Long day!

We spent the weekend in Minneapolis as I had school on Friday night and Saturday afternoon. Matt went with me to keep me company and to make sure I got to and from safely. For some reason I decided that I wanted to have a retro weekend and decided to get a dorm room at a local college campus for the evening. I thought since I am in college again we might as well get the full experience. Matt didn't really see it the same way!

All in all it wasn't a bad experience, but he has decided that we should probably stay in a hotel next time. We then went to dinner when we got home at our new favorite restaurant with our good friends, Jack and Cyndi. A good time was had by all. I really should remember to take pictures once in a while and then I could post them! When we got home I needed some much deserved stamping time.

This is just a little something I threw together still on the kick of the simply scrappin' kits! I LOVE them! That is really all I used accept for the Papertrey sentiment in the corner.

One last chicken card!

Here I sit waiting for the decorators, painters, electrician, and tile guy to come and survey our house. We are getting to the final stages of planning our redecorating project. I cannot wait to see how it will turn out! I will be sure to post before and after pics!

I did a little more playing around last night with the little chicken stickers and so I thought I would post the last one I did. I tweaked one of the other designs and I think I like it better.

Here it is!

Supplies:

Paper: SU old olive, summer sun, real red, and chatterbox

Accessories: SU tag punch, flowers and friends simply scrappin' kit for the little yellow border

Micheal's dollar spot chicken stickers, SU red gingham ribbon

Catch the simply scrappin' fever!

I was sitting here playing with my new simply scrappin' kit and I happened over to one of my favorite stamper's blog. She was apparently playing with the same kit that I was and she did some awesome things with it! I always do this...I will start talking about where I got an idea and then I will forget to tell you the artist! It is Taylor VanBruggen.

After seeing her card I decided to start seeing what I could do. I think these kits and the BOMB! They have so many little things to play with they are any cardmaker's dream. Kristin (my stamping hero) was right in that they are much cheaper than anything at the local scrapbooking store. Okay, that is my last Stampin' up plug!

Anyway, if anyone out there could tell me how I could link the card that inspired me with just having a couple of words in the body of the blog I would be forever in your debt. The only way I know to do it is like this

http://tayloredexpressions.blogspot.com/

And I am pretty sure there is a much more aestetically (sp?) pleasing way to do it.

Chicken Coop #2

Here is the second card I came up with when playing with the little chicken stickers.

I just love them!

Chicken Coop

Well, last night I went to Michael's to get some new Prismacolor pencils with my birthday money. Since I have gotten on this new kick to design my own cards it has been sort of fun to find different things here and there for inspiration. I found these little chicken stickers in the $1.00 bin and I thought they were so cute. I have had quite a time to figure out what to do with them, but this is what I ended up with.

Supplies:

chicken stickers - Michael's

paper: SU real red, old olive, summer sun, SU petals and paisleys, whisper white

ink: SU real red, white craft ink

accessories: circle punches from SU, those yellow border things come from the

the simply scrappin kit that is the hostess level one award, ribbon from SU

We've got to quit meeting like this!

Here we are again, me, my computer, my stamp room, and the POLKA DOTS! I don't know what it is about this ONE SHEET of paper, but I can't seem to stop until it is all used up. Those of you who know me well know that I am not exactly thrifty, so this is not like me to feel I need to use it all up. I think I just like it that much. It has so many colors to choose from and so many different directions you can go in.

We, the infamous Taylor VanBreugen, used these stamps from My Favorite Things a few weeks ago and of course I could not resist the few clicks it took to get them delivered to my front door. Her card can be viewed here http://tayloredexpressions.blogspot.com/. This card is very strongly influenced by Taylor's. Okay, fine! I cased it!

I have a friend, Heidi, (hope she doesn't look at my blog before tomorrow) who has a special day tomorrow. I can never forget because she is the same age as I am and has her birthday four days after mine. These stamps could not be more perfect for anyone! Heidi loves to shop so I thought these stamps would be great for her birthday!

