Sweet November Preview Day 5 "Cinder, Breezy and Meadow"

Welcome to the fifth and final day of the Sweet November January Princess previews. I've had so much fun creating with this beautiful group of stamps. Please check out the Sweet November Design Team projects created by Traci Porter and Rachel Schneider along with the uber talented illustrator Amy Young. Today we are featuring three princess animal friends, "Meadow", "Cinder" or "Breezy". It was designer's choice so I selected Cinder the dragon and Breezy, a pegasus for my projects.

My first card pairs Cinder up with Ilyse. He definitely looks a bit love struck don't you think? I have once again used paper from the Bo Bunny Crush 6x6 pad which I am totally addicted to apparently. Both images were stamped onto Bazzill Simply Smooth Cardstock and then colored with Copic Markers. I trimmed both pieces and then mounted to my background layer, positioning Cinder at the feet of the princess so he could look up adoringly at her. Note my princess is more King Arthur's court than the Disney version, thus the flowing pink veils rather than hair.

Products: Sweet November stamps, Bo Bunny dp, My Favorite Things Die-namics and sentiment stamp, The Cat's Pajamas Cutups, PTI cs, felt and button, Kaisercraft pearls, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair/Veils-R81, R83, R85; Robe-E50, E51, E53; Crown-Y23, YR23; Cinder-YG91, YG93, YG95

My second card features Breezy. The Ki Memories chipboard wings and the Doodlebug patterned paper are both older products from my stash. I really should segregate my Valentine's products much like I do Halloween and Christmas. 

Products: Sweet November stamp, Doodlebug dp, Ki Memories chipboard, American Crafts ribbon, Kaisercraft pearls, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: C00, C1, C3, C5, R81, B41, B32

I hope you have enjoyed these Sweet November projects as much as I did making them. I would like to thank Amy Young again for asking me to guest design for this release. Be sure to stop by her blog to enter for her very generous giveaway. I can see so many uses for this fun group of stamps. What little girl (and this big girl) doesn't love a princess? Great for birthday cards, "princess" party invitations, love, Valentines, the list is endless. I really had more ideas for them than I had time so you will definitely see more of these characters in future projects (hmm....like tomorrow actually). Don't forget the stamps go on sale at All That Scraps on January 3.

I would like to wish each of you a very Happy New Year!!!!! We are not big new years revelers here but I do have a bottle of champagne chilling for us and a nice meal planned. I hope to see you back here in 2011.

Sweet November Preview Day 4 "Lillianne"

Welcome to the fourth day of Sweet November sneak peeks. I am excited to be working with the talented Design Team of Traci Porter and Rachel Schneider as well as the creative genius behind the Sweet November line, Amy Young to introduce "Lillianne". The entire series of new stamps will be available at All That Scraps on January 3. Amy has some genourous blog candy to give a way so be sure to enter.

Today's card is a simple one. I stamped the Sweet November image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock, colored with Copic Markers and then cut out.  I really mixed up paper lines on this one - just shuffling sheets around until I came up with a pleasing pastel combination. The sentiments were computer generated and seemed particularly fitting as this princess looks to be letting her hair down for a change.  She's walking in flower petals here aka Flower Soft.

Products: Sweet November stamp, My Mind's Eye, Making Memories and Basic Grey dp, The Cat's Pajamas Cut-ups, PTI cs and buttons, Bo Bunny jewels, Flower Soft, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-E31, E33, E35, E37; Dress-G40, G21, E50, E51, E53; Crown-Y23, YR23

I'll be back tomorrow with the fifth and final Sweet November preview. 

Sweet November Preview Day 3 "Arabella"

It's day three of the Sweet November sneak peeks. The stamps in this series will be available for sale at All That Scraps on January 3. Today I am working with the artistic Design Team of Traci Porter and Rachel Schneider as well as the creator of the Sweet November line, Amy Young to introduce "Arabella". Be sure to enter for the giveaway on Amy's blog.

I worked with different hair colors for me (black) on both cards. As you can see, I still have room for improvement on that endeavor. For the first card, I used paper from the same Bo Bunny pad I used on yesterday's project. To carry out the heart theme I added a heart shaped doily to the background at an angle and trimmed off the excess. Since the image is in a sitting position, I placed the princess on the double ribbons after cutting her out. 

