Teresa's Blog

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T21:12:00.001-08:00

Wishing you and yours a very merry Christmas!

Pajama Party Challenge #4

2010-11-05T23:37:00.000-07:00

The last challenge of the night was from Geeta, who used "Some Kind of Wonderful" in lieu of "Twilight" to challenge everyone to use some kind of sparkle on their cards.

I was a bit too ambitious and Quickie Glued fine green glitter all over the branches of the Evergreen Branch, which left me also covered in glitter by the end. (If you zoom in on the photo, you can even see a few wayward flecks on the card itself.)

All in all, I enjoyed getting my hands and stamps inky again, so hopefully you'll see some new cards from me again real soon!

Pajama Party Challenge #3

2010-11-05T23:32:00.001-07:00

Challenge #3 was all about finding inspiration from this movie poster for "Breakfast at Tiffany's."

More than the focal image, I love the little vignette off to the right, so I focused on that in my card:

Despite not being able to mat the city skyline panel, I think this card is my favorite of the evening's cards.

Pajama Party Challenge #2

2010-11-05T23:28:00.000-07:00

The second 30 minute challenge of the evening was based on the movie poster for "Dirty Dancing." The colors on the poster are light pink, dark pink, black and kraft, so the challenge was to use only those colors.

I thought I'd try and change things up with an asymmetrical layout, and I think I like it.

Aaaaand We're Back. . .

2010-11-05T22:57:00.000-07:00

No matter how uninspired or tired I'm feeling, there is one thing that can always get me making cards again. . .a good ole A Muse party! Tonight, the gals over at the Lounge hosted a Pajama Party with a movie theme that really got my wheels turning.

The first challenge was based on "Pirates of the Caribbean," and the challenge was to make a card for a kid. My eye immediately wandered over to my little penguin friend, and the sentiment just seemed perfect.

July ATC: Turtles!

2010-10-04T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been busy as a bee with my new graphic design class and haven't had time to stamp much lately. Can you believe that even though it's called graphic design, I have to draw all of my designs by hand??? Crazy! I haven't actually drawn anything for a school assignment for at least 10 years, so it's been a rough learning curve. Nonetheless, I'm enjoying the challenge.

Enough about me, and on to my ATC. Thank goodness for Tracy and her monthly ATC group to motivate and inspire me! I did this turtle-themed one for July using a Denami Designs turtle and a Wordsworth sentiment. I really tried to do some shadowing on the turtles with my Copics, and I used a clear Glaze pen on their shells. Cute and simple, just the way I like it!

See you soon!

Denami Blog Hop!

2010-09-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

Hi there, and welcome to my stop on the Denami Blog Hop! You should've just arrived here from Virginia Larsen's blog. If so, welcome! If you're just joining the hop, you may want to start at the Denami Design blog.

The theme of today's hop is Cuddly Critters, and I've got a darling one to share with you. Have you met their cute little mouse? I'll admit, a mouse isn't usually the first critter I want to cuddle with, but once you see Denami's, you'll understand why I just fell in love with the little guy. Wanna see?

I love how easy it is to have him and his friends peeking out from the holes in my hunk of homemade Swiss cheese. Fun!

Be sure to comment to be eligible to win one of those two $20 Denami gift certificates (given to people who comment along the hop), and thanks for stopping by!

Next stop: Laurel Beard's blog.

Pink and Navy

2010-09-07T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I don't have a lot to show for four days off. Somehow, the weekend whipped by in a flurry of activities away from home: a doggie playdate, a museum visit, a trip up to Sacramento to celebrate the four year anniversary of Paper Garden, and the movies "Bucket List," and "Machete." I did manage to make this simple card though.

My card stash is seriously lacking in birthday and thank you cards, so I'm making it my mission to make some in a variety of themes. Here's the first quickie. Last week, my boss came in wearing a navy dress and a pink sweater, and I loved it as a color scheme. I added gray and light blue, and voila! a card was born.

Have a great day!

The Dog Days of Summer

2010-09-01T12:00:00.000-07:00

Holy cow! Can you believe that it's September already? August just whipped by me. Every weekend we had something going on, from a visit to our county fair to a wedding to a trip to Reno to a comedy show. I'm looking forward to September being the dog days of summer and a little mellower.

Speaking of dogs, today's cards were quickies that I made up using strictly scraps from another project I was working on. The coordinating scraps were all sitting together so I figured I'd try and use them up.

The patterned paper is by Heidi Swapp. From a cardmaker's perspective, it's often hard to find smaller patterns on 12x12 paper for making cards, but this one fits the bill nicely. The blue paper is by Coredinations, and the yellow is by Bazzill. The stamps are from a mini set from Basic Grey that I picked up at my LSS.

Have a great day!

Have a Rockin' Birthday!

2010-08-25T12:00:00.000-07:00

Hello, and happy hump day! This week is flying by for me. I recently signed up for a graphic design course at the local community college, and between that and my volunteering, I am becoming one busy girl!

Nonetheless, birthdays must be celebrated! This card is for an uber-hip friend that's really into music. She travels all over the country to see bands play and writes articles about it so naturally, I had to make her a rock star card.

The cardstock is all by Bazzill. I drew the star shape in Illustrator and cut them out with my Cricut and the Sure Cuts a Lot software (which is living up to its name!). I love being able to draw my own shapes and cut them out. The starry foiled patterned paper is by Die Cuts with a View. The purple striped paper is by Echo Park and it's actually Halloween-themed on the back. I love it when I can use holiday papers for non-holiday purposes!

The rock star image is by A Muse, and he's one of my favorite stamps. I couldn't find an appropriate sentiment in my collection, so I actually printed this one onto the cardstock using my printer. I was amazed at how well the paper took the printer ink, and I'll be doing that more in the future.

The finished card measures 3 5/8 inches by 8 1/2 inches and fits nicely in a #10 business envelope.

Have a great day!

Simon Sees, Part 2

2010-08-23T12:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday! Did everyone have a good weekend?

Hubby and I spent the weekend in the biggest little city in the world, taking in the bright lights and the clink-clink-clink of slot machines. Despite all of the distractions though, all I could think about was coming home and stamping!

I whipped up this cutie using leftovers from another card. I always make a few focal images at a time and pick my favorite for the card I'm working on, and occasionally, the extras are cute enough to be made into cards themselves. That's what happened with this little guy.

I used this sketch for inspiration:

All of the deets can be found here, except for the ribbon, which is from Michael's.

Have a great week!

Happy "Bee" Day!

2010-08-20T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today is my mom's birthday, so of course I had to do something to commemorate the occasion. She HATES celebrating her day with a passion, but I think I managed to find a safe solution to let her know I care.

I got her a dozen roses, and then made a custom flower pick to go with it. I freehanded the bee on black cardstock, then added the yellow stripes over the top. The wings are punched circles that I drew outlines on in black pen, and then glittered with baby blue Stickles. I wrote my note with a white Uniball Signo pen (love that pen!), so it would stand out on the black cardstock.

I'm hoping that she'll be able to show off the flowers at work while secretly knowing the occasion.

Have a bee-utiful weekend!

One Last ATC. . .

2010-08-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

Here's the last as-yet unpublished ATC from my collection so far this year. This one features a petunia stamp by Karen Lockhart. The patterned paper is part of the Botanique line by American Crafts, and I drew the dotted border on the orange cardstock myself.

See you soon!

