Saturday Afternoon Project

Yesterday I spent some time making some holiday cards. We always give our nieces and nephews little gifts for Christmas, and its gotten that they expect a hand made card.

Spoiled children-ha-ha.

So for the 4 girls on my husband's side I made these skate cards. One of my nieces is a big figure skater, and I got this Sizzix Brenda Walton die last summer (Love it when you find them on sale!), so I cut the base card from them by putting the folded edge of the paper just before the actual cut edge of the die.

I wanted this card not to open- more form a pocket, so before I decorated I taped down the inner bottom and stitched up the laces. Then I decorated-using a Sizzix die from the stash to cut the Christmas lights and another to cut the holly. I had the red confetti from a box packing...came in really useful for these!

I even impressed the hubby with these-always a good thing! Ha-ha.

And something a little more masculine for my nephew.  He's a skier, but I think he's gotten enough skiing cards over the years. So I settled with snow, and nothing too sparklely or frilly for him.

And then there's my niece, who is also a skier.

But I went a little more traditional for her.  The only thing I don't like about this card is where I stamped the words. I suppose I could paint them over and restamp, but I think that's just me being a fuss budget.  I like how he looks like he is going to tip his hat to Santa.

I wish I had this week off so I could do a bunch for Christmas stamp play, but I guess since I only have to work 1 1/2 days I can't complain.

Sometimes I can be such a baby.

And finally 2 of the girls on my husband's side are finishing up school this month, and he needed a couple of graduation cards. Not quite my mindset at the moment, but I went fast and simple with these.

They look a little more arty when I don't magnify them so much and make it so you can see my scribblely dots.

And inside, a pop up word.

Love it when I HAVE to make something. Gives me a really good reason (not that I need a reason) to escape into my art lair and play.

Have a great day and

good or bad- it is the first day of winter!

A New Culinary Adventure and a Christmas Card

So I went to Costco the other day and found this cookbook that looked interesting.

I am not too familiar with a lot of Lebanese and Middle eastern foods. I love falafel and hummus and I've had Lebanese food a bit (one of my childhood friends was part Lebanese), but a lot of these recipes look and sound so delicious. My plan is to start doing a bit of experimenting with some of them once we get past Thanksgiving.

I'll let you know how that goes once I start.

Also thought I'd show you this Christmas card I made awhile back.

I embossed the Christmas tree.  I think this is a fun rubber stamp from Hero Arts. The squirrels are die cuts, and I first stamped  the pink card base in black with an older Hero Arts snowflake background stamp. I wanted to just break up the solid pink of that card stock.

So I only have to work 2 days this week. Tomorrow I am off (BIG SMILE) and will also be off right through the end of the weekend. This is one of the reason's I love Thanksgiving!

I plan on doing a few little things but mostly I plan on being low key and lazy! Reading my book, making some art, watching season 2 of Last Tango in Halifax, sleeping in. I hope I can do all of those things!

If you are here in the US or celebrate Thanksgiving, what are you going to be up to?

I'm not laughing

I am going to complain. This week has been so crazy I haven't made it into the studio at all.

Sad sad face for me.

I am hoping maybe this evening. But I do have an appointment after school. And it is dark and very cold and to get motivated in the evening has been too too tough for me. Zoning out in front the TV is so much more appealing! Recharge before it is 4:45 AM and I am getting started all over again.

Too many weeks like this right now and I am starting to go nuts.

Too many things to deal with, not enough time to unwind by playing, not enough time to do what I need to do to keep me from being cranky and complaining.

I'm burnt out.

UGH!!!!!!

It will pass, I know.

Thanks for listening.

Here's a card I made last Sunday.

Nothing too crazy or wildly unique but it had fun making it and I like the result. 

Have a nice day!

Happy Holidays

Here's a couple of cards I recently made. Cards are not really my forte, but even more so my photographing of them leaves a lot to be desired.

One of these days I learn a few tricks to make my photos better.

And maybe one day I'll start to like my cards a little bit better.

Funny, this bottom card looks really good in real life and the top card doesn't look as good. But in photographs, I think the top card looks better than this one below.

