Monday, July 30, 2007




While searching for a scrapbook for Kelton's latest photos, I found one I really liked at the dollar store in Strathroy. It was sealed in a box, and when I got it home and opened it, I found that it contained several sheets of the cutest paper ever! This is the LO I designed to start Kelton's new scrapbook. The LO idea came from Splitcoast stampers. Used my Cricut once again, for the title ~ Opposites Attract cartridge. The stamping was done with several sets ~ Doodle Alphabet, Doodle Numbers, Doodle That and Fancy Flexible Phrases. The hardest part of this LO was finding enough pictures with a similar theme! I'm really happy with the way it all came together.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

Dry Embossing on Vellum



I love the way this card came out. The challenge was to emboss something using a stylus, and I have to admit I have hardly used my stylus since I got a cuttlebug, but I decided to give it a go. The first hurdle was that my light box wasn't bright enough to see the template through Certainly Celery cardstock, so I put on my thinking cap and decided to use a strip of vellum on top of the CS.

I'm still debating whether to add some Stickles to the flower to give it more dimension and a little glitz. What do you think I should do?

Stamps used are Petal Prints and Small Sayings (both SU), CS is Tempting Turquoise, Certainly Celery and non-SU white, black & vellum, inks are Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, Tempting Turquoise and Garden Green. The flower accents were from a reduced bin at Hancock Fabrics...I sure wish they had had more than one package ~ love 'em!

FINALLY ~ Blog Candy!


I know I've been promising for awhile, but life has just gotten in the way of blogging lately. Yesterday, our power was out for 9 1/2 hours....talk about computer withdrawal!

Anyway, I'm thrilled to be able to offer some blog candy to one of my lucky readers. The winner will get the magazine you see pictured above (which has lots of great ideas for Halloween cards, among other things...I made the Get Well card for Howie that you see below based on one of the cards in this mag), ALONG WITH a hand stamped card.

What do you need to do to win? Simply leave me a comment about any one of the following: a) whether you are coming to the SU Workshop at Rock Glen on Aug. 5, b)whether you prefer to see cards or scrapbook pages on my blog, or both, c) how you found my blog, d) a link to your favourite blog or e) anything you would like to see a tutorial about.

I will have my 3yo son pick a random winner from all entries on or about Friday, Aug. 3....can't wait to hear from you!

Friday, July 27, 2007

Another Scrapbooking Challenge



This scrapbooking sketch was recently posted at Splitcoast Stampers, so I decided to give it a go with a SU set I just purchased called, "Hey Ghoul Friend". I knew I had some photos from all the way back in 1995 of Britanie and Kristopher at their Aunt Debbie and Uncle Howie's place in Chatham, ON, on Halloween evening, so I pulled them out to see if they would fit in with the sketch. Here is what I came up with:



This was a lot of fun to plan out. First I cut 5 strips of orange and blue paper, then stamped each of them with a different image from the stamp set, using Basic Black, Bashful Blue and Pumpkin Pie inks. The cool spiders were cut from the 'Doodlecharms' Cricut cartridge, the printing was done with Mini Monograms and Teardrop, and the large black tag with Going Places. As a finishing touch, I used the SU small and large tag punches for the witch, and outlined the black tag with a Signo white gel pen.

Monday, July 23, 2007

Seeing Stars



A challenge on Splitcoast Stampers inspired me to do this page of George, my DH, getting acupuncture treatments after his car accident. On one occasion, he was in the acupuncturist's office when a migraine struck, and Dr. Satram placed a needle between his toes. The migraine was gone IMMEDIATELY ~ couldn't believe it.

This LO is done with unknown background paper, a SU wheel and Journalling Fun set (for the lines on the star). Three Cricut cartridges were used ~ George for the star and the word 'stars', Opposites Attract for the word 'Seeing', and Going Places for the arrows. Also used a Studio G stamp set (from Michael's $1 collection), Creative Memories circle cutter, and Cutterpede trimmer decorative blade. Ink is Ballet Blue.

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Get Well Howie



Another friend of ours, also from Chatham, had all his teeth removed recently. We sure hope Howie is feeling ok, and this pocket card helps to cheer him up. I used the same colors as for Ernie's card (below) but decided to put a pocket on the front with a removable greeting.

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Ouch! Get Well Card



Our friend Ernie is having a knee replacement today. He and his wife Nata live in Chatham, ON, but the surgery is being done an hour away, in Sarnia. I'm hoping this card will cheer both of them up as they cope with being away from each other in addition to Ernie recovering from his surgery.

Card was made with mellow moss and bordering blue cardstock, some scraps of designer paper, and the Little Pieces stamp set, stamped on white and then punched out with 1/2" circle punch.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Scrapbooking and Stamping Workshop

Sunday, August 5, 6-8 pm in the Rec Hall at Rock Glen Family Resort, Arkona

With Alesha Walls, professional Stampin Up Demonstrator

We will be making a 12 x 12 Scrapbook page, two cards and a very special box!

