Cards in the Mail!

Let's switch gears for just a minute. This is my last installment of these cards for the year. Many of today's cards use supplies from the Holiday Mini. That catalog ends January 3, and some items are discounted. Be sure and check out the list HERE and HERE and place your orders ASAP!

June Pages!

Hello again! Today I have two very different pages for the month of June...

This first one is very bright. I had seen a layout with a rainbow of sorts going across the page and figured out how to do that my own way. I also saw this photo layout and I was happy to make that work out too.

This one is simply the fact that I love this grunged up "Back to School" kit, and I was thinking summer = dirt. After I sent it to the printer, I realized the unintentional balance of how the people are placed. I was literally just throwing photos on at this point, but it looks like I put a lot more thought into it than that. 

 And now I have a secret for you....
I have a brand new stamp set, ink, and paper supplies sitting right next to my computer. Stamping on paper is my next task!! *happy squeal!

May Pages!

Yep, still finishing up sharing the calendar pages. They were a hit, as always. And I enjoy seeing my family look for themselves on each page, and seeing everyone comment on the photos I chose, haha!

Both of these pages were entered in the latest VSBN (Virtual ScrapBooking Night). The first is the "product challenge" to use anything on a reel- string, ribbon, washi tape...

 And the second uses the sketch challenge. Which you already know is usually my favorite... *wink.

I did find two flaws in my calendars, after printing them... the first is this cover. What is wrong with this cover?

I only make one cover and they both get it. I showed it to my husband ahead of time, and he really liked it. I showed it to my son, who also really liked it. Four days after sending the second calendar to the printer, for no particular reason, I realized this is the 2017 calendar and there is not a 7 on the cover...!!! 

.....the photos are all from 2016....maybe that's what I meant...?? argh.....

The second flaw was that I put my brother's anniversary wrong. I figured it out for 2016, not for 2017. Nice... 

Other than THAT, they turned out great. haha..... minor detail...

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to each of you!
I hope today is a peaceful and happy day, and that you are surrounded by friends and family!

I just wanted to share a couple of things with you...
First, the Christmas card I sent out 75 copies of.

And here is my current favorite youtube video. It will definitely bring the Spirit of Christmas to your day!
 

April Pages!

Maybe we'll get thru the calendar before Christmas, but I doubt it! haha..... There is just SO much to do!

I believe today is the last time I show an edited page to add the baby... So first up is the page I originally shared in September... Why I even made this page is beyond me because it was just days before she was born! Oh well.... it was cute then!

But it's even cuter when I swap the arrow out for a baby picture, and add another baby picture just for fun! haha!

And for the other calendar, I crammed every member of the family on there! Yeay!

And if you were wondering- one of them has arrived to my house and just needs wrapped to be given! ...waiting impatiently on the other one! haha....

March Pages!

Another very quick post for your Monday!
I just wanted to share the March calendar pages with you!

First up, the original page, which I first shared HERE...

And then how I updated it for the actual calendar!

 And finally a brand new page for the other calendar!

 Personally I am grateful they are on their way from the printers! How about you? Did you make crafts for Christmas? Are they done?? *grin

Two quick things

Right now it isn't a lack of material to share- its a lack of time to type it up! So tonight I have a quick idea for you... 

Obviously we are in a new neighborhood this Christmas. We usually do little plates of goodies for neighbors, but this year even more we wanted to get out there and introduce ourselves. (Tho to be honest, of the six homes on our street, at least one of us had met all but one family!) As we were assembling plates, my husband commented in surprise that I wasn't adding anything stampy as part of introducing myself. That is because exactly none of my stamp supplies are unpacked! I dug around for some Paper Pumpkin kits and threw together some speedy tags, using the stamps from the newest kit and the precut tags from two November's ago! So here's a quick idea for gift-giving! 

The second thing I wanted to share is that even tho I'm not mailing out stamped cards this year, (our card was created in the long-retired MDS) I had my daughter stamp the trees from the newest Paper Pumpkin kit at the bottom of our newsletter, and I added a bit of Washi tape to the back of each envelope! Still a little hint of pretty on the cards going out! 

One sketch, two seasons!

Today I am showing exactly how to use a sketch. The original layout I saw is HERE. It is a sketch because there aren't photos or actual embellishments on the page, just an outline of where to put them all. Mine is obviously not a copy, but it was clearly used as inspiration. I adjusted it to fit an 8x11.5 page and simplified it somewhat...

and created a bright, fun page for July, for one calendar....

And then a cool, wintery page for January for the other!

What do you think about that? That's why I enjoy using sketches so much. They're perfectly adaptable to whatever you need your project to be!

February Pages!

Hello again, and happy Monday! I had a very productive weekend- how was yours? While I finished the calendars (yep! They're finished AND sent to the printer!) and the kids helped me get about half of our Christmas cards ready to send, my husband installed the garage door opener, hung a clothes line, coat racks and clocks! Yeay projects! haha....

Today I'm showing the February page from one calendar...

And then again, an updated page! I first created this in February and shared it HERE...

and below is how I updated it to add another person!

So simple- swap out one long photo for two smaller ones! And they are sweet ones! haha.... this page is fun because it shows us telling our older kids and grandparents about the new baby coming. I love it.

That's all for today, but I have lots more to share so come back another day!

