Pocket Full of Posies . . .

Hello blogger friends!

Today I have a quick card to share with you that I made for a new monthly challenge blog I discovered . . . Vintage Stamping Challenge and the current theme is:   

Pocket Full Of Posies

The items used to create this card are:

Papers:  Wedgewood Blue cs, Colorbok 'rosewood' dp, Pink cs

Stamps:  SU Fifth Avenue Floral

Ink:  Versafine Black

Accessories:  Wedgewood Blue Satin Ribbon, Cheery Lynn Designs Butterfly die, Dollarama Crafters Rhinestones, Pink brad

 It was great fun to get away from Christmas or Snowy cards and make something with butterflies & flowers.  I paper pieced the focus flower and that too is something I haven't done much lately and was fun to do again.  

I don't think there are many other challenges out there at the moment that this card fits . . . but I will take a peek at Feline Playful to see and will add them here if I find any.

Link Up for Pink - A Dash of Pink

 Lady Anne's Challenge - Anything Goes (must stamp)

Another snow storm is predicted for over the weekend but I'm hoping they are wrong because we have family wanting to come and spend the weekend and I'm so hoping the weather doesn't delay them.  Talk to you soon and thanks so much for stopping by today!  AND ... as always . . .

Shew! Made it through the storm . . .

Well, here I am again about to go watch another 'old time' movie and do a bit of crafting too!  But before I leave my computer I wanted to share a few photos with you that I took this morning AFTER the snow had finished blowing & falling.

We luckily didn't get as much as they were predicting but we still got somewhere in the 4-6" range and that's enough for me!  As far as clearing the driveway . . . I figured I'd wait until this morning after the snow was done and I could actually SEE what I was doing and especially since we didn't need to drive anywhere.  But, before I could get my new fancy hat on ... my wonderful neighbor, Phil had it all done for me!  We have a wonderful neighborhood with folks who are always willing to help each other ... what a blessing!

I had earlier shared a photo of our holiday decorations on the front of the house and commented then how much better it would look after a snow fall ... I will go out later when the lights are on and take another photo.  It just doesn't look like a Christmas photo to me without the snow!

 Luckily Mark & I had gone out yesterday morning before the snow began to fall and filled all the feeders.  We have three feeders for the birds and two for the squirrels.   

It didn't take the birds & squirrels long this morning to find that the feeders were full and get their bellies full.  I also put corn/peanuts on the tree stumps and a few locations on the ground.  There were 6 squirrels scurrying about this morning along with Blue Jays, Cardinals, Woodpeckers, Wrens, Tit Mouse and House Finch flying from feeder to feeder.  I'm sure there were a few other species of birds out there but that's just the ones I saw fluttering about when I tried to snap a few photos through a crack in the sliding glass door (brrr .. certainly too cold to open the door very far!)

We have great fun watching the squirrels in our picnic area.  

Grandson, Jonathan just bought us a new Peanut Squirrel Feeder (far left tree) and Mark hurried to put it up yesterday as it began to snow.  It appears they haven't yet discovered it but I'm sure it won't take long.

They did however discover all the 'routine' locations for feed and wasted no time scarfing it up!

Here's a little closer look at one of the squirrels.  I swear, they know when I have a camera in my hand and make a bee-line for the tree tops.  However, this one was so busy eating I guess he didn't mind having his picture taken.

Okay ... I'm off to curl up on the couch for a few hours and watch a movie.  It's getting rather cold down here in my crafting cave so I think I'll put the little heater on and wait for it to warm up a bit before moving on to the 'crafting phase' of my day!

As always . . .

Butterfly Kisses & Lace

Good Evening my friends!

At the moment we probably have somewhere between 4-6" of snow on the ground with that much more expected again over night.  I have not yet 'got up the gumption' to go out to clear the driveway since our holiday visiting is mostly complete and hubby (being retired now) has no need to venture out on the highways!  I figure I'll wait until it's all done ... then ... fire up the snow blower and Get 'R Done!

So ... since I was enjoying a day of 'doing what I wished', I watched a couple of movies on Netflix and created a card for the current Cheery Lynn Designs challenge which is LACE (faux/real).  I was watching the Jane Austen movies ... 'Pride & Prejudice' and 'Emma'.  Needless to say, these movies helped put me in a 'lacy' frame of mind with the period clothing made of the finest silks & lace.

