random reflections

The 12 Kits of Occasions - February 2017

In December I received the most wonderful invitation to guest design with a talented group of women who host The 12 Kits of Occasions each month. Michelle Leon and I knew each other only from blogland despite living within a few miles of one another. One of the pleasures of this invitation was getting together with her, and making a new friend. Thank you, Michelle, for thinking of me! I had a ball creating with your kit.

The kit was filled with bright, spring colors with lots of great die cuts and patterned papers to play with. I laid it all out on a table, and started picking out pieces to play with. It was a whole new way of creating for me, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I made seven cards, and still have a sizable bag of goodies with which to create more cards. 

The first card I made was one for Easter. As soon as I saw the cute die cut bunnies, I knew just what I wanted to do. Michelle included quite a few tags as well and the bunnies looked so cute on the pink and white tag.

I lightly added some pink to the bunnies' ears and a sentiment from Papertrey Ink's "Bunny Basket." The flowers and leaves were part of the kit as well. It's nice to have a head start on Easter.

Next up, is an encouragement card. I loved the patterned paper, and fussy cut the umbrella and tiny flower from stamped images in the kit. I used a banner die to cut the sentiment, also in the kit. The tag was another included in the kit.

Michelle included a sheet of seed packet designs which I loved. It took me awhile to figure out how to use them. I also loved the white die cut with scallops. Once I found the sentiment in an older set from Papertrey, "Floral Frenzy," I knew what I wanted to do. The gingham patterned paper worked perfectly, too. I fussy cut a couple more of those cute flowers as an embellishment and added two tiny pearls.

The focal point of the next card was also a preprinted piece in the kit. All I had to do was die cut a scalloped card with the die from Papertrey's "Don't Forget to Write" kit, and added a tiny stitched square of contrasting card stock. It's been awhile since I played with flowers, but these were the perfect embellishment.

There was a cute bird cage and a tiny bird die cut in the kit. I colored the bird (and the die cut flower embellishment) with some Distress Inks, and adhered them to yet another tag in the kit, tied with the perfect twine and die cut sentiment. I added the two stamped word from Winnie & Walter stamp sets. I scored the white card base at every 1/2 inch for a little texture.

This card is probably the simplest and fastest one. The pretty flowered patterned paper was just too nice to cut up, so I used it as the main event. The die cut "Hello" and some Nuevo dots that Michelle made for the kit fit right onto the stitched oval from the "Don't Forget to Write" kit.

And although it ended up pretty CAS, the last card (and probably my favorite) took the longest to create. I colored the cute birthday cake with Copics, and then made a mix of pink Perfect Pears and Glitter Glue to add some oomph to the cake layers. Then I was stumped, and there were several variations of the card that hit the circular file before I came up with this. I added another oval of patterned paper from "Don't Forget to Write," which perfectly coordinated with the colors in the kit. Once again, I die cut the stamped sentiment provided in the kit with a banner die. Three clear sequins added a bit of glamour to the card.

This gives a better look at the texture on the layers of the cake.

I'm off now to see what the Design Team has created with the kit. You can find all the inspiration at the 12 Kits of Occasions blog. Thanks again, Michelle, for letting me play with such a fun kit.

 

Memos, Mail, Me: Birthday Weekend

It's Monday, and I'm waving to Sian at From High in the Sky and fellow memo makers from afar!

Matthew and his family just returned from a week long vacation in Florida. Before they left, we decided we would celebrate Matt's birthday two days early since trying to get together during the week often proves difficult. I did bake a delicious and gorgeous cake this weekend, but not for the birthday boy (who only likes cookie cakes from Wegmans), and I neglected to take a photo of it! The duplicate bridge group that was here on Friday night, however, gave it rave reviews. It was a chocolate praline cake, frosted with whipped cream. 

Dad had his arms full, but had help from the five year old in blowing out the candles. Ella was a little unsure about the whole event, although she had been singing "Happy Birthday," to her daddy all evening. Skylar came over early to help me cook dinner:  steak, roasted potatoes, asparagus, wild rice for Skylar and brussel sprouts for me and Betsy. Miss Madelyn was in Momma's arms during this photo, but posed for several before dinner.

The mail was filled with the usual bills, flyers, and catalogs, but at the last minute the Simon Says March kit arrived.

As usual, it was packed with goodies. I especially love the stamp set since now I'll be making multiple Easter cards. The patterned paper by Echo Park has one delightful paper after the next, and all are double-sided. I've never tried the Nuvo Mousse, but Simon Says included an Easter egg stencil and a palette knife so I'll be giving that a try. The first card is done. It was inspired by a cute card by Yana Smakula where she used the sunglasses with the little chick. Ella LOVES her sunglasses, and I couldn't resist the perfect sentiment in the set.

