Getting Back to Some Kind of Normal

Does this look familiar to any of you? This picture of my studio workspace was taken just a few days before Christmas. Especially at Christmas time, my studio gets really trashed. All surfaces, including the floor are covered in last minute projects and unwrapped Christmas presents. Glitter is found everywhere (you don't want to know where - you know what I mean). Drawers left open with contents spilling out, not to mention some small pieces of furniture that must be moved out of our living room to make way for the Christmas tree. I really don't enjoy my space when it gets like this, and even worse is the post-Christmas clean up!

It was an especially hectic holiday season this year as our youngest son got married on New Years Eve. Here are photos of some of the projects that were created for that special event:

This was the rehearsal dinner invite that I created using a Memory Box snowflake rubber stamp (you may remember this image was also used on the wedding invite I did). I lined the envelopes with my new favorite paper: Glitter Wrapping Paper by Paper Source. It is a paper weight instead of a card stock weight, therefore it is less bulky, especially for lining envelopes. I wanted a real "wow factor" when the recipient opened their invitation. I also punched out some glitter-paper snowflakes and glued them as a seal on the back of the envelope with my trusty zebra-stripe Xyron sticker machine.

I also created some die cut snowflake place cards with my Cricut machine, and snowflake-topped favor boxes for the rehearsal dinner table.

Here's a photo of the rehearsal dinner:

I also made menus for each person with more embossed snowflakes, and the edges of the menu pages punched with a Martha Stewart snowflake "Punch Around The Page" punch set. 

I was also able to finish a family cookbook project for my sons that I have been working on for the last 2 1/2 years. I have been scrapbooking photos with favorite family recipes and stories and I was able to finish covering the album just days before Christmas. 

Because I was so busy with the wedding plans and the holidays, I was not able to squeeze in some blogging time. Here are some favorite photos from this past holiday season that I would like to share with you now:

The path to heaven on earth.....

I look forward each year to visit the West Family Tree Farm to tag our Christmas tree.

Here's where we put a $2.00 deposit and mark our name with a crayon to register. Mr. and Mrs. West come out of their quaint farmhouse upon our arrival, to chat about the year we have had. 

Remember when the ground was this color?

We found a beautiful tree to tag. While walking the property looking for the perfect tree, we saw a tree that was not only tagged by it's family, but decorated by the child of the family. We thought this was such a charming idea that we returned the following weekend with an ornament to put on our tree.

We also left a note on the tree that so inspired us....

Our cutie pie is anxiously waiting for Santa to come.

While visions of field mice danced in their heads...

Santa stuffed our stockings...

...and brought us new toys! Boy, do I love to party with my family! 

Yippee!!!

December 26, 2010

Now that the holidays are past, and a new year has begun without the pressures of long term projects ahead of me, I find my attention turning to some new exciting projects.

I started a small quilting project

I made some altered art emergency kits for my Altered Art Group. They were made from toilet tissue cardboard rolls and were inspired from a project in a past issue of "Green Craft" magazine.

I altered a plain white plaster angel Christmas ornament into a Frida ornament for our Altered Ornament Swap.

Kyle and Jason

Recently I met Sue Bleiweiss who hosts "The Sketchbook Challenge" blog at a Jane Davies workshop at Ink About It and was interested in pushing myself to pick up my pencils and draw again. The first theme for the challenge was "Highly Prized". I couldn't think of a more prized subject matter than my two sons. I must admit, I am a little rusty to say the least;  my apologies to my more handsomer sons. 

I have set a goal for 2011 to push my limits, and do the artwork I was born to do. This is a good start for January. But I can do better.

I've been away too long...

I can't believe so much time has passed since my last post! I have been away on a remote island, isolated from my friends and my artwork. Even though this beautiful photo shows an idyllic spot for a restful vacation, the truth is they work you to the bone out there! While the sun is shining warmly outside, I was stuck inside laboring away. No working on my tan on a pearly beach, or sipping an umbrella accented tropical libation for me. Cut, cut, cut! Stamp, stamp, stamp! Emboss, emboss, emboss, emboss, emboss! One day I will need to have an X-ray and the doctors will be puzzled about the metallic spots on my lungs. I will explain that years earlier I was stuck on this island and inhaled so much embossing powder that I have silver lung disease!

Truth is it was a labor of love. I have been making wedding invitations for my youngest son and his fiance for their New Year's Eve wedding. 

The color theme of their wedding is silver, platinum, and ivory. I used the Amuse shimmer card stock in platinum and silver brocade, with metallic silver for the outer folder and ivory matte card stock for the actual invitation and accessory pieces. I made a couple of different samples of invitation styles and they ultimately chose the original vision that they had for their invitation.

The invitation measures 5"x7" and is in a "landscape" format instead of the usual "portrait" mode. It has a flap that tucks under a label which is printed with their initials and embossed with a silver snowflake. I used Ranger super fine detail silver embossing powder and a snowflake stamp from a Making Memories cling stamp set I bought last year at Ink About It.

A sneak peek of what's inside

For the actual invitation, I printed it, justified right (all printing done with Microsoft Word and my trusty Epson printer) then stamped with the beautiful new Memory Box #E1410 Crystal Snowflake and embossed in silver.

When opened it measures 5" x 15 1/4" with a 1 3/4" notched and folded pocket. Now when we decided on the format, it didn't dawn on me that even though I could obtain 11" x 17" stock, there isn't a paper trimmer around the store or in my studio that can cut the card stock lengthwise! Thank god for Printing Solutions next door; they swiftly and efficiently cut the 100 sheets of card stock in half for me for a nominal fee. However I wasn't out of the woods just yet. I had to figure my plan of attack carefully. First I scored all fold lines with a scoring blade on my Carl paper trimmer (that is after I lost my scoring blade, purchased a new one, only to find the original one later). With the strip of card stock folded up on a score line, I then scored (through 2 layers simultaneously) 1/4" line down the length of the card stock, on either side. I snipped a 1/4" notch at the pocket score line, then cut off the rest of the 1/4" score line that I had just made, on either side. All this to get a scored 1/4" gusset to fold under and make a pocket with. Lastly, I cut the squared corners off the other end for the flap. The cutting for the silver metallic outer folder took 11 hours alone.  Have I talked you out of doing invitations yet?

There are 3 components inside the pocket; the reply card, reception, and direction information cards.

These pieces were cut so they would stack uniformly, and each one has - let's say it all together now -  more embossed snowflakes.

Now just for fun, I decided to make them a "fantasy" style invitation sample. I got the idea for this invitation on a drive home from work one night and had to make it come to fruition. One of the decorations for the reception are silver branches that will be in large vases on the tables. I took my cue from these silver branches for the following sample....

Imagine receiving a thin ivory box in your mail box....

When opened, it reveals a wedding invitation under a silvery branch, tied up in platinum organza ribbon and...

yes, snow!

Underneath is all the information needed to attend the crystalline event.

I had so much fun making this sample. The box is from the Paper Source and it is legally mailable (albeit costly). 

Please bear with me as there is more projects to be completed before the wedding in 32 days - yikes! I will post as often as possible in this time period and look forward to the quiet month of January when I can begin anew on my artwork and blogging about it.