And this is how I roll.......................!

Well Hiya & Happy Saturday to you all! Boy do I have a tale to tell you AND GUESS WHAT???? It's ALL TRUE!!!  So as most of you know a blizzard/snow/ice storm blew thru the DC area on Wednesday and I WAS SUPPOSED to fly out Thursday morning with my pal Marti to LA for CHA!  At 10 pm that night I am packed and ready to go and fixing a late dinner for me & hubby because it took him 6 HOURS to get home from work because of the storm.  The storm was so bad that some people spent 10 hours in their cars, abandoned their cars, ran out of gas---it was BAD!  Hubby gets home and I get an email saying that my Southwest flight has been CANCELLED!  So I freaked of course and called Marti-O who was already in bed.  They couldn't assure me that I would be able to fly out Thursday morning from Dulles sooooo I HAD to be in LA Friday to teach a class so THIS WAS NOT AN OPTION for me 'kay!  So hubby is on the phone with Southwest and they have a flight out of Norfolk, VA on Thursday morning--Norfolk is 3.5 hours south from me and in the blizzard it was 6.5 hours!  Hubby says "can you be ready to go in 45 mins"----UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I guess, LOL!  So 45 mins later we are in the car driving in a blizzard, roads closed, vehicles abandoned EVERYWHERE like a friggin' obstacle course.  So I arrived in Norfolk at 6:30 am, airport is deserted and no snow to be found---great!  Runway goes right off over the water--not so great, lol!  Get on the 8:50 am flight for $300 EXTRA to Chicago --flight has 22 people on it and 3 Fed. Air Marshals----WHAT????????  One behind me, one in the row beside me and one in front of me---am I being escorted to Chicago??? LOL!  Well it made me feel a bit safe so I stretched out with my pillow and coat and was asleep before the darn plane took off--if you know me you know that that is HUGE!  Usually I'm a nervous wreck but I was so exhausted I didn't care if we crashed right in the darn water at the point, LOL!  I arrive in Chicago at 10 am (chicago time) to snow and ice on the ground and DELAYS everywhere---OY VEY!  But my flight is on time.  Meanwhile Marti-O calls and she was able to get a later flight out of Dulles that morning and is meeting up with me in Chicago to fly to LA.  I get on the plane (full house this time) and save her a seat--no Marti, no Marti, still no Marti.  20 mins after boarding the plane she gets on, LOL, her flight was late and she had to run to make it!  We both crashed and slept the whole darn way to LA.  Get to LA and no luggage for Marti--didn't make the plane, LOL!  Thank goodness my bags did because all my class stuff & copics were in my luggage and I would have seriously laid an egg if it hadn't arrived KWIM!?  1 hour later we finally get Terri (my roomie) to pick us up at the airport and then thru a series of bad turns arrive at the hotel 1.5 hours later (the airport is only 15 mins away okay) LMBO!  We check in, settle in and grab a quick bite to eat and then we all die in our beds by 9 pm (midnite my time).  Well okay, Marti died at 7:30 pm LOL! At 11:30 pm the hotel phone rings and rings and when we finally wake up  they want to let us know that Marti's luggage has arrived-- AT FREAKING 11:30 PM, are you KIDDING ME?  Helloooooooooooooooooooooooo we are SLEEPINGGGGG & we'll get it in the morning people!  At 5:45 AM the FREAKING HOTEL FIRE ALARM GOES OFF NO LIE---scares the living daylights out of us and you can hear people leaving their rooms and the hotel.  BUT NOT US--I said "they will have to come up here and drag us out if its a real emergency cuz I AIN'T going out in the LA street at 6 am in my  jammies---NO WAY JOSE!"  The alarm continues to go off for an hour and then shuts up finally.  By that time I'm awake and cranky but I get ready for my class at 10 am.  Class starts and at 11:30 the banquet manager comes to tell me that they power in the hotel MIGHT be shutting off for a few hours!  ARE YOU KIDDING ME---HELLO WE NEED LIGHT TO COLOR---DUHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!  So we broke for lunch, came back STILL NO power--power finally came on at 1:30 after I pulled out my McGuyver skills & tied the curtains in the room back with my Ipad power cord and phone cords, LOL!  Class finishes and we head out to dinner---Terri wants to show us around LA---so we saw the GREAT parts of LA & the not so great parts, LOL!  But it's always an adventure and I figure if I don't die or stroke out from it all I'll just chalk it up to another fun adventure in Suzanne's life, LOL!  I'm hoping the next few days are BORING, I'm really good at boring and calm stuff KWIM!  So this story is to be continued for you all on Monday..............................

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Monkey Fun!!

Today is my last project as a Guest Designer for Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps (sniff..sniff) and I've had such a great time working with the stamps this past month.  They are always so much fun to color and use!  Today is another fun Kraftin Kimmie Challenge and today's challenge is to "Reuse & Recycle"!  I pulled out one of the new stamps by artist Crissy Armstrong called "Cheeky Monkey"

for my Valentine's Day Project (find Kraftin' Kimmie stamps in the US HERE)!  This one I made for my hubby and I found this super cute Chocolate Monkey at my Wegmans and he inspired the whole project, LOL!  Aren't they CUTE??

