Doodle-y-doo!

I had a few minutes to play with my new Doodle This set and here is what I came up with. I CASEd two stampers: Beckie and Jenny N. I took the colors from Beckie and the layout from Jenny. Then I added my own touch. I paper pierced around the edge of the violet layer and added an additional layer of flower petals on top of the first. My son, Jacob, suggested that I do the top and bottom layers of the flower in different colors. So I did. This is a fun set and I'm looking forward to playing with it some more very soon.

This weekend will be busy getting ready for DD's birthday party on Monday. So that may limit my stamping for fun time.

Hostess Thank You

Thursday I got everything together for the workshop I'm having today. This is the little tote that I made for a Hostess Gift. I don't have a pattern for the box. I just improvised using almost an entire sheet of card stock. The paper is Cool Caribbean with the sentiment accent in Whisper White. I used my brand new Roses in Winter here. I'm really not sure if I like the colors. I know roses don't naturally bloom in blue! LOL Whatever! Inks used are Almost Amethyst, Cool Caribbean, Tempting Turquoise, Always Artichoke and Basic Black. The grosgrain ribbon is turquoise.

Included in the tote is one of the stamps from Gently Falling, 4 stamped note cards, a wedge of stamping sponge and 4 lengths of ribbon is various colors.

I got the Doodle This set today. Hopefully I'll have time to play with it tomorrow. Catch ya later!

My First Blogger RAK!!

I had a great mail day!! I got this gorgeous card from Charmaine today. Isn't it just lovely? Thank you, thank you Charmaine!! Make sure you check out her blog. She does awesome work! What fun to get a card in the mail for no reason!

Progressive Layout

Tomorrow I'm holding a workshop and the hostess requested a scrapbook page be shown. I'm also doing this workshop Totally Hands On (THO) because it is for a group of teachers who already scrap. They will be making this 6x6 page. It should be quick enough for a make-n-take. The problem I always find when doing a scrap page as a m-n-t is that everybody scraps different size pages. I would hate for someone to make this page and then never use it. So I have made a progressive page to show them how you can take a smaller page and continue adding to it to make it the size you use.

The next page that I will show them, incorporates this 6x6 layout onto an 8.5x11 layout. Here
I have just added an 8.5x11 piece of coordinating card stock and a few embellishments. I also added another place to include a photo. One of the great things about larger pages is that you can add more photos to each layout.

So far for this layout I'm using Elegant Eggplant, More Mustard and Cranberry Crisp with accents in white. The stamp sets used are Be Happy and Seeing Spots and Big Deal Alphabet.

So finally, I have added this layout onto a 12x12 layout. Of course, this also works for me because I'll put my own photos on the page and use it in my scrapbook! Yeah...one more page done!






For the final 12x12 layer I used Natural White card stock and stamped different spots in the three main colors. I also added a strip along the right side for 3 more photos. The little boxes are a great place for journaling or captioning.

So there you have it. A progressive scrapbook page. SMILE!

Scrappin' When I Can

I made this scrap page several weeks ago but I'm sharing it today because I didn't get any more stamping time yesterday. I used the Office Accoutrement set and the designer paper that coordinates so nicely with the set. I also used the Genuine Article set. Card stock was chosen from the colors of the designer paper. The base is Bashful Blue with accents in Certainly Celery. It was a quick and easy page...just the way I like them. I just don't scrapbook as often as I used to and so I need to get a lot done when I do sit down to do some scrapping. The photos on this page are from August 2005. So that tells you how far behind I am in my scrapbooks. I have done some smaller, theme albums last year though. I did one for our move to a brand new house, showing the progress of the building and one for a two day trip DH and I took to Disneyland to celebrate our 20th anniversary. Those little albums are very satisfying to complete. They don't take long and then they're done! Not like my chronological family album which will never be complete and is over a year behind!

Enjoy your scrapping and stamping projects. And come see mine! Don't forget to subscribe so you don't miss something new! Have a great day.

