Counterfeit Blog Hop!

Hey all!

Maybe you're just stopping by because, well, that's what you do -- but chances are, you're here because it's time for the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog hop! Hooray! Here's the sketch we are working with this month:

Pretty, no? For my layout, I kept pretty close to the original sketch, and I went all purple on it. Take a look, and click on any image you'd like to see in more detail:

Ok, so I know it's a pretty girly layout, but I couldn't resist using that picture of my cutie-pie hubby anyway :).  I also got to use several kit items I've been hoarding, including a die-cut felt frame and some Tattered Angels crepe paper (which is all misted up). I also got to use some fun Prima goodies -- flowers and pebbles. Here's a closeup:

Flowers are, for whatever reason, really hard for me to use -- but I like these!  Oh, and the title took two tries. Here it was at first:

Nice, but totally blends into the background. So I took my signo gel pen to it:

Much better, no? Totally legible.

If you'd like to see my original kit, click here. If you'd like to see the other two layouts I've already made using it, click here. I still have leftovers...but I'm definitely looking forward to the next counterfeit kit, which will be revealed on the 5th!

I'd love to hear what you think, and I can't wait for next month's hop! Speaking of which, get hoppin' -- go see (another) Angela at Mad for Paper!

Hope to see you soon -- have a great day!

Counterfeit Layouts, part one

Hi folks --

Well, the snow has just started falling here in MI -- what better thing to do than curl up with a blanket and a blog post?

I've been participating in the Counterfeit Kit Challenge this month -- you can see my kit here. So far, I've made a couple layouts, with at least a couple more on the way. First up:

Yes, we let our cat drink from the sink. She really does love it! I happen to love this Polaroid-style photo I shot of her going to town at the faucet (thanks, Camera+). I was going for a patched-together look on this particular layout, befitting a polaroid. I ended up using a bunch of papers and some Prima flowers that have been languishing for quite some time. The houndstooth tape kind of ties it all together.

Next:

Photos from yet another concert. We were literally in the very last possible row, so the stage shots are, shall we say...blur-tastic? In such a small size, though, it's less noticeable. Let that be your photo trick of the day. :)

Just one pattern this time, but lots of fun embellishments -- lace, rick rack, tissue tape, dymo labels, and another formerly-languishing Prima item -- that big ol' bling swirl. I added a few red pearls to it, and used it to house the title.

One fun thing about this challenge is that it really frees me from feeling obliged to use current product, or even from keeping track of what products I'm using at all! If you're playing along as well, I'd love to hear  what you are digging!

Speaking of digging -- time to find the snow shovel!

Enjoy your day, whatever the weather.

It's Twiggy!

Or, rather, it's Twig-y. Little Yellow Bicycle's latest collection, Twig, is just so dang adorable! The colors are great, the images are really unique, and if you spring for the chipboard pieces, a couple of the cutest little gnomes ever will come to live in your studio. But you'll see those later. Today:

How about a little summer flashback? I can't say I'm the biggest Dave Matthews Band fan -- they're kind  of like college-era nostalgia. But we went to the show in July with a couple of pals, one of whom is a HUGE fan, and that made it a lot of fun. By the way, I think you know you're a "real" grown-up when "lawn seats" equal "no way"! I was happy to drop some extra cash for real seats under the pavilion at DTE, our local mega-sized outdoor arena. If you click the photo above, you can see the massive-ness of the lawn crowd a little clearer :)

I've only used a little of my Twig stash so far -- a bit of the paper, including some leaves I cut out, and a few chipboard shapes, like that big tree holding my title. No gnomes yet :) That lovely ribbon is May Arts, and I also threw on a little tape from 7Gypsies. One fun detail shot:

Shows how glittery the chip shapes are, plus those little leaf pins are really cute! I have a bit of a needle phobia, but these are firmly affixed in the foam tape holding up the tree, so I won't stick myself! Whew.

