A Bit Of A Break

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Take Time Out To Take A Dip!

Look at the unexpected visitor that appeared outside my craft room window the other day!!!!  I'm sure I was the only one that was excited to see this Cooper's hawk - I think the small birds in the yard went to hide!  He started out on the edge of the birdbath, drank a bit of water, and then he decided it was time to walk in and take a bit of a dip!  I've decided to take a bit of a dip myself - to take a time out and dip into my thoughts and allow myself a week to not have any responsibility for posting to this blog.  That's not to say that I definitely will not post (see how hard it is for me to take a time out!?!) - I am just giving myself permission to not show up here for a week if that is what I choose.  I hope that you too will take a time out from visiting the blog for a week and spend those precious moments dipping into your heart or mind or soul and seeing what awaits you!  Enjoy your time out and I look forward to meeting with you again soon....next week...or possibly sooner :)  Enjoy!

Four Ways Friday #53 - Elements Of Style

This week's Four Ways Friday focuses on the gorgeous Elements Of Style stamp set!

Line images lend themselves really well to watercolor painting.  Here I stamped the floral image onto watercolor paper using Jet Black Staz-On ink.  I then used my aqua painter and made a palette using the lids of my Rose Red, Pretty In Pink, Certainly Celery, and Wild Wasabi classic ink pads.  I watercolored the flowers and then added a dash of dazzling diamonds with my 2-way glue pen.  I stamped the greeting from Sincere Salutations using Staz-On as well and then mounted the panel onto a Wild Wasabi card base using glue.

 

Designer paper makes an excellent base for stamping too!  Here I took a piece from the Brights Pattern Stack and stamped the floral image using Chocolate Chip ink.  I then stamped the greeting using the same ink.  Next I stamped the bird onto a small piece of the same designer paper and then cut it out and popped it up on the card front using dimensionals.  The entire panel was then adhered to a Rose Red card base.

I love to create background papers using stamps and ink and this set is great for doing that!  I began with a piece of Sahara Sand card stock and then stamped the curvy line stamp (I'm not sure what to call it!) using Crumb Cake ink.  Then I stamped parts of it again using Chocolate Chip ink.  I added a few adhesive pearls and then sprayed the panel with a mixture of water and Chocolate Chip ink that I keep in a mini spray bottle.  I then distressed the edges of the panel using my fingernail (you can use a distressing tool too).  A piece of Very Vanilla seam binding was tied around the panel and knotted.  I stamped the greeting onto a piece of Naturals Ivory card stock using Chocolate Chip ink and then punched it out with a 1" circle punch.  I distressed the edges with my fingernail and then sponged the edges with Chocolate Chip ink.  I popped the circle up on the panel using dimensionals.  The bird was stamped using Marina Mist onto Very Vanilla card stock, cut out, and then adhered to the panel with dimensionals.  I ran the Sahara Sand card base through the Big Shot with the Framed Tulips embossing folder.  The panel was then adhered to the card base using dimensionals.

This final card is quick and simple!  I began with a Very Vanilla card base and stamped the curvy line image using Sahara Sand and the stamp-a-ma-jig to make a diagonal pattern across the card.  I then added a bit of dazzling diamonds for some sparkle!  The greeting was stamped using Sahara Sand ink on Very Vanilla card stock and punched out with a 1" circle punch.  I added a few adhesive pearls and then popped the circle up on the card with dimensionals.
I hope you've enjoyed this week's Four Ways Friday!  Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you have a weekend filled with love, laughter, and creativity!!!!!!

One Stamp Wonder Thank You Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Just Try It - You May Surprise Yourself!

