Perpetual Calendar

One of this week's Bind-it-All projects was a cute perpetual calendar. I used a retired paper packet from CTMH called Perfect Day--love the mix of juniper and sorbet--so pretty. I decided it should be a garden theme, so used the Color Ready Wooden Garden Shapes to embellish it. I colored them w/ both inks and Copics. If I make another calendar, I'll probably use a lighter embellishment, b/c the weight of all the little wooden shapes requires a weight in the bottom so the calendar doesn't tip. : D   Love those happy discoveries...

The bird is resting on a wired vine from a repurposed floral swag that has found its way into a lot of my artwork lately....

Footloose Four by Four

Another mini for my Bind it All class!  These are tooooo much fun.  On this one, I used papers from the Footloose paper packet.   It's such a fun set. 

For the sea-themed embellishments, I used the Seaside wooden shapes pack.  An easy way to color them is to paint them with Create-a-Shade pearl paint, let dry, and then color them w/ your markers of choice.  I used Copics.  The paint dries very quickly, so there isn't too much downtime.  They're easy to attach using Liquid Glass.

The Sentiment "A Winter Summer" was created using the masking technique.  I used stamps from the now retired "August Word Puzzle" and from the Snowflakes stamp set to selectively choose my words.  I distressed the paper it was on by wadding it up and then unfolding it, daubed it w/ Creme Brulee Ink, stamped a seashell stamp lightly using Sweet Leaf and Creme Brulee inks.  Edge distressing and a coat of pearl paint finished it off.

Natural Hemp string and Opaques Mocha Adhesive Gems finished it off.  I love the hemp.  It also comes in black and white, and I go through it like crazy...there just doesn't seem to be anything I can't put it on!

Bind-it-All + CTMH: And a Happy Mother's Day to All

I've had my little Bind-it-All2 for over a year and have used it a wee bit, but wanted to step up my game a little, so signed up for the Bind-it-all classes on MyCreativeClassroom.com.  They're inexpensive ($25 a class), so I figured I had nothing to lose. 

So far, I'm three weeks in to the first class, BIA 101, and I can definitely attest to the fact that I've already learned quite a bit.  I've completed two projects from the class:  a BIA punching guide (super cute, with lots of "reminders" to using the BIA effectively).  I used some Close to my Heart Stash papers...this set is actually 2011's Christmas paper packet--Believe!  Love that it can be used for non-Christmasy projects:

(excuse the slight blurriness...some technical difficulties shrinking the photo down for the web)

Then, I made a darling, tiny 3 x 4 mini album using current papers---one of my faves from the current catty--Stella.  Also used the Stella Complements Canvas Shapes accessory pack--they're so much fun...

I'm really looking forward to finishing this 4 week class w/ a few more mini's, and then moving on to the more advanced BIA class.  I love little tiny treasure books, and using my stash to create them!

On the homefront...I'm almost finished knitting a shawl...and then will embark on the second sock of a great pair of socks I'm making.  I've got so many projects in the queue impatiently waiting for me to cast on, I can't believe it!  I'm in a frenzy of knitting these days.  There's nothing better than petting yarn whilst knitting....

I also spent today at a cheese-making class!  That was GREAT!  Mister and I have become more and more interested in eating "local" as well as making our own food so we know where it comes from....no preservatives or unnecessary ingredients...Don't get me wrong.  I'm SO grateful we have the technology to make food last long enough to get to market---such a boon in our modern age...but when it is sooooo easy to make yogurt, cheese and bread at home, we figure, why not?  We're able to get stone-ground grains from Bob's Red Mill in Milwaukee, OR, raw and low-heat pasteurized milks from local farms, as well as CSA shares (community supported agriculture) from organic farmers locally, that it would be a shame to pass those resources up.  Plus, it's a wonderful hobby for us to share...creating delicious foods from quality ingredients! 

