Letter It Hello Card

 

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Sometimes My Mind Feels As Cluttered As My Space!
I know it needs to happen - lightening my load; decluttering.  I look around at the piles (yes, they are still here!) and I know how much of my mind is cluttered with worry around what I'm going to do about all my clutter!  I haven't reached the level of needing to be on the tv show "Hoarders," but in my mind you wouldn't know that.  I am preoccupied by what fills my home and what I am going to do with it.  I just started reading Clutter's Last Stand and I'm hoping it will help me address my clutter issue in an effective and meaningful way.  Sometimes all I can do is just stand and look at the little piles that get created on the kitchen table, on the coffee table, on the craft table and in my office and I just become frozen!  I've watched some of the tv shows about clearing things out and know that I can just make three piles - toss, save and donate...but somehow knowing that is not connecting with doing it!  I obviously am in my own way for some reason and maybe figuring out that reason will help unlock my stalemate.  Yes, as you can see, sometimes my mind feels as cluttered as my space! :)

Today's card was quick and easy using the Letter It stamp set and the Print Poetry designer series paper stack!  I began with a Daffodil Delight card base and added a few strips of designer series paper.  Next I stamped the letters onto Whisper White card stock using Baja Breeze ink and cut them out with my paper snips.  The letters were then added to the card with dimensionals and a piece of Raspberry Ripple stitched ribbon was wrapped and knotted around the card.  I hope you like it and I hope you have peaceful, creative, and decluttered weekend! :)  Don't forget SALE-A-BRATION ENDS TODAY!!!!!!  Stock up on your adhesives and card stock and take advantage of getting a free Sale-a-Bration item with every $50 product purchase!  Shop HERE now :)

Pretty Petites Thank You Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  To walk inside yourself and meet no one for hours - this is what you must be able to attain. - Rainer Maria Rilke in Letters To A Young Poet
If you have been reading my blog this week, you know that I am finally trying to reconnect with myself after having been away from myself and into my work for the past month or so.  I am slowly "walking inside myself" - listening to my inner voice again, getting my fingers full of paint, losing myself in the creative process.  And...I LOVE IT!!!! :)  I will continue my walk and hope to lengthen my internal journey and artistic exploration from minutes to hours :)  How 'bout you?

Sale-a-Bration is almost over (it ends tomorrow, March 22nd)!  Don't miss your chance to get this adorable Pretty Petites stamp set for FREE with any $50 product purchase!!!!!  I stamped the outline image twice and the thank you image once using Lucky Limeade ink and then punched them out using the Petite Curly Label punch.  I punched a few blossoms using the Boho Blossoms punch and then stamped a few tiny flowers using Itty Bitty Bits and punched those flowers out as well.  The flowers were pieced together with dimensionals and adhered to the tiny labels.  I then cut a small slit on the spine of the card and threaded a piece of Summer Starfruit stitched ribbon through the slit and knotted it.  The labels were then adhered to the Crumb Cake card base with small pieces of dimensionals.  I hope you like it :)

Patterned Occasions Congrats Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Enjoy Your Civic Duty :)
On Monday I had the responsibility of showing up for jury duty!  Yes, I was actually excited about it - the chance to play my role in the justice system.  Unfortunately, my role ended up to be just showing up and then excused after 2 1/2 hours since all of the courtrooms had enough jurors.  Oh well, at least I got close to playing my part :)  Maybe next time!
Can you tell I love the Patterned Occasions stamp set? :)  I actually wasn't sure I was going to love it, but that's what I love about Sale-a-Bration!  With a $50 product purchase you can get a free item and you can use the opportunity to try something you might not otherwise select!  I stamped the jeans using Not Quite Navy ink and cut them out.  I then stamped the ticket from the That's The Ticket stamp set using More Mustard ink and punched it out with the ticket duo punch.  I wrote the "A+" on the little ticket with permanent ink.  Finally, I stamped the greeting using Real Red ink and punched it out with the oval punch.  Here's a close up:

The background piece of Not Quite Navy card stock was run through the Big Shot with the Square Lattice embossing folder and the adhered to a More Mustard card base.  I hope you like it!  To get your Patterned Occasions stamp set for free, shop HERE and spend $50 in product!  Don't forget, Sale-a-Bration ends March 22nd!

