...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.

Could it be? Is it time?

It's been 4 years since my beloved kitty, Onyx, was cruelly taken from me. One day he was with me then 24 hours later...he was gone. That day my heart was ripped open and I cried as though I'd lost a child. In some ways I did. I lost my best friend. My baby. My companion for 11 years.



I didn't think I'd ever be ready to get another cat (or pet) again. It's so painful to open your heart up like that, just to know that (someday) you'll experience that wrenching loss again. I just didn't want to put myself through that emotional roller-coaster. I am one who feels things very intensely. Yes, I am an emotional basket-case. ;)

But...today something interesting has developed. A new day has dawned. Eddy's co-worker Sandy has talked to him about her neighbor who breeds Ragdoll cats. Now, I already knew this information for a couple of weeks, but I'm really not all that into purebred animals. It's just not that important to me. I always feel like there are so many animals that need rescuing why should I go to a breeder and pay big bucks for a CAT?! How silly!

Back to today - Sandy told Eddy that her neighbor has now told her that we can have, yes HAVE one of the kitties!!! Hold the phones! This changes everything! *happy dance* So, while I would never go to a breeder and spend the $700 to BUY one of the kittens if she wants to give us one?... OH YEAH!

I AM SO EXCITED!!!

I think that Sandy is going to get pictures of the kittens (I think they are a little less than a yr. old) this weekend. Then Eddy and I will drive up to meet with her (and the kitties) during the week. We'll decide which one likes us best. :) And then arrange to bring it home. YIPPEEE!!!! I can't wait.

Though no cat can ever, ever replace the love I had (and have) in my heart for my beloved Onyx I think that it's now time for me to find some room for a new friend to love. I think that Onyx would approve.

Rock on!!

So. Ha! I am a bad blogger. Yeah, yeah. I know. But...I have two fantastic cards to showcase today to make up for it! I promise.

I decided to make a Birthday card for my wonderful friend, Cindy, who is a die-hard Iron Maiden fan (okay, she loves Bruce Dickinson) and I went all out with this card to make it extra special for her:

















The inside ------->








This one has so many elements it's crazy! Some Cuttlebugged metallic paper, Inkadinkadoo guitar stamp, rhinestones, metallic stick-on brads, metallic & "leather" papers from Paper Temptress and Image of Bruce Dickinson. I think there's more, but it's hard to remember. Ha!

THEN, I got inspired! I said to myself, "Self, I should make a Rush card!!" After all they are MY favorite band and I was in the rock n' roll music state of mind, so I made THIS card (just because):




The Rush card I had to take the Red Star image off the 'net, but it was the perfect size to print up on my c/s. The letters are chipboard and hand-glittered using heat & stick powder and Martha Stewart glitter (the purple is a mix of purple & black to get it the right color). I also used a background stamp which I embossed to try to get the starry night kind of effect. Not exactly the album cover, but I loved how it turned out anyway.

Hope these cards inspire you to ROCK ON!!!

Where have I been?

Sorry I haven't posted in a while.

I've been on a trip to Toronto, Canada (which I fell in love with) and just a bit busy in general. I've had a few projects to try to contend with and then life has a way to get in the way when you least expect it.

For the few that follow...I apologize. I'm trying to get back on track. Just been a rough go of things lately. You know how it is. Hopefully after I get back from Vegas next week, it'll get better.

Thanks for checking in every now and again. I promise to get back to posting and showing more projects soon.

Hope everyone is having a FANTASTIC summer!!

Congrats to lawn fawn cards... 10,000 hits!

One of the sweetest people I know on the World Wide Web, Kelly Marie of lawn fawn cards is celebrating today. Her blog has just had its 10,000th hit!! WOW!! How awesome is that?! I know!! And she's celebrating in a very giving way. What a doll.

Check out her blog at http://lawnfawn.blogspot.com for a chance to win some really cute prizes. She gives you THREE chances to win, too, so don't blow it. ;) Be sure to watch her really wonderful video if you've ever wondered how to use alcohol inks and a blender tool for some great backgrounds or just in general. These inks are fabulous.

Make sure you tell her Lisa over at Paper Grace sent ya, okay? *wink*

Have a great Wednesday!

Hero Arts...woo-hoo!

Lots going on this week over with the Hero Arts folks...WOW! I would seriously recommend running...yeah...RUNNING over to their blog (and/or website) to check out all the fabulous giveaways that these super crafty folks are hosting this week.

From their blog:

"Welcome to our BIG week here at Hero Arts! We are so excited - we have SO much to share with you each day. Go ahead and take a moment to add to your calendar to “check Hero Arts” every day this week. It will be worth it. There will be DOUBLE prizes, games, ideas, giveaways and more! And Wednesday is the BIG DAY - the launch of many fun new things here at Hero Arts.

This week we are celebrating our new website, but stick around because next week we will start showing some peeks of our new stamps coming out at CHA in a couple weeks. So much excitement!"

How fun!!!

So get on over there and join in on all the fun and festivities. Meet some really talented people and find some inspiration.

CRAFT ON!

Paper Purse! Oh yeah!

My first foray into the world of hybridism...I made a purse made out of paper. :) And I guess it wasn't too hybrid. I didn't do much hybrid, really. I love paper too much. But, thanks to winning a fantabulous gift certificate during the Stamping Out Alzheimer's event from The Digichick (please check them out!) I was able to see some really wonderful digital templates and papers that I normally wouldn't have seen otherwise. AWESOME!!