Finally--Happy Mother's Day to all you busy moms out there!  I had some bittersweet moments eating breakfast at Bob's today watching all the young moms w/ their adorable tots.  My, how the years have flown w/ our own "three ring circus"--the daughters three!  Hard to believe they're 25, 22, and 19.  They've been such a blessing to Mister and me, and I can say without reservation that EVERY day is mother's day around the Winter household thanks to my sweet daughters!  I love you, ladies.  Thanks for blessing me every day w/ wonderment and joy and laughter.

Happy Anniversary

Daughter Leah and her husband Scott are celebrating their first anniversary!  So, I needed a card (of course!)  Digging through the stash, I couldn't help but notice how well an older paper pack (Bliss) coordinates with Florentine...the chocolate, twilight, and colonial white combo is so lovely.  I paired it with the Bliss stamp set (now retired) and 4 my Friend Stamp Set, along with some rick rack from the colonial white collection of ribbon.  Add an Antiqued Copper Designer Brad, and do some layering on an easel card and pretty pretty!  The cutouts and lacy bits are from the Art Philosophy cartridge, of course.



Happy Anniversary, Leah and Scott.  Many, many happy years ahead of you!

Mum's Day Card

My Mom is NOT the sentimental type.  She likes humor and fun and a little bit of goofiness.  She is also the dog-mum to an adorable Westie.  So, when I saw the A BowWow stamp set, I knew I had to have it!  Perfect for my mum for Mom's Day.  I teamed it up with some Copics (colors: BG 72 and 75, Y 23 and 26, CG 00 and 01) and the Florentine Paper packet.  First, I used the Twilight card stock to create a 4.25 x 5.5" card.  On a piece of the twilight patterned paper, I randomly stamped words such as "mother", "elegant", "goofy", "xceptional" etc on it using the Keepsake Alphabet stamp set and Twilight Ink.

On top of this, I layered my image, stamped in Black Memento Ink on Neenah Classic Crest paper, on one of the Goldrush patterned papers from the Florentine pack, and rounded two of the corners. (approx cut--3.5" x 3.75"  For the inside of my card, I cut a tag using the Art Philosophy cartridge, and stamped the bone on the corners in Goldrush Ink, stamped the dog image again, and then wonkily covered up everything but his head w/ the tag.  In the center, I stamped the sentiment in Twilight Ink.

Outside are buttons tied up w/ Waxy Flax to complete the look.  It is a perfect match for my mom's personality!  Love this card and the A BowWow stamp set....useful for so many different occasions!

What I've Been Up To...

I didn't stop creating the last few months!  Lots of mixed media journaling, cardmaking, copic-coloring, and knitting have been continuing apace.  I finished a beautiful aran sweater and some socks for Mister, and made an adorable baby sweater for the sweet Taylor Swift-lookalike who cuts my hair:

Also made a card for my GF "T", who turned 50 on the Ides of March (my turn is coming up this summer)

The stamp on the front was from the CTMH Rock the Block campaign, while the "50" was cut from the CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge and then layered.   

I also took some time to become Copic Certified, learned how to make my own greek yogurt, and signed up for a cheese-making class coming up in May. 

Lots of fun going on in the Winter household this year!

The Couloir

The Couloir

The descent began several hours after the rescue.   The remaining team tried to sleep, each eking out a narrow ledge on the rocky summit on which to lay their bags and gear in the cool September night air, but sleep was elusive for most of them; they replayed the accident, the twelve hours of anxious waiting, and the initial attempted rescue over and over again in their minds.  The roar of the final 11 p.m. rescue by a military crew in a Chinook helicopter with night vision capabilities still rang in their ears.  The descent, they thought to themselves, should be easy.

Suffering from adrenaline let-down and little sleep, they gathered their gear at dawn and began to descend.  Only six miles to the trailhead, and two more to the campsite.  A walk in the park for the four men and one woman--all fit mountaineers.  At first, there was little talk, as the group concentrated on the slightly technical descent into the Cascadian Couloir.  They rehashed the events of the day before and congratulated themselves for handling the emergency so well.  Of course, a few things might have been better.  It was lucky that another party’s phone had cell service and was able to get an emergency call out to the county sheriff.  And it sure was providential that the same couple happened to have narcotic painkillers with them.  Rick’s foot was nearly torn off, after all.  But, overall, it had gone as well as it could, and hadn’t they worked well as a team?

