Happy Birthday Claire

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear Claire,
Happy Birthday to you!

We're having a birthday blog hop for the ever so lovely Claire! You should have come here from Laurie's blog. If you get lost along the way, make sure to check the WMS blog for the full list.

So here's my little happy birthday card.

No, there's no WMS banners ... yet ...

But banners are the perfect birthday accent, aren't they? ;-)

So how did I create the banners?
Seasons of Love - Tags. Heck yeah.

I stamped the corner of the star from the set onto a sheet of paper. In all sorts of fun colors.

Then trimmed these puppies out.

Sketch the arch for the banner string. Pierce holes.

Stitch and go. Watch the Bachelor while doing so. Yell at the TV as if they can hear you. Accidentally, skip a stitch... *shrug*  Sometimes you just need your Bachelor fix.

Happy birthday, Claire! Hope it's a banner year! ;-)

Next up, the wonderful Jennifer! I know she has something wonderful up her sleeve.





Stamps: (Seasons of Love - Tags, Half Pint Heroes) Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock, Ink: Papertrey Ink
Fibers: silver jewelry thread

WMS and Grand Calibur Event

Welcome to the last day of the Waltzingmouse Stamps Grand Calibur Event. Due to the cross promotional partnership between Waltzingmouse Stamps and Spellbinders, the WMS Design Team members were each given a Grand Calibur. We thought this was an excellent time to showcase Spellbinders and how well they work with Waltzingmouse Stamps!

Make sure to leave a comment on this post for a chance to win a fun prize! And I always love hearing what you guys think! :) Also, get your stamps and dies out -- WMS is hosting a challenge to CASE a DT project from this three day event. So lots of chances to win!  Make sure to check out the WMS blog for more details!

So get your cup of coffee/tea and chat with me for a bit. I have three projects (1 card and 2 layouts) to share with you today. :-) I just want to remind you that you can always click on an image for a larger view.

Thinking of You Card
Let's start with the card, because I think it's more self explanatory than the rest of my projects.

I wanted to hang my birdcage from Asian Gardens on a little window and so I created one with the labels 14 die.  I stamped one of the music bgs from Musical Backgrounds in a light grey ink. The white layer is then adhered with a lot of dimensional adhesive. I trimmed a little banner with my scissors and embossed my sentiment, also from Asian Gardens, in white.  Just a fun little card to send to anyone to let them know you're thinking about them.

Beach Stud Layout

My husband hates this project. Then again, he doesn't like any picture where he's the only one in it...

He claims I make the picture 100 times better. Everyone say awwww....

Ok, enough mushiness.

Onwards... to the scrappy stampy page. A page documenting our honeymoon to St. Thomas in 2009... was it really almost 2 years ago?

I embossed the circular bg image from Free Spirit - Boy. The white really just pops against the orange. You know when I was picking out the colors for this layout, my husband looked at the photo and asked, "What about orange?" I was thrilled that he was taking an interest in scrapbooking, so orange it is! It works quite well - perhaps my husband is a closet crafter?

Every time I walk into my local scrapbook store, they always sell these little sticker packs with fun words on them. And so I figured I'd mimic that concept with the sentiments from Free Spirit Sentiments. I stamped the words I wanted to use onto some patterned paper and then trimmed them out. Using some dimensional adhesive, I adhered it to my page. It's all about using what you have to make a fabulous project!

I used the Grand Calibur to die cut a label from the same patterned paper. Stamped the frame from Very Vintage Labels No. 1 to help accent the label. And then oh so carefully stitched the label to my photo. I probably held my breath the entire time since I didn't have another backup photo. But it went surprisingly well and I suspect you'll see me stitch on more photos in the future.

For closeups, feel free to click on any of them for a larger view.

And to make my husband feel better, a comment telling him he's studly won't hurt either. ;-)
Oh he's gonna kill me - I'm not sure he knows I'm sharing this on the blog.

What I Love About You Layout
So this post is becoming mushier and mushier. :-)
Keep in mind that this can be replaced with a "Random Facts About You" page,  "9 things you love in 2011", or just a "Funny Quotes from Your Favorite Kid" page.

For this layout, I wanted to do something that I could only do with the Grand Calibur. So this is what I came up with.

For this layout, I really wanted to leverage the capabilities of the Grand Calibur. I was able to die cut little label windows from my 8.5 by 11 paper. There's no other die cutting machine that would have allowed me to create such a layout since my Cuttlebug's width is about 5.5 inches and my Epic 6 has a width of around 6 inches.

