It's been a while...

It's been a while since I've posted. Life has a way of running off and leaving you in the dust! My hubby started his new job this week, FINALLY. They had been pushing back his start date every week and we were starting to wonder if it was going to fall through. But, he's down there right now as I type this, sitting in training and being taken out to Sushi for lunch. How unfair is that?!?! The fun part is that he's training in Walnut Creek and staying through Saturday so guess who will be joining him on Friday night? ME! I get to shop and explore and shop and eat....and SHOP!!!! I'm going to do a little research and see if there are any good scrapbook and stamp stores while I'm down there...I love checking out new craft shops! So since I haven't had a chance to stamp anything new I still wanted to post something. Simple, sassy and springy. :)
I have fallen in love with these Sassy Stems. They are great to use with watercolor crayons, inkpad pallete coloring or even just the markers. I always add a little Crystal Effects to the water vase, just to add a bit of dimension.

Hopefully I can post my Bella creations soon....I've been holding off for quite some time now due to swap-secrecy. But I just can't take it much longer. Last night, Margaret came over and we began our Bella Book! Oh don't worry....you'll see soon enough. ;)

It's Spring Time!

My favorite part of this card was coloring the flower buds and creating different shades (so saffron, pretty in pink, rose red). I also love my new texture plates!!! The Big Shot Impressions Starter Kit can be used with the Cuttlebug so you can emboss any brass template and get even more backgrounds by using texture plates. The plate used here was by Fiskars. I find texture plates to be a great alternative to the embossed folders or images because they aren't as drastic and defined. They are very subtle and don't take away from the true focal point of the project. And as always, I can't seem to get enough of the distressing or paper piercing. I LOVE IT!

This was the final project for my Spring Sensation class this weekend and sadly due to time contraints a few missed out making it so I thought I would highlight it in my blog for the weekend. After my class (which was SO much fun!!!), the hubby and I went to the Folsom outlets to do a bit of shopping, then of course stopped by Michael's since I had 3 coupons and just couldn't waste those. Then we had dinner at Outback (delish!) and finally a movie. We saw Wild Hogs and I thought it was a hoot! Kinda slap-schtick but overall very delightful. The weather was simply amazing this weekend, I couldn't get enough of it! Winter makes you appreciate Spring, if that makes sense. :) Sunday was by far the best (minus losing an hour)....Scott & I went to the spa for a massage and then La Bou for a light lunch. We felt like 'buttah' the entire day and I think we've decided we should do that more frequently....we're worth it! So I hope all of you got to enjoy the sunshine this weekend, Spring is most definitely here!!!!

Keep it Simple

I have fallen in love with the Spring Mini catalog!!! I spent my Friday night stamping with a friend of mine and we were up until midnight working on fun stuff. I didn't want to use my new designer series paper just yet so I decided to make my own. :) Then we had some fun layering and making flower petals using just punches and of course I had to add the paper piercing...I can't seem to get enough of it!!! It's simple, clean and sweet. Sometimes we can get so mixed up into making layer after layer, adding more and more, and we lose track of why we love this craft in the first place. It's sweet, simple and handmade....and I love it!