Cheryl's Stamping Corner

A Thousand Sheets of Paper Giveaway

2011-08-28T12:24:00.005-04:00

You really need to check out the blog A Thousand Sheets of Paper, she is giving away a 1,000 sheets of paper plus a lot more.

Blog Candy Giveaway

2009-02-13T12:49:00.008-05:00

***This offer is now closed due to lack of responses.***

I "won" a homemade gift by leaving one of the first 5 comments on Tammy's blog, so now I'll see who my first 5 are. The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you!

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2- What I create will be just for you.
3- It'll be done sometime this year (I will want to get it done ASAP so it will be in the next month or so).

4- You have no clue what it's going to be.
5-The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog! (then come here and post, I WILL check your blog *wink*)

The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win a homemade gift by me! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!

So....who will be the first 5 people?????

1. Scramptastic (Please email me your address. Click on View My Complete Profile to email me. I couldn't find a way to contact you on your blog)

Some Sympathy and Christmas cards

2009-02-10T08:14:00.004-05:00

On December 9, my SIL's mother passed away from a brain aneurysm. She was only 71 years old. I made this card for my SIL and for her 3 sisters and for her brother:

For this card, I knew I wanted to use the Cuttlebug Bird Call folder but I didn't want to use the whole image. So I cut a 2x2 square and placed it in the folder so that it would emboss the bird and some of the grass. I then backed the square with a slightly larger black square and a white scalloped square. It is hard to tell in the picture but I popdotted the square when I placed it on the card. It is also hard to see but the black background is embossed with the Cuttlebug Distressed Stripes folder.

This is the first time that I did a card completely in black and white and I must say that I am very pleased with how it turned out.

Stamps: PTI Paper Tray
Paper: CTMH black, white daisy
Accessories: CTMH bigger black brads, Cuttlebug Bird Call and Distressed Stripes, Nestibilities scalloped square

I am trying to keep a supply of cards on had so I used the same layout as the above card but this time I used different colors and stamps for the sympathy cards:

For the above cards, I used CTMH Faith and for the colors, I used CTMH colonial white, chocolate (card on left) and bamboo (card on right).

Since I never got around to posting my Christmas cards in December and I don't want to dedicate a whole post to the Christmas cards (I am so ready to move on from Christmas cards), I thought I would spread out posting my Christmas cards in several posts as I am posting other cards.

For the card layout below, I decided to do some in two different color schemes. Since I used metallic card stock, they didn't photograph very well.

Inside:

Stamps: CTMH Beauty of Christmas
Paper: silver metallic, CTMH outdoor denim
Ink: CTMH outdoor denim
Accessories: CTMH outdoor denim grosgrain ribbon, silver brads, glitter, Cuttlebug Snowflakes

For the card below, I changed the outdoor denim to New England Ivy and used both red and silver metallic cardstock and cranberry grosgrain.

These cards had a lot of layering and since I used metallic cardstock, it also makes the card a bit heavy. To cut down on the weight and to also save cardstock, I used my paper trimmer and cut out the centers of my backing layers. No sense in wasting paper when you can't see it behind the layers. If anyone is interested in how I save paper when layering, please post to let me know. I will then make sure I do a photo tutorial of how to use your trimmer to cut out the centers.

That's all I have time to post today. I need to get moving and get over to my sister's house to work on some Valentine treats (photos coming soon if I remember to take some pictures today) for my youngest dd to take to school on Friday. My oldest dd says that they are not having a Valentine party on Friday but are having a "regular" party. She, however, can't tell me if she needs to bring a treat or anything to school. Hopefully, she will find out today because I am not going to try and make something at the last minute for her to take.

I will be back tomorrow or Thursday with more projects!

PTI Bitty Dot Sketch Challenge

2009-02-07T21:30:00.003-05:00

Papertrey Ink has a big 2nd anniversary celebration going on right now. If you haven't heard about it, you may want to check out Nichole Heady's bog so you can get in on the celebration.

I wanted to participate in the challenges on Thursday and Friday but was unable to because my car died on me. I keep all my stamping supplies at my sister's house and there was no way I was going to walk to her house in -2F temperatures. My car needs a new alternator and, unfortunately, it will not be fixed until Monday.

I had no intentions of participating in today's challenge either but my sister came over to my house and made me go home with her so I could do a card. So this is the card that I came up with:

Stamps: SU! Wanted
Paper: SU! Chocolate Chip, CTMH Colonial White, Juniper
Inks: SU! Chocolate Chip, CTMH Juniper

It is hard to tell in the photo but the circles with the stars are pop-dotted.

Stay tuned, I have a lot of catching up to do. I have several Christmas cards to post plus some other miscellaneous cards that I have done in the past couple months.

Spellbinder's Design Team

2008-12-19T09:56:00.001-05:00

Spellbinder's is looking for new Design Team members. If you are interested in trying out for their design team, you can click here for more information.

I'm So Excited I Won!

2008-12-16T17:39:00.002-05:00

I just found out that I won blog candy! Jeanette Lynton, the founder of Close To My Heart, has a blog and just posted a little while ago the winners of her Passion for Paper contest. I totally missed my name the first time I read the list. Thankfully, I read it again and saw my name in the number 1 spot. I won a paper pack and My Stickease from the new spring catalog. I don't know which one I won because she will pick the pack for each winner. She was very generous and gave away 12 paper packs instead of the 5 that she orginally planned on giving away.

Well, I got to run now. I have to take my oldest dd and her friend to Girl Scouts. Then I am taking my youngest dd to shop for a Christmas gift for the little girl that I watch after school.

Christmas Carol quiz

2008-12-15T08:22:00.003-05:00

Here is a fun Christmas Carol quiz. After you take the quiz, leave a comment with your results! I, unfortunately, only got a 68%. It told me that I spend too much time shopping and eating and I need to spend more time singing. I am definitely not a singer and very rarely listen to music--well, I should say pay attention to the words in a song. I am going to the local high school choir concert tonight so I am definitely going to pay attention to the words.

