Acetate & Sewing for Christmas!

I spent quite a while trying to figure out what I wanted to do for my Christmas cards this year, but when I saw theses beautiful acetate sheets: I knew I had to incorporate them in my cards somehow. Pretty, huh? :)

I also wanted to try to make the cards relatively easy to mass produce, because as we ALL know...I HATE MASS PRODUCTION!! Grrr...

So, it became: One piece of acetate per card, the card-stock base, a piece of card-stock to stamp on for UNDER the acetate, a small piece of DSP (which I did in a wide variety), and then I decided to sew on them, too. I did 3 main colors. There was a red (Riding Hood Red - which you'll see below), a light blue textured card stock, and a dark blue (Night of Navy). The pieces of c/s that are below the acetate varied between Kraft & white. And... the stamped sentiments varied between "Merry Christmas" & "Seasons Greetings". The inside sentiments varied more, but I'm too lazy to type it out. (Just bein' honest.) I also hand-tore each piece, to give it a distressed look, just to give it a little extra somethin'-somethin'. And THEN, added ribbon. Which varied between Very Vanilla & Whisper White, depending on the card. :)

And here is ONE of the three cards that I made, this one I sent to my dear, sweet friend, Lydia aka understandblue who was sweet enough to take a picture of it for me to post for you today. Thanks, sweetie-head-honey-bunches-of-wild-oats!! xoxo



Thanks for stopping by and having a look!

All my best,

Hero Arts puts on a Party!

I had to say thank you to all the folks over at Stampers Corner in Elk Grove, CA...they were one of the stores that held a Hero Arts Catalog Preview/Debut Party on Saturday and it was soooo much fun!!

I went up for a good part of the day & was so lucky to be able to spend some time with my sweet friend, Ashley (from the Etsy Inspired Challenge Blog and Heart Hugs Designs) and I asked her to join me at the event. I had planned to go a little nuts, so I made sure my credit card could handle it before doing all my shopping. :)

It was a really nice time, though. There were a lot of shoppers - super nice turnout!! Way to support your LSS, Elk Grove!! Wooo! There were make n' takes (which we stood in line for) and cookies and we found out some hot & exciting news about the new Tim Holtz product line which is to debut at CHA!! CAN'T WAIT!!!

But the new stamps....are just gorgeous. So many really beautiful backgrounds, clings, woodmounts, clear... the options are endless. My shopping bag weighed a ton. I bought a bunch of the new clings, the new Silhouette Grass wooodmount stamp (so glad I bought that as they sold out really quickly), and 2 sentiment sets. I even received quite a few freebies, too. It was just a great time. So happy I went, got to spend a bit of time with Ashley, and got my mind off of my stresses for a bit.

Of course, then I was up til the wee hours last night/this morning finishing my Christmas cards (ugh!), but they're at least done and on the way. Hope they brighten your day a little knowing how much YOU brighten my life, my friends.


Leaving for Las Vegas tomorrow to spend my Christmas with my mom & dad. So, until I get back...Merry Christmas my beloved friends. Thank you for all your prayers, good thoughts, happy vibes. Every last one of them were (and are) appreciated. It's for people like you that I sit here and smile today. Many hugs to you, and blessings to you as you celebrate (however you do...IF you do) on Christmas.




Much love,

Where do I go from here?

Next month will (potentially) be my "Blogaversary". But I've come to some realizations as of late. I'm not exactly sure why I'm blogging. Is it for me? Or for other people?

I have a lot of things to think about. May shut the whole thing down. Need to get my head straight and know what's best for me.

So next month may be the end of papergrace. I just don't know. All I know right now is that I have a lot to think about.

Wishing everyone the best for a happy, healthy & Merry Christmas.

All my best,

Mass Production Nightmare

I was asked by Eddy's co-worker to make her some Christmas cards. I was hesitant because I'm just not a fan of doing multiple cards and doing things en mass. I really don't have the space for it and I almost ALWAYS wind up designing things that are too complicated and take me forever to do.

I started having nightmares about paper, glue, and glitter all over the house. Dreams of the cats running off with pieces of the cards were dancing in my head. Not pretty. Did I really want to do this? Is the aggravation going to be worth it? My back started spasming in anticipation.

