Blog Candy Alert!

Creating With Chrissy!

Love Warms Every Nest

This is for the Crafty Secrets weekly challenge over on the SCS member company forums. It's a lot of fun to play, and the girls over there are so kind and will comment on every submission! It really makes you feel good to be a part of that friendly group! The challenge this week was to use something you had lost or found. I went with the found part. One day I was browsing around my favorite store, Creative Play Stamps, and I discovered that they were carrying Crafty Secrets!! I was so happy, you have no idea! One of the first things I bought was the Birds and Botanicals booklet, which is where I got this image. Every single image in this beautiful little booklet is drop dead gorgeous. I can't say enough about how fun and easy these are to work with!

My card base is Bazzill Bling Petty Cash. I get mine at Creative Cuts and More, which is also where I got the sweet felt heart. Don't you love it? I love the softness it gives this project.

I think the designer paper is Basic Gray, but I'm not sure, because it was a RAK, and the pieces were cardfront size. It has the look and feel of BG, though. If you know, would you please LMK? I know there's not a lot of it showing, but it has sewing pattern marks on it, I think.

To change the color, I smooshed my Hodgepodge Hardware into my white StazeOn pad, worked like a charm!! I actually like that it isn't perfectly covered. I think it goes well with my haphazard style. The sentiment is from Crafty Secrets' Bird Notes, the first set I ever bought. I still adore it.

I finished this card with a very liberal few sprays of Antique Brass Glimer Mist, because it's the one I reach for most often. After I did that, I thought that Key Lime Pie would look gorgeous here as well. Oh well, there's ALWAYs another card! (God willing and the creek don't rise!)

Best Fishes from GinaK!! (My free set!)

This is the adorable set I won from Gina K! I loved making this card!!! I think the expressions on these character's faces are priceless! Plus, they were incredibly fun to color, and so quick and easy!!

All the DP here is Sassafrass Lass, and that's Bazzill Bling in the background, isn't it pretty? I stamped the images in VersaFine, then embossed them in Holographic, my all time favorite EP!!! This card is so sparkly, it's almost dangerous. After I colored the images, I added some Angel Wings Shimmerz to highlight certain parts. LOVE IT! To get the Hodgepodge Hardware all sparkly, I just smashed it onto my VersaMark pad, then dipped it into the Holographic EP. Instant glitz!! Is it too much, do you think? NAAAHHHHH! You can never have too much sparkle!

Today is my BLOGAVERSARY!!!!

I can't believe I forgot to mention that! I am putting together some blog candy, which I have never offered before, so please check back!!

Sweetest Blessings and 2S4Y#18

As I mentioned earlier, I won a new release set from Gina K. called Best Fishes, which I will show you tomorrow. Well, I didn't want that poor little stamp set to travel all by itself, so I bought it some companions, and this is one of them!! My 17YODS picked out this cherry tart as the first image I should use from this set. I'm glad he did, it's just adorable, and so easy to color. After I finished coloring it, I went over it with Angel Wings Shimmerz to highlight certain parts. It's SO pretty! Love that stuff!!

I also used Wreath of Hearts Spellbinders die, Making Memories notepaper, Bazzill, Basic Gray chipboard, and Cotton Candy Stickles, among other things!! You can get the Spellbinders and the Stickles at Creative Play Stamps. The little flower brad is from OTC. I've had them for years and never even opened them. I didn't realize how well they go with the flower punch, but now I do!!

This is Laura's Sketch 18 from 2 Sketches 4 You. It's a really fun sketch blog-check it out!

Bad Girls Owl

Cute, huh? I can't remember the last time I stamped a line image onto colored cardstock! I even tried coloring the little heart and liked it better without. It just seemed the thing to do to leave this sweet little owl alone. Well, not entirely alone, as I did add Cotton Candy Stickles in strategic places!

What we have here is some Basic Gray paper and flowers and the big paper flower is from Prima. They are the sweetest little journaling notes! They come in a cool little book-like box. I love them!! I can't remember who the ribbon is by, or the Rub on. BG maybe for the rub on?

