Home Again, Home Again ...

What a GREAT trip we had!! The only thing I have to say that was NOT good about it was the weather getting there and coming back home. Rain, snow, snowpack, hydroplaning, accidents in every direction ... it took us TWO hours just to get out of Los Angeles last Wednesday! Sheesh!

This is what we looked like as we were waiting for a cab on Wednesday afternoon. We ran over to Downtown Disney to do a little last-minute shopping, and it was POURING when we came out!! And, of course, there were NO cabs when we got out to the curb!! Not the most flattering picture, but we thought it was funny that we were getting so soaked!! (And I can't help but think about Nora Ephron's book, "I Feel Bad About My Neck" when I look at this photo!!)

So we drove and drove and drove some more ... we were soooo far behind that we actually stopped in Vegas at the good ol' Motel 6 to get some shut-eye. I was VERY grateful for a warm, clean bed!! (Always loved those old Motel 6 commercials, "We'll leave the light on for ya!" Guess I am REALLY showing my age!)

Funny story ... the first time we took our boys (ages 8 and 5 at the time) to Disneyland, my son, Garrett (who was the 5-year-old) posed for what has turned out to be one of my all-time FAVE photos. In it, he was just finishing up one of those chocolate-covered, Mickey-shaped ice cream bars. He was sporting an ear-to-ear, chocolate-lip-covered grin. LOVE it!! So, as an ode to him, Amelia and I posed for this so that we could send it to him and show him how much we missed him and were thinking of him ... (at least I don't feel bad about my neck in THIS photo!!)

Last night I went to a party for a very dear friend of mine. She and her husband are moving to California to be closer to her ailing mother. We have had some of the most awesomely-amazing, fun-filled trips with them. We were all asked to bring an 8 1/2" x 11" page for a little "goodbye book" that they were putting together for her. This is what I came up with using My Digital Studio. I printed it out on my home printer and it turned out FABULOUSLY!!! We are sooo gonna miss them. Good thing they are coming back in the summer to do another fantabulous river trip with a bunch of our friends!!

Hugs to all for a GREAT weekend!!

More CHA Fun & TEMPLATES!

What a fun-filled couple of days we have had!! My head is swimming with TONS of fun, new ideas AND I have been THRILLED to be able to spend so much time visiting with my cyber-crafty friends!

Here are Amelia and ME with Beate Johns and Connie McCotter ...









I keep telling Daven (Nolta, the SCS Guy!) that if it weren't for short people like me, tall people like HIM would never know they were tall, right???











I HATE it when the flash doesn't go off! (And I was NOT going to ask the nice man who was passing by and offered to take our picture to come back and do it AGAIN!!) Left to right that's Bev Giraud (TexasGrammy), Joan Ervin (joan ervin), Angie Crockett (angelladcrockett), Beate Johns, Connie McCotter (cmc2stamp), Me and Amelia ...

And I can't tell you how FUN it was to be able to meet and hug Lisa Johnson in person!! (Which is actually true to say of EVERYone I ran into!). It's almost as if we have all hugged before ... but I think all the chatting we do with each other online counts as cyber-hugging, right?

And how could I NOT say a HUGE THANK YOU to Marti Wills (owner of Pez-a-Doodle Designs) for being Amelia's "boss" for CHA??? She VERY graciously hooked Amelia up with a pass as an "unofficial employee" of Pez-a-Doodle so that she could get into the show. BIGBIGBIG hugs, girlfriend!!








And ...... here's the drumroll ...... the long-awaited templates I promised for the Valentine boxes I created as part of the Control Freaks Blog Tour!! TA-DAAAAA!!!












Here's the sucker box template ...



We are off to Disneyland today! What fun!!! I'll say hi to Mickey for ya!!

Fun and Friendships at CHA!

After what was a VERY harrowing drive from SLC to Anaheim (Thursday night the roads between Provo and Cedar City were a NIGHTMARE - snowpack, one lane, blizzard comin' down!!), my daughter and I FINALLY arrived yesterday afternoon to spend a few days playing at CHA and Disneyland. Don'tcha just LOVE this photo?? Yesterday felt like a family reunion!! I ran in to SOOOO many of my stamping/paper crafting friends!! This was my most FAVE photo from yesterday!!

