Merry Monday-Frosty Christmas Greetings

Hello! I am back with some super glittery goodness for a Merry Monday! I know I have already mentioned my recent obsession interest in stencils and today I'm showing off the efforts of working with my most recent purchase.  When I saw the Winter Farmhouse stencil from Simple Stories, I had visions of glittery snowflakes against a dark blue sky and looked forward to the day I would get to create this vision!

Our recent snow day gave me the chance to play and I was so happy with the results!  While it took a bit of time to use the stencil and glitter gel, and then more time to let it dry; the finished card has a very simple elegance to it and I love that the shimmery snowflakes are still the 'star' of the show!

I even did a little stamping on the inside so it wouldn't feel too plain!  I had so much fun stenciling that I made ten of these lovelies to add to my box, and I'm a little closer to being finished before Thanksgiving!

I hope you are inspired to do a little stencil magic of your own!  Thanks so much for stopping by and have a fabulous week!

Card Recipe: Paper-night of navy, whisper white, Stamp Set-Special Season (SU), Ink-night of navy, old olive, Accessories-Winter Farmhouse stencil (Simple Stories), white glitz glitter gel (Gina K)

Snowy Woods

Hi! I am so happy you are here!  I've managed to make a few Christmas cards to add to my box and while I was waiting for the glitter gel to dry on one design (gotta come back Monday to see that one!),  I decided to play around with embossing and sponging with a snowy woods scene.

I have pinned several ideas, but decided to just do my own thing for this one.  I started out inking the trees in very vanilla on the flip side of this, but didn't like the end product, so I turned the paper over and did the reverse.  The trees had a chilly vibe about them, and I thought this would make a good card to send to someone who is missing a loved one. Christmas isn't always merry and jolly for everyone and the sentiment on the inside is reflective of that as well.

I'm hoping to find a little more time this weekend to get a few more cards made.  My goal is to use two different DSP packs that are almost gone to make the rest of my cards, but I'm sure I'll break the rules and do a few unique ones as well!  Can't be too rigid when it comes to Christmas and holiday cards!!

Thanks so much for stopping in and I hope you have an amazing day!

Card Recipe: Paper-soft suede, naturals ivory, Ink-very vanilla, soft suede, Stamp Set- Curly Cute, Timeless Tidings, Accessories-woodland textured embossing folder, ink dauber

Belated Happy Mail post!

Hello! Today I have a very special card to share with you! My incredibly talented and sweet blog friend, Heather, sent me the most adorable Halloween card in October!  I thought it was so special that she thought of me and I immediately gave it a place of honor on our mantel.  I totally forgot to take a picture and post it until today when I was packing up the last of my Halloween decorations.  Isn't this just the sweetest little witch?!

We had our first actual snow of the year last night, mixed with a sleety rain and freezing temperatures, which gave us our first official snow day of the school year.  While I am enjoying the unscheduled day off, I really am not ready for winter... I'm hoping we'll still have one last glimpse of fall temperatures before winter officially settles in.

My surprise day off gave me the chance to sneak back into my crafty studio space.  I worked on some Christmas cards which will be shared later this week.  I'll probably be taking a break from scrapbooking until all of those Christmas cards are ready to be sent, but I'm already looking forward to Christmas break and spending a few days locked away to get more pages done!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a great day!

Scrapbook Saturday-stencil fun!

Hello! So glad you are here! I have a little confession to make...I've bought more stencils... Yes, I know I promised to use all my old supplies... Does it count if I bought the stencils to use up my old cardstock??  Please say yes!!

In the last few months, I have rediscovered the joy of visiting my LSS and talking with the owner whom I have known for a very long time!  Even if I don't buy much, it is so inspiring to wander through the store and get new ideas. The downfall to this is I discover new things that I love and really want to play with-like stencils!

I have had stencils in my stash for a very long time and when I first got them I did use them, but they were sometimes difficult to work with and I didn't like some of the ink marks that didn't blend correctly.  So I stopped using them and they sat there. And sat there...and sat there. Until one day I saw that my friend Hannah was teaching a class on stenciling using a variety of mediums.  I signed up, attended, had a blast, and was hooked.  I now have pixie spray that holds those stencils in place so it's easier to ink and glitter them up, and I am the proud owner of a growing collection of glitter paste.  The blending brushing to eliminate those pesky ink lines are on my wish list and I'm hoping Santa thinks I've been good enough to deserve them!  Did I mention I bought new stencils? LOL!