I started the prep work. Got the card bases cut & embossed (cardstock in Real Red & Always Artichoke by Stampin Up!) & embossed background is Snowflakes (Provocraft)). Got my little snowbanks all cut, punched & stamped. I was ROCKIN'! Started getting the ovals going...hmmm... Cuttlebug or Big Shot? Tried both. Less slippage in the Cuttlebug so I cut & embossed all the Nestie Petite Ovals for the Verve (Christmas In the Air) sentiment in my Cuttlebug. This wasn't going to be that hard! HAHAHAH!! Stamped my sentiment using Walnut Stain Distress Inks by Ranger. Then I sponged the edges (Bashful Blue - SU!) and glitterized them (with Frosted Lace Stickles - Ranger). Easy peasy, right? Boy, was I wrong. Day 2 was yet to come.

Day 2 - started early, well, for me. I had to put more Frosted Lace on the Snowbanks, let those dry then stamp snowflakes, more Frosted Lace... in the meantime the cats decided to pay a visit. AND, they wanted up on my craft desk. UH-OHHH!! NOOOO!!!!!! The Stickles are still wet!!!! You know what that means, right? Oh, yes. Stickle-y Frosted Lace kitty paws. Grrr.... Just shocked that nothing was ruined. And the cats were banished from the craft room/office and very unhappy.

So, I thought I really don't have THAT much left to do, right? Just round off the corners for the paper for the inside of the cards, stamp that sentiment, adhere the insides, the snowbanks, the outside sentiments, then HAND CUT the little trees...all 60 (yes, SIXTY) of them, then adhere those and tie on silver elastic cord. How long could that take? HAHHAHAAHAH!! Let me just say I will never paper-piece a card for anyone other than myself to give ever again. My fingers still hurt. I'm crazy. I finally finished them all around 9-something PM, yes...PM last night.

Here, my dear friends, are the finished cards:



Other things went wrong, like running out of adhesive for my Glue Glider, I had the wrong adhesive in my Xyron (which I used to adhere all the trees) so 9 trees got "eaten" and I had to redo those. I cut a bunch of the cord the wrong length...fun stuff like that. It was a rough project, but from what I hear she loves the cards. :)

Now...what to do for my OWN Christmas cards?


All my best,

Holy Toothpicks!!!

It's that time again. That time of the month where those crazy and insanely gifted ladies over at the Everything but The Kitchen Sink blog have dreamed up another one of their challenges using an ordinary household item. Here's this month's challenge:




Crazy, huh?

I had to think about this one for a while. Then like a star shining from the sky...it hit me and I knew what I wanted to do. :)



and my obligatory close-up of my Star of Bethlehem:



I will say that this challenge, well...challenged me. :D I had this idea in my head all along, but I had a heck of a time really getting my Star to look just right. Or shine bright enough. Hahahaha!! Don't think I'll make a bunch of these for Christmas as much as I like it, though. I hope YOU like it, too.



{Supplies:
Stamps: O Holy Night (Inkadinkado)
Cardstock: Night of Navy (Stampin' Up!), Metallic Silver (Paper Temptress), White (Georgia Pacific), DSP - SnowKissed Solids Digital (2Peas/Betsy Tuma)
Ink: Versamark (Tsukineko)
Embossing Powder: Silver (Stampin' Up)
Glitter: Crystal Fine, Sterling, and Florentine Gold (all by Martha Stewart)
Rhinestone: Clear (Colorbök)
Elastic Cord: Silver (Stampin' Up)
Etc.: Toothpicks (Safeway) }




All my best,

Whee! Another Challenge.. & it's Sketchy!

I'm totally off my rocker! I'm posting for two challenges today! Woooo!

This one is for Everything But The Kitchen Sink and their Sketch challenge.



I had these two ideas in my head, but I knew that I had this trip coming up to Vegas, I wasn't feeling great, I had just all this stuff going on. I tackled the "easier" one first and I hope I'll still be able to get the other one in tonight before the deadline.

I still like this card a bunch. I love monochromatic themes anyway and I totally love the paper I used and the cool Texturz plate that I embossed the white with to tie the ovals all together. It's groovy, baby! :D



I hate to call this a basic card, because really there's a lot of texture going on. Hope you like it!! And thanks so much for stopping by.


{Supplies:
Cardstock: Classic Crest Solar White (Neenah)
DSP - Scraps
White Button - Basic Grey
Embellishment - Looking Glass Flower Black & White (Making Memories)
Dry Embossing - Ring-a-Ding Texturz plate (Sizzix)
Punches - Large Oval Punch & Wide Oval Punch (Stampin' Up!) }

Color SPLASH!

