Have a Fairy Happy Birthday!

Good morning!

It's time for another Birthday Sundaes challenge! This week we'd like to see your birthday themed easel cards!
Click {HERE} to enter your creation and to be inspired by the Design Team cards. The rules have also been updated and there's no limit on the number of entries where you card can be linked - just make sure to follow our challenge theme and the rest of the rules which can be found {HERE}.

We're also welcoming a new sponsor!

Trendy Twine will be sending the winner a Trendy Twine ValenTwine mini pack!

Here's my easel card using {these} directions from SCS~

When creating my card last night, I was also inspired by the Use Striped Paper challenge at The Sisterhood of Crafters and the Things with Wings challenge at Crafty Catz.

Supplies:
Kirsten Silhouette - Paper Makeup Stamps
Birthday Cheer - Paper Makeup Stamps
Country Drive dp - Echo Park Paper Co.
cardstock from Papertrey Ink
Pixie Passion ink - Stampin Up
Tuxedo Black ink - Memento
Martha Stewart punch
Kaisercraft rhinestones
buttons from stash
Twisted Lime twine - Trendy Twine

52 Week Challenge - Week #5 & 24 Hour Challenge!

Well lookie here, it's only Saturday and my 52 Week layout is DONE! Whatever will I do with myself on Friday night now? LOL!

We had our monthly 24 Hour Challenge on SNC, I missed the deadline to get my layout entered for it but I still wanted to get mine done since I loved the collection and sketch picked for me by Amanda. She picked Echo Park Country Drive and this sketch from Creative Scrappers:

I've had this collection on my 24 Hour list a few times now and this is the first time it got picked. I've been saving it to use for pictures from my day trip to meet Sue!

I started off with inking the edges of all the papers with Tea Dye distress ink. I think it helped the papers not blend in together since they are a bit on the busy side. The thickers are from a kit I took apart and I used some flowers from Recollections and the blue one is one I've been hoarding from Precocious Paper! The butterflies were punched from a few of my Martha Stewart punches.

I can't wait to scrap more pictures from this day now that I finally started :)

TFL!

52 Week Challenge - Week #4

Yay, I made it a whole month! *patting self on the back* lol

I don't seem to have a good track record when following through with challenges or classes so I'm trying very hard to stay motivated to get my layout done each week. I saw Frosted Designs sketch for this week and knew I had to use it!

Here's my take on it. I used more of my October Afternoon Holiday Style collection. It felt a little strange scrapping a picture of myself LOL. Usually if I'm it in, so is my hubby or my dog! Every year I add at least one new nutcracker to my collection - this year I added 3! Next year I'm going to have to find a new way to display them since I'm sure I find another to add.

TFL!

Flutter By Wednesday & CAS-ual Fridays

ETA: Thank you for the well wishes.  The headache is lingering but not as bad as it was this morning. I suspect my allergies are acting up.

Good morning. Just a quick post from my phone as I have such a headache right now and I got home late last night and didn't have time to properly type a post and take a good picture of my card.

This week's FBW challenge is to include embossing on your creation along with your butterfly, angel or fairy.  Click {HERE} to enter your creation.

I love my card for this week and I'm so happy to finally share it.  I've seen lots of cards around blog land using mostly white on white and I thought that look would be great for the embossing challenge. I was also inspired by CAS-ual Fridays Penguin Suit challenge. I think this may be the first black & white card that came together so easily for me!  Taking the picture was another story lol - i finally cleaned off a portion of my countertop and photographed the card there. I need my hubby to get my lightbox set back up STAT!

Supplies Used:
Papertrey Ink cardstock
Cuttlebug Stylized Flower folder
Hero arts sentiment
Recollections gems
Martha Stewart punch
Pop dots

TFL!

Bday Sundaes #40 along with DYSU #55

Happy Sunday! I hope you all have been having a good weekend!

We've enjoyed some snow and I've spent a lot of time in my crafty room reorganizing. I'm so excited for it to be done so I can share some pictures. I'll be even more excited when spring hits and I repaint & redecorate!

It's time for another Birthday Sundaes challenge!


