It's a love thing *Cardabilities #38*

two posts from me today. I totally goofed off on my dates. I thought the Cardabilities reveal was tomorrow and here I was thinking this post will be typed way in advance for tomorrow. What a dork! Sorry.

Anyways, this sketch was super fun to play with. I love how the cluster of elements were placed in the middle. Lots of exciting possibilities on this one.

It's a love thing card

I chose to do a wedding/love theme because the neutral color background I chose gave me that vibe.


I used some oldie but goody stickers I had in my stash and layered them on top of each other. I also used some foam adhesive to create dimesnion throughout the card.

Nothing says wedding than a hint of satin ribbon. Here I used a brown one.

So there you have it. Make sure you check out the rest of the design team member's cards in the blog today.

Till next time,

Grace

Cake making day

One of the things I do at our church is to help out in the young women organization. I am one of the leaders for the teenage girls. Part of my calling (job) is to help out in activities for the girls. This week's activity will be decorating fondant cakes. We talked about marriage last week and we put together modest wedding/prom dresses using toilet paper and white duck tape. yeah I was so amazed at the creativity of these wonderful girls. So to continue the "wedding" theme, on Wednesday, we are going to decorate wedding cakes.

I learned about this great recipe for fondant through my dear friend Becky. I've done it twice in the past, and although I don't think I'm a pro at it by any means I wanted to share what I've learned with the girls.

Last Thursday while it was raining hard outside, the kids and I made a cake and decorated it using some fondant. I wanted to do a practice run before I teach it to the girls and that day seemed to be the perfect "trial run" day.

Here's a look at our finished cake....



the kids wanted to cut out shapes from the fondant (they call it sweet playdough) and they chose the colors of the fondant too, that's why our cake turned out to be more of a "baby" cake than a wedding cake.

here's some of the cut outs that the kids made. Marcus's are the blue ones and Maddie's the purple shapes.

I got Marcus to take a photo of me with the finished cake. I'm so proud of this and I'm glad that this is one of those skills that I don't give up on eventhough my cakes have not been the best looking ones. I learn something new everytime I make it.

When you mix kids and powdered sugar, the kitchen is bound to be a disaster. Here's a look at how we made our fun dessert....

I love how the whole counter was covered in white powdered sugar. Marcus' black shirt even became white after we were all done.

when I told the kids to pick out the shapes that they want to cut their fondant's with, they immediately dumped the whole cookie cutter box on the floor. Kids!

It was messy and sometimes a bit stressful, especially the cleaning part but we had fun and getting this time together with the kids making something "fun" is always worth it for me.

Thanks for stopping by.

Till next time,

Grace

Hello Monday!

Monday's are always hectic for me. I am the kind of person that makes lists and Mondays seems to be my most ambitious day when I try to check if not all of them, most of them. Do you ever feel that your lists seem to get longer and longer? I'm hoping I'm not the only one out there that has this dilemma.

Anyways I wanted to make a quick post here for anybody that lives locally in my area. I'm having a fun giveaway in my photography blog and would love to have you popp in there and play along. The prize is a free photography session and a complimentary 8 x 10" photo.

If it peeked your interest please visit my photography blog here.

And this post won't be complete without a photo so here's my favorite diva posing oh so cute!

Till next time,
Grace

Project share

and we are winding down to the end of another week. Looking forward to the weekend. But before I dream about sleeping in and hot breakfasts, let me share with you some of my latest projects....

Wonderful White Fluff

I love how scrapbooking takes you back in time. Like in this page, after looking at the photos, I was instantly taken back to this fun everyday moment how my family were enjoying our first snow in Colorado.
I used some acrylic snowflakes from Clear Scrap to emphasize the theme. I added glitter glue at the edges of them to give the shape emphasis and color.

Remember this moment

this was our Valentine's day celebration last year. Yes despite my constant papercrafting, I am behind with my photos (don't judge please!) Valentine's day fell on a Sunday so we stayed home, had a fun game of old maid and ate some heart shaped cinammon treats.
I used SEI products for this page.

Friends Forever card

I love how elegant this card turned out. I used some (old) October Afternoon damask paper for my background and sprayed Tattered Angels glimmer mist to a set of glimmer chipboards. Then finished it off with a premade sentiment.

Well Done card

It's interesting how the two cards that I posted today are from two totally opposite sides of the spectrum. The one above was elegant and a bit busy with patterns and yet this one is simple and has a clean graphic look.

I machine stitched some lines to create my own paper and added flowers to create a visual triangle. I also used some pattern papers from Jillibean soup for my background and SRM sticker for my card sentiment.

So that's it for today. I hope you have a great weekend.

Till next time,

Grace

Pinterest, oh how I love thee!

