Today I’m sharing my simple winter flocked teardrop door swag I made for my front door. As you can see in the photos, I have a very cheery bright yellow door. Normally I love it, but it makes using traditional holiday colors a little difficult. The wreath I’ve used in years past wouldn’t work on this door. I prefer traditional holiday colors with lots of green and pops of red and white, and perhaps touches of other colors mixed in. But with this new-to-me yellow door, I was not loving the idea of using green and red.
I’ve been searching for something that would work and came across this lovely flocked pine teardrop door swag. I love the big flocked pine cones. I wanted it to have a little more body so I added a few more pine picks with smaller pine cones using floral wire I had on hand. Then I added a sparkly white ribbon to finish it off. I looped the ribbon three times (twisting it so the sparkle was on the outside). I used a piece of floral wire around the center to form the bow and attach it to the swag. The long ends of the ribbons are a separate piece that I attached with floral wire. It came together easily and thanks to good a Michael’s sales and coupons the whole hanging was less than the original price of the swag by itself.
I think the winter flocked teardrop door swag works well on my cheery yellow door and will be nice even after Christmas.
Looking for gift suggestions for a friend or family member with a Mast Cell disease (your “Mastie”)? Giving and receiving gifts for a Mast Cell patient can be tricky due to everyone’s very individual trigger list. I thought I would try to put together a list of suggestions if you are looking to give a gift to a Mastie. Of course, best practice is to ask your friend or family member what they would like. But if you need some ideas, here you go!
These ideas came from the mast cell disease community and me. Please remember that every person has their own set of triggers, so some of these items may not work for every person. Please ask your Mastie friend before purchasing something if you aren’t absolutely sure it’s safe. Please include a receipt so it can be returned, if needed. Because many of us are so sensitive, we have to use very expensive items to be safe. I know I would appreciate receiving some as a gift.
Socks–again, can never have too many. Also these socks have zebras! Always a win with a mastie! (It’s a mascot for rare diseases.) Caution: some socks can contain elastic that can irritate some people’s skin.
Soft clothing. Cotton or bamboo can be a great natural option. Skin sensitivity is a big problem. I adore soft clothing!
Pill Organizers. Keeping track of medication is difficult. Especially when you take 20 pills a day. So having a large pill organizer helps immensely. And it’s nice to only sort pills for two weeks since I only take pills twice a day. If you take pills 4 times a day, this large pill organizer could be really useful. I also use a smaller week pill organizer to keep rescue meds easily accessible. And it’s convenient for traveling too!
Cold Storage Pack. Epi-pens and other medications used by Masties often need to be kept in cool storage, especially when living or traveling in warmer climates.
Medicine/First Aid Bag. I love my first aid bag that I keep in my backpack-purse. It holds my EpiPens (I don’t live in a hot climate, so I’m not worried about temperature exposure), Benadryl and other rescue meds that I like to have on hand. My backpack-purse and the medicine/first aid bag each also have one of these “Medicine Inside” zipper pulls.
Tissues. I’m personally partial to Puffs plus lotion. I have a lot of congestion and these are heaven-sent. 🙂 Not everyone will be able to tolerate this kind, so please check with your Mastie what their preference is.
Audiobook gift cards or subscriptions like Audible. Or help them get set up with their local library’s Libby/Overdrive system to get audiobooks for free.
Reusable Water Bottles or Mugs. Ask if metal or plastic would be better. Some Masties do better with one or the other.
A Go-bag. A small bag or backpack to have on hand pre-packed with hospital essentials to make it easier to have everything a patient needs at the hospital. Maybe include some of the other things on this list?
Extra long phone chargers. You might need to check the kind of phone they have so you can get the right kind of plug. Most newer phones use the USB-C port now. These are practically a necessity when stuck in the hospital!
Magazine Subscription. Do they have a hobby that has a magazine?
Air Purifier & Filters. I have this one at work and I like it. I want this one for home. If your local Mastie has an air purifier, consider purchasing replacement filters for them.
Magic Masto Lotion. Safe lotion (I use CeraVe–but check with your Mastie for their favorite) GET UNSCENTED! Cromolyn Sodium (available over the counter as an eye drop). Recipe found here.
Hot packs or Cold packs (or these that double as both). Many of us have difficulties regulating our body temperatures (super fun!) so having something to help externally is a blessing!
