Saturday Sunshine

Happy Saturday....complete with sunshine in my neck of the woods! After a week of snow and ice...this is a welcome respite from winter. Forgive my blog absence for a few days...I've not felt very creative this week :( This afternoon I took a moment to look through some paper I picked up yesterday and I loved this flowered vellum from the Paper Factory. I paired it with a striped sheet also from PF, added a touch of ribbon, Prima flower and a few of my favorite butterflies. This card made me think of "softness.." of gentle breezes and warm fuzzy feelings.

If you haven't checked out the Cuttlebug site...do so today. A great blog hop has been going on and today is chockfull of tutorials and fresh ideas from the DT. (My niece, Amber, included :)

Have a great day!

Wintertime Blues

Butterflies do not fly in ice and snow! And that is exactly what our weather is here in KY today. But, I still have these winged beauties on my mind when I am crafting :) , so more cards with flowers and 'flies. For this card I used Best Occasion Textured Cardstock; Prima Flowers; Stampede Butterfly Stamp and Teal Ink and a random ribbon scrap and button. My favorite embellishment....the Martha Stewart Doily Lacy Edge Punch..which was my birthday present from my son. I love a new scrapping tool :)

I am still crazy about a touch of glitter to make everything shine! Hope y'all are warm and toasty, wherever you are.....

All About "Ewe"...Awesome Weekend

What an awesome weekend! Friday evening at 7pm, our church hosted a Lock-In for area youth...with well over 130 present and counted...many more trickled in throughout the night, that is not counting adults. The above was an interp called "Everything." Powerful message, indeed, regarding the trials of today's young people. Several were saved and many rededicated. The following morning, I helped with breakfast and I may never make another pancake....I had blisters from stirring the 100+ hotcakes....but what a blessing.

Sunday was my 44th birthday. I am still young enough to enjoy them and old enough to appreciate them :) I made my own birthday cake, (because I am a cake decorator )and before my mother passed away, she would call me before my birthday and say, "Bake you a birthday cake and bring it over." She loved my fresh cakes and buttercream icing. She would provide the rest of my birthday meal and presents. I always miss her on my birthday; she made each one special. I was inspired by my cake to make the matching card.....of course, someone else will receive it....minus the cake....on their b'day ;)

My MIL fixed me dinner and had my family to her house after church yesterday. Very thoughtful and very appreciated.

I made this cute "Ewe" card with Best Occasions Cardstock; Autumn Leaves Blink Ribbon; Gems from the Beadery and the sheep is simply a freehanded cut-put "flocked" with Polymark White Pearl Iridescent Dimensional Fabric Paint.

I hope your day is great and your scrapping is happy!

Ordinary Days...Extraordinary Memories

Happy Friday to all. This week has flown by for me. Late last night I sat down at my scrap table and all I could think of was butterflies and flowers...I told you....you would see them again :) The cardstock is random scraps from my bin and I used distress ink on the butterfly to age the paper. I added Prima flowers (which I love) and splashed a bit of glitter on both.

I am still loving that sparkly look! The card is cuter in person...the colors look sort of washed out here.

I was inspired by Audrey to take part in Project 365. (Where you take a photo everyday and make a year of memories.) I titled this layout (there is another page for next week, of course, that goes with this one), ORDINARY DAYS. I love this idea! When I sat down and put the first weeks of January together, I already found memories to enjoy that I would have otherwise forgotten. What I like best, it doesn't have to be grand moments or big events....just a glimpse of the everyday is extraordinary when you are with those you love. My Monday post....I had a Dr. appointment, but felt good enough to scrap shop ;) (Most of you understand that.) Tuesday...my son and his fiance going sledding. Wednesday...my apetite came back and I treated myself to a nice pancake breakfast. Thursday.....my rescue puppy Packer "helping" hubby take his coat off when he came in the door from work. Friday....I am feeling soooo much better that I washed my "cozy blanket" and put it away. See what I mean.....years from now I will have a diary complete with pics of this year and these everyday happenings. So fun!

Hope you all have a great day

A Blog A Day....

Good afternoon all....we are still getting snow flurries/showers and I am nice and cozy today with a fire blazing and creative juices flowing. I am soooo behind on my scrapbooking, but today I awoke with a couple to pages on my mind and here are the results. My hubby was so sweet this Christmas to play along with my photo hobby. He gave me one whole afternoon to pose and shoot and re-pose with no complaints. I had to post this in honor of his sacrifice ;)

I used Glitter Swirl paper by Autumn Leaves, Rusty Ornament by Dolgencorp and Holiday Stickers by Wal-mart.

