Blog Candy Winner!

Congrats to

itsabrt

She said...


What a fabby prize very practical!!! My tip never sneeze when using glitter!!! Beth aka BR-T

Beth, please contact me to claim your prize!

Treat Yourself

There's a wonderful blog out there that has nothing to do with paper crafting! Treat yourself to a visit to the Pioneer Woman. She's a talented writer, cook, photographer and down right funny person. While you're there, make sure you read the story of how she met her husband. It's a wonderful novelette. You won't be able to stop reading  it. P.S. She has great giveaways, if you are lucky enough to win!

Everything went well at my yearly check-up yesterday. I almost started laughing because while the doctor was peering into my eyes with that black instrument, I wanted to ask if she could see my Inner Self.

I'm going to Fla. next week to visit my daughter and her family, so I'm refraining from challenges except for DT obligations. I'm also taking an online workshop through the Funky Fairy. It's two weeks of projects. Oh, boy! Unfortunately I won't be home during the first week and will have to lurk. BTW- Daughter is going to have a boy!

Mouse takes the Cheese

This little treat box was so much fun to make. I can imagine a wonderful piece of pumpkin cheescake tucked inside. Notice, I said imagine.


Have a dr. appt. today for my yearly tune-up. It's a new budget month for me, so I have money to spend! Archiver's coupons arrived today. Looks like I'll have to swing by there while I'm out.

Being the end of the month, I'm taking a short break from challenges to clean my studio. It's long overdue and you know who is sending me hints. The old Inner Self never stays quiet  long.

Challenges:
Saturday Spotlight- Treat box
Crazy 4 Challenges- Three geometrical shapes
Crafty Cardmakers- Autumn
House Mouse Monday- aperture

Last Halloween Card!

I think I'm ready for Christmas projects. Never thought I'd be a little tired of Halloween. Just goes to show that too much of a good thing can be make you sick. I feel the same  way about Little Debbie Swiss Cakes. I already sent out my Halloween cards, so this one will have to wait until next year. I've included two cute poems on the tags. I think my grandson will enjoy them. Interactive cards are fun.

Challenges:

Stampin B's Challenge- Diagonal Pocket Card

Penny Black Saturday Challenge- Halloween

OCC- Book/Movie Inspired (Batman...okay it's a stretch.)

Third Post- Happy St. Patrick's Day!

So much for preposting! I came across two challenges this morning that I could enter on the spot. I made this card last St. P's Day before I new about blog challenges. It's been tucked away in my card stash. The flap opens to a place to write a special message. I love long cards!!!
Challenges
ABC- G is for green
Caardvarks- Long Cards!

I'm off to work!! No more posts....I promise.

Second Post- Vampire Bites

I got up early this morning to make these "Vampire Bites' for work. Many of my co-workers are Twilight fans, and I thought they would like to have a bite! They are easy to make and quite good. Here's the link to the recipe http://www.recipezaar.com/vire-cookies-370799?nl=RZ-102709-eaters-digest__item-link-url-2 .

Peek-a-Boo Card

I've been scheduling posts ahead of time. It has advantages and disadvantages. I like posting in real time because it seems more personal; however, blogging to the entire world is not exactly one on one. The greatest thing about using the prepost feature is it takes the pressure off of meeting a daily deadline. I can make several cards when I have the time and spread them out over serveral days. I like that. I don't feel rushed. That said, here's today card that I did three days ago:

Challenges:

Treehouse- embossing

Paper Cutz Challenge- three kinds of patterned paper

Cute Card Thursday- candy/sweet

Last Week to Enter for My Eye Candy

This is Tricks of the Trade Tuesday, and it's the last few days to enter for the blog candy. Click here for details. If you're already a follower,  you are just a third of the way to being in the drawing! Get busy!

Tricks of the Trade Tuesday

My trick for keeping track of all my challenges is a web based program called Evernote. You can  access your challenges from any Internet connection. How great is that! I tag my challenges with the due date (the day before it's actually due). I also have three tags-color, sketch, other.  Let's say, I want to see what color challenges I need to do for the week. I hit the color tag, and they all appear. This comes in handy for those who like to do multiple challenges. When it comes time to post my entry, I go to Evernote first, pull up the challenge I need and click the little mouse icon. It takes me to the challenge website. I leave it open and repeat for all the other qualifying challenges. This makes linking so easy peasy. It would probably be easier to go to the site to learn more about it. Play with it. You'll be amazed. They allow a certain amount of notes free each month. I've never come close to using the free space, and I use it for other things besides challenges, too.