I have lots of cards to post but have to get the pictures off my sister's camera first. I guess I need to start taking my camera with me when I go to her house to stamp so I can get my pictures posted quicker. Hopefully, I can start posting some cards tomorrow.

For those of you who take the quiz and leave a comment, I will have one of my dds draw a name and you will get a little something for me. Leave your comments by Thursday, December 18 at noon (EST) and I will have my dd draw a name after school that day.

Christmas Cards for my MIL and FIL

2008-12-08T08:30:00.000-05:00

In addition to making Christmas cards for my DH's grandma, I also made some for my MIL and FIL. I made 10 of each of these cards.

This card was inspired by Sharon Johnson's card:

Stamps: SU! Snow Swirled
Paper: gold metallic

Stamps: CTMH (can't think of the name of the stamp set right now)
Paper: CTMH holiday red
Accessories: Cuttlebug Winter House, Stickles

I have a question for anyone who has the Cuttlebug Winter House embossing folder. Does yours deeply emboss your cardstock? When I made these cards, I used my friends folder but used my machine and they were deeply embossed. I ordered a folder for myself and my sister used it today. She used a leftover circle that I had embossed with my friends folder and she noticed that there was a big difference in the two. My folder didn't emboss nearly as well as my friends and also, the images seemed to be a little different because she could not line the circle up over the full embossed sheet. I am going to get in touch with the company but was just wondering if anyone else could tell me how theirs embosses.

Last of the Card Donations

2008-12-08T08:00:00.000-05:00

Here are the rest of the card donations.

These were made by my sister Carol:

From Stacy M., Pasco, WA:

These are from Sue C., N. Royalton, OH:

This is a set of notecards in different colors sent in by Susan R. Springboro, OH:

This large lot of cards was donated by Susie H., Tucker, GA (thanks, Susie, for your very generous donation!):

From Taylor V., Pasadena, CA:

This set of Christmas cards is from Teresa K., Staunton, VA:

And last but not least, this card is from Tosha L., Dinuba, CA:

And here is a picture of 5 of the 6 baskets that we donated for the benefit:

The basket in the middle is the one with the stamping supplies. I didn't get a picture of the 6th basket. We didn't get that put together until the night before the benefit and I totally forgot to take a picture of it.

Thank you again to everyone for your generosity in donating your cards for the benefit!

OCC Sketch Challenge

2008-12-07T21:50:00.003-05:00

Very rarely do I get to participate in sketch challenges. I keep all my stamping stuff at my sister's house so I don't always have time when I am there to make everything that I want to make. Fortunately, today I had time.

While I was working on my Christmas cards, my sister mentioned my cousin's birthday which is on Tuesday. I knew her birthday was coming up, but I guess it came quicker than I was prepared for. I had every intention of getting her card done so I could get in the mail on time but I guess my card is going to be a day or two late. She lives in Texas so I don't think the card is going to get from Ohio to Texas by Tuesday.

I remembered that OCC was having a sketch challenge so I came up with this card:

And this is the inside:

Stamps: SU! Paris in the Spring, PTI Birthday Basics
Paper: CTMH Stylin' (retired), black, baby pink
Ink: CTMH archival black, baby pink marker
Accessories: Cuttlebug D'vine Swirls, Scallop square Nestie, SU! black grosgrain, CTMH flower, CTMH baby pink brad

At first, I colored the presents in using my PrismaColor pencils but I decided there was too much color going on. So I threw that piece away and just added some color with the baby pink marker. It was so much better and had just enough color.

I was also really pleased with how my flower accent turned out. I wasn't quite sure what I wanted and then this idea came to me. I cut three pieces of the grosgrain ribbon and folded the ends under to the middle on each of them and adhered them. I then used my paper piercer and put a hole in the center of each so I could put the brad through. I think it is a fun accent piece and will have to remember to add it to other cards in different colors.

Christmas Cards for DH's Grandma

2008-12-07T13:15:00.001-05:00

This year I decided to give my DH's grandma an early Christmas present. I made her two sets of 10 Christmas cards. I hope she liked them. I didn't get to give them to her personally since she lives about 2 hours away. I took them with me when we went to my in-laws for Thanksgiving so they could give them to her the next time they saw her.

Anyways, here is the first card. It was inspired by this card by jennifv on Splitcoaststampers:

And the inside:

Stamps: PTI Snowflake Serenade
Paper: red metallic
Inks: CTMH holiday red
Accessories: Cuttlebug Lace Tree, rhinestones

And here is the second card:

And the inside:

Stamps: PTI Snowflake Serenade
Paper: CTMH outdoor denim
Ink: CTMH outdoor denim
Accessories: Cuttlebug Snowflakes, rhinestones

When you make your Christmas cards, do you make them all the same design or do you do all different cards? When I started stamping, I used to make mine all the same design but now that I have more stamps and a lot more ideas, I make different sets of cards. I'm still working on my Christmas cares but will be posting them as soon as I get them all done.

More Card Donations--almost done

2008-12-07T09:42:00.016-05:00

I think I should be able to get the rest of the cards posted tomorrow.

This card is from Jazzi B., Portland, ME:

This is from Jerri Kay:

From Joanne B., Franklin, MA:

From Julia B., Red Creek, Alberta:

From Katherine R., Rockledge, FL:

These were sent in by Kim M., Flowery Branch, GA:

These are from Laurie W., Katy, TX:

These were sent in by Lorri H., Cave Creek, AZ:

These are from Makiko J., Waskom, TX:

From Michelle B., Fenton, MO:

These are from Pam S., Connoquenessing, PA:

Sent in by Peggy E., Terrebone, Quebec:

From Rita C., Showlow, AZ:

From Rita R., Charlotte CH, VA:

From Rochelle W., Sacramento, CA:

And finally for today, from Sharon J., Baraga, MI:

I want to say a special thanks to Sharon. She posted about the benefit on her blog which resulted in 17 people sending in 90 cards! That was a huge help and greatly appreciated!

