Behind the Art with Melissa

Happy Thursday everyone!

Melissa here on the blog today, sharing another of my layouts using the beautiful Wisdom kit. 

I don't know about you but, I have several people in my life that I count as wise mentors. They are people that I've counted on for advice and counsel. All women who are so near and dear to my heart. 

In June of 2012, I lost one of those precious women in my life. I wrote up a tribute for her on my blog, that you can read here. Shirley was someone I had the utmost respect for. Whether I agreed with her or not, I valued her wisdom and years of experience, that far surpassed my own, on this earth. She was gentle and ruthless; kind and demanding; patient and persistent; loving and tender-hearted and my biggest cheerleader in life. To this day, the tears well up in my eyes when I talk about her and what she meant in my life. Actually, she still means a lot to me. 

When I began to record my thoughts about Wisdom, my mind kept gravitating to Shirley and other women in my life that I've respected for their wisdom. It made me yearn for that one day. How amazing (and scary) to have that impact on another persons life. It holds me accountable in my actions when I think about it, though. And that's a good thing.  

I loved the diagonal lines of this patterned paper. They are bold and full of movement. I'm a clean and simple scrapper and, so, I appreciate these papers that help add interest, where it might be lacking on a clean and simple page. Plus, it symbolizes my need to keep moving in life. Direction. Purpose. 

I love the cork arrows in this kit. SO much symbolism with an arrow, right??? And since this layout is all about what I hope for my future, I thought it perfect to include these arrows. I included the feather underneath for some added texture and color. 

The clear baubles were added as a symbolic gesture as well. Anytime I create these layouts, I feel like I'm taking a magnifying glass to my heart. I'm looking closer at what I'm truly feeling and working through those areas that need to surface. Such is the symbolism of these baubles. They give off a "magnified" look on the paper. I love that!

I love that I was able to express this desire through my page. It's not something I talk about often but, it is definitely a reality for what I hope for. 

Thanks so much for swinging by today!