More emerging color...Marjorie's Challenge

A CTMH Consultant named Marjorie (check out her blog -- she's Mommy Scraps under my links to the left -- and she has got to be one of the most gifted card-makers I've ever seen!) posted a color challenge this week on our boards, and I thought I'd try emerging color again using her challenge colors. Now since I didn't have all of her challenge colors, I improvised a little. Can I just say that I am loving this emerging color thing? It's so much fun! And you get a sneak peak at the March Stamp of the Month! Sara and Marjorie -- I think you created a monster! ;)

Paper: White daisy CS, Amethyst

Stamp Sets: Simple Beauty (March 2008 Stamp of the Month), Delight in Everything

Ink colors: Petal, Lilac Beauty, Sweet Leaf, Buttercup

Accessories: White organdy ribbon (I intentionally went light on accessories because in person the colors are so much for vibrant....I didn't want to take away from anything.)

Okay, so practice makes perfect...this one is better than the last I think!

Blessings!

Sara's Challenge: Emerging Color

Since I'm a newbie stamper, I was very excited when my SBS10 sister, Sara, posted a challenge to the SBS10 to make a card with emerging color. I've never done this before, but it has always awed me when I've seen it and I would love to be able to create something so beautiful. This certainly does not look as amazing as some of the other emerging color examples I've seen, but it's my first attempt and I think it turned out okay -- what do YOU think?

Paper: Chocolate, white daisy, baby pink cs (CTMH)

Ink: Chocolate, Hollyhock, Blush, Garnet (CTMH)

Stamp set: All My Love

Accessories: Scallop circle punch, white organdy ribbon

Techniques: Edge distressing (gotta love CTMH's white core CS!), and Emerging COLOR!

So there you have it, SBS10 -- I think I might trying to do this with some light blues, greens and yellows in a flower pattern! It's fun, and practice makes perfect....back to practicing!

Blessings!

What Alyssa means...

What Alyssa Means

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection. You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality. You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow.You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily.Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is. You are a free spirit, and you resent anyone who tries to fence you in.You are unpredictable, adventurous, and always a little surprising.You may miss out by not settling down, but you're too busy having fun to care. You are the total package - suave, sexy, smart, and strong.You have the whole world under your spell, and you can influence almost everyone you know.You don't always resist your urges to crush the weak. Just remember, they don't have as much going for them as you do.

What's" Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Oh I wish this all true -- especially about being the total package and not getting worked up easily. These are things I have to work on! Type "A" personality -- yup, that's probably me. And I'm definitely a perfectionist! Oh well -- thankfully this world takes ALL kinds!

"Miracle"

I know, I know -- I promised I would post something everyday...and I missed yesterday! What can I say? It happens. But I'm back today with something that is kind of fun and spur of the moment. We found out last night that some of our friends are expecting their first child. So of course I went in "card mode" and my brain started cranking out ideas. The card I ended up with is not I expected to end up with, and I still don't know if I will send it to them, but it certainly allowed me to play with a few new stamp sets.

Paper: Sweet Leaf, Blush, Buttercup, Crystal Blue, White Daisy

Stamp Sets: Serendipity, Angel Whispers, and Baby Steps

Accessories: White daisy organdy ribbon

Tips? Suggestions? Criticize away! I want to hear what you experts think!

That's all I have for now -- tomorrow, I plan to alter a few darling mailboxes for my kids...my plan is to do them for Valentine's day, but we shall see what I end up! A mistake might turn into a happy surprise! Look forward to that post tomorrow night!

Happy Sunday, and as always, blessings to you and yours this week!

Serendipity: WATER Babies!

I'm so excited to share this layout today -- it's the one I mentioned yesterday! These pictures are from a family camping trip that we take with my dad's siblings every year. (My dad is the 4th of 8 kids, and I am the oldest of the cousins...my youngest cousin on that side was the flower girl in our wedding!) Anyway -- we spend as much time as possible on the lake while we're there. This past July was the first time we were able to take all three kids camping...and God bless my parents for putting up with in their camper! Anyway....I thought these pictures were perfect with the campaign Close to My Heart is doing until January 31. (It's called Serendipity, and you get amazing patterned paper, textured cardstock, textured die-cuts, and a stamp set that compliments the paper and the die cuts! It's awesome!)

Enjoy!

In this last picture, I was showing that I made a pocket between the mat and the bamboo cardstock to put more pictures. The little circles at the tops of the pictures are to pull them out with. (Everything below is CTMH.) This layout was from CTMH's "Imagine".

Paper: Serendipity (chocolate, dutch blue, and bamboo)

Stamp sets: Serendipity, Rustic Alphabet, Doodle Alphabet, and Adorable Backgrounds

Accessories: Serendipity die cuts, hemp, pewter brads

Techniques: edge distressing, paper tearing, rocking and rolling (in chocolate on WATER), stamp kissing (in dutch blue on WATER) -- I'd never "kissed" before, so this was fun!