Over the Counter Medications. (USE CAUTION) I use a lot of over the counter medications. And at the higher than normal doses I take them, they get expensive. Consider a gift card to your friend’s favorite pharmacy (trust me, they have one 🙂 ) or buying a few bottles. If you want to buy the specific bottles, this may be difficult. Many patients require very specific formulations (no dyes, specific fillers, specific brands). Please be sure you can buy the exact kind they use (no substitutions) and include a receipt so they can return it if it doesn’t work out.
Bathroom Items:
Cleure gift card (many, including me, have to use specific soaps and shampoos. Cleure is one of the two places I have found safe ones for me.) Your Mastie may have a different place to get their specific toiletry items.
Calendars or planners. Keeping track of medications, symptoms, and doctors’ appointments is tricky. It’s helpful to have someplace to put it all.
Funny gifts to make them smile. The smiles are needed for the hard days.
Lap activities: books or coloring books (I love this coloring book) with easy-grip pencils.
Amazon Prime. Because of my scent sensitivity, it’s hard for me to shop in public. Amazon Prime is ahhhmazing. Free shipping, usually two days, but sometimes same-day or next-day shipping is available! And it includes TV, movies, and music, and a lot of other things.
Streaming Subscriptions (Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu, Disney Plus) Chronically ill people spend a lot of time recovering. This often means a lot of time in front of the TV. Consider helping them by giving them some variety, or letting them catch up on shows from their childhood (hello Disney Plus! hahaha)
Apple or Google Play Gift cards. We like to keep ourselves entertained while we’re not feeling well.
Maintenance Services. Yard, cleaning, laundry services would be amazing. These activities often trigger reactions for so they are difficult to do. It would be great to have someone help out.
Time with You at their place on their terms, no questions asked. How about a night in with a movie, safe snacks, or a favorite board/card game? With no pressure to talk, or to talk all they want. And if your Mastie friend is isolating themselves due to a reaction, it’s okay. How about a video chat?
Ask your friend to start a wishlist on Amazon or Pinterest so you can know exactly what to get them. Let’s make life easier for everyone! 🙂
WHAT NOT TO GET
Anything scented
No candles, essential oils, diffusers
Lotions
Soaps
Perfume
Bath bombs
Plants–unless you know they are okay. Personally I’m okay (and slightly obsessed) with them. hahaha
Food. Many people have a long list of ingredients they cannot or should not eat. To make things easier for us, please don’t drop off goodies. While the thought is nice, I’ll end up tossing it out. For some people, exposure to an ingredient is enough to trigger anaphylaxis. Let’s not make this a scary holiday.
From personal experience, if I don’t know the person very well or they haven’t talked to me prior about what to cook for me, I won’t eat the treats. The list of people that I let cook for me is very, very short. 98% of the time I decline treats, even when “guaranteed” they are safe. I can usually guarantee they are probably not safe treats. Most people cannot handle the depth of ingredient checking I have to do. And that’s okay. I don’t expect them to.
Let’s make this easier for everyone: Don’t bring treats!
Here are some suggestions of what to give instead:
Whole Foods gift card (or other local health food store)
Trader Joe’s gift card
Sprouts gift card
Packaged treats your friend has specifically identified as safe for them to eat (they may not have any). If they give you one, please buy the exact brand and kind they identify. Many are similar, but those differences can cause huge problems. Even differences between sizes in the same flavor can sometimes have different ingredients (yeah, I don’t understand that either).
Want to Help Support a Mast Cell Patient?
Consider supporting their side hustle this holiday season. Many of us have little side hustles to help us pay our medical bills (always so.many.bills).
Did you know you can also use smile.amazon.com to support a charity at no cost to you? By purchasing through smile.amazon.com and selecting a charity (both the above are options, plus many others), you can have Amazon donate a small portion of your purchase price to the charity. And it costs you nothing! Winning!
Hope these gift suggestions helps you!
Did I miss something? Do you want your etsy shop/small business listed in this article? Send me an email with your website info at luckystarsstudio517 at gmail dot com.
Let’s make one thing clear out of the gate: I hate wearing this stupid mask. But because I have a fragrance allergy and sensitivity, and my lungs are so sensitive to air quality–I wear it. The mask helps filter out them out. I currently have a Cambridge mask and it supposed to help filter out germs too. I’ve previously used a Vogmask, but it uses coconut fiber in the filter, and I’m allergic to coconut, so I switched.
