Take Time for Yourself

Today's project is for this week's My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club Sketch challenge. I used one of MFT's A La Mode stamps for the first time. I resisted these for a while but then suddenly three just appeared in my stash. I really don't know how that happened (wink). I stamped her onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic markers. I cut the image out and then glued it to the Heidi Swapp chipboard clock piece which happened to fit perfectly inside the MFT Doily Die-namic. I combined some old (Urban Lily circa 2004) with new Echo Park Be Mine patterned paper and used the letter "O" from an older Ki Memories chipboard alphabet as a frame for my sentiment. 

I even did a bit of decorating on the inside to finish up the sentiment. I don't normally do this either because I don't actually stamp a sentiment until I'm ready to send it or because I need it to be blank for Operation Write Home donations.

Products: My Favorite Things stamp and Die-namics, Echo Park and Urban Lily dp, Heidi Swapp chipboard and plastic pieces, Doodlebug button, Kaisercraft pearl, Strano ribbon, Copic markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-E33, E35, E37, E29; Pants-R81, R83, R85; Clock-C1, C3, C5; Shoes-N1, N5, N7; Shadows-C00, C1

Thanks for stopping by. I'm still sick but managing to get a few things done around here anyway.

I Love Us

It's a good thing Don doesn't read my blog because this is his Valentine. I created this using the My Favorite Things February Guest Design Team recipe challenge. The recipe: Valentine, 1 patterned paper, two colors of cardstock (beyond the color on the card base), three different types of embellishments.

I stamped the MFT Flapper Doodles-I Love Us image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then cut out with a rectangular Nestie. While it was still in the die I traced around the edges with a Copic Multi-liner pen rather than embossing it as per usual. I saw this on the Spellbinders site one time and had a duh-why-didn't-I-think-of-that moment! These two actually look sorta like us except I'm much thinner of course. LOL, I know you believe that one! I emulated the dress by cutting several rows of red cardstock scallops with a Fiskars border punch and then layering at the bottom.  I tried to shape the ribbon to look somewhat like a bowtie rather than tying a real bow to keep the frou frou factor down as this is going to Mr. Man.

So did I follow the recipe? Valentine theme - a couple, hearts, love sentiment (check); 1 patterned paper - Ki Memories (check), two colors of cardstock - red and black (check); three different types of embellishments - felt, buttons, ribbon (check).

Pardon the photography. We had sunshine earlier but it went away by the time I got the card ready this afternoon.

Products; My Favorite Things stamp and Die-namics, Ki Memories dp, PTI base cs, felt and buttons, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, E15, R20; Hair-E33, E35, E37, E29 (me), W5, W7, N7 (Don), Hat/Jacket-N1, N5, N7; Cravat/Dress/Hat trim-R22, R27, R29; Shadows-COO, C1

I really meant to get this done yesterday but I am not feeling much better than when I went to the doctor last week even though the CT scan revealed no infection in my sinuses. I am so sick of being sick.

My Devilish Valentine

Good morning. I have another The Cat's Pajamas Tuesday Challenge card for you today. I'm trying to catch up on these for the month and today is TCPTUES142 which is to include the colors yellow, black, red and either kraft or white. The Little Devil image was actually released as a Halloween stamp but I thought it would make a cute and funny Valentine-ish image as well. I stamped him onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then cut it out with a rectangular Nestie. Rather than embossing the edges as per usual I used the die to trace a black frame with a Copic Multi-liner pen. I also sponged the edges very lightly with ink while it was still in the die. The sentiment was patched together using two other stamp sets in conjunction with the Little Devil set.

Products: The Cat's Pajamas stamp and Cut-ups, Crate Paper, Echo Park and Bo Bunny dp, PTI cs and buttons, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E00, E02; Hair-C5, C7, C9; Mask/Tail-R22, R27, R29; Pitchfork-N5, N7; Costume-Y23, Y35, Y17; Shadows-C1, C3

Unfortunately I seem to be on my way to yet another upper respiratory infection after suffering with one for most of December. This time I didn't let it get so far before I called the doctor. I saw her yesterday and am now loaded up with another round of meds sans the antibiotics pending the results of a CT scan of my sinuses. Hopefully this time around will be short lived.

