WHAT MATTERS IS HOW WE LIVE AND LOVE . . . AND THIS IS THE FACE OF LOVE

For the past several days, I have been spending time with my family, celebrating the life of the sweetest woman I've ever known . . . my grandmother.  She passed peacefully in her sleep on Friday, December 26th.  It's just like her to put her family first by waiting until after Christmas to take her journey.  See that smile?  That's how her face would light up when one of her grandchildren would walk into the room--regardless of how she might be feeling.  Mamaw loved, and she was love--a gentle angel on earth.  She was the sweetest, kindest, extremely talented, and most gentle person EVER.  I will never forget the way she would examine something (anything) that I had made.  She would hold it carefully--as if it was a priceless treasure--and rub her hand lightly over it, zooming in for closer inspection.  Of course, a compliment would follow the inspection, and she would hand the treasure back to me--very carefully.  She was a treasure!  When my son was younger, he shared an observation with me when he said that "mamaw never gets mad or yells at us (the children)", and he was absolutely right.  Although our family will miss her greatly, I can't help but be happy for her.  I figure her "meet and greet" session began on Friday, and I can only imagine that she's still beyond happy, glowing, and asking, "Why did it have to take so long to get here?"

In closing, an excerpt from Linda Ellis' poem, "The Dash" because mamaw made the most of hers, and ours is much richer for having the opportunity to know and love her:

For that dash represents all the time
that they spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved them
know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
the cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.

 12/03/19 - 12/26/14

FLORAL PURSE CARD SET - BONUS PROJECT AT CRAFT PROJECT CENTRAL

This beautiful purse has a set of six cards with envelopes inside. There are two card designs, and they are both made with the Beautiful Bunch stamp set, Moonlight Designer Series Paper Stack, and Fun Frames Textured Impressions Embossing Folders to coordinate with the purse. The purse is made with Coaster Board, and there are two pockets inside to hold three of each card design and envelopes. This would make a wonderful gift and a great card class.

How pretty is this?  I love the details on this purse, which was designed by the talented Christy Fulk.  This purse and card set is the December Bonus project at Craft Project Central.  Qualifying for the bonus tutorial is easy . . . just subscribe to two or more months in a row, put the Craft Project Central badge on your blog, or refer a friend to the site.  When your friend subscribes, just let us know!

 

ELEGANT GREETING CARD SET

Nothing makes a better present than a set of handmade greeting cards. Make this elegant card set, showcasing four different layouts, using the same stamp sets and colors. Learn how to make your own striped paper using a stencil. The cards come in an envelope-style box with its own decorative band. Great for a stamp camp, or as a class project.

Besides the fact that you'll enjoy creating this project, anyone who receives it will fall in love with the color combo.  Monika Davis, who designed this project, always does a superb job of combining colors and creating soft, feminine designs.  Her tutorial can be found at Craft Project Central, and it is not too late to get your subscription started. 

FROM MY HOUSE TO YOURS AT CHRISTMASTIME

On this Christmas Eve, I thought it would be nice to share some other cards that I've made for the holiday.  First up is one of my favorites featuring Stampin' Up!'s White Christmas and Holiday Home stamp sets.

My second card features Festival of Trees and White Christmas and just enough sparkle and glimmer.  I loved the trendy design of this one.

Lastly, one of my Gentle Peace cards, which features the Stampin' Blendabilities Markers.  The image takes quite a while to color, but the end result is worth the effort.

My wish for you . . . a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and a blessed 2015!

SPIRAL FLOWERS & POLKA DOTS

This project uses an embroidery hoop to make a fun and easy work of art for your home. The coordinating card has a matching envelope with a unique twist on your “average” envelope. This trendy piece of art will put a smile on anybody’s face. It is so easy to make that you will want to make two so you can keep one for yourself!

The color of those spiral flowers is so striking, isn't it?  This lovely project was designed by Boni Montano, and her tutorial can be found at Craft Project Central.

