Back 40 love

After yesterday's post, I'm feeling the need to use up some of my more current SC kits. I have made pretty good progress on Back 40 (and addons.) LOVEd this kit!

Modified Becky Fleck sketch from her newest book

Another Becky Fleck sketch.

A little hand embroidery with Scrapper's Floss. I even remembered how to tie a French Knot!

A new MS punch - yes, I'm addicted. But this one can punch anywhere!

I'm going to borrow my beautiful niece more often so I can scrap pretty, girly pages!

Ha! The berries are pink, so I get to use pink paper, no matter what McKelle thinks...

These papers could not have been more perfect for this picture. They matched the playground equipment to a tee!

Only 2.5 years!

This could be a problem. It took 2.5 years to use up a whole Studio Calico kit!

My very first one - Newstand - and it is finally gone. Just a few random chipboard letters and maybe a sequin or 10 left. That's it. I used it all! Two and half years....

Lovely Fall, y'all!

November has been a definite improvement. True, I am on a hyper dose of steroids, which comes with its own set of issues, but it has definitely calmed the Wegener's symptoms and I am breathing much easier. I am determined to find a workable tapering solution for the prednisone, but for now, I am just happy to be over the blah that was October.

Oh Autumn, how I love thee. Cooler days, crisp clear nights. The softer sunlight filtering through trees ablaze in their red and yellow glory. Weather perfect for hot soups and fresh bread. No worries about heating up the kitchen to bake cookies and all things pumpkin. Planning the turkey and stuffing and sweet potato casserole for Thanksgiving and most importantly, the thoughts of family that will attend. Counting gratitudes and remembering each day what a blessed life I live.

Saw this display and had to make one of my own. I looked all over in my limited little town and couldn't find brown bottles (which I adored!) so I used canning jars instead (these are specifically for crafters - smooth sided with no embossed label.) Picked up some bunches of wheat and cut the vinyl letters with my Cricut.

Jumped on the pennant banner wagon and made this simple one in less than an hour. I cut burlap in triangles, stamped each pennant with Jenni Bowlin paint and some giant letter stamps that I picked up at the BYU Bookstore this summer, attached it to a length of twine with my TH Tiny attacher and added some punched leaves.

And finally, just a frame with mat, backed with some pretty Autumn-ish paper and a simple sentiment in my favorite Thickers font (also colored with the Jenni Bowlin paint.)

Happy, happy fall y'all!

Something's gotta give

And what gave was pretty much the whole month of October.

Struggling to figure out why I feel worse than I did at the end of summer. Seeing the ENT, the nephrologist, the pulmonologist and any other -ist who might have some idea why we're not seeing remission yet. Upping the prednisone after spending last Saturday in the clinic getting chest x-rays and breathing treatments.

I LOVE October. Absolutely, 100% adore it. I love fall and Halloween is my absolute favorite holiday. I love the decorations, the food, the costumes! I anticipate the season all year long - adding to my Halloween decor, coming up with and making costumes for the whole family, making spooky food and treats throughout the month, carving pumpkins and roasting the seeds, trick-or-treat. What's not to love?!!

But this October? Most of my projects are still sitting in the bags in my basement. The only thing that got done was a little specimen art.

The outside of the house never got decorated and the pumpkins are still sitting on the kitchen table, waiting to be carved. 

The hardest thing of all? No family costumes this year. No theme, no sewing, no gluing, no CREATING. It seemed kind of empty, you know? Instead, we recycled and the kids threw together last minute (literally!) costumes from the costume box before Trunk-or-Treat last night.

If for nothing else, I have got to get feeling better so I can enjoy my Octobers again. 

Dry wall art

I'm sure gesso is probably the preferred medium for canvas artists, but I'm cheap. And my amazing friend Megan taught me the technique several years ago and she always used dry wall compound. A huge bucket of dry wall at Home Depot? Under $10. A teeny weeny bottle of gesso at the art supply store? $10, and I would need at least 10 for each project.