Supplies:

Paper: Summer dots Chatterbox, SU certainly celery, night of navy, whisper white

Ink: SU night of navy, SU markers celery, night of navy, almost apricot, brocade blue

Charm: michaeal's in the bead isle from Westrom Crafts

Accessories: SU punch, SU brads, SU celery organdy ribbon

Using up scraps

I decided since I was already at it I would try an experiment to use up the scraps I had left from the elephant card. I ran across a blog the other day that is really cool. This particular designer puts layouts of her cards on her blogs of the cards she does. I am posting an example of what she posts and then the card that I came up with using her pre-made layout. I thought these would help give me something to start with and then I would just have to pick out the colors, paper, and images and sentiment. The site this layout came from is http://stampinupinspirations.blogspot.com/. Check it out it is really cool. She has many different templates posted there.

Supplies:

Paper: Chatterbox Summer dots

Stampin' up Summer sun

cranberry crisp

whisper white

Ink: Stampin' up cranberry crisp

night of navy

old olive

Brad: SU earth elements

Punch: SU key tag and horizontal slot

stamps: SU Bodacious bouquet (love this set!)

So, you will all be glad to hear that I think I am done with this Chatterbox piece of paper. I really really really liked it as you could probably tell!

Best friends

Finally I post a card! I had my last class of the tri-mester yesterday so today I got to stamp

really really guilt free. It is a strange feeling NOT to have homework to do even if it is only for six days. I have been working very hard on my Easter cards, but have decided not to post them.

If I do that everyone who will be recieving it will see it ahead of time and it won't be any fun.

I decided that Easter cards are my second biggest deal cards of the year. Easter is truely my favorite holiday of the year. My family could tell you stories of the Easters of years past spent sick by about 9am because I ate too much candy. I love the colors, the bunnies, the little chicks,

and the eggs!

My birthday was this last week and Matt took me out to a nice dinner. He also bought me a contraption meant to enhance the quality of my photos for my blog. It was like a little tent for pictures with really strong lights that you hold up to the tent. It didn't work at all and we decided to go back to the bucket that Matt rigged up for me. He is so clever!

This card features the following supplies:

Paper: chatterbox Summer Dots

stampin' up: summer sun, night of navy, cranberry crisp, and whisper white

Ink: stampin' up night of navy, cranberry crisp

Brads: old olive from stampin' up

Sentiment: papertrey ink

Thanks for looking!

Neglecting my blog

I just wanted to post and say I am sorry that I haven't posted any new cards over these
last couple of days. I seem to do all my stamping on the weekends. I have been busy with my
internship and getting ready for class this weekend.

My first big stampin' up order came in yesterday. I am so excited. I got my Bunny Hugs set and
I can't wait to get going on my Easter cards! As most of you know, they are my favorite. Easter
is my favorite holiday. If you came to my house you would see that it looks like Easter all year
round. My husband says he is getting tired of living in an Easter basket! Hence the redecorating.

I will be sure to post when I get some cards done. Thank you for stoping to see what's going on in my corner of the world!!!

Now that's better!

Thank you thank you to my neice, Miranda! She has solved my problem with my pictures and it makes me very happy. Seems like it is going to be a bit of a pain, Miranda, to have to go through that whole process with each picture, but at least it is an answer!

Miranda, our ninth grade niece, on top of solving my technology problems told us that she
got STRAIGHT A's on her 3rd quarter report card! We are so very proud of her. She is very
bright and capable of so much! She now has to choose her reward from her Uncle Matt and Aunt Melissa for all her hard work. She normally chooses video games (which Matt loves) or stamps (which I love). But, since it is not our straight A's, she gets to pick what SHE wants!

Miranda, one more technology problem, I promise. I want to figure out how to get one of those blog counters on my blog. I can't figure it out. I tried a couple of times, but I got the idea I would have to manipulate the code which scares the heck out of me! I know, I sound old. It scares me how much more the young kids know than the rest of us when it comes to computers! They are going to put us all out of jobs in the coming years!

Organdy Bows

Did you ever had a card that you just couldn't do justice with the camera? Well, this cardis just that. I turned out so pretty (if I do say so myself), but the photo just isn't right. I am using some embellishments that I have laying around the house. My mother-in-law has always been very supportive of my hobby and generous with her gifts to support it. She bought me these flowers several years ago and I got inspired this afternoon to use them in place of the stamped images that I used in another design of the same layout a few weeks ago. The combination of the flowers with the Elegante designer papers from the Winter mini are perfect I think. Those of you who know me know that I don't use that term very generously when it comes to my work. I am also using up some retired ribbon that I won at Kristin's open house last Summer. It was a perfect match!

