It’s been a while coming, but here I am making my first real blog post. My website is up and running and we are launching the SHOP! Guess I’m open for business! I have to admit I am a bit nervous but excited at the same time. I love creating the cards and my hope is that you will love them too. I’m not here to make a profit, I just simply want to go on creating and sharing.
Some of my ideas I gather from other designers. There are so many talented people out there! In the creative world it is called CASing. Copy And Share. Sometimes, your mind can just be blank so that’s when you go searching for inspiration. It happens to the best of us. The idea is to take the design and put your own spin on it. Choosing different colors, papers, sayings etc. Some of my designs are my own too. An idea hits and I start putting it into focus and create. I have a notebook that I keep on my desk and I draw what it is I want to do. It’s a great way for me to be able to remember what I did! I also have a friend who is a Stampin’ Up Demonstrator and since the whole Covid 19 thing hit, I have been attending zoom classes with her and a few other ladies and we make cards together. My friend, Pat, will give us instructions on what we need ahead of time and then when we come together, she shows us how to make the card. It’s a lot of fun and I’ve met some wonderful ladies. Pat is in VA, I’m in AZ and some of the ladies are from MN, IN and LA. What a great way to meet new friends who share the same passion.
Making cards is my therapy. I really enjoy the creative process. I’ve watched hundreds of videos from the talented designers on YouTube and learned so much from all of them. When I began, I didn’t know there were so many different techniques and ways to use ink, stamps and dies! Really, I was in awe of it all. I could sit for hours learning and then trying out what I had learned. I wasn’t always successful but the joy of learning and creating was so good for me. I made birthday cards for friends and family, and Christmas of 2018 I made all my Christmas Cards and some for my Granddaughters to send to friends. They are my biggest fans!
2019 saw me facing major surgery and fighting cancer. I thought 2019 was the worst year ever (for me anyway) but 2020 has not proven to be a great year either for all of us. I didn’t do much in the way of creating last year. I had no strength or desire to do anything. Cancer took a lot out of me. You really don’t know fatigue until you’ve experienced it in the way that I did. I wasn’t even sure I would get back to my card making. Recovery was long, the hardest part being so tired and trying to build my strength back up. I had no appetite but knew I had to eat in order to get stronger. Baby steps. It took about 6 weeks for my appetite to return. I have an amazing Partner, David, who cared for me and encouraged me every day, along with amazing family and friends who kept in touch and offered support and encouragement from afar. Before I began Chemo treatments, we had arranged a trip back to Western Australia (my first home) to visit my family and friends. I finished Chemo the end of September and December 4th we left for a month in W.A. It was the best thing for me and our time there was fantastic! I had regained strength and thankfully my appetite! There is so much I miss about home…… We arrived back in AZ January 6, 2020 and I felt renewed and ready to begin crafting and creating. I had the want and the desire!
So here I am. David has always encouraged me to try and sell my cards. It had also been suggested to me by a couple of my friends, but it wasn’t at the forefront for me. But, never say never…..ha ha.