Aloha, all!
For the most part, when I am near a lake or an ocean, I cannot take my eyes off of the water. We have friends we visit here on our island whose homes are right on the ocean, and all I want to do is sit and look at the water. It’s so peaceful. Next week, my husband and I will go to a family cabin on a lake in Northern Minnesota, and it’s hard to get any chores done as all I’d like to do is sit and look at the water. There are two stamp sets in the current Stampin’ Up! 2018-2019 Annual Catalog that bring those feelings to me, even when I’m stuck in a house in town.
The images and sentiments in these two cards, sent to me by two sister Stampin’ Up! demonstrators, are from the new Lilypad Lake Stamp Set. These remind me of our Minnesota Lake, though we’re more likely to have Loons on that lake than Herons. The waves in the top card, with the stamped image from the stamp set and continuing through the top layer with the die-cut image from the Lakeside Framelits Dies set, bring a sense of calm.
The bottom card, with images from the same set, even have the word “calm” in the sentiment. And of course there are sail boats out on our lake. Watching them move peacefully along the water with the light breezes is as mesmerizing as watching the water itself.
The other stamp set, carried over from the last Stampin’ Up! catalog, is called Waterfront. This set is one that I’ve loved since I first saw it as there are so many images that remind me of the ocean around the Big Island of Hawai’i, where I live. Close to where our house used to be, it’s not all that peaceful with tons of lava running into the sea from the fissures that destroyed our home and hundreds of others. But you do not have to go too far away from the destruction to places where everything continues to be a peaceful as a massive ocean can be. And certainly the sentiment from that set used in this card is perfect for what we are going through today.
Finally for today, I recently received a card that uses both of these stamp sets just beautifully.
Those two little palm trees and the sail boats are just a perfect match!
I’m trying to plan enough time to myself over the next week before we leave Hawai’i for the north woods of Minnesota so that I can share some more of the cards that sister demonstrators have sent to me to help me through this time of evacuation from our home. Even when I’m gone, though, I’ll be enjoying thinking about those that I’ve not yet published and feeling some peace from knowing that people care about us so much!

Here are the products featured in today’s projects. Clickong on any of the pictures will direct you to my own Stampin’ Up! store where you can find out more about the products that I’m able to share in a short blog post. And definitely use the link to buy any of the products that appeal to you!