The Outlawz Greetings Card "Bling It Up" Challenge

We are sponsored this month by Bugaboo Stamps.

 

We are asking that you add some bling, glitter, rhinestones, or pearls to your card this week. I would expect to see lots of entries, since this is a really easy challenge--right?

Well, I just read some crazy news. Apparently, there is some blatant artistic copying going on that I was unaware of. I unknowingly bought some digis from a rather unscrupulous artist. I even made a card with one of them for another DT prior to hearing this news. I have pulled the card before it could be published. I feel really badly about it, because the birthday card was for my sister, Barbara--and now she doesn't get to see it on my blog post next Sunday. I am really sorry about that, Barbara; but in all good conscience, I can't advertise for this particular "artist". And I use that term loosely in regards to her. The other bummer is that I now have another card to get done for this week. Oh well...

At least Barbara really liked the card. She and I had a lot of fun crafting together for the past few days! She made some beautiful cards for her March birthday peeps---I know they will love them! And we got to go out to eat about five times--had some really good food, too! It was great having her stay, however briefly, and I look forward to that again next year! 

I am so sorry that I haven't been commenting on blog posts, but I am slowly getting back to that. It will be a bit sporadic this week as well, especially since I have to make an additional card now. And I will be spending tomorrow at the hospital since my other sister, Merrilyn, is having her other knee replacement surgery. She is so looking forward to having two painless, working knees. Of course, there is that pesky recovery period for her to get through; but I expect she will do it with flying colors as she did her other one last summer. Oh, gosh, how time flies--that seems like only yesterday. 

I was planning on posting some more photos from our trip. So let's get to that, OK? When we last saw our heroine, (and her sidekick, Gary), she was having dinner at Mama's Fish House in Pa'ia on Maui. (Insert heavy sigh here.) She made it safely back to her itty bitty hotel room outside of Lahaina for the night. Her sidekick is a pretty decent driver. Most of the time. Of course, she has to give him instructions now and then, so he understands the best way to get from place to place. Some peeps might call her a back-seat driver. But how is that possible, when she sits in the front seat?

Enough of the third person already. We spent most of our few days on Maui, just relaxing, since it was our third trip to the island. We had to go snorkeling at least once while we were there. After all, Santa had given us both wetsuits to wear in the cooler winter water. And we had brought all our snorkel gear--couldn't bring that over for nothing, now could we?

So we walked from the Westin down to the Sheraton--it's really a lovely walk, even loaded down with snorkel gear. Supposedly the snorkeling at Black Rock by the Sheraton is fabulous. Well, for us, not so much. There were only a few different kinds of fish that day, and not very many of any of them. It was wonderful to get back into the ocean, though. I heart that. I heart that a lot. Gary has a problem with the motion of the ocean, so he never stays in as long as I do.

And that's why I get to be the one to take underwater photos. (He doesn't enjoy underwater photography much at all.) Unfortunately, for me, that meant using an inexpensive film camera on this trip. (We really need to get a good underwater digital camera. Really. Really.) My photos are truly terrible. Which is sad because I had a sea turtle swim out toward me as I was going back to the beach. What? A turtle. Quickly, Penny, get the shot. Um, the camera wasn't wound. Crap. Well, wind it fast, and shoot. This happened so quickly you wouldn't have believed it. I was almost eyeball to eyeball with that turtle. I took three photos, but none really captured the moment.

The only reason that the turtle was heading my way was to get away from the snorkelers who were chasing it. Honestly, some people. We were told earlier in the week that some guy actually grabbed onto a turtle and let it pull him in the water. He was caught doing it and was fined $25, 000. Served him right. That's the story anyway, from one of the locals. Here are my poorly-lit and poorly-shot photos of a great experience.

Gary wanted to drive down to South Maui that evening. To the Fairmont Kea Lani to be exact. He wanted to see the sunset from the lounge at the hotel. We had done that in September 2011, when we spent a week at the hotel. The most fantastic sunsets ever. Truly. So he just had to take photos of it again. 

