Friday, November 30, 2012

Blog Candy!!!

Well, I mentioned, some time ago, that I would give out blog candy when my blog reached 100 followers. Drum roll, please.......the time is now! And I do have a small collection of items for a lucky winner.

To receive this small collection, you do need to be one of my followers, so if you haven't signed up yet, please do so. You also need to leave a comment on this particular posting. I will give you until Friday, November 30. On December 1st I will draw a name from the collection of followers who have commented here.

You do not need to post anything about this on your blog, nor do you need to link back to mine. Just be a follower of mine and comment here. Okey dokey?

I will keep this post on top through November 30. Start your engines!

Jellypark GDT Final Installment - Stars Are Brightly Shining

Yes, this is my third and final GDT appearance for Jellypark Friends. I have been invited to join them as a DT member in January, and I am really looking forward to that--thank you!! This great group of gals are a tight-knit bunch, supporting each other through their ups and downs. I am honored to have guest-designed with them this past month, and to design with them starting in the New Year. And a big "Hi" to Jennifer--hope you are doing better each day!

I want to mention a couple of things before I get to my card for today. One is that I am writing this on Thursday, so I have no idea how Gary will be today. Does that make sense? Of course not, but I seldom do. Back-story: Gary had shoulder surgery today, which is actually Thursday, to repair some issues in his left knee shoulder. (I had to put in "knee", as the instructions they sent home with him referred to his knee surgery. He's not supposed to put much weight on it, which is ludicrous because he doesn't walk on his shoulder. Well, at least, not unless he's had too much to drink, which rarely ever happens. But when it does, it is rather hilarious to watch. Sorry. Couldn't resist.) Where was I? Lost in thought. And it's really dark in here.

Oh, yeah, Gary's surgery. Well, they gave him a nerve block, which, as I write this, is working splendidly. He has no sensation in his shoulder, arm, or hand, and barely any in his fingers. Which is a very good thing as he is still pain-free. Which was last night as you read this. But I have no idea how he is doing today, because today hasn't happened yet. Except in an alternate universe. Which, btw, is a really crazy place. Be glad you are here. Unless you have an evil twin like I do, that keeps making you write weird crap in your blog. Then, not so much.

I hope today is a pleasant one, and that Gary's pain meds are keeping up with his pain. So that his pain level is low. You know what I mean, Jellybean? It's no fun to be around a hubby who is in pain. 'Cuz then they are a pain in the you-know-what.

You know how I was so tired the other day because I stayed up all night? Well, Wednesday night I went to bed at 11:15 p.m., (I know, I couldn't believe it either!), so that I could get up at 3:50 a.m. to shower and dress and take Gary for his early morning surgery. Well, I was still awake at 12:50 a.m., which meant that I got under 3 hours of sleep Wednesday night, which was last night, or two nights ago as you read this. So I am slap-happy again this evening, although I did have a short nap this afternoon. Until the dog, Donovan Ding-Dong, started barking and scared the patooty out of me. I was really deep in slumber and was shocked awake. And you know why that dingbat barked? Because Gary was walking down the hallway. Clever dog. Why wouldn't you bark at your master in that case? I think he was dropped on his head when he was a baby. Donovan, not Gary, although that is a possibility, too. Shhhh....don't tell him I said that. Gary, not Donovan. Donovan could care less. Unless someone walks down his hallway.

I went on so long about Gary that I forgot the other thing I was going to mention. But I do want to say thank-you to my sisters, for coming to the surgical center today (yesterday) to sit with me during Gary's surgery. They were with me for 4 hours, and it was so sweet of both Barbara and Merrilyn to take the time to do that. What are sisters for, huh? And don't you just know we gossiped non-stop. And it could have been about YOU!  (Insert evil grin here.)

I am now a day behind in another DT, due to Gary's surgery--thanks a lot, Gar--but will have it done today, (Friday), I promise! I am going to do my best to get ahead this next month, so I can enjoy that trip to Hawaii. And, no, Kathi R, you are not going in my place. No way, no how. Nice try, though.

So, back to the stars. We were to add stars to our project. I didn't need to add them, though, as my image already had stars in it. I love this darling little birdy image, called Jellypark Robin and Bird House. Now I know I didn't color it with authentic robin colors, but I had to keep to the color scheme for several challenges, so I eliminated the reddish breast. (That somehow sounds odd to me.) You know, non-traditional Christmas colors. So, no red anywhere. In fact, I chose a blue, Kraft & white color scheme to meet a particular challenge--Digital Tuesday--only to realize that I was a week late and a dollar short. Sigh...

I used another sketch to create this card. It's from the Papertake Weekly challenge:


Of course, I modified it slightly. I can't help myself. It's a condition I have, which shall remain nameless. But starts with the letter "lunatic".

My image was printed on Make It Colour Blending Card. I used another Create with TLC sentiment, (there are so many fab ones), and printed that on MICBC as well. I chose DP from the Carta Bella Winter Fun collection and paired it with Stampin' Up CS.

I colored the birdy with my Copics: E40, E41, E42, E43, E44, E47, B000, B00, B52. I added a bit of Copic Spica to the beak, legs, & feet, and some Stickles to the snow and the stars.

I cut the image out with a Spellbinders Labels 1 die and framed it with CS cut with a Spellbinders Decorative Labels 1 die; then I stamped a BG mini flourish, (from several years ago, thank you, Angela), around the edges of the image with Memories Baby Blue ink. The sentiment was cut out with a Spellbinders Scalloped Circle die. Other dies used:  Cheery Lynn Pine Needles & Victorian Picket Fence, and La-La Land Crafts Corner. Stickles were added to the pine needle die-cuts for some extra sparkle.

Both the image and sentiment were popped up on the card. I added a Maya Road Little Birdies Vintage Trinket and a star button from my stash to a white bow, which I made using my Bow-Easy. And there you have it.

I am entering this card into several challenges:

Cheery Lynn Non-Traditional Christmas Colors Challenge
CMC Copic Non-Traditional Christmas Colors Challenge
Crafty Ann's Birds and/or Animals Challenge
Eclectic Ellapu Celebrations with Sparkle Challenge
Hooked on Craft Christmas Challenge
Inky Impressions Pastel or Vintage Christmas Challenge
Love to Create Non-Traditional Holiday Colors Challenge
Papertake Weekly Sketch Challenge #74
Pixie Dust Studio Winter Holidays Creation Challenge
Simon Says Anything Goes Challenge
The Outlawz Twisted Thursday Winter Friends Challenge
The Paper Shelter Christmas is Coming Challenge

Looking forward to your creations this week. Be sure to check out the talented DT's creations!

Last call for comments on the Blog Candy post! I will draw the winner tomorrow, which is Saturday as you read this! Be sure you have a comment on that post at the top of my blog by the end of today, and that you are a follower of mine!

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Through The Craft Room Door Anything Goes Challenge

Hello, Blogland! I am a little slap-happy as I write this. I was up all night, (literally), working on this card. I was fairly happy with the design, but thought I should sleep on it before I adhered everything. So I went to bed about 6:30 a.m. And got back up at 11:00 a.m. Have been working pretty much ever since, so I am really, really tired. (It was that darn game on Sunday--I never should have gone, for many reasons!) Oh, well, that's water over the bridge, or under the dam. Or is it the other way around? Never mind. It matters not. I write this on Monday evening, with Monday Night Football about to begin. That also matters not.

I want to thank all my new followers for signing on with me. You have my deepest sympathy--you don't know what you've gotten yourselves into. But you will find out. Soon enough, my peeps. Soon enough. And you may live to regret following me. Especially since I often walk into walls. 

