home sweet home

Here is the card I made for last week's color challenge on SCS. We were to use so saffron, cameo coral, and orchid opulence. I got out my home sweet home stamp set from Heidi Grace that I had not used yet. I had some so saffron dp scraps and it all started from there. The buttons came from a garage sale.

Well, today I am off to have breakfast and catch a movie with some friends. I'm looking forward to some girl time:)

Thanks for stopping by!

{ingredients}
stamps: home sweet home (heidi grace)
paper: so saffron, cameo coral, orchid opulence
ink: cameo coral, orchid opulence
more: ribbon, buttons, pretties flowers, su marker, circle punch

holiday shortbread

I had a craving for some shortbread to go with my morning tea. I had never made it before, but with only five ingredients, it couldn't be easier! Here is the recipe if you are in need of a sweet treat!

PS--these are Daisy tested and approved! Yup, I went into the other room and came back to a mess of crumbs. Luckily I only had cut a few to put on the tray and the rest were still in the pan.



Holiday Shortbread



5 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

2 cups cold butter

chopped nuts (optional)



In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Pat into an ungreased 15x10x2 pan. Prick with a fork. Top with nuts if desired.



Bake at 325 for 35 minutes or until center is set. Cool and cut into squares.

gift card holders

I made some gift card holders for my three cousins for Christmas. Usually I find a cute idea and make three, but this year I decided to make them each something different.

The first one is called box in a bag. The directions can be found here: box in a bag. It's really easy to make. I used some green paper from me & my big ideas. I found some fun green buttons to add as well.

The second one I found here at Dawn's blog after my friend Stephanie made me one:) It's made out of an envelope. Instead of stamping on the envelope I covered it with patterned paper. I like the fun, bright colors.

The third one I think is called a bagalope, but I'm not sure. I can't remember where I found the instructions. I started this a long time ago and thought I would finish it for a gift card holder. This paper is flocked and has a lot of texture to it.

I just love my cousins and I can't wait to give them their little gifts. I hope you all have a fun Christmas Eve!

purple christmas and snoopy

I went with some non-traditional colors for some of my Christmas cards this year. I kept them simple too. I layered the pine boughs and pine cones from Pines (one of my all time favorite stamp sets). Then I used the sentiment from All Holidays. I had this ribbon for awhile and I knew I wanted to use it this year. I'm happy to say I have all my cards mailed out and all the presents wrapped. I'm planning on spending today baking and creating:)

{ingredients}

stamps: pines, all holidays

ink: pale plum, perfect plum, chocolate chip

paper: very vanilla, pale plum, perfect plum

more: ribbon

I happened to catch sweet Daisy yesterday on top of her dog house! She found the one spot that wasn't covered with snow. The picture isn't the greatest because I took it through the window since I knew she would move if I went outside. Too cute. Doesn't she look like Snoopy?

wreathabella

I recieved this cute image from my friend Carisa. I colored it awhile ago and then I remembered that I had this scrap of Christmas paper that I thought I could finally use. It came together pretty quickly after that! I love those felt flowers too:) Have a happy day.

{ingredients}

stamps: wreathabella (stamping bella), perfect ending

ink: black, always artichoke

paper: always artichoke, elegant eggplant, real red, whisper white, dsp

more: felt flower, button, su markers

bag o' bags

Well, I finally did it! I actually used my sewing machine to make something. Now, this might not seem like a big deal to most of you, but I am a little intimidated by the whole sewing thing. I have attempted to make curtains twice in the past and although they actually turned out, both projects ended with me in tears and a broken machine. Yep, first I borrowed my mother-in-law's machine to make curtains for our first house and somehow broke it. Tears. It was fixable and she was very understanding. Then in our second house I borrowed my mom's machine to make curtains (why I was trying this again I'm not sure!). I also broke that one and my mom was trying to troubleshoot with me over the phone...more tears. I decided that this whole sewing thing, while it looked like a lot of fun, was not for me. So, last Christmas (yes, almost a year ago) by mom, sister, and best friend took pity on me and bought me a new, easy-to-use, fully equipped with an owner's manual sewing machine. It's taken me awhile to use it. It's been sitting on my shelf looking pretty and taunting me. I feel pretty good about making something so functional. Now all my grocery bags have a home hanging in our pantry. Even though I try to use my cloth bags whenever I can, we still seem to end up with an overflowing pile of bags. We usually reuse them to line our small trashcans. Well, thanks for listening to all my rambling. I might even try to sew on a card while I still have some thread on that little bobbin thingy:)

welcome

Good morning! A little while back I attended a baby shower for a teacher at our school. This is the card I made to go with her gift. I had that purple ribbon in my stash for awhile and it was what inspired this card. I used some watercolor paper, ink, and my aquapainter for the bear. I really like the soft look.

