Gathered Leaves |

Hello Friends!

Today’s card features the “Life Is Beautiful” stamp set which can be seasonally appropriate throughout the entire year, depending on how you choose to adorn your tree. Since it’s Fall, I chose to stamp my leaves in bright Fall colors. I also used some preserved Madrone tree bark, as I’ve used in previous posts. Directions for how to preserve the bark can be found here.

I couldn’t agree more with the sentiment on this card, also from the “Life Is Beautiful” stamp set. Despite the havoc coming at us from every direction throughout 2020, if we stop and take stock of how beautiful and precious life is, it becomes quite easy to focus with 20-20 vision – Life-Is-Beautiful!

This year has required many adjustments, but despite the inconveniences and angst, life goes on and we have so much to be thankful for! I guess it all comes down to “looking at the glass half empty, or half full”. I choose “half-full”.

I have to admit that I haven’t always had that “half-full” attitude. I had some life circumstances in years gone by which were “trying” (to put it mildly), and I felt quite justified in my negativity. I began down a very slippery slope of unhappiness and the “blame game” secondary to somebody else’s choices, and circumstances that were out of my control.

A very dear friend, who also happened to be my doctor and employer, recognized this and on a particularly bad afternoon, simply said to me, “You know, Jan, happiness is a choice. You can choose to be happy even during tough times.”

Whoa! Wait a minute! I wanted to argue and justify that this, this and this were why I couldn’t be happy (it wasn’t my fault…)! But that small voice inside me told me to keep my mouth shut and think about what he’d just said. After much deliberation, I had to admit, he was right! While I couldn’t control many of the circumstances around me, I could control my attitude and make a choice to be happy despite my circumstances.

Light-bulb moment: My happiness didn’t have to hinge on what someone else did or didn’t do.

That revelation changed everything for me and I set about very purposely being happy, seeing the glass half full instead of half empty you might say. It wasn’t easy, as my circumstances and challenges were still there. But I awoke every morning with a determination that I would be happy today, regardless of the actions of others.

It took many months of very purposely choosing happiness, not allowing someone else’s actions to dictate my emotions and attitude. I learned during that time what it was to really lean on my faith – to let go and let God! Trust me my friends, God still works miracles. I’ve been on the receiving end a couple of times which I can identify with all certainty, and probably more that I’m not even aware of. I’ll share those miracles given me in due time. But let me just reaffirm… Life Is BEAUTIFUL! (And, happiness is a choice!)

LET’S GET INKY!

Stamp sets used:

Life Is Beautiful
Gather Together

Metal Dies:

Gathered Leaves

Paper:

Very Vanilla CS – card base 5 1/2″ x 8 1/4″ – fold at 4 1/4″ (Card front will be 1/4″ smaller than card back)
Early Espresso CS (mat 2) – 5 1/8″ x 3 3/4″
Soft Suede CS (mat 2) – 5″ x 3 5/8″
Very Vanilla CS – image panel – 4 7/8″ x 3 1/2″
Gilded Autumn DSP – inside edge strip – 1/2″ x 5 1/2″

Ink:

Early Espresso
Cajun Craze
Pumpkin Pie
So Saffron
Balmy Blue
Tuxedo Black Memento

Accessories:

Preserved Madrone Tree Bark
Linen Thread
In Good Taste Elements
Light Soft Suede Stampin’ Blends
Stampin’ Sponges

Putting It Together:

On the Very Vanilla Image Panel, starting at the top, lightly sponge So Saffron across top and about three-fourths down the panel until it fades out.
Next lightly sponge Balmy Blue ink in sort of an arch across the top.
Stamp the tree trunk image in Early Espresso. Color in with Light Soft Suede Stampin’ Blend.
Stamp the leaves in Cajun Craze, stamping first below the tree, and then with the second generation ink (stamped off once below the tree), the leaves in the tree.
Repeat with Pumpkin Pie ink, stamping below the tree with fresh (1st generation) ink, and then with second generation in the tree.
Stamp the “Life Is Beautiful” sentiment above the tree.
Stamp the pumpkins from “Gather Together” stamp set on preserved Madrone tree bark, or Cajun Craze CS, using Tuxedo Black Memento Ink.
Crop out the pumpkins using the corresponding die from “Gathered Leaves Dies”.
Adhere pumpkins beside tree trunk.
Lightly sponge Early Espresso ink around edges of image panel.
Wrap Linen Thread around the left edge of the panel x 3, attaching ends to back of image panel.
Using a short piece of the Linen Thread, tie a small bow around the 3 vertical threads.
Use Early Espresso ink to lightly “grunge-up” the wood leaf from In Good Taste Elements. Use a glue dot to adhere the wooden leaf just below the bow.
Adhere the Early Espresso mat to the card base, followed by the Soft Suede mat.
Adhere a length of tree bark, (or a piece of Cajun Craze cardstock 5 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ – moisten top and bottom edges and carefully tear edges away) to mid-left side of card front.
Adhere image panel over all.
On the inside of the card, adhere the DSP strip along the right edge, even with the card base edge.
Stamp the leaf image from Gather Together in Pumpkin Pie ink.
Stamp the sentiment from Gather Together in Early Espresso, slightly overlapping the bottom of the stamped leaf.