Easel Card can Multitask!

I told you that there would be more easel cards on my blog. I just love them.  I  discovered a gift card fits nicely between the button and the top of the inside when the card is closed! Wow! A gift card holder, too.

Challenges:

S2G Twisted Thursday- sketch and pumpkin

Stamp Something- Halloween

Paper Cutz Challenge- Three different patterned papers

Stamptacular Sunday

It's another Stamptacular Sunday! This week's challenge is to maka a card/project using tradtional fall colors. There's an amazing prize for one lucky winner! The Funky Fairy is giving an entire downloadable digi set!!! If you haven't visited her site, click on the link from my sidebar. She has some really great digi stamps and papers. The inspiration for my project came from the paper. It reminded me of caramel corn. Caramel corn reminded me of popcorn. Popcorn reminded me of a popcorn box. Popcorn box reminded me of a template I had stored somewhere on my computer. Do you see how my mind works?

Now, put your mind to work! Go make a fall card/project. Can't wait to see what you do!

Shirley's 2 Girls First Blog Hop!

Welcome to the 1st S2G Members Blog Hop sponsored by Shirley's2Girls! If you've just happened upon my blog, you can CLICK HERE to start from the beginning at the S2G Challenge Blog. If you've come here from Charlene's blog, you're in the right place! I'm last on the hop! I know you've seen great projects from everyone. Here's mine. S2G stamps rock!

I'm quickly becoming a S2G stamp collector! They are such fun stamps.

This little hippo Christmas stamp is from my collection. The sentiment is perfect! One Christmas card down...

While you're here, have a snoop around my site. You never know what you might see!

How about a prize? In addition to the fabulous eye candy, we have decided to hide a prize somewhere along the hop! One pre-selected blogger will draw a random winner from the comments on her post, and the winner will receive a free stamp from Shirley’s2Girls. The fun part is...we're not telling you who it is! So as you hop, make sure you leave comments on every post so you have a chance to win!! We will announce the winner on Monday in the SNR S2G Forum.

S2G Blog Hop!

There's going to be a great Blog Hop tomorrow! Shirley's Two Girls are having a hop, and I'm one of the hostesses! It starts at 10:00am PST. Make sure you come back tomorrow for the big event. You may be a lucky winner!

This minute is a great time to  head over to the SNR and become a member of their group!

I'm Back!

I feel pretty good today! Haven't heard from the doctor, so I'm taking that as good news. You know every cloud has a silver lining. I was able to read a book this week! Yes Cat, I read the book club book!!! Usually, I attend book club as the member who recommends  the next book. That's it. I usually never finish the books I've recommended. Since my one track personality has been on cards, books haven't been read. I'm happy to say, I really enjoyed the book and the act of reading again. It's making me think about my priorities. Cat did recommend the current book club book. It's The Friday Night Knitting Club. It was an excellent book. Oddly enough, two of the main characters were named Cat and Georgia. I think the similarities stopped there. I used to be a nonstop knitter. That changed when it was replaced with another obsession. Maybe they're not obsessions...maybe they are footstones along life's path. I  think I feel like knitting a pair of socks...

Wart Hog

Yes, I feel like a wart hog today. Yesterday, I was finally able to drag myself to the doctor. She has ruled out virus. Ran some tests in an effort to figure out the mystery. Won't know the results for a day or so. Until then, I'm a wart hog. No desire to make cards. You know I'm sick when I don't want to make cards!

Have fun with the challenges! Stamptacular Sunday is having a Bonus Blog Hop on the 25th. It should be a lot of fun. It's in addtion to the weekly challenge.
I'm back to the couch! Have a good one!!

Under the Weather

I've been under the weather for the past several days. A wicked stomach virus has taken over my life. Hope to be back soon.

Tricks of the Trade Tuesday-

Drink plenty of liquids.

What is Monster Mash?

Monster Mash is any candy! This is a cute little holder for some Halloween treats. It's Stamptacular Sunday Challenge Day! Today's challenge is Spooktacular: Create a Spooky Halloween themed card or project! I used several free digis to make this spooktacular gift holder. Make tracks to Stamptacular Sunday to check out the inspiration, details, and prize for this week.

Directions for this Halloween Treat Bag is at the Scor-pal website!

Let's do the Mash....it was a graveyard smash...Now you'll have that song in your head all day. Sorry!

Just When I Thought...

Just when I thought I was caught up on challenges, a new day rolls around with a new batch! What's a girl to do?? We have gone from summer to winter around here! It's cold and gloomy with a chance of frozen stuff this morning. I'm ready for Indian Summer.