Birthday Boy!

I know I have mentioned that I have a lot of birthdays for males coming up. Here is a card for a friend of the family who is also a scout master. He is so great about doing a lot of activities with the scouts. Including, many hikes and overnighters. So when I went looking for a stamp set to use for his birthday, the Scouts at Play set was a natural fit. Of course, this set is retired and I have noticed that it is quite popular on lists looking for retired sets. I don't plan on letting this one go before my youngest is out of scouts.

Card stock used is Old Olive, Not Quite Navy, Going Gray and Whisper White. Inks are Old Olive, Not Quite Navy and Basic Black. I used Stampin' Up! Marvelous Markers for coloring the scout as well as for inking the sentiment.

I think this may be the last of the masculine cards for a while. But I still haven't shown you the one I made for my DH. His birthday falls on Easter Sunday this year. So I'll show that one soon. I also still have to make a birthday card for my DD who will be 14 next Monday. Oh, where the time go?

This week my high schooler is on Spring Break so we are off to see a matinee of Happy Feet. Even though it is available on DVD today. It will be more fun at the movies! Have a great day!

Easy Does It

Okay, I wanted to post earlier today...or even over the weekend, but it seems I have lost my mojo. So a little while ago I sat down at my stamping desk to create something, anything. I happened to have the petals wheel on my desk with the Bashful Blue ink cartridge already in it. I certainly wasn't feeling any spark about using that, but hey, it was there. I started thinking about the other items I had on my desk, like scaps of bashful blue card stock and white card stock. So I wheeled onto a white card base. After looking at it for a while I figured I would just use the set that goes with the wheel: Polka Dots and Paisley. I grabbed one of the blue scraps and stamped the dotty background on it. The focal point wasn't so easy to figure out. I stamped a few things that looked stupid and then ended up with what you see in the picture. I stamped the paisley off once before stamping it on the focal piece over the sentiment. I looked at my three pieces of paper laying there together and knew they needed something else. Hmmm, I had no idea what. So I pulled out my light blue gingham ribbon and my soft subtle brad assortment. It took me a few minutes to figure out just what I wanted to do here and now the card is actually growing on me. I don't do a lot of monochromatic cards so this is a nice change of pace. In fact, I have a workshop on Friday and I think this will be one of the make-n-takes.

Hopefully, later on today I'll actually feel like stamping and come up with something a little more exciting. Although, I'm not actually counting on that at this point. So in the meantime, while my mojo is off getting a suntan or something, I will just be taking the easy route to crafting.

Lucky Me

I didn't buy the Doodle This and Doodle That sets from the mini catalog. I really wanted the Office Accoutrement set. Now I am wishing for the Doodle sets. I'm not sure I will buy them though. Anyway, I have two friends that have mailed me cards recently using these beautiful sets.

This card is from Wanda. I love the layout of her card and spring colors. I also love the popped up flowers for the focal point. Wanda even paired the Petals wheel with this set for the background. They look great together. Go check out Wanda's blog and see what other great projects she has made. Wanda makes a lot of 3D projects. I love all her notebooks.

I also got a card from my friend and upline, Beckie. The card was a congrats for high sales in February. (Thank you Sell-A-Bration!) I love Beckie's card too. Brown and pink are so great together and I love the buckle style. Beckie's flowers are also popped up and they even have glitter! Ooh...I almost never use glitter. Make sure you also check out Beckie's blog. She is even having a blog candy give away for reaching her first 1000 hits. Yeah, Beckie! You Rock!

So today I don't have anything for you that I've stamped. I did stamp yesterday but I actually stamped for the the monthly contest at SU! I have never won...but I keep trying.
Once the contest deadline has passed, I will post the things I made. Enjoy your day and check back tomorrow!

