Sunday Snippet from the Sickbed

My plans for the past week or so were waylaid by the "crud"--no voice above a whisper, a throat that feels like it was scraped with sandpaper and then had acid poured down it, coughing until my chest hurts and I wet myself, fever that caused chills, stuffy ears that cause all noise to sound as if it is being heard through a muffler, no appetite (actually, that is a good thing if you are big like me LOL)--in other words, abject misery. 

The down side to all this?  No crafting because my brain did not want to function, therefore I missed several cardmaking challenges.  No energy to clean house, do laundry, grocery shop, or participate in any general living.  No research or writing on my WIP because my muse was as sick as my body.

The up side to this?  I could still work since I was not commuting and was also not exposing the whole office to whatever germs I have.  So, even though my customers heard a less than enthusiastic and softer than normal voice, they still got their accounts taken care of.  My company still had me available (even for overtime) since we were already short-staffed.  Because I could work, I saved my PTO for fun stuff (PTO=paid time off).  I even earned overtime pay ;-)

There was also one more up side--I read several wonderful books toward my reading challenges.  Reviews will be forthcoming on all of them, but I have at least added them to my 100+ Reading Challenge list (at the bottom of my blog).  (Reading is easy when you cannot sleep because you can't breathe or you keep coughing LOL).

I am really hoping to get a bit back into the groove of life this week...between starting to feel better and no (scheduled) overtime for the next couple of weeks, let's see if I can participate in a few challenges, read a few blogs, write a few lines, and take care of hearth and home.

Gingersnap Creations--Coffee & Cream

My cardmaking buddy Beverly of GottHeartArt turned me on to this great challenge blog and Yahoo group, Gingersnap Creations.  This is my first card for one of their color challenges--GC88, Coffee and Cream. 

All the products are Stampin' Up! 

The base is Crumb Cake and the panel is Naturals Ivory.  The ribbon is Chocolate Chip taffeta (retired) and the strip of ribbon was colored darker using the Chocolate Chip marker, while the bow is the regular ribbon.  Hemp twine strings the tags and the brads are retired from last year's Occasions Mini.

The two tags are from the "Puns from the Past" set and stamped in Early Espresso.  The "Take A Sip" wheel was inked in Chocolate Chip. 

I actually really liked the way this turned out (maybe because I love coffee so much LOL)  and I hope Gingersnap will like it too ;-)

Oops! Missed the Deadline (AKA Gotta Get More Organized)

Well, I misread the deadline for Jingle Belles this week and missed being able to enter the "No Red, She Said" challenge by a few hours :-(

I've tried to play there faithfully but just couldn't find my creative mojo this week where crafting is concerned (although I did outline a few chapters for my novel).  I need to work out a schedule of sorts I guess--a way to keep track of the posting days and the deadlines for the card challenges I enjoy.  So far, it's been hit or miss (mainly miss) and I want to get more organized. 

So, you card makers out there--how do you keep track?  On a calendar?  Make a daily/weekly chart?  What works for you?  All I know is what is not currently working for me...

Doily Card with No Red

This is a quick post under the wire for Bah! Humbug! and Jingle Belles...Bah! Humbug! wanted one or more doilies and Jingle Belles was "No Red, She Said" so once more I combined them and then I am hitting the hay for the night.  (OT again today LOL)  Maybe someday I will get more than one card done in a week?

Don't fault the picture please--the card is quite nice and dimensional in person (all products except the dollar store doilies are Stampin' Up!).  Baja Breeze background with snowflakes in Baja Breeze and Marina Mist; the brads are Tempting Turquoise and a single silver glitter brad on top of the tree.

The tree base is Soft Suede edged in Always Artichoke and is punched from the new Build A Cupcake punch.  The folded doilies were all crumpled and then inked (direct-to-paper)--the top one in Wild Wasabi, the middle in Garden Green, and the bottom in Always Artichoke.  They were then folded and inserted inside each other (just a tip--Sticky Strip is really needed to hold it all together without crushing the ruffly parts).

It's tactile but not girly; Christmasy but not red...hope you like it ;-)

William and Kate: A Royal Love Story

I freely admit it--I'm a royal watcher...I have followed the English monarchy to a greater or lesser degree ever since 6th grade when I found out that George Washington was a descendant of English kings.  The Windsors are people who are sometimes forced into boxes not of their own choosing and although they have riches and power, they are able to make the same human mistakes as the rest of us.

I watched the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer.  Prince Charles is an environmentalist after my own heart who has been forced to forge a distinct path for himself while awaiting a job he was born to but yet he would have to lose his mother in order to claim that job.  He married for dynastic reasons--she was not the love of his life, yet he did not choose the path his great-uncle David chose. 

Princes William and Harry are a new breed--they inherited "the Firm" through their father and their connection to the "common people" through their mother's brief example in their lives.  I follow their careers with interest--and yes, their love lives as well.

"William and Kate: A Royal Love Story" is but one of the books that has been published in the short time since the official engagement announcement, but it had already been in the works for quite some time.  It was a quick read--enjoyable and I'm sure as true as the recollections of the persons quoted (both named and anonymous).  I wish the two young people the best--living in a spotlight cannot be easy, but they seem to be forging a path for themselves as a couple who will do the best they can in their own way for their country...we can ask nothing more of any of us, right?