Goooooaaaaalllllll!!!!!

Any soccer fans out there? I'm not a huge fan, but my boys do like to play, so I'm kind of forced to like it.  They've been asking to play fall soccer and all I can think of is cold, wet, windy evenings spent on the field, but then I remind myself that this is much better than them sitting around doing nothing.  I do love that my boys love to be so active!

I made this card at the request of a co-worker who said she needed a card for a friend who was turning 30 and loves soccer.  By the time I finished with it, I decided it was too juvenile for a 30 year old man, but still like it.  I'll keep this in my card basket for one of the many kiddo birthday parties my boys get invited to.  I used this weeks sketch over at Try Stampin' on Tuesday to get me started...

 

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Gumball Green, Whisper White, Basic Black

Ink ~ Basic Black, Whisper White Craft

Stamp Sets ~ Great Sport, Gorgeous Grunge, ABC-123 Sketched Alphabet & Numbers

Other Supplies ~ Honeycomb Embossing Folder, Neutrals Candy Dots, Hardware Essentials Clips, 1-1/4" Circle Punch, Crystal Effects

 

I inked up the soccer ball and stamped it numerous times, then punched the images out to create the "ball in motion" effect.  The sketched lines from Gorgeous Grunge was the prefect addition to achieve that effect. 

 

Now it's time to come up with a different and more age appropriate "dude" card for my friend...what will I come up with?

 

Happy Stamping!



Digital Tuesday

After attending Kimberly Van Diepen's MDS class at Convention, I made a promise to myself that I would do a better job of preserving our family memories.  I am still learning how to navigate my way around MDS, but with the help of the challenges that Kimberly and Heather put out there for us, I have high hopes of improving my MDS skills! 

This weeks challenge is Text on a Path using the Freeform Tool in MDS....LOVE!  Such a simple trick and I will be using this in more pages to come!

I put together a pretty simple page using some pictures I took of my little man for his 2nd birthday. 

I started out with a Lemonade Stand Designer page, then kind of tore it apart and use only bits and pieces of the page.  Love that about MDS!  I really liked the numbers at the bottom of the page, but I wanted to make the 2 pop out since it was for his second birthday.  With a few quick clicks, I made all of the other numbers a neutral color then made the 2 bigger and re-colored it in Pumpkin Pie.

Wrapping the text around was super easy thanks to the video Kimberly posted!

 

So, here's to more MDS projects on my blog!!!  And since the new MDS Digital Downloads come out each Tuesday, I'm going to designate Tuesday as my day to post...mark your calendars ;-)

 

Happy Stamping and Happy Clicking! 

Birthday Under Construction

Today my sweet, stubborn, silly little boy turns 2!  I don't know how this is possible...time just goes by way too fast!  We celebrated his birthday over the weekend with a small group of friends and family.  I had a TON of fun decorating and putting the fun MDS Download, Birthday Under Construction (BUC), to use.  This post will be a bit picture heavy, but there were just too many fun things and I didn't want to leave any of them out. If you have a little boy in your life who love trucks, this download is a must have!

First off is his birthday invite, which was posted a few weeks ago in the Stylin' Stampin' Squad Blog Hop.  All of the specifics can be found on that post :)

 

Next is a fun banner and birthday I made with the new Build a Banner Simply Created Kit, which will be available on August 1st.  I added a few images from the BUC download too.

Ink ~ Tangerine Tango, Pool Party, Crushed Curry, Smoky Slate

I used the polka dot stencil for this to create the fun back round paper.  The rest was made using the BUC download.

 

Next are a few other decorations that I made for the tables.  I won't bore you with all the details, but please message me if you would like more information :-)

Food table

 Ice Cold Drinks

 Tasty cookies from Cookie Construction Co.

I boxed the cookies up in these fun Decorative Window Gift Boxes, also available August 1st.  These made for some fun goodie boxes for all of Owen's friends and family!

Amazing dirt cupcakes made by my friend Kim.  The cute little toppers were made using BUC download. 

Last is a fun sign for the gift table.

 

I loved making all of these different decorations!  I always say in my next life I want to be a party planner :-) 

 

 

 Happy, Happy Birthday Owen!

Happy Stamping!

 

Best of Eastern Elegance

Hi friends!  I have been on a cleaning and organizing rampage this morning!  Nothing like a kiddo birthday party with tons of new toys to motivate me to clean out the old toys and junk and make room for more.  Thanks to my big boys, we had the bedrooms and playroom all clean and back in order in less that two hours.  And since I was on a roll, I decided to utilize nap time and attacked my craft room and office too.  It feels good to have all of my new goodies and Convention loot in their proper places and actually have room to stamp!  And what's even better??!?!?  Still having some time left over to stamp...WOOHOO!!