I remember when my dad got his first computer and I decided I needed to give it a try.  I had no idea what I was doing, but somewhere I saw the command "init" in the book that came with the computer and I decided that would be a fun one to try.  As I just said, I had no idea what I was doing so I entered that command and hit "enter."  Well, what I did without intending to was initialize the disk that was in the drive - ie I wiped out everything that was on it.  Oops!  I didn't make anyone happy that day, but what I did do was get over my fear of computers.  I figured that as long as I didn't enter "init" there really wasn't anything I could do that could get me into big trouble!  It can be very rewarding to approach life in the craft room this same way - to realize that there really isn't a ton of damage you can cause and that if you just give things a try you may just surprise yourself!  Today, without any prior experience with free-motion embroidery, I decided to give it a shot.  No, I didn't create a masterpiece, but I did surprise myself!  I actually started to see what it was like to treat your needle like a writing instrument and began to enjoy the process (even if the product needs a lot more practice!).  So go ahead, whatever it is you've been longing to do in the craft room, just try it!   You may surprise yourself!
I decided to share a One Stamp Wonder card with you today.  The only true stamp I used was from the Thank You Kindly stamp set.  The other areas were created by masking and sponging; inking the edge of an expired gift card and running it across the card stock; and inking up a pencil eraser and using it as a circle stamp.  I did add a touch of sewing on the machine to add some texture, but it really isn't necessary when making this card.  Just the simple designs are enough.  I hope you like it!

Spanish Happy Birthday Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Watch A G-Rated Movie!

Call me silly, but I love a G-rated movie every once in awhile :)  We can get so inundated by sex, violence and horror that it can feel good to kick back and watch something easy.  Okay, I admit it - I watched Ramona and Beezus and I enjoyed it :)  Actually, I loved the message of Beverly Cleary's wonderful character Ramona.  She is a girl with an amazing imagination and she knows who she is, quirks and all.  Oh to be as wise as this 9-year old artist of life!
Today's card was a quick birthday card for a Spanish-speaking friend.  I spelled out the happy birthday sentiment using the Calendar Alphabet & Numbers stamp set plus a marker to add the punctuation.  I used the eyelet border punch to create some interest on the bottom and backed it with Old Olive card stock.  I added a flower I made with my scallop circle punch flower technique.  The leaves are retired Sweet Pea felt embellishments.  I hope you like it! :)

Die Cut Fabric Flowers Collage

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Get A Haircut :)

I am not big on getting haircuts.  I'm not sure why.  Maybe a part of it is feeling like I don't really have a hair "style" and that my hair can just grow and still work for me.  My hair is actually naturally curly and when I am at home I have a tendency to just throw it up in a bun and not worry about it (I am definitely not a walking fashion statement when I am at home and spending time in the craft room!).  When I travel for work my routine is to straighten my hair.  It's almost a part of the "costume" that I put on for my work.  When I'm home I'm in the most comfy clothes I can find (and clothes that I can get paint or ink on and not worry about it).  When I am away and working I put on the "professional" costume - and it feels like my hair needs to change to go with the "mask" of "professional me."  It is also a lot easier to deal with straight hair when I'm on the road since I can straighten it once and then go a few days without washing it and still have it look just fine.  Anyway, I finally reached the point of feeling like I had too many split ends and was just "over" my hair so I finally made my yearly haircut appointment...although I hazard to say it had been quite a bit over a year since my last one...you can imagine the split ends!  Today I am sitting here with shoulder-length curly hair and it feels sooooo good!  The spring is back in my hair and my step :)  Sometimes all it takes is a little haircut to feel refreshed and energized!  Hopefully I won't have to put my costume back on too soon :)
Today's collage is another fabric flower play piece :)  I took fabric, die cut it with the Big Shot, and then "dyed" it using all different colors of ink mixed with water and applied with small spray bottles.  I then combined the fabric flowers with paper flowers, some real twigs and some hand-cut and sewn designer paper leaves.  This collage makes me smile when I look at it :)  I hope you like it! :)

More Of My Collage Journey

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Sometimes I Need To Take A Break From Technology

