What Is Your Place You Can Most be Yourself?

Recently a dear friend and fellow design team member, Courtney Walsh, on my Webster's Pages deisgn team had her second novel published, in a series called 'Sweethaven".  I couldn't be more thrilled or excited for her!  The new release is called "A Sweethaven Homecoming" a sequel to her book "A Sweethaven Summer:".  Her books are heartwarming stories based around scrapbooking!

To help celebrate and promote her new book she is doing a weeklong blog challenge for scrappers to play along (Prizes Too!!!)  The topics to choose from are:

~Reconciled Friendships

~Motherhood

~weightloss

~being transparent

~distractions

~forgiveness

~old friends

~getting away

~the place where you can most be yourself

~the place where the peace is

~the cover of the book

~a verse or quote that really means something to you

~second chances

Courtney asked a few of her scrapper friends to do up sample layouts featuring one of the above topics to share on her blog.  I chose "A place where I can most be myself".  Most of you may not know this about me but I am a total 'home-body', I love nothing more than slipping into some comfy PJ's and kicking back in our bedroom.  It's the one room in the house that absolutely is always clean and tidy.  I wake up in the morning and immediately make the bed (LOVE a nicely made bed).  The rest of the house get's it's clean-up but it never stays that way with the everyday adventures of the rest of my family.....but my/our bedroom is my place of refuge, a relaxing, calm, comfortable place to read, nap, watch TV (Yep, we have a flatscreen in the bedroom....bad, I know! lol!!) and Yes! even scrap!!

I combined this challenge with a Bo Bunny challenge I had today to do a page that featured fun ways to add journaling to our pages.  I used the gorgeous new Bo Bunny Collection called Serenade to make up this page.  I chose to journal in a way that would add a design element to the page.  I machine stitched a zig-zag circle design on the page and handwrote my journaling around it.

There is someone else in our family that loves a well made bed, as you can see in this photo.  I was trying to snap some pic's and the next thing I know our pup Zoe had hopped up onto the bed on her favourite blanket at the foot of the bed.  At first I was going to shoo her off but then I thought, nope...she really is part of the package, the one that is always sitting there keeping me company in my peaceful place. 

I used a little bit of chalk ink and some of the new Bo Bunny stamps to create a background on the Double Dot Khaki paper (above) as well as some of the green jewels. 

I also got to use some of the NEW gorgeous blooms that Bo Bunny released at the summer CHA!  I'm so thrilled that they decided to add blooms to their new collections this time around (I'll share a pic of the stash of blooms they sent me in an upcoming post) 

Want to know what it says above our bed? ..."Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away" ......Can you believe I found this wall decore at our local dollar store?  I was so pleased with myself when I finished applying the quote to our wall and was so happy with the look of it!...Then my dear husband came home and chuckling said, "Of all things to put over our bed, you had to choose THOSE words??" ....Ha!, I told him my mind doesn't dwell in the gutter like his does! ROFL!

So enough about me.....would you like a fun challenge? Then be sure to stop by Courtney's blog to play along, you can find it HERE and if you are looking for a wonderful summer read, you cnn order one or both of the Sweethaven books HERE. Courtney is an awesome writer and has a magical way with words, I know you'll love her books.  So my question to you is, "What is your place where you can most be yourself?"

Thanks for stopping by today! xo

Handmade Flower Challenge with Bo Bunny! ...AND an invite to chat with me!

So the challenge today over at Bo Bunny blog was for the design team girls to make a card with handmade flowers....ha! a challenge after my own heart! :)   For the above card I used the Welcome Home collection papers, mixed with a little bit of Et Cetera (I love the music note paper!)  The butterflies are from the Country Garden collection.  Here is a close-up peek of the blooms... 

HOW TO:  I made the blooms using some plain book paper (literally paper I tore from an old book I bought at the thrift store for a few pennies!). I just gave the paper a light spritz with some Tim Holtz Pink Sherbert Alcohol ink.  I then used the EK Success Retro Flower punch (small) to punch out a few flower shapes.  I then used a jaggedy edged deco scissor on the ends of the petals to get that tattered look that carnations have.  I strung 3 of them on a floral wire (crinkled the petals up a bit and adhered them together with some glue).  A very simple floral design for your cards or layouts!  (Here I also adde some little bud twigs that I bought in a cluster at Michaels at 60% off!) 

Do you like making your own floral embellishments?  If you do, take the Bo Bunny challenge and create a card with your handmade flowers and post them at this link Bo Bunny Handmade Floral Card Challenge and you can have a chance at a fun Bo Bunny prize! 

One more thing before I close today.....Have you ever wanted to have a live chat with me?  Questions you've always wanted to ask?  Here is your opportunity!  I'm guest designer over at Swirlydoo's kit club this month and they have arranged a live chat with me at their site.  It's scheduled for next Monday 16th at 7:00 pm EST.  Once I have a link from them I will share it with you all here.  I hope to get a chance to chat with you all, so mark the date! :)