My current Cambridge mask. I don’t know why I always make this face when I take a photo while wearing a mask. hahaha
I don’t mind if people ask about it. Maybe if I act confident wearing it, it won’t be such a novelty and people won’t stare as much or notice or care that I’m wearing it. And maybe it will help them be a little more compassionate when they come across someone else wearing one. Or maybe it will help someone else wearing one feel a little less alone. I live in a culture where masks are really weird. I’ve definitely gotten excited when I saw another person on an airplane wearing a mask. I wanted to go talk to him and say, “Buddy, I get it. You are not alone. And neither am I.” Because I am so socially inept and awkward and we were playing sardines in a packed airplane, I didn’t. But I thought it and sent the vibes to him. I’m totally sure he felt it. hahaha.
What I’m Asked the Most
“Are you protecting me or yourself? / Are you contagious?” is probably the most asked question I get. And I just love it when it’s shouted across a store at me (that’s a true story). Uh. I’m protecting myself. Because you, madam, are stinky with your sickly sweet perfume. Gag. Because the world seems to be OBSESSED with making everything fragranced! Why do stores need “signature smells?” Or why do we need scented toilet paper?! Or pumpkin spice latte scented pinecones?!?! I think Oprah gave every store in the US diffusers and essential oils. I’m getting a headache just thinking about it. And yes, essential oils are included in this stinky group. Just because something is “natural” or “organic” doesn’t mean I can’t be allergic to it.
And I do understand the contagious concern. As someone who is on immunosuppressants and has a Primary Immunodeficiency, I also want to avoid sick people–which the mask also helps protect against. But perhaps shouting the question is not the best approach?
What Fragrances and Chemicals do to Me
I realize that I am unusual in how I react. Exposure to scents and chemicals makes me dizzy, give me a headache, make my heart beat weird, can cause GI distress, nausea, make me itchy, my throat can swell, and I swing between too hot and too cold. My eyes get runny and I get congested and anxious, and they impact my breathing. This can be mild or severe. If it’s severe, it can wipe me out for days. It’s so frustrating. Fortunately, I haven’t anaphylacted to a scent or chemical yet, but it’s certainly a possibility.
I’m super sensitive to Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs). I have to let furniture and paint air out before I can be around it. My office was completely renovated this year with all new paint, wallpaper (that has adhesive), carpet (that also has adhesive), furniture, plastics, tile (that has adhesive and grout), fabrics. Formaldehyde is one of the VOCs released. Yeah, the one used to embalm people and what your 8th-grade frog was soaked in before you dissected it. Remember that smell? It makes me so, so sick. I couldn’t move in when everyone else did because the VOCs made me so sick. It’s been months and, despite a hard-working air purifier, I still often get headaches by the end of the day being around it all day.
I actually do better with outside air pollution than with inside air pollution. If it’s a clear day and the air is fairly clear, and there’s no smoker nearby. lol.
Scents Affect Healthy People Too
There’s also data to show that there is a longterm negative impact of “scent pollution” on the general public, especially those that have asthma or other breathing difficulties. According to a 2018 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration article, “Emissions from volatile chemical products like perfumes, paints and other scented consumer items now rival vehicles as a pollution source in greater Los Angeles, according to a surprising new NOAA-led study.”
The actual study, published in Science, states, “… the use of volatile chemical products (VCPs)—including pesticides, coatings, printing inks, adhesives, cleaning agents, and personal care products—now constitutes half of fossil fuel Volatile Organic Compound (VOCs) emissions in industrialized cities. The high fraction of VCP emissions is consistent with observed urban outdoor and indoor air measurements.”
In 2016, the National Institute of Health published this study, which reported, “Results from this study provide strong evidence that fragranced products can trigger adverse health effects in the general population. The study also indicates that reducing exposure to fragranced products, such as through fragrance-free policies, can provide cost-effective and relatively simple ways to reduce risks and improve air quality and health.”
How I Help Myself
Because there is such a heavy prevalence of fragrances and chemical smells in the world, I tend to avoid going out in public as much as possible now. Life is much easier for me, and I am much less reactive when I can stay in my fragrance-free home. Ordering my groceries online and picking them up in my car has revolutionized my life. And I know there are lots of opinions on Amazon–but it makes this allergy-prone girl’s life so.much.easier!