 

This is a card that I really wasn't looking forward to making.  A good friend lost her daddy yesterday after a battle with cancer.  It is never, EVER easy to say good-bye to a loved one, but I hope she will find peace in knowing that he is no longer suffering.  I also hope this card brightens her a day a little and lets her know how much I love her!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Smoky Slate, Whisper White, Crushed Curry, Eastern Elegance DSP

Ink ~ Crushed Curry

Other Supplies ~ Boho Blossoms Punch, Deco Labels Collection Framelits, Ovals Collection Framelits, Rhinestones Basic Jewels

 

I used the latest sketch from Fab Friday to help get me started on this card.  I don't know about you, but I always find it helpful to start my card with a sketch and let my creativity fill in the rest :)

 

Now it's time to clean up (edit) some pictures...love it when I get on roll like this!

 

Happy Stamping!

Merry {Thinlit} Christmas Mashup!

Merry Christmas!!! 

No, I haven't lost my mind!  It's Christmas in July!  I finally sat down and placed my pre-order from the Holiday Catalog and all I can say is that I LOVE every single thing in that catalog.  I better be careful or I will have no money left to spend when Christmas really does roll around!  Now I just need to find time to play with all of the fun new things I got.  I always have the vision of long summer days with so much time to get caught up on everything that doesn't get done during the school year...only to be reminded that life doesn't slow down, no matter what time of year it is.  That's ok though...I don't think I would know what to do with out our crazy, busy, non-stop life!  Anyhoo...back to Christmas in July!

I have a simple card that I made using a few new items from the Holiday Catalog.  I haven't yet got any of the beautiful Christmas DSP, but the fun stripes from the Etcetera pack worked perfect for this card.  I actually made this card earlier in the week, but found that it fits in perfectly with this weeks Friday Mashup challenge...Christmas/Hanukkah project with Stripes.

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Etcetera DSP

Other Supplies ~ Expressions Thinlits, Season of Style Washi Tape, Regals Candy Dots, Simply Scored

 

I LOVE the new Expression Thinlits!  They are a little tricky at first, but after playing with them and figuring out what little trick works best to get them out (wax paper!), they are so much fun!

 

Off for another fun and busy day!  We are celebrating the 2nd birthday of my son who likes to get inky in his own way...little stinker! And no, this isn't my ink...he found he's older brothers stash and decided to decorate himself!

 

Hoping you all have a fantastic weekend!

 

Happy Stamping!

 



Freshly Made Thinlit Love

Happy Thursday! I am all out of sorts today...I usually have Thursday's off, but this week I traded my co-worker Thursday for Friday.  Hooray for a 3 day weekend, but between being gone last week and a schedule interruption this week, I don't know which way is up! 

I did manage to sneak in a little stamping time this morning before I had to start my work day.  I had some fun with the latest sketch by Amy over at Freshly Made Sketches.  I was so excited to have the opportunity to meet both Amy and Jen T last week at Convention!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Coastal Cabana, Melon Mambo, Whisper White, Smoky Slate

Ink ~ Coastal Cabana

Stamp Set ~ Positively Chevron

Other Supplies ~ Tag It Framelits, Expressions Thinlits, Typeset Alphabet Bigz, Chevron Embossing Folder, Smoky Slate Chevron Ribbon, Brights Collection Buttons, Whisper White Bakers Twine, Witches Brew Washi Tape

 

I love these colors together!  And I love that this washi tape doesn't have to just be for Halloween!  I see myself going through a lot of this one :)

 

Time to get to work...gotta make sure I'm all caught up so I don't have to worry about anything but having fun tomorrow!

 

Happy Stamping!



Truly Grateful & Thankful...

...pretty much sums up my feelings the past few weeks.  I really do have so much to be grateful and thankful for!  I won't get too mushy and lovely, but thanks to all of YOU for all of your kind and inspiring words...you help keep me motivated to keep on creating!

Wheat harvest has started in our area, which inspired this card.  As I was putting everything together, I was really wishing I had a sewing machine to add just a little bit of stitching to the card.  Add that to my mile long wish list!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla, Soft Sky

Ink ~ Crushed Curry, Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky, Tangerine Tango, Soft Suede

Stamp Set ~ Truly Grateful, Hello Lovely

Other Supplies ~ Burlap Ribbon, Candy Dots, Expressions Thinlits, Aqua Painter

 

Off to squeeze in a quick walk with the kiddos before work and before it gets too hot! 