I also did a page for my son's Christmas Engagement using DCWV Glitter Stack Paper, Making Memories Stickers and Embellishments and a random ornament to match the snowflake theme. I love the pic of the two of them goofing off....that is the real Jay and Miranda....fun loving and full of life.

I also made this card as a special "Just to say hello" to my MIL and two of her sisters, who are regulars of my blog. They check in often and send such sweet compliments. Thanks to you for your kind words Auntie Lorelle and Auntie Frances. Be watching your mailboxes....you might get a handmade goody from your niece in Kentucky :)

For this card I used Best Occasions Red Textured Cardstock; DCWV Glitter Stack Cardstock; Prima Flowers and buttons and ribbon from my generic stash. I added a bit of glitter to my flower petal edges and centers. See, I told you that I would try to get away from the flowers and butterflies which have been my faves of late, but I must confess, I feel more of those pastel creations in my future....Have a great day....

Snowy Monday

Hello All...we awoke to a snowy Monday with about 4 inches on the ground and flurries all day. I was beautiful and perfect for making snowballs. (not that anyone was home here to make any, but I did try one out when I cleared my car windows this morning;) I have mentioned a couple of times that I have been under the weather for a few days...well a trip to the Doc revealed that I am more than under the weather...I have Strep! I haven't had strep for 20+ years, never once the entire time my son was young and he had it more than a few times. Oh well, at least now I can stop treating myself and thinking that this is the most virulent virus I have ever had ;) After two large injections, surely I will be feeling well soon . And, looking at this card, I must still have that rainbow sherbert on the brain ! I crafted this springtime beauty before going out today. It just sort of came together on it's own. I chuckled to myself that I am either in a flower and butterfly rut, or I have found my niche. I promise, I will try to make something different very soon.

For this I used Best Occasion Teal Textured Cardstock; Making Memories Glitter Dots Cardstock; K&Co Flowers; Butterfly Stamp from Stampede; Gem from the Beadery and the brushed on glitter which I have been experimenting with lately. Again, my fiskars corner punch completed the look. More snow in the forecast tonight....I might do a Wintertime card next...imagine that!

Sweet Sunday Sherbert

Happy Sunday to all! I had mentioned that I had been battling a bug all week and when I uploaded this post, I realized that all of my cards are the color of rainbow sherbert. Now, it is true that I have eaten quite a lot of the creamy confection this week, but to subconsciously choose cardstock to match it...well, that must mean that I need to eat some more ;)

I love the cream and peach colors. They are so soft and pleasant to look at. I used Best Occasion Textured Pastel Cardstock; Prima Flowers, Gems from the Beadery, Butterfly Stamp by Stampede and Fiskars Punch.

I am also playing with a glitter wash that is not marketed for scrapbooking, but is acid-free and so pretty. It gives just a hint of shine and makes the butterflies almost 3-Dimensional when they dry. I am loving it!

Again, see the rainbow sherbert colors...hmmm, lime and raspberry. I used the same products as above in addition to a Colorbok Chipboard butterfly which I covered with pink cardstock and again, applied my glitter with a brush. The Colorbok tag reads "Butterfly Kisses."

Hope your day is great and all of your scrapping is happy!

Butterflies and Birthdays

Well, I think that I have done it! I have created my VERY FAVORITE card EVER!!! I made this with someone very special in mind and I wasn't going to post it until after her birthday, but I just couldn't wait.

I used Best Occasion Textured Cardstock; Stamped butterflies with Stampede Stamp; Colored them with Bic Acid Free Markers and glazed them with silver glitter. I used Prima flowers and random buttons.

I also glazed the flowers and buttons with glitter and the happy birthday tag. I loved this project.

It turned out the way I envision all of my cards but never quite achieve. Who knows, maybe I am on a new creative bent....more sparkle, more embellishments....more everything.

I hope the intended recipient will act appropriately surprised when she gets this! I'm pretty sure she knows who she is!

Happy Scrapping to all!

