Gifts of Love....

Holidays mean cards and, for me, there is nothing more special than a handmade card.

This year I made 3 Valentine cards:

one for my son,

one for my daughter,

and one for my sweet husband.

I can't take credit for the last two designs. I saw similar designs on Pinterest and decided they were too cute not to duplicate them. The idea for my daughter's card was originally posted on a website called moneysavingexpert.com all the way back in 2006. The pin that inspired my hubby's card was actually a wedding card posted on indulgy.com. I love the look of the tulle on top of the patterned paper.

Smile!

Wow! It has been a long time since I was able to get in my scrap room and create anything. Life has been keeping me hopping. My mother has been very ill for the last month and spent time in both a hospital and a nursing home before finally getting home this week. With all of that and school starting, I have been so busy that I haven't had time to do anything just for fun.

This afternoon I found myself with several minutes of actual free time. I almost didn't know what to do!

I sat down and my computer and actually took time to cruise through some of my favorite challenge websites and, before I knew it, I was cutting paper and making cards. It felt SO good!

I owe a big THANK YOU to the gals over at CAS(E) this sketch for providing the inspiration for this card. I loved sketch #91. It was so simple and versatile.

I decided to use the sketch as a way to use some of my many stamps.

I started by using a chevron stamp to create the banner on the left hand side. You can't really tell in this photo, but I actually used 4 different shade of yellow/orange inks to create a subtle ombre effect as the chevron or arrow moves down the card.

Then I stamped a sun using another shade of orange ink and added a few subtle embellishments using yellow stitching, a button, and an orange glitter pen. I decided that I wanted the circles to be a bit more free-form and fun, so after I punched the circles I used my scissors to handcut the edges before inking them.

I stamped a greeting and embellished that with 2 tiny brads. Then I matted the whole thing on a piece of subtle orange stripe cardstock from my stash.

The final card is sure to bring a bright smile to the face of the recipient.

I Wanna Scrap!

Welcome to Scrappin' Peeps summer camp hop. It you didn't arrive from Mandi's blog, be sure to go back and check it out.  

The Peeps have a week full of fun planned for all of us. We have all fallen behind in our scrapping and paper crafting and thought we would take advantage of this week of summer to get a bit caught up.
The theme for our blog hop is water. Water is a BIG part of summer and summer fun: cool glasses of ice water after a day in the sun, a cool dip in a pool, and wading through puddles after a summer rain. Water is also becoming a big part of scrapping and crafting.  At first glance, that statement may sound a bit odd. After all, water and paper usually DON'T mix, do they?

One of the big trends in cardmaking has been the introduction of watercolor and watercolor techniques. You see it everywhere. Well, if you are like me you can experiment with watercolor, but the results are often less than impressive.

Recently, however, I discovered a wonderful alternative!

I purchased THESE pencils after a recommendation from a friend:

They are NOT watercolor pencils. They are actually INK pencils. The resulting color is much more intense than the look you achieve with watercolor pencils. I have also found that it is MUCH easier to shade.

After my purchase, the first thing I did was go to YouTube to see if I could find a good tutorial on using them. I found THIS one by AnnaBelle Stamps

Great ideas huh?

Now, let me share with you 2 cards that I created using these pencils.

My first card was this beautiful Santa image. It is from a Recollections stamp set called "Country Santa".

After stamping and coloring I heat embossed the beard and added some chunky glitter to the fur parts of the coat. I layered the image with cardstock and a frame cut using a Spellbinders die.

My second attempt with these pencils was this snowman card. It was created using the Stampin' Up stamp set called "Snow Much Fun".

Don't you love the shading on the snowman's body, hat, and boots?

I have discovered only one problem with these pencils. I love the look SO MUCH that I need a bigger set with more colors! A quick search on Amazon revealed to me that there is a set of 24 and a set of 72 available.  I am already saving up to make one of  those sets my next splurge.

Your next stop for the crop hop is Robyn's blog. If you got lost on the way here is the complete list.

