Pig ears are my friend ...

Happy Wednesday!!

Yep - it's official - I love pig ears.  I have discovered in the last 24 hours that 1 pig ear can buy me approximately 6 hours of time where Koda is concerned.  I can get a HUGE bag of pig ears at Costco for $20 and that will keep my little fur ball entertained for HOURS!  Woo Hoo!  Now I don't really LIKE the idea of feeding the actual dried, smoked ear of a pig to my dog (who would ever think of MAKING such a product??!!) however desperate times call for desperate measures.  I need to get stuff done.  I also need my dog to have some sort of entertainment that doesn't involve chasing the cat or eating my banister so pig ears it is!  I just might get that shower in yet *lol*!  I'm still trying to "relax" and take things at a slower pace but I just get all excited and hyper when I have a lot of things to do ... a lot of things that I WANT to do ... and LIKE doing - I just can't do them fast enough!  Breath .... so far today I made some deliveries and then took Koda (aka Muttley) for his walk (he's actually really good at heeling now and I don't have to drag him 3/4 of the way!) then did my pilates and my elliptical and then headed to the craft room.  Today I just HAD to nail down my Stamp-a-stack cards for this Sunday ... and that required me designing one more card.  I wanted to use the card I made for Casey's party on Friday but ran out of my ribbon!!  Of course everything I thought of doing involved that same ribbon so I had to wipe my mind clear and start from scratch.  Here is what I came up with:

Isn't it cute??!!  It will be the "time consuming" card at my SAS (I always seem to have one!) but I really like it.  I don't HAVE any belated birthday cards ... I don't think I've ever made one before in my 7 years of SU!  Well here it is!  I used more paper from the Simply Scrappin' Kit in the mini "Spring Fever" and Melon Mambo, Pear Pizzazz (can't get AWAY from that color lately!) and Daffodil Delight CS.  I sued the Triple Layer Flower Punch and the small circle punch from the Itty Bitty Punch Pack.  I colored the turtle with Pear Pizzazz and Always Artichoke.  Fun!  I really like how it turned out.  So here are my 5 cards for Sunday:  the one above and:

Are you coming on Sunday?  If not why not?!  $35 gets you 3 of each of these cards (with envelopes).  I still have 3 spots left.  Let me know by tonight if you want to come ... I start cutting tomorrow!

Come back soon - I have some birthday cards for a First Birthday to share!

Have a fun day!


Tam

... and relax .....

Helloooooo!  Happy Tuesday!  Everyone doin' ok?  I, for one, am doing just fine .... today ... for a change.  Not gunna lie ... for the last 5 days I've been a bit of a waste of make-up ... not to mention a "bit" of a bear.  I am SOOOO underslept it's rediculous!  I've been blaming the pup for that but truth be told he's been sleeping really well for the last week or so.  Around 8:30 or 9:00 pm he toddles up to my bedroom and passes out.  He might wake around 4:30 am for a "comfort break" but he usually makes it until 5:30 or 6:00 which is pretty resonable (not to mention better bladder control than I have! *lol*)  Nope - can't blame Koda for my lack of sleep.  Trouble is I'm a VERY light sleeper and any little noise will wake me up.  Over the last week it has been either one of kids talking in their sleep, waking with a nightmare, my husband snoring or Koda rolling over (he's been sleeping in the bathroom and he'll knock into the toilet or garbage can).  Once I'm wakened my mind snaps awake and I lie there until 4:30 or 5:00 am planning all the things I need to do.  I simply have too much on my plate these days.  Soooooo - after a decent night sleep last night (I woke at 4:00 am but somehow forced myself back to sleep) I decided today to just SLOW DOWN!  I've been making so many stupid mistakes lately that a) it's causing me more work and taking more time that I DON'T have b) making be grumpy at my stupidity and c) making me look like an idiot (well, in MY mind, anyway).  I just don't take the time to think before I hit "send" on an e-mail or plan ahead to make life easier.  Case in point.  The other night I decided we would have perogies for dinner - quick and easy.  Great - that bought me some time.  I started frying the onions and bacon around 4:30 pm and put the water on to boil at 4:45 so when Craig came home around 5:10 pm dinner would be ready.  Around 4:55 I opened the freezer to get the perogies .... nope ... I didn't have any.  What I THOUGHT were perogies were actually bread dough balls.  Great.  4:50 pm and I have nadda for dinner.  Sigh.  I think we had eggs for dinner which was fine but I just HATE stuff like that!  Being the control freak that I am I can't STAND when things ... the house ... the bills ... the laundry .. general "stuff" is out of control.  So - today I've taken a step back.  I took the girls to school - came home - took Koda to the vet for a checkup and a shot - came home - had a quick bite to eat and headed to Costco.  Came home - took Koda for a lovely walk on this beautiful day - put away the groceries SLOWLY - boiled some eggs for pickled eggs - soaked some dried mushrooms so I can make some sweet and sour soup - did the dishes and am now enjoying a cup of coffee and filling you all in on the really small details of my day.  Bored yet? *lol*

