Enjoy the Journey

My Blog has Moved

2011-08-11T11:37:00.005-05:00

In case you are just dropping by and didn't know - I have a new blog where I share mixed media art and, well, just art in general.
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Please bookmark THIS SITE and drop by and leave a comment to let me know you found it.

My latest creation uses my scrapbook stash and paint. Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Cards - One More Time!!

2010-12-02T06:33:00.007-06:00

The December CupCardsToGo Kit "Winter Wonderland" is now up for sale! I had so much fun working with this kit, which included the cutest snow bunny stamp from Lawn Fawn. Here are the cards I made

Don't wait - get your kit now. Thanks for stopping by. Have a great weekend!

~melanie~

More Cards, this time Christmas!

2010-11-29T10:46:00.004-06:00

If you have wondering where I have been, I have a new website/blog going for my art business. Since the October art show, things have been very busy in my studio. I communicate the most on facebook (where I also have a fan page). You can find all the links you need at Melanie's Art Website

But I have some Christmas cards to share. These were made using the CupCardstToGo November kit (which I believe is sold out). The December Kit will be released December 1, so check back for more holiday card ideas.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a wonderful week!

~melanie~

Cupcards To Go Christmas Card Kit Peek!

2010-10-25T10:20:00.008-05:00

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas!!! Welcome to the CupCardstoGo Blog Hop! The November Cupcardstogo Card Kit "Ribbon Candy" is full of awesome Christmas goodness and I can't wait to share a peek with you!!

You should have arrive here from Hilary's Blog.

Here's my peek!

Now hop on over to Michelle's blog for more peeks!

If you arrived here another way, start at the very beginning here!

Thanks for stopping by!!

~melanie~

Halloween Cards

2010-10-12T10:31:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's already almost time for Halloween. We still have the air conditioner going full blast and wearing shorts and tank tops, but the pumpkins are popping up everywhere.

The October CupCardsToGo Card kit is full of spooky goodness. So fun! I had a blast making these cards.

Thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Art Crawl Synopsis!

2010-10-11T13:08:00.005-05:00

I had so much fun at the October Art Crawl in Downtown Monroe. If you are in the area, be sure to come out for the one right after Thanksgiving. I saw so many familiar faces and the response to my new color sketches was WONDERFUL! They all sold, as well as a few other pieces. It was my first time to ever show more than a few pieces at one time and, I have to say, I had some doubts up until the first sale, which was right after the crawl started.

I'll be heading to New Orleans this weekend and will be painting live at the Rougarou Bayou Trading Post AKA Rougarou Art Gallery on Sunday, October 17 around 1p. If you are out that way, stop by and say hello.

This week I'll be working on more New Orleans color sketches to take to the gallery and I'll be listing some new things in my Etsy store soon.

Thanks for stopping by. I'll leave you with a few photos and pics of art work from the show.

~melanie~

Holiday Cards!

2010-09-30T07:25:00.006-05:00

Now that it's officially fall, it's a good time to start working on holiday cards. Have you seen the new Paper Crafts Magazine Holiday Cards & More Volume 5? It's full of oober delicious cards and gift bag creations.

Here are a few creations of mine published in this issue.

The stamp is from Stampin Up! I used white chalk and a blender pen to shade the dove.

Papers and die cut images are from Graphic 45.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a wonderful weekend.

~melanie~

Blog Hop Sneak Peek for CupCardstogo October Card Kit!

2010-09-27T09:59:00.000-05:00

Hot Diggity Dog! It's time for another blog hop! I played with the CupCardstogo October Card Kit last week and I'm excited to get to show you this sneak peek! The name of the kit is "Candy Corn" and has the most amazing stamps from Unity Stamps. If you like Halloween, you will just love this kit!

You should have came to this page via Hilary's blog.

Here's my sneak peek. I wish I could show you more!!

Your next stop on this hop is Michele's blog!

And as always, leave a comment below for a chance to win a cool prize!!

If you didn't come to this page via the blog hop, start HERE so you don't miss anything!

Thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

September 2010 CupCardsToGo Card Kit!

2010-08-30T10:22:00.008-05:00

The September CupCardsToGo kit "Fragrance" is now available for purchase!

I'm so excited to be able to share the cards I created with this awesome kit.

Hurry and get your kit before they are sold out. Thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Sharing some cards

2010-08-25T07:30:00.005-05:00

I know - I know - I've been a bad blogger! My "it's-almost-fall" resolution is to at least blog once a week! I do have an excuse, tho (besides being a stay at home mom during summer when school is out) is that I have an art show coming up on a little over a month and I still have several new paintings to complete (from start to finish). If you are local and you want to know more about the art show - send me a message and I'll give you details! Oh - and one more fun thing - I found out earlier this week that the Rougarou Gallery in New Orleans just sold one of my funky New Orleans themed paintings.

So - on to crafty things...

I recently had the wonderful experience of working with Paper Crafts Magazine's "Card Style" special publication. It's all about finding your style - from cute and fun, clean and graphic, classy and elegant and shabby and vintage.

Here are a couple of cards I made for the publication. There are under the "Shabby and Vintage" section.

Most of the papers on this card are from October Afternoon, as is the Candy Cane die cut.

Papers on this card are a mixture of Cosmo Cricket and October Afternoon. The stamp is from Stampin' Up!

Thanks for stopping by today! Check back in the next 7-8 weeks because I'm sure I'll have some news on the art show.

~melanie~

Almost September? How about a Sneak Peek?

2010-08-23T10:00:00.002-05:00

I'm so excited that it's almost September! When you live in the southern heat zone, you can't wait for cooler weather and the sooner the better! Speaking of September... I have a sneak peek for the September CupCardsToGo Kit! The kit is called "Fragrance" and I loved playing with it! Here's my peekie:

Be sure to leave a comment here because as always with the CC2G blog hops, someone will be getting a prize! Your next stop for the blog hop is Wendi's blog. If you just happened upon this blog hop, go HERE and start from the beginning.

And if you want to hang around and reminisce about the days of summer, here are a few pics from our recent trip to Perdido Key, Florida.

~melanie~

Cupcards To Go August Kit Goes LIVE

2010-08-02T22:44:00.007-05:00

In case you didn't know, the CupCardsToGo August Kit "Riptide" is live!! What a fun "beachy" kit with some fun stamps from Lawn Fawn! Check out the Design Team Gallery for even more inspiration.

Here are some of my cards I made using this kit. It was so much fun!! Sure didn't do much for my island fever, though. I think I'm going to have to pack a bag and hit the beach - and soon!

Be sure to check out our Guest Designer for this month, Sudie! Now, hop on over to the CupCardsToGo website and get your kit before they are sold out - and do NOT forget the toppings, add-ons, etc.!

I'm serious about packing a bag and hitting the beach. I will most likely be awol yet another week but back with beach photos. We hit record temps here today with 106 degrees. Really. Not fun! Have a wonderful week and enjoy what is left of summer!

~melanie~

August 2010 Cupcards to Go Sneak Peek Blog Hop

2010-07-26T09:42:00.004-05:00

I just had a blast creating with the August "Rip Tide" Cupcards To Go Kit. What a fun kit! The design team is having a hop today! You should have arrived here from Michele's blog.

Are you ready for my sneak peek?

And because I've been such a slacker on posting creations on my blog this summer - here's a little sneak I was going to put up last week. So - you get TWO sneaks (oh, boy - I'm gonna get in trouble for this one!)

Be sure to leave a comment here for the drawing for a prize!

Your next stop on this blog hop is the Cupcardstogo Facebook Page!

Thanks for stopping by! I may be scarce for a couple more weeks. I have a bad case of island fever - so I may disappear soon. Have a great week!

~melanie~

Cards and more cards

2010-07-14T09:33:00.004-05:00

I know! I've neglected my blog lately. Been super busy. Did I mention I have an art show coming up in the early fall? Busy painting..painting.. painting. I do miss my paper crafting time more and more, tho.

I did get to make a few cards a few weeks ago.

I made this card from some of my Cupcardstogo June kit. The stamps are from Unity. The tiny alpha stickers are from Adornit.

This one uses Basic Grey's Koishi with Stampin' Up Stamp, and punches.

For this baby card, I paired Webster's Pages with Pink Paisley's Queen Bee.

I used Stampin' Up stamps for the sentiment on this card. Prima bling and flowers and a Martha Stewart butterfly punch. Papers are Webster's Pages and Pink Paislee.

Thanks so much for stopping by!!
~melanie~

Cards from July CupcardsToGo Kit!

2010-07-01T14:00:00.007-05:00

Today is the day! In just 6 hours the Cupcardstogo July Kit goes on sale! This is such a fun, summer kit! Oodles and oodles of goodies and I didn't use it up yet - there's so much. And stamps....TWO stamps!!!

Here are my cards.

You won't want to miss this kit - so stalk the Cupcardstogo website tonight at 6pm Pacific time and get one before they are gone!

As my previous post states - I've been painting, painting, painting! Exciting things coming up including an art show in the fall. I'll update more later. I DO have some more cards to post - so check back soon! Have a wonderful long weekend. Happy Birthday to the greatest country in the world - USA!

~melanie~

Blog Hop Sneak Peek Time Again

2010-06-24T08:54:00.003-05:00

Oh my gosh! It's sneak peek time again! This time for the July Cup Cards To Go!!! Can you believe it's almost July! Your mouth will water when you see this delicious summery card kit! Now, it pains me but I'm only allowed to show a very tiny peek. Not my rule - sorry!

And if you haven't been to their website, hop over there now. Sonda's been showing kit peeks this week! Awesome! And don't forget to leave a comment here and on the other blogs. Sonda has an awesome embellishment prize to give away!

If you are here for the hop, then your next stop is Chrys!

I'm off to take my daughter to art lessons. Have a wonderful day and stay cool!

~melanie~

Weekend in New Orleans

2010-06-21T08:02:00.004-05:00

I just got back from a weekend in the French Quarter in New Orleans. I had a door open with an art gallery in the Riverwalk mall and jumped on it. I took eight paintings there and am going to work on new art and send it down. The owner also invited me to come anytime and paint live in her store - something I've always wanted to do in New Orleans. I'm so excited! You can bet I'll be working on finding a way back down there in the fall to do just that.
Here are a few photos from my trip.