Another problem on which would welcome any guidance, is that when you click on my card on the blog instead of getting a little bigger they get huge. I would love to know how to fix that. Miranda, maybe your technicalogical genius will rescue me again! If anyone has the answer please post a comment and let me know (What? Someone might be reading it).

Well, I am going to keep at it today as Sunday is the day I get to stamp guilt-free!!!

Way too late!

I am up way too late tonight still playing with the new Papercrafts magazine. I have been talking about it so much lately you will think that I work for them or something! Nope!I am just using it to get some inspiration! I thought they had a cool concept on page 29 workingwith Prima flowers, buttons, and brads on top of each other. I think it adds some nice depth and texture. The designer was Nicole Heady. She is always inspiring!

Supplies:

chatterbox paper

stampin' up ruby red buttons

stampin' up bashful blue brads

prima flowers

stampin' up oval punches

sentiment stamp by stampin' up

bashful blue marker

Saturday

All day long Matt and I have been trying to figure out how to get better photographs of my cards. By now I am sure you can tell that once I get something on my mind I can't seem to rest until the problem is solved. I knew he was the person for the job. He is a very clever problem solver. Here is a sample of a card that is photographed using our new system. We will see if anyone notices a difference.

This card was made from a kit I bought from TJ's Pictures and Papers which is a scrapbooking store in my home town. Eloise Muholland is a designer there and she is fabulously talented.

This is one of her creations.

Papercrafts Inspired Take 2

Here is my second attempt to use the layout in the new Papercrafts. I decided to try to take a digital photo of this one since I didn't quite know what to think of the scanned photo. I think this card still needs a little something or something tweaked a bit, but can't figure out what. The supplies I used in this card are from my mother-in-law.

Supplies:

Paper: Kiwi fruit by Fresh Print

Brads : stampin' up circles: unknown, but probably from Michael's or hobby lobby

Ribbon: apricot by Stampin' up

Taking a break

I decided to take a break tonight and make a card. I got the new Papercrafts this months and they had some really cool layouts. I really liked the one on page 23 by Wendy Johnson. I tried to do something with the three circles, but it didn't work out so I ended up with this!

My mother-in-law bought me a bunch embellishments and paper for cardmaking for Christmas. Now that I am starting to get into coming up with some of my own cards I am able to start using them. It has been really fun!

I put in my first big Stampin' up order this week and I am very excited about it. It is much more work than I thought it was. It took me about three hours to get it all done!! I am going to start preparing for my first workshop next. That should be interesting.

In my last post I mentionned that I am having a hard time figuring out how to photograph my work. My technologically savy niece posted a comment telling me that I should try to scan my card and use the scan to post. I am going to try it and see how it goes. Young people these days are so smart!

Supplies I used:

Chatterbox paper

ribbon from Stampin' up winter mini catalog

together embellishment (most likely from Michael's or Hobby Lobby)

pink brads from Stampin' up

The truth is out!

Well, after I post this card the truth will be out. I am a stampin' stalker! I am guilty of
stalking the talented Debbie Olsen's blog and casing her cards. I can't seem to stop.
She posts a new card on her blog almost everyday. It is such a treat for me to go to her
blog and see what she has done for the day.

This card is a little bit tweaked version of
her card that she posted a couple of days ago. Her card can be seen here. http://debbiedesigns.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/debbiedesigns_justso1sm.jpg
The supplies I used for this card:

enchante designer papers, stampin' up
very vanilla cardstock, stampin' up
ribbon (I am not sure where it comes from, but I think it might be stampin' up)
perfect plum eyelets, stampin' up
perfect plum marker, stampin' up
paper piercer, stampin' up
sentiment is from Papertrey Inc. http://papertreyink.com

Another stampin' Sunday!

Well, my stamp room is now a total disaster after I have spent the day playing. I had gotten some inspiration from Kindrid Spirit's blog a few months ago and had been wanting to make this card since then. After I saw Sarah's card I had to buy this cuttlebug embossing folder. I think this would make a good man's birthday card. Sarah's card can be seen here http://kindredspirits.typepad.com/kindred_spirits/2007/01/index.html.

