Happy Halloween

I've been really looking forward to today. I've always loved Halloween, ever since I was a kid. A holiday that includes dressing up and chocolate? Bring it on!

Actually, I think I would get a little too excited about it.... I remember several Halloweens where I would end up getting sick and spending it on the couch, while my brothers would go out trick or treating. My mom tried to make it fun for me by suggesting I count the trick or treaters that come to the door. Nice try, Mom.

Anyway, last year's owl costume for Sage was such a hit that she's wearing it again this year. And Jonah wanted to be a Clone trooper, so I just found him a white hoodie at the thrift store for him to wear with helmet he already had. Only Austin needed a costume. Enter the Fiskar's email to save the day: they had the step by step instructions to make a Harry Potter costume. Sold! I got it done a few weeks ago. I told the kids we'd be doing a photo shoot today after school with their costumes.

The kids wanted to know what I was dressing up as. I'd thought about being Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb, but then had the great idea of being Harry Potter's white owl, Hedwig. I got my costume finished yesterday, modifying the idea behind Sage's costume to work for me. Sage wanted to be my baby, but we suggested instead that she could be Ron's owl from the books, Pigwidgeon. She's very excited about this!

Okay, enough rambling... I wanted to share my first project that I made as a torchbearer for Amber Ink blog:


I used the Amber Ink digital stamp Love Bug, which I printed out twice. Once on PTI rustic white cardstock, along with the rest of my title, and the second time onto Crate Paper patterned paper. I then cut it out by hand and adhered it over the cardstock title. I added some more Crate Paper patterned paper, PTI stamps (fall elegance, and dies (limitless layers, mat stack #4 and tag sale #5). Also, I did a little recycling on this page. The black mat stack die cut and pumpkin are from this this treat bag that I'd made for my pumpkin carving party. I just love repurposing!

Thanks for looking!

Crop for the Congo recap

Thanks to everyone who left comments on my blog wishing me well with my crop!

It took place on Friday evening and Saturday until 4pm and was wonderful! I took Austin, Jonan & Sage along with me on Friday afternoon to set up tables at my church and they were lots of help. My friend, Mandy, also came, with her boys and was very much appreciated! We set up for 32 people, as I didn't know for sure how many were coming. In the end, we had 29 in attendance.

Huge thanks again to all who attended! It was a great turn out and lots of fun! Everyone seemed to enjoy the fact that they had a table each for scrapping, the food (thanks again to Gloria, Val, Nancy & Susan for helping me out in that department!), the door prizes and the twelve hours of scrapbooking time. I had about 10 or 11 women participate in my card classes, which was a lot of fun! And lots of talking, reconecting and laughing! It was fabulous!

AND... I got three layouts done! Yay!

Here's one that I made, using some new Authentique patterned paper that my friend, Marlo, brought me back from Minneapolis:


Isn't it pretty? I loved how well it coordinated with my PTI felt (ocean tides, terracotta tile)! I also used PTI stamps (turning a new leaf, gratitude journal), buttons, twine and dies (turning a new leaf, beautiful blooms II #2, wonderful words). The cardstock is Bazzill.

Thanks for looking!

Five for Friday

#1.

Earlier this month, I got an email from my online friend, Kristin Robbins, asking if I would like to be a torchbearer (guest DT member) for
Amber Ink for the month of November! I was so flattered that she asked me!

So, I'm very excited to design with some Amber Ink products this month, along with my fellow torchbearers:

Debra
Meredith
Kirsi aka Pipertäjä
Jessica

Feel free to check out the Amber Ink blog: Amber Inklings, too. And you will see my first project that I made using a Amber Ink digital stamp here on Monday.


#2. I've been getting a lot of my Christmas shopping done-- and I haven't had to leave the house to do it! I got a few gifts on Amazon.com last year, but this year, I've gotten gifts for Jonah, Austin & Sage there, from myself and in shopping for my mom for the kids. It's great!


#3. I'm hosting my Crop for the Congo (to raise funds for my short-term mission trip to DR Congo next March) this weekend. We'll be setting up at the church this afternoon and cropping tonight and tomorrow. Wonderful friends are helping with set up, food and clean up, which is so awesome! It should be a great time!


