just a week left

One week from today,

my little girlies will resume school.

This is one momma that is not excited.
I LOVE having my chicks home with me,
not to mention,
I hate getting up early:)
So, since this is their last week,
we're keeping it jam packed
with a water park, sleepovers, grandparents,
trip to New Orleans aquarium
& Build-A-Bear.
I think they're excited.
Though I haven't posted in over a week,
I have done some projects,
but only took pictures of 2 so far.
The first uses the TESC 124 sketch.
The minute I saw these rub-ons on my desk,
I knew they would be perfect for this sketch.

Supplies: Hambly rub-ons; JoAnn's trim; Jenni Bowlin butterfly; Fiskar border punch

This second card is one I just wanted to do.
No sketch, just fun.

Supplies: Studio Calico postcard (home) & paper (chair); Basic Grey letters; Cuttlebug embossing folder

I might post again before next week,
but if not,
I'll probably be back full swing,
once they're in school.
This year will be different for me...
I'll actually be home alone
until 1:30 everyday.
It'll be strange not having
another little body here to keep me company:(
Wonder if I'll actually be productive this year?

copic markers

This past week,
Hobby Lobby had Copic Markers 30% off.
I've been wanting to try these markers,
but am not a good stamper,
so didn't know if these would be
a good investment for me?
So, I picked up 5 basic colors,
brought them home
& started experimenting.
Part of that experiment was to use
some of my dds "washable" markers
to see if I noticed a difference.

There are 3 things I noticed:

1) Copic markers are very easy to color with.
I loved the brush tip, though I thought it might
be a bit too big for some of the smaller coloring.
It wasn't.
2) I need to work on coloring more evenly:)
I thought once it dried, it would dry evenly.
It didn't & you can tell.
3) Crayola washable markers? Not too good.

For this card,
I used the TESC #122 sketch.
So, what did I stamp on this card?
Why the octopus!!
I had colored the crab
& did a great job too.
I also stamped the crab,
but I decided to stamp
on a patterned paper instead.

Supplies: October Afternoon & My Minds Eye (crab) papers; Fancy Pants sun-die; Imaginisce stamps; Basic Grey letters; copic marker

My final thoughts on Copic markers?
Well, I definitely like them,
but don't know if I should make a huge investment.
Stamping on patterned paper
can add just as much depth & variety.
So, I guess it depends on how involved I wanna get?

TESC #121 & SSSC #78

I'm moving right along.
Got 2 more cards done yesterday
& only 1 more sketch to attempt.
This card is for the TESC #121 challenge.
I've said this before,
but I'll say it again,
"me & circles just don't do!!"
I know I could have substituted
them for something else,
but I wanted to use these rub-ons.
I think I like the card,
but not really sure.

Supplies: Crate Paper patterned paper; Studio Calico rub-ons; Pink Paislee trim & brad; Basic Grey letters; twine

For this next card,
I used the SSSC #78.
When I saw this sketch,
I immediately knew I was gonna
use this Pink Paislee paper.
I ended up turning the sketch though.
I used some more of the yummy
trim I got at HL Monday.
Can't wait to make more flowers with it.

Supplies: Pink Paislee paper, die-cuts & bumblebee stamp; Basic Grey letters

Welp, girls are still at VBS,
so I wanna take advantage
of my next 2 hours of quiet!!
Thanks for stopping by!!

gettin' my weekend on!!

Since I don't work,
everyday is kinda like
a weekend to me.
But, I still look forward
to weekend plans.
With it being 4th of July weekend,

I'm lookin' forward to plans with family.
Maybe I'll make some banana pudding?
This morning hubby let me go to Michael's.
They have their punches 40% off,
plus I had a 15% coupon.
There are 2 punches I wanted,
but unfortunately, they didn't have either.
I still managed to pick up 2 others,
along w/a couple packs of Thickers.
So, on this card,

I used older Basic Grey &K& Co. papers,
my new border punch,
& Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge 119.

