PinWheel Fun!

Happy Sunday Friends!  I am busy painting today...my life is all about painting..and I HATE painting ugh.  And I'm not a fast painter and I have to take muscle breaks because I can only do so much at a time...real pain the bum I tell ya.  But eventually I'll be done so I can start on the basement staircase walls ay yi yi LOL.  And tonight we are having dinner with two neighbor couples we are friends with so I gotta get done, cleaned up and make some yummy dessert to take over.  Thankfully I just have to walk next door for dinner :) which means I may have a glass of wine.  I rarely drink wine...I like it but hubby doesn't drink it so its dumb to open a bottle for one glass.  So I will have one on occasion at a restaurant but ONLY if I have no work to do afterwards or am not too tired. Wine makes me realllllllly tired and I don't drink red wine because it gives me migraines.  So you could say I'm a picky drinker...maybe a glass of wine every 6-8 weeks LOL but that's ok...I like my Cherry Coke just fine!

And Friday night Riley PLAYED in his first Varsity game (he's on the JV team now) but he dressed out this Friday in the new all black uniforms.  It was a BIG game for us...Battle of the 'Burg...two big county rivals.  It was so much fun to watch him and with my NEW camera hubby bought me I was able to get some amazing shots.  We won 48-14...so we are the ONLY undefeated team in our county at 6-0...which is AMAZING!  So proud of the boys and the team.  

Thought I'd share a picture and a video with you.  The video is a pre-game ritual the boys always do...I find it hilarious...shows their goofy-lil-boy side that I know they try to hide on the field most times ;)

My 6'4 240 lb baby with his dad whom he now dwarfs LOL!

My son is the crazy maniac jumping in the red shorts LOL ;)

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Some PinWheel Fun

Scraptown Lady Guest 

Today I'm guest designing for Scraptown Lady which is a crafty online store.  I always like guest designing since it gives me a chance to use images/stamps outside of my usual repetoire :)  And this Stampavie Penny Johnson cutie "Little Tobi with Pinwheel" is no exception...isn't she a cutie?  I used new papers by BoBunny "Zip a Dee Doodle" pack...my fave color combo of aqua, black and white of course!!  Scraptown Lady has a TON of cute stamps, flowers, papers and other goodies in stock that you will may want!!  The banners around the image are made with a fabulous LaLa Land die!

She got colored with Copics:  BG78,BG18,BG13,BG11,BG10 / C7,C5,C3,C1 / E11,E00 / E29,E35,E31,YR20.  I added some black polka dots to her dress with my Copic MultiLiner pen, easy to do and adds a bit more fun to her dress.  Stickles on the center of her pinwheel...the pinwheel I colored using the "feathering technique"...love that look.  Then I inked around the image edges and embossed some white swirls on edges as well.

Stop by the Scraptown Lady blog to see my post and their OWH World Cardmaking Hop as well!

That's all for me today....enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

Monday comes bright and early :)

Need a Hug?

Happy Wednesday to you all!  Do you need a hug?  Boy I have needed one this week, lol, so much to get done that I am a bit flustered and out of it.  Think I’ve had a virus as well cuz’ I cannot for the life of me shake the dizziness and nausea along with just being plain ole’ tired, ugh! Get outta here already please!  But there is stuff to be done so no rest for us the weary LOL!  Wow, have you seen the devastation from Hurricane Irene.  Yeah it might’ve been only a Category 1 storm but it sure did dump a lot of rain and do damage up and down the East Coast. I am saddened that Vermont has seen so much flooding, whole roads are gone and 100+ year old bridges have washed away.  There are still thousands without power everywhere so I’m hoping that they get that restored soon as we all know its not a lot of fun to deal with no electricity.  So stop and say a prayer today for those still being impacted by this storm or send a kind word to someone you know that is suffering, it is always appreciated.

School has started here in Northern Virginia—did you hear me squealing with delight yesterday LOL?  Sorry but I’m one of those mom’s that craves normal routines and the quietness of the house without children…err…teens running through it all hours of the day.  I can get sooooooo much more done when they are at school LOL and hey I just like the peace & quiet too.  Trust me, my house makes up for it after school and sports practices let out.  Smelly, hungry, hyper teens everywhere---ackkkkk LOL!  I love ‘em but I love ‘em even more in school but that also means that summer is over (boo hoo) which saddens me.  I always can tell that the kids are ready to go back to school in August because they start bickering (well more than usual anyhow) and getting antsy—ready to see their friends and do something with their days that is productive hee hee.  And just a quick love letter by a mom that is frustrated to Target & Staples—STORES RESTOCK THE STINKIN’ SCHOOL SUPPLIES QUICKLY, our schools don’t give out the supply lists until the first day of school and by then everything is sold out and shelves bare. Ackk I’m sick of it!!!  Don’t you know I need like 10 5-subject notebooks, 7 2” binders and highlighters—what is wrong with you Staples and Target.  For Real? Get it together, we need school supplies all year so start ordering and stocking. Love—a frustrated mom of teens in Virginia!!

Yes I do--Yes I do need a Cherry Coke--maybe 5 today perhaps will make me feel better LOL!