So for my recycled part of my project all of my cardstock and ribbon were from my scrap bins.  The patterned paper is Bo Bunny and I liked the browns in it with the reds and pinks---perfect for a guy's card.  The hearts were cut out with my SB nesties and then embossed.  To make the fun rings around my image I used my circle nesties--a large one and then a smaller one and looped them around the image.  I liked the whimsical look it gave the card.  The pink cs embossed with hearts was done with a CB folder as well.  That cute sentiment is from PTI and punched out with an SU "Word Slot Punch".  A fun chocolate bow and rhinestones finish it off!

Isn't he a cutie-pie?  He's colored with Copics---I colored him in dots instead of soft blending so it gave him some fun texture me thinks.  (E37,E35,E31,E50,E51)  The leaves got a coat of stickles for just a bit of sparkle--not too much bling for my hubby :)  Make sure to hop over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Challenge Blog to see all the fun DT projects and join in the fun too!

Hope this post gave you a smile today and that you have a WONDERFUL weekend!  I'll be back with a post on Monday or Tuesday (depending on my state of mind, LOL) and then I head home on Tuesday!

Snuggle Up!!

Happy, Happy Wednesday to you all!  I am STRESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSED!!!!  LOL---yikes, so much still to get done today before I head to CHA tomorrow.  And now they are calling for snow today---omg are the weather gods trying to KILL me!  I am so sick and tired of cruddy weather and if my flight is delayed I am going to LAY AN EGG I tell ya, LOL---I have got to be in LA by Friday morning to teach my class.  ACKKKKKKKKKKKK!  This is the only thing about CHA being in January--you never know what the weather is going to be like here, terribly stressful that's for sure.  So please pray with me that we end up with mostly rain and NO snow 'kay?  I seriously am going to need to be drugged on this flight--poor Marti--AND we have a layover in Denver of all places.  Are you kidding me? 

If I make it to LA in one cohesive piece I'm going to kiss the ground I swear---Marti will take a pic of me doing it, LOL!  I will be posting sporadically while I'm gone so please make sure to check in for new projects, new challenges and NEWSIES from CHA :)

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Snuggle Up!!

Today I have a vintage, shabby-chic project to share with you all!  I am a guest designer for In Style Stamps for 3 months so I am sharing my project with you today for the month of January.  This fun lil' digi image is called "Small Cup" and I was imagining it filled to the brim with some yummy raspberry hot cocoa---mmmmmmm good!  Perfect for this freezing weather we're having right now!  Perfect card for a friend to let her know you are thinking of her!  I also did this card for this week's SCS Color Challenge CC305 which was to use a light, medium & dark pink and one neutral color--I have more neutral than pinks but I did use all the colors, LOL!

I really enjoy using digi stamps because they are so convenient, easy to resize and easy to store.  In Style Stamps has lots of great digis for you to use too--see them all HERE!  I created a digi stamp faq sheet HERE awhile ago if you are new to digi images.

My papers are from K&Company--I love the vintage feel they give to my project.  I distressed a lot of the edges with my Zutter Distress It Tool and then inked the edges.  The center panel was made by using my MS border punch on both sides of my cream cs, then ran it thru a Cuttlebug folder (swiss dots) and inked the edges.  A bow, some Prima flowers and small tag finish this card off.

Here is the "Small Cup" up close---I colored it with Copics and then added Stickles to the steam & cute heart on the front.  I used my oval SB's nesties to cut the image and matting out & inked all the edges with my Inkssentials Blending Tool.  Mmmmmmmmmmmmm...mmmm..............good!

Have a wonderful day---and hopefully when you hear from me next I will be in LA safe & sound for a few days!

Wish Shoe Well!!

Hello everyone & Happy Tuesday to you all!  I am back from Nashville and semi-rested up, LOL!  I had a great trip down to the South--I enjoy the South so much, I just know it's going to be my home someday.  All the ladies were fabulous and I had so much fun teaching, going to dinner with some of the gals (waving hi) and just chatting.  And big huggies to my friend Jessica Deidrech for taking me around Nashville to see the Grand Ole Opry and Franklin, TN (home of Tim McGraw & some yummy crab-egg benedict, lol). Nope I didn't kidnap Tim but that's okay---I just wanna give him a big ole hug one of these days!  It took me about 9 hours to get home--so I got home around 2:30 am yesterday morning.  The ride was uneventful--just me & the truckers, LOL!  I ate something, hubby helped me unpack the car and then I fell face first into bed, hee hee.  The kids have off school today for a teacher workday, but I'm working all day as I have tons to get done before I leave for CHA on Thursday--egads, I'm already worried about getting everything done.  UNBELIEVABLY hubby folded & put away all the laundry I had done before I left, cleaned the kitchen & laundry room and stocked the fridge.  Well okay--he stocked the fridge with junk but at least he tried, LOL!  Him & the kids ate snacks and watched the BUMMER football games yesterday while I was heading home.  I'm NOT watching the SuperBowl this year (sniff..sniff) since I don't like either team much, BUT I will be watching the Black Eyed Peas perform :) at halftime!   So off I go to work on projects and hopeful the kids don't interrupt too much with fighting and/or whining today as is the usual for me when they are home!  I have a few pics to share below--I'm waiting for some of the gals from class to email me more pics to share with you all!