I'm Back!

2008-12-06T12:08:00.014-05:00

Sorry it has taken me so long to post more benefit cards. I got the pictures off my sister's camera last week, but my oldest dd didn't put the list of names in my purse like I asked her to so I didn't know who did what card. Luckily, my sister found it at her house halfway under her couch.

We went to Michigan to my in-laws house on Thanksgiving Day and came home late Friday night. My sister, my cousin and I took a trip to Avon on Saturday so we could go shopping at Michael's. I didn't buy anything exciting--just blades for my paper trimmer and a storage container to put the projects I am currently working on in.

On Sunday I started to feel sick again. Near the end of October I had gotten a cold. After the sinus stuff went away, I was left with a lingering cough. Well, my cough turned into an even worse cough on Sunday along with very painful sinus pressure and all the yucky stuff that comes with it. My 5 year old dd also got a cold so the both of us have been coughing and sounding terrible all week long. Today is the first day that I actually feel better and can sit at the computer without getting a terrible headache.

Here are more of the cards donated for the benefit. I apologize if some of the pictures aren't the greatest. With almost 300 cards to take pictures of in less than a week, my sister and I had to do a rush job.

These were donated by Angie J., Overland Park, KS:

This is a boxed set of cards by Ashley N., Manassas, VA:

These are from Barbara W.:

These are from Cindy L., Winchester, NH:

This is a boxed set of 4 from Cindy M., Loveland, CO:

These are from Curt O., Carmel, IN:

These are from Emily C., Seattle, WA:

These are from Gina K., McFarland, WI:

And finally for today, these are from Helen K., Baraga, MI:

Another great giveaway at the Sunday Baker

2008-11-24T08:04:00.002-05:00

The Sunday Baker blog is giving away a great tote. You have until Tuesday (Nov. 25) at 8:00 p.m. to enter.

More cards from my sister and more card donations (lots of pictures!)

2008-11-23T08:07:00.012-05:00

The following cards were made and donated by my sister:

The following were made by Peggy O., Fairfax, VA:

These were made by Renee L., Fredericksburg, VA:

These were made by Ruth N., Albuquerque, NM:

These were made by Sue B., Lincoln, IL:

These were made by Silke L., Statesboro, GA:

Hope everyone is enjoying the cards that I have been posting. Please feel free to leave comments when you see cards that you like.

These are the last of the cards that I have on my computer. The rest are still on my sister's camera so it may be a few days before I can post more card donations.

More benefit cards and a request

2008-11-21T06:19:00.008-05:00

Here are three more cards that I made for the baskets. I think these might be the last of what I made. I have to get the rest of the pictures off my sister's camera and I'm not sure if I have more or not (I'm getting old and can't remember).

Oh, I keep forgetting--sorry some of the pictures I have posted and will be posting are on the dark side. The weather did not cooperate that week so most days were rainy and gloomy and not good days to take pictures. I couldn't wait for sunny days because the benefit was quickly approaching.

stamps: CTMH With Love, Solo "C"
paper: CTMH watermelon, tropical blue (retired), hydrangea, citrus leaf, desert sand
accessories: orange grosgrain, CTMH white embossing powder

stamps: CTMH toile (retired)
ink: CTMH garnet
paper: CTMH Heirloom (retired), New England Ivy, garnet, cocoa
accessories: CTMH cocoa grosgrain

The following card, I made the star using the tutorial for the Tag Punch Star from SCS:

stamps: Papertrey Snowflake Serenade
paper: CTMH crystal blue, vellum
accessories: snowflake punch, stickles, small pearl (in center of snowflake), CTMH crystal blue organdy ribbon, Cuttlebug snowflakes folder

This card was made by my sister:

These were made by Libby H., Austin, TX:

These were made by Lynn E., Ocala, FL:

My cousin Kim (she made the Christmas tree card in one of the previous posts) called me last night. She had a gall bladder attack and is in the hospital. She needs to have surgery but was not sure last night when she will have it. She has to talk to the surgeon yet. Please keep Kim in your thoughts and prayers.

I am having a busy fun day today. My youngest dd is in Kindergarten and every year the Kindergarten has a Thanksgiving feast for their families. Today is the feast so I along with my sister and my dh get to go eat with my youngest. I am sure there will be an early release for the Kindergarteners since the feast starts at 1:00 and will be over by 2:00 (school is released at 2:30). That means my youngest gets out early while my oldest (6th grade) has to stay until 2:30. She won't be happy about that but she will be happy that she doesn't have to walk home with her little sister and another Kindergartener who I watch after school.

Then tonight I go to a monthly crop at a local church. I missed last month's because my DH was busy being a Screamster at Cedar Point so I had to stay home with my 2 dds and my oldest dd's friend who I watch on Friday nights. At the crops, sometimes I get a lot done while other times I get maybe one card done because I am talking too much. Hopefully tonight will be a productive night because I have a lot of Christmas cards to make. Yesterday I started making Christmas cards for my dh's grandma as an early Christmas present and I also want to makes some for my MIL. I haven't even started my Christmas cards yet--I don't even have an idea what I want to do for mine.

I'll be posting more pictures tomorrow!

Lots of pictures today!

2008-11-19T15:39:00.016-05:00

I talked to my friend today about the benefit and she said they served around 575 dinners and think they raised almost $10,000! She said a lot of people commented on the card baskets. My friend and her daughter each won a basket of cards!

I have a couple days of not posting pictures to make up for so here are a lot of pictures of the donated cards:

I made these 3 cards:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink Pond Life
Inks: CTMH olive, New England Ivy
Paper: CTMH olive, New England Ivy, Desert Sand
Cuttlebug Tiny Mosaics

I CASE'd the following card from the Papertrey website. I can't remember whose card it was but I did put that information in my Splitcoaststampers gallery (my username is Ladybugb919).

