Lawn Fawn You're Clawsome!

My son, Chris, is awesome at Claw machines.  He has quite a collection of treasures to prove his mastery!  And a niece who enjoys the product of his skills!  For his birthday, I have used the Lawn fawn "You're Clawsome" stamp set to create a memorable card for him. Happy Birthday, Chris!

Colors achieved with Copic Markers.  Background is a discount store paper and ms.sparkle & co Woodgrain Colors washi tape.

SUMMER BARN

The summer of 2016 found the Bobb's helping to clear the land and make way for a new barn.  Whew! what a project.  There were a lot of large trees that had to be removed.  I confess I was more than a little worried.  Genealogy research had revealed that several stories of ancestors who met their end by felling trees.  God was watching over everyone and the worst injury for our crew was a few annoying cases of poison ivy.  We have a lot of summer birthdays.  This one in commemoration of the new barn!  This card is made with a plethora of Impression Obsession dies.  A little different for me as not one stamp was used.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

A cute little maternal owl cuddling her sweetie in the forest from Lawn Fawn is the focal point of this Mother's Day card.  The set is called "Mom and Me" and features furry foxes and feathery owls.  This card is Air Brushed and colored with Copic Markers into a cheery little scene with sentiments' of love.  Mommy letters and flowers are from Impression Obsession.

BIBLE JOURNALING UNDER FEATHERS Psalm 91:4

"He will cover you over with feathers and under his wings you will find refuge."  "Because he loves me," says the Lord, "I will rescue him." A picture is worth a thousand words and this stamp from House Mouse called, "Doverly Love", says it all.  Where else would I ever want to be? but with a God who comforts me, protects me and keeps me close to His beating heart.  And one day, I and all my mouse friends that I can befriend to go with me, will meet Him face to face.  In the meantime, we live protected, cuddled under his wing to face whatever the day brings.

There is a power in knowing God's Word.  He speaks of it here:

 "so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."

This is my second attempt at Bible Journaling.  Once you get over a few things, this turns out to be a lot of fun!  Below are a couple of Mind Obstacles that some of us might need to think through.  

Obstacles

1. I can't mark in my Bible, that would be desecration!

Thoughts:

I guess I got over this a long time ago.  I learned to mark passages that spoke to me when I studied them. I underline, use brackets for paragraphs, highlight favorite passages, insert dates and names of pastors for favorite sermons, create chain topics by putting the scripture address of topics that correlate throughout the different chapters and books sequentially creating my own Bible study. I learned that these marks made my favorite passages easier to find, cemented them in my memory and created meaningful messages and memories for me.  I can't imagine NOT marking important and relevant gemstones that I find.  It's like Hansel and Gretel's bread crumb trail that takes me back to where I need to go and what I need to know.  My Bible is so much more personal to me now that I have scribbled in it all these years. And imagine what a legacy for those that come after you.  I would love to have a Bible that my grandmother had written her thoughts in as she went through her life.  To me, that would be better than a diary. 

2.  But stamping, drawing and water coloring?  How could I? I'm really not very good at those things. I might create something I don't like.  I might mess it up.  

Thoughts:  

a. You probably will.  On the other hand, as you create more, you will have visible evidence of your growth in your new found activity. 

b. You might choose to purchase a new  Bible for artistic venues, the pristeen version, for reading Bible and second for creating.  There are a lot of Bibles on the market that are made for Bible Journaling with wider margins for room to create or even better, an interleaved one which has a blank page between every page of text.  More room for study notes AND beautiful or not so beautiful meaningful creations.  

I am absolutely THRILLED that this "hobby" has caught on and is becoming so popular.  Ladies are interacting with scripture passages and finding fun while absorbing the precious words written to us as the guiding light for our lives.  They are making creations based on the very foundational building blocks of life that were sacredly written for our increase in knowledge and wisdom.  Our first glimpse into the realm of the Heavenly Father in Genesis 1 is the story of His creations.  We are created in His image to create.  

So, I hope Bible journaling flourishes for a long time.  Go forth and create!!

WOODLAND BROWSING BABY BUNNIES WATERCOLOR

My little bunnies are enjoying the scent of spring and I am exploring a version of a watercolor rubber stamping technique that Bonnie Krebs teaches for her Watercolor stamp line.  I must say, I have worked for so long to learn how to put details into my stamping scenes that it seems counter-intuitive to me to try to watercolor with a "semblance" of the image.  Blurry is a challenge for me.  I want to go back over it and put the details back.  #tryingtolearn

The technical goods are as follows:  Art Impressions watercolor technique used with Hackney and Company/Craft Consortium "English Garden" stamp set and Stampscapes. Spellbinders dies. The Spellbinders are actually two different sets made to go with each other. Gold Labels Four and Card Companions with "Elegant Labels".  All mounted on deckled edge card stock from Hollo's.

