Penny Black Saturday Challenge #34

Wow, two challenges posted in one day! That's a first for me.

The Penny Black Saturday Challenge #34 is to create a circle card. I used an assortment of circle and circle scallop Nestabilities, along with the Penny Black stamp "Marching Mouse" and "Eva Extravagance" paper by Basic Grey.

My mouse is colored with Prismacolor colored pencils, the ribbon is from Michaels and there's that touch of Stickles Diamond glitter glue.

That's it for today. Thanks for looking.

Cheers, Judi

Cuttlebug Be Inspired #16

The Cuttlebug Inspiration this week is to add distressing to your project. I'm not big into distressing but figured I needed to give it a try.

This week's inspiration was brought to us by Basic Grey so, in their honor, I dug out several of my Basic Grey paper pads and decided on paper from Scarlet's Letter. I used two different size punches to create the flowers (small flower by Marvy and large flower by Punch It) and then ran them both through the Swiss Dots embossing folder. I sanded the edges and the dots, plus added Dark Brown Fluid Chalk ink. This ink was also used around the edges of the DP. The stamp is called "A Basket for all Seasons" by Mostly Animals (I've had it forever) and it was also run through the Cuttlebug before edging with the Dark Brown ink. The brown ribbon is DCWV bought from QVC and the copper brads are from my stash.

Since I raised the flowers using pop dots, I also tried to give the petals a bit of curl with a pencil. I've added another picture to show the dimension but it didn't really show it very well.

Thanks for taking a look. "Distressing" can really be quite fun; you should try it some time.

Cheers, Judi

House Mouse Monday Challenge #22

Paper Piercing.... that's the challenge this week for the House Mouse Monday Challenge #22. You must include some sort of paper piercing in your project. I did a little paper piercing in a class I took last summer and the one thing I remember is that you can keep your holes in a straight line by following the grid of a piece of plastic canvas mesh. So naturally, after that class, I had to buy some plastic canvas for all the paper piercing I was going to do. Yesterday, when I started this project, I had to dig it out of a drawer! Go figure...

With plastic canvas in hand, here's my take on paper piercing for HM #22. I used "Gentle Rain" and colored Muzzy with Prismacolor colored pencils. The paper came from some long ago purchase of a 6x6 paper pack, the ribbon is from Michaels, the butterfly is K&Company and, as usual, there is a touch of Stickles Diamond glitter glue.

Thanks for looking. All comments are appreciated.

Cheers, Judi

Penny Black Saturday Challenge #33

The past weekend was actually not too bad. The sun came out on several occasions and we only had a few flurries. Of course, the temperature was near 0, but did I mention that the sun came out??

It was a typical weekend... we went grocery shopping on Saturday, took Mom out to dinner on Sunday and I finally spent time organizing my Nestabilities and clear stamps. I've got my Nestabilities in CD cases with a magnetic strip. I'm much happier with the magnet than the double sided tape I was using. I also worked on updating this blog and setting up a profile in Paper Craft Planet. I haven't joined any groups yet, that's next.

Anyway, on to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge #33. The challenge this week is "Frame It". There must be one frame in our entry. I used a transparent stamp from "Critter Party", my frame was made with my Nestabilities and I colored the image with Prismacolor colored pencils. The paper is from Making Memories Kids Collection-Emma, the ribbon is from Michaels and the flowers are brads with their prongs cut off.

Have a great week. Thanks for checking out my card. Would love it if you left a comment.

Cheers, Judi

Cuttlebug Be Inspired #15

Cuttlebug Be Inspired #15 challenge (http://cuttlebugchallenge.blogspot.com/2009/01/be-inspired-15-draft.html) is a sketch this week. I really had fun with this. I used a package of heart stickers from Jolee's by You, white and gold CS from stash, and the Cuttlebug Perfectly Paisley embossing folder. Unfortunately, I don't have any idea where the "Congratulations" stamp came from (it's a foam stamp I've had for years).

