Grace Acronym Free Printable Art

I'm stopping in today because I want to share a Free Printable with you all.  I've been so blessed to see the growth of this blog recently that I wanted to give back, and share the love.  As you might know, I've just recently joined the design team over at Word Art Wednesday,  I've opened my Etsy Shop, and had my first sale, and the blog has just surpassed 45,000 views. Woohoo!  I just have to celebrate, and celebrations call for gifts!  

This print really does say it all.  God gives us so much that we don't deserve, and can't possibly earn.  Most importantly salvation!  

To Download this free 8x10 Art print click HERE.

I hope that you enjoy this print and that it will serve as a joyful reminder to you of what we've been freely given in Christ!

Blessings,

The Newest Word Art Wednesday and What it Has to Do With Me.

Happy Wednesday!

We're here, the middle of the week! Closer to the weekend!  I'm looking forward to the upcoming weekend as we will be having some house guests who are dear to my heart.  A real blessing indeed.  It's also my husband's birthday this weekend,  and Memorial day with family and friends.  So, all in all, it looks to be quite an exciting time. 

Another great thing about Wednesday is that it's Word Art Wednesday!  As most of you may have noticed I've enjoyed playing along in the Word Art Wednesday challenges.  I've truly been blessed by the well-written devotions at the blog and by just getting the opportunity to create with the chosen scripture.  It helps me to meditate on God's word which is an important part of Christian growth that we too often miss.  We're such a distracted culture and at least for me making cards, or lettering using Bible verses really helps me to focus and remember what God's word says. 

That's why I'm so excited to share with you a blessing that has been given to me.  Truly a dream come true.

I get to be a part of the Word Art Wednesday Design Team!!!! WoooHooo!  I'm just so thankful to be part of this inspiring and supportive team of ladies who love the Lord.  I desire that what I do would be a blessing to those who are inspired by it and that most of all I would be used to bring glory to my God and Saviour Jesus Christ. 

I see this opportunity as an outlet to do just that.  Thank you so much, Karen Letchworth, for the privilege of designing for your blog, Word Art Wednesday. 

The verse for this week is Matt. 19:14, and here is what I've made.

This verse is very fitting for me to be meditating on this week, as I'm preparing to teach children at a week-long Bible club.  I've been teaching at this Bible club every summer for the last eight years.  I won't sugar coat it.  There have been some rough summers filled with sickness, fatigue, conflicts, and various interpersonal trails.  Sometimes I ask myself why? Why continue to do this year after year.  This verse answers that question for me.  My Saviour and friend Jesus Christ has been so longsuffering with me, and desires for me to come to him, and He desires that for children as well.  If I can be used to bring just one child to Jesus then it's all worth it!   And when it's all said and done, I've never left regretting one moment of Bible camp.  Even the trials are for my good.  

I made this card with children in mind.  I think this card will be perfect to give at the next baby shower I attend.  

I encourage you to play along at Word Art Wednesday.  The word art is always free to download,  but you don't have to use it.  The challenge is always "anything goes".  

Thank you for stopping by today, 

Blessings,

I'm participating in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, Anything Goes

Graduation Season and Another Card

Hello there,

I hope you all had a great weekend, I know I did. :)   I even got a chance to spend a little time in my craft room creating some cards.  As graduation season is in full swing for me, I've got lots of graduation cards to make.  I thought I'd share my latest one with you.  

Do you ever just have one of those days when card making or anything crafty for that matter just doesn't seem to go quite as you had envisioned it?  That's the kind of day I had yesterday.  The first card I made found it's way to garbage as I had smeared glue all over it. :P  For the next try, I wanted to create a card that had some printed text.  However, my printer just would not cooperate!  And lastly was this card.  Whew!  I'm happy with the final result, but I just could not emboss the "congrats" sentiment.  I tried and tried.  I'm not sure what I was doing wrong, but I gave up and settled on this.  

I think it works. :) Sometimes that's just how it goes in the craft room and in life.  But I've found that those times are the most valuable because those are the learning moments.  

So I encourage you to not give up.  Keep on creating, and learning. 

I'll be back on Wednesday to share some very exciting news with you all!
 Until then, have a blessed week.

Graduation 2016 Shaker Card

Hello There,

I've got a little time on my hands today, so I thought I would stop in real quick to share my latest card with you all. 

I recently had a special request for a graduation card.  The only issue was I've never made a graduation card, and I don't usually like the graduation cards that I see.  The just always seem to be so plain, without girly colors and embellishments that I like to use when making a card.  Well, I tried my best, I'm not sure if this is much better, but it is definitely embellished.  I still don't think I would consider this my favorite type of card to make, but it was fun and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

I'd been wanting to make a shaker card for awhile now,  so I decided to go for it with this card. 

Can I just tell you how hard it is to take a decent picture of cards like this, the photo overlays give off a lot of glare, you can actually see my reflection!  

I used a My Minds Eye Fancy That photo overlay that I stitched to my cardstock base.  I left a small opening to put all of the sequins and confetti through.  Then finished stitching it up.  I gold embossed  "2016" and "grad " then fussy cut them out and adhered them to the card using foam dimensional squares.  

I used a My Minds Eye Niche die for the banner, that I watercolor painted using Tim Holtz Mustard seed and squeezed lemonade distress inks. I then added letter stickers for the word "congrats", these are also from My Minds Eye. 

I really had fun making this card, it's always great to try new techniques.  The possibilities are endless.