Only a short post from me today as I’m just not feeling 110% of my energizer self today—darn I must need my batteries recharged LOL!  But I am diligently working on the newest issue of the magazine and preparing for fall classes, design team deadlies and releases. So I’ll see you back here tomorrow ‘kay!?

NewsBitz:

-Seen all the new Prima goodies at 7 Kids College Fund? There are so many new stamps, flowers and pretty embellishments—I want them all! Use code PRIMA10 to get 10% off your order of Prima goodies!

-Anyone near Delaware—in NY, NJ or MD? Come on for a Copic Class and a fun party with me and my friends!!!  Sept 10th and you can find details at www.cmcroad.com!

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Need a Hug?

I adore this sweet image by Stampavie-Gillian F Roberts called “Being Together”—even without a sentiment it sends a sweet message.  I’ll be there for you, I love you, I’m here to support you—gotta love an image like that!  Usually I have more pics but for some reason quite a few were blurry and its too late to retake them, sorry ‘bout that!

My sketch is from Sweet Sunday Sketch and I took the liberty to move some of the elements around just a tad, sorry! LOL!  My papers are new by MME “Honey Cake”—love the colors!  A few swirls with my Marianne Designs dies, a bow and some Primas decorate it nicely. The pearls were made with my Viva Décor Pearl Pen in Ice White and sentiment is from PTI.

I’m entering this into the following challenges as well:

Creative Card Crew (anything goes)

Partytime Tuesdays (anything goes)

Heartsong Inspirations (anything goes/fave color combos)

Make It Monday (anything goes)

She’s colored with Copics—BG72,BG11,BG10 / R05,R02,R00 / E11,E00 / E37,E35,YR23,YR20 / W5,W3,W1.  I added some Stickles to the hairbands and her socks and teddy’s bow—gotta have a bit of bling in there right?!

And a special thank you to “Sending a Smile 4 Kids” for picking my cheerleader Tilda card as one of their top 3 picks!!

Field of Flowers!!

Hello everyone and a Happy Wednesday to you!  I am busy, busy, busy like a beeeeee today getting work done and laundry so I can begin the arduous task of packing for 2 weeks for my family.  Yes, LOL, I pack for everyone pretty much—this way I know NOTHING gets forgotten!  The kids pack their backpacks with junk for the trip but I take care of suitcase packing!  I travel enough that my poor red suitcase looks like its been thru WW3 and has yet to be fully unpacked since JANUARY—I KID YOU NOT LOL!  I keep it loaded with stuff that always needs to be taken so it makes my life easier.  When I get back from our 2 week vacation I will only be home for 5 days before I fly out to Chicago for a week to teach and attend CHA (Craft & Hobby Association).  That leaves me enough time to do laundry, unpack the family, pick up the animals and do some work, LOL.  It’s a crazed life but a happy life so don’t worry about me---I’m never complaining—only grateful and thankful!  Like I always say “if my feet hit the floor and I’m standing then I’m SMILING” and that’s how I live each day!  I’m grateful for each moment I get to enjoy (whether happy or sad) with my family, friends and the world! I always think that if I died I hope to have lived my life well and happily and hopefully touched others lives with kindness, laughter and love—my main goal it is for sure!!  So if you will be in Chicago at CHA make sure you stop by and say HI---I’d love to meet and chat with you (yes look for the CRAZY LADY at the Scor-Pal & Magnolia-licious booth, lol).

NewsBitz:

-7 Kids College Fund has a coupon for 10% off all CC Designs Stamps—Use Code CCTY10, good through 6/27/11!  Like to mask or airbrush? Check out the fabulous Copic Xpress It- Mask It that works like a dream!

-Yep SCACD is having another fabulous release on Friday featuring gorgeous stamps by Victoria Case exclusively for SCACD.  Enter for the yummy Blog Candy and see Sneak Peeks at the store blog HERE!

-I have Blog Candy on my last post (below this one) if you’d like to enter---you have until Friday to do so!!

-The current CMC Challenge will be ending on Friday—the challenge is to color BRUNETTES (see slideshow of my DT’s gorgeous work below) and we’d love to have you enter---lots of fun prizes!!  Everyone is welcome!  New Challenge will go up on Friday and run for 2 weeks---Tiddly Inks is our fabulous sponsor!

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Field of Flowers

Today I’m sharing a project with you that I did for the new 7 Kids Challenge!  Wendy is our lovely hostess and she has challenged us to use “FLUFF & STUFF”—which means to use soft things on our cards like fluff, flock, fabric, flower soft and more!  Fun huh?  Make sure to stop by the 7 Kids Challenge Blog to see the gorgeous DT projects and play along with us!!

I’m entering this card into the following other challenges:

Cupcake Craft Challenges (sketch)

Spoonful of Sugar (ribbons & bows)

Anything Goes Challenge (summertime)

Deep Ocean Challenge (flowers)

Make It Monday (anything goes)

I used a Stampavie stamp by Sarah Kay called “Juliet in a field of Nastutiums”— isn’t she a lil beauty?  I used soft papers by Kaisercraft called “English Rose”—I loved the soft mauves and greens in the patterns.  The layout is the current sketch at Cupcake Craft Challenges, see link above. The leaf dies are from Marianne Designs and then I added small seed pearls with Viva Décor Pearl Pen in Ice White.  The edges of my  papers got distressed with my fave Zutter Distress Tool (love it)!  The border was done with a MS border punch.