I have some patterned paper under each window -- they're adhered with dimensional adhesive. The close-up shot below shows the dimension a little better.  To reinforce the label image, I stamped one of the labels from Very Vintage Labels No. 1 onto the patterned paper.

Each label area documents a mushy little tidbit on why I love my hubs. The circles are popped with dimensional adhesive. I elected to not pop the strip journaling. More just to add a little interest when you see it in person (there is no significance between the journaling in the circles and the strips..).

• He always tells me that he loves me and he shows it too. :) It's always the little things that I love. 
• He pays attention to me. :) Heck, I'll admit it. Half the time he'll say something and I'll be crafting and I won't know what the heck he said. So big props to him there. Although right now, he's watching a sports game and I'm pretty sure I could run around with no clothes and he wouldn't notice... 
• He lets me track glitter into the bed... and all around the condo. :) And hardly complains... 
• He lets me do what I love... even if that means that I took over the entire condo so that he plays leap frog to get around. 
• He takes cares of our plants -- I have a "black" thumb. So the only reason we have fresh basil, mint and other herbs to use in our cooking is because of him
• His dorkiness makes me feel normal. ;-) 
• He knows all this random knowledge and well, I always learn something random every day
• He makes dinner for me when I'm too busy or tired... and he's getting better by the day. He just made some Parchment Salmon the other day (small steps guys, small steps)

Sure there's more little reasons I love him but I only had nine spots. ;-)

So I hope I inspired you a little with my projects today. :) Be sure to leave a comment for a chance to win a free set (and because you love me... ok, fine, because you love my projects. ;-).

Also, be sure to stop by the other DT members who are posting today: Laurie, Lynn, Jennifer, and Sandie. I know they have some amazing projects to share.



Thinking of You Card
Stamps: (Asian Gardens, Musical Backgrounds) Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock: (Spring Rain, White, Smokey Shadow) Papertrey Ink
Ink: (Cobblestone) Vivid, (watermark) Tsukineko
Embossing Powder: (white) Ranger
Tools: (Labels 14 die) Spellbinders, (die cutter) Grand Calibur


Beach Stud Layout

Stamps: (Free Spirit - Boy, Free Spirit Sentiments, Very Vintage Labels No. 1) Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock: (Orange Zest, Hawaiian Shores, White) Papertrey Ink
Patterned Paper: (Bitty Dots) Papertrey Ink, (green swirl) My Mind's Eye
Ink: (watermark, Tuxedo Black) Tsukineko
Embossing Powder: (white) Ranger
Accents: (letter stickers) Sassafras
Tools: (Lables 1 die) Spellbinders, (die cutter) Grand Calibur

What I Love About You Layout
Stamps: (Very Vintage Labels No. 1) Waltzingmouse Stamps
Cardstock: (kraft) Papertrey Ink
Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye, Crate Paper
Ink: (Dark Chocolate) Papertrey Ink
Accents: (glitter letter stickers) Sassafras, (print letter stickers) Studio Calico
Tools: (Labels 1die) Spellbinders, (die cutter) Grand Calibur, (3/4 inch circle punch) EK Success

Glenda's Random Amusing Challenge #100 Blog Hop

** Please scroll down for my WMS Customer Waltz Post **

Glenda, one of my lovely blogging friends, hosts a fabulous challenge on her blog every week. This week is her 100th challenge! How awesome is that? So she invited a bunch of us to join her in the celebration! I'm so honored to be a part of this celebration! If you take part in the challenge, you can get a chance to win some fun prizes!

Glenda's Random Amusing Challenge #100 is to use red on your card or project.  Use as much or as little as you like.  Incorporate it by using paper, ink, ribbon, embellishments, whatever you like!  You must play along with the challenge to be eligible to win the blog candy.  If you play along, please leave a comment on Glenda's blog (http://papersscissorsrocks.blogspot.com) and link back to her post from your post.  If you upload to an online gallery, please use the keyword GRAC100.

You have until midnight Pacific Time on January 23rd to play along and you can play along as many times as you like.  The winner will be randomly chosen and announced on January 24th. It's such an easy challenge to play along with! Hope to see you participate!

For my card, I opted to do a "congrats" card since it's a celebratory occasion! :)  I used some buttons to create some balloons trailing out of the car. There's some fun silver perfect pearls on the car headlights for texture and color. 


Thanks for stopping by!