Last Friday our returning and new design team members at Scrappy Chic met up for the first time. Not only is our team very talented, they're also really nice -- it looks like it's gonna be a fun year! In related news, store owner Chris has given the team posting power on the store's blog -- you can go check out this layout there sometime soon, and Liz has already posted a great page (way to break the ice, Liz!).

And speaking of Scrappy Chic, it's like Christmas over there -- I stopped in yesterday, and there were about TWO DOZEN BOXES OF NEW STUFF, just waiting patiently to be put into the computer and out on the shelves. I'm super-excited that they're carrying Echo Park now -- For the Record is just an amazing collection. Other things to look for: a whole lot of My Mind's Eye, some new dies, new Graphic45, fun new toys from Ranger, and so much more. It'll take a few days to get it all out, but you know I'll be shopping soon!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hello lovebirds!
Hope you are having a lovely Valentine's Day -- or that you had a nice weekend...no fair for holidays to fall on Mondays, if you ask me!

Well, we don't go all-out around here for this particular holiday, but I do like to make Andrew a little something. This year I stepped outside my papercrafting box and made this:

Aww, it's a frame :)

I started with a $1 heart frame from Michael's, painted the edges, and added a layer of some adhesive fabric paper stuff that I've been hoarding for at least a couple years -- it's from the "love, elsie" line that's long since disappeared! The fabric started white, but I grunged it up a bit with a couple colors of glimmer mists, and then I frayed the edges a tad.

I used the first phrases from one of my very favorite love poems -- from E.E. Cummings, of course (by the way, that whole lower-case-name business is a bit of an urban legend, but that's another story). I replaced the "heart"s with, well, hearts -- but not just any ol' hearts -- puffy hearts! I followed Emily's very cool tutorial, and it worked like a charm. Thanks, Em! The hearts themselves are die-cut and stamped with PTI's heart prints dies and stamp, then colored in a bit with my good old versamarker.

I stitched  around the heart photo opening and through my letter stickers (Mini Market letters from October Afternoon), made some parentheses using circle punches, and added a few hearts to the photo. I must say, I'm kinda proud of this little project -- and yes, Andrew really likes it!

Hope you do, too -- enjoy your day!

Friends (forever) with Flair!

Happy Friday!

It's time for some Unity goodness.

I do so love a simple card. Here I've used the great flock-o-birds stamp from the Unity/Melody Ross set She Did it Anyway and a sentiment from July's KOM, Happily Ever After.  Some matching buttons and pewter-colored ribbon from my stash, and I call it good!

So...I joined Unity's Kit of the Month club. Just couldn't resist! Have you SEEN this month's kit? Here:

Go see all the details here. 

Now, hop along -- your next stop is Cindy at The Crafty Frugalista. Keep an eye out for that blinkie!

Oh, and if you didn't just come from Crystal's Craft Corner, you can find the whole blog hop list at the Unity Blog and start right from the top! 

In other news, tonight I'll be honored to meet the two new members of the design team at Scrappy Chic -- our team is growing from three to five! And then tomorrow is our third Scrapbook League meet-up right back at Scrappy Chic. Hoo-ahh! Time to scrap! If you're in the neighborhood (or in the store!), stop by and say hi. 

Happy almost-weekend!

My Counterfeit Kit -- and a blast from the past!

Hi folks -
There's a pretty new challenge blog called Counterfeit Kit Challenge, and it is perfect for those of us with a love of pretty scrap kits but no real need for even MORE new product than what's already in our ever-growing stash.
See, every month, the folks at the blog will choose a current club kit, and then we can go shopping...in our stash! The goal is to replicate the kit with what we already own! So smart. Then, all month long, there are little challenges to give that newly-counterfeited kit a purposeful existence. Last month, there were some awesome tutorials for making all kinds of embellishments. Anyway, go check it out!

This month's challenge kit is actually a true challenge for me: it's from Scraps of Darkness, and you can see a bunch of photos via the links in this post, but I'll just give you the main kit here:

 Lots of black and red and damask and florals and such. Definitely a love theme, but not a mushy one! If it's any help, the title of the kit is "The Telltale Heart." Of course, that Poe story is about a man who stalks and kills his neighbor and then goes (more) mad almost immediately, but I'll try not to scrap any of that! :)

Well, I shopped my stash and made my own version. Here you go:

My version of the main kit.