We have spent most of the weekend working on our greenhouse. Yesterday we got all the brick layed for the floor and today after church we are hanging the insulation on the inside and hopefully framing the door and windows. It is so close to being done! It's been so cool to watch Ryan construct this thing!

Have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: bundle of joy, warmest regards

ink: stazon black, lovely lilac

paper: almost amythest, lovely lilac, watercolor paper

more: ribbon, brads, aquapainter

snowmay riley thanks

A fun winter-y thank you card! I just love riley the moose. I used some paper from K&Company. The ribbon was sent to me from ashley over at treehouse stamps and the teal felt ric-rac is American Crafts. I found these cool buttons in my stash and thought they were a fun addition. I colored the image with my SU markers. Then rounded all the corners and it's finished! I'm hoping I'll get some time to create this morning. I still need to decide on an idea for my Christmas cards. Thanks for stopping by.

I hope you all have a fun day!

{ingredients}

stamps: snowman riley, much appreciated

ink: chocolate chip, stazon black

paper: very vanilla, dp (k&company)

flower grid

It's such a beautiful morning here. There's a ton of snow on the peaks and the sky is a bright blue. I am sitting looking out the window with a cup of hot apple cider and the dogs sleeping at my feet. It is just so peaceful!

I have been wanting to try the grid technique for some time now and I finally got to it. I found some epoxy stickers in the $1 bin at Michaels a while back (see the two circle stickers in the bottom corner?). I used those as inspiration for the whole rest of the card. I wheeled the background tone on tone. I just love my wheels and don't use them nearly enough!

Well, I'm off to make some coffee cake and maybe bundle up for a walk before we head off to church. Thanks for stopping by! Have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: flower (rubber stampede), wheel, heartfelt thanks

ink: tempting turquoise, old olive

paper: tempting turquoise, whisper white, old olive

more: epoxy stickers, circle punch, dazzling diamonds, ribbon

thanks!

Just a fun little fall thank you card today. I just love this dp...it's from a DCWV paper pack that I have had {forever} and I never seem to tire of it. I recieved this image through wish-rak on SCS. I colored it with my SU markers and added some white highlights with my gel pen. I paper pierced the corners and added some ribbon and jewels to the bottom. Super quick! Today I'm hoping to plan some meals and make a grocery list since we are headed to do our monthly shopping trip this evening. I'm thinking lots of soups for the chilly nights to come! Have a happy day!

{ingredients} stamps: just celebrate ink: black paper: not quite navy, more mustard, whisper white, dp (dcwv) more: jewels, brocade blue ribbon, su markers, gel pen, paper piercer

fall treats

Hello. I have a few simple projects to share with you. The first one is a little birthday package for a dear friend of mine. There is an apple cider candle with a little box full of apple cider packets. I had a lot of fun decorating up the bag! Next are some goodies for my second graders for Halloween. They are pretty simple because we all know they only care about the candy anyway, right? :)

Well, I hope you have a happy halloween! We live so far out of town that I don't expect any little trick-or-treaters. We are going to watch a movie and just hang out, maybe roast some pumpkin seeds. Yum!

snowman riley

I just love Riley the moose! Isn't he cute? This card came together pretty quickly. I have so much hodgepodge hardware that I rarely use, so I decided to get some out and add it to this card. I colored him with my SU markers. I added lots of layers to this card because I love all the stripes in the dp. Thanks for stopping by today! Enjoy your weekend!

{ingredients}

stamps: snowman riley, warm wishes

ink: stazon black, close to cocoa

paper: close to cocoa, river rock, whisper white, chocolate chip, really rust

more: su markers, hodgepodge hardware, brads

funky snowflakes

I'm definitely not ready for snow here, but I couldn't resist using these fun felt snowflakes. We have gotten a few dustings, and in the shade it doesn't seem to want to melt. It is cold enough for a fire though and I love when the house gets all warm and cozy! I don't really know where this color combo came from, but I like how it turned out. I forgot all about those black square brads that I had and I have plenty of letter stickers to use up. So, that's pretty much it for this card. I have a few fall projects that I've been working on and hope to finish up today!

Have a happy one:)

{ingredients}

paper: real red dsp, basic gray, real red

more: felt snowflakes (American Crafts), brads (making memories), decorative scissors, alphabet stickers

fall for you

Hello everyone! Here is a fun fall card that I made. I colored the pumpkin/squash with my SU markers and popped some of them up. I inked all the edges of the mustard and pumpkin paper. I also used some very fun clear shimmery flowers! I just love fall. We've been able to enjoy some walks with the dogs this week in the evenings and it is the best! I can't wait to get a pumpkin!