Yes she was colored with Copics of course and I’ll add the pink colors I used later—I cannot remember in my sleepy head right now, LOL.  But the Greens were G99,G82,G20 and Hair was E35,YR20 & E50.  I used Flower Soft for the grassy areas and then more Viva Décor Pearl Pen on the flower centers for more texture.



That’s all for me today, I hope you have a joyful Wednesday!  See you back here on Friday!!

Sweet Holiday Friends!!

Hello friends & Happy Thursday!  These next few days will be lean here at my ole' blogger-rooni since I didn't have much time to create.  I spent a lot of time catching up on things, family stuff and then preparing for my classes in Canada and Buffalo this weekend. I will have one more post while I'm away and then not again until next Thursday (I won't be home until late on Tuesday and then I will probably sleep for 2 whole days, lol)!!  While you are reading this I will be making my way up the East Coast to NY towards Buffalo today--hoping to get to my grandma's by 5ish pm.  Then I have Friday off to spend the day with my family, then I'm teaching back to back classes in Buffalo (one day) and 2 days in Ontario, Canada at Stamplicity in Port Colborne.  I got a great hotel room overlooking the falls/river on the Canadian side while I'm there although it will be night by the time I get there & I'm usually so tired I just eat and sleep, LOL!

I am really blessed to be able to do this---from my wonderful hubby taking care of things on the homefront, my sponsor companies and those I work for as well helping me out, to all the fabulous friends and crafters who come out to see me and take classes.  I really appreciate you all!!  This is it for this year as far as traveling and I won't be back on the road until end of January!  If you know of a location that might like me to come visit, give me a holler.  Next up are LA and Nashville & possibly Texas---we'll have to see, still working on the details for those places.

For those who will be seeing me this weekend I've added the locations & addresses below for you in case you cannot get in touch with me.  My grandma does NOT have internet, lol, so I won't be able to touch base until mid Saturday.

Buffalo Class is at the Hampton Inn Buffalo South/I90
1750 Ridge Road West Seneca, NY

Canada Class is at Stamplicity in Port Colborne, Ontario
14 Clarence Street

**Coming on Monday** (I won't be taking part, but you won't wanna miss these)---

**SCACD will be having a mini release from 2 artists and will be having a blog hop as well!  You will want to check it out Monday morning on the store blog HERE!

Also on Monday the Magnolia-licious DT will be having a fabulous Blog Hop with the theme "Home Sweet Home"!  You won't want to miss the fabulous projects by the DT--start at the Magnolia-licious Highlites Blog HERE!

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Sweet Holiday Friends!!

Okie Dokie, you know how much I adore my furbabies (and I miss them soooo much while I'm gone, boo hoo)?  Well this image from Stampavie called "Xmas Puppies" just had to come on home to me, hee hee.  See the whole collection of them HERE!  I colored these cuties up like my Casey (my cairn) and her best bud who passed away a few years ago who was my 1st baby Trinket (black mini schnauzer).  I made this card for the current 7 Kids Challenge that is taking place right now (yes I'm a day late, lol) which was to make a thank you card!!  See the details and DT cards at the Challenge Blog HERE!  The PRIZE for participating this time--- a whopping $75 to spend at 7 Kids College Fund online store---WAHOOOOO!  You bettah go enter your projects NOW!!!

I used some more of those yummy Christmas papers from the Basic Grey pad "Jovial".  The light green cardstock was embossed with a CB folder and then inked.  The curvy red piece was cut with the edge of one of my SB's Nestabilities (mega labels 8) and then inked up.  I ink up all my papers and images with my fave Inkssentials Blending Tool.  The greenery was made using a new Jumbo MS Snowflake (scandinavian style) punch--I just clipped the snowflake into sections and inked them.  I love the design of the snowflake and knew it would be great for other things in my paper projects--a great way to use them in many ways!  Then I added some of those fab Petaloo poinsettia flowers.  The sentiment is from a new holiday PTI set!

Yep these cuties are colored with Copics (Warm grays on the left, Cool grays on the right). I paper pieced parts of  the stockings to give them some fun pattern.  Then added stickles to the image for some bling and holiday sparkle!  Aren't they adorable?  I just love them!

Now make sure to hop on over to the 7 Kids Challenge Blog HERE to join in on the fun and try and win that HUGE $75 gift certificate!!

Skater Boy!!

Hello and Happy Tuesday to you all! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and your week is going well. Riley came home from a sleepover on Saturday with some kind of stomach bug and it seems that I have it now as well. I was really ill yesterday and I'm feeling a bit better today--just praying no one else gets it. Especially Alexa, as she has her exams this week and graduation on Thursday--blech! So although I'm moving slower than normal I'm still trying to get bunches of stuff done, lol! I have lots of projects to get ready to pre-post for while I'm gone--only 9 more days until my Hilton Head Island vacations!  YAYYYY-I'm soooo ready for it!  Although I do think it's harder "getting ready" to go on vacation than to just stay home, lmbo, but so worth it!  Beaches, alligators and hot humid weather---HERE WE COME!

