Thursday, August 4, 2011

Ruff Day?

Hello everyone and welcome to Thursday LOL!  It’s a RUFF day here in the Dean household.  Alexa didn’t make Varsity Cheer so she is very disappointed and is moping and sad—the teen angst has hit our house HARD and I wish I could make it a bit better for her. I know she did her best and we knew it was a long shot to get on Varsity since she’s only a sophomore but I had my fingers crossed for her.  I’m actually not that upset since JV Cheer games are on Mondays and sometimes Tuesdays---that means I’ll be able to go to most of them.  Varsity cheers on Friday and with my fall travel schedule in place I would’ve missed quite a few.  I tried to tell her its just one of many of life’s disappointments, that over time we all have many and that’s just how life works.  But its HOW YOU CHOOSE to accept it and move on that counts the most.  I told her she could be the best darn JV Cheerleader on the squad and really show them how good she could be—try her best and next year who knows. No matter how hard the blow is, you gotta pick yourself back up, wipe your bum off and try again.  What matters is how you approach the situation and I try to teach my kids that you gotta be positive, move on and grow stronger from it and hopefully learn a good life lesson along the way.  But you know teens, I’m not sure how much they really hear and understand but hopefully me repeating it gets in their heads just a bit.  And I try to show them how to do it all the time---we’ve all been knocked down in our lives but you gotta get back up and not let anyone or anything keep you down. Life isnt’ always fair or fun or fantastic but we only get 1 life so you might as well move on and count your blessings when they do come along!   Sooooo I’m headed to the gym this afternoon to do some kickboxing and work my kinks and stress outta my system LOL---great stress reliever Winking smile  Good way to clear the old head and clear out some calories too!

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Ruff Day?

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Well if you’re having a ruff day sometimes you just gotta “grin & bear it” right? LOL! Well these two cuties will bring a smile to anyone’s face!  They are from a new Gina K set called “Basket Buddies” illustrated by Melanie Muenchinger---aren’t they adorable?  Today the DT is showcasing this new set and another illustrated by Theresa Momber called “Heartfelt”.  So make sure to hop around to the DT Blogs listed below for a chance to win and get some great inspiration!!

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I love dogs! I love cats! (hence my 7 animals that live in my house lol)  And this set includes both but I pulled out the doggies to use first.  I decided that I wanted them to be Lab puppies (? I have no idea lol) because I wanted to make one of them black.  I used two of the smaller stamps—the dog bone and solid black dog image to create a background paper on my kraft cardstock, an easy and quick way to create custom paper.  The circle was embossed with an ole favorite CB folder “Swiss Dots” and then I added some black pearls along the top.  My ribbon was black and white gingham but I needed it to match the cream cs so I took my E42 copic and using the chisel end ran it along the ribbon to custom-dye it to match. You can do that with basically any ribbon---a great way to customize your ribbons too!  I stamped the cute tag from the set and stamped the sentiment inside and cut it out and mounted it with dimensionals underneath my image.  Some Crystal Lacquer on their noses and tongue finish it off!  Makes you wanna run out & adopt a dog huh?  Well if you do, remember the rescues have tons of fabulous animals wanting a good home—I work with 2 in my area and we are always in need of good dog/cat parents
Winking smile
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Next up is the Gina K set “Heartfelt” illustrated by Theresa Momber—it’s a beautiful set and perfect for the upcoming fall season.  If you are sick of the heat here in the US I’m sure you will be welcoming fall with wide open arms,LOL---me not so much! I like spring and summer best—fall just means winter is on its way, blech!  I made this card for a Release Challenge I have going on over at StampTV HERE—it’s a Paper Only Challenge BUT you can use product to dress up your paper LOL.  Everything else must be paper—so no fabrics, metals or plastics!  I distressed all my papers and then inked the edges a bit.  The trim is from a new Jumbo MS punch that I love—I cut it in half and added a piece to each side of my paper strip.  I stamped the sentiment directly on my patterned paper.  The diamonds in the right upper corner are actually punch-outs from the MS trim punch that I used for the trim—they were laying on my table after punching and I thought I might as well use them LOL.  I added Pearl Pen by Viva Décor in brown to create all my pearl accents.

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However much I hate the cooler weather I sure do like to decorate the house and porches for fall and if you’ve seen my blog you know we go wayyyy overboard with the Halloween decorations LOL!  So I had fun coloring this scene up—I used Copics in a multitude of oranges, yellows, greens and browns on the pumpkins and a nice thick layer of Crystal Lacquer on top of them.  The fence I used E44,E42,E41 on and then stamped the wheat/branches over top the sides of te fence and added Stardust Stickles to them.

Hope you enjoyed those projects and have a fabulous day! Make sure to check out the DT blogs below for a chance to win and to see more fantastic inspiration!!

63 comments:

  1. Such pretty cards, Suzanne. Your coloring is fantastic, as usual......

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  2. These are so awesome Suzanne! Love the distressing on the Fall one...and thanks for the reminder that we can custom our ribbons, always forget that!

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  3. Sweet pups, Suzanne. Love how you offset the fence by itself in the second card, too. Nice, nice.

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  4. I just don't know how to put in words how awesome your creations are!! Thank you for sharing and helping me get back on track,been in a funk for awhile.

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  5. Those puppies are cute, cute, cute! Already placed my order but those puppies are tugging on my heart!

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  6. Both cards are really great, thanks for sharing them and the chance to win.

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  7. Those puppies are so cute, awesome cards.

