A birthday card for my big brother

I made this birthday card last month for my big brother, Trevor. I didn't post it right away, because I know he checks my blog occasionally (hi, Trev!) and I didn't want to ruin the surprise for him...

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (kraft, simply chartreuse), stamps (Movers & Shakers sentiments) and dies (Tag Sale #1). The patterned paper is Bo Bunny.

By stitching a pocket, I could add the answer to the question the sentiment poses...

LOL! I love that one!

Thanks for looking!

He loves...

I can't believe it's already May 15th! This month is just flying by!

I have to admit that it snuck up on me, and I realized yesterday that I didn't have a sketch & a layout ready for today's post. So, I went online and found a great sketch at Page Maps:

I love using just one photo on my layouts, but I know that others prefer to be able to include more. So I thought this sketch would be great for that.... you could have up to three square photos, or change up the design to six squares (two rows of three) and fill in the squares however you'd like. Lots of options!

I took inspiration from this card and pulled out some My Mind's Eye patterned papers.

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (canyon clay), stamps (wonderful word additions-- some selective inking to make the "loves", Simply You -- some selective inking to stamp the "awesome" on the double ended banner by Jonah's photo, Movers & Shakers sentiments) & dies (Layerz Mat Stack #5, Tag It's #5 (to make the row of banners) and Edgers' #5) I also used My Mind's Eye decorative brads & Bazzill cardstock (12x12).

I decided to use the square for the journaling on the sketch to showcase that cool image, so I tucked my journaling in the top pocket instead:

And here's a close-up of my banner, where I added some decorative brads, being inspired by this month's challenge on the MME blog.

And a few more decorative brads added here, too (they're addictive, I tell you!):

If you make a layout using this sketch, I'd love to see it! You can either post a link in my comments below or here on the PTI forum. I'd love to see what you make with it!

Thanks for looking!

A birthday card

Here's the second card I made yesterday, using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: background patterns from patterned paper scraps.

I needed to make a masculine birthday card, so I dug through my My Mind's Eye scraps and here's what I came up with.

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (rustic white), stamps (pretty peonies), dies (spiral note, edgers #5), buttons & twine. The patterned paper is all My Mind's Eye, except the strip of orange, which is Crate Paper.

Thanks for looking!

A rainbow greeting

After working hard in my backyard yesterday afternoon, I was able to spend a little crafty time in my basement where I made two cards, using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: background patterns from patterned paper scraps.

 Here's the first card. I thought the sentiment stamp needed a rainbow to go with it, so I stacked up some patterned paper scraps to make one.

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (rustic white, classic kraft), stamps (movers & shakers sentiments) & dies (happy day, clouds). The patterned paper is all Crate Paper, except the green polka-dots, which is My Mind's Eye. I added some Martha Stewart glitter to the clouds.

 I stitched a pocket to slip in a continuation to the sentiment:

 Thanks for looking!

Enjoy every moment

Thanks for weighing in about the trellises in my post yesterday! I actually ended up returning the trellis by my front door, when I realized it would cost me more money and effort to have it look nice with a vine. (And, you know, when Cameron asked if I was going to return it today! LOL!) But, you know, this made me feel slightly less guilty when I went shopping at Reitman's and bought some fun summer tops and a new denim scooter. Happy Mother's Day to me! ;)

I really loved the mix of patterned papers I used on my card yesterday, but couldn't decide if I wanted to add some Rosie Posie flowers to it, or the Notched Flower dies. So, I ended up making another card with the same patterned papers, once again, using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: background patterns from patterned paper scraps.

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (vintage cream, hibiscus burst, raspberry fizz, simply chartreuse), stamps (rosie posie, pretty peonies) and dies (rosie posie). The patterned paper is all scraps of The Girl's Paperie, the large brad is a SU! build-a-brad (I ♥ these!) and the two smaller ones are Teresa Collins.

Thanks for looking!

