BloomingPink

What better way to kick start a week than with a cheerful, yet easy card. While this is made as a birthday card, it could easily be used for all sorts of greetings - from "Just Because" to....Mother's Day (which will creep up sooner than I think!). Think I'll whip a few more, but leave the greeting off so that I can have a few on hand!

Just a quick post today to show you what I've been up to. This is a quick card for a friend of mine that I haven't spoken with in a while. I miss her and thought I better pop a card in the mail to let her know she was on my mind. This is turning out to be such a wonderfully relaxing weekend!

I think I mentioned that Dave brought me a couple nice buckets of tulips over Easter weekend. Aren't they pretty? They were starting to fade when I took this picture, but I still like it. Now they are out in the front corner of the house, planted, so that we can enjoy them again next year (hopefully!)

I finally took the opportunity to take a quick snapshot of my latest painting. I finished it at the end of March. I've been working on it since August, so I'm glad it's finally done (I get really tired of looking at the same time week after week!). It's a four panel painting - each panel one square foot. Currently they are hooked together with a panel board and some screws. I have plans to frame them separately before hanging them on the wall, slighly askew. so they aren't "square" with each other...We'll see. I haven't tested to see how it'll look (since they are still hooked together). Happy Friday tomorrow! I plan to spend as much time as possible in the warm sun. I think we're also going to take a ride into a nearby town over the weekend and look at old buildings...dreaming of bigger, more awesome studio space!

This is a TTV camera shot of my daughter walking in Assateague State Park on vacation back in 2005. I've been moving some photos from one drive to another and having a little fun looking through them. Boy can I lose hours doing stuff like this! Anyway, I pulled out this picture, because I think it will be a nice one to do as a painting while the studio I paint in is closed for the summer.

During a 15 minute decluttering session (FlyLady buzz) in the backroom of my bedroom , I ran across the photo above from my honeymoon... Well, that's all it took for me to trash the declutter session and run downstairs to the computer...because this (and others) brought back such fun memories, trampling through BC dust with my husband. I guess I'll have to get back to decluttering later, but for now...I'm reminiscing.

With all the warm weather we've been having, Yello Cat has decided her best perch as sundown approaches is atop this pizza box, under the warmth of the desk lamp. In this shot, she is snoring pretty loudly. I guess she got a little bored watching me work...I mean, who wouldn't? We both would rather be frolicing in the long grass!

I sold a couple items in my shop yesterday. I'm always looking for special ways to say thanks. The above is a pack of 3 x 3 speciality paper that I thought might be a nice way to do just that. I always strive to use ribbon and tie in a way that allows it to be reused....so I wrapped a foot each of two different ribbons that I had on hand. I also pinned on a little ribbon rose that I made over the weekend. I would be delighted to receive something like this in the mail, so I'm pretty sure she'll be happy too. It just whispers Spring, don't ya think?

I couldn't resist this picture. I was working from home and on a conference call. For some reason, my cat, Kinky, was intrigued with the work we were doing. Really. Something caught...and KEPT...her attention. For almost an hour. It's really bizarre what interested her. She sees me on the computer ALL THE TIME (I work from home quite often) and has never been so interested in my activities...but planning for my trip and conference... She found THAT interesting. I wonder if she contemplated who might give her liver in my absense? Or rather, did she notice an agenda item that might need adjustment? Anyway. My Corporate Feline.

I made the above (more than one....a set of little purses for a swap recently) These little jewels are big enough for a few chocolates or flashy baubles....whatever the budget, eh? The swap centered on challenges for the Cricut. This one uses the "Forever Young" (for the purse) and Gypsy Wanderings (emblem and layers) cartridges. My minds actually SPINS with all the possibilities of what can be done with these little treasures. Really...it's perfect packaging. Somewhere in my youth I was taught that the PRESENTATION for a gift was almost as important as the gift itself. Like almost every lesson, I'm thinking it came from my mom...who coordinates EVERYTHING. Really. You should see her little outfits. Her shoes, even her Keds Boat shoes, match. Always. She is something else... She still wraps stunning packages...Even on her meager budget....Really...She does. Anyway...as a child, I would have drooled over a machine that simplified things the way Big Shot and Cric...

Life just rushes by sometimes. Anyway, despite tumultuous delivery schedules at work, I have tried to calm my spirit with cute little projects....like the roses posted. Aren't they a cute adornment to a sandal? I saw something similar on fashionable high hell sandals (heee hee. you read that correctly), but my daughter practically lives in flip flops during warm weather, so the first thing I thought of was embellishing her flops! Brilliant, eh? So, that led me to next shots, which instead of crochet, uses 2" bright ribbon and 1/2 back pearls. I REALLY liked the ways these turned out. And a close-up of the rose. So, there you go. Fresh colors. This should give her a little style for Spring.

I absolutely LOVE jogging during this time of year...not only because the temperatures are perfect for it, but because everytime I go out through the woods I can FEEL the earth growing. The earth shakes it's cobwebs and dormant spirit and revives itself...Something my own spirit desires. I can see the same energy in my little furry family. Today....Clyde. I've mentioned my little guy before...he's a 17 year old Pomeranian. As Dave and I were heading out the door, he stepped out of his kennel asking to go. He's a funny pooch...years ago when I was jogging marathons and doing triathalons, he trained with me on the runs. He loved it, as long as the temperatures were reasonable. So, I became sensitive to his signals...when he wanted to go or wanted to "sit it out". Today, he wanted to go....AT 17, mind you...isn't that like almost 120 in dog years!? AND....he's got congestive heart failure so I have to be very careful...but I could not resist his li...

Don't little precious packages bring so much joy? My husband told me last night when I came home that one of the men in his office was a proud new daddy. So, I whipped up a card for him to take. I guess it's easy to tell based on the color that they are proud new parents of a baby girl! The picture quality of the card isn't that great, but I had just had two intensive days at the office (one of them had me up at 3:45 AM again), so I was beat, but wanted to capture the design so I could reproduce it as needed in the future. Here's a closeup: The rattle is stamped and embossed on heavy vellum, in case you're wondering (since it's semi transparent). The inside reads "Congratulations".

Thought I would put a few more bright cards together in celebration of the return of Alice. I better get these in the mail quickly or they WILL be late!

Aren't these little earrings a treat? They are simple yet elegant with just a splash of color. I finished these up last night (and just barely in time, I should add).

What does one do while waiting for snow to melt and Spring to come? ....Make jewelry in springtime colors, that's what! I made the blue sparkly loops with paper, rubber stamps, crafting pigment, and high quality jewelry resin. The backing for the loops is a galvanized flat washers from Home Depot! Who could guess, eh? And that's what THIS girl does in a hardware store...look for items she can turn into baubles and bling!

These took literally 15 minutes to whip together...which is a good thing, since I am working a stamp camp tonight and tomorrow and had to bring a door prize contribution.

One of my favorite pieces of furniture is a cabinet I purchased in 2001 (before I moved and remarried). Its one of the nicest things in my kitchen.

At least something around here is relaxed!

....You Wild Thing!