Challenges:
Cupcake Craft Challenge- buttons and stitching
Creative Belli- fall and leaf
No Time to Stamp?-gatefold card
Dare You to Digi- digi and orange, yellow, and black
Get Sketchy- sketch

Batty

I'm batty over Stickles. Love using them whenever I get the chance. I accented the bats' and cat's eyes with orange Stickles. You have a chance to win a package of Stickles on my blog. Click on the pix at the right for details. Easy Peasy.

I was able to use two of my favorite stamps...Shirley's 2 Girls  and Penny Black. Both always put a smile on my face. A friend of mine has a birthday on the 29th. It's close enough to Halloween to make it work as a birthday card.

Challenges:

S2G Twisted Thursday- sketch and chipboard

High Hopes Challenge- Going green-recycle ( made chipboard out of thick cardboard scrap)

Squigglefly- color and embellishment

One Stop Craft Challenge

Giant Spiders

I've seen giant spiders in movies, so they must be real. I don't know why; but, I had a hard time with decorating a tree. Rubber stamp trees are small. Critter stamps are big. Do you understand my problem? Decided to just have some fun with it.

I used Stickles to accent the eyes. You have a chance to win a package of Stickles on my blog. Click on the pix at the right for details.

Challenges:
Scrappy Frogs Challenge- tree
Saturday Spotlight with Hidden Potential- Dress up a tree
The Pink Elelphant-fall
Mojo Monday- sketch

Easel Cards Rock!

The second I saw the easel card at Splitcoast, I knew it was the card for me. I love it, and it's so easy peasy to make! I think you'll see a lot of them on my blog in the future. I used Stickles to add a touch of bling on the hat and around the little kitty. Speaking of Stickles, I have a little blog candy, and I do mean little, up for grabs. Click on the pix under My Blog Candy Giveaway to find out how easy it is to enter!

Challenges:
PaperPlay Challenges- favorite embell
BasicGrey Challenge- sketch
Dancing in Pajamas- buttons
Penny Black Saturday Challenge- buttons and PB stamp
Cute Card Thursday-Spook Fest

There is a Reason

Yes, there is a reason why I don't do people characters on my cards very often. I have a fear of coloring faces. I think I can get away with it when it's a carton type character. Real people, no way!

Challenges:
Get Sketchy- sketch
Paper Cutz- red, black, white
VC Stamp Challenge- black, white, and splash of another color
Nutshells- Use the witch digi
ABC Challenge- F is for flying

Teddy Bear

I still have my teddy from when I was young. It looks a lot like this one, except mine doesn't have much fur. Old age....

Challenge:
PaperPlay- sketch
Cuttlebug Challenge- Halloween and fall

I'm a Dreamer

If I had a pipe, I'd be a pipe dreamer. Since I don't, I'm a coffee dreamer. I love to coffee dream. Dreams of travels, adventures, and paper crafting always occupy my mind. The dreaming is as much fun as the real thing. Sometimes, it's even better.

Challenges:
Colour Create- red, yellow, and black
S2G- sketch with a twist (metal tag)
Cute Card Thursday- charm


To nap, coffee dream, or do another challenge....?

You've Been Boo'd!

     I'm back home and in the swing of things except for my inner alarm clock. It's so confused. Had to be at work at 6:00 am for a four hour shift. My body was thinking 3:00 am. It's not natural to be working at 3:00am. Oh well, I'm home early and have the rest of the day to play or nap. While zipping around in cyperspace, I learned about a neat little tradition some people have for Halloween. You leave a little gift on a neighbor's doorstep with a note that says you've been boo'd. I like the idea, so I made this little candy/door holder. Inside are several mini candy bars.              

Challenges:

Three Clovers Designs Thursday Challenge- Halloween treat holder

Whimsy Stamps Challenge- Get punchy

Tricks of the Trade Tuesday

Today is Tricks of the Trade Tuesday. Please click on my blog candy to find out how you can win this neat little package of stuff. Today's tricks come from my experience with making cards from a kit.

I learned three tips from this card:

1.Place a paper punch flower on top of a flower. Gives depth and interest.
2. Pleat a strip. They used a fold staple technique. I messed this up and didn't have extra paper, so I made the crinkled look.
3. Tear paper towards you to get a nice white border. I always forget to use this technique.

I love this card. It was simple to make and the layout is perfect for using pattern, solid, and stripes together. I love stripes, but find it hard to use them in great quantity. This is perfect, it's just enough. The rounded corners are such a nice touch. I always forget this easy technique.

