Monday, January 30, 2012

Scrapbook Monday- Using my stash

Woo! Hoo! I have managed to make it through the month of January with my resolution intact!  I've actually finished quite a few pages, nothing fancy, but my once a week post is usually my favorite of the week, or at least the one that I put more effort into!  At this rate, I should have all of my 2011 pictures scrapped by summer, then I can tackle the horrific task of catching up all of the other years! Baby steps, Margaret...

Anyway... Today's page is a result of me looking at all of the scrapbook supplies I have collected over the years and deciding I really need to use them! My collection of stickers and embellishments alone could stock a store! And we won't even discuss my supply of paper! So in an effort to diminish my mountain of goodies, here is my page:



I love how the pictures turned out! Often, my rainbow pictures do not capture the color and intensity.  While the colors were more vibrant in person, and the second rainbow was much brighter than in the picture, it is still an accurate capturing of the event.  The color combo on  this is a little unusual, but I did a lot of playing and swapping to make sure the rainbow remained the focal point.  I received the proper approval from my DD, so I guess it turned out OK!

Page Recipe: Cardstock-crumb cake, whisper white, orange-from stash, Ink-soft suede (sponging), Accessories-photo corner punch, whisper white satin ribbon, flowers & border chipboard stickers from stash, title cut w/ cricut

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Valentine Hearts CASE

I usually do not make a lot of Valentines and often the children I teach receive store bought cards (GASP!) depending on how much time I have.  But this year, I am working on a project with my sister, who is a home health nurse.  My classes and I are making Valentine goody bags for her patients. So I am making more handmade Valentines than ever before!  I have to admit this has been a lot of fun and I've gone crazy with the heart punches and the new embosslits for most of these!  Today's card is no exception!  I found the inspiration for this card from Debbie's Designs and almost completely, and shamelessly CASEd this one!  Why reinvent the wheel when it already works?!


I love using the Fashionable Hearts embosslit for instantly cutting and adding texture! It makes things so much easier!

I spent the morning at my oldest DD's school for District Solo and Ensemble Contest.  This was my daughter's first year and her ensemble received a gold rating! Needless to say, they were all thrilled!  Now I'm hoping to sneak in a little nap before I have to think about making dinner! Wish me luck!!

Card Recipe:  Cardstock-whisper white, real red, pretty in pink, old olive, red glimmer paper, Raspberry Tart DSP (ret), Ink-old olive, Stamp Set-Outlined Occasions (sent.), Accessories-full heart and heart to heart punches, Fashionable Hearts embosslit, non SU embossing folder

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Feelin' Blue...

Nope! I'm not sad, it's the theme of  the challenge at Shopping Our Stash.  Since blue is my favorite color, it was not a problem to find some blue goodies in my stash!  I even used up some small scraps of paper for my flowers --not that you could tell by looking at my box of paper scraps!  My upline and friend, Kelly recently joined the DT at Let's Capture These Sketches.  She does amazing things with MDS and is equally as talented with paper! The sketch they had this week was pretty cool and had quite a bit of layers, which is not my normal style, but that's why it's called a challenge!!  So I used lots of my blue goodies to create a scrapbook page using their sketch...



Apologies for the shadows; the sun was starting to go down when I took the pictures...

And a closer, slightly blurry shot of the flower...



These pictures were taken last spring.  We had a tornado warning in our area and the town closest to us did receive quite a bit of damage, but the strong winds were what took down this HUGE hickory tree that has been big since I was a little girl!  The next morning, we went out to check things out and realized the core of the tree was rotting out and that the tree probably wouldn't have lived more than a few years anyway.  But it was still sad to see it on the ground.

Our girls, who are avid tree climbers anyway, loved that they could finally reach the top of the tree (they bragged to their Dad, a lot!) and enjoyed several days playing and exploring the tree.  That was, until the morning they realized that the tree was home to several black snakes.  Then they kept a safe distance until my brother cut up the tree and removed the snakes. Since the actual page didn't have much room for journaling, the story is on the back.  I do this a lot for my pages, since it also allows me to write more personal and private messages to my girls.