Stamps: Papertrey Ink Pond Life
Ink: CTMH oak brown, chocolate, garden green, crystal blue
Paper: CTMH oak brown, chocolate, garden green

Stamps: CTMH Merry Pursuits
Ink: CTMH archival black
Markers: holiday red, star spangled blue, sunny yellow, New England Ivy, olive, grey wool
Paper: CTMH Evensong, cranberry, New England Ivy

My sister made these cards:

I saw this card on the Groppi Girl Blogs and wanted to make it. I was busy working on another card so I showed it to my sister and she picked the colors and made this card:

These cards were donated by Gigi from Alexandria, VA:

These were made by Jennifer M., McHenry, IL:

These were made by Jessica K., Chehalis, WA:

These were donated by Kay L., Usk, WA:

This was made by my cousin Kim. She made a total of 6 of these cards:

That's all for today. I have a lot more to post so keep checking back!

Blog candy giveaway at the Sunday Baker

2008-11-19T07:44:00.002-05:00

Tanya at the Sunday Baker blog has a great giveaway going on until Thursday at 8:00 p.m. The items include an apron, pin cushion and dish towel along with a few other things.

If you like to cook, the Sunday Baker has some great recipes. Tanya's fudge puddles are yummy!

I will be back later with more pictures of the cards donated. I have a bit of running I have to do this morning so, hopefully, I can get that done and pictures posted before the girls get home from school.

More card donations

2008-11-15T11:25:00.003-05:00

I have a few minutes this morning so I thought I would post more cards while I have the time.

Here are a couple more that I made:

Paper: CTMH outdoor denim, bamboo
Accessories: CTMH outdoor denim grosgrain ribbon
Cuttlebug D'vine Swirls and Fancy Corners

Stamps: SU! Coast to Coast
Paper: CTMH Indian corn blue, bamboo, desert sand, outdoor denim, colonial white
Accessories CTMH outdoor denim brads
Cuttlebug distressed stripes, tiny mosaics, spots and dots

These were donated by Bev R. from Larimore, ND:

And these were donated by Carla S. from Chapel Hill, NC:

Thanks ladies for donating these cards!

Cards for Benefit

2008-11-14T15:42:00.007-05:00

Here are a couple of the cards that I made for the card basket:

Stamps: SU! All Aboard
Paper: CTMH Heirloom (retired), garnet, cocoa, New England Ivy
Ink: CTMH New England Ivy
Accessories: CTMH cocoa grosgrain

Paper: CTMH buttercup, vellum
Accessories: CTMH buttercup organdy ribbon
Cuttlebug Birds & Swirls and Fancy Corners

Here is one that my sister made:

And finally for today, these were donated by Bethany P.:

I will try to post more tomorrow morning but it may not be until Sunday as I have a SU! party to go to and also the benefit dinner tomorrow night.

Benefit for Andrew

2008-11-14T14:49:00.002-05:00

My friend Paula's 18 year old grandson Andrew was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia this summer. You can read articles about Andrew in the Sandusky Register and the Norwalk Reflector.

As you know with any diagnosis of cancer comes extraordinary medical expenses. To help with these expenses, the family is having a benefit dinner for Andrew tomorrow to help raise some money. They are having raffles and prizes at the dinner.

As soon as I found out about the benefit dinner, I wanted to help out by donating a prize. My friend is a stamper just like me and she has other friends who are stampers so I knew that handmade cards would be a great donation. With such short notice, I knew that my sister and I could not make enough cards to fill a basket so I decided to post on Splitcoaststampers and also to email as many other stampers as I could asking for donations. The response was more than I had ever hoped.

To date, I have received around 300 cards and even some stamping supplies. My sister and I have given my friend 4 baskets of 60 cards each and 1 basket with approximately $100 in stamping supplies. We will be putting together another card basket tonight to donate.

My sister and I have taken pictures of all the donated cards so over the next few weeks, I will be posting the cards so that everyone can see.

A big THANK YOU goes out to everyone who donated cards for the benefit!

Please Stay Tuned!

2008-11-09T21:42:00.002-05:00

Wow, I can't believe it has been almost a year since I have posted. This past year has just flown by.

I don't have any cards to post today but please stay tuned because I will be posting a lot very soon. I organized donations for a card basket for my friend's grandson's benefit dinner that is coming up on the 15th. (My friend's grandson is only 18 and has cancer.) So far I have received over 200 cards as donations and my sister and I have taken pictures of all of them. I will start posting the cards that my sister and I made and also the donated cards.

Just a quick note

2007-12-19T09:52:00.000-05:00

Once again, I appear to be slacking on posting on my blog but really I'm not. My uncle got sick and died in November so I didn't do any stamping. Then on December 1 my computer died when my DH installed more memory. I still don't have my computer back (hopefully, in the next couple days I will get it). I've been going to my sister's a couple days a week to check my email but don't have time to post any projects on here.

I really wanted to post a 12 days of Christmas project that my sister and I did a couple years ago but the pictures are on my computer. I was going to post the project in memory of my uncle who died since my sister and I did it for him and our aunt. If I'm still blogging this time next year, I will be sure to post it.

In case I don't get my computer back before Christmas, I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

Some cards I made over the summer

2007-10-12T21:45:00.000-04:00

I managed to stamp a few cards this summer but never got around to posting them on here so I thought I would do that now.

Stamps: CTMH Free Spirit, For Every Occasion
Paper: CTMH Sunny Yellow, Bubblegum, Topiary
Inks: CTMH Bubblegum, Topiary, Dutch Blue
Accessories: CTMH Just Blooms, gold brads

For these next two cards, I got the color inspiration from the CTMH Fall/Winter 2007 catalog. This first color combination is from the Life Delights My Reflections kit:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink Little Lady, Green Thumb
Papers: CTMH Blush, Chocolate, Lilac Mist, Sweet Leaf, Colonial White
Inks: CTMH Blush, Chocolate, Lilac Mist, Sweet Leaf

The color combination for this next cards is from CTMH Enchanted My Reflections Kit. I don't think I care for this combination.

