New day same sketch

  I found out on facebook that a neighbor was having a birthday. She and I share dog sitting back and forth so I wanted to do a little something for her on her special day. I didn't have much time so I went back to the same awesome sketch from Sketch-N-Scrap. I had just gotten the Echo Park Just Be You 6x6 pad and the colors were perfect. I was planning to put the card in a gift bag and did not need an envelope or postage so I was able to use some thicker embellishments, which is always fun. I am thankful that with the help of sketches I am able to quickly make  a card I feel good about giving. Yes, I did take a good amount of time writing a personal message that I was happy with.
  Here is the sketch again

This is my card!

I am really liking this paper collection. I hope I am able play with it again soon. Hmmm maybe even try my hand at another sketch! I hope you get a chance to lay along and if  not. Sketch-N-Scrap will have more next month. Take a minute to check hem out and they are on Facebook too.
Have a wonderful day and stop to count your blessings.
Brenda

Happy Fall

  I have been so remiss in updating this blog for so very long. I am really struggling with eeking out time for “ me things” including writing most anything   Recently by a quirky turn of events I found myself in a writers workshop at my local library. Yep the stars aligned perfectly and there I was. All my massive insecurities just could not deny that I needed to go. I have loved writing since high school, but have not written much of anything since then. I have allowed my fear of not being good enough to keep me from something that I truly love. It is so very easy to make excuses and fill all my time with other “good things” and squeeze writing out. The speakers at the conference addressed rejection and how it is just part of the process. I have never had the desire to be published but still fear the criticism of my readers. I really left with the desire to practice writing at every possible chance. I am still struggling with time for my own pursuits but am determined to begin.
    One of the ways I am pursuing this goal is more cards. I have gotten so writer lazy that I have gotten to the point of struggling with what to write inside a card. When I was younger I wrote tons of letters and never had an issue, now I can barely write 3 sentences in a card. Emails and text messaging as a way to communicate have become my norm, not even complete sentences! Last week I sent 8 cards in one day. I can’t believe I completely forgot to photograph them, well actually I can. It was a true struggle to write notes in them and took me much too long. I am going to keep plugging along and really concentrate on the sentiment as much as making the card with the hope that it will become easier for me with practice.
  This is a card I made for my dad, he is in a long term care facility in New Jersey. Unfortunately, I am unable to see him very often but  I do try to send care packages frequently. This card will go in this weeks box.  I have been playing with the card sketches at Sketch-N-Scrap recently and I am loving how quickly the cards come together. I am beginning to remember the joy of sending cards not just making them!
    Here is the wonderful sketch from Sketch-N-Scrap. You have a few more days to give it a try. I am really loving using the sketches to try and get my mojo charged up.

And here is my take. I am really happy with the way this came out. It definitely is one of favorite recent cards.

Thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings. You enrich my life by being here.
Many blessings to you today!
Brenda

Guest Designer at Sketch-N-Scrap

  Happy Valentine's Day! I am so happy to share my layout with you today. I was so excited to be asked to be the Guest Designer at Sketch-N-Scrap for the month of February and then came the sketch...... I am truly not a hearts and foo foo kinda girl. So my first thought was to stay true to the sketch but change out the heart to a star or maybe an octagon, possibly a sun.... Then I realized that the sketch would be on a post on the 14th. Yes, I had to embrace the hearts. Furthermore, I could certainly have stuck to my usual and used pictures of my grands with hearts, after all they have captured mine, but I decided to really depart from my norm and scrap a picture of me with my love. I am so blessed to have him in my life. He has truly overcome so much and is my hero, but he sadly doesn't make it on many pages because I don't like pictures of me. My daughter took this one and I used it as a profile pic on facebook. So I decided to actually put it on a page. I am so happy I did after 43 years he deserves it!
   Here is the sketch

And here is my take.....

I know isn't he a cutie!  I am so blessed!
  I used a total hodge podge of supplies on this layout. A real stash buster! The background is from Authentique Bliss and I also cut the title from the yellow paper in the same collection. The big heart is from Paper Issues in their free cut files section. Isn't it great!  I used bright colored tissue paper to fill it in for some fun.

The little puffy hearts are Shimelle the adorable big one is from Bella Blvd's Popsicles and Pandas collection! I used Heidi Swapp Color Shine on the background paper and then sprayed all my wood veneers with it. Loved using all the bright colors!

