Variations and Possibilities

I’ve been doing a lot of card making this summer and teaching a friend in the process. One of the things that people new to certain crafts face is not having enough supplies. You see these pretty examples in magazines and on blogs of cards and scrapbook pages that people are making and you think you have to have all this stuff. It becomes daunting to some people and they step away, putting it off till later.

I wanted to show the different variations that can be introduced to a project using a limited amount of materials.

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I pulled 6 stamps from my collection that I would use for all the cards. Even though a couple of these stamps were purchased as part of a set, you could easily buy 4-6 individual stamps and accomplish the same result. Each of these cards has a different feel but they all relay the same sentiment.

Even thoughI made a set of each kind for a different recipient, it is important to remember that you can mix and match till your heart is content.

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This may be my favorite. It is handmade paper that I background stamp with stars/dots stamp with a bronze Thank You on top. I added coordinated strips of paper embellished with a brad. This is a simple one page card on the back of which the message would be written.

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This is a folding card with a separate piece of white card stock embellished on top. The stars/dots are stamped on the white card stock. The Thank You and flower embellishment are stamped in silver on a piece of vellum. The vellum is adhered to the white card stock with two eyelets. I made these in a varieties of colors. The inside of the card was kept blank.

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This is a fun little set that I put together using a variety of tags that I had pre-punched in my stash. I layered two tags on the card, each in a different position. The top tag is stamped with the Thank You and flower embellishment. The inside of these cards is stamped with the internal sentiment stamp. The back of the card is stamped with the doves.I thought about adding a ribbon tie or element to the tags but I was concerned about adding too much bulk in the mailing. These are gifts and I don’t want to unnecessarily increase shipping costs for the receiver.

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This is the more simplistic of the bunch. I kept the color pallet on the bland side which I like. These are made with scraps in varying shades of beige/ivory. The background square is stamped in grey and the Thank You in black. The eyelets just add a little more interest to the overall look. I also varied the eyelets that I used between three different metallic finishes that are in my stash. The inside of the card is stamped with the internal sentiment stamp. The back of the card is stamped with the doves.

I hope this gives you a good idea of the variation possible with just a few stamps and embellishments. Don’t let the plethora of stamps and supplies in the craft store stop you from trying.

Have fun!

Slow Down and Enjoy

I am one of those people that likes to feel useful and likes to be productive. Even when I’m not moving, I like to be constantly thinking through my schedule, my meal plans, my leisure time, my crafts, my life and making plans. I don’t enjoy excessive down time and I don’t enjoy work that keeps me busy but un-engaged. I don’t like feeling useless.

And this is exactly how I feel when starting a new job. There is always that amount of time that needs to pass while everyone tries to figure out if you really know the things you claimed on your resume. And you always have those situations where you have to be re-trained before you are allowed to perform the tasks you’ve been doing the last 11 years. I know! Training is necessary and I respect its place. But I want to rush through it all and become an active, productive member of the team.

I’m ready to show what I know and to prove that I really am worth six figures. I don’t know why I always think someone is in the background comparing my hourly rate to my production but I always do. Anyway, there are definite benefits to going into a new place and hitting the ground running, but there is also value in just taking a step back and observing.

The last three jobs I’ve had were a bit of a whirlwind. I learned a lot very quickly and I traveled a little too much for my taste, working crazy hours when needed so I was always showing my value in the most tangible and visible ways possible. My productivity was high but that came at a cost--I burned out quickly and often. When I mastered something, I was ready to move to the next thing. The enjoyment I once found in working and learning was fading more quickly with each new task that landed before me.

But my life is changing and my priorities are changing. I want to slow things down. I want to focus the passion I still have in my work and foster it into something new and exciting. I simply just want to slow down and enjoy what God has blessed me with.

There are so many changes coming at me all at once--new job, new city, selling my first home, getting married! I don’t want to rush through any of them. They all are bringing a certain amount of stress into my life, but they are also bringing me these incredible experiences that are blowing my mind. I want to savor each and every moment of this journey and show some gratitude for it all.

I am not one for making new year’s resolutions, but I am compelled to stop mid-year and resolve to slow down and enjoy.

Hiya!

Hello my lovelies. Yes, I’m still here but productivity has not been my friend lately. I am in Kansas now. I’m not completely relocated, but I am here and working and trying to figure out what life will look like here until the future husband joins me next year.

I foolishly thought I would be one of those bloggers that would keep everything moving during the relocation, giving you all the details here and there. The summer heat waves and shaky WIFI kept me from getting much done. Now that I’m cooler and connected, it’s still taking some effort to get back up and moving.

Soon, my friends. Soon. In he meantime, I am trying to get back into the swing of things by working on the one knitting project that I brought with me.

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This is the

Jared Flood Inversion Cardigan

and I am casting on the final piece. I have already stitched up and joined the first two pieces. Waiting until this thing was blocked just wasn’t in my DNA so I’m piecing and joining as I go. It really does look lovely and I can’t wait to wear it when the weather cools WAY DOWN.

Needless to say I have fallen a behind on my reading goals for the year, but I am very much still committed to meeting that goal. More on that soon. For now, I am sending some productivity mojo your way and hope that it serves you well in the coming weeks/months.