Thank You Barb!

Funny how things come up. Back at the end of June, Barb, the wonderful blogger from Made for Keeps commented on a video I had posted on my Facebook page of me zip-lining in Jamaica.  Her comment was that they have two zip lines in Branson and that she wanted to try it.  So ~squeaks and squeals~ (the rusty gears started turning in my mind-haha!), a thought emerged, and I sent her a message that I would be taking my daughter back up to Norwich University in Vermont at the beginning of July, we could route our trip thru Branson, MO so we could try out one of the zip-lines there.  So plans were made.  Now, Barb and I had never met in person but we had communicated thru out blogs and e-mails, then on Facebook.  So, Shelbie and I got to Barb's house late in the evening, and I felt like I was coming to visit a friend I hadn't seen in a while, not like I was meeting someone for the first time.  Barb is a such a warm, sweet person, and her husband Jerry is a delight.  My daughter is contracted with the Navy, will commission as an officer when she graduates and Jerry is ex-Navy...so they had lots to talk about.  I fell in love with Barb's crafting cave.  Oh my, the goodies she has!

We spent two nights and a day with Barb and Jerry before continuing on to Vermont.  During our day there, we did the zip-line from the 230-foot tower at Shepherd of the Hills.  It is about half-mile long, takes almost a minute to get to the bottom.  It was wonderful!  From left to right in the picture  is Barb, me, a charming young man who got stuck with us three ladies, and Shelbie.  Jerry took this picture from the top of the tower.  Such fun!  We spent the rest of the day wandering around Branson, with Barb and Jerry showing us different sights and attractions.  I felt  a wonderful kinship with Barb, and I hope we get to see her and Jerry again soon!

In the interim since getting back from Vermont, making this card and intending to send it, job issues came up, Tyler was in an a bad accident and things just seemed to get derailed and I've had a hard time getting back on track.  Tyler is doing well, seems back to normal though having some sleep problems (stress?).  We got the police report and learned that there were six vehicles involved, not four like we originally were told.  The person who caused the accident admitted he was distracted...saw a fast food restaurant and was thinking about getting a burger, when he looked straight again he didn't even have time to hit his brakes.  So a big delivery truck at 40 mph causes a lot of damage, injuries, [and a fatality] to five vehicles in front of it who are stopped at a red light.  I am so thankful Tyler is okay and doing well.  But I had forgotten to post this card, and I finally remembered last week that I hadn't even sent it to Barb!  Sorry!!

This card followed the Mojo Monday 146 sketch.  I used a Tim Holtz embossing folder for the base and the vellum oval, slathered them with distress ink.  The strips are from a DCWV pack, inked those edges as well.  Sentiment is from Inkadinkado, stamped with distress ink, cut out/embossed with Wavy Squares Spellbinders dies. 

Fancy Fold Mother's Day Card

I am posting this card today so that my mother would not see it before Mother's Day. Today is her birthday, so will be posting her BD card tomorrow...again so she won't get a sneak peak at it. I'm using this card for Sharon's Stamp Simply #138...Mother's Day.

I was stalking Connie's blog a while back and saw this wonderful multi/fancy fold card she created (she has more too!) and followed the links she provided for tutorials. I love different folds for cards.

I used the new Spring Bouquet stamp set from Flourishes, which I really like. Love this gorgeous bouquet. I stamped it with Stazon and colored with Primacolor Pencils blended with baby oil, then chalked around the image. Traced around the inside of the 2nd largest Labels 10 Nesties and cut out the image by hand so I could have the flowers extending beyond the margins, then cut a mat from the largest die. Stamped around the edge of the mat using Perfect Medium on a Crafty Secrets Flourish stamp, then applied Perfect Pearls. Gave it a pretty Ole-timey frame look, I think. : )

Added the lavender flourished DP to one panel. The rest of the panels have either plain white CS or a mesh patterned CS from MME that I inked with Distress Inks and used another flourish from the Crafty Secrets Flourish set around the borders.
The sentiments are from Verve's Because of You and Flourishes Spring Bouquet set.

Added a couple MS punched butterflies, layering the one on the front with gold vellum and added Stickles. A few flat-backed pearls on the front and...voila'. A pretty Mom's day card!