#4. My friend, Susan, came over on Wendesday afternoon and helped me make these little treats for the attendees of my crop:


They're PTI cardstock, cut with the PTI Lunchbox Note die, with a Ghiradelli chocolate inside. (My super nice PTI forum friend, Kim Heggins sent me a box full from California! Thanks again, Kim!!) To finish them off, we added a flower made with patterned paper and the PTI Bloom Builder #3 die.

Susan also helped me crank out die cuts for my card classes. Then, if that wasn't enough, she came over again yesterday afternoon and helped me finish packing door prizes.


I have eighteen to give away and 30 women coming to my crop. I'm thinking that's pretty good odds for winning...


#5. As I mentionned in #4, I'm teaching two card classes at my crop on Saturday and I got everything prepped last night.


Here are the two cards that we're making:


This card is a complete CASE of the super talented Maile Belles, using the PTI Holiday Lights stamps set and some Glossy Accents.


For this one, I used PTI cardstock (I used Hawaiian Shores, but my students will have the choice of this one, Aqua Mist, Rasberry Fizz, Simply Chartreuse, New Leaf and Pure Poppy), stamps (Candy Cane Christmas) & dies ((Candy Cane Christmas, Mat Stack #5). The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye.

What do you think?

Thanks for looking!

Chair-ished

Things have been fairly busy lately. I worked Monday & Tuesday, but had today day off, so I spent part of the day getting my house in order (vaccuuming, laundry, grocery shopping, baking chocolate chip pumpkin muffins, you know all that fun stuff...) and the other part getting ready for the crop I'm hosting this weekend at my church to raise money for my trip to the Congo. I'm expecting about 30 women, so it should be a really good time.

My friend, Susan, came down this afternoon and helped me prep for my card class and make lunchbox note dies for all the attendees. I'm sure I'll take some photos and post them soon....

In the meantime, here's a card I made about a month ago, but never got around to posting:


I used PTI cardstock (stamper's select white, spring rain, harvest gold), stamps (newsprint, on my couch & on my couch additions, half & half) and dies (half & half). The patterned paper is The Girl's Paperie.

Thanks for looking!

PTI October Blog Hop

Once again, I've decided to play along with the Papertrey Ink blog hop this month and once again, the challenge is an inspirational photo:



I was inspired by the pumpkins, so I decided to include some by stamping the pumpkins in my Fall Elegance stamp set. I also loved all the patterns, so I included some patterned paper on my card.


I used PTI cardstock (simply chartreuse, rustic white), stamps (fall elegance, think big favourites #7) & dies (picket fence-- these were sent to my from my PTI forum friend, Pattylt!). The patterned paper is SU! (text) & My Mind's Eye.

Thanks for looking!

Pumpkin Carving Feast

Yesterday afternoon, our friends, Bryan & Joy, with their daughters, Sara & Sonya, came over for our pumpkin carving feast! We had a great time, visiting and carving pumpkins.

We took the pumpkins out to the front deck to pose with our finished creations...




For supper, I'd made chili, a hot bread dip with bread & crackers, tortilla chips and salsa and cut up veggies and dip. For desert, I'd borrowed my friend, Marlo's, bundt pan and made a chocolate cake shaped as a pumpkin. I'd iced together the two "tops" of the cakes made in the bundt pans and then added some rolled up cardstock to make the stem. I curled some strips of cardstock around a pencil to make some vines and cut out two of my PTI leaf print dies to make the leaves.


It was super fun-- something I'm hoping will become an annual tradition.


Thanks for looking!

Another card make-over

I'd made this card originally to be a part of this set of cards, but when I added some cards with the string of lights stamped in black, these lost a bit of their luster. I figured all they needed was a little dressing up and decided to do so, using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (new leaft, aqua mist), stamps (holiday lights) and die (mat stack #4). The patterned paper is October Afternoon and the scalloped edge is recycled off of a package of The Girl's Paperie stickers.