 I've never thought about using triangles to make a flag banner! How simple!! Add flags, brads, and bows... you have a cute card for just about any theme.





My most important trick for today is to study cards that you love. You'll discover all kinds of ideas for you to incorporate in your creations.

Third Card from Kit

It took about 10 minutes to make the three cards from the Scrapbook Barn's (Gilbert, Az) Monthly Card Kit. Somehow, it's not much of a challenge. I like the thrill of picking the right paper, stamp, embellishment, etc. It's what I love about this obsession. Even though I didn't get a high on making the cards, I learned a few new tricks. I'll share those with you tomorrow on Tricks of the Trade Tuesday. I have a little blog candy for bait. You can also hit the pix on my sidebar for more info.

Challenge- One Stop Craft Challenge

Second Card from Kit

This is the second card from the Scrapbook Barn's (Gilbert, Az) Monthly Card Kit. It works for a couple challenges:

Caardvarks-new card with ribbon
Simon Says Challenge- Halloween


This is my last day in the Valley of the Sun. I'll be taking the big bird home in the morning. It's been a fun time with the kids, and I can't wait to return. It looks like it's off to work I go when I get home. Oh well, it feeds my addictions and makes the Inner Self happy.

A Great Compromise

Yesterday, my son and I were running errands in the Phoenix area when we stumbled upon a scrapbooking store, Imagine that! Of course, I had to take a sneak peek. It was a large store and their major focus was on scrapbooking. However, they did have a cardmaking kit for the Month of October. What a find! The kit had all the materials to make three different cards. The only extra thing I needed to buy was a tape runner. I could have the best of both worlds! Didn't have to haul my stuff across the country and didn't have to invest in a lot of supplies while here. I had a JoAnn's 50% off coupon for my tape runner. I did have to make some minor adjustments due to lack of a few tools. My son's scissors wouldn't cut butter and I had no ink to stress the edges of the letters. They were suppose to be rectangular. I opted for the torn paper technique. The strip behind the flower was suppose to be pleated. Had to nix the pleated paper technique because it just wasn't working out for me. This card will take care of three challenges:
Treehouse Challenge "Just because" card
Stamp Something brown
Crazy 4 Challenges Thankful

Character Counts! Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

This little card was fun to make. I had the Snoopy stamp; but, I needed pumpkins of different shapes and sizes. The Internet to the rescue! Googled pumpkin color pages and found a wide assortment. I was able to change the size of them to make the pumpkin patch. To give depth, I used pop dots. I altered the stamp. The original has Snoopy carrying an envelope. Trimmed it away and added the sign. Zap yourself over to the Stamptacular Sunday Challenge to enter this week's challenge.

Managed to Stay Out of Trouble

Took a break from treasure hunting to go to the zoo. It was an opportunity to use my camera; however, I brought the wrong lens. Oh well.

      I had to return my rental car this afternoon. It turned into an adventure. My plan was to return the car and take the light rail to the ASU campus. I'm familiar with the campus because my son went to school there. After dropping off the car, I received directions from the rental agent to take the bus back to airport terminal 2 or 3, get off the bus, turn left and wait under the light rail sign. He said to get on the silver bus, and it will take you to the rail station. I did as I was told. After sitting on the silver bus for awhile, we returned back to where we started. At that point, I asked the driver if I was on the right bus. He told me to get off the bus and wait for the silver bus. Didn't want to question him about the color of his bus, so I got off. As I exited, I saw another silver bus. Asked the driver if his bus went to the light rail station. He said, "No, take the silver bus that has the light rail terminal sign on the side of it." I think they need a better color code system.

     Once I got to the ASU campus it was almost dark. It was a little too late to snoop around. An old man invited me to sit next to him on his park bench. I declined the offer and quickly made tracks to Chili's. I waited there for my son to come and get me. I think I've substituted eating for card making. Inner Self  has been pretty quiet.

Card Crafting Withdrawl!

Here's a pix of my finds today. I discovered two really great scrap stores in the area. One specialized in altering stuff. They had a large assortment of old time stamps. The other was a huge scrapbooking store with lots of papers! I love paper, so, I had a grat time. Even though I don't regret leaving my supplies behind, I have such a strong desire to do a challenge. May have to go to Michael's and buy a few basic supplies...