Nashville Pics:

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Wish Shoe Well!!

Thank goodness for all my projects from my wonderful stint as a Dirty Dozen Gal on SCS last year---they are going to save me in a pinch, LOL this year!  THIS project has NO stamps on it--GASP! LOL!  But it sure was fun for me to create--this is one of the last projects I created for the Dirty Dozen/Fan Club Gallery and the theme was "Creative Invitations" and it was my most FAVORITE!  I love, love shoes (and purses too)--I won't tell you how many I have but I love a cute shoe!  I saw this tutorial on SCS and just fell in love--you can see it HERE!  But I couldn't stop there--I had to add the invite in the shoe and then create a matching shoe box for it too!

So my invitation is for a "Bachelorette Party" or "Girlfriend Party"---wouldn't these be so fun to send out to your girlfriends as invites.  Imagine how exciting it would be to open something like this---I would LOVE it!  The fun paper I used is by Crate Paper--I loved the Asian feel to it but very elegant at the same time! It was also double-sided which I highly recommend you use when using this template so the inside of your shoe is pretty too!  I created the buckle with a Sizzix die I had and then for the toe of the shoe I layered some Primas and a pretty Prima Pearl Center.

Here's a side view of the shoe--isn't it fabulous?  I would sooooo wear this :)  I had plans this past Christmas to make some for my trees but I ran out of time (gee who woulda thunk it right, lol)--but I really want to make some this year to hang up.

Since my theme was "Bachelorette Party" I made up a fun lil' ditty to put on the inside "One Last Fling, Before She Gets Her Wedding Ring" and then the invite details.  How did I do it?  I printed out the shoe's sole template on white printer paper---then I created the wording in my MS Word program and made sure it fit within the sole of the shoe by printing it out.  I cut the sole out of my matching cs and then lightly taped the shape OVER the printing I had done and ran the whole thing thru the printer again--that way the printing ended up right on my inside-sole of my shoe and I just used Scor-Tape to attach it.

This is the matching shoe box---I just used a basic box template and then changed the size of it to fit my shoe.  The border trim was done with a beautiful MS border punch and then attached to the underside of the lid with more Scor-Tape.  The ribbon wrap is a belly wrap around the box so it can be easily slipped off---I decorated the top of it with some more pretty Prima flowers & a bow.

And this is what the shoe-invite looks like all bundled up in tissue paper inside the box.  At the side is the belly band that wraps around the box.  Such a beautiful and elegant way to present an invitation to those who are special in your life for a super-special event!  And I must say it was soooo much FUN to make too!

Hope you enjoyed the post today!!  See you tomorrow :)

Snow Dancing!!

Happy Friday my friends!  As you read this I will be driving the 10.5 hour drive to Nashville today--here's praying for an uneventful drive, lol!  I enjoy the quiet but this will be my longest trip to date so we'll see how I do.  They are calling for snow in the morning but it should be gone and out of here by the time I hit the highways.  On Sunday I am on a mission to find Mr. Tim McGraw, LOL, I know he's just dying to meet me, hee hee!  Although my mom has given me strict orders to search out Brad Paisley for her, hee hee!  But I'll keep it short and sweet for you today as I have lots to do and need to get to bed a bit earlier than my usual 1 am :)  Hope you all have a great weekend!

NewsBitz:

-Want to see where I'll be next?  Visit www.cmcroad.com to see the next upcoming copic classes!

-7 Kids College Fund has LOTS of new & yummy products in the store!  Pre-order all the NEW Spellbinders dies HERE (30 of them, yikes, lol), NEW Bildmalarna cuties HERE, and fab NEW Sizzix Embossing Folders HERE!

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Snow Dancing!!

Yes, yes, yes---I am very late with my Copic Creations Challenge project & I apologize!  But here is this cutie for you all!  Our sponsor this week is the lovely Prairie Fairy and they have sooooooooooo many cute digi images for you to choose from.  They gifted each of the DT gals 1 image and I chose this fun and whimsical "Morley Dancing" image--isn't he cute!  They have lots of images with him in funny poses, lol!  Since for most of us it's still winter (bah humbug, lol) I wanted to do a more masculine birthday card as I don't make many of those. (course this would work well for a gal too)  The challenge was to do something different & fun on our cards/images---I chose to paint with my copic inks.

These papers are by Memory Box (older) and the brown decorative border was done with a MS border punch.   The large snowflakes are punches that I coated with MS Glitter Snow and then added a bow treatment to one of them.  The sentiment and twill ribbon are from a PTI and the image was cut with SB Nesties Labels 15--I love that shape.  As usual I softly blended the outside of the image with my fave Inkssentials Blending tool (with foam)--love, love that lil tool!

