Summer Excitement ... Big Picture Classes Style

I love the class offerings from Big Picture Classes. I don't always finish them on schedule ... but I love them anyway. And I just signed up for a free event that sounds like fun and starts tomorrow. Check it out if you are interested because free is good people. And I can promise you will get sone inspiration with the talented line up of ladies that are involved, like Stacy Julian, Wendy Smedley, and May Flaum ... just to name a few.

Finding Photo Freedom

I started Stacy Julian's Finding Photo Freedom class today over at Big Picture Classes. I am beyond excited!! I love Stacy's scrapbooking philosophy ... and my goal is to create more meaningful layouts by scrapbooking to showcase relationships rather than what my family and I did on Easter.

Today I ordered my photo binders, which I guess I should have done when I signed up for the class last week. But the way I look at it, that gives me more time to practice Stacy's method of valuing photos. And I have tons of old photos from before I owned a digital camera to prepare.

I am committed to sticking with this course throughout the 10 weeks and I know I am going to walk away a more inspired scrapbooker. Yay!!

First Sunglasses

Today I am sharing a Quick Page that I did in bonus lesson 1 of Jessica Sprague's Up and Running with Photoshop course. It was really quick and was the perfect follow up assignment from the first layout because there was no video for this lesson ... just a list of steps.



Oh, but there was a video converting the picture to black and white. I will definitely be scrapbooking this photo again though in color because Brianne's outfit (complete with matching hat) was just darling.

The journalling says:
This is a picture of your first encounter with sunglasses. I think you thought they were a really cool toy. What a cutie!! (DC Zoo - May 1988)

I love the journalling strips, but I wish there were one or two more. Well, perhaps future lessons will teach me how to add elements like that to the page. Did I mention I love that there is no mess to clean up? **grin**

Gettin' Digi with it

I created my first digital scrapbook page from Jessica Sprague's Up and Running with Photoshop class. I purchased the class about a year ago and then discovered my laptop didn't have the minimum system requirements to run Photoshop Elements ... DUH ... pretty sad for a technology person, huh? Well, since my daughter got a Mac (I am SOOOO jealous, but very happy for her), I inherited her laptop which happens to be twice the machine of my old and faithful Dell. So now I can actually run Photoshop Elements and finally take the JS class I bought a year ago. Oh, and I can Skype too.

Anyway, here is my layout. I actually LOVE digital scrapbooking so far mainly because there is NO mess to clean up. How cool is that?
The then photo is when Brianne was about 3 years old. She is holding a toy microphone, but preferred to use the top of the railing from my parents' spiral staircase as her mic. She would always sing "Bad" from Michael Jackson and it was so adorable. She is sporting a lavendar jumpsuit her Dad got her for Christmas that year. The now photo is one of Brianne performing along side of Jared from the Hip Hop Co Op, which is the first band she belonged to.

The journalling might be hard to read, but it says:
It was obvious at a very early age that you were born to perform. These 2 pictures show you "rockin' the mic" ... one at Mom Mom and Pop Pop's and the other 20 years later at the Whiskey with Jared from the Hip Hop Co Op.

My Punny Valentines

I finally downloaded the pictures I took of some of my Valentine projects from this year. The one on the left is a "Double Pocket Pretty", which is an idea from Michelle Wooderson's blog, here. I made it for my Mom and it has some yummy candies and a Panera gift card. The project on the right I made for my daughter ... she's a cupcake freak like me, so I knew that image would be perfect for her gift.



Here is the inside of the project on the right showing the 2 gift cards (one for iTunes and one for Dunkin Donuts) that I gave my daughter.

Patterned paper, stamps, and ribbon are from PTI.

Fall in Chocolate

**Edited to Add a better picture**




I made a tag with mostly PTI goodies that I didn't wind up using for my Valentine's Day gifts for my family. So I stuck it to the fabric of this basket I bought last year at Michael's and filled it with chocolate candies I picked up for Valentine's Day and took it into work.

It was quite a hit and how could it not be with the fun sentiment?!?!

Here is a close up of the tag.



