Showing posts with label dreams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dreams. Show all posts

Monday, July 21, 2014

Motivational Monday & PoP Midway Reminder: Dreams

If you are new to my blog and would like to know why I started Motivational Monday, please go HERE.
 
Hello and a very good Monday to you all.  Thanks for popping over and sharing your precious time with me.  This will be another packed post as I'll be sharing this month's Motivational Monday passage along with a creation that I had a chance to complete.  Additionally, you'll also find a couple freebies at the bottom of the post.  The reflection, my project and one of the freebies can also be found over on my Path of Positivity challenge blog as part of the midway post where the theme this month is DREAMS.  On with today's thoughts... 

There is Beauty in the Unknown...

For the last couple of weeks, I've been mulling over some ideas about what I wanted to say on the topic of dreams this month but nothing really definite inspired me. Then Saturday, I visited one of our wonderful challenge supporters, Donna Ellis, affectionately known by many as de. After reading her own observations on the topic of dreams (located HERE), I knew exactly the approach I wanted to take with today's reflection.

Many of us can become bogged down by unfulfilled dreams. I know that I have. Sadly in my case, it wasn't just one or two. I have had many dreams that have been unfulfilled but it doesn't mean that I've given up on the idea of them. The key is that just like in every aspect of life, you must pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep moving. When it comes to dreams, it merely means a course correction.

Maybe the dreams that we carry in our heart, aren't meant to be our reality. It is possible that our higher power and/or the universe have decreed that we are destined for something else completely. I saw myself surrounded by children, and later, grandchildren. When that dream fell through, I concentrated on my career. I saw myself fulfilling my goals of finishing my degree, spending my working hours developing curriculum and teaching learning strategies to individuals with learning disabilities. That dream was ripped from me as well. My dream of being financially secure? Bye, bye. Then in 2002, I became disabled. So many more dreams were crushed and left to the wayside and for a very long time. It felt like obstacles were being erected all around me to prevent me from ever fulfilling ANY dream.

Donna stated in her passage about dreams, that "instead of viewing stumbling blocks as obstacles, those "blocks" may actually be BUILDING blocks to bring us to a different place, fulfilling an "UNKNOWN DREAM" which has always resided in our hearts." Well, I couldn't agree more! Our hearts and minds are vast and we may have many burgeoning dreams and desires that have yet to be discovered. Donna went on to state, "I would not have discovered the wide world of Beauty found in our Internet Community, had I not become critically ill, and home-bound". Apparently, Donna and I share this in common as well.

Had my life not changed dramatically, I would still have been out in the workforce. Had I been spending the majority of my day outside the home, I would never have had the need to find something satisfying to fill up so much of my spare time with. Had I not discovered the world of card-making, I too would never have discovered the love and acceptance of this beautiful on-line community. Now I have new dreams, very different dreams. Some of them are well on their way to fulfilment, others need to be nourished and grown a little bit longer before they take root.

The point is, is that sometimes it is necessary to stand back and re-evaluate the dreams that each of us once had. Maybe we are destined for a different path than the one we anticipated. The key is that we never give up. We must continue to change and adapt to our ever altering circumstances. There is a quote by Alice Sebold that states, "Sometimes the dreams that come true are the ones you never knew you had." Take comfort in the unknown, for those dreams may turn out to be the best ones yet. 
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Next up, is the scrapbooking page I made using items from this month's guest sponsor Scribble and Scrap.

Digital Image Details:
  • Steampunk Key and Steampunk Keyhole:  Aren't these images cool?!  I was lucky enough to pick up both these images, along with many others in a win over on the Scribble and Scrap Challenge Blog.   Clicking on the watermark below will take you to its page in the digi section of the store in the Vintage Steampunk section. Lexie is busy working on the store right now, so I was unable to grab a watermark and link for the keyhole.  If you are interested in it, please be sure to contact her.

http://www.scribbleandscrap.co.uk/digi-craft-shop.html#!/~/product/category=6514820&id=27430173
Digital Sentiment:
  • One I created for this page.  Hopefully, I will get a chance to offer it up as a freebie if there is any interest in it.
Digital Embellishments:
  • I have used a number of different digital embellishments all of them picked up over at Pixel Scrapper.  Credits include:
    • Bow and fabric covered button--Marisa Lerin.
    • Ornate corners:  Sheila Reid.
    • Ornate gemstones:  Janet Scott.
 Digital Paper:
  • The digital paper is from the Grungy Florals - Naturals collection also available in the Scribble and Scrap store. Clicking on the watermark below will take you to its page in the digital paper section of the store.
http://www.scribbleandscrap.co.uk/digi-craft-shop.html#!/~/product/category=8603466&id=33745264
Challenges I am hoping to enter: 
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Finally, that brings me to a couple of freebies.  The first was offered up at the challenge start and the second was just offered up today for the midway...