Enjoy, Judi

House Mouse Monday Challenge #21

This week's House Mouse Monday Challenge #21 (http://housemouse-challenge.blogspot.com/) is a color challenge. We are supposed to use Cameo Coral (a slight peachy pink), Old Olive (a rich olive green), and Night of Navy (navy blue in its finest!) in our project.

I struggled with this challenge. I changed out the paper several times and re-colored the image at least three times. I did finally manage to come up with a card that I really like.

The stamp I chose is "Wreath Love". The DP and flower sticker are K&Company; card stock is SU Cameo Coral and Night of Navy; Olive CS is Bazzill and ribbon from Michaels. I used Nestabilities (2 sizes), a Martha Stewart punch, and Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder.

Thanks for looking.

Cheers, Judi

Catching Up

Sue thinks if I'm going to use this as a journal, I should be creating an entry every day. She was surprised that I hadn't entered anything since Sunday. I tried to explain that my life isn't really that exciting and there's not that much to record.

Work has been busy but not overwhelming. We're still working on one bond application for a May election. Review meeting at Treasury is tomorrow... so glad I only type the documents. We've had a new restaurant open near the office, Chipolte. Yesterday the entire office was invited for a free lunch before the restaurant opened, a test run for the staff so to speak. The food was excellent. I had a carnitas (pork) burrito bowl along with chips and guacamole. Today, they were offering a free burrito to anyone who came in between 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.; at 11:00, the line was around the building.

We've had pretty good weather this whole week. Monday and Tuesday were our sunniest days since November 17 and 18. It was still fairly cold but so nice to see the sun all day. It's warmed up today (high of 32) which also means it's cloudy. I think it's supposed to snow this weekend.

I've been working on the House Mouse Monday Challenge the last several nights. It's almost done and I'm hoping to post tomorrow (glitter's drying at the moment). I'm also going to attempt the Cuttlebug Challenge, although I don't have any ideas for it yet.

I joined Paper Craft Planet this week. It's touted as being "Facebook" for paper crafters. I need to spend some time digging around in it. House Mouse Monday Challenge has a group which is where I found the link.

New episode of CSI... time to go.
Cheers, Judi

Let's Get Dotty - PBSC #32

The sun is finally shining today and the temperature has actually reached the 20's... a heat wave after the 0 degree temperatures we've had. The birds in our backyard are having a feeding frenzy now that they can get to the feeders again.

Last week just flew by. Hard to believe it's time for the Penny Black Saturday Challenge. This week's challenge is "Let's Get Dotty", incorporating dots of any kind into your image. After such a dreary week, I decided I need something cheerful and bright. Yellow did the trick.

The Penny Black stamp is Make A Wish (342J), the flowers are Prima, and the ribbon is from Michaels. I used the Swiss Dots embossing folder, a Martha Stewart border punch and Primsacolor colored pencils (blended with gamsol). The yellow swiss dot paper is from PaperPatch and the glitter glue is Stickles Diamond.

Hope my card brightens your day! Thanks for looking.
Cheers, Judi

Cuttlebug Be Inspired #14

This is a week of firsts for me. I joined my first challenge ever (Penny Black Saturday Challenge), which also meant it was the first time I joined PBSC. I then joined for the first time House Mouse Monday Challenge and today will be my first time joining the Cuttlebug challenge. I have loved seeing everyone's contributions to these challenges and am so glad I decided to take the plunge.

The Cuttlebug Be Inspired #14 challenge should have been very easy.... just pick your favorite embossing folder and use it on a card. I guess I own too many embossing folders because it was a very tough decision. I finally decided on Swiss Dots. It was the first embossing folder I ever bought (hmmmm, there's that "first" again) and it's really what made me decide I had to have a Cuttlebug!

Anyway, here's my card. The hummingbird is an "E-Z Rub-On Transfer" from Royal Langnickel (www.royalbrush.com). I used a Fiskars border punch around the edge and the paper was from Hobby Lobby. And, of course, the Swiss Dots embossing folder.