My version of the add-ons. I think I'll need to make a few embellishments to round things out, but I'm ready to try whatever challenges come along!

So, while I was going through some older supplies both for the kit and to purge/sell in the upcoming Scrapbook Yard Sale at Scrappy Chic (it's Sunday, 2/20 -- you should totally go!), I found one of my earliest stamping efforts. I believe I was testing out my new white inkpad (I bet it's the Memories white dye ink -- which I still have, thank you very much), and learning how to second-generation stamp. Wanna see it? Ok, for you, I'll embarrass myself a little:

This would be from late 2002 or early 2003 -- near the middle is the custom stamp I had made for our wedding invitations, and many of the other images are from my first couple of stamp purchases. It's a full 8.5x11" sheet of (very cheap) black cardstock. It makes me feel very sentimental, and very glad that I stuck with it! What's your earliest stamping project? I'd love to see it!

Color Cue {11}

I guess I'm just in a challenge mood lately! But how could I not participate in the WPlus9 Color Cue challenge? Looky how pretty the colors are!

So soft and yummy. I chose to use Aqua Mist, Sweet Blush, and white, with kraft as my neutral. On my never-ending quest to create Valentine's cards for friends (because I only have one husband, after all), here's what I did:

Sweet indeed. Some stamping, some piecing and die-cutting, some ruffling of trim, and a couple pearls. Cotton candy for the eyes. My supplies are mostly from Papertrey Ink and My Mind's Eye, just in case you were curious :)

This also marks the first photo I took, edited, watermarked, and uploaded all from the iPhone. I've got that thing pretty tricked out now with some awesome photo apps, and it's sure fun trying them all out! If any of you are iPhone folks I'd be happy to share what apps I use in a future post -- just let me know! 

Anyway, if you'd like to play along, you might have a few hours left -- maybe I'll see you there!

Moxie Sweet!

Hi there!
I squoze (yep, that's a real word in my world) in a little time to make a card for the Tuesday Trigger over at Moxie Fab World. It's been awhile since I've played along! Here's the inspiration image:

Yum. Here's what I came up with:

I used a bunch of cupcake papers -- a couple mini, a couple regulation-sized -- and misted them for some shimmer. Staying in the cake-decorating world, I also added a couple doilies -- one "real" one, and one from Martha Stewart. A white-embossed heart stamp from Inkadinkado on some Raspberry Fizz bitty dot paper rounds it out. Technically, there are 8 layers of paper here, which is a TON for a simple girl like me! Here's a side view:

Well, you have until the end of today to play along with the challenge -- go forth and make a Valentine! I'm gonna go forth and grade some essays...not nearly as much fun!

Oh, and happy Superbowl whatever. I guess that's a big deal for some folks ;)

Something old...

So, it looks like Papertrey Ink is kicking off their 4th birthday celebration with a bang (and a huge giveaway!).

As part of that giveaway, I'm reposting my favorite PTI project from this year -- you can read the full original post here, though.

I made a whole pile of tags for my family members at Thanksgiving. It was a style stretch for me -- more rustic and layered and busy than usual for me -- but I ended up liking them quite a bit! Luckily for me, I'd miscounted my own family and ended up with one left over to keep :)

Here's the whole pile:

I mixed up a whole bunch of stuff here, from Leaf Prints to a Fall tags set to some ledger lines to a Wreath for all Seasons...plus dies and other fun goodies.

It's kind of nice to revisit stuff. Maybe you will, too! Happy weekend.

so much to say!

Hi there, everyone!

So, my awesome pal Meg has a fun blog post today -- it's one of my layouts! I sent her this:

Now, I can't say I send layouts to people every day, but sometimes it's just the right thing to do. What my sweet Meg doesn't tell you in her blog post is that a few weeks ago, she sent me an amazingly cute sympathy card after we lost our sweet Marty...and then, a couple days later, this book shows up in the mail -- it was the perfect pick-me-up at a time when I really needed it. So, you see, what else could I do but scrap the cutest corgi ever!

