Summertime in Estes

If it's hot at your house, come sit in the park with me and listen to the river.

Nature Grunge

I put together sort of an impromptu class, responding to a class request.  The first class is tomorrow morning, but I decided to offer it as a class next week, Wednesday, July 6 at 9:30 a.m. Cards for Soldiers will be postponed to the following week.  Here are the pics:

You've got to see this one in person to get the feel of it.  The tree is stamped on a Prima paper, with added Distress Inks.

Come check out the technique to stamp this text-bird.  Very cool!

Call the shop 970.577.1415 or email cheryl@RMMemories.com to sign up!



Friends Making Cards for Friends

One of my very favorite things about paper art is the friends I make.  Martha Vaughn is a special one.  Martha came into the store last summer when she and her husband, Ed, were here on vacation from Texas for some cool mountain air.  She stopped in two days before they were scheduled to go home!  We kept in touch some by email through the year and when she came back this summer, it was like seeing an old friend again.

Martha told me she and Ed has received a beautiful bouquet of flowers from the owner of the hotel where they were staying and she wanted to make a thank you card for her.  Great idea!  She selected a sheet of Webster's Pages and created a shutter card.



Here is Martha's card.  Lovely, isn't it?  I love this card template because its so simple, but finishes so beautifully and has that wow factor.  If you haven't made one, stop in Rocky Mountain Memories and I'll give you a free 30 second lesson.

Bessie Ida

Can you imagine your grandmother as a young woman?  What was she like?  What girlish ways did she have?  How was her character and her priorities carried into succeeding generations?

Stacy Clinton explored all of these things at Rocky Mountain Memories in the creation of her memory box.  With Cherri Robb's guidance, Stacy created a collage of ephemera and photographs that became a tribute to Bessie Ida Babcock Cunningham, her grandmother.

RMM:  Stacy, did you know your grandmother?  Was she still alive when you were a child?
Stacy:  No, she died a month after my mother was born.  My mother never even knew her.

RMM:  What are some of the items you included in your memory box?
Stacy:  Four pictures of Bessie, hand tatted lace that was made by great aunt, a handkerchief that was with the lace, I don't know who made that.  I also included a copy of her college diploma.

RMM:  Why did you choose Bessie Ida as the subject of your altered box?
Stacy:  To get to know her.  I have a photo album from her college days.
RMM:  Did it work?
Staci: Yes, it did.

RMM:  Where will you keep this art you have created?
Stacy:  Sitting on a bookcase in front of my craft table, eye level!



Stacy & Cherri in close collaberation!!

The cover of Stacy's Memory Box; a beautiful peony with a lion clasp.

Left inside featuring photos of Bessie Ida and a copy of her college diploma!

Right inside.  Bessie Ida, looking sharp posing with an umbrella and hand tatted heirloom lace from Stacy's family.

A treasure and a tribute to a woman who died too soon, but loved and remembered.

Susan Mostek's classes

Hey I wanted you to see the great projects Susan has lined up for June 18.  These are reinterpretations of past classes, brought back by requests.  The morning class will use this beautiful Graphic 45 page to make a "Quote Booklet", but you can, of course make it whatever you like.  Susan will have on hand other ways to embellish this design to spur your creativity.

In the afternoon, you'll get a chance to create these adorable Three Tiered Sliders.  One is embellished with softer colors and images, the other has a masculine theme that can be used as a Father's Day or birthday card.

As always, you'll go home with completed projects and instructions to recreate your own pieces at home.  Call Rocky Mountain Memories to sign up at 970.577.1415 or email cheryl@RMMemories.com.

Supplies and details are available on the website on the classes page.

See you there!

Notebooks

I've been reading (and rereading!) a book called One Thousand Gifts: a Dare to Live Fully by Ann Voskamp.  I'm captured by the book.  Its very well written and its message is important.  The author begins to actively look for gifts from God and, when she looks, she finds them.  She records her findings in a journal she keeps on her kitchen counter.

This is the inspiration for these notebooks.  I've used Tim's ring binders and BoBunny's Gabrielle collection of papers to complete these notebooks.  I WILL be making more.  They turn out beautifully and are sized nicely to tuck away in your purse or tote bag.

Eucharisteo.  This word is with me.  Its where we get our expression "eucharist" from.  The Bible says that Jesus took the bread and broke it and eucharisteo; gave thanks.  This is a gratitude journal.

Here's another notebook I made just for notekeeping.  I used Tim's Kraft Resist paper pad (aMAZing) and his printer's blocks (equally aMAZing!). 

I'm doing a notebook class on Saturday.  You can learn to construct your own notebook with any paper you like, embellishing the cover as you please.  (Class materials include the notebook and pre-selected paper; you get to go crazy with paper & embellishments when you make your own at home!)

Call the shop (970.577.1415) or email (cheryl@RMMemories.com) to sign up.

Hope to see you Saturday!

Random Stuff.....

Its been a few days since I've blogged because I've been busy teaching and creating!!  So here are some things from the studio.  Hope you enjoy.

The minute I saw this hat stamp I thought of the Red Hat ladies.  I had it on my desk and one day recently just sat down and played with it.  I set the hat on my favorite Paper Bag Studios lady with some Stickles and a red rose.  She's a woman full of joy, living life to the full.  Her laughter comes easily and the years are a song for her.  Don't you want to be her?

I really love incorporating nature and simple things into my work.  I've got this ENORMOUS roll of screen in my studio that I bought at Home Depot.  I love it with birds, butterflies and nature things.  I put a bit on the front of this card over a couple of butterflies, but one got away!  Flying free.  Fly away, little butterfly!!

Newest and coolest thing.  Truly.  I just am having the most fun with Distress Stains.  WAY lots of times, I'm picking up a piece, pondering what to do with it and the answer is Distress Stains.  This stuff is going to change the look of your art.  Write down today's date. Six months from now, look back at your work before and after that date.  I think you'll see a difference.  Distress Stains.  Why wait?  You can get very intense color with very light shades.  Its weird.  And fabulous.

This is a chipboard (yes, chipboard!!) flower pot that sat on my desk and, sigh, I just never had time for the poor little thing.  I was going to have to paint it, but it was so big and it was going to take some time and quite a bit of paint to get the coverage I wanted and then I thought, "Distress Stain.  That would do it."  I picked it up and, boom, it was done in just a few minutes, no clean up.  Stop being mean to yourself.  Get some Distress Stains in your studio now. 

And come to Rocky Mountain Memories to learn to use them.  :-)