Patterned Occasions Get Well Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  You May Encounter A Bump Or Two As You Try To Get Back To Where You Want To Be
I'm anxious to get back to a place of peace - back to my daily routines - of walks, and eating well, and time in the craft room.  Of course I also have a list of things that are trying to get in the way - jury duty, 2012 taxes, piles of paper crowding my out of my work spaces.  Yes, I may encounter a few bumps along the way as I try to get back to where I want to be.  I'm ready for the bumpy ride since I know I'm headed in the right direction!!!! :)

Don't forget, Sale-a-Bration ends March 22nd!  I love this adorable Patterned Occasions stamp set which you can get FREE with a $50 product purchase during Sale-a-Bration!!!!  For this card I stamped the elephant 3 times - twice with Basic Gray ink and a third time with Baja Breeze ink - all on Whisper White card stock.  I used my paper snips to cut out the elephants and then lined them up on an Island Indigo card base.  The middle elephant was popped up with dimensionals.  I stamped the greeting from Thoughts & Prayers and then adhered it to a piece of Certainly Celery card stock.  I then used a piece of Tangerine Tango ribbon from the Sale-a-Bration Sycamore Street Ribbon and Button Pack (also available FREE with a $50 product purchase).  I adhered it to the card with sticky strip.  Finally a bright button with faux threading (I threaded the button with a thin strip of Melon Mambo card stock) was added using a glue dot.  I hope you like it!  Shop HERE for your Sale-a-Bration items now :)

Art Journal Pages

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Reconnect With Yourself Through Art.
So many miles, so many hotels, so many airplanes, so many hours away from the craft room.  This past weekend I needed time to reconnect with myself and I found the best way to do that was to create art.  I made a few cards (which I will share with you during the week), but I didn't start to reconnect until I took out my paints, oil pastels, tissue paper and stamps and let myself go wild!  If you are feeling like you have gotten away from yourself - if you are out of touch - reconnect with yourself through art!

Papillion Potpourri

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Listen and Respond
Today I reached a point of exhaustion.  It was mid-afternoon (I am typing this on Thursday evening) and it was a gorgeous day outside.  So I decided to listen to what my body was telling me and respond.  I went outside and decided to lay down on the wooden bench in the backyard and close my eyes.  I wasn't out there very long - just long enough to get a little cat nap and listen to the birds chirp and the squirrels scamper on the wooden fence.  It was a perfect way to listen to my body and give it some much-needed rest.

Today's card was inspired by the wonderful butterfly framed art that Helen sent me earlier this week!  I decided to stamp the butterflies from the Papillion Potpourri stamp set in Island Indigo and Calypso Coral on a Very Vanilla card base.  I then stamped one of the butterflies onto Calypso Coral card stock, punched it out and popped it up on half a dimensional.  I decided this card needed to greeting - I can always add one later, or just use it as a note to say "hello."  I hope you like it and I hope you have a wonderfully relaxing and creative weekend.  Listen and respond to what your body tells you :)

Frondly Creation!

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Next time you think you don't have materials with which to create...think again!
Today I am sharing with you a photo of an amazing gift that was handed to me during my recent trip to Thailand. I still wish I could have brought the gift home, but I feared it would not survive the trip nor US customs! So I tried to take pictures that could provide a sense of this amazing creation made from palm fronds! The next time you begin to believe you are lacking materials to create, take a look again...there are art supplies all around you!!!! at the photo and think again....there are art supplies all around you!!!!

Scroll down for today's post

Somehow today's post posted on Saturday! So if you'd like to take a look please scroll down to Saturday's post! Hope you have a great day!

Madison Avenue and Petite Pairs Birthday Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  It's Nice To Know When The Universe Is Cooperating With You!
I finally spent a little time, in between work trips, in the craft room this weekend.  It was so nice to just sit and create a bit...even if the cat decided he wanted to try to sit on everything I was creating! :) Of course, just when I started relaxing, I went to use my new phone and a message popped up that said "No SIM Card."  Ugh!  This is not what you want to see on a day where a foot of snow was predicted and you are leaving soon for another work trip!  Well, the Universe decided to cooperate with me and, while I had to leave the house to go to the store to get a new SIM card, the foot of snow didn't materialize as originally planned.  Yes, a lot of snow fell, but since the roads were warm and the snow was wet, my path to the store was safe :)  It's nice to know when the Universe is cooperating with you!
Today's card is a simple way to put the Madison Avenue Sale-a-Bration set to some good use!  I used my stamp-a-ma-jig and stamped the patterned design in Early Espresso across the bottom of a Sahara Sand card base to create 2 separate rows.  I then stamped the smaller floral image in the centers with Bravo Burgundy and used a bit of silver Dazzling Details to give the centers some sparkle!  The sentiments from Petite Pairs was stamped using Early Espresso ink.  So simple!

Patterned Occasions Birthday Card

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: You can learn a lot by switching roles!
In both my work life and my art life I find that I often take on a teaching role. I learn a lot when I am teaching both from students and from figuring out how to present what I am teaching. Recently I have also had a fun time learning by switching my role from that of the teacher to that of the student! Whether participating in an art class or observing somebody else doing the work that I do, I gaining powerful insights and inspiration by being a student! Sometimes you really can learn a lot by switching roles!