Five for Friday

1. I was so excited to see whole watermelons in the grocery store this week! We bought a 26 lb. one on Wednesday and it's almost half gone! Summer is on its way!

2. Austin turned 13 this week, Wednesday-- I am officially the mother of a teenager! Eeek!

I said to him Wednesday evening: "So, I'm thinking the teen years will be the best ones yet. Okay?" He said: "Sure." So, it's all settled. ;)

For his birthday, we gave him a teen Bible:

And a remote control helicopter:

Here are some photos I took on Wednesday evening:

This next one is my favourite! LOL!

3. Jonah got pink eye this week, so he's been home from school for the last three days. I've been staying home with him, which has been nice, since he's been able to help me a little with some yard work. ;)

4. I picked out my Mother's Day present on Tuesday. I wanted a new trellis for the front of our house for my clematis. I needed something narrow, so I'd picked up one at Canadian Tire. It was a little short, but Cam thought we could add to the bottom to make it taller. Then, at Walmart, I saw this one and fell in love with the little birds on it:

I took the other trellis out of my van and needed to put it somewhere temporarily until I returned it, so I put it here beside my front door...

And I kind of like how it looks there. I'm picturing getting a shade loving vine to climb up it.... what do you think? Should I keep them both?

5. And lastly, a crafty share.... I made this card using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: background patterns from patterned paper scraps.

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (vintage cream, hibiscus burst, raspberry fizz), stamps (pretty peonies), felt (simply chartreuse) and dies (notched flowers, turning a new leaf). The patterned paper is all scraps of The Girl's Paperie and the brad is a SU! build-a-brad (I ♥ these!)

Thanks for looking!

A day as sweet as can be

Today was a sweet day.

Jonah was home today from school (he has pink eye), but he's so easy-going to have around that we had a great day! The kids had early dismissal, so they were home by 2:30. Sage had a friend come over and play. Today is Austin's 13th birthday, so we had Little Caesar's pizza and crazy bread for supper and chocolate cake for dessert. We gave Austin his gifts: a teen Bible & a remote control helicopter. Soon, we'll go to taekwondo, where Jonah should get his promotion to red stripe and we'll hand out some butter crunch to our club, in honour of the new teenager in our house. ;)

It was also a sweet day because I was able to have some crafty time. Here's what I made, using this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: background patterns from patterned paper scraps.

I used Papertrey Ink stamps (strawberry patch sentiments, turning a new leaf), and Crate Paper patterned paper (from my scraps folder) and chipboard (brand new!)

Thanks for looking!

Sketch #12 & new die storage

Well, I finally made a layout with Sketch #12 from Kelly Purkey's Sketchbook 4 workshop.... this means that I made a card & layout for all twelve sketches! I'm really glad that I signed up for this workshop-- there were some really great sketches that I'm sure I'll use again!

Sketch #12 worked really well for combining with this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink: background patterns from patterned paper scraps (a challenge that's right up my alley!) Here's the layout I made, using scraps of The Girl's Paperie patterned paper:

I also used Papertrey Ink cardstock (harvest gold, raspberry fizz), felt (raspberry fizz), twine, stamps (Wonderful Words Additions) & dies (Script Alphabet, Heart Border, 3.5" limitless layers ovals, fillable frames #9). The blue decorative brad is MME and the larger one is an SU! build-a-brad.

Here's a close-up of the journaling (Sage recited the list to me at lunch time.)

A few weeks ago, inspired by a post I saw on the PTI forums, I headed to Staples to see if I could revamp my die storage system. I ended up buying a Martha Stewart 8.5x11" binder....

The binder had a pocket in the front, in which I store a sheet of Sizzex adhesive that I use mainly for my alphabet dies.

I purchased some Martha Stewart page protectors that have four pockets per page. However, my PTI border dies didn't fit in these, so I used a Tim Holtz stamp folder and a sheet of cardstock with two magnet strips adhered to it for these. I re-punched the holes in the folder so it would fit in the binder.