For those of you who are reading this and haven't commented on my blog candy post, which is the top post, please do so. I have a small collection of items to send to the lucky winner on Saturday the 1st. And for those of you who do comment, make sure you are a follower so you are eligible for the candy. 'K? 'K. Is that clear as mud? Sorry, but that's as clear as I can think right now.

My daughter, (hey, Angela!), sent me a group of baby photos with little tag-lines, which were really cute. But one made me stop and laugh out loud. So I had to share it with you.


There is my potty-humor for the day. Sorry, I had to share. I find it immensely funny. (I told you that you might regret following me.) If I have offended you, and you need to un-follow me, I will understand. I won't get upset. Much... But I may pout. A lot. I might even cry. A little. 

Did I mention that I am really exhausted? I really need a nap. Or just a good night's sleep. So, if I just get on with my card details, I can go to bed early tonight and you will be reading this tomorrow. which will actually be today. Tomorrow. Not tonight. Ha! And you thought I was the confused one. 

Before I go on with the deets, I just want to make you exceptionally envious of me. I get to have the most fantastic dinner. Gary has to stop at Lowe's for some tie-down thingies for our outside Christmas decorations. But that's not important right now. What is important is that he is going to Burger King afterward--and he is getting me the chicken, apple & cranberry garden fresh salad. See, I told you that you would envy me. Or not.  

Without further ado, or mindless chatter, I present my card for the A-Team at TTCRD. This week we are sponsored by Jackson's Digital Expressions--the winner will receive 3 digital images. 


I can always find images by Robert Jackson that I love to color! He has some amazing digis in his store. I picked Granny's Quilt for this week's card, and printed her on Make It Colour Blending Card. 

I chose DP from the Prima North Country collection--primarily because one of the papers I used looks like a quilt. And Granny is working on a quilt, so...I distressed my DP with my trusty Zutter Distrezz-It-All, and then matched the DP with some CS from Stampin' Up.

After coloring my image with Copics, I accented her with a white gel pen; I also added Glossy Accents to her eyes and eyeglasses. Then I fussy-cut the image and mounted it on a die cut, which had been embossed using a Stampin' Up Sizzix Snow Bound EF. That was then mounted on top of some cardboard and a piece of cheesecloth. I also used some lace from my stash and a couple of pearls from Queen & Co. And I had to add a couple of other die cuts--it's not often that I don't use them, 'cuz they make me happy. The dies I chose were:  Spellbinders Scalloped Rectangles, Cheery Lynn Lace Christmas Tree, and Memory Box Snowflake Corner.

I used the following Copics: R02, R05, R20, E000, E00, E11, E21, E23, E44, E47, E49, E70, W0, W1, W3, W5, YG93, YG95, YG97, BG11, BG13, BG70, BG72, BG75.

And, since it is still fun to enter other challenges, I am entering the following:


I am now ready for a long winter's nap. Or at least a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. But you will see this tomorrow, which is really now today as you read this. Or possibly yesterday if you waited. Sorry. I'll stop now. 

Looking forward to your creations this next week! Have a good one!
 

Sunday, November 25, 2012

The Outlawz Greeting Card Challenge--Orange You Glad We're Outlawz

This week we would like you to create something with orange as your main color, or use oranges somewhere on your creation. Should be interesting to see what you design for us!

And this week we are still sponsored by:


                        Eureka Stamps--Providing 5 Free Digital Images
Eureka


Stamp-N-Doodle--Providing 3 Free Digital Images


Squigglefly--Providing 3 Free Digital Images



I did turn my card in at the last moment, for which I apologize to my teammates! I am also going to be doing the same for my Tuesday DT. I apologize in advance for that!

I should have stayed home today to work on Tuesday's card, but noooooooo. I had to go to the Cardinals/Rams game instead. Yeah, that worked out well. The first quarter was fantastic, second wasn't too bad. But the Cardinals stunk up the second half so badly that I would think you peeps in Britain could have smelled them. UGH!

Anyway, I am running really late, so I have no time to chat. Hopefully, I can spend a few minutes doing that tomorrow. For now, I will leave you with the deets on this card.

Apparently, most of our team decided to use the same image for this week, so you will see different takes on it. The image is Eureka's Butterfly & Sunflower. My sentiment is from Create with TLC. I printed both on Cryogen CS. I chose a sketch to use from this week's Sketch Saturday.


My DP is from the Bo Bunny Forever Fall collection, my card stock is from Stampin' Up and DCWV. I colored my image with my Copics: G40, G43, G46, YR000, YR12, YR14. I rounded the corners with my corner rounder, (DUH!) on my image, the image mat, and the background piece that the image/mat is popped up on. That background piece was embossed using the Stampin' Up Sizzix Finial Press EF, and then lightly sanded. Stampin' Up brads were added to the rounded corners. A Stampin' Up mini clothespin was clipped to the sentiment. Lace and cheesecloth from my stash were added to the design, as well as a few die cuts. The dies used were Cheery Lynn Small and Medium Butterflies, two designs from Cheery Lynn Lace Corner Deco B, and an MFT Sunflower.

There you have it. My orange card for this week. So, what are you going to do with the theme?


Stamptacular Sunday "Winter Bliss!" Challenge


This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!
This week's challenge is a…
“Winter Bliss!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project that has a WINTER SCENE!  You can use a single stamp that is a winter scene BUT…if you create a winter scene all on your own, your name will be entered into our drawing THREE times!  Please be sure to let us know in your post if the scene created in your masterpiece was an original by you or if it was a stamped image!  Oh…and don’t forget to STAMP!  After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      
You will have from now until midnight (EST) December 1st, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:
PRIZE:  Winner's Choice of 2 Digis!



I am so glad it's Sunday! We are going to the Cardinals' game again today. It's been ages since we last saw them lose. And, make no mistake about it, they are in a losing streak. Just like last year, they have lost 6 in a row. So, it must be time for them to break out a win for us. We can only hope.

Today is also my BIL's birthday. Happy Birthday, Ron! (Though I know you don't read my blog, I'll say it anyway!) I am sorry we are missing your birthday party, (and my great-nephew Tristan's celebration, too), but you see how you rank--at least against the Cardinals. (Insert very evil grin here.)

Hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving in the U.S.! And that everyone else had a lovely Thursday. I was not one of the brave, (or crazy), people who ventured out on Black Friday. I stayed home and worked on my card that you will see next week. I actually had it done on Thursday, but couldn't get a decent photo because it was so late in the day. So I tried to photograph it again Friday morning, and found several things I didn't like about the actual card. I spent a good deal of the day redoing those things. I am still not happy with it, but since I am late now starting cards for other DT's, I had to photograph & upload it anyway. Two days late! My bad. My very bad.

Before I get to this week's card, I want to mention my blog candy again. You have through this next Friday, the 30th, to post a comment on the blog candy post. It is the top blog posting and will remain there until December 1, at which time I will draw the winner. Please get your comments in, and remember, you must be a follower to win. So add your pretty face to my followers at the top of the page, please, if you have not done so already.

OK, now to the "Winter Bliss!" challenge. I decided to brayer a background for my winter scene--I do love brayering, except for the inky fingers I get--those I could do without! I also want to mention that I am ever so grateful I don't actually live in a snowy area anymore. I don't think I could take the cold at my age. It was hard enough to do when I was young! 

Oh, as an aside--Gary has booked a trip back to Hawaii for us this January. I know, I know--you are all feeling sorry for me right now. To have to go to Hawaii. In January. The pity of it all. We will be spending 7 days on the Big Island and another 5 in Maui. Feel my pain. Especially those of you who live in the frigid cold. Think of me, suffering on the beach, being forced to snorkel in the ocean, while you get to slog through the snow. I am so envious of you. Not.