They talk on Project Runway about dresses being editorial, and I guess that is true about cards too.

Both of these cards use some embossing folders, some die cuts and a little bit of stamping.

I made a bunch of cards the other day...making cards is fun because each card is like a mini-canvas.

Whether they photograph well or not!

Long day for me today. I have an event at school tonight-am tired of these frequent long days!
I'm looking for the magic spell that would make a lot more art time in my life. If you know one, please send it my way.
Ha-ha-ha!
Thanks for visiting,

Snow Scene

Been having a little fun making some holiday cards. Must say the Christmas spirit has hit me early this year! I also only have limited play time lately so making cards is a 

fun ways to do a bunch of different things in the time I have.

(Although I must admit, yesterday I had hours of studio play time. It was fantastic!)

This card is quite complex for me. A die cut tree that is decorated, a stamped bear and  some birch trees (Lawn Fawn) along with a little banner from October Afternoon are things I used to make this card. And I love using Martha Stewart's sparkle paste. Looks pretty snow like to me!

And I just discovered Zig's Wink of Stella pens. The silver is my favorite. I used it to outline the background shape. I also used some blue iridescent blue ink to stamp some snowflakes on the background. 

Boy did the past weekend fly by, but it was a low key and fun one for me. I really needed that, and only one more week to get through before we hit Thanksgiving week! Can't wait for the long holiday weekend...I do love how Thanksgiving is a fairly low key holiday.

So woke up to a little light snow this morning...come on Mother Nature, it is NOT even Thanksgiving yet!

That's all today for me. Have a great day!

Blasts fro the Past

I've been sad these past few days about my mom. She's been very forgetful lately but only recently has it gotten really bad. I think its really dawned on me that this might be the first step in the end. I know that's the wrong word choice, but I am starting to lose my mom and I don't know what other word to use right now. As much as we fought, and we did fight a lot, (we're so different) she's still my mom.

I also heard that my sister-in-law, my brother's wife, who has breast cancer, is starting to slide also.

The tough part with her is that she's angry about it all. Understandable, she's only 51, but  she's rather abrasive and pushy and she and I are very different. She's trying to keep herself feeling useful by handling things with my mom, but too much so. I need to step in because my mother is MY mother and I have to live with her final time for rest of MY life.

Oh my.

How can I say everything I need to say in so few words?

I can't.

OK, enough said for me today. 

It feels good to write this but its also bringing me down too far.
Can't have that, when she's still there with me.

So on to things that make me smile.

And hopefully you too.

Some favorite holiday art from the past.

Its fun to look back and get some inspiration. Not that I want to repeat any piece, but I see some things I did that makes me really like these pieces, and I have lots of ideas rolling around in my brain of ways to use those genera ideas to make some more new art.

Thanks for stopping by.

Holiday Season

OK, Halloween is over and Thanksgiving is only a couple of weeks away. Its that time of year when Christmas and other holiday projects start showing up. On Sunday I packed up all the Halloween arty things and put them away and then took out the Christmas arty things...I have way too many Christmas stamps! Kind of ridiculous since they only get used for a short period of time but I've been buying holiday images for over 15 years so I have a nice collection that I love. I hate to part with any of them. 

And most importantly 

they're so much fun to use!

So you can see I made a couple of Christmas cards, and I will admit I put on some holiday tunes while I was working. A little Bing Crosby and  some Ella Fitzgerald and I was rolling. 

Joy to the World and White Christmas and some other oldies.

Fa-la-la-la-la!

No school today for Veteran's Day.
LOVE it!
This week is very vacation like for me. I must admit I  really need that right now. As I've mentioned, between a tough school schedule, the new dog, my mom and now my daughter's car issue...its so busy that it has been overwhelming at times.
Tomorrow and Thursday I am working but I am having some gum surgery later in the day on Thursday and I decided I really needed a me  day on Friday. So I am taking it off. Sending the dog to doggie day care and just having an art day for myself.
Having a great day to look forward to makes my insides soar and become very light and smiley.
Mental health is as important as physical health-
as you all know
and so I am realigning my 2 sides before something bad happens to either one of them.
OK, enough said.
Enjoy.