Love at Home

I have some dear friends who are moving across country for a job transfer. They have moved a lot throughout their marriage and this move brings them back closer to family. I wanted to make a card to send them my well wishes on their move. This stamp set is called Heart and Home and is the first Ronald McDonald set Stampin' Up! offered. It has since retired but I hung onto it because I love the set. The card stock used is Old Olive, So Saffron, Whisper White and Designer Paper. I used markers to do a quick coloring job. I thought that type of coloring looks good with the stamp set style. The ribbon is moss and chocolate. And look! I even stamped an envelope! I'm so trying not to be such a lazy stamper.

Enjoy your day! Matt has gone back to school today. He is a little worried about all the questions and attention he is going to get about this poor little face. I think he'll be fine though. And thank you for all the wishes for his quick recovery.

Love is the Word

I was not feeling very inspired today. I think I'm getting my kid's cold. Yuck! So I went to the SCS Color Challenge for some inspiration. The CC#106 is Really Rust, Brocade Blue and Marigold Morning. I only have the paper for the Marigold...no ink. So I used that for the card base. I stamped the Word by Word background in Really Rust. The rust band across the middle is inked on the edges and paper pierced. Then I used rust marker added to simulate stitches. The focal image is on white. The stamps used are from the set Love without End and inked in Brocade blue and Really Rust. I inked the edges and layered onto the blue with more inked edges. This layer is attached with dimensionals and buttons were added with glue dots after I had tied a piece of linen thread in each one. All in all, a pretty easy card. It's so great to have the challenges over at SCS to give a jump start on an idea.

Matt is feeling better, but is a little more swollen than yesterday. So he stayed home from school again today. I think he'll be ready to get back tomorrow. He is a little embarrassed about getting stared at though. So, we'll have to see.

Don't forget to subscribe so that you can get emails when I post. And I love comments. What do you think of this card? Would it make a good anniversary card for a guy? I think it's on that fine line between masculine and almost masculine. Hmmm...let me know. Maybe the flower blows it. But then what focal image would you recommend?

Do the Hula

I can't believe that my oldest daughter will be 14 in two weeks. Time is going WAY too fast! This year she has chosen to have a birthday party at home with some of her friends. She chose the Luau theme. She let me design her invitations and this is what I came up with. Card stock colors are So Saffron, Pink Passion and Whisper White. Ink colors are Pink Passion, So Saffron and Tempting Turquoise. Stamps used are Big Deal Alphabet and the retired Island Blossoms. The front of the card has 3/4" cut off the bottom and a 1" piece is attached to the bottom layer to show on the front. This picture is my sample, but on the actual invitation I did cut the center out of the letter "a" in luau. It looks more professional. I had to make 14 invitations. That made a total of 56 letters to cut out and 14 flowers. I don't normally do this much cutting...lazy stamper, remember? But I did the cutting while watching TV and it wasn't so bad.

I didn't photo the inside of the card, but I printed all the party info on the computer before cutting my card stock. That makes it so much easier. I don't really enjoying handwriting invitations so I do them on the computer whenever possible. For these, I used a cute font called CK Surfer. I got it from one of my Creating Keepsakes journaling/scrapbooking programs.

Last night my youngest child, Matthew took a nasty fall off his bicycle. He was going off jumps at a neighbors house. Unfortunately, the poor kid did a face plant. After we got him cleaned up and had some dinner he started to get the chills and we worried about a concussion. So we took him to Urgent Care. He checked out fine, thank goodness. But what a sore looking face!

Stampin' with Mom

As I mentioned in my last post, I got to stamp with my mom on Saturday. I made this card for my BIL's birthday. Card stock and ink used are Garden Green, Not Quite Navy and More Mustard. The stamp sets are Crosshatch, Word Search and Wild About You. It was pretty quick and easy-and not girly!

Mom and I each made a sympathy card using the set, Close as a Memory, along with the Fine Lace background stamp. Paper used is Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Confetti White, and Chocolate Chip.

Here is a pic of each of our cards. Mom used water color crayons for the flowers and I used markers. The ribbon is chocolate grosgrain and sentiment is stamped in Chocolate Chip.