When I find myself obsessively checking email or cnn.com, the local news or facebook, I KNOW that it is time to take a break from technology.  I get caught in these cycles of mindlessly going through a routine of checking a certain number of sites and I am literally numb while doing it.  It's just habitual and I don't walk away feeling like I've grown or used my time wisely.  So today (Monday), I am taking a technology break.  I am writing this post and the post for Tuesday on Sunday evening as I listen to the far off popping sounds from the 4th of July fireworks in the neighborhood.  Sometimes I just need to take a break from technology and try to find my center again.
Today's collage is a part of my continued journey with creating art that is not in the form of cards.  Here I combined old dictionary pages, paint, gesso, stencils, ribbon, die cut fabric, glitter, found objects.  If you look closely, you can probably identify the Stampin' Up! products (I am still in love with those adorable Sweet Pea felt embellishments :)  I hope my time off from cards is not disturbing for you if you tend to stop by here for card samples.  My hope is that these collages will provide you inspiration - whether that inspiration is how to translate an idea to a card or whether the collage makes you take out a canvas or a wooden board and give collage a try! :)  I hope you are inspired in some way and remember, the beauty is in the process :)

Work In Progress

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  I, Like My Art, Am A Work In Progress!

Four Ways Friday will be back next week.  This week I've been trying to bust through the limits I have set for myself and my art.  Consequently, I have been spending time making art other than cards.  What I am learning through this experience is that I continue to be a work in progress - just like my art making! :)  I am learning to be patient with myself as I play with new and different materials; as I work with new and different shapes and sizes; as I work with a different rhythm and flow.  I have been enjoying the journey - it has taken me out of my comfort zone and into the unknown.  I am not a finished work of art and neither is this piece I am sharing with you today - we both have a long way to go! :)
Today's collage-in-the-making was inspired, once again, by my favorite place on earth - the backyard!  We have blue jays that come to visit almost every day.  They have trained us very well!  When they arrive in the afternoon, they announce their arrival with loud cawing and then wait for us to respond by going outside and bringing them peanuts and seed :)  I love that this gorgeous bird has been able to domesticate us! :)  I began with a primed canvas and added flexible modeling paste using sequin waste as a stencil.  I then added gesso and strips of paper to the background.  Next came some embossed foil that I ran through the Big Shot with the Petals-A-Plenty embossing folder.  I then painted the foil with gesso and sanded it and then snipped it into little strips and added it to the canvas using gel medium.  Next came the addition of the stick.  The flowers were made quite awhile back - I guess they knew better why I was making them!  The minute I looked around the craft room and saw them I knew they were meant to be on this canvas!  The flowers were made with die cut metal and bottle caps colored with alcohol ink.  They were attached to the canvas with gel medium.  The bird began as a laser printed picture of a blue jay.  I cut it out and then covered it with tissue paper and then a coating of gesso.  Next I used acrylic glaze to turn it blue and followed that with some charcoal pencil and black pan pastel to add details and dimension.  He was adhered to a plastic piece and then adhered to the canvas.  I am not sure what I will do next...in my own life or with respect to this piece! :)  It is the unknown that is actually welcoming me - inviting me to play!  I'll share the finished piece with you once it unfolds!  Have a beautiful, creative, fulfilling weekend!!!!!!  (p.s.  Don't forget!  You can start ordering from the new Stampin' Up! catalog today!!!!!  Yeah!!!!!)