Front row - Heather Rolin, Deb Felts, Lynn Mercurio; Back Row - Connie McCotter, Jenn Balcer, and ME!! I have many more photos to share, but I won't be able to post 'em 'til tonight (so you will see 'em tomorrow morning!).

AND, I am almost done with the templates for my little Valentine boxes, so I will post those, too!! I have to apologize because I noticed, as I was looking back at my Freak Blog Tour post at the instructions I left that I TOTALLY goobered them up!! The dimensions were sooo screwed up on the little Valentine box with the cards inside. I have fixed them and you will get to see a visual tomorrow when I upload the file ... Thanks for your patience and have a STAMPERIFIC day!!

OH!! And before I forget to tell ya, I have some VERY exciting news!! Many of you know (and many of you probably don't) that Stampin' Up started their own forum (kinda Splitcoaststampers-esque) for demonstrators a couple of weeks ago. (Sadly for some of ya, it is for demos only!). Anywho ... I found out this morning that I was chosen as their very FIRST Featured Stamper!! I have a silly grin on my face that probably won't come off for at LEAST a WEEK!!!

Today is a Palindrome!!

Check it out, friends ... today's date - 01/22/10 - is a palindrome!! It is the same forward and backward!! So, as today's Limited Supply Challenge over on SCS (for which I am the hostess!), I chose to ask everyone to create a card full of palindromes. Use a sentiment that was a stand-alone palindrome (like "MOM"), or at least one that had a palindrome IN it!! Plus, background paper, Cuttlebugging, etc., had to be symmetrical - a mirror image of itself - in order to be a palindrome, too!! Stripes, polka dots ... you name it!! There really are more options out there than ya think!!

So, this is what I came up with!! It was super quick and easy! LOVE it!!

Stamps: Women of Life by PTI
Paper: Basic Black, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo
Accessories: Small oval punch, Cuttlebug Emily's Bouquet embossing folder, whisper white organza/satin ribbon, rhinestones

And a little PSA (Public Service Announcement) - this is a two-parter - first of all, I did NOT forget about sharing photos of other things I do for organization in my craft room. I am workin' on it!! I hope to have some photos to take with me to CHA this weekend that I can share with ya (if I can finding some working internet!). AND, since SO many have asked, I am creating templates for the little boxes I made for the Control Freak Blog Tour in the last post I put up (on Tuesday). So, stay tuned ...

Happy Friday, everyone!! I'm off to CHA later today with my darling daughter ... can't wait!! :)

Freakin' Awesome Valentines!

Welcome to the Freak Blog Tour - Valentine Style!! (If you are following the whole Tour, you should have just come from the blog of the amazing Jan Tinklinberg!!) I have to admit that I {{{HEART}}}} Valentine's Day!! I'm a sucker for falling in love ... :)





This first project is my mostest favorite!! I had sooo much fun making this ... it's a little box o' love, baby!! This cute little box contains SIX sweet little Valentines ...










SEE???!!







Aren't they just the CUTE-EST???? To create the box, I used a piece of cardstock measuring 5 1/4" x 8". I scored it along the 8" side at 2 1/4", 3 1/4", 5 1/2" and 6 1/2". I then scored along the 5 1/4" side at 1" and 4 1/4". After a little cutting and taping, I just filled it with the cute little Valentines ...

Stamps: Tiny Tags, Baroque Motifs, Well Scripted
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Real Red, Pretty in Pink, Sending Love dsp
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Accessories: Bigz Scallop Envelope die, Heart Embosslits die, Pretty in Pink epoxy brads, Pinking Hearts border punch, 3/4" circle punch, small heart punch, Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon, Heart to Heart punch, Perfect Polka Dots textured impressions embossing folder, circle Velcro sticker (for box closure)

This next little project was also was done with a little box. This was a quick and easy little project. Wouldn't this just be ADORABLE sitting on a teacher's desk??? (You KNOW the kids would be swipin' those suckers in a hurry, though!) Told ya I was a "sucker" for Valentine's Day, though, didn't I??? To create this box I used a piece of Basic Black cardstock measuring 7 1/2" x 9 1/2", scored at 4" and 5 1/2" along the 9 1/2" side, and scored at 1 1/2" and 6" along the 7 1/2" side (just a little cutting and taping to assemble after that!).

