Sweetwater Designs

::: Shades of Blue :::

I took a quick morning stroll through the garden, and was tickled to see that my delphiniums were in bloom. I have several different color variations, but this one is by far my favorite. I love the cascades of blue as you enter and exit our home. These delphiniums stand more than 4" tall at the bottom of our "L" shaped front porch. I love visiting my garden in the early morning, just as the sun starts to rise. I also love to visit in the evenings as the sun rests, we have had an amazing collection of butterflies and hummingbirds visiting.

The thing I love most about gardening, is sharing. We have been giving plants and seeds to many of our friends and family in our local area. I noticed a few seed pods from some of the retiring blooms from todays post and thought they would be fun to share with some of my visitors, if anyone is interested in a seed rak let me know, I would be happy to share or swap seeds.

::: { A garden is a friend you can visit any time } :::   author unknown

In my brisk walk through the garden this morning, I noticed we have a population of spider mites populating on some of our nicest plants. As I mentioned earlier we have a lot of little friends in our garden... birds, squirrels, bees, butterflies etc and I wanted to find something safe to treat with that would not harm. I found recipe that I have decided to try ... mostly because it is created with items I have from around the house.  If anyone has used this recipe before or knows of another recipe I would love to hear more.

::: { Canola Oil Spray } :::

Mix I TBS in 1 Liter of Water, add a few drops of liquid dish soap, shake well. I hope this is one of those truly "safe and organic" cures... I could not find anything on the web to dispute it.

::: Like it a Latte :::

{ Morning Coffee} has gone from the regular cup of steaming joe to a refrigerated version of the Starbuck's  frappuccino from the local convenient store. The heat here has been exhausting, most of you would say.. 80 degrees oh my ... stop whining lol but I am not a girl who fancies the heat... not even on a cold winter's day.

As I sat here this morning, enjoying my cold frappuccino... I decided to use the { coffee } inspiration and create two thank you cards I desperately need to send out. I received some fabulous cards for my birthday and wanted to follow them  up with a special thanks. So... here's what came of this mornings Inspiration.

::: { Supplies } :::

Stamps: Like it a Latte

Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Salt and Pepper from Reminisce and Just a Girl from Moxxie

Ink: Jet Black Stazon, Pixie Pink, Pink Passion

Other: May Arts Ribbon, Pink spotted ribbon is some misc ribbon I had laying around from another recent project  { more details tomorrow } , Silver Brads, 1/4" Circle Punch, Marvy Uchida Scalloped Punch, Word Window Punch, Small Oval Punch

::: Pretty Peony :::

I have spent many countless hours in the yard this year, grooming plants... tending to the never ending cycle of weeds, and enjoying all the new growth. I could not believe how absolutely fabulous this peony was when it bloomed... it was nothing short of stunning. The blooms were amazing, bright beautiful pink and size ranging from the that of a large orange and some as large as a grapefruit.

{ God made rainy days so gardeners could get the housework done. } 

~Author Unknown

As it just so happens, today it is raining. While the plants are sure to benefit from the additional moisture that we so desperately need... I am excited to spend a day in doors catching up on some much needed cleaning. And hopefully some time for stamping!!

 

::: So Kind :::

I designed this card for a friend of mine, who had recently lost her mother and needed some thank you cards to send to friends and family. I am still working out some kinks with my new digital camera, the photo does not do this card justice.

::: { Supplies } :::

Stamps: Priceless, Three For You

Ink: Blue Bayou, Orchid Opulence, Lavender Lace

Cardstock: Whisper White, Orchid Opulence, Soft Sky, Blue Bayou. The pattern and textured papers were some random pieces from my local scrapbook store, creator unknown.

Other: Marvy Uchida Oval Punches, Stampin' Up! Large Oval Punch, Soft Sky Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon, White Ribbon May Arts, Lavender Ribbon unknown.

::: New Little Ones :::

Our house has grown 8 feet.... or paws if you will. In May we added to new little ones to our family, Bella and J!nx. I had forgotten how much work puppies could be, some days I thinking having a small baby in the house was a bit less work lol. No complaints though, they have been a lot of fun. Their pictures below show more of their personality than you can imagine... Miss Bella is very outgoing, social, and loves the camera... while J!nx is timid, shy and not at all interested in the camera.

   

::: Out of Hiding :::

I am finally ready to come out of hiding.... Surprised? I have had a lot of issues in the last year maintaining my interest in stamping. My mojo seems to come and go like the seasons and it has been a struggling stamping year to put it lightly. However... despite the struggles I think I am ready to come out of hiding and surface again.

With the help of a few good friends :::wink::: you know how you are { hugs 2 u } I am ready to get back into stamping... and more surprisingly some scrapbooking. I originally started stamping in hopes of utilizing my purchases and talents to complete my family scrapbook albums and occasionally send out a birthday or thank you card. Then the reality of it all sets in... I have not completed more than 12 scrapbook pages in my entire stamping career. And more disappointing then that, most of those creations were submitted for contest or designed for last year's Stampin' Up! Convention display boards, leaving the pages that actually made it into my kid's albums countable on one hand. A quick thought on the "sending of occasional cards goal" lol... well I make them and put them in boxes lol... very rarely do they ever go postal .

{ s t a m p i n g  g o a l s }

::: 2 scrapbook layouts a month :::

::: 3 cards created and mailed a month :::

Now this may seem silly to some, but I am your typical girl. I set goals, get really excited, get way to involved in the planning, and fail miserably on the follow through. Because of these exhausting personal habits I am setting some small goals... "baby steps" if you will, hoping to graduate to some bigger goals. { H U G S } 2 Flylady for teaching me the benefits of baby steps.

Welcome

Welcome to Sweetwater Designs, the new blogging home of Kyla Maestas. As with everything new, it will take me some time to get things set up just how I want them. During new construction I hope to find a few fun things to share with you. Thanks for stopping by.