This creation is really not my true to form style as it is quite CAS compared to the many layers I usually enjoy but I'm VERY happy with it's quickness & outcome.  Here's what I've used to create it:

Papers:  Black cardstock, White cardstock, FabScraps 'High Tea' design paper

Cheery Lynn Designs Dies:  DL113 Exotic Butterflies, DL101 English Tea Party, B136 Anastasia Border

Accessories:  Tim Holtz 'milled lavender' distress Stickles, Versafine black ink, Serendipity rubber stamp

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I've been 'summoned' for jury duty this week  ... can you imagine ... Christmas week!  [sigh]   I did NOT have to go in today and I just checked their website and there are no selections being done tomorrow either ... so ... it appears after I get the driveway cleared tomorrow I will have yet another day to watch movies and craft ... YEAH!!!  

Here are a few additional challenges to add this creation to:

Fab 'n' Funky Challenge - Add ribbon and/or Lace

The Paper Shelter - Anything Goes

Simon Says Stamps - Anything Goes

Stamp n Doodle - Anything Goes

Through The Craft Room Door - Anything Goes

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope to see you again real soon!

As always . . .

OH WOW!  WAIT!!!

I just realized I have had over 100,000 visits to my blog and 550 followers!  THAT IS AWESOME!  Sounds like some NEW YEARS CANDY is in order.  I'll be gathering that together and posting about it real soon!  Stay tuned and thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Happy Day After!!

Hello my friends!  How was your Christmas?  Ours was FABULOUS!

Over the past few days we've spent time with a lot of family and it was been warm hearted & wonderful!  Santa was very good to us ... bringing so many fabulous gifts & goodies!

Here's a peek at two of the wide range of gifts I received from hubby.  Aren't these fresh water pearls beautiful???   These look like mine but he gave me a 3 strand necklace ... just beautiful!   (He's SO GOOD to me!!)   And yes this is the EXACT bomber hat that I received.  Will be helpful when I'm outside snow blowing the driveway this afternoon since they are calling for 8-12 inches of the white stuff today.

LOL ... what fun!

Hope you are as happy today as I am!

We were so blessed to spend time with both our families this year!

And hope you were surrounded with love and family too!

As always . . .

Do you have snow for Christmas?

Hello my friends!

Here we are on Christmas Eve Day and before I shut down my computer for the next few days, I wanted to share with you a couple of cards I made for the Craft A Scene Challenge . . . WINTER SCENE.

 We had a snow storm here on Friday which left us a nice coating of the white stuff!  It of course stopped me & hubby from visiting with our kids but it's still nice to have snow for Christmas.  HENCE my SNOWY background on both cards. 

Products used on these cards are:
Papers:  White cs, Black cs
Inks:  Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Broken China & Stormy Sky), Colorbox Chalk Ink (Rose Coral), Momento (Cantaloupe), Versafine Black
Stamps:  Stampscapes (Rocky Peak - 188F, Pine Row - 150E, Leafy Branch - 277F), Memory Box (Snowy Pine Landscape - F1900), Rubber Stampede (Pine Tree - A1605F), Stampendous (Branch Songster - Q133), Penny Black (Winter Sky - 4204L), Hero Arts Sentiment
Accessories:  Stickles, Quickie Glue, Prisma Glitter,  Large Sponge Daubers, Tim Holtz (Peeled Paint) Marker, Gold Wilton doily, Spellbinder Scallop & Classic Oval dies, Martha Stewart (Icicle Border Punch, Branch Punch, Snowflake Punch)

For some reason the "icicle Stickles" I used on the mountain tops looks GREEN ... hmmmm ... oh well, at least it sparkles!  LOL! 

Other challenges:

Addicted to Stamps Challenge - Blue Christmas/Winter

Fashionable Stamping Challenge #37 - Mask It

Gingerloft Challenge - Christmas or Winter

Great Impressions - Anything Goes

Order of the Opus-Gluei - Baby It's Cold Outside (Let It Snow song)

One Stop Craft Challenge - Christmas Carol (Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!)

