Inspired Canvas of Words

So, remember when I wrote about this beautiful canvas that Leanne made?  And how it inspired me? 

Well, I decided to try my hand at it.  Leslie at Words of Me Project suggested we do something creative each day for 14 days starting January 23rd.  So for the last week, I've been working on making a companion piece to my Truth canvas. 

Using Leanne's recipe, I started by adding paper scraps to a canvas and mod podging the whole thing. 




I wanted to put all three previous words on one canvas, so I needed to make my own removable letters.  I just took some flimsy cardstock letters from one of my paper pads and put Alene's Tack It Over and Over on the backs of the letters.

I added some butterflies (my fave) to give the canvas a little dimension. 

Then painted it white.  I think the layer of paint might have been a little thin, but I told myself from the start that once I made a decision, I was going to embrace it.  There are no mistakes.

Once the paint dried, I removed the letters and sanded some sections.

Outlined the letters, added some some more scraps and sanded some more.  Then found my K&Co. keys.  I actually had another piece of metal in mind, but I couldn't find it to save my soul.  And I really wanted to complete this project. 

This took nearly a week to complete.  I worked on it every night after work.  It's not nearly as beautiful as the one I received, and quite frankly, if Leanne does decide to sell these in her Etsy shop, I would definitely consider picking some up for some friends.  This took longer than I thought it would. 

Oh, and the scraps from the scraps?  I put them in my art journal. 

I'll figure out something for that some other day.   

Now what have you done to feed your creative soul??

Snippets of Thoughts and Catching Up

Yes, I know it's been a while since I posted, and even longer since I came up with my own thoughts.  I can't tell you how many partially started posts I have sitting in my dashboard, but none end up seeing the light of day due to my "perfectionism" getting in the way.

So here are some snippets of what I've been up to lately --

I'm back at work after taking six weeks off after my kidney surgery.  It's a madhouse there, but that's to be expected at this time of year.  Gotta get those kids registered for classes in the fall!!  I am forever indebted to my replacement for those six weeks.  I promise, LS, I'll make it up to you!!!!

During my time off I played with some art journaling and painting.  Don't have a lot of confidence in what I do.  Maybe I need to take one of those online classes that will teach me to let myself go!!

I've got some things planted in the garden.  It's not complete, but this spring weather has just not cooperated enough now that I'm feeling up to planting things.  But thanks to my PG's help in turning over the garden, it's gonna be a beauty this year!!!

Now if I can just keep this little guy away from some of these new plants.  FYI: Blood meal seems to work!! Just don't overuse it...it's high in nitrogen!

And just for my Texas Sisters, here's the cactus affectionately known as the HEW/HaneyBob cactus that gets pushed outdoors each summer.

As many of you may remember, my "word of the year" is SIMPLIFY.  I'm having a rough go of it so, sure enough, one day in my inbox comes and email with a note from the Universe via http://www.tut.com/ that gives me the simple words that will be my mantra.  This is paraphrased and it's what I wrote on my whiteboard:

Know what you want

and move toward it every day.

Pretty simple, right?  But isn't that how those who are most focused on their goals work?  And for some reason, it is a stress/anxiety reliever for me.  So that's my phrase of the day for the rest of this year!!

I'm heading to the Scrap Cellar this Saturday and I'm wiggle-butt excited about it.  Last time I was with the Scrap Chicks was the day before I found out about the kidney tumors, so we are in desperate need to get together. 

You may have noticed my new header.  It was decided that I needed a header that got me away from my computer and out into my garden.  My blog header creator extraordinaire, Scrap Chick, and BFF Leanne, over at From Chaos Comes Happiness, created this header with my PG doing his favorite yard thing.  (LOVE the smell of freshly mowed lawns, don't you??).  If you think your header needs a little personalization, Leanne's the one to contact!

At least for the next week or so, I'm soaking up the last few days of "voyeurism" while watching the not so little eaglets practice wing flapping at the Decorah eagles website.  They will probably fledge within a week and I can't tell you how grateful I am that I've had the opportunity to watch them grow from the time they were a couple weeks old.  What a fantastic project they've got going there! 

So that's what's happening in my little world.  I encourage you to stop by the links I've posted today.  There's some good stuff out there!!  And feel free to leave a comment (if Blogger will let you).  Would love to know you stopped by!!

Letting Go

My last post was about my Dad's birthday on March 5.  Here it is, March 9 and I'm finally posting my next one.  I notice that whenever my blog subject is about my Dad, I tend to keep it up there for a few days.  I wonder if subconsciously, I'm feeling like I would dishonor him by replacing it too soon.  You know the feeling...you're going through some old papers and you stop to read notes in their handwriting and the next thing you know it's two hours later.  Where did that time go???