Another challenge? Eek!



I was trying to get my brain wrapped around the Embellish Brads Color Challenge with all the bright colors and how I wanted to tackle it, and in all reality I had no idea what to do. This is one of the reasons why I stayed away from challenges in the past. *sigh* What to do?

I had the brads. So that wasn't the problem. But what could I do that would set myself apart from anyone else using the brads AND the colors within the brads and the constraints of the challenge. Hmmm...

I spent some time looking at my stamps, looking at my inks, looking at current trends and then I just started to play. What I finally came up with is a card I actually LOVE!! I have to say that even if this card doesn't do anything for anyone else I just love it. I am so happy with how it turned out. And I don't say that about my own stuff very often...for those of you who know me, you can vouch for this!

I hope that you'll at least like it, too:




and a close-up of the sentiment (Why? Just because I felt like it!! Hahhahaha!)




{Supplies:
Cardstock - White - Classic Crest Solar White (Neenah), Kraft (Stampin' Up!)
Ink - Broken China, Fired Brick, Mustard Seed, Shabby Shutters (ALL Distress Inks - Tim Holz for Ranger Industries), Versamark (Tsukineko)
Embossing Powder - Clear (Ranger Industries)
Stamps - Bold Flourish (Hero Arts), Mega Mixed Messages (PTI)
Twine - Stampin' Up!
Brads - Childhood Circle (Making Memories)
Punch - Large Oval Punch (Stampin' Up!) }

All these challenges & I'm going to VEGAS!

I'm so dying to get my hands into these challenges over at Embellish Magazine's blog and Everything But The Kitchen Sink and what am I doing? Yep, I'm heading off to Vegas tomorrow. Wooooo!! I can't be too heart-broken over that, can I? :)

I did start working on a pretty good idea for the Embellish Mag. challenge. I'll just have to work on finalizing things when I get back. I'm pretty excited about this card. Even if it doesn't win the challenge I'm digging this card.

The Everything But The Kitchen Sink sketch challenge idea? Well, I have TWO!! I may have to submit both! I wonder if I can do that? I'll have to scramble, though, since the deadline is the day after I get back. ACK!! :/

So be on the lookout for LOTS of posts once I get back from Vegas, which is Monday night. In the meantime, I'll be hanging out with my family and visiting with a few friends. I love going back there. Just totally recharges my batteries and makes me feel like a desert rat all over again. Man, I love that place.

Veterans Day

Although I just posted I can't let this day go by without wishing all members of our Armed Services a Happy Veterans Day.

I thank you for your service, your courage & your selflessness in keeping our country free....and fighting for that freedom. I also thank the family members who so stoically stood by and watched their loved ones go off to places unknown. To basically "be" the family while their loved-one was away.

I, personally, thank my dad who showed me the life that the military could provide. He provided for our family and showed us the world. It was a burden on my mom at times, but we went & saw some amazing things. Thanks, Dad. I also thank my sister. She taught me that I can do anything. Both these precious members of my family are retired from the Air Force. And, I thank God for them every day for their service and sacrifices during the years.

I was in the Air Force, too. And while I didn't retire I would have stayed in had they allowed me to. I just got too sick and was determined to be not fit to serve. I was devastated. I loved the military and felt like I was doing something worthwhile. I took that oath seriously when I raised my right hand.

I hope that you all take a moment today to pause briefly and give thanks. Give thanks to those who served in years gone by and those who are serving now. If you see a member of the military in uniform...say "Thank you", not just today but ANY day.

¿Que Pasa?

So, what are YOU doing? I attempted a card using a really cute stamp set from Stampendous called Spanish Messages Perfectly Clear™ Stamps. You can see the whole set here.

Eddy's mother's birthday is this weekend and it seemed like a really good opportunity for me to try out this set. I was hoping to make her a really lovely card with the sentiment in her native language, so I hope she likes it. I know she adores flowers, so that's why I chose the paper that I did. It's one of my favorites from Stampin' Up! - Bella Bleu.



Can't wait to see her this weekend for her birthday celebration and give her the card.

