OLW Blog Hop - Through The Lens

Hello and welcome to this month's One Little Word blog hop! I am so glad to have you here. The hop goes live at 8:00am PST on March 1, 2012. If you're a bit early, be sure to check back!

Each month of the 1st, we gather together to  'ooh' and 'aah' over the amazing work done this month by the participant's of Ali Edwards' One Little Word class at Big Picture Classes. The blog hop participants are an amazing bunch. Their work each month brings inspiration and beauty into the world. I am so grateful to be included among them. Being a part of this monthly hop keeps me accountable with completing the class prompts, but it also keeps me in contact with a really wonderful group of women. You can catch up on all of my past OLW entries here.

This month's prompt was all about seeing your word through the lens of a camera, capturing the essence of your word and what it means to you in a series of nine photos. Last year, this was one of my favorite prompts; this year was just as delightful. I love the freedom and creativity inherent in this assignment. How you choose to 'see' your word is  just so individual. Some people are very literal in their approach, while others are figurative. Some are realistic, others are whimsical. Some document the every day moments, others the extraordinary.

This whole concept fascinates me.

My OLW for 2012 is do. My approach in documenting this word was more figurative. I tried to see things I have done or want to do in photos that are unexpected but I think they fit.

Here are my nine photos collectively.

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From left to right:
I want to do so much, but this desire to do often gets lost in the hustle and bustle of every day life.
I can do magical things.
The things I do will take me to new and wonderful places.
Fear and insecurity sometimes keep me from doing all that I want.
The things I seek to do require hard work but result in goodness and beauty in my life.
Doing it all means sometimes asking for help.
Knowing what to do is not always clear; I have to believe in myself.
Doing what is right can take me to strange and lonely places.
I can do anything I want - I am strong. I am capable. I am determined.

Jim & I are heading to St. Louis, MO this weekend to cheer on Creighton University in the Missouri Valley Conference basketball championships. Go Bluejays!!!

What do you want to do today?

Next up in the hop is Monica. Check out her fabulous blog here.

xoxo

The complete list of blog hop particiants...
Margie http://xnomads.typepad.com
Melissa S http://blog.mshanhun.com
Sharyn http://LaVieEnChic.com
Kimberlee http://scrapsandsass.blogspot.com
Jill http://jillconyers.com/
Cheri http://cheriandrews.blogspot.com
Cindy www.cynthiacrysdale.com
Jenn www.studiojenn.blogspot.com
Monica http://scrapinspired.com/
Catherine http://myview-catherine.blogspot.com/
Naomi http://poeticaperture.com/
Jamie jmpgirl.blogspot.com
Coley www.coleybelle.blogspot.com
Melissa C www.smudgetime.com
Donna http://holimess.blogspot.com/
Monica B http://questtoperfectimperfection.blogspot.com/
Veronica www.veronicanorris.typepad.com
Heidi D http://mommy.heidimdavis.com/
Lisa http://backtoallen.com/category/one-little-word/
Nikki www.inkyart.com.au
Devon http://www.youhadmeatneurotic.com
Amanda http://scrappnbee.blogspot.com
Brooklyn www.everysnapshot.com
Kristina http://hrinspirationfromthe403.blogspot.com/
Jen R http://jenritchie.com
Kara http://iwannabemewhenigrowup.blogspot.com
Eydie www.whatwecreate.net
Ruth http://suburbansahm.blogspot.com
Missus W http://www.mrswookieswanderings.blogspot.com/
Marilee http://rose-brier.blogspot.com
Cindy http://seriousplay.typepad.com
Kaylea http://www.myscrappylife.com
Dawn G www.sunshineandcreativity.com
Rebekah http://istampscrapcraft.blogspot.com/
Becky www.becky-handforth.blogspot.com
Orange Gearle orangegearle.blogspot.com
Katrina www.katrinasimeck.com
Jo http://www.mrsbeee.blogspot.com
Nicky Www.seejanebake.blogspot.com
Beth www.thesingularlyordinary.blogspot.com
Kelly http://mindingmynest.com
Tere http://terecontodomicorazon.blogspot.com/

Friday Photo Love & Thoughts on Hoarding

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I have been taking Amy Tan's class Stretch Your Kit, offered through Studio Calico. And I'm *loving* it...so much inspiration, so much creativity, so much fun. One of the best lessons of the class has been "use your favorites first."

Confession: I'm a scrap supply hoarder. 

When I find a product that I really love, I hang on to it. Stare at it. Store it. Think about it. Dream about it. Plan pages around it...but rarely use it. Which is a shame as these supplies are meant to be used.