Make one or all.

Cost is $5 for supplies, or NO CHARGE if you place an order for $25 or more of Stampin Up products.

Space is limited ~ you must sign up by Friday, August 3. Reply to this post
or call Marla at 519-828-5056 to reserve your spot.

Petal Thank You



It seemed like everyone said this was the set they would miss most when it retired the end of June, so I decided I had to have it. The set is called Petal Prints, and I designed this very simple thank you card to try out the set (and use up some of my leftover paper from the Moose Lodge layout below). At first, I thought it looked kind of plain, but then when I added some Diamond Stickles to the centre flower (and slept on it), I decided I really liked it. Plus, it was a VERY easy card to make.

Remember ~ keep watching for blog candy ~ coming soon :)

Sunday, July 15, 2007

Happy Joyful Birthday


Don't know yet who I'm going to give this card too, but I like the way it turned out. I used the George cartridge that came with my Cricut machine to cut the circles, using the Real Dial Size feature at 3 1/2", and the Silhouette feature for the flowers. Brad is from Dollarama ~ when I saw the package, I knew they would be great centres for flowers! Sentiment is from the SU 'Small Sayings' set, punched with the word window punch, and paper is from a package I found at Liquidation World.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Alesha's Customer Appreciation Day



My SU demo, Alesha, had a customer appreciation day on July 1. Everyone who was there made these items...what fun! We got to try out some of the new SU stamp sets and new papers for this year, and boy, did that make me want to place an order. The scrapbook page was originally intended to be a beach layout, but I made it "Kelton-specific"...LOL. The notebook/pen combo is my favorite...hard to believe that was stamped with a flower set! Can you find the parts of the flower in the photo? Hint ~ think of petals when you look at the ladybug wings.

Do you like blog candy? Keep visiting, then, as I will be giving some away soon :)

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Moose Lodge Picnic




A challenge on the yahoo scrapbooking group I belong to inspired this layout. It's amazing to think it's been 12 years since these photos were taken ~ yikes! Where does the time go? I dusted off my Tear Drop cartridge for my cricut to do the lettering and the brackets here. Also had to email DH's sister, Kari, to find out the spelling of her boyfriend's daughter's name. We haven't seen Crystal in years...she'd be all grown up now for sure.

Used 'Doodle That' and Tempting Turquoise ink from Stampin Up for the stamped accents, tag is from the 'Going Places' Cricut cartridge, the moose is from 'Animal Kingdon' and the paper clip accents are from the 'Fabulous Finds' cartridge. I LOVE my Cricut!

Stamping/Scrapbooking in a Tight Space



As some of you know, I live in two trailers ~ FL in the winter and ON in the summer. I have TONS of supplies, stamp sets, cricut and cartridges, cuttlebug, etc. etc., and finding a spot to put them, that is also out of reach for our 3yo son, Kelton, has been a real challenge. Last winter in FL, I went to a yard sale and saw two of these cabinets. I knew right away that they would be perfect for my scrapbooking supplies, since they had a locking door, they had 2 pull-out shelves (for my workspace and my trimmers), a stationary shelf (for my Cricut and Xyrons) and various cubbies and other storage spaces. So I had to buy them both (for only $20 each!!) DH was kind enough to mount some metal baskets on the doors to hold even more of my supplies, and a family friend offered to bring one of them all the way back from FL to ON in the back of his truck....I'll love you forever for that, Basil! Anyway, this is what my cupboard looks like closed.



And here it is opened ~ I have since added another row of the wire bins on the left door for more punches, stamp pads, scissors and adhesives as well as a Pampered Chef tool turnabout behind my Xyron for my pens, Crop a Dile and other tools. I love this setup ~ it is SO compact, and best of all, I no longer have to wait until Kelton is asleep at night to scrap and stamp....the door opens in a second and if I need to pick up in a hurry I simply slide my workspace shelf in and turn the key in the door. But that's not all....see the blue bag near the bottom right...that holds ALL my embellishments, themed papers, stickers, embossing folders/templates, Quickutz dies and so on and so on in my ScrapRack. Here's a photo of the ScrapRack opened up:



I am absolutely in LOVE with my ScrapRack!! The whole thing folds down in a jiffy to fit in that tiny bag you see in the bottom of my scrapping cupboard, and sets in up less than a minute....PLUS when full it will even fit on the top of a tv tray with room to spare! That means I can take all my supplies with me in my rolling tote and also have them easily accessible at home in the trailer. Love it, love it, love it!

If you're interested in more info about the ScrapRack, you can check it out at www.thescraprack.com Be sure to have a look at the online video. Don't order direct, though....if you come back to me when you're ready to order, I can get a better deal for you ~ I was able to use my business licence to become a distributor...I'm telling you, if you scrap, you absolutely need one of these. I have had so many different storage spaces/units/bins/drawers/totes and was able to condense them all into this neat unit that is organized so that I can find whatever I want in seconds...no kidding! Want more info? I have an extra copy of the organizational DVD that explains how it all works....I'd be happy to lend it to you....just ask!