Blogger's Challenge

This week's theme at Blogger's Challenge is Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa. Since I've got a few new cards in my photo stash, thought I would play along.

There's something about a blue and white snowflake card and Christmas...

I die cut the polar bear-this fun Die-versions die...the snowflake is from Cheery Lynn Designs and the stamped words are Paper Smooches. I inked the snowflake embossing folder (Sizzix) and then embossed some white paper- I think the effect you get makes a great background.

Pretty simple and basic, but that's the kind of cards I like.

Hope you enjoy my card

and thanks for stopping by.

Getting into the Spirit

Made my first holiday card the other day.

Am trying to get into the holiday spirit- you know

change over from making fall things and moving into winter and Christmas.

I am definitely someone who needs to be in the "mood" to create something, and that is especially true for Christmas.

One thing I have been doing to motivate me is to listen to some music- the Pandora app on my phone has lots of oldies-the best- to jam to while I work for that squeezed in hour in the studio after work and before dinner.

Plus it been so COLD it feels like the dead of winter here in New Hampshire.

Katie (my daughter) has gotten me hooked on these love story movies on the Hallmark Channel. They are doing straight Christmas love stories lately. You know the outcome when you see the first 15 minutes and they always end happy. No academy award winners, but just plain relaxing fun. In small doses that is!!!

Oh my!!!! 

This card looks a little top heavy- but its actually the angle.  As you most likely know,

if you photograph a part closer, it looks bigger. (So that's why people hold fish they catch while fishing out in front of them when they take photos-so Mr. Fishy looks bigger-sometimes a lot bigger.) I looked down when taking this photo so the top looks bigger-and hence-out of proportion.

Stamps are Designs from Sheena. 

And before we get to Christmas we first have turkey day-

1 week!!!

Here's a card I put together for my daughter for that day.

Pilgrims from Hero Arts, words from Flourishes, and the turkey is a Quickutz die.

And inside I made this fun little pop-up using a Sizzix pop up.

Words and turkey here are from Hero Arts.

Not sure I like the blue background but it does make the colors pop.

Hope you enjoy my cards.

Thanks for stopping by

Christmas Inspirations

Been thinking a lot of holiday projects.

Actually starting making my holiday journal. Will show you one of these days what I am doing.

But I really want to make some holiday things and was looking through some previous projects for inspiration.

Here's 10 pieces that make me smile and

make me want to run upstairs for the studio to play!

So top card is all about the snowman (Sizzix die). I stamped the snowflakes and then used the same colored ink and a brush to make the background.

Love the black and white background here. Its a Tim Holtz stamp. Then some ribbon and a Darcy stamped, cut and colored poinsettia from a set I bought maybe 2 or 3 years ago. The wonderful card is from October Afternoon.

Love this journal page.  I think the tire tracks that I stamped are a blast.

Sometimes, at least to me, the simplest pages are the very best. Especially when the page came out in a good way.

Here's a journal page with a bunch of die cuts and some blocky letters. Also some Sparkly snowflake dots (Stickles.)

And another journal page. This time I used some Viva Gold (well silver-ha-ha) paste over  stencil and some modeling past through a stencil to make the snowflakes. I stenciled the reindeer by stamping the Tim Holtz/Sizzix leaping reindeer die and using the mask as a stencil.

A cute card. Stamped image is from Sheena Douglas. I die cut both of the arches and aded a die cut star and then some felt reindeer trim. I have a whole spool of the trim I picked up marked down someplace or another and it comes in handy to finish off project or cards.

Cover of last years holiday journal. Some lace, some stenciling, some die cuts (both ones I made and the sparkling glittery snowman one from K&C Co. that I picked up on markdown at Michael's). The stenciled words are from Red Lead- a cool holiday saying stencil.

Another card, this one a little bit classy. The candles are a die cut from Dee's Distinctive Dies.  I also die cut the rounded piece (Sizzix) and inner piece (Cheery Lynn). Over that I stamped in gold the saying. The green leaves and berries are a Sizzix embossing die. Then I sued some Stickles, Dylusions spray ink and Perfect pearl sprays.