Frozen Friday

Well it has sure been a 'frozen Friday' in my part of the world. -0 temps this morning, with a high today of 19! That is cold. I have been recovering from a 72 hour bug of some sort (being a nurse, I have diagnosed and treated myself , as we nurses tend to do.) Plenty of fluids and hours upon hours of sleep. I am feeling much better today, and even joined a couple of my church friends for a horror movie this evening. Hmmm, now I remember why I hadn't been to a scary movie in 25 years. I don't enjoy being scared! But, I did enjoy the popcorn.

I made these projects earlier today. The card is Best Occasions Cardstock, K&Co Stickers, generic button and ribbon. I did try faux stitching on this card and I like it. I do need some
practice, but I think I will use it again.

I covered a round of chipboard to elevate the center and followed a good tip that I picked up somewhere in all of my blogging. I used a fingernail emory board to smooth the edges of my cardstock covering the chipboard. It really worked and gave it a smooth yet worn look.

I rarely color anything....but I found a great set of General's Watercolor Pencils, so I needed a project to try them out. I stamped this sweet little guy then penciled in the areas of color, before dampening a small detail brush and pulling the colors into their finished state. I mounted him on a small valentine card/bookmark. I loved the paint process and can't wait to use it again.

Hope your weekend is great and filled with "crafty moments."

2Sketches4You Challenge

Wow! It is cold here in my mountains of Kentucky! We awoke to low temps and an inch or so of snow. Pretty to look at....from inside :)A good day to craft!!!

This is my take on this week's 2Sketches4You.blogspot.com challenge. I used BestOccasions Mixed Media Papers and tags; Baroche Ribbon and red textured cardstock. I used my Fiskars Corner Punch to add a bit of elegance. Enjoy!

Altered Items & Other Such Things

I love this card....I consider it "shabby chic." I made it with the intent of showing that everything you make doesn't have to be with a "kit" or even with "scrapping merchandise." For this card I used Best Occasions Brown Textured Cardstock; Wedding Ribbon and Hearts taken from a windchime, both from the $ Tree. Stamps by Inkadinkado and Creating Memories Red Ink. This just goes to show that anything can be used when you are creating! Of course, this type of crafting probably will not get you in a mag or on a design team, but when I create just for the sake of creating, I like to try different things and use odd items. I spent a few hours yesterday altering a couple of items as pictured below.

I decorated a plain $2 yearly planner and personalized it for myself. This was so easy and yet, I loved the finished product. Not only is it functional, it looks nice lying on my desk.

I had a 5x7 sketch book, but really wanted something smaller that I could carry with me in my purse. I found this cute book of index cards, complete with dividers and rings. I turned it into my portable sketch book and I just love it. It is the perfect size for purse or pocket with plenty of pages to sketch my ideas. (and yes, it already has a couple in it that I can't wait to try.) Both items were created using Making Memories "Noteworthy" and "5th Avenue" Kits.

I also put together a little chipboard album of Packer the poor rescued puppy whom we have adopted. I joke that a three pound puppy has taken me hostage! I titled the album, Puppy Love...A Packer Tale.

I cut my own chipboard circles and used Making Memories "Travel" Paper to cover them. Embellishments were random 'doggy' items from my scrap bin and viola! A puppy album was born. Now, if only this puppy would grow some hair! Oh well, we love him anyway.

Hope your day is everything you want it to be!

Smile!

Happy Tuesday to all! We awoke to a mixed bag of weather this morning; at first it was a pleasant 49* then the temp rapidly dropped and we have had intermittent bouts of rain and snow. Accumulation is in the forecast....but I am still thinking of sping and flowers. This card is made using Best Occasions textured brown cardstock as the base. The print is Making Memories Spring Collection along with Prima flowers, jute and buttons.

I broke out my Singer Pixie Craft Sewing Machine which I got before Christmas and used it for the first time! I love it! So simple and easy to use, and I am not one for sewing! That is my least favorite crafty thing to do, but I really enjoyed this!

I did a tiple fold on this card and tied the edges to make more fanfare out of opening the card. The front simply says "Smile." Which is what I wish for you today......happy smiles!

Thoughts of Spring

My Dad reminded me today that it is still very much winter-time! Our temps are supposed to be in the single digits by the week's end, but my mind had already reached for Spring! When I woke up this morning, these cards were just waiting to be created. I found these adorable glittered hearts at Walmart this weekend and could just see countless projects that I could use them for. The flourish, lettering and pink print is by Making Memories. The ribbon is generic pieces that I had lying around. The inside is stamped with "We Love Because He First Loved Us" by Inkadinkadoo with Fuschia Dye Ink Pad by Stampede. The white base is Best Occasions Textured Cardstock.