I have a couple more creations to post this week, then I'll be on the road for about a week. I am flying up to Vermont Thursday to get my daughter. She can't leave her car on the college campus for the summer, so I'm going up there to drive back with her. We will head out Saturday after the graduation ceremony, so we can see one of her friends she went to high school with graduate from Norwich. We are going to do a week-long road trip coming back so we can do some sight seeing along the way. I have some friends in York, PA and Apex, North Carolina, so plan to make stops there to visit with them while we're on our way back. We both are really looking forward to the trip!

Wishful Thinking

This is a long one. Sooo....Spellbinders is having their Design Team try-outs for the 2010 team. I love all the Spellbinders dies! I thought long and hard before doing this, mainly because there are so many wonderfully talented crafters and my chances of making the DT are uber slim. But Chuck and my kids gave me lots of encouragement and convinced me to go for it. Why not, right? Submissions were a card, a 12x12 scrapbook layout, and an altered item. Here are my entries.

For the altered item, I initially considered a notebook, but then I ran into (again) all my empty Cricut cartridge boxes. I have...a lot. Couldn't part with them after I came up with a more space-saving means of storage. So I attacked this box with some pretty paper from My Mind's Eye. The paper on the inside is a scrap from my stash, but it coordinated nicely. Once I got the box covered, out came the Spellbinder dies. I used the Fleur de Lis Pendant for the centerpiece, layering it with foam tape. The Fleur de Lis Borderabilities was used for the corner pieces, and to cover the ends of the box, which can't be seen in the pix. I used the Cameo die for the frame and attached it on foam tape to the pendant. The cameo is from Melissa Frances. I painted with some Pearl Ex in two different colors to bring out the detail. On the front flap I attached two of the Decorative Photo Corners die cuts, as well as a segment cut from the Borderabilities to use as an "escutcheon". The tiny lock is hanging from a large jump ring that I wrapped around the ornament before attaching; Its tiny key is attached to a chain that I looped around the pendant. The little legs I found last year at the stamp store just down the block. They look great!

Since doing this box, I've altered six more (will post later). Lots of uses for them. My daughter and niece already put in their "orders" for one. Like I said, I have a lot. : )

For the card, I had a set of "blanks" with envelopes that were sent to me by a blogging friend. I think they were by Stampin Up!, based on the envelope size I found on their site. Anyway, those fit perfectly into the box, so I gave them a dose of Spellbinders dies and made a note card set for myself. Used the Lg Deckled Mega Rectangles Nestabilities over the base, inked along the edges. Again used the Cameo die mounted on foam tape, decorated with Liquid Pearls and a couple flat-backed pearls. Symbology One ornament in the corner, and some flowers made with various sized punches, and an MS butterfly flying around. Used JustRite Special Occasion font for the monogram.

Okay, now for the scrapbook layout. Try to keep the laughter to a low roar. When I was looking for pictures to use, I came across an envelope with these old prom pictures and decided these were the ones for the layout. The base DP is from Anna Griffin, I think (sorry). I used Classic Frames die to frame pictures. The roses were cut from the Rose Blossom Edgeabilities, stenciled while still in the dies, as was the frame. For the "journaling", that was actually my handwriting from the back of the picture on the left...from April 1980. I scanned the back of the picture then printed it onto some DP and cut that out with a Curved Rectangles die. If you click on the picture you can probably read what it says. I was such a dork! I actually made that dress, and it was so pretty - but lots & lots of satin! I used JustRite Brayton font to stamp "prom" on the ticket, which was cut from Spellbinders ticket die. The flourishes are from the Symbology One die.

So there we have it. I won't hold my breath to make the DT, but what wonderful honor and experience that would be! I had a blast doing these projects. I have some more cards that I will post tomorrow. Have a few last tweaks to do. I've finally gotten busy playing with paper again! Thanks for stopping in. Love to read your comments!

My Niece's Birthday...

...was yesterday, and this is the card I made for her. At first I thought it was kind of busy, but I've made friends with it. :) She lives with us while going to college, but was working yesterday so I haven't seen her yet. Hope she likes it. From bottom up, used SU! CS for the base card. All of the DP is Basic Gray Eva. Misted the Spellbinders In Spades pendant with Glimmer Mist in two different colors, though that doesn't show in the pic. The sentiment is from JustRite Just A Note set, with one of the 2" borders around it. Cut out with circle Nestabilities, with a scalloped base. That was attached with dimensionals to the pendant, then added some Basic Gray pearls I got from Flourishes.