© 2014 
Font Information:
 
© 2014
Font Information:
Please be sure to click on the images to bring them up into the lightbox in their proper size before saving them.  Click on the font name to take you to a download location.  All these fonts were listed as free for commercial use at the time each of these project were made, and as such, it is my understanding, that I am within my rights to use these fonts in my creations and offer them to others.  Please refer to my full terms of service for what you can and cannot do with these digital creations.
You will notice that the sentiments may appear huge depending on what software program you download them into.  You can always reduce the size without distorting the overall look.
 
Credit Notes For These Creations:
© Lisa L. Décosse. PUO. However, you are allowed to use the sentiments on handmade projects that you intend to sell on a small scale basis provided credit is given. You also need to include a credit note and a link to this blog should you use any of my images in your creations and post them on your blog. Please be sure to familiarize yourself with my full terms of use found in the 'Download Instructions & T.O.U.' tab at the top of this page. Of important note:  Please do not share my images with family, friends, etc. Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Box®, 4-Shared®, etc. Instead, please direct people to my blog(s) so they can grab the image for themselves. If you would like to post a watermarked version of the image, please contact me to obtain one.
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I invite you to go and check out, not only, the wonderful creations some members of my Design Team had the opportunity to create over on the Path of Positivity (click HERE for the midway) but also some of the great entries into this month's challenge (click HERE for the challenge).  I also invite you to come over and enter a project yourself, if you haven't already.  We could all use a little inspiration to keep dreaming.  Why not create a card that helps to deliver some positivity to someone special in your life.  

Well, that is it for today!  Have a great week ahead everyone! 

Until next time,
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Tuesday, January 01, 2013

Tuesday Alchemy Challenge #47

It's time for my first challenge as a Design Team member over at Tuesday Alchemy today!  Challenge 47 is about Hopes, Dreams & Resolutions, and there's TWO awesome prizes up for grabs!

A $10 Gift Certificate from

AND
count them, seven Digital Images from
 
  
So head on over to
and join the challenge!

Now, it seems fitting that we had to make a project based on our hopes and dreams and/or a new year's resolution.  I'm not one for making resolutions but I do try to set goals for myself.  Thus, I came up with the perfect thing for me to work on this year--CONFIDENCE!  If you've been following my blog these past two months you know that I've struggled with the issue of believing in my own talents and abilities.  So, working on building confidence as one of my aims this year just seems fitting, doesn't it?

Here is the front of the card I created as my very first project as a design team member (can you tell I'm proud of that fact, or what)...

 and here is the inside of the card...

 Hmmmm.....Maybe I should mail this card to myself as incentive.

 Anyways, here are the card details, I hope I haven't forgotten anything...
  • Digital stamp of the mouse and bear is from Beccy's Place (clicking on the link will take you directly to the free image).  It is coloured using Copic(R) markers.  Flower:  Y11, Y13, Y15 and Y17. Mouse:  R20, R22 (ears); C1, C3, C5 (body).  Bear: R20, R22 (ears); W1, W3, W5 (body); B00 (eyes); B00, B02, B05 (jacket); G20, G24 (ascot and hankerchief).  Ground: G00.  I also used a black watercolour pencil to add the texture of fur to both creatures.
  • Paper:  The card base and thin turquoise blue vertical strip on the front is from Recollection's Cardstock Paper--Cape Cod collection purchased at Michael's; the green and yellow/green floral paper and the blues/greens/ivory floral paper I used are both from the K & C Company--The Best of K & C 360 page paper pad that I got at WalMart.  The small blue square from the front and rectangle from inside is from a pastels collection I picked up at Dollarama awhile back.  The base for the 'believe' tag and the inside sentiment are from Recollection's Cardstock Paper--White paper pack.
  • I cut the tag out by hand after stamping it with a Studio G stamp using Mememto Bahama Blue.  The inside sentiment is an awesome one from TLC-Creations.  Thanks Paulette for the inspiration behind the creation of this card.
  • The theme over at Stamp Your Life is New Beginnings and your interpretation of that.  For some that may be a new baby, a new house, or a lifestyle change.  For me it is all about a new attitude of believing more in myself and working on my confidence.
  • This is also my first official use of a sketch (okay, well there was that one I stole I mean borrowed from a design I saw Crafting Vicky use).  It is from My Favourite Things, sketch 99.  Now, since I've never posted a sketch on my blog before, I'm going to assume I'm allowed to since I've seen other people do it.  Someone please let me know if I'm in the wrong.


 Challenges I will be entering the card into: 
There may be a few more added to the list throughout the week.

 Well I guess that is it for my very first post as a DT member.  Thanks so much for stopping by and don't forget to leave some love if you have the time.

Until next time,

 

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