Ink, Stamp & Scrap....

When you need a card in less than 5 minutes....

2009-04-13T14:30:00.000-07:00

Take some oval shapes, cut them into pieces and swap them around. Smack on some grass and stamp it! Just had to share my last minute Easter cards I made yesterday. I had 30 minutes til it was time to be at Easter lunch and I realized I hadn't made any cards yet. OOPS.

So while my pup was running around the house in bunny ears and my hubby was hollering how he's STARVING, I whipped these up in a flash and I have to say...I love them!

I used the large Petite Oval Nesties and ran them through my Big Shot. I chose some fun patterned papers (3 diff patterns) and ran them through all at once. I chopped off the bottom edges (not that you can see them) so that they looked more like eggs rather than ovals. I kept them tightly layered and sliced them into threes. Then I simply swapped the patterns around and glued them all down to the card. I stamped Happy Easter in the top corner and then added a few embossed lines with my Scor-pal so it didn't look so plain. Lastly I sliced up some celery cardstock to look like grass and placed that along the bottom edge. DONE! I think I cranked out 10 of these in literally 30 minutes!

I hope everyone enjoyed their Egg Hunt day yesterday, I myself enjoyed the food, food and more food. :) I think I'm still enjoying the food as a matter of fact. I mean, you can't just leave an uneaten cupcake home alone right?? ;)

Happy belated Egg day!!!

2009-04-13T08:51:00.001-07:00

So if the Easter Bunny ate all your eggs, now you know why!

Flowering Crabapple Tree...

2009-03-23T13:46:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know it's been ages since I've posted and heck even had a chance to stamp! So I'm posting my favorite creation from my class this weekend. Since this is our first spring at our home we were unsure what the flowers & trees had in store for us. Well much to my surprise I have a beautiful Crabapple Tree in my front yard and it's covered with gorgeous pink buds & a few light pink blossoms. So I used my tree as inspiration for this card.

First I made the window layers of my card front using my Nesties (which I just ordered all the NEW ones from Polka Dot Plaza and I can't wait to put them to use!). Next I ran the Kiwi Kiss layer through the Big Shot using the large polka dot texture plate from SU. I stamped the tree from Branch Out in chocolate chip ink and then added some blossoms in Kiwi Kiss, Regal Rose and Pink Pirouette. Since those colors matched the Flower Soft I'd been hoarding, I decided to add random specs of glue to the tree blossoms and throw on some Flower Soft.....I love it!

I also love the SU Tags which I used for the sentiment. I first saw them on my pal Joanne's blog and I just HAD to have them!!! Here's a little peek of the inside since you can't really see it all when it's closed. I just tore a piece of scrap paper and stippled a bit of Kiwi Kiss along the bottom to give it the look of grass. Stamps - Branch Out, Best Yet (retired SU)
Cardstock - Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White, Chocolate Chip
Ink - Kiwi Kiss, Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose, Pink Pirouette
Accessories -SU Texture Plates 1, Lot of Tags die, Flower Soft

Keepin' it real...

2009-02-22T22:28:00.001-08:00

Actually, just keeping extremely busy is more like it but hey....it was catchy. I just wanted to let the two folks still checking my blog know that I am indeed alive. ;) I went off to Iowa for a short training and am now back in the classroom here in town for another 3 weeks. It's been EXHAUSTING but at the same time extremely educational. I am in a whole new ball game now, my job makes a difference and I am taking time to embrace that. Sadly, stamping has taken a back seat, well...actually it's taken a whole other bus and is on vacation. But hopefully it won't be gone long, just have to stay focused on my work until it becomes routine then I can do crafty things more often. :) I did spend Friday night with some new friends and a bit of stamp therapy so if I can just get my camera to work I'll post it. So check back this week....I'll have something for you to look at. ;) xoxoxo

Sneak peek revealved!

2009-01-27T07:09:00.000-08:00

Isn't she beautiful?!?! I just adore this new Ballerina Sophia, which is next month's SOTM over at Paper Pretties. I finally broke out the Basic Gray Perhaps paper that I've been hoarding *shock* and I just love it. I used the Large Labels Nesties and then lightly buffed the edges to give it a distressed look. Sophia is surrounded by a light airbrush (RV00), I just left the Nestie on and used it as a mask. The white scallop circle is on textured paper (my fav) and then lightly sponged with Pink Pirouette. Lastly I used the Ribbon Nesties for the sentiment with a bit of sheer ribbon.

FYI there's a lovely sale going on over at Polka Dot Plaza, 20% off your entire order with a $40 minimum purchase (code "JAN09"). I loaded up on Just Rite stamps, the Large Labels nesties and some more Basic Gray paper I can hoard! LOL Sale is going on until the end of Jan so be sure to go check it out!

I leave this weekend for Des Moines and I have NO WARM CLOTHES....what on earth do people wear when it's 9 degrees outside?!!??!

Hopin' Day Two!

2009-01-23T06:28:00.000-08:00

Today is day two of our 3 day mystery blog hop celebrating Paper Pretties' 2nd anniversary. Now if you're just joining in the fun, be sure you start at Christie's blog from yesterday to gather all the clues! Today we started at Jessie's blog so if you're off track, get back over there and start following the clue trail!!!

Our hop this time requires a bit of work on your part. Paper Pretties is giving away a 6 month subscription to the Stamp of the Month Club. In order to win the prize, you'll need to collect all of the clues from the blog hop - 13 in all and email your answer to Christie at Christie@paperpretties.net. Answers must be in by 8am on the 25th to qualify. Sound like fun?As always we are releasing a new Sophia stamp for our March Stamp of the Month Club. Your job is to guess what this Sophia is doing. Today's final clue is......"SHEER". Good luck ladies and don't forget to join us in the Forum on the 25th to find out who won!!

Blog Hop starts TODAY!!!!

2009-01-22T08:16:00.000-08:00

Are you all following the Paper Pretties' 2nd Anniversary Blog Hop?? We're celebrating in true Prettie style and you won't want to miss out! This will be a 3 day Blog Hop - starting today!! Remember that on the 25th at 8 pm EST we'll all meet in the 2nd Anniversary Party Forum at Paper Pretties to celebrate and find out who the grand prize winner of our Blog Hop contest is, as well as the winner of a few other goodies. Plus there will be prizes every 1/2 hour at the party and everyone who orders that night will receive a free roll of American Craft ribbon!

The hop requires a little bit of work on your part. As always we are releasing a new Sophia stamp for our March SOTM. Your job is to guess what this Sophia is doing!! The grand prize is a 6 month subscription to the Stamp of the Month Club. In order to win the prize, you'll need to collect all of the clues from the blog hop - 13 in all and submit your answer to Christie (christie@paperpretties.net). Answers must be in by 8am on the 25th to qualify.

So get over to Christie's blog and start the hop!!!!!

For the little one...

2009-01-21T06:27:00.001-08:00

It's taken me a while to get these little guys posted because it's was a surprise for the lovely Jana and her new munchkin Jackson. Each Prettie created one or two 6x6 scrap pages so that she would have an entire album for him. As always I keep my creations simple, don't want to take away from the star of the page...Jackson! If you haven't had a chance to stop by her blog you should...he's just too precious for words!! Hopefully I'll be able to get my tooshie down to her neck of the woods soon so I can snuggle him up and also give her a big squeeze as well....she's only 3 hours away after all!

As for me I will be rather scarce the next few weeks as I started my new position and I'm stuck in a training classroom all day for 7 weeks and then loaded with reading material all night. :( I can't WAIT for Sunday though, it's the Paper Pretties anniversary partay and I really need some time with my girls so I can unwind from this new work stress.....I hate being at the bottom of the ladder again! ARGH! ;)

Oh and just so everyone has an updated pic of my little girl who's not so little anymore....

Prettie colorful Wednesday...

2009-01-07T07:51:00.000-08:00

So my dear Jessica challenged the girls to get colorful! We were to use Avocado, Ocean Tides, Kraft & Chocolate Chip. Normally I hoard all my patterned paper but this color challenge just screamed for me to use the PTI Polka Dot paper!

I used my Sweets for the Sweet cookie image, stamped and cut out to make a batch! I wanted some scallops on the card but didn't want to over do it so I just added it along the left side as an accent strip, then used my Crop-A-Dile to punch some holes in it (since I needed to "put a hole it" from last week) ;) I added a few embossed lines with my Scor-Pal and then of course a ribbon knot on the top. Doesn't this just make you want a big plate of cookies?!?!? If only I could bake up a batch of 100 calorie bite size cookies....mmmmm.

Make sure you swing by all the other Prettie pages to see how they got colorful this week!!

Inspired by Nichole....

2009-01-05T07:07:00.001-08:00

Just a quick post today as we celebrated hubby turning the big 30 this weekend and I haven't quite recovered from that yet! ;) I made this card for someone very special to let her know how much she means to me. Last week Nichole posted a quick review of some of her favorite projects and I just fell in love with the cards she made on the cruise. So using that as my inspiration I came up with this beauty. As usual, I used textured white cardstock for the base, yellow polka dot paper from DCWV stack and then kraft for my main image layer.

I hope everyone has a good week, my weight watchers eating plan started today and so far I'm doing great! If only I had to watch what I ate from 8am-10am it'd be a cinch!!!! *lol*

Brrrr, cocoa anyone?

2009-01-02T06:51:00.000-08:00

It's freezing today! Ok so I know I'm in California so I can't say a word about freezing, seeing how many of my fellow Pretties have been barricaded in by snow. But when you're used to warm temps then it suddenly drops down to frozen windshields....to me, that's freezing! ;)

The good news.....it's FRIDAY!!! I hope everyone had a safe and wonderful New Years, I spent mine on the couch with apple pie & ice cream, the movie Elf and a sweet little pup named Chloe. We wanted to make sure there was enough noise in the house so she didn't get spooked when the fireworks and loud noises began...luckily between the heater and the movie she didn't hear a peep.

So with the new year upon us, my goal is to start checking in with friends and family that I don't get to see that often. This is the perfect set for making those "just because" cards. Look Who's Perky is one of the very first sets that I just fell head over heals in love with. Well, that and Sealed with a Kiss of course, but this one is just so versatile I love it! I used my nesties to create the embossed square and then paper pieced the mugs on top. I ran the turquoise paper through my Big Shot and then lightly buffed the dots with my scuffer (this only works on white core paper btw). Then lastly I added the ribbon slide along the bottom with some white grosgrain ribbon and of course a touch of brown Martha glittah on the polka dots.

Do you guys have any goals this year? I don't use the word "resolution" because then when I don't keep them I feel like a faliure. Goal sounds more flexible, eh?!? ;)

Birthday balloons for Jodi!!!

2008-12-27T05:00:00.000-08:00

"Birthdays ain't for sissies!"...and ain't that the truth?!?! Well, today it's the fantabulous Jodi's birthday and my job was to bring the balloons!!! I don't care what age you are, everyone MUST have balloons for their birthday so I've made these especially for our Jodi girl!! Let's just hope she stays outta trouble during the partay...hmm, well I guess it all depends on who brought the drinks, Jessica tends to spike things once in a while. Always trying to get me and Jodi in trouble. *lol*

Now have you said hello to all the other party guests? Well head over to Jackie's place and see what she brought along to this schindig....

Xmas is almost here...

2008-12-23T09:35:00.000-08:00

Oh what a whirlwind of a holiday season this has been. I'm sure everyone thought I had been kidnapped, never to be heard from again. But, alas I am here! Can I just tell you that going through all your xmas boxes when they are covered by baseboards and shoved in the corner of the garage, blocked in by various other boxes is a CHORE! Kinda put me in a Bah-Humbug mood this year....but luckily the bright lights, the glittery ornaments and the smell of xmas cookies has filled the air this week and I'm starting to get excited for Xmas in our new home.

So this week I'm showing off Gliding By Sophia, the January SOTM over at Paper Pretties...only a few days left for you to sign up otherwise you'll have to wait until February for this gorgeous gal. I just got some of the white snow Martha glitter and I'm in LOVE with it!!! It glistens rather than sparkles....perfect for snowflakes! Her ear muffs scream for white flocking and of course, copics for the coloring. Do you see the light stripe texture on the white card? I'm really starting to enjoy the subtleness of the texture plates rather than embossing folders. Granted, I have to own it all but I enjoy the lightness of a soft texture these days.

I'll be stuck in the kitchen for the next two days baking up a storm and then off to the bay area to visit my in-laws. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a New Year filled with lots of love, joy and STAMPS! What are your plans for the holiday??

Those who can't, shop

2008-12-16T11:25:00.000-08:00

Yea, so I've had no free time whatsoever to do any stamping. Still no word on the new position I applied for at work but no news is good news right?!?! So since I'm working so much, I find myself online shopping for craft stuff during my lunch and breaks so I feel like I'm not falling so far behind, I still will own all the cool new stuff therefore I'm still up on all the latest and greatest (yea right). I have tons of new goodies that I have accumulated in the past few weeks and NONE have seen the light of day just yet. But here I sit, browsing and shopping in hopes that someday soon I'll be able to have a clear stamp table and actually get to STAMP.

