Category: Inspiration

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Inspiration On Demand

UNIQUE ONE-STOP, ESSENTIAL GUIDE FOR MOTIVATION IN WORK AND LIFE

— New social media-made book provides accessible, empowering messages for overcoming personal trials and reaching dreams

One in ten U.S. adults report being affected by depression. Facing his own personal struggles with depression, a negative mindset, divorce, among other things a few years ago, Joshua Coburn decided to create and post positive affirmations on his social media sites. As friends and fans from his previous projects in music, books, and tattooing began to take notice and utilize these quotes, they ultimately requested he create a book for them to keep close and reference as needed. Since the concept of a book filled with these affirmations was suggested to Coburn by others, he realized the project was as much about their want to see the development of a book as it was for his need to reinforce positivity in his personal life.

In order to fulfill all the wants and needs involved, Coburn planned the #ihelpedchangealife project. #ihelpedchangealife would allow these social media users to become a part of the creation and final outcome of a book they chose to title, Inspiration on Demand. Within the social media platforms, friends, followers and fans of Coburn s would vote on the title, dimensions, cover style, and all other aspects of the book s creation. Through Kickstarter.com, Inspiration on Demand was also funded by this movement.

Inspiration on Demand and the quotes within are no longer mine, says Coburn. They are of the people, and for the people who believed in the #ihelpedchangealife project and believe in positive change in all our lives.

Motivating and empowering readers to improve their daily lives, overcome personal trials and reach their dreams, Coburn, a self-proclaimed corporate oddity, shares quotes in Inspiration on Demand such as:

-Knowing your personal limits is as important as pushing them.

-Anger is an emotional prison, the keys to unlock the doors lie in the pursuit of happiness.

-If there is not a path to follow we shall create our own.

-Today is the best tomorrow that yesterday could have ever offered.

-By day s end, be sure you can look back and know you made the best of it.

I believe in going against the status quo, challenging society to be great rather than mediocre, adds Coburn, and I believe that together we can create a positive movement to improve many lives, not just our own.

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Inspiration 2014 Calendar

Inspiration 2014 Hardcover Engagement Calendar: Inspiration Engagement Calendar: Inspiration—whatever, whoever moves the human mind to produce creative thought or to exert greater effort. A family member, a friend, a leader, religion, nature, or the written word can inspire an individual to greater heights. What inspires you? The lush photography and inspirational passages in this weekly engagement calendar is sure to provide joy and rejuvenate the spirit. This calendar features 52 full color images alongside planner pages for each week of the year. The calendar begins with a 2014 full year calendarium and ends with a 2015 full year calendarium. It also includes several pages for personal notes. EAN: 9781465015396

Product Features

  • Brand New!
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The Cloth Paper Scissors Book: Techniques and Inspiration for Creating Mixed-Media Art

Where paint, paper, fabric, metal, and wax all come to play!

Uncover the very best articles and projects from Cloth Paper Scissors magazine. Editor Barbara Delaney has assembled a gold mine of hands-on inspiration and ideas for mixed-media artists of all types. Explore the exciting worlds of collage, journaling, encaustic, printing, assemblage, and more. Learn how to make interesting surface designs with Beryl Taylor, how to keep a uniquely-you sketchbook with Jane LaFazio, and how to transform a basic photograph into a whimsical wonder with Kelly Nina Perkins. The only rule in this mixed-media guide is that there are no rules.

In addition to the tips and techniques, the experts elaborate on their favorite tools and mediums, including paintbrushes, adhesives, papers, waxes, found objects, and more, taking the guesswork out of achieving tricky effects. Perfect for all skill levels, The Cloth Paper Scissors Book showcases inspiring projects for both those who are new to the world of mixed media and those who already love mixed media and are looking for exciting new ideas.