This is a 2 Sketches 4 You sketch. This is my second sketch of theirs, and I have really enjoyed them. If you are looking for another sketch challenge, they are here.

I wish you all hugs and warmth!! It's cold here. Too cold for my tastes!!

Kiss Kiss

How fun is this sweet Penny Black image? I made this for the Whimsy Stamps Sketch challenge. They are having a guest designer call, and it would have been nice if you had a little more notice, but I just figured it out myself!! Whimsy Stamps are so cute, you should go have a look at them! They are new to me, so I don't have any yet, but they are pretty irresistible!! Here is Denise's blog. I know she will get tons of cute submissions, and this is a pretty creative way to do a guest DT call, especially if people do it before the last day!;)

Dream Different Dreams

This is a sketch by Laura over at 2 Sketches 4 You. I learned about 2S4Y from Amy, who pretty much knows everything that's cool to know. The only reason I know anything even remotely cool is because of her!

This is one of those cards that just would not work the way I wanted it to, even though I love the final result! Robyn, the owner of Artistic Outpost, sent me Chinese Proverbs for Christmas, and I tried every single image and couldn't make them work on this card, so all that remains from that set is the sentiment. The set is beautiful, and I'll use all the images I tried here, just not on this card!

The base of this card is SU! Brushed Gold-so beautiful!! Then I added some 7Gypsies paper and stickers. The butterfly is Heidi Swapp, and I finished it up with some very thin gold cord from my stash, Gold Stickles, and Antique Brass Glimmer Mist. I use ABrass GM like it's going out of style! I wait until I'm completely finished with my card then give it three or four quick shots. NOTE!!! If I am working with a painted image, especially people or fairies, I cover them before I spray, or I spray before I mount that image. The reason is that I have gotten unflattering spots on faces, because as much as I love GM, you can't always predict the splatter pattern. What looks fabulous on some things looks like a skin condition on others!!

Bulbs and Seeds 1912

This is for the Crafty Secrets weekly challenge over on SCS. We were to use purple. This is easy for me, because I love purple, and use it all the time! Here I paired it with my favorite green of all time: Always Artichoke, which looks good with ALL purples. Honestly!! I get my sweet little glass gems from Creative Cuts and More. I also get my Bazzill Bling there!! This sweet purple is Infatuation.

The Spellbinders dies, Antique Brass Glimmer Mist and the Crafty Secrets Birds & Botanicals Images & Journal Notes all come from Creative Play Stamps. I LOVE these booklets, the images are all just beautiful!! They are also so quick and easy to work with!! As much as I enjoy coloring, I don't always have time because I watercolor, and because I'm slow. It would probably take me close to an hour to paint this picture, and unfortunately, it would not be this pretty!

Valentine Mobile

I woke up one morning about a week ago with the idea to make a mobile. I have never made one before, I have no idea where the idea came from!! My ideas were much more elaborate than this, but this took a fairly long time to make, even though it's relatively simple. When I was finished I had to add an extra glass bead to balance it out. This was an interesting process and I'd like to make another, better one some day!

It's all SU! cardstock & eyelets, plus Spellbinders dies, which I buy at Creative Play Stamps. The top is a Labels One die cut, the biggest one. I cut it out of a cereal box, then added Bravo Burgundy to one side. The other side I sprayed with Candy Apple Red Shimmer Mist. I also get Stickles at CPS, and here I used Candy Cane, which is red and gold.

CHA giveaways from Creative Cafe

First things first! If you're going, I'm terribly jealous! Second of all, check out these prizes Creative Cafe will be giving away at CHA!

I won Best Fishes from GinaK!!

I don't know how many of you read GinaK's blog, but she is a prize giving maniac!! Anyway, I WON a set from her today! I was so excited, the set is adorable! They are having a release party tonight on SCS, it should be fun!! Here's the post where I won. Here's the release party thread. She is having some specials and I think shipping is free with any $35 order.

Blog Candy Alert!

At Creative Journey. The trip over there is so worth it, Christine is a genius!!