Mandi mjskraze.blogspot.com/
Stella myscrapbliss.blogspot.com/
Robyn cozienookhomestead.wordpress.com/
Christine terrapincreekdesignstudio.blogspot.com/

Challenge Accepted!

I love challenges! They really inspire me to put my creative juices into action and try something new.

Early in July, my buddies over at Scrappin Mojo posted their monthly challenges. One of the gals, Mary, decided to try something different. Instead of giving us a sketch to create a card, tag, or layout, she asked us to create our own sketch and then use it to create a finished piece.

All month long I have been racking my brain trying to come up with something a little different. I kept envisioning stacked circles of different colors, each one cut in half and stacked with varied colors on top of one another.

After weeks of experimentation I finally came up with the following sketch: (Please ignore the wavy lines. I was trying to use the Paint program to create my semi-circle from a complete circle and I'm just not great with digital art- LOL!)

The neat thing about this sketch is that I had to actually cut 4 circles: 2 of the larger size and 2 of the smaller size. When I cut them in half I had enough pieces to create 2 complete elements for the center of my card, so I was able to easily create 2 cards instead of just one.

Here's my finished card...... OOPS..... cards....

I would love to see what you create using this original sketch. If it inspires you, please leave a comment, photo, or link to your finished project.

Determination....

My goal for this summer is to finish my son's senior album. I suppose that it is about time.... after all, he will be a college junior in the fall... LOL!

I am having a lot of trouble with the pages because he selected the 8 1/2 X 11 album size. He thought it would fit into bookshelves better.

Anyway, I have been scrapping 12 X 12 pages for years now and I love that size because it allows for so much more embellishment and detail.

I am down to the last few pages in the album and I find myself getting a bit uninspired.

My son also selected the colors and basic "style" that he wanted. He really likes the more earthy colors and the grungy type of look. (Believe it or not, he really likes Tim Holtz style.)

One of the things that I have done on every layout is use distress ink and/or glimmer mist to add that distressed or grunge look. On this particular page I used 2 different colors of glimmer mist. I also did some stamping.

See those little dots around the embellishment in the lower left and upper right corners? Those are actually tiny little flat beads that I painted with nail polish. I really wanted some enamel dots, but I have been trying to live up to my personal oath of not purchasing things if I already have something in my stash that will work. So.... instead of purchasing enamel dots I stuck these beads on a sheet of wax paper, painted them with nail polish, and allowed them to dry before pulling them up and adding them to the layout. Pretty good, don't you think? I am amazed at what a little determination can do.

Happy Anniversary....

Tomorrow is my 21st wedding anniversary.   It is hard to believe that I have been married to my sweet hubby that long. It hasn't all been easy, but he has always been there as my strength, support, and listening ear.

I took some time this morning to create a special card just for my hubby. It started with this great sketch from Case This Sketch.

I like to layer my cards so I used 6 different layers of paper. I added some inking, embossing, stamping, and sewing. I used one of my favorite Stampin' Up stamp sets, Wonderful Favorites. I love it because it is so versatile!

This was my first time ever making a 6X6 card, but I really like that size! I think I will definitely be making more of them.

Can You Believe It?

I didn't post on this blog for over a year and now I have posted two days in a row! What can I say? I got hooked on challenges this week. That might just be the ticket to getting me back into the papercrafting world.

I started with the challenges over at Scrappin' Mojo. Those gals can always inspire me. Then I came across this sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches.

I really liked the diagonal stripe across the card, so I started digging through my stash. I came across a chipboard cherry embellishment that I knew would be perfect for the Mojo Tutti Fruity Challenge. That helped me decide that I wanted a vintage type of look for my card.

I ended up using a piece of "Core Impressions" paper that I had been saving for a long time. I sanded it a bit to reveal the inner core through the embossed polka dots, added some lace, buttons, vintage print papers, inking, and sewing. I REALLY like the end result!

