Fluffy & bedtime

Hello!

I hope you had a good weekend!

Fluffy, as you probably know, is our baby.  She sleeps on our bed with us.  I never tire of displays of her intelligence!  She knows what "goodnight" and "time to go to sleep" means - she'll run into the bedroom and wait for us to put her on the bed, usually standing on her hind legs and putting her paws up on the side of it.  Well, these pictures on this scrapbook page just show that, from our point of view.  She gets "mad" if we don't get her up on the bed when she wants to come up.  The poor little thing is too short to climb the bed herself - we have a bed rail, then a thick box spring, then a thick mattress with a pillow-top.  So you can imagine how high it is!

We've tried to get her to run and jump onto the bed, but to no avail.  She actually surprised us one day by getting up there, but she had a lot of motivation, I guess, from us holding her toy hostage on the bed. :)

The journaling reads:  "It's no real surprise that Fluffy sleeps with us on our bed at night.  When we tell her it's time to go to sleep, she'll run into the bedroom after us and wait to be put on the bed.  If we don't do so right away, she'll put her paws up on the side of the bed and even growl to make sure we don't forget her!"

Hope the photo looks ok.  Since I've adjusted my blog design, I'm able to put a larger picture on here.  :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Bedtime scrapbook page supplies:
Ink:  Chocolate Chip Craft Stampin' Pad
Paper:  Crumb Cake, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, and Tangerine Tango cardstock, Haiku Designer Series Paper and The Write Stuff Specialty Designer Series Paper (both retired)
Accessories/Tools:  Loads of Letters On Board Chipboard (retired), Chocolate Chip 5/8" Satin Ribbon, Linen Thread, Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, Beautiful Wings Embosslits die, Little Leaves Sizzlits die, Birds & Blooms Sizzlits, Metallic Brads, Circle Designer Brads (retired), sewing machine and thread, and Eyelet Border, 1" Circle and 3/4" Circle Punches, Sponge Dauber

SU! Clearance Rack updated!

Hello everyone!

Stampin' Up!'s Clearance Rack has been updated!  You won't want to miss these fabulous deals, like packages of retired cardstock for $2.49!  They also added a Simply Scrappin' Kit for only $7.99, which I have and love.  It's definitely a steal at this price!

Check out all the deals!  Simply click on over to my website, and click "Shop Now" in the upper right.  Then click on "Clearance Rack" on the left side!

Have a great weekend!

Hey Buh-dy! scrapbook page

Happy Saturday!

Friends of Seth's brother have a daughter named Zailee.  We've known her all her life, and she's always been so adorable and such a joy to be around.  She's 2-1/2, and we had the pleasure of seeing her when we went back to VA last month.  She wanted me to take her picture numerous times, asking after each photo, "can I please see it?"  I'd tell her how cute the photo is, and she'd reply, "yes, it sure is!"

Zailee just adored our Shih Tzu, Fluffy.  She spent as much time as she could around her, petting and hugging her and saying "hey buh-dy" and "hey puppy-dog".  I couldn't wait to scrapbook these photos. :)  The larger photo is the result of me saying "smile!" and the second one is of her giving Fluffy a hug.  I used a sketch from August's PageMaps, and colors inspired by this top at Anthropologie:

Sigh, another article of clothing from that store to add to my long wish list. ;)  Anyway, here's my page...

The journaling reads:  "Adam and Whitney's daughter Zailee is so adorable.  She loves posing for pictures and just adores Fluffy - calling her "buh-dy" ("buddy") & "puppy-dog".  So cute!"

So there's my favorite Presto Patterns Specialty DSP again, using the toile piece.  I brayered Early Espresso over it, then spritzed it with Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz to give it some sparkle.  I created my pleating to separate the panels by first breaking down the fibers a little in a strip of Poppy Parade (actually two strips to make it long enough), then folding it into pleats.  I then sewed down with my sewing machine.  I also sewed around the white cardstock, and did some hand-stitching on the buttons.  The Presto Patterns DSP also shows up on both of the flowers, colored with Cherry Cobbler and Poppy Parade.  Tip:  I don't have the Poppy Parade ink pad yet, but the brush tip on the marker worked just great at coloring that DSP!