The supplies I used on this card are:

Summer dots, Chatterbox

Night of navy cardstock, stampin' up

old olive card stock, stampin' up

very vanilla cardstock, stampin' up

old olive brads, stampin' up

hodgepodge hardward, stampin' up

oval punches, stampin' up

twill tape, stampin' up

Cuttlebug happy birthday embossing folder

I am having so much fun with my new blog, but I am totally

perplexed as to how to photograph my cards so they are well lit and easy to see. I will have

to keep on working on it. The blue part of this card has embossed happy birthday on it.

That's what friends are for!

I have neglected my blog this week because I have been very busy with work and school.
The only time I have taken for stamping was trying to come up with an Easter card design the other night with some TAC stamps I dug up. They will be perfect and I will be sure to post when I have come up with a masterpiece.

I got an offer from my friend, Cheri, today that was so generous. She offered to be hostess for my first 10/10/10 class! I am so excited! I think I will get to do it after my internship is over on the fifth of April. I think I will start with four cards and two of each card. I will work up to actually ten different cards if the class goes well and I decide to do another. We will see!
Thanks so much to Cheri for her generous offer!

My Reward!

After I spent the weekend studying I decided I would reward myself by sitting down and making a card to post. I have been really trying to expand my skills as a stamper by trying to force myself to learn to design my own cards. So, I decided as a first step I would take some cards of my favorite stampers and change the colors to start getting familar with putting different colors together.

Once I get better at that I will take another step and try to do the whole thing myself. This is a card that Debbie Olson posted a few weeks ago. If I knew how to post the link to her card I would do it, but I havn't figured out how to do that. Sorry, Debbie!

I used the new designer papers from the Spring mini. I really like them alot. I used whisper white paper to mount the card on and then I used chocolate chip , old olive, bliss blue ink, bliss blue and old olive brads and the polka dots and paisleys stamp set all from Stampin' Up. I am really happy with how the colors look together. The sentiment is from the must have new stamp set from Papertrey Inc. The link is on my blog. I really like this set alot. It has all the words separated so you can mix and match words to make endless combinations! When I originally wrote this post I accidentally forgot to give credit to Papertrey Inc. for these images, so I apolgize if anyone noticed this!

This card is for one of the girls from book club. Her husband's mother has recently passed away so I thought I would make a card. I hope maybe it will help brighten their day.

I haven't figured out how to photograph my cards to do them justice yet. This one looks pretty dark so you can't see how the colors look together, but I am sure you get the idea. I enjoy my stamping so much and I am so thankful for all the ladies out there who share their ideas to make it easier for design challenged people such as myelf!!!

Long weekend!

Well, to recap the weekend it was mostly spent working on the 10-12 page paper I have been procrasitinating for the last two weeks! I finally just sat down and pounded the thing out. I was lucky enough to be able to take a break and go to my monthly book club meeting last night. It was really nice to see the girls! We discussed the book, Right as Rain, by Bev Marshall, which I thought was excellent! For next month I am very excited to be reading, The Friday Night Knitting Group. I will be sure to post what I think of it once I get it done. I am sure that will be about two days before the next book club meeting.

Like my new look?

I just had to blog about my new custom designed banner! I have been a fan of Beth Silaika's work on Splitcoast stampers and one her blog Feckled Fun and now http://freckledfundesigns.blogspot.com/, for quite some time. One day I was on her blog and I noticed that Beth was offering to design custom blog banners for the ridiculously low price of $20 dollars! I was so excited. It was just what my blog needed! A little jazzing up. So, she got to work on it and in less than a couple of days she was done! I just love it! (You can tell how excited I am by how many !!!!!!!!!I use!) Anyway, thanks so much to Beth for my new look. She even helped me install it as I am quite technically challenged!

Sweetie's dream come true

Matt surprised me for Christmas by setting me up with a design firm to help me decorate my house! I am so excited I can hardly stand it. It is starting to get really fun. I met with the girls at Design Studio B yesterday and they gave me the

fabrics and furniture choices they were thinking of! I absolutely loved what they had picked out! They are very talented women! I decided I would post the fabrics to give everyone a sneak preview. My friend, Cheri has been doing that on her blogand I thought that was a pretty good ideal! So here they are! We have decided to go with a black and white theme and then adding in color on the walls. I can't wait to see it all finished!