Bottom line - I'm stepping back from everything that I THINK has to be done right this nanosecond and realizing it can wait a few more hours.  Yes, I STILL have to finalize the cards for Sunday's Stamp-a-stack and yes, there are 100 other projects that have been started but not finished but it's ok ... it doesn't all have to get done today.  Heck - if I WAS all done today I don't know what I'd do with myself tomorrow!  So cheers (coffee clink) and here's a FUN little project for you.   I whipped up 26 of these in under an hour on the weekend ...

Can you see the Label Framelit embossing?  Cool, eh?  (MAN is THAT Canadian or what??!!)  I got the technique from

Mary Fish (stampinpretty.com).  In her video she says to use two of the silicone rubber mats but I didn't have to so what I did was 1) open your Big Shot platform all the way (i.e. flip both tabs open).  2) Place your hard Impressions Pad down, then your Silicone Pad down.  3) place your paper down 4) place your Labels Framelits down WITH THE BUMPY SIDE UP - the bumpy part is what normally CUTS your paper - you don't want it to cut your paper so face the bumps up 5) Place your clear cutting pad down  6) run the whole kit and kaboodle throught he Big Shot.  Wa-low!  You get an embossed image.  VERY cool!  I then stamped in the middle of the design with With All My Heart (page 47 of the IBC ... a very overlooked set .. I think this one is a keeper!).  I then added a brad from the SAB brads to jazz it up a bit.  This is such a great, elegant, easy and QUICK technique!  Try it out - you'll want to make 26 too!

Right.  I''ve now had a realxing 26 minutes of coffee and blogging.  I'm going to finish my coffee, get the children and maybe craft a little.  I have more projects from this week to share so come bacl soon.  ... bring a coffee ... I have been known to ramble on every now and then ;)

Have a realxing day!

Tam

Crazy for Balloons!

HAPPY THURSDAY!  Woo Hoo!  The week is almost over! ... mind you that usually means more work for me since I hold my parties on the weekends ... but then again ... my "work" is really just a bunch of PLAY, isn't it?!

So ... I have a party on Friday at the lovely Casey's house (hi Casey!)  I had my cards all planned out - we would be making the birthday present card, the Elementary Elegance card and the purple Doily card.  No problemo.  All I had to do today was cut the templates and start packing my supplies.  But then .... I got a Facebook message from the lovely Wanda saying that her and the lovely Rae Ann would be attending the party.  WELL!  As thrilled as I am to have such a great group of lovelies to stamp with on a Friday night it threw my plans out the window.  Wanda and Rae Ann have already MADE two of the three cards!  We CAN'T have THAT now can we??!!  I mean yes, the cards ARE fabulous but really ... we want new ... we want different ... we want ... BALLOONS!  Well - down to the craft room I toddled (ok - tiptoed so as not to wake the furry beast!).  10 minutes later ... WA-LOW!

I can't take total credit for it ... I got the inspiration from a card by Shoni Matney.  She had a similar layout and used the same balloons and sentiment - I changed a few details and there you have it!  A new card to keep everyone happy :)
I used the balloons from Crazy for Cupcakes (another "keeper" stamp set we should all have!) and the sentiment from the SAB Outlined Occasions.  The paper is from the Simply Scrappin' Kit that is in the mini - isn't it pretty?!  I punched the balloons out with my 1" circle punch and popped them up on a dimensional (Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight and Pear Pizzazz.  I used the pleated satin ribbon (I know I've said it before but I'll say it again - THIS RIBBON ROCKS!!!) and popped the sentiment up on dimensionals too (you pretty much have to because the ribbon is so thick - actually I used the edges of the dimensionals .. you know ... the part you usually throw away!)