One thing about traveling across time zones is that your inner alarm clock doesn't make the switch. I was up this morning bright and early. Searched the Internet for scrap stores. Mapped the info I needed and took off in search of local treasures. When I arrived at my first destination, it was closed! I arrived 75 minutes early! my inner alarm clock is looking at almost noon. Fortunately, I found a great coffee shop not far from first destination. The have free wifi; so I'm using my iPod touch to write this entry. The wonders of technology.

One thing about traveling across time zones is that your inner alarm
clock doesn't make the switch. I was up this morning bright and early.
Searched the Internet for scrap stores. Mapped the info I needed and
took off in search of local treasures. When I arrived at my first
destination, it was closed! I arrived 75 minutes early! my inner alarm
clock is looking at almost noon. Fortunately, I found a great coffee
shop not far from first destination. They have free wifi; so I'm using
my iPod touch to write this entry. The wonders of technology.

Sent from my iPod

I'm in the desert!

Ooops! Wrong desert. I arrived in sunny Arizona this morning.

Something very strange happend last night. After I packed two containers of card crafting stuff, my Inner Self spoke to me again.  She let me know that it wasn't a good idea to haul all the craft stuff across the country. I needed to focus on other stuff for a change. I'm not sure what she means about other stuff, but I felt a lot better after deciding to leave behind my beloved papers, stamps, and tools. I know I kid about my Inner Self, but I've learned over the years that the little voice inside you is there for a purpose. Fortunately, I have a good one. When I follow her advice, it always turns out for the best. When I don't, I usuallly have regrets. I'm grounded when I listen. I think she's Divine.

Who knows where the rest of the week will take me. I'll keep you posted.

Tricks of the Trade Tuesday and Blog Candy!

I dub today Tricks of the Trade Tuesday henceforth in the Blogdom of Papercrafters!

Each Tuesday I'll be posting a quick trick or tip that is related to papercrafting. As part of this weekly event, I would like to involve you! I am offering a little blog candy. Of course, there are a few strings attached. First, be a follower or become a follower of my blog. Second, post a pix of my blog candy on your sidebar with a link back to my page. Third, leave a tip or trick that you like to use when creating a paper creation. It's that easy. Each week, I'll feature a tip. When your tip is used, I'll feature it with a link to your blog.

My tip for today- Use plastic mesh canvas to make stitches, blackground dots, and piercing dots.  It evenly spaces everything for you! These are cheap! They come is a package of ten (Hobby Lobby) and make great little gifts to fellow crafters.

Remember to post the blog candy with a link back to me. Leave a trick/tip with your blog address!

BLOG CANDY

I'll be collecting tips until October 30th! The winner will be drawn on October 31st.

Haste Makes Waste

My Inner Self seems to have gone somewhere. If you see her, please send her back. I know she's gone because if she had been here I wouldn't have rushed to make this card without double checking the due dates. I made this card for three challenges, and all of them are past due. Oh, well. The stamp is from S2G. Think of it as a sneak peak for a future challenge.


Update- A few hours after I posted this card, a challenge appeared at Stamps and Smiles for ruby red, olive green, caramel, and chocolate! I think my Inner Self is back!!

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

The Challenge today at the Stamptacular Sunday Challenge is to create a card that has something that must be pulled out. I selected a couple of ideas from the resource page at Splitcoast Stampers. The Trifold Pocket Card combined with the Circle Flip Up Book became an interactive Halloween card.

World Card Making Day

In my world, everyday is card making day! Almost didn't post today because of a time crunch in my life at the moment. I'm leaving for Phoenix, Az. on Wednesday, and I have a great deal to do in  preparation for the trip! However, I eekked out some time to complete a project for several challenges. The little card on the right has the recipe for the wonderful caramel corn. Okay, I staged the caramel corn with Crunch and Munch; but, when I have time I'll make it. The card on the left is where you write a little thank you note. Don't you just love the S2G stamps! Click on the link on my sidebar to zap yourself to their store. You won't regret it!

2RedBananas- bag, boxes, or wrapping

S2G Twisted Thursday- sketch with twine

Treehouse Thursday- alter it!

Cuttlebug Challenge- Thank you notes

Where did She Go?

I took the day off! Actually, I've been working on several loose ends. Hope to be back soon. Don't forget to go to Stamptacular Sunday on the 4th. They'll have a great challenge for you!

On the Road Again

This cute little bug is a digi from Shirley's 2 Girls. Since I'm going to be on the road again next week, it kind of reminds me of myself.

Challenges:
Cupcake Craft Challenge- cute as a bug
Digital Tuesday Challenge- heart
Sweet Sunday Sketch- sketch
Simon Says Stamp- red and green