Sunday, August 29, 2010

"Why Don't They Just Play With It the 'Right' Way?!"


I used to get really frustrated with my two youngest boys when they were little. (Okay, well, I still do, but that's another post...)

I bought Marble Works with the intent of nurturing my kids' imaginations. I envisioned them spending countless hours configuring the pieces into various marble tunnels. Laughing and having fun together. What ended up happening was, they spent countless hours using those pieces to configure different guns of various sizes, to shoot each other. Throwing marbles at each other, sticking marbles where marbles shouldn't go....laughing and having fun together. I kept thinking, "I'm glad they're having fun, but why don't they just play with it the 'right' way?!"

But, seriously, weren't they using their imaginations? UGH! Okay. Yes they were. Not the way I wanted them to, but they were, nonetheless.

I decided to use their example of thinking outside the box when I made this card. My inspiration came from Heather Nichols' beautiful floral card. I decided to use my Awash with Flowers stamp set with craft paint instead of ink to make this pretty card. Yes, it is a bit messier as far as clean up goes (use baby wipes for clean up), but I really love how it gives texture in real life. Plus, using paint makes the image show up better on patterned paper than regular ink. Then I used crochet thread to stitch French Knots in the centers. Not too bad for my first attempt at French Knots, huh? The other "outside" thinking came with the eyelet lace border. I took my scallop border punch and used my 1/16" hole punch to punch 3 little holes in each scallop. I then added texture to the border by using my Big Shot and my Square Lattice embossing folder. It really reminds me of a dress I had when I was little.

Marble Works is long gone, but memories of my boys' imagination still inspire me. What can you take from your life, past or present, to inspire your crafting? I'd love you to share with me!

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