Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Tags for Swap & where did the power go?


These are 3 tags that I sent to Elena in Hawaii for the Tag Swap that I've been participating in. I love these large tags (4" x 4"). They were cut out of red cardstock & then a corner of a Webster's Page was cut down for the image (owl or lamp post) & the To/From is from the Stampin Up Tag it All stamp set. I added some greenery on the left that remind me of miniature garland along with soem red dots on the berries of the stamp. With a little red/gold ribbon the card made itself. I hope that she enjoys these images ... I may try to get some made for my own gifts as they really reflect the warm, nostalgic style tha I like so much.
Today's one of those wonderful days that I'm learning to take a minute & savor. I have the day off from work in order to prep for the annual Thanksgiving Day holiday at our house. I've always loved Thanksgiving & even though it's a HUGE amount of work to feed 21 people -- it's worth it. This morning I got out of bed, enjoyed a cup of coffee with my husband & got right at it. The pie crust was chilling right on time. The veggies were cut & sauteed for the stuffing. David had gone out & picked up turkey #2 & the custard pie was in the oven ... and .... the power went out ... OH NO! Fortunately - the pie only had about 12 minutes left & I was left praying for residual heat. I thought about stomping my feet & demanding that the tree pull itself off the wires so that I could stay on schedule. Since I'm now almost 1/2 a century old - I took the opportunity of no electricity as a gift & curled up in bed with a book for about an hour. What a treat! By the time the power was back on I was rejuvenated & ready to get back to work ... The custard pie was no worse for wear & the afternoon still had some daylight left.
And so it goes ~


Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Aviary Explosion Box


I'm teaching a class at Life's Memories & More in a few weeks. This is a photo of the Aviary Box that I made following the directions that I purchased (at Etsy) from Following the Paper Trail. I was inspired by all of the beautiful envelopes that I found at the Paper Source in Boston & papers that I began gathering from Tanya at Life's Memories & More as well Archiver's in North Carolina. I used the Tim Holtz Birdcage die-cut with vintage sheets of music. I LOVE the combination. Every one of the 10 sets of cardstocks/envelopes & papers that I put together is different. I tried to move between the whimsical fairy tale paper & the classical navy & white papers. I even tried to come up with a set that's vintage wanting roosters & chickens. This is fun, fun, fun & a GREAT gift for the person that you can't figure out what to give them. Anyone could add photos/journaling or even miniature bird houses or nests. It feels good to be presenting this project to the customers of Tanya's store.

Monday, November 8, 2010

Card for Ania

This is a card that I worked on while we were on vacation. I used the Outlines Ornament stamp & embossed with fine gold embossing powder on a chartreuse cardstock & a pale blue cardstock. I carefully cut out the layers from the stamped images & stacked them using pop dots for depth. The center of the star has a diamond bling. The primary image is mounted on black cardstock & then on white cardstock for contrast. The card base is a piece of matching cardstock from the blue layer of the star. I cut a piece of black paper to cover the top 3/4 & then attached patterned paper with star images to cover. I also added a piece of gold, sheer organza at the top (adhering under the layered star & behind the black cardstock) & used the same gold ribbon in a double layer to cover the joint where the cardstock/patterned paper meets. I had a sticker "happy holidays" in just the right shade of blue. This photo doesn't do justice to the card, but with shorter days (good-bye Daylight Savings time) I leave in the morning before it's light out & arrive home after it's dark. I love to make cards that can be shared, so I gave Ania this card with an envelope so she can decide if she wants to send it to someone on her holiday list.

Card for Giving Thanks Swap


This is the card that I made for the Giving Thanks Swap that I referred to in an earlier blog entry. This card was made using an Outlines stamp with various patterned papers. I love the phrase, "Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way." Isn't that a wonderful thought? I hope that anyone that gets this card knows that I've sent along good wishes with each one. I created 5 of the same pattern/theme, but with differing patterned papers. The cards will be packed up & sent off to Hawaii this week.