Embrace … and Mr. Dan Update

Happy Sunday!

I'm thrilled to report … I MADE IT!  I made it to April 29th and am (somewhat) still on one piece!  Seriously!  WHY, when I see a blank space on my calendar, do I feel this need to fill it?  WHY do I feel this need to fill it with something epic?  Not a half hour project, like cleaning the bathroom … no I need to say 'Hey!  I know!  Why don't I offer to make 210 cards in a two week period … in ADDITION to the other life things that take time??

Why?

Cause I kinda love it.

Oh sure … I'll bitch about it as I'm doing it … but I really do love the chaos, the stress and the focus that it brings.  I don't know why I have to have soul-breaking pressure to actually get things done but I do.  It truly does give me focus on what I need to do for the day (and a very good reason to put on pants! *lol*)

Just ONE of the things on my to-do-list for the last two weeks was, indeed, to make 210 cards.  Yes, this was purely of my own doing - no one asked me to.  No one expected me to.  No one even suggested it to me.  I just couldn't resist.

Have you ever heard of the documentary called "Embrace"?  I had.  Check out the trailer ...

Wow.

I saw this trailer last year and wanted to see it.  I thought it was a regular movie in regular theatres but it isn't and wasn't.  Fast forward to a few weeks ago.  I saw in my Facebook feed that a local St. Albert business, Sweet Boutique, was sponsoring a movie screening of the documentary.  I immediately got tickets for myself and a few of my friends.  As a bonus I found out the ticket were only $10 ... and that the proceeds from the event are going to the Eating Disorder Support Network.  THEN I found out you could purchase a $25 ticket and get a swag bag that would include a pair of the lovely Sweet Legs leggings.  Well!  Given that the leggings sell for $25 I was all over THAT deal.

The event was an instant hit and the 90 available tickets sold out in just 40 hours.

I couldn't stop thinking about the event ... and my own body image issues ... and how fabulous it was that Laura (Sweet Boutique owner) was putting on this event to help other women.  When something like this touches me I want to DO something!  I immediately thought "I want to contribute".  I wanted to contribute handmade cards to the swag bags.  I didn't want to do it as a marketing ploy.  I didn't want to do it expecting anything in return.  I just wanted to contribute ... and cards are one of my favorite ways to do that.

Here are the cards I made ...

I just love them.

This Beautiful You set is not one that originally "wanted" to buy.  It's one I knew I "should" by.  I recognized the great art work and that it would appeal to many for a pretty, feminine card.  I bought it.  I used it.  I fell in love with it.  I dunno - it just seems to empower, somehow.  Who wouldn't like to receive a card that calls them beautiful?  Who doesn't feel "lighter" seeing the image of the lady in yellow?  Who doesn't relate to the feelings of the lady in blue?  I knew this was the set I wanted to use.

I contacted Laura and asked if I could contribute to the swag bags and I was over the MOON when she said yes!  70 people had purchased the swag bag tickets ... 7 bags x 3 cards per bag = 210 cards.  I ordered 10 packages of the Notecards and envelopes and I was good to go!

The whole process was really quite painless.  My back doesn't like when I stamp for more than a few hours at a time so I just broke it down.  I'd stamp all 70 ladies and sentiments for one design one session ... then stamp/color them the next and so on.  It only took 6 session to actually complete all of the cards ...

THAT was the easy part.  It took me a bit of brainstorming to figure out how I wanted to package them all.  Long story short I *may* have squealed when I stumbled across my stash of long retired cello bags.  I had about 85 of them.  PERFECT!  I wanted to jazz them up a bit ... and stumbled across my stash of paper doilies.  PERFECT!  Needed to secure them shut somehow ... and stumbled across my stash of binder clips.  PERECT!  Hmmmm one last thing ... I wanted the word "embrace".  I remembered I had a stamp set with the word ... alas ... I guess I sold it.  Sigh.  No worries!  I found my newest alphabet set and made my own word.  Here is the end result ...

Stamping on doilies is a little tricky.  They are slightly glossy and the stamp sometimes slides a bit.  Our classic inks don't dry very quickly but I found the Archival Basic Black does ... so that's what I used.  Some of the letters did bleed a little due to overinking but I do love the overall "organic" feel.

Here are all 70 done and ready to go ...

I was thrilled to have them completed and dropped off Friday morning.  It was a labour of love and I truly hope the recipients love them as much as I do.  We DO need to embrace our bodies more.  I can't WAIT for the event (next weekend).

Now ... speaking of wanting to DO something when a story touches me ... how about a Mr. Dan update?

Monday I went to the mailbox on the way to pick up Koda from the hospital (that's ANOTHER story and part of the *fun* that was the month of April!).  I was THRILLED to be getting my White Shadow back ... and then... when I opened my mailbox ... the day got 10 times BETTER ...

A letter from Mr. Dan!!!!  I knew right away it was one of the cards my friends and I made him .. you can see the hot air balloon through the envelope *lol*

A lovely, LOVELY note written to thank us for the cards and to assure us he would use them all.

Yes ... stories move me.  They move me to act.  Acting brings me so much joy.  I just love what I do.  It makes a difference and it matters.

That's all.

Have yourself an amazing, stampy day My Friends.

xoxo

Tam