Stamps: JustRite Just A Note, and 2" Borders.
Paper: SU cardstock. Basic Gray Eva.
Ink: Colorbox Queues, Marvy Marker.
Accessories: BG pearls, Spellbinders, Glimmer Mist, Cuttlebug.

I covered these little tins with some DP from My Minds Eye. I used the little cutouts from the In Spades pendant, again misted with Glimmer Mist, and attached those to the tops, with a rhinestone in the center. Printed the contents on my computer, then cut those out with a Spellbinders label, inked while still in the die, then attached to the tin and added two little pink rhinestones. Attached ribbon around the lid. My niece and daughter love the teas from Teavana, and we have a store here, so I got some of their favorite for each of them, and that is what is in one of the tins. The other has German rock sugar to sweeten the tea. Also got her a tea maker to go with it.

Stamps: None.
Paper: My Mind's Eye.
Ink: Computer, Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders circles and label, rhinestones, Cuttlebug, tea tins, ribbon.

Feeling Froggy

Maybe the title should say "foggy", because that's how my brain felt at first when a friend asked me to make a set of note cards for her adult step-daughter, who loves frogs. The specs were that she wanted "a frog theme; her favorite colors are black, green and turquoise...have fun!". Ooookay.

I don't collect frog stamps, having only one little bitty one that would not have worked. So I went here and found these digital images. Yes, I cheated. But it felt so right. lol. These are the cards I came up with, along with the box. This is a set of eight cards and envelopes. My camera and I obviously weren't on friendly terms for the card pix. Have no idea why, because the picture of the box looks great and everything was set up the same for the cards. Oh well, I think you'll get the idea. Here we go:

The box for the cards is the pizza box style, sized for A2 cards. Used black for the box. Embossed the turquoise panels with a Cuttlebug strip. Stamped her name with JustRite font and cut it out with Spellbinders Label, attached to panel. I printed the image as-is from pccrafter already colored, got it to the size I wanted, cut it out with Spellbinders Deckled Rectangles, as well as a black base. The only thing I added was some Twinkling H2O's to her swimsuit, though it's hard to see in the picture. Added a CB embossed strip to the front edge of the box, and decorated the corners with BG Euphoria paper cut with a corner adorner.


Now for the cards. Sorry they're blurry. They are each a little different, with 2 of each design in the set.
















I attached the BG Euphoria strip to the turquoise base, then embossed with various CB folders. Cut out the images with different Spellbinders dies, sponged the edges with green then black on the very edge. Used two different JustRite fonts for her initial, cut those out with Spellbinders and gave them a base as well. I added Twinkling H2O's to the swimsuits in two images. Put lavender Stickles on the sunglasses (top one) - think that's my favorite, and also Waterfall Stickles on the water of third one. These ended up being a lot of fun to make after I got over the mojo hurdle. My friend really liked them and said her step-daughter would love them. Yay! :)

Stamps: JustRite Monogram stamps.
Paper: Basic Grey Euphoria, The Paper Studio CS.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders dies, Stickles, Cuttlebug folders, Twinkling H2O's, rhinestones.

A Little Catch Up

Well, I have been MIA again since August. Thanks to those of you who checked in on me during that time. Nothing serious, just super busy with massage therapy school and work. Graduated from MT school last Tuesday (YAY!). I am scheduled to take my State Board exam this Wednesday. Then just have to wait for the state to send me my license and I'll be open for business. Massage anyone? :)

Even though I have been absent from blogland, I have been making things. However, I forgot to take pictures, or couldn't find my camera, so obviously those things won't get posted. But here are two note card sets and a gift tag I made this past week, and my annual Halloween card I sent to my girlfriends (I know, very late posting this one).

I saw this Impression Obsession stamp and loved it! Stamped with Stazon and colored with Prismacolor pencils. Ribbon on the broom painted with Twinkling H2Os. Liquid Pearls on the bubbles. Image cut out with Spellbinders Labels Eight, added the tiny moon brad, and attached to grey CS base over narrow ribbon from Target $1 bin, and the cobweb MS border punch. I used black embossing powder on the Inkadinkado cat. Regular stamping of the sentiment from My Favorite Things in the upper corner.

Stamps: Spa Day from Impression Obsession, Inkadinkado Scary Cat, Out on a Limb from My Favorite Things.
Paper: The Paper Studio CS.
Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues, Prismacolor pencils.
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels Eight, brad, ribbon, embossing powder, Liquid Pearls, Twinkling H2Os.

