Hello at Last!

It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?  I never meant to simply drop out of sight, but that’s surely what happened.  My reasons for doing so are dimming with time, though I hope you’ll trust that all is well in our world and my memories of you and the time we’ve spent here together are as fond as ever.  Let’s see if I can recall and explain…

I guess it all started with an increasingly acute sensitivity to the amount of time I was spending on the computer.  I use it for shopping, bill paying, communication, research, art, photos, videos, music, planning and organization – you name it, I use it.  Then along came a nightmarish computer software conversion at work – frustration on so many levels that I’d just as soon forget – and when I came home from work the last thing in the world I wanted to do was sit down at the computer.  Time for the amazing healing powers of Wally and LuLu.



There’s nothing like a long walk in the fresh air and the ensuing cuddle time when they’re dry and soft and putting on the sweet.  And, boy, do they ever know how to put on the sweet.

There’s also been a lot of home improvement projects going on.  That’s LuLu making off with the paint rag.



I’m still cleaning up drywall dust from the bedroom project.

I thought I might get more stamping done if I wasn’t taking the time to photograph the cards and write blog posts and, indeed, I did make six Halloween cards and many miscellaneous without a single photograph.  I’ve now commenced in earnest on the Christmas cards and I thought I’d share three of those today.  The first is a digital from Sassy Cheryl’s with a Hero Arts sentiment.  I colored with Copic markers and added glitter and a poinsettia.  I’m trying to keep each of my Christmas cards mailable with one postage stamp this year, so in order to use the poinsettia I removed its bulky center and replaced it with three 1/8” punched and glittered circles.




Next is a Squigglefly Holiday Bells digital image.  This one has a more vintage look.  It’s also colored with Copic markers and I relied on glitter and texture to relieve the flat look.  I put spots of gold Stickles glitter, rather than gems or pearls, on the white panel (Spellbinders Labels Eighteen), and dotted the green beads with a Sakura Glaze pen.  The green panel is white core cardstock embossed with a Cuttlebug Heritage Collection folder and then sanded.



Finally, I have a card that’s very easy to make in multiples, so this is one of several I have in the works.  I brayered the inside front flap of the Cuttlebug Lace Tree embossing folder with mustard ink and embossed the white cardstock, then cut out the tree.  I layered a Cuttlebug Tiffany embossed panel onto the card front, then added the tree on dimensional foam mounting tape.  I added dots of Goldenrod Stickles glitter glue to the tree and it’s all done.  I used Stampin’ Up! Whisper White cardstock which is rather lightweight, and this will easily be a one postage stamp card.



Catching up:

• While I was away LuLu turned one year old.  Though we celebrated, I’m sorry she didn’t get a blog post.  She’s my sweet little princess and Wally’s my big handsome boy.  I love them both so much.
• I had a birthday in October, and so did my husband.  Better yet, he retired on his birthday.  I’ve never mentioned this on my blog, but for the last several years he worked and lived away from home and Wally, LuLu and I spent much of our time on our own.  We never planned to live that way and we’re glad it’s finally over.
• Also, you remember when our home was burglarized?  The DNA analysis on the bloody shirt the crook left behind when he broke our window finally made it to the top of the list and they found a match with a young man who has been in and out of jail several times.  A sad, wasted life.  He’s going to prison now.

I’ll try not to stay away so long this time, but I can’t say for certain when I’ll be back.  I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving.  Take care!