Community Flags

Alexandria Zettler from this post has sent us some more images of a community project

"Here are some more photos of our group’s prayer flags. We plan on hanging them outside the art center on July 2nd.

Our focus is sending positive intentions out into the community, giving thanks for our island community, and mine are hopes and dreams for my daughters. Our group leader chose the traditional Buddhist prayer flag colors and we are hanging them in that order when we put them on the line outside. These are just a few. We have over a hundred flags made."

Zandy Zettler

A Heartfelt Collection

From Carrie Austin

"Hello,  This is my first time posting my prayer flags, though I've been reading the posts quite often on your blog.  Thanks for the inspiration to make these!   Garden Prayer Flags: The last couple of years I've made some memorial prayer flags, and flags representing each of my kids, but this year I'm loving the actual idea of a prayer flag. Writing a prayer on a flag and letting the prayer travel as far as the wind blows is a beautiful thought.  These are my prayers for the people I love: HEAL for my 7 year old niece Elina's heart! She's had to have open heart surgery, with more procedures to come.  This is also made for any physical healing needed by others. LOVE, A prayer of love for those missing their angels in heaven, no matter the age. I pray that we can feel their love for us, and love others to honor them. I added my angel baby Cassidy's name for me, but it's for everyone. PEACE for those experiencing a pregnancy after a loss. It's the second hardest thing I've done in my life, after losing a baby. Nobody else understands the anxiety of every minute, so I pray that my friends will feel some peace in the days and months ahead.  HOPE for those struggling with infertility.  I pray for them to have hope in God's plan, and hope in good things to come! Thanks again for inspiring the world in crafting beauty."   Carrie Austin

In Celebration

Lis Harwood has made this flag for her husband.

"I made it for my beloved, Alan, who was 70 years old this weekend (but we are whispering that large number).  His favourite colour is deep red.  He saw me working on the flag but had no idea it was for him, only when I gave it to him on Sunday did he say that he'd particularly noticed it because of the colours but hadn't thought it might be for him, he loves it.  My prayers on it are for Love, Joy, Health and Long Life."

Lis

A Beautiful Collection

Today we hear from Rebecca Mishler who lives in a senior apartment.

She has made these flags for the other residents

"Aloha, These are my first quilted prayer flags, Faith, Hope, Love.  I live in a senior apartment, hoping to send a good message to the seniors here."

"I hope these messages give them joy.  There is a lot of lonely people here."  Rebecca Mishler 

"Flags for my daughters"

"These are flags I made for my daughters, Tessa Marie (24) and Anna Louise (14). As I drew/painted each one, I thought about the gifts I would like to them to receive and to give via the elements, air or spirit, earth, water, sky, and fire. As a group, we are meeting every Wednesday night to make flags and hope to hang them outside the Cedar Key Art Center fairly soon. The experience has been fantastic. My older daughter has MS, so these flags feel very dear to me."

Alexandria W. Zettler.

EARTH

FIRE

SKY

WATER

SPIRIT

More flags from France

"I made my prayer in french.
I love the little fairy and I want make a prayer for protect all the fairies.
My blog address :http://atelierbynath.blogspot.fr

Thank you for this beautiful project ...
Friendly
Bynath"

Garden Trio

From Carolyn Hanson.

"My second little flag trio is for our backyard. The first picture I snapped captured magical little rainbow prisms of color, not visible to the naked eye. No photo filters were used; must be the sweet power of prayer~

Continued thanks for your inspiring blog.

Always,

Care"

a new contributor

My first attempts were inspired by your blog. 

On left, (partially covered w/clothespin!) hopes for my ailing Scottie dog. 

Middle: my broken heart when my other Scottie died after first one recovered. 

Right: my first attempt, including wool felting, for my 5 children's hopes & dreams. 

Sent to us from "farrboot"

A trio of flags

Today we hear from Care Hanson

I've hung & loved Tibetan prayer flags for years, but never thought to create my own until seeing your lovely blog posts.

This trio was made as a birthday gift for my son-in-law, an avid gardener and brand new dad. Sewn into the scraps are thoughts of love & peace for him, my daughter & grand baby, Luciana.

Thanks for the inspiration; next I'll sew a few for our backyard~

Care Hanson

Prayer Flags from France

by Anne

Anne Gailhbaud from France has sent us these photos of the flags she has made with her daughter and grandchildren.

by Raphaëlle 5 

Theophile, 3

by Anne's daughter

by Anne

This last one has been done for her son who has a very important exam this week.

Merci Beaucoup Anne!

Sun Salutations

Here is a little prayer flag that I recently painted for my garden. I based it on the following quote:
"Just living is not enough," said the butterfly. "One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower."
Linda
Dandelion Ink Studio

More from the Global Piecers

Teresa Mitchell  is another member of the Global Piecers mentioned in our last post. Her flags are ready to leave Scotland and fly off around the world.

Flags by the Global Piecers

Lis Harwood has joined us to tell us about the prayer flag swap she is organising as co-ordinate of the Global Piecers group.