'What's Left' Collage Inspired By Charlotte Lyons

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Be Present With What Is Unfolding.  - Merle Rosen

This piece was inspired by an article I read in a free ebook I downloaded from Cloth Paper Scissors.  The article was entitled "What's Left" Collages and featured collages by Charlotte Lyons.  The article was enough to send me running into the craft room to play!  This collage, like the others I am sharing with you this week, was not done in one sitting.  Rather, it has grown over the course of a number of days - sitting within sight on the craft table - and slowly built...little by little...until it reached a point where I felt it had unfolded.  Being present with what is unfolding can feel challenging at times.  Our inner critic pipes up and tries to discourage us.  Our own internal messages around time and productivity can strangle our creative freedom.  Allowing ourselves to leap these tall "buildings" - these obstacles that try to block our creative way - in a single bound is our way to be our own superhero!  Why not try being present with something as it unfolds - you may be surprised at your own super powers!!!! :)
This collage began with an 8"x10" canvas board and grew from there.  I added fluid acrylics, gesso, stenciling, fabric, and all kinds of bits and pieces that were hiding in the craft room!  Bottle caps, die cut letters, rub ons, keys, buttons, fortunes, tiny playing cards, cardboard, beads, designer paper, book pages, ribbon, string - oodles and oodles of fun!  I have a feeling I will be playing around with more of these collages in the future.  I love the challenge of being present and watching what unfolds!  Hope you like it!

Mourning Dove Mixed Media Collage

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Keep Going!  You Can Always Paint Over It!

I am continuing my breaking of limits by working on collage and setting aside cards and most of my Stampin' Up! products for the week.  One of my favorite times of spring is when the mourning doves return to our backyard.  They have been coming back each year.  Sometimes they are fewer in number, sometimes greater.  I love their beautiful cooing sound and the sound made by the beating of their wings as they less-than-gracefully propel themselves into the air :)  This collage was all about honoring these gorgeous birds.
Would you believe this collage started out as a blue-painted canvas?!  Hard to believe, I know.  Yes, I decided I didn't like the color so instead of starting over I just kept on going - kept painting over layers - again and again until something seemed to emerge that I liked.  This is a lesson I continue to learn about art making.  The ability to keep going when the inner critic starts getting loud and obnoxious.  Just keep going!  You can always paint over it!!!!!
What did I use to make this collage?  A better question might be, "What didn't I use?!"  Let's see:  canvas, modeling paste, parchment paper, bird photo, sewing machine, parchment paper (which nothing will stick to!), feathers from walks and the backyard, sticks, beads, clock parts, burlap, paint, marker, charcoal, more paint, painted tissues, gel medium (matte), bubble wrap, sanded styrofoam colored with ink....I think that covers it....although I reserve the right to add more to the list at a later date!  How long did this collage take me?  Hard to say - I had to allow different stages of modeling paste and paint to dry.  I left the canvas on the craft table as I worked on it so that I could keep walking by it and continue to add to it as I was inspired to do so.  I guess it came together over the course of 3 or 4 days.  It's been really enjoyable busting out of my self-proclaimed limitations and now I'm just going to keep going!!!!!

Collaged Mirror

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Let Your Art Go Beyond The Limits You Have Set For It!

One of the struggles that I face as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator is the sense that I need to always be creating cards with the latest and greatest products we sell.  I realize that this is a limit that I have put on myself and I am ready to go beyond this limit!!!!!  So today I am sharing with you a project that uses very few current Stampin' Up! products and a whole lot of other miscellaneous craft and art supplies that I had in the craft room.  What a freeing experience!!!!!!!!  I am contemplating spending the rest of the week focusing on creating art that goes beyond the limits I have set for myself.  This may mean that I won't always be posting finished art pieces for you, since creating beyond my limits means allowing for art projects that don't happen in 10-30 minutes - they may take days or weeks...or, gasp!, even months! :)  What limits can you go beyond in your own art work????
So, what Stampin' Up! products did I use?  You can probably find the Staz-On ink used with the Calendar Alphabet & Numbers stamp set on fabric.  You can also see some old retired SU! sets hidden in there as well (look at the dresses on the angels).  Ooh - do you see the Baroque Motifs stamp?  And then there were all kinds of other art/craft supplies:  chipboard, bottle caps, rhinestones, fabric sprayed with SU! inks, alcohol inks, beads, Crystal Effects, paint, old book pages, a mirror and yes, some SU! card stock.  This mirror is by the back door of the house so that I can see it every time I head outside - a reminder to live in this very moment.  Maybe I need to make a second mirror to remind myself to continue to go beyond the limits I have set for myself in my art making! :)

