Autumn / Halloween Journal Cards

I found some free autumn images on a Facebook group I belong to. I copy and pasted four to a page in Word, to get four journal cards per page. I took the file to Staples to have printed on their colour toner printer. My printer at home is an inkjet and does not print colour pictures very well.

After tea/coffee tying the pages, the colours were toned down and muted a bit. This fit perfectly with a Halloween theme. The images were glued to black card stock next. I added teeny, tiny diecut bats on each of the cards.

Coffee dyed paper was added to the back of each one and I stamped a different image on each with archival ink. I love how they turned out!

Creating With Used Postage Stamps

Over the years, I’ve accumulated a lot of used postage stamps. The first thing I ever created with them was postage stamp mandala. What is a mandala, you ask? We often associate the word mandala with the circular designs that have repeating colors, shapes, and patterns radiating from the center. Mandalas can be precise, carefully measured, geometric, and perfectly symmetrical, or in contrast, free flowing, organic, and asymmetrical.

Here are some of the first ones I made with used postage stamps.

I was inspired to try this from a couple of ATCs that I received in a swap.

By using the same stamp design you can get a totally different look depending on the way you orient them.

I made a whole bunch of these ATCs for a group swap, one for each member.

Here are some other ways that used postage stamps can be utilized in projects much to the horror of some ardent stamp collectors. Let’s start with Christmas gift tags.

Artist trading cards.

Mini journal cards.

Dangles to hang on junk journals. (These were made by a friend.)

I have SO many used postage stamps, mostly hoarded over the years that I’ve decided to see how many other ways I can use them in my crafts this year. Just while writing this post, I've thought of a couple more ideas.

Digital Papers

Not only am I addicted to acquiring scrapbook paper pads, but also to collecting digital papers. Digital paper refers to electronic artwork files used as background patterns, often in image formats like JPG or PNG, and mimicking the look of traditional scrapbook paper

The real benefit of these is that they don’t take up much physical space to store. They are all on an external hard drive the size of a small notebook that holds two terabytes of data. I’ve only used 34 gigabytes so plenty of room left for more.

The range of themes is quite broad…Halloween, Gothic, Christmas, fairies, gnomes, vintage ephemera, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Rabbit, spring, winter, autumn, nature, flowers, etc. You get the idea. There are more themes than I can name. I’ve purchased them on Etsy or Kofi, and many of them are freebies from various digital artists.

I really need to start using more of them. If only there were more hours in a day and more energy in my body!

Listen to Your Own Good Advice

I recall saying quite recently that falling is not a good idea. I know this from personal experience on many occasions over the years but fall I did this week.

It was Monday, around 4:55 p.m. Work was wrapping up for the day. I got up to prepare to head home when my left knee gave out on me. I could not catch myself and ended up going for a flying leap. My forehead hit the desk across from me cracking the drawer face. I also landed on my bad knee pretty hard and well as on the desk size garbage can under my right arm.

People came running by which time I was sitting up, legs outstretched, in a LOT of pain and wondering how the heck I was ever going to get up off the floor. An ice pack was provided for my head while I sat there trying to get my bearings. No dizziness, no nausea, no bleeding thank goodness.

Luckily, someone strong enough to get me up on my feet again was there to assist. They helped me get to my car and I immediately drove myself to the local hospital ER department. Three hours later, after four x-rays on my left knee, four x-rays on my right shoulder and a CT scan on my head I was released and able to finally go home. I had no broken bones and my brain was still where it should be.

I saw the video footage the following day at work, and it was quite spectacular. I am really lucky that I was not seriously injured. They are recommending a new ‘uniform’ to wear at work now but I don’t think it will be very comfortable.

Long Weekend Excursion

On the Victoria Day long weekend, my cousin and her husband hosted a ‘cousin retreat’ at their Bed & Breakfast in Napanee. What a lovely place they have just outside of town on the bay! Here is the view from the floor to ceiling windows in the living room.

Four of us headed out from Ajax early Friday morning for the long 3 hour trip to get there. No highway driving for us, we took the scenic route. We stopped at Tim Horton’s once for steeped tea and a bathroom break. We also ended up stopping at a closed farmers market with a Port-a-Potty in the back because we were getting desperate again and could not find anything else.

When we finally arrived, we were awestruck by the beauty of the place. My cousin and her husband treated us like royalty. It was amazing! The food was fabulous. The accommodations were first class. No wonder they have a five star rating.

We talked and talked, catching up on what we’ve been up to, later that most of us typically stay up at night. It had been such a long time since we spent any time together that was not a family funeral. There have been too many of those in the last few years. It was good to be able to relax and laugh together and enjoy each other’s company.

I would never have been able to get there on my own and am grateful to the cousin who volunteered to drive us all there. And I am especially grateful to my other cousin and her husband for inviting us to spend some time with them. Thank you!