So they say "Those that cant, teach" well I'm guessing the same goes for us crazy busy stampers....can't stamp? Then shop!

BAD GIRL!

2008-12-11T14:27:00.000-08:00

So I've been insanely busy with life at the moment....Chloe is doing well for those that needed an update. The training tips REALLY helped and I'm proud to say we are notified when the little princess needs to go out for a #1 & #2!!! Unfortunately if I'm in the shower and hubby is still in bed the whimper goes unheard and "uh-oh" becomes the phrase of the day. The crate training is going well also, it still breaks our hearts to hear her howl but when we leave for work she's learning to calm down and just go in there and fall asleep.

As for stamping...yea right! My Xmas tree & decorations still aren't up...but I do have outside lights so at least the rest of the world thinks we're festive. ;) The guest room floor is done just need to put in the baseboards and then put the desk together & shelving units so I can finally unpack some crap....right now it's back to a pile of boxes and things and I'm pulling out my hair. My stamp room has the dismantled computer and desk at the moment so no chance of me getting in there even if I could find the time.

So I just wanted to check in to let everyone know that I'm not dead AND that this weeks Prettie Challenger is...me! So I'm challenging everyone to "put a hole in it". Not a pierce, but a hole...minimum of 1/8" and you can't add a brad or fill it...the hole MUST be visible. :) Good luck! Hopefully I'll be able to complete something one day soon so everyone doesn't get bored ready about life dramas. LOL

2008-11-26T09:50:00.000-08:00

This sale is INSANE!!! Up to 50% off various stampin' & scrappin' bundles!! If you've been waiting to order from the current Stampin' Up! catalog, now is a great time. Just head over to my website and click SHOP NOW at the very top....I even had to throw some items in my own cart this morning just so I didn't miss out on the sale!!! It's only good for a few days so get over there soon.

I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend....we've been busy raising our little princess so I've had no time to myself at all this week. Thank you SO MUCH to everyone that left some words of wisdom, we got a crate and began the training on Monday night. Thus far we've only been able to leave her alone for about 2 hours and then she has to have a potty break. My work is ready to fire me but hey, she's my kid!!! Sometimes the potty ends up being our tile floor but oh well, it happens. She was howling this morning when we left but I'm guessing that's normal, right? Here's another photo of Chloe just in case you need a smile this morning. ;)

HAPPY TURKEY DAY EVERYONE!!!!!

Indroducing......Chloe!

2008-11-24T04:30:00.000-08:00

I have no idea what spirit moved me this past Friday but I'm glad that it did! Ladies, I'd like for you to meet the newest addition to the Winters clan.....Chloe Noel Winters. She's 8 weeks old and full of energy (for about 15 minutes then she crashes out for an hour...rinse and repeat)

I am SO not a dog person, hence why I have no clue what came over me. Scott (DH) has been wanting a dog and we always get into a tiff over it. Well I can officially say that I AM now a dog person, I didn't even break a sweat when she piddled on our carpet (the brand new carpet). Oh would you like to see how she sleeps??
If I could have taken a picture of her snuggled up with me, I would have....but that's just NOT a good thing for you to see in the mornings. ;) So no stamping, no running errands, just lots of playing, running around, peeing and pooping for me this weekend. YAY! I have no idea how I'm going to get through an entire workday without my little girl....*sigh* Believe me when I say she is just THE most adorable little puppy on the planet!!!

Oh and any puppy training words of wisdom are more than welcome here.... ;)

Prettie late Wednesday

2008-11-19T21:36:00.000-08:00

I've been so busy at work training on the new systems AND applying for a new position (fingers crossed for me ladies) that I completely forgot to post the weekly Pretties challenge this morning. The challenge was to make an "interactive card". I first thought it meant we needed to hook up a battery and make something move or light up! (hey....could that be a challenge girls??) LMAO

Ok, ok so it really just means that it's not your traditional card, it needs to pull, roll, twirl, shake....anything to make the receiver "interact" with the card. Well, seeing that my sister has been fighting a nasty bug for over a week now, I decided I would use her sickness for inspiration.

I broke out that fabulous Sweets for the Sweet set and Sassy Circles to create this sweet little get well pull card. The only trick was to find a "get well" sentiment...can you believe I don't have one?!?! Seriously?!?! So I poked around my Pretties stash and sure enough....the Cozy In sentiment had EXACTLY what I needed, just had to omit the words I didn't want to use. ;)

Did you check out the other Prettie blogs to see what they made for this challenge....me either. Let's go hop around and see what they came up with!!!

Skip the LSS...make your own!

2008-11-18T03:08:00.000-08:00

I found this adorable holiday paper at my local scrap store and quickly added it to my paper collection (which will never be used otherwise it wouldn't be called a "collection", right ladies?) So I decided I would use the paper for inspiration and create my own. I first stamped the large snowburst image from my new Snow Swirled stamp set using Celery, then I rubbed the entire piece of paper lightly with a stamp sponge dipped in celery ink. Next I used the smaller snowburst and Little Red Riding Hood red ink, I have to say I really like this new color. It's much richer than Real Red and definitely gave my paper the feel of Christmas.

Lastly, I added some Martha red glitter to the centers of the bursts, just needed a touch of sparkle. Granted, I could have made an entire sheet of this "paper" so I could crank out a ton of cards but unfortunately I don't work that way....hindsight is 20/20 but driving blind is priceless. (you can quote me on that!)

This is also one of the cards from my Xmas card class, I can't show them all otherwise the girls coming on Dec 6th would have no surprises to look forward to! Sorry ladies, you're just gonna have to wait!!! ;)

A Prettie AWESOME bloghop day.

2008-11-16T11:28:00.001-08:00

Well I would have posted sooner but I was busy getting rid of the toxins I put into my body last night. ;) Ewww right? LOL So I staggered into the computer room and decided to check around to see what my fellow Pretties were up to and what do I find?!?! A Prettie Blog Hop Birthday Party......FOR ME!!!!! I just about fell over, actually I think I did but just that once. ;) All the girls came to my party and brought FANTABULOUS goodies...did ya see?? Adorable cards, super cute goodie bags, amazing cakes...a box filled with chocolate (they know me well). I just am SO thrilled to celebrate my 30th *ahem* birthday with the bestest stamp pals on the planet!!!! Thank you all for the bday wishes, guess I'd better get crackin on some thank you notes!!!! XOXOXO

Just one???

2008-11-12T05:12:00.000-08:00

So this weeks Prettie challenge came from Jules...one layer and you had to score something. One layer?? You never think it's hard until you actually try to do it. Well...it's only one layer and I had to score all the tag punches to fold them into flower petals. That qualifies right? ;) Here's an up close look at the petals. Stampin' Up! has great tips & tricks in our demo magazines each month and this was one of them....don't ya love it?

Sorry this is so short, but gotta get to work early....and stay late. Seems like a pattern this week, but at least there will be a nice overtime check in my hands in time for the PTI release on Sat! Thanks for stopping in to say hi....be sure you check out the other Prettie girls blogs to see their one-layer-score-something-card as well! ;)

For unto you is born this day....

2008-11-07T07:20:00.001-08:00

This stamp is from one of the new sets just released Nov 1st from Paper Pretties called The Nativity. I decided to just use the sentiment for this card and limit the use of embellishments so it wouldn't take away from the wording. I actually intended to use silver brads in the corners but once I pierced them I liked it just as it was. Isn't the paper just dreamy??? A few snowflakes have glitter on them so it's a very subtle sparkle. The paper is by Heidi Grace, I got it from the Boutique. Not sure if there is any left since the 75% off sale is still going on. Have you taken a peek to see if there is anything you need to add to your own stamp stash?? Everything (except the Prettie stamps & swarovski crystals) is on sale!!!

This weekend is my monthly stamp club so I should get some time to stamp. This last week was rough, I caught a bug last Friday so I didn't get to play at the Prettie party Sat night, I just chatted while I was wrapped up in my heated throw. Work has been insane, we were in training last week and then this week we got all new programs & computer systems to work on so by the time I got home at night my brain was just fried! Next weekend is my annual Christmas Card frenzy class, so I'll be spending each night this coming week cutting paper for that.....last year I had to cut supplies for 800 cards. I think I could hardly feel my hands once I was done. LOL

They're creepy and their kooky....

2008-10-31T04:34:00.000-07:00

Mysterious and spooky....HAPPY HALLOWEEN fellow stampers!!! I can't believe I've been so busy at work that I haven't had time to stamp, blog or even return many emails (sorry about that, catching up this weekend I promise). We're changing to an entire new computer system and we've all been stuck in trainings or covering for those in training and my brain just goes to sleep by the time I get home from work. Although I have to say Thank You to Jess for keeping me entertained via text message....I was losing my mind there for a few days!

Luckily tomorrow is the first of the month, which means PJ PARTY so I'll get to break loose and relax!!!!! Yep, it's that time once again, the Paper Pretties girls will be Stampin in their Jammies over at the Prettie Forum so be sure to mark some time off tomorrow night (7pm CST) to come join us. There will be stamp challenges posted each hour, new stamps released AND a new Cutie Pie!!!

Here's the deets:
Simply upload one of your creations using Paper Pretties stamps on the Paper Pretties forum, and Christie will chose a winner from the entries. Besides being able to call yourself a Cutie Pie, you will also win the entire release!! You have until October 31st at 8pmCST to get your entries in!!

And don't forget to check out their RIDICULOUS sale. 75% off!!! Is that not just nuts?!?!? It's practically giving it away at that point. So get over there before it's all gone. (sale excludes Paper Pretties stamps)

Friends are hard to find...

2008-10-23T05:23:00.000-07:00

And when you find one when you're not looking, that's the best!! Recently I've become close friends with Jessica and yesterday I got this card in the mail and I just had to show it off. We both share an addiction to PTI stamps but this is one that I don't have. I just love how these colors look together, I'm thinking I just might have to add this set to my collection! Thanks Jess!!!

So I'm gearing up for our garage sale this weekend and I went through my craft room and cleaned house. I'll be posting a list on here first so be sure to check back this week to see if there's any goodies you guys would like to get your hands on. :)

xoxo

More simple, quick & cute cards....

2008-10-22T08:22:00.001-07:00

I completely forgot to show you the other cards from my WCMD event a few weekends ago! *bad Jill* I just adore this one because it can be used for any occasion and even for guys!!! Just switch the sentiment to happy birthday or thinking of you and you're done!

Ok, it's Wednesday and what better to get you through the mid-week slump than comedy. I was surfing the net at work *shock* and ran across this photo....

*ROTFL*

Welcome to the Winters house....

2008-10-21T08:07:00.000-07:00

Does anyone remember what it used to look like?? The brass fixtures everywhere....nasty carpet & linoleum....beige, beige and more beige!!! We ripped it all down and started over (pics during facelift)....

The walls are now a warm custard, new carpet & baseboards have been installed, new fixtures, new tile floors....

I swear the bathroom is a soft mocha with white & chocolate accents....not sure why it's so yellow in the pic. :( We put oil-rubbed bronze fixtures and towel bars up, the bronze faucet will be going once we actually remodel the cabinets (next year, we need a break). The large vent thingy at the top of our hallway is our whole house fan, do you have any idea how flippin cool this thing is?!?!?! We didn't! But after our $300 electric bill dropped to $90, we figured it out! The house cools off in literally seconds with this thing. LOVE IT! Oh and that's the master at the end of the hall, didn't go in there for pics because it's not done yet. I haven't chosen bedroom furniture yet and the door frames haven't been primed and painted, so I have a little bit of work to do this xmas...but I'll get there. ;)

Never again will my stamp room be this clean, it took over 2 hours to clear things up in there. But it's MINE MINE MINE!!! Hubby won't let me play until after this weekend....I promised that once the house warming was over that I would go through everything and we'd have a garage sale the next weekend. WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?! There are more rooms to take pics of, but this was all I took apparently. LOL Was too busy at the cupcake buffet to bother with photo taking. LOL

Still recovering...

2008-10-20T11:17:00.000-07:00

The party was fantastic!!! The house looked perfect (well, still a few pending projects but those don't count). The food was wonderful (mini sliders, fries, shrimp & a cupcake buffet for dessert! Thank you to my amazing sister!) Drinks were flowing (especially the Margarita punch....mmmmm) and the night ended around 1am when the final guests left and Scott & I were snoring before our heads hit the pillow.

Pics will be posted soon, I took a few myself but didn't have the energy to move yesterday to download them. Now I'm at work and then running errands this evening, so hopefully tomorrow you'll be back to browse the new house. :) xoxo

Look who's turning 29.....again!!!

