Enchanting Stamping

It's been busy...

2012-02-05T13:09:00.000-08:00

What a sweet face! One day, recently, when the weather was mild I walked through a farmer's market down along the Rio Grande, this little guy was so cute and didn't mind posing for a couple of pictures. I did pick up some alpaca wool to play around with for a future project but until then I'll just have to look at his cute face.

I'm currently working on all the orders for conversation heart bracelets and valentine boxes. I've also been doing a lot of photography and having such fun with all of it.

Can't believe it's already February. I'll talk to you again soon.

Caught in the act!

2012-01-17T19:56:00.000-08:00

I was experimenting tonight. I wanted to make some cookies but didn't want to drag out all the ingredients and I didn't want to make a huge amount. So on to the internet I went and found several recipes using a cake mix to make cookies. After reading several, I combined a couple that sounded good. You can see the result. I caught him red handed this time! The DH (Darling Husband) liked these so much he was going to help himself to my little photography sample. Not to worry, he got to sneak off with a few. Hopefully some of them will last long enough for me to put them into his lunches this week.

Here is the version of the recipe I used,

1 cake mix (any flavor, I used a white cake mix I had in the cabinet)

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup sprinkles (the valentine ones I forgot to use the other day)

Mix the first 4 ingredients together until all the dry mix is incorporated then mix in the chocolate chips and the sprinkles. Use a small scoop and place rounded dough on to an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, let cool on the cookie sheet at least 5 minutes before removing. That's it, easy peasy! I thinking these are cute enough to package up and give as quick little Valentine gifts too.

Going to a "what's new in children's literature" conference tomorrow. It should be fun. I'll talk to you again soon.

Valentine treat

2012-01-13T22:06:00.000-08:00

Just a quick little treat to pack into the DH's lunchbox. I picked up a small bag of valentine colored M&M's and used up some left over pretzels, white chocolate, chocolate chips to make a pretzel candy treat. Love the colors and the sweet and salty together.

It goes together in a blink. Spread the pretzels out on a wax paper lined cookie sheet, melt the white chocolate and drizzle it over the pretzels. While the white chocolate is still warm, liberally sprinkle the top with the candy and chocolate chips. (I had valentine sprinkles but I forgot to add them to the mix. I think they would add a little more sparkle to the treat. I'll remember them for the next batch.) Wait till the white chocolate is cool and everything is set, then break it apart in to manageable chunks. I keep it in a small plastic container.

The weekend is shaping up to be quite full, I hope I can fit some creative time in. I hope you have a great weekend and I'll talk to you again soon.

DIY Valentine Gifts

2012-01-09T03:00:00.000-08:00

I've been creating away in my little studio the last few days and thinking of Valentine's day. I wanted to make a sweet little container for a gift idea I had so I searched around the net for some ideas and found this site here. This candy box is what I had envisioned but I assembled mine a little differently and I just used card stock because that's what I have on hand. I made some coordinating felt flowers and a little tag to decorate the top. Tucked inside is a little surprise.

I found the idea for the bracelet on-line too. Right here, she even gives a great tutorial I how she makes them. I did mine a little different, I'm not that good with nail polish. I sprayed the candy (yes they're real conversation hearts) with several coats of clear lacquer, let them dry and then drilled the top and inserted the eye pins. I had to warn the sweet-toothed DH not to eat them, they look even yummier shiny. Not to worry, I'll be sure to give him his own little box of un-lacquered ones to eat on Valentine's day.

I had several folks at school ask me to make some for them to give as gifts so I'm off to make more. I'll talk to you again soon.

Linking to:

Packages and twine

2012-01-08T13:27:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! 8 days late! I can't believe how easily and quickly the days have been slipping by. I've been busy crafting in the little studio I just need time to get the camera out to take pictures, then I'll post some of my projects. Until then, I received some new baker's twine this past week and have had fun wrapping up some simple packages to put in the mail. All the new colors are so fun and you know how I love to coordinate my colors!

I'll talk to you again soon.

Last Day and a Count Down

2011-12-31T03:00:00.000-08:00

Well, it's the last day of December, the last day of 2011 and the last day of my personal creative challenge. This year has been an exciting time of creative projects and working out of my comfort zone. Reflecting on the past year and all the projects I was able to work on and complete, I decided I would do a top ten post to end the year. So here are some of my favorites and some of the most visited posts of this year...

No. 10

The gifts and packages I made for my mom & sister's and niece's

annual birthday tea.

No. 9

A brunch I catered for some friends. We had so much fun that day.

No. 8

A set of cards I made for a special Aunt. They actually got put in the mail to her (I won't tell you when)

No. 7

A card I did for a challenge. I still like this orange and blue combination.

No. 6

Pinky and Dotty the owls, I found the instructions on the internet and wound up making several to give away.

No. 5

December's Valentine Bear.

No. 4

A card I made for a challenge that honorsthe famous NM question.

No. 3

Another challenge card that earned a spotin the top 10 on the Heart 2 Heart challenge blog.

No. 2

Polka dot love! This was for anotherchallenge and actually won the top honor for the month. As a result I gotto be the guest designer on the Heart 2 Heart challenge blog. It wasquite a thrill!

And finally, the No. 1
post for 2011, itwas the most visited and I actually won something!

Well, there you have it! Mycreative highlights of 2011. I already have big plans for 2012, I hopeyou do too. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you come back often. Have a safe, healthy and happy new year. I'll talk to you again soon.

**Edit** Joined the link to top ten @ Someday Crafts.

Miniature Messages

2011-12-30T19:03:00.000-08:00

Today is day 30 of my personal creative challenge

Practicing my blanket stitch in miniature. Little tiny envelope with tiny little messages inside. After I stitched it together I thought I'd attach it to another project. This time I used a small bear that I made a few weeks ago but didn't like the buttons that I had sewn on for eyes or the ribbon around his neck. So, I reworked him a little bit, painted on a face and heart and added the small message holder. Now he can deliver sweet notes for me.

I like him a lot better but I'm still going to work on him a bit more. He needs something...

Thanks for stopping by today. I'll talk to you again soon.

Scrapbooking

2011-12-29T21:07:00.000-08:00

This is day 29 of my personal creative challenge

I am a very slow and a bit of perfectionist when it comes to scrapbooking. Today I worked on a couple of pages for a book that I'm putting together for my parents. We took this road trip not last summer but the summer before. I know! I am so slow! This is the first page, I used the editor at Costco to put together pictures that represented each part of the trip.

Our first stop was a tiny farming community in Il. where my dad spent part of his childhood.

We also made a stop at the cemetery to visit grave sites of family members.

That's it! That's all I have so far. The whole book is organized, pictures are sorted and papers have been picked out, I know what pictures are going to go on what pages and I have an idea of the journaling for each page. I'm just really slow. Maybe I'll get it done by this coming summer, that's my goal. I'll let you know how it goes.

Two more days of my personal creative challenge. Some days have been easier than others, we will see if I can make it to the end of the month. I'm close!

Thanks for stopping by today. I'll talk to you again soon.

Mini Birdhouses

2011-12-28T20:59:00.000-08:00

It's day 28 of my personal creative challenge

Just a quick post. Today I played around with some paper scraps and tiny wooden birdhouses. I've had these forever and finally decided to dress them up a little bit. They are a work in progress, I'm thinking I might add them to a springtime wreath or something like that. Not sure, still in the thinking process. These are done using a couple of my favorite colors, I use pink and green in varying shades most often. The rub-ons are also left overs from a sheet that I had lying around.

Thanks for stopping by today, I'll talk to you again soon.

Valentine Bear

2011-12-27T21:09:00.000-08:00

Today is day 27 of my personal creative challenge

Ok, I know it's still a month away and it's only 2 days after Christmas, but this morning I woke up thinking about Valentine's day. I recently found this new publication from the UK called Mollie Makes (molliemakes.com) every issue has cute felt projects and other hand crafts. Well issue 8, their Christmas issue didn't get here until it was too late for me to make anything for Christmas, but they did a feature on one of my favorite designers, Tone Finnanger, she is Norwegian and has a Scandinavian style. I have one of her books, which I look at all the time.