So most of this image was colored with Copics EXCEPT his boots and antlers--those I painted with the Copic Refill Inks.  How?  I used a plastic artist's palette and put 1 drop of C7 and 1 drop of E53 into separate areas.  Then I wet my paint brush with rubbing alcohol (you could use Colorless Blender too) and very lightly started making strokes onto my image, keeping the area wet with the rubbing alcohol to blend it nicely--it took a lil' while to get the look I wanted.  I dabbed off a lot of ink each time on a paper towel and slowly added a bit of color layer by layer slowly until I was happy with it.  It is a much longer process than just coloring with copics, lol, but it was fun.  I finished off the antlers and boots with a coat of Diamond Glaze for shine.  The ends of his scarf got some Sparkly Fluff and his boot cuffs got white Doodlebug Flock and then more MS Glitter Snow around him.  Cute isn't he?  He looks like he's having wayyyyyyyyy more fun in the cold snow than I would, LOL!

Make sure to hop by the Copic Creations Blog to see the rest of the DT's projects and join in on the challenge with us too!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Love Angel!

Happy Middle of the Week to you my friends!  Are you having a great week?  We had a super nasty ice-storm on Monday night and we got almost 1/2 inch of ice so the kids had NO school yesterday.  They loved it since it's mid-term week for them but it just delays the inevitable, lol!  So back to school today for them and no ice so I can run some errands and get some work done.  I swear this is what I heard all day yesterday----can I make a shake? how do I make one? can I make an Icee? how do I make it? can I make brownies? where's the pan? what dish do I use? what's for lunch? what's for dinner? did you wash my jeans? can I go to so-so's house?  OH MY GOODNESS--this is why I get nothing done ALL DAY when they are home, LOL and they are TEENS for goodness sakes!  I think they are worse now then when they were little, always pestering me with 100 questions, LOL!  And of course I answer them but then I get "but I don't see it?--where did you say it was?" so then I end up tromping downstairs and pulling it out right where I said it was and helping them.  By the time I tromp back upstairs they're asking me another question, LMBO---it drives me CRAZY!  And the poor dogs were slipping & sliding all over the ice and they were scared to death so YES I had to go out there with them to reassure them that it was SAFE for them to pee & poop on the ice!  They were not worrying about me slipping and sliding and falling on my bum--probably where they had peed earlier, ewwwwwwwwwwwwwww!  That is my life in a nutshell people--full of life and many interruptions, hee hee!  I'm surprised I get anything done at all most days!  Geez---see why I like to go on my lonnnnnnnng drives because no one NEEDS me, I don't talk on the phone, I can't work and it's QUIET except for the radio---BLISS I tell ya, LOL!

NewsBitz:

-I am off to Nashville, TN this Friday and won't be back until Monday morning!  If you email me, I will only be checking emails in the evenings if I can.  I am sight-seeing on Sunday with some friends and then driving straight thru the night to get home by 6 am Monday, LOL!  If it's urgent--put 911 in the subject line so I answer it first!  BUT if I meet Tim McGraw then I might not come home, hee hee!

-Awards!  Thank you to everyone who has given me an award the past few months--I always try to get over to your blog and thank you personally for that.  I'm such a forgetful person that I don't always remember to put them on my blog--my mind is usually racing 200 mph and I'm checking email and other things as I type my blog so I usually forget.  But my sweet pal Lisa Gobea just sent me a sweet award and I wanted to make sure to thank her here for that--you can visit her blog HERE! And I promise to be better about this--it's a New Year's Resolution!!

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Love Angel!

Today I'm sharing a Valentine's Day card with you I made for the 7 Kids Challenge Blog!  The challenge was to do or use something NEW!  Well I did two new things on my card and you can read about them below!  You can see all the other DT projects and how to join in on the fun at the 7 Kids Challenge Blog HERE!

I haven't made a shaped card in awhile so I was SUPER-DUPER excited to pull out my NEW Spellbinders Grand Caliber machine and Grand Nesties "Labels 1" (yes this is part of my NEW)!!  Do not be mistaken--these larger dies are not just for scrapbookers--they are great for any kind of paper craft.  They can mat larger images and you can make shaped cards like I have here!  The stamp image is a CC Designs Sugarplum stamp and it was actually a Christmas stamp, but I think she looks cute as a girl cupid/love angel too!  I didn't see this at 7 Kids in stock but there are LOTS of other cuties right HERE!  See the NEW CC Designs stamps HERE--they are super cute also!  The heart cut-outs are by Spellbinders too.  The flowers are a mix of Primas and those itty bitty pink pearl on the end were made with the NEW version of Ranger's Liquid Pearls.

The papers are a mix of PTI and Kaisercraft that I had in my scrap bin--love to use up my scraps, lol!  The pink heart embossing was done with an embossing folder by UK Crafts Too--I've gotten mine in Canada at Stamplicity and in Michigan at The Paper Hollow.  They are hard to find but I LOVE the designs!  After I embossed the cs I rubbed white Palette Ink over it with my Inkssentials Blending Tool (a crafter's must have too I swear by them--get the extra foamies too so you can have 1 for each color)!