2008-10-17T08:00:00.000-07:00

It's a very prettie day today because our very beloved Jessie is turning the big 30! So we're hosting a virtual bday party for her to show her how much we adore her and that turning thirty is not that bad. Heck, I kinda like it myself!!! ;)

I was in charge of bringing some presents....At first I panicked because my stamp room is currently our storage room (I about died when I had to give it up) and all my stamps & ink are in hiding. The only thing I have access to is paper & ribbon. Since I always keep things on the simple side, I chopped up a few pieces of the SU Petals & Paislies paper, stacked them up and tied it off with a bow!! HAPPY BDAY JESSIE!!! Please stop by her blog and wish her a fabulous 30th! And be sure to visit the other prettie pages to see how the party is going. :)

Christie, Jules, Jodi, Charlie, Danielle, Jackie P, Jackie R, Joni & Jess

Don't forget that October is breast cancer awareness month and Paper Pretties is having a PINK sale, everything PINK is on sale 40% off!!! So get on over to the Prettie Boutique to do some shoppin!

Our house warming is tomorrow night so I have some serious cleaning to do...I need to find my stamp room again!!! *tears welling up* I was told it was "only for a few days" but it's been over a week now and I'm going a little crazy without it.

Eeek!

2008-10-14T09:33:00.000-07:00

Oct 14th already?!?! Where did summer go?? Well we've been buckling down at the house getting ready for our house warming this weekend. It looked so lovely just two weeks ago, a little naked but clean and livable. Then the bomb went off...clothing EVERYWHERE! Boxes, bags, pictures, candles, halloween decor. OMG! We pulled out so much stuff from the garage and the closets that I thought I was going to need to rent a hotel room just to have somewhere to live & sleep!!! I had to fill the holes in the closet walls and paint, hence why the clothing was everywhere. Over the months I had purchased all kinds of fun photo frames, candles, vases, etc and just kept putting them away.....hubby pulled them all out and my god. I wish I had taken a picture. WOW! So I might be a little absent this week because I'm "not allowed in the stamp room" at all unless my tasks are completed first (yea right).

But I do need to shout something from the rooftops

JESSICA IS A PRETTIE GIRL!!!!!

My long lost sistah (not literally, we just have tons in common, can chat for hours and we get along like sistahs) Jessica Diedrich has accepted a spot on the Prettie team, so watch out folks....together we are T-R-O-U-B-L-E. ;) Debbie Lee, aren't you just jumping out of your chair?!?!?!

So please drop by her blog and give her some high-fives on her new Prettie position! Here's a peak at some of her fabulous cards....

You light up my life...

2008-10-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday folks! Did you watch Grey's last night?!?! I actually got the chance to flop in front of the tv and veg for an hour, well 45 minutes really because I didn't watch it until 10:30pm when I got home (yikes) and I zipped past the commercials with my semi-wonderful Tivo. I only love it when it's working properly. ;)

Today I want to share a card that I just adore!!! I got this fabulous embossing template from Paper Pretties and decided to pair it up with some fun new paper I've been hoarding. I first embossed the lamps on vanilla paper and then embossed the shades on various patterned paper. I lightly scuffed them up using my paper scuffers, it's easier to scuff these small images before you cut them out. I left the template on my vanilla paper and used chalk to lightly shade the lamp bases. Then I trimmed out the shade and popped them on top!!

I'm trying to make it a goal to start using all these items that I just HAD to have. I know there are fellow hoarders out there....will you pledge to start using your stuff too?? Please?? ;)

A few cards to share...

2008-10-09T05:01:00.000-07:00

All this Gourd talk and I completely neglected to post some of the cards from WCMD last Saturday! *smacks her own hand*

We cranked out 10 cards total so they had to be simple but still eye catching. I used my Big Shot to knock out the circles & scallops (3 pieces of cardstock at once!) using my Nesties Classic Circle & Scallop Circle dies. I used textured white cardstock for the card base and layered a cute pink striped paper on the base, a small strip of lighter pink just above it and pierced double lines all the way across. I used this same layout but switched up the colors & stamps for another card (show ya tomorrow) and I just love them both!

This next one is great for anyone...guys, girls, youngsters, co-workers. It's hard sometimes to create a basic birthday card, I tend to get too foofy or girly. I used textured Chocolate Chip (I really have fallen in love with all the textured cardstock for card bases, it allows even the most simple card to look fantastic) and added this fun striped paper along the bottom. I layered that strip onto bashful blue, which now I realize I didn't even have to do since it looks like the paper! The ribbon is looped through the side of the card and knotted, but the Bday layer is popped up on dimensionals to cover the ribbon slot punch.

I'll be showing the other cards in the coming days, can't reveal EVERYTHING at once or there's not reason to come back, right? ;)

FYI for Tracy, the Gourds are from a local craft fair in California and she doesn't have a website nor sell online. You can email me privately and I'm sure we can work out a pix text while at the craft faire shopping kinda thing. That goes for everyone who's interested...but you must be able to get pix messages on your cell phone. We can do this people! Enablers Untie! errr Unite!! LOL

Gobble til you Wobble

2008-10-07T21:07:00.000-07:00

Words to live by I tell ya!!! Here is my Turkey Gourdzook, I got him at the craft fair last fall but it was after turkey day so he's been sitting in his packaging for quite some time. But this year when I pulled out my fall box, he was the first thing to be opened. Just had to share my Gobbly gourd as I promised in the last post. ;) Can't wait to get a new one this year....last weekend in November so keep your eyes peeled for my post!!!

A very special gift

2008-10-07T08:15:00.000-07:00

If you've been reading my blog for a while then you know my excitement over holiday Gourds. Last year I added this adorable little guy to my collection, created by Donna Massey owner of Gourdzooks.

She makes the most adorable little characters using gourds. It's the one holiday craft splurge I look forward to each year (they are PRICEY, this guy was $40!!!). Usually after a stamp day, a large group of us will hoof it down to the annual craft fair to shop, eat & browse the goodies...and my $$ always goes towards a new gourd. So my jaw hit the ground this weekend when one of the gals showed up bearing gifts (too sweet!) and when I opened up the package this is what I found....

I flipped out!!! I was so excited!!!!

1. I love these gourd characters!!! (she had no idea, my reaction was a shock to her, I was screaming)
2. I didn't have any Halloween ones yet and I had looked at them last year, but opted for a turkey (show ya that tomorrow).
3. It had a little black kitty on the pumpkin which looked like my little Mouse (our cat, our princess...yes, we don't have kids yet so therefore our pets are like our children)
4. She MADE IT!!!! OMG!!! I nearly fell over!!!

So I just HAD to share this with everyone, I'm sure you crafty Sue's are used to seeing Gourds and fun stuff but I'm new to them and I just get dumbfounded at the things people can do with them. Just wait til you see the other fun guys I got my hands on!!! Oh and I'll also post the projects we made for World Card Making Day....did anyone else spend the day stamping on Saturday????

The morning after..

2008-10-02T09:56:00.000-07:00

Last night was the monthly SIYJ party over at Paper Pretties, I was so thrilled to finally get the chance to attend this time!! Last month I JUST had my internet installed and it wasn't functioning so I missed the party. Turned out my hard drive was frying and had to be replaced, guess I should have been a little nicer to the internet tech support, eh? LOL

So here is my Pick A Patch Cooper card that I made for the third challenge, sadly I got home from work right as the party started so I was late in starting the card challenges. I just love this spiderweb embossing folder, I can't stop using it! That and my Martha black glitter, nothing screams Halloween quite like black glitter and spider webs right?? So I bugg'd the white paper but left the bottom portion untouched so I could stamp my greeting. I used the rectangle nesties for Cooper, Copics for the coloring as always. I wanted to make a border of black glitter so I took sticky tape and taped off all the edges, dipped it in the black glitter and tah dah! Guess it doesn't show up well in this photo, click on it to enlarge it, perhaps you can see it then! :) Lastly I used my new spider die cut to finish off the card. We'll keep you posted on when this adorable little guy will be available for purchase, should be sometime next week so keep checking back!!

Also, a big round of applause for this month's Cutie Pie, my pal Jess was crowned last night at the party, her card was simply gorgeous and she won all the new stamps that were released last night! Her challenge cards were really cute too, if you get a chance head over to the Gallery and check out everyone's cards....there are a few sneak peeks for what's coming up next month!!!!

Trick or Treat!

2008-09-29T05:02:00.000-07:00

Since treats are by far the best part of Halloween, I made this quick little treat bag featuring Whiskers, the new Sophia that was just released! I really wanted to find some cheetah print paper for her leotard but couldn't find ANY for the life of me. So....when you can't buy it, make it! I chopped off the top of the treat bag so that it was card size and ran it through my cuttlebug using white craft ink and the spider web folder. It actually embosses the entire bag so it looks really cute on all sides! Her ears, bowtie, shoes & tail are all glittah'd with Martha's black glitter, it was on sale last week so I stocked up on black, orange, green & red. You'd think the holidays were close or something ;)

Want to get your hands on Whiskers? Submit your entry for the Cutie Pie contest before Sept 30th at 8pmEST to get your shot at winning Whiskers AND Falling for You AND Howdy Girlfriend Sophia!! Then mark your calendar and plan to join us for Stampin In Your Jammies on Oct 1st at 7pm CST.

Stamps - Whiskars Sophia, Karen Foster Snap Stamps
Cardstock - White, Black
Ink - Memento
Accessories - Kraft bag, Tissue, Cuttlebug Spiderweb, Copics

Seriously?!

2008-09-26T08:31:00.001-07:00

How amazing are these?? I was absolutely stunned when I got my mail yesterday. Joni, the artist who creates all of the Paper Pretties stamps drew this for little ol' me. And she sent me all of these cards!! What's funny is when we met her last February she had never even stamped before. The Pretties got to witness her first card making at our SIYJ night at the hotel, now look at her creations!!! Joni is beautiful, talented and just an amazing person and I can't thank her enough for this wonderful work of art (Thanks Joni!!!). I even went to IKEA last night to get a spotlight for it! I obviously had free time to run errands since my cable froze up 10 minutes into the Grey's premiere!! Seriously?...seriously. So don't anyone tell me what happened!!!

Touched by an angel

2008-09-25T08:16:00.000-07:00

There are angels all around us each and every day, some of them we see and some just linger above us making sure we're ok. Sweet little Sophia is one of these angels, she's next month's SOTM over at Paper Pretties so if you want to be one of the first to get your hands on her then head over there and sign up. I just love coloring her...there's something calming about it. Ok, I'm a whack job, I know. I used my copics (as always) and my new Scor-Pal to make the embossed lines above & below the ribbon. At first I just made one score line but it was just kinda blah....so I put the kraft cardstock back on my Scor-pal and moved it just slightly off from the first line and scored it again. LOVED IT! You might have to click the photo to enlarge it to see what I mean.

I really like the look of faux embossed greetings so I stamped "blessings" first in Sahara Sand and then again in White Craft. Soft Sky is still one of my favorite colors ever, so naturally I used it for my little Angel. ;)

And if you haven't heard by now, Cammie's Heart to Heart blog candy is just amazing....so head over there to check it out. It's for an amazing cause!!!

Mine's the cutest!

2008-09-23T05:00:00.000-07:00

Ok so maybe not, but I think so! Kinda like how parents think that THEIR child is always way more adorable than any other child out there.....well, that's how I feel about my Frankie. Sure, he's just about everywhere lately but each one comes to life a little differently *heh, comes to life...get it?* ;) So I took my favorite treat bag template and switched it up a bit to make Frank-n-Treat. That's MISTER Frank-n-Treat to you!! Just flip up his hair to reveal the treats inside! Mmmmm tasty treats. Can you tell that I started my diet last Monday? 4 pounds down but cravings are at an all time high. And why must Halloween candy be SO tempting?!?! Is it because they are bite-size so we don't feel as guilty by eating a few? It's not a full size candy bar so it must be ok?! NOT!!!

I WANT CANDY!!! *breathe Jill, breathe*

Last two SOTM projects

2008-09-19T10:47:00.001-07:00

Arrrrrrrg!!! You'll have to forgive my horrible pictures, I still can't seem to get perfect lighting in the new house. Plus I have yet to unpack my good lamps and photo cube (hmm, weekend project perhaps?). So here are the final 2 projects we did for my Stamp of the Month class, the top one is quite pretty in person. I stamped the flower image in Pretty in Pink craft ink onto Pink Pirouette paper and then embossed them with clear embossing powder. The greeting was embossed with white powder to tie in the white trim. The Kiwi Kiss card base was stamped with the sanded background stamp using Always Artichoke ink, ya can't even see it in the photo. :( White textured paper (cause it's my fav) for the scallop trim along the bottom and then finally I used the ticket corner punch on the top corners to add some white brads.