Blessings,

Products used:

                                                                               

I'm participating in the following challenges:

Lawnscaping Challenge: #130 sparkle it up

Layout Inspired "Hello There" Card

Hello everyone,

I'm back to share an idea that has been rolling around inside my head for quite some time now.  I've decided to start a series, that I hope to keep going for awhile. 

I would like to begin a series showcasing cards that are "Layout Inspired".  Basically, I'll be sharing a card that has been inspired by a layout that I've seen on Pinterest.  Let me tell you, the inspiration is never ending.  I really like taking my inspiration from layouts, being that a layout is much larger than a card, it's easy to grab an idea or two and work that into a smaller version.  I'm always wanting to learn new techniques and trying out something I've seen on a layout without having to make an entire full-page layout.  

So, here is my first card for the "Layout Inspired" series.

Now, let me show you the layout that inspired this card.

Isn't this layout just gorgeous?  It was created by the talented Wilna Furstenberg.  She shares with her readers a free Silhouette cut file if your interested.  I hope she doesn't mind me using her layout as inspiration.  I just couldn't help myself. :)

I actually don't own a Silhouette machine.  I do however have a very old Cricut machine and cartridge that just happened to have a butterfly image.  So I used that instead to make my die cut negative.  I then adhered a few of the cut-out butterflies to my card with machine stitching.  I stamped my sentiment and lastly added some watercolor.  I really like how the water coloring made the wings of my butterflies curl. 

Lastly, I added a few sequins and enamel dots. 

This card was so much fun to create, and it all started with some "Layout Inspiration".  I hope this encourages you to browse through your Pinterest boards, find some inspiration, and go make something! 

Thank you all for stopping by today and for your interest in my creative journey.  I hope you've enjoyed the first installment in the "Layout Inspired" series, and will back for more. 

Have a blessed week,

Products used:
Pink Paislee paper from the Christy Tomlinson She Art line
MME enamel dots
Doodlebug Design sequins in limeade
Tim Holtz distress inks in peacock feathers and mowed lawn

Word Art Wednesday Challenge Card Psalm 33:11

Hi There, 

I'm back again to share with you all my favorite challenge to enter.  It's, yes, you guessed it, Word Art Wednesday.  I always enjoy getting to make a card with the beautifully designed Word Art.  I was a little bummed this week because I thought that maybe I wouldn't have time to play along,  but it worked out for me to get some time in my craft room last night. And this is what I came up with. 

Isn't this just so beautifully designed?  I really like how the phrase "Standeth Forever" is emphasized by the font choice.  It's so true too! God's word will abide forever, it will never fail, and is always true.  I'm so glad that I have a God who is true to His word, and never changes!  I don't usually embellish these cards too much because I really want the verse to be the focus.  I did choose to use a lot of gold to highlight this verse because it brought to mind another verse that tells us His word is more precious than gold.  (see Ps. 19:10, 119:72, 119:127)

Seriously, these are the most enjoyable cards to make.  I saw this quote over at the Gracelaced blog, "It's not about me as the creator, but as the created... made to reflect His creativity."

And really, that's what it's all about! 

For His Glory,

products used:
My Minds Eye fancy photo overlay,  Recollections journaling card, Simply Stories paper from the "Story of Us" paper line. 

I'm playing along in the following challenges:

Word Art Wednesday #230-231

Prima Design Team Call, 2016 Submission

Hello Everyone,

I'm so excited today!  I've been busy this past week working on a few projects that I've created especially for the Prima Design Team Call!  Maybe I'm being a little too ambitious to even try for the team, but I couldn't help myself.  I just adore Prima products and would enjoy every moment of getting to play with their lovely embellishments and paper lines.  There is a reason why the Prima Design Team is called the "dream team".  

One of the requirements for submission was to use mainly Prima products.  I don't actually own much Prima product, it's not readily available where I live.  So, I pulled out everything I own made by Prima and went to work.  The only Prima paper line I have is their Botanical collection circa 2011!  So, that's what I used...on every project. :)

I also own lots of Prima flowers, and Prima Say it in Crystals. I really tried to make the most of the small amount of Prima I had on hand. This will be a picture heavy post, so I'll get right to it. 

I  started off making this card because that's what I do... I used Prima flowers, Say it in Crystals, paper, and Say it in Crystals Borders for this card.  

I stamped the "hello" sentiment using Tim Holtz distress ink in seedless preserves.  Then I fussy cut the sentiment and covered it using vintage clear glass glitter.  I also cut the Prima Crystals and Borders into pieces to anchor my cluster of flowers and to add some color. 

My next project for submission is a layout.

I had a lot of fun getting messy with this one.  I used stucco paste over a stencil for the background and dusted some micro beads and Tim Holtz distress glitter onto the paste before it dried.  I was going for the look of sand and sea glass.  

I also splattered on glitter mist.  I used Prima paper and lots of Prima flowers on this layout. 

Lastly, I made a tag.  I've never actually created a tag before,  so please bear with me.  It was a fun project to pull me out of my comfort zone. 

I used Prima paper, flowers, Say it in Crystals and a Prima resin flower on this tag.  

I think the tag is my favorite!  I just love how soft and girly it turned out.  Thanks for stopping by today, and sharing in my paper journey.  I'm so glad that I decided to try out for the Prima Design Team.  It stretched me creatively and forced me to work with what I had on hand. Thank you, Prima, for the opportunity.  I can't wait to see who gets chosen. 

Blessings,

products used:

                

I'm participating in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Emboss it. (I've got lots of embossing here)
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Stencil it (I've done that here too)
Simon Says Stamp Work it Wednesday: Flowers (I've got those)