Products: Sweet November stamp, Bo Bunny "Crush" dp and jewels, Kaisercraft pearls, Little Yellow Bicycle doily, May Arts ribbon, PTI cs and buttons, Maya Road trinket pins, Doodlebug rub-ons, Copic Markers
Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-N5, N7, N9; Robe-R81, R83, R85, E50; Veil-B91, B93; Crown-Y21, Y17

For my second Arabella card, I stamped the image then cut it out with a Spellbinders Nestabilties die, cutting away portions of the image. I kept it simple as the sweet and oh-so-princess related "Enchanted" paper by Imaginisce didn't need a lot of extra frou frou.

Products: Sweet November Stamp, Imaginisce dp, Heidi Grace acrylic hearts, Doodlebug jewels, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers
Copics: Skin-E33, E35, E37, W5, W7, R32 ; Hair-N1, N5, N7, N9, W2; Veil-R91, R93, B95; Robe-B41, B93, B95; Grass-G20, G40, G82; Crown-Y21, Y23, Y26

I'll have another Sweet November preview for you tomorrow.  As always, thank you for stopping by.

Sweet November Preview Day 2 "Isadora"

Hello and welcome to the second day of Sweet November previews. Today, I am working with the talented Sweet November Design Team of Traci Porter and Rachel Schneider as well as the creative mind behind the Sweet November line, Amy Young to introduce "Isadora". After seeing yesterday's posts, I'm just as excited as you to see their projects today. Amy also has a chance at some fun and generous blog candy so be sure to enter.

I wanted today's project to be a very romantic and dramatic in nature "missing you" card. I stamped the image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic Markers. I trimmed around the image and then cut off the left portion so that it apears her dress is flowing right off the front panel. I emphasized the face and hands of the princess by placing the Martha Stewart doily underneath. Pop dots behind the bird and the dress sleeve create a sense of movement. The sentiment was computer generated onto the cloud pieces cut with MFT Die-namics. I used a new paper pad Bo Bunny Crush and I have to say, it's pretty awesome. You get a great range of Valentine-ish colors including red, white, black and pink.

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-E55, E57, E29; Crown-Y21, YR23; Dress-E50, E51, E53, N7, N9; Bird-R22, R27

Products: Sweet November stamp, Bo Bunny "Crush" dp and jewels, Martha Stewart doily, My Favorite Things Die-namics, Doodlebug button, Copic Markers

There are more Sweet November sneak peeks so be sure to come back tomorrow. They will all be available for sale on January 3 at All That Scraps. See you soon.

Sweet November Preview Day 1 "Ilyse"

I was thrilled when Amy Young asked me to help with the reveal of her latest Sweet November release available for sale at All That Scraps on January 3. I love all Amy's mythical creatures but you have probably figured that out already if you've read my blog over the past year. Today's card introduces Princess "Ilyse" and, if you like her, come back here everyday for the remainder of the year for even more princess related projects. In addition, the Sweet November Design Team has created some awesome projects so be sure to click on over to Traci Porter and Rachel Schneider along with the talented (and sweet) Sweet November creator Amy Young who is offering a chance for some very generous blog candy.


So let's get started. I stamped the Sweet November image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic Markers.  I then cut the image out trimming very closely around the edges (sometimes I like the white edging around the image, at other times I don't). I glued the image down onto the background paper in the middle only and then placed pop dots underneath her head and at the bottom of her robes. I included lots of jewels and pearls which are totally fitting for a princess.

Products: Sweet November stamp, Purple Onion Designs sentiment stamps, My Mind's Eye dp and decorative brads, Bo Bunny and Doodlebug jewels, Kaisercraft pearls, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R11; Hair/Veils-R00, R01, R20, R22; Robe-BG0000, BG10, BG11; Crown-Y11, Y21

I'll be back tomorrow for yet another Sweet November preview. Thanks for stopping by.

Post Holiday

Good morning. I hope you had a very special holiday. Ours was really wonderful. We didn't exactly have a white Christmas which really would be a Christmas miracle in Alabama but it did snow and sleet all day. It was only around 37 degrees throughout the day so it never stuck. So I guess we had "somewhat" of a white Christimas. Don and I had a nice quiet Christmas Eve together. We cooked some shrimp and then enjoyed a glass of wine while watching our favorite movie, Christmas Vacation. We know that movie by heart now but we still laugh like crazy. My son and his family came over late Christmas day and we had a wonderful meal, exchanged gifts and watched Toy Story 3 which is one of the movies we bought Clara for Christmas. I loved watching Clara opening her gifts along with my big kids of course! It's snowing again today and now we have a light dusting since it is at freezing. Unfortunately it's been just enough to mess up our plans for the day. We had planned to drive north for our Christmas with my stepson and family. But they've had snow and ice so the roads since yesterday so the roads aren't really that safe. But it is certainly a nice day to sit by a warm fire and that is exactly what we plan on doing. At least we aren't stuck in an airport right now like so many unfortunate travelers.