The flowers add a nice bit of texture.  I punched out three pieces of paper for each one, using cardstock and Presto Patterns DSP.  Each layer was crumpled, folded and inked with Early Espresso.  I used a Stampin' Sponge and Early Espresso ink to color some Crumb Cake Corduroy Brads.  And BTW, the Early Espresso cardstock behind the photo was stamped with the single stamp Dot, Dot, Dot in Early Espresso.

One more story about Zailee - she has a new baby brother, who is named after their father Adam.  She calls him "Baby Adam".  Seth's mom, Gina, asked her what her mommy brought back from the hospital, and she replied, "Baby Adam".  Gina asked her then if she wanted baby Adam to stay, or if she wanted him to go back to the hospital.  Zailee said she wanted him to stay, and that she loved him.  Aww.  ♥

Well, have a fabulous day, and thanks for stopping by!

hey buh-dy! scrapbook page supplies (12x12):
Stamps:  Dot, Dot, Dot
Ink:  Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler
Paper:  Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizazz, Poppy Parade, and Cherry Cobbler cardstock, Whisper White textured cardstock, Presto Patterns Specialty Designer Series Paper
Accessories/Tools:  Sweet Pea Stitched Felt (retired), Whisper White buttons (retired), Crumb Cake Corduroy Brads (retired), Loads of Letters On Board Chipboard (retired), Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz, Poppy Parade Stampin' Write Marker, Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, Stampin' Sponges, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border and Fancy Flower XL Punches, sewing machine and thread

Coneflower Thank You card

Hello!

I decided to play with my Color Coach again, and picked the combination of Old Olive, Not Quite Navy and Cajun Craze.  So this qualifies me again for Shelli's Color Combo challenge!  :)  I used Stamping 411's sketch challenge this week as well.

After stamping the coneflowers, I masked them with scratch paper and stamped the grass.  I love how it turned out!

Ok, I have to run again. :)  Thanks for stopping by!

Thank You card supplies:
Stamps:  Inspired by Nature, Occasional Quotes
Ink:  Old Olive, Not Quite Navy and Cajun Craze
Paper:  Old Olive, Not Quite Navy, Cajun Craze, and Whisper White cardstock
Accessories/Tools:  Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Folder, Old Olive 5/8" Satin Ribbon, Filigree Designer Brads, Sponge Daubers, and Eyelet Border, Scallop Oval, and Large Oval Punches

Artistic Thanks card

Hello!

One of my favorite tools from the new Idea Book & Catalog is the Color Coach!  Besides giving you an accurate swatch of each Stampin' Up! color, you also have dozens of different color combinations at your fingertips, listed on the backs of the cards.

Shelli Gardner's Creative Challenge this month was to use one of the color combinations from the Color Coach. I don't normally use pink and blue together, so I was up to the challenge given by the combination of Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze, and Early Espresso.  I encourage you to play along!  :)

Anyway, here's my card...

Yes, Artistic Etchings is definitely one of my favorite stamp sets!  Here I have used it with a technique that involves using clear blocks to stamp.  I believe the technique first originated from Sharon Field (at least, that's where I first read about it, on her blog).

Well, I have to run, but thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a fabulous day!

Artistic Thanks card supplies:
Stamps:  Artistic Etchings, Sweet Shoppe Lower Alphabet
Ink:  Early Espresso, Pink Pirouette and Baja Breeze Classic
Paper:  Pink Pirouette, Baja Breeze, Early Espresso and Very Vanilla cardstock, Newsprint Designer Series Paper
Accessories/Tools:  Metallic Brads, Mini Library Clip, Very Vanilla 5/8" Satin Ribbon, Scallop Trim Border Punch, Clear Block "A", Mat Pack, Paper Piercing Tool, Stampin' Sponges

Inspired Stitched Florals card

Hello!