I trimmed a piece of patterned paper that had a set of borders for the bottom of the card, and colored all the images with Copic markers. After fussy cutting them, I added a mini-Wobbler to the back of the chick. Try as I might, I cannot get a photo of the chick wobbling although I've seen it done on other blog posts. The purple dotted egg sports glitter as well. I found the perfect little heart stickers in my stash. Here's hoping your week is off to a good start!

Papertrey Ink February Bloghop

There was, once again, a beautiful inspiration piece for the Papertrey Blog Hop this morning, and I was glad I was around to take part in it.

It took me awhile to think about how I might want to interpret it. I'm very happy with how it came out---pretty much as I envisioned it which doesn't always happen. I knew I wanted a dark background, and I also wanted to use my newest Papertrey Ink set, "Gathered Garden."

I actually stamped and die cut more branches and flowers than I needed. Once I started arranging them on the Stitched Oval from the Noted A2 die set, I found I didn't need as much as I thought I might. The gold, purple, and bright pink all come from the inspiration piece.

I absolutely love the delicate bow die in this set which I die cut from some matte gold paper, as well as the sentiment which is a die cut from a favorite set, "Uncorked."

I tried several different colors for the card base, but once I laid the Smoky Shadow pieces on the Amethyst Allure paper, I knew that was the right one. A few muti-colored sequins and it was finished. I'm anxious to see what other folks did with this inspiration piece, and you, too, can take a peek at Nicole's blog.

 

Winter Scavenger Hunt Update

I've collected a few more items for Eileen's Winter Photography Scavenger Hunt, and thought I'd get them posted. I just have four more to find, and think that I'll be able to complete the hunt well before the March 21st deadline.

I wasn't too sure what to do with the first item on the list, "Layers," but then realized that one of the cards I made last year (but never posted) was the perfect example of layers. Actually, a card like this is often hard to find in my files, since I tend to more CAS designs. This one has five layers by my count.

A key is #3 on the list, and I took this photo for one of the Capture Your 365 prompts in January. One advantage of an old house is interesting little details. This lock is to the china closet in our dining room.

Tools is #18. Tracy recently installed a new thermostat. It will allow us to set the heat from afar with our iPhones among many other improvements over the old one. This time owning an older house had its disadvantages as there were many more wires and connections than he anticipated. I found him next to the furnace, tools laid out next to the iPad which had directions for the installation, and ran to get my camera. 

Number 19 is a bird feeder. Finally today I was able to get a decent shot from our kitchen window. Frequently when I pick up my camera the motion from inside sends all the birds scattering to the trees and bushes.

Finally, one of the alternates:  a pinecone. This ought to have been an easy one, but I kept missing my opportunities. Then last month, at bridge, our friend had this arrangement next to her fireplace.

We're continuing to enjoy April-like temperatures in February. Lady Ella asked me, not long ago, if there were any signs of spring here yet. At the time, I hadn't seen any, but today on my walk, I saw multiple bulbs pushing up through the soil. Our new hydrangeas in the front yard have some buds on them as well. I hope when the winter snow and weather returns (as we know it will) that they all will survive!

Celebrating with Papertrey Ink!

Papertrey Ink is celebrating their 10th anniversary this month. They've been hosting a post each day highlighting some of the stamp sets released during each year, and hosting a challenge to use a set from that year. I would have loved to have participated every day, but it just wasn't in the cards (pun intended.) Today I finally had time to play along with three of them.

First off a favorite set from 2008: "Bitty Baby Blessings." It's one of the first sets I go to when I need a baby card. I have an baby shower to attend next month, and was excited to see that this was one of the sets highlighted. 

I paperpieced the little onesie with some paper from Carta Bella's "It's a Girl" paper pack, created a little clothesline with some twine and clipped it on with a tiny clothespin onto a Stitched Circle from Simon Says. The flowers were punched from Sweet Blush paper and highlighted with a center from a flower in the "Petite Pots" set and a tiny pearl.

The sentiment is also from "Bitty Baby Blessings," stamped with Raspberry Fizz on a banner die.

Next up, a card using "Take Three:  Summer," from 2010. I'm not sure where the blue cardstock came from; it was scrap in my scrap folder. I love the contrast of the black and blue, and mounted the three images behind a Pretty Pink Posh "Stitched Film Strip" die.  I couldn't decide where to put the sentiment so decided to leave the front of the card without a sentiment. Most likely, I'll stamp a "Thinking of You" sentiment inside for a friend who's having some health issues.