Bad Girls Kits

I normally don't provide links for companies I don't design for, but my girl Toni asked, and Toni's wish is my command! The name of the company is Bad Girls Kits. The owner's name is Wendy Rago. She has several kits every month, and a store. They also have an active forum, and a brand new blog called Project 52!! I have been a member of five or six kit clubs, and while there are several that are close, Bad Girls has been my favorite. This summer they had a bunch of really fun classes on the forum, and I think they have contests. I don't have time to visit the forum much during the school year, but I sure enjoyed it this summer. It's a fun, friendly community.

Bad Girls, Spellbinders and 7 Gypsies

I am loving my new Spellbinders dies, and I used them to make the flower on this card. I used Flower Creations and Wreath of Hearts. They are so cool because they not only cut, but they can emboss and you can use them as stencils as well. I get mine at Creative Play Stamps, of course!! All of the flowers started off in a cream or white cardstock. I got all my color from Black Cherry Glimmer Mist. I don't use it very often because as you can see, it's deep, saturated color!

I also used the luscious 7 Gypsies flocked paper, which I adore!! The big, covered brad is also 7 Gypsies; I am SO loving what they are up to these days! The little envelope is from one of Melissa Frances' Post Card Kits. These last three products came in one of my Bad Girls Kits. I love Bad Girls Kits!! If I had more money, I'd buy everything Wendy Rago put her name on!! If you are ever looking for a kit club, I'd recommend hers!!

Cards 4 Kids & Blog Candy from Carolina!

There are 25 cards here going out to Cards 4 Kids in tomorrow's mail. I learned about this worthy cause on Carolina's blog on this post. Carolina is also giving away some awesome blog candy-but you have to go over there and see for yourself!!!

Scrapbooking is HARD!!!

For lots of reasons! First of all, I'm slow. It takes me a day or two to choose a picture. Then it takes me another day or two to choose my paper. As the mother of three sons, I think I'd almost rather die than make even one more primary colored layout! Then, when I've finally made my decisions, I sit there staring at this face, this beautiful face with the sweetest expression in the whole wide world, and I wonder, "Now what?" How can I, with paper, scissors and ink possibly do this child justice? Is there any way on earth I can show the depth of my feelings for this child of mine? I don't think I can, but at least I made a page!

Supplies:

Stamps: Crafty Secrets-Cherubs
Paper: SU!-Close to Cocoa, Confetti Cream, Mellow Moss; Melissa Frances, Crafty Secrets
Ink: Chestnut Roan Chalk, Antique Linen Distress, Very Vanilla Craft, Brilliance Moonlight
Dies: Spellbinders-Basic Hearts, Wreath of Hearts
Ribbon: American Crafts satin, vintage ric rac
Other: Mica Flakes, Holographic EP by Ranger, Heidi Swapp mirror, making memories rub-ons, Winter White EP

Award from the FAB Pat!!

I love this chic little award, and it was given to me by the fabulous Pat over at Stamp, Paper & Ink! Pat and I just recently became blogging friends, and I am reminded once again how truly wonderful this blogging world is. I think I must be getting a little sappy in my old age, but I HONESTLY care for my blogging buddies and wish we could all meet! If I ever win the lottery (I'll have to play first), I am flying all my blog buddies to a central location! We will shop, eat and create together until we're ready to go back home to our families. Then, when our families are on our last nerve, we'll do it again!!

I am supposed to list five obsessions and send this off to five blogs.

OBSESSIONS

1. Clean, moisturized hands. (Love Mary Kay's Moisture Therapy for every day, Aquaphor for serious dryness)
2. Lip gloss-Bonnie Bell or CO Bigelow (Dr. Pepper, Marshmallow or Vanilla Lipsmackers; #502 Bigelow)
3. Vintage style papercraft supplies (Artistic Outpost, Crafty Secrets, Melissa Frances, Graphic 45)
4. Glitter (Art Institute, Martha Stewart, or genuine German glitter products)
5. Glitter

BLOGS

Jackie
Katie
Lindsay
Etha
Amy

Crafty Secrets Memory Box & Contest Help

This box has special meaning to me for many reasons. First, it was a gift from my mom. It was full of a variety of CK perfumes. Mom was fabulous at spoiling her girls. She rarely spoiled herself, yet she thought nothing of spending $50 on a jar of my favorite lotion. I miss her.

