Summer and paper crafting...do not go together for me.

FWF:
After a month and a half of going AWOL I am back to with what...another sympathy card?  Not the best choice for a come back to say the least. My summer like many has been busy busy busy.  We have been to gymnastics practice (daily-apparently doing flips on a 4 inch beam requires a lot of practice), soccer game, of course baseball games, and had a big wedding in Kansas City that my girls were in and looked adorable.  I am going to do a page on them being in the wedding later.  Plus we have tried to make it to our little cabin a few times.  It has left me very little time to make cards or layouts. Summer is short in MN.  We have long cold winter to cuddle up at home and create.  So we Minnesotans try to get everything from summer we can.

 Today my card has all the things that make me think of my home state of North Dakota growing up on a farm in the summer.  There is twine that is almost the exact color of the twine on the hay bales we would have to haul every summer.  How many of you out there had to load hay bale on to a hay cart and use a bale elevator to put them up in your hay loft?  Generally my Mom who was the hay bale queen chose days that were at least 90 degrees to work in.  There was a strange pride when you had a huge high solid stack that you would pull home and no bales fell off.  I think most of those small bales have been replaced now with big round bales.  The saying goes you have to make hay when the sunshines I guess that is the same for haling them in while the sunshines too.  When I was growing up there were fields and fields of sunflowers, what a site, the gorgeous acres of yellow sunflower heads soaking up the suns glare. They still are one of my favorite flowers.  I love this stamp for this very reason. 

 So I find it fitting that I made these cards to send to my friends and family back in North Dakota when they have lost a loved one.  Many of those old farmers and farm wives who shaped my life and my cultural upbringing are leaving this earth.  Some of those farmsteads they lived on are now only recognized by the trees left standing and perhaps a collapsing barn however many are third generation farms still operating.  They are going full speed ahead with tractors and seeders that can cover more ground in a day than my Dad ever dream of during his farming years.  It a great reminded that life goes on and to treasure the memories.   

So here is my card.  I tried water color painting for the first time.  I am not sure if I will continue.  I need to try a better quality of water color paints and maybe watch some You tube videos for pointers.  Well, if you follow my blog or know me, you know instructions are not my strong point.  I prefer the trial and swearing technique myself.

    

Supplies:

patterned paper:  Studio Calico

Kraft paper: Recollections

Stamps:Unity Stamp Burlap, Hello Gorgeous, Heartfelt Sentiments

Twine: Tim Holtz

Water Color Paints: Mister Heuy

Water Color paper

Have a great weekend every one.  It is good to be back. We are off to lake.  Because you have to get to the lake...when the sunshines.

LBAB