For the card I have to share today, I was inspired by this gorgeous cardigan from Anthropologie:

Isn't it pretty?  I love the fun look and feel of it!  On my card, I tried to replicate the flower outlines with stamping and stitching...

I also used Stamping 411's sketch this week.  I think it fit perfectly with what I wanted to do with the card!

Well, I have to run.  Thanks for stopping by!

Card supplies:
Stamps:  Petal Pizzazz, Fifth Avenue Floral
Ink:  Cameo Coral (retired), Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight, and Basic Black
Paper:  Basic Black, Whisper White and Sahara Sand cardstock
Accessories/Tools:  Tempting Turquoise 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon (retired), Filigree Designer brads, Basic Black Brads (Neutrals), 1/2" Circle, Scallop Circle and Fancy Flower Punches, sewing machine and thread

A Giving Life card

Good morning!

It's been a while since I've played along with a creative challenge!  I created this card using Mojo Monday's sketch this week:

I added a lot of color to the Presto Patterns Specialty Designer Series Paper using the brayer and Regal Rose Classic ink, then sponged with Early Espresso to soften it.  The center of the large flower has Presto Patterns DSP brayered with Old Olive, made into a brad with the Pewter Build-a-Brad kit.

The pink flowers were stamped using the rock and roll technique - first I inked up the stamp in Regal Rose, then I rolled the edges of the stamp into Early Espresso.  I also sponged a little bit of Early Espresso to soften the white edges I left from cutting out the flowers.  To make it easier to see the sentiment, I stamped off once (stamped on scratch paper, then stamped on my cardstock without re-inking).  I actually stamped the sentiment twice with Early Espresso to make it dark enough.. although you can't tell, right?  That's the beauty of the Stamp-a-ma-jig.. just don't move it and you can easily and cleanly stamp an image or sentiment more than once!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous day!

A Giving Life card supplies:
Stamps:  Medallion, Vintage Vogue and Occasional Quotes (Level 3 Hostess set)
Ink:  Old Olive, Regal Rose and Early Espresso
Paper:  Soft Suede textured cardstock, Naturals White, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake, and Whisper White cardstock, Presto Patterns Specialty Designer Series Paper
Accessories/Tools:  Linen Thread, Old Olive 5/8" Satin Ribbon, Pewter Build-a-Brad, Metallic Brads, Corner Rounder and Eyelet Border Punches, Brayer, Stampin' Sponges

Circle journal - favorite thoughts

Good morning!

Here's the last layout I completed for the circle journal, for Jean...

See, I wasn't kidding when I said these ladies would notice when I learned that sewing on paper was so easy!  Haha!

Here are 4 of my favorite thoughts, in no particular order, and some words about them:

"To love what we do and share what we love, as we help others enjoy creativity and worthwhile accomplishments... in this we make a difference!" ~ Stampin' Up!'s Statement of the Heart

I try to share what I love whenever I can.  To me, this is not JUST about stamping (although I DO love stamping!).. I think you should always share what you love, whatever it is!  It's awesome to be able to share a part of yourselves with someone, even if it's not always easy.  And I do believe that sharing your passion makes a difference, somewhere down the line. :)

"Love is like a friendship caught on fire.  In the beginning a flame, very pretty, often hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering.  As love grows older, our hearts mature and our love becomes as coals, deep-burning and unquenchable." ~ Bruce Lee

I absolutely love this quote.  I used it on a project quite a few years ago (that I'm still working on), and this is actually how I feel about my relationship with Seth.  ♥

"A woman is like a tea bag- you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Like I wrote in my CJ layout shown a few days ago (Jenn's), I believe that women are very strong.  This is a quote that I have always loved, since before I can remember, and I was thrilled to see that SU! came out with a stamp set with this quote (Favorite Thoughts, in the Summer Mini).