Miss Ewe

I am determined to get caught up on The Cat's Pajamas's Tuesday challenges so today's card is for TCP Tuesday 140.  And yes, I am totally doing these out of order. The challenge is an inspiration one which is my favorite type. Here is the inspiration piece:

I was inspired by several things. I really like the texture of the knitted cap so I added a felt and crocheted flower.  I also liked the colors as well as the stripes. I combined several pieces of patterned paper from Webster's Pages Waiting for Santa and Sweet Season petite pages (6x6). I stamped The Cat's Pajamas Sheepish image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and drew in some diagonal stripes to the sheep's scarf and pockets with a Copic Multi-liner pen. I colored with Copic markers and cut out trimming close to the edge. I used some pop dots behind the head and scarf to add dimension. I goofed a bit when I stamped the sentiment. Rather than starting over on it, I just added more goofs so it would look like I planned it as part of the design.  Don't tell anybody - that's just between you and me!   

Products: The Cat's Pajamas stamp and Cut-ups, Webster's Pages dp, Queen & Co. felt flower, Autumn Leaves decorative brads

Copics: Sheep-E50, E51, E53, RV00, RV10, RV11; Scarf/Pockets-V01, V12, V15, BG11, BG23, BG34, RV13, RV14, RV17

By the way, the All That Scraps store is having a 20% off sale on all their The Cat's Pajamas products through January 30. Use code meow when checking out to get the discount. You better hurry though because they are going fast!

I Love You, Ladybug

My card for today is for this week's My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club Sketch challenge. It features some new products including the new MFT mini rolled roses Die-namics. I love the smaller size but highly recommend a quilling tool to roll them unless you have the daintiest of fingers. I got mine at Hobby Lobby for around $4.00. I stamped this cute Ladybug Pure Innocence image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock. After ten days away from them I was happy to break out my Copic markers to color up this litte cutie up. The paper is a mix of old and new and the ladybug brad was in my stash from back in the days when I never met a brad I didn't like!

Products: My Favorite Things stamp and Die-namics, Bo Bunny and Ki Memories dp, PTI cs and felt, Kaisercraft pearls

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-N5, N7; Costume/Shoes/Cap/Wings-R81, R83, R85, R35, R37, R39; Shadows-C1,C3

It feels good to get back to my craft supplies. Today was a great mail day too since it has been on hold for 11 days. I received a wonderful package from my friend Arlyn which included among other things a huge package of Coordinations cardstock. I also got a couple of small orders of stamps. Of course amongst all the good was a ton of junk mail which required shredding which is one of my least favorite things to do. Also, there is a nice pile of bills of which I cowardly did not open. I'm in a good mood and I don't want to ruin it just yet. I hope you've had a great Monday!

The Keys to Life

In keeping with one of my craft goals for this year, I want to start including projects with my older stamps that do not require coloring. I have so many of these from years of stamping before I discovered Copics.  Today's card features one of my favorite Stamper's Anonymous stamp. I stamped onto my panel with Nick Bantock's Lamp Black ink and then heat embossed using clear detail powder. Now technically I suppose I could have actually colored this image but I rather liked the etched look. The paper is a mix of old and new - the red is DaisyD's (I sure miss that company) and the other is a sheet from the new Echo Park Be Mine paper. The epoxy/metal piece is an older Lil Davis product I found in my stash when I cleaned out my iris carts. Normally I would tuck the ribbon underneath the stamped piece but since it was so sheer I tied it over the image instead.

Products: Stamper's Anonymous stamp, Echo Park and DaisyD's dp, Lil Davis epoxy and metal piece, Melissa Frances keyhole, Spellbinders Nestabilities

Thank you for stopping by. I hope all is well with you. I feel like I've been a bit disengaged from the blog lately. Everything you've seen on the blog over the past week was completely at the first of the month. The fact is that I've been out of town for 10 days without any craft supplies. It was one of those things where I actually meant to make me up some kits to take with me but I ran out of time. Oddly enough, I seem to use more "tools" in cardmaking than I ever did for scrapbooking so it's harder for me to pack a bag of crafty stuff. I hope to get back into the swing of things next week. I definitely hit the ground running when we came in after a 10 hour drive - unpacked, started the laundry, put clean sheets on the bed, put some kidney beans on to soak overnight (for some red beans and rice today), started the dishwasher, paid a few bills online and some general straightening up. All in an effort to make sure I have some craft time hopefully starting today. Before I knew it, it was 10 o'clock and I still did not have a shower yet. I was too tired to dry my hair so i went to bed with it wet and let me tell you, it is a lovely sight this morning!

A Unicorn Valentine

You might remember that I guest designed for the January Sweet November release last month.  "Meadow" was the only one of the stamps that I did not use for my projects. I needed to remedy that especially since this is just about the cutest unicorn I've ever seen. Love his sweet expression and I thought he was a natural for a Valentine card which fits this weeks All That Scraps Wednesday Challenge. I cut the image out with a Spellbinders Nestie and sponged around the edges with Tim Holtz Antique Linen distress ink while it was still in the die. I think that unicorns are suppose to be sparkly but since I donated this to Operation Write Home, it was not possible to use any kind of glitter. I also see where I should have added some shadows but this card has already been shipped so it's too late now. Why do I figure these things out after I've already photographed and uploaded to my blog?!

