Thursday, February 24, 2022

American Pride


We always love watching the Olympics!  This year it felt bittersweet with The Games being held in China and with the threat of war in the Ukraine which has since become a reality.   Human rights and personal safety for the athletes were a constant underlying concern. 


It would have been awful to have trained so hard for so long and then not get to compete so diplomatic boycott while still sending our athletes seemed like a satisfactory compromise.  We are so very proud of our US athletes and the 25 medals they brought home from Beijing!  It was especially exciting to have medalists from Florida and from the UP of Michigan!  


I enjoy working with themes and incorporating symbolism into my projects.  My Stamp Simply project for today celebrates the indomitable American spirit along with the Olympic spirit of setting goals that shoot for the stars, staying the course and remaining true to your inner compass!  This Graphic 45 designer paper worked perfectly for this theme and the sentiment inside echoes my continued prayer for the entire world!  

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Thursday, February 17, 2022

Fresh Springtime Greetings


Hi!  I'm here today with Springtime Greetings inspired by the tulips that my husband gave to me for Valentine's Day!  They are SO pretty!  


I had a hard time getting a good photo of today's project.  Here's what it looks like as it slides out of its envelope.  I used a narrow fishtail banner die to cut through the fold of the card stock so that the sentiment can peek through and that fun Spring garden print shows even when the card is closed.


That sheer bow adds some sparkle without overpowering the delicate flower.  


There's a sprinkling of hearts and a small trio of flowers die cut from the polka dot paper using our new Welcome Baby dies. Dotted Swiss always makes me think of Easter dresses from my childhood, so along with butterflies and garden implements, this card heralds the coming of Spring.  Our azaleas are already blooming and I've noticed a few of the redbuds starting to flower.  I am looking forward to seeing the dogwoods blossom!

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Thursday, February 10, 2022

Refuge from the Storm

Hello again!

This week's Stamp Simply project is a card of encouragement.  Sometimes life feels tumultuous and entirely out of control, and we feel tossed like waves upon the ocean.  Hopefully a card made with these beautiful papers, calming colors and inspirational verses will bring comfort and calm.


The beautiful paper is from a new pad from Craft Consortium.  I tore the edges to emphasize the white core of the paper and then went over the torn white portion with clear wink of Stella, also adding some "ocean spray" splashes with diluted silver ink and white acrylic paint.


Here's the inside.  Such powerful symbolism for which, when one's heart is torn and one's mind is in chaos, a reminder is appropriate! 

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Thursday, February 3, 2022

Still Loved, Still Missed, and Very Dear

 

Hello dear stamping friends!

If you are like I am, you find sympathy cards very difficult to make.  Sometimes it is easier to make a few "generic" sympathy cards to pull from when the need arises.  Other times, because of your relationship with the person and their family, you might be inspired to make something much more personal...then the act of card-making becomes a labor of love and the first step in the process of grieving their loss.  That's what today's card was for me.  

My dear, sweet 99 year old auntie passed away in mid-January. She was the second oldest of my dad's five sisters (he was near the middle and the only son!) and had a large family of her own, so most of my memories of her are (no surprise!) in her kitchen/home where she hosted our extended family gatherings.  There were lots of smiles and laughter that go along with a house full of cousins, aunties and uncles who didn't see each other nearly often enough! I remember her as a pretty, petite woman with a fresh face and rosy cheeks who never seemed to get flustered, nor did she ever seem to mind having us underfoot in spite of whatever mischief we might've gotten into.  (One time we got into a watermelon rind fight, launching our half-eaten rinds over the badminton net in their backyard...and hitting one young cousin in the eye! Thankfully nothing serious, although it certainly could've been! Yep, we were trouble and with so many of us I'm sure we kept the adults always on the lookout and often on the run!)


Although this is a sympathy card, I wanted it to be soft and feminine in celebration of my auntie's life and her sweet personality rather than serious, dark and depressing, so I settled on a variety of pretty prints from one of my newly arrived paper pads, It's a Girl!  The pad has lots of designs that are very specifically baby, but there are others that are perfect for other occasions including this one.  The pad also has quite a few printed tags, some with sentiments and others like this one, a perfect frame for stamping one of your own.  This one is from our Sympathy Sentiments Set 2.  I added a few pearls and nothing more.


For the inside of the card I used more of the pretty papers, die-cutting a stitched heart from one of them for an accent.  This sentiment is another from the Sympathy Sentiments Set 2. 

Aunt Ret, you are definitely still loved, still missed, and very dear! Your family is in my prayers.  xo 

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