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I've been working too much and not stamping enough. Need to get my groove back and recovering from surgery yesterday so I have some time to myself ( 3-4 weeks worth!)
Wishing you a good recovery from the surgery!
I'd start by particpating in some of the daily challenges right here; leave a few comments on cards from other people participating and you'll get plenty of love back. And you don't need the latest and greatest supplies to play along, you can just shop your stash.
I had a double knee replacement two years ago, and making some cards helped me through the pain and discomfort. I had the dh set up a small table by my recliner, used my small paper cutter, minimal supplies to keep it simple. I made some simple Valentine cards, and a few birthday. It helped pass the time, along with HBO and DIY channel. Good luck with your recovery.
__________________ Patrice. Organized people are just too lazy to look for things.
Make yourself a little pack to have with you - just a few basics that make you happy. Perhaps start with some small cards with nice DSP cut to size and then stamp a sentiment. Get them posted out and you'll feel very accomplished
I've packed for travel before, and just a small box with a few things (one or two stamp pads, one stamp set, two or three colours of cardstock - so you're not overwhelmed with choices!) can be very relaxing to pick up and make something from.
Once you feel more inspired, you can of course unleash yourself on the rest of your craft goodies! ;)
Wishing you a good recovery and happy stamping times!
I've recently been trying to get my grove back to. I was doing a lot of stamping for awhile but then I stoped for about a year and I'm looking to get it back. So far I've been pretty successful I also like doing challenges but another thing I like to do is find something I haven't used in awhile and try to find a way to use it. I also invented a game with my friend last summer when I was struggling at a crop called Card making Chopped. I'm not sure if you've seen the TV show Chopped but basically you make a mystery basket for yourself or have someone else do it if you have someone else who can (Sometimes I have my mom do it if she's around or my friend will do it sometimes) But you just pull out random stuff you have and try to make it work together I find it kinda fun!
Oh and your username caught my eye! I'm a big Disney fan too!
It may sound silly, but when I need some mojo, I start going through my stash to see what I need to purge! As I determine what I should really keep, I always find something that I forgot about that sparks some creativity.
I can't remember if Dina Wakely said it, but someone advised, just get some stuff on paper. Paint, ink, anything. She said it's like a warm up before exercising. It gets the juices flowing.
__________________ Debbie "Make it work, people." - Tim Gunn My Gallery
Wishing you a fast and complete recovery! I have Netflix and I found that priceless during recoveries. You could try to see all the Oscar nominees for example, or just watch the stuff only you want to see. You can rent discs or watch online. Then you are not a prisoner of daytime tv.
Do you like to color? You could just stamp out a bunch of images to color to make into cards later when you are up and around. A lot of people say coloring is relaxing.
A fast way to make cards is to let beautiful DP do the heavy lifting for you. Make a card face and just pop a sentiment on it with a bow or other embellishment. You can edge the sentiment piece in stickles instead of needing a layer piece. I just smear stickles on my index finger and go around the edge. A good contrast color works well. This way you are not trying to figure out layouts.
If you want to do layouts...there are lots of sketches out there you can use already designed. Once you do a few you will be back in the groove and wont need the assist.
Something I like to do that also uses up my scraps-I cut strips. Then I put double sided tape on the card front every 1/2 to 1 inch, and lay them on an angle and cut off the excess. You can vary the width and papers-a foil/glitter is nice to pop in here and there...if you do all reds, pinks, little hearts-it's a valentine! Or you could add a top piece like a die cut heart over the strips. Or you could just make a bunch of "bases" that you can pop a sentiment layer on later.
Not as fun but useful....have been through your stash lately? Maybe someone can bring you a box at a time for you to poke around in/reorg/purge. If you need to make an index of your stamps...or computer list your dies, EFs, etc. It's drudge work but pays off in the long run when shopping to avoid duplications and one needs to sit for it anyway. I know at any given time, there is something in mine that needs to be straightened out.
Or mix the two. Work one box a day and then you get to make!
Hope you have a speedy and complete recovery!