Yes, I admit it. I was one of those that refused to get sucked into Facebook and took years before signing up and now I don't know how I can live without it. I was also one of only handful (I'm assuming) that insisted that Pinterest was not for me. I know, you're probably shaking your head right now in dismay thinking this girl is an idiot! And you know what, I was! Because like FB, I don't know how I can live without Pinterest now.

For those of you that are still not familiar with it, it's basically like your coveted little black book of creative ideas gone digital. It's a place where people gather or "pin" the ideas that they see online and where other people can "pin" what you've just "pinned". Ok well I don't mean to confuse you more but once you get on it, you'll see what I mean. You can always follow me on Pinterest by clicking on my pinterest badge in the side bar of this blog. :)

Today I want to share five of my favorites.....


I'm thinking of enlarging this quote and framing it somewhere in my home.


I'm telling you, there's some extremely clever people out there. I'm thinking I can use this idea to make monograms for my children's rooms.






the perfect fall outfit. Loving the purple scheme here.

Watermelon porcupine, isn't this a cutie!!!

The next skill that I want to learn- quilting!

So that's it. If you guys like this post, please leave me a comment and I might just make this a weekly thing.

Till next time,

Grace

Dino Magnets + tutorial

Two posts in one day! It had definitely been a great crafty day so I had to share another fun little project with you today....

Dino Friends tin can and magnets

I was inspired by a fun paper from Bella Blvd that had all sorts of fun dinosaur images. I decided to cut out these images and turn them into magnets. I have a HUGE dino fan in my home (my son) and I'm sure he'll be over the moon once he sees this project.


and to make this project "tote" worthy, I placed them inside a round tin can. The tin also helps keep the magnets in place. What could be better than a project that's totally cute and functional at the same time?

Want to learn how I made these magnets? Read on....

First, you gather your supplies. This project can be adapted with any papers that you like, you can use flowers, stars, shapes, robots, princess images...anything that will suit your theme of your child's fancy

You will also need:

magnet strip

scissor

adhesive (I used glue squares bec. they're convenient for me but glue gun will also work good)

Contact paper (you can usually find this at the kitchen section of your walmart or target. They're by the shelf liners. This will act as our lamination)

Second, You cut out the images you'd like to use for your magnets. Try to cut out as much background from your image.

third, Cut out a piece of contact paper that is double the size of your design. Then sandwich the cut out piece ( in this case, the Dino) between the contact paper and press to seal. Make sure you get out all of the bubbles from your contact papers.

Fourth, then you cut out the shape/image. When your cutting the image, I suggest leaving about 1/4- 1/3 space around the image. This will ensure that the contact paper seals well around the image.

Fifth, cut a piece of magnet strip. Now my magnet strip already have adhesive in the back BUT I tend to notice that it doesn't adhere very well, so I make it stick better using some square adhesives.

Sixth, Add the magnet strip on the back of your shape/image.

and voila! You have made yourself some fun paper magnets that will sure to delight your little ones. And the best part is that because you've laminated your paper images, you can enjoy this little treasure for a long time.

thanks for stopping by.

Till next time,

Grace

Home Projects

A few months ago, I was honored to have some projects in this great idea book....



I totally forgot to share them here at the blog and since my mind is into making "home" projects lately, I thought now is the time to share them....


this minibook turned recipe holder that I made using Clear Scraps chipboard album is a great way to showcase some of your favorite recipes from your mother.

I turned an inexpensive tin container into a fun key holder with a few scrapbook products. I love how the house sticker instantly gives away the theme of the project.

This one was my favorite. I turned an old frame into a desktop calendar. I sanded the frame a bit to give it that distressed look. Then I added papers, sewn on vellum for the date pockets and embellishments to complete the project.

I even made a little pocket to hold the rest of the month and date blocks when not in used.

and finally some easy magnets with just two products. Yes you read it right only TWO and that was the fun chipboard and tin embellishments from GCD Studios plus magnet strips that you can purchase at any craftstore. Glue them together with some hot glue and you are ready to go! Easy peasy right!

So there you have it. Some quick, inexpensive ways to bring your love for paper into your home.

Till next time,

Grace

The Spinach Story

You know the quote "kids say the darnest thing!"? Well I have a fun one for you today which will be forever remembered as the "spinach story" in our family....

Last Friday during dinner time....

Dad: Maddie eat your spinach. It will make your hair grow.

After about a minute...

Marcus: Dad, did you eat your spinach when you were little?
Dad: well of course!!
Marcuse: Then howcome you don't have hair on your head?

I busted out laughing and nearly spilled my food out of my mouth.

(for those that are not familiar with my family, my husband is a proud bald man)

Kids definitely bring the spice to life.

And because this post won't be complete without a photo share, here's one fresh from my garden. The plants are slowly producing fruits and here's my first harvest this season....

(radishes, peppers and a tomato)

Till next time,

Grace

Latest Glue Arts projects

August was another fun month for the Glue Arts Design team. We have had the pleasure of working with some fantastic team ups. Below are a couple of my projects for this month.....