I worked most of the weekend but I did find time to get to the pool with the family and do some reading!  I just finished Karen White's new book called "On Folly Beach" & it was MAGNIFICENT!  She is one of my favorite authors--you open her books and just fall right in.  I read it in a day and can't recommend it enough---all of her books are fabulous, not a bad one in the bunch I tell ya!  I'm hoping to meet her at a reading when I'm down in SC for vacay--fingers crossed!

NewsBitz:

-Don't forget I'm running a SUMMER FUN SPECIAL at the Color Me Creative Classroom until June 20th!  Sign up for any 2 Online Copic Classes & get $10 off OR sign up for all 4 Online Copic Classes & get $20 off the total. (not good on previously purchased classes, for Copic Classes only, refund via PayPal)  If you don't have PayPal and would like to pay by check or money order, please email me and we can arrange that.

-Paper Romance has newly released High Hopes stamps by Dustin Pike in the store now--see HERE!  Spend $25 or more and get 10% off your order--use coupon code PRChallenges

-7 Kids College Fund has new goodies too!  All those NEW Cuttlebug Embossing folders, Tim Holtz embossing folders and Penny Black stamps--see all HERE.

-Today the NEW FAN CLUB GALLERY on Splitcoast Stampers is open featuring all the Dirty Dozen DT projects for the month of June!  This is my last month (sadly, boo-hoo) as a member of the Dirty Girls and I have to say that my projects this month are some of my faves!  The theme this month is "So Inviting"---so everything is an invitation and I definitely did some "outta-the-box" invites---so hop over there & check them all out.  If you're not a member (why the heck not), you can find info on how to join HERE!

-Don't forget I have Blog Candy going on in the post below until this Friday---so don't forget to enter!

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Skater Boy!!

Since today is the 15th of June that means it's another Copic Creations Challenge!!  This month our sponsor is Stampavie and the challenge was to color on any paper other than white cardstock!  I love this challenge and I picked "kraft cs" to color on because I love the look of Copics and a white highlighter pen on it.  The stamp I used is by Stampavie and is called "Skateboard Dude"--find it HERE!  You can find out all the info on the challenge, how to join in on the fun and see the DT projects on the blog HERE!

Since I've been making lots of girlie stuff, it way high-time to do a rough & tuff BOY card--they're always FUN!  I picked some bright colors and papers from both Basic Grey (Lime Rickey) and Cosmo Cricket's (DeLovely)--I love the circle theme.  The background turquoise cardstock got embossed with a NEW Tim Holtz embossing folder that I LOVE (shhh...don't tell but I got them all, lol)--this one is called "bricked" and it comes with the "woodgrain" folder too!  I love the brick background on this skater card!  My kraft cardstock is from Paper Trey Ink--I love their kraft!  That fun arrow was hand-cut by me, lol, because I thought I had a punch like this but I didn't (GASP) and then I inked the edges and added some white dots with my Sharpie Poster Paint Pen (in white w/ extra fine tip HERE).  The "brother" word was done with my Slice and "Words & Expressions" cartridge--love that SLICE!! A few Robin's Nest baubles in white finish it off.

Isn't this skater boy the cutest--I just love him!  Copic Tip: When you color on kraft you need to remember that the kraft cs is more fibrous so it sucks Copic ink in quickly and blending is a little different.  It also dilutes the vibrancy of the Copic colors, so you want to stay on the darker/brighter side when choosing your colors--the lighter colors leave a very faint bit of color, so keep that in mind!  I used some stickles on his skateboard and added some white accents with my sharpie pen!  Then I cut the image and it's layers out with my SB Nestabilities dies.

Now make sure to hop over to the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see all the DT's projects and to join in as well for a fabulous prize!!

Minty Fresh Friends!!

Hello and YAY Happy Friday to ya too!  Not that the weekend is going to be any less busy for me, but it's still the weekend right?! LOL!  The kids have off school today and they're off busy with friends, which is good for me so I can try and get a lot of projects done!  Although Riley is having 2 boys spend the night so that means it will be LOUD--but they'll stay down in our finished basement most of the time!  Then the rest of the weekend is family time with birthday parties, some shopping and gardening.  We're at a point as a family that we have to schedule family time now, hee hee---the kids have more social activities now that they're older.  We've always been such a "4-pack" and done everything together, all the time.  Hubby and I never really had to many dates the first 10 years of marriage when we had kids--we never had babysitters very often other than my parents and occasionally a family friend.  We just always had the kids with us--a lot of times we had anniversary dinners with them too, LOL!  And now that they're older they can stay home by themselves or they're off with friends which means hubby and I get date night once a week--what a revelation and it's wonderful I must say.  Sometimes we'll just grab a bite to eat late in the evening or like tomorrow night we'll see a movie and have dinner (Date Night with Tina Fey).  It's good to have that time and catch up again--once the kids are gone out of the house it will just be us, so it's good to keep that part of relationship alive & well!  If I had to do it over again, I would add more babysitters over the years but that's said and done and we all live & learn, right?!

