What's in a Name... ???

No doubt you've heard all kinds of sayings about names... How important a good name is, how much better it is to have a good name than riches, etc... I've always had a "thing" about names. I've always wanted to be sure I spell others' names correctly (and that they spell mine correctly, too), always been interested in how people's names were chosen, what the name means in the original language, and so on...

So, I suppose it comes as no surprise that, now, I have a framed name picture hanging in my living room!!! LOL!!!

Remember all the stamped "name frames" that were REALLY popular a year or two ago? I sort of took that idea and built on it a little... Here's what it looks like and what I did:

My surname is now Japanese, thanks to my DH, and my maiden name was German! I like to tease him that our union represents the "axis" nations in WWII... Weird, but true! LOL!!! Never mind that we BOTH are citizens of the USA, and our families had been, as well, before WWII! LOL!!!

Anyway, wanting to create a piece of framed art based on our surname, I asked a dear friend, who is from Japan, to do our name in Japanese calligraphy (kanji) for me. She sweetly obliged and her work is featured in the top portion of the piece.

The other section of the piece spells out our name vertically, with each letter of our name as the first letter in a Bible scripture that means a lot to us. I tried to come up with scriptures that were representative of our family in some way, and here is the result (all from the KJV):

A -- As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, o God. Psalm 42:1

R -- Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, Rejoice. Pilippians 4:4

I --It is God that girdeth me with strength and maketh my way perfect. Psalm 18:32

M -- Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His presence with singing. Psalm 100:1,2

A -- And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. Psalm 9:10

I printed the verses out on a transparency sheet, then backed it with a piece of brushed gold CS, attaching it with gold mini-brads.

After creating the art panel, my next step was to cover the mat with some washi paper that coordinates with my family room decor.

The frame with the filleted mat is actually one I picked up at Fred Meyer(?), with a different piece of art in it. I just liked the frame and, since the picture was on a great sale, I figured I could remove the original work and insert my own! I have to say, though, that installing the fillet back onto the newly-covered mat was a little tricky! There has to be a way to make it a little easier... I just haven't figured it out yet! LOL!!!

Anyway, I'm very pleased with the result!!! Hope you like my little experiment, too!

Blessings,

M.