{Supplies:
Cardstock - Very Vanilla, Not Quite Navy, DSP - Bella Bleu (all Stampin' Up!)
Ink - Not Quite Navy (Stampin' Up!)
Embossing Powder - Clear (Stampendous)
Die Cutting - Nestabilities Petite Scalloped Ovals (sm), Petite Ovals (sm), & Petite Ovals (lg) (all by Spellbinders)
Ribbon - Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!), Navy (random - from Michael's)
Brad - Styled Vanilla, Hodgepodge Hardware (Stampin' Up!)
Pearls - Pearl stickers (Recollections - Michael's) }

Card for Kelly

Do you have one of those friends who just makes you smile simply because you know them? Yeah...I do, too.

Her name is Kelly Marie. She's the super fun girl over at lawn fawn cards (lawnfawn.blogspot.com) and she just makes me laugh and smile even when I don't feel like it, or frankly, don't want to. In ways, she very much feels like my soul sister. She and I connect on a level I really just can't explain. Kelly is ridiculously gifted in the card-making community, she's a super fun chick, but is also loving and a HUGE inspiration to all those who come in contact with her, too.

Kelly has some health issues. For those who know ME, well, that is something I can identify with all too well. She has been having a rough few days. I wanted to make her a card to let her know really how much she means to me, and hopefully just bring a smile to that really pretty face of hers.

I hope you see this card, Kelly and smile.



There's a lot of supplies that I used to make this card so I'll update tomorrow. I just really wanted to get this card posted so my dear friend, lawn fawn, would see it before the night was through.

Take care, friend, and hope you feel better super soon.



**Edited to add the supplies:

{Supplies:
Cardstock - Chocolate Chip, Whisper White & Old Olive (Stampin' Up!), Textured orange (Bazzill)
DSP - What A Feelin', Skip to My Lou (Blue Skies Collection by American Crafts)
Ink - Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!), Versamark (Tsukineko)
Dies - Labels One Nestability (Spellbinders)
Dry Embossing - Retro Squares (Sizzix)
Embossing Powder - Apricot & Chestnut Opaque, Zing! (American Crafts)
Sentiment - Mega Mixed Messages (Papertrey Ink)
Punches - Scallop Edge Punch (Stampin' Up), Arch Lattice Edge Punch (Martha Stewart), Upper Crest Border Punch (Fiskars), Morocco Lace Edger Punch (EK Success)
Misc - Buttons (Basic Grey), Twine (SU), Platinum Stickles (Ranger Industries)}

Challenged for Toilet Paper

This is my very first challenge EVAH!! And nope, I'm not dipping my toes in, but JUMPING IN! EEK!

This challenge is sponsored by Everything but the Kitchen Sink and hosted this month by Kelly Marie over at lawnfawn.blogspot.com

Here is this month's challenge:



I really had no idea what I was going to do with this, but I decided to just grab some CLEAN toilet paper and see if I felt inspired. My card really has nothing to do with toilet paper, but more about texture and what you can do with it. Does that make sense? I guess, more that you shouldn't feel limited. Yeah...that's it!

So. Here's my card. Hope you like it! :)





And here's a close-up of the flower:



















I had more fun making this than I expected to. It was a little frustrating at times only because the TP is so very delicate to work with, but I do like the overall effect.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look. I'd love to hear any comment or feedback that you may have. (Yes, that's a hint! )


{Supplies:
Toilet paper - Kleenex Cottonelle
Cardstock - Kraft (Stampin' Up)
DSP - Basic Grey (Indian Summer Collection)
Ink - Ranger Distress Inks in Worn Lipstick, Spiced Marmalade, Peeled Paint, Walnut Stain
Dies - Sizzix/Stampin' Up - Sizzlits Little Leaves, Embosslits Flower Burst, & Top Note Die.
Misc - Basic Grey rhinestones & Chip Sticker Shape; Stampin' Up brads,
Ribbon - unknown from Michael's}

**Edited to add - I should have mentioned the items that were "TP'ed" : The flower, leaves and the Top Note die are all cut from the toilet paper.

Flutterby

I was making this card and I was working soooo hard at it. Sweat was dripping off my forehead, my hands were hurting, my eyes were crossing, my back was aching... You get the point. When I was done with it I looked at it and I kinda liked it.

Now, here was the kicker: I was SUPPOSED to be sending this card as a "Secret Card Pal" type thing. Now, no offense to the individual who was SUPPOSED to get this card, but what's to keep you from stamping YOUR name on the back of MY card and claiming it as your own? Hmmph.