Now for some great creative related news. I am featured on Amy Young's A Thousand Sheets of Paper blog today and will be guest designing for her newest Sweet November release beginning tomorrow. So please go check out Amy's blog and I'll see you back here tomorrow with the first of the January sneak peeks!

Merry Christmas to All

I know everyone is busy with Christmas preparations, me included. I hope you are enjoying time with your family and not stressing too much over the details. 

Don and I are on our own until Christmas night when my son and family come over for dinner. I like to set my table a couple of days before the actual day. It's so rare that the china and crystal are out so I want to enjoy it for at least a few days. I use my mother-in-law's china. It was the only thing I asked for when she passed away. Of course I have my own but we use to tease each other over who was going to have the most sets of dishes. I like to think that she would be pleased that I have them now. And it makes Don happy to have something that was his mother's at our Christmas table. Now I freely admit that some of this will get put away before we eat, afterall one of our family is my two year old granddaughter, plus a 16 year old who will not be needing a wine glass. What's on the menu? Garden salad, burgundy mushrooms, crash hot potatoes and filet mignon. 

Day view:

Night view:

Last year I had red and white roses for the table but this time around I decided to go a little plainer and more economic, especially since we splurged on the steak. I didn't arrange them very well but I think they are very pretty especially for just grocery store flowers. 

And lastly, one more photo of my tree before the presents get distributed.

I want to wish each and everyone of you a Very Merry Christmas.

It's Looking a Lot Like Christmas 2010

Since I've had a respiratory infection since Thanksgiving practically, the Christmas decorating process was completed very slowly. Normally I start one or two days after Thanksgiving and have it done in just a couple of days. This time around it was stretched out over three weeks and was been pared down considerably.

So let's get started! The main attraction for me is the Christmas tree. It is the only big one I am putting up this year. I have another full size one for the diningroom but I did not bother this year since I was not feeling well. The tree is a prelit one but the very last piece at the top refused to light up.  We replaced fuses to no avail so I just wrapped one loose strand of lights on it instead.  So much for the prelit tree. And also since since I love to place the Swarovski crystal ornaments on spinners, I always have additional strands on the tree since they mechanisms don't fit into the prelit light holes. Well one of those strands was no longer working either so I had to figure out how to get that one off and replace with a good one. That is not as easy as it sounds since the standalone strands pretty much look exactly like the prelit strands. I try to buy something new for the tree each year. Usually it's just an ornament but this year I splurged on the light sticks at the top which I think was a bit fortuitous on my part considering the lights struggle!

I love to wrap gifts and only use gift bags for those items that simply aren't going to fit in a box. I also often do not use actual Christmas paper on my gifts, like this one. Recognize the tags? They are the ones I made last month.

Over the years my taste in mantle decor has changed.  I use to go all out, stuff on the hearth, large heavy garland, wreathes, a gazillion candles, etc.  Several years ago I decided that I really wanted a cleaner look but I do manage to change it up a bit every year. The candles and initial are there all year and I just worked around them. 

I have a few smaller decorations here and there mostly because I think it looks odd to have everything clustered on one side of the room.

Very simple foyer decor this year:

And even simpler stairs:

If you are a former Lifetime Moments member, you might remember this small tree.  Unfortunately I couldn't find the ornaments I made for it so it's only the storebought ones this year.  It's located in the diningroom:

More simple half bath decorations:

Now onto the kitchen.  I've had this tree for several years now and it's easy to include because it stays decorated all year long.  I just wrap it in plastic and store it in the basement. It is a combo of kitchen related ornaments as well as real kitchen utensils. The alpine shape is perfect as it doesn't take up a lot of room. I admit that I'm getting a bit tired of it but it never fails to illicit comments from my guests.

Another small tree in my bedroom:

No Christmas is complete without a navity in my humble opinion. (Located in my hallway).  

The front porch:

Outdoor lights:

That's it.  If you have photos of your decoration anywhere, please send me a link so I can take a look. Thanks for looking.

A Snowflake Fairy

I'm finally feeling better and have been playing catchup this week. The house is now fully decorated (although pared down this year) and I am about 90 percent complete with my Christmas shopping. My energy level is still down but I definitely feel like I'm over the hump.  Thank you to everyone who commented, emailed or wished me well on Facebook. I really appreciate it.

