by their name, write the name large and address it in multiple colors. Stamp it with a fun stamp, use stickers, or put washi tape all over that bad boy! (I'm a huge fan of washi and have way more rolls than I need...but I'm more than ok with that!) Here are a few pictures of some fun envelopes I've made!

This is what it looks like when I make mail art. Embrace messy!

How to Enter: All I need for you to do is leave a comment below telling me about what the best piece of mail you've ever received. It can be ANYTHING!!! A letter from a long-time friend you haven't talked to in a while, a birthday card from your Great-Grandma, a letter saying you just won a SUPER AWESOME GIVEAWAY (shameless huh?! haha!)! There are no wrong answers! 

***FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES***

#1: Sign up to receive my Exclusive Email Specials! (I promise not to fill your Inbox with needless junk!)

#2: Like & Share my page on Facebook: "Valerie Wieners Art"  https://www.facebook.com/ValerieWienersArt

#3: Follow me on Instagram:  http://instagram.com/valeriewieners

#4: Follow me on Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/valeriewieners/

(So I know to enter your name again, please leave an additional comment below letting me know which ones you did! And like I tell my 5th graders..."Nobody likes a cheater"!)

A winner will randomly be chosen next Monday, October 7th & announced right here on the blog, so make sure you come back to see of you are the lucky winner!

Just a friendly reminder...if you haven't had a chance to enter the other 4 days of my Giveaway, you still have time!!! All you need to do is go back & double (or triple) check that you've done everything you can possibly do to get your name entered more than once for each of the 5 days! Who knows... you could be the winner of 1, 3, or all 5 Giveaways!!! And if you don't mind... PRETTY PLEASE tell ALL your friends about our Giveaways!!! The more the merrier! Have a wonderful Friday everyone!

Ohhhhh.... one more thing! Just between you & me... I may or may not (but I'm leaning more towards definitely) be having a BONUS GIVEAWAY sometime this weekend so make sure you check back on Saturday or Sunday! Let me just say that if I were to have a "BONUS GIVEAWAY" it might (or might not) be something to help get you ready for the FALL!!! OK... no more clues! I hope to see you & all your friends this weekend!!!

~ Valerie 

Today's Giveaway: A Paint Baby!

Good news!!! We have almost made it to Friday!!! YEA!!! I am SOOOO SUPER EXCITED about today's Giveaway!!! Since I have a few canvas' laying around my house, I thought it would be fun to give away a "Paint Baby"....

What is a Paint baby you ask? Well let me tell you....

I like to to refer to collaborations as paint babies. I make a background, you tell me your words you want on it, I plan those out and then paint them on.....it's a paint baby! (It takes two people to do it!)

I am currently getting to make about 15 of these a month as well as extra canvas' on the side. I love painting and I love collaborating and I LOVE showing my clients what our finished product looks like. I make my living off of your requests and I'm so thankful that God gave me a talent that I can share, enjoy, and sell!

I just recently finished my most favorite Paint Baby I've done to date! I got to do two different paintings for a little tiny baby girl named Rachel. Her mom, Natalie, told me a little about Rachel and said that she wanted me to create something that she will see for the rest of her life and that she will grow up believing and reading. I delivered the paintings to the family and many tears were shed. They were so happy! That made me happy and they had such kind words to say about the paintings. They also prayed for me before I left and I just thought that was so special. Below are some of the pictures of these pieces in progress and finished.

As you can see I love putting tiny details into big paintings so that every time you look you see something you didn't see before. Details make everything better if you ask me!

How to Enter: Leave me a comment below about how you heard about me or found my website. The winner will receive a custom 8x10 "Paint Baby" that will be hand-lettered by me on the canvas below (maximum of 15 words).

***FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES***

#1: Sign up to receive my Exclusive Email Specials! (I promise not to fill your Inbox with needless junk!)

