Shades of Gray

Let's spray on shades of gray
Right over the line between black and white
We'll call what we're doing okay
So we don't have to face the light

Let's put on a colorful mask
To hide our ugly face
And in our evil wretched selves we'll bask
And keep the good in it's place

Let's pretend we're looking out for others
When what we care about is ourselves
We'll only show to the world what we would show our mothers
And gently place our sin on back shelves

Let's ignore the truth which might set us free
And pretend we're righteous people
Slaves are what we want to be
So we can follow rules and blame it on the steeple

Or we can can accept this free salvation
And choose to unburden our shoulders
What a marvelous revelation
When we obey from love instead of follow orders

Let's draw a sturdy line
Between the black and the white
'Cus now we have eternal time
To bask in the Father's light

Greeting Cards

This is the first tutorial. I made this card on Saturday for a dear friend's bridal shower. I am going to teach you how to make it :) Ready? Ok!

Materials

5x5 card stock (color on both sides)
favorite font stamps
scrap paper
stencils
favorite verse
scissors
clicking pen
thin cloth
small rubber band

Fold card stock in half. Cut about an inch off the bottom. Using your scissors, round the inside corner. Cut a design in the outside edges, making the top slightly shorter than the bottom. If you have design scissors* they work best. Cut the edges of the scrap paper with same design and paste approximately 1 cm from the edge. Using your favorite font stamps, fill the outside edge with a name, "Thank you," "Congrats," or anything you choose. If you do not have stamps, stencils** will work. The final step is embossing. I know that embossers are fairly expensive so I'm going to explain how to emboss without buying. If you wish to emboss*** with an embosser, see below. First things first. You need an embossing pen. Take your clicking pen and disassemble it so that all you have is the shell. Then take your cloth and cover then point with it. Secure tightly with rubber band. Next take a stencil and place over paper in appropriate spot. Using your homemade embossing pen, outline the stencil with a heavy hand. The thinner your cloth, the easier it will be. Do not use the pen without a cloth, though. It will mess up the paper. You can also buy an embossing pen at any Hobby Lobby or Micheal's. After you've done that, simply write out your favorite verse and sign.

*Cut opposite designs on top and bottom. Match the scrap paper with the top design.
**To use stencils requires a bit more work that stamps. You cannot line them up, easily to see if they fit. I recommend using a scrap paper than trying it before putting it on the card. This will help you estimate spacing correctly.
***Manual embosser-place paper on board in the appropriate spot. Place stencil over paper and secure. Using the small embossing pen, outline each stencil with a heavy hand. Using the large pen, stroke inside the top outline to make raised texture.
Crank embosser-place paper on cutting board. Adjust the embossing piece to the appropriate place and set the top board on top of that. Run through the machine.


Sidenote: Technically, embossing is the raising of a surface, but I prefer the impression of a surface instead. You can do whichever you prefer :)

And so it begins...

come sail away with me
on oceans of blue
if you havnt a boat
your imagination with do

so sail away doll
into wild blue yonder
where hearts grow strong
and love grows stronger

and sail away
on the deep blue sea
where theres only the waves
and love and you and me

This poem is the start of it all. My name is Aly. I am an avid blogger. I am engaged. I am a Christian. I scrapbook. I read. I write. I love. I am all things creative. I am all things beautiful. I sail away on imagination often.
There is much more to the poem. It's rather long. I will get around to posting the mini scrapbook of it one day. This blog is dedicated to creativity. Mainly, scrapbooks and greeting cards. I have yet to set up my pay pal account but once I do, greeting cards and scrapbook kits will be available for purchase. I'll have templates posted for both and you'll be able to personalize. We'll see how well this works.
Here are a few of my favorite layouts for starters.
These first three are from a a sports oriented scrapbook. The man had been a football and baseball star at a small town high school. His mother kept all of the old newspaper clippings and they wanted them put together in a scrapbook.



The next two are from my very first scrapbook. I was 16 when I made it and it focused on my high school sweetheart. Some of my best layouts are from this book.


The next three are from the MS150 a few years back. My brother and dad rode from Houston to Austin to raise money and awareness for multiple sclerosis. They ride every year and I add a few pages after each ride. If you'd like to give money to support them this year, comment and I'll give you the link.



These last four are from a personal scrapbook of mine. I have a boat load of pictures and wanted to put them together so it's a sort of eclectic collection of everything.






Keep Sailing!