So that's it - now it's 4:05 pm ... I have to go make dinner .. then go to Sparks .. then put the kids to bed ... THEN start cutting and packing for the party.  Ahhh - a mother's work is never done :)

Hope you have a fun night - get some stamping in!!  Go on!  GO!


Tam

Apothecary Birthday

Happy Sunday!

Anyone else having a pajama day today?  I'm pretty sure nuthin' is gunna get me out of my jams today ... a nice quiet day of cleaning, movies and crafting ... my favorite kind of Sunday :)

Today's project comes as a total surprise to me.  The surprise is that I actually LIKE it *lol*.  Remember I told you I was working on a commission to make some birthday invotations for a friend?  Remember how long I've been procrastinating on it?  Well it paid off.  I've been thinking about it for WEEKS!  I've done lots of invitations in the past but what made this one more challenging for me was that I was instructed NOT to keep it clean in simple.  Lots of bling, flowers and busy was the request.  Ack!  I thought and thought and thought and though.  I tried a few ideas ... using my Big Shot flower dies with the glimmer paper ... too much (even for someone who WANTS glitz!) ... I don't "do" a lot of flowery type cards ... however ... never one to shy away from a challenge I pressed on!  More chocolate ... a few naps here and there ... lots of searching through fellow stampers blogs .... then it hit me ... the new Apothecary set!  It has roses all over it!!  (and roses were specifically mentioned in the request).  That was it!  About an hour later I had it - first crack - nailed it ...

Well?  Well?  What'd'ya think?  Flowery, sparkly and NOT simple!  It's hard to tell from the picture but the red border and red flowers actually match PERFECTLY - it's just the glare from the flash that makes them look a little off.  I'm thrilled that even though this isn'y my usual style I actually LIKE it!  I'm also thrilled that I succeeded in pushing myself out of my comfort zone and tried something I normally wouldn't.  To be honest, this stamp set was one of the last ones I bought.  I wasn't crazy about it but then I saw quite a few samples made with it that I liked so I bought it.  This particular stamp was not the one I planned to use - the flowers are too flowery for me .. if that makes any sense *lol*.  I really liked the end result, though.  The image is stamped in black Staz-On so the punch of Real Red marker really adds a "wow".  I also used the Pink Pirouette, Certainly Celery and Wild Wasabi markers.  I used the Pear PIzzaz Pleated Satin Ribbon (have you BOUGHT this ribbon yet?  I think it is my all time favorite ribbon type in my 7 years of Stampin' Up!).  The DSP is Certainly Celery (from the DSP pack) and the brads are from the In Color glimmer brads. The flower image is pooped up on LOTS of dimensionals.  The "You're Invited" is from the retired "Introducing" set.  To add more glitz I used Dazzling Details in Cherry (for the red flowers) and clear (for the pink).  Yep.  I like it :)

Today's entertainment is to finish making the invitations (I have to pace myself - all the coloring and dazzling KILLS my back) and cleaning the house ... actually purging the house.  I've cleaned out the girls' drawers and closets.  Of course you wouldn't know I've done anything for the last 2 hours and now I just have a mountain of old clothes to bag up and get out of the house ... but now I want to take a nap ... know what I mean?  Guess I'll have a coffee instead ... the mountain awaits!

Have a fun Sunday :)  Happy Family-Day-Eve :)


Tam

Party Hats ... the sequel ...

Happy Thursday!

Another relaxing day around here.  Wow!  I just realized I had NOTHING on my calendar all week!!  What a nice change THAT has been!  Today I didn't manage too much ... just squeezed my excercising in before I had to pick up the girls (today was a half day).  Last night I managed a little more crafting, however.  I had to revisit those darned party hats.  I showed the card I posted yesterday to Rebecca (my 8 year old) and asked her what it looked like ... she said "trees".  Hmmm - not the look I was going for!  So I asked her why they looked like trees and not party hats.  Apparently the "squiggles" along the edges made them look like trees.  If they were gone they would be hats, she told me.  OK.  Who am I to argue with an 8-year-old-expert on party hats?  You know what???  She was RIGHT!  Lookie:

This time I used the smaller punched image from the Pennant Punch .. still used the Itty Bitty Punch Pack for the pom poms and used the Happiest Birthday Wishes Hostess set for the sentiment.  I still ised the Everyday Enchantmenet DSP, Lucky Limeade and Poppy Parade paper and ink but they do indeed look more like party hats.  Next time I'll ask her FIRST!