DONE!

Thank you for stopping by my blog today! Spend some time looking around; I hope you find some inspiration here and may you GET INKY TODAY!

OH, OH, OH!!! Don’t forget that the Stampin’ Up Designer Series Paper is ON SALE through the month of October!! Now’s the perfect time to stock up on all the gorgeous papers you’ve had your eye on!

Click here for the flier of all the DSP on sale!

Or, simply go to my online store and click on Designer Series Paper Sale!

Janet

Product List

Life Is Beautiful Photopolymer Stamp Set [154871] $17.00	Gather Together Bundle [153036] $38.50	Gather Together Photopolymer Stamp Set [150589] $17.00	Gathered Leaves Dies [150662] $26.00	Gilded Autumn Specialty Designer Series Paper [153520] $15.00
Very Vanilla 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [101650] $9.75	Early Espresso 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [119686] $8.75	Soft Suede 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [115318] $8.75	Cajun Craze 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [119684] $8.75	Early Espresso Classic Stampin’ Pad [147114] $7.50
Cajun Craze Classic Stampin’ Pad [147085] $7.50	Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin’ Pad [147086] $7.50	So Saffron Classic Stampin’ Pad [147109] $7.50	Balmy Blue Classic Stampin’ Pad [147105] $7.50	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $6.00
Linen Thread [104199] $5.00	In Good Taste Elements [152476] $6.50	Stamping Sponges [141337] $4.00	Mini Glue Dots [103683] $5.25	Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $4.00
Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $120.00	Paper Trimmer [152392] $25.00

Hello Friends!

Dean and I went for a horseback ride yesterday morning and I noticed that our maple trees are already losing their leaves. Though the calendar doesn’t say so just yet, I think it’s beginning to look a lot like FALL!

In pondering how fast time goes by, The Steve Miller Band popped into my head as I was riding, and I started singing “Time keeps on slippin’, slippin’, slippin’ into the future; I want to fly like an eagle to the sea…” About that time, Jake, my horse, must’ve been listening carefully to the lyrics (or he doesn’t like my singing), as he picked up the pace and suddenly I was feeling that “wind of heaven which blows between a horses ears”! I reined him back, which he did readily, and then he blew as if to say… FINE, just no more singing! This reminded me of my son, Adam, when my kids were young. My daughters liked to sing in the car, and Adam would ask them to stop. They rarely did upon his request, and finally Adam would be begging me, “Mom, pleeeease make them STOP!” I guess Jake was either 1) giving me my wish to “fly like an eagle”, or 2) was saying in his own way “pleeease stop singing!” Either way, I stopped singing and we settled back into a nice easy walk!

Oh how I love my horses! The following just about sums it up for me and my boys (horses)!

But I digress…

I was speaking of seeing the maple leaves already falling, and that’s what prompted today’s card! I had just one more Madrone bark leaf leftover from my card a few days ago and wanted to incorporate that.

I had wanted to use bark for the larger leaf also, but I didn’t get glycerin applied to my flattened bark soon enough and the bark was quite brittle, so I started the process described in my last post all over again, this time applying glycerin to the bark as soon as it came out of the water. It should be ready for working with by tomorrow!

A couple quick notes before we get down to the inky business:

Stampin’ Up updated the Clearance Rack a couple days ago, so be sure to check out the deals there! I noticed there’s quite a bit of cardstock and embellishments, as well as designer series paper deeply discounted so check it out!

Also, if you’ve been kicking around the idea of joining my team, now is a GREAT time to do so! Through the month of September, if you sign up to be a demonstrator, you’ll receive not only the regular starter kit ($125 worth of products for $99 – plus all the business supplies and FREE shipping), but you will also receive the “Get & Go Starter Kit” which includes enough cardstock pieces to make 16 cards, a pack of Rhinestone Basic Jewels, the So Much Love stamp set, and the Queen Anne’s Lace stamp set. This is enough to easily get you set up for your first event if you choose to do so! Though, as I’ve mentioned before, many join simply to be “hobby” demonstrators (getting the discount and being able to pre-order ahead of the public). That’s what I did initially, and I can promise you I will never push you to do more than you want to do! So, if you’re interested or have questions, please just click on the “Contact” tab above and I’ll get back to you promptly!

Let’s get INKY!

Materials: