Card Mojo Coming Back?

Mmmm...I wonder? For those of you who may not remember, I make and send a lot of cards to deployed troops so that they have something to send home to their families & friends. Last Christmas I ended up buying what I could not make and believe me, it was close to a thousand cards! Anyhow, I had been burnt out for almost the entire year and couldn't bring myself to make the simplest of cards. Thanks to all of the wonderfully talented ladies (and men, if there are any) with blog sites because I feel like I have been able to recover what I like to call my "card mojo". Not that I haven't cased a few cards and added my own twist to them, but I actually was able to get my own creativeness flowing and came up with a few cards that I am actually proud of. For awhile, I started making simple cards but didn't really feel like I had accomplished anything. Do you have days like that?

With the crunch of the holidays coming up, I am usually running on empty this time of year because I am up until the wee hours of the morning making special orders that I get through my eBay store, http://stores.ebay.com/Gwendolyns-Boutique. But this year things have slowed down and I am guessing it is because of the economy. I cannot say that I miss the hustle & bustle of cranking out nightgown & pajama sets for children & adults alike, but I do feel a sense of calmness and I am rather liking it. Weird, huh? Maybe this year I can get everything done that I planned on doing every year for the past ten years (lol)!! Oh, so you DO know what I mean?! It's nice to know that I am not alone. I always have such big ideas for the holidays but sometimes (okay, most times!) I always fall short of my own expectations. Maybe I ask too much of myself. But I don't know many women who don't. I think we always expect more from ourselves than others do. At least those of us who aim to over-achieve do.

Once again, I have drifted away from what I was really talking about. Cards. It seems that I have a little more time to actually sit down and make the cards the way that I want to. And the end result is so much better when we take our time, isn't it? I am the type of person who needs to be in the mood to sew and with me, it kind of comes in waves. I can sew for weeks and then not want to look at any of my sewing machines for months afterwards. So most of my cards now are not sewn for that very reason! My mother, on the other hand is one of those people who can sew 24/7! There are some days that I wish I were more like that.

Well, onto the better stuff now...my cards!! I tell you, I am not so good at posting daily...or weekly...or monthly for that matter!! My bad!! I have always said that I would make an effort and fell short of my word for various reasons...mostly life happens. So I am trying yet again. Who knows, we might all be surprised this time around (lol)!

This first card is one of my favorites. I absolutely LOVE pink and brown together. I teamed up pink pirouette with chocolate chip and just kept layering. Stamp sets used are Magnolia Tilda and SU! Best Yet. I added a little dimension to the tag, hat & skirt by adding foam adhesive. I also lightly sponged creamy caramel to the edge of the white cardstock and pink pirouette to the pink cardstock. Ribbed pink ribbon is Michael's store brand.





Next card also has a Magnolia Tilda image from the heavenly collection. I used the scallop circle die from SU! (big shot) and teamed that up with CM circle cutters (I forgot I had those) and inked the edges before layering them. The designer paper is Bella Rose from SU! Just love that paper! Photo corner tag punch and Cute & Curly designer punch kit from SU! used. Pink Gems are from Martha Stewart (these are the best I have used so far).



And that's it for today. Thanks for stopping by!