I made the little book then, using redline tape, attached the counter samples to the inside. I usually over the samples with dsp or something, but I left these exactly as they came.

Still finding new uses for those little bitty counter samples. This is a little book

I think I will go crazy.
Last Friday a friend came over, I can't say a name because she called in sick to work, and we went through all my retired stamps so I could sell them.
My MileHigh 'support' group is having a Craft Fair and Bazaar on May 9 and I am taking a lot of other things I have made to sell there. Others are having 'make-n-takes' drawings galore, other vendors with things to demonstrate and sell and others to demonstrate new techniques. It will be tons of fun!
Anyway, on Monday I got a wild and crazy idea and decided to post my stamp sets on SCS to see what happens. If they sell, then I don't have to lug them to the Bazaar, which is in Denver.
I spent the rest of the day sorting out the who wants what and in what order and sold a lot!
Thanks SCS! Now, I will have to go back through my 'stash' and see if there are any others I want to get rid of.
In the midst of all this the Sheetrock guy came to finish the 'flooded' room in the basement. He found mold and mildew so we had to have that treated and removed. Yesterday another guy came and finished up the sheet rock and taping and mudding and everything else they do to walls to get them ready for the texture.
Today he will texture, then we will be ready for the paint and hopefully I will get my basement back.
With 3 very unrelated and totally weird reasons for floods last year alone, I have had it with water. The next time I am leaving the water and telling everyone I have a swimming pool in my basement and to come over to take a swim and leaving it there.
well, maybe not

Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.-- Robert Heinlein

More discontinued countertop samples using the new oval all set, bella blossoms, and Pocket Silhouettes. These are the little mini samples and I made a 'tent' for a stand on the back.

I believe these will be reserved for door prizes and hostess gifts.

I finally started to work on the little tiny cabinet counter samples I had.

I covered the front with designer paper and an image and of course, some bling (those are actually crystals after the sentiment)

I colored the black and white checked ribbon with the pumpkin pie marker.

The dots on the butterfly are made with the silver end of the painty pen.

I cut a piece of cardstock twice as long as the back and added one inch. I scored that from each end the length of the sample to make a little triangle to make it stand up.

Happy Sunday!
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We are not put on this earth for ourselves, but are placed here for each other.
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If you are there always for others, then in time of need, someone will be there for you. — Jeff Warner

Only passions, great passions, can elevate the soul to great things.-- Denis Diderot

I am working on Wedding Invitations again! I have them just about ready to mail out this afternoon. Another 20!

I have the most awesome class on May 5 with my new FUN group I call my Lieblings! They are the most awesome group! and I have a special surprise for them. I started working on it yesterday and I can't wait to post it! But not until after the 5th!!

Ok, I just can't wait.. no pictures but it is a Card Portfolio with 4 cards in it, with envelopes and uses awesome designer series paper!

that's all you get for now!

Our own well-being is always the result of

healthy decisions for ourselves

coupled with disengagement

from the choices of others.

-- Karen Casey

Still Open as of 4/27!

Spread The Sunshine

I've seen this contest on a few blogs, and since I'll do pretty much anything to win a prize, I decided to play too!
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The way it works is that the first five people who respond to this post, will recieve a handmade surprize from me!
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The catch is that you have to pay it forward, post this on your blog, and send out five handmade surprizes of your own.
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What a fun way to spread some Springtime cheer!
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Here are the official instructions:
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"The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! Made with tons of love just for you!
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It might be a fun stamped project, a sweet card made especially for you from me, or some yummy goodies, you might be surprised what you get!
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Give it a try! .... ... ...The catch?
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You must re -post this on your blog and the first 5 people to leave a comment, will win a lovely little treat from you!
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Have Fun!"

Believe in Yourself

You need to believe that

walking the talk matters

and, most importantly,

you need to believe that

YOU can make a difference.

-- Eric Harvey

How very true . . .

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Today I am grateful for all those things that go missing

because their absence reminds me

of how blessed I am

to have had them at all.

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-- Kate Nowak

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How so very true this quote is and how it so hits home for me today. Yesterday I got word that some very dear friends that are so extremely talented got laid off from their jobs at the Stampin' Up! headquarters. Even though they have not 'gone missing' they have gone from their jobs and I feel so blessed to have known them and been able to benefit from their knowledge at the conventions and conferences I have been so fortunate to go to.

What are YOU blessed with today?

God never gives you more than you can handle.

^_^_^_^

Even from the darkest night

songs of beauty can be born.

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-- Mary Anne Radmacher

About Setting Goals

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When you decide upon a goal,

you override your failure mechanism

and change the direction of your life.

~

-- Brian Tracy

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Our greatest natural resource is the minds of our children.