Today's project is a Christmas card I made for this week's All That Scraps Wednesday Challenge to include Christmas flowers. Since the background patterned paper included florals I opted to just add a simple felt rolled flower. The stamp is one of the new ones from Sweet November "Neva".  I attached the image to a piece of vellum cut with Spellbinders Nestabilities. 

Products: Sweet November stamp, Bo Bunny dp, My Favorite Things Die-namics, PTI felt and cs, Doodlebug and Kaisercraft jewels, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic markers
Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-N1, N5, N7, N9; Clothes-V0000, V01, V12, V15; Snowflake-E50, E51

It's hard to believe we are less than a week away from Christmas. I admit this year has been a struggle due to the aforementioned illness but I'm just trying to roll with the punches and enjoy the rest of the process. We've already had one of our get togethers with family. Yesterday, we went to my aunt's house for breakfast and spent time with my sister and her family. It's always nice to visit and enjoy the little ones opening their gifts.    

Beary Christmas

I am slowly recovering from my upper respiratory infection and am beginning to get a few more things done. Some out of sheer boredom as I'm not use to just sitting or laying around but mostly because the Christmas holidays refuse to be postponed just because I am not feeling well! Don and I did go out yesterday for some shopping; however, I didn't get near as much as I would like. Afterwards, I laid down for a 2 hour nap! I also have all my Christmas cards addressed and signed and about half of them were mailed today. I should get the remainder out tomorrow. It makes me happy to think that my little humble handmade offerings are on their way.

Today's project is yet another Christmas card. I stamped the C.C. Designs Sugarplums Polar Bear image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic Markers. Isn't he adorable? I paired him up with some very old DaisyD's patterned paper. I created it following this week's Sketch for You to Try challenge to use any previous sketch. I selected this one from 11/27 since I had wanted to do it before but that was the week I first got sick so I never got around to it.

Products: C.C. Designs stamp, The Cat's Pajamas Cutups, PTI cs and buttons, DaisyD's dp

Copics: E50, E51, E53

I hope you are having a great week.

Skating Along

Well here I am 11 days into December and I have not one wrapped gift under the tree. Heck I only have hand full purchased. The house is only partially decorated and it could use a good cleaning. I can't remember the last time I cooked dinner. I am on some new antibiotics, a new cough syrup and got a steroid shot that made be feel so much better in just a matter of an hour or two. But I'm still sick and I've been ordered to rest.  Of course, that is pretty much what I've been doing for two weeks now. And whining. And coughing. And feeling depressed. And whining some more. But I do see a light at the end of the tunnel. 

I've had this image colored for a week but couldn't muster up the energy to actually make the card. I actually think I already have enough Christmas cards made which I would know for sure if I would actually sit down to address and sign them. It's rather ridiculous that they are not in the mail by now considering I've been working on them since July.  But I do have several holiday stamps that have not been inked yet and I would really like to use them. 

(click for larger view)

Products: Lili of the Valley stamp, The Girl's Paperie dp, My Favorite Things Die-namics, Flowersoft, PTI button, Kaisercraft Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Dog-W2, W5, W7, E50, E51; Coat/Gloves/Bow/Shopping bags/Leash-R32, R35, R37;  Bags-YG11, YG13 YG17; Skates-C3, C5

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great weekend. Hopefully I'll be in a much better mood next week.

Star Gazing

So sorry I've been neglecting the blog. The cold I thought I had turned out to me an upper respiratory infection. I've been doing a whole lot of couch sitting and napping. I am so behind on Christmas shopping and decorating it's not funny. I'm feeling better but trying to pace myself. I surely do not want a relapse. Frankly, the only reason I had any posts last week is because one card was already completed and the other had the stamped image colored and the paper picked out. I hope to get back on track but no promises. I hope you stick with me while I try to get my act together!


Today's card is for this week's All That Scraps Wednesday Challenge which is to include a snowflake. I stamped the Stampavie Star Gazing stamp onto Bazzill Simply Smooth Cardstock and the colored with Copic Markers as per usual. The last time I used this image I decided they were polar bears so this time around I made them cute brown bears.  I also wanted to use more traditional colors on this one.  I LOVE this The Cat's Pajamas Snowflake die. It's big and delightfully frilly.  

Products: Stampavie stamp, Cosmo Cricket dp, The Cat's Pajamas Cutups, PTI cs and buttons, Rangers Stickles, Fiskars border punch, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers


Copics: Bears-E31, E33, E35, E37; Sky-B0000, B000; Snow-E50, E51; Greenery-G21, G24; Berries-R27, R29; Road-C00, C1

Thank you for stopping by.