I colored her up with Copics of course!  Have you seen the 12 NEW Sketch Copic Colors yet--they will be shipping in March & you can pre-order them HERE in singles or in a set (at bottom)!  The other NEW thing I've been experimenting with is using more gray copics on top of my coloring to create deeper shadows.  I ordered a few T copics to try out and that's what I used here.  When you add gray over your coloring make sure to go back over it with whatever color you used underneath to lightly blend it.  Her wings got a nice coat of Stardust Stickles--my fave stickles to use as you can use them over any color and not distort it.  Colors Used: (R22,R21,R20,R00/E15,E11,E00/E39,E37,YR23,YR20,E31/T2,T4,T6)

Hope you enjoyed this sweet angel post today!  Make sure to hop over to the 7 Kids Challenge Blog to join in the fun and see the other sweet projects!  See you back here on Friday!

Calendar Days!

Hello my friends and Happy Martin Luther King Day to you all (for those in the US)!  Since it's a holiday in the US that means quite a few of us have off today---well since I work from home I NEVER have a day off, LOL, with laundry, cooking, animals, kids, etc!  But that's pretty much the routine for most of us right, we fit it in when we can!  But kids and hubby are home today so I don't really know how much work I'll get done, hee hee!  Riley is still sick but stable so I'm hoping he's on his way to recovery---our goal is to keep him from getting pneumonia right now.  Thankfully he has a 3 day weekend plus he stayed home on Friday, so the rest was good for him.  This week is also mid-terms for my daughter so she's a studying fool right now :) She has 1/2 days all week (oh boy help me) so we'll see how that goes---she likes to BUG me while I'm working, LOL as if I'm solely here for her entertainment!!  But I've got a lot to get done before I leave for Nashville this Friday to teach my Copic Class so I gotta keep my nose to the grindstone, LOL!  And if I HAPPEN to run into Tim McGraw while in Nashville, you'll hear my screech across the country 'kay?  :)

NewsBitz:

-Interested in Distress Ink Classes!  Angie Hunt is teaching a beginning class on watercoloring with Distress Inks at the Color Me Creative Classroom HERE!  Sign up before Jan.25th and get a discount!!

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April Showers, Bring MAY Flowers!!

Today the Magnolia-licious DT has a fabulous Blog Hop for you all today!  Our fellow DT sistah Angie Hunt had a fabulous idea late in summer for our DT to create a 2011 Calendar for our divine lady-leader Diana Crick for Christmas--owner extraordinaire of Magnolia-licious!  So all of us on the DT created 1 or 2 months for the calendar and then Angie put it all together for us and sent it off.  I hope Diana enjoys each month of 2011 flipping the calendar open to a new month designed and created especially for her!  I know I had a ton of fun creating this "MAY" page for her!

So you can find all the Blog Hop Details at the Magnolia-licious Highlites Blog HERE with the blog hop order and how to join in on the fun.  Make sure to read thru my post to find out who to hop to next and maybe a sweet treat for you as well!

I got to create a "MAY" page for the calendar which happens to be my favorite month because it's always beautiful springtime and my birthday month, LOL!  Every image except the sentiment is a Magnolia stamp from Magnolia-licious!  The entire page is 8x8" which gave me lots of room to play! The lil' flowers were made with my Nellie Snellen punches, layered together and then a pretty pearl put in the centers.  To create the landscape I used the "Summer Background" (I couldn't find it at the store, but there is a similar background here)--I actually cut it into pieces (gasp,lol).  That way I could stamp the grassy knoll a few times and stamp the clouds and sun wherever I wanted--a good way to use this stamp for larger scenes.  I just put the pieces in a baggie so they are all together for safe-keeping!

This is one of my favorite Tilda as she's perfect for spring AND holding my fave flower TULIPS, lol!  She is called "Tilda with Three Flowers"--she's a little beauty and perfect to sit on the knoll.  All of my images and background was colored with Copics.  Her shoes got Diamond Glaze and the top of her dress and tulips have stardust Stickles on them.

This cutie-pie is "Tilda Picking Lilacs" (I couldn't find her at Magnolia-licious but if you request her I'm sure Diana can get more in since spring is right around the corner).  I paper pieced her dress with papers from my DCWV Collection that I used for the background paper as well.  Always shade your paper piecing so it matches the rest of your images--I shaded with Copics right on top of my paper.  I made the "lilacs" more into wildflowers, lol, by adding yellow Flower Soft to them.  All of my images were popped up on the page with dimensionals.

The tree is called "Oak Tree" and I only stamped part of it on the page and colored with Copics.  I sprinkled my flowers I made across the page using the same colored cardstocks from PTI.  The cute lil' birdies are called "Tilda's Birds" and they are from the Spring Collection 2008 and I've had them for awhile--I love their chubby little bodies :)

The sentiment I made on my computer and then printed out directly on my cardstock--very appropriate for May me thinks!  For my butterfly I used a MS punch but Magnolia makes some really cute butterflies and bees too!