This week's challenge is to simply create a birthday card and have your birthday wording/sentiment on the front of your card. Please do take a moment to review our rules if you are unfamiliar with them. As a reminder, any cards linked to more than 5 other challenges besides this one will be deleted.

This week we are sponsored by ~

Meljen's Designs is a lovely stamp company owned and illustrated by Melissa Jenkins. She illustrates whimsical rubber and digital images inspired by her kids and family. Meljen's Designs has new releases along with a new challenge every Thursday, freebies every Monday and a Guest Designer each month at the Meljen's Designs Blog. Please visit the Meljen's Designs line of stamps at our store HERE to browse through all of Melissa's lovely designs! You can also see Melissa's rubber stamps at her corner of Whimsy Stamps, too!

The lucky winner of this week's challenge will receive 4 images of their choosing!

Thank you to MelJens for supplying the DT with some cute images to play with. Check out the blog to see what everyone created this week and enter your challenge card!

Here is my creation using Daisy Pitcher ~

I was inspired by the Patterned Paper challenge at Do You Stack Up to use more of my Lily Bee Head Over Heels paper and the sentiment is from my new Scrappy Moms stamp set - Hooray for Birthdays.

TFL!

52 Week Challenge - Week #3

I put my 52 Week Challenge layout together tonight...took me what seemed like forever LOL! 

I knew I wanted to use this sketch from Artful Delight (designed by our SNC leader Abby!)

I finally decided to scrap some pictures from this past Christmas and it's the first time I got to use my new printer! My friend Suzy got an awesome printer and since she loved it, I decided to use a gift card to get my own. No more running to the pharmacy for just a picture or two to scrap!

All supplies except the kraft paper and Thickers are from the October Afternoon Holiday Style collection. Initially I wasn't going to get any but one day I went to the LSS and they had it in stock - it just jumped into my basket, I swear!  I also got those cool stitched Thickers that day - I think I need more even though I only opened the package tonight. The kraft paper is MME Funday and I took it from my Artful Delight January kit. I like that it has a light pattern to it so I could still journal on it and it broke up having so many busy patterns. 

It's supposed to start snowing overnight! I hope to get some good pictures tomorrow to scrap!

Open Challenge at Flutter By Wednesdays!

Happy Wednesday!

This week's challenge at Flutter By Wednesdays is an open one -just remember to include your butterfly, fairy or angel on your project! Click {HERE} to enter your creation!

I saw this sketch on Cards and Things Challenges and knew I had to use it for my FBW card.

Here is my take~

Sorry for the not so good picture...I was trying out my new phone. I think I better stick to my actual camera for card pictures when I'm indoors LOL.  The paper is Head Over Heels by Lily Bee Designs from SCACD.

Be sure to check out my fellow DT members blogs for more Flutter By inspiration! Links are on the FBW blog and my sidebar. 

Bday Sundaes #39

Good morning!

I had a busy week and decided to take this week as my 'off' week from Birthday Sundaes.

Here are the details of the challenge and sponsor:

This week's challenge is to create a birthday card using the following picture as inspiration. We've added a new twist to our inspiration pictures this term and will require one visible element from the picture. So your birthday cards must have a SNOWMAN on it. 

{Photo Credit}

This week we welcome a new sponsor to Birthday Sundaes!

Apron Strings is a monthly kit club that mixes up three different kits each month:  a Bigger than a Breadbox, a Smaller than a Breadbox and an All Year Cheer Card kit.  Stir in a bit of cardstock, a generous helping of patterned paper and a heaping handful of embellishments and you get a delicious kit just waiting for your creativity.  Join our autoship and you’ll get the kit, each month, right to your door.  No worries, it’s no commitment PLUS you get unlimited skips, substitutions* and flips*, options offered to help you make the most of your membership.  Subscribing to kits is easy on your scrapping budget, too, with kits starting at just $19 a month.  You’ll also find plenty of inspiration in the newsletter, which is brimming with amazing examples from the Sous Chefs, a Recipe Card (aka exclusive sketch) and a blog with examples, tips, challenges and more.  All designed to help keep you rolling in the creativity and inspiration departments. *some restrictions apply

Come check out Apron Strings today! Special for Birthday Sundae Followers - join an autoship this month, mention Birthday Sundaes, and you’ll receive a free Second Helping of Paper with your first shipment. 

