Thanks a Bunch!

....this past month has been so much fun. I had so much time with my kids--traveling to Philadelphia (suburbs), Pittsburgh, North Wildwood, NJ and to Chicago (CHA)! Thanks so much for hanging in there with me as my posts have been few and far between.

Gina K asked me at CHA when I was "coming back to work" and I assured her that I was (heehee, despite how much fun I have been having gallivanting around!)

I just got back from the beach with my kids and we had SOOO much fun. And now....I really feel ready (REALLY ready) to get back to work.

We fly back to Texas on Saturday night.....so I will "officially" be back to work next week!

I have two cards left to share (that I created just before my vacation). This one is a acetate card that I created using one of my favorite designer paper from American Crafts. I used the tab punch from Stampin' Up! to create little tabs at the top of the card (which also helps you to see the acetate better!)

Here is a close up of the flower detail. I love how the ghost flower looks layered over the designer paper (American Crafts)! The brad is a SU! Build a Brad that I poked through the acetate. Using the Build-a-Brad enabled me to match the blue from the dp perfectly.

Hope you are all having a WONDERFUL summer! Thanks for stopping by!

Hitting the Beach...

Tomorrow morning, I am heading to the NJ beach with my kiddos for a week-long vacation. I can hardly wait. The beach is one of my favorite places to be with my kids and I know we are all going to enjoy it so much.

I will be back next week with a quick card to share (the last of the cards I have to share while on hiatus!)

I will be back working in two weeks so my blog posts will pick up again...thanks so much for hanging in there with me...

In the meantime, be sure to check out Craft Critique to see some of my favorite things from CHA!

***Don't forget to stop by Gina K's blog tomorrow to catch day one of her preview party. (You are not gonna want to miss the awesome new sets she is releasing this month-July 24!)***

Thanks for stopping by! Have a fantastic week!

Lookie Who I Met!!! Cha Chatter....

Wow---I had no idea how much fun CHA would be. But, I have to say....my most favorite part was meeting so many fantastic people that I have come to know through this fabulous craft!

Here are just a few of the friend photos I took--product photos coming soon!!!


Me and Dawn L--I have "known" Dawn for over a year--and I was so delighted to finally meet another CCEE-er in person! Hugs Dawn!

What a delight Laura Canale is! She is on the MFT design team with me and I had the pleasure of meeting her at the Arlington swap in May. What a gem!

What fun it was to meet Cath Edvalson from Papercrafts magazine! She is such a warm person---I so glad I got the opportunity to meet her!

At last---Gina K and I met! Although we did not know each other---We grew up just 15 minutes apart in PA but both moved away after getting married. We started working together almost a year and a half ago--and now we FINALLY met. I just love her!

Gina K (Gina K Designs), Nichole (Papertrey Ink), Kim (My Favorite Things), Nicky (Stamping Bella), little ole me, Emily (Stamping Bella). What a fantastic group of women. I just love that these ladies all own competing stamping companies but are friends with each other.

Gina K Girls: Jessica, Gina K, and Melanie Muenchinger--

It was so much fun to hang with them for awhile!

Amber is another MFT girl---she is so cute--and did you know she is Dawn L's daughter??? (I put that in there just for you, Amber!)

My awesome stamping buddy Deborah (Beadn & Stampn)! She is one of my greatest friends. We took the opportunity to meet up at Cha since we moved away from each other this summer!

What a sweetheart---I am so glad to have met Jennifer Buck while stopping by the Unity Booth at CHA! I love her just as much as I knew I would!

Taylor VanBruggen is a gem. Despite the fact that she is such a huge name in stamping, she is so soft spoken and modest! I am so glad I got the chance to meet her!

My buddy Carole....this girl is a hoot, and despite rumors--we are actually friends! It was a blast catching up with her for a while.

Laura Canale and Michelle Giraud (flaxychick) are two other MFT girls that I spent A LOT of time with at CHA. These girls are fantastic and I miss them already!

Michelle Wooderson (Mish Mash), Nicole (PTI) and Taylor all were in the Copic Certification class I took on Thursday. That class had a whole bunch of amazing and talented ladies in it!

Sharon Johnson (notimetostamp) was also in the Copic class. I was thrilled to meet her...I am just hoping a bit of her talent rubbed off on me!!!