To A Deer Friend

2010-08-12T12:00:00.000-07:00

One of my friends is away at camp this week, so I thought I'd send her a little mail. I love this little deer (who's actually a Rudolph, but shh! don't tell!) and the silhouette trees provide the perfect backdrop for him. I had tried masking him and stamping the trees behind him, but I didn't get the detail that I had wanted. So, I ended up stamping him on a separate piece of paper, trimming him out and attaching him to the tree panel.

Just for fun, I also decorated the outside of my envelope to match my card. I just stamped Rudy again on the outside, and colored him with my Copics (keeping a Post-it on the inside to prevent bleed-through to the back).

Hope she likes it!

Cat's Pajamas Customer Blog Hop!

2010-08-09T13:00:00.000-07:00

When Alma at the Cat's Pajamas posted that they were doing a Customer Blog Hop, I jumped at the chance. They've been one of my favorite stamp companies from the beginning, and the fact that they're made here in California just sealed the deal for me. Plus, could their stamps BE any cuter???

I dug up one of my old favorite fellas, Simon Sees, for this "29 again" birthday card. The sentiment is from one of the clear sets, and it worked perfectly for my friend's 30th birthday.

The patterned papers are from All My Memories (Swanky Design 3) and Scenic Route Paper Co. "Stripes Cabernet and Cream," and the stamps are of course by The Cat's Pajamas. The sketch is from here.

See you soon!

A Forest Wedding

2010-08-04T14:00:00.000-07:00

In a couple of weeks, DH and I are lucky enough to be guests at a commitment ceremony for two of my good friends. This clever couple is doing it as a weekend-long celebration at a local campground, complete with a progressive dinner one night and a potluck for their wedding meal.

In keeping with the outdoorsy fun theme, I thought I'd make up a card to match. I used the A Muse Pine Tree Silhouette stamp that I won for this card (thanks A Muse!), an A Muse sentiment from the Everything's Rosy release, and some wedding chickies by Denami Design. The card is topped off with some ribbon I bought in 2005(!) that I finally finished off. Love using supplies I already have--the hoarding has got to stop!

Best wishes for a beautiful day!

Christmas in August. . .

2010-08-02T13:00:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, Christmas in August? I don't know what to say, except that A Muse's new candy cane paper is cute and I had to play with it for this month's A Muse Challenge, "Stick to the Pattern." I also hadn't played with my row of houses in a very long time and Tracy's Sketch Challenge was calling me and a card was born!

Can you see the glittery Diamond Stickles on the roofs and snowbank?

All items by A Muse, except for the pearls from Queen & Co. Thanks for looking!

May ATC

2010-07-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

Here's my ATC for May 2010. The little chick is by Denami Design, and the sentiment is by A Muse.

I Ruff You!

2010-07-21T13:00:00.000-07:00

Hi there!

I'm still recovering from the weekend. On Saturday, we took a long drive (10+ hours in one day!) to a beautiful wedding just outside of Yosemite National Park. The scenery was amazing:

Royal Arches

Half Dome

Bridal Veil Falls

The only downside was that we didn't get home until 1am on Sunday morning. Needless to say, my sleep schedule is all out of whack and I haven't created anything since then. However, my ATCs just came back from the group I'm in, so I thought I'd post a pic of my ATC for this month:

I love this little stamp by Taylored Expressions! The sentiment is by A Muse, and I die cut the bone using my Cricut. The heart is glittered with Stickles.

Going back through my ATC binder, I noticed that I have a couple others I never shared, so keep an eye out for those later in the week!

Ghosts in the Trees!

2010-07-15T12:00:00.000-07:00

I've had the idea for this card ever since I saw this Birch Forest with Leaves stamp at the A-Muse-A-Palooza event I attended last week at Stamp on Over. It's a haunted forest!

The ghosties are actually part of an old clear set, Simple Celebrations, which I just love and use all the time. With a little masking, I was able to make them pop out of the forest and howl their hellos.

Coincidentally, this card also works for this month's A Muse Lounge Challenge, "Holidays in July." I'm sure that this challenge was intended to get us all thinking about Christmas, but I always find it difficult to start my cards when it's sunny and hot outside.

When do you start your Christmas cards?

Sketch Challenge #91

2010-07-14T19:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a rose-themed birthday card I did for Tracy's Sketch Challenge #91. You can see the challenge here.

The stamps were from the Clear Design: Cupcakes set by Hero Arts.

To a Sweet Friend

2010-07-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

After volunteering for a week at Girl Scout camp with one of the nicest ladies ever, I had to get her a little something. Bobbin (her camp name) loves cake decorating, so I broke down and got her this:

Doesn't it look like the organizing thing of a cake decorator's dreams?! I wish I could find something that handy-dandy for my stamps!

Anyway, of course I had to whip up a card to go with it. I pulled out one of my clear sets from the Cat's Pajamas and got to work.

The patterned paper's from a paper pack I found at Target (by Colorbok), and I made the die cut using my Cricut. Hope she likes it!

Pajama Party Challenge #4: Summer Food!

2010-07-10T22:45:00.000-07:00

The last challenge is to make a card inspired by summer food or beverages, so I went the drink route, quick and easy.

Thanks for looking!

Pajama Party Challenge #3: Water!

2010-07-10T22:15:00.000-07:00

The third challenge was to make a card based on the word water. After a failed attempt at a school of fishes in the ocean, I decided to scale down my efforts and made a fish bowl instead.

Since I wanted to cut a very unique outline, I ended up attaching a white card base to the back of it (2.75 inches x 2 inches folded). I think this may be my favorite card of the bunch, just for its shape.

Pajama Party Challenge #2: Beach Party!

2010-07-10T22:00:00.000-07:00

The second challenge is to create a card based on the idea of a beach party. Rather than a human party, I thought it would be fun to party animal style. The blue/white notecard is by A Muse, and it really made putting my scene together a breeze.

Pajama Party Challenge #1: Hot!

2010-07-10T21:45:00.000-07:00

Tonight was the A Muse Pajama Party in honor of the Halloween/Christmas release, and although I've been out of the card-making loop for a while, I jumped at the chance to play. I started up a bit late, but I did keep to the 30 minute time limit. (You can find out more about the challenges at www.amuseartstamps.com.)

The first challenge was to make a card inspired by the word "hot."

When I think of hot, I think of being a little kid in the summer in the hot California sun, and nothing cooled me off better than a treat from the ice cream truck. I picked up this adorable Doodlebug paper a couple of weeks ago, and it was just calling my name as I was scrounging for supplies, so onto the card it went! I also especially love the striped ribbon by May Arts.

Almost a One Layer Card. . .

2010-06-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

There is really no way to describe how hard one layer cards are for me. They’re so mind-bogglingly challenging, they’re like my kryptonite. The few times I’ve done them, the cards I’ve made look. . . naked! So, it should come as a surprise to no one that this month’s A Muse challenge “Taking Off Some Layers,” really had me stumped.

I finally settled on using the Car Load stamp to make a simple birthday card. I figured by drawing the frame it would give some cohesiveness to my design, but even then, I just couldn’t walk away. It still needed something. So I broke down and added the purple present after the fact.

Is it truly a one layer card? I’m not sure. All I know is, this is probably the most minimalist card I’ve ever made. Now I’m off to mail the darn thing before I feel compelled to add something else to it.

Thanks for visiting!

