BBTB2 Winter Woodland Ice Skate

Again, Happy New Year to all! I'm very excited about 2012 because my dear DT sister Carole and I will be taking the reins over at BBTB2 since Heather will be on full time "grandma duty". Our first challenge of the year was chosen by our sweet and beautiful Krista who chose the ice skate from Winter Woodland. I have many fond skating memories. My Daddy was a fabulous skater (and ice dancer) and for 7 years we spent our Fall/Winter Saturday afternoons at the rink where I took figure skating. He even built me an outdoor rink in our back yard so I could practice. I almost did a layout for this challenge, but since I'm not a scrapper, I chose a different memory for my inspiration. (Oh oh, I think I just may be back to my chatty self, so grab cuppa. Have you missed me?)

I chose the skates from Celebrate With Flourish because they look just magical to me. Several years ago, DH and I took a trip to Lake Louise for New Year's and it was truly a winter wonderland. I grew up in the Chicago area so I was no stranger to snow but the pure pristine beauty was just breathtaking there. There was a huge outdoor rink with an ice castle in the center and I couldn't wait to get skates on. However, during the day it was filled with kids so we decided to go at night. Bbbbrrr.... and I do mean BBBBRRRR!!!!!! As a figure skater, we never wore heavy socks in our skates (just tights) and I'm pretty sure that's a part of the reason I developed Popsicle Toes. This made me a bit nervous because when the toes go into popsicle mode there is no warming them up and when the circulation returns, it's like a combination of pins and needles and walking on coals. I expressed my concern to the skate rental place and they turned my on to those fabulous chemical toe warmers fit in the skates and keep the toesies cozy for up to 5 hours. It was heaven! Toasty toes, who knew? Anyway, the castle was all lit up like a fairytale, the stars were out, the snow was falling and I felt like I could fly on that ice. I even saw a shooting star. (I like to think it was my Daddy) That magical night was the color inspiration for my card which seems a little dark now that I look at it in the pix, but it WAS dark and oh so beautiful.

The card is a shaped front and I ended up cutting the skates several times and trimming them to add the silver blades and layer them up properly. The gorgeous beaded snowflakes are JoLee's and the DP is from the DCWV Winter Magic stack (how apropo). My DT sisters have done a fabulous job with this challenge so be sure to stop by BBTB2 and take a look. Remember, you may use any skate from any cart to join in, as long as it's a new creation and you have two weeks to complete the challenge. And for those of you who have dreamed of joining our wonderful team, there will be a DT call shortly, so warm up that Cricky and stop back for details in a few. I'm also entering this in the Crimbo Crackers Snowflake Challenge and Simon Says Stamp Anything Goes.