NewsBitz:

-Winner of the FREE COPIC CLASS from my Color Me Creative Classroom (or a $40 gift certificate from me to Magnolia-licious) from this post is Michelle Singer!!  Yay Michelle!  Email your details and your choice of prize! Sorry I was so late with that--my mind is not my own these days I tell ya, LOL!

-Winner of the Blog Candy from this post will be announced Monday morning!!

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Minty Fresh!!

Today's card uses a brand new Stampavie stamp by Gillian Roberts called "Teddy & Me"--isn't she a sweetheart!  I just love her and that cute bear!  I used this week's SCS Sketch #276 for my layout and all the papers and cardstock are from PTI (New Leaf & Aqua Mist)--the sentiment is from PTI's set "Handwritten Notes" too!

The white trim in the background was made with a new MS border punch called "Scroll Lace"--love these punches (although I have a ton, I keep buying more, help me please, lol)!  I used pearls for corner accents and the large aqua flower on top of the twill bow is from Prima--it matches PTI's aqua mist papers perfectly!

She's colored with Copics of course (BG18,BG23,BG11,BG10, E43,E42,E41,E50) and then I've added diamond glaze to her shoes and stickles to her shirt and teddy's bow!  Minty fresh fun friends for you!

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend and I'll see ya back here on Monday!! (it's a fun Magnolia-licious Blog Hop that day)

Simplify!!

Happy Monday everyone!  Whew--I had a busy weekend I tell ya!  I got all my Christmas decorations down and put away and cleaned the whole house--I'm beat, lol!  Hubby took off the lights and packed everything down in the basement but I did the rest and wow what a job it is.  I have it down to a science now but it's still a huge task to take down 10 trees, many other decorations and get the real trees outta the house.  But it's done now and the house is clean but it looks so bare and lonesome :o(  Another Christmas done with and now gotta prepare for CHA (yay) and my son's birthday next month!  And then we're thinking about Spring Break--yay--we might be taking a trip to Costa Rico which will be exciting, but right now we're in the planning process!  All I can think is WARM, BEACH, WARM, LOL!!  This winter is sucking the life force outta me I tell ya--I'm so over it!  But anyway, my projects today are all about simplifying--creating quickly, beautifully and with simple products, so hope you enjoy them!

NewsBitz:

-Pink Cat Studio released some FABULOUS NEW Paper Piecing Projects yesterday!  You can see them all HERE!  You can cut these with your scissors, Cricut, Pazzle or any other electronic cutter--so cool!  Melissa has a fun free 'butterfly' project that you can try out too and then enter the contest to win a $50 gift certificate to her store--all details HERE!  I'll have a project using both the new digi's this Thursday and a paper piecing project so stay tuned!

-Winner of my "Laundry List" Blog Candy & Funniest Entry was from Pam Brown of Pam's Creative Corner!!  Her entry cracked me up so I had to give her the top prize--Read her comment below!
But second Prize goes randomly to Shelley of "Artful Achievements"!!!
Congrat's Ladies--please email me so I can arrange to get your gift certificates to you!!

From Pam:  "I HATE cleaning the toilet. It freaks me out every time since a few years ago we had a squirrel in the toilet stack! I had just flushed it and all the water started coming out the bottom where the wax seal was. I quickly grabbed every towel we had to try & sop it up since the bathroom is upstairs and I had just had the downstairs ceilings painted. Well, while I was wiping up the water, scratching noises were coming from inside the base of the toilet.Long story short...we took the toilet off the floor and discovered Mr. squirrel was in there. All we could see was his tail. My husband tried to lasso it with a rope. He pulled but all he got was part of his tail. EWWW!!!! Needless to say the squirrel somehow escaped down the pipe and ended up in our wall. We finally got him out several days later. I see him outside all the time. I can tell who he is because of his damaged tail. So, everytime I have to clean the toilet it reminds me of that darn squirrel. It's a BAD joke around here as he has gotten himself inside several other times via the chimney or the hot water tank. Don't know what I have in the house that he wants so badly! But I could write a book about my adventures with this squirrel! I am an animal lover so that's why we let him go every time we catch him. But enough is enough already!!! LOL!!"

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Flutterby's

So I decided to challenge myself yesterday to create a couple of cards that were more simplified than what I normally do--I love a good challenge!  So for the first time EVER, I created my card base with my Gina K cs and then stamped right on  the card base--gasp--yes I did it!! LOL!  This fabulously cute image is from Stampavie's Penny Johnson called "Butterfly Bear"--I adore these bears and you can see them all HERE!  I colored my image with copics and then added some stickles to the butterfly and her lil' flying swirls!  The green dp is by Basic Grey's "Lily Kate" (my fave paper of theirs of all time) and the pink polka-dot dp is from PTI.  I used a Fiskars border to create the edges and then punched some butterflies with my MS punch, added some PTI buttons to their centers and edged them in stickles!