So that concludes the tour around my "May Calendar" page for you, LOL!  Hope you enjoyed it!

So my Sweet Treat for you is a Blank Keepsake Calendar (8x8), a paper pad of K&Company "Wild Raspberry",  and 2 Magnolia stamps of your choice from Magnolia-licious!

Just answer this question "When Spring arrives, what is the first thing you like to do?"

Answer that question by Saturday, Jan.22nd and winner will be announced on next Monday!

Now your next magnificent stop on this Blog Hop is MINDY's BLOG HERE and she's sure to have some wonderful pages to share with you!  Don't forget to stop by the Magnolia-licious Highlites Blog as well to see the details on how to join in!

Sweet Strawberry Skippin'!!

Hello friends and Happy Sunday to you all!  Hope you had a swell weekend!  Total bummer to see the Ravens lose to the Steelers--we're all a bit bummed in the Dean household, lol!  It sure would've been nice to see a hometown team in the Superbowl--it's been a long while since that's happened!  But maybe next year right?  That's what I say every year dang it all, LOL!  Only in sports games can you go from a super high, high-fivin' and then total silence and bummed outness, LMBO!  We are off today to the RV and Camping show for awhile--James' favorite event of the year.  I can just see his brain twirling & whirlin' while we are there planning our future.  I'm all for RV'in and traveling the country BUT I will not give up living in a house and I repeat that to him regularly, hee hee---NO WAY JOSE!  I'm up for close living quarters for awhile but not FOREVER, I need my space KWIM.  I love him dearly but I also need my time, he needs his time and I gotta have a studio.  Not to mention we have 7 animals, LOL, who take up space!  And thanks for the well wishes for Riley--he's doing ok just struggling still but crossing fingers that the new antibiotic kicks in and helps!

NewsBitz:

-Interested in taking Copic Classes with me?  Check out all my upcoming locations at www.cmcroad.com---next up are Nashville, TN and LA before CHA!  I'd love to see ya!

-Want to learn more about watercoloring with Distress Inks?  Angie Hunt is a fabulous and talented designer who uses these masterfully and she's teaching a class at the Color Me Creative Classroom.  Check out the details HERE and save $$ if you sign up before Jan.25th!

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Sweet Strawberry Skippin'!!

Well today is the day my friends!  Yep it's RELEASE DAY for Kraftin Kimmie Stamps and we are celebrating with a fun-filled Blog Hop!  If you get lost along the way you can always find a link list at the Kraftin Kimmie Blog HERE!  I got to use this fabulous stamp called "Stella Strawberry" by artist Annie Rodrigue---isn't she a sweet beauty?  This line is called "Berry Girls" and there are 6 of them in the collection, all cute and wonderful so make sure you check them all out!  And there are 16 NEW Stamps in the entire release for January 2011 so lots to see and buy, hee hee!  You know you wanna add some to your collection!  You can buy the stamps at Kraftin' Kimmie or for those here in the states, SCACD carries them HERE as well!  **As you hop from blog to blog, be sure to leave a comment at each and every stop because some lucky stampers will win packages of stamps from the new release!!

I had so much fun coloring her and my fun papers were perfect for a strawberry skippin' card.  The papers are by Kaisercraft called "Candy Lane"--love the bright pinks and greens.  The scroll work around the sides of the image is a die by Marianne Designs that I cut in half.  I used some white tulle to accent my Prima flowers to replicate the beautiful ruffles underneath her dress. 

She's colored with Copics but of course (RV17,RV14,RV11,RV10/YG25,YG03,YG01,YG0000/E39,E31,YR20/E15,E11,E00).  I added stickles to the strawberries on her dress and in her hair and the bodice layer of her dress.  I always like to add Diamond Glaze to their large eyes for shine too, just a fun addition!

Okay so your NEXT STOP on the BLOG HOP is my fun & talented Canadian pal VICKI HERE!!!  

Have fun hopping today and you are sure to get lots of inspiration from all the designers!

 If you want to start from the beginning of the hop, just head over to the Kraftin’ Kimmie Challenge Blog!  As you hop from blog to blog, be sure to leave a comment at each and every stop because some lucky stampers will win packages of stamps from the new release!! 

Make sure to stop at Kraftin' Kimmie's HERE or for those in the US at SCACD HERE to load up on these cuties!

Stop back by on Monday for a fun Magnolia-licious DT Blog Hop!!

Sweet As Apple Pie!!

Happy Saturday my friends!  It's a sunny day today and supposed to be in the 40's here--ITS A HEAT WAVE I TELL YA, LOL!  Pretty sad when 45 degrees feels warm to ya, hee hee!  But I am grateful that the sun has come back for a few days and whisked away the dreary skies.  I have a very sick son at home so I am in mother-hen mode---he has a severe case of bronchitis that is flaring up his asthma and he's just not doing so hot.  I kept him home from school yesterday and he's been laying around and I'm feeding him with fruits and vitamins and feeling his head and chest---I think he's a bit sick of me, LOL!  But last year this happened at the same time and it was scary with many trips to the doctors so I'm crossing my fingers he comes out of it soon.  It's hard to see your kids so sick that's for sure!  So my post is short today as I'm tired, stressed and need to chill with him for a bit so I apologize.  Hope you have a beautiful weekend doing some relaxing & crafting!  I'll be rooting the Baltimore RAVENS to victory today when we watch the football game at 4:30 pm!  It's time for the STEELERS to be FROZEN OUT! LOL--sorry PA fans, I'm just a friendly rival :)  But ya'll are going DOWN--(please don't make me eat my words)!

