So Long 2008...

Did you know that the first celebration of the New Year was first observed in ancient Babylon about 4000 years ago? The Babylonian New Year began with the first New Moon, which was the first day of spring. The Romans continued to celebrate the New Year in late March, but soon their calendar became out of sync with the sun. So, in order to set the calendar right, in 153 BC, they declared January 1 to be the beginning of the New Year.

Looking back to the last 364 days, I have to say that I've been blessed in so many ways. Because of this blogging world, I have found fabulous new "friends" and one day soon I hope to meet them all, or at least most of them. Not only have I made new friends (my daughter calls them my "virtual friends"), but I was fortunate enough to be asked to join three design teams this year. Thank you Kristi, Russ and Susanna.

Above is my last card of the year. It's a simple Happy New Year card made with silver metallic paper from SU! and patterned paper from Autumn Leaves, which I cut using the Sizzix die. I decorated the hat pin by placing it through beads that I found in my stash. Then, I added some Dew Drops, Taffeta Ribbon and the sentiment (from SU!). Oh, I forgot to mention, the card is 4" x 4".

Well, as I write this last post of 2008, I want to thank all of you for making this year a special one for me and I wish for you a happy, prosperous and pain-free 2009.

HAPPY 2009 TO ALL MY FRIENDS!

I'm Baa-ack

After a few days of being MIA, I finally have something to post today! I've been on vacation visiting family in Northern California for a week and even though I brought some stamping supplies with me, I just had too much fun with my family to find time to stamp!

This card was very easy to make. It's from Gina K's Heartfelt Hits 1 stamp set. I used Copic Markers to color the image and for the sparkling drinks, bubbles and bracelets, I used Stickles. It's a very cute set with lots of pieces. The papers I used were white, kraft and Vintage Violet. The sentiment was cut out with my Cricut. I also used the Cuttlebug for the upper portion of the card. The ribbon is white taffeta with two metal spacers (I ran out of ribbon and didn't have enough for a bow, so these took the place of that). Oh, I also used the Stickles around the sentiment to make it sparkle. That's pretty much it. This card took about 30 minutes to make.



During our Christmas vacation we spent most of our time in Placerville (between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe) where it actually snowed on Christmas... not much, but enough to get my girls excited, being from sunny Southern Cal. My girls and I visited my brother at the lodge up there where it was so peaceful and gorgeous! Here are a couple of pictures of them outside the lodge where he lives. The little girl is Bella, my brother's niece.

My Family Christmas Cards

Here is a picture of some of the Christmas cards I made to mail to friends and family this year. As you can see, I couldn't stick to one design, but I did want to include the picture that I took of my girls. Once again, I used the cardboard from SU!'s DSP packages for the frames. It works great with the Nestability dies. The sentiment is simply typed from the computer.

It's Christmas Eve and my plans today include going over to my oldest brother's huge house for our Christmas Eve Family Party. We normally have around 60 or more family members at our get-togethers, but ever since my mother passed away almost three years ago on New Years Day, Christmas has never been the same...but we are trying to move on.

HAVE A BEAUTIFUL CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

Last Minute Christmas Share

The last few days I've spent getting ready to travel to Northern California to visit my father and my six brothers and sisters and their families. Jasmine, Chelsea, my niece and I took the seven hour drive on Sunday and we finally arrived at my sister's house in Placerville, which is exactly the midway point between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe, after tons of rain and passing a horrible, fatal accident along Hwy 5. So glad to be here safe!

Here are a few cards I'd like to share with you...

A very special online friend sent me this stamp and I thought it would be perfect to use for a Christmas card for her. That's us finally meeting and having a drink together!

The center image is from Snow Swirled which I had stamped onto Shimmery White cardstock earlier. I framed it with Pink Pirouette and Baja Breeze to give the card a nontraditional Christmas look. I also added the Cuttlebug Border Folder to give it a little character.

Last but not least, Snowman Riley. from Hanna Stamps. I made this Christmas card for another special friend I've yet to meet!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful, stress-free week so far! Thanks for stopping by!

It's Christmas Morning!

Today's Challenge at Hanna Stamps is to make a non-traditional Christmas card. This could mean using nontraditional Christmas colors or nontraditional Christmas images. For my card, I used both -- nontraditional colors (pink, baja breeze, chocolate) and a nontraditional stamp set (Slumber Party).

