Where's the Beans?

Spring feels close!  Hope is beginning to sprout in the hearts of my colleagues that we may still get the chance to be outside without 10 layers of clothes and galoshes.  Why, the sun was shining today and I even wore loafers *gasp* WITHOUT SOCKS! :D  Of course I had socks in my coat pocket, just in case.

I even pulled out an old Cat's Pajamas Easter set.  At this point DH and I really need to step away from the jelly beans, Cadbury eggs, and Reeses' PB eggs.  We are developing a distinctive egg shape from all that sugary goodness!

I've stuffed my cheeks with sweets and headed here:
The Sweetest Thing- Sketch 180
Fussy and Fancy Friday- Spring Days
Little Red Wagon- Color Challenge

How 'bout you?  What's your favorite seasonal treat?

Merry & Festive

 Do not adjust your browser, you are looking at a Christmas card when Easter is just days away. LOL! :)  I can't begin to tell you how much it still looks like Christmas around here, that is unless you live in the Midwest.  Then of course, my heart goes out to you for surviving yet another blizzard.  I said it on FB and I'll say it here, we plan to eat groundhog for Easter, not ham. ;D  I like snow, more than the typical Yankee, but enough is enough already!!  But I digress...

Today I am sharing another Christmas card in an effort to have bunches done ahead of time.  I was able to mostly pull this off last year, and boy did it help make for a less stressful season!  I do promise to post a few of the Easter cards I plan to send (hopefully before the lop eared guy comes by).

The color palette was chosen with a nod to Spring, even though this will go out in December. :) With that in mind, I was able to use paper and (would you believe) stickers that weren't meant for Christmas cards.  I think Tim Gunn would be pleased with my "make it work" moment!

I've made merry and am off to party here:
Festive Friday- "Merry" as your inspiration (I was thinking of a merry holiday party with this)
CHNC- Anything Goes- Christmas

Hugs to all and to all a merry week!

Teresa Collins Happiness Nosegay

Happy Monday Everyone! OMG!  I adore this new Memories line from Teresa Collins!!!!!  The colors are so peaceful and they make for such elegantly versatile cards. :)  The best part is that this card probably only took 15 minutes to make- 7 of which were deciding which flowers to use. LOL!

Who doesn't love to get flowers, unless you are allergic! This little nosegay card is perfect for that- no sniffles and you get a flower too. :)  The perfect kinda "just cuz" card.  Don't underestimate the importance of those "just cuz" cards.  We tend to wait for holidays or birthdays to send cards, but the unexpected joy that you get from that piece of art mailed from a friend for no other reason than to say "hey friend".  Its a hug via the mail and it feels sooooo good! 

From the pile-o-goodies above, I used these to make the Happiness Nosegay card:

May Arts- Crochet Ribbon- Baby Blue
Teresa Collins- Memories- Die Cut Flowers
Teresa Collins- Memories- Brads
Teresa Collins- Memories- Chipboard & Buttons
Teresa Collins- Memories- 6x6 Pad

So, who is the lucky person you will mail a hug to today?

 

Daisy Squares

A walk down Memory Lane today, sorta.  I pulled out my favorite daisy stamp to create this little set.  How is it that you can have tons of stamps and yet keep gravitating to the same core group?  I'm sure this doesn't happen to any of you does it? ;P

This is such a statement stamp- and it doesn't hurt that it uses a lot of space to make it's statement. :)

I tried to catch the light to show you the sparkle I added to each daisy half.  Spica clear pens are great for adding sparkle without having to wait for drying time.  I've said it before, I'll say it again- extended exposure to 5, 6, & 7 year olds has worn down my ability to wait.  They can't ever wait for anything and now I can't either! LOL! ;)

So how 'bout you?  Did you wait to read everything before you got to this shot of the whole card set, or did you do what I always do, scroll through all the pics first and then got back to the top to read the post?  Hee-hee!

Happy Hopping through Blogland today! :)

Beyond Just Cards

A few weeks back I was part of a fun party hosted by Vicki at 2 Bags Full.  It was a giant hop all over Blogland to meet new peeps and grow our blogs.  For my part, I hosted a giveaway of cards.

Beth, at Beyond the Garden Gate, won the card set.  It was a "choose your own adventure" set, which is a fun way of saying she got to pick what kinda cards she wanted. :)  She asked for half birthday/ half get well.  I had a few of them in my stash ready to go, but needed a few more.  These are two of the newest creations that got added to the set and shipped out west.

Beth posted a few pics of some other cards (some of them will be familiar to you regulars!)  Along with pics of my goodies, you'll find awesome garden pictures on Beth's blog.  Her pics of flowering beauty are just the thing for making you smile.  She has the cutest lil' pup Josey, who is so stinkin' adorable in the snow, precious kitty Gracie, and a wild tortie (torties are my most FAVORITE cats) that she calls Tortie. Be sure to stop by, get inspired for the planting season we have been promised will get here soon, and give her some love!!!

Happy Garden Days!

Christmas in Spring- Almost

Winter Storm Saturn got me in the mood to pull out the January Kit Club kit I got from the club I'm in at Ink About It.  The theme of the kit is snow days and it was still in *gasp* mint condition.  The weather last week did get me thinking it was December, not March.  That in turn got me thinking about getting Christmas cards ready!

