Winners!!

The winner of the KI paper and stamp: Carriegel.

The winner of the Sassafrass lass package: Dani.

Please e-mail me your addresses and I will get those out sometime this week. Thanks everyone for playing along. :)

Let's do a Giveaway!!!

(and random other things)

Ok, so I promised a giveaway. I have a few extra things in my stash that I would love to give you. I'm going to start with a KI Memories pad (I actually bought the exact same one and then got one from 2Peas) and a Prima frame stamp. Some of the sheets have cool foil details. There are also solid sheets for a total of 18 sheets. The stamp is about 2" wide by 3" tall.

The second giveaway is a bunch of lovely Sassafrass pattern paper sheets and some stickers. Some of these papers are from their latest release and some are their cute Christmas line. Here are just a few things in this giveaway (I'm not sure how many papers and stickers there are, but it's from several different lines):

Leave a comment by Sunday evening at midnight and I will have two winners listed on Monday.

On another note, I have the layout of the day at 2Peas today. You can see the layout above. I can't believe that just a few days ago we were at the park playing bubbles. It was 32 degrees here yesterday and bitter, bitter cold. I used lots and lots of stamping on this one. You know how stamping makes me happy.

I also wanted to mention something that is dear and precious to my heart. My very sweet supporter and friend, Tania Willis is teaching a class on recording memories of loved ones lost. Although I often struggle with recording my own feelings about losing Joseph; I believe it is important to record as many as of our memories as possible so that future generations will know these amazing people. Please see her blog for more details: http://www.throughtrialsiambeingpurified.blogspot.com/.

Things I've Got My Eye On!

So here I am enabling again. LOL! I love to browse the 2Peas store and see what cool new things have been uploaded. And then of course I have to share them here. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't. ;)


Do you have a digital die cutter? Then I think this is just awesome cool. Kristina Werner has created digital files that can be downloaded and then cut on your machine. I don't have the Cricut cutting software, but I do have a Silhouette so I need to give it a go. Cute, huh? She also has a card download and a "thanks" word downloadable file. She's a genius!




And if you love Hambly, which frankly I haven't used much of but LOVE this sheet here, you can find tons of new items in the store:

And then new items from KI are appearing in the store now too. This ribbon spool is too cute. I just need a cute baby to go along with it:

Thinking of spending a warm, sunny day outside. You're totally going to need this cute paper from KI Memories as well.

How about a stamp for less than $1. This one from We R Memory Keepers is a keeper for sure.

And if you want a super cute digital kit. I love this one by Holly Brooke Jones . . . "Enchanted Forest". Look at that cute owl and darling cloud paper. I've already downloaded it and used it I loved it so much!!

Well, hopefully I've enabled you enough. I did promise you a giveaway so I'll try to do that either tomorrow or Saturday. Got some fun extra things in my stash that need a good home. ;)

Thank you!!

Thank you for all of the kind comments about women being mean to other women. You're all very sweet and definitely helped me feel better. See. I really think most people are nice!!

We are having weird weather on and off: snow then warming, and then more snow. I don't mind the snow as long as it melts off the roads and gives me some warm days in between. Spring in definitely upon us.

I promised to load some of the other projects I used to flood the 2Peas gallery with. The above card uses Hero Arts stamps (the butterfly is an old Inque Boutique stamp). I love how woodgrain stamps just give a nice neutral background to projects.

Here's another woodgrain project with Hero Arts stamps (Heidi Grace and My Mind's Eye pattern paper are used on this project as well):

And then there's this one that uses both a woodgrain stamp and sentiment stamp from Hero Arts and a stamp from the latest CK KOTM. That one is a two sided stamp with dates on one side and an alphabet stamp on the other side.

I have a dental appointment tomorrow, and I'm totally nervous for it. I NEVER used to be nervous of the dentist. I mean how easy is the dentist: lay down in a chair to have all your work done? But for some reason I'm all worked up about it. :( I hate nerves and how they interrupt my day. So wish me luck! LOL!

Happy Birthday, baby!!

Today is Jimmy's birthday. He's six!! And although it's cold and snowy, he's happily playing with his new Legos in his room. He's also pretty happy that on his birthday there are NO CHORES. That's a big deal around this house where the mama and daddy are the meannest people on the planet and no one has as many chores as they do. LOL!

We're taking doughnuts to his class this afternoon and then just chilling around the house before a dinner of pizza and cupcakes or cake (depending upon his mood) tonight.

And on another note, Wendy suggested a GG flood in the 2Peas Gallery today so check it out here!

And I'll share a few of the Little Yellow Bicyle items I added to the gallery.

