Scrapbook Sunday #11

Yes, two more pages to share! I made these at the all-day crop several weeks ago. What about last night's crop, you ask? Arggghh, only 2 cards made in 5 1/2 hours. Doh! I did cut out several new stamp sets, but I'm not quite sure what the problem was. Maybe all the talking or drinking or eating? But, I had a great time, so I'm not even going to worry about it!

Most everything used on these pages was from a Jenni Bowlin kit. The rhinestone brads are SU, and the chipboard fleur-de-lis (Joann's) was colored with Certainly Celery marker, stamped over with Versamark, covered with Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder (I think, it was Lori's and it's been awhile), then heat embossed. The beautiful paper already had all the "writing" on it, so perfect!

Here is a picture of the two pages together:


Hope your weekend is going well! I know it's definitely going too fast! Here's to more stamping!

Jenn's Banner

Happy Saturday! I'm off to work in a minute, but wanted to share this fun banner I made for Jenn Balcer over my holiday break. She sent me this awesome Spooky Banner last fall, so I had been dying to RAK her back. When SU had the colorful new Bali Breeze paper, I knew it was perfect for Jenn. She received it this week, and you can see a better picture of it hanging in her home here.

The following pictures are close-ups of the letters. It was so fun to make! I used the Holiday Garland from the SU Holiday Mini Catalog (that had never been opened , of course!). It had the chipboard letters THANKFUL and JOY which worked our perfectly for Jenn's name. I used mostly all SU supplies (Priceless stamp set), but the little "bling" stars were from a Jenni Bowlin kit, and the orange striped ribbon was from Lil Davis Design back when Jenni Bowlin was their designer (always planned to use it for something Halloween, but that never happened...it looked better after I ironed after the picture was taken). For the "priceless" and "so kind" and "delightful", I embossed with SU Glassy Glaze Enamel. I forget about it sometimes, and it's so cool.




I'm off tonight to a crop, but I won't be scrapping...I'll be stamping with all new SU supplies! Can't wait to share! Have a great weekend!

Another Frankenstein

More leftover parts to make this Spring Solitude card. I'm all about that little bird right now, you gotta love it! (That's for you donnapiranha!) The scrap of Wild Wasabi fits perfectly behind the scrap of Whisper White, don't you love it when that happens?! I love the color combo on that scrap of Darling Doodles paper and wish it hadn't been discontinued, but oh well, we have lots more great new stuff!

Speaking of which, the great stuff is arriving today, whoo! hoo! Remember that hideous UPS rescheduled message I talked about yesterday? Yep, it happened, but only to my Sale-a-Bration pre-order stuff...luckily not to my big-daddy, new catalog stuff. Schwooo! That was close! I'm going out tonight with some girlfriends for our Christmas celebration (we like to make it last into January, right girls?!), but I may have to tear into the box late tonight and make at least one card, don't you think?!

Have a wonderful Thursday!

Recipe Stamps: Spring Solitude. Cardstock: Groovy Guava, Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Brocade Blue, Darling Doodles, DSP. Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi. Accessories: Blue & Green Brads, 1" and 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Paper Piercer.

Frankenstein* Thank You

Here comes Wednesday! I survived Tuesday, schwooo! We had a good first day back to school, I forget how much I love those little dears. They really missed me, said the break was too long, they were bored, wish they could have come back sooner, etc. Of course I was like, ummmm, yeah, me too! The funniest part was when reviewing the procedure for standing in line, one students shared, "Don't lick the walls." I had to fight the laughter, but so true...some students have to be reminded to not lick the walls. I read on another teacher's blog about her 2nd graders in Utah licking the walls too, so apparently it's not just a Texas thing. Ewww!

Here's a quick little card made last week from those "leftover parts" on my desk. Maybe I should coin these my Frankenstein cards...cards made from leftover parts. I like it (and just retitled my post)! The "thank you" is from the new level 2 hostess set Spring Solitude. I've made two cards with it so far, but have only used the greeting and the little bird (I'll share that one tomorrow), he is sooo cute!

Speaking of little birds, right now (I reserve the right to change this at a later date) my favorite set from the new catalog is Always, and I'm happy to say it will be arriving on Thursday! Whoo! Hoo! Order shipped on Tuesday, arriving Thursday. That's a UPS shipping miracle! And even if I get one of those hideous "rescheduled delivery" notices, at least it should be Friday, still in time for the Saturday crop. The Always set will be joined by Enjoy Every Moment and Hi & Hello, as well as numerous accessories such as Berry Bliss DSP, striped ribbon, My Way punch, and chunky glitter, just to name a few.

Okay, off to impart some knowledge...ha! ha! Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Recipe Stamps: Spring Solitude, Three For You. Cardstock: Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, Ginger Blossom DSP, Darling Doodles DSP (retired). Ink: Purely Pomegranate. Accessories: Star Punch, Vintage Brad, Tag Corner Punch, Paper Piercer, Stamp-a-ma-Jig, Dimensionals.