Anyway, this little bear design was in the publication as a Christmas bear so I thought I could change it up a little and make him a Valentine bear with a little red heart and everything. I think he turned out pretty cute.**Edited I linked my bear to Sew Cute Tuesday**and Someday craft's Whatever goes Wednesday.**

Thanks for stopping by today, I'll talk to you again soon.

Ribbon organization

2011-12-26T21:07:00.000-08:00

Day 26 of my personal creative challenge

Organization is not my strong suit, I struggle with getting things into a working organizational style, but I did score these great boxes when our tech was unpacking some speaker bars for the computers at school. The empty boxes are the perfect size for ribbon storage and organization. In case you haven't noticed, I do love ribbon and over the years I have collected a lot. This system has helped me keep the ribbon in better shape and organize it by color. I labeled the end of each box with the colors contained in it. They stack neatly above my desk on the wire shelves my sweet DH installed for me. At a glance I can grab the box with the color I'm looking for and take it to my work table to try out the different sizes and textures to see which one will work with the project at hand.

Now my next decision is to try to figure out how I want to cover the boxes so they go with the color scheme in my room, or do I leave them plain? They are mostly white with the black spots, so on one hand they are kind of cute and would go with any color scheme I might go to in the future, but on the other hand they do have a company name plastered all over them. Decisions, decisions...

I'm kind of proud that I was able to figure out a re-purposing project with these, I usually don't think of things until it's too late. It was kind of a happy accident that I grabbed these before they went in the dumpster.

I'm cleaning up the the craft studio right now, making yet another attempt at organization. My next struggle, cause, conundrum, is what to do with all the magazines I collect!!! They are beginning to take over every horizontal space in the room (including the floor!). They contain so many great ideas I have such a hard time parting with them. I would go digital but I love holding them in my hands and turning the pages. I read and re-read them all the time. What to do!?

Thanks for stopping by today I know I rambled on a bit. I'll talk to you again soon.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T20:05:00.000-08:00

Day 25 of my personal creative challenge

God bless each of you on this day and all through the year.

Homemade Caramel Corn

2011-12-24T10:50:00.000-08:00

It's day 24 of my personal creative challenge

The caramel corn is done and packaged up in it's Christmas popcorn boxes. Yes, there is a prize inside each box.

This caramel corn is delicious and it turns out crisp not chewy every time. I put a little prize in the bottom of each one. Lip gloss rings for the girls and dinosaur erasers for the boys. I found the prizes in the party isle at the big store down the hill.

It's almost time to deliver the goodies. I hope your Christmas eve is filled with the love, joy and hope of the season and you and your family get to celebrate the birth of Christ and His gift to each of us. I'll talk to you again soon.

Cowboy Christmas Cookies part II

2011-12-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

This is day 23 of my personal creative challenge

If you've been reading my blog the last few days you may remember that I make a batch of Cowboy Christmas cookies for my gift platters. Well, they didn't last long enough to go on the platters. I went in to the pantry yesterday and found that the container only had about 4 cookies left, the guilty party admitted to eating them but said he thought I had more somewhere else and didn't realize these were for the platters. Oh well, a second batch went together today and I think these turned out better than the first batch.

I started packaging them up as soon as they were cool enough so hopefully they'll make it out to our friends and neighbors. For this gift I used another one of the cute little buckets I got at Target. Then I made labels for the top of the containers. I've still got to add a tag and some ribbon but, they're almost ready to go out the door.

I hope your day was filled with fun and laughter too. I'll talk to you again soon.

Chocolate, chocolate cookies

2011-12-22T19:53:00.000-08:00

It's day 22 of my personal creative challenge

Today I worked on some gluten free chocolate cookies for a friend of mine. They have a meringue base and lots of chocolate. I think they turned out pretty good and DH says "they rock", high praise indeed!

I found these cute clear paint buckets in the Target $1 bins. Perfect for a dozen of these little chocolate treats. I just need to add a label and tag and ribbon, of course. More goodies to be made tomorrow so I'll talk to you again soon.

Yum... lunch time

2011-12-21T13:00:00.000-08:00

This is day 21 of my personal creative challenge

I've been working in the kitchen on sweet stuff all day and needed a little something to cut through the sweet. I made this quick pasta salad with linguini, zucchini, carrots, scallions, avocado and a home-made balsamic vinaigrette, topped off with a sprinkling of over crisped turkey bacon. It was delish! I've also been experimenting with truffles.

I thought they would be easy but my filling is not cooperating. They do taste decadent though. I'm using cheesecake as the filling and then dip/rolling that in semisweet chocolate. Two of our favorite flavors in this house.

I'm going to keep working at it. I wonder if I roll the chessecake ball in something before trying to roll it in the warm chocolate if that would help? Any suggestions? Leave me a comment and thanks for stopping by today. I'll talk to you again soon.

10 minutes or less

2011-12-20T17:07:00.000-08:00

This is day 20 of my personal creative challenge

A very quick card for the top of a cookie tray. One stamp, one color of ink, a little glitter, ribbon and a tag I already had. I really like this lime green color it's not a traditional green but I like it's brightness. I'm making more goodies in the kitchen and hoping to post pictures soon.

Have a great evening. I'll talk to you again soon.

Snow theme

2011-12-19T19:58:00.000-08:00

Today is day 19 of my personal creative challenge

It snowed most of the day today. Big fluffy wet snowflakes that melted when they hit the ground (until about 4:00) tomorrow's commute for some folks will be a bit dicey. Thankfully, I'll be spending the day in the kitchen working on cookie platters. But for tonight, a cheery little snowflake card. Thanks for stopping by. I'll talk to you again soon.

Day 18 of my personal creative challenge

2011-12-18T22:18:00.000-08:00

Nope, no pictures, although I've spent the last four hours editing almost 400 pictures from the weekend events at church. What an amazing weekend! You'll just have to take my word for it that I was creative with my camera for two solid days, what a blast. Tomorrow I'll be back with something "made" to show you. Until then, have a great day tomorrow and I'll talk to you again soon.

Fabric Stamping

2011-12-17T21:00:00.000-08:00

This is day 17 of my personal creative challenge

Switching gears, or crafts today. I did a little stamping and coloring on fabric to make these cute little fabric patches. I'm still in the thinking process about how I'm going to use them. But for right now, I think they are cute just the way they are. When I figure it out I'll be sure to share it with all of you.

Have a blessed Sunday tomorrow. I'll talk to you again soon.

Thank you volunteers!

2011-12-16T16:25:00.000-08:00

Today is day 16 of my personal creative challenge

Finished up the last of my volunteer thank you gifts. They all turned out great and I think my ladies really liked them.

Each set ended up being a different color combination. I can't decide which one was my favorite. This green and red set was very traditional but I loved how it turned out. The next set was is a pale blue green with accents of brown and it was really pretty too.

Nope, can't decide. What about you? Do you have a favorite? Thanks for stopping by, we have a gathering to go to tonight so I guess I better go wrap those white elephant gifts. I'll talk to you again soon.

Sugared Almonds

2011-12-15T16:59:00.000-08:00

This is day 15 of my personal creative challenge

A yummy treat and mostly healthy gift, these sugared almonds are pretty easy to make but, a little time consuming, you can package them up in a variety of cute ways. This year I went a little easy on myself and made some small popcorn shaped boxes to put them in.

These were easy to put together and then wrap up with a little clear wrap. A quick tie with some ribbon and they are good to go. This recipe will make enough for several little gifts as long as I stay out of the bowl.

I hope you are having a great evening. Only one day left before our Christmas break starts, not that I'm counting or anything. I'll talk to you again soon.

Christmas gift set version II

2011-12-14T22:40:00.000-08:00

This is day 13 of my personal creative challenge

Finished the second Christmas gift set this evening. I used the un-traditional colors of pink and black for this set. This gift is for my friend Rebecca, she is a girly girl so the color combination reminded me of her.

This set contains the same elements as the first, a decorated notepad and paperclip bookmark, three different gift tag designs, 4 embossed note cards and envelopes and 4 embossed gift card envelopes. Hope she likes it.