Party Recap

2010-06-23T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I survived the two parties in 10 days. And, for posterity, I thought I'd note what I did in case I ever need to coordinate things like this again.

The first party was a bridal shower fiesta. The wedding colors are orange, yellow and teal, so we decorated appropriately:

I found the directions to make these here.

In the same issue of Martha Stewart Living, she had these cute fruit cups that were just delicious!

My friend did the food, which consisted of a do-it-yourself shrimp fajita bar, guacamole, chips and salsa, and homemade ice cream sandwiches for dessert. All in all, a great event!

Then, I co-hosted a retirement party for my boss' boss on Thursday evening at a local restaurant. Since the majority of the work was done by the hotel, I offered to do the guest book and make favors.

The guest book was actually a series of 4x6 notecards (idea here). They were bordered in the party colors and decorated with a photo from the honoree's career. We strung them up on a simple clothesline and pinned them so everyone could see the funny photos, and then the next day I put them all into an album for her to keep.

For favors, we brainstormed words that defined the retiree's career, and I made up a simple design on the computer to attach simple candy boxes that each hold 3 Hershey Nuggets. I learned how to make the box portion of these favors at a stamp convention in Las Vegas last year.

To make the boxes, I cut my cardstock into 2 1/4 by 6 inch rectangles, then scored them lengthwise at 1 3/8 inches. Since I was making 60 of them, I found that the easiest way to do this was to masking tape where the cardstock should line up.

This will leave you with two halves, the 1 3/8 inch half and the 7/8 inch half. Then, I scored four lines going the short way (the 1 3/8 is higher in this photo):

Cut triangles out from the 7/8 inch half (to allow the box to fold up more neatly).

Then crease all the folds and assemble! I usually attach the sides before assembling the bottom.

After a couple of hours, you'll end up with this:

A whole line-up of favor boxes!

Gift Card Holders

2010-06-15T15:30:00.000-07:00

With the end of the school year comes the need for end-of-school-year gifts. My go-to graduation/special occasion gift for people ages 10-20 is iTunes gift cards, so I spent a couple of days making up gift card holders for everyone all at once.

To get the process started, I did a search in Google Reader for gift card holders, and came across this one by Tori Wild that's just darling. I made a tester one using the template she provided, but I really wanted horizontal ones, so I adapted her idea and made my own.

For my gift card holder, I cut a solid piece of cardstock (in this case, black) to 12inches by 2.75 inches. Then, I took my long strip and scored it at 4 inches and just under 8 inches to form the base of my holder. To make a pocket, I cut the right panel on the diagonal from the fold.

To decorate it, I cut two patterned paper panels (red polka dots in the above photos), each 3.75 inches by 2.5 inches and attached one to the front and one to the middle of the inside (behind the diagonally cut piece.) Once the patterned paper was attached, I used a skinny piece of red line tape at the bottom to create the pocket.

To create the belly band to hold the whole thing closed, I cut a 1 inch by 9 inch green strip of cardstock and wrapped it around the holder, overlapping it at the front. I stamped my image and layered it on more cardstock before adhering the whole panel to the green strip (to hide the seam).

These are a cinch to make, and it was fun to make up several graduation ones, all coordinated with the graduates' school colors.

Bring on the Blue Skies!

2010-06-07T13:15:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday everyone! Did you have a good weekend?

Saturday I hit up my favorite LSS, Scrapbook Territory where I picked up a ton of fun new things at 25% off. Congratulations to ST on 7 years of amazing patterned papers, stamps and more! Oh, how I love that place.

Of course, as soon as I got home I had to play with some of my latest acquisitions. This cloud paper by A Muse has been out for a while now, but I hadn't gotten my hands on it until this most recent trip.

I used Tracy's Sketch Challenge for my inspiration, although the final card came out a bit different than the sketch. I also made a little sentiment banner and popped up the balloons, just for fun:

This week, I'm looking forward to a short work week with some party planning thrown in. I'm co-hosting two parties in the next 10 days, so I'm not sure how much stamping time I'll be able to squeeze in, but I've got my fingers crossed.

Have a great week!

Birthday Scoops!

2010-06-03T12:00:00.001-07:00

I'm still on a Denami kick, playing with the new stamps I got a couple of weeks ago at the rubber stamp show in Sacramento. The ice cream cone stamp is has been available for a while, but those darling heart chips on the fourth scoop finally did me in.

I tried to step outside my comfort zone with a brighter color scheme, and I have to say, I'm a fan. Maybe I should tackle the brights more often!

Memorial Day. . .

2010-06-02T12:00:00.001-07:00

In honor of the holiday weekend, we visited a local cemetery to honor the holiday with a bit of a reflection. It was all decked out in flags to honor those that have served in the military, which I always find both patriotic and heart-wrenching. We finished out the holiday with an all-American BBQ with a few friends.

Thanks to all those that have served.

Ladybug Cards

2010-05-31T10:00:00.000-07:00

Ah, happy Memorial Day! Are you having a great holiday weekend? I sure hope so.

It's finally starting to feel like summer around here, and just in the nick of time too. (Most of the month of May has been rainy, which is very unusual for northern California.) June, here we come!

I needed a ladybug birthday card today for one of my friend's daughters. We're walking in a 5K memorial walk together this morning, so I whipped up a couple of quickies. Tori has loved ladybugs for as long as I can remember, so I knew it had to include the bug.

For these cards, I pulled out one of Papertrey Ink's first sets, and oldie-but-goodie called "Little Lady." The sentiment is by A Muse. Now all I have to do is pick which one to give her.

Have a great week!

Slow Like a Snail. . .

2010-05-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

I recently came across a card that I had made for the April challenge on the A Muse Lounge, but never posted or entered. Oops!

The challenge was to cut something out on yoru card, and coupled with the repetition challenge from a while back, I came up with this easy belated birthday card. I didn't have the right colored jute to go with it, so I pulled out my trusty Copic markers, and dyed it to the right shade. Messy but fun!

Tracy's Sketch Challenge Card

2010-05-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

I just barely managed to squeeze a card in under the wire (I hope!) for Tracy's Sketch Challenge.

I picked up the dotted frame and the wedded chicks at the show on Saturday. The line of pearls is by Memory Box.

See you soon!

Denami Sketch Challenge #2

2010-05-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

Paulina reminded me that Denami has a sketch challenge up on their blog, so I went ahead and gave it a whirl.

Oh, how I love those cherries! In case you can't read it, the sentiment says, "You're the cherry on top!" I thought it would make a good thank you note or just because note.

In other news, I'm really looking forward to the weekend. Because I work a 9/80 schedule, it'll actually be a four day weekend for me, which I desperately need. I would be so nice to get caught up on life. Hopefully in those four days I'll have some time to make some more cards too!

See you soon!

2010-05-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been quite a month. I finished up two college classes (A's in both!), threw a Wild West party for 40, created table centerpieces for a 150+ person party, and dog-sat for this little troublemaker:

Oh sure, he's cute, but did you see the chair? Yikes.

Needless to say, my other activities didn't leave me a lot of time for crafting.

When I'm getting back into cardmaking after some time away, I usually start off following some sketches. Here's a card I did following Taylored Expressions Sketch #113.

This past weekend, I went to the Sacramento Rubber Stamp Show, and the samples at the Denami booth motivated me to pull out my Denami stamps when I got home. They've got some cute stuff!

Now that things have calmed down a bit, I hope to be back soon with more to share!

