QUILTY WOVEN STAR CARD

 

Today's project features the Perennial Lavender designer paper, which is so gorgeous!  I've made a few of these woven star designs, but it appears that I forgot to photograph them.  I actually thought that I had already shared one on my blog, but I can't seem to find where I did.

The woven star is a pretty focal point, isn't it?  It would look less busy without all of the gingham squares and triangles around the star points, but I'm pretty sure the sample that I had seen had the square corners--but not the center triangles on all four sides.  Maybe I went a little crazy with the gingham.

My paper strips were 1/2" wide and were adhered from corner to corner and extended the edge of the cardstock.  After placing and weaving the strips in over/under fashion, all of the paper hanging over the edge of the white cardstock were trimmed away.  Placing the gingham squares in the four corners is what gives the star its points.  Of course, embossing the panel makes it less apparent that there was a lot of piecing going on.

In the above photo, you can see how I decorated the inside of the card.  

Funny thing happened while I was making this card.  Actually, what happened wasn't funny AT ALL.  I had what I thought was a neat idea for the inside of the card.  The only thing that I had left to do was grab two circle punches for the "big hugs" sentiment.  I turned my chair toward my side desk and bent down to the bottom drawer to retrieve the punches and . . . oh %$#*&@!!!!!!  The most excruciating pain in my lower back caused me to come up out of the chair and try to move in any way to make it stop.  I saw the proverbial stars and thought I might pass out. I slowly made my way out of my craft room, barely able to walk.  Having never felt anything like that before, I really didn't know what to do.  I made my way to my bed and laid down very carefully.  I was kind of frozen however I had landed because I could NOT scoot myself in any way that required the use of my lower back.  For a couple of days, that point between sitting and standing was the part of moving that I dreaded terribly.  Even picking up my feet to walk was painful.  An electric heating pad, ibuprofen, Tylenol, and a walking cane were my best friends for several days.  As I laid in bed, I kept thinking about the sentiment for the inside of this card and that I had been excited to see how it was going to look, but it was a week or so before I felt brave enough to reach for the punch.  That's the funny part.  I guess you could say that I've never taken as long to complete a card OR been apprehensive about reaching for my tools.  I might should have kept this card, but I eventually dropped it in the mail to a stamping acquaintance who I felt could really use it as she puts one foot in front of the other through grief.  I never heard that she received the card--NOT that I expect to hear from people that I send cards to--but I wonder if (after everything that happened while creating the card) it ended up lost, misdelivered, or perhaps I had the wrong address for the recipient.  Maybe it blessed whoever received it.

Have a stampin' good day!