#2: Like & Share my page on Facebook: "Valerie Wieners Art"  https://www.facebook.com/ValerieWienersArt

#3: Follow me on Instagram:  http://instagram.com/valeriewieners

#4: Follow me on Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/valeriewieners/

(So I know to enter your name again, please leave an additional comment below letting me know which ones you did! And like I tell my 5th graders..."Nobody likes a cheater"!)

A winner will randomly be chosen next Monday, October 7th & announced right here on the blog, so make sure you come back to see of you are the lucky winner!

We are getting to the end of our week of Giveaways! The good news is that if this is your first day to see my blog you still have time to enter the 3 previous days! So... get going! I really want YOU to win! See you back here tomorrow for our final day of Giveaways!!!

~ Valerie 

Day 3 Giveaway!

Happy Wednesday everyone! First of all, I would like to say a HUGE Thank You for all the responses from yesterday's contest! Y'all are coming up with awesome quotes, verses & song lyrics & I'm super excited to get to hand-letter one of those bad boys!!! The good news is that if you haven't had a chance to enter yesterday's (or even Monday's) contest, you still have time! So go check out those 2 blogs to find out how!

Today's Giveaway is geared more towards the kiddos (or really stressed out adults!). I'm giving away one of my hand-drawn Coloring Books & a set of some super fun "Hungry Catapillar" crayons! 

So, you might be wondering "what's with coloring pages"? Well, to understand why I'm so partial to these little gems, let me take you back a few years!

I didn't always like kids, in fact, in my pre-Jesus years--I hated them. They were noisy and selfish, (which I was very guilty of too!) & I didn't want to compete with them for attention. Post-Jesus though, changed they way I looked at them. When I relapsed on cocaine I immediately began volunteering at church and the people who took me in first were the preschool ladies. I didn't like the idea at first, but I soon came to love it! I was beginning to think that kids were cool! They were real, and pure, and had crazy imaginations (and as an added bonus loved laughing and dancing). I had found a new appreciation for them!

I got a job in a preschool the next year and those little people were more obnoxious but had the same characteristics. Some days I couldn't handle the noise they created as I was stuck back in my eating disorder and failing to see life and these "mini-humans" clearly. My mind was in a constant mess of bad thoughts and selfish thinking and I just couldn't handle the stress. So, as a way to help me through the day I decided to create coloring pages for the kids! 

I don't know if you've ever seen a kid color, but they can't talk and color at the same time. It's just not possible! They were either too focused on their coloring page or they were bored...and who can blame them! These coloring pages were from the 1970's ya'll!!! So, I decided that while the other teachers were teaching I would create new coloring pages with things that were cool to them. (And, as an added bonus, their parents like them too!) 

I always colored when I was a kid! it was the first art tool I ever picked up (the picture on the left me at the ripe old age of 4 & I couldn't resist posting this sweet picture my niece! I mean seriously, how cute is she?! ). I colored on everything. The walls, furniture, closets.... the list goes on & on. My mom told me this morning that I would hide behind things and color on them, maybe as a way to escape. As I was growing into an adult, I would continue to color. When I was growing up my dad drank. He drank a lot. A whole lot. I knew that going to my room and doing art by myself was better than being in the kitchen with him because he couldn't yell at me if I wasn't making him mad by talking. I had things I wanted to say I just never had a chance to say them so I used art to communicate instead. This situation helped create my feelings of being unwanted, unworthy and searching for affection from men in the years to come. I came across this article this morning and I totally get it:

"Art therapy for children can provide kids with an easier way to express themselves since children are more naturally artistic and creative. A young child is likely to be more comfortable initially expressing him/herself with some crayons and markers, for example, than he/she is going to be at expressing emotions and feelings through words.