Stamps: NONE
Paper: Basic Black, Pretty in Pink, Real Red, Whisper White, Sending Love dsp
Ink: NONE
Accessories: Scallop Circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch, 1 1/4" circle punch, Real Red epoxy brads, Heart to Heart punch, Whisper White organza/satin ribbon, Scallop Edge border punch, suckers






And last, but CERTAINLY not LEAST ... here is a layout I did using MDS (My Digital Studio) of me and my Valentine ... (everyone say it now .... awwwwwwwww, isn't that just SWEET??)



Now, hop on over to Katy Clark's blog and see what SHE has made with love ... :)



And just for good measure, here is the "official" Blog Tour Blog Roll:

Patty Bennett
Wendy Janson
Lisa Martz
Gretchen Baron
Melanie Schulenberg
Connie Babbert
Mary Brown
Julie Buhler
Brandi Wiggins-Cote
Dawn Olchefske
Erin Blair
Janine Tinklenberg
ME!!
Katy Clark
Cindy Major
LeeAnn Greff

A Favorite ...

This is from a stamp sheet I bought from ISC just over a year ago. How sad is it that it hasn't seen ink until now?

I love how peaceful these trees make me feel. There is something to be said about the serenity of fresh snow in a tree-filled area. LOVE that!

Stamps: Sketch of Nature by ISC
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Ruby Red
Ink: Basic Black, Barely Banana, Apricot Appeal, Pumpkin Pie, Ruby Red, Versamark, White craft, white gel pen
Accessories: Martha Stewart Lattice border punch, black polka dot organza ribbon, white embossing powder

And don't forget to come back tomorrow for the Control Freaks Blog Tour!!! You won't wanna miss it!!

Lovin' My New Stuff!

I made this card using some of the stamps I got from the Sale-a-Bration and Occasions Mini catalogs. I do believe I am going to go bankrupt ...

I really struggled with the color combo on this one. I must've made at least three or four attempts at it before I stuck with this color combo. I was trying to use some of the colors that SU is showcasing in the Sale-a-Bration catalog, but was having a VERY hard time stepping out of the box (we all do it, ya know? There are just certain color that speak to me!)

I have been asked a couple of times in the past week when I was going to show some more ways that I store things in my stamp room (in reference, of course, to the lovely article that was done about my craft room in Stampin' Success last April). I guess it is about time I made good on that promise.

I will be posting some more photos for you in the next few days, so stay tuned!

ALSO, the next Control Freaks Blog Tour will be coming up on Wednesday of this week. Don't miss it!!

Stamps: Vintage Vogue, Vintage Labels
Paper: Old Olive, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White
Ink: Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories: Mat Pack/Paper Piercer, Satin/Organza Whisper White Ribbon, Scallop Circle Punch, Large Oval Punch, 1/2" Circle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch

Freakin' COOL Swap!

We just recently did another swap with the Control Freaks. I figured now was as good a time as any to clue everyone in to who the Freaks are and how we started ... (and I really LOVE how this card I did for our recent Occasions Mini swap turned out, by the way! As JanTink would say, "YILM!" - her acronym for "Yes I Love Myself!) Teeheeehee!

Anyway ... several years ago a few of the gals who started the Freaks were sitting together in a hotel room at a Stampin' Up regional event and perusing/discussing the swaps they had received. C'mon, admit it! Any of you that have EVER swapped have done this. You sit with your BFF's and try to see who got the ugliest card, right??? You laugh until tears are streaming down your face, right?? You KNOW you have DONE this!! Soooo...they got to talking and said, "Wouldn't it be be great if you could control the swaps you got? " Thus, the Freaks were born. Lisa Martz, my dear friend who lives in Nebraska, is often referred to, by us, as the Mama Freak, as she is the one who started this group and she is the one who does all the gathering and re-disbursing of swaps. It is a by-invitation group (which, I have to say, I am still shocked/thrilled to be a part of!). Every time SU releases a catalog (including all mini's and the Sale-a-Bration one), a swap is announced and we are allowed to sign up for it. The Freaks group has over 40 members, but the swaps usually hover around the low 30's. The only requirement is that was use only Stampin' Up products to create our swaps. And that is pretty much it.

