My Cuttlebug

I haven't been posting often, but I have been busy. Now, maybe someone out there will notice I did not post September's artist trading card and you are right. When I tried taking picture of all of them before I handed them out, I only encountered technical difficulties and lousy picture after lousy picture. I intend to attempt to take a picture of the card I kept so you can see the design. But of note (to me at least) is that the day I worked on my September ATC's was the day I bought my Cuttlebug machine and from that moment on I have been embossing and cutting like a fool.

The following two cards are for men...a couple of my uncles to be more exact whose birthdays are this month.

This first card is actually very similar to my September ATC as I even used left over background paper I had made for those. Do you see those swirls? Those were done with my Cuttlebug. And do you see the ovals? Those were done using my Spellbinder's Nestabilities dies cut and embossed with my Cuttlebug.


Do you see the white and brown mesh looking paper? Cuttlebug and the Cuttlebug Mesh embossing folder designed by Christine Adolph (the same who designs the lovely stamp lines with Stampington).



Here is another card I made for someone who loves purple (could you tell?). Notice the panel behind the flowers? That is the Textile Cuttlebug embossing folder designed by Christine Adolph. And the borders are made using Martha Stewart Craft's Doily Lace border punch which I finally found at a Michael's in Dallas when I went to visit a friend of mine. Did I mention that I brought along my Cuttlebug and Cuttlebug embossing folders and my friend spent one night and the next morning happily embossing away and then went out that week to buy her own Cuttlebug? Yes, I am an enabler.

The polka dot brackets are from a set by Inque Boutique and the oval a Nestabilities die cut and embossed using my Cuttlebug of course. And the squares were also cut using Nestabilities. These dies are fantastic and I buy a set a month as I have a VIP coupon from Cut@Home.

And lastly for now here are the artist trading cards (ATC's) for the Vintage Halloween theme:

I think they came out pretty well. I used Kiwi Kiss from Stampin' Up! for a punch of color with the black and white--I love this color! The scary cat face is from Paper Source (when I was in Dallas I bought it), the cat with the swirly tail is from Papertrey Ink's Spooky Sweets II set, the beware stamp is from Pink Paislee's Trick or Treat set. And yes, I used my Cuttlebug for the black cardstock base which I embossed with the wonderful Swiss Dot embossing folder and I cut the black cat heat embossed on the vellum with a scalloped oval Nestabilities die.

Lately I have been hard at work on my Halloween party invitations. They include the same Kiwi Kiss color, black, white and some other colors for good meassure. I will try to post some pictures at some point.

More Cards

I thought I would share a few more cards made recently before I am off for my trip to see family (and hopefully that includes my year old twin cousins).

First up is a card I made for a maternal male cousin turning 10. This card was done without any real thought. I just pulled things out and tried things out and hoped it would work out. It turned out to be something I really liked.

Below is a card for my only paternal female cousin that I hope to see this week for the first time in well over 5 years. The card ends with the green.

This is a card and the envelope I made for my friend, Erin, who is moving into a new phase of her life.

Here is a better picture of the card alone:

Some more birthday cards for friends (notice a color theme on the last two?):

This is a card I made last night for an aunt I am going to see this week. I hope she likes it!

Have a great week! I know I will.

Some More Cards

Wow, another post in less than a month! First, I apologize for the quality of the pictures. I have mentioned more than once that I am no photographer.


Here are some more Artist Trading Cards with an "Orient Express" theme to share from my trade last night. It is hard to tell, but in the background is a train on the right and the skyline of Istanbul behind the image of the woman (by Dawn Houser, Inkadinkado).




I also wanted to share a card I made for my twin cousins' 1st birthday (yes, they are MUCH younger than I am). For some reason the card looks very crooked, but I don't remember it being that way. The stamps were bought especially for this card from Papertrey Ink (Bitty Baby Blessings) plus the kraft cardstock, aqua mist cardstock and ribbon are from Papertrey Ink as well. Can you faintly see the tiny sailboats on the onesies? The Bitty Baby Blessings stamp set is downright adorable and I was so excited to try them out on my cousins' baby cards especially as one of the sayings was "Good Things Come in Multiples" perfect for twins, right? I was also excited about the color combination. Have I mentioned my love of Papertrey Ink? The dots are from metallic white craft paint which I also used on the ATC's above. I do tend to use similar products for a while much like I can listen to the same CD for months.

Before July Ends

Gracious it has been a lot time since I posted anything! To be honest I had lost some of my enthusiasm for blogging...a new puppy, computer issues (does anyone else deal with quirky computers?), catching up on all my work at work, doing a lot of things at home (like sifting through 20 years of papers) and such does have a way of cutting into my blogging. Plus, right now I am more interested in other people's blogs than my own.

