I'll be the first to say that I am addicted to taking pictures, ask my family. One simple hike will turn into a slow pace and eventually an abrupt halt. I travel light with just an iPhone and a tiny bag carrying my ōllo Clip. I wrote an entire blog post about my lens and will include the link below. These images were captured with a 10x Macro.
Having the "End" in mind is a good habit because it teaches us to be mindful of the journey. I truly hope that you are planning a BIG PARTY after your 30-Days. Don't just tolerate the fact that you tried something new. Celebrate your steps toward self-discovery and wellness.
How you celebrate is completely up to you. So be original and have fun planning a way to commemorate the occasion. PEACE be the Journey.
Yesterday's post was about getting together but maybe I should have posted about creating the invitation. This will be a little hard to explain but you can reference previous post on erasing any background using the Cut-Me-In app.
1. Start with a teacup pic.
2. Open it up in Cut-Me-In. I used a previously saved white background and then chose the teacup pic as my foreground.
3. After that I opened the A+Signature app to fill in the words and heart images. I usually take off the shadowing and adjust opacity.
4. Then I needed to add a border so I used the InstaCollege app to pick a collage and added the same picture to each frame.[Saved it.]
5. Opened it back up in Cut-Me-In using the the saved floral as the background and the invite as the foreground. [Saved it.]
6. I trimmed it in my Photos app and laughed at myself. All that work for a little trim?!
[Enter the critic.] I thought that I was done but the more I looked at it the more I disliked it.
7. I skipped step #4 and went to #5 [again] using a solid color background that I already had in my photos. Now I can post on Facebook, Google+ & email them out to my friends. THE END!!!!
PEACE be the Journey & I hope you plan a cool sister celebration.
You raise creative geniuses by exposing your children to healthy experiences that will allow them to become, "Life long learners." A space where being wrong isn't a bad thing and making mistakes is part of life. Emphasizing that strength is the ability to learn from your failures. Most of all allowing them the freedom to get dirty in nature or dance for no apparent reason. Parenting + (name a hands-on activity) = Healthy Experiences.
I don't believe research would suggest that children should spend more screen time. Have you ever heard of a psychologist telling parents to refrain from outdoor activities and add TV time? Never.
The best part is that children are thrilled to spend time with you even if it's on the front lawn walking to the mailbox. You can easily boost their creativity by investing focused attention. Believe me when I say that I had to reteach myself to focus on them.
Focused attention means...
No techie devices
No head set connectors
No mini/portable wifi machines (includes watches that can tweet)
Sit with them while they play and let them teach you.(Start with 5 min then bump it up.)
Call them on the phone. They know not to disturb me when I'm on the phone so I give them that benefit. I stared calling them when I'm out working. I also take them on birthday dates.(Both are great for a house full of siblings.)
Let them do things for you and give them eye contact when they're presenting you with their gift.
At the end of your wonderful life do you really want your child logging on your FB profile to make your eulogy? Let's not get it twisted. PEACE be the Journey
I'm sure that validation and praise is wonderful but what do you do when no one is celebrating you? [Easy answer.] Celebrate yourself! Of all the beauties in Hollywood Sophia Loren is one of my favorites because she ages gloriously. Anyone can seem beautiful with youthful skin and adornments but let's wait for 80-years.
I have no clue into S.L.'s personal life but I can't help admire how she embraced her curves, hair & fiery heritage. It would seem that she possesses her beauty.
#CreativeBeauty idea...
Make a collage of words, images that boost your self esteem and pin-post-put it up.
:) PEACE be the Journey. Please join us through email & Like-Us on Facebook. We're working on growing CB's YouTube & FB presences to bring you more unique stuff. Sharing is caring.
I took the left over paint from an earlier project and added watercolors to the dried acrylics. It looks like a fish dressed in red wearing a top hat and dancing disco. Hope you make time to smudge :) PEACE be the Journey.
Fabulously YOU! Hoping that you spoil yourself during this self-care Friday. You are truly irreplaceable and you bring value to everyone around. And just in case you forgot we made this post for you. Three things you can do for yourself today.
1. SMILE because it makes you look younger.
2. WRTIE down one thing you like about yourself. "I like how I ______ ."
3. SAY it to three other people. Self talk is great but audible self talk is powerful.
'Busy' doesn't mean successful because nowadays it can represent a day that felt like a complete waste of time. Now let's boost in some ideas to make you a grand success.
PURPOSE Decide what you want and write or doodle it on a few sticky notes.
PLAN Place the notes on the day of the week that you want to complete that task.