Page Recipe: Cardstock-whisper white, marina mist, basic black, Paisley Petals DSP, and several scraps from my stash, Accessories-decorative label punch, Baja Breeze corduroy brad (ret), Daisies #2 die, title cut w/ cricut

Clean and Simple Sketch

This has been one of those crazy weeks when I really wanted to sit down to create, but other commitments had first billing... TGIF! Grocery shopping finished, dinner made, kids in bed and time to get crafty!!  Clean & Simple Stamping had a great sketch that I really wanted to use to get a few more Valentines done.  I had hoped to be finished by now... Just where did January go anyway?!

I've been determined to use up some of my older DSP, so out came Cottage Wall.  I also used the stamp set Outlined Occasions, which is a Sale-A-Bration item.   As much as I wanted to color in the word Love and the cute little hearts, I resisted in an effort to keep the spirit of CAS!  Of course, I did end up using some Vanilla Shimmer Smooch on the embossed heart...



I even added a little DSP to the inside!


Well, I hope you enjoyed my CAS Valentine.  I actually made a few different cards, but you'll just have to come back to see them later!  Hope you weekend is filled with plenty of opportunities to be crafty!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-pale plum (ret), rich razzleberry, whisper white, Cottage Wall DSP (ret), Ink-pale plum (ret), Stamp Sets-Butterfly Prints, Outlined Occasions, Word Play, Accessories-scallop trim and full heart punches, snow burst embossing folder, Vanilla Shimmer smooch spritz



Monday, January 23, 2012

Scrapbook Monday with the Triple T

Well, so far so good on the resolution to post a layout once a week! It helps that some of my blogging buddies have been checking in to see if I remembered : )

Today's layout used a sketch from Top Tip Tuesday designed by the ever talented, Lisa.  There are two sketches to choose from  and I used the CAS sketch earlier to make a Valentines card, but this one struck me as a scrapbook layout.  TIP TIME:  I have to admit that the angled piece threw me at first, then the logical half of my brain (the part that usually doesn't kick in until I've goofed up) said "Cut the piece to the width you want, then angle it on the page and use a ruler to draw your angles. DUH!!!" (my logic section is not very polite to the rest of my brain) So, if you are struggling with parallelograms or trapezoids, this is my suggestion!  Now to switch off the logic and let the creative and fun part take over lest everyone think they are back in math class. YIKES!!



The banner came from the Apothecary Art stamp set and only took a little fussy cutting to make it. I really like that! My flower was made using multiple layers of the boho blossom punch and the pretty pink rhinestones were colored with a pink sharpie. I LOVE this money saving technique and there's almost no limit to the colors I can create!

Even with the layers and circles, the page remains uncluttered and the photo is still the main element. Now all I need to do is add a little journaling to the page and it's finished.  I still have a stack of Christmas pictures taunting me and they keep getting put back in the photo box.  Maybe next week they will finally make it onto a page and into a book!

I also want to take a minute and thank everyone who visits, follows, and comments on my blog! Whether your comment is encouraging, witty, or advising, I really appreciate the feedback! Especially since my DH (bless his little heart!) says such wonderful things like "Looks OK to me." or "What do you mean, does it need anything else?".  He is incredibly supportive when it comes to a messy table, late dinners, and a ton of supplies that he doesn't understand exactly what they do, only that I need them! So I guess I can't complain too much!!  Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you come back soon!

Page Recipe:  Cardstock-Sending Love DSP (ret), very vanilla, real red, pretty in pink, and the base is from my stash, Ink-soft suede, chocolate chip, Stamp Set- Apothecary Art, Accessories-1 3/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Boho blossom punch, houndstooth folder, chocolate chip corduroy button (ret), real red brad



Thursday, January 19, 2012

Another Challenge Card!

