Consider this a subtle reminder with a not so subtle creation.
You are beautiful just the way you are 💕
Sometimes, life gets in the way. We get lost in who we are. Lost, in everyone else’s expectations of who we should be.
Find yourself because you are worth it
This was created for all those who may be lost.
When different media come together as one.
This card began as a card base covered with a strip of peach washi tape. The tape has the illusion of stray alcohol inks. The tape was sprayed with gorgeous copper mica.
Watercolor paper was then stamped with this gorgeous magnolias and embossed with matching copper powder.
I used my favorite Derwent graphitint watercolors to shade the flowers. Once dried, they were die cut and added to the card with 3D foam tape.
Timeless Beauty
The card was finished with a strip of burlap ribbon that I picked up at the dollar store, more mica spray and shades of Nuvo dream drops.
Topped with the most appropriate “Hello, you’re beautiful” sentiment.
⭐Drop me a comment to let me know you stopped by. ⭐
Remember, Be Still and Create something Beautiful. 💕
Did you ever have a day that just didn’t go well? No matter what you did, for whatever reason, it was crappy. For me, these kind of days are simple reminders. A reminder there is a bigger plan and your just a small part of it. My support system fell apart years ago with the death of my mother, my best friend.
Somehow, the thought of what used to be, came back. Maybe it was the smell of her perfume or cooking her favorite dinner. Perhaps it’s stopping to stare at her photo in my living room. The same photo that I walked past several times a day. My journey of healing has been a long one.
Enjoy my creation as I celebrate her memory. If she was still alive, this would have been made for her.
It took some time to create this card. I started by ink blending distress oxides over an embossed and stamped floral image. I used my favorite altenew white embossing powder for this. Once the first layer dried, I spritzed it with gold mica spray. Then I set it with a heat gun. Finally I dry de-bossed it with a 3D folder that matched.
The same image was stamped again but this time on watercolor paper. I embossed that image also but this time, I used my favorite rose gold powder. I then used a watercolor technique with the same distress ink stain, adding color for the flowers. The image was die cut and popped up onto a card front with foam tape.
This card was finished off with more gold mica spray and matching sequins.
What kind of struggles do you have with the death of someone you love? How do you cope?
Again, thanks for stopping by by. Leave me a comment to let me know that you were here. If you know someone special that is struggling right now, drop me a message and I will send this out to them.
Check out my affiliate links at the bottom for all the items used to make this card. I may be compensated if you use my links.
Just remember…. Be still, create something beautiful. Your not alone
Sometimes life hits us so hard and so fast that we feel helpless.
I have created a gorgeous reminder that you are not alone. The physical and emotional struggles we all go through, make us a better person.
One Day At a Time Using the “Sun and Moon Mandala” stamp set
I decided to work with this gorgeous stamp because it’s actually a set. Nested inside the sun is both a Moon and a sentiment. I choose to only use the sun stamp for this.
Distress Inks by Tim Holtz are versatile for gorgeous backgrounds and highlights.
Once the cardstock was stamped and embossed with fine black powder, the blending began to create the wonderful background. My choice of colors are linked below but you can use any color you choose.
After the ink blended background was complete, an apperture was cut in the center. I used a shaped circle die from my stash. it’s great to have several sizes and shapes already in your stash for this reason
Sweet color combinations with a shaker feature in the center.
Once the front was cut the acetate sheet was added and back with foam tape. I piled shiny star sequins in the center of the base and adhered the card front to the base.
I then cut both the sentiment and the shadow with my mini blossom die machine and glued them together. “Hang in There” sentiment was perfect and popped up with foam tape.
Hang in there and enjoy the ride.
The card was topped off with smooth satin gold sequins and left to dry.
It’s ready to go out to someone that needs a smile today.
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Links at products used are posted below. If you use my links, I may receive a small commission but it makes it so much easier to find supplies.
Usually I begin with a little story but this one doesn’t have one. Well, not really.
You see, we all lose loved ones and memories come sneaking back to us at times that leave us with a smile.
Inspired by the memory of my Mother. This would have been something I made her, had she been still with us. It’s her style through and through. A little sweet but not too obvious.
Enough mush, here is the nitty gritty of this card. I was inspired by the washi tape that I had purchased on sale at Altenew. I knew I wanted to do something with it because it really caught my eye. I decided to try and add a little watercolor to the tape to give it a sweet muted look. I used Altenew woodless watercolor pencils. I chose these because the color is very soft and I didn’t want to tear the washi. I applied the color after adhering to white cardstock.
