CH-CH-CH-CHanges

I might working on a new blog....Which I hope to have up and running shortly! I needed the change! 

STAY TUNED!

Remembering hope...

   I did something I said I would never do again. I got another tattoo. It so wasn't planned.  I want to tell you the story behind my piece of artwork and why it means so much to me. In April of 2013, I was diagnosed with clinical depression. I always had bouts of sadness since single digits of age that I did not understand. It got worse as a teen. I learned to hide behind a mask of I'm fine. October 2012 began a spiral of despair. I sought help in April after spending months crying , in bed, ignoring everyone and everything.

    

       One thing I do remember is my youngest daughter coming home one day and telling me about the semi- colon project in about November. I was so touched. You can read more about the movement  and story here. I toyed with the idea of a tattoo of the semi-colon but I wanted it to mean so much more so I never gave it a lot of thought. Fast forward to last week....I am sitting in my kitchen working on a puzzle with my friend Erin and her daughter when I came across this article about one of our favorite actors.  Yes I was being that awful friend checking facebook. 

{PAUSE} This is going to sound very fan girlish, but I halfheartedly keep up with the actors from Supernatural because they are generous, charitable human beings using their fame for good. And the TV show is AMAZING! {UNPAUSE}

That article can be seen here and here. After reading those, putting on a suck it up you cant cry in front of people face I handed my phone to Erin, who got misty eyed and I said Don't if you start , I'll start and I won't be able to stop.  Lucky for me she was a trooper. I knew right then though that is what I wanted paired with my semi-colon. I drew this up the next day...

   The flat line in the beginning is representing the months I lost, the blip representing the help I received and I wanted the wording to look like a heartbeat ending in the famous semi-colon. I have had mostly positive feedback about it from random strangers who know what the semi colon represents and was called an inspiration. I don't see it that way. This is my visual hope to not let this illness win the war, because even as I write this I am having a down day. It sucks and it affects everyone in family on these days. But we troop on and we #Alwayskeepfighting.

Pocket Letter MANIA!!!

     What's up fellow humans? I want to thank my dear friend Bridgett (lol everything starts with that sentence on my blog.) for introducing me to this new fandangled craze, called pocket letters. Have you seen/heard of these? If not, I recommend you search the internet high and low because they are EVERYWHERE! They are the brain child of Janette Lane. Click here to learn more. For those who do not know, the basic concept is you take a baseball card sleeve ,put some pretty decorated pictures (ATCs for you art people) in there, fill each pocket with a few goodies (one being a letter), and send it away. It is designed to fit in a normal legal size envelope to save shipping costs. We all know I don't do normal, so lets show you some I have done.

      I reality I have done 4 already before these. I just didn't take pictures of them silly me. This is number 3 in the series I have made for Bridgett. We pick a theme for each one. First was just trial. We both feel that didn't go so hot. 2nd was beach , for it is a favorite of hers. 3rd one is my favorite thing STAR WARRRRRRSSSS! (Don't cringe Jeanne...)

 

 I used the multitude of Star Wars related things I have in my stash. And I can be honest I shed a tear, or 10, when I cut the paper. I am ok now it was the first step that was the hardest.

   This next one I made for a YouTuber that Jeanne turned me on to. Her name is Sarah Wooley, her channel is Something Different and she is funny as all get out. I just had to send her one. 

This one was made to represent everything about me. I wanted her to get to know me on a personal level so on the back of every pocket is something about me. When she removes her goodies there is still something pretty to keep!

Last but not least, we have one for Jeanne. Her favorite color is yellow and so I tried to make it pockets full of sunshine. If that is now stuck in your head sorry not sorry.

Now that you have seen what pocket letters are would you be interested in trading any with me? If you are interested hit the contact me button or the purple email button on the upper left and send me an email telling me you would like to with your address and I will get started. I  can honestly say I am hooked.

How 1 project can make me loose control

A big reason my blog has suffered so much is I have not been crafting. I have not been crafting because I have this thought process in my head that I simply can not move on until I finish a big project or class. Well, the bestest signed me up for a copic online class for my birthday A YEAR AGO! I just finished it up today and would love some feedback on my progress. 

 I can not for the life of me get a hold of that dainty flick thing! CAN NOT! It is aggravating beyond all belief and this is why it took me so long to get through the class. Then a week ago, I decided no more procrastinating and just sat down and did it. 

Add that to my goal of quilts and well you see where this is going...