If you happen to be going there, look for my art in the Rougarou Trading Post.
Thanks for stopping by. Check back soon for sneak peeks from the July CupCardsToGo Kit!

~melanie~

Happy Friday and a NEW painting!

2010-06-11T09:56:00.006-05:00

I'm heading out to the big easy next week. Beignets at Cafe Dumonde, eating dinner on the balcony watching the horse and buggy and shopping quaint shops on Magazine Street. I can't wait. The street I'm staying on is loaded with art galleries. I'll come back with so much inspiration!

This is what has kept me busy this week. It's for a collector and it's going to hang in their apartment in the French Quarter. Someone asked me if this was me in the painting (since I own a dachshund) - so I guess the secret is out, huh. (wink).

This painting, "Mardi Gras Night" is 24" x 30" - which is why it took most of the week to complete. I'm working on another doxie painting now, and when that is finished I'm getting back to paper and scissors for a different kind of fun!

Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

First Friday in June!

2010-06-04T12:38:00.004-05:00

Yeah - it's the first Friday in June. Know what that means? I have no idea!!!!

But I did want to share one of my lastest paintings today. I wanted to create the look of a vintage quilt along with one of my favorite summer flowers - sunflowers.

I used my scrapbook stash for the collage around the edges and center of flowers.

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

~melanie~

Cupcards To Go New Kit Reveal!

2010-06-02T06:37:00.003-05:00

Have you seen the Cupcardstogo June kit that went live last night? If you haven't, you might want to run RIGHT NOW because there are a limited number of kits! Hurry...then come back here.

Here is a sneak peek of the cards I made with the kit!

You can see these cards and all the design team cards at the CC2G website.

Meanwhile, I'm still busy getting some paintings done. I might share a few here later this week. Have a great day!

~melanie~

It's Tuesday but...

2010-06-01T09:07:00.003-05:00

...it feels like Monday! Gonna be a short week, huh.

I'll be in my art studio most of this week cranking out some more paintings so I may not have much on the blog this week, but I have a couple of cards to share today. Both of these cards use Cosmo Cricket's "Earth Love" collection.

The chipboard are Cosmo's Paul Bunyan alphas; alphas are Cosmo's tiny brown type. Border punch is from Stampin' Up!

Stamp is from Stampin' Up.

So - now it's time to announce the winner of the Paper Crafts magazine giveaway. Congratulations to Kristen! Check your e-mail.

Summer has officially begun! School is out, summer camps and swimming lessons are all scheduled. Looking forward to sunshine and swimming. Thanks for stopping by and have a "Sunshiney Day" (can you hear the Brady Bunch singing that one??)

~melanie~

Memorial Weekend Giveaway!

2010-05-28T18:27:00.007-05:00

Yeah - it's Friday!

I just have one card to share today, but keep reading because I have a long weekend surprise giveaway!

Papers are Jenni Bowlin, chipboard is Crate Paper, and the stamp is Stammpin' Up.

So, are you ready for a giveaway? I ended up with two copies of the May/June 2010 Paper Crafts magazine!

So I would like to share it with someone who really, really would like it. Just leave a comment below before Monday night May 31 at midnight (Central Time) and I'll draw a random name. I'll post the winner Tuesday so check back. (I have to add that this is for US residents only - I can't ship international...sorry!!)

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful weekend!

~melanie~

It's a beautiful day...

2010-05-27T07:15:00.001-05:00

Did anyone catch the post title? That song is going through my head after hearing Lee sing it after he won American Idol last night. Wasn't that an awesome show? It was so good seeing all the past contestents over the show's history.

Anyhoo...
I don't have much to share. But I did break away from my busy week a few days ago and made a few cards.

Papers are Webster's Pages Life's Portrait 6x6, Prima Flowers and bling, and Stampin' Up stamp.

Papers for this card are Lullaby Lane 6x6 from Webster's Pages. The stamp and punches are from Stampin' Up.

This card uses 6x6 paper from Webster's Pages (Lullaby Lane and Life's Portrait), Webster's Alphabet stickers and eyelet trim. The scalloped sticker is from Pink Paislee.

Have a wonderful long weekend. It's always busy, busy for us because my daughter's ballet production is always Memorial weekend. This is her fifth year in ballet and I'm amazed at how much she's grown in dance. Her costumes are getting more and more grown-up. She always gets "tired" of going to practice every year half way through the year, but once it's recital time, it all becomes new again and she falls in love with it all over again. She's doing three dances - one in each of ballet, tap and jazz (the jazz is the most fun!)

This is one of the photos from last year that my photographer friend took. We just took portraits last weekend and I don't have them back yet.

Dress rehearsal is this afternoon so I'm taking my camera!! Again - have a wonderful weekend!

~melanie~

Paper Crafts Card Creations 8

2010-05-26T07:30:00.000-05:00

The Paper Crafts Connection blog is celebrating the release of Card Creations Volume 8. There are great tips and prizes, so be sure to hop on over there.

I just have one card to share today - my Friendship card published in Card Creations 8.

Papers are Cosmo Cricket. Stamp and ink are from Stampin' Up!

Check out Paper Crafts Magazine for more inspiration.

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

One more CupcardsToGo Sneak Peek

2010-05-25T10:00:00.004-05:00

Seven days until blast off!!! Next Tuesday, June 1 - the CupCardsToGo June kit will go live! Are you ready???

I'm posting one last peek here for our blog hop.

Be sure to leave a comment here for your chance to win a stamp set, and then hop on over to Wendi's blog for more peeks!

Thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Cupcards To Go Blog Hop! Hot Diggity!!!

2010-05-18T10:00:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's finally time!! Yippeeee. The girls at CupCardsToGo have been waiting for this day!!!

If you've been hopping along the Blog Hop - you should have arrived here from Danni's blog. I hope you are enjoying all the sneak peeks! So, I won't chatter on anymore..... (giddy here).... so here's my peek for you!!!

And that's it! That's all I'm going to show for now! BUT - leave a comment here and you'll have a chance to win a summer stamp set from Cupcardstogo!!!

I know you are ready for the next "hop" so hop on over to Wendi's blog and continue on with the fun!

~melanie~

Playing with Queen Bee

2010-05-07T09:27:00.005-05:00

I finally stole away some time to play with my Pink Paislee Queen Bee papers and die cuts. From the moment I saw the first sneaks of this (months ago) I fell in love with it.

I used a Stampin Up border punch for the ruffles on the bottom of the card, lightly sanding them. I sprayed the Creative Imaginations chipboard crown with glimmer mists and let it dry. The coating on the chipboard prevented the color from soaking in, but still took away the stark whiteness.

I used a punch for the layers in the flower, crumpling and sanding them. The rhinestones are from Prima and the rub on is from Scenic Route.

Have a wonderful Friday and great weekend. Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there. I'm going out in the country tomorrow for a cookout at my mom's house. Thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

I have a Sneakie Peekie from CupCards to Go!

2010-05-05T07:29:00.004-05:00

Psssstttt...... I have a teensie weensie sneakie peeky from the June CupCardstoGo! Yes, - in case you haven't heard - the CupCards to Go Card Kit Club is back in full spring starting with the June kit!!! Yiipppeeeee!!! You won't want to miss out on this kit.

Here's my little peekie.. and I was only given permission to make this an itty bitty peek.

I do know that the other design team members have or will so be sharing sneak peeks on their blogs. Hop on over to the site for links to their blogs and keep your eyes peeled!! Oh, and check back around the middle of the month for a blog hop!

I have a busy day planned out in a tiny town out in the country - yep - one that only has 3 or 4 redlights, helping my photographer friend on a job. It should be fun. Thanks for stopping by today!

~melanie~

Cards with Cosmo Cricket Material Girl

2010-04-28T08:31:00.004-05:00

The more I play with Cosmo Cricket's Material Girl, the more I realize how versatile this collection is.

This vintage design on the green paper can be so versatile. I used it on a card here that can be a friendship card, a birthday card, or just a hello card.

And I drew out the blues in this friendship card. I love the blue and cream floral paper. Gonna have to make an all blue cream card soon.

The stamp is from Stampin' Up! and the border punch is Fiskars.

It's been a busy month here. I hope to have more things to share soon. Have a great day!

~melanie~

Thanks Card on a Friday!

2010-04-16T11:01:00.004-05:00

Happy Friday Everyone... or as I say on facebook "Happy Friday, Ya'll!".

I've been missing the past few Moxie Fab's Tuesday Triggers, but I'm happy to say I did one this week. Here's this week's trigger:

I was inspired by the color scheme and I tried to mimic the rose petals with lace and layered ruffles

Papers are from Basic Grey Koishi. Prima flowers, a doily, and some seam binding.

Off to eat lunch with a friend. Have a wonderful weekend!

~melanie~

Thanks and Congrats Cards

2010-04-14T11:42:00.005-05:00

I got my order of the newest Webster's pages in last week. I couldn't wait for the 6x6 papers and stickers. This is what I made yesterday.

I used Webster's Pages 6x6 mini papers and alpha stickers, Stampin' Up border punch, seam tape from Etsy, Prima flower, 7gypsies sticker and pearl brad.

Supplies: Websters pages 6x6 paper, alphas and stickers; Stampin up Border punch, Pink Paislee Artisian Elements, and seam tape (from Etsy).

Another sunshiney day here. Thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Stitching a background

2010-04-13T08:24:00.005-05:00

Last month, I fell in love with the Papertrey Ink Background stamps shown HERE (who didn't?) but with my work status (you know - returning to being a starving artist), my I had to tighen by budget. So, what's a girl to do? Hmmmmm.... I thought about it and decided to give my sewing machine a try. Yes, I machine stitched the diagonal strips. :)

Here's how it turned out.

I used Papertrey Ink's Blooming Button Bits stamps. The polka dot paper is from Collage Press and the border punch is from Fiskars.

Thanks for stopping by today!

~melanie~

My Obsession with Alice

2010-04-08T09:40:00.005-05:00

As of late, I've had an obsession with Alice. I saw the new Alice movie last month and was "enchanted" with the artistry in the film...the costumes, the color (or lack of), the characters. It was all so "artsy". I wanted to see it again the next day, but didn't. Besides stirring the artist in me, I related to Alice in a strange way. Grown up Alice was "expected" to conform to society, she was expected to dress a certain way and marry a certain man and live a certain life. I tried this mold on for the past seven months. I took a corporate job, sat at a corporate desk, and brought home a corporate paycheck. But I was dying inside. After three months the artist inside of me was screaming to get out. Yet, I was so tired at the end of the day, that I couldn't physically do anything creative. After months of prayer and patiently waiting, I finally found my way out and couldn't be happier in my spirit.