I've got somethings in the oven so I better go take care of that. Thanks for stopping in, I'll talk to you again soon.

Boxed treats

2011-12-13T20:57:00.000-08:00

Today is day 13 of my personal creative challenge

Okay, I have to admit, today was difficult. I didn't think I was going to get anything finished! But, here it is, one box of cookies ready for the cookie exchange tomorrow. Only 5 more boxes to go. It wouldn't be so bad except for the fact that I couldn't find any boxes that I liked, that went along with the theme for the exchange, so of course I had to make some. Sometimes I drive myself CRAZY! It's going to be a late night so I better get back to work. Thanks for stopping by I'll talk to you again soon.

Christmas Cowboy Cookies

2011-12-12T20:01:00.000-08:00

This is day 12 in my personal creative challenge

This evening it was more baking for the neighbor's treat trays. I was trying a new recipe for cowboy cookies. There are several versions on the web and I read just about all of them. I decided to use Bakerella's version to start off with but, I hit a few snags. My first problem was I thought I had enough oats in the cabinet but when I opened the container... no joy, not enough for the recipe. But in that same cabinet I had a bag of "Bare Naked granola" and that got me thinking, these cookies are flexible enough to have lots of goodies in them why not substitute the oatmeal with granola. Okey Dokey, in the bowl it went. Next, I had no pecans! What!!! how could I have no pecans. Well, I didn't and I wasn't going out in the rain/ice/snow to pick some up so I guess there'll be no pecans in this batch. I added the rest of the ingredients and as I was mixing, the dough was very dry and was not going to hold together to bake. Again I though to my self, what should I add, milk? nah, I think I was channeling Paula Dean, so I added more butter and another egg, better, but now it was a little too sticky so I added more flour. Are you getting the picture? The stuff in the bowl kept getting bigger and bigger! Finally, the first batch went into the oven. They smelled really good, they didn't look bad, I sort of let them cool and tried one. MMMM, I think I'm on to something.

They have the chewy texture of an oatmeal cookie, lots of chocolate goodness, and the coconut adds another layer of texture and taste. My adventurous DH tried one (after they'd cooled for a couple of minutes) He pronounced them tasty. Okay, guess these will make it on to the treat trays after all.

I'm off to take another batch out of the oven. Sleep well, and I'll talk to you again soon.

Gift set

2011-12-11T21:15:00.000-08:00

This is Day 11 in my personal creative challenge

Finished! All the pieces are together in my holiday stationary gift set for my friend Rosa. I'm making three more sets in different color combinations but I just had to show you one of them completed! Everything is handmade, even the gift box. So here's what's inside...

On the left side of the box is the notepad and matching paperclip bookmark with a coordinating pen. The center sections hold the three different designs of gift tags (four of each design) on the right are 4 snowflake embossed note cards and envelopes and the bottom right are four snowflake embossed gift card envelopes. Hopefully it has everything she needs to finish her gift wrapping and correspondence. I'll add a big bow and gift tag when I give it to her. As I finish the other sets I'll post them too.

Well, I have some photos to edit still tonight so I guess I better get busy. Have a great start to your week and I'll talk to you again soon.

Creative Kitchen

2011-12-10T12:26:00.001-08:00

This is Day 10 in my personal creative challenge

The holiday baking has started. I decided to make these Candy Cane Blossom cookies for the cookie exchange at school. I found this pretty red pearlized sugar at Michael's. It's so sparkly. These are super easy and look so pretty. I'll probably bake extra for my neighbor treat trays.

You can find the recipe for these on the Hershey website here. Well, I'm off to do more baking. I hope your weekend is off to an excellent start. Thanks for stopping by, I'll talk to you again soon.

Fun Friday photography

2011-12-09T20:33:00.001-08:00

This is Day 9 of my personal creative challenge

I got to spend the evening photographing a CD release party. The party was staged in a million dollar home right on the banks of the Rio Grande. The view of the city lights was spectacular and the interior of the house was really beautiful as well but, I was there to photograph the people so I didn't get any of those spectacular shots. I did take a quick picture of this beautiful chandelier. It was hanging in the sitting area of the master bedroom.

Have a great night and I'll talk to you soon.

Tags again!

2011-12-08T19:56:00.001-08:00

This is Day 8

in my personal creative challenge

This is the last set of tags for the gift set I'm putting together. This gift set is done in shades of purple and blue with a little silver and glitter thrown in. There are a couple more pieces to the set then I'll show you the entire project.

This little challenge of mine was a bit hard to do today, it was a long day at school and I kind of wanted to come home and veg out but I knew I'd be disappointed in myself if I didn't at least make the attempt. I'm glad I did.

I'm photographing an event tomorrow night so I know I'm going to be creative, but I'm not sure I'll be able to post, I'm going to try my best though! Have a great day tomorrow and I'll talk to you again soon.

Glittery snowy gift tags

2011-12-07T18:08:00.001-08:00

This post is Day 7

in my personal challenge to do something creative every day.

More tags for the gift set I'm working on. Can't wait for you to see it all put together. But, until then, this is another small part of the set. We're back to school tomorrow there has finally been some melting of the snow and roads are clear enough for the buses and student drivers to make it to the various campuses around the city. It's been a great and unexpected break and a nice jump start to my creative challenge.

Have a great day tomorrow and I'll talk to you again soon.

Day 6 Treat boxes

2011-12-06T20:07:00.001-08:00

Spent part of the day making treat containers and deciding on which recipes to use this year. We always deliver treat trays to our neighbors, it's a tradition I enjoy and helps to kick off the season. The bigger containers are for my favorite caramel corn recipe. It comes out perfect every time and so addictive I could eat an entire batch by myself (almost in one sitting!) I will try to refrain from over indulging but it will be a struggle. These still need tags and labels but at least they are started. Have a restful evening and I'll talk to you again soon.

Day 5 Gift tags

2011-12-05T18:18:00.001-08:00

Today, a set of gift tags and some warm comforting soup for dinner. I got out and shoveled the driveway and walkway to the house so I'd say it was a productive day.

These tags are the next part of a gift set I'm making for a friend. More tomorrow. Have a cozy evening and I'll talk to you again soon.

Day 4 personal creative challenge

2011-12-04T19:20:00.001-08:00

Day 4, still going. I think I read somewhere that if you can keep something going for 30 days it becomes a habit. Hmmm, if I can get in the habit of being creative everyday, think of the other things I might be able to make into a "good" habit! Something to ponder...

This little note pad and matching paperclip book mark are the start of a series of items I making for gifts. So as I get more of the kit together I'll post the pictures. I'm noticing a theme here though. Snow and snowmen, I think I've been a little inspired by the weather, we did get snow this weekend but the weather folks are predicting another 5 to 8 inches over the next couple of days. I know several kiddos who are praying for a snowday and I'm thinking a day to sleep in might be nice. Either way I'm looking forward to a little creative time where I can grab it.

I'll talk to you again soon!

Day 3 creative personal challenge

2011-12-03T20:20:00.001-08:00

Whew! just made it. I've been away from home the majority of the day, but I was able to get a card made for a care package that is leaving tomorrow for a friend stationed in Korea. That was first thing this morning about 7:30 am, but I only got home a few minutes ago to post. I guess that's why it's called a challenge, right? My goal is to use this activity to manage my time better, to use those quick minutes productively rather than squander them. I know when I've been able to be creative in some small way during the day I feel like I've accomplished something and that gives me a little more joy. When I get to make or do something for someone else that brings them a little joy, that just adds to the feeling.

There is still time, do something this evening that brings you joy, and if it is for someone else... that's all the better! I'll talk to you again soon.

December 2nd day two of personal challenge

2011-12-02T17:58:00.001-08:00

Seeing as this is my challenge to myself, I'm taking it slow, slow and steady wins the race, right!? Anyway, I got a little stamping and coloring done today. I have a project in mind but it is going to have lots of pieces to it. So, little bits at a time is what I have in my schedule right now, I'm trying to be creative and productive so nothing gets neglected, you know, like laundry and a hungry DH.