Broadsheet Alphabet Bookmark

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Pay Attention To Your Natural Rhythm

I have been traveling quite a bit for work in these past few months and I find that when I travel my "pace" seems to be "full speed ahead!"  I am the one who is almost race-walking through the airport once I arrive at home, believing that moving a bit faster will get me home a bit faster...and every second counts when it comes to being home!  I have been home for just over a week now and my body is finally returning to what I believe is my natural rhythm.  When I am at home long enough to decompress I find that the rhythm I enjoy is one of slow contemplation - the ability to sit in the backyard and weed the garden slowly.  Walking the dog at a pace that is recognizable as slow and steady - not hurry and get it done.  I feel so much more at peace when I am attune to my natural rhythm.  I wonder how I can bring this peace to my pace when I travel.  I know it begins with my inner dialogue.  I wonder what I can whisper to myself that will remind me to just "be?"  To let myself flow at my own right pace.  To be respectful of my body and its rhythm.  What is your natural rhythm?  How do you encourage yourself to respect your own pace?

Today's project was one of a number of quick bookmarks that a friend came over to make for a family reunion she was going to over Father's Day.  We used card stock (in this case a combination of brushed silver, whisper white, early espresso and sage shadow- retired).  The white was run through the Big Shot with the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder.  The letters were stamped using the Broadsheet Alphabet and Chocolate Chip ink.  The ribbon was sewn on with the sewing machine.  I hope you like it!

Four Ways Friday #52 - Pennant Parade SNEAK PEEK!

Wow!  It's amazing to think that I have been doing Four Ways Friday for 52 weeks!!!!  That's a big milestone for me!  I hope you've enjoyed Four Ways Friday as much as I have :)  This week's Four Ways is all about the new Pennant Parade stamp set!  I had a ton of fun coming up with ideas for how to use this adorable new set!

The idea for this first card came to me in the shower!  I seem to get ideas when I am totally relaxed - either on my morning walks or in the shower :)  I used one of the pennant stamps to create the "arms" of this star.  I stamped them with Riding Hood Red and Night Of Navy ink and cut them out and then scored them down the middle.  They were adhered to the card with glue.  I made the paper rosette by cutting strips of designer paper 3/4" x 6" each and then scoring them each 1/4" and then gluing the ends together before using hot glue to form the rosette circle.  I adhered the rosette to the card with pop-up glue dots.  A rhinestone brad finishes the center.  The small star stamp from the Pennant Parade set was perfect for this card!  I die cut the "4" using my Simple Numbers dies and the Big Shot.  The July is from the Full Calendar stamp set and the "happy" from Fabulous Phrases.  Finally, I sponged the edges of the Natural Ivory card base with Night of Navy ink.

This second card uses the pennants in a much more "traditional" way.  I stamped the pennant onto Pink Pirouette card stock with Basic Black ink and cut them out (I don't have the pennant punch yet, but I have a feeling I'll be ordering it!).  I then stamped the letters from the Calendar Alphabet & Numbers set in Chocolate Chip ink onto Baja Breeze card stock and punched them out with the 1/2" circle punch.  They were popped up using dimensionals.  The "hello" was stamped in Chocolate Chip and the card stock was cut to make a mini banner.  I adhered the crochet thread to the Natural Ivory card base and then adhered the pennants.  The bunny from Forest Friends was stamped using Chocolate Chip as well and then I used my sewing machine to stitch around the edges of this simple card.

Don't forget that you can cut up the triangle shape of the pennants to make other shapes!  Here I turned a pennant into the bottom of a cupcake and used the scallop circle punch to create the top of the cupcake.  I frosted the cupcake with faux frosting made of styrofoam (you can see my video on how to make this faux frosting HERE).  The background was stamped in Regal Rose using the A to Z stamp.  The "wish big" from the Pennant Parade set was stamped using Tempting Turquoise.

