Sometimes They Just Don't Turn Out How You Would LIke

Just say'n.

No. Really. Let's take a moment to discuss imperfection, shall we? It is real. We all deal with it. And, quite frankly, it is a very good thing.

No. I'm not talking about embracing the randomness or anything like that. I am talking about stuff that actually turns out like crap even though you had a good idea to begin with. Or...at least...it seemed like a good idea at the time.

Case in Point:



Imperfection. A lot of it. And not in a good way. You see, I LOVE that hot air balloon stamp and I wanted to play a bit with inking directly on the card base so I decided to go ahead and use my scalloped circle punch as my template.

Bad Idea #1: Is a scalloped circle a good template for gradient inking? Absolutely! Was my scalloped circle punch large enough to accomplish the look I was going for? Not. Even. Close.

Yes, it is GREAT to use what you have, but, you have to use what you have well. Sometimes, I fail when it comes to that. I should have pulled out my Cricut or chosen a plain circle or something that would have been a better suited size for the job at hand.

Bad Idea #2: Is a handwritten sentiment acceptable? ABSOLUTELY! Good, even! However...rulers are a good thing. Flat surface...yup...those are good, too. And enough space so your arm can actually WRITE something - excellent idea! Obviously, I employed precisely zero of those good ideas in the application of this card. Just say'n.



One might argue that the hand dyed ribbon could have been applied with a more suitable adhesive, as well, however, to be honest, I think if everything else was done properly, that would have looked good.

Overall, this card is horrible. No. For reals. It is. And I'm okay with that. Do you want to know why I'm okay with that? Because I learned from it. I grow from mistakes like these. A few days after making this card I actually had a SUPER inspired weekend that led to the creation of ten cards that I submitted for publication. I don't know if they will be chosen or not, but what I can tell you is that they are excellent work and I am actually proud of each and every one of them.

Mistakes are a good thing. Crappy cards that look like poo are a good thing. Without them, we have no standard to measure growth. Sometimes I make ugly stuff. I usually avoid showing you that stuff or I pretend I like it just to see what you say! HA! But with this one, I decided to chat with you honestly about failure. This card: Complete and utter fail.

And I'm totally cool with that. I wasn't going to post it. To be honest, the entire reason we are having this conversation is because I neglected to upload the good stuff I had prepared for today to Flickr so I couldn't post it. I will...later. I promise! :-)

So, I challenge you to take a look at the last ugly thing you made. Don't even TRY to pretend you've never made anything you think is ugly! HA! Now...what's wrong with it? How could you have executed that idea better? I'm guessing you started with a great idea - it just didn't turn out how you would have liked. That's the way these things work. SO...you obviously have great ideas...use those uglies to grow so that you can try that idea again or make the next idea work exactly the way you saw it in your head! That makes for happy days, my friends!

Please share your thoughts today! I'd love to hear them!