Stamps: Papertrey Ink Little Lady, Green Thumb
Paper: CTMH Autumn Terracotta, Garden Green, Smokey Plum, Sunflower, Colonial White
Inks: CTMH Autumn Terracotta, Garden Green, Smokey Plum, Sunflower, Colonial White

The next two cards use paper by Cosmo Cricket. I was in Pat Catan's one day and saw the one with flowers and it reminded me of the flowers from Paper Trey Ink's Little Lady and Green Thumb sets. It took me awhile to find inks in my supplies that coordinated with the papers but I think I found some that were pretty close. I'm not sure that I really like the colors of this paper. Definitely not a color combination that I would put together.

Stamps: Papertrey Ink's Little Lady, Green Thumb, Paper Tray
Papers: Cosmo Cricket's Miss Molly, Peggy Sue, some unknown cardstock from Pat Catan's
Inks: CTMH Grey Wool, Color Box Roan Chestnut and one of their reds
Accessories: CTMH bigger brads, red grosgrain ribbon from Pat Catan's

I finally got to stamp today!

2007-10-12T21:12:00.000-04:00

My two dds and I were finally able to make it over to my sister's house to do some stamping this afternoon. I needed a couple thank you cards to send to my cousin and my aunt and uncle to thank them for the Macy's gift certificate my cousin sent me on behalf of all of them for my birthday which was in September. Normally I don't get a present from them, but since my aunt and my uncle have been in assisted living and my sister and I do all their shopping, taking care of their meds, etc. since my cousin lives in Texas, they have gotten us gift certificates for our birthday the last couple years.

Ever since another CTMH consultant (Kathi Carlson) posted some cards she made using the floral dimensional elements and the Floral Elements stamps set, I have been wanting to play with the set. The two thank you cards are cased from a couple cards that she made. I used a different color combination than she did and I also added the stem and leaves to the one card. I was having so much fun playing with this set that I went ahead and made another card.

Stamps: CTMH Floral Elements
Paper: CTMH New England Ivy, White Daisy, Barn Red
Inks: CTMH Autumn Terracotta, Sunflower, Barn Red, New England Ivy
Accessories: CTMH White Daisy Grosgrain, Bigger Brads, Flower Garden Dimensional Elements

I had so much fun stamping today that I just want to keep stamping. Unfortunately, all my stuff is at my sister's house, my DH is being a monster at Cedar Point and my dds are in bed so I am stuck here at home. I happened to look at Nicole Heady's blog today and saw the beautiful slider card that she made and so want to make one right now. I guess I'll have to just keep blogging to keep my mind off making that slider card. Hopefully, my dds will be good tomorrow and we can go do some more stamping.

Alzheimer's Memory Walk

2007-09-07T09:49:00.000-04:00

My sister and I are participating in the local Alzheimer's Memory Walk on September 29. I decided to form my own team instead of joining someone else's because I have a few family members (my mom, two uncles and an aunt) who are suffering from Alzheimer's.

I have set a goal to get $500 in donations for the walk, but so far I have only managed to raise $90. That is a looong way from $500. My sister and I have a little friendly competition going on to see who can raise the most. The loser will have to clean the other's house. So far my sister is beating me by $10. If you would like to help me (and, of course, the Alzheimer's Association), you can make a donation here: Memory Walk. If you are not comfortable donating online, there is a link to a form that you can print and mail in. Any donation big or small would be greatly appreciated.

I also have a goal to have a total of 5 team members but so far I only have 2. If you are near Sandusky, and would like to walk to benefit a great cause, please consider joining my team Friends Together Against Alzheimer's.

I'm Back!

2007-09-07T09:38:00.000-04:00

Boy, I can't believe how long it has been since I have posted. Now that summer is over and the girls are back in school, hopefully, I will be able to post on a regular basis. I didn't get much stamping done this summer but I did scan the few cards that I did manage to do. I will get those posted when I have time.

We didn't take a big family vacation this year but we did go to the hot air balloon festival in Jackson, MI, in July. My DH took some great pictures and when I can the disk that he put them on, I will post some of the pictures. I'll post more about the festival when I post the pictures.

We also took a trip to the Cleveland Zoo. It had to be the hottest, most humid day in July that we went--it was at least 90 F. Fortunately, we remembered to take a cooler filled with bottles of water so that we didn't get dehydrated. We skipped going into the Rainforest because we were too hot and tired after going around the rest of the zoo. DH also took some great pictures at the zoo that I will have to post (when I find them).

It's great to have the time to blog again. I hope I didn't lose too many readers during my down time. More to come shortly.

A couple TAC cards

2007-06-23T10:41:00.000-04:00

I went to a TAC gathering last night at my friend Paula's house. Awna (the TAC demo and another friend of mine) designed a couple cute cards for us to make. I am in awe of anyone that can color. I don't know what it is but when it comes to coloring stamped images, I just am not that good at it. As a kid, I loved to color in coloring books but as an adult, I just am not impressed with my coloring skills. Also it didn't help that last night I was feeling a bit shaky for some reason--not a good thing when trying to color detailed images!

I was so proud of myself that I did not buy anything at the gathering. It isn't that I didn't want to but financially, I really shouldn't be spending money plus I made myself a promise not to buy new stuff until I use some things that I bought a long time ago and never used.

Let me tell you, it wasn't easy not buying the Haute Couture stamp set that we used for the second card. This set is retiring plus since it is retiring, the price was discounted. When TAC first came out with this stamp set, I just thought it was OK, not really my style, but the more of Awna's artwork that I see with this set, I really, really like it. It was so hard not to buy the set last night but I'm sure if I really want to make some cards with it, I can sweet talk Paula (she is buying this set) or Awna into letting me use their sets.;)

I'm a Slacker!