Luckily, I'm still creating things here and there ... often times I just don't have time to get a decent picture. So these that I took with my iPhone will have to do.

Supplies for the tag: Simple Valentine patterned paper & Tag Sale #3 die are from PTI, Nestabilities, sentiment is from a Studio G dollar stamp set from Michael's last year.

Finding My Crafting Mojo

It sure is hard to get back in the stamping / crafting groove. But one of the best things to do is Just Do It. I used this week's Mojo Monday sketch to create a birthday book (this project came straight from Nichole Heady's blog from last year). I loved how it turned out and it will be displayed proudly in my studio; AND it will store birthday cards so I know where to find them. Not to mention, it will help me with one of my goals for this year, which is to send out cards and crafty projects to my friends and loved ones in a time manner.

I paired Fred the Bear with some retired Stampin Up papers and I dug out my Snap Stamps for cover and for each month in the book. The chipboard binder and calendar pages are from Papertrey.




And here is a picture of the inside of the book, which shows the January birthday page.

Thanks for stopping by and **fingers crossed** I hope this is the first of many projects I will be sharing.

Feeling Flakey

I updated my blog background last night and, kind of like picking out nail polish when you get a manicure, I love the name of the background just as much as I love the design. (You can find really cool, free backgrounds for blogger, here.)

Speaking of flakey ... did any of you watch the Bachelor? My sister sucked me in to yet another season of the show. It will be interesting to see if this guy can actually choose someone this time. One of the strangest moments of the night was the woman that calls herself a "manscaper" ... she actually waxed part of his forearm. Why he didn't pull his arm away is beyond me!?! Even more shocking is he kept her around ... WWWHHHAAAATTT?? And he kept the girl with the fangs. Hmmm.

I did get a chance to stamp last night though, while I was watching, which is great. Another one of my goals for this year is to **make** time to create, as well as sending out cards and other projects to my friends and loved ones in a timely manner. I am happy to report that the cards I made last night will be in the mail tomorrow. So this weekend I will share what I made, I want to make sure my cards are received first.

Anyway, thanks for stopping by.

New Year - New Blog

It's a new year and one of my many "goals" is to start blogging again. But this time, I will be using my blog not only to share the projects I create but also as a way to share every day life kinds of things.

Here is today's little ditty that I found when I was looking at Val's blog, who has always been one of my crafting idols:

From Dear Abby's column in Saturday's paper, a little reminder on how to live, Just for Today:


DEAR READERS: Welcome to 2011! While the last year has been arduous for many of us, a new one has arrived, bringing with it our chance for a new beginning.

Today is the day we discard destructive old habits for healthy new ones. I will share Dear Abby’s often requested list of New Year’s Resolution. Many were adapted by my mother, Pauline Phillips, from the original credo of Al-Anon:

JUST FOR TODAY: I will live through this day only. I will not brood about yesterday or obsess about tomorrow. I will not set far-reaching goals or try to overcome all of my problems at once.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will be happy. I will not dwell on thoughts that depress me.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will accept what is. I will face reality. I will correct those things that I can correct and accept those I cannot.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will improve my mind. I will read something that requires effort, thought and concentration.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will make a conscious effort to be agreeable. I will be kind and courteous to those who cross my path, and I’ll not speak ill of others. I will improve my appearance, speak softly, and not interrupt when someone else is talking.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will do something positive to improve my health.

JUST FOR TODAY: I will gather the courage to do what is right and take responsibility for my own actions.

Latest Addition to My Craft Room

Thanks for the positive feedback on my craft room. Still trying to get things moved in and organized. I LOVE sitting at my "desk" and knowing where everything is and then putting it away when I'm finished.

Okay, on to the latest addition. I bought this 2 tiered tray at Target last night. It will be perfect for displaying completed projects or holding parts of projects that I am working on. I love it.

Making Progress

Granted it's a little slower than I would like, but still I am progressing nicely in relocating my craft room to a different bedroom in my house. It's working out great so far. I bought 6 more crafting cubes in different configurations from Michael's last weekend and set up the 2nd side to my main work area.

