The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga: Giving and Receiving

I will be attending the Seven Spiritual Laws of yoga teacher training in July (if I pass my pre-test, which I started yesterday. :) I'm super excited and I want to share this journey with all of you. Every day there is a spiritual law with a corresponding mantra. It is a great practice to concentrate on these ideas throughout the day and during your yoga or meditation practices. (The week really starts on Monday but since life is all about starting where you are right now, and it's Monday, let's start here. :)

Oh yes! There's Sanskrit! Which I'm super excited about learning.

Monday: The Law of Giving and Receiving

Sanskrit: Om Vardhanam Namah (I am the nourisher of the universe)

Everywhere we go and whomever we meet, give them a gift of a flower, a smile, or simply look in their eyes and say namaste. Receive your gifts from the universe with gratitude and keep the circulation of wealth in your life by giving and receiving of care, love, and affection.

Happy Monday!

Artist Highlight-Jane Dixon

I am so so excited to have the lovely artist Jane Dixon as a Pink Light "guest" artist! Jane is such a pleasure to work with and I am always so happy to see her beautifully coordinated designs. I could tell the first time I chatted with Jane that she had a beautiful aura about her and she translates her positive energy into her bright, fun, unique patterns.

Joyful color, funky shape, and quirky line are the bits and pieces that make up Jane Dixon’s illustration and pattern collections. Inspiration is found mostly in nature, music, and everyday experience: simplified and twisted just enough to make a whimsical and stylish statement. Favorite subjects include florals, bugs, fish, and animals, city scenes, and culinary delights.

With a background and work experience in studio painting, graphic, and product design, Jane opened her own studio in the Chicago area in 2007. She designs for the stationery and greeting card, home décor, party, advertising, and publishing markets. Companies who’ve sought her designs are Target, Andover Fabrics, Solo Cup, DesignDesign, Carolina Pad and Paper, Wilton, Burnes Group, Great Arrow Graphics, and Scholastic Books.

Thanks for sharing your light with Pink Light Jane!

Shown here are a few of my favorites. All designs below are copyrighted by Jane Dixon. :) Enjoy!

Pink Light Design for CardsDirect.com

Artist's Kristin Knych and Mary Beth Freet have designed collections for CardsDirect.com for their latest birth announcements! A few designs are shown below and please see the rest of the designs here (top 12 are PLD)!

The designs are quite lovely and we had a great time collaborating with the smart team at CardsDirect!

Just a few happy thoughts...

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.

Anne Frank

Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.

Leo Tolstoy

Earth laughs in flowers.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Teach only love, for that is what you are.

A Course in Mircles

Pink Happy Thought for the week

What I learned this week:

When I say yes to what I really want, life seems to flow much easier. Let's say yes to what makes us happiest even if it seems like there's not enough time or not enough resources. When we just say yes, everything has a way of working itself out. Here's to saying yes to love and joy and spending time with family, even when we have a million things "to do". What we really have "to do" is simply "to LOVE".

Pink Light at Printsource!

I am VERY excited to announce that Pink Light will be premiering in the fashion industry (returning to my roots) at Printsource in NY in August! Hope to see you there! More details to follow...

Wednesday's Woman: Khristian A. Howell, Surface Designer and Photographer

I am so excited to feature my dear friend Khristian A. Howell as this Wednesday's successful business woman who is working it! I miss sitting 8 feet away from her at Nordstrom but I am so happy to see where she is now! Thanks to Khristian for being a constant source of inspiration for many!

Hi, I'm Khristian and I make surface patterns, take pictures, and eat lots and lots of olives.

Let’s keep it simple…I am determined to live each day doing what I love. Right now that includes surface design, graphic design, and photography. Some would call my love of French culture an obsession – I choose to call it passion. I could (and will soon) live the rest of my life eating olives along the Mediterranean and riding the trains of Europe.

Each day, each step in this adventure as a working artist, gets better and better, and I learn more about myself and how I see the world.

I just completed my first Surtex and I am still basking in the afterglow! The experience was so amazing, I could not capture it all in a blog recap. So spur of the moment, I wrote a book about it all! Confessions of a first timer is my way of addressing the roller coaster of emotions, second guessing, and just plain fear that anyone feels thinking about doing their first trade show. I also share a bit of how to and what I will do even better next year. Writing this book was truly cathartic for me. It also gave me great closure on one of the most challenging and rewarding times in my life. Completing it gave me clearance to move on to the next level in my business. I sincerely hope it will help anyone thinking about diving into Surtex or the Licensing Expo, the extra boost of confidence we all need.

Five things Khristian loves most in life and business:

1/ travel. especially paris.

2/ my wonderful, amazing, magnificent husband

3/ building my business with integrity and following my instincts.

4/ belly laughs with my best friends

5/ pink champagne

Tuesday Teen Talk with Maryah: Fresh Attitude Dance Recital

FRESH ATTITUDE 2010 DANCE RECITAL!!!!

I have taken dance at Fresh Attitude Dance Studio for the past 5 years…and I love it! There are lots of different ways that I like to be creative and dance is just one… but probably one of my favorites, because I love performing, being with my friends and wearing crazy outfits!

Last weekend was our 2010 Dance Recital!!!! There were 9 hip-hop dance classes and 2 lyrical with nearly 150 students that made up our two hour show. The whole thing was SO much fun… from getting ready back stage, to performing, watching the other classes and ending each show with the grand finale!

This was the dance where we got to wear our “tye dye” t-shirt!!! I love how they all looked together on stage with bright lights!

Here, we danced to a song called “Do or Die” by the ‘Bandwithnoname’… it was a fast, upbeat song that was hard to learn but our class did a great job and we had a ton of fun performing it.

THE FINALE!!!!!! At the end of the show our entire studio came out on stage and did one final performance together! We had a blast!!! I can’t believe that the year is over… and can’t wait for next year!!!!

“I hope you never lose your sense of wonder, You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger, May you never take one single breath for granted, GOD forbid love ever leave you empty handed, I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean, Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens, Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance, And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance. I hope you dance....” (Lee Ann Womack)