CofC3-Finding a new way

Once again, Linda Ledbetter is hosting the Compendium of Curiosities 3 on her blog. The challenge, of course, is based on the book by Tim Holtz and you can purchase the book by clicking the link. We will have a sponsor for each challenge, which will last two weeks this go round. For the first challenge, we are sponsored by The Inspiration Emporium.  Linda also has some helpers giving their interpretation of the techniques and you can reach their blogs via the link to Linda's blog.  As with previous challenges, I cannot tell you how I accomplished the results. To find out how to do the different techniques, you need to click the Tim link and purchase your own book. Tim will even autograph it for you and Mr. BTS, Mario will get it shipped to you faster than lightning!

My title of Finding a New Way began last month when my father in law passed away on March 24, 3 days after celebrating his 82nd birthday. And our journey changed yet again this past Thursday when my mother in law passed away one month to the day of dad's passing. She was only 2 weeks shy of her 90th birthday. So to say we've had some upheaval in our lives this past month is an understatement. We are getting through it. It's what mom and dad would have wanted. And they are together again. As John put it on Friday,  after almost 58 years of marriage, dad had a month without mom. Hope he had a good time because now he's got her for Eternity!

As is usually the case when I start a project, I don't have a goal in mind. I go where the project takes me. I love the Classic stamps that SA brought back a few years ago and Number 5 with the different eyes has always intrigued me. So I stamped the eye of the man and the eye of the woman. Then I decided I needed a couple of butterflies. And as I was working, I was thinking about how for the last 9 months while my in laws were getting sicker and sicker how little time I had to create. And creating art is my therapy. For ALL things. Mad or glad, happy or sad. I get my feelings out on the paper or in the art journal or on a canvas or whatever medium I happen to be working on. And as I was working, I realized how much I'd MISSED it. And how good it felt to get my fingers inky and think about something other than whether mom or dad needed our attention more on this day or who needed to go to the doctor or what we needed to do for their care. And it became cathartic for me. And that's when I knew I had to put the words "healing" and "therapy" on the tag. And I had to do it "my way." So to me, the eyes represent mom and dad. And they've transformed into butterflies and will now be hovering about, watching and guiding as we go about Finding A New Way.

 My tag using the Paint Marbling Technique found on page 42 of CofC3.

 Second tag swiped through the Distress Paints

 And third tag swiped through the paint.

 All three tags together.

 Completed tag.

 RIP dad. You lived a rich, full life and you will be missed.

RIP mom. We love you and will miss you always. And now you and dad are together forever.

12 tags of 2014-April

Another month! Seems like they go so fast. 

March was hard for us. We lost John's dad, Ray, on the 24th after being in the hospital for most of the month. He had celebrated his 82nd birthday just three days earlier. It's been a hard couple of weeks, but with the support of family and friends, we are getting through. 

Tim has a fabulous tag this month! I changed mine up a bit from his example. Marching to the beat of my own drummer, as it were. I used Sticky Back Canvas for my trellis instead of the grungepaper that Tim used. I like the softer look it gives. I still don't have his pinecone die, so I used my CTMH Artiste Cricut cartridge and cut the rose with it instead. I used the positive of Dina's new leaves stencils and some old dictionary pages, traced and cut out and used that for my leaves. 

 

RIP dad. You lived a rich, full life and will be missed.