Thanks for looking. I would love to hear from you.
Cheers, Judi

House Mouse Monday Challenge #20 - ATC

Monday's House Mouse Challenge is to create an ATC. I haven't made ATCs in a while but, for my first House Mouse challenge, this sounded like fun. So I dug out my stash of stuff I had left from ATCs and went to work.

The stamp is "Monica Romances" and Monica has been colored with Prismacolor colored pencils. The beads, doily and heart charm came from Michaels and the paper is from PaperPatch. Heart punch is EK Success, "Love" is Hero Arts and, of course, there is a touch of Stickles glitter glue.

Thanks for looking.
Judi

Penny Black Saturday Challenge #31

Today I am participating in my first ever challenge. I've been checking out a lot of them over the last several months and just love the Penny Black Saturday Challenge. This week's challenge is the color scheme Pink and Brown. So here's my card.

Stamps: Penny Black (586K), Endless Creations (B151)

Cuttlebug: Swiss Dots Embossing Folder

Nestabilities: Scallop Rectangle

Paper: Daisy D, My Mind's Eye

Punches: EC Success (flowers - 2 sizes)

Hand-made paper (from stash)

Brads (from stash)

Tombow Markers/Blending Pen

Stickles Diamond Glitter Glue

Thanks for looking. I would love it if you'd leave a comment; I really appreciate them.

A Couple of Days... just like any other day

Not much going on the last two days. Work hasn't been too bad. We got our school bond app sent to the Treasury Department for review which is a huge load off my plate. It was the largest application we had ever sent in... 17 sites total. Let's just hope it passes in May.

Woke up to snow this morning. Guess we got a couple of inches. It's supposed to turn really cold starting this weekend and continuing through next week. Glad we don't have to go anywhere.

We had a department holiday party in December and I volunteered to teach everyone how to make cards. They seemed to really enjoy it and now they've decided they want to make Valentines. We had several hours for our holiday party but this time, we are going to play during a lunch. My challenge is to create a couple of cards that 10 women who don't know much about stamping can make in an hour. How do I get myself into these situations??? I haven't any idea what kind of cards to design so I guess that's how I'll spend my weekend.

Even though I haven't made anything new in the last couple of days, I did find an ATC I made a while back. It is made with alcohol inks (Trias) on glossy cardstock. I really love the look you get with Trias. The colors blend in such unusual patterns. I used an Impression Obsession stamp and mounted it on black cardstock.

Birthday Card #2

Today is my Mom's birthday, 85 years old. Sue and I went over to see her after work. She had already had supper but the cook at Sunrise of Cascade (assisted living community where Mom lives) had prepared her an apple pie. We had a piece with her, along with the other folks she eats with. It was very good pie.

This is the card I made her. The stamp is "Aspire" by Penny Black, the patterned paper is "Aspen Petite" by Karen Neuburger, the purple card stock is from Hobby Lobby. I colored with Tombow makers and gave the stamped flowers a touch of Stickles glitter glue. The paper flowers are from my stash.

I was going to use this card for the Penny Black Saturday Challenge until I realized it didn't have any embossing. It would have been really embarrassing to have my first ever challenge post not meet the requirements. Too bad... I had a lesson in posting a link and I'd like to give it a try.

Birthday Card

I've been working on a couple of birthday cards; one for the office and one for my Mom. Here's the one for the office. I'm not very happy with the photo. The colors were much more vibrant than what this shows. I'll have to keep working on that.

I used Stampendous' Fluffles The Cat, an assortment of card stock scraps, the Cuttlebug Happy Birthday embossing folder on the bottom layer, a bit of green gingham ribbon, a touch of Stickles glitter glue and I colored Fluffles with Prismacolor colored pencils.

I hope to post my Mom's card tomorrow.

Back to Work Tomorrow

It's back to work tomorrow. I've been on vacation since 12/24; I like being on vacation.