Participating Bloggers - be sure to check out all the fabulous projects!
Allison Fillo http://stampinwhenican.blogspot.com/
Allison Miles http://allistamps.blogspot.com/
Beate Johns http://beate.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/
Belinda Chang Langner http://cadnileb.blogspot.com
Carly Robertson http://carlyrobertson.typepad.com/
Cheiron Brandon http://www.cheironbrandon.typepad.com/
Chris Sather http://cattsscratchingpost.blogspot.com/
Dawn Stein http://www.lavendergiraffe.blogspot.com/
Donna Hitz http://www.frozenstamper.blogspot.com/
Elena Shacochis http://thestampingshac.blogspot.com/
Geeta Suggs http://www.craftyengineer.typepad.com/
Jenn Shurkus http://jennshurkus.typepad.com/creative_chick/
Jennie Moczan http://www.simplycaffeinated.typepad.com/
Jill Grace http://creativegrace.typepad.com/
Joan Jeffery http://www.j-jcreations.blogspot.com/
June Gibbons http://perfectlikeacurl.blogspot.com/
Kamila Younkman http://littlescrapsofheaven.typepad.com/
Krystie Lee Hersch http://www.cupcakemartini.com/
Meghan Fahey http://driventoink.com/
Michelle Clark http://www.sparkledesigns.typepad.com/
Michelle Mathey http://msmathey.blogspot.com/
Michelle Woerner http://stopandstamptheroses.blogspot.com
Nance Lempinen-Leedy http://nanceleedy.blogspot.com/
Sherry Czarnecki http://littlestampsbiglife.blogspot.com/
Silke Ledlow http://silkeledlow.blogspot.com/
Teresa Kline http://www.enjoythevasunshine.blogspot.com

WMS December Customer Waltz - A Perfect Day

Welcome to the WMS Customer Waltz! You should be sure to check out all the fabulous projects at the WMS forum! :) And as usual, there's a fun game as well. Spot all the watermarks in the WMS DT member's photos and you could win a fun prize. We might have 0 watermarks, 1,2, 3 or more! ;-)

This month's theme is all about L-O-V-E. :)

I took it into a little different twist. Because I can't follow rules. Ever...
Just ask my Kindergarten teacher, bless her soul.

So this is what transpired in my little head.
Love == Wedding == Scrapbook page of my wedding... and then I took it a step further. Because I never want to forget all the mistakes behind that day. Because weddings are never perfect. 

In fact, they're nothing close to perfect except to the bride. 

Watching Four Weddings on TLC has taught me that well.

(Confession: I watch a lot of bad reality TV while crafting and I watch a lot of bad reality TV when I'm not crafting... just ask my hubs)

For the most part, I let the journaling and pictures speak for themselves. I added a little stamping -- the flowers from  Big Blooms Chrysanthemums, very wedding appropriate and then of course, my favorite pattern from Pic-Nic Patterns. This pattern is so beat up it's not even funny anymore.

Why are the pics so small? Well, those little pics are actually the little thumbnails you get with your picture order. Ah recycling. It's good for ya and for your kids and your kid's kids and so on.

And I think it the little pics sum it up quite well -- even though all these little mistakes happened, everyone only sees the big picture -- a bride in a wedding dress getting married to her beloved.

No one knows that I blinked when my mascara was applied -- talk about a royal mess.

No one knows we were running late because of my mascara boo boo.

No one knows that we didn't eat lunch.

No one knows my veil wasn't staying put at ALL.
No one remembers the snow and sleet.
No one else notices the mistakes.

Well, except for my brother falling during my ceremony...
I will never forgive myself for that one...
I've replayed the events leading up to that one part of the wedding one too many times.
So sorry little bro!

I'd say that next time I'd stamp my pretty little manicured foot down.
Ask people to stick to the schedule I had provided, to not improvise.
But I'd like there to be no next time as I have no intent of getting married again.
Once was more than enough.

No plans to be a part of ANY wedding again.
Not even if I have kids.
My imaginary kids better elope.

But for now, my wedding is certainly providing some lovely pictures to scrap. ;)

Thanks for waltzing by and I hope you'll be sure to check out everyone else's fabulous projects as well!



Stamps: (Big Blooms Chrysanthemums, Pic-Nic Patterns) Waltzingmouse Stamps
Ink: (white pigment, raspberry fizz hybrid) Papertrey Ink,
Cardstock: Papertrey Ink
Patterned Paper: My Mind's Eye
Fibers: (floss) DMC)
Accents: (letter stickers) American Crafts, (gems) Hero Arts, (clip) Making Memories
Tools: (border punch) Fiskars

Ten Things in '10

Not sure about you guys, but 2010 was one "h-e-double hockey stick" of a year. It's also made me re-think a few things -- realize what's important in life and what's a little less so.

I'm a firm believer in reflection to learn from your mistakes. I'm also a list person. I make them all the time - a to-do list, a grocery list, a list of what lists to make...