The first thing I painted on my new journey - without consciously thinking about it - was - Alice. I was inspired by a recent issue of Somerset Studios magazine - their theme throughout the magazine was Alice. I picked it up on a recent trip to Texas, and I couldn't put it down. I also was inspired by Kelly Rae Roberts. But what turned me on to Kelly Roberts was this art post by Courtney Walsh. Courtney, you have no idea how much I was screaming on the inside while sitting at the corporate America desk bored out of my mind reading this post. I guess one just doesn't know how much we can effect the lives of someone else. Thank you for being the little white rabbit for me to follow. I didn't know it at the time, but it was the beginning of a journey.

So....I came home from our trip to Six Flags and opened my box of art supplies that the UPS man delivered the week before. (Yes, I haven't even opened the box because I knew once I did, there was no turning back) I followed the techniques in Kelly Robert's book and drawing from inspiration in the books and magazines, came up with this.

My main goal in this process was to "be free". I had to let go of any of my past artistic ways and just let things happen and deal with it. I used scrapbook paper (yeah - a new found use for my stash), a Martha Stewart punch, some stickers from a kit club (the butterfly), rubber stamp and ink, along with oil sticks, and acrylic paint. The words were an afterthought - I added them after I completed the painting shown below.

Which brings on my second attempt at mixed media collage. Again, here we go with Alice.

I used older Basic Grey papers, oil sticks, acrylic paint and a $5 12x12 multi-media canvas I found on sale. Love it when that happens.

Again, my goal was to practice the mixed media collage process again. I know that there is something unique to me that hasn't surfaced yet - a new set of series, but for now, I'm sticking with Alice. As I was thinking about my obsession with Alice, I was reminded of this song that I "found" when I was a nineteen. I found a tape (it was actually an 8-track tape and yes, I had an 8-track player in my car - so you can probably pinpoint the approximate year) that had this song on it. Want to hear it? It's worth the laugh because of the hair in the video. Here goes: Living Next Door To Alice

Thanks for stopping by today. Sorry to venture from my usually papercrafting posts!

~melanie~

Birthday Cards

2010-04-06T12:35:00.007-05:00

I took a little bit of my "painting" time and made some cards yesterday - just to play! I DID receive a wonderful box of new scrapbook supplies from my favorite store, Emmas Paperie, right before Easter. There is nothing to motivate me more than new goodies!

I also picked up a copy of the new Paper Crafts Go to Sketches and LOVE IT. I used sketches from the book for my cards, although I did deviate a bit here and there.

I used the Basic Grey Kioshi collection on these.

I just LOVE the little birdie!

(Sorry - I had to remove this card!)

This is my first time using the scrunchy seam tape ribbon. I found it on Esty and used my flat iron (it's not just for hair) to smooth it out a bit.

All the rub ons used on these cards are from Karen Foster.

I hope you are enjoying beautiful spring weather. We have some long lost friends coming in from Michigan later this week. I'm cooking them some gumbo. Meanwhile, I need to get back to my art studio - I have another commission to work on. Have a wonderful week!

~melanie~

Sunshine, Easter and pppssttt!

2010-03-30T08:38:00.006-05:00

After the quite unusual snow we had 9 days ago, we are now enjoying wonderful springtime weather. I see many yards full of crazy blooming wildflowers and dandelions and know that it would be long before we smell fresh cut grass on every corner. Can you imagine it??

I know I'm jumping ahead, but since I have NO Easter cards made, how about a summer card?

I used Jenni Bowlin Homespun mini-papers pack for this (I just love mini-paper packs!), an older Melissa Frances vintage label, Piggy Tales chipboard, Adorn-it alphas and Prima flowers.

And I may not have an Easter card, but I do have an Easter page. This is from an egg hunt my little one had a school last year.

I used JilliBean Soup papers and corrugated alphas (YUM) that I sprayed with Glimmer Mist. The green alphas are American Crafts, Prima Flowers and SEI Stickers.

And one more PPPSSSTTT - that I should have mentioned sooner. There is a giveaway over at CupCardsToGo! that ends TODAY! CupCardToGo will reopen in June. Bookmark the site (save it to your google reader), and get on over there NOW and leave a comment on the give-away post.

~melanie~

I've been creating...but....

2010-03-25T12:25:00.004-05:00

I HAVE been creating.
But
...its not paper craft stuff.
I pulled out the paint and canvas last weekend and have been like a mad artist as of late. Want to see what I've been doing?

First - a long overdue painting for my chiropractor. Not a good photo, but I didn't think ahead and bring my camera - hence a fuzzy cell phone pic.

The verdict? He loved it - and so did the staff (that's good b/c they will be facing the reception area and have to stare at it the most). It's 24" x 24" on stretched canvas with 1.5" deep sides. It was so much fun to do.

And some of my most fun and most popular pieces - my funky New Orleans pop art pieces. They are both 16" x 20" on 3/4" gallery wrapped stretched canvas. These haven't been sold yet.... but will go up online soon.

Title: New Orleans Jazzy Shotgun House No. 1

Title: Garden District 305

I have some new scrappy goodies that I can't wait to play with, but I need to get more art work done. Oh - and I forgot the most important news - I resigned from my job before spring break - so I'm now a permanent fixture in my studio. I've had the most freeing week of all doing what I love. And it's SPRING!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful week.

~melanie~

Spring Snow

2010-03-22T06:32:00.001-05:00

We woke up yesterday to snow. Yes. Snow.
Snow in the south.
Snow in the south the 2nd day of Spring.
hmmmmmm.
It snowed for at least 3 hours. Temps not low enough for accumulation. But it was pretty to see. I spend a few hours working on a painting and looking up and watching the flurries. All the while going "Snow??? really???"

And in case you did or didn't catch that - yes, I'm painting again. More on that in another post.

Here's a little something for today.

Background papers and ribbon are from Jillibean Soup. Label and "pea" papers are from Cosmo Cricket.

Oh - and guess what I've heard??? I don't know if I'm supposed to say anything so ssshhh.... but I hear that CupCardsToGo Card Kit Club will be re-opened soon!!! Again...ssshhhhhh!!!

And, I know so many people say things like, where did time go? March already? Etc... Etc... But seriously - March is almost over?? I'm still getting over the fact that February came and went so fast.

Have a great day!!
~melanie~

Back from our Mini-Vacay

2010-03-19T17:35:00.004-05:00

Wheww- back from Texas! We spent all day yesterday at Six Flags. We got there before it opened, but apparently they let you in anyway - and some of the rides were even open. Woohooo - it was fun getting on rides with short lines - or even no lines. Little Miss Priss was very selective on what she would or wouldn't get on - but we did manage the milder roller coasters (mini-coasters). Here are a few pics and I'm off to recoup!

Have a wonderful weekend!!!!

~melanie~

M M M Material GIrl!

2010-03-16T07:24:00.005-05:00

I have to give photos credits... did you notice my new blog banner? I had to give up the snow photo (no matter how cool it was that it snowed in the South) when the azaleas are blooming (yeah - I know!!). About two weeks ago my daughter wanted to take a nature walk to take photos with her new digital camera (she bought it with her birthday money). I asked if I could use one of the geese photos for her blog. :) She was more than happy to agree.

So.... on to other things...

Sometimes you just have to create just to create, right? Here's what I did with some my Cosmo Cricket Material Girl. I love the 6x6 paper pads - they are great for cards.

(card set removed for publication)

The felt alphas are from Making Memories. The felt flower is from my stash.

The stamps are from Paper Trey Ink (Blooming Button Bits).

Packing my bags tonight - Six Flags, here we come!! Have a wonderful day and thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Tuesday Trigger!

2010-03-15T06:45:00.004-05:00

Just a quick post to put up my Moxie Fab World Tuesday Trigger card. I just LOVE this week's green and white and toile inspiration.

I was going through my stash (you know - the one where I hoard things I love and then they are not-so-new anymore) and saw this wonderful Graphic 45 paper with the newsprint ads on one side and the floral print on the other. Thought it was perfect for this challenge.

Gotta run! Have a wonderful week and thanks for dropping in. :)

~melanie~

Spring Break is Here!

2010-03-14T11:02:00.006-05:00

Can you believe it? I still have a snow photo on my blog banner, but it's Spring Break in the south! Kids are out of school for a week and we are heading out in a few days for a mini-vacay! I can't wait! Looks like we'll be heading to Six Flag Arlington. Anyone else going that way??

Here are some things I made over the weekend. The first is a card I made using Jillibean Soup's Old World Cabbage Stew on White collection and the white Corrugated Alphas.

I used Krylon Short Cut spray paints on the alphas. Flowers are from Prima. The green twine is from Jillibean.

One more Jillibean project for today.

The papers are from the Chicken Noodle on White collection and Soup Staples (Kraft); letters are the white corrogated alphas. The papers used on the the butterflies and the brown mini-alphas are from Cosmo Cricket. The bird sticker is from My Mind's Eye. The metal frame is an older Making Memories frame I've been hoarding. The crystals are from Prima and the other chipboard elements are from Crate Paper.

Enjoy your day and I hope you see signs of Spring in your neighborhood today!

~melanie~

Stamping a Smile

2010-03-09T06:38:00.001-06:00

Such a busy week this week with not much creative time, but I'm hoping to keep my blog updated.

Here's a little something made entirely of cardstock (I rarely do this!) - but thanks to stamps and colored ink, it's fun.

I used some stamps designed by Kelly Panacci available here at Hampton Art. I used Friends I for the flowers and You and Me for the sentiment. I stamped the flowers in different colors, cut them out, and mounted then with foam adhesive. I used the cricut for the scalloped squares, and the Cuttlebug for the background. The border punch is from Fiskars.