Products: Sweet November stamp, Pink Paislee and My Mind's Eye dp, Purple Onion Designs sentiment stamp, The Cat's Pajamas Cut-ups, Prima flowers, Making Memories ribbon, Kaisercraft pearls, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: E50, E51, E53, E55, B41 B32

Thanks for stopping by!

Shake Shake Shake

I am going retro with todays project. I found this heart skaker in my stash when I was purging scrap supplies back in the fall. There was no copyright on it but I'm sure it has been sitting in that iris cart for a long time. I paired it up with this incredibly cute C.C. Designs Polar Bear image. I stamped him onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock, colored with Copic markers and then cut out trimming close to the edge.

Products: C.C. Designs stamp, Bo Bunny and Ki Memories dp, Copic Markers
Copics: C00, C1, C3, C5

In addition to my 2011 overall goals I've also made goals specific to creative efforts. They are:

1. Scrapbook more - at least finish two albums already started
2. Use older stamps that do not require coloring
3. Work on Copic skills and techniques
4. Join a local stamp club
5. Continue to make cards for Operation Write Home

See you back here soon. Have a great week. 

Here's to New Beginnings 2011

I prefer to make goals rather than resolutions. I also like to think about what I want those to be during January so I really don't feel compelled to make them on the first day of the new year. Thus the reason you are seeing them now rather than on January 1. Before I list my goals for 2011, I would like to take a look back at my 2010 ones to see if I made any progress.

2010 success was mixed:
- continue on my weight loss/better health lifestyle; add more exercise to the mix
-> I maintained my weight loss from 2009 give or take a few pounds here and there. I do need to exercise more; hopefully my new running shoes will take care of some physical issues

- cook more; try new recipes
-> I did do a lot more cooking this year; we only average eating out once or twice a month

- go on a spending freeze; pay down debt
-> Complete failure on this one

- read more
-> Not as much as I would have liked

- work on organization
-> Did some major work on this in the summer and fall

- create, create, create
-> A year of blog posts is evidence enough

Now to my goals for 2011. Not surprisingly, some of them are the same as last year.

->Exercise more; work on my health and weight
->Along with cards, start scrapbooking more
->Try new recipes
->Continue purge and organizing house
->Begin to make improvements to the house with a future sale in mind
->Work on paying down debt/budget
->Use my time more wisely
->Find a church that we both like

I also have some craft goals to share later. You are probably not interested in either of these but I am using the blog to keep me accountable!
 

Got Crate Paper?

Got Crate paper? I certainly do! In December Crate Paper featured some of my Christmas cards using the Snow Day line during their Happy Holidays Blog Event. Imagine my surprise when they choose my projects as worthy of a goody box of Crate Paper projects.  And oh my......I received an absolutely delicious 11 pound box of goodies, and even better, it arrived on my birthday! Here are some pics of all the Crate Paper goodness (sorry about the weird light conditions - nothing but snow, ice and cloudy weather around here):

Since our travels plans are on hold for right now, I couldn't help cracking open one of these fun collections (Seasons) to make a card for this weeks The Cat's Pajamas Tuesday challenge (TCP Tuesday 141) to use ribbon in any way except the standard bow. Despite the fact that I have several new TCP stamps, I chose to use this cute Whale of a Time stamp again. Love this little whale and it's matching wave Cutup. I can only hope for some warmth in real life as it is very cold here. I used ribbon as my sun rays reflecting the warmth theme which in turns matches the "warm" sentiment which is from another TCP set. I went for a monochromatic look with the yellow ribbon against the yellow background. I first stamped the "wave" onto PTI white cardstock, then cut a circle using a Spellbinders Nestabilities, sponging the edges with yellow ink while it was still in the die. I colored the wave with Copic Makers and then inserted the circle into the background panel cut with the TCP Wave Cutup die. The whale was stamped onto dp, cut out and mounted onto the circle.

Products: The Cat's Pajamas stamp and Cutups, Crate Paper dp, chipboard and brads, American Crafts ribbon, Doodlebug jewels, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copic Markers: BG72, BG75

A huge thank you to Crate Paper. I look foward to creating many more project using these beautiful paper collections. Let me know if you see something you would like.  I would love to share with my blog friends.