Wednesday, I actually managed to squeeze in some crafting time to play along with some challenges! So if you're in shock at seeing another post from me already this week, now you know why!  Top Tip Tuesday has two different sketches (created by Lisa!) to choose from.  I chose the CAS one, although my card doesn't really look super CAS!  LOL!  My tip for TTT is pretty simple, but it is not something I realized when I first started making cards.  **When you are using several similar embellishments or stamped images, you can easily add dimension and interest by randomly popping some of them up with dimensionals (or pop dots).  I usually lay out my pieces and then decide which ones I want to 'pop'.**    Shopping Our Stash had a challenge to use borders of some kind.  My assorted hearts make the border on this card. BTW- If you have never played along w/ SOS, it is so fun! They actually encourage you to dig through those wonderful treasures that are hiding in your stash and use them (Wow, such a novel idea!!!).  The only relatively new thing on this card was the heart embosslit I used! The DP I used has not been pulled out in ages!



I have actually started to acquire quite the collection of completed Valentine cards! I may actually be finished by Valentines Day!!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-real red, pretty in pink, whisper white, Raspberry Tart DSP (ret), red glimmer paper, Ink-black Stazon and assorted SU markers, Stamp Sets- Gift Givers, Precious Butterflies (sentiment), Accessories-heart to heart punch, scallop oval punch, large oval punch, full heart punch, Fashionable Hearts embosslit, dazzling details and pink glitter glue

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Shaking the 411

I love checking out the sketches at Stamping 411, but don't seem to find time to play along as often as I would like.   This week, the sketch was just too appealing, and when I saw that Hand Stamped Sentiments had a challenge to make a shaker card, I thought the two would work well together!  This is my first EVER shaker card and it was a very easy technique thanks to my shaker frames!!
The funky dotted border was made using the eyelet border punch.  I had estimated my strip of paper a little too narrow, but when I looked at it, I thought it looked pretty cool anyway!


A close up of the shaker window and all of it's glittery goodness...


It's almost my bedtime, so I'm going to cut this short and hurry off to link it to the two challenges! Thanks for visiting!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-old olive, marina mist, whisper white, Paisley Petals DSP, Ink-marina mist, Stamp Set-Precious Butterflies, Accessories-2 3/8 scallop circle punch, eyelet border punch, 3/4 circle punch, snowburst embossing folder, basic pearls, dazzling details, shaker frame, glass and fine glitter

A Mind Blowing Valentine

My girls have always made their own Valentines for school.  I think it's because they saw all of Mommy's goodies and wanted to play along.  I would even attempt to sway them to use store bought cards (Aren't the My Little Pony cards cute?!).  They would look at all of the designs and characters, then say "I still want to make my own."  Then we would go to the craft area and buy glitter glue, heart stickers, doilies, lace, and any other goodies that they thought they might need.  After a few years, I gave up on doing the easy thing and just checked their art supplies to see what they might need.

As they got older, their cards became more creative and less 'glitter bomb'.  My oldest, even though she's almost a teenager, still makes a few Valentines for her best buds.  My youngest is still making them for the entire class.  Needless to say, we look for designs that are fun and appealing, yet very simple to make.  This year we found some great inspiration from pinterest.  There was a card that said "You Rock!" and when opened, revealed a packet of pop rocks.  We looked for the little packets of pop rocks at the store, but didn't have any luck.  We did, however, find mini Blow Pops...  We used MDS to create a tag for the front of her card.  I don't use my MDS often (I love to get inky!), but this was SO EASY!!!  Camille picked a pattern from ice cream parlor DSP for the background and then added the heart and oval scallop punches for her sentiment shapes.  We printed the tag onto regular printer paper, then she cut out all 35 squares and glued them to her white card stock.  Since there wasn't any stamping, we used an inexpensive white card stock for the base.  Besides, most of these will have the candy ripped off and then be tossed aside.



The candy packet is attached to the cardstock with a little piece of sticky strip.  I didn't take a picture of the back, but we used the to/from stamp from Winter Post.