I then ran the entire panel tucked into the wood planks 3D embossing folder through my platinum. This came out gorgeous!
The edges of the card base were dredged across the embossing ink pad. Then the antique rose embossing powder was poured on and heat set.
Lastly the panel was adhered with foam tape to the base. This is important because tape runner generally doesn’t stick to washi when it’s tucked around the back.
Sentiment taken from the vintage roses stamp set and also embossed to match.
Finished off with some sweet acrylic white pearl dots. Try using washi on your next project and tag me because I love inspiration! 💕
Remember…. Be Still and Create Something Beautiful ❤️🥰
It has happened to every one of us when we least expect it. Later, the timing was proven to be right. This happened to me years ago. I rescued a very large cat from a family that was ready to give him up to a shelter because they couldn’t care for him.
Recently we celebrated his birthday. He is now well over 10 years old. He is my best friend and he has been through so much. He chose me.
Continuing on with my papercrafting, I recently completed a class teaching me how to build scenes. This project portrays my kitty and his playful nature. I began by using the graffiti scribble stencil by Altenew for the background. Inked with distress ink in “salty ocean” color.
The images were cut and stamped from Altenew “modern cats” stamp and die set. I used honey drizzle and caramel toffee crisp dye inks layered on top of each other for the perfect color. Fine details were added with black fine liner pen. My favorite Nuvo drops were added to complete the scene.
💘 love this guy 💘
Who is your best friend? Was it planned or just kind of happened?
Thanks to everyone that has emailed and left kind messages. I appreciate each and every one of you. Remember to drop me a comment and follow my blog for more stories and creative gems.
As always, all my creations are donated back to the IAFF Center of Excellence for firefighters recovering from PTSD or to someone that just needs to know they are important.
Remember, Be still and create something beautiful. 💘
When was the last time you took some time for yourself? You did something to feed your soul? Something that helped your grow as a person?
For me, being a first responder, that concept is considered selfish. As a firefighter, we go to work, save lives and go home to our families. Many times, we do not think about the stress we place on ourselves or our families. The sacrifices we make to save others are huge.
Since my diagnosis of work related PTSD was given to me, I have learned that I am important. Important enough to take time for me. I took time off to feed my soul and enjoy life again. Its been tough but so enriching.
This card is dedicated to those afraid to let go and enjoy life. Do what makes you happy.
Be Wild and Free
I intended this card to have calm and muted shades of yellow, greens and blues. I accomplished this by ink blending my card stock with tumbled glass and shabby shutters Distress Oxide ink. The paper was embossed with a technique using Altenew’s Geo Cover Die B. The paper was misted with water to prevent cracking because of the intricate pattern.
The muted flowers were cut from Altenew’s Wild and Free stamp set. I used my favorite shade of Blue Lagoon Crisp ink with Mango Smoothie and evergreen. The special 3D butterfly was a stamp cut from vellum and embossed with nuvo navy metallic powder. Dimension was created with foam tape.
Finally the sentiment from the same stamp set was embossed with the same navy powder to match and handwritten “be” was added with fineliner pen. Topped off with yellow and blue nuvo drops.
Feed your soul!
Its a simple reminder to take time for yourself. Wake up just a little earlier each day and enjoy the calm.
Thank you to everyone for all the comments and support.
Tell me what you think.
As always, Be still and create something beautiful. 💘
Perhaps, you still don’t know what makes you happy. When was the last time you tried something new? Are you afraid of failure? Are you afraid of what people will think? Who cares,
because at the end of the day, only YOU can make YOU happy.
I recently tried watercoloring. I was attracted to the forgiving nature of the ink and the bright colors. Coping with PTSD can be very challenging from day to day.
As most of you that follow me know, I have been exploring art as a coping mechanism. I have been searching for ways to learn and reach out to others in recovery.
Welp, here is latest project and very first watercolor design. I love this!
Stencil Techniques /Anderson
I started this with a teal layered card stock background on a 4×4 square card. I was looking for something a bit outside the box so I used shades of blue and green watercolor pens from Altenew. I sprayed adhesive onto the Altenew flowing hearts stencil and attached it to white watercolor paper. I wet the paper and filled the stencil with shades of blue and green watercolor.
