Buttoned Up.......PPA91....

Clean, simple and use a button - a perfect challenge from Pals Paper Arts this week!  Someone there must have heard that I have an early morning planned tomorrow - there's a wedding to "attend." You too have plenty of time to play along and still get a front row seat at Westminster Abbey.  I'll put the kettle on..................

You-nique.......PPA90....

It really is incredible how we are all the same......but oh so very different!  My daughter and I entertain ourselves when shopping with a guess who game. (Oh come on you must have some strange made up games in your family!) We hold up a piece of clothing or an accessory and ask "Who's this?"  And we always seem to know!  As a teacher I always reminded my kids to put their names on the back of their art projects but after a while I didn't need names - their personalities would shine through everything they created.  And I love seeing personalities come through paper crafting.  So glad you are all you-nique!

It's a sketch challenge this week at Pals Paper Arts!  I used Bold Blossom stamps in front of Sunny Garden DSP - along with two sassy Tempting Turquoise butterflies!

A Tale of Two Aunts

My father's parents and four older siblings came to America from Holland on the S.S. Noordam in 1920. I searched Ellis Island records and found the original ship's manifest that lists his parents, brothers and two sisters, Alida and Alida.  The Dutch custom was to name the first girl after the father's mother and the second girl after the mother's mother.  Since both grandmothers were named Alida, the sisters had the same name. The family called the eldest one Da (rhymes with Pa) and the younger one Al (rhymes with doll).  My grandparents tried to explain this to the customs agent but he was having none of it.  He said they needed different names to enter the country and re-christened them Alice and Dorothy - and I grew up calling them Aunt Al and Aunt Dot.

The stamps from The Open Sea perfectly captures the look of the actual ship's manifest.  I followed the sketch from Stamping 411 and used a sentiment from Word Play.

Bloom Already! PPA89

It has been said that the Earth laughs with flowers.  Well I would be happy for a quiet chuckle or a silly little giggle around here - those snickering snowflakes that still show up now and then do not count!  I made this flower out of the Springtime Vintage fabric with the Fun Flowers die.  (Spray the pieces with starch, crumple them and let them dry before assembling.)  Then I mixed in some newsprint, ribbon and lace and set it against a beautiful Marina Mist background. That is one big foofy flower - a definite belly laugh!  I hope those bulbs in my back yard hear it and WAKE UP!  Join in the fun and laughter at Pals Paper Arts this week and let your flowers bloom!

Recycling for The Paper Players

My kids threaten every year to get me a dumpster for Mother's Day.......oh one can only hope!  I love to throw things away!  Too much stuff just drives me crazy.  As much as I love getting SU! packages, all of that packaging and cardboard puts me over the edge - can't wait for recycle day!  Because of my enthusiasm for filling trash cans, my husband has designated areas where I am not allowed to "clean up." But to do the recycle challenge at The Paper Players, I had to sneak into the cellar and approach the sacred work bench.  I snared some sandpaper for the flower, some waffle packing paper and a couple of plastic thingys.  I remembered to save my grocery receipt this morning - instead of throwing it away as I leave the store - and layered the flowers with it.  An interesting thing happened when I used my heat gun to wrinkle my ribbon.  Before the ribbon crinkled, the receipt layers of the flower turned dark! Totally forgot that receipt paper is now heat sensitive!  I do have a few things left over from my trip to the basement.......it's time they moved on.........

Dot the Hi! PPA88

 

Pals Paper Arts color challenge this week is perfect for spring!  The temperature is slowly creeping up around here and there has even been some rain.  Who knew I would be so happy for rainy days?  These colors are just what I see when I look outside.....a bit of mud, a bit of snow, and a few hardy shoots peeking through along the back of the house where the sun is the strongest.  So I dotted the hi to welcome Spring!