Wednesday, Aug 7th or early morning Thursday, Aug 8th

Well after I got the fabric today I couldn't turn off my creative thoughts in making my very first tag. My sister Carlene came up and showed me how to use my new sewing machine and i was filled with excitement on making my first piece. So, I made my first tag with eclectic fabric by tim holtz today. Really like how it turned out.

The most amazing part was that this tag was made without any adhesives, glue dots, pop dots- purely just the sewing machine and embellishments.



What great fun!!!

Wednesday, Aug 7th

So so so excited. Today I finally was able to get what I have been waiting for. Tim's new fabric line. I am so stoked about making my first art piece with this. Thanks tim for expanding me into a new element of texture to use in my studio. Can't wait to share what I make first in the up coming week.

Gracie memory canvas

My dear friend at work (Julie Wallace) lost her sweet girl Gracie. I wanted to do something special for my friend so that she could have a memory board of her sweet girl. I have dogs and a huge pet lover. I made this canvas to her so that she could have an ever lasting memory of her sweet gracie. She loved it so much and so glad!

Cody and Tyler - my babies

Well I went fishing in June and took our kids - Cody and Tyler. They are so fun and loving creatures and glad to have my boys. Here is how good they were as they watched us fish.

Craft room expansion project

Well the past two months have been a busy ones as i worked on my construction project for my craft room expansion. I completed the project of my dreams that started about 8 weeks ago. Here is pictures of my new space and I just love how it turned out.

The best part of it all is that after this project was completed I was asked to submit material to potentially be considered to be in a magazine. I have now been selected to be featured in the magazine. So I have been focused on getting pictures done and completing the article template. This is a CPS newsstand title called Studios it will hit newsstands in November (Nov 19th to be exact) and be distributed in bookstores (B&N, Books A Million, Jos Beth, etc.) and the craft stores (Michael’s, Joanns, Hobby Lobby, AC Moore, etc.).

It is a complete dream come true to have this happen. This would not all be possible if my friend Michael Farrel wouldnt of got me hooked and if Kevin Ott wouldnt of helped me make the space of my dreams.

Craft night-mothers day tag-May 2013

So the weekend of April 19th. My friend Michael and I went up to Columbus to have a craft weekend with our art group. This was with Lori and Nancy (Wanda was there in spirit). We had a great weekend. During that weekend I saw Nancy's awesome craft space. I also found a tag I adored which then became the muse to the Mother's Day tag Michael and I worked on as a project. We took a #10 tag, and completed multiple layers of stain an paper. Added some embellishments and homemade florals. However, after I mailed the finished product to my mother I realized I never took a pic. How many times has anyone else done this and kicked themselves.

US Citizen congrats card

Here is a card I made for one if the presidents I support at work who officially became a US citizen. Boy these blue print stamps come in handy in cases like this. It was hard to think what style of card do I make. Then a light bulb went off that I then thought use the blue print stamps. After some stamping, using distress markers, distressing the edges and makings own ribbon through dies. This is what I created. She loved it.

2013 Father's Day Card

So I wanted to create an authentic card for my father for fathers day. I had a craft night with my friend Michael and we collaborated to make a really cool card. The out come of the card we created was awesome that provide an authentic look. Here is the card and was a great time creating this card.

Monday, June 3rd

Well tonight I continued to work on my Artitude art journaling tag swap. I am edging toward the finish line so should be able to meet the due date no problem. I just hope the group likes what i have done as this isnt in my comfort zone. Looking ahead - Tuesday, June 4th is craft night with my best buddie Michael. Should be fun we are finally going to complete - THE ARTFUL JOURNAL project by Tim Holtz. So looking forward to doing this project.

Hard to believe this is the last day of May. Has been a busy month with vacation and working on craft projects. Here is the MAY 2013 Tim Holtz 12 Tags that I made. I really liked making this tag. The rub ons and color technique used was really fun.

Petrified - upcoming art journaling tag swap

So I am in this great craft group that is full of talented people. We have been making swaps for each other which i feel i have excelled in. However, Our latest swap is going to be art journaling on a tag. I don't know why this makes me petrified but it does. I am a perfectionist by nature. This probably comes from my chosen profession being in finance. It is funny how working inside our comfort zone comes natural. However when we choose or move outside the box we feel weary. Tonight I have sat, thought, contemplated and played with what I will do in this challenge. I either draw blank or hate what I am coming up with. It is odd the pressure we put on ourselves. I want to make something amazing and since I am letting my fear take hold it has choked out my creativity. I think my greatest fear is failure. However, in order to be great at something you have to stumble at first. As Tim Holtz would say embrace imperfection. But when you are fearful it is hard to accept it with open arms. I will take pause, regroup and attempt to start this thought process another day. Maybe I should try this after a few drinks. Lol. Just a crafter Shari g his thoughts as he embarks into something new with hesitation.

April - 12 Tags of 2013 - Tim Holtz tag made

Here is my April - 12 tags of 2013 - Tim Holtz tag. This was so awesome to make. The effect you get with using the distress paints and metalics is like no other. What a great tag to make and was alot of fun.