This first set is a set of 8 cards, made with a Kraft CS base from SU! Background DP is by Olf Fashion Flowers by Fiskars. The bands are the reverse of that DP, and I embossed four of them with the textile CB folder. Monogram with JustRite stamp cut out with round Nestie and mounted on two layers of Spellbinders Labels Nine. Easy peasy, but so pretty.


Stamps: JustRite Monogram stamp.
Paper: Kraft CS from SU!, Fiskars DP, Pearl stationary paper from Office Depot.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders labels and nestabilities, Cuttlebug, embossing folder.

This is the gift tag I made to put on a bottle of wine I gave my frient Tommie for her birthday. I had printed out the sentiment "It's your party...wine if you want to", cut and embossed with Spellbinders Labels Five and inked all around it. Tied it to the wine bottle I had wrapped in purple and black tissue paper. Boring! Then I happened upon this post by Donna and just had to make those grapes! Not sure how I didn't notice that one embossed grape got into the bunch, but that's okay. It looked really great, and Tommie loved it! I used three leaves from a Cuttlebug die, and one Spellbinders leaf. The grapes are just layered oval Nesties. I attached the grapes to the tag and tied it to the bottle with some raffia.

Stamps: None.
Paper: CS from Hobby Lobby.
Ink: Computer.
Accessories: CB leaf die, Spellbinders leaf, Labels Five, and oval Nestabilities, foam tape, raffia, eyelet.

Last but not least is this set I made for Tommie's daughter, who turned 21. Their birthdays are one day apart, and a bunch of us got together for a fun birthday surprise for these two. I used two different colors of CS from SU! for the base of these cards, embossed with CB Victoria folder. I don't know the name of the orange/cream CS, it's scraps in my stash I've had for a while. Those are the bands and the background on the box. Again, Spellbinders Labels Five layered under JustRite monogram cut out with circile Nestabilities.

Stamps: JustRite Monogram.
Paper: SU! cardstock, The Paper Studio CS, ??DP from my stash, Pearl stationary paper from Office Depot.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels Five and circle Nestabilities, CB Victoria Folder.

SSNOTIME70 - Seniors Rule !

This week Sharon's SSNOTIME70 challenge is to create a card that would be suitable to give to a senior citizen. Could be silly, vintage, any occasion...whatever we can dream up that an older person would enjoy getting. I went for vintage, remembering how much my grandmother loved lacey stuff. DP is Anna Griffin, edges distressed then inked and mounted to card base. Had this white lace for 10+ years, ran three different Colorbox Queues over it to get this color so it would match the cameo. Ran it through my Xyron to attach it to the card. The cameo was a paint chip with a bit of shimmer that was cut/embossed with Spellbinders Cameo and Brooch die, inked while still in the die. The lady in the center was embossed then painted with Petal Pink Liquid Pearls. Added some tiny pearls to the frame, threaded the sheer ribbon through, and attached the cameo up on foam tape. Attached the ribbon then in the swirly pattern, and finally added a few more pearls to the edge of the lace. Sentiment is from SU! Carte Postale set. Love how this turned out! :)

Stamps: SU! Carte Postale.
Paper: The Paper Studio, Anna Griffin.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Lace, Spellbinders, Liquid pearls, flat-backed pearls.

Birthday Card For My Sis-in-Law

I made this card this past weekend for my sis-in-law's birthday, but couldn't post until today so she wouldn't see this before she got the card. Her birthday was yesterday; she lives in another city so I hope she got it in time. I got two new sets of Inkadinkado stamps in the mail last week, one being this set, "Nostalgia". Had to get into that one right off the bat! Stamped main image on white CS, as well as the sentiment. Cut/embossed the main image with Labels 2 die, the sentiment with smallest Curved Rectangle die. Inked both while they were still in the dies with cocoa, then lightly with olive inside that to pick up on the green from the DP. Distressed the edges of the main image. Attached the DP to the base, distressed the edges all around and attached the cut-outs. The sentiment is up on foam tape. Added tiny pearls to the top and bottom of the main image, then the paper flowers after inking them and adding pearls to the center. I had been wanting to try this canopy effect, so cut a piece of DP in opposite direction, used MS punch on the edge, then scored it. Distressed the top edge, inked the punched edge, attached it to the base and added graduated pearls to the center of it. I got her a gift card and made a little pocket on the inside cover for it to go into. I love how this turned out.