 I have 3 quilt tops done but now I am in the process of hand quilting the designs. You know the part that is huge and will take FOREVER! Lucky for me, this is my evening craft because this can be done sitting ,watching movies with the family so more crafting shall be had! If I have not lost all my readers what do you think I could do to help combat this way of thinking that I simply can only do one thing at a time?

Miles Apart

The main reason I bought the Wish You Were Here stamp set by Lawn Fawn was because I knew I was going to make my bestest some cards with it. It is so hard living across the states from each other.  Sometimes you just have to send thinking of you cards.

For her card I thought these cute wood veneer states by Studio Calico would make a great accent. Washington in purple for me and Texas in green for her. Stamped with x's for us both. 

  How do you show your best friend you care about them , if you guys live apart?

   

Traveling the world....one card at a time

A recent discovery for me is the Lawn Fawn Company. Well, not to recent but I don't count knee deep in the seasonal swing because when I can shop ,its for Christmas.

The thing about Lawn Fawn that I LURVE ,LURVE, LURVE (besides the cute factor) is the fact that the sets have coordinating dies that are so easy to use with their sets.

When I finally got a hold of this wish you were here stamp set,

I knew I had to create something soon. Here it is...

Colored with an x where I live (approximately) on a pop dot to show that my friend should be here. OK maybe not Here , here but definitely closer then across the pond!

Head on over to the Lawn Fawn Store and let me know which stamp set is your favorite!

The impact of having a planner

I used to love my Dilbert Dayrunner planner. He stayed faithfully with me through high school. Then I had kids, then I moved to a foreign country where I didn't work and just raised them. He wasn't as useful anymore. He's still around in the capacity of an address book. I fell out of the habit of needing him. This last month I tried to revisit him and bring him back to life. Unfortunately, his parent company just didn't have anything to suit what I needed. Bummer I would have loved to use all his bells and whistles then it hit me. I really don't them. 

    Now with the movement towards planners and binders, I love me some of the companies out there. Again though, I just don't need all the detail planning that these companies offer. Lovely Bridgett said lets make our own. Well, I researched it and the problems I had were 1. just about EVERYTHING is printed on 8x10 format & 2. the few I did find for smaller sizes would still need a binder and this thing lives in my purse. Ladies you all know what abuse we put our things through in our purses and bags. A binder just wasn't going to work. 

Let me show you what I found that works for me. First some supplies, I decided on these 4 colors to use with my awesome calendar stamp set.

 

The set was given to me after a friend decided she no longer wanted it and I didn't think I would find a lot of uses for it but I made it hang around. Good thing too.They are the perfect size.

My only requirement was it had to have a monthly and a weekly calender.I had so much going on that a monthly just wasn't going to cut it. I found this beauty at Target for $7.99. 

   

 

The front of the cover slides out so I can personalize it with the crafty stash! YAY! Until I do though the manufactured one is pretty. I made 3 paper clip markers to mark sections off some areas of my binder.

I love that the tabs are monthly...and that the cover extends beyond them so no accidents to rip them off.

First, inside the cover I have my stickie note pad Bridgett made for me and the front page I use as a dashboard of sorts.

    

This planning page I believe I will use to jot blog ideas. I don't need a lot of room for that because as long as I don't forget the idea I will be ok.

   

Next is the monthly calendar where I stamp and color coded important things. I also highlighted all the holidays. Here I will just do a quick note , like Dr. Dentist etc

  

 

Then in the weekly I will write the important details....

     

There is another planning guide in the back and I plan on using that for ideas for possible you tube videos but I did such an awful job on the last one I may never do another one!

Some note pages and on the back of the last page I have my most frequently used addresses for quick on the go mailings.

The binder clip in the back holds important paper work

As an added bonus I can take this out when I get home and write the important things on our family calendar. That way even my husband can't say he doesn't know what I have going on!

There it is my planner and how I try to keep it all flowing together. Do you use a planner? If so whats your favorite brand?

A holiday unknown

Like most Americans today, I will be celebrating the day noshing on some nummy Mexican food.
Do you really know what the day is about? I know most people think its a Mexican independence  day, but that isn't until September 16th. The holiday is actually the Mexican army’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War (1861-1867). It is also just a minor celebration in Mexico , but here in America we have turned it into a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage. A lot of cities will even host a parade, mariachi bands, and festivals. 

 I find it odd that we celebrate it here in America, but hey we have also changed St. Patrick's day into a party holiday, so why not let the Mexican culture have some fun. What's your favorite Mexican recipe? Share it in the comments and Have a Great Holiday!