Secondly, the photograph is of my grandmother. She was educated, glamorous, cosmopolitan and most importantly, loving. I'll never forget her smile or the way she got to snorting when she laughed! The same women who posed in her evening wear in the society pages was a snorter!!

On a less serious note, this box has lots of Crafty Secrets, Crate Paper and SERIOUS glitter!!

Now for your help! Crafty Secrets is hosting a contest on SCS, and one of the ways to win is to have the most comments on your project. I typically go fairly unnoticed on SCS, so if you are a member, would you mind posting a comment here? I'd sure be grateful!!

On a thrilling note, my favorite store, Creative Play Stamps, now carries some Crafty Secrets stuff!! How thrilling is that, I ask you?

Big Bombshell News!!

After designing for Bombshell Stamps for about a year, I am stepping down. I have enjoyed my time with the company immensely, and Shannon Lucier, the owner, has been such a pleasure to work for!! I am trying to lighten my schedule a little, so farewell, Bombshell!! I wish you wild success!!

I would love to introduce the three new Bombshell Designers, so please keep an eye on them, because all kinds of cool Bombshell stuff is coming!!! All the info is here!

Crafty Secrets Altered Art

I LOVE me some Crafty Secrets!! They are hosting a really great contest over on their SCS forum to promote their new releases. I can't enter this because it's not new, but I sure have something up my sleeve!! This card uses Basic Gray's Vagabond, and lots of aging for that vintage look I love!!

I hope all is well with you! It's COLD here, and I just got back from walking the dogs. The fronts of my legs and my cheeks are still a little numb. I think I'll check out Title 9 tonight and see about some super warm and windproof workout pants.

Twelfth Day of Christmas!!

This is my final trinket holder for the Twelve Days of Christmas workshop I took from Lisa Pace! I still have Monsieur Hiver, aka Mr. Winter to make, and then I will have completed the whole workshop! I have all the supplies to make him, and hope to get him finished in the next day or two, but Cupid's Workshop starts tomorrow, so we will have to see! Lisa is having a drawing for free entrance into her Valentine's workshop, so if you have enjoyed the projects you have seen here from her Christmas workshop, maybe you should stop by It's in the Details. Lisa has a sneak peek up today, and it's so pretty, you just won't believe it!!

Fortune Teller

This is my favorite of the Artistic Outpost Fortune Teller cards I've made. I love the smile and the mystical qualities of this gal. Plus, as you can plainly see, she has a big love for the bling, which is something we have in common!!

The designer paper is some OLD SU! I mean four or five years old! I thought it worked well here, though. The chipboard is Basic Gray. I peeled off the adhesive, poured on the glitter, then used glue dots to adhere them to the card. I embossed the image in Ranger Gold Tinsel, it's pretty fun stuff. I melted the ribbon with my heat gun, and finished it off with a rim of gold Stickles around the perimeter of the card.

Eleventh Day of Christmas!! Plus MRI update

I will finish my Lisa Pace workshop if it's the last thing I do! Besides, the Valentine's workshop starts on the 15th, so I have to finish my Christmas projects! This is the eleventh day of little trinket holders. The way this one works is that you tie candy canes, or whatever will fit, onto the middle of the star. It being January 12th, I just don't happen to have any candy canes lying around! I have day 12 finished and will post that sometime in the next week or so.

Well, I got my MRI results on Friday, and there is nothing at all wrong with my neck! This is good news! However, it doesn't solve my problem. I wish they had taken pictures all the way down to about where my bra band hits, because I'm so frequently tight there. Oh well, I guess I'll just figure something out. But thank you all for the well wishes and sympathy!! I can still stamp, so it's not the end of the world!!

Animas River

This is one of the beautiful photo style stamps you can get at Creative Play Stamps, called Animas River. I don't know if this is the actual Animas River by Durango, CO, but it's sure a pretty stamp, and it's on sale now!!

