Yay for Daylight Hours!!!!

One thing I dislike about this time of year is the lack of daylight hours...I leave for work in the dark and get home after dark, it sure cuts down the amount of time I have to snap photos of my recent projects! Good news is, there are weekends in there and lots of daylight hours to take pictures and update the blog!! :)

Here's my latest layout....finished it last night!! I'm so in love with Pink Paislee pp with it's endless fun colors, patterns and embellishments!!! This is Cupcake and well, Sophie is as sweet as a cupcake so this pp worked perfectly!!!!



I've got the Christmas Spirit, do you have the Christmas Spirit? :) That's a little saying in our family, we usually start most conversations with that when talking to my aunts and mom. Makes us smile and get into the Christmas Spirit even if we're not quite ready for it!!! lol

The cards below are a sampling of the Christmas cards I've made this year...love the kraft CS, it's classic yet not normal Christmas colors...I'm all over that!!!! :)

Thanks for looking.

On another note - I'm enjoying my Cuttlebug a LOT...who knew?? I've used it on cards, layouts (the butterflies on the layout above, for example, were my latest aquisition) and different altered projects I'm working on, it has so many uses that it really ended up being money well spent!!! I can't wait to show you the rest when they are completed!!!

Our Christmas tree is going up today...I'll have it ready to go for this evening to add the lights since I prefer to string the lights in the dark so that I can make sure they are perfect...if I'm still "going" once that much is done, I'll most likely finish it tonight, if not, that will be tomorrow's job. I can't wait for the house to be all festive and decorated!!!! Love this time of year! Oh and I did a little online shopping this morning for Paul, he'll be happy with this gift I know!

That's all for now...have a great weekend!!!

Got Sketch Mini!!!!

*Copied from the Got Sketch Email I received*

The secret is out!

Introducing Got Sketch Mini! It's a week-long class just for you, our Got Sketch supporters!Since this is the season for giving, we thought we'd give you our early Christmas present! It's our way of saying thank you. And yes, it is totally FREE!! So, go ahead and share the news with your fellow sketch fan friends. The more, the merrier!To those of you who have been curious but have yet to take one of our workshops, this is your chance to participate & get a glimpse of what our classes are about. It's a sampling of our Got Sketch workshop -- minimized into a 7-day program. We know you will enjoy it!

Here's what you can expect:
TWO top-notch 12x12 sketches from Valerie Salmon & Janna Wilson
The sketches will include a sample layout, supply list, instructions, and project notes which are delivered in high-quality printable pdf files
1 Sketch Challenge on Day 1
1 Tip & Trick Sheet
An interactive community
Inspirational gallery from your classmates
A Live Chat session with Valerie, Janna, & community members
Prize Giveaways
A self-paced class: No deadlines, No homework, No tests
The community will open on Wednesday, December 3, and ends December 10.Register ahead of time to join to be assured that your entry will be approved by Wednesday, 12/3.
Click Here to join!
Woohoo!! Let the fun begin!See you there!Site link: Got Sketch Mini (Membership is required.)

Paper Wreath...Wow, Gorgeous!!!!

Check out Lynda's blog, she's posted instructions on how to make the Paper Wreath, it's fabulous and I think I might just have to make one this weekend!!!!!!!

Thanks for providing the instructions, Lynda!!!!

Pleated Flowers by Pink Paislee

Check this little tutorial out!!

Paper Flowers

The Pink Paislee blog is just full of inspiring ideas...these flowers are so cool!!! Actually quite easy to make and it's fun getting the glue gun out again!!!

Try it and see!!

Found Some Daylight Hours

To take some pics of my latest creations!!! It's hard to come by daylight this time of year and since I've switched to taking photos instead of scanning it's left for a weekend project...makes me look like I did more than I have since they all go up at once! LOL

First off, a Christmas card that I whipped up last night...similar in design to the ones posted earlier on in Nov, a slight variation if you will. I made 8 of these last night in about 20 minutes...I'm starting to panic a bit since it's almost Dec 1st and I'm not done making cards yet!!!! Yikes!

Now for some fun Pink Paislee creations...oh dear, I'm so addicted to this pp line right now...I've always liked it but lately everything they are coming out with is inspiring me big time!

**note the flower center here, it's a Tim Holtz circle Fragment...how cool are these things...I got some as a gift and had NO idea what to do with them...watched a video on Tim's blog and voila, I have a flower center!!! :) Love it!


These are portrait photos that I never know what to do with...too small to frame, he's already 3 years older than these pics so I decided to scrap them...they can't be submitted, etc. but they're still cute to me and I thought fit perfectly with the Pink Paislee owl!!


This one...way different than my usual style of scrapping but I wanted to showcase a pic of each of our neices and nephew and one together so trimming a few of the odd pics I had fit perfectly on this layout.

That's all for today...but it's only early, you never know what might arrive on here before the day is through!!! ;) Happy Scrapping!

Waaaaaaaa Hoooooooooooooo!!!!!

Emphasis on the HOO!!!!!!!