I love how it turned out--so sweet and pretty!  I left a sentiment off so this could be used for alot of occasions like a baby card, hello, thank you & birthday!  I just love these bears--too sweet!

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Get Well Blend!!

My second card uses the same simplified idea, just different embellies and stamp!  This fabulous stamp is NEW from Lockhart Stamp Co. called "Coffee to Go"--see the new collection HERE!  I used DCWV "Latte" (perfect 'eh) dp for this card along with some matching PTI ribbon.  I stamped and colored my image right onto my base card, added stickles & diamond glaze and then embossed around the image with my oval nestabilities--you can't see but I used a clear Spica pen to trace the ovals for subtle sparkle.   

**SUZANNE TIP:  My bow was created with my Bow Easy--I attach my bows with Scor-Tape and to make it SEEM like its tied into the ribbon, I tie off the flat ribbon with some Scrapper's Floss so that it's pinched, and then add the bow on top of it!! **  The sentiment is from PTI's "Tea for Two" and the whole card got a spritz of Smooch Spritz in Vanilla!  So for all you coffee or cocoa lovers this is a perfect stamp for you :o)

I'll see ya back here tomorrow and tell you how I managed to lose 7 lbs in 1 week with my new eating plan that I have the whole family on and of course some new projects, LOL!

A Bubbly New Year!!

Hiya Friends & A Happy (not) Snowy Blizzard Sunday to you all!  I'm NOT in NYC due to the nasty 25 inches of snow we got yesterday---BLECH!  We're so disappointed but may try & head up after Christmas for a few days before New Years--we'll see.  Right now all I can dream about is laying on a very warm beach under the sun, LOL!  So hubby is trying to dig us out so we can go to the grocery store since I didn't get much food before cuz I knew we wouldn't be here! Looks like we'll have a white Christmas after all!  This will be the kids first Christmas and hopefully the last one (I prefer no snow of course) LOL!  But we'll make the best of it and we've been watching Christmas movies and making cookies & I've been reading a bunch--so it's all good!  Hope you'll all staying warm & safe this week!  Me I'll be in my pjs as much as I can :o)

Make sure & scroll to the bottom to see both slideshows--one is a few pics of the blizzard and the second is pics of the "ICE" show!

NewsBitz:

-Today is the 9th Day of Christmas at 7 Kids College Fund--and you can SAVE 15% off of all Zva Creative products--go HERE (offer good 12/21 only)!!   And while you're there they also have the BRAND NEW Basic Grey Papers for sale HERE!

-Also 7 Kids College Fund has a HUGE amount of CLEARANCE items that you might want to load up on---you can see it all HERE!

-If you haven't entered for my HUGE-4 Winners "Merry Christmas BLOG CANDY"--you have until Dec. 22nd at midnite (EST) to do so right HERE!!

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Happy New Years!!

Since I'm done with making Christmas Cards this year, I thought I'd make a Happy New Year's set instead for ya!  This cutie pie image is by Stampavie's Penny Johnson & called "Bubbly Bears"--this fun image is perfect for any celebratory occasion ya know (you can see the entire cute collection right HERE--I love them all)!  Of course if you changed the inside sentiment of this card it would be perfect for an anniversary, birthday or wedding card!  I kept the colors simple--just gold & creams and created an aperture card for the Cute Card Thursday Challenge. (aperture means a cut-out on the front of the card with the image or scene on the inside showing thru).

I embossed the cream cs with one of my favorite CB embossing folders called "Textile Texture"--so elegant and paired it with PTI's shimmery gold cs.  The center was cut out using my Nestabilities Labels 1 set--my favorite shape next to the circles and ovals I tell ya---if you get any of them I recommend those 3!!  The flowers are a mix of Primas with gold glitter dot centers, and I tied my ribbon (I used both gold & cream ribbons together) with my Bow Easy.

The image was colored with Copics and the inside dp is by Graphic 4--sentiment is from PTI's "Signature Christmas" set.

Aren't they just the cutest couple?  I colored the champagne in with my gold Spica pen and then added a layer of diamond glaze on top of the glasses, bubbles and their lil' pink noses :o)

Aren't these the cutest lil' candles?  I got a set of 8 of these at my AC Moore store for like $6--they're so fun!  Perfect for party favors or fun little hostess gifts (mine are linen scented but they had a few other scents & colors as well).  I just dressed them up simply with some gold ribbon bows. 

Blizzard 09' Pictures--click to make larger!


ICE show at the Gaylord Pics:


Have a good one & Happy New Year to you all!!

Black Friday Hello!!

Happy Black Friday everyone!! Did everyone have a fabulous Thanksgiving?  Ours was spent with family & very nice & quiet--good food all around.  I made the Brie Stuffed Mushrooms from Pioneer Woman's site & they were YUMMO-licious!!   Are any of  you out shopping today at all?  Not me, the crowds of people and general craziness is not worth any sale or deal I might find--yucko--makes me extremely nervous I tell ya!  So good luck to you that brave the shopping craziness today!  Hubby and I will be having a peaceful dinner & then seeing "Jersey Boys" which I'm really looking forward to--my kind of evening for sure :o)  Then on Sunday we'll be "hunting" our Christmas trees (2 real ones)--my favorite thing to do so I'll have some pics for ya next week!  So be safe, happy & have a relaxing weekend!!