This has got to be one of my favs. I just love dry embossing a frame around my main images, keeps things simple but elegant in my opinion. I used markers for the flowers and then misted with water to re-moisten and stamped onto Baja Breeze card stock. Add a sentiment, border & brads and I was done!

This weekend we're working on the master bathroom, closets & hallway. We set the date for our house warming so now we have to make sure we stick to our weekend projects so it's presentable in time. 4 weeks...which sounds like a long time but really, it's only 8 days since we only have free time on the weekends. Anyone wanna put on your paint smocks and come help? ;)

XOXO

p.s. did you notice my "Arrrrg"?? Today is National Talk Like a Pirate Day! My co-workers are ready to throw me out the window! LMBO

Happy Mail Day!!!

2008-09-18T07:12:00.000-07:00

I love having a rough day at work and then coming home to a big package of goodies!!! I got all of this from Polka Dot Plaza, they have the new JustRite stamps and they were about 50 cents cheaper than everywhere else, so I stocked up!! I got the new Christmas set, the rectangle stamper (so cool!), some new Inkadinkado snowflake stamps, two brass templates (I figured the gift could be used for Xmas cards and birthdays and I couldn't resist the high heel, too cute!). I also got a pack of the Basic Gray magnetic snaps I've been seeing on various blogs, the Scor Pal (which I ripped open and LOVE), some colored fun flock and Basic Gray pretty paper! And this is just the beginning....my PTI, Bella and Paper Pretties orders are all scheduled to be here this week too!!! It's like Xmas!!!! Do you have any idea how hard it was NOT to call in to work sick today?!?! I can't wait to come home and play!!! Perhaps I'll have a new creation to share tomorrow.....check back!

Stella quick card

2008-09-16T08:58:00.000-07:00

So when you need a card in literally seconds, here's what ya do. Get your stash of pre-stamped images (you should always have a small stack, if anyone needs some just let me know!), give it a quick color with some Copics, throw it onto some scrap cardstock and find a fun piece of patterned paper for a background. Cut, layer done!

I completely forgot my girlfriends birthday and she was stopping by to pick up her stamp order and I only had 10 minutes until she was there. So I grabbed Stella, some pieces of left over cardstock and paper from my last stamp night with the girls and threw this together. I love how fun Stella is....Margaret can't stand Stella but just you wait, once my new Stella stamps arrive she'll be begging to borrow her!!!

Stamps - Stella w/Olive, Here's to You sentiment
Cardstock - Regal Rose, Rose Red
Ink - Memento
Accessories - Copics, Ribbon

Another SOTM card

2008-09-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, as with everyone else on the planet that got this new SU set, I too am addicted to it. This Upsy Daisy was the featured set this month for my SOTM (stamp of the month) class and here is another one of the cards we made. I love how this set can be the focus or just an accent, just depends where it's stamped. For this card I used Apricot Appeal for my main card, I don't seem to use that color enough and I just adore it. I wanted to use the grass from Inspired by Nature but didn't want it to take over the card so I stamped it first onto the Apricot and then layered vellum cardstock on top of it with the daisies stamped in Pumpkin Pie & So Saffron. I hid the adhesive with some white taffeta ribbon and then added the greeting to the top right corner.

I'm almost at 60,000 hits so keep checking back for some tasty treats once I hit that big number!!! xoxo

Stamps - Upsy Daisy, Pocket Silhouettes sentiment
Cardstock - Apricot Appeal, Vellum cardstock, Pumpkin Pie
Ink - Apricot Appeal, So Saffron, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories - Paper Piercer, Oval Punches, Taffeta Ribbon

Saffron Daisies LINK ADDED

2008-09-11T07:12:00.000-07:00

Here is a sneak peek at one of the projects for my SOTM class this Saturday. I just adore using textured white for my card bases, they add a very clean yet elegant feel to the card. The main image is faux embossed using craft White and More Mustard. I used my pal Joanne's trick (the link works now) with the slot punch for the ribbon. Funny thing about this card is that when I showed my hubby he said "I think it needs a small strip of yellow on the bottom"....so there you have it, pigs are officially flying because my hubby is now helping to design my cards!!! You shoulda seen the monkey that flew outta my.........well, you get the idea.

So I went to use my Crop-A-Dile last night to set some eyelets and I kept flipping the top knob around to find the setter for 1/8" eyelets. Hmmm where is it? I know I'm supposed to use a certain one (can you tell I don't use it much for eyelets?). As I looked closer to side "C" I saw a white mark in the center of the hole....hole?!?! Um shouldn't there be a small rod thingy on the C side?!?! Well yes, it's officially broken and I have no idea when or how it broke. Do you think Memory Keepers has a warranty on these?? It's metal! I'm pretty sure it's NOT supposed to pop off, eh? So there's my tragedy of the week. Poor little crop-a-dile... such a short, unfulfilled life.

Stamps - Upsy Daisy, All Holidays
Cardstock - Textured White, Chocolate Chip, So Saffron
Ink - Whisper White craft, More Mustard, Chocolate Chip
Accessories - Chocolate Ribbon, Scallop Circle Punch,

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!

2008-09-09T05:00:00.000-07:00

How amazing are all these goodies?!?! The Prettie Girls sent me a package filled with handmade love!!! I just sat in awe as I opened each special item made just for our new home, I even got all teary. And everything was made with my all time favorite paper (Crate Paper, Seaweed collection) and it matches our house perfectly!! I'm guessing you weren't actually painting your house and needing color suggestions, eh Prettie Mama?? ;)

Charlie embroidered the adorable tea towels with our initials (Scott & Jillian Winters), Jules made the precious little house that has the date we officially owned our home, Danielle stamped some fantastic tiles (always wanted a set of those!) and the phrases she picked were SO us!!! Jana made a super cute photo frame with matching journal (which I can't wait to use) and Jesse gave us two big coffee mugs with my fav rub-ons on them (even the hubby said "sweet!") and an amazing 'welcome' sign that just took my breath away. Even my hubster said to tell you all thank you, he was extremely surprised and impressed with such thoughtful and tasteful goodies. I can't wait to hang them up and put them all to use! THANK YOU GUYS SO VERY MUCH!!!! XOXOXOXO to the Prettiest Girls in the world!

Sweet Angel

2008-09-08T05:00:00.000-07:00

It's rather hard to think about Christmas when it's 106 outside but when I saw this stamp I just had to ink her up. This is Angel Sophia, she is the October SOTM over at Paper Pretties, so if you've signed up for the club then this will be in your mailbox soon!!! For those that aren't part of the club, sadly you'll have to wait until November to purchase her so you might want to think about signing up (you'll FLIP when you see the Nov Sophia OMG)!! I just adore her and of course I had to use my new fabulous Doodlebug Flock that I just got.
Does it get better? Why yes it does!! Paper Pretties is extending their sale for one more week!!! 45 % off EVERYTHING, how fantastic is that?!?! I got some fabulous paper, ribbon, brads and of course some stamps I've been wanting to add to my collection. $100 worth of craft goodies for $55!!! Use the coupon code "Labor Day" when you checkout, sale ends Sept 13th.

Inspired by Nichole...

2008-09-05T06:04:00.000-07:00

I was catching up on my blog surfing the other day and I found myself reading all the old posts on Nichole Heady's blog, I just love her simple and elegant creations. She made an adorable card using fabric and the flower cuttlebug die and I really liked it, so I altered it a bit and used items I had. The flowers were punched using the SU scallop circle punch and textured white cardstock and then I popped them up with dimensionals. I made a ton of these with various sentiments so I'll have them ready when I need them. I've really been trying to make duplicates when I make a card, Michelle Wooderson always says to create in bulk, that way you're not so hesitant to give away your precious card. ;)

Stamps - Polka Dot BG, Heard from the Heart
Cardstock - Textured White, textured Pretty in Pink, So Saffron, Kraft
Ink - Craft White
Accessories - Brad, Grosgrain ribbon, Scallop circle punch, 3/4 circle punch

The good and the bad

2008-09-02T09:33:00.000-07:00

How was everyones 3-day weekend?? I had a fantastic Friday & Saturday. Friday night was a BLAST!! 14 ladies scattered in my living room, family room and dining room. We had a taco bar and everyone brought one ingredient. YUM! Then we had ice cream sundaes for our treats with brownies & cookies on top. DOUBLE YUM!! We stamped, laughed and socialized until 2am!!!! Then I was up early to let the cable guy in, that took all day. I had some gal pals over for lunch and stamping and next thing I knew I had cable!! Sadly, the internet wouldn't connect so I still don't have internet at home. Hopefully they'll get the problem fixed sometime this week....I was ready to throw the computer out the window. LOL

Monday I spent the day baking cookies for my neighbors. I hadn't gone over to say hello yet and we've lived there for nearly 2 months already. So I whipped up a few dozen Chocolate Chip & also my favorite Coconut Oatmeal cookies and went to say hello.

The card is quite cute but didn't photograph well. I used textured white cardstock for the card base and then added a little paper piercing on the Saffron and used my Scor-pal for some dry embossing around the edges of the stamped image layer...

Ok now the fun stuff.....Paper Pretties is having a huge sale!! I mean GINORMOUS!!!! Everything in the Boutique is 45% off!!! And some items were already on sale so they are now almost 80% off!! HOLY COW that's practically FREE!!!! So get your tails over there quickly, it's only while supplies last and at this sale price, my guess is they won't last long!!! Enter coupon code "Labor Day" when you checkout to get the discount.....what are you still doing here?!?! ;)

Stamps - Pocket Silhouettes
Cardstock - Textured White, So Saffron, Old Olive
Ink - So Saffron, Old Olive
Accessories - Scor-Pal, Paper Piercing Tool, Brads, Word Window punch

Happy Friday!!

2008-08-29T08:39:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to start the weekend!! As I left for work today, the streets were lined with RV's and boats. My poor hubby looked like a small child sitting outside the candy store with no money. Anyone with a boat want to adopt two fabulous fun friends??? ;)

So I've rejected Pacific Point almost completely, but Baja Breeze is definitely a must have color this year. It pairs really well with chocolate and Not Quite Navy, love them! I used Shimmer White cardstock for this simple sympathy card. I stamped the main script image from the Fresh Cuts set using Baja Breeze and then filled it in a bit using NQN. I did stamp NQN on NQN for the border strip but it doesn't show up well in the photo. Lastly I added a little doodle piercing to the bottom.

Tonight I have 14 women coming over for my Stampin Fun night and I'm so excited!!!! Then tomorrow I'm having another small gathering for a friends birthday and we'll be having lunch and then stamping the rest of the afternoon (while the cable guy is installing my connection to the outside world). Saturday night I'm going out with the girls for some wine & laughs and then Sunday I'm spending the afternoon in a pedicure chair. Monday night is SIYJ so I'll be running back and forth from my stamp room to the office to hang out and spend time with my Prettie Girls!!! Ahhhhh what a weekend...now if only I could find that friend with a boat, any takers??? ;)

Stamps - SU Fresh Cuts, PTI Out on a Limb
Cardstock - Baja Breeze, NQN, Chocolate Chip, Shimmer White
Ink - Whisper White, NQN, Baja Breeze
Accessories - Paper Piercer, Brads

I miss my camera

2008-08-28T09:15:00.000-07:00

My pictures aren't coming out very well and I apologize, I'm using my mothers camera at the moment because it hooks up to her computer so I can get photos onto the web. Come Saturday I'll have my OWN internet, I'm so excited!!!! Here is a quickly I made to show off the new Upsy Daisy set which I absolutely adore!!! I snagged this layout from the latest SU Success and switched up the colors and the tag. I wasn't sure how I would feel about the new colors but I must admit that I love the Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze, Red Riding Hood and the Pink Pirouette....the jury is still out on the Pacific Point & Tangerine Tango. :) I used textured Chocolate Chip for the small strip at the bottom and the ticket tag is popped up on dimensionals.

I love KISS-ing (Keep It Simple Stamping...ok it's supposed to be Stupid but I like my version better!). If I spend 4 hours on a card, odds are I'm not going to give it away. ;) One of my favorite blogs is Stampin Kub and he's really been talking a lot about keeping it simple lately, so my goal is to do just that AND get them in the mail (I'm horrible about that).

Stamps - Upsy Daisy
Cardstock - Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Ink - Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip
Accessories - Brads

Is it Friday yet?

2008-08-27T08:15:00.001-07:00

So this week seems to be dragging...anyone else having that issue? Perhaps it's because I'm looking forward to the 3-day weekend a bit too much. The hubby will be out of town helping a friend move so I'm having the gals over Friday night and Sat afternoon for stamp time. What better chance to take over the house, right? ;)

Here is the card I made for the Stampers Club this last weekend. The technique was Faux Silk and it was a real challenge to keep this card simple so 1. it would be quick for 12 gals to throw together and 2. keep the focus on the technique and not the design of the card. Everyone LOVED the new scallop border punch, even me! I'm so hesitant when it comes to punches these days (they are so flimsy and they break all the time) but SU has yet to disappoint me so I'm hangin in there.

