Crazy Cool Crafty Stuff

     How is it possible that there are 5 weeks only left in 2012?! Where has the year gone?  Looking back, it has been a very creative year for me. Did I accomplish all of my personal creative goals for 2012? No. But, I did make more creative time for myself in 2012 than I did in 2011. That's for sure! I felt good about every minute of it. This weekend, in fact, two of my craftiest friends and I held the first meeting of our new "Let's Get Together and Make Some Crazy Cool Crafty Stuff" Club. (We haven't come up with our official name yet. That is a work in progress.)  We had a blast! We created 3 projects I found on Pinterest, and each one was a rousing success.
Check out these cool shadow boxes.

     These are based on a project found on the blog Blue Eyed Blessings  http://www.blueeyedblessings.blogspot.com/ . There is a wonderful detailed tutorial there. This project was very fast and the results spectacular!
     Next we used a product from Sculpy called Pluffy. We rolled it out, then stamped on it using Close To My Heart My Acrylic stamps. Popped them in the oven, then painted them silver. I originally got this idea from my friend Melissa Laverty http://fancymelissa.com/blog/  and got more inspiration from Cathe Holden at http://justsomethingimade.com/2010/11/christmas-stamp-embossed-ornament/. These were super simple and a great project to do with your kiddos.
     Our third, and final, project for the afternoon was a project I lovingly call "Glittery Balls." (I snicker every time I say "balls"...heehee. This project was inspired by Lori Allred from My Craft Channel http://www.allreddesign.net/2012/11/ibp-glitter-cups.html.

These "balls" are so easy and so FABU! Just GORG! (That's how my teens talk.) Just use some Pledge Floor Shine some glitter and cha-ching...glittery balls! I used my Cricut and the Cricut Vinyl for the personalization. The possibilities of embellishing these balls are innumerable.
     I also created an Advent calendar using Close To My Heart's Workshop on the Go Kit. This is one of my favorite projects and would make a great gift.

You can order this kit from my website http://heatherrunion.ctmh.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=6870&CatalogID=1733.
     After re-reading this post, I am feeling pretty good about my holiday crafting. It's not even December 1st, and I am off to a Flying start!
     I'm thinking the theme of my next post will be my creative year in review...it's a work in progress.

Sophia's Love Potion

     My fifteen year old, Sophia, had to write a recipe for a love potion for one of her classes this week. I thought I would share it with everyone because I think it is very sweet!

Love Potion

 

Ingredients

2 cups white lilac petals

2 cups purple rose petals

4 3/4 cups trust

1 cup loyalty

3 ounces honesty

1 gallon happiness

3 teaspoons support 

2 cups attraction

A pinch of compassion 

Instructions

1. Evenly mix the white lilac petals and the purple rose petals together and set aside.

2. slowly add the loyalty to the trust over ow heat. Stir for 3 minutes then allow to cool.

3. Stir the support, attraction, and compassion into the happiness.

4. Once the trust mixture has cooled, add the happiness mixture to it.

5. Pour the flower petals over the new mixture.

6. Finally, sprinkle the honesty on top.

Administering the Love Potion

To administer this love potion, you must first put it into a spray bottle of sorts.  Spritz yourself first, and then convince the one you love to spritz them self. REMEMBER: The potion will only work if the one you love sprays them self. You cannot do it secretly! Once both of you have been sprayed, you should fall in love within the next 24 hours. Good luck!

    

      Trust, loyalty, honesty, happiness, support, attraction and compassion sound like a perfect recipe for love to me! Interesting that she has her first real boyfriend...(insert bittersweet sigh). Here they are before the big Homecoming dance a few weeks ago.  A stunning couple if I do say so myself!

     Young love...definitely a work in progress!

 

Crafty Happiness

     Being creative (gettin' crafty) really is how I get to my "happy" place. Art is truly therapy for me. Lately, I have felt the need for lots of therapy! I love to create just about anything, but, in my creative heart, first and foremost, I am a scrapbooker. Long ago, I grew beyond the idea that a scrapbook had to be a leather bound album filled with 12x12 pages. I think just about anything that tells a story can be a scrapbook. I really enjoy scrapbook art that can be displayed in your home or given as a gift. This is a project that I recently completed that I am totally in love with! Check it!

     Stunning, right?! The best part of this project? It is a Work Shop on the Go from Close To My Heart! The Scroll Album Kit http://heatherrunion.ctmh.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=6868&CatalogID=1733comes with all of the embellishments needed to complete this project. All you need to add, besides your pictures, of course, is adhesive and Chocolate ink. The thing I love about this project, is that it is a no brainer! It comes with a full set of fully photo illustrated instructions to guide you from start to finish. I am really considering doing several of these for Christmas and Birthday gifts this year.
     Think you might be interested in this project? Check out my website at http://heatherrunion.ctmh.com . The kit is item number G1042 and retails for $35.95 plus tax and shipping. If you are local to me and need some help completing this kit, give me a jingle, I would love to "meet up" and assist you in completing this masterpiece! What the heck, find a couple of friends who want to get in on this crafty fun, and we'll make it a PARTY!
    All this talk about creating is making me feel inspired. To the craft room I go!