Simple and fun! Stamped images are from Paper Smooches except the BRRRR word which is a very old stamp in my collection.

Ha-Ha-Ha! Love this a lot. I used the Darice birch tree embossing folder and inked it tourquoise to make the colored embossed background. The images are from paper Smooches except the words which are from tachnique Tuesday.

Another super fun card. This time I embossed the frame (Sizzix) right onto the card and then rubbed darked green and white ink over the card. I added the die cut snowflake (Cheery Lynn) and added Stickles to the bow to make it pop. Then I added the snowman, a sparklely die cut circle and the words (Technique Tuesday).

And lastly, this other bright card. Images are from paper Artsy, excpet the red dots on the card which are from Cornish Heritage Farms-one of the original backgrounder stamps.

 

Hope you got inspired to do some holiday play this weekend.

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO ready to bring out the Christmas bins-

I am bad- I have 3!

I need to clean out- but maybe I'll wait until after the holiday and unload some stamps that I've out grown or don't speak to me the same way any longer.

Do you have a 3 day weekend?

I do with nothing more planend than lunch with a friend on Monday.

I think that is the moste xciting thing-

a quiet long weekend.

Hopefully some art, some sleeping, some reading, a bit of cooking and maybe I'll even get a bit of my disasterous studio mess picked up a bit.

Starting to get dangerous in there.

 

I want to thank you for stopping by to visit and

have a great weekend too.

Holiday cheer today

Here's something cheery and holiday-ish on this late November Tuesday. 

Do you feel like me, that it isn't very Christmasy for right after Thanksgiving? Must be the fact that turkey day came so early this year and December doesn't even start until the end of the week.

Here's instructions for my card.

I embossed the frame (Sizzix) with this new stamping/embossing set I picked up earlier this fall. I actually used white pigment ink on the folder so when it embossed the frame stayed green and the card got this white grungy look. Then I took some green Twinkling H2O's and painted the frame-though you miss the sparkle here.

Inside the frame I punched a circle on silver sparkley paper and I also die cut the snowflake (Cheery Lynn). I went onto the card and added some red Viva paint pen dots and some red Stickles to the bow on the embossed frame.

Then I added the snowman-(Paper Smooches) and the words are from Technique Tuesday/Allie Edwards.

Here's a close up.

Not much else new to report today

so have a great Tuesday and

thanks for visiting my blog.

Holiday Week Chatter

I love this holiday week. It is a short working week, a good holiday since there is lots of yummy food, good shopping deals and usually low stress good family time. I say usually since we are going to my family on Thursday for the holiday and you just never know with my family, but I am just not thinking about that.  Sometimes if you think you too much you get stressed and make it all worse.

But I really like Thanksgiving.

And it will be good to see my family.

(Though I am secretly jealous of people who get a love key holiday without all the family hub-bub).

And I only have to work 2 days this week, and I have some fun things planned for the long holiday weekend.

More about that later.

Yesterday I went to visit some friend's of my husband's family who were visiting from San Francisco. Katie and Bob are charming lovely people and I'm glad I got to go visit them while they are here in the east. We stayed for dinner and sat on the couches and watched the guys put down my mother-in-laws new floor.

Hey I am reading a new book too-

Just started it but Julia Child is such a fascinating woman. I've read a few books about her in the past, and I have loved them all. What a great life she had.

Will let you know more about this book when I get further into the book.

So last thing for today is this fun card I made.  I started with this new Darcy's embossing folder I just bought a couple of weeks ago. I inked the folder and then embossed on white paper to get this cool blue sky background between the trees. I mounted this on white cardstock and outlined with a blacked Sharpie.

Then I added the moose and cardinal (silly bird). I put a Santa hat on the moos with some silver glitter. These are stamps from when Kim Hughes designed for Cornish Heritage Farms. Not sure she has re-released these images from her own company Paper Smooches.

The words are from a Technique Tuesday release.

The set it is from is called the Magic of Christmas by Allie Edwards.

