Change. There's been a lot of it lately. Just four months ago a dear friend of mine set me up on a blind date. Since that moment, dating has been about as central to my life as is the cup of joe I buy every morning. Crazy. One month ago, my passion came a'calling, graphic design. I took to it instantly and next week, I visit the U of M Campus to check out their graphic design program (for the second time). And finally, one week ago, Crate announced the big buyout to American Crafts! I continue on as design team coordinator and social media enthusiast. The team is to remain "as is", thankfully so, and Crate is only going to get better from this point forward. I'm thrilled.
In reviewing all of this, I wonder where I'll be at this very same moment next year. Already, my life feels vastly different than that of four years ago, which is when I tucked myself beneath layers of sheets and prayed for my old life back. Of course, that never really happened. Eric didn't make a miraculous return and wouldn't you know it, time kept a'ticken unbeknown to me. Some how, I pulled through. Fast forward to now, and I'm taking risks and embracing change like never before. Already, the differences are apparent. Who I am today is not the same person I was prior to the loss. Nor am I the same person I was last year. So again, I wonder, where will I be at this given moment 365 days from now? I've not a clue, but it's certainly nerve wracking and exciting to think about..especially considering how quickly things have changed just in the last few months. Can hardly believe it...seriously.
Mentioned earlier on, a dear friend's wedding finally found it's way onto a layout of mine. I titled it "I Thee Wed" for obvious reasons. I paired the theme with a color palette not originally chosen for the project. The peach happened upon the layout by accident. A lonely rose beckoned to be grabbed from a bottom shelf I'd been ignoring for a while. I intermixed it with gray, gold, black, crimson red, lime green, and pink..a subtle, unexpected combination perfectly suited for a wedding.
If you're curious as to the brand of the background paper, it's Anna Griffin. I've a serious crush on her pattern papers. Far from the likes of traditional designs accustomed to this industry, her style is sensibly chic. It's also understated at times, which makes using her papers extremely easy for me. Often, they blend well with black and other negotiable neutrals. The Bright Red/Pink pattern paper is also Anna's...
There's not a whole lot of technique based subject matter to discuss from this layout. Because of this, I'll simply go about emphasizing images and allow you to fill in the blanks where need be..let me know if you've any questions about anything shown.
I did my best to include stamping with this project. On my desk is a stash of neglected stamp sets - both old and new. I pulled a few sets out and focused in on a couple of images. The two above (label and starburst) are from the same set, MME's Lost & Found 2 "Sunshine - Lovely", stamped & Trimmed from vanilla cardstock.
An ornate Basic Grey rub-on interspersed with mini flower stickers (Autumn Leaves/Retired), petite buttons (Fancy Pants), and cabochon pearls.
Vintage velvet ribbon. And orange, none the less. A last and final punch of color prior to the layout's preparedness for the blog. Makes me so happy.
And the rose, well, you know all about it already...pretty, isn't it?
And as a fun farewell, Ethan's weekend art project - a fave craft of mine from thy younger years (love the ones with the melted beads, too) ;)
Perfectly messy & sweet.
A great start of the week to all! See you again soon! ~ CM