2007-06-23T10:26:00.000-04:00

I know I promised to post more cards a couple weeks ago but when it comes to using a camera, I put it off as much as possible. A photographer I am not. It doesn't help that DH got a new Cannon Powershot S315 a couple weeks ago and I haven't even touched it yet. He told me that this camera was going to take a lot of learning to use--not something that I want to hear. I'm not good with regular digital cameras and now I have to learn how to use a fancy one.

I still have the Kodak camera that my sister passed on to us when she got her new Kodak but my rechargeable batteries barely hold a charge anymore. I really need to get out and get new batteries so I can continue to use that one.

So today while I was scanning a couple other cards that I want to post, I decided to scan the ones that I made a couple weeks ago instead of taking a picture with the camera. They are shadow box cards to they don't look the greatest when scanned, but that is the best I can do right now. Here they are:

For these cards I used:

Stamps: CTMH Life is so Good, Birthday Script
Paper: Sunkiss Yellow, White Daisy
Inks: Key Lime, Spring Iris, Hollyhock, Sunkiss Yellow, Sunny Yellow, Grey Wool, Heavenly Blue
Accessories: White brads, silver brads, white organdy ribbon

It is hard to see but on the inside, I lightly sponged heavenly blue ink using a piece of paper with the same size oval cut out as the front for my mask.

Simple Graduation card

2007-06-10T22:38:00.000-04:00

I made this quick graduation card today for my DH's coworker's son. I really don't have any graduation stamps (it is extremely rare that I know anyone graduating so why buy graduation stamps!) so I decided to use the high school initials and the school colors. I hope the ribbon doesn't make it look too girly.

I forgot to scan the inside of the card but I stamped "congrats" in blue and then had a graduation cap stamped in orange and slightly above and to the right of the "s" in "congrats."

Orange and blue are definitely two colors that I wouldn't normally put together but they are the school colors--thank God I didn't go to that high school (I can't believe I will be going to my 20th class reunion this year!) because I really do not like the color orange!

For this card, I used:

Stamps: CTMH Rustic Alpha, The Works Alpha, Geometric Thoughts
Paper and Ink: CTMH orange, star spangled blue, white daisy
Ribbon: CTMH Dutch Blue grosgrain (I think this ribbon matches star spangled blue better than Dutch Blue)

I did make two more cards today after the graduation party but I will have to post them later. They are shadow box cards so I couldn't stick them in my scanner. By the time I got home it was too dark in my house to take good pictures.

I've been tagged!

2007-06-08T16:06:00.000-04:00

I've been tagged by Awna. You can check out her blog at http://allinkdup.blogspot.com/.

Yourself: uninteresting

Your Partner: Jeff

Your Hair: too thick

Your Mother: Betty

Your Father: deceased and deeply missed

Your Favorite Item: can't think of one right now

Your Dream Last Night: don't remember

Your Favorite Drink: water

Your Dream Car: something with room for more than 5 people

Dream Home: one with a stamp room

The Room You Are In: living room

Where You Want to be in Ten Years: too far away to think about

Who You Hung Out With Last Night: my kids

You're Not: outgoing

One of Your Wish List Items: more stamps (Papertrey and Gina K Designs)

The Last Thing You Did: took my dds to Wendy's

You Are Wearing: shorts and a t-shirt

Your Favorite Weather: warm and sunny but not hot

Last Thing You Ate: Pringles

Your Life: boring

Your Mood: varies

What Are You Thinking About Right Now: answering this

Your Car: red

What Are You Doing At The Moment: typing my answers

Relationship Status: married

What Is On Your TV: Looney Tunes DVD (kids are watching)

What Is The Weather Like: rainy
When Is The Last Time You Laughed: don't remember

Sympathy Card

2007-06-05T23:34:00.001-04:00

Just before I went to get my haircut today, my sister called to tell me that my hairstylist's mother had died (my sister works where the hairstylist's DH works). No one ever called to cancel my appointment so I went to my appointment and the hairstylist was working. There is no way that I would have been able to work after my dad had died.

I already had planned to go to my sister's house afterwards to do some stamping so I just changed my stamping plans and made my hairstylist a sympathy card.

For this card I used:

Stamps: CTMH's Sweet Flowers, Comforting Thoughts

Paper: CTMH's Simple Pleasures, cocoa, bamboo, colonial white

Inks: CTMH's cocoa, bamboo, twilight, desert sand

Ribbon: CTMH's cocoa grosgrain

For the inside of the card, I did reverse masking and sponging:

I am getting myself into the habit of making more than one of the same card when I make a new design so after I completed this card, I made three more. For the last card, I didn't want to cut a new sheet of the B&T paper so I used a different piece of B&T from the Simple Pleasures kit:

Taste of Home Magazine

2007-06-03T09:51:00.001-04:00

This is totally not stamping related but I wanted to see if anyone was interested in getting (or renewing) a subscription to Taste of Home Magazine, Simple & Delicious or Every Day with Rachel Ray.

I am a Taste of Home Entertaining Charter Consultant and I am offering discounts on subscriptions to these three magazines but only for this week. A one year (6 issues) subscription to Taste of Home is regularly $12.96. I am offering it for $11. A one year (6 issues) subscription for Simple & Delicious is regularly $12.96. I am also offering it for $11. A one year (10 issues) subscription to Every Day with Rachel Ray is regularly $18. I am offering it for $16.

If you are interested in a subscription to any (or all) of these magazines, please contact me by June 8.

The Earth Laughs In Flowers

2007-05-29T15:06:00.001-04:00

The Papertrey Green Thumb set is quickly becoming my favorite stamp set (at least for the moment). I just love the variety of stamps that come with this set.

Again, I was inspired by a card I saw on Splitcoaststampers. I just love this layout and will have to use it for some more cards.

I was finally able to get my hands on the Spots and Dots (I think that is the name) embossing folder for the Cuttlebug. I love this folder.

This is the first time that I have done a curved line on my cards. I drew it with a pencil and then cut it out. I'm not sure that I like this method. If anyone uses any tools to do their curved lines, please let me know what you use. I did see a flexible ruler by B0-Bunny in an ad in I believe the last Paper Crafts magazines. Has anyone used this ruler? If you have, let me know what you think. It would make drawing the curves easier but I would still need to cut it out by hand so I'm not sure I would like that part.