The pic of Mom's water colored flowers (on the left) doesn't do them justice. They are soft and beautiful. We also used the coluzzle to cut our ovals and the slot punch to put the ribbon through.

Yesterday I got all the cutting done for Meagan's birthday invitations. I will be assembling them today and will post a pic tomorrow.

Have a great day.

Inspiration Everywhere

Last week I took my kids shopping for spring/summer clothes. One of my girls picked out a pair of capri's with a big flower embroidered on the pocket. Here is a picture of it. I loved the combo of colors so much that I decided to use those colors on a card. The picture doesn't really do the colors justice, but I think you can see Pink Passion, Orchid Oplulence and Pumpkin Pie. The other two colors are Cool Caribbean and Certainly Celery. It took me a few minutes to decide on a stamp set to showcase this many colors, I almost went with Watercolor Garden, but finally I ended up with Treat Yourself.

I started with a card base of Certainly Celery and stamped Print Pattern on that in the same color. The next layer is a strip of Pumpkin Pie stamped with the Canvas Background and with some ribbon from Target wound around it.
The bubblegum machine image is stamped in black on Whisper White. I colored the machine with aqua painters and ink pads in celery and Sahara Sand. Next I stamped the "love" hearts in Orchid, Pink Passion, Pumpkin and Caribbean. I sponged around the machine in Caribbean and layered that piece onto first, Caribbean and second, orchid. I also stamped the word "love" from one of the sentiments in the set onto a piece of white. I used a marker to ink the stamp, thereby only inking the part I wanted and omitting the rest of the stamp. I punched the file tab punch so that the word was positioned right where I wanted it and attached it behind the orchid layer. At that point, I did just a little bit of paper piercing around each corner. The focal image is attached with dimensionals.

I am really pleased with the way the card turned out. I don't usually use quite so many colors. I hope you like it, too!

Today I went shopping with my mom. We went to the new Michael's in town. It is so huge! I only bought a few things but it was fun to look around. Afterwards, we came to my house and stamped. I'll show you what we made on my next post.

Another Challenge For Me

Once in a great while I do the challenges at Splitcoast Stampers. This week I decided to do the Sketch Challenge (#115). For the moment, Cool Caribbean is my favorite color, so I started with the card base in that color. To determine the other colors that I would put with the caribbean, I went to a site that gives color combos with SU! colors. What a fun tool. I just plugged in Cool Caribbean and the program gave me tons of different combinations. Once I picked a combo I thought the sketch would great with patterned paper so I pulled out the Notations Designer Paper in the spring mini. I put one pattern on the top third and another on the bottom third. For the center panel I stamped on Whisper White and layered onto celery. I used the birthday sentiment from Sincere Salutations in Elegant Eggplant. I also stamped the large flower from Office Accoutrement in eggplant and cut it out. Then I stamped the smaller flower from the same set in Cool Caribbean and punched the center with my 1/2" circle punch to serve as the center of the large flower. I attached with a dimensional. At this point the sentiment panel seemed a little bare with just the words, so I stamped the small flower randomly in Caribbean and eggplant. At the bottom of the panel I used my Horizontal Slot punch to tie my celery and eggplant grosgrain ribbon onto. The panel is attached to the card with dimensionals as well as the large flower. And there you have it.

I hope you're enjoying the outcomes of my challenges. It's fun and keeps me stamping. Maybe I'll check some of the back Sketch challenges over at SCS for inspiration. I may not have time for stamping today though. I've got to get to Costco and hubby is home with a day off so that will keep me busy, fer sure! Happy Friday!

Tree on a Triangle

I'm finally getting around to stamping some masculine birthday cards. There are several birthdays coming up that I will need them for. Of course, I usually wait until the day of the birthday to throw together a card and I'm never happy with the results. So I'm trying to be better. Today I decided to try the Triangle Fold that Beate Johns had a tutorial for recently. Make sure you check out her site for the measurements and see how great a stamper she is!

