I learned in the last 10 months how healing art is and how important it is to step back from the stress, breathe, sit at your craft table and use ordinary pieces around you, to create your own world, one scrap at a time.
Last December, I found myself in the Emergency room with a dangerously low heart rate on the day of one of my friend's 40th birthday. I almost didn't go. I almost didn't want to succumb to the heart pain, the hours waiting in the ER and putting others out; namely my husband, for little old me, but I did, and boy am I glad I did.
What came to follow was a never ending round of tests, incessant doctor's appointments, and new issues developing. What remained the constant in my life was the art of paper crafting.
The doctor insisted I lose 40lbs as soon as possible to combat the increasing medical issues. I bought myself a Smash Journal, as any good paper crafter would do to document the journey. What I found was the solace the crafting left behind. Out of the bedroom went unnecessary items and in its place was a designed and constructed new Scrap area for the best friend a girl could have.
In my new found healthy lifestyle, I found that I had to force myself to stop and do something creative between work and chores at home, and that's where the Swapping began.
The swaps were not only a great opportunity to see people's work that I admired greatly, but it gave me the opportunity to stop, breathe, and create sometimes for only a few minutes at a time while a chicken roasted, dishes washed, laundry dried and papers waited for grading, but I did it. What I found in the process of deciding what I would do for each swap, picking out papers, and inking some edges, was healing.
One swap at a time.
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| So Thankful For You, Gratitude Project Life Swap |
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| Halloween Project Life Swap |
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| Create Banner Swap |
So thankful for you Project Life card for Swapping Scraps FB Group made from DCVW Mariposa Paper, Bazill Cardstock, Martha Stewart Border Punch, Prima Wooden Flowers, Twine, liquid crystal and journaling paper.
Halloween Project Life card for Swapping Scraps FB Group made from recycled Making Memories packaging, Cricut "A child's year", Twine, Stazon Inks, Recollections Clips, Dylusions Inks Sprays, Black Pearls (unknown manufacturer.
"A" Banner Swap: Acrylic ATC, w/ Acrylic butterfly made from recycled acrylic packaging, Cricut Storybook cartridge for frame and letters, Cuttlebug Chevron embossing folder, plastic flower embellishment ribbon, Ranger white paint dauber, Black Stazon, Tim Holtz Rock Candy on small yellow A.
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