Back to the card--you know how I love to digress. It's my favorite thing to do. (Well, almost, next to snorkeling.) So I chose to use Make It Crafty Melissa Snowball for my little girl in the snow. I printed her on Make It Colour Blending Card, then masked her and brayered my scene around her with Stampin' Up inks. Then I colored her with my Copics:  E000, E00, E11, E31, E35, YR20, BG70, BG72, BG75, Y21, Y23, Y26, YG21, YG23, YG25, R20, R22. I accented her with a bit of white gel pen and Copic Spica and then added some Glossy Accents to her eyes. (Which didn't sting because she was out in the cold and couldn't feel it.)

I die-cut the large trees from the La-La Land Crafts Christmas Tree die; then I added some Liquid Applique to them before adding them to the scene. I die-cut the small trees from the Memory Box Country Landscape die. I added Stardust Stickles to each of them after adding them to my scene. I mounted the scene onto DP from the Jellibean Soup Winter Tortellini & Spinach Soup collection; then I mounted that onto Stampin' Up CS. To the sky I added a Create with TLC sentiment, printed on SU CS, (sorry SU), which I die-cut with a Spellbinders Classic Circle die. (In case it was not obvious, the sentiment represents the sun.) And there you have my "Winter Bliss!" scene. Actually, it was easy to make. Not like the card you will see next week. Aaargh!

So, go forth and create! Let's see what you come up with for your winter scene. Be sure to let us know if you used a stamped image, or if you created your own scene. Have a great week! 


Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Jon's Birthday Card

This is the first time, in a long while, that I have made a card strictly for an occasion and not a DT. I am as shocked as you are. Well, perhaps I am more shocked than you are. Or, maybe you are not shocked at all. But I am. So much so, that I almost didn't blog this.

Ah, but then I thought, oh my peeps would be so upset if I made a card and didn't show it to them. They might mutiny. They might never come and visit again. They might throw rotten eggs. Or tomatoes. Or even shed a tear or two. Well.... couldn't let any of that happen, could I? Noooooo, so here I am, letting you in on the deets for this card.

Which is for Jon. My SIL. Whose birthday is today. I believe it is number 46. Of course, I could be wrong about that--I am old after all, and I do forget things. Like my name. My phone number. My address. Which is really embarrassing, when the police find me wandering barefoot and pregnant, (just kidding on that last part), but wandering barefoot through the school playground, looking for a friend to play jump-rope with. And they try to bring me home. And I can't remember my name, phone number, or address. So they take me to the police station and wait for someone, namely Gary, to notice that I am missing. And to come and pick me up. You'd think they'd realize after the 35th time this happened, where I belonged. But noooooo, they can't seem to remember squat either. What's happening to this world of ours? Where is the love? And just who the heck are you anyway? Why are you in here? You're scaring me.

Now, where was I? Oh, yeah, sorry, I was lost in space there for a moment. Jon's card. For his whatever-number birthday. Hey, Happy Birthday, Jon, from your nutcase MIL! Cheers!

Oh, if you think I am bad, you should have heard my sister, Merrilyn, yesterday. She called in a state of confusion. And scared me a bit--it seemed like her brains were actually scrambled. Until I realized that she was on pain meds again, because she had a bit more oral surgery Monday. (Which I knew was coming up, but didn't actually know when. My bad. Didn't even get a card ready. Drat!)  So she took pain meds when the local anesthetic wore off. And she gets just loopy when she takes those. Loopy and nauseated. When she called she said that she couldn't reach the dental office, and she needed to talk to them. But her call wouldn't go through. She could call me because she had me on speed-dial. Well, we hung up so she could try something else. (I don't remember what--I'm old, remember?) OK, so after a bit, she called me back and said that she had been dialing the wrong number. Really. Okaaay. Loopy I tell ya. Loopy as all get-out. And this was for real. Not like my pretend episode above. (well...sorta pretend.) Hey, Merrilyn, hope you're feeling better today. (And don't kill me for telling on you.)

Enough horsing around. Stop it. I must tell you about this card, for I have another DT card waiting in the wings to be created. And time's a-wastin'. So...Jon is a Green Bay Packers fan. Big-time. Which makes life interesting at their home, because Angela is a big-time Vikings fan. Hmmm....must make for stimulating conversation, (translation: loud voices), when the two teams play against each other.

Anyway, I decided to make a card for Jon with the image MayzyArt American Football, which I printed on Make It Colour Blending Card. (Hey, Mayzy, so glad you are back in action--I missed you; we all did!) Then I knew I had to do the card in the Packers' colors--green, golden yellow, and white. But I had no DP with those particular colors together, so I just went for those colors in card stock. As it turned out, I had the nearly-perfect Stampin' Up colors, (even though they are retired now.)

To add a bit of interest, I embossed the green and yellow card stock pieces. I also added a couple of die cuts to the front of the card for some extra dimension. I used my own computer-generated sentiment. (Oddly enough, this is a phrase Gary's uncle used to say in the early 1970's. When the Packers actually stunk up the field, so we laughed at him. Well, we're not laughing now, are we, Uncle Don? And are you enjoying watching them from the other side? Save me a seat, OK?)

I accented the image with some white gel pen after coloring him with my Copics: G24, G28, G29, B32, B34, C0, C1, Y13, Y15, Y17, R20, E000, E00, E11, E13, E15, E18, E19, E31, E35, YR20.

The embossing folders used:  Cuttlebug Clockworks, SU Sizzix Chevron, SU Sizzix Stripes. The dies used: Poppystamps Simple Banner and Grass Border, Memory Box Woodland Branch, MFT Grass Border, and Spellbinders Edgeabilities Classic Scallop.

I figure I might as well enter this into a couple of challenges, right? So...

CMC All About Kids Copic Challenge
Eclectic Ellapu Layering or Openable or Interactive Challenge
Ooh La La Creations Someone Special Challenge
The Outlawz Paper a la Mode Embossing Challenge

That's it for Jon's card. If you celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you have a happy, wonderful, delicious one! (We'll be at The Deli!)


Sunday, November 18, 2012

The Outlawz Greeting Card Challenge - Non-Traditional Thanksgiving


We have something fun for you at The Outlawz Greeting Card Challenge. It is: Non-Traditional Thanksgiving. We want you to create a Thanksgiving card that DOES NOT include Turkeys, Pilgrims, or Cornucopias. Traditional fall colors may be used. Sound difficult? It's really not. All you have to do is make a card about something or someone that you are thankful for. Remember to include a greeting!

And this month we are being sponsored by:

                         Eureka Stamps--Providing 5 Free Digital Images
Eureka


Stamp-N-Doodle--Providing 3 Free Digital Images


Squigglefly--Providing 3 Free Digital Images


First, some housekeeping. I posted a blog piece about the blog candy that I am giving away on December 1st. Yes, Smarty-pants, of this year. (There's always one in the crowd, isn't there?) Anyway, I am keeping that post at the top of my blog so it is easy for everyone visiting to see. But it has a funky date to it--and that's the only way I know to keep the post at the top. If anyone else knows a better way, please advise. I thank you; Leslie thanks you. Do not ask who Leslie is. I cannot tell you. I do not know myself. Well, I do know myself, but I do not know Leslie. Clear as mud? I thought so. Mission accomplished.

Small tidbit:  even though our Arizona Cardinals lost, again, today, (@*#%&^*), it appears I will win my 9th Family Fantasy Football game this week--and lead our family league with a 9-2 record. I find that extremely satisfying. The old grey mare still has it. Well, maybe not "it", but something, at the least.