Last an image from 2012: "Sentiment Signs." I was pleased to discover that the sentiment fit perfectly on a stitched rectangle mounted on the Papertrey "Center Style: Masculine" die which I don't use often enough. I adhered both to a piece of Ombre Striped paper (also Papertrey Ink). 

A few gold enamel dots from Simple Stories and a cupcake sticker finished it off.

I'm linking each of these to the appropriate challenge at Nicole's blog. I've enjoyed seeing some of the older sets highlighted during their celebration, but also looking through all the releases from each year. I was reminded of some favorite stamps that need to see some love!

 

 

 

Memos, Mail, Me: A Breath of Spring

Waving to Sian at From High in the Sky and other Memo makers this bright, crisp February morning.

This weekend brought a breath of fresh air to western New York. We had two days of temperatures around 60°s with abundant sunshine. Despite a nasty cold that attacked me on Valentine's Eve, I got out for a much needed walk both days. The snow has finally melted from the roadways and sidewalks, but the ponds are still frozen.

As we walked from Brickstone Trail through the neighborhood, I got a glimpse of the landscape reflected in the lightbulb of someone's outdoor lightpost. Too good to pass up as I'm practicing (once again) with the manual option on my camera.

Our other outing was to the Black Button Distillery. One of the men on Tracy's reunion committee won a group tour and tasting, and nine of us took him up on his offer. I'm not one for spirits, so I skipped the tasting, but the tour was fascinating. I knew that Scotch had to come from Scotland, but I didn't know that bourbon had to be made in the United States in order to carry that label. We all went out to dinner afterwards, which gave us a chance to catch up with one another since the big reunion in September. (No, those cute young things in the photo were not in our group; we are all old enough to be their grandparents.)

And there was abundant happy mail again this week. Several weeks ago, we noticed holes that appeared to be cut in our quilt. It almost looked like we had critters eating pieces from the quilt. There's no explanation for it, but I started watching for something to replace it. A catalog from Pottery Barn arrived, and I found a comforter that was just the right colors for our bedroom---and a much more restful pattern than our previous quilt. It was on sale, and I had a "Friends and Family" coupon I could apply as well. I knew if it didn't work out, I could return it for free to the store at the mall. But, luckily, we're very happy with it.

And then on Valentine's Day, what arrives but two valentines from blogging friends--Honorè and Alexandra! Ellen Huston had a sale, and I picked up two sentiment sets I'd had my eye on for awhile.

Schools are closed here for a February break, and both organizations where I volunteer are also closed. It opens up a good deal of time for some serious crafting and work on photography projects. My cold seems to be on it's way out, so I'm hoping to be a lot more productive this week than I was on the weekend.

 

Tag, You're It: A Card for Charlie

I've seen the Tag, You're It Challenge pop up occasionally, and recently I added it to my Feedly. This week's challenge was just perfect for a baby card I needed to make and get in the mail.

I rearranged the elements a bit in order to get the sentiment where I wanted it, but otherwise, it's a pretty close match to the inspiration piece.

The little giraffe was in my stash of die cuts, and I'm not sure where it came from. I found the bright orange twine when I reorganized last month. The price tag was still on it. It only cost $1, but I have no idea where I picked it up. The patterned paper is Echo Park's "Dots and Stripes," which I've had in my stash forever. The sentiment die cut from a scrap of paper in my stash is Papertrey's "Wet Paint II," and the little hearts are Simon Says "Holiday Shapes" die. I guess you could say this was a "Stash Tag," but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

I wanted to put the tag on a card so I'd have room to write a note. I ran the Aqua Mist card through a Lifetime Crafts embossing folder.

And here's a look at the inside where I used Papertrey's "Baby Button Bits."

I used a light blue Copic marker to color in just the bottoms of the open letters. It's cold and windy here today; a good day for some more crafting.

 

 

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! Tuesdays are now a little busier since I've started volunteering at two different agencies--one in the early afternoon, and one after school. Before that I got a needed new haircut. And a little later we're meeting friends at a new sports bar/tavern for Valentine's dinner. As he often does, Tracy sent me gorgeous flowers. He really outdid himself, sending cut flowers and a stunning orchid which will last well beyond Valentine's Day.

You can see the purple hyacinth tucked in the bouquet which smells so wonderful. We got about 6" of snow today, so the spring flowers are really appreciated! My favorites are the freesias.

Of course I've been busy making valentines for the last few days. I posted one earlier this week, but here are the rest of them.

For Matt & Betsy. . . the pick-up truck by Honey Bee reminded me of Matt's truck for his landscape business, although his is white (not a very interesting color for a card.)

