Love Is In The Air

A simple no sew project made for Beacon Adhesives CHA booth last year.
Ultra suede was die-cut using Sizzix products. Stuffed and glued with
Fabri Tac. Punched and die-cut embellishments are added.  Finished
with a beautiful ribbon from May Arts.

Yes, tomorrow brings us the beginning of February, the month when we celebrate the LOVE holiday of Valentine's Day.

I'm thinking it would be fun to make my posts this month about LOVE.  A good time to share with you some things that I like and love.  Not quite sure where this may go, but it sounds like a great idea to share some things with you.

My workroom is filling up with many "heart" shaped pieces for sewing, felting, jewelry and paper crafts.  Plus there are several other "loves" that I may like to share with you too.

According to weather reports we have been hearing since yesterday, I will be spending more time inside the next few days anyway.  We may see a storm as large as the one we had here in '67. (That was when I was a Senior in high school and I guess I can also be referred to as a Senior again.)

So from here in the midwest - there is more than love in the air!

All You Need Is Love

Thinks it's time to share some "love"!  So several of the next post I will be making will relate to love, hearts, special things, valentines and maybe some others things thrown in for good measure ... we'll see where I go with this.

Simple to make.  Die-cut and punched pieces from metal and papers.
Alcohol inks for coloring metal, Dimensional Magic for coating
the papers.  Ric-rac and ribbons for finishing touches.

To start off here is a little necklace that I made for my daughter last Valentine's Day.  Had my Sizzix Big Shot out, along with some dies and various materials that I like to play with and came up with this little treat!

Here I Go Again

So that track that I was off the last time I posted -seems like I happened to get "side tracked" once again.  I'm just going to have to say - "here I go again"!

The calendar is now reading January 25th, so it was twelve days ago when I was telling everyone and myself that it was time to get "back on track".  Family and everyday life just seems to get in the way of my plans!  What's a creative person to do?

I'm happy to say that I accomplished a few things.  The most important was getting Christmas decorations down, packed and stored till next time.  Another job that needed to be tackled was cleaning and a quick organizing of my work space once again.  I have many different work areas and there was not one that I could work at without pushing everything out of the way.  So I reorganized a few of my most used supplies, with a few more things to tackle, but at least some new work can begin.  I have sewing of pillowcases for  children with cancer, quilting to finish, felting projects in various states of completion, submissions for magazines and classes and several other "just for me" projects.

There are some changes and additions that I have wanted to make to this blog, but decisions haven't been finalized yet.  My hope to make it more interesting and fun to read. If you have followed my blog you will know that I was connected with a "hop" for Sizzix.  Participants were all connected by a "button" on each of our blogs.  In the near future I will be adding a new "button" that will connect a number of designers blogs to each other.  We will be sharing ideas for products, our own designs, some challenges and other creative happenings from time to time.  As this takes shape, I will keep you informed and hope you will come read about all the creative fun!

So all I'm going to say is ... here I go again ... come join me for the rest of the year!

Time To Get Back On Track

So the calendar shows that it's January 13th, just about halfway through the first month of this new year.  I'm sitting here wondering where did the first 12 days go and what have I done?

This whole holiday season has been a huge blur to me.  Did all the usually holiday related things: sent out cards (early for a change), decorated the house (using almost everything), baked some cookies (not the usual 12 different kind), shopped for the family, readied the house for Christmas with the family, made a few handmade cards for some special friends ... and some other things too!  Then we were off to Wisconsin for a few days to ring in the New Year.

The holidays were joyous because we were with family but yet difficult for me.  Coping with the loss of a young mother, who is a friend of my daughter's, was difficult for everyone during this time.  A new round of tests for my dear husband to go through again was another added concern, along with the waiting for results.  On returning from a nice time "up north" with the family, word came of the passing of a very dear, close friend.  Needless to say the way the year ended and began was upsetting.

My mind can't seem to stay focused too long on one thing.  I've neglected much around here.  I"m thinking it is now time to get back on track.  There were plans on making some changes to this blog - they will happen slowly, but I'm determined to make them.  My workroom is looking like a tornado hit and that needs to be attended to.  Sewing projects have piled up, so a schedule to complete those will have to be made.  And a big "to do", is to get back to some long range goals that I have tried to set for myself. They need to be addressed, without anymore procrastination!

So let this new year begin once again!

New Year - New Decade

Happy New Year to you!  I wish you all a great new year ahead but for whatever reason I can't get excited about this holiday or why and how people celebrate it, never have and probably never will!  It was great to be away for a few days.  There were a couple of hours of craziness during the days away but it was still relaxing and enjoyable.  

Funny how the days since Christmas seem like a faint memory already.  We are about half way through the first week of the first month of this new year.  So what will this new year of a new decade bring?  Is there any easy way to answer that and really know?  I can't say that there is.

So did you make any "resolutions" for the new year? If you did I would love to have you comment on what and why.  I don't make resolutions but I am thinking and hoping about what I would like to do in the coming year.  There are a number of things that I wish will happen and hope to make happen this year.  Though I refuse to put so much pressure on myself to get it all done.

I have some ideas about changing and adding to my blog this year.  If you are a reader I would love to know what you like about coming here and what else you may like me to include.  Blogs are time consuming but I like this format of connecting with people.  I also would like to increase my followers and readers.  Though I know by tracking stats that there are many who have not become followers but come to the blog from time to time.  Come on and just sign up to follow!

I have a list of ideas to keep me in a "creative" mode. My hope is that some of them will be accomplished and that will make me feel productive. If I meet them all ... that would be even better, but no pressure!

The one thing that always comes first is my family and that will still be a priority.  With health issues still confronting us, those are my first concern.  I have and always will have the support from my husband and family for working on my creative goals.  We have discussed some of the projects that I would like to move forward with this year with a resounding, "Go for it!".  So that is my hope this coming year, to continue to "go for it", even though I may have to pause from time to time for other important issues of life.

"In the new year, may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship, never in want."

     -Irish Saying