Thanks for looking!

Treat bags

I was inspired to make some treat bags for our pumpkin carving feast by this post by Danielle Flanders. I also decided to use this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.

Here's the first treat bag I made:


I used PTI cardstock (smokey shadow), stamps (Fall Elegance, Think Big Favourites #4), medium glassine bag & dies (Mat Stack #1 & #5). The patterned paper is October Afternoon.

To see the rest of the treat bags I made, click here or scroll down.

Here is the second treat bag that I made using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (true black), stamps (Fall Elegance, Falling Leaves, Big & Bold Wishes), medium glassine bag & dies (Mat Stack #5 & limitless layers 1.75"). The patterned paper is October Afternoon.

To see the rest of the treat bags I made, click here.

Here is the third treat bag that I made using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (true black), stamps (fall elegance, Think Big Favourites #4), medium glassine bag & dies (Mat Stack #5 & limitless layers 1.75"). The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye.

To see the rest of the treat bags I made, click here.

Here is the fourth treat bag that I made using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (true black), stamps (falling leaves), medium glassine bag & dies (Mat Stack #5 & Fillable Frame #7). The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye.

To see the rest of the treat bags I made, click here.

Here is the fifth treat bag that I made using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (rustic white, true black), stamps (fall elegance, Big & Bold Wishes), medium glassine bag & dies (Mat Stack #4 & limitless layers 1.75"). The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye.

To see the rest of the treat bags I made, click here.

Thanks for looking!

Five for Friday

1. We have the day off today! :)

And actually, we have the next four Fridays off, too, which is so great, because I have subbed at the school almost every day for the last month, and while it's great to work there, a day off is also very much appreciated.

2.
I've been making some more cards to sell at my church to raise funds for my upcoming trip to the Congo. I started selling them last week and was very happy with the positive response they received!

3. I decided to use my new Papertrey Ink stamp set: Holiday Lights to make another Christmas set to sell. Each set has the following five cards in it and will retail for $10.










This set is so much fun-- I'll be using it for one of my card classes at my Crop for the Congo next weekend...

4. And someone else has been enjoying this stamp set, too.


Sage asked if she could have some of my "flubs" from making the set (see #3) and used her gel-pens to draw in the bulbs:




After using the gel pens, she decided to stamp her own out. So fun sharing a hobby with my girl!

5. And lastly, here's another card that I made using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (new leaf, pure poppy), stamps (Holiday Lights) & dies (Mat Stack #4, Limitless layers). The patterned paper is Fancy Pants.

Thanks for looking!

A birthday card

Here's another card that I made using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


I used PTI cardstock (aqua mist, fine linen, stamper's select white), stamps (gratitude journal, communique sentiments) & dies (two triangles, mat stack #4, limitless layers). The patterned paper is Pink Paislee.

Thanks for looking!

A card for a sweet friend

I wanted to share a card that I made for my good friend, Val. I realized last night that she and I have been friends now for fifteen years! Definitely something to celebrate!

I used this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: Layered Mats and Frames.


This card is 5.5" square, because I made a pocket on the inside in which I slipped a CD. I used PTI cardstock (raspberry fizz, aqua mist, hibiscus burst), stamps (signature cupcake), button, twine & dies (tiny tags, mat stack #5, limitless layers, edger #3 & bloom builder #3). The patterned paper is SU! (text) & Basic Grey (bloom).

Thanks for looking!

A birthday card

I wanted to share a birthday card that I made on Sunday, using some scraps that were sitting on my scrap table (I ♥ doing this!)


I used Papertrey Ink cardstock & felt (Vintage Cream), stamps (Botanical Silhouettes), dies (Love Lives Here), twine and buttons. The patterned paper is all My Mind's Eye, except for the cream on cream polka dots (on which the sentiment is stamped)-- that one is Lily Bee.

Thanks for looking!

A few upgrades...

When I was making these sets of cards, I had a few "flubs." Rather than toss them in the recycling, I decided to see if I could upgrade them a little by trimming off the "oopses" and adding a few more elements & stitching...


