A Heart 2 Heart Thank You

The other day, while at my Studio, I struck up a conversation with my next door  neighbor.  She is a remarkably bright and energetic women in her 80's.  I have know her since I was a baby.  We were reminiscing about  flower gardens and feathered friends.  In the past years, she has had beautiful blue birds that nested in the bird houses that her late husband had built.  When I asked her if her blue birds were still around, sadly she responded that they hadn't returned this year.  I remembered the photos that I had taken last year of these impressive creatures.

I have wanted to give her a little "thank you" for keeping an eye on my Studio on the days that I can't be there.  This week's Heart 2 Heart challenge is to add a photo to a project.  Perfect!  Make that thank you and do something for Heart 2 Heart.  :o)

This is a one page layout that I will frame that will act as both a "thank you" from me and a "thank you" from the blue birds for their home.  The base of the layout is "Sky."  I had one left over scrap of Sorbet Elemental that served as the element in the upper left corner.  The strip along the bottom is Pacifica and was stamped tone on tone using the flourishes from "Love Life." (D1482)  After I did the stamping, I scored and sanded it.  My goal was to pick up the movement of the tree limbs in the background and the texture of the wood bird house.  The letters were cut with the Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge with Opaques added as embellishment.  Blue and Orange are the perfect complimentary colors to show off the beautiful markings of the birds.  A few pieces of ribbon, a few more Opaques and hand rolled flowers and the layout was complete.

I'm glad that I had the opportunity to get this layout completed and can't wait to give it to her.  Don't forget to check out the Heart 2 Heart Challenge Blog for more inspiration using photos on your projects.  For Now, Happy Crafting!