Have a wonderfully "sunshiney" Tuesday and thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Fabric Flowers and Texture

2010-03-08T06:11:00.004-06:00

I played with texture a bit this weekend in between hosting a birthday party at my home and house cleaning. I was rummaging through some of my older kit club finds and came across this fabric flower. Yes - I was hoarding a fabric flower. I was also hanging onto some felt Heidi Swapp butterflies. After uttering "thou shalt be used" (well, I really didn't say that) I ended up with this:

Supplies: Bazzill cardstock, (used cricut to cut the scalloped white card), baby yellow chenille, fabric flower and brad (kit club), yellow ribbon (Bo Bunny), patterned paper for leaf (Cosmo Cricket), felt butterflies (Heidi Swapp), red alpha letters (Adornit).

It's going to be a very busy week. Gotta help manage the office while the boss is out of town which means I won't get my two off days to create with this week. I'm sad when I'm not creating, but maybe I can sneak into my scrap room if I'm not too wiped out in the evenings. Have a great Monday!

~melanie~

Sweet Springy Tuesday Trigger

2010-03-04T09:01:00.006-06:00

Did you see the current Tuesday Trigger on the Moxie Fab Blog? If this doesn't get you in the mood for spring - I don't know what will.

Here's my take on the trigger.

(So sorry - I had to take it down)

The cardstock stickers are from My Mind's Eye "Mary Mary Quite Contrary", the papers are from My Mind's Eye "Breaking Free". I used pink chenille on my card because to me it mimics the icing on the cake in the trigger, and it's so perfect for a baby card.

It's a sunny day in the south! I think spring is not too far! Have a great day.

~melanie~

A Little Hump Day Humor

2010-03-03T07:00:00.001-06:00

Here's a little card I forgot to share last month. Thought it might make someone smile today. Excuse my slightly off-angle photo. That little quote from the hubby makes me snicker.

Title: Regular Guy

This card is in the January/February issue of Papercrafts Magazine in a feature focusing on Anne Taintor style cards. The papers are from My Mind's Eye. The vintage label is from Crafty Secrets.

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Cards for Summer

2010-02-26T07:00:00.007-06:00

While we are still looking at winter weather in the south (really? really??), here's a couple of cards I can post quick for Friday. I can't believe it's Friday already! I made these last month and just thought it a bit odd to post summer-ish cards when most people are shoveling snow.

(sorry- I had to take the image down!)

I used My Mind's Eye Breaking Free for all these.

Have a great Friday! Thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Stitching on Cards and Lime Green Paint

2010-02-21T13:27:00.005-06:00

Did today's blog title get your attention? It pretty much sums it up, tho. I'm posting these today because I feel like I'll have a busy week and don't know if I'll post again for several day. And guess what?? Our sweet weather man - you know, the one that told us it would snow nine days ago and he was right - said that it might snow again Tuesday or Wednesday. Okay, so don't shoot me but I have to say this: the Saints MUST have won the Super Bowl with all this snow in Louisiana.

So on to the projects. I'm crawling out of my box. I just didn't know my box was so big and I have so far to go. But progress is progress. Dear Sweet Cath over at the Moxie Fab World Blog issued a challenge to create some things with embroidery floss. That is something I have quite a bit of. Years ago I was a cross-stitcher (is that a word?) and have a case of embroidery floss that I retrieved from storage when I started paper crafting. I couldn't resist the challenge and I absolutely love the examples that Kim Hughes created. Here's my little creation.

I hand drew the bird, poked holes, erased the lines and stitched. The stamp is from the "Tag You're It" Kim Hughes Collection from Cornish Heritage Farms. Paper, ink and cardstock is from Stampin Up!.

And now for the lime green paint.

I've been enjoying the sketches at Cosmo Cricket's blog, and this week they issued a challenge. We were to take our fear - whatever it was - and overcome it by creating something with it. So, after thinking about it, I realized one of my fears was using something permanent on my layout. I am comfortable with being able to lay something down, look at it, pick it up, move it around - but permanent? So, to make it even more challenging - I decided to go with something outrageous - and that would be lime green paint. Yep, that's right. So I took my cardstock and started overcoming. It's only cardstock, right?

The only problem with the lime green paint was that, well, none of my Cosmo Stash included the color lime green - so that presented yet something else to overcome. Rather than back out, get another paint color and start all over again - I forged forward. I subdued the paint with some good old reliable brown chalk ink, and proceeded until I was finished. Without further boring details - Meet Miss Chatty:

I used papers and chipboard from Cosmo's Material Girl, Paul Bunyan alphas and tiny blue type alphas.

So - lime green is the new neutral, right? I can't wait to see everyone's creations for this challenge. Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Cards for the weekend!

2010-02-19T06:37:00.001-06:00

Had some free time yesterday just to play!

I had some scraps of one of my newest Webster's papers (from Life's Portrait) and I decided to use it now instead of putting it aside for later. I made two cards from my scraps.

The chipboard is from Dream Street. The white molded flowers were included with some miscellaneous embellishments in one of my kit club kits. Thought I'd finally put them to use, too.

I used a Martha Stewart punch for the butterflies. The rub on is from Basic Grey.

While going through my stash, I happened upon some adorable stickers from Chatterbox. I thought it was about time to release them from their misery and use them.

The rub ons for this card are from K&Company - another goodie tucked away too long in my stash.

I'm looking forward to the weekend. Quite different than the unusually snowy weekend we had last week. Have a great day!

~melanie~

Webster's Pages and Glimmer Mist

2010-02-18T12:45:00.003-06:00

I had so much fun playing with my Glimmer Mist and Webster's Pages, that I had to make another page. I just received some of the new CHA 2010 Webster's papers, so I fought with my "don't cut up the paper" urge and went for it.

I misted white cardstock with Wheatfields Glimmer Mist for the background. The paper is from Webster's Life's Portrait collection. I just LOVE this zoo photo of my daughter. It's from three years ago and yes - I know - it's about time I used it in a layout.

The fabric label is from Webster's "Fabric Fancies". THe flowers are Prima and the crystals are from Zva.

I'm enjoying the winter Olympics this week. How about you? Have a wonderful day and thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Snow in the South!

2010-02-14T22:53:00.005-06:00

Well, most of you are probably so sick of snow, but after eight long years - we finally had snow again in Louisiana - and lots of it. (well, at least enough to play for one day before it melted!)

Here are a few pics

This little lady was spotted in the neighborhood. Isn't she stylish?

And this looks almost like cotton!

I just have one project for today. It's a layout based on this current Cosmo Cricket sketch No. 5.

I used Cosmo's Nutmeg collection for this page.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Webster's Pages and Tattered Angels

2010-02-11T10:59:00.008-06:00

If you've been reading my blog, you will have seen that for 2010 I've been on a quest to try new things in the paper craft world. They may not necessarily be "new" as in 'new to the industry' but they are new to me. Things to get me out of the box so to speak. So I've been taking part in challenges, sketches and triggers. I've been getting out of my box and also overcoming another little disorder I have - hoarding yummy scrapbook supplies. I know some of you know what I'm talking about.

So... anyway - for this post I created something for Lucy Edson's Webster's Pages challenge: Print a photo on the back of Webster's patterned paper. I loved the challenge and went through my older stash (well, you didn't think I'd experiment on my brand new papers did you?) You have to choose just the right type of photo that will look good with print on it. I tried two - neither of them exactly what I wanted, but I choose the best of the two and went with it. In my beach photo, I used a floral paper with a large amount of "white space", but I intentionally made it print with the little butterfly in swirl in the corner.

And what I like about today's post is that I also challenged myself to use my Tattered Angel's Glimmer Mists on my page. The design team at Webster's Pages have teamed up with Tattered Angel this month and have been showcasing some beautiful creations that inspired me to dig in my stash - you know - the one I hoard. I had some Glimmer Screens as well as Glimmer Mists so I decided to create a soft background for my beach photo. I used Wheatfields Glimmer Mist over a screen and misted it over white cardstock. I used some cheesecloth behind my photo, and pulled out some of my older Prima flowers. The leaves were cut from some of my older Websters papers.

And guess what??? As I sit here typing, there is snow in a nearby town just 30 miles from us. It's on its way!!! And we are expected to get 4 inches accumulation tonight. You know what that means in Louisiana?? SNEAUX DAY! And I just so happened to have taken off work tomorrow. Me and the Mister will be celebrating our 22nd wedding anniversary. Well, so much for a quiet day at home with my sweeatheart, but the sweet thing about it - as rare as snow is in Louisiana, it snowed the week we got married. Looks like I'll be making snow angels with all my little loves in my life tomorrow and taking lots of photos!

And a little shout out to Anabelle and Fran! Happy Anniversary to you two lovebirds!!!

~melanie~

Christmas Page and Cosmo Sketch

2010-02-09T16:27:00.005-06:00

I survived a weekend of party after party. My little one had a slumber party Friday and Saturday was recovery day. Sunday was the Super Bowl party (even if it was a small one) and then Monday was my little one's actual birthday. I don't think I want to see cake for a long time. (and I love cake!)

I've been loving the extra push I've gotten to get pages done by participating in Cosmo Cricket's sketches. Here's the most recent one.

And here's my take. A couple of Christmas's ago (yes, I'm behind on my scrapping my holiday pics!) my son and daughter decorated Christmas plates. This one shows her plate and the cookies she set out for Santa. I used Cosmo Cricket's "Jolly By Golly" collection on this page.

We have two more celebrations this week! Our anniversary is Friday (22 years!) and then Sunday is Valentine's Day. Again - no more cake, please! If my blog isn't updated until next week, you will know why. Enjoy the rest of your week and thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

A little Valentine (And Geaux Saints!)

2010-02-08T07:00:00.000-06:00

I have to start out by saying Congrats to the Saints!!! It was an awesome game. The Colts played well. The entire Who-Dat nation is rawkin'. It was a long journey and the outcome is so sweet. I just threw my Who Dat tee shirt in the washer to get the shrimp ettoufee out of it (I'm a messy cook sometimes). I just might wear it to work tomorrow.

I just have one card to share today. It's a little Valentine card.

I used the Cricut Wild Card cartridge to make the card and the Cuttlebug to emboss it. The frog and sentiment if from Fancy Pants. I think there is a little Basic Grey paper on there, too.

Have a wonderful Monday! Thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Who Dat?! Tuesday Trigger

2010-02-03T22:53:00.006-06:00

Yes, you read that right. I used the "who dat" and "tuesday trigger" in the same sentence. Did that get your attention?

It's February - the month of "love", and so hear's a fabulous valentine inspiration from the Moxie Fab Blog for the current Tuesday trigger.

