Sneak peek

Today's card is a sneak peek of something that'll be on S&S tomorrow.....stay tuned!

For my church

My church's pastoral care ministry has been looking at me wistfully, hoping I'd get around to making more for them to use....I've been so unfaithful to them lately! So today I devoted the day to making some, and got 40 done (lots and lots of duplicates)....here are the 4 designs. All but the 2nd were CASEs of ones sent to OWH.....which do you like best out of them all?

Productivity!

Well, if you saw the earlier post with that pile of scraps and colored images - it's down to just a few little scraps now! All the images are on cards! Some are, well, rather simple cards - I ran out of steam as the evening wore on. But I was determined to clear off that pile. And I did! WahoOOooOO!!! 52 cards! What a huge sigh of relief to have all that used.  :)

February: International Muse Month

Mudbay Musings is hosting a blog party....and when they asked about paying homage to our muse, I thought - why not! I think of vintage-y and artsy when I think "muse," but all creativity needs inspiration...so I'll attempt to address mine.

They posted a list of questions, and though I don't think they all have to be answered, I immediately thought of some responses to some of them - so here's my thoughts.

1. Have you created a piece of artwork that embodies the spirit of your Muse? I'm not sure that one piece could exactly incorporate that spirit, but see the end of this post for today's attempt at that.
2. Are there people in your life that constantly inspire you?  Our OWH contacts! They amaze me every day...one of them posted a video showing his living conditions the other day....and it's just amazing they're willing to live in a tent they can't even stand up in! For me! How much more inspiring can you get?
3. Do you have an inspiration shelf or board in your studio? Not in the way the question is asked, but...I have a great little sketchbook that I jot ideas down in. If I keep actual pieces in front of me, I try to mimic them, but if I doodle it, then I'm relying on my poor memory - so it challenges me to make it my own.
4. Do your emotions find their way into your artwork?  Sometimes. When I'm blue or stressed, my cards tend to get reallllly simple. If I'm in a good mood or relaxed, the layers and embellishments increase drastically!
5. Are you renewed by taking walks in the beach or woods? Yes! I don't do it nearly often enough.
6. Does working in your garden refresh your soul? In spring yes....I get all full of plans and spend a lot of time in the garden, but by June 15th, my goose is cooked. I start resenting the mowing and trying to keep those dandelions out!
7. Do the antics of your children or pets keep you grounded?  Yes indeed. Ciara's need for some TLC stops me for a snuggle and can really make a big difference. She's a big snugglebug!
8. Do you love to surround yourself with particular colors?  I used to have a black pickup truck, but bought a yellow Mazda for my 40th birthday, and have just adored yellow ever since. I've since introduced more brights into my life :)
9. Does watching your feathered friends give you wings? I have a bird feeder outside my bedroom window, and love to watch them argue over seeds in the mornings!
10. Do favorite sounds or fragrances ignite the writer within?  Not sure about igniting a writer. But gimme the smell of certain foods...or the sound of bacon. Something is definitely ignited there!
11. Does journaling give life to, or put to rest, your innermost thoughts? I'm not a big journal-er, unless you count blogging and social media...my life's kinda captured online, and I haven't done much journaling in years.
12. Does the mere mention of a yard sale or flea market make your heart jump for joy?  It used to, til I realised how much stuff I have that I'll never use. My reponse to it now has to be, "STIFLE!"
13. Does your everyday world have another life through the magic of a lens? I'm no artsy photographer, however, in the past year or so I find myself documenting more of my life in photos, mostly for OWH. Sometimes it feels like another life - always looking for something to share with OWH donors to tell the story of what the cards do for our heroes, and what happens in the process. So...I've certainly taken more photos since OWH began, if that's what the question's asking. lol.

So now on to photos of my muse....or muses :) This project is a gift I'd been meaning to make to send to an attorney who helped OWH out in a big way—he's going to be working on our trademark process too, so I wanted to send a little something to thank him for all his help! I printed out the photos and mounted them on black foamcore, and trimmed them out. The red paper is stamped with stars, and the dark paper under the photos is a subtle navy blue pattern—not easily seen on these pics.

My craft room!

Lots of folks have asked, so here it is. Rambling gets a little discombobulated - things like having removed the rubber from my stamps. Uhm, no, I removed the rubber from the wood. And the colored pencil box is wood, not metal. Yes, I know the difference, I just can't talk! lol.

My Trifold Shutter Card

Marcy did a great tutorial on the OWH Stars and Stamps Blog - this thing is a pain to make, but I still like how it came out! All the papers decorating this are from the La Créme stack.

Much love

Ahhhhh another challenge under my belt! This time it's a great sketch from the S&S Blog by Karen - love it! (And if you missed the last sketch challenge cards, check out the post with this sketch - it has all the cards from the last challenge in a fun slideshow!)

So here's my take on the sketch...it's getting to be spring around here (sorry to those who are still getting snow! ha!) so my cards seem to have a lot of butterflies nowadays :) I'm loving this stack I got at Joanns a while back - yummy black and cream papers! The background one is flocked, and soooo soft. The image is stamped on that paper - a mix of several sets of flowers and grasses. The dotted edge on the butterfly and around the card is done with a silver pen.