Grateful, Part Three

Looking for a way to fill up your family member's love tanks? Here's another quick idea that I remember reading about in the book "Chicken Soup for the Soul." A teacher did an exercise similar to this with her classroom when morale was low. Many of the students were so touched by this, it became one of their most treasured possessions that they kept into adulthood. Here's the exercise: Using little slips of paper, write the name of each person in your family on one side of the paper. On the back of each one, write a compliment for that person; something you love about them, something that makes them unique and special. Have each family member do this same exercise. Even 2 and 3 year olds can do this with a little help. Just ask them, "What do you like about your [family member]?" Then, take another piece of paper, write the name of one person at the top, then take all of the slips with their name on them and glue them to the paper so that the compliment is face up. Repeat for each person, then give it to that person. This exercise could easily work for any club or group whose members know each other pretty well...book club, girls night out, youth group, etc. You can make this as simple or as fancy as you'd like with the paper you select. Try using scrapbooking paper and cardstock to jazz it up for a frameable work of art that is meaningful. If you want the comments to be anonymous, you can re-type them and print them. If you have members who compete, compare, or get jealous of each other easily, don't read them outloud. Pass them out quietly, one-on-one. If you have never read the book, "Chicken Soup for the Soul," I definitely recommend it. It's full of short, heart-warming, true stories that live up to its title.
	Grateful, Part Three: Here's the last card for the theme Grateful, (tomorrow we'll be doing something totally different).  For this project you'll need a stamp set that has 4 small leaf patterns and the word grateful or thankful. I used a Stampin' Up! set called Falling Leaves. 1) Make a card measuring 5.5 X 4.25 that opens at the side using medium brown cardstock, such as Soft Suede. Tear along the right side of the front to create the torn edge look (as shown). 2) Stamp 4 leaves onto Very Vanilla cardstock using 4 coordinating colors of ink. I used More Mustard, Cajun Craze, Old Olive and Chocolate Chip inks. Trim closely leaving a tiny border around the leaves. 3) Use paper punches to cut out 4 shapes as follows: Use the 1 1/4 inch circle with Cajun Craze cardstock, 1 1/5 inch circle on More Mustard cardstock, scalloped square on Old Olive cardstock, and the curly label punch on Summer Sun cardstock or another yellow.
4) Glue the leaves onto the shapes of a contrasting color.  For example, don't glue the Cajun Craze leaf on the Cajun Craze shape...pick a different color.  Arrange them in a slightly overlapping fashion while leaving a 1.5 inch empty column along the lefthand side of the card.  When you like the way they are arranged, glue them down. 5) Tie a piece of twine around the front flap of the card and secure with a knot.  I also stapled the twine just below the knot so the twine wouldn't slide left or right.  Above the knot, tie a small piece of Old Olive ribbon and another piece of Very Vanilla ribbon onto the twine and snip the ends diagonally. 6) Stamp the word Grateful or Thankful onto Very Vanilla cardstock with Chocolate Chip ink.  Cut it out, leaving a 1/4 inch border all around it.  Glue it onto dark brown cardstock such as Chocolate Chip.  Cut that out, also leaving a 1/4 inch border.  Glue it over the top of the twine string so that it overlaps some of the shapes, as shown in the example. Try using this same layout with different color schemes and different stamp sets, such as Christmas images or snowflakes. Use birthday stamps like cake, balloons and confetti sprinkles to create a fun birthday card. Here's the basic template:

Grateful, Part Two

Do you remember making collages when you were a kid? I distinctly remember going through old magazines and cutting out everything that looked appealing, and then pasting them all in a random, overlapping fashion onto a giant piece of paper. I actually kept one that I did and it's fun to see what was meaningful to me at that time in my life.
What if you did one now? Instead of picking random pictures out of magazine, take snapshots of your real life. Photograph whatever is important to you...people, pets, prized possessions...and assemble them into a visual reminder of what you are thankful for. Then hang it somewhere you'll be able to see it every day, perhaps in a spot that only few will see, like in your closet, or on the back of your bedroom door. Every time you see it, say "Thank you," outloud. Focusing on what you are thankful for automatically brightens your mood because it forces you to emphasize the positive things about your life.	Here's the collage I made using Picasa's collage feature
Here's another exercise: throughout the day, when you notice you are complaining, whining, or saying something negative about another person or situation...catch yourself and stop. Then in your head, come up with 5 good things about that person or situation instead; things you could even say you were thankful for.  How do you bring about a more gracious attitude? Do you have any strategies that work for you? Feel free to share them in the comments section. Now onto today's greeting card project:
	Grateful, Part Two: You'll need a stamp set that has 3 different leaf patterns, acorns and the word grateful or thankful. I used a Stampin' Up! set called Autumn Splendor. 1) Make a card measuring 4.25 X 5.5 that opens at the bottom using a dark orange cardstock such as Really Rust or Cajun Craze.  2) Cut a rectangle out of patterned paper that measures 3.75 X 5. The paper I used had a woodgrain texture that looked weathered with rust and teal accents. Glue it onto the card centered. 3) Stamp three different leaves and acorns using four different colors onto Very Vanilla cardstock. I used Chocolate Chip ink for the oak leaf, More Mustard ink for the maple leaf and Taken With Teal ink for the last leaf, plus Really Rust ink for the acorns.
4) Use a 1 1/4 inch circle punch to make a circle out of patterned paper that coordinates with your background paper. Mine is predominantly Taken With Teal in color. Cut out all the leaves and the acorns, leaving a barely visible edge around them. Glue the acorns to the middle of the circle.  5) Arrange the leaves in a cluster, using the circle with the acorns as the middle of the cluster, as shown. When it looks balanced, glue it all down. Use linen thread or thin twine to tie a bow around the top flap of the card, (it will be visible on the inside of the card). 6) Stamp the word Grateful or Thankful onto Very Vanilla cardstock with Taken With Teal ink. Cut it out, leaving a 1/4 inch border all around it. Glue it onto dark brown cardstock such as Chocolate Chip. Cut that out, also leaving a 1/4 inch border. Glue it to the bottom right corner, and you're done!