I think I finally GET it!

So I started this blog with the idea of having an outlet for creativity. But the last couple of months have taken quite a turn and I haven't been doing anything "crafty" to share.

At the end of March I was in a car accident while on my way to work. A semi-truck didn't stop in time and rear-ended a girl behind me who then hit me and pushed me into another car. At first glance of my car it didn't seem very serious. It was a semi after all and could have been much worse. But here I am, 3 months later, still going to therapy twice a week, still not back at work, still no resolution with the at-fault party over property damage.


All of this took place just as we were getting ready to move. The move was a good thing. We were hating where we were living and LOVE the new home. It actually feels like a home. But with my limited range of motion, I have not been able to organize a creative space for myself, and I haven't been very motivated to get it done.

As if all this wasn't enough, my husband and I are coming to terms with a new diagnosis for my son. Because we feel very deeply about respecting his right regarding disclosure ("Nothing about me without me"), I'm not going into specifics here. But I will say it has changed our way of thinking, and our way of being, forever.

This morning was a stressful morning. You know those days when things just feel like it all comes crashing down on you? Yep, I had one of those days. And after my sobbing was over, I got to thinking, "Where's my outlet? Where can I go to vent? Where can I go when another challenge has been thrown at us? How do I yell out to the world that the challenge was not only met, but was conquered?" I need a pressure relief valve.

And it brought me back to here. Whether anyone reads this or not, whether anyone cares or not, sometimes writing it all down just makes you feel better (I learned that from my long-time friend Kerry for whom I will always be grateful).

When I came up with the name for my blog, it was just for fun. Nothing else really rhymes with Tiffany. But now I think I've actually had an epiphany. This is what blogging is all about. It's not just about being creative, or how many followers you can get. It's not about blog give-a-ways (although they're really fun). It's more about sharing, whether it's ideas, news or feelings. It's an outlet and one I feel in desperate need of at the moment.

So I hope you'll continue the journey with me. If you've made it this far in my novel, Thank You! And if you have a vent of your own, I'd love to hear that too! See, I'm already feeling better.....

Wow - I've been slacking......

........in the blogging department. In between dealing with the car accident, replacing said car, moving, and all the doctor's appointments, I've been neglecting my poor blog. But I'm still here and still crafting. But not with my usual medium. Since the move, I haven't been motivated to organize my new scrap space (I know, right?) But I HAVE been creating. This time with yarn, my new found love. Here are just a few of my creations I've been working on this month. They are for sale at my Artfire store, TLS Designs. Just click on the logo up at the top and on the left.

But rest assured, I'll be back to card making soon. I have a TON of new SVG files sitting here on my computer just screaming to be used. Who wants to come help me organize my scrap space?

First H2H Challenge......with a Prize!!!!

If you have been following my blog at all you'll know 2 things about me. 1) I love challenges, and 2) I love paper piecing. Okay, so there's 3 - I love winning PRIZES!

There is a new blog called Heart 2 Heart and they are hosting their very first challenge. (Did I mention there was a prize?)

This is a color challenge using Sweet Leaf, Sunflower and Chocolate. As soon as I had my papers pulled out I knew exactly what I was going to do. This is my first pop-up card. What do you think?

National Scrapbooking Month

Close To My Heart is offering a special kit called Miracle to celebrate National Scrapbooking Month. While it doesn't have as much paper in it as previous kits, I discovered that a little bit goes a long way. I made this very cute 6x6 album and have plenty of paper, stickers and chipboard left over to do another 12x12 page and possibly a few cards! If you are interested in getting this kit for yourself, just shoot me an email and I'll be happy to share the details!

"Where did the kitties come from?"

I had such a great response from people on the BB I frequent about these cards. But the one recurring question was "where did the kitties come from?" So to answer the questions, yes, it was done on my Cricut but not from a cartridge.

If you've read any of my previous posts you know what a fan I am of SCAL2. It's an awesome program that let's you cut out just about anything from your computer. On the left side of this blog is a list of websites I go to very often to get SCAL files. Some are free, some have a small fee.

The kitties are from a SCAL file I purchased at MyScrapChick. So darn cute. As soon as I saw them I knew I had to have them.

And just a side note - these cards are up for grabs at my ArtFire store. You can get there by clicking on the ArtFire icon on the top left of this page.

Another PageMap Contest

I couldn't resist another challenge by PageMaps. This time the prize is a Cricut! So cool!

I also learned a new technique in doing this layout. Covering chipboard with paper is not so easy. So instead, I embossed them. It worked great!

Page Maps card contest

I love contests! Actually, I love winning contests. I love the free stuff you get when you win a contest. And this contest is for some very cute paper from Sassafras called Nerdy Bird. So here's my entry for the Nerdy Bird Page Maps challenge.

The very cute candles are from MyScrapChick. The random stamping was done using the It's Your Day and Let's Celebrate (I think that's the name) stamp sets from Close To My Heart. And of course the loop punch is from Martha Stewart.

The Small Details - It's hard to tell in the pictures but I random stamped the words Celebrate the Everyday and Celebrate the Occasion on the blue background and then clear embossed it. Also, I cut the flames out in a lighter color card stock, and then inked the edges with Tulip ink. I love how they turned out!

Thanks for looking and please leave a comment. It would be nice to know if someone is actually reading this :)