Yup, I made the Design Team at Your Memories By Design....I'm soooooo excited to join this awesome team of ladies and working with Cat's handmade unique designs every month! Our term starts Jan 1, 2009 so be sure to come and check it all out and get familiar with the site and products if you haven't already...you won't regret it!!!!

Thank you so much, Catherine, Megan and Heather and congratulations to Marti, Vanessa and Susan...I can't wait to get to know you all better and work with you in the coming year!!!!!!

Have I mentioned Wahh HOO!!!

Ribbon Wands

Check out this cool blog - Ribbon Wands

She's got cool ideas on what to do with ribbon...cuz if you're like me, you've got LOTS!!!!!! ;) An Etsy store where she sells her Ribbon Wands and lots of other fun stuff....I love ribbon!!!!! :)

Christmas is Coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Isn't this the cutest?? I watched this video on Jennifer McGuire's blog this weekend - and yes, now I NEED a Slice by Making Memories - and last night, Virginia posted her 8th Day of Christmas project over at Scrap Shotz and guess what it was? Yup, this star!!! It would've been much easier with a Slice but I did it thanks to some BG Christmas shapes and a Bazzill chip star!!!



I plan to make a whole bunch more...it might just be my "2008 ornament that I make for all the kids and family"!! I'm sure they will love them!!! :) TFL

I Wish!!

I wish I could make cards like this all the time....

These are a few cards that I made at Scrap Shotz's Card Crop back on World Card Making Day...how come if I envision what want a card to end up like it never materializes into a fabulous card like these ones below - without copying a sketch or pattern from someone else? It's not that I don't like making cards, it's just that they never end up the way I want them too! I'm going to practice, starting now!!! Wish me luck!!!









Check out this blog post for details on the cards and links to how to create, etc.

Holy Mojo!!!!

Holy Mojo is right...I'm about this close to starting another layout and it's past my bedtime!!!! I'm seriously addicted to sketches lately and found this yummy on Pink Sketches (link to the right). It came together so quickly that I need to do something else...NOW! :) :) Love it when that happens!!!

I did this layout for YMBD "On the Menu" Challenge. It was originally the 4th weeks challenge for the SYTYCS contest that was cancelled and Cat decided "why waste an awesome challenge" so she posted it for us! I finally found time to create the layout and I love how it turned out!!!!

My Meal
Course #1 - Corrugated Cardboard
Course #2 - Stamp Sampler
Course #3 - Transparency Puree
Course #4 - Ribbon Rigatoni
Course #5 - Chipboard Chocolate

The '100 things' blog go-round

I first saw this on Kathy's blog and have since seen in on a couple more so I figured I'd play along...hope you all do, too!!!!

Bold the number and line that you have done:

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyworld
8. Held a praying mantis
9. Climbed a mountain
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped.
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon - not yet!!
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma - every chance I get!!
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person - only from the airplane
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating ( huh?!)
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone's life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

4 Nights and Counting!!!!

Until Twilight begins in theatres!!!! I'm so excited, we've had our tickets bought since the day you could buy them...over a week ago! We're going out for supper and then over to the theatre to get in line...it's going to be CRAZY with teens and adults alike!!!!!! Fun times!!!!

On that note Are you a Vampire or a Werewolf? Take this little quiz and find out which team you're on!

You Are a Vampire

You are charming, sensual, and even a bit manipulative. You can't help but get people to do what you want. You have sharp senses and a strong predatory instinct. You go after what you want, without mercy. While you have the heart of a killer, many people are drawn to you. You are elegant, timeless, and mysterious. You are the ultimate fantasy object.

Are You a Vampire or a Werewolf?

More Layouts!!!!

One took me a week, the other, just over an hour...go figure! I have a really hard time with boy layouts...tell me why? I'm so not a pink person (although I do love to scrap with it) so doesn't it make sense that neutral color layouts should be easy for me...not so much for boys but I'm working on it, especially with these new pics of my nephew, helps that he's cute as a bug! ;)

I grabbed some of last years Basic Grey and went to town, the die cuts are so much fun!!!!

This next layout is new October Afternoon...one of my fav lines lately!!!!!! The colors are lucious without being overly bright!!!!

Based on this sketch from Beggahuna Sketches - yummy!!!!!!!!






Thanks for looking and come back soon...I have a few Pink Paislee (another fav-o-rite lines) layouts in my head and can't wait to get them done and uploaded!!! :)

Time!

After a beautiful, beautiful week on O-Town, I'm back in my scrap room trying to finish up some stuff that I started before it became "summer in the winter"!!! Here's one I finally finished this afternoon. It's based on a Pagemaps sketch and is the first challenge over at Art Unleashed. What a fun sketch to use for inspiration...well, I guess the Fancy Pants pp and chipboard didn't hurt, either!!! YUM!!!!



Here's another one from the same Fancy Pants line, can you tell I like it? Honestly, I really do! ;) lol This was the October Kit at Scrap Shotz and I was able to snag a kit this month...I miss being on the DT sometimes!!!! ;)

That's all for now...back to the scrap table for me...I'm in the mood for a Half Map from Pagemaps, so I might actually try one of those for fun!!! :)

How Can It Be November??