I decided to take a little break from organizing and allow myself to work on some projects. In the past week, I made a mini album from my 4th of July weekend trip to Maryland, AND a little birthday calendar book, AND a few bookmarks. I need to take some better pictures of those projects before posting them here though.

Time to Get Organized

Just thought I'd pop in and show a picture of my new crafting space. My daughter moved into a bigger place, so she was able to take additional furniture from her bedroom at my house. So now I'm shifting all 3 bedrooms around. Of course the priority is re-vamping my crafting space.

Here's a brief glimpse at my favorite addition ... a Closet Maid cubbie with 9 compartments. On the very top is an adorable cupcake themed cookie jar my sister found for me at Kohl's in February. Next to that is a sketch book I made with my Bind It All when I was in Maryland for the 4th of July weekend. And next to that is my Nesties to Go tag book my sister made me that I posted about here.

Holiday Planner

I wanted to share a little Holiday Planner I made this past weekend. Isn’t it cute? Almost everything is from PTI (www.papertreyink.com), except the patterned paper is from Imaginesce. I think I’m going to make more of these up and give them out as little gifts. Of course this one is for me for next year. I already altered a little $1 notebook from Michael’s that I’m using to help me plan for the Christmas holiday this year.

Can you believe Christmas Eve is only a month away? Yikes!!! I sure can’t. Where has this year gone?

Supply List: Holiday Button Bits and Take Note stamp sets, Poppy and New Leaf buttons, Spring Rain cardstock, lined note pad all from Papertrey, Inc., patterned paper is from Imaginesce’s Polar Expressions line, sheer dotted ribbon from Hobby Lobby

Friends Are Blessings

My friend Dawn challenged me to use my heart CB folder, so I created this card following a sketch over at Cupcake Craft Challenges. It may be hard to see in the picture, but the Chocolate Chip layer has teeny tiny embossed hearts all over it. (Thanks for challenging me Dawn ... I did give my sister one of these heart CB embossing sets, but have no fear ... I still have one for myself too.)


The picture is not the greatest because I took it with my iPhone. It's so hard to get decent pictures of my projects with the time change because by the time I get home from work it is completely dark.

I love this pumpkin image, it's from the Tall Oaks set by Verve. The sentiment is a retired Stampin Up set and it says "When I count my blessings, I count my friends". Isn't that super sweet? And very true. The leaves are from a retired Stampin Up punch and the patterned paper is My Mind's Eye, it's really a Spring line, but the colors work for Fall as well.

Oh No She Didn't

My sister, Joy, posted a new comment on my prior post (which is almost a month old) saying she needed to see something new. Can you believe her? Well, actually it is kind of sad it's been so long since I've posted ... so I thought I'd share a very special project.



It's an altered tag book that Joy made for me and gave me when she was here on Labor Day weekend. Get this ... it stores and organizes all my Nestabilities. I call it Nesties 2 Go and I absolutely adore it. She used some gorgeous My Minds Eye Paper to alter each tag and then she attached magnetic sheets that hold the Nestabilities. Is she a genuis or what? And thankfully, she made it with room to grow ... this baby will hold 5 more sets than what I have. Here's what it looks like opened up.



Oh and she sent me some happy mail in late September with an adorable Cupcake Chef stamp that I've used a couple of times already and this really cool "magnetic wand". When I first glanced at the packaging, I thought it said Magic Wand, so that's what I call it.



It is a tool that you use to help you pick up the Nestie you want to use from the set. Isn't that neat? Here's a picturing showing me using it:




So, if you like what you see please take a minute to post a comment on Joy's blog. Oh, and you might want to let her know that you want to see something new from her too ... **wink**

Cupcakes Forever

Here is the card I made for this week's Cupcake Craft Challenge. I love the sketch. And given this is my last week on the design team, I had to use a cupcake image.

I would like to thank all the wonderful ladies on the CCC Design Team for all the fellowship and inspiration. They are all so fantastic and I feel truly blessed to be part of such an awesome group.

