A Trio of Thanks

I can't believe it's been over a year since my last post, the last time I picked up a marker, cut paper, made anything other than a school poster-lol! Time slips by and we get busy with work, kids, life and it gets harder and harder to make "me" time.

Those who know me well also know that since moving to Atlanta I began a new love affair. No, not a new man, but an obsession called running. It was such a welcome relief to come to a place that was wooded, pretty with rolling hills and four real seasons! 

My love affair came to a screeching halt when I hurt my back and damaged two disks, entrapping my sciatic nerve. After the holidays it was finally time to take the plunge and have surgery to fuse my spine (and hopefully make me bionic:)) with the promise of future stability. This is a major surgery with a long recovery time (i.e. months). 

No running, no work, no kids activities. Many, many friends have come to our rescue with meals, cards, sweets and I realized I was quickly out of my stash of thank you cards. When I was able to sit up, I decided it was time to get out those markers and ink and start back into something I loved so much.

I started with some simple flat cards that could be finished with a little coloring, minimal layering, and finished quickly since I can't sit up for very long at a stretch. 

I had fun trying out the new Blendabilities markers from Stampin' Up. I'm so glad they finally produced their own line of alcohol markers which match exactly with their paper colors. I was always fudging it with my Copic markers to find ones that came close. These markers flow beautifully and it's really easy to blend shades for realistic shadowing.

 

I also cracked open a new stamp set and paper from the Sale-a-bration catalog- these colors are so bright and summery- makes me forget we're still deep in winter! This special runs until March 31st, so check out the fabulous free stamp sets, paper and accessories they are offering!

Now it's time to write those notes! Hopefully the people who receive them will know how much I really appreciate their kindness and friendship, especially at this time!

Supplies:

Stamps: Peaceful Petals (retired), Simply Wonderful (Sale-a-bration)

Paper: Whisper White, Blushing Bride, Calypso Coral, Crisp Cantaloupe, Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Best Year Ever DP

Ink: Baked Brown Sugar, Coastal Cabana, Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral, Memento Tuxedo Black

Accessories: Blushing Bride Chevron ribbon, Deco Labels and Window Frames Framelits, Modern Label punch, Word Window punch, oval punch, Blendabilities markers, Best Year Ever Accessory pack, Stampin' Dimensionals, Candy Dots, Pearl Basic Jewels, Basic Metal Buttons, Linen Thread