Our trip took us past the scenic whale lookout again. So we stopped to take more photos, because we had our "good" cameras with us. Best laid plans of mice and men. And dummies. The whales knew we were coming, and they went elsewhere. Got a couple of shots of whale parts, but there were only a couple of whales to photograph. Where were they? I think they were partying over by the Westin that afternoon. Because we weren't there. So this is what we got:

The photos above are my best 'whale parts' photos. Below are Gary's. And I imagine you'll have to click on mine to see much of anything; but Gary got a couple of pretty good shots. My second photo is looking toward Lana'i. Gary's second shot is looking toward Moloka'i.

So, disappointed in the lack of whale activity, we left the area to head to South Maui. The lounge at the Fairmont Kea Lani is really beautiful. And it has really good drinks and appetizers. So that's what we had for dinner while we waited for the sunset. Which was an absolute disappointment. Because the sun sets at a different angle in January than it does in September. It doesn't set over the ocean, but rather behind Lana'i. Boo. Hiss.

However, before the sun set I managed to get a couple of decent shots of a whale passing by the hotel beach. And Gary did get a fairly good sunset shot.

Gary rented a cabana for our last full day on the island. He went out there earlier than I did, because he can tolerate more sun and heat than I can. But I did spend about five hours out there--covered in sun screen and shaded by the cabana. The cabana turned out to be two wooden lounge chairs with padded seats, which sat underneath an adjustable canvas cover. There was a table that joined the chairs.

I took my iPad and camera down and was set for the day--we had ice water served hourly, we ordered drinks and lunch, and had a pretty fabulous relaxed day--with one notable exception. The Westin property is smoke-free, but the beach is not. And some **^%$%^*** was smoking a cigar, non-stop, down on the beach; and wouldn't you know, the wind blew it right into our cabana. However, there were other cabanas available that day, and they let us move to one where the smoke didn't reach us. Honestly, cigar smoke is an odor that I just cannot handle. I think I would rather smell baby poo.

Before I got down there, a whale breached fairly close to the beach and Gary got to see it. Did that happen again after I arrived? Are you kidding me? Of course not. I did see several whales passing by throughout the day, so I took a few more shots of them. I got a some pictures of our pretty views, one of my sugar-daddy, and even one of a lizard--guess which is which. Snort. Pfffffffffffft!

Toward Lana'i:

Toward Moloka'i:

I have to admit that these photos are so very ordinary compared to the ones Dawn showed me of her trip to Alaska. OMG! Those whale shots were unbelievable! Of course, the whales feed up there, so they behave very differently than they do in Hawaii. The photo ops are very different. Which makes me want to go up to Alaska in the summer just to observe humpbacks in their summer habitat. Besides, it would get us out of the desert heat, which sounds like a plan. Hmmmm....perhaps I should bring this up to my beloved.

Well, that's the end of my photos. Gary took some of the hotel grounds on the day of checkout that I might show you on my next post. Unless you protest too much.

On to today's card. My image is from Saturated Canary, called "Dance Music". I printed her on Make It Colour Blending Card and colored her with Copics: Y28, R20, R22, BG70, BG72, BG75, BG78, YR20, YR21, YR24, YR27, E000, E00, E11, E21, E31, E35. I added Copic Spica to her eyelids, lips, headphones, star, and iPod screen.

I chose DP from MME Lost & Found Sunshine and paired it with Bazzill and Stampin' Up CS. My sentiment was die cut with Memory Box Typewriter Lower Case dies. It was mounted on die cuts using Spellbinders Labels 20 dies. The other dies I used were: MFT Notes & Treble Clef; MB Musical Interlude, which I cut in half; and MB Treble Clef. My bling came from MS Birthstone Stickers and Recollections Rhinestones. And so it is.

Hope you play along with us on this challenge. Be sure to check out the Greetings Card Blingmeisters, AKA my DT mates. They did it up royally this week.