 

Happy Stamping!

 

 

 



Toil & TROUBLE ~ Sneak Peek

TROUBLE is the key word...after seeing all of the demonstrations and amazing swaps at Convention, there are so many new things I want!  But guess what??!?!  Even though I didn't make it as one of the Artisan Design Team members, I do get a little shopping spree...let the shopping begin!!! 

I tried my best to hold off on ordering too many things from the Holiday Catalog, but there were a few I couldn't resist!  After seeing the fun shaker card demonstrated by Pam Morgan during opening session, I had a fun CASE idea using the Toil & Trouble set.  You can see the Opening Session YouTube video here for details on how the card was made, along with all of the other great happenings as Convention kicked off. 

It's difficult to see in the picture, but Window Sheet is on top of the black card stock, taped with Washi Tape on each side.  In between the Window Sheet and black card stock is some fun confetti...love this idea! 

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black, Witches Brew DSP, Modern Medley DSP, Silver Glimmer Paper, Window Sheet

Ink ~ Whisper White Craft, VersaMark

Stamp Set ~ Toil & Trouble

Other Supplies ~ Witches Brew Washi Tape, Modern Label Punch, Itty Bitty Punch Pack, Basic Black Embossing Powder

 

I can't wait to break out the rest of my Washi Tape and make some other cards using this same idea...so much fun!  This will for sure be a card we make in my Washi Tape class next month...don't miss it!

 

Happy Stamping!



Back to Reality...

Monday...after 5 days off...UGH! Need I say more?!?!? 

I'm back home and back to reality after 5 crazy-awesome, fun-filled days in SLC.  I can honestly say I have never experienced so many different emotions in such a short period of time...LOL!  I was so happy to see my hubby and all 3 of my babies waiting for me at the airport yesterday.  I missed them all so much!  But as soon as I got in the car, I quickly realized my vacation was over and I was back in "Mommy Mode".  Unpacking, laundry, birthday gift shopping, checking on work...I jumped right back in.  It's a good thing we get to head to the beach soon because I need a vacation from this vacation!

I have a few Convention pictures to share today and I'm sure I'll have more this week as I go through everything.  Here are a few (and when I say few, I mean get ready for quite a few pictures!) of my favorite highlights from Convention 2013... 

The streets of downtown SLC were lined with these banners

Visiting the Riverton home office

Top 20 Artisan Finalists...Great group of ladies!

Finally got my Artisan Finalist ribbon!  I may not have made the top 10, but the experience of being in the top 20 was amazing!!!

My Artisan Display Board...just call me Breelin Sandwich!  LOL :D

My 3-D items...the wreath and the Kraft box.  I'm still not sure who made the hot air balloon, but it is awesome!  Sorry for the blurry picture too...not easy taking pictures when you are in a room with almost 6000 other demos!

We made birthday banners for the children at Primary Children's Medical Center in SLC...this really touched my heart and I was honored to be a part of it.

And you can't go to your first SU! Convention and not get a picture with Shelli Gardner!  She is the sweetest person EVER!

PRIZE PATROL!!!  There were more giveaways this year than ever before and they were all A-W-E-S-O-M-E!

Convention is all about friends..new and old!  My roomie and friend, Cynthia, are already making plans for next years Convention! 

All Things Stampin' Up! Facebook Group 

Convention running buddies! 

Beautiful view of the state Capitol we were treated to on our morning runs

Sea of Swaps

Closing Session

 

I still can't believe we didn't any pictures on Awards Night!  What were we thinking?!?!?  I will blame it on nerves!  Next year we will be sure to get a picture of us in our fancy dresses! 

 

I have so many more pictures, but these were some of my favorites! 

 

I do have one more picture for you...one last card I made for a swap.

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Night of Navy, Very Vanilla, Etcetera DSP

Ink ~ Old Olive, Calypso Coral

Stamp Set ~ Hello, Lovely

Other Supplies ~ Chevron Embossing Folder, Vintage Trinkets, Crochet Trim, Denim Ribbon

 

And now it's really back to reality with a nasty 4 letter word...WORK! 

 

Looking forward to getting my stamp room back in order tonight and spending some time stamping!

 

Happy Stamping!!!

 



Homeward Bound ~ General Swaps

Good morning stamping friends! I'm up and at 'em, getting ready to head home. I have had the BEST time in SLC and am already making plans for returning next year. It was a fast and furious few days full of learning, laughing, stamping, running and, of course, crying too.  I am going home with a notebook and a head full if ideas and I can't wait to share them all with you! 

I promise to post some pictures if Convention highlights as soon as I get settled back home...I have some fun ones! 

