Julie's on Etsy

Julie has a shop on etsy. It's called "Design Pile" and currently features photo christmas cards. It's a great value for one of her designs. She also offers printing service if you like a better quality print - you know something other than wal-mart, snapfish, sams, etc.

Check out her shop here

And remember her designs when you get ready to order your Christmas Cards.

(And FYI Julie is my younger daughter and also has an addiction to paper. It runs in the family - Jill has it too!)

Blessings!

Friends 24-7

So hard to believe that more than a month has gone by since my last post. I really have made more than this one - single - solitary card. Really!

I've taken pictures twice. And realize that on my wish list I should be dreaming of a new camera - as in Canon Rebel (whatever camera that Jill bought on Julie's recommendation). Did I mention dreaming? Anyway, if I do get the camera how do I get in Julie's classes? She will be having a workshop in Southport in the spring, so if you have a digital SLR camera, I'm sure this class would be well worth your time and money.

I'll keep you posted.

Anyway, Julie bought a big new mac computer and her old one now resides in my home office. I'm having a difficult time transitioning to Photoshop. Again, I need classes. Julie needs to move closer. Wouldn't it be great if Brunswick Community College would add a photography/arts program and hire her. Dream, wish, hope!

Back to the card. This was one of the cards from my last class. The layout is from the 2009-10

SU Idea Book & Catalog. The stamp set is called Friends 24-7...such a great set. I'm so glad I have a 24-7 friend!

Blessings

Happy Birthday Bree!

Today's is Bree's 4th birthday. When I called her this morning she proudly told me that she is now 4, that when she goes to school (childcare) today she will be 4, and that she will be 4 for a long time. I guess when you're four a year does seem like a very long time.
Bree is all about pink. Her bedroom walls are pretty close to the pink layer on the card. She likes cupcakes and princess stuff, but is not afraid to pick up the worms that get caught on the driveway after a rain. She gathers them, places them back on the grass, and then waters them hoping they will plump back up and live again.
I used the scallop edge punch to make the cupcake bottom and a circle punch for the top. I had to add some pink rhinestones to dress it up a bit. And the sentiment - well, it says it all. So Very Sweet! At least I think so.
Happy, Happy Birthday Bree!

Mojo Monday Challenge

I made a card for todays Mojo Monday Challenge, and then I switched out the center of the card to give it a whole new look.  Choosing a patterned paper from SU Sale-a-bration collection determined the color combination.  The ribbon is also from last February's Sale-a-bration.   The circle background and thank you stamps are from Inkadinkado (at least I think).  The Japanese doll was made from punches.

This layout would be great to use for a brag book or mini album. Okay, now there's one more card challenge I would like to try before I begin dinner.  If I keep it simple, I just might make it.  

New Baby Card

My niece Stacy had a baby boy a couple of days ago.  She lives in another state so I'm glad my sisters have posted pictures so quickly to facebook.  He's a cute little guy - only weighs 5lb 5 oz.  Stacy and Will are home now and are doing great.  Congrats to Stacy, her husband Eric and their sons Ian and Bradley.

I used Taylor's Challenge layout to make the card for Stacy.  I found the soft sky patterned paper pieces near the top of my dp stash, so that determined the colors I used.  The sweet bundle of love stamp is from Sweet Celebrations, the little baby from Tag Time and sentiment from Congrats (all retired SU sets).  I used Blue Bayou ink for the image and sentiment. 

On her post, Taylor said this was an easy layout and she was right. Check out her blog and see some of the other great cards using this layout.

Catalog Inspiration

Most of the time I refer to the Stampin Up Idea & Catalog as just "the catalog." But it really is more than that. It really is a great place for ideas and inspiration. At the first Stampin Up workshop I attended, I purchased a catalog (see there I go again...calling it "a catalog"). Of course, I could have held a workshop or something and received it free, but that's another story or lesson learned. Anyway, the point is that I saw the value of having in my hand a wonderful source of ideas and inspiration. The card today was made using a sample on page 15 as the inspiration.
There is a level 2 hostess set in the new SU catalog called Asian Artistry. I really like the set and will hopefully be able to add it to my collection. But for now I pulled out a retired set (Calming Garden) to make this card. I used the same layout, kept the colors similar, and left off the ribbon. I also added a layer to the inside of the card. There is another sample on the same page that I think I would like to try with another stamp from Calming Garden. And then perhaps when I get the new set I can try both cards again with new images.
The original card can be seen in the 2009-2010 Idea Book & Catalog.

Japanese Doll Card

Sorry about the awful pictures.  I guess you can tell I didn't take much time making sure the light was right, etc.  There was a lot going on and I was trying to make sure I snapped a couple of pictures before the little dolls got packed away in a suitcase.  My sister Becky and her family were here for a couple of days before they headed to the beach. We had been having problems with our well and were waiting for a new one to be dug.  We had a temporary fix - yeah, right!  That's difficult and inconvenient all by itself.  Add six more people to that mix and I guess it was just bound to break.  Saturday morning we woke to no water at all.  Needless to say it was an interesting morning.  We were able to get water from the neighbors to get things cleaned up before we all left for the beach.  How did they do this 100 years ago?  Oh, and while all this was going on, the little cat decided to give birth to her kittens.  One did not survive the day and the other only survived 3 days.  Sad.

Anyway, back to the subject.  I saw some Japanese dolls made from punches on Kirsteen's blog.

I knew right away that Becky would want to make some.  Kirsteen had listed all of the measurements for the card and the dolls.  So Becky and I made a bunch of the dolls and one card.  We knew we didn't have enough time to make a bunch of cards, but at least we made the dolls.  Hopefully Becky will be able to make a bunch of cards when she gets home and things get back to normal - well just crazy normal (she knows what I mean.)

Check out Kirsteen's blog and see her other samples as well as the instructions