Sooo...after that long explanation you should now understand what it is to be a Freak! We started doing blog hops several months ago so we could share with more than each other. I have truly enjoyed being a part of this group. It's Freakin' AWESOME!!

And speakin' of the Freaks ... don't forgot our Blog Tour is coming up again on the 20th (which is, like, NEXT Wednesday!!)

Stamps: Well Scripted
Paper: Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Melon Mambo, Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink
Accessories: Folk Flowers Decor Stencil, Scallop Trim corner punch, Perfect Polka Dots textured impressions embossing folder, Beautiful Wings embosslits die, 5/8" Pretty in Pink satin ribbon, Wide Oval punch

With All My Love from ISC

Here are a couple of samples I made featuring a new stamp sheet from ISC called "With All My Love." I had soo much fun creating this card ... I have always had a weak spot for anything heart-shaped - I have been collecting heart-shaped jewelry items since I was a little girl, and I hate to admit how many stamp images I own that are hearts!! Seems we never get tired of them, eh?

Stamps: With All My Love by ISC
Paper: Soft Suede, Rich Razzleberry, Pink Pirouette, Very Vanilla, Whisper White, With All My Love Digi Paper by ISC (for the largest heart)
Ink: Rich Razzleberry
Accessories: Pinking Heart border punch (SU), Heart Punch (SU), Sizzix Damask embossing folder, Cuttlebug Spots and Dots embossing folder, rhinestones, linen thread, pop-up glue dots

And sample #2 ... I tried going for a more manly-man color combo, but I am afraid I couldn't stop myself from adding a bow ... so not as "dude-like" as I had planned. Sigh ...

Stamps: With All My Love by ISC
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Distressed Warmth Digi Paper by ISC
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Accessories: EK Success Fluer-de-Lys border punch, basic black grosgrain ribbon, Quickutz Retro Diamonds embossing folder, pop-up glue dots

And once again, you can check out the January New Releases at the following links:
I Heart for You!
With all My Love

And also don't forget to visit the ISC Blog. For even more inspiration and how each design was created stop by and each of the Creative Architects blogs:

Kathy Tucker
Connie McCotter
Sabrina Jackson
Joanne Grzelak
Julie Warner
Karen Dunbrook

Starting the New Year with something different…. introducing ISC Digi-Paper. A downloadable file!

With All my Love Digi Paper
Distressed Warmth Digi Paper

Have a great day!

New Stamps from ISC - "Love is in the AIR!"

Hooray for new rubbah, eh???

Love is in the air! Can you believe we just finished Christmas and already we are looking ahead towards Valentine's Day cards? Good thing ISC has some new LOVELY images that we can use to help us create! Today I am sharing a couple of cards I made with the new "I Heart for You" stamp sheet.

Stamps: I Heart for You by ISC
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Real Red, Distressed Warmth Digi Paper by ISC
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: Cuttlebug Tartan embossing folder, whisper white satin ribbon, black gingham ribbon, 1/4" circle punch, Martha Stewart lattice border punch, small black rhinestone sticker by Doodlebug


Here is the second card I created with I Heart for You as well. I love the elegance of the swirly heart image and how you can dress it up or down for a more formal or fun card, depending on your mood.

Stamps: I Heart for You by ISC
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Melon Mambo, With All My Love Digi Paper by ISC
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Cuttlebug Checkerboard embossing folder, Spellbinders Scallop and Classic Heart Nestabilities, flower punch by Stampin' Up, chocoalte chip gingham ribbon (unknown), 1/4" circle punch, small pearl sticker

There is a little bit in the new releases for everyone ... from an AWESOME background image (which is a GREAT large size!) to even a little bitty calendar image!!