So here I started with a card base of Sahara Sand. On the front I stamped the single leaf from Lovely as a Tree randomly. The oak tree from the same set is stamped on Confetti White and water colored with ink pads and aqua painters, then layered onto Old Olive and Chocolate Chip card stock. I used my coluzzle to cut all the circles. For the inside I layered squares of olive and chocolate into the center section and also layered up a birthday sentiment in the same colors to attach to the inside. Once I completed the card with a little sponging I realized that I didn't have a standard envelope to put this in. I'm not one of those stampers that stamps a matching envelope with every card. I'm a lazy stamper.

So what's a lazy stamper to do? Well, I guess it was time to put in a little extra effort. I got out my Five Envelopes in One Template from Stampin' Up! I had to shorten it some for the fit, but it wasn't hard to do. I even added some punched circles, brads, and thread for a closure. It's so cute I may just do this again...someday.

Have a great day. And do something unexpected today. It may just make you or someone else smile!

Eclectic Accoutrement

Today's card offering starts with a More Mustard base that has been stamped with the Canvas background in mustard and Old Olive. The vertical strip is a piece of glossy white that was first brayered in both directions with the Pumpkin Patch Spectrum Pad. Then I stamped Fontastic in Pumpkin Pie over that. I layered that strip with olive and added a punched tab in pumpkin, stamped with a sentiment from Little Hellos in Chocolate Chip. I attached the tab with two olive brads from the Earth Elements set. I wrapped the card front in mustard grosgrain ribbon and topped off the card with the flower from Office Accoutrement. I first inked the flower in mustard, then used my pumpkin pie marker to color the edge of the flower. Then I cut the flower out, added a button from the Earth Elements set and attached with dimensionals. Twelve of these cards are on their way to Florida for my upline's monthly swap. Hi Beckie!

I don't know what possessed me to use these colors. They aren't very spring like. But at least I have a couple more birthday cards to add to my stash. Altogether, I made 12 card fronts and 2 full cards. I figured since I'm making swaps anyway, it's no problem to make a couple more for the stash. I try to do this regularly. Then I have cards ready to go at the last minute.

Just last night two of my kids wanted a card to give to their teachers. They also made giant chocolate chip cookies to give to their teachers. I don't know what the occasion is, I think it's just because they like their teachers. And I know that teachers are under paid and under appreciated so I was willing to help the kids brighten the day of two hard working women.

Have a great day and check back soon to see what else I'm up to!

Take a Challenge

This morning I was checking some blogs that I have bookmarked. I came across Daring Card Makers. They regularly post sketch challenges. So today I decided to play. For my card I started with a card base of Tempting Turquoise. I then layered three pieces of the Paisley & Petals Designer Paper. I added a strip of Old Olive and turquoise grosgrain ribbon. Lastly I stamped the flower from Looks Like Spring. I did the rock-n-roll technique. First I stamped the flower in Turquoise then I rolled the edges in Old Olive. I cut the flower out and added a button from the Fresh Favorites II set. This was a quick and simple card with great results. Sometimes it's nice to have the layout all planned for you and to just think about the pretties.

Splitcoast Stampers has weekly sketch challenges and color challenges. I think I'll have to go there when I'm feeling uninspired in the future. I'm wishing you all lots of inspired stamping time!

Funky All the Best

I stamped this card last week when I was feeling a bit uninspired. I went to my stamp cabinet to pick a stamp set. I felt like I had been using the same sets a lot and I wanted to try something else. But I wasn't feeling the vibe. I pulled out All the Best just because I've had it for a long time and have rarely used it. I sat down at my stamping table and looked at the stamps, waiting for inspiration to strike. I decided to do the Versamark resist technique. First I stamped the leaves all over a piece of glossy white card stock. Then I brayered over the entire piece with Mellow Moss. It's so cool to see the leaves "appear" as you continue brayering. I cut my glossy piece to size and used my ticket corner punch on all four corners, then layered on black and added silver brads. Now I needed a focal image. I pulled out my whisper white card stock and felt completely uninspired again. So I pulled out my color coach and looked to see what other colors went with Mellow Moss. I was surprised to see Regal Rose, So Saffron, and Brocade Blue there. So I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to line up the shadow block in each color. Then I stamped the floral image in black. That was not easy for me. Black flowers don't seen very happy, ya know? But I actually liked it. So I again used my ticket corner punch, layered on black, and added silver brads. To tie in the silver I grabbed my silver cord and wrapped it around the card, tying on a tag stamped with the "thanks" sentiment from the same set. I punched the word out with my Word Window Punch to make the tag. The black floral image piece is raised on dimensionals. The card base is Mellow Moss.