On our last installment of Life with Penny, we found our heroine about to go out on Sunday for lunch with her dinner group. Which confounded everyone who read it; there were many, many complaints. That's actually a lie; no one even seemed to notice. Anyway, our heroine, (she likes that description; it makes her smile), did, indeed, go out to lunch with her husband and their dinner group. And, she had breakfast--not to confuse the issue of the time of day or anything. The group met at Liberty Market in downtown Gilbert, another great restaurant with really good, inexpensive food. (If you don't mind standing in line to order your meal. And I do not, I mean, she does not.)

Our heroine had a 3-egg breakfast scramble with grilled vegetables & feta cheese, served with a hefty portion of Liberty potatoes, (pan-roasted with onion, green pepper, and cheese) and a biscuit. She was very hungry, as it was noon MST, and she had not eaten yet that day. So she finished her eggs and potatoes and about 1/3 of her biscuit, which was served with honey--yum! Delightful meal. Her spouse had a breakfast scramble as well, though his was pork chilaquiles, which are basically fried tortillas in a salsa with the eggs. Hers was healthier. But both were delicious. He finished all of his breakfast, including the biscuit. Served with honey. They both had a Bloody Mary with their meal and a hot Chai latte afterward. Totally satisfying.

The group was too large to describe everyone's meals here; suffice it to say, good food was had by all. And to all a goodnight.

Oh, sorry, forgot the rest of the episode. Actually, our heroine found the company delightful, particularly after spending an entire week with no one to converse, except Donovan, the dog. He, on the other hand, or paw, so to speak, was not the least bit happy that she left him to go to lunch with the dinner club and have breakfast. End of installment.

Now, to my card for the week. My non-traditional Thanksgiving card.  I, again, chose a sketch to use for the creation of my card. The sketch I used is #180 from Sweet Sketch Wednesday.


My image is Eureka "Best Friends". I thought this image would work perfectly with the Create with TLC sentiment that I chose for the theme. Do not ask which came first, the chicken or the egg, the image or the sentiment. I do not remember. So sorry. Well, actually I'm not, but I still do not remember.

I printed the image on Make It Colour Blending Card and the sentiment on Stampin' Up CS, (which I also used for the die cuts and card base). My DP was selected from the Authentique Thankful collection, and I distressed it with my Zutter Distrezz-It-All and SU ink. My die cuts came from Spellbinders Grand Circle, Grand Scalloped Circle and Labels 8 dies and an MFT Sunflower die. I also used a bit of lace from my stash for my design.

My image was colored with Copics: W0, W1, YG91, YG93, YG95, YR21, YR23, YR24, E000, E00, E11, E15, E17, E19, E42, E44, E47, and E49. I accented it with a white gel pen and sponged SU ink around the edge.

See? Easy peasy. Now, go forth and create, my peeps. Looking forward to seeing your finished cards!



Stamptacular Sunday "RECIPE" Challenge


This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!
This week's challenge is a…
“RECIPE Challenge!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project using the following ingredients:  ribbon or twine, pearls or gems, and dies or punches!  Oh…and don’t forget to STAMP!  After all…we don’t call this the STAMPtacular Sunday Challenge for nothing!      
You will have from now until midnight (EST) November 24th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:
PRIZE:  Winner’s Choice of 7 Digis!

AND

PRIZE:  It’s a SURPRISE!


Before I share my recipe with you I need to take a breath. For I am totally caught up commenting on DT challenges and blogs that I follow. And I know, too, that won't last long, like maybe 30 seconds or so. But it feels good right now to just stop and take in the moment. Ahhhh.......

Well, Gary is home--woooohoooo! So glad to see him. (And not just for the sweet gifts he brought from England--some fabulous thin chocolate with shaved toppings--like caramel & nuts--yummy, yummy! And some beautiful eau de toilette: Floris from London Lily of the Valley. Oh, wow, sooo pretty!) The ding-dong dog, Donovan, was delighted, as well, when he heard Gary's car arrive Friday night. You should have heard him--Donovan, not Gary--cry until Gary came into the house. I guess a week away was a little longer than the dog liked. Of course, the honeymoon for the two of them will be over this next Friday. 'Cuz that's the day that Gary takes Donovan in to get his teeth cleaned. Dum, da dum, dum dummmmmm! Better him--Gary, not Donovan--than me, that's all I gotta say.

Other news: I have reached the 100-follower mark! Drum roll, please!!!! I will be putting up a special post regarding that shortly. But I am so tickled that so many of you decided to follow me. (If I only knew where I was going, it would help us all.)

I had a wonderful lunch with my sisters on Friday at Cornish Pasty Co. in Mesa. I was a little stunned when I walked into the restaurant and found that they were doubling the size of it. Business must be good! Actually, it must be very good, as Merrilyn tells me that the original place in Tempe is doubling its size also. Well, serve good food at reasonable prices with good service and they will come. (They as in we, right?)

I did a tiny bit of shopping after lunch--went to get some special shampoo at Aveda in the Chandler Fashion Center. I was shocked at how many people were shopping at 2:30 in the afternoon. It was not a holiday, nor a school break that I know of. So it was surprising to have trouble finding a parking spot close in. Perhaps they were having a big sale at the mall that I was unaware of. At any rate, it was a quick in and out for me, so that I could get home and start another card, which I finished on Saturday. That card will be posted tomorrow.

Now to today's card. I followed the "recipe" with: ribbon, gems, and die cuts. Did any of those items surprise you? Shouldn't have, particularly the die cuts. I am a die-cut addict. I realize that. And so does Gary's bank account.

I like to use design sketches, whenever possible, because they challenge me to create something unique from a basic design. This week I chose Sketch #53 from the November CLP Sketch Challenge for my card.


For my image, I picked Tiddly Inks Wryn Caroling, because I think she is just adorable, and I thought it was about time that I used a Tiddly Inks image. I printed her on Cryogen CS, then colored her with my Copics: W0, W1, G94, G99, R20, R35, R37, R39, E000, E00, E11, E21, E25, E29, E40, E41, E42, E43, E44. I accented her with a bit of white gel pen and Copic Spica Red.

The DP is from Bazzill Basics Paper "Believe" collection. I paired this with Stampin' Up CS for the card base, the sentiment, (from Create with TLC), and the die cuts. Which brings me to the dies that I used:  Whimsy Holly & Berries, Memory Box Treble Clef, Memory Box Snowflake Corner, Spellbinders Grand Circle and Classic Rectangles, and MFT Treble Clef. I used three different laces, all of which I dyed with my Copic ink refills. I also dyed some ribbon from my stash with Copic ink. My gems are from MS Birthstone Gem Stickers.

Besides entering the CLP Challenge, I am entering the following:

Divas by Design Anything Goes
A Gem of A Challenge Ribbon & Lace
Oozak Winter Vibes Challenge
Penny's Paper-Crafty Anything Goes Challenge
The Outlawz Twisted Thursday Punches and Dies

And now, it's over to you! Let's see what you cook up with your "recipe"!


Friday, November 16, 2012

Jellypark GDT Part Deux -- I'm Hungry Challenge

This is the second installment of my GDT at Jellypark Friends Friday Challenge. Our last challenge--Back to Nature--was not really me. As I explained two weeks ago, "Nature Girl" I'm not. However, "I'm Hungry" is right up my alley. It's in my wheelhouse. It's my middle name. It's who I am. It's my essence.