Well, I made it, day two and I was able to carve out a little time to create. More tomorrow. Have a great evening and I'll talk to you again soon.

A personal challenge

2011-12-01T16:42:00.001-08:00

Happy first day of December! The countdown begins... I know I haven't started anything so I am challenging myself, a little personal challenge, to be creative every day this month and post it to my blog. For my first day, I'm easing into it with a photograph of one of my timers. Mr. Snowman, we're expecting snow this weekend we will see if it materializes. Well, I'm off and running with my challenge, let's see if I can keep it up. Do you want to join me? Leave me a comment and we'll be creative together!

Have a great evening and I'll talk to you again soon. (Hopefully, tomorrow)

November birthday

2011-11-25T11:40:00.001-08:00

Woke up this morning to a cold, rainy, blustery day. A perfect day to stay holed up in the workroom. Made a quick birthday card for our sweet Angie. I'd gotten her a gift card earlier and wanted to secure it inside the card. So I made another of my quick paper pockets from a piece of card stock (see this tutorial) I ran through my big shot in an embossing folder. Wrapped it around the gift card for a quick measurement, folded it, cut my notches, taped it together, added a ribbon and secured it inside the card. Wa-la.

She loved it! It was so nice to see her smile. Have a great day and I'll talk to you again soon!

Thankful

2011-11-23T15:22:00.001-08:00

Today is the beginning of the Thanksgiving holiday for our house. We are blessed to have this day to decompress and reflect on everything we're thankful for, before the big day tomorrow. We started off slow with a leisurely breakfast. Tea in my favorite tea cup and cranberry scones fresh from the oven. Sitting around just talking and petting the dog as she wanders between us catching crumbs before they have a chance to hit the floor.

These are very quick to mix together and yummy with butter and a little drizzle of honey or just plain (my DH's favorite way). Here is my recipe.

Cranberry Scones

2 cups flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/4 cup of sugar

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

3/4 to 1 cup milk

3/4 cup of dried cranberries

Mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter until crumbly, I use a dough cutting tool but a food processor will work too, just don't over process. Add milk a little at a time and blend well; dough should be sticky but hold together. Flour a flat surface and knead the dough a couple of times. Pat it out into a round shape about 1/2 an inch thick and cut the round into triangles. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

Makes about 12 scones.

Sometimes I add orange juice to the recipe if I have some in the fridge, if you do, cut back on the milk in an equal amount up to 1/2 a cup. These are great hot from the oven or rewarmed in the microwave.

I hope your holiday preparations are happy and eventful! I'll talk to you again soon.

Pepperminty cuteness

2011-11-21T01:00:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post about these cute peppermint striped clothespins. They just make me smile! Have a wonderful Monday all day long. I'll talk to you again soon.

Paper pockets

2011-11-20T19:47:00.001-08:00

Paper pockets seem to be all "that" lately, at least on several of the blogs that I visit on a regular basis. I am always trying to figure out a way to keep up with the trends by making it myself. I am also an instant results kind of person. I don't want to have to order something and then wait for it to arrive before I can start playing around with the vision I have in my head. So, this little tutorial is all about my attempt at making my own cute paper pockets. You could also modify it to make envelopes since you are creating it to the size of your "filling". My pockets needed to hold 2 recipe cards (see the previous post) I needed to make a bunch of them and I wanted them to reflect a certain theme. Here is where serendipity played a part, I was at Target to pick up that universal tool, duct tape, when I happened by the dollar bins. There I found small rolls of brightly colored holiday wrapping paper. So I picked up a couple, along with my duct tape. I thought the paper would be the perfect weight for my pockets.

First I measured the length and width of my recipe cards and added an inch to the length and then doubled the width and added 2 1/2 inches. This way when I wrapped it around the cards I would have some overlap to glue together. I took the paper and rolled it out on my large cutting mat and used my rotary cutter and quilting rulers to cut it into strips.

Next, I wrapped it around the 2 cards and creased the bottom to get my folds. I unwrapped it and cut notches where the two fold lines intersected on each side. (see below)

I added a small square of white text paper to the top edge of the pocket to reinforce the area where I was cutting a thumb notch. Then punched the notch with a circle punch, just using half of it.

I folded the two outer flaps on the bottom of the pocket up toward the top of the pocket.

Then folded the two sides over, making sure the overlap covered the printing along the side of the paper.

Unfolding the top side I applied tape and then carefully folded it back over.

The final step was to apply tape to the bottom flap and fold it up to create a nice clean looking bottom edge.

Done! It seems like a lot of steps but I was able to make 100 of them in a very short amount of time.

Hope you found this tutorial helpful. As I said above, you can modify this to fit any size project and by adding more to your length measurement you can also add a top flap to make it into an enclosed envelope. Let me know if you try it or if you have any questions.

Have a great week and I'll talk to you again soon.

Cookie Exchange

2011-11-17T04:52:00.001-08:00

I am helping with the preparations for a holiday cookie exchange. I'm making the invitations, yes, 96 of them. I found this cute wrapping paper in the $1 bin at Target. It works perfectly with our theme of peppermint candy and candy canes. I'm planning on posting a tutorial for the envelopes later this week/weekend. Inside the envelope are two recipe cards. The first one is the typed up invitation with all the exchange directions and the second is a blank recipe card for them to RSVP with by filling it out with their cookie recipe. Next, I printed out sheets with "You're invited" and punched them out with a tag punch, a little distressing on the edges, a cute candy die cut and bow and it's ready to be attached. This is one of the prototypes so I used embroidery floss for the bow on the tag but I found some cute baker's twine that coordinates exactly with the wrapping paper so for the real thing I'm going to use that. I painted the natural wood clothespin white and then added peppermint stripes to it as well. A little candy cane to finish it off and it's done. Now, just 95 more to go!

I went back and forth about the closure for the top but decided that the peppermint clothes pin was too cute not to do.

Do you have any great suggestions for an amazing cookie recipe? Leave me a comment, we could do a virtual exchange, post a pic of your cookies in the comments. I am looking forward to hearing about your cookie creations! I'll talk to you again soon.

Get well soon

2011-10-29T11:49:00.000-07:00

5 days in bed, computer down for the count, nothing good on TV.... My sweet parents delivered this cute little mini notebook to my front door. They couldn't come in because I was still contagious but, my DH set it up and I was good to go. Sitting in bed wrapped up in blankets, liquids, aspirin, prescriptions and tissues on the side table. How spoiled am I!! I should be well in no time! Thanks guys!

I'll talk to you soon, when I have a voice again:)

Deb

Halloween treats

2011-10-24T01:00:00.000-07:00

I had seen these cute little peppermint patty spider treats on a site some time ago and thought they would be cute to make for the staff for the start of conferences. Our fall conferences coincide with the Halloween holiday. I'm in the process of constructing 97 of these little guys. They'll have a little tag hanging from one leg that reads: "Hope your conferences are filled with lots of treats and no tricks."

However, in the past, the thought of making these by punching out all the different pieces with several different size punches made my wrist and thumb start aching just thinking about it. Enter the new little paper crafting hero from Close to my heart... The Art Philosophy cricut cartridge. All the pieces for these critters can be cut using that cartridge! No punches necessary, except for a standard single hole punch, for the small black pupils. Even the legs are from the cartridge and I loved being able to cut just the right size to layer everything, as well as cut different size circles based on the diameter of my candy pieces. So versatile!

These little treats were also inspired by the Heart 2 Heart challenge blog. This week's challenge: Halloween or Fall. You should head over there and see all the wonderful inspiration. The papers for this project are all from Close to my heart, Hydrangea, black, daisy white and one of my favorite greens of all times, citrus leaf. The shapes are: Scalloped circle, photo corners base and layer, and a plain circle. For my purposes it was easy to load my paper, choose my shape, set the size and then auto fill the page. The cricut maximized my paper and did all the cutting for me. Now if it could just use glue dots I'd be set (ha, ha).

Have a great week and I'll talk to you again soon. (If my post looks a little off it's because my motherboard died on my computer and I'm using my DH machine, he doesn't any photo editing software on his, but I'm grateful I could still participate this week!) Oh, the original site were I found these little guys is here.

