In the Works...

Act Of Kindness

Earlier this week, Jacki Jones of The Card Castle blogspot sent me this beautiful card full of kind words and encouragement.

I don't think there is any way Jacki could have known how partial I am to violets, but I am, so needless to say, I love the image she used...

In the language of flowers, violets stand for "faithfulness," which means even without reading and re-reading her supportive message inside, I can simply look at the card, and be reminded of God's faithfulness to me...

Thanks Jacki, your act of kindness has meant so much!

Note:  Images on this card are not by smARTworks, but if you'd like to know the sources, please contact Jacki... She's really nice, and I'm sure she'd be happy to oblige.   

Gift Certificate Winner

Congratulations to stamp artist, Kim Tedrow, winner of A Monthly Rubber Stamps Club stamping contest for the month of August!  Kim won a $50.00 gift certificate from smARTworks for this entry:

"Button Card Tag" 
Details/Instructions for Kim's project can be found, here, at the AMRSC website. 

It also merits mention that Kim could have used any stamps from any stamp company, and still have won the AMRSC contest, but she chose to create a smARTworks exclusive!  Doing that snagged her an additional $10.00 gift certificate as a "publication thank you."  Way to go Kim!

smART Rubber Used:  BG-09 Screen (catalog pg. 10), and BG-12 Weave (pg.11).

Tip Of Another Sort

Today's tip is completely off-topic:
~ Make proper nutrition a way of life, eat less, and exercise more ~

Believe me, not doing so has terribly unpleasant consequences, and as the rubber, WD-40 No Shortcuts catalog pg. 26 says,

"There are no shortcuts to any place worth going..."

My dad and his heart attack are classic examples --  Doctors had given "Charlie" similar advice for 20 years... Advice unheeded, so now we all get to live with it, and Charlie's life, as he has enjoyed it, is over...  kaput!

Maybe on second thought, this does relate to stamping after all... If you truly love what you do, and you make the effort to take care of yourself, you may be allowed to fully enjoy your passion for many more years to come... 

When you think about it...Ink, paper, and rubber, are a whole lot more fun than needles, oxygen, and pills.

Note: The blogger and her DH have reaffirmed their commitment to heed the advice given.  They may still end up with health issues, but at least they will have done their part.

How It's Going

To all of you who have been praying for me and my family, I thank you. 

My father is back home, and for the moment things are status quo. He appears completely out of the woods heartwise, but due to other complications, has a long way to go before things return to "normal."  In fact, there is the real possibility things never really will...

Voicing that possibility is scary, because it means certain lifestyle changes (for all of us) are permanent, and huge decisions are looming...

Right now I can't take very big bites of the whole situation, only small nibbles of the immediate, chewed upon until I can swallow.  I ask for strength and wisdom to attend to the day at hand, and then get through that day... In my heart I know God will prepare the way.

I do have one bright spot to share, however, something that may seem insignificant to you, but which God has used to encourage my heart --

This morning, following a link on the Gingerwood Bulletin Board, I connected to a blog called Encouraging Impressions, and quite unexpectedly, came across this card which the blogger had created using smART rubber from the WD-141 Horizon set (catalog pg. 71). 

Complete Thrillsville!  Other than the wonderful work of the smART Cookies, and a couple smART Cookie applicants, this is the very first time any thing like this has ever happened to me. 

Just goes to show, in the midst of difficulty, God is always so very good, and happy things still happen! 

Thank you Sarosa, your goal may have been to minister to some soldier serving in Iraq, but you also ministered to me.

No Tip?!?

I apologize, but there is no tip today.  In it's place, however, a brief summary of what's been going on in my life...

I received a phone call around 1 a.m. Sunday morning from my crying mother who could only manage to get out that my dad had had a heart attack, and was en route via ambulance from the local hospital to a major medical facility an hour and a half away... Click!  End of conversation. (BTW, ironically, it was also my dad's 79th birthday.) 

I'll skip the million details and move ahead to right now...  My dad is out of intensive care, and holding his own, but will be having further "heart work" done tomorrow (something they couldn't do earlier for fear of instigating a second attack).  I am unsure of the prognosis.  Hopefully, he may come home over weekend, or early next week, and then it's any body's guess???

Meanwhile, I have been traveling back and forth (that's 3 hours in the car each time), and am trying to figure out what all of this is going to mean once the man is back home...

I can't imagine dad ever returning to his job (yes at 79, he has still been working for the State of Maine as a technical draftsman 2-1/2 days every week, and is just a month shy of having kept this same job for 47 years!), and for awhile at least, no driving (a problem because my mother is blind, so can't drive at all, plus they live way out in the country with no neighbors, etc.), and my only sibling, brother John, lives 3000 miles way in Nevada... 

I guess you could say I'm a little stressed, but it's funny, because now I know why God allowed me to have that "bad" day on Friday -- So Ps. 31 : 14-15 (see card from previous post) would be really fresh in my thoughts... It is literally what ran through my mind as I was I hanging up the phone Sunday morning, and has continued on instant replay ever since... "My times are in His hands."

A Note To Anyone Trying To Contact smARTworks or Placing An Order:
Due to these current circumstances, e-mails are still being answered, and orders are still being invoiced and filled, but only once each day -- usually during the evening (EST).  Thank you so much for understanding.   

Arrrrrrrgh!

Bad day all day!  Nothing earth-shattering or catastrophic, just a bad day...Nothing went right... not one thing...Good time for this card and the Bible verse it sports:

Cardworks:
BV-14 Psalm 31:14-15 (catalog pg. 39) stamped directly onto A-2 card front, 
Layered cardstock/print strip and punch flowers, with coordinating gingham ribbon accent. 
Flowers adhered to card using foam tape. 
Dimensional glaze highlights on flower centers.