Are you feeling the pressure of the last days of Christmas shopping? I am, so I have to go... Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

I See Stars

I just realized that I don't have much time to prepare everything before Christmas Eve is here and I still have my Christmas cards to make and mail out! So, this may be the last Christmas card I'll be making before I concentrate on my own cards.

Everything I used on this card is from SU! except for the tiny button (Walmart). The buttons were neon colored, so I took my Copic marker and colored it a dark red.

For the stars, I used the large and small star punches from SU! and punched one of the cardboard shirt boxes that I wasn't planning on using. I cut two of each and glued them together to make one thick star... a do-it-yourself star chipboard! To make the star dazzle, you can either cover the top of the stars with VersaMark or glue then sprinkle with Iridescent Ice embossing powder and heat set. The rest is just assembling it.

Well, I gotta start gift wrapping presents and working on my family's Christmas cards. Have a wonderful and safe day.

Warm and Cozy with a Parade of Lights!

I so love the two images from the Warm and Cozy stamp set from Gina K. This little boy hauling a tree on a sled is such a sweet image that I really enjoyed coloring him. I used Copic Markers, Pitch Black Adirondack Ink, Stickles, Snowflakes Cuttlebug Folder and SU! Papers and Ribbon.

This last weekend, my two daughters invited their friends over for a Christmas party and to watch the boat parade. Below are a couple of pictures I thought I'd share with you. They didn't come out too great, but you can use your imagination.


Thank you for sharing your day with me!

65 Years!

The week after the fire here in Yorba Linda, things around the house were still a little bit chaotic. We had so much on our minds that I didn't have time to go to the mall to shop for our friend's parents' 65th wedding anniversary gift. Well, it was one hour before the dinner celebration was to start and I had to come up with a gift. The solution... make a card to hold a gift card! But in this case, I decided to give them "his" and "hers" gift cards.

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful Monday!

Angel Wings - PCP Sketch Challenge

It's Sketch Challenge Saturday over at Paper Craft Planet and join in the fun! This is the sample card that I made for the sketch. I used the angel wings from Wings on Things-Small (Molly Stamps) as the focal point. It doesn't show up very well on these pictures, but in person the wings are very "glitzy." To get that effect, stamp the wings using VersaMark, pour and melt Heat and Stick powder using the heat tool and while it's still wet, quickly pour Iridescent Ice embossing powder over it. Tap off any excess powder and heat emboss until melted. After I went through this process, I realized that maybe I could have just stamped the wings using my glue pad! Oh well...

Here's the sketch for the challenge. When you upload your photo on Paper Craft Planet, make sure you use the tag/keyword SK121308. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Bag It - Tutorial

Supply
• Big Notes Die
• 2 Pink Pirouette Cardstock cut with Big Notes
**Optional: Cuttlebug the CS before cutting
• 1 Pink Pirouette 3-3/4" x 1"
• 1 DSP (Ski Slope) cut with Big Notes
• Cellophane Bag 6" x 4"
• Twine
• 4 Jumbo Eyelets and Crop-a-Dile
• Sticky Strip
• Mini Glue Dots
• Embellishment of choice (I used Felt Flurries, Rhinestone Brad, Pink Taffeta Ribbon, Button, Silver Cord, White CS, Small Lable Punch-modified by trimming the sides, All Holidays Stamp Set-SU!)

Trim the DSP 2" from each end and adhere one end to each of the Pink Big Notes piece on the wrong side. Score 3/4" from edge and fold the DSP over to the right side of the Pink.

Score the bottom of each Big Notes pieces about 1" from the bottom and fold towards the wrong side.








Place the strip of 3-3/4" x 1" pink cs on your work surface, adhere both of the folded bottoms of the pink Big Notes onto the strip of cs.








Use it as a guide and do not go past the edges of the strip.








Take the cellophane bag and pinch the bottom corners as shown in the picture. Fold the "dog ears" towards the center of the bottom for the bag and secure with a mini glue dot.







To make it easier to shape the bottom, I insert my glue bottle into the bag. Set bag aside.







Place Sticky Strips where indicated in the photo. Peel the middle two strips (the two long ones) and place the bottom of the cellophane on top of the Sticky Strips. Push down with the bottle of glue. Bring the sides up.