Have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: autumn harvest

ink: black, more mustard, pumpkin pie

paper: pumpkin pie, more mustard, whisper white, chocolate chip

more: SU rub-ons, flowers (creative impressions), brads (making memories), SU markers, dimensionals

Here is a little birthday card I made. I have a lot of friends that have a birthday this month! You probably can't see it in the picture, but the white stripes on the dp are all sparkly! I also added a little crystal effects to the flames of the candle.

Can I just say the weather today is beautiful! I got home from work and took the dogs for a walk and it was so warm and lovely! The aspen are starting to change all around too. I feel so blessed to live where we do:)

{ingredients}

stamps: inkadinkado cupcake birthday, so many sayings

paper: old olive, yellow textured (dcwv), apricot (dcwv), tempting turquoise, dp (dcwv)

ink: stazon black, old olive

more:rhinstone gems, crystal effects, ticket corner punch, word window punch, circle punch, oval punch, paper piercer, buttons

inspiration challenge

Today's SCS inspiration challenge was to choose a room from this website. It was really hard to choose, but this yellow wall and picture just stood out to me so I went with that one. My card turned out really simple, but that's what I liked about the room. I knew I wanted a solid image in sage shadow and a white strip across the bottom. Then I added just a little bit of black.

Well, it's back to laundry and cleaning house for me. It's nice to have a weekend home where we can just catch up on things:)

{ingredients}
stamps: birthday whimsy
ink: sage shadow, basic black, so saffron
paper: so saffron, basic black, whisper white
more: sheer white ribbon, dimensionals

apple harvest!

This is one of the reasons I am a little behind on making cards! I have been working on putting up my apples. Let me tell you...a bushel of apples is A LOT of apples! I have been making apple sauce, apple pie filling, apple butter, apple cinnamon bread, apple dumplings, apple cheddar bread, and dehydrated apple chips for the last two weeks. I have never gotten apples before (last year I only did pears and peaches...which I also did this year...yummy peach pie filling, peach jam, and pear butter), so I am learning! It's been fun though and feels so rewarding to look in the freezer and on the pantry shelves and see the results of all my hard work. These pictures are what I have made from about 1/3 of the box:

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a happy day.

twinkly tulips

Hello all! I just love tulips any time of the year! I embossed these (from treehouse stamps) and colored them in with my twinkle h2o's. They turned out so shimmery! I haven't used those page holder brad things in a while so I put a couple of those on there too. I just love black brads! There are a lot of layers on this card...but it was really fun to make.

I have been so busy putting up all my apples and peaches. Our freezer is well stocked! I will share some pictures later.

Have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: happy spring, warmest regards

paper: whisper white, basic black, bali breeze dp

ink: black

more: brads, hinges (?), ribbon, twinkle h20's, dimensionals

ps--we finally caught little Gus Gus after 12 days! Such a tricky little guy:)

better late than never!

I started these cards a long time ago when I was stamping over at my friend Stephanie's house! She let me borrow her doodle this stamp set. The only thing I had to do to finish them when I got home was to put the eyelet in the center of the flower and attach it. But, they got buried in a pile of stuff on my desk and I just got around to finishing them! It was great to use up some fun ribbon. I chose the color combos based on some ribbon I had on hand that I hadn't used in a while.

Have a happy day!

lovely as a tree

Here is a fun fall card to share with you. I woke up to a wonderfully foggy, chilly morning and I was reminded of how much I love fall! I stamped the background with my flannel background stamp. I stamped the trees with versamark ink and then dabbed chalk all over them. I used my colluzle to cut the ovals. This was such a fun card to make and I love how it turned out.

One thing I do not like about fall is the fact that mice are looking for a warm place to stay. We have a little guy cruising around our house and we can't seem to catch him. I absolutely HATE mice! I am so terrified of them and I don't really know why. I saw him four days ago and let out such a loud scream that scared both Ryan and the dogs. We set traps and Ryan has been faithfully checking them every time we walk into the house, but no luck. I was beginning to think that maybe he just left quietly. But what do you know...I had to see the little guy run across the room and hide under the piano this morning. Now I am stuck here with a mouse on the loose! Thank goodness for the dogs to keep my company. I try to envision cute little Cinderella-type mice, but it just doesn't seem to help!

Anyway, I hope you all have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: lovely as a tree, flannel background

paper: chocolate chip, very vanilla, pumpkin pie

ink: versamark, pumpkin pie

more: flower fusion (felt flowers), pastel chalks, chocolate chip ribbon, brads, acorn brad

whoo! hoo!

