Well, the holidays are over. Thank GOD. Don’t get me wrong; I love to watch my kids open the gifts they received… however getting there is another thing.

Christmas to me is not Christmas unless I make at least five gifts to give. The holiday is about giving not receiving, right? It is not about how much we spend, it’s about the thought behind the gift. So each year someone special in my life will receive a gift I creatively made. This year I did Creative Memory paper albums for my youngest daughter’s first year. Amber was born in December and the album had 12 pages. I dug out the pictures I hoped showed how much she has grown this year, along with special moments of my older two with her.
I got five done, with my own still to do! I’ll post pictures of at least one so you can see the finished project. I feel really bad because two of them were for family I haven’t see in close to 20 years and they are still waiting for me to mail them. I will have to plan better for next year.

With the Creative Dream getting started just before the the Holidays I didn’t really have enough time to finish. I did get all my customer’s gifts done in an awesome turn around time. Most of them finished way before planned. Actually everything was done early. May I always have this great blessing and have customer to share this with. LOL.

I’m now getting ready for my next project, in time for Valentine’s Day. This one will include the kids, having them make special cards for their parents: A 90 minute session with two cards for ten dollars. Each extra card will be two dollars. This will include everything they need to make them. Should be lots of fun… I love working with kids; they’re so creative.

I hope everyone has a blessed and prosperous new year! See you back here soon!

A couple of people have emailed asking about instructions for testing your creative muscles with a simple project, so I’ve included instructions for something like the House of Love.

First pick a project piece. Anything made of wood or paper mache will be good. You will also need paint in your color choices. Note: You don’t need much unless your project is really big.

For the House of Love I used: 3 oz bottles of Apple Barrel paint and sealer [also a 3 oz bottle] and a bottle of stuff called crackle. My project required the use of two brushes; one was like a sponge on a stick about ¾ inch wide and an inch long. The other was a small fine bristle brush about ½ inches in size.

You will need a place to pour out your paints. My favorite tool for this is a small paper plate like the left over cake plates from a birthday party.
Something to hold water in to clean the brushes between color changes.
And for me lots of paper towels. I am very clumsy. If you are I would recommend getting newspaper or something to place on the work area to keep the paint from staining it.

Once you have everything you need you are ready to begin.

First give your project a base coat. I use white paint for mine; I find it works better that the topcoat sealers. Let it dry until it’s not tacky and then give it a second coat. Let it sit for at least an hour before you start to paint with the colors of your choice. Always use a second coat and remember to let the paint dry well before you put the next coat.

With the sponge brush follow the directions on the back of the bottle of crackle. Each brand is different. Let dry over night and your project is complete. If you run into any problems or have questions let me know!

After doing the diaper cake, the diaper wreath, and the laundry basket for a good friends baby shower things started to change in my life. The adventures have begun; I’ve taken a good look at what I have done for many years I decided to share my creative talents.
To my surprise many people were very responsive… So here I am a few months into making my dreams come true.

I have had enough orders to keep me very busy, and with Christmas around the corner I am even more overwhelmed. However… I am loving every minute of it!!

The House of Love was the first project I made and sold. The purchaser was so thrilled with it she wanted to know what was next. Holiday ornaments?? I asked. So far I have made 14 and every one has loved them. I will get pictures up soon, I promise. Then I made a little gift box with pictures and that was a hit. So as we get closer to Christmas the orders keep rolling in.

I have always dreamed of making my projects of the day and sharing with people. Now I am living the Creative Dream. May you continue to see the different projects and someday find one for that someone special.

This is a candle grouping I made for a surprise 60th birthday.
Included are:
Two candle bases with micro beads
Beaded Butterflies to add life
Three votive candles each beaded a different color
Twelve tea lights, four of each color
Two taper candles to go in the candle bases
Basket

She loved the gift so much she used it for her spring table setting.

See the ‘before’ picture of this little house in the Gallery.
Made from an unfinished wood frame painted in the favorite colors of the receiver; this one features an antique like finish. [Not really visible in the picture.]

Perfect for small collectibles and/or family photos.