Product Features

  • Dimensions: 10.25 in. H x 8.5 in. W x .25 in. D
  • Weight: 1.35 ounces
  • Made in United States
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Paint Along with Jerry Yarnell Volume Two – Painting Inspirations

Painting Inspirations. There’s no better way to describe the stunning projects provided by Jerry Yarnell in volume two of his popular new series. His invaluable instruction and encouraging voice accompany each new artistic challenge, giving readers the inspiration and step-by-step guidance they need to master a variety of new painting techniques. They’ll learn how to stretch as painters and build confidence with brush control, color mixing, composition, values and more. Ten complete step-by-step projects include a gorgeous adobe Indian village, rocky cliffs, and snow-covered hillsides. Readers will finish each lesson with a completed painting – one that’s worthy of a special place on their wall.PBS painting star Jerry Yarnell follows the success of his beginner’s lessons in Painting Basics with intermediate painting projects in Painting Inspirations. Yarnell reviews some basic terms and techniques; presents his materials list (as in volume one, he uses a limited but effective palette); explains glazing, an important skill for acrylic artists; and speaks to his mixing technique. The bulk of the book contains 10 complete paintings presented in Yarnell’s popular step-by-step method. The compositions feature several landscapes in predominantly cool tones, such as a squirrel perched on a gnarled tree in a purplish, fantastic winter storm; a lonesome fence jutting across a cloudy lavender sky and soft green foliage after a rain; and a solitary lighthouse emitting a hazy beacon of yellow light against the deep blues of a crashing ocean and evening sky. Some of the techniques Yarnell explores include back lighting, the use of negative space, monochromatic effects, and discovering the exhilaration of fearlessly employing pure color. As usual, Yarnell intersperses his straightforward instructions with friendly advice: “You will want to do some experimenting with both brushes and different consistencies of paint. Each of us handles this kind of detail work very differently. The secret, however, is the consistency of the paint and the pressure applied to the brush.” –Mary Ribesky

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Recovering from Multiple Sclerosis: Real Life Stories of Hope and Inspiration

A deeply personal exploration of the journeys of 12 ordinary men and women diagnosed with multiple sclerosis around the world, showing that recovery is possible

A diagnosis of multiple sclerosis conjures up images of wheelchairs, paralysis, and a shortened life, but in fact it’s possible to regain mobility and make a recovery. This is a collection of 12 life stories of people who have been diagnosed with MS, and have been able to halt the progression of the disease and recover mobility by following a program of drug treatment, diet, sunshine, meditation, and exercise. These stories offer hope and inspiration to others diagnosed with MS, and an insight into the different journeys people take to recovery. Based on extended interviews, they also offer an understanding of the challenges faced by people with different types of MS and at different stages in the progression of the disease.

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Inspirations

Inspirations… Is a fantastic collection documenting the early artwork of photographer Carmen N. Tarasi, Jr. As a photographer Carmen says, “I am limited to create based on what I can see with available light as opposed to a painter who can create completely fictional images. And so my subject options are somewhat limited to those which actually exist.” He has excelled pushing those limits with his artwork. Discovering locations that offer themselves to his art along with developing relationships with his subjects enables him to capture stunning images as well as emotions. Experimentations with film and what he calls, “extreme processing” allows him to take his art from the natural to the supernatural. By mastering the reticulation process and developing his own special chemical staining concoctions he is truly able to transcend reality into a state of the surreal. Rules of reality as well as rules of photography are bent, remade or totally disregarded as he strives to achieve his art. He constantly strives to create his vision, present the essence of his subjects and invoke an emotional reaction from those who view his art. His process is truly unique. Contained within these pages are 30 breathtaking and extraordinarily beautiful works of art created by photographer Carmen N. Tarasi, Jr. Enjoy.

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Denyse Schmidt: Modern Quilts, Traditional Inspiration: 20 New Designs with Historic Roots (Stc Craft / Melanie Falick Book)

Denyse Schmidt is one of the leading quilters of the 21st century. Known as a “modern” quilter, she actually draws much of her creative vision from quilts of the past. In Denyse Schmidt: Modern Quilts, Traditional Inspiration, Schmidt pays homage to the quilters and quilts that came before her. Each of the 20 traditional quilt designs she has reinterpreted here (among them are Irish Chain, Mariner’s Compass, and Orange Peel, to name a few) is introduced with a lively overview of the pattern’s history. Instructions are illustrated, templates are provided at full size on a pullout pattern sheet, and a complete techniques section is included at the back of the book.