I have bookmarked the Freshly Made website and you will also find a link in the sidebar. I will definitely be keeping an eye on their sketches each week. They are GREAT inspiration for someone like me who needs to start using some of that mountain of craft stash that I have been keeping for years!

Hello...... Hello...... Can Anyone Hear Me?

Just checking to see if this blog even works anymore..... LOL!

Life has kept me pretty busy this past year. It was my daughter's senior year in high school and between college visits, fundraisers, trips, track meets, and various other competitions it seemed like we were constantly on the run.  School and family took up most of my time. I don't think I have scrapbooked in over a year. I did create the occasional greeting card, but other than that my supplies have just been gathering dust.

Last week that all changed.

I came home after teaching a week in our summer credit recovery program and I logged on one of my favorite websites: Scrappin' Mojo. (There's a link in the sidebar if you are interested.) It just so happened that the gals were hosting a summer crop full of WONDERFUL challenges. The timing was perfect!

So far I have finished 4 challenges, creating 4 cards, three of which I will share with you. (The other one..... I am not so happy with.... If you want to see it, you will have to visit the website.

CARD 1

This card is for the single layer challenge. That in itself is something I rarely do. I also decided to try a new stamping technique. I grabbed a small rectangular acrylic block and inked it up. Then I spritzed it with a water mist so the ink would bead up. Then I stamped directly on the paper. After my rectangles dried I went back and added the flower stamping and dry embossed some lines above and below the image.

CARD 2

 



This one was for a polka dot challenge. I LOVE polka dots! I used one of my many embossing folders to emboss the bottom edge of the card. Then I dry embossed some lines above that to create an area for my stamped greeting. I raided my flower drawer and found a printed plastic flower, a chipboard flower, and a rhinestone sticker flower. I stacked all of those to create my own unique flower at the top of the card.

CARD 3

 

 

This one was for the watercolor challenge and was inspired by a card on Pinterest. I used the same technique that I mentioned earlier, this time inking up a larger acrylic block with several different colors of distress ink. Then I spritzed it with water and stamped on watercolor paper to create the background. I blotted it with paper towel and allowed it to dry before stamping the image with black ink.

 

The summer challenges have been extended through this week, so I am hoping to get a couple more done. Who knows? I may even get out some pictures and scrapbook a page or two!

My Attempt at Cardmaking

I am a member of the Scrappin' Mojo group online.... (link is provided in my sidebar.) This is a great group of gals who love scrapping, cardmaking, and papercrafting. Some of them got together a few months ago and formed a small group who participates in a special card event monthly. One member will put together a card kit and sends it out to each member. Each crafter works to use the kit contents to create their own special card creations and shares them in a blog post.

I have watched every month as ladies posted wonderful inspirational cards and found myself oohing and aahing at their creativity. As for me..... cards have just not been a strong point. I think that this is largely due to the fact that I just haven't tried to create them very much.

A couple of months ago one of the kit club members surprised me by sending me the kit. I opened the kit and found myself almost afraid to cut into anything. My cards just aren't good enough...... at least that is what the little voice inside my head kept saying. Besides, my scrap space was so stacked up at the time that I didn't even have space to work.

This month another member of the club sent me the kit. Once again I opened it and found myself in awe of the contents. (Here is a pic.... so you can ooh and aah right along with me...)

See what I mean? GREAT stuff..... Anyone could create cards with this stuff, right? I had to give it a try. Besides, my scrap room is now relatively clean and organized, so that isn't even an excuse anymore.

I headed off to Pinterest, my usual inspirational search location and with a little help from there, I was actually able to create 4 cards that I am happy to say, I MADE!!!

Hey, I could get used to this! As long as I have Pinterest to help me with ideas....LOL!

Seriously though.. if you like cardmaking and scrapbooking, check out Scrappin' Mojo. These ladies are fantastic crafters and some of the sweetest ladies you will meet. And who knows..... you might discover that you can do things you didn't think you could do too!

