FabMo Workshop 2/24/19 UPDATED

I've been working on the sample cards for my next workshop at FabMo. I really like how these cards turned out  but they take super long time to make, like doing a puzzle. You also have to keep track  of all the pieces, which in class can be tricky. Still I'm going to give it a try. The ladies really like using washi paper.

scraps 2019

As a paper crafter, I really hate throwing out my good scraps. After my last workshop at FabMo and valentine's day project I had a lot of watercolor background paper and gold wallpaper. I cut everything into 1 inch squares and made a patchwork. It sat on my desk for a few days (not knowing what to do with them) before I uncovered the sample iris images I used in my workshop. Not wanting to throw out the iris, I added them to my patchwork. Everything has a nice shimmer which is hard to get a good photo of, plus I'm taking the photos at night. 
The cards turned out pretty well for using scraps. 

Valentine 2019

inspired by Sarah

 I had a really good time designing this not so Valentine's  day card. Lots of meaning behind it. :)

When I was married, my husband called February "the month of hell" because my daughter's birthday, my birthday, our anniversary and Valentine's day all happened in a very short month. He wasn't much on planning ahead or doing anything for the holidays, so it just stressed him out. It made the rest of us feel forgotten.Valentine's day was not very thoughtful in my house during those days, so lovely dovey cards isn't the first thing I think of. 

The design for this card was inspired by a family member who has be posting on social media a lot of quotes on honesty, trust and in general what happens when a relationship goes south. It got me thinking about broken hearts but we at some point heal (the stitching) and give love a try again. The random painting of color (much shinier in person) on the hearts represents all that we go through in life, everything leaves a mark, good or bad.  

Watercolor on black card stock 2019

I've had Twinkling H2O  watercolors forever and never really used them to paint anything but backgrounds. 
For years I've watched my favorite bloggers make color swatches of watercolor metallic paints on black paper. 
The creative light bulb finally went on and I stamped this iris stamp (I got it for .50 at the last used rubber stamp sale) on black cardstock. I then embossed with black embossing power. Turned out better than I thought it would! The gold fans are made from wallpaper from FabMo. 
A few of my favorite bloggers have posted that they feel card making is going the way of scrapbooking. People are getting overwhelmed with buying stuff to the point they don't create anything. Since I sold my house (2011) and sold off 90% of everything I owned, which included my crafting supplies. I kept only the essentials for my paper crafting hobby. I have to admit that I did like to collect supplies but at some point you run out of space! 
I love watching my crafting you tube videos for inspiration and never feel the need to buy anything. 

FabMo January 2019 Workshop

January 2019 Workshop Cards

Just a quick post of the cards we will be doing at the FabMo Paper Crafters workshop this month. There will be a few more cards to fill in the gaps (two of the cards are super fast to make) so people don't have to wait around for the supplies. I really want to post more about the black card, because it was inspired by so many different bloggers. Hopefully I can get to it sometime this week!

Annie's stare down.

German Shepherds are very active dogs and Annie is true to her breed.  She gets a morning workout before I leave for work and some play time when I get home. At night, we go for a walk before bedtime. Annie also gets to spend a lot of time outside when I'm home. I feel so bad she has to be in the house all day. She gets to hang out in the zen garden (filled with sand), even if that means she will be tracking in a ton of sand. Last night we came across a pack of coyotes at the end of our driveway. Normally I only see one but this time it was at least five and they weren't afraid at all by me or Annie's barking. So Annie didn't get to spend anytime out in the garden after our walk. She was not happy and gave me the stare down asking why she couldn't go outside for her nightly cool down. 