This is the Seattle LDS Temple canvas I did for Michael for Christmas several years ago. I've shared it here before:

This is my most recent canvas. I used it for a special night at our church for my Young Women, depicting the Tree of Life. I used a Hero Arts Scroll Tree Stamp as a guide and just made it a whole lot bigger. Huge, actually.

That middle canvas? Didn't realize it wasn't true to square until I was almost through with the whole thing. Aaargh! Matthew wants to hang it in his room - I think I can hang it without it being too noticeable but it definitely doesn't work just sitting on the mantle.

Pants on the ground

I'm not sure if we'll all remember the significance of this little phrase 20 or 50 or 100 years from now, but it made for a pretty funny page title.

Currently (a complete blog post steal)

I am a fan of Stephanie Howell's scrapping artistry, but I think what I love most is her journaling. Her words. Such a lovely peek into her life and the life of her darling girls (yep, just a wee bit jealous of all that pinkalicious goodness!) And she does this great post on her blog occasionally called "currently" where she details some of the fun/sad/happy/hilarious things that are going on with each member of her family. I hope she doesn't mind if I steal her idea...


He:

1. is totally loving preschool. He thinks the sun rises and sets with Miss Leanne's words (which became quite funny when he misheard a song she was teaching and insisted that there were 10 days in a week.)

2. likes to 'read' Max's homework over his shoulder. And he usually gets most of the words right...

3. loves to play Quirkle or Memory with mom, at least several times a day.

4. can't wait to be 5 so HE can play soccer, instead of watching everyone else.

5. is much less whiny and screams a lot less now that the kids are back in school. Whew!


He:

1. says pink is his second favorite color, just like Ciera. And he needs a phone, so he can call people. Like Ciera. Hmmm....

2. scored a goal on Saturday at his soccer game, but was more thrilled when the coach called him the Defensive Maniac!

3. is one tough cookie! He has a huge bruise from a teammate mistaking his knee for the ball and his head actually bounced off the ground when an opponent tried to take him out. But he kept on playing and didn't shed even one tear.

4. has the strangest taste buds. He has always been uber-picky, but last night takes the cake. We were making our traditional caramel apples, but he didn't want one because he doesn't like apples (not sure how he knows this as he refuses to even try one.) We offered a banana, but that would have been "disgustinger." He finally settled on a caramal LEMON!! And he ate it!

5. refuses to wear long pants, or a jacket, even on mornings when the temperature dips into the 40s.

He:

1. tries my patience on a daily basis.

2. is raising the decibel level in the house with his new saxophone.

3. is enjoying football, though he doesn't get much playing time and doesn't regret quitting soccer at all.

4. ran faster after the ice cream truck than I've ever seen him run on the field!

5. made it into Rockin' Rhythms for second year. His teacher is fabulous! I wish *I* could be in her class!

He:

1. still loves soccer. And drums. And Scrabble, chess and Robotics.

2. was just made the Deacon's quorum president last week.

3. has the quirkiest sense of humor. Think Monty Python...

4. is going up to the high school for his math class every day. High school!

5. reads just as much as I did at his age. And tends to disappear into his room to do it, just like me.

She:

1. turned 16 last week (umm, yeah, didn't have the right candles, so had to improvise with 4 squared...)

2. has had several PRs in XC this year and dodged a big season ender today when her leg x-ray didn't show a stress fracture. Whew!!

3. is trying to fit in XC, band, 4 AP classes, and so much more, it makes my head spin.

4. skipped a possible first date to Homecoming to go run at Nike pre-Nationals in Portland and was told by a young man in the elevator that she had "attitude." I knew that.

5. adores her new phone.

He:

1. was much better at putting on his boutonniere than me or his date for Homecoming.

2. is constantly reminding me that this is his last (fill in the blank.) His last year of school, his last Halloween with us, his last first day of school photos, etc. As if I need to be reminded.

3. is still dating J, much to her father's dismay. Not that he's not a great young man - I just don't think Mr. M wants J dating anyone at all.