Overall, I think the effect is a little funkier that I normally do. But it's a fun change of pace. I'm working on swaps today. Have a great day and thanks for visiting me!

Jen's Buckle Card

Today I want to share a Buckle Card with you. Jen at
I {heart} 2 stamp had a tutorial a few days ago for this clever card. Check out her awesome site to see just how to make this card. For mine, I used Tempting Turquoise, Cool Caribbean, Gable Green and Whisper White card stocks. The inks are also turquoise, caribbean, green and white. I used Looks Like Spring, Print Pattern, and Quick Thinking stamp sets. Accessories include word window punch, clear buttons, linen thread, stamp positioner, white gel pen. I will be making several of these cards for an SCS swap I'm doing.

I hope to have stamping time tonight. I'll be busy most of the day with errands, housework and contractors coming to the house. But tonight the kids are having some friends over so I'll stamp in the next room to keep tabs on what's going on. I've got some projects brewing in my head. We'll see what happens.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Maybe it's Karma

Do you believe in Karma? I think I do. What comes around goes around. If you're a nasty person, eventually nastiness will come your way. And if you're a good person, that will also come back to you. So I'm thinking that the winner of my Blog Candy must really have some goodness due her. I did two drawings and this person was the winner both times! I assigned each of you a number based on the order that you commented to my blog post. The first person was #1 and the last person was #34, etc. So first I asked my daughter, Beth, to pick a number between 1 and 34. She automatically chose #5. When I went to see who #5 was I discovered that it was someone I know quite well. So I thought maybe it wouldn't look good to have her be the winner. So I made 34 little pieces of paper with the numbers on them and had Beth pick one. Unbelievably, she picked #5 again. How weird is that? I guess it was meant to be!

So the Blog Candy goes to: Beckie (Ladystamper)!!
WhooHoo!! Congratulations, Beckie!!

The photo is of Beth holding the paper with #5 written on it. When I told her what had happened she was laughing so hard I wasn't sure I would be able to take her picture. Beth knows Beckie and has spent most of her primary years determined that she will one day marry Beckie's second son, Thorin. Beckie and her family moved away almost five years ago, and the determination has finally waned. But I do have a great photo of Beth and Thorin when they were four years old. Thorin is on bended knee holding Beth's hands as they stare into each other's eyes. It is precious! So maybe, someday the two of them will cross paths again. Maybe it's Karma.

I'll be at the post office first thing in the morning to get your goodies in the mail, Beckie! Thank you all for leaving your comments. It was fun for me to hear what movies you all like and make some new friends. Keep checking back. I've got plans for some future posts!

Inspiration at Target

I went to Target yesterday and while I was browsing I came across a comforter that immediately made me want to stamp! I loved the color combo so much that I quickly jotted down the colors on some scratch paper so that I wouldn't forget them by the time I had a minute to stamp. Well, I didn't forget. In fact I obsessed about the card until I had time at 10 pm to make it. So here it is! For the base of the card I stamped the Paisley background in Chocolate Chip onto white. I then added a strip of Ruby Red with a thin layer of Gable Green to one side. I stamped the large flower from Office Accoutrement with Tempting Turquoise onto white and cut it out. I ran chocolate ribbon around the card and added a bit of turquoise to it as well. The flower is on dimensionals and has a button from the Earth Elements container. I love the way the card turned out with the same feel as the comforter. These are colors that I would have never put together if I hadn't been inspired at Target.