Check out the January New Releases:

I Heart for You!
With all My Love

Be sure to visit the ISC Blog. For even more inspiration and how each design was created stop by and each of the Creative Architects blogs:

Kathy Tucker
Connie McCotter
Sabrina Jackson
Joanne Grzelak
Julie Warner
Karen Dunbrook

Starting the New Year with something different…. introducing ISC Digi-Paper. A downloadable file!

With All my Love Digi Paper
Distressed Warmth Digi Paper

Be sure to drop by tomorrow when share what I created with the "With All My Love" stamp sheet images!!

I'm Baaaa..aaaaack!

Sheesh!! What a month!! I have been running like my pants were on fire since Thanksgiving - rushing from one project right into the next! This is my latest (and hopefully LAST) big project for a while - the wedding favors I did for my friend and her daughter for her daughter's wedding. I made 300 of these little babies!! I thought I was going to lose my mind!!!


The worst part? When I was down to what I thought was the "end" - tying the ribbons onto the boxes - it took me EIGHT stinkin' hours!!! EIGHT!!! I nearly lost my mind!!! I am soooooo glad to have these out of the way!!


I think I am going to start stamping some things that don't require me to run around for a bit (famous last words!). We DO have a new release coming out this week for Innovative Stamp Creations AND there is the next Control Freaks Blog Tour coming on the 20th. I hate to admit that I have spent the better part of the last two days decompressing and watching episodes of Grey's Anatomy online (how embarrassing!!). My brain has officially turned to mush!!

Stamps: None!
Paper: Not Quite Navy, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Ink: HP Printer
Accessories: Bigz XL Matchbox die, Cuttlebug D'Vine Swirl embossing folder, Martha Stewart Snowflake punch, rhinestones, 1/4" circle punch, wide oval punch, 5/8" Whisper White satin ribbon

Something Old, Something New ...

... something borrowed, something blue!!! Okay, well ... to be fair, I didn't use "something borrowed" ... but here is a card I did for today's TLC over on SCS - TLC254 (paper quilting). The VERY FIRST card I ever posted on my blog here was a paper quilt (check it out HERE)!! That's is where the "something old" comes from. "Something new" could fit a lot of stuff on this card - the patterned paper, the stamp set, the ribbon, the punches - I got that one covered for sure!! As for "something borrowed" - I guess I could stretch it and say that the "faux stitching" is a technique idea I borrowed for today's challenge!! And the "something blue" is rather obvious ... funny thing is, this is NOT a wedding card!! Hehehehe!

Speaking of weddings ... I am currently working on - yes, count 'em! - 300 wedding favor boxes for a wedding that is THIS Saturday!! HOLY COW!! So, if I am not around too much, y'all will know why!!

Stamps: Vintage Vogue
Paper: Whisper White, Night of Navy, Pattern Pack III (SU)
Ink: Night of Navy
Accessories: Pinking Hearts border and corner punches, 1/2 pearl, whisper white satin/organza ribbon, pop-up glue dots

Happy New Year!

Wowza!! I can't believe it has been OVER a week since I have posted anything here!! Too much to do and not enough time to do it all, I guess. I think today I am going to read a book and take a nap!!

I actually thought about stamping something "just for fun" today, too!! Here is what I came up with. I hosted the LSC on SCS this morning as a last-minute fill-in kinda person (LSC253). I chose to do a "Happy New Year" card in every way ... the challenge was three-fold" (1) "Happy" - stamp the card in 15 minutes or less (which, of course, is happy 'cause it means you will have time leftover to stamp ANOTHER card); (2) "New" - use something you got during the holidays that is fun and "new" to play with (in my case I used the Cuttlebug snowflake border embossing folder I got in a bundle pack); and (3) "Year" - the card needed to be something commemorating an annual-type event - like a birthday, anniversary, or even New Year's> And that is pretty much it!!

I have a mountain of laundry, mountains of messes to clean in my craft room and a MOUNTAIN of books to read ... which is just what I think I will do!!



Stamps: Holidays & Wishes
Paper: Brushed Gold, Whisper White
Ink: Gold Encore
Accessories: Cuttlebug Snowflakes embossing folder, Martha Stewart snowflake punch, half pearls (SU), gold organza ribbon (Papertrey)




And ... by the way ... my daughter LOVED her Raggedy Ann's makeover!!