Happy Doggieversary!

2010-04-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

A couple of friends of ours are celebrating their third wedding anniversary in May, and for once, I thought I'd try and get ahead on my card-making. "Scotties in Love" by Taylored Expressions seemed like a natural choice, since she works with dogs.

The sentiment is actually a one-liner by A Muse, but I inked up one word at a time to get it into two.

Have a great day!

And the Best Reason to Play. . .

2010-04-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

In addition to being super-fun and challenging, the A Muse Pajama Party also involves random drawings from each challenge for prizes. And I won! Woo-hoo! Those ladies over at A Muse rock, I tell you.

While I'm here, I thought I'd finally share my ATCs from last month. Since they were due to be delivered in the first part of April, of course I had to go with an Easter theme.

Here's my ATC:

I just love that patterned paper by W R Memory Keepers. Didja see that it even has ears on it? Love it!

Have a beautiful day!

Pajama Party Challenge #4: A Card For Mom

2010-04-17T20:11:00.000-07:00

Oh, the irony. Immediately after I posted card challenge #3, I came across my "Simple Celebrations" clear set, and saw the tulip image. Since I felt like I didn't rock the flowers challenge as well as I could have, I decided to incorporate the tulip into Challenge #4, to make a card for a mom.

Here's my card:

Well, that's all the challenges for tonight. Now I just have to clean up the kitchen table before anyone gets home and notices the mess I've made. Yikes!

Have a nice weekend!

Pajama Party Challenge #3: My Favorite Flower?

2010-04-17T19:25:00.000-07:00

Challenge #3 was to make a card inspired by my favorite flower. I was stumped. I don't really have a favorite flower, and I don't have many flower stamps either. As I was scanning my stamp collection, an idea popped into my head.

My favorite flower isn't a specific flower; any flower attached to a tropical drink is my kind of flower!

So, here's my card:

I based the card design on a sketch that Tracy came up with a couple of weeks ago. On to the fourth challenge!

Pajama Party Challenge #2: Repetition

2010-04-17T18:55:00.000-07:00

Challenge #2 is to use repetition on your card. When I use repetition on cards, I like using an image that I can color in different ways to give it some variety, so I picked "Monarch" (which I think has since been discontinued).

Here is my card:

After stamping the sentiment, I'm now debating whether or not a yellow sympathy card isn't too chipper for such a serious occasion. What do you think?

Pajama Party Challenge #1: Inspiration Challenge

2010-04-17T18:25:00.000-07:00

Challenge #1 is to use a photo for inspiration. You can see the photo here.

I immediately gravitated to the colors: light green, light blue, and light pink/purple. Here's my card:

On to the next challenge!

Tonight's the Night!

2010-04-17T17:45:00.000-07:00

Tonight's the night of the A Muse Pajama Party and I'm so excited! I'm hoping to participate in real time here on the blog. Stay tuned!

April Showers

2010-04-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, this is downright frustrating. While the rest of the country seems to be basking in warmer weather and even heat waves in some places, here in California we're still slogging through rain. It's driving me nuts!

At any rate, I've managed to find some very cute umbrella paper, and I thought I'd make up a quick card with Seattle Girl to make myself feel better.

At least I have the A Muse Pajama Party to look forward to on Saturday night!

Has a Week Gone By Already?

2010-04-12T12:00:00.000-07:00

I realize this is about a week late, but how was your Easter?

Mine was quite food-filled. On Saturday, hubby and I went on a culinary adventure to the East Bay. We checked out a restaurant supply store, had lunch at the Home of Chicken and Waffles (a combination that has always baffled me, but that hubby loves), and then went to the most amazing grocery store, Berkeley Bowl West. Needless to say, we came home with all sorts of fun and unusual goodies to try and to cook. We made snickerdoodles, chili, lentil soup and egg salad sandwiches (with the hard-boiled eggs I had decorated for Easter).

Speaking of decorated eggs, here was our most successful attempt:

We used a basic Paas egg-dying kit with electrical tape, a la Martha Stewart (although hers came out a lot better than ours did).

I spent most of last week playing with my newest toys, the Cricut and the Sure Cuts a Lot software. It's amazing! I can cut any shape I'm able to draw in Adobe Illustrator. In fact, here's one of my first cuts:

I threw this card together using scraps I had around my workspace, but I'm really looking forward to playing with Cricut and SCAL some more.

See you soon!

A Case of Bad Timing. . .

2010-03-31T14:00:00.000-07:00

Why is it that I am at my busiest when all of the good ideas come? I've started a couple of classes at the local junior college this week, and true to form, fun ideas are swirling in my head, none of which I can get to until the weekend. Drats!

In the meantime, here are some things that have recently caught my eye:

Spaghetti and Meatball Cupcakes-perfect for April Fools Day.
A Healthy Casserole-perhaps for Easter morning?
Penelope Loves Lists-an organizing blog that I hope will get me motivated.
Cute Canisters- did I mention I really need to clean my craft space? Wouldn't these be fun?
The Simple Diary- I first heard about this in a Vogue article about Rachel McAdams. A clever way to note the passage of time.
Homemade Peeps!- 'nuff said.
Ice Cream Sandwiches for Easter-yum!
Cheap Healthy Good- a healthy blog to help me recover from Easter!

Back in a bit! (I hope!)

A Flutter-by Thank You. . .

2010-03-25T13:00:00.000-07:00

I recently hosted a Leader/Daughter event and the patches didn't arrive in time. When they finally did arrive at my house, I thought it was only appropriate that I make up some cards to deliver them in.

Here's the patch that I found here:

And the card that I based on it (with some inspiration from Jennifer McGuire's cards here):

Hope the girls like getting these in their mailboxes!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I came up woefully short in the stamping department when it came to St. Patrick's Day themed stamps, but I did manage to pull a card together that's green. (Phew!)

I love sending birthday cards, but when I cut it too close, it becomes a bit of a conundrum. Can I still send a birthday card on the day it should have been received? If I remember a day after, should I still send a card? Should I comment on the delay?

Enter the belated birthday card! Heaven forbid I should ever miss another birthday, at least now I'll have a ready-to-go card to make up for my shortcoming. Phew!

Hope your St. Patrick's Day is memorable and full of green!

February ATCs

2010-03-12T12:00:00.000-08:00

Here are the ATCs I did for Tracy's February swap. If they look familiar, it's probably because they're based on an earlier card I did here.

I'm lovin' my Liquid Pearls to make corner accents and the like, can you tell? I also colored over my seahorses with clear Spica.

Have a great weekend!

Soft Lavender

2010-03-11T12:00:00.000-08:00

Is it Thursday already? How did that happen? I am truly convinced that time goes faster as an adult than it did when I was a kid. I feel like Christmas just happened, and it's already March!

Maybe it's because I had a busy weekend last weekend. On Friday, hubby and I drove down to Moss Landing with another couple to check out Phil's Fish Market. I've never had such fresh fish, and the atmosphere was fun too! Then on Sunday, we went to check out the Legion of Honor's Cartier in America exhibit. I loved checking out the bling!

Anyway, on to the card. I've had this sketch on a Post-it floating around my workspace for forever, and the card finally came together this week. I needed a card for a classy older friend's birthday, so I turned to a Karen Lockhart stamp for a calming sketchy feel.

I used cream Neenah cardstock for the base, and a bit of A Muse gingham paper for some color. Quick, easy and done done done!