January Calendar Page 1!

Hello!! Yep, I'm still alive and well, just zero stamping time! We moved into our new house the day after Thanksgiving and we have most of our day to day things unpacked but not 100%. That is a work in progress if ever there was one...! And since I knew I wouldn't have stamping time for a long while, I went so far as to leave much of my current stamp supplies at my parents in case my mom has more time than I do!

However, December means Christmas and Christmas means gifts, and around here that means calendars for both of our parents for Christmas! I make a calendar of just our little family for my inlaws and a calendar of all my parents posterity for them, which means I now have a lot of pages that need done....and then shared here! I fully intended to do these pages throughout the year so I wasn't cramming this month (cramming, like I have so many other years...!) I did get a few done, but now that my baby and my nephew were born, I'm having to go back and edit some pages!

Like this one!
I shared this page HERE last January, back before I found out I was expecting a baby and had time to do this, haha...

 But now, the page looks like this!

Fortunately it is very easy to make changes in digital scrapbooking, haha!
And fortunately for you, this means I have many posts planned to share with you!
I hope your December is off to a great start!

Online Extravaganza!

Starting now! :) 
Go to www.stampinup.com, view the sales HERE and select me as your demonstrator to not miss out on these great deals! 
If your order is less than $150, use Hostess Code CCJTJ7FB.

October Calendar Page 1

Well, we closed on our house last week, finally got the keys a few days later, and started moving in! We won't be done moving stuff in for another week or two, and we're going to get some painting and installing done before we actually move in. But that is definitely cutting into my creative time...! And so today's is another quick post.

I did get a calendar page done tho, and that's worth sharing! haha. This is the Halloween pics of all nine of my parents grandchildren!

Yes, I used MDS, and yes, it is retired. But maybe you have it or maybe you have some of these papers laying around! So here's a fun way to use it! haha! 

MDS Downloads: Eat Drink & Be Scary, Days to Remember, Storytime, Mis-Stitched, Back to School, Playful Polka Dots

Cards In The Mail!

I have gotten so many cute cards in the mail lately and haven't shared them in so long, that I am splitting them up! Today I have the fall/Halloween/Thanksgiving cards, and I've saved Christmas for a later day....but likely other cards will arrive by then, haha!

Creators names are added to each photo. Enjoy! I know I do!

 The outside is above, the inside is below!

Bridal shower!

One of the many things happening this fall in my world, is my brother's wedding! My mom and I hosted a bridal shower for his fiancée, with a recipe theme. 

To start, I made these cute invitations with my (sadly) long-retired MDS, and some cute kitchen and cooking themed stamps and DP. 

Then, I stamped index cards using another long-retired stamp set. Each invitation went out with an index card so that people could bring a recipe with them, or even mail back just a recipe if they were unable to attend. And that's exactly what some people did!

For the shower itself, I stamped more cards, so that people could leave "a recipe for a great date night" and/or a "recipe for a happy life together", but I didn't get any pictures of that...

I used a recent Paper Pumpkin kit to make a cute banner. It says "BRIDAL SHOWER"... and there are some photo posters....

And here's a close-up....

So that my kids could help (and stay busy?) they made this sign for the door. And the balloons are my husband's interpretation of my daughter's idea!

My son drew the bubble letters and my daughter colored them.

And the cute couple enjoying the shower, for good measure...!

So, you see, I haven't been completely non-creative.....just non-blogging. 

Paper Pumpkin September

Hello again! While on my little break, I still created a few things. Today's post is another fast one, but since I snapped a picture before delivering these, I may as well share it!

September's paper Pumpkin had a cute little way to share a treat. As is always the case for me, treat packaging goes to some ladies in the neighborhood, or from church. Turns out, these tiny tubes hold one m'n'm per layer, and that was perfect. I used the autumn colored m'n'm's out of two regular packages, for reference. 

These would also make cute thank you gifts since we've now moved into November. And, the refill kit is still available for subscribers! Check it out HERE. 

Not a subscriber? It's easy to sign up! Click the Paper Pumpkin sign on my side bar! 

Blog Hop: Stepped Over!

Happy November to you!! The holiday season has arrived!
Today I'm playing along with the Blog Hop and I'm totally feeling a day late and a dollar short-
because I'm sharing a Halloween creation...
....to inspire you next year! Ha!

For a while we've been stepping our creations up a notch, and this time I'm stepping it "over". That means I'm making the same card twice, but once with a holiday spin.

First up, I have this pretty fall card, which I barely got in the mail on time!
(seriously...a day late on everything right now...!)
And for both cards I used last week's Freshly Made Sketch.

Supplies:
Stamps: Jar of Love
Ink: Soft Suede, Mint Macaron, Delightful Dijon, Cajun Craze, Rich Razzleberry
Paper: Cajun Craze, Very Vanilla, Petals & Paisleys DP
Accessories: Petals & Paisleys Ribbon, Dimensionals

And then for my "stepped over" version, I have this fun Halloween card! I also added a bit to the background by heat embossing the creepy eyes, with clear embossing to make it subtle, and therefore just a little more spooky!

Supplies:
Stamps: Jar of Haunts
Ink: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Halloween Night DP
Accessories: Clear Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Dimensionals

That's all from me today! Thanks for stopping by!
Now hop on thru and see what every one else has created to inspire you!