A Slow realization...

Ahem…it’s been a while.

At least I can finally say that our house is (mostly) in order now.

Also, I’ve been posting to my other Blog about our move and adventures westward.

I signed up for a craft show (my first), which is in two weeks.

I need…product, product, product, which I mostly don’t have but have been busy working on.

I’ve also been struggling with something as of late.

I’ve slowly come to the realization that my paper crafting doesn’t really seem to fit with what other paper crafters are doing.

Everyone is moving forward...using the latest products and techniques, while I seem to remain in place.

Maybe it has to do with the long 6-7 months that it's taken to pack up our home, move and get settled in our new house.

So I’ve stayed away, trying to figure out what to do…what I want to do.

I thought of taking on another persona…another blog…but I’ve decided to stick with who I am, at least for the time being.

And to admit…that I do simple.

In fact, I like simple.

Maybe it’s boring.

Maybe it’s plain.

Maybe it’s a throwback to the style that we all started with…simple, plain and unadorned.

But it’s what I do best.

I think.

I’ve found that something chemical happens to me when I participate in a card…color…sketch…challenge.

I’ve even talked it over with the husband…who would prefer to have his fingernails pulled out rather than talk “crafts.”

I recently told him…“somehow I lose myself when trying to create for a challenge. I create with my brain rather than from my heart.”

And…I usually end up not liking what I’ve created.

The husband, definitely not the warm and fuzzy type when it comes to my craft works, listened and offered up this gem…

“It’s simple…forget about what other people are doing and just make the kind of cards you like.”

Hmm…I thought I was doing that.

But upon reflection, I realized the husband...is right.

Whenever I enter a challenge, two things happen…

I forget about what I like and do best, and

I try to become “someone else.”

And I fail miserably at it.

Or maybe it’s more like what a good friend shared recently.

She was bemoaning how she resents things that take time away from her creative pursuits, but then added…”but the honest truth is I like to dream of those things more than actually doing them.”

Hmmm…

Don’t get me wrong.

I love to sit and peruse the latest craft magazines or sit at the computer visiting blog sites offering yummy card goodness.

I ooh.

I aah.

I drool over the latest techniques and products and what the rock star paper crafters are doing and creating and the world they open to the likes of me.

I envision creating cards…like them.

But it’s not me…or at least not me at the moment.

Like my friend, maybe I much prefer the reading and the “dream” of doing those things…rather than the actual doing.

Maybe it’s simply that I am a “hand’s on” visual learner…I need to see, feel, touch and see a technique, otherwise I'm disappointed in how my attempts, or as is more often the case, don't turn out.

Don’t know if that makes sense, but there it is.

I may change one day.

I hope I do.

But until then, I’ll continue to do what…I think…I do best.

Simple.

Thanks for stopping in…

What...if Anything Have I Learned this Week

is that it’s better sometimes to not submit to a card challenge. This is a good example.

Last night I made this dual purpose card for both the (second) Raspberry Suite Color and Hero Arts Blog “windows” challenges. I started late at night, which was the first problem. Truth be told, however, the card looks rather cute in real life. In the photo though, it looks…blech.

I was going for a mortar and brick look (to make a window) and it works in real life, but not under the harsh lens of a camera...the so-called mortar looks like really poor workmanship.

So with only fifteen minutes left to post to Mr. Linky, I decided to forego the challenge and wait for the next one and try and tweak this one.

Thanks for popping by...

What...if Anything Have I Learned this Week

[Forgot to do this last week]

That I am spoiled…spoiled…spoiled by all the many craft and sewing stores within a few miles from my home and that when we move...

that I will sorely miss…the Paper Source, Michaels, AC Moore, Pearls, Joann and G Street Fabrics, since none of these stores are located closer (if at all) than 50 miles from Laramie, Wyoming.

(That there are, however, two quilt shops, a bead shop and a yarn shop in Laramie…so there is a crafting community…yea!!)

What...if Anything Have I Learned this Week

On the ‘Morning Joe’ show (on MSNBC) all the talking heads gather together at the end of each show to take a turn in sharing… “What did we learn this morning?”

I’ve decided to take a page from “Morning Joe” and include a "What did I learn this week” section in my blog. So here’s my first...

"What did I learn this Week..."

That I can use silk flowers by the stem…for much less than the cost of the scrap-book and card making flowers that come in fancy tins, packets, etc… on my creations. I’m sure everyone else out there has already figured this one out, but I only just chanced upon it today.

I went to Michaels specifically to get some white MM mini blossoms.

While waiting to pay, I noticed a silk flower stem lying behind the checkout counter that looked to be the exact size and color I needed...at 50% off. I purchased that baby and what-do- you-know…it worked!

Of course, the silk stems don’t have fancy patterns or polka dots, etc., but for the solid colored flowers…it’s a lot cheaper. Just pull the “blossoms” off and store in a small container.

There is the problem, however, of the left-over denuded stem. For those of us who like to recycle and watch what we toss in the trash, this presents an issue [and I am left with a whole lot of flowers!]. Hmm…I sure hope I don’t have to re-think this idea!

Thanks for stopping by...