A question and answer type of format can be daunting and intimidating for a child, especially when they have to try and explain themselves with their already limited vocabulary. Because of this, art therapy for children can be a much more viable solution for communication than simply having a conversation and talking about things. This can be especially true when it comes to children and traumatic events.

http://www.arttherapyblog.com/child-art-therapy/how-art-therapy-for-children-works/#ixzz2gYyNxmUy

I use coloring and drawing as a tool to focus on something else. If I find myself stressed out, I tend to want to binge eat. But, with binging always comes purging. And trust me, that's not good for any one involved! Bulimia is an eating disorder that steals everything from you, and I mean everything-health, joy, hope, kindness, patience, self control, concentration and priorities. When I feel overwhelmed in the world I know I don't want to pick up 28 cupcakes and a bag of chicken nuggets so I pick crayons. Crayons are the much better choice in my eyes... :)

The description of my coloring pages in the shop include that they are good for the person who is stressed out. If this is you, you should try it. Focus your concentration on the page and the colors instead of whatever it is that is trying to take over your mind. I am no doctor, but I bet that while you're coloring that thing in your head disappears and you are more at ease with crayon in hand, forgetting the worries of the world --even if it's just for and hour!

How to Enter: Leave me a comment below about what you you do when you tend to feel overwhelmed or stressed out? (And for the record... This is a safe, judgement free zone!)

***FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES***

#1: Sign up to receive my Exclusive Email Specials! (I promise not to fill your Inbox with needless junk!)

#2: Like & Share my page on Facebook: "Valerie Wieners Art"  https://www.facebook.com/ValerieWienersArt

#3: Follow me on Instagram:  http://instagram.com/valeriewieners

#4: Follow me on Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/valeriewieners/

(So I know to enter your name again, please leave an additional comment below letting me know which ones you did! And like I tell my 5th graders..."Nobody likes a cheater"!)

A winner will randomly be chosen next Monday, October 7th & announced right here on the blog, so make sure you come back to see of you are the lucky winner!

Thank you so much for being so patient with me! I just believe in transparency & think that if even one life is touched by my story then I've done my job! God is Good! 

Enjoy today & come back tomorrow for Day 4 of our Giveaways! 

~ Valerie

"I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me & heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud & mire; he set my feet on a rock & gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see & fear & put their trust in the Lord." Psalm 40:1-3

Day 2 of my Week Of Giveaways!

Happy Tuesday everyone! Can you believe it's October 1st? I'm so ready to pull out my scarf, grab a Pumpkin Spice latte (or anything pumpkin, really!), & enjoy the cooler weather!

For Day 2's Giveaway, I'm going to need a little help from you! I'm trying to come up with a new Hand-Written Art Print for my store & thought you might be willing to give me some ideas!

As you can see below from a few pictures of my bedroom, words are obviously INCREDIBLY important to me! Often times during the day, just like a lot of you I'm sure, feelings of not being good enough & terrible "self-talk" begin to run through my mind. I'm constantly having to catch it & change my thought in that moment! I learned how important this is during my time in rehab & can honestly say it works when you put it into practice (which can be the hard part). CATCH the negative thought you are thinking in the moment & then CHALLENGE it with what God says about you. Then, CHANGE your thought by thinking or saying out-loud, "I am not (insert word here), I am fearfully & wonderfully made". I so deeply believe the words we think & say have the power to change the way a person is feeling at any moment!

How to enter: All  you need to do is leave a comment below with something you would like to see as one of my hand-written Art Prints! It can be your favorite Bible verse, a favorite saying or quote, or a favorite song lyric. The sky's the limit!

I will then turn the winning comment into one of my hand-written Art Prints that will be sold through the store on my website! The winner will also receive an 8x10 print as soon as it's created (& the bragging rights that your suggestion was chosen!). 

***FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES***

#1: Sign up to receive my Exclusive Email Specials! (I promise not to fill your Inbox with needless junk!)

#2: Like & Share my page on Facebook: "Valerie Wieners Art":  https://www.facebook.com/ValerieWienersArt     

#3: Follow me on Instagram:  http://instagram.com/valeriewieners

#4: Follow me on Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/valeriewieners/

(So I know to enter your name again, please leave an additional comment below letting me know which ones you did! And like I tell my 5th graders..."Nobody likes a cheater"!)

A winner will be chosen next Monday, October 7th & announced right here on the blog, so make sure you come back to see of you are the lucky winner!

