Lucky Me!!!

I've wanted to share this news for awhile, but haven't had the time, and I still can't disclose all the info......intrigued, aren't you? A few weeks ago, Jenny asked me to join a weekly sketch challenge design team--and I JUMPED at the idea. Literally! Jake didn't understand, and still doesn't, but I know YOU do!

Anyway, it will be up and running soon, so stay tuned to play along with us! Check out some other very talented ladies on my sidebar that I get to work with....Lucky me!!!!!!

And, because I decided I should no longer be represented by my cat, I uploaded a picture to comment with on blogger. I feel I need to explain it---I like to laugh, and I tend to laugh loud. Laughter is the best medicine and that's what I look like when I'm laughing out loud!!! A teacher at my school told me that my laugh is "infectious." I hope that's good....?

Smiles,

Forever Mojo

For this week's Mojo Monday sketch challenge I was inspired by a beautiful scrap--I love to recycle! (And I've found out this works for Flourishes Timeless Tuesday as well!) The patterned paper at the bottom of my card came from a recent wedding invitation my mother and I received--It was wrapped around the invite and reply cards. So I've got more scraps that will be sure to appear in more cards!



The pattern is so elegant and paired with Tempting Turquoise it reminded me of something in a Tiffany's box. So I added pearls. As an added bonus, I found this black ribbon, already tied, on the floor at work Saturday. I am serious about ribbon and making use of ANY that I find! The Forever came from two stamps in a Hero Arts pack that I got in some blog candy a few weeks back, and the hearts are from SU Mini Mates.

The wedding is in Tennessee, and on my husband's birthday (the day after mine) so we won't be attending. That, and I only vaguely remember the cousin who is getting married, from meeting him once over a decade ago. I wasn't planning on making a wedding card but the paper would do nothing else! So Mom, you can take this to Scott and Margaret.

Smiles,

Sweet One

Today's OCC challenge was a color challenge: Night of Navy, Bashful Blue, More Mustard and a neautral. I don't actually have More Mustard so I thought I'd go with Creamy Caramel--not like mustard but next to it on the SU chart! After I decided that and got things started I came across this ribbon already tied in a bow and that seemed like a match to me. I threw the card together before I went to work today, so most of the details and stamps used have flown out of my brain for the day.

DH is on his way home from a basketball game so I think I'll use this time to catch up on some Grey's Anatomy.

Smiles,

My first CASE

This morning I was reading Terri's blog and she shared a card she made for a case challenge. I've never CASEd before (Copy And Share with Everyone I think) so I figured I'd give it a shot.

Laura's challenge was to CASE one of the cards from her SCS gallery, in celebration of her 300,000 hit. Holy cow! And boy are her cards beautiful, so it was hard to choose. I went with this card because I liked the simplicity of the layout and didn't have much time before hitting the gym.

With my card I pieced presents together using two SU gift stamps I have, and Apricot Appeal paper. I didn't have a bow I liked so I actually wrapped them up with some ribbon I had lying around. I kept mine simple and stuck with two colors because it's for a friend's husband and I was afraid of too much. Does it still count as a CASE? Either way, hope you like it!

Smiles,

Paper: Green Garden DSP, Apricot Appeal, Very Vanilla

Ink: Really Rust

Stamps: Tag Time, Button Bear

Accessories: Ribbon, pop dots

'Tanks' a lot!

I'm finally done seeing trains in my dreams! While having a party and getting gifts is fun, saying thank you is something I was brought up to do. I wanted my nephew to have some matching thank you's for his Thomas the Tank party--so it make sense to throw them together since I made the invitations.

I had all sorts of scraps of Thomas scrapbook paper left from when I made matching envelopes for the invitations. I had plenty of scraps to mat and then I added some fun puffy stickers I found at ACMoore. There are no two alike, so I thought I'd share a variety.

As a teacher I shouldn't encourage saying 'tanks' instead of 'thanks' but it's too cute and he's only turning two. I couldn't get it out of my head, so I went with it!

Smiles,

Raspberry Suite--Enjoy!

I've been seeing this color challenge by Dawn McVey on many different blogs so I thought I'd give it a shot. I went into it thinking pink, but looking back now didn't include too much!




When I showed my DH he told me it was very nice, as he always does. But then he added how he likes my cards with "depth." I guess he does notice all my hard work! Oh, the scallop is popped up, but the picture doesn't show it. Thanks for stopping by!!!



Smiles,

Paper: Candy Lane DSP, So Saffron, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White, Pink Passion, Pixie Pink
Ink: Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip
Stamps: Everything Birthday
Other: Word Window Punch, Ticket Corner Punch, Scallop Punches, Circle Punch, Oval Punch, So Saffron Ribbon, Orange gemstone stickers

Jewelry, Mojo and a warm welcome

Tonight my husband was helping his mom carry upstairs/setup a new TV, so I had some extra stamping time. After creating my fun, but time consuming, Jazzy Inspiration card I wanted to make a clean and simple card like I hear so much about. I'm no good at those I discovered. But it only took me about 25 minutes so that's something to smile about!