The sentiment is from Simon Says "Sending Happy Thoughts," their July 2014 Card Kit.

For Sarah and Adam . . . the hedgehog is definitely for Sarah who collects them. I found this cute stamp at Paper Source when we were in Chicago in January and couldn't resist it.

The die cut hearts are all from Spellbinders Nested Hearts; the patterned papers are from Echo Park, Carta Bella, and Pink Fresh.

For Caleb . . . some monster hugs from "Silly Monsters" by Your Next Stamp. I have to admit, my collection of fun stamps has definitely expanded now that I have grandchildren old enough to appreciate them.

The fun eyes are from Doodlebug. They were out of stock for weeks on end, but Tracy managed to find some for my Christmas stocking. (Granted I didn't get them until January when they came in, but I didn't have to keep searching for them.) The heart die cut is from Concord and 9th. I found it in my pile of pre-cut die cuts and it worked out perfectly.

For Baby Hannah . . . another polar bear card from My Favorite Things, "Polar Bear Pals." The sentiment was cobbled together with a Cocoa Daisy stamp set and one from Avery Elle.

The heart on this card was also in the pile of pre-cut dies, the paper is from Papertrey Ink. You can see the metallic heart in the close-up.

And for the man of my heart . . . 

The die and stamps for this card are from Simon Says' newest release, "Love." It's the first die cut set I've bought that comes with the shadow background and the script. Love it. I don't usually use a die cut for the inside message, but I did this time.

I also made a couple valentines for friends.

This is also a new die that came in my Christmas stocking. I have all kinds of ideas for it, but die cut it this time in a variety of bright colors for an inlaid heart. A few enamel dots and it was done.

And just one more . . .

I bought this stamp set,"Be Mine, Valentine," last year when Papertrey Ink released it, and I'm actually surprised that this is the first time I've used it. There are all kinds of great images and sentiments in the set so I think it has potential for much more than just valentines. The background is an older impression plate from Papertrey called "Book Print." The heart is from My Favorite Things.

It's been lots of fun getting ready for Valentine's Day, but now I have an equally big project ahead of me. More to come about that later this month.

 

 

 

 

Memos, Mail, Me: The Valentine Edition

It's after dinner, and I'm just getting around to writing my Monday Memo blog post. It was a busy, busy weekend. We had the delightful job of babysitting for our three granddaughters on Friday night after a busy day entertaining a friend for lunch and volunteering in the afternoon.

Our Presbytery hosted its annual Church Leadership Development Day on Saturday. I was the official greeter prior to the worship service, and as soon as it ended I slipped out to go to the memorial service for a friend who lost her battle to ovarian cancer. It was a beautiful tribute to a very caring lady. Her three children spoke eloquently. I could have never spoken at my mother's funeral, so I am always impressed with the poise some people possess. I returned to attend an excellent workshop on exploring ways of companioning those facing loss or in crisis. 

On Sunday, I introduced our speaker for Sunday Seminar---the wonderful professor whose Old Testament course I took last fall. As always, her presentation was both scholarly, stimulating, and entertaining. After church, Miss Skylar came to bake valentine cookies.

Skylar took some cookies home for her family, some for her cousin and aunt, and we saved some for dinner on Wednesday night when they'll be here to celebrate Valentine's Day a day late.

Between events, I was making dark chocolate almond clusters with sea salt (yum!), and packaging my valentines for friends and family. 

One box of the chocolates went to a friend this afternoon, and the other is going to my hairdresser tomorrow when I get my hair cut. The cute container is from Reverse Confetti. I bought two packages of them when they were released, and love how easy it is to create a cute package with the accompanying die cuts. The XOXO die cut is from Simon Says, and the patterned paper is from a 6X6 paper pad by Echo Park.

I used the same containers for the Valentines for my older granddaughters. No worries that they'll see these on the blog before they get them on Wednesday.

Almost everything in the boxes came from Target and Michael's in Chicago when Sarah and I were shopping for the goodie bags for Caleb's birthday party. The crayon notebooks are little sketch books. Inside the box is a tube of colored pencils, some tiny highlighters, an eraser that looks like a cactus, a pack of sticky notes, and a couple of magnetic bookmarks.

Last, the goodies for the kids and co-workers at the after school program where I volunteer twice a week. 

I bought the fry boxes last year at Michaels and tucked them away in my Valentine bin. They worked perfectly to hold some dark chocolates for the three folks I work with in the intermediate room. I tied a tiny valentine to some brightly colored pencils I found at Target for the kids. Pencils always seem to be at a premium.

