And the Winners are.....

I used the recommended Random Integer Generator to select the winners of my One World, One Heart giveaway, and this is the result:

Here are the random numbers:

15 Mary Isabella and Kiley too, who said she liked the blanket, so that's her prize, as hers was the first number generated

40 Shelley
112 Grouchy Whitecat
36 Stampgram
113 Youvegotmaille
109 Crystal

each of whom will receive one of the papier-mache items.

I've emailed them all, and am anxiously awaiting their mailing information so that I can get their prizes off in the post.

[EDITED 13TH FEB TO ADD: I have now heard from 3 of the winners. I need to place a deadline on getting your mailing information, so in case the emails didn't make it (although none bounced back, so I have no reason to think that's the case), please leave a comment here and email me if you are one of the winners. If I haven't heard from you by midnight GMT Sunday 15th, then I will have to select another random number, I'm afraid]

[Edited 14th Feb to Add: There are 2 remaining prizewinners who have not contacted me yet. Grouchy Whitecat and Shelley. I've emailed twice, and left a comment on Grouchy Whitecat's blog. (Shelley doesn't appear to have a blog). If you know either of them, can you alert them, please? I'd really prefer to send the prizes to the first winners drawn! Thanks!]

....

This was fun! I only got to visit a fraction of the 911 participating blogs, but so enjoyed those visits, and will enjoy popping into random blogs from the list over the coming months. The giveaways may be finished, but the purpose of One World, One Heart - bringing bloggers together - continues on.

I was delighted that 157 people - most, but not all, bloggers - came by and said hello.

Thank you to Lisa Swifka, who set the whole magnificent event going, and kept it rolling, and kept everyone organised and calm. One World, One Heart is absolutely amazing! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

One World One Heart

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Last year, I got such joy from participating in One World, One Heart. This year, the event just crept up on me. I didn't realise Lisa was gearing up and getting it all in place until just a couple of days ago. And what an undertaking it is! Lisa Oceandreamer started two years ago, creating a place where bloggers could meet and mingle, offering one another little gifts of something they have made, around Valentine's Day. I participated last year for the first time, and was the lucky recipient of a bunch of beautiful prizes offered by creative bloggers. The giving and receiving of gifts is lovely, but the even greater gift is getting to meet new people, to share interests. Some links made through this mingling last, some are brief "nice to meet you" encounters.

All the details are at the One World One Heart blog. You can participate by offering a giveaway on your own blog, or you can visit any of the participating blogs, leave a comment and be entered in the draw on offer.

This year, I have six items to give away.

Five of them are the product of a long-ago flurry of activity with papier-mache and decoupage. There are two vases and three bowls. You can be pretty sure they are each one-of-a-kind. The sixth item is in the background of the photo... It's a cream tweedy-flecked little lap-blanket which I've just finished knitting. It could be a baby-blanket either!

Leave a comment on this post in order to enter the draw for the giveaway. I will make the draw and post names of winners as close as possible to the date on which One World, One Heart officially ends - 12th February. You don't have to have a blog to enter. You don't have to be particpating with your own giveaway either. But you do have to make it possible for me to contact you if you win, which means leaving me either a link to an active blog, or an email address.

Ok.... Let's have fun! I'm so looking forward to meeting new bloggers and saying "hello" as I pick random participants to visit. As the count is now over 400(!!!!), I doubt I'll get to visit everyone, but I'll try!

Welcome if you haven't visited here before. I'm so glad you dropped by!

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Added Wednesday 28th... My link's just been added to the list on the One World One Heart blog today, and visitors have started to arrive in numbers. I'm away for a few days, so won't be visiting too many of you until next week, but I'm really glad you've come over, and I'll try to visit over the coming week... and beyond the draw too.

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Added 12th February..... Comments are now closed, and HERE is where I announce the winners. Thanks everybody for coming by, and hope we'll meet again in the Blogosphere. Pop back any time!

Abundance

Today has been a day of abundance indeed. I came home from a day that had its share of difficulty, opened my emails, and a flood of gifts was waiting there for me:

Laurel at Rue's Daftique informed me I'd been the winner of one of her beautiful pendant/charms.

And then, Catherine at This Girl Remembers let me know that I'd been selected to receive this series of prints:

Pam, whose beautiful prints are at her Etsy shop, will let me choose which one I would like to have. I'm having a hard time choosing, but think I may be opting for one which features a Hummingbird, because I love them. I also like the lady in the Orange Dress. Oooh. Decisions... decisions!!!

Then... Elaine at NZFlutterby let me know that I'd turned up as a winner of the wonderful horse-themed postcards which she has on offer:

Mary Ann at Firstborn, had 5 gifts on offer, and I was lucky enough to turn up for this heart-shaped tin, containing little goodies and charms

.... I know, I know... By now you are thinking "She's got enough... she's got her fair share... "

But there's more! Fatma, of Fatmasplace offered this wonderful soldered house, and now it's mine!