"In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations." ~ The Great Law of the Iroquois Confederacy

Now this... this has struck quite a chord with me, and I really do think of this one every day.  It is also from this Law that the earth-friendly company Seventh Generation (one of my absolute favorites) derives its name.  This explains why I try to live "green" every day.. why I eat organics whenever I can, why I eat local products, why I use ONLY earth-friendly cleaners.. and so on.  I guess it's my personal philosophy?  I won't bore you with the details here, but feel free to ask me.  :)

The picture above Stampin' Up!'s Statement of the Heart is of me, my mom, and Shelli Gardner, who is the co-founder and CEO of Stampin' Up!.  I was tickled to meet her and have my picture taken with her at a regional seminar in Virginia Beach a couple of years ago, especially since I wasn't able to at Convention prior to that.  (My mom was my "guest" at the regional.)  She's such an inspiring person, through and through!  If you didn't know, she has a blog called So Shelli, which she updates regularly about her family life and SU! life.  She also has a Creative Challenge every month or so (using SU! stuff).. you should take the time to enter, as you can win free stamp sets!  :)

Anyway, the other picture is one that gives me such a profound feeling, whenever I look at it.  It was taken when we were at Maymont Park a couple of years ago, in the winter.  I felt it went perfectly with the quote above.

Here's my sign-in tag for Jean's CJ:

Lots of sewing here too, to coordinate with my layout.  Hope you like it all, Jean!

Circle journal layout supplies:
Stamps:  Taffy Alphabet (retired), Vintage Vogue
Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Rose Red, Old Olive, and Tempting Turquoise
Paper:  Naturals White, Kraft and Whisper White cardstock, Vellum Cardstock, Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper (retired), Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper (retired)
Accessories/Tools:  Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, Metallic Brads, Scallop Edge Border and Small Heart Punches, sewing machine and thread, and Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, and Clear Buttons (retired)

Sign-in tag supplies:

Paper:  Naturals White and Early Espresso cardstock, Vellum Cardstock, Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper (retired)

Accessories/Tools:  Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, Scallop Edge Border, Spiral and Small Heart Punches, sewing machine and thread

Circle journal - what I miss when away from home

Good morning!

Here is my next layout created for the circle journal.  This one is for Lisa, who wanted to know what we missed when away from home.  I tried to use lots of color for Lisa!

What do you think?  I used a little inspiration from a sketch on PageMaps, as I was feeling a bit burnt out!  I know how much Lisa loves those butterflies, so of course I had to use them. :)

To create the Crumb Cake (that name always makes me hungry) layer, I used the "negative" from the butterfly die-cut, sponging Crumb Cake ink into it like a stencil.  That gave me great images of the butterflies, almost as if I had stamped them!  I also stamped the flower vine from Vintage Vogue in Crumb Cake.

A bit of stitching on here too, as you can see.  Even hand-stitched the buttons on at the bottom!

So when I'm away from home, I'm always missing:
1.  Seth - when I was at the beach with my family, we talked over video chat almost every night
2.  Fluffy - she's like my child, so I'm sure those of you with children (or furbabies too) can relate!  :)
3.  my own bed - nothing like relaxing in the comfort of your own!
4.  home-cooked food - I guess I end up eating out a lot when away from home.  To me though, there's just nothing like a good home-cooked meal.  (I know the picture is of food not really "cooked", but it was of a recent meal of smoked mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, and yummy homemade garlic bread.. hey, that's cooked!  lol)

Here's my sign-in tag for Lisa (sorry, it's a little blurry for some reason):

Hope you like it all, Lisa!  :)