Stamps: Inkadinkado Nostalgia.
Paper: The Paper Studio, My Mind's Eye.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels 2 and Curved Rectangles, Cuttlebug, paper flowers, pearls, MS cornice border punch.

Happy 50th To Tony

I have a guy friend who lives in Austin, whose 50th birthday is tomorrow. Hopefully he won't pop on here and see this before he gets the card. We met not long after my divorce and became fast friends. He comes down to San Antonio every couple of months and we wander through antique shops here in SA, or go on day trips Boerne or Fredricksburg for the antiquing and wine tastings there. Tony was the first person I had ever heard describe himself as a "metrosexual". Didn't want to appear dumb so waited until I got home and googled that. Yep...was like Tony was posing for that description. :) Hence the birth of this card...the image and sentiment for the trips through the wineries. Used burgundy CS base, as it has a story of its own. We were in an antique shop in Boerne and I saw this beautiful burgundy leather chair. As I sat down in it, Tony said "I have a pair of shoes that would match that perfectly". Before I burst into peels of laughter, I know I gave him that - you did NOT just say that - look. :) SU! crackle background, torn and distressed, edge-inked. Inkadinkado image colored with Prismas/baby oil, cut out and embossed with curved rectangle Nesties then attached on foam tape after inking the edge. Crafty Secrets sentiments embossed with silver and copper EP that I mixed together before sprinkling it on. Can't tell in the pic, but has a really pretty patina look to it. One cut out with Spellbinders Label, inked, brads added, and attached on double layers of foam tape. Second sentiment directly on CS base.

Stamps: Inkadinkado Wine & Cheese, Crafty Secrets Wine Lovers.
Paper: The Paper Studio, manila folder.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels & Curved Rectangles, copper and silver EP, brads, foam tape, metal ruler for distressing.

MIA Mojo...

When my kiddos had their Christmas with their father's side of the family, they didn't take gifts for their dad or stepmother because they were told they would have a separate gift exchange with them. That hasn't happened yet for one reason or another, and the kids put off getting gifts, the little stinkers. I finally coralled them for the picture for their dad (previous post), and they had no idea what to get their stepmother. Groan...I was going to be making something for my niece yesterday but said I would make something for stepmom. I called and asked my ex her favorite color - pink. Here's what I came up with, though took a while to get my heart into it. I made the A2 box base, and then my mojo just jumped out the window...to chase a squirrel or something, I dunno...but I had a hard time coming up with something that could be considered presentable. Finally told myself not to think about who this is for and just "do what you do" as my daughter said. Okay, so I picked this pretty cardstock and cut it to fit around it the box base like a book cover, scallop punched the edge. Ran narrow satin ribbon across the base and attached the box over it, cut a slit to pull the ribbon through. Because it was a single-sided CS I rummaged and found a solid DP that was a close match and lined the cover and spine. Put that to the side and started on the cards. Used my JustRite Monogram stampers with the From the Desk of frame. Did the initial in pink and frame in a pale blue to pick up from the design. Cut those out with circle Nesties, then a scalloped circle from the liner paper for the mat. Mojo waffled again. Went and did some cleaning downstairs because we're having a dinner party tonight, came back a few hours later and this is what I ended up with. I used the largest scalloped rectangle Nestie on the patterned CS, then a larger scalloped circle and cut out a vignette. That's where I put the monogram stack. My daughter came in and looked at everything, said "Oh Mommy, that is so cute". Before I could stop her, I heard my evil twin say "is it too cute?" (I'll smack myself later). Back to the card - felt it was missing something, so added that muave satin ribbon running all the way across. Then attached the monogram stack. Still missing something, so I added those little swirls, which are outline stickers. Used four gold and four silver, then added a longer one to the inside of the box lid. Went back to the box and stamped her name with JustRite Brayton and Special Occasions fonts, cut that out with Spellbinders ribbon slide, inked edges. Ran the ribbon through it. Flowers are layered CS from a Cuttlebug die. I inked alternating layers with shades of pink and blue, then put them on my gel wrist pad from my computer and pushed down in the center of each layer with the end of my paper piercer so they would curl up. Attached them to the box with Diamond Glaze, and added the blue foil butterfly. Put little rhinestones in the center of the flowers and on the butterfly's body. Did I do okay? :)

Stamps: JustRite Monogram stamper and Fonts.
Paper: The Paper Studio, Pink Paislee, Hot Off the Press.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders, Cuttlebug, ribbon, foil butterfly, rhinestones, outline stickers, scallop edge punch.