This Springtime card is much cuter in person ;) The flowers are K&Co; the ribbon is from Target Scrapbooking $ Spool; the patterned papers are Making Memories as is the tag. The buttons are from my gigantic button collection (my Granny Smith would be so proud!) and the white cardstock is the same as above.

I wanted to mention that I received a beautiful handcrafted gift this Christmas....it was a quilt, handpieced and handquilted by my husband's Aunt who passed away last February. Her 88 year old sister gave it to me on Christmas morning. We both shed a few tears at the opening and I was again humbly reminded of the precious people that God has placed in my life. The quilt will serve as a sweet reminder of the wonderful woman who shared many day to day activities of my married life. She often told me that I was "her's, not an inlaw." :) Living next door to her, we worked on crafts together for many years before Alzheimer's Disease took her from us. My home is filled with many of her creations and she inspired me. Take a moment today to tell those who are special to you how they touch your life. Sometimes, that is the greatest gift of all.

Pretty in Pink

Hi all. Can you believe that it is Friday already? I am not sure where this week went, but it sure flew to get there. My sister phoned me today to check on me...stating, "you haven't posted for a couple of days. Are you okay?" I had to chuckle....we guage our wellbeing on the amount of time we spend creating! How cool is that....all of you scrappers understand, don't you?

I have decided that I love the color pink! I never wear it, but I have fallen in love with it for card making and scrapping. I also loved the bling on this card. It is a rhinestone sticker by BestCreations. The flowers are K&Co. Although I do not own a cuttlebug yet (Birthday hint, hubby ;) I used an embossing tool on the checked paper and appreciated the texture that it offered. My gems are from The Beadery.

Big news for my niece, Amber. She was chosen as part of Cuttlebug Challenge Design Team! How exciting for her (and me, vicariously ;). I can't wait to see what her creative mind will come up with for their challenges. You can check her out at thecountryscrapper.blogspot.com. She is a gifted scrapper and lives on a really cool farm. You might even catch a glance of her menagerie!

Happy scrapping...and may your day be blessed!

Love Is In The Air

Hi all! It has been a rainy, dreary day here in Eastern KY, but I am feeling all warm and mushy anyway! Today, I broke out the pastel papers and how pleasant they are to the heart and eye. I found the pretty pink glitter hearts at the $Tree and what a deal, 9 for $1! I couldn't pass that up, afterall, we are in a recession. The papers and ribbons are just odds and ends that I dug out and the glitter letters are by Colorbok. Just looking at this card makes me crave some decadent valentine goodies;)

While thinking of Valentine's Day, my mind fast-forwarded a bit to spring....my favorite time of the year. This card just came to me when this VERY large daisy fell out of a junk box while I was organizing some of my Christmas Scrap goodies. (Hubby laughs because I never throw anything away, but just look what I might have missed if I had!) This ribbon is a Michael's $1 spool, and matched my card perfectly!

I am loving this light studio! I could never get close-up details before and now....just look at that detail! Someone asked the name of the lighting set-up, it is Concepts Digital Portable Lighting Studio; found at my local Walmart for a steal of a deal at $20. It comes complete with studio, 2 lights and a tripod. Who could pass that up? (It was originally $44.84) My verrry favorite "after Christmas" find! Hope you all have a great day and happy scrapping!

Back At It!

Whew.....it is good to be back to the scrap habit again! I couldn't find much time during the holidays, but now.....it's back to what I love doing the most. My mother-in-law asked that I make a few cards for her Sunday School card ministry and here is a glance at my creations. I didn't put anything elaborate on them (like my over-the-top bows ;) for postal rate savings.

These were mostly made using scraps of cardstock, Prima flowers and jewels from the Beadery. This was my first attempt at "mass production" and I enjoyed the project. I hope that her class will as well.

You all have heard me complain time and again about my inability to get quality lighting on my posts. Well today, I had the shopping experience of shopping experiences! While developing my Christmas pics at my local WM....I happened upon a Digital Lighting Studio for less than half-price and decided to give it a try. (I also phoned my scrapsister to ask if she would like to invest in one as well ;) Look what a difference this makes! I had made a homemade lightbox but apparently ,not a very good one. This makes all of the difference in the world! Now, I can't wait to make something else...just to play with my lighting. Happy scrapping to all!