Friends come in all shapes and sizes...

Ain't that the truth! And we never know where we'll meet them. This is my first Bellarific Friday post as a Stamping Bella Babe. Woo Hoo. The theme this week was Animals and I chose to use Cristy Croll's Friends come in all shapes and sizes stamp 'cause I loved the message. I am so grateful for everyone that I've met along the way.



Isn't this image adorable! It would make a great little girl's birthday card too! Neenah Classic Crest Solar White cardstock was my starting point along with Memento Tuxedo Black ink. Next came coloring with Copics and shading with prismacolor pencils blended with gamsol. I know I'm repetitive about that but thankfully mixing up the colors never makes it boring. Glamor Dust Glitter was applied with a Quickie Glue pen on the crown and along the skirt of the Princess. Every little princess deserves to have lots of sparkles right? For a smidgen more, I added a couple tiny pink swarovski crystals along the right side and again on the sentiment panel. Speaking of which, the sentiment was cut with a Spellbinders Oval die and matted with Labels 10. The main image was matted with cardstock and then backed with the Spellbinders Classic Scalloped Rectangles. The design paper is October Afternoon Ducks in a Row. An 8x8 pack that I hoard. But the big circle pattern matched the big cirles in this little lady's skirt. Woo Hoo. And I know that card sizes can be deceiving in photos so note that this is actually 5x7. I finished it off with a sheer fluffy ribbon bow.

And here is Mini-Bella McKenzies card. She was busy last week using Little Mavis and has another creation to share. In case ya'all didn't know McKenz is my 9 year old niece and she loves to create with me and da Bellas.



The Bella Babe lineup has grown this week so don't forget to visit the Stamping Bella Blog to see all their creations too. One lucky commentor has the chance to pickup some Bella bucks. It might be you! Next week's challenge is "Back to School". I had an Ahha moment and know exactly which Bella stamp I am going to work on this weekend. Won't you join us too? Simply send Emily a photo of your creation by Thursday night.

Now, I know that last month brought on some real creativity from the sistahood. About 50 participants joined in each week to showcase their bestest work. I am grateful beyond believe for this opportunity to be part of the team and to promote Stamping Bella products - an easy task I might add as they are so darn stinkin cute! But I want to share with you that creativity is a journey.

So here's my story (a condensed version so you get the gist of it without boring you). I started stamping about 12 years ago. My Mom made cards and dragged me to a party. I quickly realized that I wanted more than just stamping images and cutting paper. A dear mentor introduced me to the Internet. Through the Internet I found oodles and oodles of card styles and designers but the first blog I ever visited was Amy Sheffer's. That girl knows how to make cards! I was always casing her designs. She participated in the Saturday SFYTT with Jen. Jen was a Bella Babe so I started visiting the Bella blog. Colored images started to draw my attention so I went to a Copic Certification class. Amy had a post about an awesome blog - Heavens Created This. I clicked on every photo Linda, another Bella Babe, posted seeking to gain a better understanding of shading and depth with her beloved Copics. My dear son sent me to a pencil coloring class with Paula Williamson yet another Bella Babe as a Christmas gift this year. (Are you seeing the pattern here?) Paula gave me a hands on lesson of building color. With each step along the way I have been drawn to places, images, people that make me happy and feel at ease. Crafting has to be fun. It can be a challenge but what makes this such an outlet for me is that I get to play and make others happy around me too. (At least I think I do.)

During the August DT search - I was crazy about showing you my best work. And yes I had a meltdown or two. But I have the best darn husband around. He went into our bedroom and grabbed this off his dresser.



You're laughing aren't you? Hang with me though. This is a card I made for him about 6 years ago. I hadn't found the Internet yet so this was greatly influenced by a company that liked to cut or rip paper. I also didn't have nearly the supplies that I do today. The gift the kids and I gave him was a trailer so he could tow his Harley for long distance trips. I'm a sissy and hated to have my butt go numb. The annual road trip to Lake George, NY just got 4 hours longer with our move to Michigan - so 10 hours was a little past my limit. The gift might clarify the use of the papers and Harley brad - a bit anyway. But the message is what's important here. He told me "that was then and this is now. It doesn't matter if you win the contest, look how you've grown!"

I have some wonderful new sistahs that I have been getting to know this week. Please keep coloring, keep making cards and keep tyring to be what you can be. Creativity is a journey. Thank you for your support on mine and for visiting with me today.

Have a great weekend!

Cath