Another Gift Set

My kids had their Christmas with their father's side of the family yesterday. They had no idea what to get for my former in-laws so asked if I would make a card set for them. No problemo. There were supposed to be 8 cards like the one on the left, but after I got going I realized I only had enough of that DP for 6, so snagged a different DP and made 4 of each, so have paisley and floral. Used my wondermous JustRite Monogram Stamper on manila folder, then cut each out with smallest Labels 2 die. I centered that cutout still in the die on the solid CS and ran both through the Cuttlebug on top of the embossing mat to create an embossed frame and also embossed the cutout at the same time; hard to see in the picture, but IRL looks nice. I then inked the edges of the cutout. Dropped the ink pad right in the middle of one (oops!), so I ended up pouncing the inkpad over each cutout. Looked good. : ) Attached all layers to SU! Kraft CS, inked all around the edges of the card. Used the Kraft CS for the box and the second floral piece of DP for the cover. Did the same monogram as on the cards, with the next two die sizes as well. Inked the edges differently for each layer, adding antique gold to the last layer. Put the ribbon in place and attached the matted layers on top of it, wrapped the ribbon around the bottom, and lookie, lookie...I actually tied a decent bow! Not very good at those, so I was pretty happy about it. :) The cards look pretty bleh in the picture, like something missing, but they look so pretty IRL with that embossed frame. The kids said their grandparents really liked them, so that's what matters.


Stamps: JustRite Monogram Stamper.
Paper: Manila Folder, SU! Kraft CS, My Mind's Eye DP.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders, ribbon.

Happy Birthday to My Shelbie Delaine!!

Delayed this post to 12/16 so my daughter would not see it until she got home to get the card (she checks out my blog from school - ~grin~).
Today is my daughter's 18th birthday. She won't be coming home from college until tomorrow, but thankfully will be with some friends from here at home who are also attending Norwich, and they are taking her out for dinner this evening. Here is the card I made for her. I used stamp glue on the Flourishes Damask background and sprinkled it with lavender glitter. The flower is from Rubbernecker. Inked it up with lavender and then "tipped" it Sapphire Silk. Green and Stucco on the leaves. Then inked the edges and sponged over the image. Then did the cracked glass technique with UTEE. Attached it to the background. Used the Spellbinders ribbon tag for the sentiment which is a rub-on, threaded gold ribbon through it. Added the gold Dew Drop at the top. The mushy stuff is inside. :)

Stamps: Rubbernecker Flora and Flairs, Flourishes Damask.
Paper: The Paper Studio.
Ink: Colorbox Queues.
Accessories: Spellbinders, UTEE, ribbon, Dew Drop, glitter, stamp glue, Making Memories rub on.

Sweetly Scented Gifts in Pretty Packaging

I love homemade soaps, and Joan Fricker has some gorgeous gifts in pretty packaging on her blog for Sharon's Stamp Simply Celebrates party. She challenged us to do some pretty packaging of our own.

Today I took off work so I could go out to Camp Bullis Army Base with the ROTC kids so they can run the obstacle course. My friend Deborah is going too (her daughters and my son are in ROTC). The 1Sgt and Chief who are in charge of the ROTC group have challenged Deb and I to run the obstacle course as well. Alrighty...what a way to celebrate a couple things - my birthday today, and my last chemo treatment (which was on the 9th). Well, I used to be very physically fit, played several sports, but that was a while back. We're both pretty deconditioned now but we're willing to give it a whirl! I figured since we would be feeling pretty sore by the end of the day tomorrow, I put together this set for Deb to maybe help her unwind a bit. There is a vanilla scented candle that I bought and altered, and some lavender infused bath salts that I made and put into that cute little milk bottle. I wrapped both containers with DP from My Mind's Eye. The medallion on the candle was made with JustRite Harmony II stamper, and the words on the oval were from Brayton font. Then all layers were cut with Nestabilities ovals and circles. The little tag was made from MFT set, colored with Prismacolors/baby oil. Mirror was cut from a piece of shimmery silver CS. Added Liquid Pearls where the bubbles are, and a little flower bling hanging on the "wall". Matted that on the My Mind's Eye DP I used for the bands.

Will let you know how the obstacle course turns out. Will definitely be lots of laughing - Deb and I will probably end up being the poster children for Depends. :)

Stamps: JustRite Harmony II, Brayton font, MFT "Time for Bubbly".