Fold down to the side the excess length of the bag until it meets the top edge of the cs sides. Peel of the two Sticky Strips that are left and adhere the sides of the bag to it. The bag should be formed now.

Now you're ready to add the brads. Simply place them in the four corners of the top through all thicknesses including the cellophane. Next, run the twine through the brad holes and tie inside the bag.

I'd love to see how you decorate yours! Send me a photo if you can.

Sketch Challenge - Saturday, Dec. 13 - PCP

This Saturday I will be hosting the sketch challenge on Paper Craft Planet. So come join me over there. Just look for the sketch on the main page under "photo." Thanks again for your visit! See you later.

Just In Time for the Holidays!

Whether you're participating in a cookie exchange or just want to fill up those fabulous containers you've decorated with all those cute ribbons and pretty embellishments... or maybe you just love to bake during the holidays (or during any time of the year), this is definitely for you!

C O O K I E S !

Here are just a few samples. Enjoy! Feel free to send me some samples...I love chocolate :)

7 Layer Cookies
Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Heavenly Cheesecake Brownies
Homemade Turtles
Peanut Blossoms

Make-n-Takes from OCL

A few days ago, I received an email from Joy (Eclectic Paperie) announcing that Copic Instructor, Marianne Walker, was giving a mini 2-hour class at my local craft store using Our Craft Lounge stamps. Did I even hesitate for a second to reserve my spot? Right! So last Sunday I finally met Marianne and I agree 100 percent with the others who told me that she is one great knowledgeable lady! I'm really looking forward to taking her in-depth Copics class at CHA in January.

Joy Kennedy was also there to help with the class, which was a nice surprise to see her again. Marianne went over several things about Copics and most importantly, answered a lot of questions! She was also nice enough to refill my dried out Colorless Blender Pen -- yay!!! I so missed using that! There were several prizes given out throughout the evening while we worked on three make and takes. The three I have pictured here are the three projects we made in class and the stamp sets are all from Our Craft Lounge. They have some very cute sets -- I know because my credit card did its duty at the store afterwards! Now to find the time to play...

Thank you for visiting here. It always means a lot to me and so do your comments. I should have the tutorial for the Big Notes bag before the end of the week. It's the holiday season and things are crazy busy around here. My daughter is planning a Christmas party for her friends this Saturday and she said that she has everything planned, but that translates to my needing a back up plan... let's see: Food, Drinks, Cleaning, More Food...

Bag It With Big Notes!

If there's one die that you're trying to decide to get, make it the Big Notes die. Not only is it great for toppers, cards and frames, but it's a great die for making boxes and bags! I recently made the bird box for the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge at Paper Craft Planet with this die and today I want to share with you a little bag that you can fill with candy, a small present or a gift certificate!

In the middle of posting this, I fell asleep and I just woke up in the middle of the 11:00 news! I missed Boston Legal and I had to think for a minute before I realized why everyone was already upstairs! Like some of my fellow DT friends, I too need sleep badly!

There is a tutorial that I was planning to share for this project, but I'd better be getting to bed before I oversleep tomorrow again and drive my daughter one hour late for school... like I did last week. If I have enough people interested in the tutorial, then I'll go ahead and post it later.

For now, I'll just say good night and thank you for stopping by!

Butterflies Are Free To Fly...Fly Away

Okay, I'm not a big Elton fan, but that song was stuck in my head while I was uploading these pictures.

Last week I made two butterfly cards with this same set from Molly Stamps, only they were in black and white. I decided to go the other direction and fill in the clear spaces of the wings with bright colors! I used the same steps that I used with the black and white card... stamp the wings, from Wings on Things - Big, on a piece of acetate sheet with black StazOn, turn it over and color the clear spaces of the wings on the reverse side (I used Copic markers).

Note: if you color with Copics, you must color on the side that doesn't have the StazOn ink on it; otherwise, the StazOn ink will just dissolve.