Well..... I sort of have a one track mind lately. It's sort of love-related. Right now I'm in love with the fact that Louisiana's own Saints are going to the Super Bowl. Yeah - that's right. My little miss princess is having a birthday party slumber party this weekend and she told me that her cookie cake could be a Saint's cake. How sweet is that? So instead, I ordered her a girlie cake (with chocolate - lots of it) and a Saint's King Cake. Anyhooo.... when I saw this adorable Tuesday trigger, well, my eyes saw fleur des lis's. (sort of like a cartoon character sees stars, birdies or dollar signs.)

So, with out further suspense, here's my creation. (smile)

So..... I don't know if I'm wayyyy off track with this week's challenge or not, but it was fun. I promise, I'll have more to share on my blog next week. Right now I'm flip flopping on my Sunday menu. Gumbo or Jamabalaya? Crawfish or shrimp? decisions.... decisions...

And so my friend Susan - you know who you are. I'd love to see your Colts card! ;) (not that she ever reads my blog...evah!)

Have a great weekend!!

~melanie~

Happy Friday, Ya'll!!

2010-01-29T06:46:00.006-06:00

Well, it's officially the last Friday of the first month of 2010. I'm just not ready to turn the calendar page yet!!!! **sigh**

Moxie Fab World is having a Tainter Style Card challenge... so here's my Tainter-style card - which gives me a wonderful idea for Friday night dinner plans. ;)

Papers are from October Afternoon and My Minds Eye. Die Cut flowers are also MME. The vintage image and label is from Crafty Secrets.

I spent yesterday in a nearby small town with 3 other girlfriends from high school. One of the girls had a birthday and it's not very often we are all available to travel out of town for the afternoon for lunch. It was a fun time that went by way too fast.

Anyhooo - here are a couple of "happy" cards to celebrate it being Friday.

Papers are Cosmo Cricket, chipboard bird is from Stampin Up! with Glimmer Mist sprayed on it, the cloud is a die cut from My Mind's Eye "Love Me Do".

This one also uses Cosmo Cricket. I used my Cuttlebug for the butterflies and embossing. I'm really in love with butterflies right now so they will be fluttering through my blog.

Have a wonderful Friday! I'm looking forward to the weekend. It's been a BUSY week.

~melanie~

Got Sketch and In Search of CHA pics

2010-01-26T21:45:00.001-06:00

I'm in search of CHA Winter 2010 show photos. You know, for the folks left behind... including me.

I found some today at Linda's Blog.

If you have links to booth/show photos - post them here and I'll add them. Thanks!

Today I have my first layout using one of Valerie Salmon's "Got Sketch" layout sketches. This one is number 96.. that tells you how many I have missed.

Here's my take on the sketch.

The papers are from Webster's Pages, Prima flowers, Making Memories card and pin.

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to share links to CHA photos here.
~melanie~

Tuesday Trigger and a Card Sketch

2010-01-25T07:00:00.009-06:00

I can't believe we're starting the beginning of the last full week in January! It seems like I JUST took my Christmas tree down. I'm just not ready to turn the page on my new 2010 Dachshund Puppy calendar!

Meanwhile, I've been trying to keep my creativity sharpened by doing some challenges. Have you seen this week's Tuesday Trigger on the Moxie Fab blog? Pretty gold, white and turqoise.... I used it for inspiration to make a quick card while I was simmering a pot of gumbo yesterday in preparation for the big Saints game (who dat?) ;)

The patterned paper is from Melissa Frances; Stampin' Up stamp.

And I have one more card for today. This is based on last week's sketch at Card Positioning System's blog. It's sketch number 150.

The journaling card and patterned paper are from October Afternoon.

Off to the start of a busy week. I'm also stalking blogs and message boards for CHA show photos. I'm so excited about the new product coming out. Fun! fun! fun! Have a great day.

~melanie~

Another Cosmo Cricket Sketch Challenge

2010-01-21T22:30:00.001-06:00

I've really been loving doing online challenges and sketches and such. They keep me focused and motivated. Not to mention - it's fun.

I created another layout based on a sketch on the Cosmo Cricket Blog this week. Here's the layout.

I wanted to do a Valentine-ish layout maybe it's the little hearts in the sketch that planted the thought in my head, so I printed some photos of me and my hubby. And I thought of a song that I like and realized it would be the perfect title for a layout. After I got into the layout and to the journaling, I realized our anniversary was only 22 days away. (We got married on Valentine's weekend). Anyway - it was pretty cool once I got the page going - and yes - I did veer from the sketch a bit. But, the sketch is a starting point, right?

The other plus to working on this page was that I dove even deeper into my "things I love" stash. (Translation - things I hoard because it's beautiful) I confessed on my last blog post that I have a hoarding problem. So, I used Cosmo Cricket papers from Chemistry, Honey Pie and Girl Friday. Isn't it nice when different collections work together so well? The other supplies are Prima Crystals, Jenni Bowlin Bingo Card and ticket, Adornit Mini-Alphas and Creative Imaginations Alphas. I cut some of the butterflies from felt with my Cuttlebug. (I'm really loving butterflies again right now - you may be seeing them more.) The chipboard strip is from Making Memories.

So, enjoy your Friday! We're hitting a birthday party tonight, and then I'm cooking a big pot of gumbo for the Saints game Sunday. Enjoy your weekend and thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Birthdays are..

2010-01-21T08:20:00.003-06:00

Birthdays are fun!

It seems that alot of people I know have had birthdays in the past 3 weeks. In fact, hubby and I are going to a birthday party this weekend. Our friend be celebrating the 29th anniversary of his 21st birthday. Did I mess up your thinking?

I made a couple of birthday cards this weekend using some things from my Webster's Pages stash. The stash that I hoard because it's so beautiful that I just can't cut it up. Yeah - I know - I'm really working on that. For these cards, I used some journaling cards - journaling cards that I also hoard because they are so beautiful. But, like I said - I'm working on it. So, I decided to make the journaling cards into birthday cards.

I used a Melissa Frances rub on and the striped ribbon is a Hobby Lobby find. The butterfly was cut with the Cricut and Indie Art cartridge.

The top portion of the card is a journaling card. The patterned paper is Raspberry Truffle. The cordorouy button is from Imaginesce; Melissa Frances rub on.

And here's one card I made from the January Challenge at the Webster's Ning Message Board. The challenge was to use a technique you've never used before. I love felt flowers, especially the ones with the stitching around them. While going through my stash, I came across come Making Memories felt flowers - that I was hoarding by the way... and I decided to stitch around them with embroidery thread AND machine stitch the center of them.

Papers are Webster's Pages, Vintage Image is from Crafty Secrets.

Any big plans this weekend? Besides the birthday party, hubby will be watching the big football game and I'm sure I'll dream up something fun to cook for him - even if it's a dessert. That will make him happy. He'll be wearing his Saint's Tee-Shirt. I bought it for him a few weeks ago and told him he has to wear it for all the big games.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!

~melanie~

In the name of love..

2010-01-19T12:46:00.008-06:00

With Valentine's Day around the corner - I couldn't resist creating some Valentine cards - just for the fun of it. For this card, I used die cut images from My Mind's Eye "Love Me Do", some Adornit Mini-alpha's and my hearts embossing folder.

I used the MME "Love Me Do" Die cut heart for the focal, and the papers and sticker is from Little Yellow Bicycle's "Sweet Love" Decorative Edged Tablet, which included stickers and cardstock. It's made to go with a coordinating album, but it's perfect for cards.

I'm sorry the colors are a bit dark. Finicky cloudy sky. It's really my favorite in real life. Again, I used the Little Yellow Bicycle's Decorative Edged Tablet "Sweet Love". The border punch is from Stampin' Up.

Last one. Simple and sweet using the Little Yellow Bicycle "Sweet Love" collection. Again - bad coloring in the photos (sorry...hate that when it happens).

I don't know about you, but I'm ready for all the new CHA releases from so many of my favorite companies. I'm really trying to "use up" what I have now to make room for new inspiration. Have a wonderful day and thanks for stopping by!

~melanie~

Birds of A Feather

2010-01-17T21:40:00.005-06:00

I've been stalking the Cosmo Cricket blog, drooling over the new releases. I'm pretty convinced I have to have every bit of it. Anyway, they been posting some sketch challenges over there, so I created this page with the latest sketch.

Here's my take on the sketch. I used some of my many photos from my high school reunion this past summer.

The papers are from Cosmo Cricket's Earth Love and Nutmeg collection. The felt flowers are from Stampin' Up.

Guess what, me and hubby finally went to see Avatar this past weekend. All I can say is WOW! Well, that's all from me for now. Thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

More Cosmo Cricket Projects

2010-01-14T07:40:00.001-06:00

The sun may be shining, but baby, it's STILL cold outside! And there's nothing like cold weather keeping you indoors to intice you to create something with your Cosmo Cricket stash.

The gals at Pursuit of Craftyness were recently sponsored by Cosmo Cricket. We all worked with the complete Jolly by Golly collection. Here are more of my projects created with this line. It's sooo fun and not just for Christmas!

This little gift set was super easy to make. I used a pre-made gift box, covered it with paper and added the cute chipboard mittins.

I hand stitched around the cardstock with pink embroidery thread. (thought it would give the feel of warmth, like hand-knit mittens). If you know anything about Louisiana, you know we really don't get alot of snow down here. Notice the short sleeve shirt my daughter is wearing the photos? Well, it was actually about 80 degrees in December and one of the local churches created a "winter wonderland" complete with a snow machine. Yes, a snow machine. And yes, it was melting and the snow was so hard they could barely pick it up - but hey - when you are 4 years old...and have never seen "real" snow - you are happy, right?

Here are some cards I made with this collection.

Be sure to check out the Pursuit of Craftyness blog to see all of the design team's projects. That's all I have for today. Thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Raspberry Suite Color Challenge No 21

2010-01-12T16:43:00.005-06:00

So here she goes again with another "new" thing. This time I created something for Dawn McVey's color challenge. Doing color challenges all around is "new" to me, but I have to say - I really think I like doing this!

The colors (as you can see) were aqua, soft yellow, cream and chocolate. I stepped out of my patterned paper box, and went with cardstock only. I embossed the focal cardstock for some texture. I envisioned using more aqua, but this seemed to be the direction I went, so I went with it.

