Tea for Two-sday! Alicia & Karla!

Hello again dear friends, and welcome to another very special Tea for Two-sday at Just Bee 'n Me!! I started Tea for Two-sday as a way to introduce two sweet, creative souls from my blogroll to each other and to all of you dear readers. I try to select two friends who have different styles or use different media, or perhaps are from different parts of the country or the world, who might otherwise not meet.

For this Tea for Two-sday I am THRILLED to introduce Alicia Padron and Karla Dornacher!!

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I met sweet Alicia, an accomplished children's book illustrator from Venezuela, very early on in my blogging days when I was regularly participating in Illustration Friday. I kept being drawn week by week to her winsome, soft watercolor characters and critters who displayed such innocence, but who also knew how to have fun! Alicia is such a sweet soul...you can see it in every stroke of her brush!

I thought this way-too-cute tea party illustration of Alicia's was a perfect one to share for this occasion!!

(Copyrighted illustration courtesy of Alicia Padron)

I couldn't be happier for Alicia who has now illustrated two lovely children's books: I Love You All Year Round and The Wish Trees...both available for sale...



(Image courtesy of Alicia Padron)

These books are absolutely beautiful and the stories are very touching...

I love it that Alicia will sign and personalize this dedication card (below) if you'd like to include it in with one of her books when you give it as a gift...such a neat idea! You can find out how to receive one on the sidebar of Alicia's blog...


(Copyrighted illustration courtesy of Alicia Padron)

I just had to share this next photo from Alicia's blog because it touched me so. This group of children from Zambia are gathered around a copy of The Wish Trees. The author of the book, Andrea Koehle Jones, has been in Africa visiting children and donating copies of the book. Click here to let Alicia tell the story... I can only imagine how gratifying it must be for an illustrator to see her work being enjoyed by children from across the globe!

(Photo courtesy of Alicia Padron)

Oh yeah, you definitely don't want to miss this - please click over to Alicia's blog and scroll down her sidebar to see her Visual Stories section where she shares two of her illustrated short visual stories set to music..."Little Lost Fox" (seen on her main website too) and "Little Phillipe Longs to See the Big Universe". These are just the sweetest things...turn up your speakers, sit back and enjoy....you will just LOVE them both!!! And if you want a glimpse into the process Alicia uses to create her awesome illustrations, click here!

Please be sure to stop by and say "hi" to Alicia - I'm sure she would love to meet you, and I KNOW you will be blessed by her warmth, good cheer, and amazing talent!

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And now, I am SO pleased to introduce all of you to one of my heroes, and a dear friend, Karla Dornacher, who makes her home with her husband in the Great American Northwest!! I was first introduced to Karla's work when someone gave my Mom a precious coffee mug as a gift a few years back. This adorable mug was graced with Karla's sweet illustration of a garden angel with little flowers and seed packages all around, as well as a Scripture. (that is to this day the mug I always drink coffee from when I visit at Mom and Dad's!!) From then on I was hooked on Karla's wonderful work, found on any number of books, cards, and gift products!

Imagine my delight when Karla announced that she had started a blog!! I could now look in on Karla's world that she so graciously shares and hear the stories behind her illustrations, as well as get a glimpse into her comings and goings...and let me tell you, she is the real deal...a true sweetheart!!

You may be familiar with Karla's work from her wonderful illustrated devotional/gift books she writes...I encourage you to have a look (read details here)...they are so warm and insightful and beautiful...and they are very tactile too with lots of little dimensional extras like an envelope with a sweet note tucked inside. Best of all, they are filled with awesome truths from the Word that Karla has lived out in her walk with the Lord.

I have Down a Garden Path sitting on an end table in my living room - I just LOVE it. The gorgeous morning glory illustration below is from that book...(you know how I love morning glories)

(Copyrighted illustration courtesy of Karla Dornacher)

Karla has also created numerous sets of WAY CUTE clip art for personal use in scrapbooking, homemade gift and card-making, women's ministry gatherings, and a host of other uses! Her seasonal sets are currently available here at Aimee Asher. This sweet Easter set is her most recent:

(Copyrighted illustration courtesy of Karla Dornacher)

Karla has recently wrapped up almost all of the work on a new book she has written and illustrated coming out this fall (I believe) called "Give Thanks"...I'm sure it will be wonderful in every way!! The following illustration is from the book...and Karla sweetly shared the process for painting this gorgeous image:

(Copyrighted illustration courtesy of Karla Dornacher)

I also wanted to include a photo of Karla's studio that just got a makeover...I LOVE to see where artists create, and this room is a beautiful reflection of the sweet gal who creates here! See more of Karla's studio makeover here... You gotta love a makeover!!

(Photo courtesy of Karla Dornacher)

Finally, I wanted you to know about an aspect of Karla's life that you may not be aware of - she is a gifted speaker and shares her insights and testimony of God's goodness and unfailing love at numerous women's gatherings, retreats and teas throughout the year!

As a former women's ministry leader, I've seen how powerful it can be to have someone share from the heart about God's faithfulness in their lives!

I hope that you will head over to Karla's and greet her...she is an amazing woman and you will no doubt love getting to know her!

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Thank you dear friends for stopping by for this special occasion today!! I hope you have enjoyed meeting Alicia and Karla as much as I have loved introducing them to you! And please continue to stop by as I have more sweet creative friends over for tea...and you never kn0w...you might just be one of the next invitees !!