"These "Global Piecer" prayer flags will be flying off around the world and were made with some very special friends in thought and prayer.  On each flag is written the particular prayers for the individual.  

The prayer flag to the far right was made for a very special "indigo sister" who is caring for four different loved ones with severe illnesses/problems at the moment and hasn't a moment or the energy to care about herself.  My prayer flag for her includes prayers and tears.

Lis has put together an interesting post on how she put these flags together here.

A pick me up.

Here is a flag sent to us by Vickie

 "I've been praying for someone whose been going through a tough time lately,

 I thought she could use a special little pick-me-up.

 As long as I can remember she's played the piano, sung in church and in can-tata's.

 For many years I stood behind her watching her hands move across the keys of an old upright piano while words of God's love were embedded in my heart from the old time hymns she sang." 

Vickie

http://morestarsincomanche.blogspot.com

Heart

Here is a flag sent  by Beverly Hilbert of Arlington VA.

"I have attached the prayer flag I made on Sunday at Artistic Artifacts. One of the members made the base. The collage was made from the collection of goodies at my table. It was fun to do." 

Protect

Prayer Flag by Judy Gula, owner of Artistic Artifacts 

" At my shop, Artistic Artifacts, I host Judy’s Altered Minds, a fiber/mixed media art group that meets monthly, and the April 27 meeting was devoted to creating prayer flags. Because of a teaching obligation I had to miss the fun that day, but I wanted to participate too! I began with fabric I monoprinted using a Gelli Arts™ Gel Printing Plate, collected scraps of ribbon and fabric. I laid out fabric strips and ribbon as I sewed the seam to create the hanging sleeve, so in one step I had the addition of hanging embellishments too. This is one of the flags I made dedicated to the idea of protecting our teenagers from suicide. Unfortunately our local High School has lost several students to suicide in the recent years, and it has affected my community greatly. Please visit my blog to learn more: http://www.artisticartifacts.com/blog/?p=2674”

Making Prayer Flags

Michele Bilyeu on a class making prayer flags with quilt guild members.

I had a wonderful time teaching a class on the making of "Peace and Prayer Flags, Garlands, Pennants, and Bunting" at the Polk County Fairgrounds in Rickreal, Oregon for our local Mid-Valley Quilt's "Quilt College".

What a great group of women! Each and every one went 'outside of her personal' comfort zone in creating peace and prayer flags, making them as individual as possible. And every single one of these lovely ladies added something that was unique, creative, and different than my samples!

I provided kits for 14 different peace or prayer flags and they had a wide variety of individual kits to choose from even among their favorite 'looks'.  I provided choices that included patriotic, country, Victorian, rainbow 70's, religious, spiritual, just plain cute, and native cultures and traditions. But of course, I didn't tell them, what was what, or give any advice on select and being me, they could switch ingredients and ink jet quotations if so desired.

And they did!....
read more at: Quilt College: Peace and Prayer Flags

Gratitude

Flags from Patti Schaffer.

"Each flag was dedicated to one of the 3 doctors or 2 medical centers I credit with saving my life. I thought good wishes or thanks which each stitch. The squares are silk. You can't tell but there is silver metallic thread with the white on the gold pieces.

Thanks for the blog."

Prayer Flag Blog Hop

Are you aware that there is a little Prayer Flag Blog Hop going on at the moment?

To further the Prayer Flag movement, Vivika and her team over at Quilting Arts have put together an eBook and Prayer Flag Pack. 

Vivika first blogged and shared her flags over on the Quilting Daily blog
and here are all the other blogs to visit.

April 14:               Jane LaFazio

April 15:               Meg Cox

April 16:               Deborah O’Hare: That's Me!

April 17:               Jamie Fingal

                               Susan Brubaker Knapp

April 18:               Carrie Bloomston

Each blog shares details of how each of us has decorated our Prayer Flag Banner.
I hope you have the time to take a look and be inspired.

Gratitude

Michele Bilyeu shares her Gratitude  today by posting:

I am feeling so very grateful for the beauty of Spring flowers, the sound of early morning bird song, the playful antics of dozens of little squirrels as they perform their high wire acts from limb to limb. I am grateful for the budding of new leaves on trees, the buzzing of bees, and the sweet sound of humming birds as they flit back and forth from our many feeders to fresh blooms in the yard.

Grateful that my youngest sister-in-law, Shelley, with advanced Stage 4 lung cancer is holding her own, after her 7th chemotherapy treatment. She and my brother fly from Juneau to Seattle every three weeks for another round of treatment, so while it might seem discouraging that they she is now on 'maintenance' levels, that is actually a good thing. She is holding her own and still striving to live until her second grandchild is born in May.

Grateful that my brother in Eagle River who battles one round of pneumonia, and one medically induced coma after another, is now feeling well enough to have some physical therapy to get his strength back. And his wife, with end-stage kidney disease, is now back to holding her own against the increasing odds of finally "being sick enough" to make her way up on the kidney transplant list.

Life if filled with so many challenges, but we focus on the good, the daily gratitudes of health, happiness, and the ability to bear whatever pains we might feel that day.....

read more at:

With Heart and Hands with Michele Bilyeu