On an airplane and the guy next to me got a panicked look when he realized he was going to have to sit next to a person wearing a mask. I quickly leaned over and said, “Don’t worry, I’m not contagious.” He visibly relaxed. This happens almost every flight. One perk of the mask was that it covered up my super fat lip from a cold sore.
When I do venture out, I often resort to wearing a mask in public, sometimes at work, and almost always at Church, or in crowds.
Yes, I get a lot of looks. And a lot of avoiding. People work really hard to avoid me. It’s usually really obvious too. It’s a little hurtful sometimes, especially at Church. Sometimes it’s okay because I justify their actions with a thought that they were probably drowning in some Bath and Body Works product that would likely want to torture me, so it’s okay that they took one look at me and hurridly, awkwardly, turned around and walked the other direction.
Here are a few of the experiences I’ve had because of wearing my mask.
Story #1
An older lady and I were in the same fabric aisle at a craft store. I’ll call her “Maude” in this story. I was stopped in the aisle checking my phone, minding my own business, and wearing my mask. Maude came into the aisle and checked a few bolts of fabric then noticed me. I noticed her right away. Older women tend to be heavy-handed with perfume and I usually avoid such individuals. I started moving down the aisle and she stopped me and politely asked if she could ask about my mask. It was so nice of her to ask permission! She seemed nice enough, and I didn’t detect any heavy perfume. And I’m happy to raise awareness. I kindly explained that I have fragrance allergy and sensitivity and the mask helps protect me. I usually keep explanations simple. People usually don’t want to hear the whole story.
“Oh! That sounds awful,” she said. “It can be,” I said, with a smile that she couldn’t really see behind the mask. I started to move on, thinking our exchange was over. “What kind of treatment do you get? Are you on medication?” she asked. Oh dear. Here we go. It felt like she had an agenda.
Now let me pause here and say this: No one needs to disclose their health issues to anyone unless they want to. There is no reason this stranger needed to know my situation, and I did not feel pressured to tell her. But I thought this could be a good moment to raise awareness, and I was feeling gracious. I do believe in raising awareness for MCAS and I have found that sometimes when I have talked about it, I have been able to help someone else find answers they were looking for. Wearing my mask has provided several of these types of opportunities. Perhaps this was another one?
“Yes. My scent sensitivity is actually a symptom of a rare disease that makes me allergic to anything at any time,” I replied. “How does that work?” she asked. I was surprised. Most people don’t care about the details. I briefly explained that a type of immune cell likes to frequently and randomly misbehave. And when it does, I have a reaction. “Oh my! Do you have a doctor?” “Yes, I have a whole team of doctors and they are doing their best to help. I’ve very lucky to have them.” I moved to walk away again, but I had to walk past her, so she kept asking questions. “Have you ever been to a chiropractor? I know an excellent one. He really helped me. I’m sure he could fix your problem.”
And there it was.
She started to pull a small stack of business cards out of her purse. Who carries a stack of a chiropractor’s business cards around? I imagined the chiropractor was probably her son. I resisted rolling my eyes. “Oh, no thank you. I’m very happy with my doctors. It’s a rare disease that is very difficult to treat,” I said, trying to move away. “He’s very good and certainly could help you,” Maude said a little too earnestly. I put up my hand to stop her. “That’s very kind of you, but I don’t need a chiropractor. There is no cure for my condition. But thank you anyway. I hope you have a lovely day!” And I walked away. And avoided her the rest of my time in the store.
A chiropractor, while helpful for some things, is not going to fix a problem with my cells exploding and flooding my body with chemicals. But thanks for playing! Better luck next time!
“Maude” was very nice. I could tell she was trying to be helpful, so I was polite and answered some questions. But she also was trying to give me something I wasn’t asking for, so I politely ended the conversation and walked away.
Story #2
Wearing my “pig” mask. 🙄🙄
This took place in a store on a different day, sometime in the early summer. I walked around a corner and another shopper lady looked up and noticed me and I looked away, but I could see she was watching me out of the corner of my eye. I turned around walked down a different aisle and continued my shopping. She kept showing up (was she following me?). I noticed every time she saw me she would giggle to herself. It was weird. By this point, I wore my mask so much that I kind of forgot that I was wearing it. Finally, she came around a corner and stopped me and said, “Ohhhh, it has air holes!” (she was referring to the vents) and then started laughing out loud. I was so confused.