I'm also excited for Monday night, Sept 1st as it's the monthly SIYJ (Stampin In Your Jammies) over at Paper Pretties. I haven't been able to attend these for months due to the move and lack of computer at home but as of Saturday I'll have internet again!! YAY!!!! So bet your tail I'll be planted right in front of my computer on Monday night stampin' with the Prettie Girls!!

Stamps - Fresh Cuts, All Holidays
Cardstock - Pink Pirouette, Close to Cocoa, Vanilla
Ink - Pink Pirouette, Close to Cocoa
Accessories - Paper Piercing tool, Scallop Edge Punch, Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon

Floors, paint & stamps...oh my!

2008-08-24T19:32:00.000-07:00

I love you guys!!!! I had no idea when I posted my last little blurb how many of you 1) were still around and 2) are so fabulous and wonderful. Thank you all very much for your well wishes, it is my goal to start making time for myself and my health. We get cable next weekend (whoo hooo!) and my sister made me promise to TiVo the Yoga channel and do the easy stretches at least 3 times a week. There is no way to eliminate stress out of your life but you can take 30 minutes a few times a week and try to help your body cope with it, right? And even though I prefer ice cream therapy, my growing jean size would like to see me quit. LMAO

Ok so here are some pics from the house, since I know you're all dying to see what we've done thus far. I'll be taking more as we go, I just had these on my camera card and FINALLY got over to my sisters house so I could put them up on here to show you!

Here's the large family room, this area was all carpet which then transitioned into linoleum in the kitchen to the right. We put this tile flooring throughout most of the house, hallway and bathrooms. Now only the formal living and master bedroom have carpet. Walls were nasty beige so we changed it to a soft custard yellow with white trim. All new baseboards as well...they are 6" and I love them!Here is the laminate flooring that I DID in my stamp room (it will go in the guest bedroom as well).

We've also done the laundry room, guest bath & master bedroom but I didn't have any pics on my camera from that so I'll have to take some. I did have a fabulous weekend of friends, family and I even managed to squeeze in a little stamp time! More to come this week as we head into a 3-day weekend. Anyone have any grand plans coming up?!?!

XOXO

GASP

2008-08-21T10:14:00.000-07:00

Pssst, anyone out there? Greetings from beyond the grave! Ok, so not the grave but there is definitely dirt involved. LOL So it has been 8 weeks or so since I've been able to blog and now that I have the chance, I don't know where to start!

The house.....coming along but we hit some road bumps and had to take a break. We STILL don't have internet or cable at our new home but we're getting by just fine. Installation is scheduled for Aug 30th so, fingers crossed, I'll be able to check email, blog, post pics and get back in the swing of things.

Stamping.....I've been trying to get things organized enough to sit down for some good ol' stamp time and by this weekend I'm sure I'll do just that. My new Stampers Club starts this Saturday and I just can't wait to see everyone. Plus I've gone through all of my old stamps & accessories and have tons of goodies that will be looking for new homes!

Health.....getting better. For those that know me, I'm not the average bear. And this bear got hit with a large bolt of stress + heat = flare up. I have MS, Multiple Sclerosis and when the magic bolt hits, my body just lays down until it's over. I lost my vision for 5 weeks and I swear I was going to lose my mind if I had to lay in bed one more day. Shortly after that, my vision started to return and I began to lose use of my hands. Well as any stamp addict knows you CAN'T lose your hands!!!! So the doc pumped me up with magic pills and now my hands are listening to me again and doing what I say. ;)

So there is my update, I'm sure there are only about 3 people left reading this blog but I assure you once my stamp groove is back, you'll be checkin' back more often and loving this blog once more. Plus I'll post some killer blog candy just to bribe you into reading for a while. LOL

XOXO

Checking in

2008-07-08T12:59:00.000-07:00

I thought that being without tv and a computer for a few weeks would be torture but surprisingly I've had so much to do that I haven't noticed....until now. I just got back to work and had over 100 emails and thought I'd be spending my entire workday catching up. *hugs to everyone for all the love & well wishes*

So I've learned a lot about myself during this house thing,,,,

1. I am chaotic and never can stick to just one thing (which means nothing gets fully completed)

2. I pay way too much attention to the small details (can be good in crafting, bad when shopping for paint colors and not making a darn decision)

3. I laugh...A LOT! Mostly at myself, but occasionally at others. Life is just friggin funny! You get to a point when things are so hectic & insane that you just have to laugh....or check yourself into the looney bin. ;)

4. I love our new house. Sure, we're still on concrete floors and dirt is everywhere and I'm digging through boxes just to find a clean pair of chonies (undies for those with a questioned look on their face). No one can penalize us for painting a wall, making big holes or tearing out carpet....cause it's OURS!

5. I sleep HARD when I've been working around the house all day, wow! I've had such horrible sleeping issues this year, was on Ambien for a short while til the doc said "no more!"....talk about taking the candy away from the baby, omg! But now, I'm out cold each night and I sleep SOOOO good. Not to mention the fabulous George Clooney dreams. Mmmmmm ;)

I will try and post pics as soon as I can (our computer at home is still boxed up so I have to take them to my parents to get them off my camera card, but I'll post by Sat I promise!). Today the grouting is being finished in the kitchen & family room and the base boards are going into my stamp room so I can START UNPACKING IT!! YIPPEEE!!!! I did all the laminate flooring myself! (go me, whoot whoot)

So I'm guessing another week until I'm semi-functional and soon I'll be able to stamp again!!! YAY!!! I've missed my Wed Prettie challenges and all the fun new stamp releases, so be sure you keep checking everyones blogs to see what's new.

XOXOXO

Did a bomb hit California?

2008-06-24T23:22:00.000-07:00

By the looks of our new home we're guessing the answer it 'YES!' So let's take a tour, shall we?

The entry way, welcoming you to our brand new home!!! Isn't it stunning??? I think the grout residue when you first walk in gives it a rustic feel.
Dinner anyone? As I've learned from my elders, if you cover your furniture with plastic it will last much longer. So I thought covering everything would ensure a lifetime of home appliance bliss!Ahh yes, the bathroom....we felt it would save time if we just placed the toilet IN the shower, thus cutting your morning shower time by at least 5 minutes.

Dorothy followed the yellow brick road, so we thought it only appropriate to follow the ceramic brown tile...has a ring to it don't ya think?

And finally my glowing craft room. It's actually celery with white accents but when I removed the blinds to paint the trim the sun burst in and the room began to glow!

So there is an update, I have been working all day and then coming home to this and working til midnight with the hubby to seek and destroy our home! LMAO

Ok bedtime, I'm officially delirious from lack of good sleep. XOXO

IT'S OURS!!!!

2008-06-20T09:01:00.000-07:00

It's finally ours!!!! We got the keys in our hands yesterday and we broke in the new house with a sledgehammer!!!! :) So I will be sanding, painting and cleaning this entire weekend and I can't even sit still thinking about it. I want to get to the paint store right now, but sadly work won't let me go home early just because I want to shop for paint. Do they not understand that I will be completely sidetracked and unfocused until I get my paint?!?!! LMAO

Thank you all SO much for your words of encouragement, this was a serious emotional roller coaster and I'm thrilled that it's finally over. I loved getting your comments and emails telling me to hang in there, look at the big picture and I'm not the only one out there that has gone through this crazy crap! Thanks sistahs, love & hugs to you all.....I'll post pics as the changes are made. Sadly, it's going to take a ton of time because we both work full time so we'll only have the few hours in the evening to work on our projects. First thing to get done....STAMP ROOM!!!!!

Happy Friday everyone!! xoxo

A you freakin' kidding me?!?!?!

2008-06-17T13:18:00.000-07:00

So I get a call this morning at 8am that our lender will not fund our loan until the gutters are cleaned, the loose tile in the bathroom is replaced, the toilet seal is replaced and the garage is swept. SERIOUSLY?!?!?! Is this seriously happening?!?!? On a house that we're BUYING?!?!!? We will do those things when we're in it, but BEFORE?!?!?! Someone please talk me down off the cliff otherwise I'm going to drive straight off it!!!

I promise I'm alive......barely

2008-06-16T22:21:00.000-07:00

I just realized I haven't posted anything in 10 days *gasp*. I can't even believe it's been that long since I've inked up rubber or even had something to blab about. Ok, so I've had plenty to blab about just no time to get it out of my fingertips. The house is almost ours....we've been researching, prepping, ordering and selecting everything for the past 10 days to be sure that we're set to paint, install, update, etc the moment we get the keys (which was supposed to be the 9th...which then turned into the 13th....which is now the 17th...maybe). So who knows when we'll have keys in our hands! It's very frustrating but we know it'll be here before we know it and we'll be even more exhausted than we already are. On the upside, tiles arrived today so we picked those up. Did you know how heavy a case of tile is?!! It took 3 trips to Home Depot just to get it back to the house without popping tires! WOWSA! So I'm exhausted, still packing every night along with scheduling demolition dates, moving vans, contractors and tree removal companies....fun stuff. Not to mention working full time still, packing and cleaning our rental and also starting a photography class Thursday this week. What exactly was I thinking?? I promise I'll post more soon, just working day to day at the moment and stamping is on the back burner (ACK, did I just say that?!?!) ;)

Fabulous Friday!

2008-06-06T07:24:00.001-07:00

I'm am in such need of some 'retail therapy' right now! This penny pinching is torture!!! ;) So why not live vicariously through a bella, eh? This was the Pretties March bella, Savyshopabella....do you see the resemblance? We're like twins, I tell ya! *lol*

I just adore this fun flower paper with bright pinks & greens, it's from DCWV summer stack. Almost everywhere you turn there is something about score lines or embossing the edges of images. I've been doing that for years using a brass template and embossing tool. Just run it across the edges of your paper and make a fun embossed border! I stamped my bella in Adirondack pitch black ink, this is by far the BEST ink when working with Copics. The skinny oval shape is from the Sassy Circles set, which is perfect for grounding your bellas. I've been stalking every website and local scrap store in search of the Swiss Dots embossing folder and I finally got my hands on it...love it! Now I know why Joanne uses it so much, it's just perfect for any card!

I know the Pretties subscribers will miss their monthly boxes since they end this month but now you can sign up for the Stamp of the Month club and get exclusive Paper Pretties stamps before anyone else! Plus now they even have gift certificates...you can get ribbon, stamps, brads, paper, and if you're stumped for what to get me for a house warming, just add a gift certificate to your basket! ;) Have a fabulous Friday folks, I have a long weekend of packing ahead of me. xoxo

Prettie Wednesday

2008-06-04T05:30:00.000-07:00

Does anyone remember having the EggBaby project in school? Well, this weeks challenge from Jana was to make a baby card using Paper Pretties stamps. I sat at my table (half packed away in boxes) and could not for the life of me think of anything "baby". And then it hit me....Egg Babies!!! So I broke out my favorite baby boy DCWV paper (Charlie and I just can't get enough of it) and went to work. I love using apricot, turquoise and celery together, it's a great color combo! I opted to paper piece the egg using the coordinating polka dot paper in the stack. I love the glittery bits, they just make it pop. I didn't want to go too crazy so I added a small PTI sentiment at the bottom.

The boxes are slowly stacking up around us and I think it's enough to drive a person to insanity (I was 75% there already with all this house buying stuff). I've packed about 1/2 of my stamp room and it's torture. I only packed what I knew I hadn't touched in at least a year *cringe* that way I was sure not to need it for any upcoming classes or projects. Well next week I have to have it ALL packed and I think I might cry. I hardly get any free time to stamp as it is right now but once I tape up the last box I won't even be able to day dream about stamping. *sigh*

Ok, enough of my pity party, I just need to focus on flooring, painting, cleaning and then unpacking my NEW stamp room!! YIPPEEE!!!! Ok, I feel better. ;)

Stamps - Paper Pretties - One of Those Days
Cardstock - DCWV
Ink - SU Not Quite Navy
Accessories - Copics, Nesties

Happy Anniversary!