Wild Thing

Good morning. I hope your weather is better than it has been here. We are beginning to thaw out after a major snow and ice event. That doesn't happen often here in the south, thank goodness.

I stamped the My Favorite Things Little Loveosaurus onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic markers. I had a few blending issues with this little guy but he's still cute even if I did mess him up. I substituted a heart brad for the tip of his tail. I generally followed this week's My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club sketch for the layout.  Not sure it turned out how I intended but with three days of interruption while working on it, I think my original concept got lost somewhere. 

Products: My Favorite Things stamp and Die-namics, Ki Memories dp and acrylic sticker, Bo Bunny dp, My Little Shoebox letter stickers, Bo Bunny jewels, Copic Markers

Copics: COO, C1, C3, C5, R22, R27, R46, R81, R83

This has to be short and sweet today as I have a lot going on. See you back here soon.

Bee Mine

I originally got this cute My Favorite Things Pure Innocence Honeybee stamp for Halloween but I thought it would be just as cute for Valentine's Day also. I paired it up with We R Memory Keepers patterned paper and matching embossed tag. Easy peasy!

Products: My Favorite Things stamp, We R Memory Keepers dp and embossed tag, Kaisercraft pearls, PTI cs and button, American Crafts ribbon, Copic Markers


Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Body/Hat-W1, W2, W5, Y21, Y23, Y26; Wings-E50, E51, E53; Container-R30, R32, R35, R37

We've got ice and snow on the ground here. A rare event for Alabama. We're tucked in tight with a fire and a cup of coffee.

Oops

I {Heart} U

I originally bought this The Cat's Pajamas stamp for Christmas but I was also sure it would look equally cute for Valentine's Day. Unfortunately not one single Christmas card was made using it so I hope to make up for that now. I stamped the image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic markers that are listed below. The paper is some older Ki Memories from my stash. I followed January's Sketch for You to Try for the layout.

Products: The Cat's Pajamas stamp, Ki Memories dp, My Favorite Things Die-namics, Heidi Grace acrylic heart, PTI felt, Doodlebug rub-ons and button, American Crafts ribbon, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Copic Markers

Copics: C00, C1, C3, C5, R81, R83

I hope you have a great weekend. Yesterday was my birthday. It was not a particularly happy one but I'm hoping for better days. 

My Favorite Projects of 2010

As I look forward to the new year, I also wanted to look back on 2010 and remember some of my very favorite projects. So here are my top 12 in no particular order.

1. I had to list a scrapbook page. I really need to convince myself that I actually am a scrapbooker! Sadly, it is one of only 10 l/o's completed all year. It features my beautiful granddaughter Clara:

2. A favorite paper line (Cosmo Cricket Garden ) combined with a favorite Sugar Nellie image:

3. I fell in love with the My Favorite Things Pure Innocence line and this is just one of many. I also love this color combo:

4. Yep, another My Favorite Things P.I. image along with one of their Die-namics which I am just crazy about.

5. I also discovered the Sweet November line this year. Love these whimsical stamps. This card also features one of my favorite Christmas paper lines this year, Crate Paper Snow Day:

6. I also discovered another fun stamp company, The Cat's Pajamas. There stamps are just pure fun and I think this whale stamp and wave die was my first purchase from them:

7. I also discovered Tiddly Inks digital stamps. I like this particular image along with the Cosmo Cricket Mitten Weather paper:

8. Another The Cat's Pajamas image along with some very old Ki Memories patterned paper. I still reach for these papers as they look just as good today as when they were first released:

9. I love creating scenes on my cards and this one was fun to put together. It features another My Favorite Things stamp combined with some Bella Blvd patterned paper.

10. Another Sweet November image plus it features more Cosmo Cricket Mitten Weather patterned paper.

11. Another My Favorite Things Pure Innocence girl.

12. I had to include at least one card featuring this gorgeous The Girl's Paperie Tinsel and Twig Christmas paper. The stamps are from Taylored Expressions. This card looks like I spent a lot of time on it but I really didn't.

I hope some of my favorites were some of your favorites as well. My one year blog anniversary came and went in December. Since I was sick most of the month, I let it slide by without any fanfare, not that it was important to anyone but me. But I do want you to know how much I appreciate your support, friendship, emails and comments this past year. I realize there are a lot of blogs out there; afterall my Google reader is full right now too. It means a lot to me that you have taken time out of your day to read mine.  So thank you and I hope you stick around for 2011. 