4. has decided to he wants to be a pediatrician. Not sure the full effect of at least 11 YEARS of post high school schooling has sunk into his head. Not sure how he missed that living through 17 years with his dad and me. We support him, though.

5. has finally seen the light about the importance of school and grades. See #4 and #5.

Inspired by...

Fashion!
If you know me personally, you'd probably laugh at this one. As much as I like to look at cute, trendy clothes, I'm not very good at pulling it off in person. I tend to end up in a t-shirt and jeans/shorts most days. But I do like to look! And it occasionally inspires a fun scrapbook page or two...

Inspiration found here at Studio Calico's (old) blog.


And here's my take:

Created using Studio Calico's fun Summer Camp kit and add-ons (main kit is still available here)

And truth be told, this page was created before I saw the challenge on the SC blog, but I had been thinking about all the scallops in fashion lately, so it works. Created using SC's Continental kit and add-ons.

No time for scrapping!

We've been doing this:

And football, for which I have no pictures. Bad mom!

And a lot of this:

And this last weekend:

They definitely keep me busy! 

And, notice the new header? Last year's Halloween costumes. Right about the time I first got sick, two weeks before Halloween. I've always loved October, but last October was the beginning of easily my most trying year. Now, just need to fight through, stay strong...and come up with some costumes for this year!

Inspired by...

One of my go-to techniques for slump busting is to use a sketch. I've been a sketch fan since Becky Higgins started her Creating Keepsakes column way back when. I own several sketch idea books, but I'll have to be honest - I like them fresh! I have several sites bookmarked and a number of sketchy blogs on my reader that keep me in hot-off-the-press sketches. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Becky Fleck's Page Maps - probably my all-time favorite. New sketches monthly, along with periodic sketches for cards, tags and assorted non-standard page sizes. I also own and highly recommend her book and I've pre-ordered her next book from Amazon. She has a monthly newsletter and a blog as well.
• Pencil Lines sketch challenge blog - new sketches every Sunday and a really diverse group of designers who showcase the weekly sketches.
• Sketchy Thursdays - another weekly sketch challenge blog. I've actually submitted my pages a couple of times and was chosen as a Sketchy Thursday Favorite. Yay me!
• Got Sketch is by the very talented Valerie Salmon. One of my favorite aspects of her site is the archives locator - it uses # of photos, which is most often how I search for the perfect sketch.
• Two Peas in a Bucket offers a great free sketch class by Kelly Purkey. I also took her second session Sketchbook class and I'm definitely hoping she offers another. Great sketches + my favorite kit club Design Team doing the examples? Fabulous!

Many of my favorite manufacturers also have occasional sketches on their blogs, so I watch for those as well. Prima comes to mind and Basic Grey's newsletter always has a sketch.

Becky Fleck Page Maps sketch, Studio Calico Continental kit (and adons)

Started out using a Becky Fleck Page Maps sketch, but it doesn't look anything close to the original. Which is one of the beauties of a sketch! Studio Calico Continental kit (and adons)

Another Becky Fleck Page Maps sketch and using up more of Continental (just checked and it is sold out)

Inspired by...

Do you ever get in a creative rut? Find your mojo has left the building? What do you do to get out of that funk? Restart your artistic engine, so to speak?

I've had a bit of one over the summer. The kids were insanely busy and I was exhausted just trying to keep my mom-taxi running on time. And dealing with the whole this-is-the-new-normal, I'm-gonna-feel-crappy-often Wegener's bit, I didn't spend a whole lot of time in my creative space. Well, I did, but it consisted of a whole lot of staring at photos, blank pages, wandering around the room...and ordering more yummy scrappy goodies on-line. Retail therapy! Ha!