Denami Challenge

2010-03-06T20:57:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite stamp companies, Denami Design, has just started up weekly challenges on their blog. Their first challenge was a color challenge, so of course I had to play along. Here are the colors for the challenge:

And here is my card:

All of the stamps are by Denami Design. The card base is by Memory Box, and the patterned paper is by A Muse. Thanks for visiting!

Quickie Thank You Notes

2010-03-03T12:00:00.000-08:00

My birthday was a couple of weeks back, so I had to come up with some quick and easily mass-produceable thank you notes.

Here's what I came up with.

The green notecards were already in my stash (Memory Box) and the absolutely adorable patterned paper is from October Afternoon's Cherry Hill collection. The sentiment is an old one from Stampin' Up.

Taylor's Sketch Challenge #102

2010-03-01T12:00:00.000-08:00

I had some free time over the weekend, so I thought I'd try Taylor's Sketch Challenge. Here's her sketch:

And here's my take on it:

The image is one of the A La Carte Animals in Love stamps that I picked up at the CHA Craft Supershow in Anaheim back in January. I just love these puppies! The patterned paper is by Sandylion, Bella Blvd. and Memory Box.

Happy Monday everyone!

A Muse Lounge Color Challenge

2010-02-26T12:00:00.000-08:00

As you all know, I love doing the challenges posted on the A Muse Lounge. However, February's Challenge got me really stumped. I think I first read it on February 1st, but it wasn't until this week that I finally figured out how I could put them together.

The challenge was to use one of three color schemes:
-french roast, swiss red and popsicle pink
-orange crush, papaya, and sky blue
-black/slate and white

I had hoped to do one of each, but I couldn't even come up with one during the course of the month, until now.

It's just a quickie, using my favorite stamp from the "Sea of Love" release, but i like how it turned out. Best of all, it's already been written in and dropped in the mail. Woo-hoo for that!

Mini Flower Card

2010-02-25T12:00:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been raining non-stop here, which has made it difficult to get motivated and also to photograph my cards. So, here's a fun little birthday card I did a while back.

The repeating flower was a little accessory on one of my Hero Arts Sparkle Clear sets from a while ago (THIS one to be exact), and the birthday cake is by A Muse. The sentiment is part of another Hero Arts clear set called Happy Day Animals. I colored some white Memory Box pearls with my green Copic for the purple flowers' centers.

Here's hopin' it gets sunny and spring-like really soon!

And the winner is. . . .

2010-02-16T14:00:00.000-08:00

Susie
of Little Susie Cardmaker!

Congratulations Susie! E-mail me at imteresa at hotmail dot com, and I'll get your prize out to you this week. Everyone else, thanks for playing! It was fun to see where you're from!

Because I Love You--Blog Candy!

2010-02-11T12:00:00.000-08:00

Hey there! Did that title get your attention?

In honor of Valentine's Day and my birthday the day after, I'm giving away some blog candy! I thought it would be fun to give away some treats from a few of my favorite companies. Wanna see?

This prize includes a 25 pack of A2 notecards by Memory Box, the Live It Up Sparkle Clear stamp set by Hero Arts, a Rock Star stamp and this cool water bottle from A Muse.

All you have to do to win is leave a comment on this post, including your first name and where you're from ('cause I'm curious who reads this blog.). One comment per person please!

The deadline to enter is February 16th at 12:00PM Pacific Time. One winner will be randomly selected and announced shortly thereafter.

Good luck!

January ATC

2010-02-10T14:00:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but to me, 2010 is just flying by. I had barely recovered from the holidays when we started up a new round of ATC swapping with Tracy. I'm loving this group. The ideas they come up with are UH-mazing!

Anyway, here was my submission to the swap:

Pretty clean and straightforward. Of course, once I got the full set back in the mail, my mind started swirling with ideas for the next two months. Is it possible that creativity is contagious? Gotta love the talent of my swapping cohorts!

Well, on the theme of 2010 speeding by, Valentine's Day and my birthday are quickly approaching. Stay tuned for some blog candy later this week!

Japanese Birthday Card. . .

2010-02-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

I've been needing lots of birthday cards lately, so I came up with this quickie using a Hero Arts stamp, and October Afternoon Cherry Hill patterned paper, and an A Muse sentiment. See you soon!

My A Muse Winnings!

2010-01-29T12:00:00.000-08:00

Not too long ago, I was thrilled to win a prize on the A Muse Lounge. It arrived last week, and of course I had to break it open and play with it!

Even though I won after the holidays, I made a card with it:

Then, I got to thinking. The cello bag and the red ribbon tied around my prize were sitting there on my desk, and it occurred to me that they were prizes too! After playing around with the ribbon for a bit, I came up with another card idea.

I used the whole length of ribbon as a closure to a gate-fold card. I attached it to the card underneath the image and sentiment so it wouldn't fall off. When you untie the ribbon, the card opens this way:

Either way you look at it, I'm loving my winnings. Thanks A Muse!

This month's challenge is to use 10 things on a card. I've already made one, but you should play too! Visit the A Muse Lounge for more info!

Disney Treats!

2010-01-27T12:00:00.000-08:00

After teaching my workshop on Tuesday, I fell in love with the projects all over again. The Ghirardelli Treat Box was the biggest hit with everyone, and I was dying to make another one. So, with hours to go before I left for a weekend trip, I started up a new batch of them. Can you guess where I went on my trip?

I drew the hat shapes in Adobe Illustrator, then added each person's initial and printed them all on a single sheet. I punched them out with my yellow Marvy circle punch and layered them on yellow circles punched with my blue scalloped circle punch, and then the rest came together pretty quickly. The patterned paper was Disney-themed as well. They were the perfect treat as we sat around the airport, waiting for the thunderstorms to pass.

Hope you had a splendiferous weekend too!

Treats and Sweets Recap

2010-01-26T12:00:00.000-08:00

One of the reasons I haven't been posting on here very much is that I have been super-busy prepping for an event that was held last week. As part of my volunteer work with Girl Scouts, I hosted a Treats and Sweets workshop for 25 people. We made a whole bunch of projects, with inspiration found all over blogland. Wanna see?

Ghirardelli Treat Box

York Peppermint Patty Covers

Pencil Pairs

Treat Bags

Hanging Hearts

Lifesaver Matchbooks

I simplified a lot of the projects from their original forms (for time and budget constraints), then pre-stamped all of the images, cut the papers to size, and created kits for each person. It was fun, but definitely a lot of work. Have you started prepping for Valentine's Day yet?

Lovely Pajama Party: Challenge #2

2010-01-24T19:36:00.000-08:00

For this particular challenge, we needed to make a card for our BFF. My BFF Jackie, came out to visit over Christmas break, and together we went down to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. One of the most fascinating exhibits for me was called, "The Secret Lives of Seahorses," which is where I got the inspiration for this card.

This is going to go out in the mail tomorrow to my friend, to thank her for the visit and the fun adventure.

Lovely Pajama Party: Challenge #4

2010-01-24T19:00:00.000-08:00

For the next card, the challenge was a color scheme: only red, black and white. This one actually took me a while to come up with, but once I had the idea for it, it came together very quickly.

By the way, these 30 minute deadlines are killing me. I hope to be back soon with another. Wish me luck!