I used SU's slit punch to make my scallops at the bottom. For the center of the flowers, I used CTMH's liquid glass and sprinkled a little prisma glitter.

For this card I used:

Stamps: Papertrey's Green Thumb

Paper: CTMH's key lime, sunkiss yellow, hollyhock, white daisy

Inks: CTMH's key lime, spring iris, sunkiss yellow, hollyhock

Ribbon: CTMH's spring iris

Another Green Thumb card by Papertrey

2007-05-29T15:01:00.000-04:00

I was finally able to purchase the oval and circle scalloped punches. These punches are certainly hard to get a hold of because they always seem to be sold out. Luckily, I found a site that you can receive notification when the item is back in stock so I ordered these as soon as I got the notice.

This is the first card I have made with the punches. This card is similar to the Friendship Flowers card I just posted but instead of making a smaller triangle for the right side, I just made another larger triangle.

For this card I used:

Stamps: Papertrey's Green Thumb

Papers: CTMH's black, clover meadow, white daisy, holiday red gingham

Inks: CTMH's holiday red, clover meadow

Spinner card

2007-05-29T14:51:00.000-04:00

I needed a card for my youngest daughter's 4th birthday. We had the party yesterday but her birthday isn't actually until tomorrow. I was going through some old cards I had made and came across this one and figured it would be perfect for her. She loves the color pink.

I found the directions for this card in a Paper Crafts magazine. Basically what you do is stamp your spinning image on two circles and then sandwich a string (or thread) between them. Make sure though that you have one image right side up and the other image upside down when you put them together. That way when you open the card up, the back image will be right side up in the card. You will also need to make a cover with a circle cut out for the inside front of your card so that the ends of your string are covered. When you are completely done making your card, you twist your image around a few times and then hold it while you shut your card. When the recipient opens the card, the image will spin.

For this card, I used:

Stamps: CTMH's Kid's Art-Party

Papers: CTMH's watermelon, hydrangea, white daisy

Inks: CTMH's archival black, baby pink, watermelon, hydrangea, chocolate

Baby card

2007-05-29T14:43:00.000-04:00

This card is for a friend of mine who had her second child last week. This card was inspired by a card on Splitcoaststampers.

For this card I used:

Stamps: CTMH's Classic Caps, Geometric Thoughts, Botanicals Superset

Inks: CTMH's blush, breeze, buttercup, spring iris

Papers: CTMH's breeze, buttercup, white daisy

Ribbon: CTMH's Spring Iris

Friendship Flowers pop up card

2007-05-29T14:31:00.001-04:00

I finally got around to scanning my artwork to post. This is the first time I have done a pop up card. They really are quite easy and I will definitely be making more in the future. It adds a nice surprise to the inside of the card.

After I made this card, I realized that I should have just inked up and stamped the "i'd pick" on the stamp since I already had the "U." I guess it is OK the way it is because your eye automatically goes to the big "U" instead of reading the word "you."

For this card, I used:

Stamps: CTMH's Friendship Flowers, Rustic Alphabet, Spunky Greeting
Inks: CTMH's hollyhock, twilight, goldrush and garden green
Paper: CTMH's Best Friends Forever My Reflections kit and My Stickease (large flower on front), twilight, colonial white

Ebates

2007-05-26T14:04:00.000-04:00

I have added an Ebates link to My Links. If you sign up for Ebates (make sure to use my link or put me in as your referral using ladybugb919@yahoo.com) and shop at the stores they have listed, you can earn cashback on your purchases. Plus when you sign up for
Ebates, you automatically get $5 cashback when you make your first purchase.

For those of you interested in subscribing (or renewing your subscription) to Paper Crafts magazine, you can get a great deal through Ebates. Sign up for Ebates, then go to Magazines.com and purchase your Paper Crafts subscription. The Paper Crafts subscription is $11.92 through Magazines.com and you will earn 22% cash back when you purchase your subscription. In addition to that 22%, you will also get $5 credited to your Ebates account. So after your cash back and credit, you end up only paying $4.30 for your subscription to Paper Crafts.

Happy Shopping!

Blog Candy

2007-05-26T13:45:00.000-04:00

I've been thinking about doing some type of blog candy but I'm not sure how successful that would be since I have only had 3 people make any comments on my blog. So readers, if you are interested in getting some type of blog candy, please start commenting on my artwork. Once I get about 20 comments on my blog, then I will seriously start considering what I can offer to my readers.

If there is anything that I can do to improve my blog, please let me know.

I do have some more artwork to add. It is just a matter of getting some pictures taken and download to my computer so I can post them.

Frappr Map

2007-05-26T13:39:00.001-04:00

I have added a Frappr Map to my blog. Please scroll down to the very bottom of the page and add yourself to my map so that I can see where everyone is from.

Papertrey tunnel card and another CTMH Rustic Flowers card

2007-05-16T12:39:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I made my first tunnel card and I also used my new Papertrey Green Thumb stamp set for the first time. I am going to have so much fun playing with this set. If you don't already have it, you really should check it out at Papertrey Ink. This is the first set that I have purchased from them and I will definitely purchase more.

I found the pattern for the Tunnel Card on Splitcoaststampers. I really like how the inside turned out, but I am not sure that I really like the front. After I had adhered the white for the inside of the card to the petal cardstock, I had decided that I really didn't like the canvas stamp for the background but I was running out of time for stamping (had to pick by 3 year old up from preschool) so I just left it. Any opinions on what I can do to the front to make it better?

For this card, I used:

Stamps: SU! Canvas and Print Pattern background stamps, Papertrey Ink Green Thumb

Papers: CTMH Petal, Honey, Garden Green and White Daisy

Inks: CTMH Brown Bag, Chocolate, Garden Green, Twilight, Petal and Honey

Ribbon: CTMH Sunflower

I made this Thinking of You card last week. It is very similar to the Mother's Day card that I made.

