Honor Thy Mother!

Hi there, Y’all! Welcome back to the Cut Card Stock Blog! Today I will be sharing a layout with you that I did to honor my beautiful Mother. ALL MOMS deserve to be honored! Don’t you agree? Here is the layout that I made honoring My own Mom..
This is her and I on my wedding day last year. So many emotions stir inside of me when I look at these photos, especially the one with her head resting on my shoulder. She is almost 70…and I will let her rest her weary head on my shoulder anytime! Oh How I love My Mommy! Lol

OK! Enough with the mushy stuff!! My Mom is AMAZING and I want to shout it from the rooftops! With Mother’s Day around the corner…I just might do that! OR….maybe I will just give her this layout in a nice little frame, and tell her face to face how much I truly love and appreciate her.

So, here is the Quick list of the Cardstocks that I used:
CCS Gold Glitter
Curious Metallic Champagne
Bazzill Rose Gold Foil 12×12
Pop Tone Pink Lemonade
Basis Olive
Canvas Textured Wedding Cake White 12×12

I started with my Canvas Textured Wedding Cake White 12×12 Base and all of the pieces that I had cut using my Cricut. The Roses, stems, and leaves were cut using the CCS Gold Glitter , Bazzill Rose Gold Foil 12×12, Pop Tone Pink Lemonade, and the Basis Olive. As you can see below, I just did a few of each style to begin with to get an idea of sizing, placement, and the overall look.
Since it looked pretty close to what I had in my head, I proceeded to cut more pieces to make sure that I had enough of everything. I then began to start prepping my plain white paper for some artwork!

Below, I have used a stencil and added a geometric border all around the edges using Medium plain white gesso. I wanted to add texture to the paper, while also adding a primer for the next step…Watercolors! At this point, I had to run a few errands, so I let it air dry.

Once it was completely dry, I mixed my watercolors. I didn’t have any rhyme or reason to the way I added the color. I just wanted different shades of soft pink hues to frame the page.

When I was done, I had added several different shades of pink watercolor to the edges. I also drizzled a bit of shimmery gold misting spray into the mix in hopes that the gold would bring out the CCS Gold Glitter cardstock cut-outs…and I was right! I finished the process by adding in a few more splats and splotches, and then I let it dry.

Now you can see my background paper starting to take shape! The Canvas Textured Wedding Cake White now has taken on new life! With the gesso dried and painted and the roses and leaves all in place, I decided to add in some Nuvo drops for more dimension. I truly love playing with paints and other mediums…it is a way of making any page look unique and adding in your own personal touch…without much effort! The best part is… You don’t have to be perfect with paints!

Here is another close up look at how the page is coming along with all the elements. I love how the CCS Gold Glitter cardstock just POPS on this page!

Next, I began work on my photo mat. I used a piece of corrugated cardboard that I had gotten in a delivery at work. Yes, I keep all kinds of nifty things that I come across…just for things like this! I added some white frilly lace to the backside before adding in my photos.

Once the glue had dried, I moved on to matting my photos on the Pop Tone Pink Lemonade cardstock and trimming around the edges with my 12×12 trimmer. I also inked the edges and added faux stitching with a white gel pen. While I was doing all this…using all this PINK, it occurred to me that there was not a single shade of pink in my wedding AT ALL! Thank Goodness for black and white photos!

Once I had the photos in place, I started adding all of the final touches. The title, the journaling strips, the butterflies… all to add those tiny touches that make a simple scrapbook layout a “Work of Heart!”

Like most teenage girls, I thought my Mom was dumb and had no clue about life. She was a single Mom trying to raise 4 kids alone, and I thought she cared about her job, her friends, and everything else, more than she did about her kids. I was mean and defiant toward her and I probably made her feel terrible more than half the time. As I got older, I realized what a fool I was to ever think that she didn’t care about her children. I also realized how hard she must have worked to take care of all of us. It wasn’t until I was in my thirties, raising 5 kids, not knowing how to juggle everything with only two hands, that I actually started seeing and appreciating all that she did. She Was AMAZING.
However, it was when my son passed away that I realized how much I truly cherished her and needed her.
I never felt so helpless until I couldn’t help my child. I needed my Mom more than I ever had in my entire life. Every single day she would check on me without fail. Even though I was 39, I was still her baby. Today, she is my best friend. My Rock. The one person that has been by my side from the moment I took my first breath. I wish I knew then what I know now. She is a Super Woman, and When I grow up, I want to be Just like her.

I hope that my layout has inspired you in some way today. I also hope that you take time to let all of the amazing Moms in your life know just how wonderful and loved they are this Mothers’ Day. Heck, let them know every Day! Head on over to the Cut Card Stock website and order what you need to make a layout honoring your own Mom.