Approaching the Couloir, the team refocused on the new terrain.  The couloir is a scree field, a broad mountain avalanche field filled with loose boulders, rocks, pebbles, and sand.  It is active terrain, and the couloir hugging the flanks of Mt Stuart is renowned for its size, and its danger.  The team formed a single line, with Dee and Jim in the front, George and Bryan next, and John  in the rear.  George turned to John as they walked on

                “Careful,” he warned, “that  rock seems like it could be ready to go.” 

John looked up and made a conscious effort not to grab onto the boulder as he climbed through that area.  His hand, however, did lightly brush it, and what followed was later to blur in John’s mind.  The “rock”, a refrigerator-sized boulder, toppled loose from its resting spot—who knows how long it had remained safely in place?—and rolled over John’s legs, then bumped and rolled down the couloirs, breaking into bits by the time it reached the bottom of the slope.  Alerted by the rockfall, the rest of the team looked back, saw John on the ground, and rushed back. 

Stunned, John began to process what had just happened. 

“It’s lucky the scree is so sandy,” he panted to the team, “I think my ankle is just sprained.” 

The boulder had pushed him backwards, up slope, until he was nearly lying down on the field.  As it rolled over him, the left leg lay crossed over the right leg, with the sandy scree underneath absorbing some of the impact.  

“Are you sure?” Dee asked, “Can you make it down?” 

John tested his slightly numb legs.  He was shaky and a little shocked.  With the thought of yesterday’s accident fresh in his mind, John thought of the number of hours it would take a rescue team to be notified and deployed.  With still no cell service among the team members, no way to contact help immediately, and no way to notify family members of the further delay, John shuddered at the thought of putting his family through another night of anxiety.    His wife hated the climbing anyway, and was always a nervous wreck when he was out.  This could send her over the edge.  No, he’d have to make it down, one way or another, sprained ankle or not.

The rest of the descent was a nightmare.  John used his trekking poles as modified crutches and focused on the task at hand.  With years of triathlons, marathons, swimming and climbing under his belt, he felt he possessed the raw strength to hobble down the mountain on one leg and two arms, but it was his mental disclipine he would have to rely on the most.  After some time of achingly slow descent, the team stopped to plan.  By then, the couple who had aided them the night before had caught up with the team, and saw that another team member was injured.

“Why don’t Bob and Sandy go down with John, straight to the car?” Dee proposed, “and we’ll go back to camp and carry out the gear.” 

That was six sets of gear, each weighing sixty-five to seventy-five pounds, for four people to carry.  Jim balked.  Never known for his sensitivity, he looked at John,

“Hey, you can go back for your stuff…pick it up later.  You’re not injured that badly.”  John stood in stunned silence just looking at Jim.   Had Jim’s climbing partner’s fall the day before impinged his judgment? 

“What a jerk,” John thought to himself, considering what to say, but Bryan jumped in before he could form a cohesive reply.

“Hey, he doesn’t want to do that.  We’re not going to do that.  We’re getting all the stuff and meeting back at the parking lot.”

So, it was settled.  Four members hurried down the additional six miles of trail to camp, while the remaining three continued the painful hobble downward.  John’s arms ached, and his foot throbbed.  His legs slowly began to show purple bruises from mid-thigh to ankle.  With two miles to go, Bob and Sandy urged John to take a break.  Stubbornly, he refused, fearful he wouldn’t have the strength to start again.  Twelve hours after the initial descent began, the trip that should have taken just a few hours, ended in the team meeting at the trailhead parking lot. Three hours of driving were ahead of them.

Two weeks later, a surgeon cut through the fibula to repair John’s crushed talus and cartilage, along with several tendons. By that time, his legs had faded from purple, to ghastly green, and finally, a jaundiced yellow.  It would be six months before he could walk without a cane-- in another six, he would run 5k in 22:45.