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy day to stop by and take a peek at my work.  I hope you draw as much inspiration from me as I do from all of you amazingly talented crafters!!

Gotta Run ...

What A Bummer !!!

Hello my friends!

I had this blog post nearly done & ready to publish when my phone rang.  In the midst of talking to my daughter and trying to type with one hand to finish, I hit a wrong key and POOF!  Blog Post GONE!

So, here I go again!  LOL!

I'm fortunate enough to have all my Christmas preparation in order and ready to go so decided to take a little time blog hopping and crafting.  While visiting my friend Diane (Nellie's Nest) blog, I was in awe of her creation for the current Cheery Lynn Designs Challenge - Lots of Layers and decided to play along.  Here's what I came up with . . .

Now mind you, I LOVE creating vintage Christmas cards and am sad that I'll be putting all my wonderful Christmas papers & embellishments away for another year. . . but, it was fun to switch gears and create something NOT holiday oriented.  

Here's a list of items used to create this card:

Papers:  White cs, Old Olive cs, KaiserCraft 'The Lake House' dp

Cheery Lynn Designs dies:   B117 Fanciful Flourish, B147 Olive Branches, B165 Lace Corner Deco E, DL112 Exotic Butterfly Small

Accessories:  various Stickles, Kaiser pearls, X-press It Foam Mounting Tape, Versafine Black Ink

Stamp:  JustRite 'Large Fancy Sentiment'

I hope you are close to being ready for Christmas too.  We had planned on going to visit with our daughter last evening along with family & friends from my SIL's side of the family but Mother Nature decided to share a lot of snowing & blowing all day/evening and we decided to not risk the hours drive and stayed home.  I was saddened to not be able to make the trip but am glad to see we will have a white Christmas this year.

A few other challenges I'd like to enter this creation into are:

Lady Anne Challenge - Sentimental Friday - Anything Goes

Crafts 4 Eternity - Anything Goes

Hotshot Crafts - Butterflies

Stampin' for the Weekend - Anything Goes

Stuck on U Sketches - Die Cuts

Aud Sentiments Challenge - Use Any Sentiment

Delightful Challenge - Anything Goes

In the Pink - Pink and Pearly

Flutter By Wednesday - Anything Goes + Butterflies

The Paper Shelter - Anything Goes
Hiding in My Craft Room # 77 - Anything BUT Christmas
Vickie's First Challenge - Anything Goes
Artistic Inspirations #20 - Anything Goes
The Crafty Bloggers Network - Anything Goes

Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by today and for your kind words.  

Now let's see if I can get this posted before I hit another wrong key and loose it all again!  LOL!

Stay Warm, Safe & Happy

and as always . . .

Shelly's Images Challenge

Good Morning My Friends!

Today is the final challenge for 2012 at Shelly's Images and our challenge is:

Out With The Old and In With The New

Today we are featuring Shelly's "Jingle Bells" digi image and you can find in HERE.  Please be sure to pop over to our challenge blog and check out how my team mates have created with this fun image.  They are AMAZING and very inspirational!

My OLD is the Martha Stewart 'branch' punch/Petalloo poinsettias and my NEW is this awesome Cheery Lynn Designs "Holly Branch" which I purchased at my last visit to Joan's Gardens in Indiana.

I hope you'll find the time to come join in the fun at Shelly's Images.  There's plenty of time ... you have until January 2nd to get your entry posted.  I can't wait to see what you create!

That's it for me today!  I hear we have a snow storm on the way so I'd better get my running around done early today so I can stay indoors and watch it come down vs trying to drive in it!  Thanks so much for stopping by during this busy, busy time of the year and as always . . .

Neighborhood Holiday Party - 2012

Hello dear blogging friends!

WOW!  Are you as busy as I am???  YIKES!

Just a few quick things to share with you this evening!  First of all our Neighborhood Party was a HUGE SUCCESS!  We had 25 adults and 8 kids.  We had food & people in nearly every room!  LOL!  Here's a few photos to share . . .

