Monday, February 20, 2012

Some Christmas Cards











So I am pleased to say that I completed the Christmas challenge for this month:) All the cards have hearts on them and I stuck with stickers! The first card has Lilac, Blue and white. I used this glitsy background paper that i used the cuddlebug on for a snowflake design and used the stickers of the cherub holding a bird (dove). I colured almost all with tombow markers and added stickles as well. I also used the cuddlebug to cut out the design of the border in lilac for the first card. The second card, I embossed the background paper with some gold and silver. The thrid card-the background was done with perfect pearls. The fourth-I cut out Mr. Cupid and used a nice dark blue background paper that I then added some sticker borders in a bit of sparkle and I used stickles to add write the words. The last card I simply used a heart that I coloured in twinkling H20's. Happy card-making every one








Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Insecure Writer's Support Group February



I am quite happy that I am back creating cards and I am loving that! I thought, as well, about this group and how many wonderful writers are out there and people like Alex who lets everyone have a voice on anything! I am blown away how there are over 200 people who participate on this website and I try to visit as many as I can but I fail at visiting as many as I want to. I am happy that I am doing the best I can at present and I thank everyone who looked at my blog and not tear down my horrible grammar etc... I have a tendency to write the way I speak and can leave errors in my hurried manner:) I thought I would write in the next few months about my mom whom I believe has led an extraordinary life. I will also try to do some highlights from the good to the bad and to the ugly (I can't tear myself away from film).


My mom was born February 10, 1928. Her name...Elfriede (elf-free-de) Ruth Ortmann. Her grandmother-her mother's mother, found my mom to be special and named her. Her name "Elfriede" is special. "Elf" means 11-for the 11th month of the 11th day of the 11th hour when the First World War ended. "Friede", in German, means freedom and this word my mom took strongly to her heart. She was baptized in the Lutherstadt church where Martin Luther nailed the 95 thesis to the door. She grew up in Germany before the wall, when Germany was changing into something horrible. She had a wonderful childhood in the country side near Wittenberg. Her love for her grandmother was strong and loyal. As for the other grandmother, her father's mother, ...not so much. This grandmother, who had 17 children with only 4 reaching adulthood, was one tough cookie who did not care for my mom and once walked across the street to just slap my mom on the ear. If you saw a picture of this lady you would see why my mother would distance herself from her. The funny thing is that the artistic side and the love for the finer things came from the bad Oma, as I used to call her. The grandfathers? Her grandfather on her father's side never spoke a word and just sat in a chair and would sleep. Her mother's father was the kindest man who owned a farm and bought a small carousel and would never charge the children to ride the carousel. He was kind and thoughtful and my mom always was fond of her mom's parents. How sweet the days of school, playing in the snow in winter and swimming at the local old quarry that filled up with cold spring water. Who knew that she would be taken from her home, watch her brother die and her other brother die of his wounds(so did 176 others that day). Who knew that she would be in Hamburg and Dresden when the bombings started or that she would suffer at the hands of the Russian soldiers....who knew. Throughout it all her love for freedom and her loyalty to family drove her on and created one strong woman.

Monday, February 6, 2012

OMG! I'm Back with a couple of cards!!










I have been away for quite some time...Alot of stress but now it is calmer. My mom went to long term care in mid November, then Christmas which is the first Christmas without her at home, All the Christmas usual mayhem and then I got quite sick in January. I can say I am all better and my mom is adjusting as best as she can. My wonderful hubby organized my wreck of my craft room and I was so happy with what he did. I felt quite lost for a long time. The first card I used mainly pink, with some red and yellow and I used my cute hedgehog stamp for the animal antics which I embossed and coloured in with pastels. It is a combined Valentine and birthday card for a cutie of a girl named Torie. The second card is pure valentine with mainly red, some pink, and white but I had to add a little black ....I can't go all pink:) I think it fits perfect also for home sweet home. My husband and I have dealt with my mom for 2 years and we really did not have a home on our own for so long and now we do. I don't mean this to sound cold as I love my mommy with all my heart but it has been difficult and now we have our home with just us and it feels so nice. I had a sticker and I coloured the image with tombow markers and used reds and pinks and sponged the background but left some white. I used stickles in black for edging and mounted it on dark red and glossy black.