In the front, I decided to store my PTI alphabet dies and a set of Quickutz alphabet dies (Reuse). I haven't separted my alphabet dies, so these I just slide into a pocket. For the Reuse dies, they're separate, so I cut a magnetic sheet to fit the pocket and store the dies on that, before sliding them in.

On the next page protector, I have my new PTI script alphabet dies. Since these didn't fit in a pocket, I split them into two sections and store each one in their own pocket. For my Wonderful Words dies, I have them on a magnetic sheet.

After my alphabet/word dies, I have my frame dies. Most of these fit one per pocket. However, for my fillable frame dies, I decided to save space and store two per pocket. I cut a piece of white cardstock to fit the pocket and put adhered two magnets to the cardstock. This way, the dies stay in place as the binder gets handled.

For the sets that had four or more dies, I used a magnetic sheet in the pocket to stick the dies to. For three or less dies, I used a sheet of cardstock with magnets adhered to it.

After my frame/label dies, I have my flowers...

...and leaves. For my Rosie Posie dies, they didn't all fit in one pocket, so I store them in two pockets, side by side. I've also been storing extra diecuts in the pockets.

Then come my miscellaneous sets...

And in the last page protector, I have my Christmas dies.

Then I used a few more Tim Holtz folders to store my Woodgrain impression plate, Quatrefoil die, shim and embossing pads.

My Edgers #5 dies didn't fit in the pockets, so I used a Tim Holtz folder with magnetic strips on a piece of white cardstock for those...

... as well as for my Edger #3 dies and my Lunchbox Note die.

Then, at the back, I repunched hole in my Quickutz alphabet die folders and added them to my binder...

And that's it. It looks bulky, but it actually doesn't take up that much room and I'm finding it easier to keep everything in its place. I'm really happy with this system!

Thanks for looking!

The only layout...

... that I got done on National Scrapbooking Day weekend.

Normally, I make it a habit to participate in NSD online crops, but this weekend, it just didn't happen. We had Austin's birthday party on Friday night (we went to see The Avengers), the taekwondo promotion test on Saturday, followed by some weather that was just too nice to ignore (we went to play tennis) and a couple of movie nights (Iron Man & Iron Man 2, because I really liked him in the Avengers...). I did manage to fit in some scrapbooking time yesterday afternoon, in between a trip to the playground, so I made this layout for Valerie Salmon's 5 Year Anniversary Sketch Challenge. The challenge was to use: 5 photos, 5 patterned papers and a cluster of 5 embellishments.

I pulled out some new Pink Paislee patterned papers and my photos from the piano festival and made this:

In addition to the Pink Paislee patterned papers, I used Bazzill cardstock (white), Papertrey Ink cardstock (ocean tides) and dies (script alphabet, double-ended banner, notched flower), My Mind's Eye decorative brads and a scrap of The Girl's Paperie Xmas patterned paper to make my flower.

Thanks for looking!

A masculine birthday card, part II

Here's the second masculine card that I made recently for a woman at my church who likes my cards... Again, I used this colour combinations from this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink.

And, once again, I tweaked the combo slightly because I don't have any terracotta tile ink, so I substituted Canyon Clay.

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (vintage cream, kraft, aqua mist, fine linen, canyon clay), stamps (think big favourites #12, pretty peonies), dies (edgers #5, double-ended banner), impression plate (woodgrain) & buttons.

Thanks for looking!

Some masculine birthday cards, part 1

A woman at my church who likes my cards, recently asked me to make eight birthday cards for her. She wanted four feminine ones and four masculine ones. The feminine ones were easy-peasy. The masculine ones were a little more difficult...

Here's one of the cards I made here, using another one of Nichole's colour combinations for this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink.

It seemed like a good combo for a masculine card. ;)

I needed to tweak the combo slightly because I don't have any terracotta tile ink, so I substituted Canyon Clay. I hope this is okay!