So what better way to sum up my 2010 year? Yes... a list to reflect. A list to look back.

A list of the best (scratch that), let's just say the most memorable moments of 2010.

The good and the bad.

The highs and the lows.

So that I will always remember 2010.

It felt good to use some older product I had laying around, just itching to be used. Inspired by the fun numbers from Sassafras Paper Whimsies (A mix of One Thru Twelve and Tailored Deck). The stickers are from October Afternoon. With the pre-made embellishments, this page came together relatively quickly.

I say "quickly" because it takes me a night to finish a card... a card that is only 4.25 inches by 5.5 inches (or 23.375 square inches). So for me to finish something that is 12 by 12 (or 144 square inches) in the same time it takes me to do 2 cards... I call that quick. :)

I held off on the journaling because I hate my own handwriting. Is that typical? I've been itching for a typewriter for ages but I'm not sure where I can find one cheaply.

This year, I expect you'll see some more scrapbook pages from me. In order for me to achieve this, I'd love to ask for some advice. To my scrapbooking friends, I'd love some tips on taking better pictures of your scrapbook pages... I struggled with this one a bit.

I'm taking a step back from the crafty deadline madness and focusing my craftiness back on preserving my memories, remembering my life and making cards to make my friends happy. Yes, everyone else is making resolutions about helping others and I'm focusing it back on me. Selfish of me, I know. But sometimes you need to take a step back to keep your sanity.

Have a fabulous week and thanks for stopping by! Here's to 2011 and may it bring us all a little more laughter and a little more time with the important people in our lives. :)

Sending My Love

So who else is still struggling with the whole coming back to reality after vacation?  I swear, I need coffee and it's 8pm...   This is the longest break I've taken in awhile as we didn't have the funds to go anywhere special this year. Ok, enough of my petty complaints...

I think by this point, many of you have heard about Katie Renz already. If you haven't heard, Katie has posted her story on her blog so be sure to check it out. I was just thinking about how when I was a wee little stamper just dipping my toes into this crazy stamping world, Katie is one of the ladies that really encouraged me -- I even have a few RAKs from her (here and here).   I wanted to send something to her to let her know I was thinking about her -- the least I could do.

Just wanted to send a little ray of sunshine over her way. I kept it bright and happy. A little bit of coloring, a little bit of inking and a lot of paper piecing. I love doing this with scraps of paper... punch a few with the handy dandy square punch (or trim them to size) and create your own quilt. It gives a fun colorful effect -- to bring out the edges, I do apply some distress inking to the edges. It's not necessary but I think it makes the pieces stand out more if you use similar colors.



Stamps: (Branching Out) There She Goes
Cardstock: PTI
Patterned Paper: (365 Degrees) Pink Paislee
Fibers: (ribbon) PTI, (twill) Craft Supply
Accents: (buttons) Making Memories
Die cuts: Spellbinders

Kisses in the New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! :) Hope your new year is filled with family, friends and lots of love. :)

To ring in the new year, I thought I'd publicly share my resolutions this year.

1. Meatless Weekend meals will continue in this house - Because I believe in being healthy and saving the world.  Because legumes, beans, and greens are tasty. Because I want to lower our risk for diabetes, cancer or heart disease. And because I believe in reducing our carbon footprint.
2. The "vegetable" of the year is going to be soy and cabbage. For those of you not in the know, my husband is not a fan of greens. So every year, I pick a few vegetables to slowly introduce into the diet -- last year was the year of the kale and he loves it now (even asks for it when we're in the grocery store). This year, we're going with soybeans (edamame, tofu, etc) and the cabbage family (cabbage, chinese cabbage, all sorts of cabbage). The older I get, the more I crave the foods I grew up with -- tofu, bok choi, kai-lan, and my favorite- kong shin tsai (I really don't know the translation for it. My mom grows this in our front yard but my husband refuses to let me do the same... he thinks its a mosquito breeding ground... which is probably true since it needs a swamp like atmosphere). Yum. Ironic given that in high school, I did almost anything to avoid eating at home, even if that meant going to boarding school for high school to eat cafeteria food for every meal.... what was I thinking?
3. Complete at least one 5k race this year - A little running never hurt anyone. I'd love to do a triathlon but that requires owning a bike... Hah, can I just do the swim part of the triathlon?
4. Stop making excuses  - A little less thinking, a little more doing. Jump on an airplane and see the world without thinking about the cost. Go out for a dinner just because. Buy that pretty dress on the hanger and wear it for a girl's night out. Or spend the day in bed, reading... just because.

A year committed to heath and happiness. :) What resolutions do you have for the new year?