Lovely Pajama Party: Challenge #3

2010-01-24T18:55:00.000-08:00

On Saturday night, A Muse had a fun pajama party, complete with challenges. I was out of town for the actual festivities, but I'm trying to get caught up now with some of the challenges. Here's Challenge #3: To create a card with only one layer. Crazy, I know.

Anyway, here's my best attempt:

All stamps by A Muse. Back soon with another challenge post!

Tracy's Sketch Challenge

2010-01-13T12:00:00.000-08:00

I was very happy to see Tracy bring back her Sketchy Thursday feature last week, kicking it off with a fun and easy sketch, no less. One of my New Year's resolutions is to participate in more challenges, so of course I had to do this one.

Here's the sketch:

And here's my card:

I broke out the "You're the Best" Sparkle Clear set from Hero Arts for this card. This girl is just super-cute, and I'm working on some other cards with her already. The patterned paper and the ribbon are by A Muse, and the notecard is by Memory Box.

Have a great day!

Heart-y Leftover Card. . .

2010-01-08T12:00:00.000-08:00

As I was cleaning up my workspace one day, I found enough fun scraps to make a quick Valentine's Day card. Here ya go!

The pink card base and patterned paper are both by Memory Box, the image, sentiment and heart twinkle stickers are all by A Muse. I love that little takeout box full of hearts. See you next week with more cards to share!

A Muse-ing Math. . .

2010-01-06T12:00:00.000-08:00

Has this ever happened to you? You go into a rubber stamp store to buy one cute stamp that you had seen online. But then there's a cute sentiment that goes with it. And on the sale table, a couple more stamps that are calling your name. After picking up some patterned paper for the upcoming holiday and a new embellishment or two, you find yourself suddenly holding ten things (or worse yet, a receipt with 10 digits after the dollar sign!)

This month's challenge on the A Muse Lounge is to make a card using 10 items. As you can see from above, the perfect ten is easy to come by when we're talking stamping.

On my card, here's how I did the math:

4 layers+2 stamps (one on the inside)+3 Copic colors+1 heart embellishment=10 items

Good thing card-making math doesn't require sales tax!

Christmas Treat Holder. . .

2009-12-31T14:00:00.000-08:00

Rather than wrapping one of my multi-part gifts, I tried something different and made it interactive!

Here's what magically appeared on someone's desk:

But that's not all! If you keep pulling the ribbon. . .

A gift card to Starbucks appears! And if you keep pulling. . .

There's a note from me!

Best wishes to you for a happy new year! See you in 2010!

Christmas Recap. . .

2009-12-31T12:00:00.000-08:00

Well, I survived Christmas, and even managed to make up a fun gift card holder. I saw this gift card holder a while back on Heather's blog, and I just had to try it.

Here's the outside:

I stamped a Paper Source long envelope with the A Muse snowflake stamp, and covered the flap with a piece of paper from Making Memories. The to go cup and its scalloped base are mounted on a piece of mounting tape and serves at the closure for the envelope. If you pull out the envelope flap, it looks like this:

Inside, there's a panel using more A Muse stamps. . .

And then inside the actual envelope, I put a small square card with a gift card attached with glue dots.

Fun! I'll be back soon with one more to share!

Getting Ready for Christmas

2009-12-18T15:00:00.000-08:00

Well, the holiday season came on hard and fast in my world, and the carefully thought-out homemade gifts I had decided on back in November didn't start to take shape until last week.

A Girl Scout army waiting for their call to duty. . .as notecards! (Please pardon the bad pictures, since they were taken at the last minute too!)

All in all, I made up 10 packages of 10 notecards each to go to each of my fellow Girl Scout volunteers. I love that A Muse Scout Girl stamp, but man! it took a lot of intricate coloring.

Next year, please remind me to start earlier!

More Tags. . .

2009-12-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

Well, the last card got me on a tag kick, so I made a few additional tags for gifts and for the A Muse Lounge December challenge (anything holiday-themed).

I have an incredible group of friends from my volunteer work with Girl Scouts. When I got married in 2007, they actually kidnapped me and took me on a destination bachelorette party to the Happiest Place on Earth, Disneyland. It was the best bachelorette party I could have imagined. I am so lucky to have these girls in my life!

Anyway, we meet up about once a month to do dinner and keep up on everyone's lives, so of course in December we'll be swapping gifts, and these are the tags for their gifts.

I usually color images with my Copics, but since these are a single layer and the Copics bleed, I opted to use my much-neglected set of Prismacolor colored pencils. Both images are by A Muse.

See you soon!

Tag Challenge

2009-11-27T21:50:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving weekend! Did you have a good turkey day? I spent mine gobbling up WAY too much food, but it was good to be with family. I hope yours was great too!

I've got an extended weekend off of work, so I took some time to try my hand at the current A Muse Challenge, to use tags.

I found some mini tags at Staples a while back, so I tried those out on this card. I stamped the To Go Cup on them in Memento ink, colored them in with Copics, and mounted them with 3M mounting tape onto the A Muse patterned paper. I had forgotten how easy tags are to use on a card!

See you soon!

Woodgrain Wreath Card

2009-11-13T12:00:00.000-08:00

As I was digging through my Cat's Pajamas stamps for the sketch challenge, I came across another stamp I just love, the wreath. So, I had to make a quickie card with it:

Since I already had the red Stickles out, I colored the ribbon and the dots in with them, and then colored the image with Copics. I just love the woodgrain paper by A Muse as well.

Have a great day!

Cat's Pajamas Challenge

2009-11-12T12:00:00.001-08:00

I happened to catch the sketch challenge for the Cat's Pajamas last week and thought I'd play along. Leigh was the hostess, and here's her sketch:

I pulled out one of my first Cat's Pajamas stamps and a scrap of paper from Basic Grey's Lilykate collection and got to work:

I colored the cupcakes with Copics and colored over the cherries with red Stickles. The flame was colored with a Gold Spica as well. The sentiment is by Hero Arts.

Have a great day!

Ridin' the Wave. . .

2009-11-11T12:00:00.000-08:00

This week, I've discovered several new blogs that I've just fallen in love with for design, ideas and photography.

Mer Mag
Twig and Thistle
Design Dazzle
Celeste Rockwood-Jones
Lorajeans Magazine
ArtMind
Sandra Juto

Don't you just love blog surfing?

October ATC

2009-11-10T12:00:00.000-08:00

Last night I got my October ATCs back from a swap, and I figured it was about time I showed mine.

I had the hardest time with this ATC because although I knew which stamps I wanted to use, I couldn't figure out how to incorporate the sentiment without losing it in the background. I think it came out decently well.

Thanks for looking!

Blog Award

2009-11-06T12:30:00.000-08:00

Hey there!

I'm still here, just busy working on non-crafty things. Luckily, Tracy Clemente nominated me for this award:

Thanks Tracy, it's an honor to be nominated by you! And here are my responses (in a word):

1. Where is your cell phone? Purse
2. Your hair? Black
3. Your mother? Short
4. Your father? Deceased
5. Your favorite food? FroYo
6. Your dream last night? Forgotten
7. Your favorite drink? Snapple
8. Your dream/goal? Skinny
9. What room are you in? Office
10. Your hobby? Crafting
11. Your fear? Cancer
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Hometown
13. Where were you last night? Party
14. Something you aren't? Opinionated
15. Muffins? Yuck!
16. Wish list item? Silhouette
17. Where did you grow up? San Rafael
18. Last thing you did? E-mail
19. What are you wearing? Scarf
20. Your TV? Oversized
21. Your pets? None
22. Friends? Changing
23. Your life? Exhausting
24. Your mood? Mellow
25. Missing someone? Jackie
26. Vehicle? Yellow
27. Something you’re not wearing? Makeup
28. Your favorite store? Scrapbooking
29. Your favorite color? Purple
30. When was the last time you laughed? Morning
31. Last time you cried? 10/24/09
32. Your best friend? Mom
33. One place that I go to over and over? Target
34. Facebook? Hooked
35. Favorite place to eat? Chevy’s

And because I'm shy, I'm not going to name names for this award. Instead, I nominate YOU (yes, you reader!) for this award. Your comments keep me going and are always over the top.