I started with a Basic Gray Urban Couture tag. I really enjoy these tags, and have found all kinds of fun things to do with them! I stamped the image in Chestnut Roan chalk ink, and added a few 7 Gypsies rub ons. Speaking of rub ons, make sure you use yours as soon as possible after you get them, and avoid buying them on sale, they do go bad. If you've ever had trouble with rub ons, yours are probably old, as they should be very easy to use!!

Also, Creative Play Stamps has one of the biggest selections of ink I've seen, and this pad is on sale now! One of the cool things they have is a black ink pad sampler. It's a great idea because you can try several different blacks, as they all do have different qualities.

The definition and brad are from making memories. The chipboard is Basic Gray. I really like BG chipboard because one side is adhesive. I use this side to hold my glitter, then I use glue dots to adhere the chipboard to my project. This glitter is Martha Stewart's Brownstone, it's beautiful!!

All Boy!!

Or in my case, ALL BOYS!!! Terri, the owner of Creative Cuts and More, sometimes send me random cuts from her extensive collection. I love going through these and thinking up a project for them. Today I wanted to work with this sweet felt star, and I really love how it turned out.

I started with a base of Bashful Blue, then I added a Quick Strip down the side. These were from SU! a year or two ago. For 2009, I am either going to use or get rid of some paper. I used to be a horrible hoarder!! I can tell you that all hoarding does for you is leave you with lots of outdated paper. Join me in using all your new and best stuff in 2009!!

Then I sprayed these two with some Caspian Sea Shimmer Mist. I made this by adding one jar of Radiant Pearls to four ounces of hair spray. It works like a charm!

I then put the sticker on BB card stock and cut the circle. The way I got it in there perfectly is by positioning the die exactly where I wanted it and taping it down. I cut the scalloped circle from Barely Banana and stuck it on the felt star.

Then I grabbed the metal stars with my tweezers and heated then dipped them one at a time into my retired SU! Light Blue embossing powder. I love to use ep this way, and that is why I have 40 or so colors. These stars look beautiful IRL!!

Do you ever get a card three quarters of the way finished and then decide you want the ribbon in an inaccessable place? That's what happened here, so I just took my SU! slit punch and punched a tiny nip out of the top of the card. Now the ribbon loops all the way from the inside to the outside of the card.

Oldest & Youngest

I was looking through my pictures to see if there was anything I haven't posted yet because I still feel pretty wretched. I couldn't find any cards, but I did find these pictures of my oldest and youngest at a football game this fall. My, they do change, don't they?

Head Cold & MRI

No, I don't have such a bad head cold I had to have an MRI! I do have a cold, which is why you haven't seen anything new in a couple of days-mostly I just want to go to bed!!

I did have an MRI today. I have had neck and shoulder pain for 15 years. It hasn't been fun, but it's never been really bad. About three months ago, my right arm just started hurting all the time. Pretty bad pain some days, and lots of Advil every day. The doc x-rayed my neck, but didn't see anything too bad there. The radiologist called for an MRI. I should have results by Friday.

I drove to the hospital by myself this morning. It's an hour away and I had to take a personal day. I told DH he didn't need to come, people get MRIs all the time. I was pretty nervous, and I let the guy get me all set up and loaded into the tube. Then I made him get me out. He was very nice and did an admirable job of getting me settled, and promised that he would get me out every three minutes. Of course I was telling myself to quit being such a big ninny, and how stupid it would be to miss a day's work for naught. I convinced myself I could stand it for three minutes. I have, after all, given birth three times. Surely that is harder than lying in a noisy tube for three minutes.

I hated being in there so much, I couldn't remember the words to It Is Well With My Soul, or The Lord's Prayer! Freaked out I was, yes indeedy. But, there is one thing about being a Christian I'd like to point out: PEACE. It doesn't matter if you are stressing and can't remember the words. The Holy Spirit then becomes your translator and takes all your heartfelt thoughts and wishes straight to God. Then, ONLY because you had faith, not because you did anything to deserve it, you get PEACE. How cool is that? Free peace, ripe for the taking! It sure does come in handy to know people in high places! **I know, I'm such a name dropper!!!**


I can't figure out how to get a YouTube video on my blog, but if you'd like to hear a couple of beautiful renditions of this classic hymn, check out, "It Is Well With My Soul" by the Issacs, Wintley Phipps or Mahalia Jackson. Mahalia was a world famous gospel singer, the Phipps version comes with a quick and pretty neat story at the start, and the Issacs version is incredibly beautiful.