After it's all colored, trim closely around the outer edge, but when you get to the middle section (the body), cut the shape of the butterfly's body. For the antennae, place a mini glue dot on the portion that is to be the "head of the butterfly," cut a piece of 1-1/2" red hemp, fold it in half and place the folded part on top of the glue dot. Secure it by placing a Dew Drop that already has a mini glue dot attached to it and place that on top of the hemp. Continue attaching Dew Drops along the "body" of the butterfly with mini glue dots. When done, flip the piece over and adhere a mini wooden clothes pin under the body. I used mini glue dots, but if you have something stronger, by all means, use it! Now you can clip it onto your plants to make it look pretty!

The Wings on Things sets are so awesome for creating cards and projects. And since there are two sizes, you have even more possibilities!

Thanks for stopping by!

9 Ladies Dancing...

It's the 12 Days of Christmas Contest at Paper Craft Planet and we're on Day 9 today. So far we've given away fantastic prizes to eight lucky players. For this challenge, the winner will receive a $25 Gift Certificate from Hanna Stamps! Oh, Yeah! So let's get creative! Here's today's challenge:

Make a card (or any paper craft) that has a girl on it! That's it!

Nine Ladies Dancing... Well, I took this challenge literally, as you can see (Yup, there are nine of them), but one girl will do. The stamp set I used here is one of Hanna Stamps' new releases, I Dream of Hanna. I made a little stage for her and her back-up dancers. I recently cleared out my "work room," aka the dining room, and I no longer have everything in front of me nor do I know where most of my things are in the garage. I guess I'll just have to make do with what I can find.

Stamp: I Dream of Hanna
Paper: Rust Red, Always Artichoke, White, Patterned Paper
Ink: Pitch Black (Adirondack), Copic Markers
Acc: Martha Stewart Border Punch, Silver Cord, Stickles, 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon Always Artichoke (SU!), Craft Knife, Dimensionals, Mini Glue Dots

The deadline for submitting your creations to PCP is midnight tonight EST. The winner will be announced on Sunday morning. I hope you'll play along. Who knows, you may even win! Thanks for stopping by for a visit.

Warm and Cozy Christmas!

Can this little girl and her snowman friend be any cuter? She reminds me so much of my friend's six year old daughter. The set also comes with a stamp of a little boy carrying a Christmas tree and that little boy looks just like her three year old brother. I guess I know which set to use for their Christmas card this year! The set is called Warm and Cozy Christmas from Gina K. Designs. This is the first time I've ever used a stamp set from Gina K., and I have to say that from the storage container to the great quality of the red rubber, I'm quite impressed! And her pure luxury paper and envelopes, wow! The name says it all.

Stamp: Warm and Cozy Christmas
Paper: White, Old Olive, Bashful Blue,Retired SU! Designer Paper
Ink: Pitch Black (Adirondack), Copic Markers
Acc: Old Olive Twill Ribbon, Fiskars Border Punch, Stickles, Piercing Tool and Mat, Dew Drops, SU! Filigree Brad, Dimensionals, Mini Glue Dots, Snowflake Cuttlebug Folder

Thanks to those of you who sent me emails wishing me well. Just a little update about my appointment yesterday with my new doctor... she tried a new treatment on me that I had never heard of before called Dry Needling. She basically inserted a needle about 1.5" to 2" deep into my neck and shoulder muscles. She did this about 20 times and of course I screamed and it didn't help that I get weak and scared when it comes to needles. It was so painful, but she said having pain shows she's at the right spot. Next month I'm scheduled for 35 more pokes but this time it's with a larger needle for Botox. I'm so traumatized right now and I feel like someone just whacked me in the neck and head with a bat full of thorns. I honestly would rather go through a migraine than to go through this again. Maybe I'll cancel the Botox appointment. Yes, I'm a big wimp when it comes to needles!

Have a fabulous weekend and don't forget to join me tomorrow at Paper Craft Planet where I will be hosting the "9th Day of Christmas" Challenge. Everyone who enters their creations will be entered to win a prize from Hanna Stamps! Very Cool Indeed!!!

This-n-That

For days now I have been suffering from this ginormous migraine and yesterday, no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't finish my last Hanna sneak peek. I was in so much pain and I'm so glad that today I have an appointment to see a new neurologist. I've exhausted my old one and now ready to see what this one can do to help me. But please visit the other designers' blogs. They have wonderful sneak peeks of the new releases (their links are on my sidebar). Speaking of releases, please join Hanna Stamps and her design team at our release party tonight, Dec 4th at 9pm-11pm EST, in the Hanna Stamps Forum over at SplitCoast. There will be lots of chatting, challenges, PRIZES and fun! So, be there!