I adore the colors of this paper line for how they are so crisp and cool.  They softly whisper "snowy morning"- although I am ready for the flowers of spring.  Wait 'til you see what I have planned for some of the other paper- total pop of spring!

I've grabbed this card and shoveled a path here:
Festive Friday- Element: Snowflake
Sweet Sunday Sketch- Sketch 179


Have a great week!

Warm Thoughts

With daylight savings around the corner, one starts thinking of warm weather fun.  Sadly, the weather outside is not cooperating right now. :(  That being said, I thought I would share a couple of shots from our trip to St. John, USVI last April.  Truly the pictures don't do it justice.

 

We spend lots of time in the summer up in Wells, Maine and in the peak season, there's traffic to fight on Route 1 that resembles something that residents of LA county deal with on a daily basis.  Not so on St. John's.  The 5 o'clock traffic "jam" lasted 3 minutes.  We parked- FOR FREE- at most beaches (there are only a couple that charge) and when the sun began to hide behind too many palm trees, we picked up our stuff and headed down the road to the next beach. :)

Now getting there is not quick.  It involves 2 planes and a ferry- at minimum.  But once you are there, you never want to leave.  We rented a place via HomeAway (we've rented through that site for every vacation since about 2008 and never had a bad experience) and this was the view FROM THE DRIVEWAY!!! :)  If you ever have the chance to go here, I can't say enough how much it is worth going.

Driving there isn't for the faint of heart.  Switchbacks that curl your hair, and drop-off that add at little more white hairs, but the vistas are stunning.

Well, hope this has you thinking warm thoughts!  Have a wonderful weekend!

This Happened!

Hey there Peeps!  Don't you just LOVE all the new CHA goodies?!?!?  Charlie sent me a box-o-fun full of fabulous treats from the new Teresa Collins Memories line.  EEEEEEKKKKKK!

This month we are all sharing our take on  New Chich sketch from The Hens' Den, created by Design Team Member Lori McClellan!  Combining this sketch with my Teresa Collins stash and you have...

Lori McClellan is uber talented and she came up with a 2 page sketch.  For this card, I used the left side, but my DH wants me to try the right side too.  He had an idea for how he thought a card using the right side might look. :)  Maybe I should have him make that card and share it with all of you! :)

Rather than photos, I used the stamped calendar & layered flower with chipboard wording.  Instead of layering paper pieces on the background, I used Teresa Collins stamps and then added a ribbon bow in lieu of flowers in the middle.  Trying to think a little outside the box and still respecting the Chic Sketch at the same time.  That's the great thing about using a sketch as a jumping off point.  It really makes you stretch yourself to, as Tim Gunn says, "make it work".

It's easy to look at a sketch for a layout and think "layouts only".  I'm here to challenge you to apply Lori McClellan's sketch to a card, or even a tag!  One of the coolest projects I made was a set of mini tags using a layout designed for a A2 card.  It might not turn out exactly as you expect, but we always learn something for trying, right?

The part I most love about this card is how you can use this stamp set to personalize the date.  It makes it awesome for scrapbooking memories, but also for creating a super special birthday or anniversary card.

So, waddya say?  You in for giving Lori's Chic Sketch a try?  Post your creation to our FB page so we can see your fab work!  Need more inspiration to take the leap?  Stop by tomorrow to see my Teamie Carolyn Lontin's take on the  New Chick sketch from The Hens' Den, created by Design Team Member Lori McClellan. :)






The goodies that made this card happen:

May Arts- Ruffle Ribbon- Black
Teresa Collins- Memories- Die Cut Flowers
Teresa Collins- Memories- Die Cut Accessories
Teresa Collins- Memories- Stamps
Teresa Collins- Memories- Chipboard & Buttons
Teresa Collins- Memories- 6x6 Pad

Cupcakes Anyone?

Gosh, the weekend really flies by!  How come the weekend zooms, but Monday's drag?!?!  Well, anywho, I thought these might bring a smile to everyone.  They make me smile. :)

My poor friends, and the peeps at my last couple of classes, have been subjected to these cards of late.  They are sooo stinkin' happy I carried them around in my purse to show anyone I could corner. :)  They are another take on the cards seen here.

I just couldn't stop myself from making these!  To be fair, they are a fun way to use up scraps on your table- 'cause who wants to clean up the mess when you can use it up instead.  Really, I will do anything to get out of cleaning my studio. ;)  For rough directions on how to make these, and to see where I got the idea from, click here.

I've delivered these tasty treats here:

Chocolate, Coffee & Cards Challenges- Buttons & Bows
The Ribbon Girl- Ribbon or Twine
Paper Playtime- Anything Goes
My Crafty Spot- Tasty Treats 
Pile it On- Birthday

So is your Monday already looking happier?  Hope so!

Sweet 5x5

Yahooey it's the weekend!  Wanted to give my local peeps a "heads up" that I am teaching another class at Ink About It, in Westford, on Saturday, March 16th from 12-3.  You'll walk out with 25 cards and you can hit one of the new restaurants that have open across the way for and early dinner/late lunch (or hit them beforehand for lunch!)

These are 4 of the 5 designs and you'll get to make 5 of each (25 total) in this 3 hour class!  Unlike my other 5x5 classes, this one is only going to run one time and it is only open to 10 lucky peeps.  I hear through the grapevine it is already down to 8, so make sure to call today and reserve your spot.