See you soon!

blessings

Sisterhood of the Blogging Stampers 10

Now that I'm officially part of SBS10, let me introduce myself! I am a SAHM with 3 little ones....my oldest will be a kindergartner in the fall, and my youngest is 18 months. They keep my on my toes! And I'm so lucky to be married to a great guy...my husband Matt! He works so hard to make sure I can stay home with our kids.

In April 2007, a friend of mine (Thanks, Tricia) introduced me to Close to My Heart, and I was hooked. I've been scrapbooking for a very long time, but I'd never tried stamping before. I was too chicken, to be perfectly honest! I'm a bit of a perfectionist, and I was never able to get stamps to line up the right way. So Tricia showed me how CTMH's acrylic stamps work, and I was literally hooked. I joined as a consultant a few weeks later, and I've become a stamping machine! Now I make cards and other papercrafts, too, and I am so excited by all the things you create with stamps! So while I'm probably a "baby stamper", I love it and I learn quickly. And I'm NO LONGER AFRAID TO TRY ANYTHING!

So that's me in a nutshell -- mom, wife, scrapbooker/stamper (so SCRAMPER). I LOVE MY LIFE!!! I'm excited about this sisterhood thing! FUN FUN FUN!! (And please be honest -- I love comments, good and bad...it's the only way I improve!!!)

Counting our blessings

I was so excited because I finally had a free minute to scrap a few pictures from this summer. (Let's just say that when we woke up this morning, the temperature was 10 below zero. BRRR. I thought the summer pictures would warm me up.) I completely finished the layout, went to print my pictures, and was so sad to find that my printer is OUT OF INK! UGH! So tomorrow, I promise, I will post my completed layout, pictures and all.

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you my favorite layout from last semester's scrapbook club. (It meets at my house on the 2nd Tuesday of every month...come check us out sometime. We have a blast!) This layout is from CTMH's Cherish book...it has GREAT layouts, and makes it super simple to do layouts quickly because it tells you where to put patterned paper, etc. and has a perfect cutting guide! I love it! Back to the layout...my goal for every Thanksgiving is to scrap the things that we are thankful for during the previous year. And each of those layouts will include a current picture of our kids. So this is the 2007 version of "Counting our blessings"...

Paper: Enchanted, Autumn Terracotta CS, Sunflower CS, White Daisy CS, vellum (all CTMH)
Inks: Pansy Purple, Autumn Terracotta, Garden Green, Sunflower CS (all CTMH)
Accessories: Twill ribbon, garden green brads, colonial white spiral clips, colonial white waxy flax, friendship dangles, chocolate ribbon, copper photo hanger (all CTMH)
Stamp sets: Goodness of Life, Rustic Alphabet, Autumn Splendor (all CTMH)

Journaling Reads:
Samantha....We are thankful for your 4th birthday this year. We are thankful that you have been blessed with two wonderful preschools and an exitement to learn! You are learning to read and you even taught yourself how to play "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" on the piano this year! You are our blessing -- how we love you!
Hudson...We are thankful for your 2nd birthday this year. We are thankful that you love fiercely and passionately (tractors come to mind!). We are thankful that you gave up diapers early this fall, and we are thankful that you love to help daddy work outside. You are our blessing -- how we love you!
Hunter... We are thankful for your 1st birthday this year. We are thankful that you learned to walk. you love to read (I've never known a child who loves to read so much!) -- may you always be thankful for books. You are growing into a funny, energetic and "ambitious" delightful little boy. You are our blessing -- how we love you!
Six years later... We are thankful for the blessing of our sixth wedding anniversary this year. It's hard to believe we've been married for six years, and yet has it only been six years? I don't remember life "before". Six years and what do we have to show for it? Three beautiful healthy children.

Our family is a blessing. How loved we are!

So there you have it -- just a few of the things we're thankful for!

See you soon!

My first artwork post!

This is my first attempt at posting my art on the web, so here goes nothing! This is a lovely little milk carton that was posted on Splitcoast Stampers. I saw it and had to give it a shot. It wasn't terrible hard to make, and I'm going to try it again with more colors. But for my first shot, I'm okay with it!

Paper used: Cranberry Cardstock, Creative Basics Silhouette (CTMH)

Stamps: All My Love (CTMH)

Accessories: Creative Basics Silhouette Ribbon, scallop circle punch

So there you have it...next time I will ink the edges of my white core cardstock, and I'll try a wider variety of colors. But I had fun, and my daughter thinks it's neat! (I think she just wants the Hershey's kisses that I put inside! Ahhh...a girl after my own heart!)

Blessings!

Just Starting Out

Yay! Finally a place to post my creations...and to share the crazy things my kids (and did I mention my husband) do during the day! Check back often -- my goal is to post something...a story, a card, a layout...every day!