I met so many stamping friends at CHA....that alone was totally worth the trip. My camera had a bit of a mishap after the first day so I missed out on some other photos but I saw lots of other FANTASTIC people--like Alma, the Cat's Pajamas (I am floored that I don't have a picture with her as we spent a lot of time together??? LOVE her!); Lisa Johnson (who is as fabulous as she is talented!); Debbie Olsen (THE first stamper who I stalked!); Lisa Strahl aka Mona Lisa (totally fun and so sweet); Kathy Sanders (I got to watch her coloring skills in person and she is definitely amazing!); Kirsten Dobosque (so stinkin funny!); Joanne Basile (absolutely adorable!); Diana Crick (Scor-Pal)=genius; Julie Campbell (a total doll!); Kurtis Amundson (so shy and modest); Jenn Balcer (beautiful inside and out); Tanya Fox, Cardmaker Magazine (so sweet!) and Dawn Gehring, Crafts n Things (what an awesome person-so glad to finally meet her)! And many more....I know I am forgetting lots of people---everyone was such a joy to meet!

But---there was also tons of fun product to see and I will have some photos of that uploaded soon!

Thanks for stopping by!!

CHA Chatter!!!!

Even if you cannot attend CHA, you can keep up on all the latest and greatest gadgets and gizmos through the continuous reporting of Craft Critique! Craft Critique reporters will be roaming the convention floor bringing you the coolest new stuff---Check it out! You won't want to miss a post!

CHA Bound---and a Cute Critter!

I am heading to Chicago tomorrow morning for the Copic Certification course and CHA! I am so excited. I will be back next week with a quick update a card or two and then off to the NJ Shore for a vacation with my kiddos. ****Look for lots of CHA pics in August (when I get home to my photo editing software!)

Here is a cute card I have been wanting to share---I love this critter---such a happy Kangaroo and I always seem to grab for her when I want to make a fun whimsical card. I couldn't resist adding the little basket in her hands!

These stamps are from Melanie Muechinger's Just so Hoppy set, distributed by Gina K Designs. Gina also carries these FABULOUS rain dot eyelets....I have been wanting to use them to thread hemp through since I got them (then, truth be told, I temporarily lost them but found them again in the move--woohooo!)

Here is a look at the inside of the card:

Materials used: Stamps-Just so Hoppy (illustrated by Melanie Muenchinger for Gina K Designs); ink-brilliance black; paper-olive, whisper white (SU!); rain dot eyelets (available at Gina K Designs); corner punch (SU!)Designer Paper (Cosmo Cricket); white gel pen (SU!); prismacolor pencils; odorless mineral spirits (available at Gina K. Designs); twinkling h20s; Spellbinders Nestability dies; Cuttlebug (Provocraft); hemp (Stampin' Up!); dimensionals.

Fun Schtuf!
Don't miss the newest stamp sets from Gina K Designs that will be available on July 24! They are awesome--I so wish I could play along. I am sure the dt will have tons of eye candy for you to see. Check out Gina's blog for updates and sneak peeks!

Thanks for stopping by!

From Trash to Treasure

I LOVE beautiful embellishments for my cards but I don't always want to spend a lot of money to get them. Somehow I have a hard time paying $2 for an embellishment for one card.

For example, I love these charms but I waited for awhile until I (luckily) found them on sale and in a clearance bin! Woohoo! But I am not always lucky....

So I have learned how to improvise. One of my favorite things to do is to go to garage sales, flea markets, etc. and find things that I can "rework" to use on my cards/scrapbook pages.

Here is a look at some recent finds (note: everything pictured below was purchased for $2.50!)

The snowflakes and sun charms were once dangling off of earrings--I simply removed the earring hooks and now have some cool winter/summer embellishments. The middle pieces are beads from a necklace. On the right are two pieces (similar to the ones above) that were clip on earrings. They had a yucky worn pearl center that I removed and I also removed the clips on the other side. The center circles will look great with a build-a-brad or another accent adhered there. I even found some pretty (blingy) rhinestone snaps that will look awesome in the middle of a flower!

Whola!!! From trash to treasure. (Sorry about the dark photo--but you get the idea!)

After I get home, I am sure you will be seeing some of these on a few cards!

Keep your eyes out - you never know when you are gonna find a great "treasure" for your hobby!


Thanks for stopping by!

Feel Better-Pieced robe

I love this set from My Favorite Things called Bunny Slippers. It is just adorable---I couldn't wait to paper piece the robe and create a card with it.

Here is the first card I made with this set:

I pieced the robe with two different designs. (How to do it: stamp the robe image on three pieces of paper--white and two different designs (polka dots and pink) and then cut out the parts of the designer paper you want for each section and adhere to the stamped image on the white cardstock). I added a bit of white gel pen for highlights.

After completing the card--I decided to add a few dew drops in the corner.

Here is a close up--you can see the faux stiching better on this photo.