Here is a layout using the Baby Safari line (and a photo of my beautiful niece):

Here's a Jellybean jar that I'm gifting to a neighbor using the same line:

And a card (don't you love how Monkeys are so hot right now)!

I'll share more of the uploaded items another time. I don't want to flood here and overwhelm you. LOL!

And to my little man . . . Happy Birthday, handsome!!

Mean Girls

Feeling a little bit robbed of my scrapbooking confidence right now. You know when you're hanging out with a group of girls, laughing, talking and then you leave a little while later feeling a little icky as if something's wrong? And then you realize that one of the girls was being rude to you, but it was so subtle that it only poked at you and bothered you in such small increments that you didn't even realize it at the time. But you totally realize it now, and you feel foolish for not realizing it in the moment and excusing yourself earlier. And you wonder if everyone else in the group realized it but you. And then you wonder what's wrong with you and you start to question everything you've said or done in that group.

I've seen it happen at the Elementary school with my daughter. I remember it happening in Junior High and High School. Thankfully not so much in college. But I am surprised that grown up women still treat each other like that. And I am disappointed in myself for allowing someone else to help dictate how I feel. It happened in a scrapbooking arena a while ago and when I sat down yesterday to create something for one of my deadlines all those uncomfortable feelings just oozed out and stole my confidence.

I can only be a victim if I allow myself to be, but I think it takes a bit to shake off that ickiness and move foward and accept that someone you like and you admire doesn't care for you. And even if you have to at least on some level bump into each other (whether online or in person), it's kind of out of your control how much someone else likes you or not. I'm just a people pleaser and I'm feel sad when people don't like me. And I feel especially sad when women are mean to each other. I just don't understand why that's necessary. :(

On another note, the above layout and card below are for the current CK KOTM. I was asked to complete these some time ago but the kit was just recently posted for purchase on their website so I can share them now.

Thanks for letting me spill a bit. I am sure we've all been in that uncomfortable spot before.

All Day Fun Day!!

So instead of a birthday party for my son this year I promised him that we could take one friend and do a day of fun. He was NOT happy about the plan, but he agreed to give it a try and chose to take his cousin Wyatt with us. We tried and tried to discuss possible plans for his outing, but he would get overwhelmed an upset any time we tried to chat. So I asked him if he preferred to have it be a surprise and he did.

So . . .

We started by picking up cousin Wyatt and Aunt Heather and heading up to Jungle Jim's. What a cool place!! Indoor rides. I'm not talking Chuck-e-cheese token rides. I'm talking about a roller coaster, the swings, a real merry-go-round, space ships that went up and down, and bumper cars to name a few. I also invested in many, many tokens so we could all play some of the other games. So we had a lovely two hour adventure which ended with each of them turning in their tickets for the typicaly cheapy prizes.

Next was a trip to Chick-fil-a and their indoor playplace. Of course, Jimmy ate no chicken nuggets--not a fan. But he was content with their delicious waffle fries and lots of sweaty playtime.

Round 3 was a trip to a city park where Aunt Heather produced a lovely gift bag of outdoor toys: bubbles, bowling, and badmitton. An hour or so of that and we were off to grandma's house for a very well received package of LEGOS, which he is playing with non-stop.

Our return home involved a sleepover with big sister in the family room with too much candy, a very long night, and several movies of his choice.

He seemed very content and happy; and I'm glad. We're all worn out today but that means we really did have a good time.

Wanna Peek?

Yep. Finished up my QVC deadline last night. And boy am I tired. Realized it's been a while since I've stepped away from the scrapping. So after I deliver these bad boys up to my awesome boss, Marci. I'm not stepping into my office (except to check e-mail of course and clean up the ever growing mess in there) for a few days.

The kids have Friday off so instead of a b-day party for Jimmy we're doing a "Fun Day" with his cousin Wyatt. We don't know yet what we're doing, but I'm thinking Aquarium or Discovery Gateway or a park or just wild and crazy fun wherever we go. Hopefully there will be a cute cartoon at the $1 movies 'cause I'm cheap like that. ;)

If you'd like to watch the QVC show, it will be airing March 25 from 11-1 p.m. (MST). You can also watch it at www.qvc.com.

Have a warm and creative day!!

Good Morning, Sunshine!!

Seriously. We have sunshine here. Yes, there is still snow hiding in the shady corners of my yard, but I passed a temperature guage and it said 67 degrees. Yeah, baby. Spring really does exist!! I pulled out my flip flops yesterday (and promptly noticed that my toes need to be repainted). I'm still chilled in the 60's, though. Is anyone else? I notice that I'll have a jacket on when everyone else is walking around in t-shirts. You would think the extra poundage I have on right now would contribute to a warmer heat index for me but no. Hmmm. Strange!!