Changing my mindset to using my favorite supplies first may take some adjustment. But on this recent layout I went for it! I used several products that I had been hoarding: the chipboard butterflies, the rub-on butterflies, the skinny black letters, the tiny aqua buttons, the "be" labels, the wood asterisks and the number brads.

I. Used. Them. All.

And I love it. I love seeing my favorite products on a page. I love the freedom of using beautiful supplies just 'cause I want to. I love the surge in inspiration and creativity that comes from not limiting myself. I love the "go for it" attitude. And I love the feeling of accomplishment, of completion.

I'm off to spend the day crafting...and I'm going to use whatever I want in the process! xoxo

Progress

Victory is mine.

I'm not sure exactly why, but I have been quite unmotivated for the past couple of weeks. I've been having a difficult time getting started on projects. Oh, I have tons of ideas...but I've been stalled out in taking action. I love possibilities. I love ideas. I love dreaming and thinking. And once I get going, I love creating.

It's the getting going that is the issue.

And I know that is why I needed 'DO' as my one little word this year. I know I need to push myself out of my head and into my craft room (and other places - gym, anyone?). I know that I just need to let go of fear, of insecurity and start doing something. I know that stagnation does nothing positive. I know the longer I delay the harder it actually is to move forward. I know all of these things.

But it is still hard. And I'm still afraid. I'm still insecure and stagnant.

So I am particularly proud that yesterday I did something. I entered my craft room, moved around some piles and made a layout. Of course, I haven't cleaned and organized since early December which made it somewhat tricky to create this layout...but I persevered. I also made some progress on Project Life.

It was a good start. A good day.

All of this is a rather long-winded way of saying thank you. The blog helps me in many ways, both small and large. Most importantly, it helps keep me accountable. It helps to know that just maybe there is someone out there interested in seeing what I've created.

So, thank you.

P.S. Here's the layout I made with my January Take 12 photos. I used the sketch from Ella Publishing's Take 12 kit as a guide. I love the way in turned out.

Have a wonderful next week!

OLW Blog Hop - I Remembered Pictures... And I've Planned An Awesome Giveaway

 Welcome back friends! I am super excited about this month's One Little Words blog hop. Ali hit the ball out of the park with this month's prompt. I'm talking grand slam, out of the stadium home run.

This month we took a step back from prompts that centered around deep thoughts, letters to future selves and documenting our planning process and ventured back into the artsy, crafty side of things. Now don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed every single one of the previous prompts. The contemplation, planning, and exploring the depth of my Dreams has helped me to keep my OLW in an active place in my life. It gave me a timeline of sorts for action steps. It offered some accountability in committing to this process. And it opened my eyes to new perspective. To read more about these prompts, you can check out my previous posts on my Dream journey here.

But I was so ready for some hands-on creativity this month. In fact, I was desperately ready to express my Dreams in a more artistic way. Our prompt this month was this:

This month you’re invited to create a series of nine mini-canvases that will fit inside a divided page protector. The main encouragement I want to give to you is to simply keep your word in mind as you play.

Perfect. Just perfect.

The color scheme for my album has been turquoise, grey, red and yellow. And this month I was feeling yellow. Such a bright, sunny, cheerful, happy color...the exact right sentiment for my outlook as I move forward on this Dream quest.

Here's my collage:

 

I was super inspired by this stamp that Ali used to create her crossword pattern. I am a major crossword geek! And while I didn't have that stamp, I did have the amazing red + yellow crossword patterned paper that I've been  hoarding for a couple years. I used the paper, a brad and stamped my OLW to create the central canvas around which I built the others. I love how it turned out! Here's a close-up the central portion:

I also have photos to share of my completed project pages for March, April and May. Can you believe how long I've been slacking on sharing my completed pages? Yeah, I know, I can't really believe it either. But here they are anyway... If you want to see any image in a larger size, then just click on the image.

March - Folded

March - Unfolded

April - Left Side

April - Facing Pages

May - Facing Pages

May - Closeup on Quote 

May - Spreadsheets

May - Spreadsheet Detail

June - Facing Pages

Now, some of you might remember from last month that I started on embellishing my OLW album cover. It is complete! I love, love, love the butterfly accent with the flower cluster - doesn't that just evoke Dream-iness?

And here's a couple of detail shots of the cover elements...

Last but not least, I am super stoked to announce my very first giveaway! 

(cue applause)

I am doing a major de-stash of my craft room. I'm talking tons of patterned paper, sticker sheets, embellishments and even some American Crafts Thickers. I mean, who can resist Thickers?!?

No one, that's who.

I plan on filling a US Priority Mail flat rate shipping box to the brim for one lucky reader. To be eligible for this box of awesome-ness, all you have to do is leave a comment telling me one random fact about yourself. I will collect comments until 11:59pm CST on Thursday July 7th. The person with the most interesting factoid will be crowned winner by moi and announced Friday July 8, 2011. So be sure to stop back.