The stamps are Blooming Button Bits from Papertrey Ink. I'm really lovin' this set.

Thanks for stopping by!!

~melanie~

monday monday again

2010-01-11T09:19:00.005-06:00

It's Monday (again!). How come it always seems to come so quick? ;)

I just have one card today. I made it for the Hero Arts blog January Contest they have going on this month.

Papers are from Basic Grey Bittersweet (6x6 pad) and stamps are Hero Arts. I used chalk to color my images.

I also have some sad news. Many of you fellow papercrafters know Sonda Tadlock. We just got word that her beautiful daughter, Baylee, passed away Saturday. If you haven't already, stop by Sonda's Blog and leave a message for her and Duane. Most of all, please lift them up in your prayers during this difficult time for them.

thanks for stopping by.
~melanie~

Trying new things

2010-01-09T13:43:00.009-06:00

I had some extra time this week and tried some new things. One was a new Paula Deen recipe for stuffed canneloni. The verdict - good but alot of work (the stuffing part). The family loved it and I can now cross that off my list of unchartered territory in the cooking arena.

The other new thing I tried was the Color Challenge at the Moxie Fab World blog. The challenge was to use equivalent colors of Bazzill Basics Paper: Grape Delight, Mystique, Festive, and Pomegranate... and to ONLY use those colors. Here's what I came up with:

I used Papertrey Ink's new Blooming Button Bits stamp set, Worldwin Castata cardstock (Grey), Prism Papers Orange Cardstock, Patterned Paper from My Minds' eye, Bazzill Buttons and ink from Stampin Up!

I had so much fun using this stamp set, I made another quick card. On the topic of new things...this is also the first time for me to use Papertrey Ink's Stamper's Select White Cardstock. It's awesome! It's 110lb weight and I'll be back for more.

Supplies: Stamps and Cardstock from Papertrey Ink, Paper from Cosmo Cricket Early Bird, Ink from Stampin' Up! and buttons from my stash.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you've been inspired to try something new this week!

~melanie~

Tuesday Trigger Inspiration

2010-01-07T10:00:00.003-06:00

Just trying to stay warm on this cold day in the south. Brrrrrrr!!!!

I've been trying to stretch myself in 2010. One area is to try more challenges and get out of the box. I decided to create something with this week's Tuesday Trigger from the Moxie Fab World blog. The challenge for me (who likes color and lots of it) was to pull from the color scheme and create something I'm happy with. I really enjoyed doing this and, even tho it took me a bit longer than normal because I had to find just the right elements.... I love the outcome.

Here is the trigger:

And here is my creation:

I used Basic Grey's Wassail paper "Sleigh Ride". (it's not just for Christmas!), Butterfly stamp from My Mind's Eye, Sentiment from Stampin Up, flowers, trim and other vintage finds to finish it.

It's not too late to play. Hop on over to the Moxie Fab World blog and stretch!

~melanie~

Valentine Cards

2010-01-06T09:37:00.002-06:00

I played around in my craft room making some Valentine things during my long New Year's weekend. I challenged myself to make some things with collections that aren't necessarily Valentine theme in nature. It's always fun to think out of the box.

I envisioned this first card while waiting to drift off to sleep one night. You know you are a bit craft-crazy when you plan cards instead of counting sheep. I used Dream Street papers "Nature's Poetry" collection. The papers are soft and romantic and includes chipboard. I used one of the chipboard elements for the center.

I used my Cricut to cut the series of hearts from various patterned papers. I placed them across the white cardstock, then stitched them in place. Next I ran the hearts and cardstock through the Cuttlebug and embossed them all together.

On this next card, I used Dream Street's Merry and Bright collection - yes, a Christmas collection. I thought the foilage with the touch of red would work great. The felt alpha's are from American Crafts, and the ribbon is from Stampin' Up.

For this tag, I used Dream Street's "Say It" Paper from Sam Collection, and the Just My Type Chipboard. I used white core cardstock and sanded it to reveal the white. The flower is American Crafts and the mini-alpha's are from Making Memories.

And the final project is a card using Just My Type Chipboard elements from Dream Street, chipboard flowers from Melissa Frances. I embossed the paper, then sanded the hearts to reveal the white.

I'm still brainstorming on what to make the kiddo's in my daughter's class at school. We had a blast making white chocolate lollipops last year, so I may do that again. If you have any goodie ideas, I'd love to see them. Post here and let me know.

Have a wonderful Wednesday and thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Oh What Fun! With Cosmo Cricket

2010-01-04T09:44:00.007-06:00

The team at Pursuit of Craftyness has been having a blast playing with Cosmo Cricket's Jolly by Golly collection. Cosmo Cricket sent us complete collections and I've had so much fun playing with it the past few weeks.

Here is one of the layouts I created with the collection. My daughter was Emily Elizabeth (Clifford the Big Red Dog's owner) in our church's version of The Grinch. There was a toy parade in the production, which included Clifford, Batman, Star Wars and Toy Story characters (to name a few). I'll have to do another scrapbook page because I couldn't get all the photos on the page. The toy parade was a big hit. Kids got so excited when their favorite character came out. What am I saying - I got excited when they came out, too!

Hop on over to the Pursuit of Craftyness blog (link at the top) for more inspiration with this collection. Have a wonderful day!

~melanie~

Favorites of the Year

2010-01-03T08:00:00.000-06:00

I usually do a photo "year in review" post, but until then, here are a look at some of my favorite scrapbook pages of the year. Believe me, there wasn't much to choose from - I have had a busy year outside of my crafting. I guess I have alot of catching up to do soon!

This is my great-nephew. The scrapbook paper looks like a frame.

Another year older for Miss Priss.

Goofing off at the mall.

She just loves the spotlight.

Finding one of my long lost girlfriends while planning our high school reunion.

A day in the country.

Boy - I didn't realize how many LESS pages I had this year until I went back and compared from the previous year. I guess if I were going to resolve to do something in 2010, it would be to create more scrapbook pages. What about you?

Thanks for dropping by!

~melanie~

Just An Old Fashioned Christmas

2010-01-02T09:24:00.005-06:00

We didn't take our standard family portrait in front of the Christmas tree this year. Instead, we went downtown to the antique mall shopping area for our family portrait. These are my favorite from the shoot.

I enjoyed having some scrappy time during the holidays, and I couldn't wait to use the new Collage Press Joy Ride collection. (Thank you, Collage Press, for the giveaway!) I chose to use our Christmas portrait. The old timey look of being downtown seemed to tie in with our low key family oriented festivities.

Supplies: Collage Press Joy Ride Collection, Chipboard tree (Cosmo Cricket Jolly by Golly), Buttons, Rick Rack and Martha Stewart Crystal glitter.

My scraproom is a mess and our tree is still up, but I'm going to enjoy the last two days of the holiday as long as I can! Thanks for stopping by.

~melanie~

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T10:17:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year! Just a short post today. This card was in the October issue of Cards Magazine. I thought it appropriate for today. Have a wonderful 2010!

Melanie

All is calm...all is bright...

2009-12-24T13:11:00.003-06:00

Just stopping in to wish everyone reading this a Merry, Merry Christmas! I just got my box of Collage Press goodies and made this little card last night and wanted to share. I just baked a yummy dessert and some dip and am ready for party number two. Looking forward to spending Christmas Day in PJ's!!! Thanks for stopping by... fa la la la la...

A Merry Little Christmas Card

2009-12-21T22:15:00.003-06:00

This is my creation for the Moxie Fab Challenge "All Creatures Great and Small". I have had these stamps for a couple of months and still haven't used them! I needed the push.

Papers are Basic Grey. Stamps are Stampin Up!. I cut the tree using the Cricut. A little frosting on the rick rack and star, and finished up with some buttons.

Scroll on down to see my daughter's entry.

Thanks for stopping by!!
~melanie~

Twas the Friday before Christmas

2009-12-18T23:58:00.004-06:00

and all through the house...the smell of freshly made fudge was watering my mouth...

Okay - that is ALL the rhyming I'm going to attempt. Tomorrow starts the series of "busys" for at least 3 days in a row. This may be my last time to post.

First of all - it was a happy Friday! I got word that I was one of the prize winners at Collage Press's blog! Yeah! I can't wait to play with their holiday paper line! Fa la la la la.

I was browsing my google reader blogs and I saw where one of my fellow scrapbook friends had some local publicity! Her local newspaper did an article on her. It's a great article. Here is Miki's blog. Be sure to check it out AND her etsy store. Congratulations, Miki!!

And last but not least, here are a couple of Christmas cards I made using some of my older stash. I'm such a HOARDER of papers and things I love. I know...I know...I had better use it while it's fresh.. even though hoarding it for "later" doesn't hurt. LOL. Enjoy your last weekend before Christmas!!

Both of these cards use Basic Grey, Melissa Frances and My Mind's Eye. The stamps on the first card are from Stampin Up! I used Martha Stewart crystal glitter on the larger poinsettia's. Thanks for stopping by!

May Your Days be Merry & Bright

2009-12-17T17:32:00.006-06:00

Just getting ready for Christmas around here. Party on Saturday, Christmas production on Saturday and Sunday night. THEN I can breathe.......

Here's a few creations made with Dream Street Paper's "Merry & Bright" Christmas collection.

I take a photo of the two little "misses" together at Christmas. I haven't taken one this year yet, so I used one from a previous year. (reminder - take the little misses' photo soon!)

Off to play practice. No school tomorrow so I think we'll stay in PJ's... at least until noon. Thanks for stopping by!!

This blog post belongs to....

2009-12-15T21:50:00.008-06:00

This blog post is for my daughter. She loves to create things. Gee wonder where she gets that from. She loves stamps. She boldly walked into my scrap pile (room) Friday night and said she wanted to make her pastor a Christmas card. I said "Okay!" and asked what she would like to put on it. With her eye quickly looking around and spying some vintage Christmas stamps, she started naming things she saw. I said - "Oh, so you don't want to use the penguins, reindeer and Christmas tree stamps"? "Oh... well... I didn't know you had those kind of stamps". and when she saw them her eyes got big. So, instead of a one card night, it was a three-card night. And since I knew that Cath at the Moxie Fab blog had a challenge for "creatures", I asked her permission if I could take a photo of her cards. Oh, and in case you are wondering... the Penguin card isn't shown because it went straight to her children's pastor a few hours after making it.
So.... presenting Miss Arielle's Moxie Fab challenge Christmas cards, featuring "all creatures great and small".