A Beautiful Life

Ahhh, a pretty good thing...a swap card made with the new stamp set A Beautiful Life for a Preview Brochure set swap...but I'm really jonesing for all my NEW catalog stuff!! My order was placed on 1/2/08 (the first day available) at 1:28 p.m. central standard time. It's gone into picking, still no shipping confirmation. Arghhhh! I'm reasonable...I'm not demanding it by tomorrow, just by Friday, please!

Okay, back to today's card. I used the fabulous new Bali Breeze DSP, really loving that stuff! I was feeling blocked and working with a deadline, so I copied this basic layout from Kristina Werner (she has to be one of the best things to ever happen to Stampin' Up!, I hope they never lose her!). This card shows a Going Gray base, but for my swap cards I actually changed it to Basic Gray. It's a little bit darker and deeper and so yummy. I altered the scallop punch circle using my buddy MJ's fabulous technique you can see here (that girl is smoking brilliant!). The flower image and greeting are stamped in Versamark ink and then embossed with Winter White embossing Powder. I think that's all the highlights for ya!

I was thinking about my students a lot Monday night, and I'm really getting excited to see them today! So please ignore all of my previous whining and wailing! lol! We have 8 weeks until the TAKS Reading test, so can you say Under Pressure?! (I'm sick, I prefer pressure actually, although I do reserve the right to still complain about it!). I started to type: like Glenn Frey says, The Heat Is On, but honestly, I was never crazy about The Eagles, and it just got worse when they went out on their own. Feel free to retaliate if you disagree! hee! hee! Have a terrific Tuesday!

Recipe Stamps: A Beautiful Life. Cardstock: Going Gray, Whsiper White, Tempting Turquoise, Bali Breeze DSP. Ink: Versamark, Rose Red. Accessories: Scallop Circle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Gray Taffeta Ribbon, 1/8" Circle Punch, Winter White Embossing Powder, Heat Gun.

Splitcoast Featured Stamper #48 Challenge

Finally got a chance to work on my Featured Stamper card last night around 8:30 while watching the conclusion of Jane Eyre on Masterpiece Theater. Love all those romantic novels from that period. This version has a very hot Mr. Rochester...oh my weakness to the dark and brooding. But I digress....

My card (sorry for the bad photo at 10:30 last night) is copied from this card from the Splitcoast Featured Stamper Nancy Riley. I love how different the layout is and how her animals "come out" of the circles. I just "scooted" my images over to try and get the same effect. I colored the images with the SU Pure Color Pencils, they tend to get neglected, but they're awesome, especially for a lazy water colorer like me. I really like making big cards like this.

Okay, off to work...stiff upper lip and all. The kids come back Tuesday, while the teachers have a "training" day...trying to ease us back in gently. At least we get to wear jeans! Thank you for all of your encouraging comments over the last several days. Beverly left me a great comment yesterday about remaining positive...the year is half over AND I get to crop with friends next Saturday night! She's so right, thanks for that, Beverly! Have a super Monday!

Recipe Stamps: Time Well Spent, Much Appreciated. Cardstock: Old Olive, Basic Black, Whisper White, Bali Breeze DSP. Ink: Staz-On Black. Accessories: 1 3/8" Circle Punch, Brads, Paper Piercer, Pure Color Pencils.

Scrapbook Sunday #10

Yes, I've revived Scrapbook Sunday...we'll see how long it lasts! I have two more 2-page layouts, so we'll at least have #11 and #12! ha! ha! And I am going to a crop next Saturday night, so maybe I'll get one or two more made? (Notice how I don't set my expectations too high!) I was hoping my new SU catalog order would arrive by next weekend so I could play at the crop, but it's not looking good, they must be really buried with new orders. *sigh*

You may remember these pictures of my dog Nick, aka Mr. Barky Von Schnauzer, that I posted some time ago. I actually scrapped them! Most everything I used was from my past Jenni Bowlin kits (only the chipboard N was not, it's from a Joann's chipboard stack and colored with a Creamy Caramel marker). When I went to that crop last weekend, I only packed the Jenni Bowlin kits. I was determined to use some of them! It was kind of like Christmas opening them all up and actually looking at them closely!

Hope your Sunday is going well! I have not accomplished much, as I've had a migraine since Saturday. I can't decide if it's caused by the weather or the thought of returning to work tomorrow! I am heading over to Splitcoast to make a Featured Stamper card, because my buddy Nancy over at iSTamp is the Featured Stamper this week! She is an amazing stamper and person, check her out! If you haven't already, you should head over and give it a go too!

Beate's WSC29

I decided I needed another challenge last night, so I actually combined two to make this card. I know, can you believe it?! Man, I love holiday break! I used Beate's sketch challenge WSC29 and Splitcoast's Limited Supply Challenge LSC149. I loved Beate's sketch and the limited supply challenge was to use no white or vanilla card stock...I didn't even think I could do that!