I had a lot of fun with the details on this one, but I'll show you just a quick couple:

Addie is, of course, the No. 1 corgi -- and here, I made the No. 1 from some grungeboard, inked up and hit with a dose of glossy accents. I've been meaning to try that technique out -- works like a charm! Instant Thickers-like appeal.

The title started out as some plain white fabric Thickers, but that just wouldn't do -- so I inked 'em up with distress ink...and now they look like corduroy! Ooh, fun. I'll be trying that one again, too.

Seriously, Meg, you're the best -- thanks again for your daily kindness, as well as the extra kindness you passed along when I needed it.

In other news, I got a fun box today! I participated in the Embellish challenge for the first time awhile ago and, well, I guess I picked the right month to try, because I kind of won :) My prize came from Canvas Corp, and man, is it burlap-tastic! There's a lot here -- burlap shapes and canvases, tiny clothespins, some colored pencils, various fibers, and something very intriguing called chalkstock -- a 12x12 cardstock-weight sheet of, well, chalkboard stuff! There's some great design possibilities here. Thanks to Ashley at Embellish for sending it -- it got here really quickly!

There's just so much to be thankful for! Since it's a thankful kind of day, I'd like to offer you this:

This little guy's been making its way around blogland -- I spied it on Emily's blog and thought I'd play along. Here's the deal: The first 5 commenters who let me know they want to participate will each get something handmade from me this year. Who knows what it'll be? Happy mail, maybe some goodies...sky's the limit! Those five folks have the option of reposting and continuing the chain of fun. I'm not one for following rules, though, so I won't tell if you just want to be on the receiving end!

FINALLY (whew!), I've been fortunate to receive a blog award not once, but TWICE in the SAME DAY! What are the chances? So, thanks to both Emily and Sue for sharing it with me!

Like any girl with good Lutheran training, I know German when I see it. Can't read it, necessarily, but I sure can recognize it. Turns out Liebster means, more or less, "lovely." Extra-sweet. Like most blog awards, I'm supposed to pass this one on, but I'm feeling kind of anti-choice right now (plus many of my bloggy friends have already received it!). So this goes out to all of my readers -- the few, the proud :) 

Thanks for hanging with me through a wordy post! You rock. Now go forth and have a lovely evening!

Sort-of sweet

Howdy!
So, in case you've been living under a rock (or you don't live stateside), there's a crazy blizzard sweeping the nation!
By tomorrow, we're supposed to get at least a foot of snow under blizzard conditions. I'm pretty sure I was a smallish child last time we got that much snow all at once. Of course, there's already 6 or 8 inches on the ground, so...it's gonna look pretty awesome around here! It's times like these when I'm grateful that Andrew and I both work in snow-day-friendly jobs!

But that's neither here nor there. How about another layout instead? On Thanksgiving this year, I did a quick photo shoot with my cousins....

This was the best photo, and I think it is really sweet! These two are 19 and 12, and they couldn't  be more different. It's hard to get them to sit next to each other, much less pose for photos! If you click on the photo, it might be big enough to see the journalling and smaller photo -- I ended up with lots of photos depicting the torment that only a 12-year-old can provide. I should be happy that one turned out well!

I used some BG Wander here, along with a bunch of bits and bobs from my stash. The letters that spell "Sweet" are white, but they didn't stand out enough, so I inked 'em with some chalk ink:

Much more visible! Plus, the white edges look kinda cool irl. I also actually used a couple of eyelets, which doesn't happen too often:

Used 'em to tie on a little tag up in the corner. I think I'll use that little lightbulb of an idea again.

I'll have a few more cousin-themed layouts coming up -- we've had lots of quality family time of late, which equals more family photos to scrap!

Off to prepare for the Groundhog Day blizzard of 2011. How's the weather where you are?