Then, I let the paper dry before die cutting it with a scalloped heart die from my stash. I adhered it to blue card stock and cut a second heart base. Lastly, I taped the entire heart to my base card using 3D foam tape. I topped it off with matching sentiment from Altenew “A crafty life” stamp set.
A work of 💙 heart
Drop a comment below and follow me for more inspiration. Interested in art therapy? Reach out because your not alone.
Remember, Be still and create something beautiful 💘
Its just 3 words. But, it has Proven difficult for some people to say.
I know because I grew up in a home like that. I never heard those words growing up.
I know, its just words. Sometimes you need to hear it, for a little reassurance that you are indeed, loved by someone.
My mothers last words before she passed away was, ‘I love you”. I had never heard them from her so, as you can imagine, it was a bit shocking.
As a result, I also find those words difficult to say. It is just something I never learned or practiced.
It was a major milestone, in recovery to learn to express myself better. I cant change the past. I can only move forward and shape my future.
Anderson/ Easy blending techniques
There it is, the inspiration for my next project. This is pretty much “Me”. Straight forward, not too mushy but flexible.
A simple reminder that we all need to tell our loved ones how we feel and express our true selves every damn day!
This project showcases the ink blending technique which is typically a background. I added a fun twist by blending ink onto a doily and using that as my focal point.
A Big Hello There!
This project started with card stock from my stash. Two layers were cut and the second one was covered in beautiful Altenew washi tape to create the background. A paper doily was then ink blended with oxide ink in hues of red. While that was drying, I fussy cut flower bouquets from the washi tape. It is time consuming but worth it.
I cut 3 layers of “hello” from the Altenew “Waterbrush Hello Die” from red card stock. I glued each one together to add dimension and stability to the “Hello” word phrase. The word was layered on top of the paper inked doily. The washi flowers that I carefully cut earlier were added around the center. The sentiment strip was added at the bottom from the “All the Hearts” Altenew stamp set to finish this project.
We all should say “I love you” a little more and remain silent a little less. Drop a comment and share this with someone who needs this today.
Remember, be still and create something beautiful. 💘
I think most of us can say that we have recently lost someone very important to us.
Did you stop and take the time to grieve or did you just push it away to be dealt with when the time was right?
The time will never be right. Avoidance is something we all do whether we realize it or not.
I lost my Mom a few years ago and it was unexpected. I wasn’t ready for it at all. The thought never crossed my mind that someday I will only have memories.
Suddenly all the little things she used to do that bugged me disappeared. The opportunity for the mother daughter chats we had disappeared too. The person that I had become so fond of was taken from me way too soon. I was devastated, hurt and lonely. The visions of seeing her take her last breath and cry out my name began to haunt me.
Its been several years now and I have finally stopped beating myself up with guilt and blame with false hope that I could have saved her. I have finally began sorting through some of her belongings that are tucked away in my attic.
As the years go by, the grief that we tucked away in avoidance gets heavier and heavier. Soon enough, it pokes its head out and begins to overwhelm you.
Perhaps its time. Time to move on. Time to smile at her memory instead of cry. Time to finally put her to rest.
Altenew Academy – Layering 1 lesson 3 project.
Inspired by the memory of my Mom and all those recently lost. 💘
This gorgeous project was created by me and without a plan. It sort of evolved into this beautiful heart. Made in the typical rose pink fashion that was my Mother’s favorite.
Comprised of the “ornate foliage” stamp set and layered inks from Altenew. Finished off with floral washing tape, heart shapes, foil paper and glue dots..
I want to also thank my readers for stopping by.
I am truly humbled by the support you have given me.
Here we are, its finally 2021. It doesn’t feel like it yet. People around me are me are still suffering. Families are still grieving and people are still assholes.
Me, I am simply working hard in an attempt to remove myself from the effects of the past year. Who said 2021 will be better?
The reality is, the beatings will continue until you make your own changes. Prioritize your goals and write them down. Keep them in your face all day long. Stick them to your bathroom mirror, your dashboard, the wallpaper in your cell phone.
Statistically, the majority of us create goals and then by March, the motivation is gone. Perhaps those goals were not obtainable to start with.
Maybe instead if your goals of losing weight, it should have been lose 10 pounds because that is visual and therefore obtainable.
Now, revise those goals and create something obtainable. Hold your head high because you have the courage to even move forward after the assault that 2020 gave you.
Keep up the good fight, kick ass and keep moving forward.
“Courageous You”, inspired by two lovely ladies. Ka and Pauline keep up the good fight. 👊
Anxious Crafter 