Christmas in July

Some of you have probably joined my blog via the "Christmas in July" Blog Hop.

I hate to put pressure on anyone...... but I really felt that I had to make you aware that there are only 163 days until Christmas!!

Ok...... do I have your attention now?

Seriously though, it is right about this point in the year that I start seeing Christmas ornaments popping into my local Garden Ridge and Christmas craft project supplies showing up at the nearest Hobby Lobby. Sometimes, working on a Christmas project can be a great way to "mentally" escape the heat that normally befalls us in the middle of July, but it can also put a lot of pressure on someone like me who still hasn't done anything with the photos from LAST CHRISTMAS!

Luckily for me, I happened to take part in this blog hop that should help inspire me to get creative and document some of those memories from 2012. Not only will that help me clear the desktop, but it should also help me clear some space in my stash piles before the newest Christmas supplies show up in the scrapbook stores.

Lucky for you...... You can join the fun too!

First, let me share my layout with you....

This page gives homage to my daughter, who is probably the BIGGEST Christmas lover in our family (and that is saying a lot!). Kari sings Christmas carols all year long and loves nothing better than sitting through a Christmas movie... no matter WHEN it is on television.

I snapped this photo at a store in Tennessee. When we visited the store in the month of July, my daughter was thrilled to know that Christmas was ONLY 171 days away.

I reached into my stash to find 2 sheets of 6X6 papers from the Basic Grey "Jovial" paper pad. I used these to create the block behind the photo. I added some paper strips that I cut from various 12X12 papers in my stash, a border strip punched from some scrap paper and several stickers and chipboard words and letters from my abundant supply closet. Some inking around the elements helped tone down the colors a bit and blend the elements together. All in all, I am very happy with the end result... and definitely in the mood to do more Christmas scrapbooking!

Now it is your turn! Join in the fun and create your own Christmas project. If you participate, use the hashtag #scrapbookchristmas in Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.

Next up on the Blog Hop is Alanna-  http://scrapping-and-life.blogspot.com

If, at any point, you get lost, here is a FULL list of the blogs participating in this event:

Ruth - http://scrapmachine.com/

Bernice - http://btsoi.blogspot.com/

Theresa - http://himynameistheresa.com/

Holly - http://harmonydiy.blogspot.com/

Sandra - http://www.thecraftybunch.com.au/

Melissa - http://digitalscrapbookinghq.com/christmashop

Kimberly - http://kimberlymariekett.blogspot.com/

Stella (YOU ARE HERE) - http://myscrapbliss.blogspot.com/

Alanna - http://scrapping-and-life.blogspot.com

Megan - http://meganlianesblog.blogspot.com/

Jen - http://myreillyboysandme.blogspot.com

Lisa - http://mykreativepursuits.blogspot.com

Margareta - http://www.paperpilekitten.com/

Taniesa - http://thecraftypickle.com/

Smitha - http://www.smilingcolors.com

Catherine - http://paperaddictcatherine.blogspot.com

Kate - http://www.funkytales.blogspot.co.uk

Tasha - http://tashascreativejuice.blogspot.com/

Melissa - http://yesterday2day4ever.blogspot.co.nz

Alison - http://magicalmesses.blogspot.com/

Cat - http://decisioninspired.com

Manda - http://www.mandalikadesigns.com/

Madeleine - http://senoritaml.wordpress.com/

Melissa - http://www.scrappyjedi.com/

Amanda - http://amandathemadscrapper.blogspot.com/

Ali - http://www.moloneystylestamping.wordpress.com

Jenny - http://scrappinjen-partyoffive.blogspot.com/

Ros - http://noteverypicturezperfect.blogspot.com.au/

Sue - http://themakingtable.blogspot.com.au/

Julie - http://plywthpper.blogspot.com/

Leave a comment and let me know what you think of my layout. You can also share links to YOUR Christmas in July projects. I can't wait to see how everyone is inspired!