As I get ready to head to the airport, I'll leave you with the two cards I made for  my general swaps. It was great to meet so many awesome demonstrators from all over the world! 

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Basic Black, Bermuda Bay, Very Vanilla, Modern Medley DSP

Ink ~ Bermuda Bay, Jet Black StazOn

Stamp Sets ~ Swallowtail, A Dozen Thoughts

Other Supplies ~ Linen Thread, Very Vintage Designer Buttons

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Real Red, Pacific Point, Whisper White

Ink ~ Real Red, Pacific Point, Crushed Curry, Red Sharpie

Stamp Set ~ Regarding Dahlias

Other Supplies ~ Simply Scored, Basic Rhinestones

Convention Day Three ~ Stylin' Stampin' Squad Swaps

Hello to all of my Stampin' friends! Convention 2013 has come to an end...boo!! It has been an amazing few days in SLC and I can not wait to come back next year! From meeting new friends, to being inspired and excited by everyone, to making the top 20 Artisan Finalists...it has been a trip I will never forget! I just had to say good bye to my roommate and am feeling a little sad...I am also exhausted and anxious to get home to my family and soooo ready to get in to my stamp room and CREATE! I have so many great new ideas and can't wait to share them all with you. 

But for now, I must finish packing and get some sleep before I fly home in the morning. Safe travels to all and see you next year! 

I will leave you with a card I made for the Stylin' Stampin' Squad swap (say that 3 times!) It was wonderful to meet all of these ladies face to face...love you all!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Smoky Slate, Whisper White

Ink ~ Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango, Perfect Plum, Smoky Slate, Melon Mambo, Pool Party

Stamp Sets ~ Four You, Tape It, Positively Chevron

Other Supplies ~ Whisper White Bakers Twine, Brights Collection Designer Buttons

Convention Day Two ~ Awards Night

It has been another amazing day at Convention! We kicked off the day with a morning session where we were introduced to some amazing new products that will be coming soon! Some of the new products include Framelits, a new board to design your own envelopes and a cool new line called "Undefined", which is a product where you can carve you very own stamp! Awesome!!!

After general session, we had the chance to attend the Expo...lots of great stuff and I will post pictures soon! 

We ended the day with Awards Night, the night I've been waiting for! It seems like it took HOURS to get to the Artisan Design Team Award! All 20 of the finalists were asked to stand and then the top 10 were called up on stage. Sadly, my name did not get called :( I was a bit bummed, but it was an amazing honor to be a part of the top 20 with all of these amazing and talented ladies! A huge congrats to the winners! Very well deserved for sure! 

We did go to the after party for a bit then came back to the hotel and enjoyed our Cheesecake Factory cheesecake.

One more day of Convention left! What will they have in store for us tomorrow?!?

I'll have more pictures for you soon, along with more of my swaps! 

Happy Stamping!

Convention Day One ~ Artisan Swap

It's day one of Convention and it's already been so amazing!!!  After arriving late in the afternoon yesterday, I finally got to meet my roommate and new friend face to face...so  happy!!!  We made our way from the airport to our hotel and got all settled in.  Then we were off to the Cheesecake Factory...a long awaited treat after we have both worked so hard to meet our weight loss goal and fitness achievements.  After getting a little sleep (who am I kidding, I'm too excited to sleep!) we started the day with a tour of the Riverton Office, which was AWESOME!  We had a little bit of downtime after the tour and then I was off to meet with all of the Artisan Finalists for our swap!  It was so awesome to finally meet everyone face to face.  I still can't believe I made it to the Top 20...PINCH ME! 

Here is the card I made to swap with all of the fabulous finalists.  It looks like a simple card, but let me tell you...those circles took me hours to cut out and my shoulder is still sore from cranking all of them out!  But I love this card and the work was totally worth it!

Here is a side view so you can see the embossing a little bit better.

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Crisp Cantaloupe, Very Vanilla, Venetian Romance

Ink ~ Crisp Cantaloupe

Stamp Set ~ Happy Day

Other Supplies ~ 1-3/4" & 1-1/4" Scallop Circle Punch, Antique Brads, Circles Collection Framelits, Beautifully Baroque Embossing Folder

It was so much fun swapping with the Artisan Top 20!  So much amazing talent!!! 

day did not end here though...General Session kicked everything off and the Opening Social after was awesome!  In between all of this, I had a chance to meet up with some of the All Things Stampin' Up! Facebook group...so great to meet so many of these people in person!

Time to {try} sleep...another BUSY day tomorrow!  Not only do we have a day packed full of fun stuff, but we also find out who will make the next Artisan Design Team!