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-- Walt Disney

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Daily Quote

Be kind and merciful. Let no one ever come to you without coming away better and happier.-- Mother Teresa

Uncle Phil and Grandma Morie

Maurine Ellen Neff (1901-1995) was born in Sapulpa Oklahoma and had one brother, Elmer Neff who was about 20 when she was born. Consequently, Elmer was known as Uncle Brother to Maurine; mostly because of the age difference. Elmer and Ella doted on little Maurine buying her dolls and clothes and taking her on vacations. Elmer and Ella had a son, Phil Neff and a Daughter Eleanor.

This picture was taken probably in the early 1990's. It didn't have a date on it, but I knew my grandmother right to the end, and I believe this picture had to have been taken probably about a year or maybe 2 before she died. This picture was taken in Ponca City, Oklahoma in the home that she and her husband of more than 50 years had built in 1956. Robert William Baze died in February 1972 at the early age of 71.

Nancy and Lou

Cousin Nancy Dahl and Lou came through the Springs last week. It was awesome to spend an hour or so with them to try to catch up.

I believe it will take longer than an hour to catch up on 10 years.

It was a joy to meet Lou and spend some time, in any event.

Rustic Rooster

I love this rooster!

I used water color crayons to color him, sponged the background colors, layered the watercolor paper on Old Olive. The Summer Sun was run through the Big Shot with a Texturz Embossing plate and stamped with Baroque Motifs.

I love Baroque Motifs. The swirls are so awesome.

I found the little 'sun' clip in a stash of non SU that I have been hording and tied a piece of scrap checked ribbon on it.

Technique: Masking using God's Beauty

I stamped the butterfly in Basic Black on Whisper White cardstock.

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I stamped the butterfly on a sticky note and cut it out and put it over the stamped butterfly (masked), then stamped the leaves in Old Olive.

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I used markers directly on the butterfly to color it in using Summer Sun and Really Rust. I think I got the colors backwards. I looked up Monarch's after I made this and the orange/rust was actually closer to the outer edge and the golden was closer to the body. Oh well. Next time.

The leaves were painted using reinkers and an aqua painter.

I mounted the Whisper White on a piece of black that was 1/8" larger giving a 1/16th edge around it.

That was then mounted on Old Olive, Summer Sun and Tangerine Tango.

I really love this set. It's too bad it is a Hostess set and will be gone in July.

Lunch Bag Gift Bag

March 2009 Workshop Project.

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This cute and versatile Gift Bag is using an ordinary brown lunch bag.

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Directions are as follows:

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Step 1. Cut the top of the bag off so the bag is 7 inches long.

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Step 2. Put red line tape across the top of the bag, front and back.

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Step 3. One side of the bottom of the bag is always in the 'up' position. When you smooth it down it will almost always be shorter than the front side of the bag. This is OK, but you need to be careful how you put the rest of the project together.

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Step 4. Put red line tape across the bottom of the bag. This is where you need to be careful that you put the tape across the bottom of the front and across the bottom of the back flap you just folded down.

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Step 4. Cut a piece of Card Stock 8 1/2 x 11 in half so you have 2 pieces 8 1/2 x 5 1/2. One is for the front and one is for the back. DO NOT ATTACH TO THE SACK YET.

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Step 5. Cut your designer paper to match your card stock, embellish, then attach to the piece of card stock that will be the front of your gift bag.

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Step 6. Attach the front piece to the lunch bag by removing the red line tape and gluing up the rest of the sack with a glue stick. There will only be 2 pieces of tape on the front of the sack. One at the top and one at the bottom. The front of the sack will be the side that is longer at the bottom when the 'bottom' of the bag is folded over.

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Step 7. Turn the bag over, remove the red line tape, run the glue stick over the back of the sack then CAREFULLY line up the bottom of the card stock for the back with the bottom of the card stock for the front. DO NOT line it up with the bottom of the sack. This will cause your gift bag to 'lean' to the back and possibly fall over.

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top it off with a Big Shot Top Note and a 3x3 gift card to coordinate with your occasion.

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Again, I can make a detail of all instructions with pictures if that works for you better. Without your input, I will continue to give directions as you see them.

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Thanks for looking and Happy Easter!

Lunch Bag Gift Bag for March Workshops

A flower for all Seasons

The Preferred Swap Stamp for April is "A Flower for All Seasons" and it was very difficult to decide which one of the four to choose!
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I ended up with the Tulips and bird. The basic card stock is So Saffron with a strip of Old olive on the inside and punched with the scallop border then stamped with Itty Bitty Background mini stamp.
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The Old Olive dsp used on the front was spritzed with water and ran through the Big Shot Texturz Plate: Eyelet. I found that even with a shim, the impression works best when it is spritzed first. Especially when you use regular card stock because it is even heavier than the dsp.
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I used the spiral punch on the dsp by the flower and I used Styled Silver Hardware for the Sentiment "Hello" from Fundamental Phrases.