Materials used: Bunny Slippers (My Favorite Things); brilliance black ink; white gel pen (Stampin' Up!); white and celery cardstock (Stampin' Up!); oval punches (SU!); white ribbon (SU!); paper piercing tool and mat pack (SU!); photo corner punch (SU!); dew drops; designer paper (My Mind's Eye); dimensionals (SU!).

Thanks for stopping by!

Look at this beauty---and a New Home Keychain

Isn't this card just AWESOME?????? I thought so too! No---It isn't one of mine---the very talented Pamela Smerker designed this card for the Papercrafts Idol contest. She used my Framed Flowers set (Gina K Designs) on it and I just think that it is stunning. I asked Pam if she would mind if I showed off her card on my blog.

Pamela won a top 20 spot in the contest with this card. You can check out her card (and the rest of the finalist cards) for the next round here. Don't forget to vote!!!

Congratulations to all the finalists in the contest!!!!


Here is a little project I created with the new Papertrey Ink set called Boards & Beams. Since we just moved, I thought it would be a cute gift for my dh----to keep his house key on.

I stamped the house image on white cardstock and on a piece of cardboard. After coloring and cutting out the image, I adhered it to the cardboard using Modge Podge. I stamped the sentiment on the back on the key chain, sponging the edges to make it look like wood. After the project was assembled, I used my Cropadile to punch the hole at the top for the key ring. Then, I applied a layer of Modge Podge over the key chain.

Here is a view of the back:

I love how this sentiment is done---mixing the different fonts.

Materials used: Stamps-Boards & Beams (Papertrey Ink); Copic markers; sponge; olive, choc chip and cocoa classic markers (Stampin' Up!); brilliance black stamp pad; cardboard; white cardstock (Papertrey Ink); Cropadile; Modge Podge; key ring.

Finally, I would like to let my sweet friend Carole know that although I am on a bit of a hiatus right now---I SEE EVERYTHING---paypacks are coming! SNORT!

Hope you are having a GREAT summer!

Thanks for stopping by!

Check out my desk!

Thank you all so much for your support and prayers over the past week. I am in Pennsylvania now with my family. The services for my grandmother were yesterday and the day was absolutely beautiful---a true celebration of her life. I know she was smiling down on us. Your notes, emails, and messages have touched my heart so much. I am really overwhelmed. Please know that I am so grateful.

I have a few cards/projects and stuff to share with you during the next few weeks here (while I am away!) Also, I am really excited to be traveling to Chicago next week for a Copic certification course and CHA! I will be sure to share LOTS of pictures!

For now, I want to show you a gift I received from my father-in-law before I left for my trip. (Pardon the mess in my stamp room---nothing is unpacked and put away yet as we left right after moving in!)

My father in law took pity on my work space after one of his visits in our old house. After he found out I would be having my very own stamp room in the new house---he set to work creating a dream workspace for me. I am absolutely floored...

Here is a picture of the main desk. You can see the sewing machine that is housed in the main compartment of the desk. The front panels can be unlocked and the sewing machine accessed on the right and a rolling cart is on the left (that can be rolled out when I want to sit and work at the desk.

There is a panel on the back of the desk that can be pulled up to create a MASSIVE workspace (I will be sure to take pictures of that when I return!)

Here is a top view of the encased sewing machine. The machine is on a lift system inside the desk...so when I want to use it, I just lift the panel, push down on the machine and it will lift up to be able to work on the desktop. There is another panel that you slide on at that point that creates a flush service around the machine. When you are done sewing, you can remove the panel, push the machine down and it locks into place. Very cool!

Here is a side cart that is a locked cabinet with huge drawers--where I can store scissors, cardstock, coloring tools and things I don't want my children to have easy access to. My father in law created a mini version of this which is housed inside the desk on the left hand side.

Here is a photo of the cabinet open so you can see the huge drawer space.

Cool, eh? (giggle! That one was for my Canadian friends!)

I will be back soon with a card to share. Once again, thanks for all of your prayers and for sticking with me. HUGE HUGS!

Thanks for stopping by!

Signing off.....

...for awhile. I was planning on taking most of the month of July off from blogging (except for the occasional post here and there) as we are heading to see my family in PA.

My mom called this morning to let me know that my grandmother passed away. It is definitely times like this that I HATE being so far from my siblings and family. We are heading to PA in a few days and, although I have created a few cards to share this week, I just don't feel like doing all the work of posting them. My heart is not in it.

Love you, Mamo!

I will be sure to share the other cards in another week or so---I just need a break.

Thanks so much for your understanding. I will be back.