A little french flair

2011-10-20T00:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but when I see stripes with a scalloped edge it always makes me imagine a little cafe on a sidewalk in Paris with a striped awning shading the little tables set in white linen with fresh loaves of bread in baskets on the tables. I've never been there (to Paris that is) so I don't know why that is what I think of, but there you go, that is just how my little pea brain works.

This card makes me think of the promise of spring. I know, we just started fall, but I don't do cold very well so I am always looking toward the warmer months with anticipation.

There you have it, my special gift card set that I'm sending off in a few days. I hope my aunt enjoys them and can use them. I'll talk to you again soon.

Holiday thanks

2011-10-19T00:30:00.000-07:00

The third card in the set is a thank you card, it was inspired by the October 3rd Heart 2 Heart challenge card sketch. The wonderful thing about the Heart 2 Heart challenges is that they are open for the whole month so when you finally have a chance to get into your stamping space you still have the opportunity to participate in their fun challenges. The color combination for this card is holiday red, colonial white and chocolate.

The stamp sets used are the Close to My Heart "Remarkable Wreath" and "Universal Backgrounds" I love the look of text on my backgrounds almost as much and I love polka dots, (well it's not really that close). I guess I'll have to try combining them on a project soon. The last card of the gift set is tomorrow. I'll talk to you again soon.

Love is all you need

2011-10-18T00:30:00.000-07:00

As promised, here is the second card in the Close to my heart "Remarkable Wreath" card set. This card was done in several blue tones, with the addition of cream, bamboo and chocolate. I also used the words background stamp from the "Universal backgrounds" set. I stamped the words background right on my designer paper and then layered all the other elements on top of that.

I hope your day is filled with love. I'll be back tomorrow with the next card. Talk to you again soon.

Four the numbers!

2011-10-17T00:30:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. Welcome to my little space. Today I am posting the card I designed for the Guest Design Team spot for the Heart 2 Heart challenge blog. The challenge this week is to create a card and include a number on the front. I decided to use the Close to My Heart "Remarkable Wreath" stamp set. I have been wanting to use it for a while now and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. In fact, once I started using it I couldn't stop! I created a whole set of cards to send to one of my aunts in Illinois, so Aunt Dukie, if you're peeking in, these cards will be on their way to you soon.

The first card in the set has fall tones, I used autumn terracotta, sorbet, sunflower and chocolate inks and some of my favorite polka dot papers that I have been hoarding for a while, a snippet of vintage lace that I purchased at the antique mall this summer and some of my beloved polka dot ribbon.

I also added some bling in the form of gold glitter dots sprinkled around the wreath. They are very sparkly, but it was hard to capture with the camera.

I'll post the next card in the set tomorrow so be sure to check back. Thanks again for stopping by and I'll talk to you again soon.

Baby gifts

2011-10-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

Four new little ones are due in the next few weeks so it was time to put together their gifts. These new little ones are made honorary Ravens and they get the t-shirt to prove it. This year I wanted to package them up a little different so I found some baby bottles and rolled the shirts up really tight and slipped them inside the bottles. Then decorated the top of the bottles with a tulle bow, silk flowers and a coordinating binkey. I added a tag with a quote by Robert Munsch from his picture book, I'll love you forever. The mom's to be really seemed to liked them.

The stamp set, and inks are all by Close to My Heart. I pieced the tag image with a few scraps and colored the rest of it in with colored pencils. Then I masked the whole image and sponged around it with CTMH Sky blue ink. Thanks for stopping in today. I'll talk to you again soon.

Friday Floral

2011-10-07T05:44:00.000-07:00

A crisp fall morning, a little misty and a little cool. The flowers have faded but they left behind these. So delicate with their wispy tasseled tops.

A little bit later these lovely fall colors were all around the city. Balloon fiesta here in New Mexico is a fall tradition and so much fun to participate in and photograph.

I hope you have a wonderful, restful weekend and I'll talk to you again soon.

Just Married

2011-10-03T18:00:00.000-07:00

Finally, here is the card from our third September wedding. The sweet bride is a purple lover like me so I pulled out some of my "jewels" and purple papers to share with her. Papers, stamps and inks are all by Close to my heart. Boy, I don't know about you, but it sure was a Monday all day today. I hope yours was good. I'll talk to you again soon.

Guest Design Team...

2011-10-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

Surprise! I know I was, surprised that is. I was invited to be the Guest Design team member for the month of October on the Heart 2 Heart Challenge blog. You can go here to see my picture and a little blurb about me. And... I get a cool new badge for my blog. Check out the side bar on the right! Be sure to check in at the challenge blog each week to see the inspiration posted by all the talented contributors! Happy stamping! I'll talk to you again soon.

Floral Friday

2011-09-30T04:00:00.000-07:00

The last little bits of summer are starting to fade. Fall is moving in with it's warm colors and cooler days. Here is one last summer flower. See you next summer little flowers. I need to go out and visit with some of fall's floral offerings. Have a wonderful weekend I'll talk to you again soon.

Clean and simple

2011-09-26T04:30:00.000-07:00

When I make a card to give to a bride and groom I try to coordinate it with their wedding colors. (I know.. I'm just weird that way) The invitation for this wedding was very colorful with touches of bling through out. The Close to my heart cricut cartridge "art philosophy" helped make this card quick and easy. The large medallion shape was perfect for my stamp and left just the right spaces for some sparkle. I hope you've got something to celebrate today. I'll talk to you again soon.

September... the new June??

2011-09-25T04:00:00.000-07:00

I know that June is traditionally the month for weddings, but we have 3 to go to this month, something unusual for us. This is the card for the first wedding. A sweet couple starting out with so much love for each other and thinking of others all the time.

I used another older Close to my heart stamp set and the colors sweet leaf and blush with just a touch of grey wool. Wishing you love today. I'll talk to you again soon.

Happy Fall!

2011-09-24T11:28:00.000-07:00

The first weekend of a new season. It's hard to believe yesterday was the first day of autumn, State fair is almost over and balloon fiesta is just around the corner. This morning I noticed the tree in the neighbor's yard had some fall colors started. Doesn't it feel like this year is flying by?

For this quick little card I used a couple of older retired Close to My heart stamp sets with a scrap of newer background paper. I like to go back and revisit some of my old favorites now and then and use them again just for fun. I hope you have some fun this weekend. I'll talk to you again soon.

Floral Friday

2011-09-16T05:00:00.000-07:00

Another Friday, I know I'm looking forward to the weekend and some fun activities, I hope you are too. The weather is changing here I think those fall colors are right around the corner. But meanwhile, the trees on the playground had a few blooming ideas this week and I caught a couple of minutes of bright blue sky before the clouds moved in again. Have a wonderful weekend and I'll talk to you again soon.

ME? I won!?

2011-09-10T20:30:00.000-07:00

I am finding it hard to believe but, it actually happened! I won the top spot at the Heart 2 Heart challenge blog this month. I am beyond thrilled and completely in shock. If you've never visited the blog you should hop on over there right now. They have some great inspirational challenges and the Design team always does a wonderful job of interpreting the challenge to give even more inspiration and you get to use the great Close to my heart products.

Check out my new, super cool badge. Awesome, right! I just had to share. Thanks for stopping by. I'll talk to you again soon.

My Friend retired

2011-09-10T10:20:00.000-07:00

My friend Jo retired, a year ago... That's when I started this project. It was supposed to be a banner that I was going to hang over her cake at her reception. But, as some projects do, this one began to evolve into something more than a simple banner and the more I worked on it, the less it got finished. Have you ever had that happen to you? You see the problem was, Jo is very special to me and I wanted this project to reflect all the fun and thoughtful times we have spent together. By now, a banner is kind of unnecessary, but I had all this work done so I decided to turn it into a mini album (not so mini after all). One side of the banner/book spells out the word retirement, the opposite side of each ban-nett? I don't know, what you'd call the individual flags of a banner!? Anyway, the opposite side has a short poem that goes along with the corresponding letter. I added lots of charms and glitter, buttons and beads. So this is the result. Now I need to get it into the mail before another year goes by.

