Time Travels!!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend (for those who live here in the States) & Happy Friday to the rest of ya!!  Yay it's a 3 day weekend--I love those!  And I want to say a BIG THANK-YOU to all of those that have served or are currently serving in the US military--we thank you for risking your lives to protect our freedoms and the country that we live in and we recognize the self-less sacrifice you give each day!!  And we remember those that gave their lives in the service of their country--we will not forget!!

Our plans this weekend, hmmm...are changing just a bit!  We're gonna spend one day in Baltimore and another day at our golf club's pool cuz' it's gonna be a hot one this weekend!  I'm gonna get that batch of hot, steamed MD blue crabs tho'--that's for sure!!  I'm not quite in tip-top bathing suit shape yet, but I've got a GREAT selection of cover-ups, LOL!  Although I did just order 2 new tankini's from Victoria's Secret and I'm hopeful to wear them by the end of June and get rid of all my Victoria Secret swim skirts that I have, that is my goal.  Gotta get hustling on my workouts--I'm up to running 3-4 miles five days a week and I got my new Elliptical Trainer so I'm doing 3 days on that along with lifting weights and Jillian Michaels workouts.  So far I've lost 4 of the 15 lbs (plus 2 lbs I count as water)--yikes--9 more lbs to go!  I'm more worried about toning the jiggle up though, hee hee--need that to be firmed up--no jiggling allowed, LOL!  Wouldn't it be really great if we could really LMBO (laugh our butt's off)--that would be so EASY!  And I am liking the juicing--I got a new Breville Juicer and it's fantastic--super powerful and quiet too.  But most importantly it's easy to clean!  So I drink 3 juices a day and a dinner of chicken/fish & veggies and for snack I have a Luna bar--but my fave juice mix is celery, cucumber, mushrooms, tomatoes and apples & cranberries---yep it really is good, like a sweet salad in your mouth, LOL!  Don't gag please :)

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Time Travelin'

Today Susana's Custom Art & Card Design is having a fabulous NEW RELEASE from Victoria Case for SCACD and the DT is having a blog hop too!  You can get all the details on the blog hop at the store blog HERE!  These cuties are ready for summer and the collection is called "Hearts & Hugs Summertime" and they will steal your heart for sure.  I'm using this cutie called "Safe Travels" and I made a card and matching suitcase favor/treat box (I created this box and made a tutorial for it, see below) along with papers from Graphic 45.  I think this would be perfect for someone heading off to college this fall, a bon-voyage present or just a congrats or moving gift!

I colored this gal from "Safe Travels" up with Copics--gotta love a nice red dress, I added black polka-dots to the dress with my black spica pen.  Her purse & hat bow got a coat of Viva Decor Glitter Liner (in holo.) for some extra bling!  The tag was pre-made and came with the Graphic 45 papers--I added the sentiment in red (PTI) and some pearl bling to it.  The double bow was made with my fave tool Bow Easy and the corners were done with my MS border punch.  I distressed all my papers with that fabby Zutter Distress Tool for a little shabby chic look!

So I worked for awhile to come up with a realistic-like suitcase box that would open by hinges and fit a gift card, money or other small treats.  I finally came up with this after 2 hours of playing, lol, and I created a tutorial that you can download (Mini Suitcase Tutorial HERE)---I will also link it in my Tutorials/Templates tab at the top of my blog for ya!  If you use it, please just note where you got it--I'd appreciate it!  You can of course decorate it any way you choose, I ran some kraft cs thru my Cuttlebug folder and then distress inked the edges.  The nailheads are gold brads with the backs cut off and attached with glue-dots.  The little stamps/tags are cut from some of the Graphic 45 paper/die-cuts.

This is what it looks like when it's opened--the top hinges but doesn't come off and you can fit a gift card, money or other small gifts inside.  I love how it turned out, even if it did take me awhile, LOL!

I am the LAST STOP on the BLOG HOP today, but if you're starting with me make sure to start at the BEGINNING with DT sistah KIM!! If you get lost along the way, stop by the store blog for all the blog hop details HERE.

I'll be back with a fun post for ya on Sunday or Monday (not sure yet, hee hee)!  Hope you have a fabulous weekend!!