I love good food. (Who am I kidding? I love food, period.) Which reminds me--I am still eating Amy's frozen entrees. For an entire week now. It has gotten really boooooring. But Gary comes home from England tonight, thank heavens! Not in time for dinner. Well, actually, in time for a very late dinner, but I know my hubby. He will be so exhausted, so jet-lagged, that he will not want to go out to eat. He will just want to come home. And probably fall right into bed--preferably on his side. And he'll sleep for hours. At least we will go out to eat tomorrow night.

But first, I get to go out to eat for lunch today. With my sisters. It was Barbara's turn to decide where to eat. So we are going to meet at Cornish Pasty Co. Yes, I did just talk about it this last week. And my sister reads my blog, and became hungry for the food there. Don't know if I will have a pasty or their fabulous mushroom, walnut & spinach soup. Probably the soup. Because then I will still have room for dessert--they make a wonderful sticky toffee pudding. (The only version that I have had that is better than Cornish Pasty's is the one at St. Francis in Phoenix.) Now doesn't that sound like a great lunch? Real food. I can hardly wait.

Oh, and on Sunday our dinner group is going out to eat. For lunch. Which could also be called dinner by certain people. And then they would call the evening meal supper. But I call lunch, lunch; and dinner, dinner. Anyway, we're going out for lunch with the dinner club. Is that clear as mud? I thought so--it is to me. Can you tell I have spent a week conversing mainly with Donovan, the demented dog? He has destroyed what little clarity I had left. With his endless trips outside. I am so tired of them.

Oh, and did I mention Donovan's sense of humor? It sucks. When he is through outside, he claws at the back door. Well, I guess he doesn't really have claws; he is a dog, after all. He has nails. So he nails at the back door. That sounds stupid. No wonder everyone says a dog claws at the door. Or do they? An inquiring mind has a need to know. Or not.

Where was I? Oh, yeah, Don's sense of humor. It still sucks. He "claws" at the door to come in; then, when I open the door for him, he runs away. And turns around in circles. If I step outside, he runs further away from me. Don't laugh. It's not funny. Even if Donovan thinks it is. Especially when I am in the middle of a card. Or a TV show I am watching while working on a card. And I miss the end of the show. Which has happened. More than once. Like I said, Don's sense of humor sucks. Rotten eggs.

It's a wonder I don't sound like a blithering idiot by now. Cuz I don't. Much. If anyone out there wants a slightly-used, 6-year old Maltese, let me know. I am ready to trade him in. On a stuffed animal. One that doesn't eat, pee, poop, have knee problems, or swallow whole dental chews. As long as the stuffed animal isn't a sock monkey. I can't abide sock monkeys. They give me the creeps. Terrible creeps--and I cannot tell you why. Nor do you care.

Anyway, I was telling you that I love good food, and food, in general. So I thought it would be easy for me to make a card to fit today's theme. Ah, apparently not so much. Turns out, I went off the deep end again. Couldn't stop myself. Heavy sigh....

For my image I chose the sweet, (food reference pun intended), Jellypark Just for You Tag, which I printed on Make It Colour CS. And I had this vision in my head about using lots of tags on the card to go with the image. So I did. Like I said, I overdid it just a tad. Oh well....

My DP was chosen from the Prima Almanac collection. I distressed the DP with my Zutter Distrezz-It-All and sponged the edges with Stampin' Up ink. I combined it with Stampin' Up CS for the card base, die cuts, and tags. I printed a Create with TLC sentiment on one tag, stamped a Stampin' Up Teeny Tiny Wishes sentiment on another, and stamped a SU Sweet Little Sentiments stamp on a third.

My tags were die-cut from the following:  Memory Box Distressed Tag die, Magnolia Doohickey So Wrapped Lovely Heart Folded Tag die and Vintage Tag die. I also used a La-La Land Crafts corner die for the pretty corner die cuts.

The tags were tied with Copic-dyed ribbon, lace, or tulle. I added MS Pearl Stickers to three of the tags, including the image. I layered the DP with tags stuck behind the layers.

My image was accented with a Copic Spica pen and a white gel pen, after coloring it with Copics: R00, R01, R02, R20, YR00, YR01, W2, W4, W6, W8, W10, E000, E00, E11, E13, E53, E55, E57, E59.

Like I said, I went nuts, (food reference pun also intended), again with this card. Sometimes I just can't help myself. CAS I am not.

Looking forward to seeing what you create. Be sure to check out the fab DT creations!



Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Through The Craft Room Door Anything Goes

And here we are beginning another week of Team A for TTCRD. BTW, have you gotten your subscription yet? If not, you might want to consider doing so--it is really a great magazine; the holiday issue is currently out--check out the video to the right. And another edition is being prepared while I type, so look for that soon, along with new free digis!

This week we are sponsored by Squigglefly, who is providing 3 images, and by Oozak, who is providing a $10 gift card.

Can you believe I am posting again already? I can't, and neither can my brain, fingers, or butt--which are all sore from sitting at the computer too much! Oh, and of course, from creating cards. I desperately need to read a book again--it's been a couple of months now since I have read anything, and I am really going through withdrawal. I must carve out some time for reading soon.

Gary ate at an Iranian restaurant in Cambridge that he loved. He said they made the best hummus he had ever eaten. I had another frozen Amy's. Sigh....hey, any of you out there want to come over and cook for me? (I don't cook, as I think some of you know. Yes, yes, I know--I'm a real catch, aren't I?)

Oh, and I thought I should mention that I gave myself a treat yesterday--popcorn, which I very seldom have at home. I decided to melt some margarine for it. And while the microwave was busy zapping my margarine, I was turned away watching the popper. I was turned away until I heard the loud bang coming from the microwave. Yeah, I zapped the margarine too long. It not only melted, it exploded all over my microwave. No, I didn't cry, and I didn't even swear. I just swung into action to mop up the mess. Quite proud of myself for my restraint. And also confused--where the heck did that come from?

But, as you can see, I need someone here to make my meals. I can't even make popcorn! Gary, where are you? Oh yeah, in England. Eating hummus. Pfffffft!

Well, I have to get back to another card in-process, so I will get on with the deets for this one. Surprise, surprise, I made another Christmas card! Will wonders never cease! I chose Squigglefly Old Fashioned Winter Girl by Inger Harding for my image, which I printed on Cryogen CS. I also printed my Create with TLC sentiment on Cryogen CS. My DP is from the Echo Park Christmas This & That collection, and I paired it with Stampin' Up CS. I distressed my DP with my Zutter Distrezz-It-All and sponged it with SU ink. In fact, I sponged just about everything, except my dog, with SU ink.

My image was colored with Copics: E000, E00, E02, E07, E11, E25, E31, E40, E41, E42, E43, E50, G40, G82, G85, W00, W1. I then used Copic Spica on the skate blades, the holly berries, and her lips. I accented the image with a white gel pen, and added Liquid Applique to the hat and jacket trim. That was the first time I tried this product, and I think I need practice. But I do like the raised effect you get with it.

I cut out my image and framed it with Spellbinders Labels 4 dies. I used Whimsy's Holly & Berries die, as well as Cheery Lynn's Poinsettia 2 die for embellishments. I added lace and red netting from my stash and SU ribbon to finish my card.

Looking forward to your creations this next week. Have fun making them!

That's it. That's all she wrote. The end.


Monday, November 12, 2012

Lady Anne's Anything Goes Challenge

I do apologize for posting a second time today. I know it can be somewhat trying to read my blog once a day, much less twice! Please bear with me; I will try to make this as painless as possible. Our new challenge is being sponsored by:
The winner will receive four free digital images of her/his choice! This challenge will run from November 12th through December 10th. As always, it is anything goes, which sets you free to design whatever your heart desires, although now there is a limit to four entries. As I have previously mentioned, I am in dire need of Christmas cards. (Why I don't start them earlier in the year, I wish I knew. I think it is because Procrastination is my middle name.) Anyway, here's another holiday card from me.