Fifth Avenue

I stamped the Fifth Avenue Rose in Versamark and embossed it with White Embossing Powder.

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.I used the Water Color Wonder Crayons and an aqua painter to paint the rose.

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.I painted the entire rose with Pretty in Pink then went back in the areas I wanted to be darker using Rose Red.

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.I added a touch of glitter on some of the petals after it dried, then layered it on Regal Rose, then Rose Red, then Old Olive.

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. The Mother's Day sentiment is from All Holidays and is stamped in Old Olive on Pink Pirouette Designer Series Paper which was then layered on Old Olive.

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The Bow is the Vanilla Taffeta ribbon. HOWEVER, I want to tell you a little secret. When you are attaching a bow to a project the SECRET for a perfect bow is to wrap the base ribbon around the card and secure it on the back using redline tape.

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Step 1... push one end of the ribbon directly from the spool, under the band of ribbon on your project.

Step 2... Without tying a know, make a loop with the ribbon that is on the top side of your band with your right hand.

Step 3... With your left hand wrap the ribbon around the loop and pull it through and carefully pull the loops to form the bow.

Step 4... Cut the left side of the ribbon from the spool. Voila.. no wasted pieces!

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.. The result will be a bow that is perfectly proportioned and you have no wasted pieces.

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If you need a visual on this process, email me and I will post one. Otherwise I will assume this was perfectly clear!

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Thanks for looking!

Fifth Avenue Floral

Two versions of the Fifth Avenue Floral Stamp.

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. When I got this set the outline of the Rose was so beautiful, I knew it had to be embossed on Silver Card Stock. I used Versamark and Stamped and Embossed the Black Rose first, then I stamped the other 2 with Versamark and Embossed them in White EP. One is layered on rose Red, Whisper White, Black then the Whisper White card.

The other one is layered on Black, then the Whisper White Card.

Easter Egg Card

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This dimensional card was created by Kim Wilson, Phd. She has fantastic easy to follow directions on her blog.

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http://craftdoc.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/2009/03/24/easter-side-step-card/

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I used Kiwi Kiss as the card base and it using the usual 1/2 page of 8 1/2 x 11 card stock. The trick is the scoring!

I used various dsp papers (including Chocolate Eggs!) and punched them with the new Large Oval, glittered them with the 2 way glue pen and Dazzling Diamonds.

On the original I stamped "Easter Wishes" in Chocolate Chip from All Holidays stamp set on Very Vanilla then punched it out using the Designer Label Punch and attached it to the Chocolate Egg on the top left.

I was in a hurry and pulled it off this card to use on another and didn't replace it. I also tied a ribbon around the left part under the Egg.

I can see this card template used for a lot of different occasions! Birthday Presents! or the Bee's from Just Buzzin' By .. and on and on.

4x5 Altered Formica Sample

Dreams Du Jour Stamp Set.

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I used distressed retired dsp for the background.

I stamped the "Dreams" on Confetti CS. The "Dreams" was also stamped on Whisper White.

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. I cut out the flowers and the Dreams part and the leaves after coloring them, then layered them on the originally stamped "Dreams" on the Confetti.

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I wrapped gold cord around the edges after punching the corners, then layered it on Elegant Eggplant and Always Artichoke.

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The Always Artichoke was cut wider to accommodate the spiral punch.

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The butterfly's were stamped directly on the dsp (by the way, that is Designer Series Paper) then glittered the wings with dazzling diamonds and the 2 way glue pen. I added black crystals for the body.

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I used Elegant Eggplant grosgrain ribbon, Silver Buckle from Styled Silver. I ran the Elegant Eggplant marker in the groove of the buckle and then filled it with Crystal Effects to give it a Cloisonne look.

Angel

Excuse me!

Can't you see I am busy?

This was so funny! I opened the door and flipped the light on and there she was, just sitting in the sink! And the Look I got!

Ron went to get the camera while I stood there and talked to her. We took a half dozen pictures and she just sat there. What a Killy Sat (that is Silly Kat)

Angel

I am so very fortunate to have such an active participant in everything I do.
Thank you Angel!
from the humble human you have trained so well.

Angel

WAIT. I think I just saw a piece of ribbon move.

S-h-h-h-h-h

I am not moving until I catch it.

A flower for all Seasons

Demonstrator Swap. I used the A Flower for All Seasons. It is stamped in basic black on watercolor paper. I punched it out with the new large oval and layered it on Ballet Blue with 1/16th corner rounder punch. I mounted this on a piece of so saffron dsp and punched the left side with the spiral punch.