When Mason started pre-school three weeks ago and I realized I would have a few kid-free hours, I knew I wanted to spend at least a little bit of that time creating. And not laundry mountains, for sure! But I was almost paralyzed as I sat down at my scrap table - for a couple of days, that's all I did! Sat. And thumbed through a few magazines. Pulled out photos...and put them back. Picked some pretty patterned paper and embellies from my stash...and...nothing! Oh, I made a few cards - because they had to be done and I'm great under pressure, but that daily flow of inspiration was just missing.

I knew I needed some intervention and it came in several forms. I pulled out a couple of my fabulous Studio Calico kits and started perusing the Design Team galleries. My plan was to simply lift a few of my favorite layouts - hardly any mojo needed at all for this exercise. Great designs and me using the exact same materials. What could be easier?!

From the delightful (and blessed momma to two adorable girls, soon to be four!) Stephanie Howell. I loved how she used the brackets and die cut paper, with three small photos in a row. Mine is a pretty straight-forward lift, though I used just half the So Sophie paper. And I'm kinda liking journaling on the edge lately.

And the divine Sasha Farina! Her attention to details is amazing. I always have to look...and look again to notice all the little pieces of her layouts. Fabulous! More journaling on the edge for me.

I've been a fan of Stephanie's since I first saw her work! Sadly, she is no longer on SC's design team, but I follow her blog to keep up with her innovative designs. Again, pretty straight-forward lifting. I added a little misting, but definitely kept the machine sewing, especially over the corrugated alphas (they didn't feel like they were going to stay stuck very long...)

And last, but certainly not least, is a lift of the wonderfully talented Maggie Holmes. I loved how she used the entire Hambly rubon sheet on one page. Her photography is divine! And I highly recommend her on-line classes - I've taken both the beginner and the advanced classes and they were wonderful. I rotated my page and didn't have as many bits and pieces, but I love how it turned out.

Stay tuned tomorrow for more things that inspired me!

Happy sweet 16!

Time is going faster and faster and I'm reminded way too often how little time left at home my older kids have. McKelle is 16 today! She had an insane AP History test this morning and will run XC at one of her least favorite racing spots (think of the effect of tons of dirt, weeds and hay on a girl with asthma and allergies!) this afternoon. I was hoping to get over there, but brother #3 threw up at the bus stop and is home sick. I'm not even sure I'll get to see her for more than a minute on her birthday...

She's gorgeous and smart and talented. And one of my very favorite people in all the world.  Happy Birthday baby girl!

Some recent cards

I haven't scrapped as much lately as I would have liked, but I have been making cards. Just a few recent ones:

Loving this color combination lately!

I love all the gorgeous flowers Prima makes, but hardly ever use them in scrapping (too many boys at my house and McKelle would freak over a flowery layout for her!) So, cards it is. This one made it way down south to wish my grandma a very happy birthday earlier this month.

These last five? Made with stuff on my scrap table. I challenged myself to not get out of my seat while I finished the cards. Not sure what that says about me...except that I really need to clean off my table! Lots of random goodies floating around - small pieces of pp, a leftover rubon or two, a cardstock sticker half, a Studio Calico insert. Probably need to do this more often to use up all my little bits and pieces.

I scrapped!

It seems that all the energy I have lately has to be directed to essential tasks - laundry, kid care, meal prep - and there is never much left over for the things I really love. But I've had a little break lately, with Mason starting preschool 3 days a week,  and I finished a few pages. My creative side has been nourished!

Just a little fun with some gesso, Hero Arts stamp, mist and Studio Calico's Continental kit from July.

More playing - just a favorite photo and no journaling whatsoever. Papertrey Ink stamps, Versamark Ink, stickles, some old Heidi Swapp letters that I ran through my Cuttlebug with one of Tim Holtz' texture fades (LOVE these!) Paint, a little piece of transparency, some new BG brads and my sewing machine. 

Absolutely in love with Studio Calico's Elementary line!

A little Jillbean paper and more Studio Calico Elemetary line. Oh, and that fabulous stamp from last month's kit!

Crate Paper's new school line is just lovely. And goes very well with Studio Calico's Elementary. Love it all!