All these valentine gifts are in remembrance of my father whose favorite holiday was Valentine's Day, and never failed to send me a package and/or flowers. 

So, what about the mail?

Well, I got some great mail again this week. A darling "Save the Date" card from the daughter of a good friend. Check out Emily's great lettering on the envelope. I also got two books. I ordered the bottom one after checking it out of the library and realizing that I would want to underline and take notes. The top one was hand delivered by a friend. She read it on vacation and thought that both Sarah and I would enjoy it as well. Katherine Patterson was unknown to my friend, but she's a favorite author of mine. I think I've probably read Bridge to Terabithia at least fifteen times with fifth graders as well as several readings of  The Great Gilly Hopkins and Lyddie. I've enjoyed her books of essays, The Spying Heart  and Gates of Excellence, but I was unaware of her memoir, Stories of My Life. I'm really looking forward to reading it, and expect to put it in the tote bag for our March road trip. Then it will go to Sarah when we make our next trip to Chicago.

Waving to Sian at From High in the Sky, whose brilliant idea started this weekly meme, and all the rest of the Monday memo makers.

Best Books of 2016

Last year was the first full year that I kept track of my books on Goodreads. Previously, I used Shelfari, but they closed the site down and sent all of us to Goodreads. It was a frustrating transition. I finally got most of my books moved over, but it was impossible to get all the dates correct. I've gotten used to Goodreads, but never really liked it as much as Shelfari until the end of the year when they posted my end of the year stats. My goal for 2016 was to read 36 books (3 books/month). I read 10 m0re than that; probably a record since I started keeping track of what I read in 1986. The number of pages was rather impressive, too---14,330. Reading the Bible cover to cover last year did add a significant number of pages to the total. 

So, what can I recommend? I left the Bible out of the running, since it's a rather daunting undertaking. Very glad I did it; learned a lot, and am surprised at how much I remember when references to it come up, but not something most people are interested in pursuing.

The first book I read in 2016 was one of my favorites: 10% Happier by Dan Harris. My OLW last year was Mindful, and Dan's book about his exploration of mindfulness and mediation after having experienced a panic attack while reading the news on Good Morning, America was a great read. It's funny, insightful, and has one of the better lists of meditation practices that I read last year. 

When Breath Becomes Air was a devastating, but significant, read. One of the most important books I've ever read was Being Mortal by Atul Gawande. Kalanithi's diagnosis of terminal cancer just as he was completing his residency in neurosurgery shares the same philosophy about end of life issues as Gawande, also a neurosurgeon. Despite it's tragic end, it's an uplifting book, and beautifully written.

Our book group chose Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking to discuss last year. One of our members felt the research was just too encompassing (it's nearly 400 pages long), but I found it fascinating. I learned a lot about myself, and about both of my children.

I read a library copy of Convictions last year, and will reread it again this year since I now have my own copy. It made me think hard about what I believe and why. I'm not done thinking about this book or my convictions. It was probably the most thought-provoking book I read last year.

The couple that hosts our book group is responsible for putting out three titles from which the group chooses the next book. This is one Tracy and I proposed that did not get chosen, but I thought it was better than the one we read for book group---The Muralist by Shapiro. It's well researched, but clearly a novelized account of Georgia O'Keefe's life. Very readable, and fascinating.

This was another book that wasn't chosen by our book group. It's only the second book by Alice Hoffman that I've read. (She's prolific.) It's another fascinating novel based on a true story. It's about the mother of Camille Pissaro, one of the first of the Impressionists. His mother grew up on St. Thomas, an idyllic island, but one that thwarted her desires and ambitions. It provides an evocative look at the small Jewish refugee community on the island as well as the passionate and scandalous love affair of Pissaro's parents.

I'll read anything written by Ann Patchett. Her novel, Bel Canto, remains one of my all-time favorite novels. I thoroughly enjoyed Commonwealth, although I found it a bit harder to read due to a narrative that jumps back and forth in time over 50 years, chronically two families, bonded by the affair and eventual marriage of two of the parents. I started reading it on my Kindle, but ended up getting a library copy so it was easier to flip back and forth. Once I had a hard copy in my hands, it was a much easier read, and as always, well-written.

This was one of the last books I read in 2016, but I loved it, and wrote about it here. The even divide between non-fiction and fiction is pretty typical of a year of reading for me. I probably read a bit more non-fiction overall, but when I thought about the best books of the year, it turned out to be an even-split.

What were your favorite reads last year? I'm always looking for recommendations even though my "to read" list has more books on it than I have time to read. I keep moving them around, adding new ones, picking up another title at the library, and finding new interests.