Paper: My Mind's Eye, manilla folder.

Ink: Colorbox Queues, Stazon.

Accessories: Nestabilities, ribbon, Liquid Pearls, rhinestone, candle, milk bottle, bath salts.

Pretty Simple Notecards For a Wonderful Teacher

On day 4 of Sharon's Celebration party Deb Saaranen issued a challenge to create a simple gift of packaged note cards for a teacher or acquaintence. I made this set for the lady who was my first teacher many years ago when I started Montessori School. We have kept in touch all this time. In fact, she sent me an e-mail the other day with her "reveal" of my first day of school - in September of 1968! Ack! : ) I used burgundy CS for the base card again, rounded the lower corners. The DP is from Anna Griffin. I used three different coordinating papers for the "ribbon", with different border punch on each. There are 8 cards, 2 with the green and 3 of the other two colors. Used JustRite Special Occasion font in one of the Damask borders. Cut those out with Spellbinders circle Nestabilities, then a mat from scalloped circle. Added tiny pearls above and below the letter. These cards went together very quickly. I also put the initial in smaller font on the return address part of the envelope - can see it there with the cards. The box was made from the burgundy CS. The top was covered to match the cards. I cut a strip of the yellow paper and on one end used the ribbon punch. Threaded the burgundy ribbon through that and attached the strip to the box top over the ribbon. It then wraps around the bottom of the box and ties on top. The medallion was made JustRite monogram stamper and border, spelling out her name, with tiny decorative stamp from Brayton font set, and then a tiny pearl. All layers were cut with Nesties. It is actually a little card, with that final shimmery scallop attached to a circle of CS cut on the fold so it opens and I have written a message to my teacher. :)

Stamps: JustRite Special Occasions font and border, Brayton set, Damask border (how about that product placement behind the box). hee hee.

Paper: Anna Griffin DP, Hot Off the Press DP, The Paper Studio CS.

Ink: Colorbox Queues.

Accessories: Ribbon, Spellbinders, ribbon, tiny pearls, border punches, envelopes.

A SSC Day 5 Sketch Challenge

To celebrate Sharon's Party a sketch challenge was hosted by Cathy Tidwell. Here's the sketch, and my card. Base is kraft CS. Bottom DP is Memory Box Winterberry, then DP from Sandy Lion. Peace dove from Flourishes embossed with gold EP, cut out with oval Nestabilities. The two flowers stacked on each other are from Michael's, with rhinestone added. Then the gold Dew Drops on the left. Another quickie card. I really like how this turned out.

Stamps: Flourishes Peace.
Paper: SU! Kraft stock, Sandy Lion DP, Memory Box Winterberry DP, The Paper Studio CS.
Ink: Versamark.
Accessories: Gold EP, Dew Drops, Nestabilities, die cut flowers, rhinestone.

A Mass of Christmas Cards

I did several of the challenges on Sharon's Stamp Simply Celebrates Party, so I have several posts today.

First up is Tammy Hershberger's mass card production challenge. I made 10 A2 size cards for this. Started by cutting out all the parts so it could go assembly line fashion. Burgundy card base. Cut and embossed smaller curved rectangle Nestabilities from manila folder (have boxes of these things from company I used to own), then burgundy rectangle. It was perfect width but too long, so cut it in half nad overlapped to the size I wanted. The seam is covered with the ribbon. The background DP is actually some pretty Christmas wrapping paper I got at Hobby Lobby for $2, and it's a huge roll. So everything is cut out. Attached the DP to the card base. Stamped SU! Scandinavian tree (LOVE this set!) with Versamark, embossed with gold EP, added a rhinestone in the big flower. Used the ribbon punch and threaded ribbon through the back and wrapped around the bungundy rectangle. Attached that stack to the card. Took about 65 minutes from the time I started cutting all the parts until I finished the last card.

Stamps: SU! Scandinavian Season.

Paper: The Paper Studio, wrapping paper, manila folder.

Ink: Versamark.

Accessories: Spellbinders, rhinestone, gold EP, ribbon.