Stamptacular Sunday

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…

“Swirls and Lace!”

For this week's challenge you will create a card or project that includes both swirls and lace.  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) February March 2^nd, 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:

MELJENS DESIGNS

PRIZE:  Winner’s Choice of FOUR DIGI IMAGES!

Oh, swirls and lace should be a slam-dunk, don't you think? Easy-peasy! I expect to see lots of entries this week!

I have my sister, Barbara, here this weekend. We have been making cards in my craft room since Thursday, and it has been a blast! However, I have not been able to keep up the pace with commenting on the blogs I follow. So I beg your pardon. I promise to get back to it ASAP! Look for my comments again starting tomorrow, OK? Thank you for your patience.

This is a very quick post--my longer ones will resume tomorrow as well. Okey dokey. On with the show:

I chose Mo's Digi Pencil Easter Carly to color for this card. I think this image is so dang cute! I printed her on Make It Colour Blending Card and then colored her with Copics: BG70, BG72, YG61, YG63, YR30, YR31, R20, R22, C00, C0, E000, E00, E11, E18, E19, E21, E39, E97, E99. The background was created with Copics also. I added Glossy Accents to her shoes and Copic Spica to her lips. I die-cut her with a Spellbinders Grand Labels 11 die, and sponged the edges with SU ink.

The sentiment is my own. My DP is from the Prima Sun Kiss collection; it was paired with Bazzill and Stampin' Up CS. I made a flower with Cheery Lynn Daisy Strip and Embellishment #1 dies and put it together with a SU brad. I used Stampin' Up ribbon under some floral lace that I had inked with a Copic marker. The dies I used to create my swirls with were Magnolia Doohickey Flourish and Cheery Lynn Lace Corner Deco B. Ta-daaaa! Swirls and lace--like I said, easy-peasy!

Be sure to check out my teammates' fabulous cards to get some inspiration. I'm looking forward to seeing your creations. Have a great week!

Jellypark Friends Get in Shape Challenge

We are challenging you to use lots of shapes on your projects. Shouldn't be too difficult, right? I managed to use some; and, if I can, anybody can!

I am really running late on things this week. Really? What a surprise--that's never happened to me before! Liar, liar, pants on fire.

I did manage to get my card in just under the wire. And then found out that the internet was causing posting difficulties. So, the new challenge was not going up as soon as it normally would. Please bear with us--I am sure that everything will be straightened out shortly. And, if not, please hang in there a little longer. The new challenge will get posted. At some point.

I have my sister, Barbara, here for a few days. We are busy crafting in my craft room. Well, not right at the moment, because I had to write up this post and she is reading. But we both got a card done today and have plans to get at least one more done tomorrow. Oh, wait a minute, I am writing this yesterday, so move the day references back one, please. And, if you didn't get that, don't worry about it. I didn't either. Neither did my evil twin. I think she is asleep right now, though, so that doesn't count.

My last post included a few shots taken in Maui. We were only there for five days, but they were really fun and relaxed. I didn't take as many photos there, because this was our third trip, and I just wanted to vegetate a bit.  But I did get some that I was both happy with and disappointed in.

The day after we arrived the weather was beautiful. We went down to Lahaina to grab lunch. We wound up eating at Mick Fleetwood's, (yes, from Fleetwood Mac--that's a very old band, for you youngsters), new restaurant, Fleetwood's on Front Street. We had a really good drink and some yummy flat bread and hummus with veggies. They seated us up on the rooftop, which is kind of unique. There are beautiful views up there, if you ignore the power lines! All in all, it was an enjoyable meal. I did manage to get a shot of Mick's sound guy, who was getting the gear uncovered. (It had been protected in the rainstorm the night before.) Oh, and, of course, a shot of my beloved, imbibing again.)

I think we went to Star Noodle that night for dinner, but I really do not remember for sure--no photos were taken to remind me of where I was that night!