I am giving myself permission to indulge because it has reconnected me with some creative ideas and some good friends as well.  My last visit led to the purchase of two different snowflake stencils that I couldn't wait to use.  The one I'm sharing today is from Taylored Expressions and it made a fabulous 

background for  some snowy pics that have been in my stash.

my new stencil, white craft ink, and a dauber

(it actually worked well for this technique, but I'm

still asking for those brushes!!)

my blue paper got an upgrade!

pulled out some old 3D stickers to finish out the page

Had so much fun, I made another one!!

While I know I need to use my old supplies, it was a lot of fun to add something new to my table.  And...since this new stencil helped me scrap two pages of older photos with old embellishments, I'm still calling this a win for using up my stash!

My other stencil has smaller snowflakes and I'm thinking a little white glitter paste will make some wonderfully sparkly Christmas cards.  Guess I've found my inspiration for Monday's Christmas cards!!

Thanks so much for visiting and I hope you have a wonderful weekend! Find some time to play!! You won't regret it!

Throwback Thursday-Feeling Fallish

Welcome! I'm not sure what the weather is like where you are, but it is feeling a lot like winter here, which really stinks because I LOVE fall!  We went from summer to a week of fall temps to winter and I wasn't finished with autumn!  I always love the chill in the morning air and the beautiful changing leaves that make fall in southern Indiana so special.  It has always been my favorite time of year and it is always so fleeting...

Today I managed to feel a little like fall while sharing this scrapbook page.  The photos are from many years ago on a beautiful fall day when my husband's nephew got married. The day and the decorations were the epitome of autumn and we had a wonderful time visiting with family.

I think everything on this page is throwback! Old cardstock base, old paper flowers, and even the journal block was a scrap of white paper I had laying in a basket.  I cut the letters with my cricut and ran them through the xyron sticker maker.  I am getting closer to finishing that 2011 album and I'm hoping I can squeeze creating those pages in between making Christmas and holiday cards. Wish me luck!!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope whatever the weather, you make it a great day!!

Merry Monday (and not a minute too soon!)

Hello!  While I am not nearly ready for Christmas, I am ready to get those cards going so I'm not rushing around at the last minute!  If all the rest of my cards are as easy and quick as today's I'll be done in no time!

I recently purchased a sheet of paper that had 12 3x4 blocks on it and they were absolutely perfect for making Christmas cards.  I know I made a pledge to use up my stash, but if it helps me get cards created quickly so I can make more pages, well...guess I just had to make the sacrifice! Ha!

I found that some of the blocks worked better with different shades of green, red, or blue, but once I had that figured out, it literally took me minutes to emboss the base and glue the layers together. Easy peasy! There were two blank frames that I stamped with sentiments, but other than the embossing, there really wasn't much to do.  Sometimes it's nice to have pretty papers do all the work for you!

So now I have 12 cards in my Christmas stash.  That's not nearly enough, but it's a start!  Thanks so much for stopping by today. I promise my next MM will have a little more effort put into it!  Have a wonderful week and I hope you find some time to be creative too!

Scrapbook Saturday-Picture Perfect Sunsets

Well, hello! I cannot believe it is November already. 2019 is almost gone...how did that happen??  It has been rather chilly here and it seemed like the perfect excuse to stay inside and create.  

I decided to stop passing over these photos and finally get them on a page.  I took these one evening as the girls and I were outside admiring the beautiful evening sky.  We were in awe of the lining around the clouds and the beautiful blending of colors.  While I love the photos, I wasn't sure how I wanted to use them in the girls' scrapbooks.  After digging through some different papers, I came across a page that had journaling blocks.  I saw the 'wish' block and everything clicked into place.  We often think about the future of our children and hope everything will turn out well for them.  Recently, I've done a lot of reflecting and while I want my girls to be successful, I really want them to enjoy the everyday beauty and gifts that are often overlooked when we're too busy trying to be successful.  So I made a list of wishes to include in the album so they will always know what Mom means when she wishes them the best! 

This was another quick and easy page.  I already had the sunflower stamped and fussy cut from a play day making a thank you card, so all I had to do was add some leaves and the journal blocks.

Today, I also started on my Christmas cards and will be sharing them on Monday.  They were super, super easy and I now have 12 cards in my stash!! Woot! Woot!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a fabulous November!!