I was on a roll so I kept going ...
I saw a card similar to this next one on Facebook a few weeks ago.  One demonstrator (I can't find her name now!) was holding a card that caught my eye - I zoomed in on it and HAD to copy it.  ... of course that meant I first had to buy the Doily stamp that I always wondered "why would anybody buy that stamp?"  Now I know:

Isn't it great?  The Doily is stamped in Sahara Sand (the accent card stock is Sahara as well).  The "Thanks" is from the Thank You Kindly Stamp Set (a MUST have set!) and the flower is from the SAB Fresh Vintage set - they are stamped in Soft Suede.  I added some brads and some Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz (I can't believe you can see it in the picture!).  So simple but nice!  This one makes it into my upcoming Stamp-a-stack.

I changed the colors to make the card a little more appearling to the 8 - 14 year old girls who will be stamping at my upcoming fundraiser.  I'm thinking they'll like purple better than brown *lol*:

I used the "BFF" stamp set and changed the colors to Wisteria Wonder and Concord Crush ... took away the spritz and added some Rhinestones.  Wa-low!  A pretty card that works with almost any sentiment!

I think that's it for today.  I'm excited to play again tomorrow while the girls are at school.  I finally have an idea for my friends' birthday invitations she asked me to make.  I've been thinking about it for weeks but kept coming up with a big blank.  Now I think I've got an idea that will work just perfectly!!  I'll share when I have it made.

Have a fun night :)


Tam

Outlined Party Hats

Happy Wednesday!

Not much to report today - I have pretty much just exercised all day - pilates, elliptical, dog walking ... very time consuming!

I played in my craft room a little yesterday.  I'm trying to design a 3rd project for my upcoming fundraiser.  Here's what I managed ...

Hmmm - not lovin' it ... I think I need a few more hours of play ...  I used the SAB Outlined Occasions set (stamped in Poppy Parade and colored with Lucky Limeade and Pool Party) and I made party hats out of the Everyday Elegance DSP from the SAB mini with the Pennant Punch - the pompoms are from the Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack.  I popped them up on dimensions.  Wa-low!  Quick and easy ... but not the "WOW" I'm looking for.  Back to the drawing board ...

Gotta run - kids need picking up.  Have a fun day :)


Tam

Elementary Elegance

Happy Valentine's Eve!  Hmmm - I guess I should get a card ready for My Love .... *lol* story of my life ... I always have cards planned for OTHER people and then I scramble at the last minute for my own cards *lol* ...

I had fun today ... despite the fact that I was up most of the night with Koda.  I had a leisurly day of excercising, showering, walking, cleaning and crafting.  Oh ... but before all that fun I got to dress Alicia up like she was 100 years old for the "100th Day of School".  She looked so cute!

If only we all looked that cute at 100!

Right - onto some projects.  First up is a batch of cards I made for my friend Pam.  Pam is a Doula and needed some cards.  These are what we came up with:

I used the Note Cards and Envelopes in the IB&C so these were very quick and easy to put together.  I ran the card through the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder.  The CS is Marina Mist.  I printed the sentiment in a word document and then stamped over it with the flourish from the "Bliss" set that was in last year's SAB catalogue.  I added some rhinestones for a little glitz.  They turned out really nicely.  I did some in Marina mist, some in Pool Party and some in Pink Pirouette. 

Next up are the Teacher Gifts I made for tomorrow ...

I've always wanted to find a reason to buy these little jars from Ikea.  FINALLY!  I filled each jar with 10 of the Swiss Delice chocoaltes (from Costco) that I wrapped with Avery labels stamped with the Valentine image from It's a Wrap Holiday (retired from the Holiday mini).  The lid had Cherry Cobbler polka dot ribbon attached with sticky strip and the sentiment is from the retired Chocolate set.  I attached some small hearts with mini glue dots.  Fun!