So, I'm making another card. It will also be nice. But no blood, sweat or tears will be involved in the making of this next card.

I present the Flutterby (Butterfly) card:



And a close-up:



May all your days be filled with love & butterflies.





{Supplies: Paper: DSP - Kaleidoscope (SU!); Textured c/s (Bazzill). Ink - Ranger, including embossing. Stamps - Butterflies & background (Flourish) by Hero Arts, Cling Collection. Sentiment Stamp - Dreams du Jour (SU!). Die-cut - Tags Five Shapeabilities (Spellbinders). Bling - Basic Grey.}

Get Ill Soon Blog Hop

Welcome to my blog. Hi there. I don't always welcome people to my blog by vomiting, but today is a first for me. You see, I am taking part in the first ever Get Ill Soon blog hop.




If you'd like to start at the beginning of the hop, start here: The Crooked Stamper (<--click to go).

I have to admit something, when I first heard about this very unusual theme, my first thought was to not walk, but... RUN LIKE HELL far, far away to my nearest exit. What could I possibly do that would be worthy of an Auntie Princess inspired "Get Ill Soon" idea?

This all came about by a super crafty & hilarious bunch of women on Twitter of whose company I am so lucky to have fallen in with (please go to The Crooked Stampers Blog for the history on how Auntie Princess started the whole thing). But the idea in question was to come up with a card that says "Get Ill Soon". Twisted, yes? I love it!

Get Ill Soon... Hmmm... I thought what do I have in my stash that I could put on a card that would make you think of being sick? Okay, this is going to be tough. I have flies...Malaria! YES! I have blobs...Snot! YES! Woo-hoo! I have letters to spell out "achoo". I am so in business. Now to put it all together in to some type of cohesive card-making nicety. That will be my challenge.

Hope the card that follows meets the standard of the Twitter gals:




Now, please venture forth onto your next Get Ill Soon card by the fabulous Dreena at her blog: Prairie Papercrafts and Stamps (<-- click to go!)

Hope you're illin' soon.




Supplies for my card { Paper - Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!), DSP - Periphery (Basic Grey). Stamps - JustChillin' Boy (Making Memories). Embossing Folder - Cuttlebug A2 Forest Branches (Provocraft). Ink - Versamark (Tsukineko), Chocolate Chip Pigment Ink (Stampin' Up). Embossing Powder - Copper Zing™ (American Crafts). Assorted knick-knacks - Gauche Alchemy.}

...and another thing...

HOLY COW!!


TWO POSTS IN ONE DAY?!?!?

Well, it's just because I made a card for my dear, wonderful dad's birthday. He's just the best. And the man certainly deserves a card that has been *slaved* over by his daughter. Okay, well, worked on with joy & love in her heart, anyway. :)

Hope y'all dig it:



Here's a closer look at the front:



It uses Basic Grey DSP (Periphery - Cork), SU c/s in Not Quite Navy, Mellow Moss, & Sage Shadow, & stamp set is And Many Mower. Ribbon is also SU Chocolate Chip. I also used a little Ranger Tea Dye on a sponge to make it a little dirtier looking. Ha!

Happy Birthday Daddy-o!! Love you!

Drumroll please...

The first of our two, yes TWO, kitties joined our family on Thursday, September 10th. She is a gorgeous black and white Ragdoll kitty that we have lovingly named Penelope Sharkattack (then added my last name & Eddy's too). We're calling her Penny. The middle name is ALL Eddy's doing. But it IS cute.

Here is our sweet, cutie-pie-head, Penny:





We are also bringing home another kitty from the same breeder. A kitty we are calling Gracey Rockit. She is an older kitty at 4 1/2 yrs old. Another reason we were hoping to bring Penny home 1st was to let her get accustomed to our home prior to bringing Gracey home, then let her "help" Gracey (who is much more timid than Penny) and have her kind of show her the ropes, per se. Gracey is a pretty cat, but I hope that her shyness (and the fact that she's been in another home for so long) doesn't hold her back and keep her from enjoying the life that we can provide for her here.

Anyway...here's Gracey:




I'll be looking forward to when they both here and settled, but for now I am totally loving the company of Penny, who is just a little fur-baby. I'm hoping that Onyx is looking down and purring with approval.