Stamping as Therapy

If you’ve spent any decent amount of time with a group of stampers you have probably heard the phrase, “It’s cheaper than therapy.” It’s usually a lovely joke expressed towards those that need an extra push to buy the latest big thing or towards non-crafters that gawk at what some will spend on a “hobby”. I never thought I’d actually look to stamping to get me through a hard situation.

If you’ve noticed this blog has been lacking posts as of late. My family and I have been through a personal tragedy, and this blog, amongst other things, has moved to the back burner. But, as the weeks have moved on I’ve found myself moving more and more towards my stamps. Not, because stamping is actual therapy (if you need help you should most definitely seek professional help, and I don’t mean emailing Shelli), but because it’s an activity I love. And, while I’ve had the wonderful support of friends, family, and my amazing husband I needed something to keep my hands busy and calm my mind. And, the simple act of stamping brought me such a simple joy. Slowly but surely my life is beginning to radiate with joy and happiness again. I owe that to my family and friends, but also to this simple hobby. When my mind gets too busy and talking to someone doesn’t seem to help I can pick up a stamp and make something beautiful. And, on the days when the world seems anything but beautiful that’s a gift only God could have given to me. I have experienced His grace in abundance this past month, and I’m glad that He gave me the gift of a craft that allows me to share that grace with others.

I received my holiday mini preorder last week, and I’m having so much fun playing with my new stamps. I firmly believe this is our best mini catalog yet!

Here’s the card I made today:

(all images copyrighted at Stampin’ Up)

Stamp Set: Season of Simple Grace

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Gold Encore

Paper: Baja Breeze, Confetti White, Chocolate Chip, Riding Hood Ride, Kiwi Kiss

Other: Riding Hood Red Taffeta, 1 3/8 inch circle punch, crop-a-dile, stamp-a-ma-jig

I love how this card came out. I’m a sucker for religious stamp sets, because it’s how I started stamping. I was sick of trying to find a Christian Christmas card that didn’t look boring or old fashioned in a bad way. So I started making my own, and the next thing I know I was hooked. So, when I saw this set in the mini catalog I knew I had to have it.

First I cut out the baja breeze, and adhered a piece of torn confetti white to the bottom of the piece of cardstock. I then stamped the holy family in chocolate chip. You may have to use a marker/blender pen to color in brown if there are any gaps along the confetti white and baja breeze border. I then used the stamp-a-ma-jig to stamp the star in gold. There is something about Christmas Cards that just screams for gold. In fact if I make this card again I will probably sponge gold along the chocolate chip border. After the star was dry I mounted it onto the chocolate chip layer, added the kiwi kiss strip to the card and mounted it to the card base. I then punched out a circle in kiwi kiss, folded it in half, and glued it to the card. I then punched two small holes with the crop-a-dile, and tied some taffata ribbon to the card. I find the taffata ribbon the perfect color and feel for Christmas. I also like the simple not for this card, because it doesn’t overwhelm the design and is easy to do. Easy is always good if you are looking at doing multiples of a card.