**Today is the last day of Kraftin' Kimmie Sneakie Peekies and tomorrow is RELEASE DAY--yay!  There will be a fun Blog Hop to kick it off tomorrow morning so make sure to stop on by okay!?  Also there is today's Kraftin' Kimmie's Challenge which is to use "Florals" in your papers and trims--check out the deets here!

**Also today is the Copic Creations Challenge and our sponsor is "Prairie Fairy" which has a huge and glorious variety of digi stamps to choose from.  Make sure to hop over to the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see the DT projects and how to play along!  I'll have my card up early next week for you with all the deets!

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Sweeter Than Apple Pie!!

She is sweeter than apple pie dontcha' think?  This is "Abigail Apple" by Annie Rodrigue for Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps and she's available for purchase tomorrow (also available here in the US).  Something about her dress just gave me "scah-let fevah dahling", LOL, and all I could think about was Gone With The Wind and that lovely green dress Scarlet wears.  And then I thought about Granny Smith Apples to come up with my color scheme--why my mind goes where it goes, who knows, LOL!  So she got a debutante's gown of bright white and apple green which is so fresh and springy--makes me long for warmer weather!

The papers are from K&Company "Floral Dreams" and I loved the soft patterns and matching colors!  I embossed the white background with a brocade-like Cuttlebug Folder and the white trim was done with a MS punch.  I used a Marianne Designs die for my scroll-work and then added Prima layered flowers to my bow.  Since today's Kraftin' Kimmie Challenge is all about florals I wanted to use a giant one, LOL!  A few Bella Baubles in light green finish off the card.

I colored my "Abigail Apple" with Copics (YG67,YG03,G20/C1,C00/E29,E25,E31,E50)--I shaded the white parts of the dress with my grays.  In my pics it really washed out but IRL you can see the gray shading more, lol--that's the problem with photographing white, it can be super tricky!  The ribbon accent at the hem, hair bows and bodice of her dress got the stardust Stickles treatment and then I added Diamond Glaze to the apples and her eyes.  Don't they look yummy or am I just hungry?

Now make sure to hop over to see the other Krafty Girls DT sneakie peekies--you can find all the links for them HERE!  And tomorrow is the blog hop and release so I'll see you back here bright and early!!  Have a good one!

Oh Baby!

Yayyy its Friday my friends!  Dontcha' just love the weekends?  We are going out to dinner with friends Saturday evening and then hubby and I are off to a big RV show on Sunday!  I know, I know it sounds incredibly exciting, hee hee, but we like to look at RVs for some reason.  Maybe one day we'll buy one and travel the country--a gal can dream right!  Tonight I'm doing NOTHING, ordering Japanese and watching a movie on Apple TV with the hubster and son--daughter is off to a basketball game.  So I'm gonna feed my face with hibachi scallops, filet mignon and rice, watch "Dinner For Schmucks" and do some reading.  I am almost done with "Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follet---although I had to take a break for a few days and I started reading Susan Wiggs "Lakeshore Chronicles" series (really good) which was a nice read.  I have 3 more in the series to go which I'm looking forward to.  But I'll finish the Pillars book this weekend I think--the underlying story is very, very good but the violence is a bit off-putting but I'll make it through, lol!  And it was fun to read your comments on yesterday's post about being "Unplugged"--I love a good discussion!  I do feel that our kids are more techno savvy than my generation was BUT I do think that because they do so much social interaction thru tech gadgets that when push comes to shove they don't have the practice/ability to do it face to face.  Which is scary when they will possibly have to talk in front of an audience, do an interview, negotiate a deal--those are things that still have to be done person-to-person.  I think it's awesome that we can all keep in touch with so many of our friends nowadays, make new friends and start businesses but I think we need to keep "real life skills" in place as well.  Technology should NEVER replace person-to-person interaction--if it does than we'll all be robots, LOL!

Okay let's get on to my next Kraftin' Kimmie Sneak Peek for you today!

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Oh Baby!!

 

Another round of sneakie peekies for Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps NEW Releases--they will be available for purchase on Sunday!  Today I get to share a cutie-patootie baby stamp by Steven Leary for Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps--it's called "Baby Bubble Bath"!  I think its so cute and super fun to use for any baby events in your life!  The rubber duckie on his head prompted me to pull out this fun paper from Cosmo Cricket called "Togetherness"--I love the fun duck print and colors! Perfect for this :)  Make sure to stop by the Kraftin' Kimmie Blog HERE to see the rest of the DT's and Guests (like me) projects for more sneakie peekies!!