X-acto-ly!

Whether you use an x-acto knife, Coluzzle, or some other shape cutter with a blade (I love my circle/oval cutter by Creative Memories), here a tip for you:

Replace that self-healing cutting mat with a glass one.

Yes, you read it correctly -- a G-L-A-S-S cutting mat!

It may feel foreign for a couple of times, but very quickly you will find the glass cutting surface makes the cutting process easier, the cuts cleaner, and keeps blades sharper, longer.

Where do you get a glass cutting mat? Here are two inexpensive suggestions:

The Hardware Store -- They will cut it to any size you request.
An Old Picture Frame -- Remove the glass. Discard the frame.

With either of these options you will want to cover the raw (and very sharp) edges with masking tape.

Additional 'Glass' Tips:
*To promote smooth cutting, keep the glass clean.
*Avoid setting the glass on uneven surfaces - if any pressure is then place on top of it, a heart-sinking 'snap' will be heard.
*Do not use the glass mat when setting eyelets.
*For safety sake, when transporting, wrap well or box (I use and old, flat stationery box), and label "Glass" or "Fragile."

Note: I'd like to credit Courtney Ricker, an instructor and stamp designer at Your Maine Stamper for sharing this this tip with me five or six years ago.  It transformed me from being x-acto phobic to x-acto competent.

Surprised!

Two weeks ago I received an unexpected e-mail from an old friend whom I first encountered during our freshman year of college.  Although "Annie" and I haven't laid eyes on on another in twenty-seven years, we have faithfully stayed in touch by exchanging cards/letters almost every Christmas.

During most of this time, Ann, husband Todd, and eventually their two boys, lived in Florida, but several years ago, on a leap of faith, relocated the family to California so Todd could pursue his long-time dream of opening a custom costume business (Todd's Costumes)...

Okay, back to the e-mail --

Ann, whose boys are now 13 and 15, was within nine days of her due date!  Yup, a surprise gift from God was on it's way!  I was stunned, amazed, and so very happy for her!  Since my older two were also 13 and 15 when Eli came along, I know firsthand how very special this surprise is going to be...

On Tuesday, a second e-mail... All 9lbs. 4oz. of Ann's New Blessing (boy #3) had arrived... mother and baby doing fine... photos soon to follow...

Congratulations my dear, dear friend!  I have been, and will be praying for you.  I also think it's time for Todd to get busy making you that Wonder Woman costume, 'cause at soon to be forty-seven, you've certainly earned it!

Cardworks:
smART Rubber Baby-02 Boy/Girl (catalog pg.58), and WD-119 one Dream (pg.43)
Cardstock-weight print paper used as an A-2 card base.
Bear image stamped in black and clear embossed - Twice on white scrap - Once on print.
Images on white scrap colored with a combination of markers & chalks (One image, bear parts only - One image, bow only).
Bear images cut out and layered as shown, then mounted to card using foam tape.
Sentiment stamped in black and clear embossed directly onto card front.
Punch embellishments layered and adhered to card.

smART Card Stamping Contest

If you own any images by smARTworks you really should consider entering the smART Card Stamping Contest.  Just think, for the cost of simply making and mailing a single card, you could win free rubber, free custom-sized acrylic blocks, and a little stamping fame (your name and card announced here, and displayed on the official website). 

The submission deadline for this current quarter is coming up, but not until September 30 -- means you still have plenty of time... SOOOOOOOO grab some paper, an ink pad, any of the smART images, and start stamping!

Complete submission and prize details found here.

 

Back To School Adjustments

In this neck of the woods, school opened the day after Labor Day.  Was that really just two days ago?!?  Good grief!  It feels like f-o-r-e-v-e-r! Adjusting to the new schedule, and trying to turn the old body clock around a bit is no easy task!

This morning, it translated into opening my eyes at 4:45 to say,

"Dear God, I know I should be thanking you for this day, but right now, can you just help me haul it out of bed?"

Once I'd made it from the bed to the floor (for stretches, sit-ups, and lots of groaning), my little 'prayer request' got me thinking how amazing it is that God is never too tired to be Himself.  All His characteristics remain intact no matter what hour of the night or day, no matter what the season, no matter what the weather, etc.

Seems 'everything' threatens to change me, or at least who I perceive  my 'best' self to be... I'm constantly having to ask God to help me 'adjust' -- my attitude, my responses, my thoughts, my priorities, etc... but not so for Him. He is ALWAYS the same!  ALWAYS His best self... No adjustments necessary.

Okay, for the moment that's all my tired mind could handle -- Couldn't delve any deeper, or try to make much application beyond how fortunate that makes me... Could, however, be roused and inspired enough to be deep-down grateful, and to finally utter (toward the end of those hideous sit-ups),

"Thank you, dear God. Thank you so much for YOU, for who you always are, and yes, even for this day! Now, please, can you just help me haul it out to the kitchen..."

Cardworks:
smART Rubber BV-02 Ps.118:24 (catalog pg. 1), ACCENTS #1 (pg.26), and WD-44 Happy Face Wishes (pg.28)
A one-layer card stamped in Kaleidascope Riviera rainbow and black dye inks, with layered punch flower accents.  Glitter glue was applied to flower centers.

Before closing, I want to take a moment and send out an official "Happy Birthday" to our own Surprise Cookie, Heidi Kingery --

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HEIDI!!! Hope you enjoy your special day to the max!

Remember, sometime in between all her day's festivities, Heidi will be announcing the 3 winners of her 'Birthday Blog Bash' blog candy at her posting place, Sweet Somethings.