 Our menu consisted of:

BBQ Meatballs ... Buffalo Chicken Dip ... Artichoke/Spinach Dip

Bacon Wrapped Short Ribs ... Crab Rangoons ... Shrimp Cocktail

Mini Sandwiches ... Antipasto Platter ... Meat/Cheese Platter

Hummus ... Spinach & Cheese in Filo ... Chips/Dip

Cookies ... Fudge ... Fresh Fruit Salad

 * * * * *

I also wanted to share with you the great news that I was PUBLISHED AGAIN in the December Edition of Paper & Pixels Online Magazine!  How thrilling for me to have them showcase my work in the last three editions!  If you're not familiar with this publication, you will really want to check it out!  It is jam packed with fabulous crafting information, samples & tutorials!

 

How to get your copy of Papers and Pixels:

Current magazine subscribers will receive a separate email with the download link.  Newsletter readers and everyone else can purchase a copy in our Shop for a $1.50.

And remember:

Visit the Papers and Pixels blog and/or facebook page each and every month on the 10^th through the 14^th for sneak peeks of what you’ll see in the next edition.  Sneak Peeks are also posted in the Forum.

Well that's it for me this evening!

I hope you are all as excited about Christmas as I am!  OH ... and I hear we are getting 2-3" of snow the end of this week and colder temperatures!  Maybe we will have a WHITE CHRISTMAS after all!  (during our 'Christmas' party I had the doors open and the furnace turned off ... what's up with that!!??!!)

okay ... catch you later and as always ...

Joan's Gardens Challenge

Good Morning Blogger Friends!

Today is the day of our Neighborhood Christmas Party here in our home but before I get busy with all the last minute preparations, I wanted to quickly share with you the project I created for the challenge this week over at Joan's Gardens.  Here's this week's challenge requirements:

Decorate a box or container that 

can be used for a Christmas gift

A few months back I purchased a few of these empty black boxes from the local Deals store (for $1) with just this sort of idea in mind.  I've used design paper from The Paper Studio - Vintage Christmas - 12x12 pack for my decorating.  The tag is from Crafty Secrets and I've made the flower using gold metallic paper along with my Cheery Lynn Designs Build a Flower 2 die set.  To adorn my flower I've cut Holly Branches (also a Cheery Lynn Designs die) out of the scrap paper used for the inside of the box.  A few springs of white branches were punched using a Martha Stewart punch, feathers & a pearl for the center of my flower.

I've used a gold Pilot Marker to frame the edges of the outside panels just to give it a little more 'class'.  I'm very happy with how it all came together and have the perfect person in mind to give it too.  Now to decide exactly what I want to fill it with!

A few additional challenge to enter into are:
Craftymess Challenge #23 - Vintage Christmas
 Di's Digi Designs - Christmas-Anything But A Card
Sugar Creek Hollow #42 - For A Gift
  Totally Gorjuss - For Someone Special
 Anything But A Card Challenge #8 - Anything But A Card
 

Well, I'd better get busy ...

I hope you have a fabulous day today and thanks so much for stopping by!

As always ...

Crafty Secrets Christmas Creations

Hello my friends and thank you so much for stopping by my blog today!

I've had these two Christmas cards sitting on my table and had forgotten to share them with you.  They are both made using Crafty Secrets images/papers.  Please be sure to pop over to Crafty Secrets to see all of the AMAZING products.  If you are a vintage lover like myself, THIS is the place to be!

Here I have not only created a multi layered card using both parts of the image & journalling note from the Christmas Booklet but have also used the same Crafty Secrets Vintage Christmas collage paper that I used for the background on my card and printed it onto regular printer paper to use as wrapping paper for my package.

This vintage Santa image is one of my all time favorites among all the fabulous Crafty Secrets Vintage Christmas images.  Here I have simply printed a sheet of their Christmas plaid paper for the backing which was edged with a gold Pilot Marker.  A gold Wilton doily was also used to showcase this beautiful image.  A touch of ribbon and a cute little snowman charm and this card is ready for any lady or gentleman!

