Spellbinders Paper Arts has monthly club kits you can join. They send you one item per month depending on which club you join, and you get at a member's discount, plus some other perks. I joined the "Stitched Die of the Month" because I didn't have any stitching dies so I thought it was a great way to build my collection.
In December, they sent me this stitching kit which includes the notched border, plus the flowers and letters. I thought it would be perfect for Valentine's Day, but you could put anything in the center and just use the stitched frame.
To make my card, I cut out all the pieces, did some ink blending, and then stitched away! From there I just assembled my card, gluing everything onto a white card base. I added pearls in the flower centers for embellishment.
I haven't decided what to do with this card yet. It might be too girly for hubby, but I could give it to my daughter, granddaughter, or a friend. We will see!
I hope you enjoyed my stitched Valentine! Do you send out Valentine's? I'd love to hear from you.
This is part three of a travel series to Yellowstone and the Grand Teton National Parks. If you'd like to start at the beginning, go HERE!
After visiting Old Faithful and The Grand Prismatic Spring, we then headed back on the road and we saw a little sign that read "Firehole Canyon Drive". Hubby then made the impulsive decision to turn left and I am glad he did, because it ended up being one of my favorite spots in Yellowstone National Park.
If you're following along on our little map, we arrived early in the morning on Day One through the East Entrance. Our goal was to see all the highlights on the figure eight loop in three days. We Stopped at the Fishing Bridge Visitor Center & Museum, drove past Yellowstone Lake, hiked around Old Faithful, then again at the Midway Geyser Basin, and then took a scenic drive in Firehole Canyon. The drive is right before you reach "Madison Junction"
After battling the crowds at Old Faithful and The Grand Prismatic Spring, this little drive was a much needed respite. It was so peaceful, there were hardly any cars on this drive. It's like most tourists didn't seem to know about it, but I guess the word will get out now after this post because it is AMAZING!
The drive takes you down into the canyon of Firehole River where you will see amazing waterfalls, tall rock formations, and wildlife. It is a two mile, very narrow one-lane road, but there are a few spots where there is enough room to pull your car over, get out, and enjoy. We stopped almost immediately when we saw a sandy bar right by the river. Right away, I saw this amazing large bird on top of a tree. According to my iPhone, it is an Osprey.
I can't tell you enough how peaceful this place is. Oh, it felt so good to get away from people and just enjoy the water and all the surrounding beauty...and silence.
The cliffs above the river are huge! To give you an idea of the scale, in the two pictures below there is a person sitting against the rocks in the lower left corner and another person standing in the next photo.
The water was shallow enough you could take your shoes off and wade if you liked.
We got back in the car at this point and continued our drive. It just was one sweeping, scenic view after another.
We saw our first waterfall on the drive.
And a horse shoe bend view of the river and canyon.
Of course we had to get out and take more photos here!
Back in the car, and we see another water fall!
We were blown away to discover an Osprey's nest. They actually had the right side of the road closed to give this Osprey more privacy; like the road wasn't narrow enough already.
The Osprey picked a good spot for her nest: nice views of the canyon!
Found another waterfall!
The drive was a little scary when you got to the top as the road was so narrow and there was just this little brick wall to keep your car from driving over the edge.
When you reach Firehole Falls there is a large parking lot. Here we saw a tour group stop and get out to take a photo and get a better look. When we were there, the parking lot was virtually empty, but by the size of the lot, I have to think this road is a lot more crowded during the busy tourist season.
And the very end of the road, is a short little hike you can take to the river. This spot is very close to the main road, so you will hear traffic.
We were surprised to find a family of ducks swimming in the strong current.
Firehole Canyon Drive is a MUST-SEE if you ever visit Yellowstone. It takes you off the busy road and highly trafficked main features, and gives you a tranquil Yellowstone experience.
And now, here are a whole bunch of little videos we took on our drive. Most are under a minute long or less. I highly encourage you to watch at least one to hear the sound of the moving water that photos can never provide.
