Friday Fiasco also known as The Time I made an Amalgamation of Crap

I have made the decision to devote Friday blog posts to total effing fiascos and/or failures. Yesterday I mentioned plans to make fifteen cards in a messy, imperfect style by Sunday - clearly showing that I had lost my friggin' mind. I got to work pretty soon after my declaration. These two pieces of paper are the product of my first attempts at mixed media cardmaking.

At this point you might be wondering what products I used. I'm not going to tell you - I think it's a real disservice to the manufacturers. I would feel they were totally justified in telling me to cease and desist in discussing or using their products. I actually like the polka dots on the right. We'll see if it goes on any project. I promise I will share products if and/or when they make the cut.

In the past, I would have thrown in the towel, shook my hands at the heavens, and swore to never pick up another crafty material ever. I would have started to make mental lists of which friends would get my supplies while calling my good friend and cursing her for directing me towards this crafty journey. I am so thankful God has a sense of humor. He must look down at me and laugh or at least I hope...

Moving on...I did not throw in the towel. I made another attempt today. I decided my project on the left fell victim to overly ambitious color choices and should be seen as a a simple mistake, not a complete failure. This is progress people. So I decided to go monochromatic...and then changed my mind (like an idiot).

I stamped a variety of images and it looked okay. And then I decided to add yellow. I was thinking of the paper I planned to use on the cards - and thought it was a GREAT idea. It was not. The paper was saturated with water at the time I took this photo - and maybe even now. When I saw the yellow - I knew I had made a mistake. I tried to correct it by overstamping with the other colors - I don't think it worked. I'm waiting for it to dry and reassessing before declaring it a catastrophe.

At this point you might be wondering when the bitching and moaning is going to end. But here's the thing, most people don't take the time to show their failures. My first attempts suck pretty much unequivocally. Sometimes it takes me years to try something new let alone actually like what I do - I'm really not about the imperfection. And there was a time I would have thrown in the towel and went back to what works for me. The problem is...nothing changes that way - I don't learn anything new. I don't grow or evolve. This is no longer acceptable. So I've decided to share and move forward because I will "master" this...it just might take longer than a few days. Guess what? It's okay. It has to be. Hope everyone is having a nice Friday evening. Until then...

P.S. I will be going back to the "old" way to finish the cards for my friend by Sunday. I'm just not giving up on my mixed-media journey.