Just as I was about to walk away, she stopped laughing and finally explained. “I saw you wearing the mask and thought it was a pig snout and that you were wearing it to be funny. I just had to stop you so I could get a look at it and see what you were wearing!” Laughter continued. Apparently I wasn’t in the mood to laugh at the moment because I just stared at her. I finally said, “It helps me breathe.” Why the heck would I be wearing a pig snout mask to a craft store in the summertime?! “Well, it looks like a pig snout!” Cue more laughter. I turned around and walked away. I saw her once more before I left and she giggled to herself.
Way to go lady. Thank you for making me feel more self-conscious about wearing a mask in public. 🙄🙄
The above stories are certainly the two most obnoxious experiences I’ve had. Most people are polite, or at least keep their obnoxious thoughts to themselves and just avoid me.
Story #3
Once in a doctor’s waiting room, a little girl loudly whispered to her mom, while clearly pointing at me, “Mom, why is that lady wearing a thing on her face?” The mom looked up in alarm and glanced at me. I looked up and caught her eye and smiled. I was amused. She quickly shushed her daughter and didn’t answer her and attempted to distract her.
Worried that shushing the curious little girl would make her think that the mask is something to be ashamed of, or think that asking questions was bad, I decided to take the moment to share. (Obviously, I realize that the mom knows her daughter best and has the right to teach her the way she wants, but this was a benign situation and I thought I might be able to help make it a little less awkward. And I think it’s okay for kids to be curious about their world.)
“The mask helps me breathe better,” I explained simply.
After the pig incident, I bought a blue mask. I didn’t want any more pig comments.
“Oh, okay” the little girl smiled and kept playing with her toy. The mom smiled at me. I turned back to my phone to keep reading my book.
A minute or two later, another lady sitting nearby piped up, “Sorry, I just have to ask. How does the mask help?”
I took a minute or two to simply explain my scent allergy and sensitivity and how the mask helps. Hopefully leaving everyone listening aware of the impact their choices to wear perfume or heavily scent their laundry, etc., has on those around them.
How You Can Help
If you want to help people with fragrance allergy and sensitivity…maybe try to stop wearing scented lotions or heavy perfumes? Switch to fragrance-free laundry soap? I use All Free and Clear. It’s cheaper than my old brand and doesn’t make me break out in hives. Win-win!
Be aware that your fragrance choices affect everyone you come in contact with.
I don’t expect the world, or even the people around me, to accommodate my unique set of issues and fragrance allergy and sensitivity (except at work, where they have to). It’s very difficult to do. But awareness and compassion would be greatly appreciated!
Last year I made a pretty, white Tea Light Christmas village for my mom. She loved it. But it turned out much bigger than either of us expected–so there’s some question where she’s actually going to display it. 😂
The simple elegance of the white cardstock make the touches of green and red pop. I love it.
I just love the village all lit up!
How I Made It
I cut the houses using my trusty Silhouette Cameo. The houses are available on the Silhouette Design Store by artist Marji Roy. The designs are also available on her website in other formats if you don’t have a Silhouette. The village tutorials are here. They were pretty easy to put together–but the most time-consuming parts were adding the scallops to some of the roofs. The houses are about 4 inches square, and the hexagons are about 6 inches in diameter. As I said before, the project got bigger than I expected. No one that knows me is surprised. ha.
For the windows, I used vellum to give them a frosted glass effect. It hides the view of the light strand but lets the light shine through. For the Church, I gave the vellum windows a watercolor effect so it looks like stained glass.
The village includes:
20 buildings,
a plethora of snow-covered trees,
a covered bridge,
fences and park benches,
gazebos,
a couple of moose,
a horse-drawn sleigh,
a TARDIS (haaa),
a little nativity scene (I cut off the button loops),
little nutcracker soldiers (also cut off the button loops),
and an ice skating rink.
I used white glitter on the roofs and the edges of the trees to look like fresh snow. The bows have red glitter added to them. I realized after that using red glitter cardstock would have been better. Adding red glitter to the bows after they were cut was messy!
The hexagon bases, also from the Artist’s website, are a great way to hide the lights and add dimension to the village. I used the tutorial on her website to set up the village. There’s a hole in each base that allows the strand of lights to be threaded up and into each house. Because I used bendable fairy lights, it was easy to feed the lights into each house.
This was such a fun project to work on! I’m just enamored by this little (or not so little) white Christmas village. I’m tempted to make a slightly smaller version for myself, but I still remember my hand cramping from all that gluing. 😂
Awhile after I had made Margaret’s Butterflies and The Popcorn Farmer storybooks, some of my nieces and nephews wanted a paper children’s storybook featuring themselves. Well, of course, I’ll make them a book featuring them as the main characters!