The card uses Stampin' Up's new Embrace Life stamp set and Ginger Blossom DSP, so pretty! I was going to stamp the flowers in craft ink and emboss them, but I'm out of clear embossing powder (let's just say I used what I had left to experiment with the scracth 'n sniff technique and it did not turn out well!), so I used Versamark ink, Heat and Stick Powder, and some retired SU Pastel glitter (coral flavored)...couldn't believe how well it matched, I knew I saved it for some reason (ummm yeah, it had never been opened!). The fine lines on the image made this very challenging, what you see is my 4th attempt. The glitter still looks messy, but every time I tried to brush some away, I brushed away the good glitter, arrgghhh, so I gave up!

Hope you're enjoying your weekend! I've been incredibly lazy...still denying (and crying on the inside) that I have to return to work on Monday...wahhhhh!

Recipe Stamps: Embrace Life. Cardstock: River Rock, Ginger Blossom DSP. Ink: Versamark, Ruby Red marker. Accessories: Heat and Stick Powder, Embossing Gun, SU Pastel Glitter (retired), Dazzling Diamonds, Aquarpainters, Pretties Kit, Glue Dots, Photo Corner Punch, Paper Piercer, 2-Way Glue Pen.

Splitcoast Sketch Challenge 157

I realized I hadn't done any Splitcoast challenges over my holiday break, so I went over last night and decided to do this Sketch Challenge 157. It was a fun and easy sketch! My normal style is so simple, but I kept telling myself, "No, add something else. No, not done, add something else." I probably could have added some more stuff (maybe a photo corner punch in the top left with paper piercing?), but I was worn out and stopped there (it's exhausting talking to yourself all night!).

I spent Thursday with my fabulous upline and friend Jackie, so I made this card as a thank you for her. After spending the day with her, I have enough patterns/projects for the next 3 stamp clubs! And no, don't worry, she won't see this as she doesn't spend her time on the computer! lol! She spends her time stamping, working her business, and making money! What a concept! hee! hee!

A few deets on the card...the paper is Bali Breeze from the new SU catalog. The letter "j" is from that holiday mini catalog chipboard garland (yeah, the package just got opened this week!). I traced the "j" on the patterned paper, cut it out with an exacto knife, then ran it through the Xyron (thank you Ms. Nguyen for giving me the refill, I forgot how great it is!) and applied the Dazzling Diamonds glitter. The little white tag is from the tag sheets that SU used to sell...just stuck on some patterned paper, traced the tag shape on it, and cut it out. The greeting "so grateful" is from the SU retired Cute Converse set, never could part with it!

Hope you have a fabulous Friday! Go try that sketch challenge if you haven't already!

Recipe Stamps: Cute Converse (retired). Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Purely Pomegranate, Pumpkin Pie, Bali Breeze DSP. Ink: Pumpkin Pie. Accessories: Holiday Garland chipboard (retired), Xyron, Dazzling Diamonds, Always Artichoke Ribbon, Spiral Punch, Three For You punch, Brads, Dimensionals.

Father's Day Trio

Why Father's Day, you ask? Good question! I started making Thank You cards last night, specifically a Not Quite Navy card using Baroque Motifs. Let's just say it was NOT happening. After cutting off the bottom 3/4 of the card I had stamped with the scrolly image, I picked up a Wild Wasabi scrap, then noticed the "Happy Father's Day" stamp in the All Holidays box (it was out because I had planned on using the little {thank you} stamp that I love.) I was thinking it would be PERFECT with our new Wild Wasabi striped ribbon, which I don't have yet, but I worked on anyways using the double-stitched ribbon.

After making one, I thought why not go ahead and use up these scraps on my desk and make 3 so I'll be ready come June! That is one of my goals this year (NOT resolutions, just goals!)...to have cards ready ahead of time AND remember to mail them out ON TIME! I really MUST set up a birthday type of calendar thing, because my memory is gone! I'm guessing you make cards like me, but do you find you NEVER have the right one...or can find it...when you need it! I have like 867 cards in my stamp room, but never the right one! Argggh! But not this year!

You wanna join me in getting your cards ready and made ahead of time?! What shall we try next, Mother's Day? Or go crazy and make Valentine's Day and Easter cards?! FYI, my birthday is in July, if you wanna get a jump start on that one! Hee! Hee! Post a link to your creations below, or email them to me (to my blogless friends, you know who you are!) and I can post them for you!

Okay, I have to go warm up the fingers and get ready to key that new SU catalog order at 1:00 my time! Wish me luck!

Recipe Stamps: All Holidays. Cardstock: Not Quite Navy, Wild Wasabi, Chocolate Chip, Always Artichoke, Real Red, Whisper White, Very Vanilla, Dashing DSP, Close to Cocoa Prints DSP, Bali Breeze DSP. Ink: Not Quite Navy. Accessories: Wild Wasabi Double-Stitched Ribbon, Star Eyelets (retired), Star Punch, Not Quite Navy Brads, 5/8" Chocolate Grosgrain Ribbon, Vintage Silver Brads, Paper Piercer, Dimensionals, Stapler.