Finally Scrapping Again

This week I FINALLY managed to scrounge up the creative energy to create a layout again. Actually, to be honest, I started the page several weeks ago, but then my little scrap mojo engine lost steam. The page has sat here on the desk gradually being covered by paper after paper and new purchases.

This week I decided to just get started digging through the stack and do SOMETHING creative!

I found myself here at home, all alone. Hubby was working, along with my son, Keenan. We had dropped Kari off last week for Governor's Scholars. The house just got too quiet, and I got too bored. I had to do something..... so I cleaned. When I found this layout at the bottom of the stack, I had to try to finish it.

The scan isn't perfect, but you get the idea. The original sketch came from one of the Allison Davis books that I purchased from Scrapbook Generations. I LOVE those books! If I had to do it over, I think I would have added just one more of the vertical strips behind the photos, but I guess it will do. At least...... it is done!

Technique Tuesday

WOO HOO!

I LOVE stamps! They are one of my BIG scrapbooking weaknesses. Today I checked my emails and discovered a great stamp event that I just HAD to share with you!

Technique Tuesday, one of my favorite stamp companies, is having a week-long event full of blog posts, giveaways, and fun.

To start things off, they are offering a chance to win THIS prize pack!

GREAT stamps that any scrapper or crafter could use!

Be sure to go to their blog for all of the GREAT things going on this week
To make it easier, here's a direct link:
Technique Tuesday BLOG

Life is Fun

It is so often the "little things" that I remember..... the smile on my son's face when he just can't help but show his feelings, the touch of my husband's hand on mine, the way my daughter wears different colors of nail polish on each finger.

I think it is for this reason that I love scrapbooking. A single page can be my opportunity to document those little things and why they mean so much to me. Each page is a 12 by 12 freeze frame of my thoughts, my feelings, and my life.

Take for example, my latest page.....

I realize that my daughter won't be so carefree forever. As she continues to age, the weight of schoolwork, adulthood, and life's little problems will begin to weigh on her, just as they do on me. Yet she will always have this page documenting a time in her life when she could focus on just enjoying life and maybe being a little bit silly. Hopefully that will encourage her to continue to live her life with just a little bit of laughter and fun. Maybe I need to remember that too!

Scrapping With an Empty Nest

Last night I reached a realization.

One of the reasons that I am not scrapping much anymore is that I am not taking pictures much anymore. With my oldest child away at college and my other child a busy teen, I have lost two of my major subjects. Kari is busy with track and field or cross country, both of which are very difficult events to photograph well. The few pictures that I do get are the same images over and over. I get a few photos that Keenan's college pals post on Facebook, but they are usually the typical staged group shots.

With no photos of them, what do I scrap? I know that there are some people out there who scrap about themselves. I tried that for a while. I don't have many photos of myself and I can only do so many pages about my hopes and dreams.

I love my scrapbooking hobby. It has always been a personal release- allowing me to throw my creative energy into telling a story with photos, papers, embellishments, and journaling. It also allowed me a stress release. Alone in my scraproom with all of my "toys" I could create without fear of someone coming by to evaluate the outcome.

I don't really know what my future is, as far as scrapbooking. I don't see grandchildren in my future for quite a few years, but I don't think I can give it up either. I would love to hear from some of you scrapbookers out there who are like me- working women who have or soon will have an empty nest. What do you scrapbook? Where can I go for motivation?

Valentine's Day is Coming...

Christmas is barely behind us and now I need to get a start on Valentine's Day projects. Lucky for me that we had a crop at Scrappin' Mojo over the weekend!

I decided to get a jump start on some V-Day cards.

One challenge asked us to select a Pinterest project that inspired us and create our own card or layout based on it. I decided to make a Valentine card based on one made by Darlene over at Splitcoast Stampers. Here's my finished card:

I love the way the patterned paper peeks up though the the heart-shaped hole. This is one of the first times I have used Baker's twine too. I think I like it!

For my second Valentine's card I tried a different technique.