Stamps are "Penguin Holiday" and "Beauty of the Season" from Hampton Art. And a little disclaimer here - my daughter did all the stamping, stamp placement and marker coloring. I DID, however, let her use my "good" markers for the coloring. I also tied the ribbon and sewed on the button. She's only in 2nd grade. Maybe I'll teach her to sew next year.(wink)

Thanks for stopping by!
~melanie~

So...I created this card last night and...

2009-12-15T21:24:00.005-06:00

So, I created this card last night in my attempt to try to participate in Hero Arts Blog contest...only to realize I missed the deadline. Insert waa-waa sound effect here. Nevertheless, I was inspired to create, and rose to the challenge.

Since I can't upload it to their site since I missed the deadline, remember... I thought I'd load it here. I actually made two. Why not, after all I had all the supplies all over my table. Just posting here so they will get some luvin'. (wink)

I used the "Happy Hello" clear snap set, Clearsnap "Vivid" ink, cardstock and patterned paper from Stampin Up!

Here's the 2nd card.

I used the same stamps as above with pink, white and kraft cardstock. The ink is Whisper White craft ink from Stampin up! stamped on the kraft cardstock.

That's all I have for now. Sooo many things to do this time of December, as we all know! Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!
~melanie~

Merry Christmas Tags

2009-12-13T00:19:00.005-06:00

I HAVE been creating. Most of it is for calls and they have to remain 'unseen', but tonight I finally broke through and made some stuff "just because". When I saw Linda Beeson's blog here, I just HAD to make some tags. So I gathered what I needed and piled it in my living room sofa table... because...well - that's where the roaring fire was AND I wanted to watch Christmas movies while I played. You know, for inspiration.

So here it is after midnight and I'm staying up late enough to upload these, just because my blog has been that inactive. Here they are:

Paper is from Basic Grey, the stamp, ink and 1.5" striped red ribbon from Stampin Up! and the border punch is Martha Stewart.

Paper from Melissa Frances, stamp and ink from Stampin Up!. Everything else from my scrap pile.

Papers from Basic Grey, My Mind's Eye and Pink Paislee. Striped Ribbon from Stampin UP!

Papers from Pink Paislee. I just love this tree. I trimmed it and mounted it with 3D foam tape.

That's it for now. It's going to be a busy, busy week. Both of my children will be in a musical production this week (it is a twist of the Grinch) and they are going to be "toys" in the toy parade. Miss Priss is the lady Fantastic Four - my teenager - not sure yet. I'm just glad he agreed to do it. (smile)

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful, WONDERFUL week!! Fa la la la la...

~melanie~

It's December!

2009-12-01T22:24:00.004-06:00

Yeah! It's December! And guess what? Baby, It's COLD outside!!!! Brrrrr. That's not always the case here in sunny Louisiana. When I got home from work, my daughter asked for a fire. Or wait - maybe it was me. Anyway - hubby said to wait until Friday when it REALLY gets cold. So.... to satisfy the urge, I pulled out my new Kenny Chesney's Christmas DVD. I wasn't sure if I'd like it, being that I accidentally picked up the DVD instead of the CD. BUT - the DVD came with snowy scenes and - you betcha- fireplace scenes. Can you say AWESOME! Oh, and I really liked the music. A different twist on Christmas, being that he's singing about the Caribbean and getting a tan on the title song. We danced around the Christmas tree and had a good little time celebrating the first day of December.

I don't have much to share, but I at least want to TRY to post something every day until Christmas... but I can't promise.

I made this card and gift box using Piggy Tales papers and Stamping Up! Christmas stamps.

So - this is my way of welcoming in most wonderful month of the year. Have a wonderful day and thanks for stopping by!

Cards for the holiday

2009-11-22T11:42:00.003-06:00

Cooler weather (finally), turkey and dressing, fall leaves... it's officially the start of the holiday season. I think we'll be putting our tree up tomorrow - for the first time EVER before Thanksgiving. Gasp! And I can't wait.

Here are a couple of fall and Thanksgiving cards I made with Dream Street Paper's "Sam" collection.

I hope each and every one of you have a blessed Thanksgiving week. Thanks for stopping by.

ET the movie flashback

2009-11-16T21:08:00.007-06:00

Does this photo remind you of a scene in the movie E.T. the Extraterrestrial?

In case you missed it, there is a little dachshund hiding among the Littlest Pet Shop plus cow, penguin, pig, squirrel, and even a brown dachshund. Aha - you see her now, don't you. Her most favorite place to be (next to being outside of course) is right in the middle of a pile of warm laundry. I couldn't resist this pic.

Well, I actually took a break from life this weekend and played in my craft room! Nothing special - just having fun. Here are a few.

This card uses Sassafrass Paper and Jenni Bowlin alpha stickers.

I tend to hold onto papers I treasure, so I made myself cut into some of my not-so-new Webster's Pages paper. I just love this stuff! The rub on is from SEI.

Most of the papers in this kit are from one of the JulyCupCardsToGo kit that I had leftover (papers from Cosmo Cricket, Making Memories). The red flower die cut is from My Mind's Eye, the label is from Making Memories.

Well, time to pay the piper for all the playing I've done. My house is a wreck and I need to get things in order for next week's Thanksgiving dinner. I'm already in the mood to watch "Christmas Vacation" while I clean. Maybe tomorrow when I get home from work. Anyhooo.....Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!

One more for the week!

2009-11-05T07:24:00.004-06:00

Okay - I have to keep up the momentum before Friday, huh? Here's a page I did using some of my high school reunion "girls nite out" photos. I TOLD you I have alot of reunion photos to scrap and I LOVE them all!

I used Piggy Tales "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" collection (paper, chipboard, epoxy).

Have a great weekend!!!

Just some recent concert photos...

2009-11-02T08:28:00.007-06:00

It seems like I've been to more concerts in the past 2 years than in the previous 10!!! Probably because it's true. Have I been that deprived?? As posted a few posts back in September, me and my little girl went to see Taylor Swift. Just a few weeks after that, I was listening to one of my favorite radio stations and they were giving away Chicago Concert tickets (the old band Chicago - you know - the one that's been around since the 70's - (yes, before some of you were born). So.... I decided I'd try to win. On Monday, I totally missed the que to call. So Tuesday, which just happened to be my dear hubby's birthday, I heard the que and, yes - I WON! I phoned hubby and calmly mentioned "Hey, hubby. Chicago is playing in Shreveport..."...pause... "When?" he asks. "In two days", I replied... then I asked "Do you want to go hear them?"... he said "Sure" and that's when I said "Good, because I just won two free tickets!"

Now, let me say that I was soooo thankful for free tickets... even if they were in the back section of the venue... which was a large meeting room inside a casino. Even if you were against the farthest wall, it was better than being waaayyy in the back inside a huge arena. BUT, we stepped outside right when it started to place a "good-nite" call to the kids, and a man...let's call him a high-roller - said "Hey, you want our tickets? They are really good seats". Since he'd rather play in the casino instead of hear the band, we said SURE and off we went to the front section of seats. Here are a few of my pics.

Then just 3 weeks later, our local civic center had Miranda Lambert and Jack Ingram. Since I'm a-little-bit-country and a-little-bit-rock-n-roll, I jumped at the chance to support our local concerts (believe me, we don't get that many BIG names locally). Our seats were awesome - again!

Whew! Got all that posted. Now to kick back and welcome in November!!! Have a wonderful week!

And yet another Taylor Swift post...

2009-10-29T07:05:00.003-05:00

Well, what can I say? It's another Taylor Swift post. This one is scrappy, tho, so you'll forgive me, huh?

My miss priss and I went to see Miss Swift in concert in September... just days before the famed incident with Kanye - yeah - you know the one. The one where we were watching her win an award. Where I told miss priss , Look..let's see if Taylor wins this award..... Oh GOODIE - she won. Let's watch her acceptance'.... then "Uh....oh, no... why did he take her mic? Oh! That wasn't nice...." and I guess me and alot of others were speechless after that. Including Taylor. Well, anyway - back to the CONCERT. I scrapped a couple of photos using Dream Street's "Merry & Bright" collection. Yes, a Christmas Collection, but hey - I think it worked. The chipboard alpha is from Dream Street, and the bird and branch is from Stampin Up! I covered all the chipboard with Doodlebug Bumblebee glitter.

So, now that I've done three blog updates in the past 7 days, I'm forgiven for not keeping it up for the past 2 months? Okay, Okay, I'll try. I'm sure I can dig up some NEW concert photos until I have more scrappy stuff. Have a wonderful and SAFE Halloween weekend. Don't eat too much candy, because, well - you know IT'S FOR THE KIDS!!!
(((insert evil scary dude laugh here..))))

Quick and Easy Halloween Gifts

2009-10-26T09:59:00.004-05:00

It's not to late to make some Trick or Treat papercrafts gifts for your child's classmates or teachers. I found a pack of 10 pencils in the dollar section of target. The hardest task was sharpening the pencils! (Yes, I sharpened the pencils b/c the cheaper pencils are soooo hard to sharpen. I wanted the recipients to use them right away!) I used Dream Street papers "Superstition" papers and chipboard, some ribbon, jute and buttons along with a die cut scalloped (via the Cricut) and in no time I had two sweet gifts.

Have a wonderful Monday and check back soon!

Catch Up Time!!

2009-10-24T15:49:00.004-05:00

I am here!
I am here!
I am here!

I've been sooo busy at my new job - and on top of that, it seems that EVERY single weekend we've had things scheduled. I am frantically trying to "clear" my weekends from now until next year, but so far I haven't been successful. I'm in between fall fest and family night at the racetrack and instead of (gasp) napping, I'm playing with paper and scissors. I'll update my newest page as soon as I scan it.

Meanwhile... here is what I did a few weeks ago using Dream Street papers.

The first one uses Dream Street's "Nature's Poetry" papers and coordinating chipboard.. a little bing and, of course, buttons!

And, I TOLD you that you'd be seeing alot of my reunion photos in scrapbook pages. I have soooo many. I can't NOT scrap them. This uses Dream Street's "Urban Ink" papers.