So tonight I have a late night at school since National Honor Society (which I am one of the advisers) is putting on our annual Battle of Classes fundraiser. Will be tired tomorrow, but it is for a good cause and I am happy to get it coordinated and (hopefully) pulled off successfully.

Hope you have a great Monday!

Stop back soon.

How about a Christmas Card?

Here's a fun card I made last weekend. It didn't start out like this; it started off as a full front designed card with snow on the ground and a snowman and  full sized trees and all these snowflakes falling down.

Busy, busy, busy.

So I used a die cut and cut out this bird and tops of these trees, because I really liked this part of the card. It always amazes me how you can dislike a card and then cut an inchie square from some spot on the card and really like the results. It is a great way to dump all the clutter you can otherwise end up with.Then I die cut a bit bigger square out of some glittery lighter blue paper and did a small amount of layering. 

I did add a bit of green Viva paint pen to the evergreen tree here, and I mixed that paint with some white sparklely Stickles-I added the same Stickles to the bare tree too-since it is snowing they needed some fresh snow on them.

The bird, trees and snowflakes are all from an old set I have from Cornish Heritage Farm and Kim Hughes. She has just re-released this set in her Kimset Collection at Paper Smooches called Winter Groves.  This birdie is also in the set but I cut off the little feather cowlick sticking off the birdie's head.

Finally I used some silver sparkley paper and die cut the joy word-using a Sizzix die. I just love this joy word. I love the retro feel and the shape of the letters. I used it a lot last year on holiday cards and I have a feeling this year it will get a lot of use too.

So yesterday I was on my way with my friend Vicky to the Peabody Essex Museum to go see a traveling hat exhibit. On our way we passed the North Shore Mall in Peabody, MA, and guess what? We ended up stopping at the mall and shopping and NEVER made it to the museum!!!! It was such a blast! Although I did spend a bit too much cash on myself at Chico's. Was ok though-and a lot of fun. We also went to the container store and I got a few little holiday gifts for my family. And being out with my friend we laughed and chatted and talked and chatted and laughed some more.

It was a great way to start off my weekend.

So I am still hoping to go see the James Bond movie tonight-

there's also that new Abraham Lincoln movie I want to see too.

Katie wants me to go with her to see the final Twilight movie Wednesday when she is done with classes. I want to see what they do as their twist from the book. Are you a Twilight fan? I really didn't care for the books, but the movies are ok. But if I can go with my daughter, that is what I like.

So have you seen any movies lately? Gone on any fun shopping trips? 

An Oldie but a Goodie

I spent a good chunk of my day in both cities...actually in 1 building that straddles both cities- The Boston Museum of Science with my biology class. A good day and fun was had by all. A good way to end a long work week.

Here's a 1 layer  Christmas card made just from stamping images on white paper and attaching the white design onto a card made from dark green cardstock. I made this card a year or 2 ago...not exactly sure how long ago it was. Maybe even 3 years ago. I LOVE using this  North Pole map image from the no longer in business stamp company- Toybox. I think it is a great Christmas stamp-maybe because I just find maps so interesting and of course the North Pole is home of Santa. Anyhow, that image is stamped first in brown ink. Then I stamped in the black the old fashioned flying Santa. I honestly don't know who made that stamp. But this is one of my favorite vintage Santa sleigh and reindeer stamps. Then I added 3 other stamped images. One is the green holly image going up the left side. I used green ink and red Sakura jellyroll pen to make all the little smudgy dots. I think this stamp is from a clear set of Hampton Art Stamps. Then I stamped the postmark and the saying. I think the postmark is from the same set as the holly.It is a clear stamp set...maybe someone knows for sure since I just have the set but not the wrapping that it came in. As I said, it has been a long time since I made this card.

Oh yeah, and then I distressed this card with a bit of brown ink and a stipple brush.

Anyhow...busy Saturday ahead.

Enjoy your day!

Ho-Ho-Ho

Don't you just LOVE this Santa? I do, he is silly and fun! And yes my photo is a bit crooked, but you get the idea.