Busy Holiday Weekend 2018

Tomato cage tree

For the past few weeks I've had one computer issue after another. My IT guy finally figured out my monitor (which is my flat screen TV) was at fault and replace some burn out parts. Right when that was happening my cell phone locked up and the only way to unlock it was to upload from my PC, which I couldn't do since my monitor was in the shop. My only hope was someone at my aunt's house on Thanksgiving would bring their laptop and fix my phone. 
Now that everything is back to normal, include the weather (finally have clean air after all the fires here in CA) I worked outside all day. Got my Christmas decorations up and lite, vegetable garden cleaned up and compost ready for winter. Annie had a great time being outside all day, she was one tired pup. 

Christmas card 2018

Christmas Card 2018

I was inspired by Jennifer Mcguire's blog post using a die that made this tree shape. I made my own template and had a great time whipping up these cards. I have a ton of DMC thread, so it was nice to finally dig into my stash. The photo of Annie was taken down in Carmel right before Thanksgiving. The best part was I was able to get the pelicans and waves in the background. The pelicans are not always at the beach, let alone get them in the picture with Annie sitting still! The photo goes inside the card. Have to say a big thank you to the Costco photo department. I made a mistake when I ordered my photos online, it was cropped to close. The photo tech made the correction and reprinted everything for me while I shopped. I send my cards out early because I hate to forget  or because they are handmade and a little thick (but still legal) sometimes they get sent back. 

Carmel City Beach 2018

Thannksgiving Card 2018

Very Old Amuse  Thanksgiving Stamp

I was a  little late in getting my Halloween cards out this year, so I'm working extra hard on getting my Thanksgiving cards out on time. I wanted to do something other than a turkey or pumpkin pie, which I've done in the past. Plus I didn't want to buy anything specific of just Thanksgiving. 

When I'm in a creative slum, I randomly slap color (twinkling H2Os) on water color paper. I have stacks of it laying around waiting for me to find something to do with it. For 2018, I decided to break on my mini leaf punch (does anyone use those anymore?) and make a wreath. Yes, this is a very old school design but it works for me. 

I'm really getting into stamping on the envelopes, to the point where I have to think of a card to go with the envelope so I can mail it!

Coloring done with chalk on the front

FabMo - Paper Crafters Workshop 11-11-18

I finally got my samples done for the November Paper Crafters Workshop. Took me awhile to find the Snow Tex for the window card. I had a jar that was 20 years old and didn't check to see if it was still good. Yep, I have some very old craft supplies. :)
Anyways, went to Michael's to get a fresh bottle and it took the store manager to find it for me. I went up and down aisle #19 several times and couldn't find it. The manager of course walked right up to it! 
I still use cut up car sponges I've had for years. Still haven't gotten use to using all the blending tools. 
The window card has a lot of parts but I think the ladies in the class will enjoy making it.  Thinking of giving them the option to put a cat silhouette in the window instead of a Christmas tree. Always risky offering choices in a class. :)

Stitched Christmas Tree - 2018

Part of my morning routine is watching (really more listening to) my favorite crafters (Jennifer McGuire, Sandy Allnock and AmyR) while I'm making breakfast and getting ready for work. 
Jennifer (crafting guru master) posted a Simon Says Stamps release. I loved her stitched card and I really wanted to order the die from SSS but it wasn't cost effective to order since the shipping was more than the die. I decided to make my own template for the holes and it turned out great!  The plus side was I could make the card this morning and not have to wait. 
The other great thing was going through my stash to use some mini red brads (from my scrapbooking days) and mini rhinestones. Finding some vellum was a challenge since it's not something I use. I think this will be my Christmas card for 2018!

Caring Hearts Card Drive 2018

Old Hero Arts Stamp I got at the last used stamp sale

Each year I participate in the Caring Hearts Card Drive. Cards are made for people who are in nursing homes and have no family that visits them during the holidays. This year instead of doing 1,000 as I had planned, the organizers have asked that card makers only donate 100 per person. The logistics of handling over 63,000 cards, as well as some personal family health issue, one can understand the reason to limit the amount. So I'm working on my samples and will start mass producing my cards. I have a local ladies church group that will add a personal note in each card as well. 

Memory Box stamp from the used rubber stamp sale.