I've been having SO MUCH FUN creating with these amazing digital images and papers!  Please come check out all the fun & products Crafty Secrets/Heartwarming Vintage has to offer ... here are the links:

Our Websites, Gallery, Store

• Our New CraftyVintageGirl Store!
• CraftySecrets.com
• Our ETSY Store
• Our Shopatron Store
• Join Us On Facebook

A few challenges I'd like to enter these projects into are:

 Sweet Stampin' Christmas Challenge - Anything Goes - Christmas

 Crafting for All Seasons - Green & Red + Glitter & Sparkle

 Crafts and Me Challenge - No Blue Allowed

Creative Moments Bloggers Challenge - Anything Goes/Anything But A Card

Fab & Funky Challenges - A Vintage Christmas

 Fresh Brewed Blog - Christmas Creations

Stampavie & More Challenge - Christmas

Stampin' Royalty - Christmas/Winter

Anything Goes Challenge Blog - Traditional Colors - Christmas

A and T Emerald Faeries Challenge - Christmas

Deep Ocean Challenge - So This is Christmas

Everybody-Art-Challenge - Anything Goes

I hope you all have a wonderful day and a fabulous weekend!

Let those you love know how much you love them ... you never know when you won't have the chance again!  Throw your arms around them and give 'em a GREAT BIG HUG!!!

Till next time . . .

Sad News this holiday season . . .

I got the sad news today that my Uncle Clyde "Hen" Morgan died last evening!  Uncle Hen (as we all called him) was my mother's last brother.  There were 12 children in this family and now there are only three.  My mother being next to the youngest at age 82.

 

This photo is from 1966.  Uncle Hen is 3rd from the right and my mother is next to him (2nd from the right). 

   Uncle Hen with his pride & joy ... his four sons!

(2011)

 Clyde (Hen) Morgan

June 29, 1923 - December 12, 2012

R.I.P. dear Uncle Hen!  You will be missed!!!!

Just a REMINDER !!!

Today marks the LAST DAY of fun, games & freebies over at the 12 Days of Christmas Event at Shelly's Images!  You will have until Noon tomorrow (12/13/12) CST to enter into the fun and/or grab your freebies ... so please ...

HURRY!

Gotta run ... busy, busy!
Would you like a peek at our Christmas tree?  Here ya go ...
Some of the decorations on this tree are 50 years plus,  many are homemade and have been gifted to us over the years!  Would you believe there are a little over 1500 lights.  (Hubby likes lots of lights! LOL)

The Sisterhood of Crafters Challenge

Hello my dear friends and thanks for stopping by today!  I know how busy you must be!

For the last challenge of 2012 at The Sisterhood of Crafter's, Tanis has asked us to 

STAMP YOUR BACKGROUND

What a fun challenge!  I haven't thought to do this technique in such a long time and was so glad Tanis suggested it!  So, of course, I got carried away and did not only ONE project ... but THREE!  

 I was in need of a few extra Hershey Bar Pouches for the neighborhood kids who might come for the party here on Sunday so thought I'd create one by making my own background paper.  Here I've used a Santa image from a Stamper's Anonymous CMS114 - Mini Holidays 3 set and Tim Holtz red distress ink.

 

 Here I've used the same Santa image for my focus but the base card was stamped using the snowflakes and Versafine Black ink from the same stamp set. 

On my final creation I chose to use the holly branch stamp from the same stamp set and Tim Holtz Iced Spruce distress ink to create my background.  The image is from Crafty Secrets.  A touch of Deco Art Glamour Dust and red Kaiser pearls are the only embellishments I felt this lovely card needed.

I still have a lot to do before Sunday's party so I'd better get back to it!

Have a wonderful day!

And as always . . .

A Vintage Christmas Challenge

While doing my DT commenting last evening, I stumbled upon a beautiful vintage challenge blog called Vintage Cafe Card Challenge and just had to take a peek at the absolutely gorgeous vintage creations!  Of course I immediately had to create something so I could also play along in their current challenge which is a sketch I believe, using this image . . .

. . . isn't it gorgeous!

Here is what I created for their challenge and I can't wait to see more from these talented ladies!

My image is from Crafty Secrets, the design paper is The Paper Studio 'Old World Winter Pack' and my die cut pieces are Cheery Lynn Designs.    I've also stamped a Stamper's Anonymous Holly stamp using Momento 'Bamboo Leaves' ink in the corners on the design paper.  Lime green Stickles was used on the leaves for sparkle and dimension.