Of course, I couldn't waste the little piece I cut off of the pennant!  I decided it looked like an ice cream cone!  I created the scoop of ice cream using the scallop oval punch and the 3/4" circle punch.  I added sprinkles (tiny "waste" from my small hole punch) and covered them with crystal effects.  The greeting on the decorative label is a combination of two stamps from the Fabulous Phrases stamp set stamped with Melon Mambo.
I hope you've enjoyed this Sneak Peek at this adorable new Pennant Parade stamp set!  Thank you so much for stopping by and celebrating my 52nd Four Ways Friday with me! :)  I hope you have a wonderful and creative weekend!!!!!

Upsy Daisy 3x3 Stenciled Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Be Inspired By The Color That Surrounds You!

I went to the Denver Botanic Gardens today and was awe-struck by how gorgeous nature is!  The colors and textures, the types and varieties - just stunning.  I came home and all I wanted to do was try to replicate the bursts of color that I saw in the gardens.  Here is one scene that inspired me:

I used Melon Mambo, Pear Pizazz, Rich Razzleberry and Old Olive to try to capture some of the color.  I sprayed the Pear Pizazz with mixtures of water and ink and frost white shimmer paint.  I sewed the panel to give it the texture of vines.  I sprayed the vintage stencil using Elegant Eggplant ink mixed with water.  The greeting was created using the ornament punch (I cut the top off of the ornament) and used the greeting from Upsy Daisy stamped with Rich Razzleberry.  I sponged the edges, added some rhinestones and popped it up on the card with dimensionals.  I hope you like it!  Here is another picture from the Gardens - maybe it will inspire you!  Isn't nature AMAZING?!?!

Artistic Etchings Altered CD

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  How About Signing Up For An Art Class?

I took what I consider to be a big step today.  I signed up for a 3-hour workshop on book binding!  I am really excited about it!  Somehow I had myself convinced that I could teach myself all I needed to know by reading books, watching videos, and experimenting.  I guess if that was my only option it would suffice.  However, what I realize I'm missing is the human interaction and the ability to have a teacher with me, watching me along the way, helping me in the moment.  I can't even remember when the last time was that I signed up for a workshop/class.  Now it is something I am committing to.  I'll let you know how it goes!  If it goes well, you will likely see some hand bound books in the not-too-distant future :)  What have you been yearning to learn?  Can you take one small step in that direction?  It might just be doing a search for classes in your area or asking artists in your life if they have taken a class on that subject.  Moving in the direction of your goal will take you closer to it! :)
Today's project is an altered CD.  I actually collect quite a few CDs in my work life.  I do a lot of training and I always have a disk with the presentation on it - just in case something crazy happens with the version on my laptop computer!  After the training concludes, the CD is no longer needed.  So, rather than throw it away, I save it and then give it a makeover! :)  Here I used designer paper with gel medium to cover the entire CD.  I embellished it with some paper flowers I made using my scallop circle punch.  (You can see a video of how to make these flowers HERE).  I heat embossed the Eiffel Tower image from Artistic Etchings using black embossing powder and then mounted it on black card stock and cut it out.  I added a bit of Melon Mambo pom-pom trim.  The letters are a combination of alphabet sets - one current one being the Calendar Alphabet & Numbers stamp set.  I used my crop-o-dile to create a hole at the top of the CD and then added a large eyelet and striped ribbon for hanging.  I hope you like it! :)

O Canada Scrap Rubber and Punch Art Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Use Your Rubber Scraps!!!!!

