inspiration monday

from start to finish.....the winter olympics was awesome!

thank you athletes....thank you canada!!

and after sixteen days of watching champions from all around the world compete, one thing's for certain.....those kids are in great shape!! i've figured out that in order to have great buns-of-steel to show off in one of those skintight snowsuits, all it takes is slaloming down a snow covered mountaintop for six hours a day.

yeah.....like that's gonna happen!

the reality is at this point in my life, the thrill of victory means having my buns-of-jello just look good in my jeans....and watching the olympics for the past two weeks has somehow subliminally inspired me to try to make that happen by eating a little better, and dare i say it....exercise more. and hopefully by the time the summer olympics rolls around in two years, i won't be feeling the agony of defeat when i see all of those runners sport their little track and field shorts!!

journal page finished using micron pens, watercolor pencils, niji waterbrush, graphite

palm trees and icicles

my heart goes out to all of you little bloggy sweeties who've been hit by yet another winter blast from mother nature....i hope you're staying warm, staying safe, and your supply of hot chocolate hasn't been depleted! it's been a long, cold season, and this winter we've even had a taste of the frigid air down here, too! for the past several days we've had overnight low temperatures in the 20's.....and while i know that sounds like a heatwave to all of you snowbunnies up north, this is north florida, and we start to whine any time the mercury drops below 50 degrees! so here's to channeling some much warmer weather really soon....because let's face it, palm trees and icicles just don't go together!

right on the button

i enjoy creating so many different things that it seems my greatest challenge these days is trying to find projects that combine all of my loves.......my love of paper, my love of fabric, my love of sewing, my love, my love.....

and sometimes i wonder if that's why i enjoy creating journals so much. i get to tear paper, slop some glue around, attach eyelets to the covers, and my most favorite part.....sew it all together....

and every once in a while i add a trinket or two.....

so usually when i'm done,

i feel like maybe i've hit my challenge

right on the button!

you can read more information about this journal here

scrappiness

here's what you get when you combine playful mary engelbreit fabric with a fabulous tutorial from rebecca sower......a happy, colorful, scrappy flower!! rebecca's tutorial comes with well-written instructions and wonderful photographs, making it really easy to finish one of these sweet flowers lickety-split! it's a super way to use up little scraps of fabric that have been living in your stash for a while......

and when you're finished, you can pin your new scrappiness to your winter jacket to help cheer on those warm days of spring that we're all longing for!!

click here for more information about rebecca's scrappy flower!

switching gears

sometimes when i'm trying to learn a new technique......like drawing hair, for example.....and it's not going too well, i like to switch gears.

totally.

so, today i'm trading in my journal and graphite for my sewing machine and these fun mary engelbreit fabrics.

it's time for a little fabric play!