We woke to ice and rain this morning but by noon it had cleared up. I've spent my last vacation day as we would any typical Sunday... reading the newspaper, having a big breakfast, taking a couple of naps, making a couple of cards... just relaxing the day away. Sue does have a special doctor's appointment tomorrow so we took a dry run downtown to find the office.

I'm still hoping to get a card posted to a challenge sometime this week. I just don't quite understand the linking process so I need to see if Barb can explain it to me. I'm sure it's really a very easy process once I get my mind around it.

I hope I wake up on time tomorrow morning. I've gotten used to staying up later and waking up later. Back to the real world!

Second New Year's Resolution

Well, I completed my first New Year's resolution with the creation of this blog. My second resolution is to stamp more and to join in at least one stamping challenge a month.

When I discovered the world of blogging, I spent hours following the links from one blog to another, taking in all the wonderful cards and craft projects out there. I must admit I was overwhelmed by the amount of material posted. I had lost some interest in stamping until I found this community of stampers and papercrafters who shared project after project with the entire world.

Bouncing from blog to blog, I found out about all the stamping challenges out there. I especially like the House Mouse Monday Challenge, the Penny Black Saturday Challenge, and the Cuttlebug Challenge. As soon as I figure out how to link my project to one of these challenges, I'm going to join the fun.

I did work on a couple of cards today. I need one for the office on Monday and one for my Mom's 85 birthday on Tuesday. It's a pleasure working in our craft room since it got a major cleaning for our New Year's Eve get-together.... now if I can just keep it this way!!

New Year's Eve Stamping Party

For the last 8 years, my sister and I have had a New Year's Eve stamping party and this year was no exception. The first couple of years there were 5 of us; we dropped to 4 but this year we were back up to 5 (me, Sue, Barb, Sandy and Marla). We usually start early afternoon on New Year's Eve and continue through New Year's Day. We stamp, laugh, eat, stamp some more, eat some more, watch the "ball" drop at midnight, and stamp and laugh some more. We have a regular pajama party, while playing with stamps, ink, paper, glitter or anything else we can get our hands on.

Tradition dictates that we start off by making calendars. We first made calendars that fit in the 3x5 acrylic frames but a couple of years ago, we moved to the 4x6 frames (more stamping space!). It's amazing how 5 people can all be working with the same calendar, yet the end results all look so different. I'm going to start off each month with a copy of mine. (I need to figure out how to get better photographs of my cards.)

After calendars, everyone starts working on whatever cards they might need for the coming year. Sue and I always have to work on cards for our Mom as her birthday is the 6th. We also play with new products (Cuttlebug was a huge hit) or work on other projects. There is always a flurry of activity and conversation. We all have very different styles and we always show off what we've completed.

There's always plenty of food around; everyone contributes. Snacks and diet pop are a given. We try to have something substantial (pizza or meat and cheese tray or this year's favorite, mac and cheese) for supper. And, of course, the evening wouldn't be complete without an assortment of sweets.

Breakfast has really become a brunch. We have a wonderful egg/bread/ham/cheese casserole (recipe actually calls it an "egg souffle"), along with fruit, OJ and/or coffee and sweet rolls. Gives us all the energy we need for another round of stamping.

We tend to start packing things up about 4:00 p.m. After several trips out to cars, our guests head home, and Sue and I collapse tired but content.

It's a wonderful way to start off the new year... doing something you love in the company of good friends.

2009... A New Year

Wow, I've accomplished my first New Year's resolution. I've created a blog. My friend, Barb, told me it was very easy... and it was. I must admit I didn't discover blogs and blogging until last fall. I know, I know, I'm very behind the times. But it was full throttle forward, once I figured out what everyone was talking about.

My life isn't very exciting but it seems time to start a journal (and my typing is much better than my handwriting). I also hope to share some of my card-making and paper-crafting projects, maybe inspiring someone along the way.

If anyone comes to visit, thanks! I'd love it if you'd leave me a comment.

So, here's to 2009 and recording my life, a (small) Piece of Time.