Here is hoping you get to finish a project that has been a while in the making. Have a wonderful weekend, it's nice and cool and rainy here today. I'll talk to you again soon.

Floral Friday

2011-09-09T17:11:00.000-07:00

You know it's been a crazy week when you get to Friday and realize you haven't done one creative thing all week long (except for fixing meals and your hair). Thank goodness for God's creation, He leaves inspiration all around us if we'll just look. Wishing you an inspirational weekend, I know I'm hoping to get into the workroom for some creative therapy over the next couple of days. I'll talk to you again soon.

Friday Floral

2011-09-02T04:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday and Happy Labor Day weekend! I hope you enjoy the last hurrah of summer. I want to stay up late and enjoy the soft evening air, the coolness of fall is closing in and I know I'm going to miss those hot laid back days, but fall brings it's own joys. I'll talk to you again soon.

Passport

2011-08-30T04:00:00.000-07:00

Another project for a friend. She found these cute passport folders at the local craft store for $1.00 each. I stamped up inserts for them. The front page is vellum, I ran through my printer for the text, the little box in the center is for the photograph, got to have that for a passport! I want the feeling of a stamped passport so the layer underneather is stamped with seals and foreign language script. It shows through the vellum without taking away from the text. And, Of course, I had to stamp up a matching bag to deliver them in. Hope she likes them. I'll talk to you again soon.

Wishes...

2011-08-28T14:17:00.000-07:00

I just got the Tim Holtz' ticket die and couldn't wait to play. I stamped up a roll of newly die cut tickets with the words "make a wish", smudged different inks on them, then rolled them onto a little wooden spool. I tied it off with a little bit of red embroidery floss and added a tag that says, "If I had 100 wishes I'd give them all to you!" Just a little something to give to someone special. Have a great week and I'll talk to you again soon.

Floral Friday

2011-08-19T04:00:00.000-07:00

We made it to Friday. Have a great day! I'll talk to you again soon.

Polka dot love

2011-08-18T06:07:00.000-07:00

One of my go to design elements is polka dots. To me, they add freshness to any design. Big or little, a few or a lot, polka dots make me smile.

My card was inspired from here at the CASE challenge from Heart 2 Heart. I initially chose this card because of the tonal quality and all the lovely layers. My card is much thinner but, I kept the tonal and some of the layers. My other inspiration was from the The Shabby Tea Room, using polka dots, something I dearly love to do. I used the same shade of green ink on the whole card, stamping, distressing and playing with the Close to my heart mini misters (the felt flower and the pear). I could stay at my worktable all day but, I have to go get ready for school. So I hope you have a "pearfect" day and I'll talk to you again soon.

Hot, red or green style!

2011-08-13T14:59:00.000-07:00

If you live here or have ever visited then you probably know that our official state question is "Red or green?" It is the most commonly asked question in regard to how you want your chilli. This year they are predicting a super "hot" chilli crop. So this card is my tongue in cheek take on the state question.

A birthday card for a friend who we will be meeting for "new mexican" food in a few days. This is the inside of the card...

When I saw the challenge on the Heart 2 Heart blog this was the first thing that popped into my head. Stop on over to their spot and look at all the other HOT ideas. Thanks for stopping by. I'll talk to you again soon.

All the papers, stamps and inks are from Close to my heart.

Altered T-Shirt

2011-08-10T05:16:00.000-07:00

Take a plain t-shirt, this one was a crew neck that was just too high, you know the one, I always felt like it was choking me when I wore it. I wear black a lot so I wanted to do something to make it more comfortable and still keep it versatile enough to wear under jackets and other pieces. So I laid it out on my cutting board and got a plate, I used a clear glass plate so I could see the shirt underneath to get my placement right.

Once it looked about right, I cut the tee-shirt to create a new neckline. I ironed the edge under about an inch to create a casing for the elastic then I sewed it leaving a small opening on the back side by one of the shoulders to add my elastic. I threaded the elastic through and pinned it, tried it on and adjusted the gather and fit, sewed the ends of the elastic together and then sewed the opening closed. Wha-La, a new/old tee.

It fits better and is much more comfortable and I am still able to wear it under and over other pieces. Happy Wednesday, I'll talk to you again soon.

A challenging challenge

2011-08-07T03:10:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I did a Mojo Monday challenge and so I thought I try the latest one. This is the sketch.

A challenge for me since I don't usually follow a layout plan, I'm more of a theme or color picture card maker. Any way, here is my take on this sketch.

Can you tell I have back to school on the brain? There's a lot going on with this card but all the images except the star are from the same very cool new Close to my heart set, Vintage Type, I used tulip, sunflower and outdoor denim inks and papers and the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge to cut all the pointy edged circles (I'm sure they have an official name but I can't come up with it right now). Have a great day and I'll talk to you again soon!

About Botanical

2011-08-06T03:14:00.000-07:00

Earlier this summer I had the chance to visit a few art galleries and small boutiques. In one of those, a simple little piece of art caught my eye. It was a line drawing done on a vintage page from a dictionary. It had just a little color but was very attractive in it's simplicity. When I returned home I was still thinking about the piece and thought I might be able to recreate something that had the same simple appeal as the one I saw in the boutique. I scanned a page from an old dictionary and printed it on to some cardstock. Then I stamped some simple line images (retired Close to my heart) onto it and colored and shaded with colored pencils. Trimmed it down and put it into a thrift store frame.

It reminds me, in feel, of the piece I saw.

It was also a quick and fun little project that will be just right for a friend who loves to photograph flowers. And, as luck would have it, I found a challenge that I think it is a perfect fit for. Over at Moxie Fab World they had a challenge going on using botanicals. Slip on over there and look at some of the lovely botanical projects they have. Have a great day, and I'll talk to you again soon.

Happy Friday

2011-08-05T05:33:00.000-07:00

Getting back into the routine of work and home but having a little difficulty squeezing in creative therapy time. Looking forward to a few minutes to play in the craft room this weekend. Until then, have a wonderful day and I'll talk to you again soon.

A challenge or three...

2011-08-01T21:49:00.000-07:00

Today was my first day back to school. I spent the day working on the data base, ordering necessary supplies, preparing book lists and going through mail. So when I got home it was time for a little creative time in the workroom. I have been playing with the new Close to my heart Cricut cartridge Art Philosophy, the images are a-maz-ing! I cut the large tag, the scalloped oval, and the postage square frame using the Cricut then stamped and layered to my hearts content.

The stamps are from a brand new set from the new catalog called Sweet moments and I used three different coordinating patterned papers from a special kit called Miracle. All from Close to my heart. The ink colors are Sky, Sweet leaf, Bamboo, Colonial white and black. Tags are some of my most favorite things to make. This one was inspired by three different online challenges. The first is the Heart 2 Heart challenge that called for celebrating birthdays, the second was a mix and match challenge from The Shabby Tea Room . That challenge was to mix at least three different patterned papers in a project. The third challenge that inspired me was from Simon Says Stamp it was to make a tag. I've never tried to combine challenges before and it was "challenging". But, fun too. I think I'm done for the evening so I'll say good night and sweet dreams to all. I'll talk to you again soon.

Brunch

2011-07-30T21:19:00.000-07:00

I got to cater a little party this weekend. The hostess is a good friend and she wanted small, finger-type foods. So everything was petite, just a few little bites each.

Three different kinds of mini muffins, (yes, from scratch)

Miniature parfaits,

Bacon and egg bites, with lots of cheese

Twice baked mini potatoes.

It was lots of fun, I got to plan the whole menu and then played in the kitchen. My sweet DH was my guinea pig, every recipe got his approval. The first things to disappear were the mini potatoes, they were yummy. A good time was had by all. I hope your weekend is filled with fun, I'll talk to you again soon.

Thanks a latte'

2011-07-27T09:32:00.000-07:00

Just a quick card for a friend who loves the color green and coffee. Some of the papers and all of the ink is CTMH the rest... I am attempting to use more of my misc. scraps from an overflowing scrap box. I am also working on some new projects with the latest CTMH toys. I hope to post some of them in the very near future! Have a great day and I'll talk to you again soon.