This is the first year we have finished this early.  When the last one was completed, Camille looked at me completely serious and said "That was fun! Can we start making next year's?"  yikes...



Monday, January 16, 2012

Cheetah Girl!

Here we are again with another Scrapbook Monday post!  Today's page features actual photos from 2011 (ooohs and aaahhs from the crowd).  I decided I better work on my newer photos as well as the older ones or I would forget what they were for...  This is from my DD's birthday party.  She is a cheetah fanatic and this attraction is fed by her 'fairy Godmother', who is also my sister.  This year she received a bath towel and a ultra chic scarf from her aunt.  Daddy thought he might look good in animal prints as well and tried on her scarf.  My layout was based on a sketch from Simply Stampin' Challenge.  This was their challenge a few weeks ago, but I didn't get around to creating with it until now.


Her scrapbooks are already full of layouts using cheetah/leopard prints, and quite frankly, I'm tired of using them! So I went with a sahara sand base, brown accents, and added just a hint of the animal print by using strips of fleece material as ribbon.

The background print was made using versamark, clear embossing powder, and a quick shot from the heat gun (have I mentioned my fascination with this process??)  The rest is pretty self-explanatory

Page Recipe: Cardstock-sahara sand, soft suede, very vanilla, pretty in pink, Ink-early espresso, crumb cake, pretty in pink (sponging), Versamark, Stamp Sets-sprinkles (ret), Broadsheet Alphabet, Notes and Details, Accessories-clear embossing  powder, heart to heart punch


Sunday, January 15, 2012

The Gnomes Part 2

If you came here today expecting a dignified post and intelligent conversation, SORRY!!  Remember my Gnome Sweet Gnome  card?  I was trying  to come up with a cute little saying to put inside and my blogging friend, Lisa,  gave me several ideas.  I settled on "Gnome-one is as special as you!".  She also planted the seed of a sequel as she was wondering where they were off to and what adventure they would have.  Well...I can't tell you all of the details, since neither would kiss and tell, but Chip and Rocky (he's a little chipped and she's made of stone, get it?!) wanted me to share their latest adventure...


That's right, they fell in love, are now happily married and living in Boulder (sorry...couldn't resist)!



Check out Chip's fancy suit and his crystal effects hat, jacket, and shoes.  Of course, Rocky is all dressed up as well.  Did you know that when you put lots of dazzling details on vellum, it wrinkles?  I didn't. However, since it is her wedding day, we are calling them ruffles and just attached the vellum to a piece of blushing bride card stock!!

I had so much fun with this card, especially since it really wasn't for anyone other than me!   Oh, just a heads up that Chip and Rocky are keeping in touch and may show up on my blog again for another adventure.  I hope you have enjoyed my 'pun'filled adventures of Chip and Rocky! If not, I blame Lisa! She started it!!

On a more professional, crafty note, I used my heart framelits for the first time on this card. I LOVE THESE THINGS!!! Can't wait to see what SU comes out with next in this department!!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-very vanilla, Sending Love DSP (ret), real red, vellum, Stamp Set-Gnome Sweet Gnome, Ink-stazon black, assorted markers, Accessories-very vanilla seam binding, cherry cobbler & original dazzling details, crystal effects, snow burst embossing folder, hearts collection framelits

Saturday, January 14, 2012

A Three Hour Card, A Three Hour Card...

I think I know how the people from Gilligan's Island feel now! They only intended to take a 3 hour tour and spent what felt like an eternity on the island instead.  I set out to make a bridal shower card, not a big feat, and ended up spending 3 HOURS from start to finish on this!!  Those of you who follow my blog will understand immediately why this took me so long! I'm a CAS card maker by nature.  I do enjoy vintage and shabby, but they still end up being pretty simple.  Not this card, my friends...

In an effort to spare those from the challenge blogs who don't really want to hear my tale of endless crafting, here are the challenges I chose to  submit my card.  Shopping Our Stash is asking for all that glitters, sparkles, or shines (not a problem on this one!), SUO Challenges is asking for an infrequently used or new technique (lots of embellishing and Smooch spritz), and Top Tip Tuesday has an anything goes challenge. And my 3 hour card...


and the inside...