SAIL ON! TEA CUP TRAVELER, HAPPINESS IS IN THE JOURNEY

Meet Pure Innocence (PI).  I love the simplicity of this little line drawn sweetie and she is a favorite character of Lawn Fawn. PI reminds me of both myself as a little girl and my granddaughter.  Lawn Fawn has several new releases of her every year and she is always doing something fun.  Her every day antics fit into my memories of life as a little girl.  When I saw this version with her eyes covered, my imagination jumped immediately to putting her into a hot air balloon.  This concept turned into one of my favorite all time cards.  I chose the "where" sentiment because it was one of my granddaughter's favorite words at the time.  The banner is an Our Daily Bread Designs diecut.  The barn is from Sweet 'n Sassy stamps, "Landscape Sillhouettes", the cup is from, "A Nice Cuppa", by Stampin UP.  The paper for the hot air balloon is from "My Mind's Eye.

THE JOYS OF GRANDPARENTING, Rediscovering Beatrix Potter

Beatrix Potter had owned her first Lake District farm, Hill Top in the village of Near Sawrey, for a year when she began work on The Tale of Tom Kitten. She shows Tom and his sisters living in the farmhouse and getting into mischief amongst the flowers of the beautiful cottage garden that she had created herself.

Three little kittens, Mittens, Moppet and Tom Kitten.  They had dear little fur coats of their own and they tumbled about the front door and played in the dust.  The little kittens mother, Mrs. Tabetha Twitchet expected company for tea and so she fetched the kittens and washed and dressed the girls in clean pinafores and tuckers.  She Tom had gown, and he had outgrown his finery.  His buttons burst off.  Mother sewed them on again.  Mother Twitchet unwisely turned them out into the garden to be out of the way while she made hot buttered toast. She directed them to "keep your frocks clean children, you must walk on your hind legs, keep away from the dirty dust ash pit, and Sally Henny Penny, and from the pig's sty and the puddle ducks.  They fell outbut later finds them in total disarray.   Moppet and Mittens walked down the path unsteadily.  Presently, they trod upon their pinafores and fell on their noses.  When they stood up, there were several green smears....

You tube has the stories, all complete, read in lovely English accents ready to stir young and old imaginations.  Happy Times.   

The card is created with a rubber stamp from Crafter's Companion.  Copic Markers were used for coloring.

FUN WITH BIBLE JOURNALING!

KNOCK, KNOCK, SURPRISE!  IT'S M E!!!!!

Hello, knock, knock, it's me.....I know its been a long time, sorry didn't mean to scare you, but yes! I've written a blog after three years!!!  I have really forgotten how and am creating this one as a trial and error to see if I can really do this again.  Maybe not too much has changed.

Well, I'm still a rubber stamper and paper crafter and more into genealogy than ever!

My latest adventure is into Bible Journaling.  The name is a little misleading, at least for me.  It is more Bible illustrating for me.  Using my stamps and similar techniques for making cards, I have made a couple of images to go with Bible passages that have a tender spot in my heart.

It isn't' really about the art so much, as it is about engaging with the scripture passages and meditating on their meaning while you work. The artwork won't be perfect, just as our lives are not without imperfections.  So, it is OK if you make a mistake or it doesn't turn out quite as expected.  Just like every new adventure, it is a learning experience.

So, I started in Genesis. I remember in science class the first time I was shown the periodic table of the elements.  I was fascinated thinking, you mean that is all the ingredients that it took for God to create the earth?  This was just unacceptable, I was sure that here had to be more, but it was still fascinating to think that I was at least looking at a lot of the basic building blocks of earth all spelled out on a chart.  So when I read the Genesis account of creation, that's where my mind goes.  And it was a perfect place to begin my Bible journaling.

I was able to purchase a stamp of the periodic table of the elements.  I included as schematic drawing of a shell as it might have been drawn out and then the end product. Voila!  Creation!  The background is water colors and the elements below are Washi Tape.  The shell is actually a napkin that I decoupaged in.  I colored the opposite side in with some watercolor markers and I'm sorry to say, it bled a little.  Oh, well.  I'm sure the workshop of creation got a little messy too.