If you have ever bought Stampin' Up! stamps, you know that they are die cut from a larger sheet of rubber.  They used to not be die cut and you would have to cut them out yourself.  Now the process is a lot simpler - the hard work is done for you :)  There is still left over "scrap" rubber from these die cut sets and I have a habit of saving the scraps.  Why?  Well, do you see the maple leaf image on this card????  I created it using a piece of scrap rubber, a sketch of a maple leaf, my craft & rubber scissors, and a wood block from the craft store!  What can you make from your scraps????

This card won an Honorable Mention in Stampin' Up!s July contest!  I was so excited!!!!!  It is featured on the demonstrator portion of the Stampin' Up! website in the on-line extras for the Stampin' Success magazine.  The theme of the contest was Land That I Love and I made both a U.S. card and a Canada card to submit for the contest.  When I thought about making this card an image of the mounted police immediately came into my head!  Must have been those cartoons I watched as a child :)  I decided there had to be a way to make the Canadian Mountie using punches.  Here is a close up:

I used the round tab punch for his shirt and the ornament punch for his pants :)  His hat is a portion from a modern label punch....his nose is too!  His arms were made from an oval punch.  He was a ton of fun to make!  The background of the Crumb Cake card was stamped with the Wood Grain background stamp.  The letters are from the Timeless Type alphabet run through the Big Shot and then coated with Crystal Effects.  I made the maple leaf from a piece of scrap rubber and then stamped it onto Whisper White card stock, cut it out, and popped it up with dimensionals.  I hope you like it!!!!

America The Beautiful Broadsheet Alphabet Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  It Is Amazing What Can Happen From A Passing Glance!

There are times when you just need to step away from you art.  You get to a place where you are unsure what your next move is.  You hesitate because you just don't know what to do.  It is at these times that I allow myself to walk away and do something else or I turn to another piece of art that I am working on.  I keep the original piece nearby so that I can keep glancing at it.  Sometimes I'll walk out of the craft room and every time I walk by the doorway I will give the art piece a passing glance.  It is these brief glances that keep my subconscious in "create mode."  Then, at a moment when I least expect it, it seems an idea will pop into my head for what the next step is!  Sometimes you just need to step away and then keep glancing.  It is amazing what can happen from a passing glance!
I had submitted this card for a Stampin' Up! contest focusing on the Land That I Love.  It didn't win...although it was a real winner to me :)  Tomorrow I will share the other card I submitted for which I received an Honorable Mention and won a free stamp set!  Yeah!!!!!!  I had a ton of fun making this card and it seems very appropriate as we near the 4th of July.  I masked off the Night Of Navy section and inked it up.  I then used the direct to paper method to create the flag stripes with my Real Red ink pad.  The stars are from the Extreme Elements stamp set and were heat embossed with white embossing powder.  The letters are from the Broadsheet Alphabet stamp set and they were stamped in alternating colors, cut out and then embellished with champagne glass glitter.  I added some twine and a tiny library clip as well :)  I hope you like it!

Happy Father's Day!!!!!

Happy Father's Day to all of the fathers out there!!!!  May your day be sweet and filled with love!!!!!!

Four Ways To Be Present!

I decided to do something a little bit different this Friday!  Since this was a week about reflecting on retired stamp sets, I thought that I would not introduce a new Four Ways Friday with a stamp set today.  Instead, I want to share with you some thoughts and images about Four Ways to be present.

1.  Plant a seed, watch it grow, and enjoy the fruits of your labor!
This is the first strawberry from our strawberry plants this year!  I am able to be present when I plant in the garden.  I also stay in the moment when I go outside and look at the plants in the garden - literally standing there and watching them grow.  I am also more present when I eat one strawberry that is homegrown as opposed to picking up a carton of berries at the store and eating them.  There is something about being a part of the entire process - from planting to eating - that becomes a part of the actual moment of enjoying the sweet flavor of the fruits of your labor.

2.  Stop to notice, and maybe even smell, the flowers!
I took my camera into the backyard the other day and began taking photographs of all of the different flowers that were growing.  It was amazing to look at them up close, rather than just walking by them and seeing them as dots of color on the landscape.  Being present is about really seeing that which is around you.  To do so, we may actually have to slow down a bit.