2008-06-02T13:19:00.001-07:00

2 years ago today, I was falling asleep in the pedicure chair because I got absolutely no sleep the night before my wedding. I just kept thinking I would sleep through my alarm and miss everything, well that and my bridesmaid snored all night! *lol* I wasn't nervous a bit, I was actually excited that the wait was over. All the planning was done and I had to let go of it all and trust everyone to do their part. No butterflies, no tears, no problem.....until we got to the wedding site. I peered outside and saw Scott down in the garden in his tux, I lost it!! Oh and I did great on my vows until the very last line, then my voice cracked and my eyes filled up and it was over. Thank God for waterproof mascara, right ladies?? ;)

We're off to celebrate Indiana Jones style! (Jen would be proud) The movie selection was his gift and the popcorn with extra butter is my gift! He's still just as handsome as the day I married him, sadly I'm not quite as thin nor as tan. Hmm, perhaps I'll pass on the extra butter tonight......nah!!!!! ;)

Belated Prettie Day

2008-05-29T05:39:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we were challenged to make a bookmark. Since I'm currently reading this book I opted for something simple. Of course I tend to lean towards simple, clean looks more often than not anyway, so it wasn't really out of character I suppose. *lol*

I used the single flower from the Bloomin' Beautiful set which is currently featured in the Occasions Mini catalog. I wanted to have a sentiment following along the stemline but couldn't find anything small enough to fit. Finally I remembered you can reposition rub-ons so I grabbed the ones I got during Sale-a-bration and they were perfect! I stamped the image in Brilliance Black ink and then colored the flower using Copics YG11, YG63, R81, R83, R85 and my yellow glitter stardust pen for the center.

My weekend goal is to make my hubby an anniversary card. Our 2 year anniversary is this coming up Monday, June 2nd and since we bought each other a house our wallets are pretty much tapped for gifts. Anyone have any creative ideas for a thoughtful, cheap, handmade guy gift? Details and directions if ya do! ;) xoxo

Oopsie

2008-05-28T13:44:00.000-07:00

You mean it's not Tuesday?!?! Nope, it's Prettie Wednesday and I completely forgot! The holiday weekend threw me off a bit and today is my day to challenge! Two weeks ago Charlie assigned the challenge to create a bookmark (mine will be posted tomorrow since I totally forgot to post it today before I left for work) and last week Jana challenged us to create a Baby card using Paper Pretties stamps (and I just ordered all the new releases and a few others that I didn't have yet so I can't wait to get them!!)

Today my challenge to everyone is to "Make it new again!". Dust off your oldest stamp or set and create something with it. Come on, give it a shot! You once loved it for a reason right??

The house...

2008-05-28T06:54:00.001-07:00

Since I have received a few emails and comments asking about the house I thought it would be easier to show you ;) We have our work cut out for us but I know in the end it will be worth it. Now remember, you're looking at the potential. *lol*

When you walk in the door there is a living room to the right (where my mom is looking-ish), and if you were to walk straight ahead there is a family room (where the fireplace is).

So if you go right into the living room it wraps around to a dining area and then heads into the kitchen

The kitchen which opens up to the family room (the one with the fireplace you saw in the previous pic)

The guest bathroom...

From left to right - the hall closet, laundry room, stamp room
I skipped over the guest room and hallway, although it's fabulous because it's filled with tons of cabinets (just forgot to take a pic apparently). So here is the Master, it has vaulted ceilings but the fan is mounted WAY too low, that will be one of the first things to go. ;) Oh and there is a master bath but I forgot to photo that too, nice huh? LOL

And lastly the rose garden in the backyard. I have a brown thumb so hopefully since they are already established, I can keep them alive so people will think my thumb is a slight shade of green ;)

So that's it! Again, lots to do but we're looking forward to it. Everyday we're running errands and taking measurements and meeting with plumbers, contractors, painters, engineers (don't ask). So my stamping is slacking but I think it'll be worth it! ;)

A Beautiful Bella day

2008-05-27T07:00:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing holiday weekend! I was so looking forward to having 3 days to myself (hubby planned a weekend of camping with the guys). So Friday night I had the girls over for a Stamp night aka stamp, gossip and eat chocolate night. ;) I don't think the party ended til after midnight, I so needed that girl time! Well the next morning around 8am there was this horrible noise outside my front door. I staggered to the living room just in time for the front door to open and Scott to say "I'm home!" Apparently there was a snow storm at his camp site so they packed up and came home...there went my 3 days off. *lol* But on the upside I did enjoy some relaxing time with my fella, went shopping at Contractor's Warehouse (omg love that place) and yesterday we signed escrow papers!!! It'll be a matter of weeks until we get the keys to our new home and the renovations can begin!

So the only stamping I got done was this one card on Friday night. I fell in love with this floral paper a while ago and never got around to using it. It feels wedding-ish to me since it's soft and elegant so I brought out my Bridalbellas. I have a cousin who is getting married in August and she truly IS a bella....this gal is just gorgeous! No clue what her colors are yet but I think this will be perfect for her bridal shower.

Stamps - Bridalpartybellas by Stampingbella, Inkadinkado sentiments
Cardstock - So Saffron, Whisper White
Ink - Brilliance Black
Accessories - Copic Markers, Glitter, Organdy Ribbon, Corner Punch

Memorial Day Sales

2008-05-26T08:10:00.000-07:00

If anyone is looking for online Memorial Day sales there definitely a few good ones out there...

www.Addictedtorubberstamps.com has everything on sale plus half-price shipping - I got some cute Penny Black stamps from there!

www.polkadotplaza.com has 10% off your entire order (coupon code mem10) - got my Monogram stamper and some Nestabilities from there

www.joanns.com has tons of scrapbook items on sale and 40% off one item (coupon code sed152)

Happy shopping and I hope everyone has a fabulous holiday weekend! I'll be spending the rest of my day at Contractors Warehouse and Lowe's....they really need a stamping & crafts aisle in that place, then I wouldn't gripe that we've spent 4 hours in there! LOL

Prettie Party recap

2008-05-23T10:43:00.001-07:00

Paper Pretties had a fabulous release party last night and introduced the world to three new adorable sets! Sadly I was stuck filling out loan paperwork for most of the evening so I missed it. :( So if you missed the party too, here's a quick recap....

The first stamp challenge was to use Buttons. Jessie made this adorable card featuring Cooper from the new Look Out World set!

This is another one of the sets that was release, One of Those Days. Jules created this for the first challenge as well...only one button but hey, it's a button!! (her words) LOL

And lastly the third set released was Sweets for the Sweet, my fav of the bunch! Here is an adorable apron card created by the Prettie Mama herself, Christie.

The second challenge was to use light blue, celery & chocolate. I absolutely LOVE this color combo and the cards the gals made were just amazing. This is my fav, created by Danielle. Isn't her coloring fabulous??
The second one is by Charmaine, love those giant brads and I'm definitely putting this layout in my layout book!
And the last challenge of the night was to create a treat box/package. This is Charmaine's recipe box using the new Sweets for the Sweet, too adorable isn't it?!?!

I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend!!!! XOXO

Be Inspired...

2008-05-21T08:44:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago Jules challenged us to "be inspired". Normally, the inspiration comes from a magazine photo of a bedding set or something from a Crate & Barrel catalog and you are then to create a card "inspired" by that photo. Well, I decided to twist my inspiration a bit. I was inspired to finish something I had started. A while back, Joanne posted these adorable stationary cards with a holder. I was inspired to make my own and I had created the holder a while ago but not the stationary...I just said "oh I'll get to it sometime" (anyone else do that and end up with a huge pile of need-to-get-back-to stuff??)

So I sat my tail down and stamped away. I am in love with the SU designer papers, especially the groovy guava. I used the Mixed Messages set from PTI (love it) for the sentiments, I did a variety so I had a few different occasions covered. Luckily it got my engine going and I was inspired to finish a ton of projects I had set aside, so be sure to check back as I will be posting them regularly (now that they are finally done!) ;)

If you haven't heard already, the latest release from Paper Pretties is tomorrow!!! 3 new sets will be released and the party starts at 8pm EST in the Prettie Forum. There will be card challenges posted during the party so clear off your stamp table and get ready for a virtual stamp night with the Prettie Girls!!!

Stamps - Baroque Motifs (SU), Mixed Messages (PTI), Borders & Corners Circle (PTI)
Cardstock -Groovy Guava, Blush Blossom, Shimmery White
Ink - Groovy Guava, Blush Blossom
Accessories - Scallop Punch (SU), White ribbon (SU)

Just for Dad...

2008-05-19T06:49:00.001-07:00

This is a Tool Time card just for Dad! I started this a while ago and never got around to finishing it, so since it was over 100 this weekend I stayed inside and got a lot done. :) The tools are dry embossed using the tool template from Lasting Impressions. I punched out a small circle and stamped "DAD" from the new Pond Life PTI set. I also roughed up the edges just a bit so it matched the card. I love using the Lasting Impressions cardstock because it has a white core so you can sand off the ridges and really make the images pop. The colors used here are Fudge, Silver, Poppy, Artichoke and Limeade Dots. I am currently in the process of creating dry embossing card kits for Polka Dot Plaza, I only have one done thus far but there will be more to come so be sure to check back soon!!!

Stamps - PTI "DAD"
Cardstock - Lasting Impressions Fudge, Silver, Poppy, Artichoke, Limeade Dots
Ink - Chocolate Chip
Accessories - Brass Template, Dimensionals, Paper Scuffer

A little girls birthday...

2008-05-16T06:01:00.000-07:00

My friends little girl turns 3 this weekend so I wanted to make her a "big girl" card for her birthday. I brought out my Flutterby Sophia set from Paper Pretties and I love the phrase "Flutter your wings and fly" that comes in this set. The paper is from the same stack I've been using a lot of lately, American Designs or something (can't recall the name). I actually created a frame using the scallop oval Nesties, rather than just layering two pieces. It adds a little dimension in real life. I also decided I was bored with the straight edges so I threw a bit of a curve to the background paper. I thought about doing scallops but didn't want to take away from the focal point. I used Copics for the coloring and topped it off with some taffeta ribbon.

Don't forget, there is only one day left for the Paper Pretties chipboard sale. Drop on over to the Boutique and check out all the fun stuff that has been added and be sure to visit the sale section for some great deals (before they're gone!)

Stamps - Flutterby's
Cardstock - Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose
Ink - same
Accessories -Copics, Nesties

Blooming with Love...

2008-05-15T07:16:00.001-07:00

I am in love with this set! Ever since I saw it I knew I had to have it and lately I've been seeing it a bit more from my favorite bloggers. Joanne made an adorable card with it just the other day and Michelle created some fabulous quick cards a few weeks ago. So I finally broke down and ordered it and I adore it!!!

I got a large stack of Wild Asparagus paper last year from Costco and I've been avoiding it...until now. I loved this fun stripe criss-cross paper so I decided to pair it up with some Pumpkin Pie & Chocolate chip cardstock. A little paper piercing along the bottom pumpkin strip and I added the small flower from the Bloomin' with Love set across the upper half of the strip. I used my Rectangle Nesties for the image & the scallop nesties for the chocolate layer. And of course Copics for the coloring & airbrush for the background orange.

It's a gorgeous day!

2008-05-13T08:34:00.000-07:00

Oh the life of a beachabella! Since the weather is warming up, I thought it only appropriate to start stamping with summer stamps. Of course, beachabella is at the top of the list! I got my hands on this paper a month ago and I've been dying to use it. I used Copics to color her in and my Sakura Glitter roll pen for her bag, she looks better with bling. ;) I love using the Karen Foster snap-stamps, it's a shame they were discontinued. I added a little doodle and roughed up the edges a bit and she's ready to hit the sand!

We're starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel with the house hunting. Thank you all so very much for your kind thoughts and words of encouragement. I never knew this was so exhausting, but in the end I know it will be well worth it!

Stamps - Beachabella - Stampingbella, Snapstamps
Paper - unknown as it wasn't marked
Ink - Brilliance Black
Accessories -Copics, Paper Distressing Tool, White Eyelets

A belated wish...

2008-05-12T08:58:00.000-07:00

Happy belated Mother's Day to everyone!!!! I have been MIA for a few days as we have expanded our house search radius thus causing my brain to explode. I curled up in a ball on Saturday evening and told the world to go away...and it did, for about two hours. Sunday was fabulous as we had a large family bbq and the food was just amazing....so much for my diet. There's always next week, right? ;)

This is May's Copic card on the PP forum. Each month over at Paper Pretties there is a step-by-step tutorial using Copic markers. It's a great way to learn about shading, blending, and even the airbrush system. Paper Pretties also just announced their new Stamp of the Month club! This new club features pre-releases of Paper Pretties stamps along with access to the online galleries and tutorials available on the Paper Pretties website. Head over there for a quick peek, the first stamp is simply adorable!!

Stamps - Paper Pretties Simply Special
Cardstock - Bashful Blue, So Saffron, SU Designer Paper
Ink - Brilliance Black
Accessories - Copic Markers, Oval Nesties, Copic Airbrush

New Toy!!

2008-05-07T23:01:00.000-07:00

I think we got home around 10:30pm last night after running around house hunting, meeting with a contractor to look at the current house we're still debating on and going back and forth to Kinko's to fax paperwork to various agents. OYE! My hubby still had to do his homework and begged me to stay up with him for just 10 minutes while he finished. Ten minutes?