Supplies: Basic Grey & K&Co papers; Basic Grey fabric tag; Jenni Bowlin butterfly; EK Success border punch

Below are a few layouts
I've done over the past week.
Nothing earth-shattering
except maybe using some older product.

And this sweet picture
is Chloe!!
She's about 7-wks old
& was hand-raised by my sister.
She has another sister & a brother,
so my sister's trying to find them homes.
We're thinking of keeping her,
but Macy, our 1-year old cat,
isn't too keen on the idea.
So, we're gonna see how it goes until Sunday.

I hope you have fun plans this weekend.
Happy 4th of July to you & your family!!

TESC 118 * part 2*

I mentioned in this post,
I wasn't too fond of my card
for the TESC 118 challenge.
So, while the girls napped
& it rained outside,
I made another card.
Very pleased with this one.

Supplies: Pink Paislee Queen Bee paper, rub-ons, die-cuts & alphabet stickers; EK Success border punch; flower by Danielle Flanders

So, it took me this entire time
to make this card
& now my girlies are awake.
Time to do something fun!!

movin' right along

I finally got to take the girls swimming.
The day started off dreary,
but quickly became full sunshine.
We got 2-hrs of pool time
before the clouds took over.
Now they're napping
& I'm anxiously awaiting the rain.
I love the rain,
especially when the girls are napping:)
Here are 2 more cards I got done yesterday.
The first up uses Card Patterns #70.
Remember this gorgeous paper?
Told you I was using some old stuff!!

Supplies: Amy Butler & Fancy Pants paper; Prima flower; Amy Butler rub-on quote; Offray rhinestones; Martha Stewart butterfly punch

For this card,
I used the Taylored Expression Sketch Challenge #118.
I'm not really happy w/how this turned out
& it's because of the sentiment.
I think I would have liked it better
had I simply used some Thickers?
Either way,
I can't remove it w/out tearing what's underneath.
I might still try though......we'll see.
At the very least,
I'll probably make a new card,
as I really liked this sketch.

Supplies: Crate Paper & chipboard; Basic Grey paper; Heidi Grace sentiment stamp; EK Success border punch

Welp, if I'm gonna get anything accomplished,
I need to get off this computer.
Thanks again for stopping by.

feeling myself again

I'm finally feeling myself again.

In fact,
I needed to start running/exercising again today,
but didn't manage too:(
Really need to get started tomorrow,
these M&Ms will be stickin' pretty soon!!
We have a break from summer activities
for about 3 more weeks,
so I'm really hoping to get more scrapping done.
Here are 2 cards I worked on this weekend.
The first uses Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #74,

but I didn't get it done in time.

Supplies: My Minds Eye papers; Cosmo Cricket chipboard; Cuttlebug embossing folder; Jenni Bowlin alpha stickers; Fiskar border punch

This card uses the current CPS sketch #172.
For some reason,
the minute I saw the sketch,
I thought of this K&Co line.
I did hand-cut the flowers on the card,
but the bottom ones are part of a border sticker.

Supplies: K&Co papers & sticker embellies; Fiskar "friend" stamp; American Crafts Thickers

I'm so proud of my 10-year old.
She has a 1-yr old cat
& really wanted a 6-wk old kitten.
As a family,
we sat down to talk about the pros & cons.
Afterwards,
we let her decide what she thought
was the right decision to make.
She opted NOT to get the kitten.
Whew!!!
What a relief for mommy,
but I'm really very proud of her.
For a 10-year old that's huge.
They usually only think of themselves
& what they want.
I know she really wanted this kitten
& she even cried,
but she's fine now!!
So..............
maybe I can talk daddy into a puppy:)

*a work in progress*

Don't think for one minute
I think stamping is a piece-of-cake.
Quite the contrary!!
People that have the talent
to stamp truly amaze me.
I buy stamp sets simply because of their beautiful work.
So, I mentioned I got my first stamp set from
Taylored Expressions, "Pet's Place."
I also went back to her current sketch
to make the card below.