So if you'd like to play, consider yourself asked. Just leave a comment here if you do post it, 'cause we all want to see your answers!

ATC Recap. . .

2009-10-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

I'm part of a monthly ATC swap hosted by Tracy Clemente, and while I'm busy working on this month's submission, I thought I'd show you the ATC I made for last month's swap.

I went with my favorite little guy from the A Muse A Palooza release, Fishing Penguin.

(Sorry about the funky picture, I was rushing to get it out the door last month!)

The patterned paper is by Memory Box, the ribbon and both stamps by A Muse. If you're wondering why the color scheme looks familiar, it's because I made a matching card back in July using the same supplies.

I'm about to hit busy mode, since we're hosting a pumpkin carving party at our house this weekend. The house still needs to be cleaned, the menu finalized, and everything needs to be covered in garbage bags (to minimize pumpkin gut clean-up). Yikes!

Have a great day and a great weekend!

Pumpkins with a Purpose. . .

2009-10-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

Remember that pumpkin I showed you earlier? Are you wondering what I did with it? Let me show you!

I started by making a card for Tracy's Sketch Challenge:

But then I couldn't stop making pumpkins! So, I started mass-producing cards for a Thanksgiving card drive I had heard about. Here are some additional cards I made:

I even made a pop-up pumpkin card:

They're all super-simple, but I had to make time to write up personal notes to the elderly and homebound that will be receiving them the week of Thanksgiving. Off to make more!

Where I've Been. . .

2009-10-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

Really, a better question would be where HAVEN'T I been. As I mentioned in a previous post, we had a couple of visitors come from Japan, and of course we had to show them the sights. The only catch is that they only had two weeks to see it all. So, we did it very efficiently.

The day they arrived we took them around San Francisco:

Two days later we threw them an All-American BBQ, and the day after that, we flew to Vegas:

On Sunday, we got on a bus at 6:15am and took off for the Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon. We were gone until 11pm, but we did get to see this:

Monday, we recovered from our bus trip just in time to catch a plane ride back to the Bay Area, and Tuesday, we went wine tasting in Napa:

Friday, we were back out on the road, one night in Yosemite:

And a night in Tahoe, where we caught the first snow of the season:

All in all, some great adventures were had. Now back to stamping!

2009-10-09T12:00:00.000-07:00

Hey there!

So sorry I haven't been around much lately. I've been playing tour guide to some visitors from Japan who've never been to the U.S. before, so of course we had to hit up all the West Coast highlights. More on that later.

In the meantime, here's a quick project I picked up from some Stampin' Up ladies that were at a rubber stamp show that I attended recently. It's done almost entirely with punches--cute and easy!

Happy fall!

Sketch Challenge Entry #5

2009-09-17T22:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Thursday night! I'm gearing up for a weekend of scrapbooking, but when I heard that Tracy's Sketch Challenge was extended for another week and we got a new sketch, I just had to play. You should too!

I'm switching from card-making to scrapbooking for the weekend, but I hope to be back on Monday with more cards.

Have a great weekend!

Sketch Challenge Entry #4

2009-09-16T12:00:00.000-07:00

Here's yet another entry for Tracy's Sketch Challenge. The numbers aren't looking good (less than 25 participants at present), so get out there and stamp!

I needed a manly birthday card for a former co-worker at the end of the month, and party owl seemed to do the trick nicely. I've seen the orange/green/blue color scheme everywhere, so I thought I'd give it a go. I think it turned out pretty well.

I'm hoping to make one more card this evening to round my entries out to five. Wish me luck!

Sketch Challenge Entry #3

2009-09-15T15:00:00.000-07:00

Are you sick of this layout yet? I'm not! In fact, I think this third card is my favorite so far! I love love love this card!

Want to see why?

It's all about love!

The strip down the side is actually a repeating stamped image by Stampendous. And, although you might not be able to tell in this photo, I Versamarked the Flourish Trio by Hero Arts across the red notecard. The car image is one of my favorites by Elzybells, and the Delivering Love sentiment is by A Muse (although it might be discontinued). The ribbon is by A Muse too, of course.

See you soon!

Sketch Challenge Entry #2

2009-09-15T11:00:00.000-07:00

Good morning, and happy Tuesday! I figure if we're going to be getting to 52 entrants on Tracy's Sketch Challenge Contest, I'd better do my part with additional cards. I'd previously said that I wanted to enter 10 cards, but since it's already Tuesday, I'm starting to wonder if that's realistic.

Anyway, here's card #2:

It seems I can always use more birthday cards and thank you notes, so when I'm making a lot of cards, those are the two categories I go for. The main image on this card is by the Cat's Pajamas and is part of one of their clear sets.

Okay, back soon with another entry!

Sketch Challenge Entry #1. . .

2009-09-14T13:00:00.000-07:00

Here's my first (of hopefully many) entries for Tracy's Sketch Challenge. You can find out more about her big contest here, or just click on her blinkie on the right.

The yummy cupcake image is by Hero Arts, and I even glitterfied it with some Antique Linen Distress Stickles. Yum!

Remember, she needs 52 entries to do the giveaway, so enter today!

Happy Birthday!

2009-09-11T13:00:00.000-07:00

Today is a very special day because it's my aunt's birthday! She's a fabulous lady, with a great laugh and the love of a great manhattan cocktail (which I can't even swallow!). Anyway, I thought I'd try and make her a card that's as classy as she is.

Here's my card:

I originally saw this idea on a card by Julie Ebersole and I just fell in love. It's so simple, but it looks so complicated! I love stamps like Mini Flower that are so versatile. The sentiment is by Denami Designs, and I drew in the stem myself.

And, on a sidenote, come enter a sketch challenge hosted by Tracy Clemente! This week, she's celebrating a year of sketches by giving away $52 to a stamp store of your choice! I'm hoping to enter 10 cards (ambitious, I know), but all it takes is one to win! Come join us!

No Coloring Here!

2009-09-09T09:00:00.000-07:00

Wow, Tuesdays masquerading as Mondays are always bumpier than I anticipate. It's like the shorter work week makes everyone panic. Good thing I have stamping to come home to!

This month's challenge on the A Muse Lounge is called "The No Coloring Zone." The challenge is to make a card without using coloring tools. I thought paper-piecing would fit the bill, and used some of my favorite A Muse papers (and one by Little Yellow Bicycle) to make up a small scene on my square card.

I used three stamps, Clouds, Long Grass, and A Warm Hello, and hand-cut a piece of wood-grain paper to make my tree trunk. The sun was punched out of a piece of Little Yellow Bicycle Sharon Ann Baby Safari.

Have a great day!

Thanks Snow Much!