Heart 2 Heart Doilies and Lace

2011-07-24T03:01:00.000-07:00

I rummaged through my scrap box and found some bits and pieces of older Close to my heart papers and used some as flowers and some to layer on my card. I like the look of the lace on the side, reminds me of a petticoat peeking out from the bottom of a hem line.

Be sure to visit the Heart 2 Heart challenge blog to see all the other projects for this challenge. Thanks for stopping, I'll talk to you again soon.

Close to my heart does it again!!!

2011-07-23T10:21:00.000-07:00

This just in..... new toys from Close to my heart, they will be available for purchase starting Aug. 1. Can't wait to start playing with the new CTMH Cricut cartridge and the My Acrylic stamps that go with it!!!!!

Contact me if you want to order one for your very own!! I'll talk to you again soon.

Heart 2 Heart Inspiration II

2011-07-23T09:11:00.000-07:00

Orange!!?? a color I am not usually drawn to but lately have been using and photographing a lot. The middle picture is of things that were sitting on or near my worktable so I gathered them up for a quick photo shoot. These are just a few of the orange inspired pictures I've taken lately. So my challenge was to create a card with my inspiration color for the Heart to Heart inspiration challenge.

I love orange and blue together (nope not a Denver Bronco fan) more like Chicago Bears! (Mostly just to support the DH). All papers, stamps and inks are from Close to my heart, ribbon and buttons from my stash. Thanks for stopping by I'll talk to you again soon.

Heart 2 Heart and Good intentions

2011-07-22T12:16:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of my summer break I had all these good intentions, I was going to get my craft room cleaned and organized (I plan this every summer), I was going to do on-line challenges, I was going to get a lot of sewing and clean up done around the house and yard. Well, here I am again at the end of my summer break, and while I got a few things done, a few things started, a few things thought about. In the end, I did not accomplish everything I wanted to do. I have one more week to try to get at least one major project finished. Not sure which semi-started one I'm going to do but I'll let you know. Meanwhile, I did do a few challenge cards for the Heart 2 Heart July challenges. We were supposed to create a card based on the picture above. Here is my card....

All the papers, stamps, inks and buttons are from Close to my heart. The ribbon is from my stash. Off to get some work done. I'll post another challenge card later. Talk to you soon.

Blog Candy Give Away

2011-07-17T02:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, all you readers who never leave a comment. I really would like to hear from you so, here is a little incentive. Here sits Pinky Swirl Rue and her friend Dotty Darling. I will be giving one of them away on Wednesday July 20th. How do you get a chance to win? Glad you asked, just leave me a quick comment on this post and on Wednesday I'll randomly choose someone from the hat. That person can pick one of these little cuties for their very own. So leave me a comment and let me know who you are I really would like to get to know you!

Pinky Swirl Rue

Dotty Darling

I'll talk to you again soon!

Photography trip

2011-07-16T05:29:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine and I had a chance to do a little over-night photography trip to Santa Fe. We visited the International Arts and Crafts festival and walked up and down Canyon Road (where all the art galleries are) It was a fun and relaxing couple of days were we just photographed, talked and ate when we wanted to. I have always wanted to go and take photos of the different doors and gates and windows that I have seen over the years when visiting "the city different" I think the bright doors set in adobe walls are so interesting.

Peeking into courtyards in the plaza.

A row of painted mailboxes, so charming, I wish my neighborhood had mailboxes.

Flowers blooming in the summer heat and more doorways....

We had a great time and didn't bore our families with "just one more picture!" Have a wonderful weekend and I'll talk to you again soon.

Girlfriends and dollar finds

2011-07-15T08:09:00.000-07:00

I have some friends who are going to a conference in a couple of weeks. Their team leader wanted some fun little gifts to give them so I volunteered to help. First we blinged up some $ bin finds from the local target and I stamped and beaded and beribboned some pens.

I wanted to put together some tiny little survival kits. The theme was "Girlfriends". So, I went shopping and found these little plastic purses in the candy section of my local dollar store.

Before

I took it apart and made a template from the label. Then I stamped a new cover and filled it with essentials.

After

The kits include: hello kitty bandaids, a package of advil, an emery board, some gum and candy and post-it flags for marking their new catalogs. My friend found some hobo bags in zebra print to put all their goodies in and I stamped up a tag for the handle.

Something fun to give to each member as a thank you for being a part of her team. Have a great day and I'll talk to you again soon!

The heat is on...

2011-07-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

We're not in triple digit heat right now but it is still hot enough that the "swamp cooler" is having a difficult time keeping up. We had a group dinner to go to last night and I really wanted something with ice cream but even with ice and a cooler it was not going to make the trip across town

sooo....

meet Dreamsicle and Neapolitan and they really tasted like their frozen friends without the ice cream headache:)

They were easy to make with a few added ingredients to a basic white cake, cake mix. So I had my ice cream and cake too!

I hope you are staying cool and enjoying the summertime. I'll talk to you again soon.

Fun with scraps

2011-07-10T00:44:00.000-07:00

Fabric scraps that is.......

I've been playing around with fabric from my stash and trying to come up with small, little useful things to make from my over abundance of bits and pieces of fabric. I know from my experience, when I am sewing my pincushion is never were I need it to be. If I'm at the cutting table, it's at the sewing machine (this is a problem because the two areas are at opposite ends of the house) and I am not someone who can wear one on my wrist, can't even stand to wear a watch. So, my solution, make several and leave them in all the places I usually need a pincushion.

This first little owl is going to a young friend who likes to sew and craft. The ladybug is sitting on my worktable right now. I'm not sure were it will take up residence at the moment, it is a work in progress.

I have lots more fabric and ideas so check back I may soon have a little give away as these little useful things may be multiplying. Have a great week and I'll talk to you again soon.

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T09:48:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to the USA! I hope all your celebrations are fun and safe.

I'll talk to you again soon.

Pretty packages

2011-06-24T05:30:00.000-07:00

Here they are, all dressed up in their party clothes. My gifts for the birthday tea are ready to go. I do enjoy creating an attractive package to present gifts in. Sometimes I think the package is even prettier than the gift. I couldn't find just the right size box for these fancied up bottles so I ended up making my own. I got the idea from an old fashioned oatmeal box. I created a cut file for my Cricut using the George cartridge. That way I could easily adjust height and diameter based on what sizes I needed. I used some old vintage looking cardstock I had in my stash and got to work. I think next time I will use something a little heavier. These boxes won't hold up to a lot of weight but they sure look cute.

The bottles are filled with White Tea (of course) and Jasmine bath salts. Well I'm off to get myself ready for the tea. Have a great day and I'll talk to you again soon.

Birthday Tea Time

2011-06-22T06:30:00.000-07:00

This is one of the little events that I look forward to every year. My mom, my sister and her two daughters (my nieces) all go out for a birthday tea. We have a great tea room here in town and it's a rare chance for us to all be together. I give them each a little present for their birthdays at the tea. This year I found some pretty little bottles that needed just a little dressing up.

So I got out my tools and my trays of beads, findings and ribbon and gussied them up.

I hope they like them. The tea room always has a theme for the month and this time it's "the pirate's life for me". I think these could be considered part of a pirate's treasure. What do you think? Leave me a comment and let me know. I'll talk to you again soon.

A note of thanks!

2011-06-20T06:30:00.000-07:00

Some days you need a little help from your friends...

You know who you are. Thanks so much for helping out when you were needed! I'll talk to you again soon.

Happy Father's day!

2011-06-19T20:52:00.000-07:00

I did a little baking for Father's day. Unfortunately I couldn't deliver today so dad, if your checking in, they are on their way along with a few other little gifts.

I hope all those special dad's had a great day today. We love and appreciate you. I'll talk to you again soon.

Playing in the kitchen

2011-06-08T16:11:00.000-07:00

Woke up this morning and felt like cooking. It all started with the cranberry scones for breakfast. Yum.