Packaged up goodies

Rolling into day 7 of Sharon's Stamp Simply Celebrates Party, and there has been so much going on! I decided to play along with Dee Jackson's project of packaging for food items. My SIL and I used to buy the peppermint bark from Williams-Sonoma every year until two years ago, because the price just kept going up. This year their tin of bark is $26.50. Gak!! It's super yummy but so out of range. So last year she found a recipe that is so close you can't tell it apart, as long as you use good quality chocolate. I made a batch and packed some up in a couple of these tins that I covered with different DP. These little tins are actually gift card holders that I got at Michael's. The one on the left is the lid for the box showing the peppermint bark. That tin was covered with this gorgeous paper from Sandy Lion (found it at Michael's). Added some gold cording around the top edge. The medallion is actually two paint chips cut out with circle and scalloped Nestabilities. On top of that is the "seasons greetings" sentiment from Christmas Stamp Ensemble by JustRite. Uhh...it's a 3 1/4" image that I shrinky dinked down to 1 1/2" and attached after rough cutting and sanding the edges. It looks really cool. :) The other tin is covered with paper from My Mind's Eye, with cording added to the top as well. This medallion is three of the Spellbinders snowflakes embossed and stenciled, then covered with chunky glitter. They are layered on top of yet another paint chip. Guess it's time for a trip to Home Depot for more paint chips. hee hee! :)

Stamps: JustRite Harmony Christmas Stamp Ensemble.
Paper: My Mind's Eye, Sandy Lion, paint chips from Home Depot (Ralph Lauren collection - grin).
Ink: Colorbox Queues,
Accessories: Marvy Markers, Spellbinders, glitter, cording, tin, rhinestone.

SSNOTIME64 - Christmas Card With a Twist

Among all the fun partying on Sharon's blog, today's Stamp Simply challenge is a Christmas card using no traditional papers or stamps, but may use a Christmas sentiment. This great set from MFT came yesterday and I just had to use it for this challenge. I stamped the girl with Versamark then embossed with black EP. Colored her with Prismacolor pencils blended with baby oil, added some glitter to her shirt, then cut her out with Spellbinders Lg Labels die and matted with scalloped rectangle. Attached that to the turquoise base card. I added tiny rhinestones to the corner scallops, and also one on her index finger - nice blingy ring. :) Had the Spellbinders snowflakes and MS branch punches already sitting on my desk, so I added them too, with a rhinestone for more bling. The "seriously" is from this set, and the Christmas sentiment from Flourishes.

Stamps: My Favorite Things "And Then I Said", Flourishes Flourished Christmas.
Paper: The Paper Studio.
Ink: Colorbox Queues, Versamark.
Accessories: Black EP, Spellbinders, glitter, rhinestones, Prismacolor pencils/baby oil.

Day 6 of 12 Days of Christmas on PCP

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, six geese a laying. Today we could use a duck, a goose, or an egg. I have a rubber ducky stamp, so built the card around that. Stamped ducky and Babs in the tub with Stazon, colored them both with Prismacolor pencils blended with baby oil. Cut around them both with a craft knife, and stuck ducky amidst the bubbles, which were covered with Liquid Pearls. While I was thinking about how to do the rest of the card, I started leafing through the Coldwater Creek catalog that came in the mail today. Right inside the front cover was the snow covered tree scene, so I thought about the window. Attached the background DP to the base card, then attached the tree picture. Cut, embossed and stenciled the arches and windows with Spellbinders dies and attached those over the tree picture. Bathtub was attached on dimensionals. Stamped "Relax" in upper right with MFT stamp.

Stamps: Babs from Rubber Romance, ducky from Target $1 spot, MFT Time for Bubbly set.

Paper: SU! CS, The Paper Loft DP, The Paper Studio CS.

Ink: Stazon, Colorbox Queues.

Accessories: Spellbinders, dimensionals, picture from catalog.

Day 5 of 12 Days of Christmas on PCP

On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...five golden rings. Something round or with circles/rings is the theme for the Papercraft Planet 12 Days of Christmas Challenge.

I love gold and silver ornaments, so made this ornament card. Cut it out of shimmery silver CS with the largest circle Nestie. The "cap" was cut from SU! curved tab punch. I stamped a Verve filigree on it with Versamark and embossed with gold EP and attached the tab to the card then punched the hole. The main image was a stamp by Martha Stewart, also embossed with gold EP and overlapping a bit onto the cap. Finally, stamped and embossed the Flourishes sentiment in the center. Added tiny rhinestones below the sentiment and also around the edge of the cap.

Stamps: Verve Floral Filigree, Flourishes Flourished Christmas, Martha Stewart stamp.

Paper: The Paper Studio.

Ink: Versamark.

Accessories: Circle Nestabilities, SU! Curved Tab punch, rhinestones, embossing powder.