Circle journal layout supplies:
Stamps:  Jumbo Outline Alphabet and Good Neighbors (both retired), Vintage Vogue
Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Rich Razzleberry and Crumb Cake, VersaMark ink
Paper:  Peach Parfait, Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizzazz, and Chocolate Chip cardstock, Razzleberry Lemonade Designer Series Paper
Accessories/Tools:  Beautiful Wings Embosslits die, Little Leaves Sizzlits die, Metallic Brads, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White buttons (retired), Spiral and Scallop Trim Border Punches, Stampin' Sponges, Chocolate Chip 5/8" Satin Ribbon, Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, sewing machine and thread

Sign-in tag supplies:

Stamps:  Sentimental Journey

Ink:  Rich Razzleberry, Early Espresso

Paper:  Early Espresso and Naturals White cardstock

Accessories/Tools:  Crop-a-dile, Marina Mist 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Metallic Brad, Word Window and 1" Circle Punches, Cutter Kit, Basic Black Stampin' Write Journalier, sewing machine and thread

Circle journal - I love being a woman!

Hello!

I hope you had a great weekend!  Seth and I drove over to our hometown for the weekend with Fluffy, so we were visiting with family.  We just returned very early this morning, so I've had a late start to my day!  :)

Last week, I had finally finished my circle journal layouts.  Lisa should have them today!  (So sorry for the delay, Miss Lisa!)

Here's Jenn's, whose topic was 5 reasons why I love being a woman...

I had a lot of fun making this page!  I love the way the elements are arranged, and making that double eyelet border was very easy.  The black lettering on the background was printed through Microsoft Word directly onto the Naturals White cardstock.  You will notice on these last 3 layouts, that this is the period when Melissa discovered how easy it is to sew on paper.  LOL

My five reasons..
1.  Being able to multi-task!  This is one of my personal strong points, and I will quietly say that Seth has often admired me being able to do this.  :)
2.  Shopping for & wearing pretty things - I snapped the photo at Target, of one of their jewelry displays.  I love jewelry, although I don't own as many pieces as I'd like.  I suppose I have trouble spending a lot of money on them, especially "costume" jewelry.  I have been meaning to use this jewelry display as inspiration for Simply Adorned pieces.
3.  Being strong!  I feel that women are very strong and are able to endure a lot.
4.  I'm not expected to know a lot about sports (you know, like professional sports teams, etc).  Kind of a stereotypical thing, I know, but I'm glad that I don't have to remember all of the pro sports players and how good of a player they are, and so on!  The picture on the LO was of the football stadium at the University of Tennessee.  It was our first UT game, and there were close to 100,000 people in attendance!
5.  I'm looking forward to becoming a mother!  That's an experience that I am sure is like none other.

Jenn asked us to make a feminine accessory item for our sign-in tag, such as a purse or compact.  I had so much fun making this little purse!  Here's the outside:

I took a piece of Early Espresso cardstock, scored it, and covered one side with VersaMark ink.  I then covered it with Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, and used my paper piercing tool to draw wavy lines in both directions.  Then I heated it, and voilà!  A faux alligator purse.  :)  You can tuck the purse flap into the Filigree Designer brad to hold it in place.

Here's the inside:

Hope you like them, Jenn!

Circle journal layout supplies:
Stamps:  Watercolor Trio
Ink:  Baja Breeze
Paper:  Naturals White, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, and Baja Breeze cardstock, Bella Rose Designer Series Paper (retired)
Accessories/Tools:  Chocolate Chip and Old Olive buttons (retired), Chocolate Chip 1-1/4" Striped Grosgrain Ribbon (retired), Filigree Designer Brads, Linen Thread, Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, 1" Circle, Small Heart and Eyelet Border Punches, Cutter Kit, sewing machine and thread

Sign-in purse tag supplies:

Ink:  VersaMark ink

Paper:  Naturals White and Early Espresso cardstock, Sweet Pea Designer Series Paper pad (retired)

Accessories/Tools:  Marina Mist 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon, Filigree Designer Brads, Basic Black Stampin' Write Journaler, Small Heart and Eyelet Border Punches, Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, Paper Piercing Tool, sewing machine and thread