We were able to choose a Sassy Studio Designs image, and I picked Victorian Holiday Sassy, as she looked like a great image for a Christmas card. I printed her on Cryogen CS.  I decided to use Sweet Sketch Wednesday Sketch 179-109 for the design of my card, and then created a scene on Stampin' Up CS with my brayer & some inks, (SU and Distress), for the central portion of the design. I wanted the sky to be dark, so that I could use my new Memory Box Star of Wonder dies with it. Oddly enough, the only other die I used was a Nestabilities Classic Square for my Create with TLC sentiment, which was printed on Bazzill Kraft CS. The body of the card is also Bazzill Kraft CS, and my DP is from the Glitz Joyeux Noel collection. I distressed my DP with my Zutter Distrezz-It-All, and then inked the edges with Distress Antique Linen. 


My image was accented with Copic Spica pens on her earring and lips, and  Glossy Accents on her eyes, (before I foolishly cut the bottle tip too short, which I did because I broke off a toothpick inside it, while trying to unplug it, sigh...). I used up almost all of my bottle of Stardust Stickles on the stars, which left me with barely enough to do the card on my previous post. (I did the posts in reverse order of actually making the cards. Just to confuse us both. Keeps us on our toes, don't you think?) Let's see, what else do I need to tell you? Oh, yeah, I accented the image with a bit of white gel pen after coloring with Copics: BG70, BG72, R20, R21, E000, E00, E11, E40, E41, E42, E43, E44, E47, E49, E51, E53, E55. And I finished the card by wrapping it with a bit of twine from my stash.

I hope this wasn't too painful for you. I must get on with my next card before I get back to commenting on your blogs. I do so enjoy visiting them to see what you have created. And I very much love all the wonderful comments that you leave on my blog--it does my heart good to read each of them--thank you all!

Here's hoping you will add something to our new challenge! I am looking forward to it!


The Outlawz Greeting Card Challenge- Craft Your Stash and Trash

Hey there, this month's Greeting Card challenges are sponsored by:

                            Eureka Stamps--Providing 5 Free Digital Images
Eureka


Stamp-N-Doodle--Providing 3 Free Digital Images


Squigglefly--Providing 3 Free Digital Images


And I have chosen another Christmas image--GASP! Yes, I am doing a lot of Christmas images right now, why do you ask, Grasshopper? I need to make many more cards for this holiday and am running out of time. I do feel like I'm in Wonderland--"I'm late, I'm late for a very important date"!

I  heard from Gary this morning. He spent the day walking around downtown Cambridge, and eating. Yes, eating. He had a Cornish pasty, which he said was very much like the ones we get here in the Valley of the Sun. Yes, for you Brits, we do have Cornish pasties here--and they are delish! (Apparently, the chef moved here from the UK and missed the food from home. So he opened up his own restaurant in Tempe, making many different pasties. Oh, and a scrumptious pudding for dessert. And he was so successful that he opened up a second location in Mesa. But I digress.) Gary said that for dinner he ate at an Indian restaurant; he went to England with another program manager from Phoenix, who is originally from India. Hence, the Indian food. But that's a story for another time. Suffice it to say, Gary was full of good food when he called me, and I am jealous, because I am eating frozen Amy's....

I was able to complete my card for my Tuesday DT on time--hooray! Which you will see tomorrow, although I am writing this on Sunday, which means that you will see it two days from now. Confused yet? I am. I am also hungry since it is dinner time on Sunday, and I have just been talking about food. Well, I suppose I could always drive over to our new McDonald's and get something to eat. Unfortunately, even though our Mickey D's is so new that they opened just this week, they still serve the same crappy food as every other McDonald's. Besides, I am in my jammies--hey, nobody saw me today, and I have worked since I got out of bed. So don't judge me too harshly, OK? (See what happens to me when Gary leaves me alone?)

So, before I go heat up my frozen Amy's entree, I will give you the scoop on my card for today--which is now Sunday, but you are reading this on Monday. So glad I straightened all of that out for you!

My Christmas image today is Stamp-N-Doodle Carollers. And before my fellow Americans give me a bad time about the spelling, please understand that is how the digi is spelled. I assume, (which I should not do, because I make an "ass" of "u" and "me"), that this is a British spelling of the word. Which, since English was their language before it was ours, means that we spell the word incorrectly here in the States. Right? Kind of like the word colour. It looks wrong to me, but my word color looks wrong to the Brits. And they had the word first, so there!

OK, so I chose DP from the Teresa Collins Christmas Cottage collection. I paired that with Stampin' Up CS. I printed my image on Cryogen CS. I chose my sentiment from Create with TLC, printed it on Cryogen CS, and cut it out with a Spellbinders Labels 20 die.  I used a Cheery Lynn Colonial Lamp Post die also. I have a new die, SCACD Alice's Clock Statement Corner, which I used for two corners of my card. The other corner dies that I used, from the Cheery Lynn Lace Corner Deco B collection, were from my just-about-to-trash stash. I seem to cut out way too many pieces and then have a problem storing all of them. So I often just toss them out--I know, I know, baaaad Penny. Anyway, my other crafting-my-trash items were the two finishes that I used--I am tossing both of them out. The Glossy Accents is getting trashed because I cut the tip waaaay too short. When I use it, the stuff goes all over everything! I did manage to carefully add it to the lamp, the little girl's boots, and the eyes & glasses of each character. The other bottle I am tossing is one of Stardust Stickles, just because the bottle just ran empty--I did manage to squeeze the last bit on the trim of the red hat.

I accented the image with a white gel pen after I colored it with the following Copics: YR0000, YR000, Y000, Y00, E000, E00, E08, E09, E11, E19, E30, E33, E35, E37, E42, E43, E44, E47, E49, G40, G94, G99, W0, W2, W3, BG90, BG93.

I am entering this card into the following:

CMC All About Kids Challenge
Oozak Winter Vibes Challenge
Papertake Weekly Anything Goes
Penny's Paper-Crafty Lots of Layers Challenge

That does it for this edition. I am looking forward to your creations from your stash-and-trash collection!


Sunday, November 11, 2012

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge "For the Love of Tilda!"


This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!
This week's challenge is a…
“For the Love of TILDA!”

For this weeks challenge you will create a card or project using at least one of the many famous Tilda stamps from Magnolia!  We hope to see all our participants getting creative with the endless possibilities this week!    
You will have from now until midnight (EST) November 17th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:
PRIZE:  $15 Gift Certificate!

AND

PRIZE:  It’s a SURPRISE!


Well, it's been a few days since my last post. And many momentous things have happened, especially on a national level. On a personal level, I have been madly crafting for my DT's, as they all seem to be due at once. What the heck did I do that to myself for? Plainly poor planning on Penny's part, don't you think? I am limping in to the finish line as I write this. I am desperately hoping that I get all the cards done on time, but I am not going to hold my breath. Nor should you. It's bad for your health.

I am alone right now. My husband has left me. But, before you start feeling too sorry for me, I must tell you that he went to England, (Cambridge to be exact), on business. He is taking some sort of week-long training class at his company over there and left on Friday to do so. He said he wanted to get there early so he could get over his jet-lag before concentrating on a class. I can well understand. When you get to be our age, it's all you can do to focus when you are well-rested. When you are tired, all bets are off!

Actually, I lied when I said I was alone. No, the pool boy is not here. We no longer have a pool, so I didn't see the need to keep him on staff. He was getting a little long in the tooth for my tastes anyway.

