No way to avoid being inspired

I've been missing in action for a few months, but it's not because I've not been working on creating. In fact, the reason why I haven't been posting anything is due to the opposite: I've been very busy creating!

I have been in demand making art work for others and the creative flow has been non-stop; no time for writing or posting, lol.  Here are a few of the pieces I have put together. Most of my recent work have included working with mixed media techniques that include watercolor, markers, fabric, cut files, digi artwork, and of course, my Make-the-Cut and my Silhouette Cameo.

Back in September I shared the first piece I was inspired to make. I made this and gifted it to my sister, a fellow lover of art and an artist in her own right (though she won't admit it, lol). I used cork board to make the woman cut out and colored it with a Copic marker.  I bought the fabric from Jo-Ann's and cut it by hand (this was my first attempt and though I don't sew, I tried my best).  The accessories were cut with my Cameo via Make-the-Cut and were from the Lettering Delights collection Create-a-Face-Bling.

This other one on the left was my second attempt at making my own artwork. I used a combination of files to put this together including the Create-a-Face and Create-a-Face Bling collections by Lettering Delight. I cut this one from brown cardstock from Gina K Designs. Again, I purchased the fabric from Jo-Ann's for $1.00.

From these two pieces I was asked to make pieces to give out as recognition awards to men/women in my church congregation and/or the community.  For some of these I simply used the person's photograph and created a silhouette I cut with my Cameo from Make-the-Cut and embellished with fabric, etc.

Digi art courtesy of Robert Jackson

Birthday gift for an 80 year old

Award for Cynthia Davis. The doll is a mini replica of her "Dolls of Hope" 

This last award was celebrating the leadership of the Organist/Choir Director of the Holman Choir, the senior choir at my church, in commemoration of its 55th  Concert of Negro Spirituals, held on February 22, 2015. Again, the digi art is from Robert Jackson. I used Gimp to alter the body of the digital file and painted the body with a musical notes pattern.

Prior to finished/framed work

Finished product put together by my sister Joni

I am giving full credit for inspiring me to God. Most of these pieces are followed by or include scripture and these usually come to me once I've finished the piece or based on information pertaining to  the recipient. 

I have other pieces to share and will do so at a latter date.  In the meantime, enjoy!

Vulnerablity

“The cry of the Israelites has now come to me;”

Exodus 3:9 NRSV

To be vulnerable is to open ourselves up to hurt. Yes, hurt. You ask, why would I want to be hurt by anyone or anything? Trust me, it is not easy to be vulnerable; it is not easy to expose our innermost feelings to others! We won’t take that risk! Revealing vulnerability to others is showing weakness. Better yet, it makes us seem like children. Yes, children. We hear words like, “You baby”, “cry, cry baby”, or “act your age”.

When I was young, I never wanted others to see me cry when they hurt me with their words. Why? Because in our culture, crying meant you were a baby. Instead, I hid behind an angry face and would lash out at my tormentors. That is, until my older sister took hold of me and started speaking words of wisdom to me. She would say to me not to become angry at people’s words, to remember that, “sticks and stones may hurt my bones, but words would never hurt me”. Those words formed me in a way I cannot describe. They were a reminder to me that it did not matter what people said to me or about me; what mattered is how I handled the situation. Do I lash out or ignore? Many times, ignoring meant crying tears of hurt, which allowed others to see me in a new light, no longer hiding behind a face of anger or an attitude of “don’tcarishness” (an “I don’t care what you say about me!” attitude).

When we become vulnerable, we allow others to see our hearts. We allow them to enter into the most private space in our hearts, that space occupied by ourselves and by God alone. We become, in fact, like children, open to the wonders of being carefree and innocent. When we become like children we are dependent on others to take care of us, i.e., our parents. Without a father or mother, we cannot survive as children.

In Exodus, when Moses saw the burning bush and heard God’s voice, he hid his face for fear of looking at God (Exodus 3:6). But God had work for Moses to do, for he saw the vulnerability of his people, the Israelites, and Moses would be the tool he would use to deliver them from Egypt. 

The Israelites’ childlike quality or vulnerability is what called to God.

Carol Kent and her husband Gene, in “A New Kind of Normal,” allowed their vulnerability to shine for the world to see when they allowed the cameras of Dateline NBC into their lives and into their story. What happened next was a surprise for them – the outpouring of love and support they received from friends and people who they did not know was an encouragement to them during their darkest moments. That is what happens when we open up and become vulnerable, when we invite God into our innermost thoughts (which he already knows) and cry out to him for help. He sees our need for him, for his love and protection.

On another note, this blog is mainly for me to showcase my cards and art, however, oftentimes I get so busy with my work and ministry that I neglect to update you readers with what I have been up to. On occasion, I make cards or art work and forget to take photos (yikes!).  Since my last post I made these three cards and all of them were for special persons or events.  Enjoy!

For a Sistah in Christ battling Breast Cancer

A couple at church who celebrated 29 years of wedded bliss!

This is a couple getting married next month.

Finished Invitation & RSVP

Hey blog friends,

Last week I shared with you a draft of a beach invitation I was in the process of making.  Today I can gladly say, IT IS FINISHED!  Here are photos of the finalized invitations.  I hope you like them.

Just a few photos of finished cards

I used MTC to cut these flip flops to my Cameo Silhouette

Embossed with Quickutz Tide embossing folder

RSVP card

Voilá

Here are both together

Let's Dance!

If I had to choose the types of cards I love to make, then I would have to say it's the ones that depict people and fashion. What I mean is, I love making cards with modern day women/men/children, and anything that has to do with fashion, such as shoes (especially those that are in style) clothing, purses, etc.

This card symbolizes all of that.  I don't remember where I purchased these lovely dancing ladies, but I love what they represent - freedom of expression, movement, joy, celebration!

I cut these three dancers using Make-the-Cut. The dresses are a layered part of the cut file and all I did was cut each dress using a different patterned paper (polka dots, Zebra, and Cheetah).  I wanted to make the card as CAS as possible, as well as monochromatic, so I opted for black, white, slate grey, and dark brown.

Post Valentine

Yes, I know, Valentine's Day is long past, however, since we're still in February I think it's not too late to post cards, what do you say?

I made these cards a while back, however, because I've been super busy, I wasn't able to post them to my site, so for your viewing pleasure, here they are:

I made this card especially for someone who wanted to give it to their hubby. Drawing inspiration from here and using the sketch on the left, this is what I came up with.  The background papers we digi papers purchased from Mygrafico. The papers are by Cupcake Cutiees and they're called Hearts N Love papers. The Love of My Heart sentiment was printed on Gina K Designs Red Hot and Dark Chocolate cardstock from my computer using the Channel font, and I finished by embellishing with brown ribbons and two pearl pins to which I added tiny pearls at the end so they won't stick anyone, lol!  The card on the right (below) was made using the same papers, but the embellishments were from my stash. I made this one for my brother to give to his wife. I love the play of red and chocolate, don't you?

These other cards were quickies made using cutting files I purchased from the Cutting Café. They were easy to make using Make-the-Cut. These are the finished products. Most of the papers I used were part of a stash I've had sitting around for a long time.