Thinkin' about "THINGS"

     You know, lately, I have been thinking a lot about "things."  The more I think about my obsession with "things," (yes, I said obsession), the more afraid and ashamed I become.  I am not just talking about material "things." I am talking about work "things," home "things," family "things," money "things," time "things,"...a whole lot of "things."
     I have to be entirely honest, I have a pretty great life. Really, I do. I know it.  I have a great family, beautiful home, supportive friends, co-workers I adore, and more blessings than any one person really should have. Still, I often find myself unhappy worrying about "things." Many of these "things" I can change, some I cannot. But, I find myself mired down by fears, real and imagined, that prevent me from taking action. Am I lazy? I don't believe I am, but why can't I simply get over or work through all these "things?"
     I think that fear... well... sucks!  I want to be brave, not just sometimes, or when it's easy, but brave all the time. I just feel like there are so many "things" going on in my life right now, that I have forgotten how to be brave. Shucks, I am even afraid when I go to the dentist anymore. (Sorry Doctor Boyd, you are a wonderful dentist. It's me, not you.)
     I think the only way I can work through all this stress and fear about "things," is for me to become brave again. I mean, honestly, what do I really have to lose? My family? My friends?  I don't think so. I feel like "things" are pushing me to make some major changes in my life. It is true that no one is promised a tomorrow, so I better get brave quickly and take care of some "things."
     I often pray about "things." The Serenity Prayer is one of my favorites.

     Maybe, just maybe, I can start to work through some of these "things." Do me a favor, please. Say a prayer for me. I'll take all the help I can get with "things." It's a work in progress...

The "BIG 40"

     This past weekend, I made my annual pilgrimage to Fredericksburg, VA and a magical little store filled with more scrappy happiness than one girl can hope for. Scrapdoodles is a fantastic shop filled with all things scrappy, and then some! Paper, stickers, stamps, inks, paints, glitters, albums, ribbons...all to be found in abundance at Scrapdoodles. It is kind of like Disneyland for all things scrappy.  For the past few years, Scrapdoodles has hosted a weekend full of artistic bliss (and artistic education) taught by the one and only Donna Downey of Donna Downey Studios near Charlotte, NC.  I first met Donna at a scrapbooking event in Northern Virginia in 2008. I left her classes feeling personally artistically transformed.  Sounds profound, right? It truly was. It was a defining moment in my artistic journey. It was the first time that I had stepped outside of my creative "box", and it felt FANTASTIC! I was an instant fan! Since then, our paths have crossed several times, and I have come to appreciate the warmness and whimsy that Donna brings to creating and teachng others how to expand their creative palette as well.
     Donna taught a full slate of classes on Friday through Sunday at Scrapdoodles. I was able to join in on the artistic fun on Saturday and Sunday (...Thank you, Timmy. Happy wife. Happy Life.) I felt particularly inspired after Saturday's class, The Big 40. Donna describes this class as her favorite top 40 tips, tricks, and techniques for building better art journals and mixed media backgrounds. I call this class, Finally Learn How to Use Many of the Art Supplies You Have Been Accumulating/Hoarding. It was so much fun and so expanding. Check these techniques out. On the left we have  UTEE (ultra thick embossing enamel) acrylic paint resist and on the right UTEE Distress Stain resist.

Complicated...no. Did it make me giggle out loud and cover my mouth in delight?...YES! If you think that's awesome, then you should have seen my reaction to using masking tape to add texture to a background.

One word...AMAZEBALLS! I love learning to look at things a different way, and using those supplies that have been hiding out in my scrap room. It feeds directly into my evolving philosophy of consuming, not collecting, my products. Oh, the joy!
     Just let me sum up by telling you that these creative adventures are the things that keep me bright and sunny for the rest of the week...sometimes the month. I love a good creative "high." Here is a link to Donna's website. Check out one of her creative events. They are well worth your time and money.
http://www.donnadowney.com/

Well, Here Goes Nothin'

     I have been playing around with the thought of starting a blog for the past few years. Since I love social media, it seems like the natural progression is to just jump in and do it. I feel like, at my core, I am a storyteller. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the rest are great, but not really appropriate for all the details of my life and adventures that I would like to share. My biggest obstacle...the actual technology. I am NOT a tech savvy gal! I aspire to be a tech savvy gal, but, as with many things in my life (as in yours, as well, I'm sure!) it is still a work in progress.
     I don't have a specific purpose in my mind for this blog. I simply want a place to share,well, anything that is making me feel like I need to share. Anyone who knows me is already aware that I can talk the balls off a pool table! Don't be shocked if I am sharing a recipe one day, and telling the story of how I secretly desire to try stand up comedy the next. Occasionally, I suspect, I will just need a place to vent. Mostly, though, I want to share my ideas and adventures, my joys and sorrows, and my thoughts on how my "story" is currently unfolding.
     Just to get my feet wet, I am going to try to post a picture at the end of my blog post today. I know what you're thinking...big flippin' deal, right? Well, for a technical novice like myself, it will be a major victory...if it works! Well, here goes nothin'...

     Sweet Lord, I think it worked! SCORE! (It really is the little things.) In case you don't already know, I'm the hottie with the short brown hair. (Just kidding! Although I do aspire to be a hottie too! LOL!) This is a picture of my unbelievable family, taken by my sister in law, Lisa, on Easter Sunday 2012. Prepare yourself. I am certain that many posts in this blog will revolve around these incredible human beings. They ARE, typically, my favorite subjects.
      My goal is to make this blog a happy, and occasionally educational, place where people can go to feel connected and maybe even inspired. Come along for the ride. You are welcome here.