Ok, what's quick and will feed my stamp craving? The Monogram Stamper by JustRite was my selection, I just got this cute little guy the other day and it was still in its packaging (can't have that now can we?). I remembered a gorgeous stationary set that Debbie made so I whipped this together in 9.5 minutes leaving me 30 seconds left to turn off the light and go climb into bed. I used the Special Occasions companion kit (which comes with a small wood mount stamp) and the Versmagic dew drops. Sure it's not fancy but hey, I knocked out 3 cards in under ten minutes so I fell asleep with a feeling of accomplishment! *lol*

Stamps - DIY Monogram Stamper
Cardstock - Wild Asparagus, Groovy Guava, Whisper White
Ink - Pink Grapefruit Versamagic
Accessories - Nesties

Well....it's Wednesday

2008-05-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

"When it's too good to be true it usually is"

I'm trying to find the silver lining in this house thing and I just can't. I love it, I want it....but it's a mess. Inspection reports came back and the previous owners basically abandoned their home and any issues it had, just left it to rot (figuratively and literally). No bandaid will fix these issues, it needs to go to the hospital just to survive. But do we want to take that on? The overall attributes of this home are what we love...location, school districts, open floor plan, vaulted ceilings, sq. footage. *sigh*

We spent yesterday making phone calls like crazy, I left work early to go see two new houses that were just listed. Insurance company won't even insure the new house in it's present condition. The bank wants a detailed estimate from a contractor for mandatory repairs BY THURSDAY! We just got the report on Tuesday! I had class Tues night and now I'm back at work trying to juggle work and personal (REALLY hard when it's busy).

Just needed to vent. I haven't seen my stamp room since Friday and I think it's taking it's toll. *lol*

Look at all the ladybugs!

2008-05-04T17:03:00.000-07:00

There were hundreds, I swear! They were crawling all over my nephew and he was in heaven. He laughed, ran around chasing after them. Letting them crawl into his hand and then watched as they flew away. Getting him to leave was quite a task, he didn't want to leave all the ladybugs behind. "They don't have anyone to take care of them, Auntie". Seriously, could you just melt?! Oh and he picked out his room.....

I have a feeling he'll be spending most of his time in his closet since it doubles as a jungle gym. LOL

A picture is worth a thousand words....

2008-05-04T16:52:00.000-07:00

And this picture melts my heart. This was at my wedding in 2006, my mom dancing with my baby nephew (who reminds me that he is 'no longer a baby auntie!').

I wanted to make a fun project for my Stamp Club and since Mother's Day is coming up I thought picture frames would be perfect. Everyone seems to be scared to use rub-ons but they truly are SO EASY!

Be sure to always clean your surface with alcohol to remove any grease, dust or residue. Simply cut out the rub-on of choice (I used one from the Sale-A-Bration set) and place it on the glass where desired. Each rub-on pack comes with a "rub-on tool" (popsicle stick people, sheesh). Just rub the stick over the image and slowly remove the paper. If a piece doesn't attach, just put it back in place and rub it again.

It's wonderful for vases, glass candle holders and obviously frames. Just be sure you only use a soft cloth to clean with as the rub-ons are not dishwasher-proof or Windex friendly. ;)

Guess what???

2008-05-02T04:06:00.000-07:00

Yep, that's right....we found a house!!! We didn't tell anyone that we submitted an offer on this one because we didn't want to jinx it (since the last one fell through).

I wanted to tell my family so I invited them all out to some yummy Mexican food for a pre-Cinco de Mayo dinner...which was just my cover. ;) Then I made these adorable little postcards (the address is on there but thought it best to photoshop it out, just in case anyone tries to steal it from us!) Once the final papers are signed and we have keys, then I'll relax. LOL

So to all of you that put us in your thoughts and prayers and crossed every finger you have, THANK YOU!!!!!

Never enough time...

2008-04-30T08:43:00.000-07:00

Does anyone else feel like this lately? As if there is just not enough time in the day to get everything done? I have been spinning my wheels like crazy, we're house hunting again since the first one fell through. Every day after work we're driving around for hours looking at houses and I'm just exhausted. The little "me" time I get, I end up watching tv or napping, I just can't even muster the energy to get into the stamp room and have some fun. So everyone please keep your fingers crossed that we find something soon.....I need to get back to normal. :)

It's Prettie Wednesday today but sadly I was unable to finish my card last night because I fell asleep at the stamp table. My sweet hubster came in and found me zonked out on my table and thought it best to drag me off to bed. Needless to say my image blurred a bit from my cheek, so I think I'll have to redo that. But go check out the Prettie Girls blogs and see what adorable cards they came up with, today it's Christie's day to issue the challenge....use Acetate. This should be a fun one!!!!

And don't forget to submit your guess here for your chance to win 6 months of free stamps!!!!

Bright and cheery PLUS Watermark Winners!

2008-04-28T06:15:00.000-07:00

I stepped inside the box. I found these stamps on sale over the weekend and something said "buy them", so of course I listened. ;) I stamped two of the window images on white cardstock so that I could play with coloring a bit. Once I had one colored I looked at it and really liked it (rare that I like a trial run) so I colored the other image the exact same and stamped the second window image from this set in the middle. What started out as a scrap piece of paper for practice coloring turned into a very cute card (I think).

I wanted to create a polka dot border coming out from the sentiment but found that I don't actually have any. *shock* So I got a little creative and used my rectangle polka dot border from PTI and only inked two sides. :) I also used SU's Sanded background stamp using PTI Spring Moss ink on the top strip of Celery paper. It gives the card texture but sadly it doesn't show up very well in the photo.

~WATERMARK GIVEAWAY~

Ok so I know most of you are just dying to know who will be getting a custom watermark so here it is.....

Hubby picked

12 - Jean (Jhcross)

17 - Lorraine

21 - Lois E.

29 - Carissa

There you have it. Not one, not two, but four winners!!! Please email me ladies with the name you'd like displayed on your watermark. :) xoxo

Stamps - Stampendous, Paper Tray Ink
Cardstock - SU Cool Caribbean, PTI Spring Moss
Ink - PTI Spring Moss, PTI Aqua Mist, Brilliance Black
Copics - Y11, YG03, Y38, YR21, BG45, BV01

Honey-Do-List

2008-04-23T22:20:00.000-07:00

Have you been over to the new Paper Pretties site?!?! It's fabulous, much more user friendly and very easy to navigate through. Every month I will be posting a tutorial on there so be sure to register and check it out. There are also RAK groups, swaps, monthly Pajama Parties and of course (my fav) shopping!!!!

This month I decided to do a step-by-step tutorial on how to create a notepad. I used some fabulous Crate paper from the boutique and my favorite stamp, Luke & Lexi, from the Sealed with a Kiss stamp set. For details visit the Prettie Forum and register as a member!

Don't forget to leave a comment about your favorite thing about Spring on this post, I will be giving away a personalized watermark on Monday!!

Prettie Wednesday

2008-04-22T20:58:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Jana challenged us to use polka dots on a card. It had been quite a while since I played with my bellas so I flipped through my bella book to see which one I wanted use. Do you know this one had yet to be inked?!?! *enter gasp here* I scrambled through my papers and ran across this polkadot pattern from the Pretties Cruisabella box last year. It matches perfectly with Certainly Celery, Almost Amethyst and Orchid Opulence. I added a doodle border around my bella & fella and popped them up on dimensionals. Lastly I put a strip of celery paper across the bottom and punched the "retail therapy" using my large SU oval punch.

Danielle is our challenger today so be sure to stop by her blog to see what tricks she has up her sleeve. Also be sure to visit the other Prettie blogs to see their polka dot creations.

Essence of Spring & some candy!!!

2008-04-22T05:11:00.000-07:00

I adore spring time...flowers blooming, birds singing, me sneezing. ;) No, honestly I truly love springtime and this card is a perfect reflection of how I felt yesterday. I was driving around town with my mom just looking at flowers, appreciating all the beauty that we tend to pass by in this crazy world. The simple things....flowers. I immediately came home and ran to my stamp room, I knew I just had to ink up this stamp.

I used Regal Rose for the card base and at first I had just a plain piece of Apricot for the background layer, but I knew I wanted to have texture to it so I swapped it out for a piece of patterned Apricot paper. Because it has a white core I was able to sand the edges and scratch up the paper a bit, love that look! I stamped the flower image using Versamark and then chalked the vines and flowers with matching SU chalks. I did wipe over the entire image with a swiffer cloth when I was done (works great!). Next I ran it through my bug using my Nestabilities and layered onto Certainly Celery. I roughed up the edges a bit more so that it tied in with my textured background. I used my friend Joanne's slot punch ribbon trick and then added some paper piercing around the bottom. The greeting is from the new PTI Pond Life that I got this week, I stamped it first in Regal Rose and then moved the stamp just ever so slightly and stamped again (without reinking) to give it a 3-D look. Lastly, I popped up the main image with dimensionals and was done!

Please note my fluttery watermark on the photo, a bit softer than the polkadot one. Would you like to have a watermark of your own? Well today is your lucky day! I am offering up some tasty blog candy in the form of a custom watermark made just for you! Just drop a comment on this post letting me know your favorite thing about Spring. The winner will be selected on Monday, April 28th at 12:00pm PST (thanks to my number picking hubby Scott) I'm a pick-a-number-between kinda gal, random.org just ain't my style...I won't let robots rule the world! *lol* ;) So drop me a note and share with me your Spring tales.

A cute little bug...

2008-04-18T07:38:00.000-07:00

...named Wade. I am currently obsessed with this color scheme....I'm even wearing it today! Well, not the top hat just the turquoise and green clothing. ;) I used the polka dots from Sassy Circles and white craft ink to make my background paper. Copics for coloring and Nesties for the layers. I left the rectangle nestie on my main image and sponged a bit of Cool Caribbean around the edges to achieve the airbrushed look...I'll be getting one soon!! When I met Debbie Olsen at CHA she showed me a few tricks using the airbrush and I knew I would soon be shelling out a pretty penny to own one.

Notice the cute watermark?? In my Adobe Elements class I've been learning about layers and brushes so when I stumbled across the tutorial by Kurtis I understood exactly what he was talking about. I already had this watermark created from class but he gave me a few extra tips on how to change the lighting of my font.

Hmm, anyone hungry for some candy yet? Stay tuned...

Answers to Photoshop questions

2008-04-17T08:48:00.000-07:00

I'm so sorry that my post was so short the other day, I was literally AT my class and snuck onto the web just to show off what I learned. ;) I've received quite a few questions so I wanted to answer as many as I could.

1. Is this class online? No, it is at an adult education school that offers TONS of fabulous classes in the evenings for working gals like me. I really encourage you to poke around your own area and see if there is something available like this, they have floral arranging, digital photography (that's my next one), excel, accounting, and tons of other wonderful courses.

2. Where was the photo taken? No clue! In the class there are preselected photos for us to all use and learn techniques with, we won't use our own photos until week 6. I'm on week 2. :)

3. How did you do that? Honestly, it's a matter of working with light levels. Once you learn that, you can pretty much fix any photo you take. It's like magic...at least that's how I feel about it. Every picture I fix I just say to myself "wow, that's cool!".

4. What program did you use? I'm working with Photoshop Elements 6.0 - available at Costco for $79.99 or on Amazon.com for around the same price.

I also am learning how to create Watermarks so I hope everyone keeps checking back, I'll have fun blog candy to offer next week!!!

Photoshop class...

2008-04-15T20:56:00.000-07:00

Before...

After...

Cool eh???? Ok, gotta get back to class...just had to share.

Skipping Spring

2008-04-14T22:49:00.000-07:00

And jumping into Summer!!! *splash* This was my Summer themed card for the first challenge at SIYJ last Friday evening. The challenge was to make a card using bright summer colors....I chose Only Orange, Positively Pink (remember that one?), and Green Galore. This is one of my favorite MFT sets so I just had to use it. Copics for the coloring of course and some paper piercing and white grosgrain to finish it off! Anyone ready for bathing suit season?? I'm SO NOT!!! ;)

Such an honor....

2008-04-11T08:31:00.000-07:00

I was recently contacted by Andi at Crafts on a Whim to be this Friday's Featured Crafter. I was floored!! Of course I said YES and quickly filled out the questionnaire and giggled back and forth with Andi for a bit (she's a doll by the way). Her site is quite informative and she's had some fabulous ladies as featured crafters, including two of my Prettie sistahs Julie and Charmaine.
So thank you Andi for the honor and I encourage you all to go check out Crafts on a Whim and add it to your daily net surf!!

Come party with me!

2008-04-10T22:03:00.001-07:00

Tonight is the night!!! The hubby is going camping and I have the stamp room prepped and ready for Stampin' In Your Jammies tonight at 8pm EST. 3 new stamp sets will be released and this is just one of them, Simply Special. I love how simple this little watering can is and the saying that goes with it "You make even the simple things special", so perfect for any occasion. I used Copics for coloring and Nesties for the layers. What I really loved was just using one sheet of patterned paper. I sliced off the bottom, flipped it around to reveal the solid on the back and popped it back in place! No guess work involved, gotta love that!