Last up is a simple card I came up with for an upcoming fundraiser.  Once again it took me about 2 hours to come up with this simple card ... once again .... "it's hard being me" .... *lol*

I sued Sahara Sand and Cherry Cobbler ink and cs and the Elementary Elegance SAB set.  The strip of Sahara Sand cs was run through the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder.  I love how the texture of the folder coordinates with the swirls of the stamped frame.  Cute!

Right.  I'm SO ready for bed (at 8:10 pm!!!)  If only the puppy was on the same sleep schedule ...

Have a fun night :)


Tam

Oooo - shimmery ....

Happy Wednesday!

Ahhhh - I feel the stress melting away.  I have a bit of a break for the next few days insofar as I don't have any major fires to put out.  Oh sure - I DO have 5 cards to design for my upcoming Stamp-a-stack ... and I DO have to design 3 cards for an upcoming fundraiser ... oh, and their is my commission for 24 cards ... and another commission for 10 invitations ... but those don't count as "burning".  I can take a day or two and catch up on all those "little things" ... like paying bills ... feeding the family something that resembles a healthy dinner ... and training the fur ball (just look at how darned cute he is ...)

Hee hee .. he just makes me giggle (... when he isn't driving me crazy!)

I have 2 projects to share today.  The first one is a Valentine treat I thought we might make at my class last night.  In the end I decided against it as the Technique project was fairly time consuming.  Here is the treat:

It was really quick to put together.  I used the Pillow Box die for the Big SHot.  The "Love" is from the retired It's a Wrap Holidays set.  I stamped the imgae on my Avery Labels and stuck it on the box.  I stamped it 3 more times and wrapped it around (3) Swiss Delice chocolates (Costco) - they fit inside.  I punched Espresso and Cobbler hearts with the small heart punch and tied the 1/8" Espresso ribbon to hold it closed.  Fun!

Here is the Technique card we made last night (and will again on Friday):

Oooo - shimmery!  I used the new Edgelits die to scallop the edge of the card stock and then stamped the image from Bordering on Romance (in the mini) in Black Staz-On.  I embossed the front white piece with the Elegant Bouquet folder and used the black polka dot ribbon as an accent.  I put the TWO stamps from Bordering on ROmance onto one clear block and stamped it in Staz-on, then punched it out with the 3 1/2" circle punch.  Now comes the fun part (thanl you Joan Jeffery for the inspiration on this - 24 hours ago I had no idea what our technique would be this month until I saw your Extravaganza projects!!)  I spritzed a few shots of the Vanilla Shimmer Smooch Spritz into a container and "painted" the flowers and embossed areas with my blender pen (and a q-tip).  Isn't it pretty??   It's a great affect.  Try it out!

RIght - the little beast is awake - must run!  Have a fun day :)


Tam

Elementary Elegance Birthday

Well hello there??!!  Were you worried that the puppy had licked me to death and I would never return?  Not quite ... but I am close to collapse from exhaustion!  I had forgotten the joys of broken sleep!  I have been crazy busy between taking care of Koda (when he is awake I HAVE to focus 100% of my attention on him or he gets into ALL KINDS of trouble ... like chewing furniture!) and LOTS of Sale-a-brations workshops (LOTS of fun, Ladies) and designing projects for my upcoming classes.  I have a class tonight - as of 9:30 am I had officially designed the projects *lol* - nothing like doing things ahead of time!!  I'll show you my technique card tomorrow - the picture didn't turn out very well and if I hurry I can still get in my workout, my shower, make dinner and tidy my craft room in the next 2 hours!  Right - on with the project!

I struggled for a LONG time with this very simple card.  That's what happens when you can barely see straight at 10:00 pm and are trying to be creative!  I thought I would have to tweak it this morning but when I did I preferred this version:

Once AGAIN I used Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobbler and Early Espresso (this set just screams Espresso!).  The DSP is from
Mocha Morning (LOVE that paper!!!)  The "frame" is stamped with Vanilla Craft Ink and the Happy Birthday is in Cobbler.  It is punched out with the label punch and popped up with dimensionals.  I added a mini library clip for a little extra "something".  I'm not sure if I love this card or not.  I think if I saw it on-line I would like it ... I'm just not used to clean and simple!

Right.  Off to the basement to work out.  Have a happy day :)


Tam