I was inspired by the Sketchbook 4 #12 sketch to make this card:

I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (vintage cream, kraft, aqua mist), stamps (distressed stripes, tag sale #5, Movers & Shakers sentiments) & buttons.

Thanks for looking!

I think this is the last one....

The last Mother's Day card, that is. ;)

I made this one using another one of Nichole's colour combinations for this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink.

I found this colour combo to be quite challenging, and I'm not sure if I'm thrilled with the final outcome, but here it is...

I use Papertrey Ink cardstock (rustic white), stamps (beautiful butterflies, botanical silhouettes, Tags it's #3) & dies (layerz mat stack #4). The purple cardstock is SU! (Wonderful Wisteria), the ribbon is Offray and the purple gems are Hero Arts.

Thanks for looking!

And another Mother's Day card...

Hi there, I'm just popping in quickly this morning to post another Mother's Day card that I made using another one of Nichole's colour combinations for this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink.

I also used the most recent sketch at Retro Sketches.

Here's my card:





I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (rustic cream, sweet blush, canyon clay, melon berry, new leaf), buttons, twine, stamps (flower fusion #3, pretty peonies) and dies (heart border,  flower fusion #3, turning a new leaf). For the yellow stamped circles, I stamped them and then covered them with Glossy Accents.

Well, we're off to our taekwondo promotion test this morning.... Jonah's testing for his red stripe.

Thanks for looking!

Thanks for looking!

Five for Friday

1. On Sunday, we attended the Morden Festival of the Arts highlights concert, where Sage performed her French poem that she'd presented for Speech Arts. She was the only one to perform a French poem at the concert! And, both she and Jonah won awards for how well they'd performed their poems. I was so happy for them!

2. The other morning, when I woke up, I could hear Jonah & Sage talking softly. I got up to check and here's what I found:

Jonah had climbed into Sage's bed and was reading to her! It was so sweet, I had to grab my camera to take a picture!

3. They also got pretty creative this week and set up a sumo wrestling ring in the basement, stuffed some pillows in their clothes and played "Penner Sumo Wrestling":

4. Austin was honoured in taekwondo this week.... Master Braun called him to the front of the class to present him with this mini-target key-chain and spoke about the growth she'd noticed in him since becoming a poom belt... how she appreciated his volunteering for the whole day at the tournament, his willingness to work with the new students in class and how she sees him becoming a young leader in the club. I was super proud!

He's got a big day, today, too... This afternoon, he's working at the town library to raise money for their student council's work-a-thon and then tonight, we're having his birthday party (I cannot believe he's turning 13 next week!) He got to pick what we do for his party, so we're going to see The Avengers in the theatre tonight.

5. I got another layout and card done for Kelly Purkey's sketchbook class...I'm up to #11. Only one left and I've finished the workshop. :)

Here's my layout:

I used Echo Park patterned paper, Papertrey Ink cardstock (harvest gold), stamps (Simply You, Movers & Shakers Sentiments) and dies (Edger's #5). The decorative brads are all My Mind's Eye.

For the title, I used the "YOU" from Simply You and then modified the "You're all these things and more" stamp, by selectively inking the "re all these things and more" and then masking so I could stamp just the "A" at the front.

Because the layout was so full, I decided to include some hidden journaling behind the patterned paper, so with the Edger #5 dies. You pull it out to read it  -- some mushy stuff about how I love being his mom. ;)

And here's the card I made, using another one of Nichole's colour combinations for this week's Make It Monday at Papertrey Ink.

I used PTI cardstock (aqua mist, fine linen, berry sorbet, simply chartreus & rustic white), stamps (rosie posie, happy day) & dies (rosie posie, happy day, quatrefoil plate). I used the quatrefoil plate as an impression plate instead of a die. I also stamped with the matching ink on the cardstock to create my flowers.

Thanks for looking!