I'll have something new up again SOON! I promise. Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by!

Pie and Taylor Swift

2009-09-12T09:41:00.009-05:00

I'm on a quest to find the perfect chocolate cream pie recipe. One like my grandma made (I know, that's what everyone says, huh). So - that means I'll be baking several pies in the next few weeks.

Here is Pie Number One
Problem: took too long to cook in double boiler and therefore the chef (me) abandoned the boiling before it got thick.
Result - tastes great but runny. Hubby ate it all anyway. (gotta love a man that will cook whatever you consider less than par).

Here is Pipe Number Two
Problem: After researching and comparing recipes - I settled for one in Taste of the South magazine (plus it had a nice photo). Half way in the cooking process, I noticed it didn't call for eggs in the recipe. ALL the other similar ones did. What to do? Hmmm.... eggs or no eggs.... So, I added eggs as in the other recipes.
Result - success.

And then there's Taylor Swift. I took the little miss to her concert this week. Making a note to NOT ever get floor seats unless they are VIP seats right next to the stage. LOL. Why do people STAND during a concert when they are on the floor. NO one can see over your head unless you are 6 feet and 50 inches tall.

But..........wait. What is the commotion BEHIND us in the middle of the concert???
(don't read this if you are planning on going to a Fearless tour and you don't like spoilers)

It's TAYLOR!!

She came and got on a rotating stage about ten feet from us. I told my daughter not to move because we couldn't be in a better place. I was in photography la-la-land as well as being so happy I could actually SEE the show.

Great concert! Thanks for stopping by. I'm off to excercise after eating that piece of chocolate pie!!!

Faces I love - with Dream Street Urban Ink!

2009-09-02T09:01:00.002-05:00

At 8am this morning, it was 58 degrees in Northeast Louisiana. That's almost a record for this time of year and WE LOVE IT!!! Wish we could have this type weather for a whole season!!! What a welcome change from the 100 degree heat we had just 2 weeks ago.

I have another page to share. I created this right after my high school reunion using Dream Street's new line "Urban Ink". It works perfectly with my reunion photos because our school colors are black and orange. The chipboard elements are also from Dream Street. I used a Becky Fleck sketch for this page.

Catching up in the scraproom

2009-08-27T09:38:00.004-05:00

It's been an amazingly busy summer! I started looking for a job the week before school started. Well, woops - I got a call to work before the week was up! Better watch what you wish for. Luckily, I get a couple of days off during the week, so this week I played catch up on some paper crafting.

This is a page I made this week using My Mind's Eye's Laundry Line "Sundress". I just love the soft vintage design and the touch of glitter in some of the pages. I used the "Ashlyn's Alphabet" Cricut Cartridge for the title, butterfly and the scalloped shape behind the photo.

I cut the butterfly and title in cream cardstock, then used Tattered Angels' Glimmer Mist in Candy Apple Red on the shapes. It mimics the glitter n the papers.

Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by.

New Memories with Old Friends

2009-08-04T10:39:00.004-05:00

I'm still enjoying the 'afterglow' of my high school reunion. I had some free time yesterday to pull out the NEW Dream Street Papers summer collection and created this page using the Sam paper line.

Believe it or not, my camera was off duty most of the reunion night. GASP! I know!!! I'm always running around events with the camera, but this night was was soaking it all in - without the camera. But there were cameras there. This is one of my favorite photos of the night - the old gang together again - minus a few people who had to leave early or were just not in sight when we did this. All the elements on this page are from the Sam collection.

Thanks for stopping by!

Thank You Card

2009-08-03T09:45:00.004-05:00

I spent a few hours making thank you cards for door prize sponsors for my recent reunion. This is one I made for a special friend using Stampin Up! products.

Stampin Up Supplies: Bella Birds Designer Papers, Crushed Curry textured cardstock, Very Vanilla cardstock, Kind and Caring Thoughts Stamp Set. Stampin' Write Markers (Earth Elements: Summer Sun, Not Quite Navy), Twill Ribbon, Scallop Edge Border Punch.

I've been asked by another graduating class to plan and coordinate their reunion. Oh boy, Do any of you out there have any idea on pricing for this? Holler at me because I need some guidance with this.

Thanks for stoppig by and have a wonderful day!

I'm BAACK and I'm MOXIE FAB!!

2009-07-29T13:34:00.003-05:00

I'm baaaackkk from the past... back from my high school reunion and just found out that while I was away - I was MOXIE FAB!!!! How cool is that??

Here's the link to the Moxie Fab blog with my Treasure Card. Thanks, Cath!

The reunion was wonderful!!!!! We had 66 classmates...for a 66% attendance! That's a record for our town. Here's a group pic. Yeah - I know - there are so many people that everyone's face is so tiny - but that's a good thing, right?

Dream Street Blog Hop!

2009-07-28T08:14:00.001-05:00

Hey - if you are here for the blog hop - hop on over to Katrina's blog!

I just got back from my reunion and don't have anything new up yet. Have fun!!!

Explanation for my absense!

2009-07-21T23:10:00.004-05:00

I promise - I have a GOOOOOODDD explanation for my long absence. My high school reunion is in 3 days and I've been coordinating it for the past three months. Seriously. I've learned lots of new technical skills, created a 17 minute slide-show DVD, made a few digital scrapbook pages (for the reunion, of course) - and made AND BOUND a spiral bound program/directory with old high school photos in it. Seriously, I feel like I have moved mountains!!

I can share a new creation with you. It's actually something I made last month for Dream Street papers. On one of our mall excursions, we stopped in a photo booth for some silly photos. I couldn't wait to scrap them.

I used the "Heart Song" collection on this. The chipboard birds are new from Stampin Up!

Speaking of Dream Street - have you seen the new collections yet?? Merry & Bright, Nature's Poetry, Sam, Superstition and Urban Ink! Click here to see new papers; click here for awesome new rub ons; and click here for alphabet and die cut shapes. You will love these new lines.

I'll check in AFTER my high school reunion and start cranking out some new creations with these awesome lines!

Another CupCardsToGo Blog Hop Sneak

2009-06-24T00:01:00.001-05:00

Today's post is part two of the CupCardsToGo July Blog Hop. If you are hopping along, then you should have just visited Daniela's blog. I hope you have enjoyed all the peeks! I'm the last on the list, but I'll link you back at the end to the beginning in case you missed it.

I enjoyed everything about this kit! The colors, the ribbon, and embellishments and, as with most kits - an adorable stamp! Here is a peek of what I made with product from the last peek.

So..... if you are just joining in, you may want to start at the beginning at the CupCardsToGo Website here. You won't want to miss this kit, so watch for the date that the kits go on sale. Thanks for stopping by!

Friends: Lost and Found

2009-06-18T06:37:00.000-05:00

Just one layout to share today. As I mentioned previously, I've been coordinating my high school reunion for the past couple of months. When I started this, I was recently reunited with one of my friends who moved away a couple of years before we graduated. She flew in for one of our planning meetings and we got to spend some time together. I used Dream Street Paper's "Fresh" collection as well as lots of vintage trims and buttons on this page as well as some Melissa Frances stickers.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

Cupcardstogo Blog Hop!

2009-06-17T16:34:00.004-05:00

I'm a bit late for this party! Cupcardstogo is having a blog hop with sneak peeks of they July kit! Be sure to go to the beginning of the hop to make sure you see all the peeks. This kit is filled with oodles of yummy goodness! You won't want to miss out.

Here's my peekie!

Now, hop on over to Michele's blog to see more!

Cards with stamping

2009-06-11T08:33:00.007-05:00

Today I have more cards with stamping.

I needed some cards to send to some high school reunion friends (yeah, I still have that project going on), and I wanted something quick and easy, yet cute. I had to be able to duplicate them easily. I used Cornish Heritage Farms stamp set "Cute Curls" designed my Kim Hughes. I just love the little lady bug. I used my Stampin' Up marker to color the bug red.

This one uses Stampin' Up! Papers (Bella Rose and Bashful Blue Designer Series). The stamps are Stampin' Up!'s "Dreams Du Jour"; ribbon is Stampin' Up!'s Pink Pirouette (you won't believe how much you get on a roll!) The flower is from Prima.

This card uses papers from Making Memories (Noteworthy and Flower Patch) and Stampin' Up's "Best Yet" stamp set.

Last one - mostly cardstock and a strip of My Mind's Eye paper. I used the "Best Yet" stamp set again on this one. Lots of ribbon, trim and texture. Cardstock is Stampin' Up's Kraft and So Saffron. Ink is SU's Chocolate Chip. It's so dark and "chocolatey". :)

In case you didn't know, I've been a Stampin' Up Rep for 6 months now. If you like SU! products, you can order directly from my My Demonstrator Site.

Thanks for stopping by today. Have a wonderful weekend!

Time to post some layouts

2009-06-09T12:10:00.004-05:00

It's time to share some layouts. These are actually older ones that I was holding onto for pub possibilities - but since yet another one of my fav magazines is shutting it's doors - I'm going to share a couple today.

Title: Rainbow Dress
Playing around with one of my leftover Lime Tart kits. Papers are from Daisy D's.

Title: I Believe (in flower fairies)
This was sent to (gasp!) MMM in 2008 for the theme. (i won't get it back. :(...)
Supplies:
Patterned Papers: Graphic 45, My Mind’s Eye, Paper Salon,Sassafrass Lass and wrapping Paper by Cleo (flower fairy)
Alphabet Stickers: Basic Grey and Making Memories
Chipboard: Fancy Pants, Scenic Route

Title: When You Dream
Papers were Webster's Pages and Basic Grey

I will have some more cards up later this week. Thanks for stopping by.

Some Stamped Cards

2009-06-04T11:44:00.004-05:00

Enjoying the month of June, here! We had a nice shower last night, and tomorrow I'm picking blueberries. They will probably be nice and plump and juicy. I can't wait to make a fresh blueberry pie.

Here are a few cards I made using some of Hampton Art's new stamps.

I used Hampton Arts' printed cards and envelopes, along with their Kelly Panacci line of Friends and Artsy Edges stamps.

This one uses Hampton Art's You and Me clear stamps, and their Kelly Panacci line of Artsy Edges and Frieds stamp sets (both are clear also).

This fall card uses some wood mount stamps. I colored the images with Stampin Up! markers.

Thanks for stopping by!