What have I learned after this card?
First, daschunds tend to be a little more orangey:)
I should have used a more orange color.
And I really need to learn to stamp
on a background & not have to hand-cut.
I feel my little guy is lost against this card.
I also noticed a "splat" on the "new addition" sticker...
it's there, but it's part of the sticker?
And I might also add some twine?
All-in-all,
I'm "okay" with this attempt.
Maybe after a few more cards,
they'll start to look better?

Taylored Expressions Sketch #117

Here's a card using some
of My Minds Eye "So Sophie."
It instantly reminded me of Christmas
& matches Cosmo Cricket's last Christmas line
& some of My Minds Eye Quite Contrary.
So this line is extremely versatile.
I used the current
Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #117

Supplies: My Minds Eye "So Sophie" papers; Cosmo Cricket chipboard

Even though I immediately thought Christmas,
this line can be used for everyday.
Something about these colors makes me happy!!
Here's a few layouts I made for ScrapHappy.

I have a few more projects,
but I'll wait til later this weekend.
Hoping to get more accomplished!!
Enjoy your weekend!!

TESC #111 *2nd post*

Still not getting much accomplished.
At least,
not in the scrapping sense!!
I made a card using the current TESC #111.
When I was finished,
I didn't think anyone would recognize the sketch,
so I made another card (no arm twisting over here:)

Look for this card in the October 2010 issue of CARDS magazine


Supplies: Pink Paislee Queen Bee papers; die; cork; acrylic stamp & brad; Pink Paislee letters

This is just a quick layout I made yesterday.
Hubby showed Ashlyn how to shoot his Red Ryder.
She thought it was fun,
but didn't have too much interest.
Must be a boy thing.




I still have about an hour left
before the family arrives home.
So, I'll see about getting something done.

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenges

This is a very pleasant surprise:)
I'm not one to usually toot my own horn,
but this really made my day!!
If you haven't visited Taylored Expressions,
not only are the sketches versatile & fun,
there is sooooo much talent to be seen.
If you are an avid stamper,
I would definitely run to this site for inspiration.

I have projects that need to be made,
so I'm hoping to have more work to show
the latter part of the week.
I hope your week has been blessed so far!!

TESC #110

It's rainy & stormy today,
which makes for perfect scrapping & napping weather:)
Yep................
I'm gettin' ready to take a nap with the girlies.
LOVE weather like this.
So, after I uploaded my card for the TESC #109,

I realized I was a week behind.
They had already uploaded the TESC #110 sketch.
So, I pulled out my new Pink Paislee "Queen Bee."
I've had it for awhile,
but couldn't bring myself to cut it up.
AND,
check it out.....
I stamped the crown & word "queen."
Yippee!!

Supplies: Pink Paislee Queen Bee papers, cork accents, die-cut label & stamps; Staz-on Black ink; Fiskar border punch; twine

I also made a few layouts
using some more My Minds Eye
from Scrap Happy.
I even made a boy layout:)

Supplies: My Minds Eye "Jack & Jill" paper; sticker quote; Lush red letters; Fiskar border punch

Supplies: My Minds Eye "Mary Mary" papers; Lush red letters & brads; Fiskar border punches; October Afternoon alphabet letters

Okay, I hear my pillow calling:)
Gotta go nap!!

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge 109

I've been finding some awesome new sketch sites.
They're not technically new,
but they're new to me.
I think this is another stamping challenge site,
and once again,
my card has no stamping!!
This card uses a sketch from
Taylored Expressions or TESC 109.
I really, really loved this sketch.
Using more My Minds Eye
from Scrap Happy.

Supplies: My Minds Eye "Mary Mary" papers & die-cut sticker; butterfly punch & DMC floss

I'm getting excited about the end of school.
I already know there's only 6-weeks left,
BUT,
Ashlyn will miss the last week,
so she technically only have 5-weeks!!
I have a 5-year old graduating from kindergarten.
And a 10-year birthday party to plan.
Time is flying by too fast.
I hope you have fun plans for the weekend.
It's supposed to rain Saturday,
so maybe I'll get some scrapping time?