And Sophie, or Miss KoolAid, let me know that I'm among the winners of her altered slide mailers. Pretty?

And, And, And

In the post came an unexpected gift from a friend, a book of marvellous poetry by Angela Patten. I hadn't had a chance to read her in the past, but am so glad my friend shared this with me.

Have I been blessed with abundance or what? I have loved the experience of sharing in One World One Heart. I'm looking forward to visiting all the blogs on the list over the coming weeks and months. Thank you to everyone who entered my giveaway, thank you to the generous women whose beautiful gifts are coming my way, and thank you again, to Lisa Oceandreamer for putting it all together.

WINNER!!!!

I've just made the draw for my One World One Heart Giveaway, and the winner was the 23rd commenter of 104 (comment #105 was to tell me that I had won a prize!!!). The lucky recipient of my handmade book is Linda, who told me she'd been a long-time reader of my blog, although I hadn't known that at all. In other words - a lurker won the prize! Isn't that wonderful? And I know she was really reading, because when I went to look at her blog (I have visited all those who commented here - and quite a few more OWOH participants besides), back among her archives was a post in which she mentions her favourite poets - and lo and behold! There was my name! I blush!

I'm absolutely delighted to share another few of my poems with Linda,

AND, AND, AND,

How did I get to be so lucky?

I have won no less than FIVE prizes in One World One Heart! I was really excited about picking "my" winner, but this puts jam on it altogether! I really feel blessed with all the wonderful gifts coming my way. But the best gift of all has been meeting so many bloggers whose paths had not yet crossed with mine. I want to thank Lisa from the bottom of my heart for arranging this wonderful event.

I'll make a post later tonight showing the goodness I'm being gifted with, but wanted to announce the winner of my giveaway today!

Hope everyone is having a happy and love-filled Valentine's Day!

Pay It Forward

Pay it Forward

"Upon my many and joyous wanderings through One World One Heart posts this evening I was invited to join yet another inspired idea: The very artistic 'ladybug' from living in the light I find http://thelightifind.blogspot.com/ has invited everyone to take part in this Pay It Forward. I think this is a great idea...What happens you ask? Well, the first three people to leave a comment on my blog will receive a handmade gift from me. Don't look for it too soon - it may be a few weeks, but I will get them out to you as soon as possible. My request is that once you sign up, copy and paste the above on your blog and "Pay it Forward" by making the same promise"


I found the above among the new bloggers I have encountered through One World One Heart. Ellie felt she'd joined in too late to make something, but wanted to participate anyway, so she has two beautiful tiles on offer. And then, she posted that she had decided to make something to give to the next 3 people to post in a "Pay it Forward" idea started by AlteredDiva.

Now that I've put my name down on hers, I've agreed to do the same here, so within the next couple of weeks, hopefully, I'll be making a few more little books, each with a slightly different selection of my poems, stories, memoir-bits, to offer to the first 3 people to request one in a comment, and to commit to paying it forward on their blogs.

If you arrive after the first 3 commenters, you can still enter the giveaway I am offering for One World One Heart. It is HERE

How did I get to be a Rock Star?

It's amazing the things you'll find as you wander about meeting new bloggers in the course of an hour's One World One Heart browsing.

I found out how to become an instant rock star, for instance. All you have to do is (I found these details HERE) :

Through a random search, you come up with your bands name, the title of your album and the album cover photo.The rule's are, you can't keep refreshing the link ... work with what you get. Let’s make a band:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random The first article title is the name of your band.

2. http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3 The last four words of the very last quote is the title of your album.

3. http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/ The third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.Now take your photo, add the band name and title to it, then post it.

I particularly like "Police Dog" as the name of my band. But I also really like the picture. Unfortunately I left Flickr after I'd copied the photo, and forgot to take details of the photographer. The page wasn't stored on my browser, so i couldn't go back to find out. My apologies.

I'm having such fun meeting all these new-to-me bloggers. And so far I've only gotten to visit the people who've entered my draw (Scroll down! Scroll down!) and a few others. There are lots and lots.

One World, One Heart Giveaway

Lisa Oceandreamer does wonderful things at her blog, Heart of the Nest, and one of them is the bringing together of people from all over blogland in this event.

She invites bloggers to sign up to One World, One Heart, to give away something - preferably but not necessarily, handmade. You can read all about it Here .

I thought I'd like to have something to give away, but my time is short these days, and I thought I wouldn't get around to making something, and then, today, it struck me that I could offer something I've already half-made, by gathering some of my poems and a couple of small stories (some previously unpublished) into a little hand-made book. Here it is:

It's quite plain, but is embellished here and there with gilt decorations, and a little colour where appropriate. It is a one-off, so if you would like to have it, then join in by putting your name in a comment. The draw to select a winner will be made on Valentine's Day, February 14th, and I will contact the winner for details of where to mail the book.

Then go and check out the huge list of other participants whose blogs you can visit to put your name in the draw for their artwork and other items. And having visited once, the idea is that we get to know a whole lot of other bloggers through this event. Enjoy!