Take note that today is the last day to leave a comment on my Blog Candy post. Check back tomorrow to see if you are the lucky winner! I am really enjoying reading all of your comments. Make sure to subscribe so you always know when I've posted something new. I try to post everyday, but sometimes life gets in the way.

Last night I took the kids to the mall for some new clothes. This is not my favorite activity! And we didn't finish so we'll be back at it tonight to get shoes, some more shorts and t-shirts and maybe bathing suits, too. My credit card company loves me!! LOL Clothing four kids is not cheap! And my friend, Beckie (Ladystamper) had six! She is Superwoman, though. Love you, Beckie!

Finding More Joy

Another sample of the Polka Dots and Paisley set, along with the Petals Jumbo Wheel. The card is Apricot Appeal. The background is the paisley image stamped randomly in apricot. The band across the middle is the wheel stamped in apricot onto whisper white and layered on Certainly Celery. The main image is also on white and stamped in celery. I did a little marker coloring on the main paisley image in apricot and added the celery grosgrain ribbon. The doodling on the main image and the dots on the horizontal strip are freehand. I just thought it needed a little something to anchor the whole thing. Someone once told me that every art project needs and little black or brown to anchor it. I admit that I don't always do that, but more often than not, I find that it helps. Some images just have the feeling of wanting to float away without that touch of black to "ground" them.

I'm definitely feeling the love with all the comments on my blog candy. Thank you all! So don't forget to leave your comment on that post to be included in the drawing.

I'm hoping I can find a little time to stamp something new today for sharing tomorrow. I need to clean the house, make dinner, run kids around, do laundry, etc., etc., etc. I know you all know the story. Have a great day!

First 1000 hits Blog Candy!!

I'm so excited to reach my first 1000 hits. I'm having so much fun blogging! When I first heard about blogging a year or so ago, I thought it sounded kind of weird. It never occurred to me that blogging could encompass the stamping world. I'm so glad other people thought of it first and now I get to add my two cents worth of creativity to the world at large.

So to celebrate my first little milestone I am offering the items you see in this picture. The metal containers and the notebook are ready and waiting for you to embellish them with your own sense of creativity. I have already embellished the mailbox and made the cow magnet for you. There may even be a surprise inside for the luck winner. *wink, wink*

I bet your wondering what silly thing I want you to post about to qualify for this blog candy. Here's what I was thinking: Tell me what movie you last saw at the theater and then give a little critique. I love to go to the movies, but I hate to spend $18.00 to get in and another $15.00-$20.00 on overpriced concessions only to be disappointed in the movie. Last weekend I saw "Wild Hogs". This one was definitely worth the admission! I laughed the whole way through. I highly recommend it to you. Okay, so post your review to this post anytime before 10:00 PM PST on Thursday, March 8th. I will announce the lucky winner on Friday morning.

Come on, play along. And if you are new to my blog take a look and subscribe! The more the merrier. Speaking of merrier, I went to Disneyland yesterday. The weather was beautiful! Hubby and I got to play with our two adorable nephews while their parents went on rides and I even went to dinner at Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney which is a treat all on it's own. My own kids had a great time as well and we are all exhausted today! LOL

Nuts About You!

Here is the giftable item I was talking about. This is a tub of Planters Nuts that I covered with paper. Aren't you proud of me? I'm not hoarding my Designer Paper from the Spring Mini Catalog. I've put together a piece with Cool Caribbean card stock and ink, a piece of Hodgepodge Hardware and turquoise grosgrain ribbon. I used Sticky Strip to put the whole thing together and my Coluzzle to cut the circles on the lid. I also used my two tag punches for the tag that says "happy birthday". It was a quick and easy project. I just measured the tub and went to work. I love to get a gift in pretty packaging. I hope the recipient of this will too.