I'm usually a stickler about following sketches EXACTLY but this Mojo Monday sketch kept getting lost under a pile of scraps and I'm enjoying the changes made. I wouldnt' normally combine these colors, but these came from Stacey's Jewelry Color Inspiration. My favorite nephew will be getting a little brother this summer, so maybe this card will welcome him to the world. I guess I'll need to have two favorite nephews at that point too!

Thanks for stopping by. If you're in the mood for something sweet, check out Jenny's blog candy!

Smiles,


Paper: Whispher White, Real Red, Bashful Blue, Barely Banana, Delicate Dots DSP
Ink: Real Red, Bashful Blue
Stamps: Everything Baby (SU!)
Other: Making Memories star brads, ribbon, scallop edge punch (SU!)

Jazzy Inspiration....Celebrate!

I thought I'd try my hand at this week's Our Creative Corner sketch, and I combined it with some Jazzy Inspiration (note, turn down the volume before heading over to check it out!). Whoa, I went a bit overboard I think. But I had fun and that's what counts, right?




One of my favorite parts of this is the ribbon--I have a bit of an addiction to ribbon. Especially if I don't have to pay for it. I'll take a scrap of ribbon anywhere I can lay my hands on it. I was at a wedding this summer and there were cookies as favors tied with gray and pink ribbon. Everyone was eating their cookies and the ribbon was lying around. I took mine and my husband's of course, but when I saw the waitstaff throwing ribbon away I began picking up stray ribbon and trying to be discrete about it. I've got quite the stash!
I had fun with the balloons too, and glittered up the polka dots and stripes. I'm not sure if you can see it--my photo isn't great in the waning sunlight. I was also inspired by Denise, The Paper Landscaper, who always does the inside of her card as well.

Thanks for checking it out!

Smiles,


Paper: Whisper White, Pacific Point, Riding Hood Red, Basic Gray DP, Candy Lane DSP
Ink: Black, Tempting Turquoise
Stamps (SU): On Your Birthday, Tag Time
Other: Cuttlebug embossing folder, Word Window punch, ribbon :-)

All Aboard!

I've finished my nephew's invites!!!! Good thing it's a small party, there were quite a few pieces to piece together. Anything for my favorite nephew!!! The process went quickly while I watched Grey's Anatomy Thursday night.

Thomas' face was copied on my printer onto gray cardstock--I don't have the patience to draw/trace/piece all of that too! The info on the back started quite simple, but luckily I dropped my mother's off before mailing any of them. I had the WRONG date! I copied the info from last year's invitation and forgot to change the day. OOPS! So after work today I came home, reprinted correct invitation and added it ontop of my mistake with a mat. Looks like I meant to do that, right?

One of my favorite touches is the custom matching envelopes. I took some plain yellow envelopes I had, glued Thomas the Tank Engine scrapbooking paper on the flap and cut to fit. And with all the scraps I've got left over I think Carter needs thank you notes too.

Smiles,

Comments galore!

I'm deep in one of my least favorite tasks....report card comments! I love teaching and I love my first graders but summing up how they are doing in a few sentences, knowing it will be with them forever, is a daunting task! Plus when I write them I have to analyze them incase the parents take it wrong.....

I'm trying to make it fun by checking out everyone's Mojo Monday projects. Write a report card comment, write a comment about someone's card, write a report card comment, comment on a blog....and so on and so forth. Too bad the card comments are much easier....all positive! But I have enjoyed finding some new blogs and many cards.

I also got my SU order today. I came right home from work to take a peek.....and it didn't come until almost 7. Blah! So once I'm done comments I can move onto opening the package. It's staring at me unopened. But here's one thing I'm looking forward to getting my hands on:

Yeah, it was free!!!!!

Smiles,

Finally some Mojo!

Woohoo, I've finally made a card! I was busy the last week making a scrapbook of my dad's retirement ceremony and now that he's been given that I can get back to some cardmaking.

To tackle today's Mojo Monday sketch I used all supplies I received from Susan when I won her blog candy last week. And there was no stamping for me since she had already stamped this bee-utiful image. Though these DP aren't ones I would've picked out myself I fell in love with them while making the card and look forward to using them again. I feel like I need a sentiment or something on the yellow cardstock. We'll see....

Tomorrow I'm expecting a box of Stampin' Up goodies.....more creations to come!

Smiles,

Difficulty focusing

I'm stumped when it comes to cardmaking, but in a good way, this week. I just have my mind wrapped around a project for my sweet nephew, who is also my godson. Last year I made invitations for his first birthday, with the theme of Backyardigans:

The little head at the bottom is Pablo, his favorite character. I had fun making it once I figured out how in the world I would do it! I especially love how I put the grass at the bottom and snipped it to make it freshly cut too. Sorry for the bad photo--there's no good lighting here at night.

