"Best Wishes" card

No, this isn't for a wedding - although when I sat back and looked at the final product last night, it sure looks like it could be! One of the families from our church is moving on to the next stage in their life: the husband has finished his master's degree, and they're moving back to Canada to head up a camping ministry in Alberta. Very neat opportunity! Well, his lovely wife is one of the table leaders in our MOPS group, and I made this card for the steering team and other table leaders to sign.

Details on the card: all stamps from SU (Easy Elegance, French Script, Sincere Salutations). Large Fabriano notecard (finished card is 6x8), Daisy D's patterned paper, and the heart ribbon slider is from Maya Road

A RAK and another tag...

So lucky me got another fun surprise in the mailbox yesterday! Denise sent me this great card - love the colors and the velvet ribbon (I really do need to get some of those darling little safety pins). She also included some stamped Bella images. Man, for not owning any of the stamps, I now have quite a collection ;) Thanks so much, Denise!

And speaking of Bellas, I sharpened a few of my Prismacolor pencils and came up with an image that I actually like, so now I just need to find a home for the little lady on some cardstock. Maybe I'll even manage it by the end of the week!

And lastly, I've been tagged by Wanda and am now supposed to share 7 weird things about myself, then tag seven others. Only seven things?!? Hmmmm...

1. I am a complete klutz, and have managed to hurt myself in some rather comical ways. I am now very wary of sheetrock, as it has left me "damaged" twice. Never take your eyes off of the seemingly innocent white stuff resting against a wall. And don't get me started on coconuts!
2. I hate Doritos and cheese popcorn, but like Cheetos.
3. My first "real" job was as a waitress in high school. My first day, I went over to help clean up a glass of water that a nicely dressed older woman had spilled. In the process, I managed to knock over her husband's glass, sending the ice water directly into his lap. Thankfully they were very good sports about the whole thing, but I was absolutely mortified and seriously considered quitting.
4. I was born and raised in Montana but have never been skiing.
5. My first college major was mechanical engineering. Whatever was I thinking?!?!?
6. I did not date until I was in college, and I had only one other boyfriend before my hubby.
7. I'm only 5'4" but wear size 11 shoes. I would also like to add that 99% of cute shoes are only available through size 10. It stinks (oh, and that would refer to my feet, too!)

And now for the fun part of making others squirm! I think I'm going to tag some bloggers that I love checking out for "fresh" inspiration. Great techniques, and a style markedly different from my own, so it stretches me. (And I may not have left comments on all of them, so this could be a surprise for a few!)

http://brayergirl.typepad.com/

http://thepaperquilter.blogspot.com/

http://susan-artfulmusings.blogspot.com/

http://theartfulmama.blogspot.com/

http://houseofstirfry.blogspot.com/

http://www.collagecontessa.blogspot.com/

http://heatherbailey.typepad.com/heather_bailey/

Convention Recap

Well, I wasn't a big winner this weekend, but I did have a lot of fun. I worked at the Eureka booth from 9:30-3:00, running the register. And let me tell you, I would estimate that I only had about 10 minutes of downtime total. Those ladies were snatching up the sticky powder, foil, and leaf! John is a wonderful demonstrator, not to mention a very nice person. I snapped this one quick pic - this pretty much captures the tone of the day, as everyone was oohing and ahhing over the demo. I swear we're all magpies; we love our shiny stuff!!

So after that, it was time for a bit of shopping. I had a couple things on my shopping list: envelopes from Marco's, polka dot alpha from a*muse, and a couple copic or prismacolor markers to try out. I got two sizes of envelopes from Marco's so I now can make two other card sizes without thinking, "Aw, man, now I've gotta make my own envelope!" I did get the alphabet from a*muse, and I also picked up three Prismacolor markers from their booth in jasmine, sky blue light, and avocado. Haven't had a chance to play yet, but I'll be sure to report back. Their booth was super cute, and I got to see some JulieHRR samples first-hand!! And of course I had to pick up a few things from Eureka, including two more foils, and three stamps (a peacock feather, a dragonfly, and a butterfly). I was tempted by some brass stencils, but maybe next year. I didn't take any other pictures, as many of the samples were the same from previous years, and honestly I was just too tired at that point. And I am delighted to report that I only spent about half of what I earned, so I'm quite happy with myself. I only saw two booths that were offering make & takes, and even though it was late in the day, the seats were all filled so I just kept on going. Overall impression: fewer vendors, fewer M&Ts, but a good variety and definitely nice quality goodies. Can't wait for next year!

And I saw a fellow stamp addict with a great T-shirt: "Just hand over the stamps and no one gets hurt!" (in a ransom note type style). I may just have to make one for myself!