For today's card I played with the patterned occasions stamp set. I love this adorable cupcake image! I decided to color the image with a number of different markers and stamped the image with the help of the stamp-a-ma-jig. I then stamped and cut out the image on a separate piece of whisper white card stock. I popped up the cut out pieces using dimensionals. Of course I had to add a touch of dazzling diamonds to my cupcake for a bit of bling! I hope you like it!

Healthy Airport Eating and Flying Pigs!

Today's lesson from the craft room: If you make a commitment you can find ways to keep it!
I travel quite a bit and I follow a pretty healthy diet. I have gotten pretty good at seeking out and finding healthy options even in hectic airports! Starbucks at Dallas Ft. Worth Airport provided my latest healthy meal - I love oatmeal for dinner😄 It just goes to show that when you make a commitment to something you can find ways to keep them! Now if I take out my travel watercolor set on the airplane, I'll be really proud of myself!!!!
Today I am sharing an adorable card that was part of a gift I received from Lorraine for Pig Day!!!!! Thanks Lorraine!!!! You can view her blog and her wonderful creativity at www.papervernissage. blogspot.com!

A Butterfly Gift From Afar!

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  It's Good To Have Friends You Can Lick Your Plate With!
I confess that there have been times where I have actually licked my plate clean!  After all, how can you let chocolate sauce or a wonderful balsamic vinegar go to waste????  No, I don't do it in restaurants - just in the privacy of my own home :)  I just visited a friend and her husband - this is a friend I have known since I was small - and I smiled very big when I turned around and saw her husband licking the last remaining chocolate sauce from his plate!!!!!  Not only was it fun to see that I'm not the only one guilty of plate-licking - it was also wonderful to be in a place where you are so comfortable, you can do those things that you would normally only do when someone isn't watching you :)  It truly is wonderful to have friends you can lick your plate with!!! :)
Today I am sharing a wonderful surprise that showed up in my mailbox when I returned from my international travels!!!!!  Helen sent me this gorgeous butterfly art piece that she had created using a rainbow of Stampin' Up! colors and the beautiful wings embosslit!!!!  You can check out Helen's blog HERE!  I love all of the adhesive rhinestones she added as well!!!!  Here are a few close ups - I love that this gorgeous creation will hang in my craft room and make me smile every time I look at it!  Thanks Helen!!!!! :)

An Adventure in Marbling!!!!!

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Learn Something From Someone Who Knows!
I had an AMAZING experience this past weekend!  I took a 1-day course on Marbling Magic on Paper and Fabric at the Denver Art Students League from an amazing instructor, Jo Fitsell!!!!!!!  Jo has been marbling and working with fabric for 25 years and learning from her was incredible!!!!!  You can learn more about Jo here!  Also, if you want to learn this amazing technique, she has a wonderful DVD available that was filmed by Quilting Arts!!!!  The DVD is called Marbled Fabric Surface Design and is available HERE!  Can you tell I was impressed?!?!  Jo shared quite a few samples of her work with us to demonstrate the amazing variety of pattern you can create with marbling.  Here is a piece she put together from a number of different fabrics she marbled - just gorgeous!!!!!

It was fun to just dive into the process to see what might happen!  What I loved most about the process is that you have to let go of being in control and literally, go with the flow :)  Here is one part of my workspace during the class...

And here are a few pics of some of the fabrics (the top 2 pics) and paper (the 3rd pic) I created!

At the end of the day I had produced quite a pile of fabric and paper pieces!  Now I can't wait to incorporate them into some of my artwork!!!!  Thank you Jo for a wonderful day and for helping me discover a new passion!!!!!

A Few More Travel Photos: Melbourne, Australia

How does one become a Chocolate Therapist???????
How about these yarn bombed trees! :)

NEW: Photopolymer Stamps!

We've searched long and hard for just the right material to be able to introduce completely clear stamping. And we've found it. We're excited to announce that we now have wood-mount, clear-mount AND photopolymer stamps! The new photopolymer will be an addition to our stamp line and will appeal to all types of stampers. Our top-quality photopolymer has just enough give to create a perfectly stamped image every time and with the introduction of our firm-foam pads, let's just say they're meant for each other! Photopolymer stamps will also be unique, fun designs that will inspire you and provide more versatile options you may not see in our traditional wood- and clear-mount stamp options.

What makes them so great?

• They're entirely transparent for perfect placement every time! 
• They are durable. The photopolymer material is designed to last. 
• Can you say sticky? (Don't worry; in a good way.) These stamps stick amazingly well to our clear blocks.
• They're age tested. They won't yellow or cloud up over time. 
• They use FDA, food-safe material. How far can you stretch your stamping creativity? 
• We could go on, but we'll let you try them for yourself.

They are clearly a great choice.