Carter's 2nd birthday is one month from today and I'm in charge of invites again--because I love a challenge and I volunteered! This year it's Thomas the Tank Engine. With no train stamps I will be paper piecing it again. Until I get the first one completed (hopefully tomorrow when I pick up some big brads) and approved, I don't know how many other cards I can make. That and the craft area is a mess and in need of a good cleaning! So until I can find my table Sunday, who knows what I'll be doing! I'll be sure to share Thomas when he reveals himself to me....I think I'm dreaming of trains....

Smiles,

Bows

Courtney has some generous blog candy! Check it out here. While I was there I found her challenge from earlier in the week. She challenged everyone to use bows in their project. I've continued working on Easter cards and here is my card with a bow:

The ribbon called out to me last year and this is the first time I've used it--perfect Easter colors! I'm also continuing to use up a variety of scraps from my neverending scrap pile. I didn't like how the ribbon looked as a bow on it's own so I threaded it through a Fiesta Felt button and love the result. I also didn't like how I colored the bow on the basket so I glued a bow over it. I finished the card off with some cute button brads...what do you think?

Smiles,

Verve Release

We've 'sprung ahead', the sun is shining in NH and I'm still in my pjs. What could make the day better? Oh ya, I stamped for a couple hours this morning!

I made this card for the Verve Release Sketch Challenge and am extremely happy with the results--not always the case when I do challenges. I found this cute bunny from my SU Tags n' More set that has been collecting dust. I colored the eggs with markers and popped them on dimensionals. When I came up to take the picture I felt the bunny needed a bit more....so I attached part of a cotton ball to his tail. Besides the Happy Easter stamp (from AC Moore) everything else is SU!

On another note, Jenny is looking for designers interested in a weekly sketch blog. Check it out here! I've got to get to planning for school....and maybe another card! Happy Sunday!

Smiles,


Paper: Bashful Blue, Barely Banana, Certainly Celery, Delicate Dots DSP
Ink: Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Brocade Blue, Green Galore, Rose Red, Perfect Plum, Pale Plum
Stamps: Tags n' More, Tag Time (egg), Happy Easter (?)
Other: Stampin dimensionals, stamp n' write markers, blender pen, sponge, cotton ball

Cheers!

Last night, I had the house to myself so I made a mess of the coffee table. I picked up these cute St. Pat's stamps at AC Moore. They are Studio G and normally $1, but 30% off this week. Score! Using Taylor's Cupcake Challenge sketch I had a great layout for some Irish cheer....and green beer because I couldn't resist. Plus I was using up more scraps!

This will be for my BIL...too bad they didn't have a stamp that was 50% Irish - 50% Polish. He loves beer 100% though, so it's all good. Enjoy your Saturday!

Smiles,

Inspired to burrow....

Earlier this week Jenny discovered the Inspirational Card Sketches blog and I was excited to join in on the challenge. But that was a the day after I shoveled--for 3+ hours--and arriving home after a day with first graders I couldn't do much more than collapse on the coach. I battled aches and pains all week and I've been staring at the sketch every day since. No time or energy until tonight!

My MIL and her family are Irish and proud of it. I need to make a few St. Patrick's day cards to get in the mail! I had embossed the clover image, which is the traditional Irish Blessing if you look close, and everything else is scraps from the table that I ran through my Sizzix. I also used my corner rounder punch. Thanks for checking it out!

For now, I'm off to join the cat and burrow under a blanket. Melky, is it cold in here or something???

Smiles,

A SNOWY Mojo Monday and some Stitches!

We woke up with a lot of snow this morning. I wanted spring to come, not snow! No school today....so much for returning from vacation! But that meant I got to play along with the Mojo Monday sketch challenge first thing in the am. Today's sketch certainly challenged me and I spent much longer than anticipated--I love the outcome however. You be the judge...

I moved the piercing of the original sketch to accomodate my 5 1/4" square card. I made the entire card out of scraps that were littering my stamping table, so I don't have too many details. The ribbon was just lying there and seemed to have the perfect amount of shimmer for an angel card. I used Bashful Blue ink and a dauber to give the Whisper White more of a sky feel for the angel to fly through. I enjoyed glittering the angel wings with Martha Stewart glitter too!. I cut out one wing and popped it on dimensionals, though the picture doesn't show that too well. I was inspired by Mary to make a coordinating envelope. Both the envelope and angel's dress were pieced with Candy Lane DSP.

Despite the snow I'm trying to think spring. I was picturing this cross stitch when I pulled out pinks for the card so I decided to hang up the April quilt today.

The design is from Paula Vaughn's A Quilt for All Seasons. It was the first cross stitch I did in college that got me hooked back on crafting. I had done some cross stitch at about the age of 10 but nothing so intricate. I needed a creative outlet, and this was it!

Off to shovel now...hope you aren't buried in snow as well.

Smiles, Caryl