I lied, because I do have someone here. You know, that ding-dong dog of mine, Donovan. He keeps me company, if you can call it that. I think he must be getting over-the-hill himself, with all the running-to-the-door-to-let him-out-and-running-back-to-the-door-to-let-him-in that he makes me do. Possibly his memory is poor or his bladder is now weak. I couldn't say. I can say that he is driving me CRAZY. So sorry, but I just had to shout. I feel so much better now.

I must get on with things, since I am still trying to meet a deadline with another DT. So, here's the scoop on today's card. I wanted to make another Christmas card, (I am getting desperate now for quantity), and the only Tilda images I had to fit the bill were mini's. Oh, well....

I chose Magnolia Mini Tilda Hanging Ornaments and Magnolia Mini Christmas Tree for my design. I stamped them on Cryogen CS with Memento ink. They were colored up, (or down--whichever way you care to look at it), with my Copics: E000, E00, E11, E21, E25, E29, R20, R81, R83, R85, C0, C1, YG61, YG63, YG67, BG70, BG72. These colors co-ordinate with the paper I chose from the Carta Bella Merry & Bright collection. I combined that paper with Stampin' Up CS. I accented the image with a white gel pen and a Copic Spica pen.

My design included die cuts from the following dies:  Cheery Lynn Pine Branches, Spellbinders Labels 22, La-La Land Crafts Christmas Tree, and Memory Box Winterland Tree. My sentiment comes from Create with TLC.

Now, let's see what you have up your Tilda sleeve! Looking forward to it!



Sunday, November 4, 2012

The Outlawz Greeting Card In Flight Challenge

Hey, Peeps! This week at The Outlawz Greeting Card Challenge we are looking for "an astronaut, hot air balloons, air planes, helicopters, balloons, or showing appreciation for a service man or woman" for our "In Flight" challenge. I think everybody should be able to find something in this challenge to make, don't you?

Luckily for us, this month's sponsors also have fabulous images. They are:


Eureka
















Before I get to today's card I want to mention a couple of things. One is that I seem to have caught a cold. Will wonders never cease? This means that I may be MIA for blog comments for a couple of days. All I really want to do is crawl back into bed. But I will get to everybody's blogs ASAP, I promise. The other thing is that I am so glad we got to go out to dinner Saturday night before I caught this blasted thing, because I was able to really enjoy my meal that night.

For my foodie fans, let me just say that we had a spectacular meal. We went to Wright's at The Biltmore in Scottsdale for dinner. Love how they've changed the menu there--the chef has taken traditional dishes and given them each a great twist. And to add to that: you can get a small or a large portion of each dish. That makes it easy to have an appetizer, a main course and a dessert without getting overstuffed. Plus they have a wonderful wine list, with lots of great wines by the glass.

I have to say that we didn't get our meal underway until an hour after our 6:30 reservation. Too funny, that, because our dinner partners called to say they were running a little late, since they had to do some car shuffling, and would be about 15 minutes late. Ah, no problem, Gary and I each got a glass of wine to sip until the other couple arrived. Well, 6:45 came and went. It was now about 6:55 and Gary received a call from Chad asking where we were. Gary said that we were sitting at our table waiting for them to arrive. Apparently, they went to The Phoenician instead of The Biltmore, and were wondering why they couldn't find us at any of the restaurants there! Chad said he thought the valet barely got his car parked before he had to retrieve it for them! So they got to Wright's about 7:10, which was a pretty fast recovery. (Don't tell anybody, but I think he was speeding!)

Anyway, I ordered the salmon rillette for an appetizer and it was so lip-smacking good that I didn't even share with anyone! Just a delicious spread of smoked wild salmon, sea salt capers, egg, creme fraiche, chive and caviar for the toast points they served with it. I could have made a meal of that by itself! Gary opted for beef tartar, served with quail egg yolk, horseradish aioli, grain mustard and capers. He loved it! Following that was a dainty portion of a yummy chef's palate cleanser, and I couldn't tell you all of the ingredients, but it was sooo good! I do know it had creme fraiche and chorizo in it, with some tiny greens.

Then Gary and I each had lobster thermidor for the main course. Wow, lovely roasted lobster, lobster jus, served on a sage bechamel brulee. So spectacular! The only thing I was not crazy about was the romanesco. It tasted like broccoli, but had the texture of raw cauliflower, making it a bit difficult to eat--and it cooled off way too rapidly. I was wondering if it had been a tad under-cooked. However, the lobster was so wonderful that I was still happy with my entree.

And for dessert, Gary had the pumpkin souffle, which I tasted, and it was fabulous. But my chocolate souffle was even better. Ooooh, tasty! We left Wright's pleasantly full and very, very happy! This was our second visit there, and both times the meals were superb--so, if you are in the Phoenix area, I can highly recommend a visit to Wright's. Just remember, it is really dark in The Biltmore area, and you have to keep driving a long way to get to it, so don't give up and turn around before you get there!

Well, I'd best get this card recipe recited so I can go lie down and rest. I am really not feeling well, but I'll take two aspirin, and I'll be better in the morning.

I chose a Squigglefly image: Birthday Balloon Boy, by Cheryl Alger for my card--this is going to be a birthday card for one of the three males in my family who have November birthdays. My sentiment come from Create with TLC. I selected my DP from Basic Grey What's Up collection, and co-ordinated that with DCWV CS. I added VersaMagic chalk inks to the edges of my DP, and distressed my DP with my Zutter Distrezz-It-All. I used a lot of dimensional adhesive on this card. My die cuts were created with these dies: Memory Box Ticket, Large Hot Air Balloon, and Small Hot Air Balloon; La-La Land Crafts Hot Air Balloon; Cheery Lynn Lace Corner Deco B; and Spellbinders Classic Rectangle. Lace and ribbon from my stash were also added to my design.

I colored this image with Copics: C0, E000, E00, E11, E31, E35, YR20, YG91, YG93, YG95, YG97, BG93, BG96, R02, R05, R08. I added a bit of white gel pen for accents.

I am entering this card into the following:

Basic Grey Anything Goes
Penny's Paper-Crafty Birthday Challenge
The Paper Shelter Anything Goes Challenge

Will be looking forward to all the creations you add to our challenge!




Stamptacular Sunday Sketch Challenge


This week’s challenge is going to be so much fun!  We can’t wait to see what you create!
This week's challenge is a…
“SKETCH Challenge!”

For this weeks challenge you will create a card or project using the above sketch as your inspiration!  Feel free to flip it, flop it, twist it, turn it and add any embellishments your heart desires as long as we can still see the original sketch in your final results!  Oh…and don’t forget to stamp!  After all, we don’t call this STAMPtacular for nothing! 
You will have from now until midnight (EST) November 10th, 2012 to complete this challenge and post a DIRECT LINK to your submission into our InLinkz in order to be entered into the drawing for this week's fabulous prize donated by:
PRIZE:  It’s A SURPRISE!


It has been a busy two days since I last posted. I have finished a DT card to be posted at a later date, and I am working on a DT card that was due yesterday, but I just couldn't quite finish it. (Well, at the moment, I am actually typing. But, if I wasn't typing, I would be working on the DT card.) For one thing, I had to go out to dinner with Gary and some friends of ours last night. For another, it got dark and I cannot photograph my cards after dark. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it! But I shall have that card done this a.m. and apologize to my teammates for its late appearance. 

Another reason (I can come up with lots of excuses, but, this one is real) that I couldn't quite finish my card yesterday (which is actually going "live" tomorrow--and is that confusing enough for you?), was because my sister, Barbara, and I had a date with the Rubber Stamping Convention in Mesa. We were among the crazolas that arrived before 9:00 a.m. with tickets in hand, ready to storm the booths. And Barbara is doing really well walking; you would never know that she just had knee replacement surgery! Anyway, I spent the better part of Saturday shopping and having lunch with her. It was great fun, but oh, how my feet hurt.