I even drug out a rarely used Fiskars heart punch. And that washi tape is still one of my favorites, I have no clue where I got it!

Thanks again to Sketch-N-Scrap for this opportunity!
 Thank you ever so much for stopping by to see me today, I so appreciate you viewing my page. I am thankful for the opportunity to share just a little of my life with you!
 I hope that your Valentine's Day will be filled with moments that make you feel special because you truly are.
  Brenda

4 in one week!!!!

  After doing the layout the other day I decided it was time to attack the pile of fall stuff in the corner of my desk. Yep it was what I was using the last time I scrapped in October! Anyway, I found this picture which is one of my all time favorites in the pile. I printed it out and never got to work with it. I decided that I would give sketch number 309 at Sketches in Thyme a shot. I was extremely intimidated by the sketch, but decided to give it a try anyway.

I really like my layout and am very happy that I attempted it.

 Most of the product on the layout is from The Hello Fall collection by Simple Stories.
Thank you for spending a bit of your time with me. I am most grateful.
Brenda

Time to Scrap

We have been having an unusually cold winter here in Georgia. It has given me a large amount of time at home Yep this southern girl goes in to full on hibernate mode. I have been given the gift of time but unfortunately mojo did not come with it. This week we had another snowfall. The kids went to school on Tuesday and that was it for this week! I have been homebound, could not even get out and help mom.  I was determined to get in the cave and get started on getting some pictures scrapped! The first one I got done was tough...... Just could not get happy with it. So decided to just finish it and move on. I have to remind myself that they are not all going to be my favorite!!! It has been so long since I have played that I am unfamiliar with my own stash...ugh.... well anyway.
    I LOVE these pictures of Zade from the first snowfall this winter. The area they live in got 10 inches!! Unheard of here. Needless to say the boys had a total blast, so lots of pictures to work with. I decided to use these for my second attempt at returning to the cave.  This sketch is 307 at Sketches in Thyme .

 I would love to tell you that this went together quickly but.... that is not the case. I was determined to finish it while having a pj day yesterday so that I can move on. And here is my take on the sketch...

I told you he is a cutie!!  I am really hoping that I can get myself back in the cave soon and continue to scrap. It truly keeps me sane and makes me happy! Maybe soon my mojo will come back and I will be back on track. In the meantime I will muddle along and enjoy working with pitures of my amazing grands!
  Thank you so much for stopping by. I would love to say see you again soon, but who knows haha.
Have a most blessed day and I hope you find time to do something today that makes you happy.
Brenda

Paper Issues week end

  Several people have asked me to post my layouts on facebook so that they can see them... somehow just don't like doing that... maybe because it opens me up to critique haha ...... So I thought I would put the 5 layouts I got done this week end for the Paper Issues online crop in this post and then post a link. I have fun cutting paper! There is so much talent on that site it is wonderful to be able to see all they can do. It is super fun to get to play along with them!
 Here is this week ends layouts....Lousy photo lighting too...ugh

yes it is the same picture... for 2 different albums....

Well there it is my week end.... haha and you should see the mess!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 Thanks for looking
Brenda

A stash busting week-end!

  Saturday the weather was supposed to be really bad... false alarm... but everything I had planned for the day was canceled. It just so happened that it was the same week end as Paper Issues on line crop.I have never really been able to participate in one so I decided that I would just scrap the time away. I had so much fun! I truly can not remember the last time that I got more than one layout done in a day! One of the challenges was to scrap a black and white picture with all bright colors. I found this picture on my cell phone and LOVED it in black and white. We were all at Amanda's for Trips birthday party and this praying mantis just decided to hang out for awhile. Zade is VERY animated when he sees a bug and this was a "big bug". I felt like this picture truly captures his reaction. I went searching for a sketch and found this interesting one at Scrap Our Stash. 

I then went digging and found this awesome collection from My Minds Eye called Collectable. I dug it out and quickly remembered how much I enjoy this paper and the embellishments too! I was really pleased with how it worked with the picture.

The challenge included using supplies to spell out the word leaf.
   L- Layered sticker and letters
   E-enamel dots
   A- arrow
   F-flair

 I am thankful for such a fun challenge to help me get my mojo going.
Today no scrapping as my craft cave is buried under piles of fun stash! I have to motivate to clean before I can play again. And the weather is good and several things from yesterday are rescheduled so it will be a full fun day!
Have a wonderful day filled with many blessings.
Brenda