With that said I have been meaning to share a few things I have made in the last couple of months.

Here are *very* simple father's day cards for my grandfathers. At this point I can't remember if I even made my dad a card (another problem is I have more memory issues than usual of late).


Here are Artist Trading Cards I made for this month's trade with a Star theme (that is Greta Garbo).

Hope you are enjoying the summer wherever you may be!

Follow Through

I am trying to keep on top of my correspondence. There are people to write by email, others to send a birthday card, belated wedding card (yes, that is on my list and I have a clue about the design), anniversary cards, etc. Then there are the phone calls. I have a mental list of people to call. I enjoy phone calls, but don't talk too often on them because of the fact that when I do I can talk for hours. I am not sure how appreciative people are of this proclivity so I tend to call rarely.

Correspondence in whatever mode or medium you use is terribly important to remaining connected with not only friends, family and acquaintances, but the community and world at large. Also, as I mentioned in a previous post I am aware of my own responsibility of maintaining relationships, redeveloping those that have slipped away and fostering new ones. I have quite a few more friends from my past to reconnect with or at least attempt to reconnect with as our lives may have moved in too disparate of directions to be any thing more than an acquaintance now. Still, it is worth the effort to convey to someone that they still remain in your thoughts and to acknowledge the meaning they have or had in your life.

In an effort to be prepared for the upcoming holiday card-making extravaganza I am making an effort to be organized and most importantly REMAIN organized. In the past I have been a sprinter making a mad-dash-beginning but falling short of the end, but I am working on becoming a marathon runner who paces herself. I think I become so seduced and dazzled with a larger-than-life image of myself by doing tasks in such a spectacular way that I loose energy, momentum and heart in face of the looming monumental goals I set up for myself. I then let others and myself down. Being an all or nothing sort, one missed birthday and the whole dream falls apart for me. Erosion of self-image, etc. ensues until I feel so embarrassed or ashamed of my inability to complete something I may go so far as not communicate with the person I feel I have disappointed.

For instance, a friend from college had a lovely child more than two years ago (actually he shares a birthday with my sister and another friend of mine). I took a class at my favorite store to learn how to make this certain little scrapbook for the little man as a gift. I began it and it remains incomplete and so now two years have passed without me making a gesture to celebrate this friend's son and instead of just remaining in touch, I did the cowardly thing and remained silent stewing in my guilt and causing perhaps irreparable harm to an important relationship. I forgive myself for being dumb. Now, it is time to actually do something!

When I was in middle school and still went to Sunday School (something I really dreaded), I had this lovely teacher...I can't remember what exactly she taught (we had several classes with different teachers much like regular school), but I remember her saying how she hated the word "sin" and preferred using the euphemism of "missing the mark". I liked that then and I still do. I miss the mark a whole hell of a lot and I am learning how to forgive myself for it and then to make amends. It is all well and good I feel guilty, but what good is the guilt if doesn't motivate me to do better? A therapist told me that my intentions are good, but do I want to have people constantly give me a break because I meant well? It is a pattern I have relied too much on...people usually want to give people a chance for whatever reason and I have taken advantage of that.

I believe I have skated by a lot in life because I have been blessed by too much good fortune. So many things come too easily to me that when I actually had to work for something I didn't know what to do. Rather than work, I often would blame myself for not having the natural ability or avoid it entirely. It was a cop out and it is still something I find myself wanting to do. In the end, it is best to deal with things head on than let them build until they become issues, therefore the need to communicate and follow through.

Tomorrow happens to be World Card Making Day and I, dear reader, plan on making some of those cards that I have intended to make, but haven't done yet.

Love, love, lovE, LOVE

Last night I watched the show I had most anticipated this season: "Pushing Daisies". If you want a summary about the show follow the link as I am pretty atrocious at summarizing (see post about dreams below as evidence). What I can tell you is that I love the luscious, Technicolor look of the show reminiscent to the saturated intensity found in movies like "Nanny McPhee" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". There is a sense you are watching a slightly morbid children's fairy tale which is reinforced by the voice of the narrator (Jim Dale who is the voice for all of the Harry Potter audio books here in the States).

The hero, Ned, is a pie maker with special powers and so very isolated from the world of the living. The heroine, Chuck (aka Charlotte Charles) was Ned's childhood sweetheart (only sweetheart for what I can tell) whom he brought back from the dead in order to solve her murder. There are several other interesting supporting characters. The love story at the heart of the show is sweet and tragic as they can never touch and I think we all wonder (or at least those who watched the show) how they will express their affection without contact. As on critic said, this show is going to explore aspects of love not often touched upon (no pun intended) and perhaps even the nature of love.