Another ATC

Well, I was reading over the info for tomorrow's event, and I realized that each person is allowed to enter two ATCs. So of course I had to make another one! These are the same size as a baseball card, so it's fun but also challenging to work on such a small canvas. This time I used patterned paper (BasicGrey - Scarlet's Letter), then layered on some funky lace, vellum, and die cut clock hands. The "tick tock" is stamped using Technique Tuesday's small Williamsburg alphabet (clear set), and then I handwrote "it's later than you think." And let me tell you, that's soooooo true! This girl needs to get to bed...

By the way, since I've mentioned several times that I've cut myself off from spending on craft stuff, I thought perhaps I should add a word of explanation about tomorrow. I am actually helping out at a vendor booth, so not only do I get in free, I even get paid to be there! I've adapted my personal challenge somewhat for tomorrow: I can't spend more than I earn. I'll have limited shopping time, which will certainly aid in that goal, but I am just looking for a few things so hopefully I can be a good li'l stamper. I'll report back on Monday!

My first ATC!

I'm going to the Allentown Rubber Stamp & Paper Arts Festival this weekend (more info here), and they're having a little ATC (Artist Trading Card) contest. The theme is Clocks: Tick, Tock, and the winner gets "rubber bucks" that can be used at any vendor booth. I've never made an ATC in my life, but the lure of freebies is just too tempting. I started with Going Gray cardstock, then stamped it with a few images from the "It's About Time" set. I then swiped over that with a few different colors of acrylic paint, and overstamped a few words. The finishing touch: some actual watch parts (purchased from this same expo, several years ago). I layered it onto some cardstock, so I now have my very first ATC. The small size is fun to work with, but I think I'll stick with cards for now. And you can bet I'll let y'all know if I do win!

day lived well. check.

Lovely RAK

I actually received this great card last week, and am just getting around to posting it. The background is done on glossy paper with the lovely shades of purple and beige, I'm guessing with either a baby wipe or sponge? Either way, it make a wonderful backdrop for the card. There's also some fun paisley images on the vellum, and great texture on the heart, too. Thank you, Jacki, for this happy postal surprise!

Along with the card itself, she sent me some stamped Bella images to play with. Now these little ladies are quite the rage in the stamping world, but as part of my vow not to spend any $ on my hobby, I had avoided even looking at the site. Well, suddenly they turned up in my mailbox!! Last night, my hubby and the kids were all sitting around the kitchen table coloring while I cleaned up after dinner, and my son announced that. "Mommy needs to color, too!" Since he insisted, I didn't want to break his little heart so I got out my "special" crayons and colored two of the little ladies. I generally prefer watercoloring when I'm coloring images, but I can't say I'm particularly happy with these results. I may just have to break out the Prismacolor pencils (which have never been sharpened - see why I really need to stop buying stuff?!) and give it another whirl.

Me? Really?!?

My dear friend Geneveive from The Art of Making a Home Joyful has nominated me for a Thinking Blogger Award! Seriously! In her words: I actually chose Tah Dah because of the creativity that is displayed in this blog. I am always impressed by Trish's God given gift and it is evident by the hand made cards that are posted on this blog. These hand made crafts sometimes take my breath away and make me think, "Wow"! Hmmm... no pressure there! :) I am truly honored to receive this fine award, and can't wait to receive the big check that accompanies it. (kidding!!)

The rules are to tag five other blogs that make you think. In addition:
1. If, and only if, you are tagged, write a post with five links to blogs that make you think.
2. Link to this post so people can find the exact origin of the meme.
3. Optional: Proudly display the "Thinking Blogger Award" with a link to the post that you wrote. Here are 2 versions to choose from:

So without further ado, I would like to honor the spirit in which this award was presented, and pass it along to five individuals who continually inspire me with their artistic endeavors. They all have unique styles, and their colors and layouts definitely make me think!!

1. Debbie at Thinking Inking
2. Godelieve at Stamping Mathilda
3. Jacqueline at Jacqueline's Craft Nest
4. Jacki at The Card Castle
5. Dina at Mama Dini's Stamperia

Thank you, ladies, for making me think!!

Woooooo Hoooooooooo!!!!

Oh my goodness - I won something!! I love the book Artful Memories by Carol Wingert and Tena Springer. Well, I was browsing blogs on Monday and someone had linked to Carol's wonderful blog - and it just so happened that she was giving away a copy of their new book Lifelines that has just been released. And I won it!! I'm soooo excited! I've been very convicted about how much moolah I have dropped into my hobby/obsession, so have vowed not to purchase anything papercrafting related for two months... and now I'm getting this sure-to-be-awesome book delivered to my door! Free!!!!

Suddenly, the sunshine seems just a big brighter!

UPDATE: Yes, the projects in this book are every bit as beautiful as anticipated. There are some great techniques that I'm just dying to try. Stay tuned, as I'm bound to get some time to play eventually!!