The next day we ate breakfast outdoors at the Westin, did some poolside reading, and managed a bit of window-shopping at the shopping center next to the Westin. I think we took a drive at one point to see the area where we stayed last April. We had dinner reservations at my all-time favorite restaurant, Mama's Fish House. So we headed out a bit early to do some more window-shopping in Pa'ia, which is not too far from the restaurant.

On the way we stopped at a scenic point where whales are usually seen in the winter. Had I really thought it out, I would have taken my good camera with the great zoom. But, of course, I didn't, and there were whales blowing and breaching and blowing some more. Many, many whales. I had the little camera so I couldn't really get great shots of the whales themselves. They were too far away and it's hard to catch their bodies out of the water. But, if you click on the photos, you might be able to see parts of some whales. It was fabulous to see so many in one location. I heart whales. I heart them a lot!!!

Gosh, those are probably more photos than you needed/wanted to see of the whales. Oh, well...tough. Pfffffffffffffft!

The route to Pa'ia takes you along the north side of Haleakala. I couldn't believe my eyes when we were driving and I glanced over at the volcano. You could see the entire top of the mountain! I imagine that was because that ferocious storm had blown all of the clouds away. If you click on these photos you may see the observatory at the top of the mountain at about the 10,000 foot level. We were up there in September of 2011! Hard to believe that Gary actually drove us up that high. (He'll never do it again; that was a white-knuckle drive for him. Chicken.)

We did stop in Pa'ia to window-shop for a while before going to Mama's. I saw a lot of things I actually wanted to buy for the house. Gary--not so much. So we bought nothing. Which was fine. As long as I could eat at Mama's. (Of course, Gary cannot resist my request for dinner there, especially when it is accompanied by stomping my feet, flapping my arms, and generally throwing a major hissy fit. It ain't pretty--but it's effective.) (Oh, just kidding. I don't even need to beg to go to Mama's. He loves it as much as I do. The food is phenomenal.)

So a few restaurant photos. Why this dude is still there in January, I have no idea. But he deserved a photo for his endurance. 

Here's a shot of the outside of the restaurant, which faces the ocean.

When we arrived, there was a wedding being performed at sunset on the beach. How romantic! (Gag me.) (Yes, I am just jealous. So sue me.)

The next photo is the view from our table. Loved it!

Then we have the menu, some ditzy old lady sitting there, (but oddly, no goofy guy), a divine Mai Tai, fantabulous lobster soup, and the most scrumptious opakapaka! What a meal. Yummilicious! Best meal on the trip, no doubt about it. I want to go back. This instant. Got any spare change?

So, there you have another day of our vacation. I have a few more photos to show you on another post. For now I will send you back with a word from our sponsor. What? That made absolutely no sense. But I am leaving it in anyway.

For my card with shapes, I chose Jellypark Friends Boy and Toy Train and printed him on Make It Colour Blending Card. I think he is a darling image, don't you? I had some DP from the Basic Grey Oliver collection with toy trains on it. Imagine that. Serendipitous. I combined that, and other DP from the same collection, with Stampin' Up CS.  

The image got colored with Copics: E000, E00, E02, E08, E09, E11, E13, E15, E18, E21, E70, E71, E74, YG91, YG93, YG95, BG32, BG34, BG70, BG72, BG75, BG78, R20, C00, C0, C2, C4. He was die-cut with a Spellbinders Labels One die and sponged with SU ink. Then I framed him with die cuts using Spellbinders Marvelous Squares. The stars were made with Spellbinders Classic Stars dies. The sentiment was cut from Memory Box Typewriter Upper Alphabet dies.

My finishing touches were a button and twine from my stash, some Tim Holtz Film Strip Ribbon, three Tim Holtz Mini Gears, and some SU ribbon.

That's it for my shapes and my post. Whew! It is now today, because it is after 1 a.m. And I am ready for sleep. I hope to see your shaped creations soon. Be sure to check out the darling cards by my teamies and the fab new releases by Claire! And have a great weekend!