Firework!

When my daughter was about 4 months old I began taking her to a local music class that I heard about through the moms group I am a part of.  Back then she was just a passive observer, but it was (and still is) a great experience for both of us.  


So one day in the fall we were at our music class and the instructor tells the parents to free-dance with our babies.  Here I am, 4 months post-birth and mid-post-partum depression, feeling dumb, just tapping my feet and praying it was a short song!  The song she played was one I had never heard before (because I lived under a rock I guess!) and I started to tear up listening to the words.  One particular line says, "If you only knew what the future holds; after a hurricane comes a rainbow."  I thought about how amazing it was that I held the future in my arms, and I had to do everything I could to keep from crying.


Later, I searched YouTube for the song and realized that I was blown away by a Katy Perry song.  Katy Perry?!  "I kissed a girl" Katy Perry?!  I don't care who sings it, though.  It means something very special to me.  I dance with my daughter to the song all the time and it never loses its impact!  So of course, I needed to scrap all those emotions and show just how I felt in a visual way:

This page took some time!  The first thing I did was use my circle cutter to cut a circle out of heavy card stock.  I then cut a smaller circle out of the center of that one.  I went through my ribbon collection and cut a short length of each color I wanted to use then layer them out in ROYGBV order.  I wrapped one piece at a time around the card stock circle and secured it with double sided tape before putting 2 stitches in each.

The lettering was done with embossing powder on a transparency.  I am not entirely thrilled with how it looks on the transparency, but I usually don't like to change a layout that I already deemed "finished."  Why?  Because each new layout shows my growth as an artist and I am proud of my "learning moments"!


My next step in this layout was to tint the picture 6 times to go along with the part of the song that says "let your colors burst."  I did this using Picasa, a free photo editing program available through Google. I then placed a matching circle beneath each tinted photo and ran a straight line of stitching through the center.

My final step was to add journaling.  I felt it needed to be handwritten because it is a letter to my daughter, and I used a silver metallic pen to make it pop.  The journaling reads:

One morning in October we were in music class when the instructor put on a song I had never heard before.  I listened to the words as I spun around with you in my arms and I was suddenly STRUCK with the enormity of being a mom.  You were this tiny person, with so much potential, and it is my job to help you become the best Grace!  And as the song says, "If you only knew what the future holds..." I started to choke up.  Because like a firework, all that you will be is inside of you just waiting to be released.  I know I have an important job!  I know I will love whoever you are.  And I know you will shine "brighter than the moon."  Love, Mom.

Inside the page protector that houses this page, I also placed a copy of the song as well as a printout of the words.  I hope she understands just how much the song means to me and that someday, when she is an adolescent and maybe we're not as close as I'd like, she can find her own meaning in the song.  


Well, thanks for letting me share.  I will be at a crop all day tomorrow :) so I will post again on Sunday.  Have a great weekend!