I kept most of the details simple as I wanted the fun paper to really stand out along with the cute image!  The bow was done with my fave Bow Easy and PTI ribbon with a button center accent.  Then I added a few more small buttons to the corner and the border trim was done with a MS border punch.

The image was colored with copics (R05,R02,R00/YG67,YG03,G20/Y15,Y11,Y00/BG10,C1) and then I had fun with some products.  I added some white liquid applique to the bubbles (heated to puff up) and then stickles on the water and soap bubbles.  The sentiment is from PTI!

Have a great weekend and check back here tomorrow with another fun Kraftin' Kimmie sneakie peekie!

What Color R Your Stripes?

Happy Thursday to you all--the weekend is almost here!  So today I'm going to talk about being Plugged in or Unplugged okay, lol!  Are you a techno-phobe or a lover of all things techno?  Is your whole family consumed by techno gadgets?  I ask because I read the best article in the Wall Street Journal about families being TOO plugged in!  I have to admit that sometimes our family is wayyyy too plugged in with Ipods, laptops, tv and phones!  But we have pretty strict rules in our family--no techno gadgets after 10 pm for the kids except on Friday and Saturday evenings and never allowed in the bedrooms at nighttime.  And NO phones/Ipods at the dinner table EVER! The article described how one family couldn't even hold a conversation with each other at the dinner table because they were so used to being plugged in.  We certainly don't have that problem--we eat dinner together as a family regularly and some of our dinner conversations would roll your ears back, LOL--we talk about everything!  I do think that our country is too plugged in and our kids are not learning essential social skills because they talk 90% of the time thru texts and emails instead of face-to-face.  And I'm not a huge fan of Facebook/Myspace for the teens as they spend too much time on it and bullying is very prevalant on those sites.  My kids have accounts but I have access to them so I can make sure the talk is "clean" and above board, if not its cancelled--that was the agreement.  I would admit to checking my Iphone and emails too often as well but on the weekends we try to stay unplugged as much as we can and really spend together time.  And emails and cell phones have made us so accessible that work hours are all hours for a lot of us==at some point we'll all have to take a stand and cut back a bit but it can be hard, lol!  So do you find yourself too plugged in?  I wanna know :)

NewsBitz:

-Sew Easy's are a fabby new product and back in stock at SCACD HERE!  They create different piercing/stitching patterns and allow you to sew many different stitches.  The flosses are very thick and create beautiful dimension on your paper projects.  I have a video to share on these soon--my movie maker software has to be reloaded as it had some "issues" LOL!

-Copic is releasing 12 NEW Sketch marker colors and they will be available in March!  7 Kids College Fund has the set of 12 for pre-order at a great price HERE!  Make sure to check them out!

-Want to take a in-person Copics Class with me? I have a few openings for copic classes in Murfreesboro, TN next weekend (Jan.22nd) if you live around that area! Check www.cmcroad.com for info on those classes and others coming up (I'll be teaching in LA before CHA too)!


-Interested in taking a class on watercoloring with Distress Inks? Then the fabulously talented Angie Hunt will be able to help you with her Distress Inks 1 Class HERE at the Color Me Creative Classroom. Sign up before Jan.25th and get a discount on the class as well!

-Blog Candy Winner is Lynda Sterling!  She doesn't have a blog but always emails me sweet comments on my posts so Congrats Lynda!  Email me with your mailing address please!

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Stripes the Zebra!!

 

So today I get to share some sneakie peekies of the NEW Releases for Kraftin' Kimmie stamps (also available for those in the US here)!  I am so thrilled to be guest designing for them this month!  These new releases will be available for purchase on Sunday and there will be a fun Blog Hop as well!  I got to use one of Crissy Armstrong's new stamps for Kraftin' Kimmie called "Stripes the Zebra"--it's like she made him just for me, hee hee!  Since I LOVE, LOVE all things zebra (hence the blog artwork, lol)!  I had so much fun with this card and hope you like it too!  See more sneak peeks and details at the Kraftin' Kimmie Blog here!

I used a fun Cuttlebug folder (zebra patterned, 15% off ) on the red cardstock in the background--then I took my stardust Stickles and put them on the embossed areas.  I like the sparkle and how it really picks up the pattern without being too bold or distracting.  The black/white paper is from my scrap bin.  The border is from a MS border punch and the circle cut is a Spellbinders nestie (lacey circles-yes my fave).

Let's do it together again friends ok?  Say "AWWWWWWWWWWWWWW, he's so cute"!!! LOL!   I colored this cutie up with copics (W9 thru W1/E42,E41,E40)--I used the warm grays this time to create the black tones, sometimes its fun to mix it up :)  To make him more dimensional I cut his back legs off (LOL) and then popped the front part of him up on dimensionals.  His paws & eyes got a thick coat of diamond glaze to make them nice and shiny.  The butterfly got colored with the feathering technique and then a coat of stickles for some pretty sparklies!

Hope you enjoyed this post today and now you need to hop on over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Blog to see more sneakie peeks and details about the NEW Release!