I am always curious about love (of all types, but for purposes of this post the romantic variety) the way only a person who hasn't experienced the much lauded emotion can be. I have seen friends and family in love, I have heard the tales of love from friends and family and I have witnessed the erosion of love. Love is as unique as those that experience it. Sometimes the love is selfish or self-serving. Sometimes the love is selfless. Sometimes is seems surprising. Sometimes it seems inevitable in hindsight. Sometimes love is soft and gentle like pale sunshine on a spring day. Sometimes love is harsh and powerful. Sometimes love is nourishing. Sometimes love is harrowing. Sometimes love is affirming. Sometimes love is eternal. Sometimes love is temporary. Sometimes love is without limits. Sometimes love is conditional. Sometimes love is abrasive. Sometimes love is a balm. Sometimes love is suffocating. Sometimes love is freeing. Sometimes love is safe. Sometimes love is dangerous.

Is it little wonder everyone can write so much about such a many-faceted emotion? Is it little wonder that people remain ever fascinated? I have thought long and hard about love because I want to write about it (and if I am honest would like to experience at least once, although I am no good with emotion). How can someone who has never experienced love write about it? Since love is so very different for everyone would it matter if I experienced it when I have to ascribe it to characters that aren't even remotely me? I still have to imagine how a particular character of a certain disposition, experiences, time and place would feel and express love. For anyone who thinks writing a romance of depth, sensitivity and feeling is easy, think again. A few historical romance genre authors surpass others in their ability: Judith Ivory (also known as Judy Cuevas), Laura Kinsale and Patricia Gaffney (she no longer writes historical romance, but her Wyckerley Trilogy is excellent) to name a few.

Asking about love can meet with jubilant and effusive talk, silence or a rant. I always wish to ask about it, to learn how love is for that particular person, but love is personal and some people don't want to discuss it. I wonder if there is a site dedicated to sharing stories about love? That would be fascinating....

By the way, the image found above is of a card I am sending one of my uncles for his birthday. It is a bit feminine, yet I think he will appreciate it nonetheless. I used extra bits I had on my table from making my orange artist trading cards earlier this week and since my uncle likes blue I went with blue and orange. I always wonder what the woman is thinking with her sweet smile...perhaps she is remembering her first kiss or dreaming about who she will love? Then again maybe she is thinking about running through the meadow or dancing or doing sums or she solved a riddle....

At War with the Inner Critic

As much as I love the intricacies of planning: research; buying the elements; making lists and devising ideas my plans usually go awry before completion. In a piece of art this usually is a blessing, in all other areas of life this means many things left undone. My intentions are good, but how far can intentions get you?

One thing I always intend to do, but have only accomplished once is making handmade holiday cards for family and friends. Maybe if I start working on my idea now I will design and create a card people will treasure when they receive it in the mail in December. One of the problems with designing a holiday card is that my family and friends have diverse religious affiliations and I need to be sensitive regarding their beliefs. Do I do like that single successful year and do a nondenominational peace card? Or do I different cards with a similar footprint? I still prefer untraditional colors like pink and lime green or robin's egg blue and red for Christmas and turquoise and brown or aqua blue and sea glass green for Hanukkah. What about the other religions?

I look at old cards and such and see so much room for improvement in all I did and do. Yesterday at my monthly artist trading card (ATC) trade, I mentioned how in my recent packing up of my old studio I reviewed some of my ATC's and found them lacking in my opinion. I was not putting down my work so much as that I feel that in me I can do better...that I haven't reached some hidden potential I can only sense and haven't yet been able to exploit. In other words, I haven't found my artistic voice. All these years I have been fumbling around in the attempt to discover my authentic style and I have yet to find it. What I am making still isn't "right" and it doesn't feel entirely like me.

The same can be said for my creative writing. I constantly strive for the sense I have captured the ellusive truth and perhaps I begin anew too soon. I do know I struggle. In fact I struggle each time I write one of these entries as my inner critic finds more fault than good in what I do. If my inner critic had its way each entry would be a masterpiece and therefore never posted as I would be rewriting and revising the blasted thing everyday of my life to polish it until is gleamed like a jewel. Like a jewel it would be slick, cold and hard with no rough edges to make it interesting and human. When I post an entry it is actually a minor triumph for me of sincerity and honesty over a need for perfection. With any creative venture (actually most everything), I am working against my inner critic and my tendency to procrastinate (which I think is a mechanism to blindside my inner critic--I have not the luxury of time and must only do no matter the results).

So, dear reader, I return to my little battle and attempt to conqueror my inner critic long enough to create imperfect, but heartfelt holiday cards in time for the holidays.

P.S. I think I need to name my inner critic...it is about time we were on a first name basis. Any suggestions?