One lucky winner will win December's All Year Cheer Card Kit!

As a reminder, you must follow our rules to be eligible for the prize.  Full rules can be found on the sidebar and HERE. 

Be sure to check out the Birthday Sundaes blog to check out the DT inspiration!

New Toys

Yes, I waited until Friday again to do my 52 Week layout challenge...it's been a long week!! Don't worry, I already have next week's page scheduled to be done during my 3 day weekend :)

I scrolled through my desktop of sketches I saved this week and picked #302 from Sketch Inspiration to play along with.

I did flip it for what I had in mind, needed to pull some extra duty and enter in a Scrappin-N-Chattin challenge! Abby challenged us to use a vertical title and this sketch was perfect for accomplishing that.

I am still scrapping pics from Christmas 2010. Hopefully it's only 3-4 more layouts and then I can retire these BG Jovial supplies for cardmaking. I already have several collections in mind to scrap the 2011 pics!

TFL!

Flutter By Wednesdays #185

Happy Wednesday! 

We were so happy to see so many fluttery entries last week. It's good to be back! I enjoyed fluttering around seeing so much inspiration!

This week's Flutter By Wednesdays challenge is to use BRIGHT COLORS along with your butterfly, fairy or angel. Please enter your creation {HERE}. To see what the FBW team did with bright colors, visit the links on the FBW blog or the links on my sidebar.

Here is my take on the challenge~

I think I achieved the bright alright! LOL!  I used my Cosmo Cricket Delovely 6x6 pad and Papertrey Ink black cardstock along with one of my favorite butterfly punches :)

I used this week's CPS sketch for inspiration. I couldn't find my corner rounder so I decided to tear and ink the edges of the 4 square panel. I also popped up each square with pop dots but didn't end up taking a picture to show off the dimension.

I am also sharing my card with the following challenge:
Shopping Our Stash #34 - All That Glitters, Sparkles or Shines - everything on my card is from older stash and I'm glad I found these rhinestones that shine :)

Thanks for fluttering by!

WWW Wednesdays for Jan. 11th

I just saw this meme on Should Be Reading and decided to play along.

All you have to do is answer the following 3 questions:

What are you currently reading?
I am currently reading Buzz Off by Hannah Reed (Queen Bee Mystery #1) on my Kindle and A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady (A Piece of Cake Mystery #1) in paperback.

What did you recently finish reading?
I finished my first book of the year on Monday night.  Sinister Sprinkles by Jessica Beck (Donut Shop Mystery #3).

What do you think you'll read next?
Next up in my TBR pile for January is Goody Goody Gunshots by Sammi Carter (A Candy Shop Mystery #4) in paperback and I haven't decided yet what I'll read on my Kindle...maybe something that isn't a mystery!


To see what everyone is reading, link up over at Should Be Reading!

Birthday Sundaes #38

Good morning!

Birthday Sundaes is back for a new year full of new challenges, new and returning sponsors, and lots of inspiration!

Today's challenge is the easy peasy Birthday Card Challenge - just create a new birthday card and remember to include birthday wording/sentiment on your card front. Edited to add: We also have an optional added challenge to add something NEW to your card. If you do, please let us know what it is! Please enter your newly created birthday card {HERE}. Check out the inspiration while you are there!

This week we are sponsored by Whimsie Doodles and they generously supplied the DT with some fun images to use. The lucky winner will receive a $10 gift certificate to spend at Whimsie Doodles!

I used Gift Leah for my card along with a bunch of scraps from one of my LYB Winter Twig layouts.  The layout is from last Wednesday's SCS card sketch.

Thanks for looking!

SNC 52 Week Challenge #1

This year I took the dare, double dare and triple dare to join in the Scrappin' N Chattin's 52 Week Challenge. Each week we have to create a layout and at the end of the year, everyone that is still in it is included in the big prize drawing (a $ prize that we all contribute to).

This is week 1's page and my first page of the year!