NewsBitz:

-7 Kids College Fund NOW has all kinds of great High Hopes Stamps in stock right HERE!  Also SAVE 15% on ALL items in the Christmas Section of the store HERE(use coupon code "XMAS15") this includes all the lovely Sarah Kay,  Stampavie, Magnolia, Rachelle Anne Miller, Whiff of Joy, Penny Black & more Christmas stamps-Cuttlebug Embossing Folders too, so make sure & check that sale out!!!  And if you need a good idea for a crafter in your life nothing is better than a good ole Gift Certificate so they can stock up on goodies--get yours HERE!!  Any crafter would love that!!  (me too, hee hee)

-Pink Cat Studio is having a Black Friday promotion as well---if you spend $3 or more in the Digi Store OR Rubber Stamp stores you get a free digi image called the "Sugarplum Fairy" & she is super cute!!

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Life of Butterflies

My first card today is one I did using this week's SCS Sketch #256 which was a pretty cool sketch me thinks--I love the wavy center panel!  I pulled out my Lockhart "Chintz Butterfly" stamp out & embossed the butterflies & the sentiment (from PTI's "Life" set) with Stewart's Copper embossing powder & Versamark ink.  Sorry I forgot who the dp is by (maybe DCWV?)--I only had small bits of it left but I love it!  The center panel is suede paper (so yummy) that I embossed--lots of fun texture which I love!  I tied my bow with extra wide ribbons (a la my pal Becca Feeken), attached with Scor-Tape & added some Copper Bella Baubles to finish it off.

Here's a close-up of the butterfly with that fun copper embossing & then I added some stickles to the lower wings for a little extra sparkle!  You should try this sketch out--really fun!!

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Mistletoe & Mice

Is this not the cutest little mouse couple you have ever seen?  I just adore this image from Stampavie called "Mistletoe & Mice" that you can find HERE!  I used the Friday Sketcher's sketch from last week for my layout and all the dp is by DCWV and of course the image was colored with Copics.  I created some fun little mistletoe leaves with a MS leaf punch (I cut the ends to be round) and used PTI buttons for the berries.  Some stardust stickles for sparkle & a fun bow treatment finishes it off---a cute holiday card!!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend & I'll see you back here on Monday!

Snow Friends!!

Happy Saturday my friends!! Are you lucky & have a 3-Day weekend for Columbus Day? The kids have off on Monday, but hubby has to work--they don't give that day off, hee hee! We're running errands & going to the nursery to get mums & cornstalks for the front porch today. Alexa went to a slumber party last night & is off to the pumpkin patch with her gal pals today. And then tomorrow I have my last Copic class of the year, looking forward to it--I will resume classes once a month starting in February after all the holidays have passed! If I could afford to travel around & teach classes I would because I really love doing it--who would've thunk it, LOL!

Alright, I'll be quiet now since I know you're all busy on the weekends like me, hee hee!

NewsBitz:

-Susana's Custom Art & Card Design will be having a BRAND NEW RELEASE of Victoria Case images next Friday & they are BEYOND cute! Can you say winter fun cuteness?? Sneak Peeks start on Tuesday with blog candy on the store blog too!

-Also in stock at Susana's store are the new Prima Say It In Pearls Bling for your paper projects--I LOVE these so much that when I ordered every color, I twisted Susana's arm (she came willingly, hee hee) to get them in stock! They are so beautiful, good value & you can use them as one piece or separate them if you choose. I like to use them in the middle of my bows or as corner accents, but the possibilities are endless! See them all HERE!!

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Just a quick holiday card for you today! I used a fabulously cute new image by Stampavie's Gillian Roberts called "Bear & Robin"--you can find all of these new cuties right HERE! I so adore these lil' cuties--I will be using more of them real soon! This layout is this week's Mojo Monday Sketch #107 which is very versatile & fun to use! Papers are Basic Grey's new "Eskimo Kisses", ribbon is Paper Trey Ink & then I put a snowflake button in it's center.

This image was colored w/ Copics and then I added Sparkle Fluff to the bear's hat and the snow is Martha Stewart's Snow Glitter--I love the sparkly snow & sparkly fluffy hat trim together! Sparkle Fluff is similar to Flock but so much better because it has strands of sparkle in it, love it!! And had to add some Stickles to bear's scarf & the lil' bird too! Cute me thinks!

I'm off---have a fabulous weekend & Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian Friends!!

hugz,

Suzanne

Some Sunshine for You!!