Irish you luck

I barely had to breathe let alone craft the last few months, but some days I just broke down and had to for my sanity. One of my dearest friends , Bridgett Owens over at Bridgett's Strawberry Blues, is in love with everything Irish. One of her main bucket list items is to visit Ireland.  Naturally, I could not let Saint Patrick's Day pass without sending her a card.

 

I tried out the new trend of bohkah. I sponged 3 colors of green and added various layers of white circles.  It turned out wonderfully and I can not wait to try more backgrounds with this technique.

If you craft have you tried this yet? If so, did you like it?  Leave a comment and let me know!

How I lost 4 months of my life

I don't mean literally. I mean my blogging life. I had such good motivation and inspiration. Overnights were done, I had projects in mind, . and bam! It started, life in the most unexpected ways. 

 It began with a co-worker going into labor and me taking over her position while she was on maternity leave. By the time I got home, I was done. I cooked ,did laundry, did the mom thing, played taxi, etc. etc.

   Then guess what decided to make another appearance (4th time in 4 months)? Bronchitis. My doctor was getting a little tired of seeing me for this. Apparently, between October and January,  I don't have time to slow down and take care of myself~snicker~ Also, I am still being seen for my liver function, But I am happy to say the numbers are going down. My liver is repairing itself with some help. 

    My Children, boy where do I start there? Let's just say we have spent more time in the ER, doctors , and specialists then I EVER want to see again. We are still in the works of getting their health on track. K started it and M is finishing it strong. From pneumonia to worrisome health scares the last couple of months has been a hair pulling, disheartening, sometimes anger evoking, high blood pressure causing ride.

     The hustle is slowing down now. We are all finally working to new goals to stay healthy, financially, and sane. I look forward to sharing the journey along the way with a few crafty things thrown in.  I must know, when life throws curve balls your way what seems to fall through the cracks? How do you make time for yourself? And how do you continue to do it all?

My 12th Man projects

I would like to start saying I am a Cowboys fan living in Seahawks Territory. Yes, it makes for some very interesting months at work during the holidays when I show up wearing my jersey. It doesn't help when one of my favorite and dearest best of friends is a Seahawk fan and I have untold access to Seahawk fabric and craft supplies. So for Christmas I bought 2 yards of fabric to make her this infinity scarf...

Photo by Erin Peasner

While on enforced bed rest I decided I needed to use up all my excess fabric supply and so I decided to make a rag wreath. Lucky her she gets the benefit of all my left overs lol. Like I said How Bout Them Cowboys?

 

In total I used approximately 3 yards of left over fabric to make a 12 x 12 square wreath.

Starting out I cut all my fabric into 9 by 2  inch strips.

Here are my piles. and wire frame ready to go. ( sorry like I said I was on bed rest and so tried to stay in bed as much as possible.

Taking one strip folded in half  I slipped it under the wire..

then grabbed the ends through to tie a "knot"

The back will look like this as you tie

Worked all the way around the frame and fluffed it up....

Here is what it looks like outside on my window where it will not stay LOL. I just wanted a picture in natural lighting.

Receiving is nice too

I have been an awful friend and have not bragged on my friends in a long, long time. I have gotten some wonderful cards and I have not shared them. Well, I am taking care of that now. My picture quality is not the best so cards are prettier then they appear lol.

First up is a Christmas card from my friend Amber. The polar bears are cute!

2nd is from my crafty pal, Denise over at Being Craft-De, That's me!  I love the peaceful feel and pop of red in this one.

Now for Jeanne over at Jeannie's Happy World. I have decided that it is my mission to start actually mailing letters and cards again. I do not want it to become a lost art. Jeanne is all aboard and sends replies so I have a few to share of hers. First up her very awesome Lawn Fawn christmas card.

This is one I recieved in reply to one of my cards I sent her...She says it was a beginners card LOL let me tell you she is talented because my cards now aren't this layered and gorgeous!

This is a bad bad picture but the card is absolutely adorable. Another Lawn Fawn ditty ( I find it ironic we both fell in love with Lawn Fawn about the same time. Great minds and all LOL) for my fall card. Love it!

and the crown jewel of the collection. This literally sat on my German wall unit for months so I could see it everyday it was so amazing. A lovely peacock she took a lot of time to color , flecked with gold and layers with flowers and gorgeousness. Yes I have amazing, talented friends!

I think as crafters we need to start using all these things we make and mail these creations to brighten peoples day. Think we can commit to that? Take one day a month and mail some sunshine to peoples lives? I think so.