2009-09-08T13:00:00.000-07:00

Hi there, and happy Tuesday! Did you Americans have a good Labor Day? I had a very relaxing one. I went up to Oroville, CA (near Chico) and spent the weekend with family, eating WAY too much and just enjoying the holiday.

Did you know that Labor Day is in honor of all laborers, and that the labor unions were the ones that got us weekends? I for one know that I'm grateful for weekends, so yay for labor unions and yay for Labor Day!

While I'm in thanking mode, I should also thank you, my blog readers. This is my 200th post, and I am grateful to every one of you that leave comments. So thanks!

Here's a thank you card I recently came up with.

When the new Christmas images from A Muse came out in July, I immediately gravitated toward this stamp, but I couldn't figure out how to use it for the longest time. Then, it came to me: backgrounds!

I stamped the image multiple times on blue cardstock with dark blue ink, and added some highlighting and some extra dots with a white fine tip Sharpie. A few pieces for a focal point, and a card was born.

Have a great day!

A Very Dotty Birthday. . .

2009-09-03T12:00:00.000-07:00

My my my, how quickly a week goes by!

Today's card was actually made using a loaner stamp from my mom. I don't think I would have purchased this stamp on my own, but it IS very cute and I thought I'd give it a whirl.

Here's my first attempt:

I stamped the image on Neenah 80lb white cardstock and trimmed it with my Tonic paper trimmer. I colored the image with Copics, then mounted it onto an oversized piece of Bazzill Loganberry Pie cardstock. I added the ribbon by A Muse and tied some white embroidery floss around it and through the button. The panel was mounted onto a piece of paper by Little Yellow Bicycle, and that was mounted onto a Memory Box notecard.

See you soon!

Trial and Error. . .

2009-08-31T12:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday!

Did you have a good weekend? It was overcast and gray both mornings here in northern California, but each day it burned off just in time to reveal some pretty nice weather. So, my weekend was fun and sunny. Best of all, I got all of my projects done from last week, so I was freed up to do a few cards.

These three cards are all based on the same sketch, an oldie-but-goodie from Taylor Van Bruggen, Sketch #44.

Here's the sketch:

Fun, right?

Well, I started off with this card:

I was bound and determined to cut the striped patterned paper (rather than layering another blue circle on top of them), and that's where the challenge began for me. I really liked how this card turned out in terms of colors and patterns, but the circle wasn't quite even. I had cut a 3 inch square first, cut them apart and then punched the circle out of each corner before gluing them down. That didn't work.

For my next attempt, I tried using my Coluzzle to cut the circle out of the full 3 inch square, then cutting it apart and mounting it. (I also cut the center image to be the same size circle.) That had slightly better results, but the circle still seemed uneven:

But, I think I got it on my last card. On this attempt, I used two different sized circles on my Coluzzle, the third track from the center for the patterned paper (which I pre-divided and glued down to a scrap of paper), and the second track from the center for the center image. Here's the result.

Three cards later, I'm finally happy with the result. Does anyone else go crazy over little details like this?

Not a Card. . .

2009-08-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

My evening schedule has gotten pretty booked up, so I'm probably not going to have a chance to make any more cards this week. But, before I go running, I thought I'd share a simple paper craft that I came up with for Girl Scouts.

I know I know, not a card. But hopefully equally cute!

I adapted this design from a kit developed by Paper Source and shown on their blog. Unfortunately, the rest of the things I'm working on are not quite as fun or cute: writing out directions for the owl, working on a newsletter and labeling things for a Used Rubber Stamp Sale at Stamp on Over. Keep your fingers crossed that I get through all this stuff quick so I can get back to STAMPING!

Hope to see you soon!

The Road to A Friend's House. . .

2009-08-25T15:00:00.000-07:00

My recent car troubles have made me aware of how much I really do love my car, so I thought I'd pull out my Beetle stamp (actually called Girl in Car) and show it a little love as well.

I was inspired by the card in this post by Taylor Van Bruggen. Chickie is talented, I tell you!

Although this card is a bit brighter than my usual color palette, I really like the patterned paper and how everything works together. Another card on my birthday list: done!

Have a great day!

Turtle Time!

2009-08-24T12:00:00.000-07:00

Hi there! How was your weekend?

Mine was pretty laid-back. I had been planning to go camping with a group of friends, but at the last minute it was discovered that we had no reservations and the campground was booked. So, I got a bonus weekend at home to catch up and get things done with. I ran errands on Saturday, went for a walk with a good friend, and then spent part of Sunday playing in a park with another friend's 2 year old. Fun in the sun!

It's getting to be birthday season around here, so I thought I'd get started early (SHOCKER!) and get these cards done.

This one is for my friend Kat. She loves turtles (who doesn't?!), so I had to come up with a layout incorporating my tiny turtle from Denami Designs. Here's my first attempt.

I like this card, but I think I can do better. Perhaps I'll find time later this week to try it again with these cuties. See you soon!

Now That's Better. . .

2009-08-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

Well, Thursday's shaping up to be much better than Wednesday was. I have a plan (albeit an expensive plan) for the car, and better yet, it's my mom's birthday!

With a present like that, who cares that you're turning 50 again, right? Here's a close-up of the tag (made with A Muse and Hero Arts stamps, of course!)

We're taking her out to dinner tonight to celebrate another year of fabulous-ness. Have a great Thursday!

Halloween Tag. . .

2009-08-19T12:30:00.000-07:00

Oh, Wednesday. You started off so promising (I actually got out of bed ON TIME!), and then you just came up short. Everything was cloudy and gray, and then I was faced with a vehicle crisis which culminated in me in tears on the phone to my husband. Yay for husbands. Boo for big car repair bills and tough decisions. And onto today’s card.

Today’s card isn’t a card, but in fact a tag. I’ve been making so many Halloween cards lately that I had a lot of strips of patterned paper lying around my workspace, so I figured I’d try and use them. I just stacked them on top of one another, added a scalloped edge, and voila! a tag was born.

Here’s hoping for a better Thursday. Actually, I KNOW it’ll be a better Thursday because it’s someone’s birthday. See you tomorrow to find out who!

Lego Fun!

2009-08-18T12:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday!

With all of my movie watching, I almost forgot to post the birthday card I promised you on Friday. On Saturday, we went to a friend's son's 11th birthday party. The birthday boy had requested Legos, so of course I had to make a card to match the present we got him.

I had seen a gift bag with oversized circles to make it a Lego block, and I adapted it to make my card. Robot Kid seemed like the closest thing I had to a Lego guy, so I popped him up and added him in. The sentiment is by A Muse, and the speech bubble is from a clear set by Hero Arts.

Have a great day!

Brewing Up Some Fun!

2009-08-17T09:43:00.000-07:00

Well, I've taken on a new endeavor that has kept me stamping this week: I'm watching all of the Harry Potter movies on DVD in order. I've gotten to movie #3 (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban), and even though I saw them all when they were in the theaters, I'm loving seeing all of the characters/actors grow up in the films. Plus, it's been so long since I've read and seen some of them, I forget how they end!

Anyway, watching all of the amazing scenery and costumes has got me thinking about witches and magic. I recently acquired A Muse's Witch Girl and the "What's brewing?" sentiment, and I thought I'd give her a spin. Here's the card:

The patterned paper is by K & Company, the notecard by Memory Box, and the cardstock is by Bazzill.

Have a magical day!