I saw the inspiration card on Robyn's Stamping Hood a few months ago and thought this would be fun to recreate. I must have been channeling Anne Marie  (aka the Bling Queen!) because the next thing I knew I was pulling out pearls, embossing folders, ribbon, smooch spritz, glimmer paper, and lots of other shimmery bling!  In all fairness, there are a lot of crafters out there who could have made this in 15 minutes, but this was so far out of my comfort zone that I would pull paper out, then put it back. Try this punch? No... What about this one?  Big pearls or tiny pearls?  It needs texture... No, that's too much...Hmm...which sentiment should I use... Even cutting the paper for the cake layers was an ordeal (cut 3 different times til I was happy)! When I finally was committed (or needed to be!), and adhered everything to the card, it still needed something.  Out came the Smooches!  When I finished, my table looked like the entire SU catalog had exploded and I had shimmery fingers from the smooch spray! But I have to say, when I picked up the finished project, this truly is one amazing card, by my standards.  Of course, with snow and freezing temperatures, I was not about to go outside just to get better lighting, so even though you may not be able to see all of the shimmery, glittery goodness, believe me! It's there!!

I used a LOT of goodies on this card and amazingly 90% was stuff I've had for quite a while! I am hoping that the bride-to-be will enjoy this card! I honestly don't know her, but she is marrying our neighbors son, and I have known him since he was a baby! Hope you have managed to make it through my extremely long post and that you enjoyed visiting!!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-pretty in pink, real red, very vanilla, Sending Love DSP (ret), red glimmer paper, Ink-real red, blush blossom marker (for shading edges and hearts inside), Stamp Sets- Loving Thoughts, Sprinkles (ret), Punches-modern label, heart to heart, scallop oval, corner rounder, large oval, Accessories-elegant lines embossing folder, basic pearls, vanilla shimmer and blushing bride smooch spritz, Chantilly crochet trim

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

A Sneak Peek Valentine

In an effort to actually have my Valentines finished before Valentine's Day, I'm trying to make a few each week.  I don't send out a lot of cards for this holiday, so if I can keep with this plan, I should be ready!

Today's card is a CAS sneak peek at the Sale-A-Bration's Catalog.  The inspiration for my card came from the catalog itself.  I changed the flower and instead of stitching the stem and leaf, I used one of the sentiments from the stamp set to create them.

The stamp set is called Outlined Occasions and both stamped images you see are from this set.  If you would love to own this set, it can be your's for FREE during Sale-A-Bration (starts January 24th) with a purchase of $50 or host a workshop or class and get it free with a qualifying total!

I punched 3 flowers using the 5 petal punch and sponged the edges, then attached them together with a glitter brad.  The Love tag was created by rolling one side of the tag and threading white bakers twine through the curl before tying a bow.  It is hard to tell from the picture (in hindsight, I should have went w/ a darker ink), but the stem and leaves are made with the sentiment 'be mine'.

Card Recipe: Cardstock-crumb cake, pretty in pink, whisper white, Ink-pretty in pink, certainly celery, Stazon black, pretty in pink & wisteria wonder markers, Stamp Set-Outlined Occasions, Accessories- 5 petal flower punch, pretty in pink glitter brad, white bakers twine, corner rounder punch

Monday, January 9, 2012

Christmas Past

Here we are in week two and I actually have another scrapbook page!  I'm still about 5 years behind on some of my pictures, so there is no lack of material, just finding the time to properly display them!

This week's page features some older Christmas pictures.  Every year after the children's Christmas service, my girls pose for a picture in front of the nativity.  Time for a little history...I always get a bit nostalgic about this nativity.  We attend the church that I have been a member since my birth.  When I was very young, I was asked to place baby Jesus in the manger during our Christmas service.  It was such a special honor for me.  Over the years, this tradition continued with different children until it was replaced with the children acting out the story of the nativity.  However, the nativity in this picture is still the very same set that was used when I was a child.  I often wonder just how many children have enjoyed placing Jesus into his special place.  But I digress... you came here to see my scrapbook page!


