ALY ALLEN | THE BLOG

this print has a funny story behind it. i originally designed it knowing that it was an important verse for a lot of you, and i thought you might like a cute way to display your mission of parenthood. as i was designing it, i thought, of course, about how i have two little ones at home. and how it's my responsibility to teach them Love, show them Grace, point them to a Savior. to sharpen and mold and ultimately spur on in the direction that God has ordained for them, since before they were born. it's not my choice what they do, but it's my job to help them do it well, whatever it is.  as i was thinking about my two girls, i wondered why i'm so set on having no more kids. if i'm honest, it's because i don't think i'm a good mom [whatever that means], i know i'm failing miserably in a lot of areas, and i'm just pretty sure i shouldn't add any more children to the mix. but this verse caught hold of me as i remembered the incredible bles...

this print is not new. it's been around for quite some time, back when i was dabbling in the hand-drawn world. i sorta gave up on that, but i still loved this print with all its perfect imperfections, so i kept it in the new shop ... [ buy it here for just $11 . sale goes through sunday] the verse comes from Matthew, the sermon on the mount, also known as "the beatitudes". this one in particular is one of my favorites because i know it to be true. genuine hungering and thirsting for God always fills us like nothing else. like Jeremiah 29:13 that says "you will seek me and find me , when you seek me with your whole heart". what a special promise. He can be found, He wants to be known, and He will fill our deepest longings. i'm not sure if there's anything in all the human existence better than that. a God who loves us, who died for us, and who still wants an intimate relationship with us after all that we've done to mess it up. just recen...

this print is dear to my heart because it's the first verse my daughter ever memorized. she was two years old and i'm sure i was the only one who could understand her, but she really did memorize it perfectly. the first verse, anyway. here's the proof captured on video . i initially chose this verse for her to memorize because i wanted her to know from an early age that God is always with her, and that He can handle anything. as she has grown, it's become apparent that this was exactly the verse for her. even at 3 1/2 years old, she struggles with fear. she's scared of the dark, she's scared to be in her room at night alone, she's scared to walk upstairs by herself [even during the day]. each night i remind her Who is always with her, even when i'm not. i don't want to raise her to be dependent on me, because i will let her down, i will not be with her every second of her life, and i just can't fix everything. but God can be and do all those th...

last week i started a little series called "behind the print" because i want you to know my heart behind each of the prints that i design and offer in my shop. they're not just verses that i've picked at random. most of the time, they're not even really verses i think you would like, i'm sorry to say. usually they're verses that have had an impact on me, or are impacting me right now,  that i just have to design. it's a form of worship and it's an opportunity to thank God for the Truth He's teaching at any given time. sure, there are a few that i just think are great verses or i know they'd be popular, but that's not most often the case. [available here] my heart is just recently starting to believe this and understand the gravity of this beautiful Truth. God's workmanship, His girl, created to do good works and He's already planned them out? i mean, it's heavy. yet it's freeing at the same time. i love the myste...

i think it must have been Beth Moore who first acquainted me with this verse. she's always so full of encouragement for mamas with young kids, always pouring so much Grace over us. i remember the days when i believed that i had to have it all together: i had to wake up before my kids and have my quiet time, i had to complete all the days of Bible Study "homework" and have plenty to add to the discussion. i had to pray for a certain amount of time about a broad range of topics every single day. and i remember those days were full of lots of condemnation and guilt and not much heart change or growth. it was more about checking it off the list, which didn't happen frequently enough for my standard, instead of genuinely hungering and thirsting for time with the Lord.  one day, i absolutely do want to implement a daily before-the-kids-wake-up quiet time. absolutely. but "before the kids wake up" is anyone's guess these days, you know? could be 3am, could...

designing prints really isn't the easiest thing for me. i mean, i absolutely love it, but it's not like i can just sit down and say "i am going to make a print out of john 3:16 right now". it just doesn't work that way. more often than not, it has to be a verse or quote that i'm passionate about  at that moment  that i just have to put onto a print or else my brain will explode. it's out of the overflow of my heart that the verses are chosen and the prints are designed. sometimes i hate that i'm this way, because it makes custom orders really difficult and because i will often be right in the middle of my day when inspiration strikes. at that moment, it feels like i have to drop everything and open photoshop elements before the inspiration is gone. the actual design process is pretty organic. there's no magical formula, i just try different things until it looks right. that's another thing i sorta hate, that i can't whip something up in...