Altered recipe folder

We were asked to make a project highlighting our wonderful U Cut if foam adhesives. I decided to alter an old accordion style folder and turn it into my recipe book. I love to collect recipes. And because the organized girl in me was dying everytime I open my recipe cupboard/cabinet in my kitchen and have my recipes spill out, I decided to file them in this folder.


I used some U cut it foam to give this project dimension. It's so easy to use and because you cut just the right amount of foam you need for each item, you will always get the perfect raise for your project.

Hello Friend Altered bag

We were able to play with some Paper Smooches stamps this month. I used the Friendly Flowers pack and created a row of flower accents to my paper bag. I'm sure any friend would be happy to recieve this cute bag.

To see how I made these two projects you can visit the Glue Arts blog here and here.

Thanks for stopping by.

Till next time,
Grace

First day of school

So before I share with all of you my kiddos' first day of school story and photos, I stumbled upon these pictures in my photobucket album and thought to post photos of my kids circa 2008.....


Marcus was 4


Maddie was 2

the above photos were taken while the kids were blowing bubbles in our old home in Cali. Gone are the days where for entertainment, we could bust out the bubble bottles and it would be a hit for both of them. (they still like to blow bubbles today but that doesn't count as "entertainment" for them anymore)

and then we go to this past Monday, where bright and early we walked to school......

Having our school just on the other side of our street is a major blessing for us. And when we got there, I made sure I take a shot of my "ready for school" kids before they leave for their respective classes...

Last Saturday, after driving my parents to the airport, we headed to the mall. The kids needed some last minute things and because of some great deals (Payless doing BOGO half off) we managed to score these cute flats for Maddie for $6. She absolutely adores them and she insisted I took a photo of her "new school shoes".

I stayed a bit till Maddie got comfortable in her classroom. Here she is doning her name tag.

On a side note, she is becoming quite the fashionista. She picked her outfit for the first day of school all by herself. I wanted her to wear a bow but she insisted in wearing the headband because according to her "it matched her blue shirt, pants and shoes!" Can't argue with that!

Oh they sure grow up fast!

At the end of the day, both of them seem to have enjoyed their first day of school. Marcus was happy that one of his buddies from last year is in his same class and Maddie was thrilled to have met new friends.

It seems like we are off to a good start. Now if only homework was this breezy then our lives would be perfect!

Thanks for stopping by.

Till next time,

Grace

Top Ten Highlights of our family's visit

So this past two weeks have been a crazy one for us. We had our family visit us for Marcus baptism and we didn't waste anytime showing them around our new "home". I took lots of photos and I mean LOTS and I'm giving you a condensed version of our time with them. Here are the highlights......

1. Our son Marcus got baptized. We've waited and prepared for this day for a long time and we're so happy and proud of him that he decided to be an official member of Christ's church. The program was filled with great words and music from family and we capped off the event with a brunch at our home.

2. I love this photo that Mitch took for me. It shows three generations of women/girls making Lumpia (filipino egg rolls) Yes even little Ms Maddie was helping.

3. We took my family to the Pueblo Reservoir and Mitch gave the family rides on his canoe. The kids really enjoyed it.

4. I was able to bond with my niece and nephews. On their last day I took the five kids (all by myself) to the park. I was a bit worried being that I'm not use to having more than two but these kids were amazing. Loving their pose here too!

5. The kids got to spend some time with Grandma Tolman. It was so cute when she came with some skittles for the kids. She is known in the family as the skittle lady. Everytime the grandkids come to her house, there's always a good supply of skittles for them. It's funny how the kids' didn't forget about that because that's one of the first things they mentioned to her as soon as she arrived.

6. I wasn't the only one that bonded well with our family. The kids, both Marcus and Maddie, enjoyed their cousins immensely in this trip. These kids would be up earlier than 7 am and won't stop playing until we make them go to bed. They never ran out of things to do and our trampoline was always bouncing away with kids.

7. We ate out a LOT! Took the family to our fave Rudy's BBQ restaurant and some local buffet places. We cooked a lot at home too. The kitchen was bussling with movement all the time.

8. We've been here for over 6 months now but when my inlaws came to town, that was the only time we got to finally go up Pike's peak. It was cold up there and the ride up was no fun to this "scared of heights" girl but the view (before the clouds came in) was worth it.

9. Took the family to our fave tourists spots like Garden of the Gods and Pioneer's Museum. We also took them to the Air Force Academy chapel, Olympics training center and Manitou Springs.

10. Got to do a fun photoshoot with my sister's family. They were a hoot to shoot!

It was definitely a packed visit and we enjoyed every minute of our family being here. Our home sure went silent since they all left. But thank goodness for all the photos we took, we now have these memories to treasure (and scrapbook *wink*) for years to come.

Till next time,

Grace