Where did the year go? Holy smoly, guess I'd better get cracking on my Christmas cards, I stalked up on envelopes when I was at Staples on Friday so I have no excuse now...except that I feel like scrapping, not making cards...go figure! ;0)

I did a little bit of scrapping this weekend, applied for a couple of Design Team postions and a guest DT position at a sketch blog...it's okay either way if I get none of them but hey, it's a way to get my work out there, right? In between 2 trips to the dump with "stuff" from our basment (ahh, the space down here now!!!), winterizing the boat and flower beds and cleaning up outside...we even had a bon fire of pine branches...nice!!!!!!, I did a little scrapping but my Sat. evening plans were thwarted by the fact that I fell asleep on the couch at 9:00PM!! My #1 reason why I don't lay on the couch in the evenings!!! lol

I did an overhaul on myself this weekend, too...new color, a 2 step jobbie that was actually kind of fun to do and it actually looks okay, I'll see about getting a picture tonight after work, see if hubby can work the camera for me! :)

That's all for now, maybe I'll get in a card or two before volleyball tonight!! :)

Right Now!!!!!!!!

Some People Suck!!!!

As you've all read, I entered into a layout contest, I was excited, a little nervous - it was after all my first contest like this, ever - and I was quite proud of myself for stepping out of the "box" and trying new things/challenges!!!! As of this morning, I made it to Round #4...yay me!

Well, about an hour after the contestants got the challenge, we received an email that the contest was CANCELLED!!!! WHAT??? Yep, apparently some people can't follow the rules, or innocently overlooked what was expected during the contest and were soliciting votes for their layouts. The rules clearly stipulated that the vote was anonymous and no names of contestants were posted...you were not to post anything on your blog re: the vote except for the blurb given by the contest administrator....ie: what I posed each and every week here on my blog.

It's so unfair turning something like this into a popularity contest and asking all your family and friends to go vote for you...when you might not deserve to make it into that next round. Why can't people play by the rules? Is the prize pack worth dishonesty, your pride, your integrity? Not for me it's not...so while I'm sad that that the contest has been cancelled, I'm kind of glad that it's over, I wouldn't dream of asking my friends and family to vote for my layout knowing that I didn't move on honestly...I can't believe the gall of others that can!

My heart goes out to Cat for being forced to make this decision...lack of respect is another pet peeve of mine...YMBD is a fabulous forum and full of wonderful, honest, caring people! I plan on sticking around and making myself at home, it's an awesome place to play!!!

**off my soap box now...it just sucks when a handfull of people ruin it for everyone....Karma is a bitch.

Here's my layout I entered into Round #3 - the challenge was to use a SHAPE on your layout that wasn't the norm...ie: circles, squares, etc. I chose this huge Heidi Swapp butterfly overlay that I've had kicking around for a while...the more I look at the layout, the more I like it so one good thing came out of all the hoopla above!!!!

Also, check out the pp I used...it's called Webster...if you can get your hands on some...DO IT!!!!! Check out Scrapbook Star, that's where I got mine...it's sooo yummy!!!!!!

Scrapping Sunday!!!

It's a not bad day outside and I'm in here scrapping...of course, standing out in the pourning RAIN yesterday afternoon and most of the evening for a Halloween party yesterday means I deserve it, right? ;)

I was surfing blogs and checked out a fav of mine and found this little post for easy, super cute Christmas cards...after debating what pp to use and creating a Christmas tree pattern in PSP since I don't have any tree stamps, it took me about 15 minutes to make 4 of them!!! Watch the video to see just how easy they are and then get started on your own Christmas Cards, like I did! :)

Ignore the crooked stamping...my stamp was messed up and I finally (by the last card ;)) had to take it off the wood mount and reposition it!!! Might have to redo the background piece before I send them off...it's driving me batty!!!!

Trash Your Stash!!!!

Do YOU have more scrap supplies then you know what to do with? Do you need to make room for new stuff? Here's your chance to make a dent in that "stash" problem and produce some beautiful artwork at the same time...because lets face it, you loved it once or you wouldn't have bought it, right???

Come on over and join us at Scrap Shotz - Jess has issued a challenge that looks easily managable!!

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The challenge is this...

Do (or re-do if you've done them)... TWENTY of the October and November challenges...
...yes the mini card crop challenges
...yes the October DT challenges
...yes the Color your world crop challenges
...yes the Scrappy Hour projects
...yes the November DT challenges

With supplies from your CURRENT STASH... (as of today...)

Win the draw and I will buy you the December SSZ kit in it's entirety!!! Even if you're a subscriber the bill will come to me! (DT members...you will get the equivelent in a GC as you'd already have the kit...)

Anyone up for the challenge???

Deadline is December 1st...

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Come pick your spot in the thread and start scrapping...it'll be fun, I promise...and well worth it if you win the contest, the prize rocks!!!! :)

Voting Begins Tonight for Round #3 of SYTYCS

We need your votes!!! Come and help us decide who should move on to Round #4 of YMBD's "So You Think You Can Scrap" Contest! Click HERE to view the submissions and cast your vote!