Latte, #Snailmail, and #Journals....

A perfect way to spend the morning....

Started it off early enough to watch the rising sun turn the mountain range a molten, peach color; reaching it's peak intensity just before the moon disappeared behind the mountains. It only lasted a couple of minutes but what a treat to watch.  After Matt got off to work, I started in on my morning jolt of caffeine and started working in my office. I have three different projects spread out among every working space in my office. I consider my floor to be a working space as well. I try to leave a little path to the back door so the dogs can navigate their way out.

This morning I decided it was a perfect time to work on some stationary and write a few letters. Yes, I do mean getting out a pen and paper and crafting a sentence that doesn't include texting lingo... Old fashioned I know but there is just something about receiving a hand written note that makes your heart sing when you open your mailbox.

I have also been playing around with stationary designs too. Writing a letter is a very personal thing and I want it presented in a way that reflects my personality and makes it a treat to open. I really love the style of my Quilted pages journals so I am taking a little inspiration from that idea. I basically take a piece of card stock and fold it in thirds. The card stock can be plain, have a printed image,or you can draw something on it, etc... The possibilities are endless. I then take lined writing paper and sew a few sheets onto the backside of the card stock. Then, when you are all done you fold it up, throw a stamp on and away it goes.

I am also working on a Baby Brag Smashbook Album for my girlfriend who just had her first baby! This time last year we were getting ready for her wedding and now we are welcoming her beautiful baby boy into the world. It's really is amazing what each new year brings.  I also have another girlfriend with a bun in the oven so I figured I better make three and put one in my Etsy shop.





I know when you have kids the last thing you have time for is scrapbooking... So I am designing this book so you can slap  your favorite pictures in, have pockets to store mementos, and the right size to hold a 4x6 photo. You can throw it in your diaper bag to share with friends, or have it out on the coffee table; just the right size to hold in your hands and not be overwhelmed.

Computer Meltdown

Thanks to a series of computer/cellphone meltdowns I have been offline most of the month. It's been difficult but it hasn't been all bad. We definitely realized how much our world revolves around a working computer.  As of today I am officially back in business. Now that laptops are so cheap we are thinking of getting a second one. Matt and I have shared most everything for years. We still share a stick of deodorant but there are some things it's nice to have all to yourself... Such as having your own bathroom sink, vehicle, and an entire side of the closet all to yourself; just to name a few.

 Things didn't slow down while we were offline that's for sure. I have been busy with fulfilling custom Etsy orders and breathing new life into old books. In between my Etsy business I have been trying to keep up with my Husbands' Matt, new schedule. He recently took a Flight RN job with Mercy Air here in Las Vegas and he has been traveling non-stop all this month. Not only is he moving into a position that fulfills his life's journey but we will finally have a day schedule! It feels wonderful to wake up with the rising sun and be sleeping when it's dark outside. Thanks to our new day schedule, gluteen-free diet, and gym membership, our bodies are coming alive.

#smashbook, long gone are the days of a traditional scrapbook

  We have had lots of big changes in the last few months and I am just bubbling over with excitement, creativity, and joy.

My own life's journey has brought me to find a new friend, a fellow Etsian and paper lover. I have also really fallen in love with the journals I have been making. I love to rediscover a discarded junk and breathe new life into each piece.  During this evolving process, I combined my love of journals, sewing, and ephemera to create something truly special and unique.

Quilted pages... A really fun way to use Ephemera

  It always breaks my heart to see stack of books collecting dust, long forgotten in a corner. I hunt through them finding the perfect books to make into new journals. Some of the journals I make are custom orders and others are inspired by the book itself or my own interests. Each one I make, I fall a little more in love with the process. It's such a perfect combination of everything I love.

I love the old birding or Field Guide books

This special journal is traveling all the way to Italy!

Playing with my new toy the Vintaj BigKick... Oh the possibilities.

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Remains of the Day Class #Ephemera Swap

Treasuring my new stash of #ephemera for all of my #smashbooks #Journals #projectlife

My heart skipped a beat when I opened my mailbox to find a very special package waiting for me this afternoon.

 Finally, my package from the latest #ROD swap arrived this afternoon.  I put together 10 envelopes filled with ephemera and other fun goodies and sent it off to our host. In return she shipped me a package of 10 envelopes from different ladies bursting with trinkets. I could hardly wait to get home and dive in to my box of ephemera heaven.

Opening each package was such a lovely experience. All the ladies took a little extra care to fill their package with extra loveliness and fun bits of old papers or do-dads. Some ladies created nifty bags sewn from different calenders or old wall paper. Each package was filled with a collection of old papers, fabrics, images, buttons, cards, tags, etc...   I especially loved the alcohol ink papers, Japanese writing, and the tags. All 10 packages were different and a thrill to linger through. Such a wonderful afternoon surrounded with bits of old papers and trinkets for all the journals to come.

I am already planning which pieces will go in my next journal! T

It's a special thing to find a group of women all so kind and eager to share their passion with others. Thank you to all the ladies who participated and for our wonderful host. 

All 10 packages ready to be rummaged through

Getting started

Making Highways out of Old Wagon Trails

I just realized this post was never fully uploaded. Not sure what happened but better late than never...





Having a 40 acre gold claim isn't worth much if you can't get to the interior of the darn thing. The desert is such a rugged landscape that there is no way our Titan will be able to blaze a path ahead. Not with creosote bushes every two feet and branches capable of puncturing an off-road tire.... I speak from experience, trust me.
Those creosote's are not to be underestimated.

With only a few precious days on our claim we decided to dedicate two of them to a long overdue chore. It's finally time to blaze a road wide enough for the truck to make it's way down the hillside, safely I might add.

Besides it's 10:00 in the morning and the water is still frozen over... Not much is going to happen with the sluice when it's covered in ice.

Bulldozer Matt making his way down

While we wait for mother nature to thaw us all out from the chilly 15 degrees, Matt and I set to work making a road out of an old wagon trail using hand tools and good old fashion hard work.

Looking more like a highway now

Here they come

Reckon they made it down the hillside

I trimmed back any of the trees or bushes that would add more pinstripes to our truck and did away with anything that looked remotely like it may puncture a tire. All the large rocks/boulders had to go and I was careful to get rid of the cholla cacti scattered all about. The puppies have a knack for finding any stray cacti lurking about.

Matt spent all morning digging into the hillside, widening the trail and then leveling it off as best he could with hand tools. The real test was getting our truck down the new and improved road. It was a little hairy when the back tire started slipping off but between me guiding Matt down and his excellent off-road driving skills( thanks to military training) we made it safely down our new road.

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We celebrated our achievement and last night on the claim by cooking up a spiral ham in my #Griswold dutch oven. As far as cast iron goes, Griswold is the way to go!  I cooked up the ham and taters while our claim neighbors came over with canned green beans from his garden, and corn bread.

We had a feast on our last night surrounded by good friends and delicious food.

Our claim neighbors enjoying a feast