Have a great day! I will. I'll be at Disneyland all day. Yeah! Hopefully by the time I get back on Monday night I'll have hit the 1000 mark on my visitor counter. Then I'll get to offer you some blog candy on Tuesday! Thanks for visiting my little blog. I'm having so much fun with it!

Polka Dot and Petals Birthday

My two loves-Petal & Paisley DP and the Bloom with Happiness Hostess Set-appearing together today! I seem to be on a little polished stone kick too. I used Summer Sun, Apricot Appeal and Barely Banana for this piece. When it was dry I embossed the birthday cake and candles in black EP. I colored in the flowers with Rose Red Marker. My card base is Close to Cocoa with both sides of the same DP showing here. Chocolate grosgrain ribbon wraps the card and buttons from Fresh Favorites II are attached with glue dots. the focal image is matted on Rose Red and attached with dimensionals. All in all, a very simple card. I think I'll be off the Bloom with Happiness kick by tomorrow. In fact, tomorrow's post will be a giftable item. So tune tomorrow for the results of that!

I've noticed that my visitor counter is getting quite close to 1000!! Woo hoo! I'm so excited. In honor of that milestone I will be offering blog candy next week also. Yeah! That should be Monday or Tuesday. So make sure you check back.

Have a great Sunday. I'm off to Church and my BIL's birthday dinner. Mmmm...cake.

Silver Celebration

I'm just loving this hostess set! Here I did some polished stone with pretty in pink and regal rose. There is not a lot of variation in the color, but it's still pretty. Then I stamped the dress and cut out just the skirt. I also stamped the dress on shimmery white paper and then attached the skirt to the white piece. I used snail adhesive at the waist and dimensionals at the bottom. I punched two 1/16" holes on either side of the waist and tied some silver cord in a bow. I layered that whole piece on another piece of the polished stone and then layered that on black and added the silver brads. I wrapped the silver card base with silver cord and then attached the focal piece with dimensionals. FYI: The silver paper is retired SU! paper. But the silver paper that SU! carries now is even better. Lastly, I stamped the sentiment at the bottom of the card.

I hope you like this one as much as I do. It reminds me of the Prom. Next year my oldest will be old enough to go to his school's Prom. We went to the DMV today. He missed passing the permit test by one question. He'll have to try again in a week. And while we were at the DMV we needed to know his height. He is 6'2" already. And he's only 15 1/2!! I wonder how tall he'll get. His dad is 6'5". I have a feeling that dad is going to be looking up to his son before long.

Tri-Fold Joy

I decided to play with my spring mini toys. Starting today there is a Stampin' Up! special featuring items I used on this card. I used the stamp set: Polka Dots & Paisley. The Jumbo Wheel: Petals. The Designer Paper: Petals & Paisley. When you purchase all three of these items you will receive 50% off any one item in the new Spring Mini Catalog. This discount offer is available from March 1 through March 31.

For the card base I used Apricot Appeal and folded the card into a tri-fold opening. On white card stock I used the Petals wheel in apricot and layered that onto celery and adhered that piece to the bottom section of the front of the card. I used a small strip of one of the striped papers in the Petals & Paisley Designer Paper Pack and adhered that to the top section of the tri-fold, just at the center opening. I stamped the dots from the stamp set in apricot above the designer paper. I stamped "find joy" on a metal edge tag and I also stamped the open flower in celery and apricot on the tag. I punched two 1/8" holes in the tag and wove celery grosgrain ribbon through the holes and around the top of the card, tying off with a square knot. I did add a dimensional to the back of the tag for stability.

I love these new selections! Find joy in your day today. I'll find my joy be stamping and spending time with my hubby. He starts days off today. yeah! I'll find anxiousness in taking my 15 1/2 year old son to the DMV to take his permit test. Yikes! How did he get to be that old already? For that matter, how did I get to be that old? That same son is finding joy in winning a singing part in the school musical. He'll even have a solo! Woohoo!

Make sure to subscribe to my blog if you haven't already. I'll be sharing with you soon!