I find that I need the 'jump start' of a Sketch. I always look at Mojo Monday and Retro Sketches. CASEthisSketch is another good one...simpler designs.
I seem to start with DP, maybe because I have So Much!
It helps me to have a recipient in mind, so my designs can be specific.
Jump back in and have some fun!
Are you on Pinterest? If so, how about going through your boards and actually doing some of the things that caught your eye enough to pin. I know I have enough techniques to try to last a good long while and so many cards pinned that I could CASE for weeks!
I noticed your location and I know a great scrapbook store in West Babylon. Send PM if you want the details.
One thing I recently started to do is pick a stamp, ink it in various colors on watercolor paper (in a spiral pad) and bring it + pencils or crayons etc with me. I also bring 1-2 aqua brushes and color away whenever I get a chance. Kinda like my own coloring book.
At home, I trim and mat the colored images and make cards.
I took a three year crafting hiatus and returned to SCS about four months ago. With the exception of the Hope You Can Cling To challenge (one month of daily challenges), I took things slow.
But beginning this year, my plan is to craft at least a tiny bit every day. I'm looking to the ongoing SCS challenges to help me do this. Splitcoast Challenges - Splitcoaststampers
I will be using the No Pressure approach to these challenges, meaning that if I don't have the supplies or a challenge does not interest me, I won't do it--and I won't feel guilty about not taking part.
In addition, I hope to do a journal page of some sort at least once a week: (pretty page, supply practice page, lettering practice page)
Here's to wishing you a quick recovery and lots of fun crafty time on your days off!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Disneywed
I've been working too much and not stamping enough. Need to get my groove back and recovering from surgery yesterday so I have some time to myself ( 3-4 weeks worth!) Suggestions??
I think I understand where you are, because I was there too. I came back to my craft space after 4 months and was TOTALLY overwhelmed each time I cracked the door. I just could not get creative.
Here was my solution to get un-overwhelmed: 1. I cleaned up the space slowly, little by little over several sessions. 2. I lovingly went through my box of finished cards and pulled only 2 cards that I adored and would love to recreate again. I collected all the needed materials and stamps and markers and such to recreate that card, then mass produced 5 or 6 copies of it like an assembly line. It was easy, unstressful, productive and eased my feeling of being UN-creative. I adored the product and found that I am talented and able to do what I love.
Let me know if this helps get your mojo started!
__________________ Hugs, Cindy
A day without card-making is a dull day.... Designing Duos
Great ideas! I think every idea I had has already been shared by someone else!
I hadn't really thought about it ... but what someone else has mentioned is really true for me. Consider going through a box full of stuff, sitting by a cabinet of stuff, asking someone to "please box up that shelf" & bring it over near you, etc. Doing that type of activity has actually spurred more than just "cleaning out"/"purging" in the past. It really can result in unexpected generation of new ideas! (Thanks for reminding me of that, Ladies!)
Stamp line-art images in Memento ink. Have a short stack of those in a box with alcohol markers or even colored pencils - with our without Gamsol (odorless mineral spirits) for stirring up a coloring urge! I no longer color frequently ... but there really are some times when getting back to the "color book girl" in all of us is therapeutic or just plain fun. Especially when we have no expected card to be finished "right now". Just color for the fun of it!
Visit You Tube ... and just get lost in watching new-to-you video techniques! (Maybe have a notebook & pen handy to keep your own notes!)
This is a great time to ask for someone to bring your unfinished or unused "kits" to you ... paper crafting, stamping, needlework kits .... anything that you can do for a while & pick up again later.
Do visit the SCS Challenge Forum and pick something that sounds like fun to you. It doesn't even have to have this week's date, this month's date at all. Older challenges are still a 'challenge' if it's fresh or interesting to you.
Got a boatload full of images stored on your computer that are in excess? Leftover images no longer needed after you've edited your faves from a set? Great time now to clean out those excess jpegs or docs or whatever that are taking up space and need to be tossed. ;)
Take care of you & follow the guidelines given to you by your Dr. or medical team. Chat more at SCS! Someone is always around!
trying to get back in the groove