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Enjoy Golf



This card was made for a challenge to use an unexpected element. After scouring the house for something unique, inspiration suddenly hit, and this is the result. DH says he wants it to give to one of his golfing buddies, who has a birthday soon. I'm flattered.

Can't give too much info about this card ~ all the stamps used are unknown, as is the cardstock and ribbon. Inks are Creamy Caramel and Night of Navy.

Sunday, July 8, 2007

My 100% Original Boy



My Stampin Up Demo, Alesha, had a customer appreciation day at her house recently, where we made 5 unique projects, including this scrapbook page. Her sample had the word "Beach" at the top with 2 birds at the ends of the word, but since I don't have any beach photos, I looked around to see what other stamps she had, and came up with this variation on her layout. When I came home, I added the photos, "so very cute" and the lettering at the side of the photo...DH's idea to add "11 months". All of the materials used were Stampin Up, with the exception of the word 'months' which is from an All Night Media alphabet set.

Saturday, July 7, 2007

A Special Thank You to Cristin

Thanks, Cristin, for letting me know you couldn't find vinyl cling anywhere! Because of you, I discovered yet another way to unmount stamps ~ while searching on the net for a source for vinyl cling, I discovered a tutorial that showed how to mount the clear sticker (that would normally go on the wood block) directly onto the foam of the unmounted stamp. You then use Tack n Peel on your acrylic block, as opposed to vinyl cling on the stamp itself. The *HUGE* bonus is that you can see your image as you are stamping it! I had to try this right away, so I reached for a set that I had just purchased used, and discovered that I was able to gently peel the sticker off the block, put it on the foam back of my unmounted stamp,and trim.I could then see exactly what I was stamping. Awesome!

This would be even easier with new sets, as you can place the sticker on the foam and then trim both together. Poor DH, as I will be sending him to the storage room to retrieve all the blocks from the sets I have already unmounted, so that I can take the stickers.

Quilted Card



I bought this BG 'quilt' stamp at a yard sale, and was looking for just the right challenge to use it, and here it is. Wish I had stamped all the words in Close to Cocoa ~ it didn't scan well in Bashful Blue.

This card was very easy to do but somewhat time consuming. Inks used are Bashful Blue, Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery, Almost Amethyst, and Close to Cocoa. Paper is Bashful Blue, and stamps are from SU's Springtime Stems, Happy Harmony, Fancy Flexible Phrases and of course the unknown garage sale quilt stamp.

Thursday, July 5, 2007

I Care



This is a really speedy card that can be used as a pick-me-up. I went looking for some pretty paper in my ScrapRack, and this just seemed to jump out at me, although I have no idea where it originally came from. Embossed it with my Cuttlebug, cut a couple of tags with my small and large SU tag punches, stamped them with "Fanciful Flowers" and "i care" in bliss blue and pale plum, and the card is all set to go. You can't really see it in the photo, but I also used my Creative Memories scallop corner punch on the edges and then taped the whole thing to white cardstock.

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Canadian Baby



Now that Kelton is no longer in diapers, I'm selling them off. (Contact me if you're interested in Wonderoos). Can't sell this one, though ~ it's priceless! I'm thinking I might even frame this dipe in a shadow box so we will have it forever.

Anyway, I did this page of him being a silly Canadian baby. Circles are cut with my CM cutter (no surprise there, eh?), black BG circle pattern is the Teddy Bear wheel from SU with white craft ink, paper is from a pack I got from Costco, All Canadian Kid sticker I got at a yard sale, red maple leaves are from Michaels, and lettering is from the TearDrop cartridge (Cricut, of course).

Monday, July 2, 2007

Boy oh Boy

Our friends Bob and Kathy are grandparents for the second time today :) Their daughter, Stephanie, and her husband, Mike welcomed their baby son, Justin, into the world. Laila is proud to be a big sister, and I made this card to welcome Justin into the family. I used Ballet Blue ink and cardstock, some unknown DP, and cut the circle with my Mini Monograms cartridge on my Cricut. Baby, star and word 'boy' stamps are from Studio G (dollar spot at Michaels), and 'oh' is from an All Night Media alphabet stamp set that my DH got for me. The inside of the card also has a couple of stars, and reads "twinkle, twinkle little star, darling baby, here you are" ~ 'Small Sayings' from Stampin Up. I popped the baby up with a dimensional, although it doesn't show up all that well in the photo.

Sunday, July 1, 2007

Another June Birthday



We have 3 children born in June ~ Kelton on the 7th (2004), Shara on the 16th (1982) and Jade on the 25th (1985). What a busy month! I made Shara's and Jade's cards using the same stamp set, "You Make Me Happy" from Stampin Up. This is Shara's card ~ I love the soft colors.