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  8. Sorry for your girl's 'ruff' day, but your advice to her was just the thing :)and I know from experience that she did hear you and it will sink in slowly, but surely (my girl is 19 now and she is forever 'echoing' some of my advice to me :)

    Your cards are adorable too...they are colored beautifully and love the little details ;)

    Here's to a better day :)
    Kim Marie

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  9. Very pretty cards. Love these new stamp sets. Great work!

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  10. cute cards loveing those puppies there adorable

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  11. Amazing coloring - as usual! These stamp sets are so wonderful - thanks for the inspiration!

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  12. truely amazing...love the doggie card with the netural color theme

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  13. Love them both, your cards are just beautiful

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  14. Your coloring is perfect as always ...wonderful cards.

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  15. Great cards! Love all the different techniques you used with the puppies: creating the background paper, the swiss dots, and most especially coloring the ribbon to blend for the card. Really like the fall card with the pumpkins and fence. So sorry your daughter didn't make varsity, but you gave her great advice and with time she will realize she has another chance next year.

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  16. Enjoyed your cards! Very pretty...and cute dogs!

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  17. Beautiful cards and awesome coloring! Thanks.

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  18. The pumpkins are going to be a must have.

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  19. Really like how you had the inset with the fence and then the pumpkins over it. Very nice design!

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  20. Love the autumn stamps with the fabulous cone flower and picket fence, but just can't get enough of those adorable puppy faces.
    Great cards.
    Marcie

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  21. all just great. Hope your daughter is feeling better about cheer now....

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  22. Love that little black lab! So cute! Love your design on the second card too! Gawgous!

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  23. Very nice cards....I too am an animal lover....10.

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  24. Stunning cards! Sorry to hear about Alexa. Sending hugs to her.

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  25. O just beautiful cute card! Love it!

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  26. Fun couple of cards -- great pumpkin coloring!

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  27. OMG this is soooo darn cute! Sorry to hear about your daughter but I agree she will be the best JV Cheer they have and blow them away with her Awesomeness!!!
    Hugs!!!!!!

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  28. These are beautiful Suzanne! Really appreciate your eye of color!

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  29. Amazing coloring of the puppies and pumpkins.

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  30. Great cards. Love the pumpkin card. Thanks for sharing.

    Linda D.

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  31. These look terrific Suzanne! I like how you colored one pup black and the other white and did a black & white card with the sillhouette images in the background. Your autumn card is simply breath-taking - LOVE the effect of that crystal lacquer on the pumpkins, SO pretty!

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  32. Cute creations. Thanks for the coloring the ribbon tip.

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  33. These are fantastic! Love the coloring on the puppies!

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  34. Love the fall card. Looks like a perfect fall scene, Suzanne.

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  35. Love the rustic pumpkin patch! And these puppies are adorable!

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  36. Great coloring work. Beautiful detailed cards.

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  37. Beautiful cards, Suzanne. Sorry about your daughter.....I do not miss those teen age years. I'm sure she'll be fine......

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  38. Suzanne, what really cute cards, give your daughter a hug from me. Love those labs...

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  39. Suzanne- thank you for sharing these wonderful cards! As always, your coloring is fabulous!

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  40. Love the pumpkins with the fence. Makes a beautiful, simple fall card.

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  41. Suzanne this post really hit home, I was going through "try outs" this week for 7th grade volleyball. Thank goodness they ended up not having to do any cuts, only 10 girls went out. I was mentally working on my speech just in case.
    I think you did just fine with what you told her, and maybe you could mention how happy some junior or senior girl is that they made it, and how hard it would have been for them to have to be on JV. If she is soft-hearted that might put it in a different light.
    Love the doggie card!
    Have a great weekend

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  42. Sorry your daughter didn't make varsity. Like the way you handled it though. Oh, the disappointments in life. Love the fence and pumpkin card. Nice job. Edna

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  43. That black lab will have the yellow one up and running around playfully in short order! Both very nice cards. TFS

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  44. Your cards are awesome! Love them both!!

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  45. Amen to your talk with your daughter. I have survived having 4 teenagers, 3 of them girls....
    I like your circles behind your puppies and your fall card, esp. using the punched scraps. Waste not, want not.
    Amen also to thoughts of winter following fall. There is beauty in all of the seasons its just that some of them I have to enjoy in my home out of the elements.
    Jean McGee

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  46. I love everyone's interpretation of those puppies! And the background papers I'm seeing made with the stamps are works of art too! TFS!

    Kris in Alaska
    funamom at yahoo dot com

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  47. I love, love, LOVE those pups!!!! And the Fall card is gorgeous!! Don't hate me but I can't WAIT for autumn and winter!! LOL

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  48. sorry your daughter didn't make it but I'm a great believer that everything happens for a reason. Love your cards x

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  49. that background you made with the dogs and bones is over the top cute suanne1 gorgeous fall card, love the pumpkins and layout!

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  50. I did enjoy, beautiful coloring! And your outlook on life is exactly like mine! More people should adopt that attitude!

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  51. Adorable cards! Thanks for a fun blog hop!

    Carol B
    ciaoitalia2007(at)gmail(dot)com

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  52. Sweet puppies and I love how you created the background with the little dog silhouette. Your fall card is gorgeous! Great coloring and the big circle behind the focal image makes me think of a big harvest moon.

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  53. Gorgeous cards Suzanne. I hope your DD gets over her disappointment

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  54. Great GKD cards and hope your daughter recovers from her disappointment soon.

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  55. Love both of your cards, Suzanne! Thanks for sharing.

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  56. Your cards are wonderful! The puppies are my favourite you have made them sooooo cute

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  57. beautiful coloring and layouts on these.

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  58. Great cards! I just love your choice of colors and your coloring.

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I appreciate all your lovely comments and taking the time to stop by! hugz,Suzanne

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