Then I was planning on something chicken for dinner so I marinated some and then broiled it around lunch time. It looked so good I decided I needed a little of it for my salad. I chopped up the rest for a delish chunky chicken salad for dinner.

I was feeling the need for something a little sweet so...

I started with some simple chocolate cookies and added ice cream and a few sprinkles and mini chocolate chips.

Mini ice cream sandwiches. Perfect for a little evening sweet to end the day. Well, dishes are done and I have a sewing project to get finished so I'll talk to you again soon.

Crochet Flowers Obsession?

2011-06-05T06:30:00.000-07:00

Yes, I have a new obsession. If you have visited my blog more than once you have probably noticed I love adding flowers to my projects. I have made fabric and felt and crepe-paper, punched and crumpled and painted and beaded flowers. Well, now it is crocheted flowers. This is another of those portable activities I can take along as I'm waiting , and I find that I am waiting a lot of the time:) I had seen these cute flowers on other blogs adorning all different kinds of projects so I thought "I can make those". I found some great tutorials on you tube and a variety of crochet sites, they were extremely helpful. I bought my hooks and thread from that big store up the hill, (you know the one) and I started making flowers. My family and friends were constantly asking me "what are you going to do with all those" or "are you going to make a blanket with them?". They suddenly started to get it when these little flowers started showing up on gifts and projects I was working on. Of course most of the projects I made left the premises before having their picture taken, but as you can see I have plenty more to work with.

I was on my way out the door to drop off a few things at a friends house when I decided the bag need a little work. Tada... my little flowers to the rescue.

Thanks for stopping in, I'll talk to you again soon.

Blogging again!

2011-06-04T11:24:00.000-07:00

Whew! Now that the intensity of the end of the year has finally passed, I am once again gazing into the possibilities of summer break. The frantic pace of the last 5 weeks now screeches to a crawl as I am determined to relax and breath for the next few weeks. Yes, I did stamp and sew and craft the whole month of May but, for the most part, it was to finish a project to give away the next day. So, not many pictures were taken. I am hoping to get the creative flow going over the summer to stock pile a few things so I'm not under the time crunch I have been these past few weeks.

I was able to snap some quick shots of these cute little recipe books I put together for my volunteers and EA. This adorable paper is the Mayberry kit from Close to my heart.

There is a section for favorite recipes, pictures of friends and family. I included a couple of favorite recipes that I had made for them during the past year and additional blank recipe cards for them to add other favorites. I added pictures of all of us from different events during the year and then pictures I had taken of their children during the year were in the book under family. There are extra pages in each section for them to continue adding to their books.

More to come as I slow down my pace and give the creative flow a chance to recharge a bit. Thanks for stopping by, I'll talk to you again soon.

End of April

2011-04-29T17:08:00.000-07:00

This April has been filled with lots of praises and prayers. It's been a tough month and I'm kinda glad it's behind us. We are down to the last four Mondays of the school year and the crazy end-of-the-year schedule has started. I hope your April was filled with wonderful moments and opportunities to praise and pray as well. I'll talk to you soon!

Contrast

2011-03-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

When I think of contrast that old Three Dog Night song comes to mind... the ink is black the page is white...
This week I've been working on a photography challenge using contrast. I didn't want to do a traditional kind of black and white photograph but when I tried to think outside the box I had quite a bit of brain block.
Baking to the rescue! Contrast chocolate cupcake, white frosting. What do you think?

I made these little mini's this morning. Cute, huh. They taste pretty good too.

I'm taking them to a small group dinner tonight along with the left over chocolate chip pistachio cupcakes I made yesterday. I think I have baking out of my system for a few days anyway.
This is my other latest thing, I do this whenever I'm waiting at the Dr. office or in line somewhere or waiting for something to come out of the oven.

It's called zentangling. Just use a square piece of paper and black pen and some basic lines and for a doodler like me it adds up to hours of zen fun. There are several great sites on the internet that give instructions on how to do it and the philosophy behind it. I'm thinking about starting a before school group with some of our early bird students. Anyway, that's it for contrast today. Have a great evening and I'll talk to you again soon.

Going Green

2011-03-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

A green birthday that is...
My sweet husband's birthday is this month, today in fact. So in honor of the month and because green is one of his favorite colors, I made cupcakes, chocolate chip pistachio. From scratch even. Something I like to do but rarely have the time.

I found these cute cupcake papers in the $1 bin at Michaels.

Cupcakes baked and cooled. (slight green tinge is good)

Cupcakes in profile.

On to the White chocolate frosting.

Lots of butter (shhh, don't tell) I never said these were lo-cal did I?

Tinted a pale green then swirled on.

Little custom topper. Too much fun! Verdict: Yum. What shall I bake next? It's spring break so there is no telling what I'll come up with. Stay tuned. I'll talk to you again soon.

Birthday Boys

2011-02-20T17:54:00.000-08:00

The little twins across the street are celebrating their first birthday. The card colors were inspired by the gift card I got from Target. Their dad said it was the coolest card he'd ever seen. I hope your weekend was great and your week is terrific. We have school tomorrow to make up for one of the snow days last month but, if you have tomorrow off enjoy it and do something creative. I'll talk to you again soon.

Valentine treats

2011-02-16T18:14:00.000-08:00

Lovely flowers from the beautiful bouquet my DH gave me for Valentine's Day.

A couple of little valentine treats for friends. Gotta love that crepe paper.

Hope your day was great. I'll talk to you again soon.

Freak NM storm

2011-02-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

We've been out of school for two days and just got word we'll be closed again tomorrow. It's supposed to hit 7 below tonight. So there's really been no melt in most areas other than the main roads. Not usual NM weather at all, but kind of nice for a change. I wouldn't want a winter like this all the time though. There's a reason I'm a desert girl.

I love this little red bench from the neighbor's yard. So I braved the cold to get some pictures of it covered in snow.

Icicles, another unfamiliar sight, usually any snow we get melts before they form.

I hope you are somewhere warm and dry tonight and I'll talk to you again soon.

Sunset

2011-01-31T09:42:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite shots from our visit to Bosque Del Apache. The cranes were coming in at sunset to roost for the night. The sunset was awesome!

Talk to you again soon.

January

2011-01-29T14:37:00.000-08:00

One day it was here the next it was gone! Don't know where January went, but here I am at the end of it and don't really have anything to show for it. Work has been busy, I've been taking some evening classes and volunteering all weekend at church for the last few weekends. So there hasn't been much time for creating and I've been feeling it. So today while the workmen are here completely re-piping my house and cutting big holes in the walls all over the place, that they assure me will be patched up so no one will ever know, I closed myself in my creative space and made a birthday card. Just one since I've also had the dog in here pacing because she can't go out and bother the workers.

(about the card: I used mostly scraps that were floating around my worktable, and I've been fidgeting with making crepe paper flowers, I kind of like how they turned out. All the ink and cardstock is from Close to my heart. and so is the birdcage stamp and the glitter, of course.)
I must have birds on the brain because tomorrow I'm going with a friend on a photographing trip to the Bosque Del Apache Bird Refuge. Our photography instructor is meeting us there to help us work on our technique. It's supposed to be beautiful, 62 degrees. Can't wait, it should be fun. If I get any good shots I'll be sure and let you know. Talk to you again soon.

Holiday Cards 2010

2010-12-20T07:32:00.000-08:00

A bright and cheery holiday card. This is one of a very few we'll be passing out this year. I just ran out of time.

This one is a little more elegant, but with lots of sparkly glitter. So much left to do and so little time to do it!! Guess I'm off to get busy. Talk to you again soon.

December Weddings

2010-12-19T09:37:00.000-08:00

We have two weddings to attend this week. This is the first of the to wedding cards I'm making. The second card isn't finished yet, I'll try to get a picture of it before we leave for the festivities.

Talk to you again soon.

Jingle all the way!

2010-12-18T15:19:00.000-08:00

I was just practicing with the camera. I have this colorful and sparkly jingle bell wreath hanging on my office door. I am hoping your holiday is colorful and full of sparkly fun! We've had snow, now I just need to find some mistletoe...

Stay warm and healthy and I'll talk to you again soon.