Supplies: Lockhart Cupcake image, Studio G sentiment, Orange dotted patterned paper from Stampin Up, My Mind's Eye plaid patterned paper, Taken With Teal and Chocolate Chip cardstock from SU, Ribbon and buttons from Papertrey, Martha Stewart border punch, Nestabilities, Copics

Things That Go Bump in the Night

Here’s a cute little goodie bag I made for this week’s Cupcake Craft Challenge. It’s my favorite style … cute and simple. I whipped this up after getting home from shopping for fall décor for my house. I bought some pumpkins and some orange cloth napkins and I spotted these yummy chocolate covered pretzels that had orange icing drizzled on them, so I picked up a container of them as well. I considered adding more embellishments, but I wanted the goodies inside to be easily spotted.

Be sure to check out what the other design team member’s came up with for this week’s challenge.

Supplies: Image, sentiment, and bag are from Papertrey, patterned paper is retired Stampin Up, ribbon is from Hobby Lobby, Martha Stewart border punch

Buttons and Stitching

Wow ... has it really been almost a month since I've posted on my blog?? I sure wish my work schedule would settle down a tad to give me more time to craft.

Okay, onto the challenge. This week we were to use buttons and stitching on our creations, so I pulled out my mat pack and paper piercer and got my faux stitching on. Don't you love this adorable cupcake chef image? My sister bought her at a stamp show and sent it to me. (Thanks SO much, Joy ... I absolutely love her and I hope you liked the thank you card I sent that I created the same day as I received the happy mail from you)

Get this ... the patterned paper on this card I received **free** from eclecticpaperie with my order. Daisy sent me 24 sheets of various Crate papers. Yup, 24 sheets. When I opened my pakcage, I was like ... I know I ordered quite a bit of paper, but surely it wasn't this much. lol. So, I made this card to send her thanking her for her generosity. I suspect she checked out my order history and was like this girl has a papercrafting addiction, so we owe her an extra large helping of patterned paper love.

Pearls and Swirls

Here's the card I made for this week's Cupcake Craft Challenge, which was to use Pearls and Swirls on your project. Don't you love this adorable Whipper Snapper image? I figured since there's so much buzz about a really bad flu season this coming winter that I'd better make some get well type cards.

Anyway, once again I made a slight boo boo on my card. Did you find it? Well, I mistook the little chicken's feet as large flowers on her comforter. Guess when I caught on? Yup, you guessed it when I showed it to my Mom. Well at least this time she didn't point it out to me ... a little light bulb just went off and we had a good laugh about it.

Supplies: Get Well Chicken image by Whipper Snapper, Imaginesce Patterned Paper, PTI Stampers Select card base, primas, Martha Stewart Oval Pearls, Swirl CB Folder

Make It A Couch Potato Night

I wanted to share a project I submitted for the Papertrey Guest Star Stamper contest for August. I had *so* much fun making it. What is it? Well it's a little couch potato gift set I came up with based loosely on a popcorn bag. I don't have a pattern, but the base of the bag is 2 pieces of 8 1/2 X 10" Sweet Blush cardstock that I scored and adhered together with sticky strip. I seem to use this method a lot when making 3D projects like bags and boxes.

I staged my picture by making some popcorn and putting it an extra popcorn bag favor and tipped it over. My whole house smelled like popcorn ... yummy!!

Here's a picture of what the actual gift set would look like. Don't you love the polka dot couch?? I have so much fun when I use this set. I put the goodies (a bag of microwave popcorn, a large pack of M&Ms, and a Blockbuster gift card) in a cellophane bag I got at AC Moore in the candy decorating section. Embellished with ribbon and a cute little tag. Wouldn't this be a perfect gift for a friend that is recuperating from surgery, or a breakup ... or just going through a hard time? Or how fun would it be to make up some smaller popcorn bags for a Chick Flick night or a slumber party for your daughter and her friends? The possibilities are endless, really.

I emailed pictures of my project to my sister before submitting it and she said it inspired her to stay home from work, make some popcorn and watch TV ... lol ... totally cracked me up!! (You are too much, Joy!!)