Item	Description	Price
132956	Designer Typeset Photopolymer Stamp Set Recommend clear blocks A, B, G, F, and I. Purchase separately. Includes 57 pieces. (Don't faint! This is a good overwhelming feeling.)	$13.95

The Fine Print

• Photopolymer stamps will be offered on a trial basis. Based on popularity, we hope to release more photopolymer stamp sets over the coming months. At this time we don't plan on offering a line of photopolymer sets as expansive as our wood-mount and clear-mount lines.
• Not available in wood-mount or clear-mount.  
• All photopolymer will be packaged in cello bag w/insert, but don't forget you can store them in our clear cases

Home Sweet Home :)

Today's Lesson From The Craft Room:  Gather Inspiration In Your Travels And Carry It With You Wherever You Go!
Home sweet home!  I have been away for over 3 weeks and am happy to be sleeping in my own bed again :)  Now you know why my posts have been quite sporadic this month :)  My travels, for both vacation and then work, took me to Turks and Caicos, Melbourne, Australia, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia, and Bangkok, Thailand (and a few airports in between!).  It was a wonderful trip and now I am trying to recuperate and figure out what time zone I'm in :)  I was inspired by so much along the way.  This is just one photo from my time in Bangkok.  Hopefully I can share more pictures with you over the next few weeks.  I am also hoping to let everything I experienced inspire me :)  I feel like I have filled my well with so much!  I will be able to sip from this well for a very long time.  Here are  just a few more photos to share:

Creating A Palette To Travel With Watercolor Wonder Crayons

Have you ever wanted to travel with your Watercolor Wonder crayons but were afraid they might get lost?  Or maybe you wanted your kids to be able to use your Watercolor Wonder crayons, but you were afraid the crayons might get broken.  If so, you're in luck!  You can create a very simple palette that you can take with you or give to your kids without worrying about loss or breakage!  I just created a simple table on my computer - but you could just write on a piece of copy paper - and then I laminated it.  Once the sheet is laminated, you can create a whole area of color by drawing on the laminated sheet.  When you are ready to do some coloring, just use an Aqua Painter or brush with a bit of water and use the colors directly from your laminated sheet!  You can even create a little laminated booklet with luggage tags with one color per tag!  With a little creativity, you can take your supplies on the road :)

Oh, Whale Thank You Card!

This amazingly cute card was sent to me by Sharri A.!!!!!!  Thank you Sharri!!!!  I love it!!!!!  She used the adorable Oh, Whale bundle to create this gorgeous scene!  Gotta love that cloud embossing folder too!!!!  So talented!!!!! :)

That's The Ticket Masculine Birthday Card

I love it when you find the perfect use for a stamp set!!!!  I was wondering how I would use the Feeling Sentimental Sale-a-Bration stamp set and when I saw it sitting on the craft table with the Just The Ticket stamp set, magic happened!  I heat embossed the ferris wheel with black embossing powder and stamped the tickets with More Mustard and punched them out.  I used the stamp-a-ma-jig to help line up the stamp across the bottom of the Naturals Ivory card base.  A piece of linen thread finished the look!

Patterned Occasions Get Well Card

Don't forget, it is still Sale-a-Bration and there are all kinds of fun stamps available for FREE when you place an order of $50 in products!!!!  I stamped the band aid twice and cut out the center so that I could pop it up on a dimensional.  I love using bright colors on get well cards!  And if anyone out there is under the weather....I hope you recover rapidly!!!!!!

Just Believe Papercut Card

You have to have a bit of patience for this one, but I like to think of it as a meditation :)  I stamped the image from Just Believe onto a scrap piece of paper and then temporarily adhered it to the card front.  I then used my hobby blade to follow around the image (that's the quiet meditation part) and then extended the final cuts to create a rectangular border around the entire image.  This card is so delicate and peaceful.  I hope you like it!

Doily and Two-Tone Ribbon Love Card

You can't go wrong with a combination of yummy two-tone ribbon, doilies, glitter and butterflies!!!! :)  I added some scoring using the Borders Scoring plate.  This ribbon makes me swoon :)  I hope you like it!!!!  Happy Valentine's Day!!!!!  I hope you have a weekend filled with love and creativity!!!!!

Folded Card Stock Valentine's Treat Container

It is so easy to create a simple treat holder by scoring a piece of card stock!  You can adjust where you place the score lines to accommodate the candy that you want to fit inside.  I secured my bag of candy to the card stock using a small piece of sticky strip!  Happy Valentine's Day!!!! :)

Upcycled Tape Roll Valentine's Treat Box

Today's Treat Box began its life as a roll of packing tape!  Once the tape was done, I kept the inner cardboard roll and decided it would transform into a beautiful box!  I covered the inside and outside with designer paper and then adhered a chipboard circle bottom.  The top was put on by adhering 2 strips of ribbon to the inside of the box using sticky strip and then punching 2 holes in the lid with the crop-a-dile.  The red ribbon tie is what holds the lid to the box.  I hope you like it!