Love that So Saffron wide grosgrain ribbon!

I used the "Hello" from Fundamental Phrases and attached it with the Styled Silver.

I used the punch scallop on all layers on the front and the strip on the inside edge.

The inside strip is also stamped with Itty Bitty BG.

The dsp on the front was run through the Big Shot using the Eyelet Texturz Plate. I have found that if you spritz the paper with a fine mist of water first, whether it is dsp or regular card stock, it makes a deeper more defined impression. You do have to wait a few minutes for it to dry. I made 20 of these at once so by the time I was through with the last one, the first ones were dry with no problem.

Comments are welcomed.

4x5 Altered Formica Sample

Altered Formica Sample.
I love this rose and was sorry to see it discontinued last year.
Enjoy.

Happy Friday!

For fast-acting relief, try slowing down. -- Lily Tomlin

Watch for Scrapbook Specials in May!

Watch my blog in May for specials for your Scrapbook Fun!
Some will be one day only!
Some will be the entire month!
You won't want to miss any of it!

My favorite quote!

Ask my grandkids! At Grandma bebe's this has always been my 'rule'!

Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.
-- Ernestine Ulmer

My version has always been: "Eat desert first, you never know when you will get too full"

Have a great day!

May is National Scrapbook Month!

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5 Step Process to Successful Scrapbook Pages

Step 1 Decide on your Message or Theme of your picture or pictures.
Choose the Photo or Photo’s you want to use.

It is best to choose only 1 or 2 photos for each page. You will want to focus on your main theme and don’t want it to end up too busy or confusing. Keep with the same message on the photo’s you choose.

Step 2 Choose the Products you want to use.

Choose background colors that coordinate with your photograph and then choose the Stamps and even the scrappin’ kits that Stampin’ Up! has to choose from at this time.

Step 3 Decide on your Layout

Focal Point: Choose the Photograph you want to use as your focal point.
If it isn’t the largest of the 2 or 3 you have chosen, then think about enlarging it and use only 1 or 2.

Your Focal Point is the first thing you want people to see when they see this page. Start with the middle of the page and move it around until it is just right. But don’t attach it to your page just yet.

By the way: Always use Dotto adhesive for your photograph when adhering them to your page. It is archival, removable and acid free. This way, if you need to move it later because it might be better ‘a little to the left’ then it is no problem.

Now that you have your photograph(s) and have an idea where you want it to be on the page, stamp a background on part of your background paper or use some designer paper as accents, or stamp a background on all of it.

Add layers to your photograph now, before attaching it to the background.

Put embellishments on the background that you want to go behind your photograph.

Step 4 Title and Journaling

You know who is in the photograph and you know when you took the picture and you know where it was taken BUT

You are creating a scrapbook that is archival, acid free and will last for generations.

20 years from now, 50 years from now, will everyone looking at your handiwork know who that is in the picture? How old they were when the pictures was taken? When it was taken and where? What they were celebrating: a birthday, a picnic, a family get together?

Try to include the WHO, WHAT, WHEN and WHERE on every page.

I have scrapbooks my grandmother put together back in the early 1900’s but I don’t know who the people are in the pictures and I don’t know exactly when the pictures were taken. It doesn’t matter what ‘day’ but “Summer of 1912” certainly works.

So, in the WHEN part of your journaling, go for a date that gives the future readers an idea of when this event happened.

Also, the journaling my grandmother did was in her own handwriting. Now that she is gone, those pages are cherished even more. It doesn’t matter if you have perfect penmanship or can’t follow a straight line, your future generations will cherish it never-the-less.

Step 5 Accents and Embellishments

The final and fun part of adding buttons, ribbons, brads, and bling that give your page its final touch. You might even want to sign the back to give it that final personal touch.
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Buena Vista, Colorado

There is a remarkable little subdivision/Village that is growing up right on the Arkansas river just a few blocks off Highway 24 in Buena Vista, Colorado.

All the homes are Victorian and the Main Street has little shops with apartments above them. There is an artist studio, a little grocery store, an awesome coffee shop and numerous gift shops.

I think I want/need this house.

I have pictures!

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I have more pictures of things to inspire you!
But I have not been able to download them to the computer yet.
Keep checking and soon. . .
I will have copies of projects we have completed in March in past workshops and things that you might want to do in April or May!
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Daily Motivational Quote

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Gratitude is like a flashlight.

If you go out in your yard at night and turn on a flashlight,

you suddenly can see what's there.

It was always there, but you couldn’t see it in the dark.

Dawna Markova

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Daily Motivational Quote

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Against the force of laughter nothing can stand.

-- Mark Twain

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