I just love this little owl. I got these images through wish-rak on scs. This card is pretty self-explanitory. I used three different punches and some eyelets. I love the simplicity of it. I made this card a little while ago and never got around to sharing it. I'm hoping to work on some more cards tonight while I listen to the Broncos game.

Have a happy day!

{ingredients}
stamps: just celebrate
ink: black
paper: whisper white, old olive, chocolate chip, recollections dsp
more: flower punch, 1/2" circle punch, notched corner punch, eyelets, su markers

bff and a 14er

Hello you all. When Carisa sent me this bella image it totally reminded me of my best friend Mindy. So, I had to make her a card. We have been best friends since middle school and so it was really fun to use my new sparkly green stickers to put {bff} on this card. We used to write that to each other all the time on all of our notes! Such fun :) This week flew by so fast. I didn't get a chance to post anything. But here is a picture of my sister and I at the top of Mount Democrat last weekend. Our only 14er that we got to this summer. This is the first one that I've been on where there was a sign at the top, so we had to hold it up in our pictures! We had so much fun. Have a happy day!

I'm back:)

Well, it has been a crazy couple of weeks trying to get our internet up and running again. We had some major hail a while back that not only tore up our garden and damaged our vehicles, but ruined our internet connection. But, a nice man finally came out yesterday and got it fixed.

I wanted to share some pictures of what our garden was producing before it was torn up:) The carrots survived the storm and are much bigger now than the ones in this picture. Also, it seems that a few zucchini and squash buds are breaking through all the torn leaves. Maybe we will get a few more of those. Overall, my husband and I have had a blast this summer getting our garden up and going. This was our first summer in this house and the first time we have planted a garden at this altitude (about 9,000 feet) We learned a lot, enjoyed some home-grown veggies and are excited about next year. Plus, we have a greenhouse in the works too!

I also wanted to share the award that the sweet and talented angela gave me. Thanks so much Angela! I am really honored!

Thanks for stopping by. I have a lot of cards to share with you that I have been working on the last few weeks. So, stay tuned:) Have a happy day.

glorious flowers

These are two of the cards I made over at Stephanie's yesterday. We had a blast together...making lots of cards and then going to lunch and then stopping by our classrooms and working for a little bit (I guess we just can't stay away from there!). I love that we get to work together and stamp together! She is such a great friend. I used one of my older sets, glorious gift, which is really fun to layer. Stephanie let me borrow her scallop edge punch and martha stewert butterfly punch. I'm really liking them both! I also got out my hodgepodge hardware and ribbon to put some fun details at the top. The little yellow tag on the bottom one says {happy}. These cards were inspired by a card I saw in one of the old mini catalogs.

I know this doesn't pertain to many of you, but I know that many of my SU customers read this. As you know, I am no longer a Stampin' Up! Demonstrator, but the very talented and sweet stephanie is my {old (as in the past, not in age:)} downline and an awesome Demonstrator. Please feel free to contact her if you would like to place an order or book a workshop with the fabulous new catalog! Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a wonderful day.

{ingredients: red & pink}
stamps: glorious gift, everyday flexible phrases
ink: real red, pixie pink, pretty in pink, certainly celery
paper: whisper white, pretty in pink, real red dp
more: hodgepodge hardware, scallop edge punch, martha stewert butterfly punch, real red ribbon

{ingredients: pastels} stamps: glorious gift, everyday flexible phrases ink: bashful blue, certainly celery, barely banana, pretty in pink paper: pretty in pink, barely banana, bashful blue, bashful blue dp, whisper white more: hodgepodge hardward, pretty in pink ribbon, scallop edge punch

friendship

I know this is a simple card, but I really like the way it turned out. I got the image through wish-rak on SCS. I love this almost amethyst dp. I think that is one of my favorite colors. Today I get to go stamp with stephanie. Yeah! We've been having so much fun looking at the new catalog. I'm looking forward to seeing the new In Colors in person. Have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: just celebrate

ink: black

paper: certainly celery, pretty in pink, almost amethyst

more: certainly celery ribbon, su markers, paper piercer, dimensionals

inky button challenge

Good Morning. I had the opportunity to meet Angela over at inky button at the bella ball in Littleton (we had a blast!). She is so sweet and creative. She gave us all a challenge to use buttons on a card...so I did just that. I made an invitation to a birthday tea for my aunt and cousin (they share the same birthday). I used my twinkle h20's on the image (love those). I'm not sure what the name of this image is. I got it a couple years ago at the scrapbook expo in Colorado Springs. I had these buttons laying out from working on my wedding album and they matched perfectly! Only two more pages and then I'm done with the wedding album. Yeah! Have a happy day:)

celebrate

Here is a quick birthday card that I made a little while ago. I love this glitter paper (in the background). I also used my riveting stamp set, which I have neglected for a long time. I love how it looks with all the circle punches and layers. Today Ryan and I are hanging some drywall in the garage...let's hope for a productive day! My arms are still a little sore from the last time I helped him (that stuff is HEAVY), but it's good for me, right? Have a happy day and thanks for stopping by.

