Big Changes!

I can hardly believe it's been almost FIVE YEARS since I've posted on this blog! I would say that time flies, but much of the past five years have felt like slogging through thick mud. I have been on a journey that was hard, but enlightening, and while I'm relieved that the worst of those days are behind me, I'm also grateful for them. 

So...What happened?

• I went from living and loving my awesome crafty life, to
• being in so much pain I literally wanted to die, to
• reconnecting with God, to
• a total and complete miraculous healing, to
• downsizing everything in my life and
• moving to a smaller house in another town, then
• publishing my first book (a lifelong dream for me).

And, yes, I did have to give up that beautiful library and amazing craft room. I still occasionally quilt and create books and boxes, but I don't have the supplies or the space for the papercrafting that I used to enjoy, so no more cardmaking for me.

Anyway...

My book, Faith Storm: Salvation to Relationship, came out of my experiences over the past few years, and is available in paperback at Amazon.com. 

I also have a new website (https://cheryllea.com), and I wanted to personally invite you to visit my new blog home where I share my thoughts on life, from a perspective of renewed faith.

   Life: In Progress | On Purpose | Toward God

I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss papercrafting and the sweet, sweet community that I was a part of for so long. I still check in to see what you all are up to, and your creations always bring me joy with their beauty and creativity. Thank you for continuing to share your amazing talents with the world.

My life has taken me in another direction, but I am content and happy to be where I have landed. 

I hope you'll visit me soon!

Love to you all,

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.

New Baby

No, no, no! I don't have a new baby! But, I do have a new baby card.

Pardon the poor picture quality. I took this with my iPad and no flash. In real life the colors are more pure than in this pic.

The color on the pic of the inside is closer to the real thing.

This card will accompany the car seat quilt I posted earlier. My daughter embroidered a quilt label for the quilt. We even digitized the carriage ourselves! It turned out so cute:

Finally, I realized a few days ago that I hadn't posted pics of the quilts my daughter and I finished. 

My daughter's first quilt!

My first completed quilt

 I love having a "surprise" color on the quilt back.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

~Hugs,

Supplies Used:

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.

Flourishes Stamps For Sale

It's time to get started on that craftroom sale I mentioned last week! I will have Pinterest boards set up for the items I have for sale. If you see something you want, just email me at inkup.blog at gmail.com with a list (first-come, first-served) and I'll get back to you with your cost, including shipping. I will be taking payments on PayPal.

Most of the items I am selling are used and are not in their original packaging. Some stamps are stained, but that does not affect how they stamp. All sales are final.

I'm starting with Flourishes stamp sets today. Look for Spellbinders dies in the next few days.

Click here for the list: Flourishes Stamps for Sale

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful week!

~Hugs,

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.

Bulldog Stare

I used this week's Mojo Monday sketch for this fun, masculine birthday card. 

I just love the Crazy Dogs & Cats stamps and dies!

The inside

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

~Hugs,

Supplies Used:

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.

Car Seat Quilt and Upcoming Craftroom Purge and Sale

After a year of almost non-existent cardmaking, I've decided it's time to clean out the old craftroom. Very soon, I will be posting links to lists of gently used papercrafting supplies that I am selling. There will be a little bit of everything, including Spellbinders dies and Flourishes stamp sets, all at very good prices! Keep watching for my next post!

In the meantime...

Just popping in to say hi and show you my latest creation. (Sorry about the photo quality. It's been so long since I posted anything, I've gotten rusty on my photo editing program.) This is a small quilt made for covering a baby in a car seat. I got the free pattern here. 

I used a 5" charm pack from Missouri Star Quilt Co. called Giraffe Crossing 2, and the teal dotted border fabric is from the same line. I'm starting to think that I can't craft without Tim Holtz in my project somewhere. The brown vintage-y fabric is Tim Holtz Eclectic Elements Ledger fabric. The yellow backing and binding is a super-soft poly fabric called Minky. It feels amazing, but this is probably the first and last time I'll use it. It is really hard to sew on my little machine, and my shoulders paid a big price.

Here's a look at the entire front of the quilt. I did a self-binding with the Minky. You can see the ties about a third of the way down, on the sides.

I was a little worried about doing any free-motion quilting on this because of how stretchy Minky is, so I mainly stuck to using my walking foot and stitching in the ditch, but I did do some swirls in the outer border, and it turned out very nice. 

I hope you have a fun and safe Halloween if you are out and about tomorrow night. For the holiday, here's a recipe for homemade candy corn that is delicious. My daughter made the pumpkin face from leftover candy, so you aren't limited to just making corn shapes. It's not the easiest recipe to make, but it tastes much better than the candy corn from the store. 

Thanks for stopping by, and Happy Haunting!

~Hugs,

Thanks for visiting my blog!

To have Ink Up delivered to your inbox,

subscribe in the box at the top right of the page.