Makes me think about how many things in our life we are reluctant to part with because we're afraid of dishonoring a loved one. 
"Don't want to get rid of that sweater...I got that from my Mom." 
Yeah, 8 years ago and I haven't worn it in 7 years. 
"Yes, I know there's a chip in that vase, but I got that from my sister." 
Even though every time I put flowers in it, I can't help being distracted by it. 
"Yes, I know that he builds something for me every week, but my grandson loves to build things." 
Even though when he leaves here, he totally forgets about it. 
"Yes, I know there is weekly artwork on my fridge, but I want him to know how much I love his art."
Even though he forgets what the artwork was all about within days. 


Steak & Shake Artwork by 3 yr. old budding artist

For many years, I suffered from the "Can't let go" syndrome.  And I really do think it had to do with the idea of either dishonoring or forgetting the one that gave me the gift.  But I read once that it's not the thing, it's the memory you cherish.  So take a picture, scrap it or just put it in an album, and continue to cherish without having an unused item cluttering your home. 

That's the whole idea of my word of the year, SIMPLIFY.  And I've been slowly but surely working at simplifying my surroundings.  But I'll admit that it's not easy.  And sometimes I have to wait to be in the mood.  But once I start, I love the results. 

So, why is it so hard to just keep going??

My Creative Journey (this month)

I've been busy, busy, busy getting my Craft Cave organized.  For too long, things have gotten away from me and it's been so crowded in the Cave that I couldn't even work in there.  So, inspired by a couple of Big Picture Classes that I am taking/have taken, I'm holding true to my word of the year, SIMPLIFY. 

I've whittled down my paperstock (way too much for one woman to have -- and I really don't even like some of it!!), organized and labeled my embellishments

and alphas, 

and ROYGBIV'd my cardstock. 

By the time I complete my class to Find Your Way at BPC, I should have a good idea of what type of layouts are the ones that work for me. That will allow me to whittle down the paperstock even more.  And I will be able to

embrace imperfection in my layouts, because it really is all about the memories!!

When I'm not in the Cave, I've been going thru pictures, sorting, dating and getting them into plain jane albums (with my PG's help) that will help me find what I want when I want to scrap a page. 

So that's what's been on my creative radar this week.  But I also wanted to share this little tidbit with you.

Back in April 2005, a group of girls got together at my girlfriend's house to work on vision boards.  (A digital version of it can be seen on Leanne's blog, here).  As I was organizing my cave, I turned around to notice that my vision board

 was behind a cork board that had this poster on it. 

Now, I don't want to get all Freudian on you, but I couldn't help but chuckle when I thought about how I was covering up my vision, yet telling myself to keep in touch with my dreams. 

So I ask you...have you been covering up your vision?  Is it front and center so that you can keep in touch with your dreams?   

Have a great Sunday, y'all!

What a Charming Word!

As I mentioned earlier, my word for 2011 is SIMPLIFY.  And when you select a word of the year, it's nice to have that daily reminder to keep your focus.  Back in 2009, I was introduced to the wonderful world of Lisa Leonard Designs when I received a gift of a charm with my 2009 word (Gratitude).  Each year, Lisa has a special charm that is created with the Word of the Year in mind.

So I couldn't resist this year's charm.  I'll probably be wearing it most days.  Isn't it gorgeous???

Thanks LLD!! 

My 2011 Word

As I mentioned yesterday, my 2010 word (Serenity) wasn't as successful as I'd hoped.  So I did some soul searching on why it was harder for me to embrace and I realized that my life has too much stuff in it. Call it disorganization, call it clutter, call it my past!  But it's time for change. It's time to declutter. It's time to SIMPLIFY.

sim pli fy  verb

a.-  to reduce to basic essentials

b.-  to diminish in scope or complexity

c.-   to make more intelligible; clarify

Yep, that's my word for 2011 - SIMPLIFY. What's so funny is that as I say the word, I experience an AHHHHH moment. Have you ever had one of those? Where just one word fills you with serenity and peace? Where you feel all sorts of gratitude?? Wait, what's this? A connection with ALL of my words??  Hmmmm.... interesting. Maybe that's the way it's suppose to work!

I started to approach my blog buddy/Scrap Cellar Chick Leanne to help me out with creating a visual for my word. Then it dawned on me (don't you just love/hate those "duh" moments?)...KISS! Keep It Simple, Superstar! (yeah, I know it's usually "stupid" and not "superstar" but I'm not about to call myself stupid!!).
And so, this is my first step into SIMPLIFY!  Can't get any simpler, right??

And here's my plan for 2011...There are so many people in this world who need things. And there are so many things in this place I call home that it's time I get the two of those situations to meet up. It's time for me to SIMPLIFY. And it's not just my home. It's my diet, my scrapbooking, my relationships. I don't believe we were put on this earth to lead complicated, cluttered lives. I believe we serve God best by simply being our uncomplicated, uncluttered, simplified selves.

Funny thing about these one little words -- once you pick the word (or it picks you) you start moving in that direction.  You start wanting it in your life.  Every day, all the time.  How cool is that?!!??

I'm headed over to Leanne's.  She's got a linky thing going for our words for 2011.  And, of course, a thank you to Ali Edwards on starting this revolution.