For this card, I added some PTI cardstock (terracotta tile) and My Mind's Eye patterned paper, as well as some KI Memories rhinestones. The stamped are PTI (botanical silhouettes).



For this card, again, I added some PTI cardstock (terracotta tile) and My Mind's Eye & Pink Paislee patterned paper, as well as some KI Memories rhinestones. The stamped are PTI (iconic images, fancy flourishes).



And for this last card, I For this card, again, I added some PTI cardstock (terracotta tile) and some KI Memories rhinestones. The stamped are PTI (iconic images, fancy flourishes & beautiful blessings).

Thanks for looking!

Ephesians 2:10

I love the the Bible verse that we've been memorizing this month down in R.O.X., so I decided to make a card with it.


I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (terracotta tile & vintage cream) & stamps (Mehndi Medallion). I also used some My Mind's Eye patterned paper and my SU! border punch.

Thanks for looking!

Pages with Papertrey -- Sketch Challenge #2

For this month's sketch challenge, I decided to share a sketch that I made:



And here's the layout I made with it:


I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (rustic white), twine, stamps (fall elegance) & dies (tag sale #3, gratitude journal). I also used My Mind's Eye patterned paper, my EK Success border punch and Making Memories letter stickers (for the date). For the title, I printed it out onto cardstock and then ran it through my Cuttlebug.

If you make a layout using this sketch, I'd love to see it! Please post a link either in this thread or in my comments.

Thanks for looking!

Cards for sale (part III)

I made another set of cards to sell as a fundraiser for my mission trip to Congo in March 2012. You can check out my first set here and my second set here. I will be selling the following set of five cards for $10. I made two sets with vintage cream, one set of white and a fourth set with rustic white cardstock. These are the rustic white ones...

For the first two cards, I used Papertrey Ink stamps (botanical silhouettes).





For this next card, I used Papertrey Ink stamps (iconic images).



For this next card, I used Papertrey Ink stamps (iconic images, fancy flourishes, beautiful blessings).



And, for this last card, I used Papertrey Ink stamps (iconic images, fancy flourishes).



Thanks so much for looking!

An invitation

We went to the library yesterday after school. While the kids looked for books, I noticed a display of Halloween idea books and started to look through Halloween, by Martha Stewart. I loved all the different ideas for pumpkin carving and decorating! As I continued through the book, I came upon a section for a pumpkin carving feast. What a great idea! So I showed it to my kids and asked what they thought about having such an event and inviting some friends over to join us. They all thought this would be grand!

Of course, we'll be modifying Martha's idea slightly. Instead of hosting our party on an acreage near a stone house, we'll be having it inside. And instead of serving white bean & sausage soup in hallowed out pumpkins, I'm thinking of serving chili in regular bowls. But still, we'll get together with friends, carve pumpkins and enjoy a meal together.

So, of course, I decided to make an invitation for our feast...


In making this card, I attempted this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink : Faux Watercolouring. I used it on the background pumpkins.

I used PTI cardstock (rustic white) & stamps (simple sentiments, fall elegance). The patterned paper is My Mind's Eye and the green cardstock is SU!

Thanks for looking!

Homespun Halloween

I wanted to share another layout that I made for Pages With Papertrey Challenge #2, using my PTI Leaf Print dies.


I also used My Mind's Eye patterned paper, American Crafts thickers & Papertrey Ink dies (Half & Half). I also stamped the "homespun" & line beneath it using my Love Lives Here: Holidays stamp set.

Thanks for looking!

Congrats, times two

My nephew recently got engaged, so I wanted to make a congratulations card for him and his finacée...

I dug through my basket of premade Bloom Builder #3 blooms and found one that I'd made with Pink Paislee patterned paper (a Christmas line!), a PTI button and twine.


I used Lily Bee patterned paper, Papertrey Ink stamps (Think big Favourites #5) and dies (Mat Stack #1, #5 & Bloom Builders #3).

Since I had the left over diecuts from making this card, I decided to use them to make another one right away.


I used the same materials as the first card, as well as some PTI cardstock (fine linen.)

Thanks for looking!