When I finished this page I kept thinking it needed something, but I also didn't want it to be too cluttered.  Let me know what you think!  Notice the scalloped edge pieces behind 'you'  and 'me'? That is a piece of the NEW labels collection framelits cut in half. I am loving this set!!  There's also some 'stash' items on this, so if you don't see it listed by name, that's why!

Page Recipe: Cardstock-whisper white, real red DSP (from brights stack), Ink-soft suede, cherry cobbler (sponging), Accessories-Victoria crochet trim

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Be My Valentine

Ever look at a piece of patterned paper and think 'Wait a minute...There's a card in there...'?  That is pretty much what happened with this card.  I was looking for some red sparkly paper for a different project and came across this paper.  It's a retired paper from SU and I actually forgot I had some left.  As soon as I saw the pattern, I had a pretty good idea what my card would look like.  I remember seeing somewhere that someone made an envelope with hearts spilling out, but wouldn't you know, I didn't save or pin that one (a million others, yes...)  So if this was your original idea, please let me know.  The basic design and layout, other than the heart envelope, is from my little ol' head.
**UPDATE- While reorganizing my pinterest card pins, I came across the original card and wanted to give credit where it's due.   Darlene Design is the website where you can see the inspiration piece!


This was not CAS or QAS (quick and simple) and I made 4 of these!  I do not have an envelope die (gasp!), so I used a template that I had from ages ago.  Then I got busy punching, and punching, and punching, and embossing, and glittering, and you get the picture.  I'm slightly obsessive when it comes to putting patterns together, so the hardest part for me was arranging the hearts into a design that I thought looked just right.  I really like the way it turned out!

When I finished this card both of my DD came over and exclaimed "We want to make these for our Valentines!" Ummm.... I DON'T THINK SO!!!!  So now I'm trying to find a more basic way to recreate this so they can make duplicates for their friends.  Plus, I'm not so sure the boys in my youngest DD's class will appreciate this very girly card!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-pretty in pink, real red, very vanilla, Sending Love DSP (ret), Ink-pretty in pink, real red, chocolate chip (distressed edge of envelope), Stamp Sets-Fabulous Phrases, Just Believe, Punches-heart to heart, modern label, word window, Accessories-very vanilla seam binding, basic pearls, square lattice folder, snow burst folder, dazzling details

Friday, January 6, 2012

Back in Time for the perfect guy card

At the risk of showing my age, I need to share a story about this card.  As I was going through my stock pile  of cards, I realized I did not have nearly enough 'guy' birthday cards.  Masculine cards are never easy for me.  It shouldn't be so hard, but I seem to spend way more time trying to come up with a good man card.  After looking through my DSP and not finding anything I liked, I remembered the small box of 81/2 X 11 patterned paper that I rediscovered while cleaning.  I dug through lots of little girl and baby theme paper and then found something that made me stop in awe.

Some of you will remember several years ago (early 90's) when hunter green was all the rage (I even had the trim in my kitchen painted this color).  Well, I found a piece of paper in hunter green! I have no clue how old this paper is and don't even remember why I bought it.  The scary thing is, I realized it was the perfect paper for my card.  As you can see below, the pattern looks a lot like a  man's flannel shirt.  Then I remembered that I bought a SU ink pad ages ago that would match it.  I was crossing my fingers that I hadn't sold it during one of my clubs.  I checked my 'sale' box and there it was!! So here is my manly birthday card and now that my pattern paper is gone, I can return the ink pad to the 'sale' box!

The color in the picture is a little off, but the paper and the leaves are both that lovely shade of green (known as forest foliage by SU)!