I totally forgot that the 2Peas mid-month garden went up on Sunday. Sundays are long and crazy around here. I thought I'd post my layouts and links today then.

The first was a project for the "Sewing" theme. I'm finding myself loving sewing right now. Makes me want to make something--curtains, pillows, cute crafty things. I need some sewing lessons, however, as my Junior High sewing class was a few years ago. ;)

Then I thought it would be fun to highlight some of the other GG's work. They are my inspiration for sure!!

* I loved, loved, loved this one by Robyn. She rocks my world every time. Did you know she's teaching a monthly class in the Education Forum? Awesome new layout each month.

* And then Miss Kelly Purkey is just too darn cute. I'm not sure it would matter what she puts on a page (and she makes GORGEOUS layouts), but with her cute photos it's always a great project.

* And Jen McGuire is the Queen of Cards (as is Kristina Werner) and I thought these little snorkle cards were too cute not to point out.

On another note, are you contributing to Scrapbook Trends calls (or Cards, or Handmade, or Beads)? I'm noticing a lot of new names in my submissions. Coolio!! I love seeing new people in the publishing world.

ST is currently working on their regular issues and a Holiday Issue. Got something cool to contribute? Check out this!! (That link has all their current calls.)

My upcoming call is for "Use texture to convey the emotion and make sure the emphasis is on the journaling." Can't wait to see what you come up with!!

Well, off to finish up a big deadling for QVC. I kept dreaming of different packages I was opening and panicking over how I was going to use the product. I think I need a break. LOL!

Stamping Idea Book & LOTD

In need of a new idea book? I am. Any time I get in a rut, I pull out one of my books and browse through all the talented designs inside. I received an e-mail from Scrapbook Trends this morning with this new title:

This is going to be a fun one!! You know how I feel about stamping. ;) What's even more fun is I got to watch the uber talented Anne from Scrapbook Trends photograph this cover shot. She's amazing and so fun to work with. I think we "need" to convince her to teach us some photography tips. The stamps on this card are PaperTrey stamps. So VERY lovely!!

You can order the idea book here.

Also, this layout is the Layout of the Day at 2Peas today:

The item on sale are those cute white tags. Very inexpensive and totally fun to work with. I used my Cuttlebug to emboss them. I recreated paper airplanes to match that AWESOME American Crafts pattern paper. The text is a text box with black fill and yellow letters. It's so much more dramatic than just black text on a colored background. The paperclips at the top were just hanging around and I thought they would be great for holding up my tags.

Challenge!!

Wow. Three posts in a row. New record for me. But I had to post. Starting today (and for a week), I am hosting the challenge over at 2Peas.

This week's challenge: Use a nature element on your layout.

By uploading your project to the gallery and then marking the appropriate "challenge" box in the challenge menu you will be entered for a chance to win a 2Peas GC. Not bad, huh?

Now certainly you can think of some nature elements to use, right?!! I posted my sample layout above. :)

Have You See the Cricut Infomercials?

Every so often I'll catch one on Saturdays, and to my surprise I saw something of mine on one this past Saturday just in the background. Ages ago I was asked by my CX Design Team lead to use the Cricut Machine to create a blanket, a pillow, and a home decor item using my Cricut Machine and Fabric. Yep, I said fabric!!


I was like, "seriously?" But it really works!! Here's how you do it:


1. Choose your fabric (a nice cotton fabric works best, but the fusible fabric helps make fabrics stiff).
2. Iron on the fusible backing (no more than the size of your Cricut Cutting pad).
3. Cut the fabric and backing to fit your pad and mount on the pad.
4. Select your shape and size from your choice of cartridges.
5. Change the blade speed to slow (you don't want the fabric bunching).
6. Adjust your blade depth and pressure by testing a smaller piece of fabric. (I noticed that these settings depend a lot upon how old your blade is. A newer blade will be adjusted differently than an older blade.)
7. Then cut away.
8. Then following the directions of the fusible backing, iron it to your project. (I used the "no sew" kind, but if you want to sew around the edge make sure you purchase that kind so your sewing needle doesn't get all gummed up when stitching.)


Here is the close-up of the blanket. I had to move quickly when ironing as to not scorch the chenille on this blanket. (The iron was at a very low setting.)

(I loved that zebra print for a branch. Very cool!!)