Hopefully I'll be up to creating again tomorrow! Hugs to you all!!

Carla

More Cutie Pie!!

This is my final card from the New Year's Eve festivities over at SCS. I used Crafty Secrets' sweet little set called Journaling. The rest of it is a mish mash of odds and ends from my stamp room. I'll probably come up with a small gift to go along with this for my kindergartner's teacher.

This ADORABLE little girl is another image from Artistic Outpost's Cutie Pie plate, which I believe I have mentioned before.:) I just noticed the crazy angle the ribbon is at in the top picture. It looks very odd in the picture, I just caught the very edge of it!!

Today was our first day back at school. I stayed up until at least midnight every night of our break, and slept until eight or nine every morning. I tried to go to bed early last night and spent a miserable couple of hours tossing and turning. I got up early to do my Bosu Ball DVD. I'm pretty tired this evening!! The Bosu DVD was pretty hard. I'm a little stunned by just how out of shape I am. I'm trying to be proactive and not get depressed about it, but I'm still pretty shocked!! Are you going to do anything good for your health this year? I'm trying-try with me!!

Frostbite Fashions & Very Vintage Gift Card Holder

This card was made for a SCS challenge. We were to use silver! Now was that hard for me? I don't think so!! Even this Doodlebug paper is metallic! I added fur trim to Pam & Buster's outfits. I don't have a very wintery In Style Stamp, so I thought I'd winterize these two!


I don't think my photos show very well, but this a a gift card holder. A very elaborate gift card holder. With lots of vintage stuff cobbled onto it. I think it got away from me a little bit. It's a tad unwieldy and very fragile. Whomever I give it to had better be very careful, or I will revoke both the gift card holder and the gift card. Those are the conditions. Take them or leave them. They are entirely non-negotiable.

Early Valentines!!

I think Valentines are my favorite cards to make! I made this top one for the SCS New Year's Eve party. I used two things I really love: Crafty Secrets Heartwarming Vintage Cut Outs, which are so quick and beautiful, and Flourishes Lace Heart set. There was simply no way that this card could go wrong with a line up like that!

The second one is from Artistic Outpost's Cutie Pie plate, still one of my top two or three AO plates! That's saying a lot, considering how much I really adore AO stamps! I could stamp with this set all day long! Don't forget to participate in the AO referral program, you could win fee AO rubber just for doing what you already do-stamping!! I hope when my DT term is up that I will be able to participate, there are still a few of the older plates that I don't have yet!!

Some SCS New Year's Eve Fun!

I love the way this tag turned out! The base is a Basic Gray Blitzen tag, which I adore. Then I used a 1995 SU! snowman, who I think is just so sweet! The best, and most sparkly touch is the Creative Cuts and More snowflake die cut! They come in three sizes, this is the small one. I had it cut out of a medium blue Bazzill Bling. I covered it in glue, and then Angel Dust Art Glitter. I added some satin and organdy ribbon, a silver snowflake sequin, and a gem. I like it so much, I think I'll keep it and use it as a decorative accent in my house next Christmas!
This card uses my beloved Crafty Secrets stamps, and the doomed Daisy D's paper, which I will treasure even more now. I also used an actual vintage ticket to continue with the food theme. I got this ticket from the now defunct & very dishonest The Embellishment Studio. I entered a contest with TES, and won it. I bought some things and liked their stuff so much, I joined the kit club. They charged my PP account FOUR times and never sent me one kit. Essentially, they stole $88 from me. PP found in my favor, but by that time, TES had closed their account. I often wonder about those people. What they are like? Do they feel bad for stealing from so many people? Were they just theives to begin with and they don't feel bad at all? Will they start another company and do it again? I wish I knew their names, the internet can be so anonymous. Would it be harder for them to steal if I were standing right there? Would they snake their hands down into my purse and snag my wallet? Is there any difference?