I used a sketch from Jana Eubanks

Everything except the black letters are from the Bella Blvd. Tail Waggers and Cat Naps collection. Such a cute pet collection! I know the letters are a little hard to follow but the title reads 1 2 3 Strikes and Amber is out of beds.  The journaling talks about how we crate Amber during the work day and how she chewed up 3 different beds. These pictures were taken just a few weeks after we got her. The first picture is when she actually broke out of her crate LOL. It's since been reinforced with metal ties so she can't escape.  I have some other pictures to scrap from the day she escaped her crate. I hope to get those scrapped soon!

TFL!

It's a Fluttery Blog Hop!

Good morning and Happy Wednesday! Just a few more days til the weekend, yay!

It's the first Flutter By Wednesdays challenge of 2012 and it's also a blog hop! So if you are here from Leanne's blog, you're in the right place! If you just stopped by to visit, hello there. Our blog hop starts {HERE}. We are welcoming 4 new members to our team ~ Karen, Leanne, Lynette and Suzanne! Welcome ladies!

This week's challenge is an open one - just remember to include a butterfly, fairy or angel on your creation! Please enter your creation {HERE} and check out this week's sponsor, Bugaboo Stamps and see how you can win! We'd also like to thank the ladies that played along with our month long December challenge! It was so nice to see some people getting crafty during one of the busiest months of the year.

This is my first creation of the year~

I dug deep into my printed Bugaboo Stamps stash and chose Ava Fairy to play with. She's colored with prismacolor pencils and I've highlighted a few areas with Smooch Illuminate. The layout is from SCS363.

It's time to flutter on to your next stop ~ Mary!


Card Details~
Bugaboo Stamps - Ava Fairy digital image
Echo Park Paper Co. - Life is Good 
prismacolor pencils
Smooch Illuminate
flower & button from my stash

Mission Organization: Stamp Storage

One of my many goals for this year is to *finally* get my scrap room under control. I've been in it for 2 years now and I can't say that it's ever been completely workable and organized for me. Of course the fact that I never seem to stop collecting doesn't help!

Last week I started with organizing my unmounted rubber stamps. I have bunches of them organized by company in canvas bins of varying sizes but most bins are so full that I can't find what I want. I decided to transfer them to a binder system using baseball card page protectors.  This worked for 90% of the Paper Makeup Stamps that I started with.  Some stamps that didn't fit in one pocket ended up in two pockets. I split the pockets and then taped up the seam. Not an ideal solution but one that works for me to keep them all together.  As I was organizing them (first by category and then alphabetically), I numbered each pocket with a sharpie and then wrote out a corresponding list with the name of each stamp/set. The numbering of pockets is especially helpful with the large combo sets.

Here's a finished picture~

If anyone tries this for their storage, I recommend heavy duty binders as I tried a durable binder first and it wasn't sturdy enough for the weight of the rubber stamps. This 3 inch binder has about 28 pages in it.

Tomorrow I hope to start organizing my Stamping Bella stamps!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Last year was a bit of a difficult one for me. Nothing overly bad happened but I just felt lost and could not focus on people or things that needed my attention. I had big plans for my One Little Word last year but it did not pan out.

A new year is time for a fresh start and new outlook. This will be my year to succeed in a lot of areas of my life.

To give me more guidance, I am taking Ali Edwards' One Little Word class at Big Picture Classes (which I did not do last year). I think having the class will help me focus on my new word and bringing that word to life.

This year's word is~

IMPROVE

There are many aspects of my life to which this word will apply ~

• relationships (both marriage, family and friendships)
• art (broaden my skills with the tools I have)
• cooking skills (or lack thereof lol)
• housekeeping skills (get the clutter out the door!)
• health
• finances

 I've just finished downloading the class materials for this month and will start putting my album together this week.  Today my focus will be on cleaning up around here and finding my scrap table!

In addition to One Little Word, I have signed myself up for other BPC classes for February and have joined in the Scrappin-N-Chattin 52 week challenge, where I need to create one layout a week for the entire year. I wanted to join last year but did not think I could do it. This year I'm choosing to believe in myself that I CAN do this and WANT to do this!  Project Life 2012 is also on my horizon, I'd like to do a better job of keeping our everyday memories documented and focus the scrapping on the bigger events that have been piling up!

I also get to start all the reading challenges I signed up for. Yay!