Here is a close-up of the pillow:

And then for something different, I actually ironed on the fabric leaves to a sheet of cardstock. (Again use a low setting on your iron so the cardstock doesn't warp.) Then I just placed the sheet inside a frame. Here's the frame:

I actually bought those smaller squares that they sell at fabric stores so it was uber cheap. And I also scored on the blanket, pillow, and frame. All were on major clearance so I think I spent $50 total on the project (if that).

Isn't it cool to see the things the Cricut can do? I can hardly wait to try the new stamp and embossing folders they sell now. I love my die cutting machines. :) What cool things have you done with yours?

You Guys are KILLING Me!!

Oh my goodness! Just got through browsing layouts submitted for my Scrapbook Trends article: Stories to Tell. And you guys are AMAZING!! This was the hardest time picking evah!! Seriously. I'm totally inspired and would include them all if I could. How do you say "no" to greatness? I hope it's exciting for you to get the request. I still get all giddy any time I'm asked to do something or have something picked up by ST. It's awesome, huh?!!

Speaking of feeling giddy and all happy--I got a box of goodies from Hero Arts (see photo above). Yummers!! I can hardly wait to play. Those border stamps are calling my name, and I see a theme of tree bark going on here--loads of fun shapes for those. (By the way, have you seen the Hero Arts blog? Amazing inspiration posted there daily!)

This is going to be a short and sweet post as I'm off to our Relief Society Birthday party (that's our church's women's group). We're doing a service auction. I told you already that I'm donating scrapbook goodies, right?!! Gotta set up tables and chairs and help with the cooking and then it's time for some serious fun.

Have a good one!

What are You Working On?

Me? I'm recovering from our trip to Vegas: loads of laundry, cleaning, kids back on schedule, me back on schedule. I think I need a vacation from my vacation. LOL!

On the work front, I've been doing some VERY cool things for Scrapbook Trends Magazine. Let's just say they've got some exciting new things in the works and leave it at that. ;) Are you intrigued yet? LOL!

On the article front, I am currently working on something for the Mini Album Idea Book. Aren't mini albums awesome? I love going in with a plan and then completing an entire story in one swoop. Plus it's nice to leave out a bunch of supplies and just go at it. I thorougly enjoy that.

I'm considering making cards to submit to the next Cards Issue. Yep. I still submit stuff too. It keeps the creative juices flowing (and not everything gets picked up either--some things never change). They are currently working on themes like beach, back to school, and butterflies. Want to check out the whole call? See here. We'll see if I can get some time as all those interest me, and whatever doesn't get picked up goes into a box of cards for friends and neighbors. Either way, I've got something done to give out and that makes me happy!!

Next week I've got projects due for upcoming QVC and the HSN. Do you shop those? I'll watch at least part of them (I often forget they're on), but I've yet to purchase anything from them. If you do shop from there, what's your favorite thing about them?

On the home front, our church ladies group is celebrating our birthday. We're having a silent auction of goods and services. Guess what I'm donating? Yep. Scrapbooking supplies. What a great way to purge the office. The husband wants to know why I don't get rid of more items. Not going to happen, babe. LOL!

I've also got a sick 5 year old who is just well enough to be bored to tears and driving me crazy. And although we had great weather last week, this week has been cold and snowy so I can't get him out of the house. This house isn't big enough for the both of us. ;)

So what are you working on? Submitting anything? House/spring cleaning projects? (We totally need to do the yard but may hold off with the economy being the way that it is.) Everyone well at your house?

(Oh and the above layout appeared in Scrapbook Trends Magazine August 2008 issue--my first article with them.)

Back to Reality!

I love a good break as much as the next person, but there is something very nice about coming back home after a trip. :) I missed the kids so it was great to be back with them.

Vegas was a great getaway. Hate the "yuck" factor on the strip, but I was able to get some shots of the Effiel Tower and see the Bellagio Gardens, which were Asian themed this time--very pretty. Ate at the Luxor "MORE" buffet--yummy.

But I loved, loved, loved my first NASCAR race. Talk about a ton of wrecks. Kyle Busch was out within the first 4-8 laps. Poor guy. But he went on to win on Sunday, and since that's his home town that's even more cool. It was noisy and fun and I'm ready for more. My husband also loved it so we'll be back for sure!!

While I was gone the Garden went up at 2Peas. The theme for this month was "Stitching". I focused on hand stitching and adding elements with stitching. This one adds elements:

Here's the one with the handstitching (the bird paper is a digital kit available at 2Peas):

And then my "New Product Focus" was using the new Making Memories Easter line. I especially love the patterns on the back of the paper. Lovely!! And those paperclip butterflies (I removed the paperclips on mine) are gorgeous.

So did I miss anything while I was gone? I didn't check my computer the whole time, and I feel totally out of the loop. LOL!