Praise for Denyse Schmidt: Modern Quilts, Traditional Inspiration:
“Denyse Schmidt’s contemporary art quilts are things of enduring style and beauty, but few fans realize her 16-year career as a textile artist began when Schmidt fell in love with tried-and-true, centuries-old traditional quilt patterns . . . Modern Quilts, Traditional Inspiration is the artist’s return to this fertile terrain, featuring her colorful and updated take on 20 time-tested designs. Full-page photos of gorgeous quilts full of those bold geometric shapes that first inspired her provide ample motivation, while detailed instructions, a pull-out book of templates, and a section detailing tools and techniques offer plenty of how-to support, even for novice makers.” —American Craft Magazine
“The book contains 20 traditional quilt styles that look exceptionally modern, hip, and fresh, with limited color palettes and minimal use of prints. To me, it is the best of both worlds—tried-and-true patterns with stories to tell, interpreted by this talented woman who helped define modern quilting. The modern/traditional debate is moot here, which is refreshing and wonderful.” —Sew Mama Sew!

“It’s been 7 years since Denyse Schmidt’s first book, and believe me, this new volume was well worth the wait…Whether you consider yourself a traditional or modern quilter, there is plenty of inspiration here, in projects that play with the tantalizing pairing of vintage patterns and contemporary colors. Although Denyse explains the origins and alternate names of many of the patterns, she rarely offers them straight: she riffs off old patterns like Mariner’s Compass and Wagon Wheel and strips them down to stark basics.” –Meg Cox, Journalist, Author, and President of the Alliance for American Quilts

“Denyse Schmidt never ceases to inspire us . . . We are very excited to announce her latest book, the simply breathtaking Modern Quilts, Traditional Inspiration. Delving back to the traditional styles that first sparked her passion for quilting, Denyse gives these twenty quilt patterns a modern spin with bold, beautiful fabric choices.” —The Purl Bee
“In this book, [Denyse] shows off a new gamut of wonderful quilts . . . She writes in such a quiet and contemplative way, reminding me that quilting at its best isn’t meant to be done in a hurry to crank something out.” —Spoonflower.com

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The Inspiration and Interpretation of Scripture: What the Early Church Can Teach Us

What is true of Scripture as a result of being inspired? What should divine inspiration cause us to expect from it? The answers to these questions in the early church related not just to the nature of Scripture’s truth claims but to the manner in which Scripture was to be interpreted.

In this book Michael Graves delves into what Christians in the first five centuries believed about the inspiration of Scripture, identifying the ideas that early Christians considered to be logical implications of biblical inspiration. Many books presume to discuss how some current trend relates to the “traditional” view of biblical inspiration; this one actually describes in a detailed and nuanced way what the “traditional” view is and explores the differences between ancient and modern assumptions on the topic.

Accessible and engaging, The Inspiration and Interpretation of Scripture presents a rich network of theological ideas about the Bible together with critical engagement with the biblical text.

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Stillness Speaks

In Stillness Speaks, Eckhart Tolle illuminates the fundamental elements of his teaching,
addressing the needs of the modern seeker by drawing from all spiritual traditions. At the core of the book is what the author calls “the state of presence,” a living in the “now” that is both intensely inspirational and practical. When the pressures of future and past thinking disappear, fear and frustration also vanish, conquered by the moment. Stillness Speaks takes the form of 200 individual entries, organized into 10 topic clusters that range from “Beyond the Thinking Mind” to “Suffering and the End of Suffering.” Each entry is concise and complete in itself, but, read together, take on a transformative power.Expanding on his mantra—Get out of your head and into the moment—Eckhart Tolle offers this new book on living in the now. Here Tolle emphasizes the art of “inner stillness”–the place where thoughts, ego and attachments fall always and we are left only with what the moment has to offer: “When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world.” Don’t expect this to be a quick skim or even a straight-through read. Like his previous bestselling book The Power of Now, Tolle uses brief entries and numerous white spaces to give readers easy in-and-out access into enticing spiritual insights that expound on inner stillness, such as learning the difference between surrender and resignation, overcoming the fear death, and how to end suffering. In fact, this is designed to be an ongoing conversation. Pick it up any time or any place, but be sure to allow for plenty of breaks for serious contemplation. Even as you occasionally abandon the book, don’t abandon the teachings, pleads Tolle. Embracing and practicing inner stillness is no longer a luxury, he writes, “but a necessity if humankind is not to destroy itself. At the present time the dysfunction of the old consciousness and the arising of the new are both accelerating. Paradoxically things are getting worse and bett! er at the same time, although ‘the worse’ is more apparent because it makes so much noise.” Devotees who have read all of Tolle’s books and audio tapes probably won’t find new ideas or information here. But they may appreciate the refresher course –revisiting familiar concepts in a slightly different package. –Gail Hudson