Thanks for hanging in there on this much-longer-than anticipated post. Next up on the OLW blog hop is Kathryn at Katlo Designs. Check out her blog here.

Happy Hopping!

A New Adventure

My Tell Your Story art journaling class with Elsie and Rachel has sadly come to an end. I cannot emphasize enough how much I enjoyed this class. I have always been a journaler of sorts. In the past I've done several different types, ranging from simply making lists in my daily planner to creating very artsy and detailed layouts for my scrapbooks. But I had never committed to journaling on a daily basis.

And I want to.

One of my goals for this year is to do something creative every day. I find when I make the time to create I am more relaxed and productive in all the other areas of my life. But, I had been struggling to find a way to balance my need to create with the real life time demands. I love scrapbooking. And I firmly believe there is no one way to scrapbook. I am a "hybrid" in every sense of the word. I scrap with paper and glue. I scrap digitally with my laptop and Photoshop Elements. I scrapbook both 8.5x11 and 12x12 pages. I make mini-albums. But the stress of creating a layout - or even part of a layout - everyday was really overwhelming. My scrapbooking is very much a story driven process. And let's be honest, not every day has a story that I want to tell. But every day does bring new feelings and experiences that can be documented. I found keeping an art journal was really the perfect fit. I put much less pressure on myself regarding my journal pages than I do my scrapbook pages. Art journaling was easier and faster to conceptualize and complete for me. I am just in love with this direction in my creative journey.

So, I was particularly excited when of my Tell Your Story classmates Janel organized a 30-Day Journal Challenge through her blog. I love the ongoing commitment to keeping up with my art journal, and the added accountability of participating in a group helps keep me on target with my goals. The Challenge started yesterday - and I am loving what I am seeing in our Flickr Group!

Here are my first two pages.

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More Scrapbook Pages

I'll bet you thought I had forgotten my earlier promise to share the rest of my pages from Sketchbook, the online class that I took with Kelly Purkey. Well, I surely did not. In case you missed the earlier pages, you can find them here and here. This post will cover the pages that I created based on sketches 8 through 12. Enjoy!

Sketch 8

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Sketch 9 (personal information x'd out for privacy)

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Sketch 10

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Sketch 11

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Sketch 12 

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Here's to putting creativity in action! I hope all of you are experimenting with adding a little creativity in your loves, too.

Embracing Your Own Creativity

I have been musing a lot over the past few weeks on the concept of creativity, more specifically embracing personal creativity. I got started considering this idea after a friend of mine said to me, "I wish I could be as creative as you. I just know I could never do any of that stuff." My immediate response, "Of course you could. But there is a learning curve. Like with anything new, it does take time and practice." And then she responded sadly, "No. I'm just not creative."

This really bothered me. Because I just don't believe that. I refuse. I believe that we are all born with a sense of the creative. Creativity is akin to imagination. Everybody has it but not everybody knows how to use it.

According to Webster’s Dictionary, the definition of creativity is artistic or intellectual inventiveness. Creativity is marked by the ability or power to create or bring into existence, to invest with a new form, to produce through imaginative skill, to make or bring into existence something new.

 At its most basic form, creativity is birth, bringing something into existence. And we all have the power to do that.

Too often, creativity becomes synonymous with artistry or talent or genius. This does a disservice to all. Some of the world's most creative individuals, such as Albert Einstein, Linus Pauling or Marie Curie, had very little to do with art and very much to do with changing the world. It is less about talent and more about openness and a willingness to explore new things. It means continually looking at the world around us with fresh eyes and a new perspective. It is both vast and yet intimately personal. How creativity manifests in my life may be very different from how creativity is present in your lives.

I think that is why there so much resistance to creativity. It is powerful. It can be overwhelming. And it very often produces fear.

Fear is a natural enemy of creativity. So are self-doubt, insecurity, perfectionism, self-criticism, inflexibility and comparing one's self to others.

Conversely, there are many emotions available to you that will foster creativity: courage, acceptance, confidence, letting go, embracing imperfection, flexibility and focus.

I guess it is just a matter of choice. I have actively chosen to live my life creatively. And while I may not produce the kind of changes in the world as Albert Einstein, I certainly produce changes in my world that make me and those around me happy.
 
I wish you the same. Because you are creative, too.

Messages From the Universe...and the Fabulous Mrs. Baker

I am trying to blog more regularly but I haven't quite got into a rhythm yet. So when I was planning out the next couple of days, a new blog post was on my list...but it wasn't at the top of the list. I completed a medico legal report for a court case that I'm consulting on; I did a little spring cleaning and laundry; I enjoyed a lovely lunch with Mr. Jimmy; I finished a couple of scrapbook pages for my class; and I've been thinking deep thoughts about creativity.

whew...