Water Feature #1 on Firehole Canyon View Drive
Ducks Swimming on Firehole Canyon View Drive
Close Up of Ducks Swimming on Firehole Canyon View Drive
Water Feature #2 on Firehole Canyon View Drive
Water Feature #3 on Firehole Canyon View Drive
A Horse Shoe Bend View on Firehole Canyon View Drive
Water Feature #4 on Firehole Canyon Drive
For More Information on Yellowstone, Check Out these Posts:
Eight months ago I wrote in THIS POST that I was given the great honor in the paper-crafting world to join the "Dirty Dozen" on Splitcoaststampers. Splitcoaststampers is an on-line paper crafting community where crafters can learn new techniques, chit chat with each other, share their art work, and so much more. One part of this community is "The Dirty Dozen". This is an invitation only group of crafters whose work is seen as exemplary so they are asked to be part of the Dirty Dozen. The requirements of the Dirty Dozen is to create six cards for six months centered around a different theme each month. The cards then are uploaded into the "Dirty Dozen Gallery" and only fan club members are allowed to see them. After six months, Dirty Dozen members are allowed to post them elsewhere on social media or their blogs. Well, it has been six months since I completed my first challenge, so I can finally show me my first set of cards!
The second Dirty Dozen challenge theme was "Butterflies are Free " and here are my submissions:
Butterfly Sympathy
Unfortunately, I needed a sympathy card so I thought I'd combine the need with the challenge. I always feel butterflies make great images for sympathy cards because they symbolize a transition and a new life (as believers in Christ we believe life isn't over at death but is just a new beginning with Jesus in heaven).
To make my card, I dry embossed a white background with a Cuttlebug folder that I thought resembled butterfly wings. The butterflies themselves are 3D stickers. I stamped the sentiment separately and then cut it out with Spellbinder's Nestabilities. The sentiment is from Stampin' Up! "Brighter Tomorrow". I then adhered rhinestones for embellishment.
Fabric Butterfly
For my next card, I used my AccuQuilt Machine to cut a butterfly out of fabric. The fabric also has butterflies, and the body is felt.
To make my card, I cut my fabric and my card stock using an AccuQuilt Machine. An AccuQuilt Machine is similar to a paper die cutting machine but it is much larger and you can cut layers of fabric on it. Most crafters use it for sewing and quilting. To create the butterfly hinge on the card, I traced the butterfly onto a card and hand cut the butterfly leaving just a small portion attached. I glued the fabric to the white card stock butterfly, did a zig zag stitch on the edges and then glued everything to the card butterfly. The sentiment is from MFT and then I added a flower, ribbon and twine for embellishment. A glued an oval piece inside the card to hand write a sentiment.
Butterfly Explosion Card
For my third card I called it "Butterfly Explosion" because it is full of butterflies with the butterfly designer paper, the die cut, and the stamp.
To make my card I attached butterfly designer paper to a card base. Next, I cut out a butterfly circle using Spellbinder's Nestabilities. The butterfly is a stamp from retired Stampin' Up! "Flight of the Butterfly". I first stamped the image on the butterfly circle card stock, then I stamped it a second time on a separate piece of card stock and fussy cut it out. The flowers and little butterfly are cut out from Cuttlebug dies. I put Stickles in the flower centers.
Butterfly Gatefold Card
To make my next card, I used a tutorial on Splitcoaststampers on how to make a Gatefold Card.
To make my card, I cut another butterfly out of designer paper using my template from my AccuQuilt Machine. I glued a pretty ribbon around the edges. I used an MFT flower die to make the flowers. The bird and sentiment are hand cut from the same designer paper used for the entire card: "DCWV "The Homespun Mat Stack"
Here's what the inside of the card looks like. The images are just designer paper glued on to a green card base.
Vintage Girl #1
My last two cards use images from the same Crafty Secrets set "Born to Fly"
To make my first Vintage girl card I stamped the image, colored it in, applied Stickles, and then fussy cut it out. The star on the wand is glitter paper. I popped the girl up on dimensionals. The banner and butterflies are from the same set. Once again, I just stamped, colored, and cut out. I added twine to the back of the banner to make it more realistic. All the pieces were glued on to the card. Crystals were put inside each banner piece. I cut a tag for a sentiment. The ovals were cut using Spellbinders.
Vintage Girl #2
To make my second Vintage Girl card, I first sponged pink and purple ink onto white card stock. I then stamped, colored, and fussy cut out all the images. I added Stickles to the girl and the butterflies. I popped the girl and the banner up on dimensionals. Butterflies, and crystals were glued on to the white card stock. The sentiment was stamped directly on to the card stock. The white card stock base was glued to a purple glitter card.
I hope you enjoyed looking at my cards from my second month on the Dirty Dozen Design Team.
