Project 365 Challenge/Days 45-47 Photos & Flowery Sympathy

Some more daily doses of inspiration... I am getting caught up on photographing and posting some of my daily project challenges. Day 45 was a struggle in trying to get good digital photos at a volleyball tournament with very low lighting and no tripod or use of my flash. I just eye spied in a magazine a new gizmo...a tripod that fits onto a water bottle. That may just be an investment for an upcoming tournament. So, as it sometimes goes...you take a whole lotta shots just to get a couple good ones. In this case, this was my only real favorite from the bunch...of one of my daughter's friends (aka, one of my adopted daughters) right before she was ready to serve.

Day 46 - Flowery Sympathy Card

It is funny  how in life God brings you different people and different experiences that forever change your life. We have been going to the same Life Teen mass for several years and have shared the same pew with this sweet elderly couple. As time passed we got to know them a little better. Ginny was suffering for throat cancer and has been gradually losing her battle for the past year. They are a couple who remind Dan and I of one another in height and stature. Walter is real tall and slim and Virginia is short like me and petite. They don’t have any children or local family so we bring them soup and other meals when I make them up. We also invited them for Christmas dinner, but they both came down sick and weren't able to attend. Well sadly, the day after Valentine’s Day, Ginny slipped away from Walter’s caring hands in to those of the Lord. Our hearts are saddened however we know she is at peace now. I made this card to send to Walter to let him know that we are here for him and our friendship will continue. Her services are being held in Indiana so we have no way to formally say our goodbyes. Making this card with Ginny in mind made me feel just a little better, as creating always does!

inside view...

Day 47/ Sweet Floral Sympathy

It seems that death comes in pairs or trios. Just as I finished making one sympathy card, I found the need to make one to comfort another friend who was dealing with the surprising loss of her stepdad, Jim. 

I really liked the color combinations I used on the other card, so I introduced a deeper linen CS with embossing to make this card for her. Check out my Picasa gallery for supplies.

inside view...

Although I don't have formal sketches for these cards, you can use these basic layouts 

mixed with your favorite ribbons, CS, papers, stamps and embellishments to create

lots and lots of cards for any occasion. Hope this weekend, you live life creatively!

Project 365 Challenge/Day 22 - Delightful Dahlia Card

Some projects are created early in the day and others from this personal challenge are squeaked out in the last remaining hours of the day. This one was created in the wee hours of the night using a digital stamp image printed out from my Sew Long Flowers digital collection.

If you saw my Dress up Your Embellishments article in the April 2009 issue of Scrap & Stamp Arts Magazine, you would have seen my tip on altering paper flowers to customize them. I shortened the petals and layered the center flower element with some Glue Arts U-Cut-It double-sided adhesive foam to create this 3-D flower element.

This card includes Springtime Vintage patterned paper, a hand-distressed turqouise Prima paper flower, Glue Arts adhesives, asstd. solid CS, ribbon scraps, blender pen, pastels and markers. Choose from a variety of flowers in my “Sew” Long Flowers digi set. I colorized mine in brown and printed onto some high quality presentation paper to create this hybrid card.

Don’t want to hand color? You can purchase this pre-colorized clip art collection.

To create the double bows, wrap a piece of ribbon around brown layer and attach flaps on back side with high tac adhesive and Glue Glider™ Pro. Cut two small pieces of same ribbon and tie onto front panel by placing ribbon underneath the horizontal ribbon and tying into two bows.