So, somewhere in there were thoughts about my blog post, more specifically a post on personal creativity. But those moodlings are still in an infant stage and not yet ready for publication. And then one of the first things I read this morning was this post by Gretchen Rubin outlining tips to help you tackle your "to-do" list. One thing that really struck home with me was this: It's actually easier to blog every day than it is to blog two or three times per week. Daily blogging instills consistency, provides opportunity for creative expression and develops a sense of commitment. These are good things, right? I think so, too and I am already on board with the concept. And, then, my good friend Mrs. Baker sends me an email broadly hinting that my blog is in need of a new post...which is not only true but also very sweet. It's good to know that someone out there enjoys my meandering.

Sometimes you just have to accept that the universe in sending you a message.

I am in for daily blogging.

Tonight I leave you with a recent page I created for my wedding album. I got married nearly two years ago and the book is probably two-thirds complete. Let's not even get into that level of procrastination, shall we? Tomorrow, I'll be sharing another crafty project. And Friday, look for some high falutin' thoughts on creativity. Let me know if there's a topic you'd like to see in the future.

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PS Grand Master B is just doing amazing! He came home for Easter last weekend and will be back again this weekend. And we're in the midst of finalizing his transition to return home for good. So many wonderful things in our family's future!

Told Ya I'd Be Back...

Oh my goodness...it has been a beautiful day here today in the heartland. I had a full schedule of patients at work; all of them showed up which is a bonus. I had a lovely dinner with my hubby. And I even found a little time to myself for some crafting.

I am taking Kelly Purkey's amazing new class called Sketchbook. Everyday for 12 days KP provides an awesome sketch for a scrapbook page. The handout is chock full of design tidbits, tips & tricks and amazing examples. She has teamed up with the Studio Calico Design Team to bring a wide variety of styles and amazing creativity to the example layouts. I am absolutely loving this class. I'm so inspired. I've been making a page a day (so far)  and have tons of ideas for more pages. I was even able to participate in the the class's first live chat tonight...I know - I, too, am shocked at my productivity.

So, I thought I'd let you reap the benefits as well by sharing some of my pages. I am not going to share the sketches or any of the example LOs because those are just for members of the class. But you CAN bask in the glory of my creative endeavors...if you try really hard.

This is my LO based on the sketch 1. I have been wanting to put together some pics of Princess Izzy taken over the past 6 months. She has most definitely knows her own mind and she isn't afraid to let you know it either. I just love this girl, sass and all.

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For the sketch 2, I wanted to highlight some of the many things I love about my best friend. Deana turned 40 recently and we spent several days celebrating this milestone. I wanted to put into words some of her accomplishments right now, at age 40...and I wanted to show off the killer photo that I took of her.

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Here's hoping everyone has a lovely Easter weekend. I have tomorrow off and plan on doing more creating. I'll share some more colorful goodness with you this weekend.

PS I just want to take this opportunity to let you know that I won't be 40 until December 2012. Yes, thank you, I am the younger and prettier sister...

Experimenting With Home Decor

I've been mixing it up this week. I've seen other crafter's do really cool and interesting things to decorate their homes using traditional scrapbook supplies. Up to this point, I've been leery of attempting this. My initial response is fear. I guess I'm still not fully trusting my own creativity and inventiveness. I would see these really neat ideas and finished projects that other women had envisioned and immediately think "How did they every come up with that?!?" which would then be followed by "I could never do that."

Well, the time has come to end that kind of thinking. Fear is a killer of so many things, but it definitely stops creativity in its tracks. Lately, I've been actively trying to approach every area of my life with more openness and less fear. My initial thoughts when I encounter really inventive projects or ideas might be "How did they do that?" but I am working on my next thought being "I could do that, too."

In that vein, I have had this 7Gypsies Artist Printers Tray since before Christmas. I bought it on a whim thinking I might be able to do something cool with it but I really had no firm ideas. At the same time, I have been slowly working on my wedding album. I really love how it is shaping up and am so thankful we invested our money in two great photographers. There are so many gorgeous pictures and they spark vivid memories of one of the happiest days I have ever had. Showcasing them in a special keepsake album is wonderful but I also want them displayed throughout our home.


:: experiencing an eureka moment ::

Obviously, I came on the idea of using the Printers Tray as a home for a collage of wedding memories. I focused on using papers and products that evoked the joyful, carefree feeling of our beach wedding. I love how it turned out & now I get the chance to see it on my wall every day. So cool.

Hope you enjoy this project. I included an overall shot of the tray and also two close-up shots of some of my favorite aspects of the project.

 

  

  

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