Until tomorrow...

Happy Stamping!



Hello from SLC!!!

I made it safe and sound and FINALLY got to meet my roommate (and friend for life!) Cynthia!  After months of chatting, sharing ideas, helping decide on swaps (and clothes!) for Convention, it was sooooo good to finally meet her face to face!  We are in for an amazing few days of fun, excitement and of course, STAMPING!!! 

I managed to sneak in a few minutes of stamping time this morning before I headed out for my flight.  I used the sketch over at Hand Stamped Sentiments and had some fun with this card!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Basic Gray, Whisper White, I Am Me DSP

Ink ~ Real Red, Basic Gray, So Saffron, Pool Party

Stamp Set ~ Wanderlust Photopolymer

Other Supplies ~ Whisper White Bakers Twine, Candy Dots, Honeycomb Embossing Folder

Now that we are all settled in our hotel room, we are off to explore and find some where yummy to eat dinner.  Stay tuned for more posts and exciting updates along the way! 

Happy Stamping!!!



Ready for a the Joy Ride of my Life!

One more sleep and I will be on my way to SLC!  To say I'm excited would be a huge understatement!  I can't sleep, I can't eat...I'm ready to jump out of my skin with excitement and anticipation!  Be sure to check back later this week for Convention updates and see some of the swaps I made!

Today I have another card to send to my boys while I am gone.  This one started with a sketch from Stampin' Celebration.  This is a fun sketch that was perfect for another Rev Up the Fun card!  I am saving this sketch for a later date to create a scrapbook page too...love it!

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Basic Black, Smoky Slate, Daffodil Delight, Whisper White, Brights DSP Stack

Ink ~ Jet Black StazOn, Daffodil Delight, Smoky Slate

Stamp Sets ~ Rev Up the Fun!, Tape It

 

Again, I am so happy I got this set...my boys are going to love getting their cards in the mail while I am gone!   I'm going to miss them all like crazy, but am looking forward to an amazing time in SLC!

 

Happy Stamping!!!

Revin' Up....

...for an amazing week! 

I'm not sure how I am going to be able to focus on anything but Convention excitement for the next two days!!!  I have two full days of work to get through, things to do around the house and I still need to finish packing.  I guess those things will {hopefully} help keep my mind occupied and get me through!

While I am so super excited to head to SLC, I am also a bit anxious to leave my boys.  This will be the first time I've been away from my youngest for more than just a night and he's such a momma's boy.  But I know he will do just fine and it will be good for him AND my hubby.  My twins could care less that I'm going to be gone.  All they can think about is all of the cool "man" things they have planned while I'm gone. 

I thought it would be fun to stick a card in the mail to each of the boys while I am gone, so I snuck in a little stamping time early this morning and got a few made.  The first one I made using the color challenge from Fab Friday and sketch from Freshly Made Sketches.

 

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, I Am Me DSP

Ink ~ Real Red, Basic Gray, Tempting Turquoise

Stamp Set ~ Rev Up the Fun!

 

My twins are totally in to fast cars and motorcycles right now, so I just HAD to get this fun stamp set!  Believe it or not, I have the hardest time making boy cards!  You would think with 3 boys I'd have no troubles at all, right?!?!?

 

Time to get my work day started and I'm hoping it goes by quickly so I can get to all of the other things on my To Do list! 

 

Looking forward to meeting some of you at Convention!  Safe travels to all and...

 

Happy Stamping!

 

 



Never Underestimate...

...the POWER of TWO! 

This sassy little sentiment kept popping into my head yesterday as my hubby and I ran the Run or Dye race together.  (Please tell me I'm not the only one who is always thinking in Stampin' Up! colors and sentiments!!!)  With our busy schedules, my husband and I never get to run together, so when we are able to find a fun race and BOTH have a day off, it's always a special treat.  We both had a blast!

All of the colored powder that was thrown at us inspired my card this morning...which I will leave for my hubby when I head off to Convention on Wednesday.  (Oh my!  It's getting soooo close!!!)

 

I apologize for the "grainy" photo...my phone case still has a some color powder in it! 

Supplies Used:

Paper ~ Smoky Slate, Whisper White

Ink ~ Melon Mambo, Pacific Point, Gumball Green, Crushed Curry

Stamp Sets ~ Yippee-Skippee, Positively Chevron

Other Supplies ~ Cute Clips, Sponge Daubers, Owl Punch (heart)

 

I have to say, it felt good to create this morning...even if it was a quick and easy card!  Now it's back to my swaps...I WILL finish them today!

 

Happy Stamping!