Since I wasn't able to share my last sneak peek with you, I will be using that set this Saturday (Dec. 6th) at Paper Craft Planet for our 12 Days of Christmas Contest. It's my turn to host on that day with the 9th Day of Christmas Challenge. So, please visit PCP for our 12 Days Contest and remember... Saturday is "9 ladies dancing..." challenge. You can go over there right now and play today's challenge, and if you do play, you will be entered to win a prize from Verve! So what are you waiting for? You have five more days to play and every day, someone wins!

Well, I've gotta go for now. Thanks for the visit.

Moosing You

It's day three of Hanna Stamps' sneak peeks and today I'd like to show you two new Riley stamps! That's right... Riley Van and Riley Trailer! Put the two together and you've got a road trip Riley style. That's what I've done here with this tri-fold card that ties closed with a ribbon.

When I started this card yesterday, I had a very bad headache with a touch of vertigo. I had hoped that this morning I would feel better, but instead, my headache turned into a migraine...aack!! I finally finished this card, but I think I went sponge crazy. I wish I had the Camping Riley because that would look great with these stamps!

Stamp: Riley Van, Riley Trailer, Route 66 Hanna, Tis the Season Hanna, What Riley Would Say
Paper: Mellow Moss, Always Artichoke, Cranberry Crisp, White
Ink: Pitch Black, Espresso (Adirondack), Bashful Blue (SU!), Always Artichoke, Bravo Burgundy (Stampin' Marker), Copic Markers
Acc: Nestabilities, Dew Drops, Ribbon (SU!), Dimensionals, Mini Glue Dots

Before I go, I wanted to share with you a little something about the platter in the second picture above. If you notice, there's a signature in gold above the card on the platter. About seven years ago, Macy's was promoting Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York's line of dishes, the ones she uses in her own home that she designed. She made a special appearance and I was able to meet her and get the platter autographed. Pretty neat, huh? Well, time to go take another Imitrex. Have a wonderful day... or evening.

I'll Do Most Anything For Shoes

Another exciting new release from Hanna Stamps! When I first saw this Pin Up Hanna, the first thing that came to my mind was Amsterdam and the Red Light District. Now, if you've ever been there, then you know what I'm talking about! But I do love Amsterdam (not because of that district!), it's just so beautiful with all the canals and the interesting architecture...and the people are just so nice! I even had someone offer me his car so that I could site see since he wasn't using it while at work!

Anyway, this set has lots of possibilities. What I love about the Hanna sets is that there are so many pieces included! This one comes with lingerie, but I decided to cover her up with a sentiment, just for fun!

Stamp: Pin Up Hanna, Read My T Hanna
Paper: Basic Black, Rose Red, White, Pattern Paper
Ink: Pitch Black (Adirondack), Copic Markers
Acc: Primas, Dew Drops, Dimensionals, Mini Glue Dots, Large and Ex. Large Oval Punches, Slot Punch, Ticket Punch, SU! Twill Ribbon, Paisley Cuttlebug Folder

Don't forget to join us HERE Thursday evening at 9:00 pm (eastern time) for the Hanna Stamps Release Party for lots of chatting, challenges and prizes! Thanks for visiting!

On the Fourth Day of Christmas...

...my true love gave to me, four calling birds... Have you been playing the 12 Days of Contest at Paper Craft Planet? We've been giving prizes every day and we're on our fourth day! The challenge for the fourth day is to make a card/project with a bird or "calling" on it. Just use your imagination.


I decided to make a paper craft project instead of a card. This box is made with four top notes die cut using the cardboard that comes with the DSP packaging (I use those a lot, so I always save them). Before running it through the Sizzix machine, I cuttlebugged it. After cutting four top notes pieces, I scored about 1" on the top and bottom of each piece and glued the four bottom folds on a 3-1/2" x 3-1/2" square piece of the cardboard. I secured a brad in the center of each top fold then ran four ribbons through the folds and tied the corners. If you'd like to, you can pinch the pointy sides together and glue it. Then I just decorated the box with four birds.

Thanks for the visit and please let me know what you think of this project.