And, just in case you missed "Day 1" of my giveaways yesterday, you still have plenty of time to check it out & get entered! Also, don't forget to check out my "Shop" at the top of this page! I have a lot of INSTANT PRINTABLE Coloring Pages & fun Fall Art Prints to help get you ready for the changing seasons!

Make sure you come back tomorrow for Day 3 of my Week of Giveaways! You don't want to miss it! In the meantime, enjoy your first day of October!

~ Valerie

A Week of Giveaways!

Welcome Everyone! Let me begin by saying how incredibly humbled I am that you would take the time to stop by & visit my website! 

I've been trying to decide how I wanted to celebrate the launch of my new website over the past few days. Obviously, I wouldn't have a reason to celebrate if it wasn't for all of you...so I've decided the only logical thing to do is to have a WEEK OF GIVEAWAYS!!! I have so many fun products to give away this week, but in order to find out what they are (& to be entered into the drawings) you'll have to come back every day! And since you're already here, how about you go ahead & get yourself entered into my first giveaway of the week!

TODAY'S GIVEAWAY is a Custom 4x4 hand-painted & hand-lettered canvas! I decided to paint the words "You Are Enough" because one night during my recovery group each girl echoed the struggle they had with feeling like they were "enough". Whatever the reason was, each of us felt like we didn't live up to what the world was telling us we should be. My co-leader, Judy Stallwitz, decided to pray the words "you are enough" over each one of us saying "God, let Valerie know she is & always will be enough". Oh, if we could understand that we ARE enough & honestly believe the truth about who God says we are, what freedom we would experience! 

HOW TO ENTER: All you need to do is leave a comment below about where you would put this canvas if you were to win it! 

***FOR ADDITIONAL ENTRIES***

#1: Sign up to receive my Exclusive Email Specials! (I promise not to fill your Inbox with needless junk!)

#2: Like & Share my page on Facebook: "Valerie Wieners Art":https://www.facebook.com/ValerieWienersArt

#3: Follow me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/valeriewieners

(So I know to enter your name again, please leave an additional comment below letting me know which ones you did! And like I tell my 5th graders..."Nobody likes a cheater"!)

A winner will randomly be chosen next Monday, October 7th & announced right here on the blog, so make sure you come back to see of you are the lucky winner!

Now, for all you Fall lovers out there, I've added some new Fall Art Prints as well as a couple Instant Printable Coloring Pages to help get you ready for the changing seasons! Check them out in the "Shop" at the top of this page!

I hope to see you back here tomorrow for Day 2 of my Week of Giveaways! Enjoy your Monday!

 ~ Valerie

It's so nice to see you!

Let me be the first to welcome you to Valerie Wieners Art! Whether you made it here on purpose, or accidentally, I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am to have you here! 

Allow me introduce myself... My name is Valerie & I am the artist behind Valerie Wieners Art! 

From a young age, I always knew that when I grew up all I wanted to be was an Artist! I was an art major in college but never finished because I enjoyed creating art more than learning about it. I’ve always loved the art of hand-lettering & fell in love with writing pretty when I started selling my scripture based paintings. (There’s just something about handwritten, one-of-a kind pieces of art that just makes my heart happy!) I work out of my home studio & letter at our kitchen table. Every painting is prayed for before & during its completion & I always say while painting “This is you, not me Jesus. Thank you!”.

I’m madly in love with my Jesus, recovery, & testimonies!  I also love: sidewalk chalk, fingerpainting, new pens, “Thrifting”, Farmers Markets & flowers! I’m obsessed with all things pumpkin & on any given day you can find me running or bicycling on my cruiser! I love carrots, broccoli, peppermint tea, & sugar-free vanilla! When I’m not doodling or working on a custom order, I try to fit in an episode (or two) of Cupcake Wars or anything else that might be on the Food Network! 

My goal through art is, & always has been, to encourage everyone to see the beauty in everything & to inspire creativity! I am convinced that God has given each & every one of us different gifts & talents to use to His glory! Thank you so much for letting me share mine with you! 

“Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.” Psalm 34:5