First I used my Cuttlebug to emboss the white paper. Then I colored the raised parts with my Prismacolor pencils. I used gamsol to soften the color a bit. I added some pearls on some of the flower centers, tied on ribbon and a couple of tags. I LOVE the look!

A Special Page

This weekend my favorite gals over at Scrappin Mojo.com are having an online crop. I happened to have a bit of time so I figured I would join in on the fun.

Terri posted this sketch from Page Maps for one of the challenges:

I flipped through my photos and found the perfect 2 to create a special page. They weren't the size mentioned in the sketch, but I thought that I could adapt it.

When I started working everything just seemed to fall into place. I ended up with THIS page commemorating my daughter's baptism this past Easter.

There is plenty of time to join in on the crop fun. Come on over to Scrappin Mojo. You'll find a link in my list  to the right. They are great girls with very creative ideas!

WHOO HOO!!!

A new year and a new goal for myself.....

Last year I didn't get much srapbooking or crafting done. Work, life, and other things just took too much of my time and focus.

This year I have made a goal or a resolution, if you will, to reignite that creative flame in me and to begin scrapbooking once again. It has always been a kind of therapy for me, a chance to escape the stress of life and work and just do something that I love. I need that back in my life.

I figured that there was no better time to start than January 1, so today I completed a simple, but finished page, focusing on my daughter's love of s'mores.

I used old papers, old chipboard, old letter dies, and some sewing. BOY, did it feel good!

The Best Laid Plans....

A lot has happened since my last post. The most significant thing is that I will NOT be retiring.

The last two months have been filled with a lot of discussion back and forth between myself, the group who was going to be hiring me as a literacy coach, and the Kentucky Teacher Retirement Systems. It took three visits to Frankfort, but today it finally became apparent that I just wasn't going to be financially able to leave my job and take a different one.

I won't bore you with the details. I will just say that there were certain stipulations placed into legislation that I still don't understand. They are just too open to interpretation, and apparently we were not interpreting them the way of the powers that be.

I am a bit disappointed. The idea of a new career had given me a renewed enthusiasm that I had been lacking for quite a while. I only hope that I can find a somewhat similar enthusiasm once I discover what my position will be in education next year.

This is IT!

Today was my last day at school. The teachers met to finish up all of the end of year paperwork and to enjoy a celebration meal together. My principal presented me with the traditional "Bell" that is given to all retiring school personnel.

I am very excited about the future. My new position has given me a renewed enthusiasm for learning and for my career. My head is swirling with ideas that I can implement, along with the teachers at OCES. This is not the end of my "play"; it is merely the end of one act and the beginning of another.

Milestones

Significant events come along every now and then, but for me it seems that many of them are hitting me all at once. My son is a senior and will be graduating from high school next week.

That means that I will be the mother of a COLLEGE student in the fall.

 Sweet hubby turned 50 last week.

That means that ME turning 50 can't be very far away.

Perhaps most significant and definitely most difficult for me to believe is that I will be retiring from teaching this year. I am completing year 27, and while I am still fairly young for retirement, I felt that it was time for a change. A position as Literacy Coach became available at the elementary school and it just seemed that it was meant to be. The timing was perfect for me to go ahead and step aside, leaving room for some new blood in the middle school language arts class. My new position is funded through some grant money and I will be paid through Berea College.

I am excited about helping younger children learn to love reading and writing. I feel more invigorated about my job than I have in quite a while. I will miss the middle school faculty. We have become a real family over the years. When one of us hurts, we all hurt; when one of us cries, we cry with them; when one of us is joyful, we help them celebrate. I will miss many of the students. Some of them have really touched my heart over the years. I will, no doubt, have to drop back in from time to time, just to check up on them and see how they are doing, but I truly think that God has prepared me for this time and this change. I have faith that his hand is helping to guide me and that my future, with this job, is meant to be. I hope that this change will be less stressful and will allow me more time to be with my family and to create. I look forward to posting more on this blog and sharing more of my creative endeavors with all of you.