3.  Take a nap (outdoors)!
It may seem strange to say that one way to be present is to take a nap :)  Yet, giving your body exactly what it needs in the moment is all about being present.  It is about recognizing that now is all that matters because it is all that you have.  I learn the lesson of being present every day when I watch Willow.  She is the most present being that I know! :)

4.  Create!!!!!!
When I am in the craft room actually making something I am so in the moment!  For athletes it's called "being in the zone."  I guess we artists can call it the same thing :)  Time dissolves.  The here and now is all that matters as we devote our attention and energy to exactly what we are doing.  We experience a sense of timelessness.
It is in the present where we can find our sense of peace.  It is in the present where we can connect with one another.  It is in the present where we can be ourselves and be happy.  I wish you a beautiful now.  May you continue to bring your awareness to the gift of the present :)

Wanted Get Well Soon Card - An Ode To Retired Stamp Sets

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Presence Teaches That What You Do Today Is Important, Because You Are Trading A Day Of Your Life For It.  -Dan Millman

What if we actually stopped to consider this thought during each and every day?  That what you do today is important because you are actually trading a day of your life for it.  I teach workshops on topics such as negotiation, influence, and having difficult conversations and I am so conscious that the people that are in attendance at the workshops are trading a day, and sometimes two days, of their life for the experience of being at the workshop.  I know that some of them are told they need to be there by an employer.  Others are there because they decided they had a need that they felt the class could fulfill.  I usually start the morning by saying something like, "We are here together, in this room, for a period of time.  These are minutes of your life that you are not going to get back.  It is so important to me that when you leave this room you feel as if you did some of value with those precious moments of your life.  I want to feel the same way too."  I go on to ask them what their personal goals are for our time together so that I can be sure to do my best to help them reach the learning goals they have set for themselves.  I feel very similarly to the time you are spending with me now.  Please know that I so appreciate your stopping by my blog and reading these words and looking at these pieces of art that I share with you.  It does not go unnoticed that you are choosing to trade some of the precious moments of your life to spend a little bit of time with me.  I too, am trading precious moments of my life to capture these words and images, in the hopes that they will prove to be of value for both of us.  Thank you.
Today's card is an ode to the retired stamp set Wanted.  I used Chocolate Chip ink to stamp the images and a rub on for the greeting.  I love how the eyelets and the crimped card stock add texture and interest to the card!  I hope you like it! :)

Ancient Art Birthday Card - An Ode To Retired Stamp Sets

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Be Present

I am working hard, in this very moment, to keep myself present.  As I have shared with you, I find it so easy to lose myself in thoughts of the past or thoughts of the future and not experience the present moment fully.  This happens often for me and really gets highlighted whenever I am on an airplane...which is quite often these days.  I travel quite a bit for work and find myself on planes a lot.  Over time I have developed a pretty interesting fear of flying.  Interesting because I didn't used to have it.  My sense is that the fear is more related to the thought of not making it back home more than anything else.  So, as I sit on the plane, my mind starts to travel into thoughts of the future - particularly into thoughts of fear.  Will I make it?  Will the plane fly successfully?  Do the pilots know what they heck they are doing?  Where is my life vest if I need it?  What will it feel like if we fall out of the sky?  My heart starts to pound, I clench my fists, I am anything but relaxed and I am so in my fearful thoughts of the future that I fail to realize that in that very moment I am very safe, very alive, and the plane is flying perfectly.  I am continuing to remind myself to be present.  How about you?
Today's card is another ode to a retired stamp set (kind of ironic that in a post about being present I am paying homage to something from the past ;)  This stamp set was called Ancient Art.  I used my markers to color and stamp the images.  Do I get points for using one current set, Curly Cute, to stamp the word "birthday?!" A bit of stitching on the background adds some texture.  I hope you like it!