A few other challenges I'd like to enter are:

Christmas Card Challenge - Must be Christmas using die cuts

Dream Valley Challenge - Christmas
Great Impressions - Anything Goes
Joanna Sheen Challenge - With Love At Christmas
Mema's Crafts - Anything Goes

That's it for me today!  I really must get busy with baking & fudge making!  Our party is this coming Sunday and I can't be putting things off any longer!  I'll have to 'play' later ... now it's time to get busy!

Have a fabulous day everyone!  Actually ... have a fabulous week!!
Thanks for stopping by and as always . . .

Creating a Scene

Happy start to another week blogging friends!

Do you have your shopping done?  Baking?  Wrapping? Decorations? Christmas Cards mailed?

Dear Oh Dear ... no wonder we need a Check List!!

So much to do ... so little time!

As most of you ... I still have some of the 'above' not checked off my list yet but did want to take a moment and create a card with one of my favorite styles/techniques in mind ... Creating A Scene!

The products I have used on this card are:

Paper:  Black cs, White cs

Stamps:  Heartfelt Creations 'HCPC 3432 Magnificent Spruce Trees', Crafty Secrets 'SL46 Winter Wishes' (sentiment), AMuse 'Lots of Flakes', AMuse 'Santa Silhouette'

Inks:  Tim Holtz 'Broken China', 'Stormy Sky', 'Evergreen Bough', 'Iced Spruce', Brilliance 'Ice Blue', Versafine Black

Accessories: Eclipse Masking Medium, Jumbo Sponge Daubers, Various Stickles

I am always amazed at some of the GORGEOUS scenes I've seen created by other crafters out there in blogland and just keep thinking that if I practice, I might some day get as good as them.  SO ... that's exactly what I intend to do.  Keep practicing ... and the following challenges are helping me out!

2 Sisters Challenge Blog  - Snowflakes

Bloggers Challenge - Make or Create a Scene

Lady Anne's Sentiment Friday - Anything Goes

Fairy Tale Challenge - O Christmas Tree

Stempelsonnen Challenge - Anything Goes with Stamp as main focus

Crafty Creations Challenge - Winter Scene

Bearly-Mine Challenge - Santa is on his way!

Jackson's Digital Expressions - Inks & Such

Oldie But a Goodie - Let It Snow (everything on this card is older than 6 months)

Craft A Scene - Winter Scene

Well that's it for me today!  I really must get busy checking some of these projects off of my ToDo List!  Thanks so much for stopping by and taking a peek!

As Always . . .

Blue Christmas . . .

. . . without you!!

Do you remember that song? 

Today I have a blue Christmas card to share with you which was made for the challenge at Joan's Gardens.  This week Joan & Selma have asked us to create with these things in mind:

Use something oval

Use an embossing folder

Make a blue and white card

Add a ribbon (maybe a bow??)

I recently purchased this image from Joan and thought it would be perfect stamped in blue.  What do you think?  The ribbon really is the same color as my background paper but for some reason my camera doesn't like photographing blues & purples in their correct color hue!  I'm sure it's just a setting and maybe AFTER the holidays I'll have time to check into it.

Recipe for this creation:

Papers: SU Brocade Blue cs, white cs

Stamp:  Stampendous 'Cling Snowy Postcard'

Ink:  Tim Holtz Stormy Sky distress ink

Accessories:  Cheery Lynn Designs B117S Fanciful Flourish Sm., Cheery Lynn Designs B147 Holly Flourish, Cuttlebug border embossing folder, White Jelly Roll Pen for faux stitching, Offray Antique Blue Satin Ribbon, Icicle Stickles, Waterfall Stickles, Kaiser white pearls

This creation also fits the Cheery Lynn Designs challenge this week which is HAPPY HOLIDAYS.  

And a few other challenges are:

Brown Sugar Challenge - You Have Me In Stitches

Craftymess Challenge - Vintage Christmas

Delicious Doodles - Anything Christmas with Blue

Pause, Dream, Enjoy - Blue & White

Raise the Bar - Blues & Whites

The Stamp Man - In the bleak mid winter

Stampin' for the Weekend - Let It Snow

My decorating is all finished and since I received our first Christmas cards of the season, I guess I'd better get started on addressing ours and get them in the mailbox!  I hope you are enjoying your holiday preparations as much as we are! 

Until next time and as always . . .