{ingredients}
stamps: just celebrate, riveting
ink: black
paper: tempting turquoise, pixie pink, green galore, white, lavender lace, patterned paper (dcwv)
more: SU markers, paper piercer, scallop punch, circle punches, dimensionals










And just for fun.....

You Are Country Music

You are friendly, down to earth, and fairly conservative. You are true to your friends and your upbringing. Change is hard for you. But beneath your old fashioned attitude, you are expressive and artistic in your own way. Very few people can express pain and pleasure as eloquently as you can.

What Kind of Music Are You?

fun with 8x8

I got to spend the day yesterday with my best friend scrapbooking and shopping! We had so much fun catching up. I started working on my wedding album. I already scrapbooked all of the pictures that people took with their cameras and did lots of journaling in my 12x12 album, but I wanted to do a simple album with the professional pictures. I chose a pretty green 8 x 8 album and some bright papers. I want to keep it pretty simple, so the focus is on the pictures. I spent most of my time planning and gathering supplies (and talking with Mindy), but I did get a few pages done. Here are two of my favorites. Everytime I look at my wedding cake I just have to smile. I just love the lime green and the polka dots and all the pretty gerbers! (Sorry about the glare on the pics.) Such fun colors. It's pretty gray and rainy here...a perfect day to make some tea and finish working on this album. And maybe try a new soup for dinner...( I love finding some ingredients that I have in my cupboards and then searching for recipes online:) Well, I hope you all have a happy day!

bright & cheery

Isn't this a fun, bright card? It makes me want to sit outside and have some tea with a friend and enjoy summer a little longer! I used mindy's layout from the card she sent me awhile back. (See it here.) You can't really see it in the photo, but all the flowers on the background paper have glitter on them. I got this ribbon in the mail when I won some blog candy and I finally found a use for it. The colors match perfectly! I hope you all have a happy day!

{ingredients}

stamps: great impressions

paper: tempting turquoise, green galore, lovely lilac, pixie pink, white, dp (dcwv)

ink: stazon black

more: SU markers, ribbon, brads, dimensionals

ashley's bwc

Hello everyone. Here is my card for ashley's brainwave challenge. This was a fun color combo to work with. I dusted off my white embossing powder and one of my SU wheels. It's been a while since I used either of those. I also got to use some of that pretty ribbon that ashley sent me. It came together pretty quickly. Have a happy day.

{ingredients}

stamps: friendship blooms, petals wheel

ink: white, apricot appeal

paper: soft sky, pumpkin pie, apricot appeal, white, apricot appeal dp

more: white embossing powder, round tab punch, jewels, ribbon, rub-on's

bring it on

A while back my best friend Mindy posted about this scarf and I made the comment that if I posted a yarn project of my own, then she would have to post some scrapbooking! She replied with "bring it on." So, here is my yarn creation. Nothing as cool as her scarf, but a dishcloth and pot holder will have to do. You may wonder why I only have one pot holder. I actually made two of these for my aunt's birthday last year. A few days ago she informed me that one of them went up in flames. So, I made her another one. I have never made a dishcloth before (but I received a really cute lime green one as a gift) and I wanted to try. I would still like to figure out how to make a border/edge around it. I also have some yarn stashed away for a scarf. Hopefully I can get it started soon. So, Minnz....I'm waiting for some scrapbooking girly:)

Have a happy day.

blooming with love

Good morning! Here is my card for the color challenge over on SCS. I love this set, and it hasn't seen ink in a while so I was happy to get it out! The little square with the button and flowers was inspired by Sharon over at no time to stamp who posted a beautiful card with a mini collage on it. The wheel barrow and background were looking a little plain, so I got out my itty bitty backgrounds and gave them some polka dots. Thanks for stopping by. Have a happy day. Later today I'm off to meet Stephanie so we can work in our classrooms!

{ingredients}

stamps: blooming with love, itty bitty backrgounds

ink: black

paper: river rock, groovy guava, whisper white

more: button, primas, brads, photo corner punch, white gel pen