• Art - Blog - Creativity

    All I really need to know

    Easter Sunday I was up bright and early like usual. The strange part was I had absolutely nothing to prepare or even get ready to bring along for our family meal. My mother-in-law told me to take a break and that she had it all handled. (which she did)

    For once I had both the drive to be creative and the time to do it.  Thank goodness I had gotten my hair done and makeup on early because I got totally lost in art journaling right up until having to change my clothes to leave home. 

    This was the first piece I created. Warm colors celebrating the warmth outside.

    I really love all the texture in this journal page.

    Next I completely changed my color palette for more seasonal pastel Easter egg colors.

    Layering bits of this and that has definitely been my style of choice lately.  Also creating loose leaf style pages that will be adhered to my Creative Memories scrapbook pages…cause you know I’m not going to actually use those for the intended purpose.

    I had to add stitching to this piece. I love how simply I can create texture and movement through textiles and trim.

    I even zig-zag stitched over baker’s twine as a quasi frame for the quote I chose. I tried a tiny key to the corner for a final touch.

    I wonder how many more pages I might have created had it not been Easter Sunday. Although other Sundays I’d have been worried about cooking for our family.

    Linking up today with Art Journal Journey for Having Fun.

    Art Journal Journey
  • Art - Blog - Crafts - Creativity

    T Tuesday: weird week edition

    Welcome to T stands for Tuesday! Grab a cuppa and stay a while.

    Over the weekend I got a little creative with an art journal page. You can see the details in the previous post.

    But I really must tell you about last week!

    I experienced the weirdest storm of my entire lifetime. We had a little bit of everything including a snow day on Thursday. This video pretty much nails the day right on the head. So funny!!!

    And just to add a little more funny truth, I saw this…

    Seriously…this happened Thursday.

    Anyway….after moving a bunch of snow, I made a bunch more cards while catching up on some TV.I’m on a mission to use up some old supplies….use it or lose it! I found two boxes of small-ish blank greeting cards in white and ivory. I know I’ve had them for 20 years and hadn’t used more than 1/4 of the lot. Use it or lose it!!

    The school year is winding down…sort of. Time is winding down but there are so many things that need to get packed into those days. While I am looking forward to summer and time off, I do actually enjoy the structure of going to work. As crazy as it sounds, I seem to get more done. Having that time constraint makes me more creative too. I’ve always been better with a looming deadline. Think about…you have company coming over in 2 days…oh I’ve got time to get everything done, no problem. Yet the last 2 hrs before company arrives you get more done than the last two days combined. Or maybe that’s just me?!?!

    Mini-me and I made a costume for a competition she is doing for her French class. Three girls are performing a skit in French at the University of MN. Mini-me is a whale. We didn’t make a full costume but enough to portray her as whale like…think blowhole and fins.. I’ll have to snap a photo of her decked out before she leaves. I wish I could go and see it but its during the school day.

    I’m reusing my Bulldog mug photo in celebration of the UMD Bulldog hockey team winning the national championship this year!

    Tuesday is the usual fair for me this week…work and an errand on the way home.

    What are you doing today?
  • Art - Blog - Creativity

    Listening is key

    I was inspired to create this journal page after reading a college student’s first hand account of why he was walking for suicide prevention on his college campus. I was moved by his very eloquent yet heartbreaking words describing his journey. I couldn’t help but think of all the young men and women in my life, especially my own children.  

    Often when I have high emotions, I turn to creativity as an outlet. I let everything go and work by intuition…not over thinking anything. Eventually I get to a place that the page starts to take a shape in the direction my mind was subconsciously heading.

    I’ve always been told I’m a good listener by my friends. They often will turn to me to vent, gab, or problem solve. I may not always have a ton of advice but I do always have a shoulder to lend.

    It is my wish that my children will find someone in their lives that will be able to do the same for them even if its not me. And that they have learned the skill of really listening. It is the key to so many things.