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!

SCRAPBOOK PAGES

Lately I haven't been in the card making mood. Does anyone else go through this? I am calling it a dry spell for now as I just feel like I am burnt out. It happens to the best of us. You would think with all of the new techniques out, I would be on top of my game. But it just isn't happening for me. So I decided to dapple in scrapbooking for awhile and this is what I came up with. I found myself sewing mattes & making paper piecing's and have since concluded that I really like doing this. It's almost like a therapy for me. My mind goes to mush and I drown out all surrounding noises. Oh, so you do know what I mean?! Great! Well, at least I know that there are several of us out there:o) We're not alone! Anyhow, check out these layouts. Not too horrible for someone who doesn't scrapbook too much. At least I think they are okay:o)

MORE TIME TO PLAY?

Well, I tried to commit to blogging more often but as it turns out, I have had way too much on my plate. Bet you all know that feeling though, huh? I have decided to give a few things up so I can have a little more free time to blog. I really think that I enjoy looking at everyone else's work more though. There are some really awesome ideas floating around out there! I may have cased a few (wink). I haven't made too many cards lately, but I managed to make a few this week. I even listed them on ebay and was really disappointed when they didn't sell. My cards usually sell. But I have noticed that many auctions are ending without sales. Must be that time of year. Although I have to say, I did have two ladies email me and ask if my information was stamped on the back of the card. If it was blank, they were both interested. Well it wasn't, so they weren't! Oh, well. I guess I have some cards that I can add to my collection now. Prior to the holidays I had completely depleted all of my cards & I had quite the collection. I sent them to some troops that are in Iraq. It was well worth doing that, as it was only a small gesture on my part but now I need to build my "stash" back up again (smile). I am getting alot of help from my friend Paula. That woman can make cards! Well, I must run. But I will leave you with the few that I made.

CHILDREN'S CARDS

Okay, so here are two children's cards that I have recently made. I never really know what I am going to do with the layouts because if it isn't appealing for the child, it really isn't a hit then, is it? I love this new Oscar the Grouch stamp that I just bought online and Raggedy Ann & Andy are a classic that will never go out of style. This really wasn't meant for Christmas cards, but I thought I would try it anyway. I like it, don't you?

SCRAPBOOK PAGE LAYOUTS - MARINES

Well, it has been a long time since I have worked on any scrapbook pages. I was afraid that I might have lost my touch, but surprisingly, they turned out okay. Next I plan on working on some for my own albums which sad to say, I have neglected them for too long.

CHRISTMAS CARDS "SNOWY"

I love the way that these cards turned out. And I really like the papers that I used from from basic grey. I think it gives the cards a little something extra. I wasn't quite sure about the marshmallow face snowman, but now that I have the cards made up, I like it as well as the snowy the snowman cards.