I didn't have time to finish it the first time I was working on it. I had decided that I was going to mat the oval with crystal blue but when I went back to finish it, I forgot about the mat. Of course, the adhesive that I use is not forgiving and will not allow for things to be moved so I just left it unmatted.

I used the Cuttlebug to emboss the background and used liquid glass and prisma glitter for the flower centers.

For this card I used:

Stamps: CTMH Rustic Flowers

Papers: CTMH White Daisy, Chocolate

Inks: Chocolate, Heavenly Blue, Crystal Blue

A better picture

2007-05-06T09:33:00.000-04:00

I used a different camera this morning and got a better picture of the shadow box Mother's Day card. As always, pictures never do artwork justice. Enjoy!

I've been challenged!

2007-05-06T00:04:00.000-04:00

I was challenged by Awna to make a Mother's Day card this week using pink and green. Amazingly, I was actually able to come up with something that was worthy of the challenge.

It is kind of hard to tell from the picture (sorry it isn't the greatest but I am not a great photographer) but the card is a shadow box card.

The flowers are CTMH's Rustic Flowers and the sentiment is from Paper Impressions (I purposely looked at the company name but now I can't remember if Impressions is right or not). I used CTMH sweet leaf, pink carnation, baby pink and archival black. The sentiment is stamped on acetate. I also used liquid glass on the flower centers and sprinkled with prisma glitter.

I am pretty pleased with the results and can't wait to make more shadow box cards--they are so easy. Hope you enjoy the card and PLEASE post your comments so I know if you like my artwork or not.

No Artwork--pics of my dds

2007-05-04T14:47:00.000-04:00

I was going to post this on Wednesday but got busy and forgot. On Tuesday my dds each had 8 inches of hair cut off. Instead of donating their hair to Locks of Love (requires 10 inch minimum), we will be donating it to Pantene Beautiful Lengths ( requires 8 inch minimum).

This is their hair before :

And this is their new do:

Both of them said they didn't like their shorter hair but I think they do but just won't admit it. My oldest wanted her hair to be shoulder length but she was sitting crooked so it had to be cut shorter to even it up. My youngest told me today that she likes her hair "a little."

I hope to get some more artwork posted soon. My stamping time is limited since I keep my stuff at my sister's house and can't get over there very often. I was challenged to make a Mother's Day card using pinks and greens so, hopefully, I can get to my sister's tomorrow to do some stamping.

For You

2007-04-27T09:44:00.000-04:00

Sorry, I didn't post any new artwork last weekend as I promised. Friday night, I did get to stamp but I didn't make anything new. I have decided that when I make a card, I am going to make a few more of the same to have on hand. So Friday night I made three more of the car card. I actually did make another card that night but just wasn't happy with it when I looked at it later so I decided not to post that one.

I didn't get to do anymore stamping last weekend because I was so tired from the events of the week (my uncle is still in the hospital). Yesterday I was finally able to get to my sister's house to stamp while my youngest dd was in preschool. Unfortunately, in the 1 1/2 hours I had to stamp, I only got one card done!

I did get to try out my new ATG gun that I got this week. It is going to take a little getting used to but I think I am going to like it and it is going to end up saving so much on the cost of adhesive. If you don't have one, I suggest getting one.

OK, now for the card that I made yesterday. This card is inspired by a card I saw on Splitcoaststampers by its_kristy (http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/538060). The striped paper is CTMH's Rough 'n Tumble, the other paper is CTMH's outdoor denim, Indian corn blue and white daisy. The ribbon is CTMH's outdoor denim grosgrain. The flower stamp set is CTMH's A Friend Is... and the sentiment is from CTMH's April SOTM For Every Occasion. I used my blending pen(which is almost dry) and Indian corn blue, outdoor denim, clover meadow, sunny yellow and cranberry ink. To make the scallops, I used my slit punch that I got from SU! This is actually the first time I have used the slit punch for scallops and I think I am going to need a little practice to get it right. I then used a 1/8" punch to punch the holes in the scallops. I am definitely going to need to be somewhere with a lot of light so I can see to center those holes better.

This was a fun card to make. I will definitely make a couple more of this same card and then play around with different colors and different flower stamps.

I hope you enjoy the card!

Sorry I haven't posted any more artwork!

2007-04-20T13:47:00.000-04:00

This has not been a good week for stamping. Tuesday evening my sister and I had to take our uncle to the emergency room (he fell at the assisted living place where he lives and had a bloody nose and lip--he doesn't know if he passed out or not). We got him there at 7:30 p.m. It took until almost 1:00 a.m. to get him admitted to the hospital.

Wednesday, I was too exhausted to do any stamping and then yesterday I had to get my uncle from the hospital.

Well, my uncle is now back at the hospital because he has pneumonia. My sister is at the ER with him now and he will definitely be admitted again.

I WILL be stamping tonight (unless there are some unforeseen circumstances) so check back this weekend for more artwork.

My first artwork post

2007-04-16T17:02:00.000-04:00

This is the first "real" boy card I have made. The paper is CTMH Rough 'n Tumble and the stamp set is Flyin' High.

I used the coluzzle to make the circles and a Cuttlebug to emboss the swirls on the yellow circle. For some reason when I scanned the card, the scanner reversed the embossing detail. I actually flipped the circle over so that the thicker swirls were embossed.

How did I do with my first boy card?

I can't believe I have created a blog!

2007-04-16T16:38:00.000-04:00

I never thought I would be one to create a blog, but here I am! I am sure I will be a delinquent blogger and not post much but you never know, I may prove myself wrong.

I am hoping that having a blog will give me the boost I need to get creating. Speaking of which is very hard for me. I keep all my stamping supplies at my sister's house. It seems that whenever I go over there, the stamping bug leaves me.

Hope you enjoy my blog. I just ask that you leave me feedback on my artwork. Also please do not copy my artwork to submit for publication, contests, etc.