Happy Saturday friends! Hope you're enjoying the weekend so far! We've had lots of rain(which we needed) & storms yesterday & today! I want to state that I HATE "Murphy's Law"--who came up with it & why does it even exist? LOL! I swear, I left the house yesterday afternoon & it was bright AND SUNNY! No sooner did I get to my 1st destination & it started pouring & thundering (the kinda rain you cannot see thru) & I got drenched! I get home & no later than a half-hour, the sky clears up & the friggin' sun came out! What gives, LOL? It couldn't have waited for me to run my 2 lil' errands, oh no--so I had to get new clothes on & re-do my hair & makeup for date nite w/ hubby, hee hee! And then what does it start to do AGAIN when we're getting ready to leave for dinner---yeah, you guessed it, it POURED AGAIN!! I was ready to just have a drive-thru dinner, lmbo! It was like a rain cloud was followin' me, I swear! Anywho, that's enuff about my exciting events yesterday, LOL!


NewsBitz:

-Don't forget to enter for my Halloween Blog Candy on THIS POST with all the details! You have until August 24th at midnite (EST) to do so!

-If you haven't checked out the NEW Victoria Case for SCACD stamps at Susana's Store HERE--you need to I tell ya! They are C-U-T-E!!

-I also wanted to share that I got 2 more projects published--wahooo! And one of them made the COVER!! They'll be out early next year--I'm soooo excited, still dancin' around the room!!

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So today I've got some sunshiney projects for ya to chase away that rain-cloud, hee hee! Both of my cards were based around this fabulous wire ribbon I found at Michaels--I just lovee it! First up is this fabulous Lockhart Stamp Co. "Peaches" image! I even googled a peach pic to make sure I colored it correctly, hee hee--I love fresh peaches but not as much as my MOM, she has bowls of them every summer! I used PTI's fabulous "summer sunrise" cs & dp cuz' it matched the peaches so perfectly. I added some diamond stickles to that fun lettuce bowl & a few Bella Baubles in "oyster" to finish it up! The scalloped border is done w/ my SU border punch! Summer Fabulous!

Next card uses a fabulous new image from Stampavie done by artist Tina Wenke--she has such cute images--see them all HERE! And that sunflower is so much fun & matches my ribbon of course :o) I used some nut brown Flower Soft on the center of it for lots of texture. Some diamond stickles got in there too after I colored it up with my Copics! And can you believe it--I used NO PATTERNED PAPER on this card, lol! I just used cs from PTI & embossed the blue cs with my Cuttlebug "Perfect Paisley" embossing folder!

The sentiment is from a new PTI set "Autumn Abundance"--great set! Those fabulous sunflowers are from my friend Nikki's store HERE! Just 2 fun & fabulous summer invoking cards for ya!!
Aren't they cute? Love 'em!!


Alrighty I'm off for the rest of the weekend, hee hee---gotta get some rest! Have a great one!
hugz,
Suzanne

Snail Mail!!

Helllloooo & Happy Friday to ya!! I'm sooo excited for my trip that I can hardly stand myself, hee hee! I definitely need a break and some serious "girl time"--YKWIM--what better way to celebrate my birthday! Nothing better than hanging out with your girlfriends and chilling out--maybe win a few bucks too, LOL! I am allowing myself to bet $100 and that's it--I'm not much of a gambler cuz' I don't like to lose money, it's too precious to me :o) I've got a round up of projects for ya today & tomorrow...

My first project is for Whiff of Joy's Project of the Month for May--we were to create gift packaging/wrapping for a flower gift. I changed it up a bit and created a small tote/basket for these cute lil' pots which are "Grow Kits"--they come w/ all the ingredients to grow a small flower or herb ($1 spot at Target)! I used this cutie pie 'Cute Snail' from WOJ designed by Elisabeth Bell and paired it with Black Market Paper Society dp (Imported Rhythm)--such bright spring-y colors. A perfect gift set for Mother's Day or someone's birthday! (This set is for sale in my Etsy shop if you're interested)

I made the matching card with my circle nesatabilities and added some fun Primas with Doodlebug brads in the centers. And of course the snail gal got some bling with diamond stickles!

Here is what the lil' pots look like and are available at Target!
I created a fun little tote for my pots using cardstock & my handy-dandy "Scor-Pal & Scor-Tape"!! The sentiment is from Whiff of Joy also! I added some Primas to the top of the pots to dress them up a bit too! I really like how this one turned out, whadda 'bout you?

Second project today is for the Copic Creations Challenge Blog--this time we were to use lavenders/purples/lilac Copics on our projects. I used this fantastically cute stamp from Stampavie called "Giving Shelter" by Rachelle Anne Miller. And no, I didn't plan to have 2 "snail" projects for ya today--it just happened, LOL! The lovely dp is by Cloud 9 Designs and I heat-curled this awesome sheer ribbon from Offray and topped it with a new Prima hydrangea flower! The sentiment is from PTI's "Mixed Messages" with some lilac rhinestones underneath.

Now make sure and check out the rest of my Whiff of Joy DT's Projects--they should all be up on the store site this weekend and they are bee-u-tiful!

The Copic Creations DT has lots of lilac lovely projects today too, so head on over there to see & join in on the challenge!!

I will be pre-posting projects tomorrow & Monday for ya! Tomorrow I will have some new H&M Stamps projects & the Magnolia-licious May sketch card for ya too!! I will be home on Tuesday evening & hope to be blogging again on Thursday! Don't miss me, hee hee!

hugz,

Suzanne