So we started planning our story. The kids decided we were all pirates that searched for treasures and fought sharks. Obviously. We came up with hilarious pirate names: I am Captain Pink Beard, then there’s “Shark-Attack Sue,” “Two-Eyed Jack” who wore an eye patch (haaa), “Sharkbait” who has a pegleg, and “Horseshoe Harry” the good luck charm. The story is based on a game we play whenever we are together.
It was so fun to plan and put this book together. It was definitely more intense than the last two books I made! A lot more cutting! And a whole lot more glitter! Yaaas!
The Story
The cover of the book, featuring an overflowing treasure chest.
The Golden Ship, by Megan McGrath
The Flying Fish sailed swiftly through the sea. An adventure was happening that’s a guarantee. Captain Pink Beard ordered the crew to keep a lookout. She was hoping they were on a treasure route!
The crew consisted of four special pirates, Who all knew they were each the Captain’s favorite. The First Mate was Shark Attack Sue, Who defended the crew against all creatures in the great big blue.
Then there was Two-eyed Jack. He wore an eye patch. With a sword, he had a knack. No one was his match.
Next was a wee one they called Sharkbait, who now was missing a leg. All thanks to a shark they named Craig.
Then last, but certainly not least, was Horseshoe Harry. He was the Ship’s good luck charm–always as happy as a canary.
Suddenly, Shark Attack Sue yelled, while pointing at the horizon, “Look there, a bottle floating on the sea! I hope it’s not filled with poison!”
Two-eyed Jack fished the bottle out of the ocean. Said he, “Well, ‘tis not a bottle of lotion!”
Captain Pink Beard gave it a close inspection, and then made a loud clap. “Ye skallywags! This bottle contains a treasure map!”
So the crew sailed the Flying Fish to the small treasure island. The trip was much longer than they planned. All the while, the shark called Craig kept pace. Little human legs had become his preferred taste.
The ship set anchor in the island’s bay, They packed up their gear and headed down the gangway.
Captain Pink Beard led the crew through the jungle, Until they reached four rocks in the shape of a rectangle.
The crew dug, and dug and dug, and dug, until they heard a dull thud.
Crowns, and jewels, and pearls, and coins were passed all around. There was so much treasure in the ground!
Shark attack Sue yelled, “Hooray! We found the treasure!” Two-eyed Jack added, “Now we can live a life of leisure!”
Heaps of wealth were piled in the rowboat, weighing it down. They could not wait to spend the treasure in the next town.
Craig the Shark saw this as his invite. He raced up to little ol’ Sharkbait and tried to take a big, BIG bite.
Shark Attack Sue and Two-eyed Jack stepped into action. Beating Craig back till he hightailed it in a different direction.
Now with their foe defeated, and their treasure stores no longer depleted, They decorated the Flying Fish with gold and jewels that were beaded.
They sailed away in their golden ship shining and shimmering in the sun. And now this tale with pirates, sharks, and discovered gold is done. The End.
Some fun facts about the book:
It took so long to write the actual story! I love rhyming books and so I wanted this book to rhyme. Turns out it’s harder to do than it seems!
The waves are all glitter cardstock. I cut over 60 waves for this book. Whew. The waves were then inked along the edge with a darker blue ink to give them some depth.
The planks on the ship were all individually cut, inked, and glued in place. Easily the most time-consuming part! I even added little nail marks. Yes, it’s okay to roll your eyes.
I had to design the railing along the edge of the ship. It was a bit tricky to do the angled one so the ship had depth, like on page 1.
My favorite page is when the shark is trying to take a bite of Sharkbait. I think it’s such a funny page. I used the trace feature in the Silhouette Design Studio to create the shark.
The sunset on the last page is all inked in. I wish the shimmery ink translated better in the photos. The original is quite pretty.
Since this was such an imaginary story, I felt like I could go crazy with the gold foil, glitter, shimmer, and sparkle. Including the Pink Glitter Beard. 😂😂
The kids looove their story and we regularly play their special game and talk about the story often. I can’t wait till the rest of my nieces and nephew are a little older so I can make a special paper children’s storybook just for them.
Do you have a fun, special game or tradition in your family? How have you documented and recorded it?