I am not the brightest bulb on the planet. (I freely admit that. You may spread that around, if you are so inclined.) I wore some comfy shoes, meaning they feel good on my feet when I am sitting down, not that they feel good to wear for walking about and/or standing for hours on end. They have very thin soles. Which translates to aching feet after wearing said shoes for 3 hours at a stamping convention. Sigh....I should have worn my thick-soled tennies. But did I think of that? NOOOOOOO! Oh, sorry, didn't mean to shout at you. 

And then last night, when we went out to dinner, I wore my lovely boots with 4" heels. What the devil was I thinking? Well, let's put it this way. My size 7-1/2 feet are now approximately size 9 from all the swelling. Luckily I have zippers in those boots, or I never could have gotten them off my feet. Which now look like Bigfoot feet. Only not so hairy. Thank heavens for small favors.

BTW, do you think I spent money at the convention? Really? Moi? Ding, ding, ding! You're right! I did spend money. Tons of it. We are now broke for the next 10 years, give or take a week or two. Gary blew a gasket when I came home and told him how much I spent. He stomped around the house for at least 15 minutes, yelling his head off. Just kidding. He wasn't even home when I got here. He has no idea how much I spent--he didn't even ask. And I was actually really good and spent less than I ever have at a convention. Why? Because most of my images and sentiments are digital now, so I don't "do" rubber much anymore. (Oh, that actually sounds a little kinky, but, sadly, it's not.) I mostly got a few dies and an item for my upcoming blog candy. 

Oh, here's an update for you. An unofficial one at that. But remember when I told you that an urgent-care doctor diagnosed granddaughter Kelsey with pneumonia? Maybe not so much. Her sister has been coughing like crazy, too, so Angela took Brynn to their pediatrician. The preliminary diagnosis: whooping cough. OMGosh! How is that possible when they both were immunized as babies? Well, apparently, the vaccine can wear off before it is time for their booster shots at age 11. (Kelsey is 10-1/2 and Brynn is almost 9.) We will know for sure this week when the tests come back. Meanwhile, the girls have to stay home and the whole family was put on antibiotics. Oh, my....

I think the girls will get their Halloween cards in time for Christmas. I am not hand-delivering them yet, as I don't want to end up with the whoops, too! My sister, Merrilyn, had it when she was in third grade. (Yes, I know, that was back before there was dirt, as she is even older than I am.) But she was very sick with it--no antibiotics in those days--and she missed two months of school and coughed for almost 3 months total. Poor baby. It hurts everywhere to cough that much. Let's hope the girls get over theirs quickly!!!

Changing gears here. I need to finish describing this card in order to get to my other one. So, without further ado, (gosh, does anybody really talk like that anymore?), here goes my description. I really loved this sketch! I thought it was a great starting point for another Christmas card. Slowly, but surely, step by step, inch by inch, I am getting a few cards done for the holidays.

I love this image "Stockings" by Saturated Canary. I printed it on Cryogen CS, which gives the image a nice shimmer. I also printed the sentiment from Create with TLC on Cryogen. I sponged Stampin' Up ink around the edges of both, but not before I colored the image with my Copics: BG53, BG57, YG61, YG63, YG67, R20, R81, R83, R85, E000, E00, E07, E08, E09, E11, E31, E53, YR20, YR21, C00, C0. I also accented this image with a white gel pen, added Glossy Accents to her eyes (with her permission), and put Copic Clear Spica on her lips and thumbnail. (She has shiny polish on her other nails, too, but you just can't see them from this view.)

My fun Christmas paper is from the Jillibean Soup Winter Tortellini and Spinach Soup collection. My CS is from both Stampin' Up and DCWV. My die cuts were made with the following dies: Memory Box Eyelet Stocking, Poppystamps Simple Banner, and Spellbinders Classic Rectangles. My embossing was done with a Sizzix Stampin' Up Textured Impressions Snow Burst folder.  I added four SU mini clothespins, which I really do love. (Just in case you hadn't noticed. Because I seem to use them a lot.)

I am entering this into the following:

Crafty Ann's Christmas in October
Dilly Beans Anything Girl Challenge
Divas by Design Feeling Festive
Inky Impressions Lots of Layers
Love to Create Lots of Layers

Crafty Ann's Christmas in October ChallengeDilly Beans Anything Girl Challenge

Well, this has been real. Gotta get back to my other card. And now it is up to you peeps. Show us your takes on this fun sketch! I am looking forward to seeing what you create this week!


Friday, November 2, 2012

Jellypark GDT

Today is a first for me. I am  so tickled to be guest designing for the Jellypark Friends Friday Challenges! The theme for this week is Back to Nature. Now, for those of you who know me really well, you will be laughing hysterically at this. For those of you who don't, I don't really want to explain. But I will.

I am like the last person you will find out in nature. Unless, of course, there is an ocean nearby. Then, Calgon, take me away: I am in that water, snorkeling, if at all possible. But, if it is just going outside to sit, unless I am in the shade, you won't find me. If it is hikes on trails, you won't find me. If it is gardening, you won't find me. If it is riding a bike, you won't find me. If it is sitting on a beach, under a shady umbrella, you may find me. That's kinda the way I am. A house potato.

So, in doing a back to nature theme, I had to take myself back about 50 years. I was raised in the Montana Rockies, in Whitefish, to be exact. As a child I was outside all the time. My parents had trouble getting me to come home. Unless I was deep into a book. Otherwise, I was always doing something outdoors: roller skating, bicycling, sneaking to Whitefish Lake to swim, (and getting spanked for it later), playing softball, and in the winter, sledding and ice skating. So what happened? I think I'd need to lie down on a psychiatrist's couch to figure that out, because I have no idea. All I know is I quit the great outdoors when I got to be a teenager, and my family moved to Minnesota. Perhaps the shock of going from a small town to a big city did it. I am really not sure.

Anyway, I thought about what I loved seeing outside as a kid, and it was always the animals. Even the bears. From a distance. We didn't have the same kind of squirrels in our area as we saw in Minnesota. In Montana they were chipmunks, tons of them. Saw them in the trees pretty much everywhere. Just too cute, even though they are from the rodent family, and I really wouldn't want to get bitten by one.

So I thought I would do a rodent squirrel for my back-to-nature themed card today. I think this Jellypark digi, "Squirrel, I'm Nuts About You" is darling, and I had to color him up. Or down. But mostly up. He was printed on Make It Colour blending card. I brayered the background for him. Everything else was created with paper from a distressed piece of Authentique's Thankful collection, and card stock from Stampin' Up and Bazzill. I added a Memory Box Orchard Tree Frame die-cut around him. I also used a Memory Box Acorn die, as well as a La-La Land corner flourish, and several leaves from a Spellbinders leaf die. Then I finished die-cutting with a Spellbinders Classic Circle die and a Labels 8 die for framing my sentiment from Create with TLC, which I modified slightly by paper-piecing the acorn. A bit of baker's twine behind the frame, and I'd call him done.

He was shockingly, (oh, not really) colored with Copics: E04, E07, E09, E15, E17, E19, E40, E41, E42, E43, E44, E47, E49, E81, E84, E87, W00, W0, W2, W4, W6. If you are familiar with Copics, you will note I used colors mostly from the Earth collection, which was quite fitting for the theme, don't you think? I did a small bit of accenting with a white gel pen.

That's it for me. Over and out. But not before I encourage you to show us your back-to-nature side. Looking forward to seeing what you create!