Loss for words

2008-04-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

I've had to make a fair share of sympathy cards lately. I made this card using the PTI Out on a Limb set, soft sky & chocolate chip ink. I wanted to keep the card simple and delicate so I just used the rectangle nestabilities for the main image and left everything else plain. I did use my blender pen on the soft sky blossoms, it adds a bit of texture to them as the paper will puff up a bit (no clue why but you should try it, it's neat). My heart hurt as I addressed each of these cards and put them in the mail. What do you say to someone who's entire world just got flipped upside down?

A lovely bella and a peek

2008-04-08T06:57:00.001-07:00

Ok, so when Saycheeseabella first hit the scene I thought she was cute, perhaps to make some cards for my pals who enjoy photography. HELLO! How cute is this card?!?! You can use it for ANYONE!!!! Christie sent me this card, just because (the best kind) and I absolutely fell for this bella!!! And the paper is just to die for!!! So of course I had to share with all of you. A reminder that when you see a new stamp image you never know just how much you NEED it until you see it used and fall in love. :)

Wanna peek?

Oh it may not look like much but it's quite adorable, I assure you! Perhaps if you join us for a pajama party this Friday night, you might just win this hidden treasure! Got a pen? This Friday, April 11th Charmaine will be hosting Stampin In Your Jammies over at Paper Pretties and 3 new sets will be released! Did you write that down?

Tonight I have my first Adobe Photoshop Elements class so wish me luck. It's an 8 week course, 4 hours every Tuesday night. By the end of this class I'd better be able to shrink my waist in photos like they do on magazine covers and remove unwanted Ex's from old pictures!! ;)

Flower love

2008-04-06T21:50:00.000-07:00

I'm in love with these flowers!! I made this card for my stamp club this weekend, originally it was to focus on the faux wood technique (so easy and so cool) but turned out to be a coloring class. *lol* I offered to let everyone use my Copics so they could see how they like them compared to other coloring tools, I think everyone is now officially hooked. :) They are so easy to blend and shade with, as you can see. I used my white gel pen to re-whiten the centers of the flowers (since going around them while coloring would be next to impossible) then I used my yellow Copic on top of the white to add a touch of color.
As I said in the beginning, I'm in love with a pot of flowers....we're running away to Vegas and we're going to live happily ever after! ;)

I challenge you...

2008-04-02T16:06:00.001-07:00

...TO A DUEL!!!! no, just kidding, but come on someone out there had to be thinking it, right?!? So 2 weeks ago Joanne gave us the challenge to use masking on a card. Sadly, my comp had a heart attack last night so I can't get any photos from my camera card to my blog at the moment. I can, however, email and blog all I want from work. *shhhhh, don't tell*

So be sure to visit the Prettie blogs to see what everyone created. And this week, since it's my turn, I challenge everyone to take some time off!!! These gals stamp until their fingers bleed and leave their families screaming to be fed. (ok, that last part is a total lie but you get the point) So I've told them all to take a break....get caught up on their to-do lists, do their taxes (due in 11 days people!) and perhaps feed those starving children. LOL

Will you take some time out for yourself??? I challenge you!!!!

Isn't she lovely.....

2008-04-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

So I've decided I love stamping with Sophia SO much because she makes me enjoy the little things....holding a teddy bear, chasing butterflies. As we grow up we become hardened by life and adulthood. But Sophia is still sweet and simple.....I lovey her! I just got my hands on these adorable papers, tons of polka dot patterns, stripes and shapes. I used Celery cardstock for the card base and Wild Wasabi and Rose Red for the layers. I made this available in a card kit for my stampers so I can't wait to see their creations!! Happy Tuesday!!

Finally....the picsedited to add

2008-03-30T22:19:00.001-07:00

Sorry that it has taken me so long to get ahold of these photos to share with all of you (they were on my sisters camera and she's horrible about downloading to her comp in a timely fashion). Plus, my mother-in-law was in town visiting all weekend so I was unable to post much of anything. I did get some cleaning done....why do I feel like I'm on an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond when she comes to stay with us? Anyone who watches the show understands what I mean. ;) Ok so here are the pics.....My Giant Cupcake cake.....I can't even begin to describe how moist this cake was. HOLY COW!!!! Next.....the cupcakes. ***EDIT*** I used 1 box of cake mix and filled each side with half of the mix. I baked it on 325 for 45 min (it's a dark pan so you need to reduce the heat a bit). Your cake halves will crown, you just take a cake leveler and slice off the crowns to make each side flat so they will fit together.
Can you believe I was asked to make a Giant cupcake AND cupcakes?!? Come on people!! Oh, oh and get this....they loved the Giant cupcake so much that it wasn't even cut until the day AFTER!!!! Luckily, it tasted amazing so I was happy....but I left the Easter festivities a little wounded. :( Ok last thing, these were probably over the top but stinkin cute none the less, eh?
I used a little Peep-shaped playdoh cutter to cut out little butter bunnies! Yes, I know, I'm WAY lame but I thought they'd be cute. ;)

Prettie Wednesday

2008-03-26T05:00:00.000-07:00

There are very few things that I dislike in this world.....ok, that's a blatant lie. Let's start this again...there are very few things in the Craft world that I dislike, yes, that sounds much better. Chipboard just happens to be at the top of that short list. Oye! So the challenge was to create something using chipboard. We here you have it...cut, layer, stamp, glue...done. Nothing fancy, no tears, no sweat just simple. (seriously, I just wanted it over with) ;) I love the Pretties dearly and I'm sure they are all rolling their eyes while reading this but oh well....now the secret is out, I hate chipboard! *enter shocked face here*

On the upside, be sure to check out all the other Prettie blogs as I know a few of them actually enjoy this hideous embellishment. Plus their creations are always fabulous and perfect for casing! (hint, hint)

PTI Blog Hop

2008-03-25T15:36:00.000-07:00

Hippity Hop, hippity hop....ok cheesy but when I first read "blog hop" that's what came to mind. So the challenge was to make ribbon the focal point of a card, I decided since a card is really a paper gift, it needed a bow.

I'm loving these new pinks...although my camera wants to fight me. Here is another shot of the same card with natural lighting, which luckily shows that the pinks do match. ;)

Prettie Polka Dots

2008-03-25T07:18:00.001-07:00

First, the colors DO match in real life. I can't figure out why the camera won't pick up the pink hue in the paper or ink, but it picks up the ribbon....odd. Anyway, I used the new pinks from PTI that were released last week and I must tell you that I LOVE THEM! And this is coming from a die hard SU-products-only person. The paper is fabulous, the ink is GREAT....it looks like it'll be blotchy when you first stamp it (as do all dye inks) but once it's dry it's totally flawless!!

I needed a simple card for a friend who is going through a tough time right now. She loves pink and she loves polka dots so I decided to use them both! I adore the new Sassy Circles set from Paper Pretties (a total must-have), I used the background polka dots in Sweet Blush to create the background then I used the large oval to highlight the sentiment.

Happy Easter!!!

2008-03-22T20:04:00.000-07:00

So this afternoon I finally used my giant cupcake pan that I just HAD to have (a year ago) and I can't wait to show you all how adorable it turned out!!! It's in the fridge right now so I promise to take a photo tomorrow before it gets cut into pieces. I wanted to wish everyone a wonderful Easter and I hope the 'little ones' in your family find the Golden Egg and fill their baskets!!! Oh there's a story behind that, don't you worry.

The Tale of the Golden Egg....
As children, my sister and I would wake up extra early on Easter morning to see if we could catch the Easter Bunny in the act of hiding all our eggs and filling up our baskets. But every year it seemed we were just a few minutes too late.....he was gone. We would sit on the couch, staring out the window, each of us trying to secretly map out where the eggs were and how we could get them first. Once the door opened, we were off! We would always hunt in the front yard first, now that I'm grown I realize it's because there's no shade in the front yard and by 10am the chocolate candy in each egg would be soup! There were the typical small colored eggs (of course), plus the real eggs we had dyed and set out for the Easter Bunny the night before. And each year there were two giant white eggs (with REALLY good candy) and one silver egg. The silver egg always had money inside and you can bet the fight was on when one of us found it first. But our Mother told us every year that the Easter Bunny leaves behind only one Golden Egg containing a $100 bill. He leaves it for someone very special who had been extra good that year. (anyone else think the Easter Bunny has a deal with Santa??) So each year we would hunt....and hunt....and hunt, searching for that Golden Egg. Around 4pm we would give up, sit down for dinner and finally pass out from exhaustion once the sugar left our systems.

I'd like to tell you that my sister and I loved hunting eggs together and we were two sweet, little girls who loved each other very much...but I'd be lying. We were monsters!!! Competitive, conniving, sneaky little sh*ts (pardon my language, but we were). We would steal eggs from each others baskets, knock over chairs along our path just to trip the other one up, empty out the eggs into our baskets and then place them back as if they hadn't been found. HORRIBLE! And every year it gets worse....oh yes, we still hunt!! And our hubbies assist in the criminal acts!! The Golden Egg is still at large, but someday...it will be found.

Oh sweet Bella...

2008-03-20T21:20:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted any of my Bella creations in a while so I thought I would share my latest bella card. This color scheme was WAY out of my comfort zone but I'm actually quite pleased with the result. You can't see it in the photo but I added a little sparkle to her hat & the flower on her shirt with my Sakura glitter pens (love those).

~Prettie alert~
If you hadn't noticed, this weeks Prettie posting was missing from my blog. All the other Prettie girls were able to get theirs done and posted on Wednesday...but I'm far behind. So this weekend I shall be playing stamp-catch-up and post-office-catch-up. *lol* I've told the hubby there will be a "do not disturb" sign on the stamp room door this weekend....no house hunting, no shopping *gasp*, no going out to eat, no work, just stamping. Oh and Easter but that's only a few hours then I'll be back to work in my room with my sign up!!! ;)

Quick and fun

2008-03-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

I made this quick card for my Stampers Club to show off the Chalkboarding technique. I absolutely LOVE this technique, I've decided. It meets all my "love" criteria...simple, quick, easy and cute. I used Pale Plum & Certainly Celery for my base card and Chocolate for the flower piece. I stamped the flower from the Live Your Dream SU set using White craft ink and then dabbed the chalk right onto the ink, you don't have to let it dry at all. Layer, add dimensionals, ticket punch and done!

At each club meeting I teach a new technique or card element and everyone has until the next club meeting to create their own card using what I taught. Those that do their "homework" and bring it to "class" (*lol*) get their name put into a jar and at the end of the meeting I draw one winner and they get some fun card-making goodies! So here are a few of the cards everyone made, aren't they just too cute!?! I adore my club gals and I SO look forward to each club meeting.

Ink, Stamp & Scrap....

When you need a card in less than 5 minutes....

Happy belated Egg day!!!

Flowering Crabapple Tree...

Keepin' it real...

Sneak peek revealved!

Hopin' Day Two!

Blog Hop starts TODAY!!!!

For the little one...

Prettie colorful Wednesday...

Inspired by Nichole....

Brrrr, cocoa anyone?

Birthday balloons for Jodi!!!

Xmas is almost here...

Those who can't, shop

BAD GIRL!

Indroducing......Chloe!

Prettie *late* Wednesday

Skip the LSS...make your own!

A Prettie AWESOME bloghop day.

Just one???

For unto you is born this day....

They're creepy and their kooky....

Friends are hard to find...

More simple, quick & cute cards....

Welcome to the Winters house....

Still recovering...

Look who's turning 29.....again!!!

Eeek!

You light up my life...

A few cards to share...

Gobble til you Wobble

A very special gift

The morning after..

Trick or Treat!

Seriously?!

Touched by an angel

Mine's the cutest!

Last two SOTM projects

Happy Mail Day!!!

Stella quick card

Another SOTM card

Saffron Daisies **LINK ADDED**

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!

Sweet Angel

Inspired by Nichole...

The good and the bad

Happy Friday!!

I miss my camera

Is it Friday yet?

Floors, paint & stamps...oh my!

GASP

Checking in

Did a bomb hit California?

IT'S OURS!!!!

A you freakin' kidding me?!?!?!

I promise I'm alive......barely

Fabulous Friday!

Prettie Wednesday

Happy Anniversary!

Belated Prettie Day

Oopsie

The house...

A Beautiful Bella day

Memorial Day Sales

Prettie Party recap

Be Inspired...

Just for Dad...

A little girls birthday...

Blooming with Love...

It's a gorgeous day!

A belated wish...

New Toy!!

Well....it's Wednesday

Look at all the ladybugs!

A picture is worth a thousand words....

Guess what???

Never enough time...

Bright and cheery PLUS Watermark Winners!

Honey-Do-List

Prettie late Wednesday

Saffron Daisies LINK ADDED

Finally....the picsedited to add