"MAKE-IT-SNAPPY-MONDAY"

This is truly one of the easiest Christmas gifts I've ever made.  Actually, the gift was money, and this order of french fries was just a fun way to package the bills.  I didn't expect my nephew to go ga-ga over the neat packaging, but I also didn't expect him to totally dig the bills out of the fries and leave the packaging at my house.  Ha!  I guess I can fill it up and give it to him again next year, and that will be an even easier and quicker gift to assemble!  To create this project, I used Stampin' Up!'s Fry Box die to cut the Real Red card stock and the strip of Basic Black card stock, and the sentiments are from the Good Greetings stamp set.  I used a retired die to cut the snowflake from silver glittery thin foam, and the french fries were made from Very Vanilla card stock.  For each fry, I began with a 2-1/2" x 3-3/4" piece of card stock, scored it at every 1/2", crimped it, folded it into shape, and placed adhesive on one of the 1/2" flaps to finish it.  The top and bottom of the fries is open, and rolled dollar bills slip easily inside.  I love french fries, and I would love them even more if they were filled with $$$.

ORNAMENT TREE

What if you had a tree base that you could decorate year-round?  This project features a unique and beautiful handmade sculpted tree.  In this tutorial you will learn how to create an armature using upcycled cardboard.  You will also learn how to color your Simply Pressed Clay to create realistic color for your tree. The tutorial also includes instructions for four different types of mini ornaments you can use to decorate your tree.  You might even choose to make customized ornaments for holidays throughout the year and change the look of your tree with the changing seasons.  Of course, there are also instructions for a coordinating gift card so that you can gift these trees to friends and family for the holiday season.   You might even choose to spend an afternoon or evening making ornaments with them! 

Isn't this a gorgeous project?!?!  The complete tutorial, which was created by Michelle Wecksler, can be found at Craft Project Central.  Have you started your subscription yet?

 

LOTUS BLOSSOM

One of Stampin' Up!'s products for the upcoming Sale-a-Bration promotion is the gorgeous Lotus Blossom stamp set.  It's a 3-step stamping stamp set that is so very easy to use and makes you say WOW!  For my card, I chose Smoky Slate, Blackberry Bliss, and Whisper White card stock.

It's just lovely, isn't it?  My finishing touches were a few sequins and silver twine for just the right amount of sparkle.

"TOTE"ALLY TERRIFIC GOLDEN CARD TRIO GIFT SET

Who doesn't love a fashionable tote?  Just in time for the new year, this project features an elegant tote and three sophisticated cards, all featuring gold accents & embellishments.  Think Watercolor Wonder Washi Tape, Gold Foil sheets, Gold Glimmer papers, Gold Brushed cardstock, Gold Fancy Foil Designer Vellum, gold heat embossing, Gold Glitter, and Baked Brown Sugar Classic Stampin' Ink Pad for a faux gold look.  This tutorial will show you step-by-step how to coordinate all these wonderful products together for an amazing, perfectly finished look.  This project is easy to assemble but looks like you spent hours on it.  It's a perfect New Year's gift for that stylish and chic friend on your list!

The tutorial for this project, which was designed by Carol Lovenstein, can be found at Craft Project Central.

NATIVITY SHADOWBOX CARD

I like to send extra special cards to my aunt Betty, and I wracked my brain for weeks trying to think of what kind of Christmas card I would make for her this year.  And then the Silhouette Online Store had a 50% off sale on all SVG designs, which is where I found this one by Lori Whitlock.  It looked easy enough, and I barely added anything to it.  The design really didn't need anything--for Christmas, doesn't a nativity scene suffice?  My apologies for the bad photo, but there was something special about the way the light was shining down from the top of the card.

I actually made two of these cards and sent one to aunt Betty and one to my parents.  Can you tell that the card is a shadowbox design, and can you guess that it folds flat for mailing?  Awesome!  What you definitely can't see is that the card has a depth of approximately 1" from front to back.  It was a bit tricky for me to initially figure out how to put the card together.  I knew how the three layers were supposed to fit, but I wasn't sure how much space to leave between each layer or whether it mattered when and how to adhere the front and back panels.  In the end, I thought I might have "overthunk" it.  It's a stunning design, isn't it?  I've been a fan of Lori Whitlock's designs for a while now, and this one doesn't disappoint!  My three additions are the rhinestone jewel in the center of the star, the navy organza ribbon, and the stamped sentiment from Stampin' Up!'s Gentle Peace stamp set.  When I first received that stamp set, I thought that I must have been out of my mind to buy it, but I have come to really enjoy and respect it.  It had the perfect, most appropriate sentiment for this card.  Soon, I will share a photo of the main image from that stamp set that I took the time to color.  In the meantime, you can get a glimpse HERE.