I Love You

Good morning!  Welcome to the first Monday of 2011!  I'm furiously creating Valentines hoping to make as many as possible before the Operation Write Home deadline of January 7 which has to include ship time. I had originally planned on making quite a few in December but that didn't work out when I got sick. So now I am going right down to the wire. I was feeling a bit guilty about submitting the same card for the My Favorite Things WSC as well as the January Guest Design Team contest so I wanted to submit something else. I just worked it into the OWH deadline by making it a Valentine. 

The theme for the GDT contest is "banners" so I thought this beautiful Parisian Anthology paper from Pink Paislee with its small banner background would be perfect.  Although not the traditional colors for Valentine's I think it's just pinked enough and of course this "Heartfelt" image is so very sweet for a little girl.  I added a small felt banner piece to the top for my sentiment (which came from the WTG Bottom of My Heart set). I cut the lace border at the bottom twice and then layered on top of one another to make it a bit more sturdy. I used the soft twill to balance out all the lacy pieces. A couple of buttons, small pearls for her shoes buckles and a row of bling at the bottom and it was done.

Products: My Favorite Things stamps, Die-namics and twill, Pink Paislee dp, PTI felt, cs and buttons, Doodlebug jewels, Basic Grey pearls, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-E50, E51, E53; Coat/Hat/Shoes-E50, E51, E53, B0000, B000, B01, BG72, C00, C1; Heart-RV0000, RV00, RV10

Thanks for stopping by.

War Eagle

Ugh, that was a hard title to type! We are definitely not Auburn fans in this household but we will be rooting for them against Oregon as we're for the Southeastern conference all the way. Plus it's actually quite neat that two Alabama state universities are competing for a national championship two years in a row. Not only that, but a team member from each university has won the Heisman trophy for the past two years. At any rate, around here a football game is an excuse to party. Beer, some wings, chips and a big screen tv is all you need! It fits right in with this week's My Favorite Things Wednesday Stamp Club "party" challenge. I actually already had this made before the January MFT Guest Design Team contest was posted but I'm also submitting it for that as well.  Normally I don't combine challenges but why not since it fits the theme of banners?

I stamped the My Favorite Things MVP image onto Bazzill Simply Smooth cardstock and then colored with Copic markers. The Auburn blue is actually much darker than my blue markers so I tried to deepen the color with black shadows which made it a bit closer to navy. I even put some "eye black" under this little guys eyes. Afterall, Auburn hasn't been to a championship game in 43 years so they are not use to the glare of the lights! The pennants were created with the My Favorite Things banner die. I "pinned" them up using some very tiny Queen and Co brads from my stash. I tried to keep the frou frou down to a minimum as this is going to a teenage boy. I just accidently found the small football sticker shaker in my stash while I was ransacking my craftroom looking for something else.  

Products: My Favorite Things stamp and Die-namics, My Mind's Eye dp, PTI sentiment, ticket die, felt and cs,Jenni Bowlin letter stickers, Martha Stewart border punch, Copic markers
Copics: Skin-E33, E35, E37, R29, N7; Uniform-C00, C1, YR01, YR12, YR14, E99, B93, B95, B97, N7; Cleats-N5, N7, N9

Some time next week, I will take a look back and list my top 12 favorite projects of 2010. I hope to see you back here.

Be Mine

Happy New Year! What is on your agenda today? I'm cooking a rather large meal that includes the Southern traditional black eyed peas and turnip greens for good luck. It's also the annual football marathon. I wish we were a little more excited about the Alabama game but honestly, the bowl lineup this year has just not been that great including our game. Normally I love football but with so many crammed in one weekend is a little much! I hope to get some crafting done while appearing to be interested when Don says "did you see that play?".

Today's card generally follows this week's Mojo Monday sketch. I stamped the Sweet November Isadora image (available January 3 in the All That Scraps store) and then cut it out with a Spellbinders Nestabilities die, cutting away a portion of the image. I drew in a line with a Copic Multiliner pen to make it appear that she is lying on a blanket. The crown paper is from an Imaginisce Enchanted 6x6 pad and the rest is the brand new and simply gorgeous Echo Park line "Be Mine". I am loving the grey and pink color combination for Valentine's/Love theme. You will definitely be seeing more of it. I even used the logo name from the bar code strip as my sentiment.

Products: Sweet November stamp, Echo Park and Imaginisce dp, My Favorite Things Die-namics, PTI felt and cs, Prima Flower, Basic Grey pearls, Martha Stewart punch, Spellbinders Nestabilities, Copic Markers


Copics: Skin-E0000, E00, E02, R20; Hair-E50, E51, E53; Dress-RV00, RV10, RV11; Crown/Bird/Blanket-C1, C3, C5

I'll be back tomorrow with another project. I hope your year is off to a great start. Roll Tide!