Card Recipe: Cardstock-early espresso, crumb cake, Inks-forest foliage (very retired!), early espresso, crumb cake, soft suede, Stamp Set-Lovely as a Tree, Just Believe (sent.), Accessories-chocolate chip ribbon (ret)

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Gnome Sweet Gnome

I've had a new stamp set setting on my craft table for over a week now and just couldn't decide exactly what to do with it. This is where challenge sites really help out!  I found a great sketch at Stamping 411 and then realized during my challenge hunting that my card would also work for Top Tip Tuesday's Anything Goes and The Squirrel and the Fox's Something New.  Since this stamp set just came out in the catalog yesterday and I haven't inked it yet, I think this will qualify as new!  The pool party seam binding is also new.

I received this set for free (demo perk!!) and really wasn't sure how I would us it before this.  My girls loved it, mostly due to the movie Gnomeo and Juliette!  I haven't put a sentiment inside because I'm trying to find something 'punny' to go with the images. I would love to hear your suggestions!!

I did A LOT of fussy cutting on this and while I love the finished appearance, this is still not my favorite technique!  Guess I just need to keep at it!

Thanks for looking!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-crumb cake, pool party, whisper white, Ink-pear pizzazz, black Stazon, island indigo, pool party, blushing bride, and blush blossom markers, Stamp Set- Gnome Sweet Gnome, Accessories-pool party seam binding, pastels (for sky and blending in grass)


Tuesday, January 3, 2012

A Sneak Peek!

I've been playing with some NEW goodies from Stampin' UP!  Most of them will be available on January 4th with the release of the Occasions Mini.  The fabulous paper I used will be available during Sale-a-bration which begins January 24th.
As soon as I saw the labels framelits and coordinating stamp set, I knew these would be two of my first purchases!!  Then I realized there was a sentiment stamp set that would also work with these... Needless to say, it was just like Christmas morning when that box arrived on my doorstep.  I really love vintage and if it also happens to be a little shabby, all the better!  Both of the cards I made are going to be mailed, so I took it easy on the embellishments, but I am thinking of making another card adding the crochet trim and some pearls.




 Isn't the DSP gorgeous? It's called Everyday Enchantment and could be yours for FREE with a $50 order placed on or after the 24th!

Well, today I head back to work. I love my job, but it has been so nice being able to stay up late and sleep in every day since Christmas!  It will be nice to get the kids back into a routine again.  They have forgotten how to do their chores since Christmas break...

Card Recipe: Cardstock- pool party, soft suede, very vanilla, everyday enchantment DSP, Ink-soft suede, pool party marker, Stamp Sets-Apothecary Art, Loving Thoughts, Accessories-pastels, scallop trim border punch, square lattice embossing folder, labels collection framelits

Monday, January 2, 2012

Snowfall

Happy 2012! I hope that everyone had a wonderful new year!  Our's was pretty low key.  DH went to bed early because he had to work bright and early on  new years day.  The girls watched The Twilight Zone marathon and I crafted until 11:45 when we switched channels to watch the ball drop. Then we turned in for the night! Such wild and crazy party animals!!

One of my blogging friends invited me to join her in her new year's resolution of posting one scrapbook page a week.  Now, to be quite honest, I don't normally make resolutions because they tend to be very short lived (more like a 'to do' list for a week or two...), but this seemed like a wonderful plan to help keep me on track with my scrapbooking. So I am officially announcing that my new year's resolution for 2012 is to post at least one scrapbook page a week on my blog! (Oh the pressure...) I know that some of my dear friends will be sure to remind me if I start slipping on this!

So here is week number one's page-


Apologies for the shadows...the sun was starting to go down as I took my picture. It was also a little windy and my ribbon shifted as I took the picture.  It really is straight on the page now!  I used an old Page Maps sketch for my layout.

Page Recipe: Cardstock-baja breeze, early espresso, whisper white, Ski Slope DSP (ret), baja breeze DSP from subtles stack, Ink-early espresso, baja breeze (sponged around top note), Stamp Set-Broadsheet Alphabet, Accessories-top note die, baja breeze seam binding