This ia a really simple and clean card. Printed background paper on red cardstock (not shown). A piece of green cardstock, outlined with red Sharpie. Then a strip of 7Gypsies tape, and finally Santa (Paper Smooches). I stamped him on white paper, colored him with Copics and then used some white Stickles for the fur parts of his outfit. I also used a Sakura jellyroll glaze pen for the shiny belt and boots. I also used a white Uniball pen (the best white pens!) and scribbled on his beard to give him some texture. Then I cut him out and attached him. Used a saying stamp from this same Paper Smooches set -Santa Paws- and finally added some red Viva Paint Pen dots.

How easy was that?

Wasn;t there a commercial or tv show that used to say that all the time?

So yesterday was the darkest day...talk about wanting to nap or watch TV. I willed myself to go through gifts and get out Katie's gifts and do some wrapping before she comes home on Friday/tomorrow from college for her break...but man, it was a chore. And I didn't finish seeing I first had to dig out all the wrapping supplies and go through the bags of gifts to seperate her things from the other gifts....then Dave came home and that is way too big of a distraction with dinner and him chatting away...I should have taken yesterday off and stayed home to wrap...and I would have taken taken today but I have a field trip tomorrow and hate to be out 2 days in a row. Anyhow, I made a BIG dent in her things and Dave came home with a gift for himself which he then gave to me to give him...perfect-was looking for something a little "bigger". That helps a lot. This week is one of those weeks that is too far from vacation to feel like its almost there but close enough to start teasing you! Lots to do at home and lots to do at work. Still too far away to be able to let up a bit but too close to want to do much at school. And the kids are getting antsy too!

Oh well, field trip tomorrow so I just need to get through today. Which I will. And I should go do a bit of holiday shopping after work too. Just so much to do right now!

Anyhow, have a FABULOUS day.

A Different Point of View

Last month I showed you a card using this snowman stamp from Artistic Outpost. Here's another one, a bit different. I don't know, but it could use some bling I think.

I used red cardstock, printed holiday paper, and some heavy cardtsock I embossed with this Sizzix embossing folder and then I used Viva Inka-Gold metallic rub in a platinum white color. I die cut the word Joy with some silver metallic paper using a Sizzix die and then I added some Viva dimensional paint with a Paper Pen. I like this card in person, but I still think a little bling for the holidays...maybe a snowflake...

Check out the Artistic Outpost web site for some fun stamps...

http://www.artisticoutpost.com/

So here's a few Holiday Journal pages to show you...today some of my critters. Well 2 of the 3. My little female cat, Emma, isn't included because she just does her own thing most of the time when we're all together in a picture taking place.

I created this tag for a photo (see below) of my puppy dog Harley. Quite simple but I am using it as title. I took a tag, doodled the words (a favorite technique lately) which I then colored, I cut out the heart freehand  and stamped the woof in it, I stamped the paws and the the words along the bottom of the page (Elsie Flannigan stamps from eons ago when she designed scrap book paraphenalia). Then I added a bit of 7Gypsies tape and I brushed some brown ink with a stenciling brush.

I know, this page isn't much. But I like to alternate my art pages with just plain photos to keep it interesting when you look through the book. This photo I printed and left a white border, which I wrote in what I think Harl is thinking as he walks-love this silly photo. I am always going around speaking what I think my animals are thinking based on their actions, so there is some scrapbook memory appeal to this.

And here is my cat Leo  while we put up and decorate the tree (he is facing away because it is not about him but notice he is still in the room-in hopes of it becoming about him). I used some flowery background paper and a strip of white paper on the left side of the photo. I used yellow ink and stamped smaller versions of meow all over th e strip (Hero Arts stamp) and then I used this bold Autumn Leaves Meow stamp and colored in the middle red. I added yellow tape (7Gypsies) and stamped this border from the same Autumn Leaves set the big meow is from. Then I added the little stamp image from Art Chix and some red Viva Paint Pen dots and lastly-but never leastly- I wrote in what I think Leo is thinking here.

So the cold is really here- not terible cold-days get into the high 30's low 40's but the nights have been about 20-25 and chilly. I guess with winter almost here...it arrives on the 20th...

Stay warm!