DO [Get it done!]
SUCCEED Eventually the little things will add up and with each sticky note you'll feel more accomplished.
PEACE be the Journey & don't forget to sign up for this blog and stay current with ideas, tips & tricks to make your life "Marvelous."
Turn that mundane FB banner into something marvelous. Why be common and ordinary? Take a few minutes to make a statement. I posted this blog to share the process in photo's and the vlog so you can hear me talk through the task. Sort of a multi-sensory experience.
EXAMPLE-A
Let's get started! Above are the directions and you can skip #1 if you're not into B&W pics. Below is the YouTube vlog I created... complete with ukulele from möi. I'm definitely not Jake Shimabukuro but I do like a good jam session, Ohana style.
I opened the image in chop-station on the CMI app. [Cut Me In app] My suggestion is to not rush and don't expect perfection. [FYI the free version has a TON of pop-up adds that are annoying.]
EXAMPLE-B
EXTRA TIP: The next pic is what an edit looks like when I take a snap shot with my iPad and open it in InstaCollageFREE [ICF]. I only did this to give the pic a yellow frame for posting. [EXAMPLE B]
The dashboard in ICF has so many choices and it's best to let the pic shine so don't pic a busy frame. I like using the ICF app when I'm branding a color or when I'm using more then one pic. [Example A]
At the end of-it-all I didn't want a frame. When you get comfortable using these photo apps you'll be cooking oatmeal and creating stuff while you wait. PEACE be the Journey.
Most of the work was done in Cut Me In and I used A+ to watermark it. Took me 10min or less to complete my morning project. Now to get ready for the day. Don't forget to make time for creativity in your day.
Turning the mundane planner into a MARVELOUS planner.
I always have fun at the $1.00 section at Target(R) because the possibilities are endless. I started with the items listed above and then gave it a creative boost. The total project was under $10 (US) and at the end of the day it became a great gift. I've included the YouTube vlog that goes with this project. You can choose to watch it or read my picxam (picture + examples).
I decided to make quarterly tabs and bling them out with rinestone adhesive stickers. For tabs I used Fellows (Clear) Binding Covers and cut them on a slelf healing mat using a rolling cutter and ruler.
Once you learn how to make your own tabs you might end up going ballistic and this idea. The best way to purchase your binding covers is by buying a pack of 100 which is about $45-ish or split the cost with someone. You can do so much with them.
The total price...
The next was a notebook size planner.
I laid a strip of washi tape on top of the clear cover and painted the letters with acrylics. Once dried I outlined them with a Sharpie and cut out the tabs. Then I cut a thin line below the letter and peeled away the remaining tape to reveal a clear tab. The clear part is what I glued down with a glue stick.
Not bad for $2.00
I incorporated several ideas crammed into one project. Composition books are cheap but who wants to draw out lines? My solution was to use a tear-away weekly planner and glue stick each page. [i only glued the edges] The rest of the project is too lengthy to type so check out the Vlog above.
Let's say that you're planning a party and want special evites for email and other social media formats... but there's a few problems. You're not a graphic designer and you don't want it to look like other evite templates. AND [deep breath] all you have is a iPhone or iPad.
[I apologize, I only have experience with Apple products but I'm sure the apps work with all smart-devices.]
I was in the same place with my parents 60th birthday bash. I wanted something I could use on all platforms like Facebook, Instagram & Text. Here's the final product...
I used my two favorite apps to create my evite. They're easy to use and since I didn't have time to stage a photo session and hire a graphic designer this was a simple solution.
Like I said, "I didn't have time" which translates into last minute planning. I dug into my iPhotos and pulled them out of the virtual cloud. This pic had potential but it was too cluttered.
I took a blank screenshot on my iPad Mini and pulled it into "Cut Me In" then I selected this pic. Now comes the work... erasing the clutter. [It was actually therapeutic.]
Above is the final result. This came after I shrunk the image and pulled it to the corner. Ahh it looks better already. Next step is to add the party information and a few elements of design. I imagined the two of them having a conversation about turning sixty.
Below is an image of their conversation bubbles from the A+ Signature app. I completed the rest of the evite in this app. [Tip: there's a lot of fonts so keep it minimal, possibly two.]
The final invitation was fun, informative and easy to use on multiple platforms. Notice how I reflected the colors from my Mom's 2014 Seahawks Championship jersey. That's their favorite team.
Have fun and don't forget to LIKE & SHARE us on Facebook so that we can bring you more creative boost moments. PEACE be the Journey.