So, I made this fantastic purse. I used the template from The Digichick (this one) and just printed it on DP from American Crafts called everday - What's Up?. From there I cut it out and scored it. Made my own little embellishments and there ya have it. The possibilities with these are endless! I can't wait to make more. :)

The one I made is for Eddy's niece. She is turning 15 on the 25th and will be having her Quinceañera party today! Yay, Alexa!! I thought something like this would be cute yet a nice little something that we could use as a gift card holder. So...here it is:



Hope you all like it! I sure had fun making this.


{The DP as I mentioned was from American Crafts. The textured strip of orange cs is Bazzill. All brads are Mod Blackbirds brads. The pink is Pink Pirouette, blue is Baja Breeze, green is Wild Wasabi all from SU! All punches used were SU! I used a few random rhinestones from I don't know who and then some silver embossing powder to emboss her name which I did with my JustRite stamper. My ribbon is from Michael's.}

Father's Day

I think that it's so hard making manly cards. I really wanted to do a special card for my dad for Father's Day, but I knew he wouldn't be impressed by frou-frou stuff or a lot of embellishments. I thought to myself the less I put on it, the better I'd be.

But I did want to do something special. So...how to do a special card, but keep it clean and not "out there"?

This is what I came up with. Hope those of you who stop by like it:




It's pretty basic really. A base card (SU!), a layer of cardstock (SU!), Designer Paper (Karen Foster Design), ribbon (SU!), specialty paper in both vellum cardstock & "leather" (Paper Temptress) and some stick-on bubble letter squares (Creative Imaginations). (And, yes, there's a sentiment stamped inside). Oh, and brads (Making Memories). Can't forget those and I used my Nesties to cute & emboss.

There's really not much to it, but I think Dad will approve.

I hope that he knows how much he means to me. He sure has made his mark on me over the years and it's always his approval that I strive for. He's my hero and my mentor. Happy Father's Day, Dad.

Loving me some Bombshell's!

I got introduced to this incredibly fantastic stamp company (through Twitter, of all places) called Bombshell Stamps. This is a really great stamp company run by a super cool chick, who designs the artwork herself, Shannon Lucier.

Now, these aren't your Mama's stamps!! Noooo....lemme tell you what you've been missing! These are stamps of classy pin-ups from the days gone by, then there are the skulls, the roses, the barbed wire...oh, yeah. Definitely NOT your Mama's stamps. Unless your Mama has a really cool attitude. ;)

Seriously, these are some of the most fun stamps I've seen in a while. As Shannon herself says on her site, "Stamps with an attitude". I'd agree with that 100%.

Here's my first creation with the "Bombshell Angel" set and pieces of the "Man's Ruin" set. I had fun with it:



(sorry the pic is a little dark, I usually take them outside, but it's late...and DARK!)

{Supplies - Paper: all paper except for black & white is Stampin' Up. The Black is Black Lustre by Paper Temptress and the white is also Paper Temptress. All images & sentiments Bombshell Stamps. Glitter -Martha Stewart. Various Copic Markers & Stampin' Up markers. Versamark pen & pad used for embossing. Bombshell girls outfit was paper-pieced (embossed 1st w/ black embossing powder, then cut out).}

Hope you all check out the site and her stamps. They're LOADS of fun!

Have a great weekend.

I Will Miss You, My Friends

Some dear friends of ours, Mike and Jen, have decided that they want to leave the Bay Area and move to the area around Seattle, WA. I'm really going to miss them. Probably more than they know.

Mike is a kindred spirit (I love him like a brother). He is serving in the Army National Guard, so he understands what it feels like to want to serve his country. And Jen has that creative soul and a fierce love of the outdoors. They are such a wonderful couple and it's really going to feel weird knowing that they are not "just down the road" (even though they don't live that close anyway).

I made Mike a military-style card in the theme of my CFH blog-hop card (see post below), but I wanted to make a card for the two of them so that they'd know that no matter where they go they'd always be in our hearts, too.

Here's the card:








and a close-up of the card, so you can see the detail of the beautiful metallic paper by Paper Temptress:



I wish you all the best Mike and Jen...and will miss you both. Please come back and visit us!





PS - {I usually post all my "ingredients" and how I made the card, but I haven't been feeling too well. So, I'll just say that I used Basic Grey Two Scoops DP, the Sentiment is from Gina K Designs, metallic paper (yum!) is from Paper Temptress, heart punch and stamp is from SU!, ribbon is from Michael's.}

Blog Hop, Blog Hop...CARDS FOR HEROES...Blog hop!!!

Welcome to the Cards for Heroes Blog Hop! If you get lost or need to link back, please click here: Cards for Heroes

Cards for Heroes is a wonderful organization that sends blank handmade cards for our servicemen AND women who are deployed far from home to write home on...what a gift! Please check out their website for a way that you can give by donating your own gift of talent or a monetary donation (if feasible).

Here is my contribution for the hop:




(recipe at the end of the blog...)


I am sooo excited to be participating in this. If any of you know me (which most of you won't since I'm not much of a "self-promoter") I am a disabled veteran from the United States Air Force. I joined the USAF waaaay back in 1987 (yes, I AM aging myself) and was in during the first Desert Storm conflict. I did not "go over" because by that time I was already sick. I loved every second of my time in the service. And, when asked if I would do it again (sign up to join the military, that is) even knowing my outcome...I would do it again in a heartbeat.

My father was in the AF and my sister was in, too. We were just one big happy Air Force family!! :) and we fully support our country and those fighting to protect, honor, and serve her. THAT'S why Memorial Day means so much to me and why Cards for Heroes has really hit home with me. It's so important not to let those who are now in the position of looking after this great nation of ours know that we are not forgetting them.

Thanks for "hopping" by my blog today. (((hugs)) to you all! I hope you liked the card I made for this special occasion and I hope you checked out some of the others I've made, too (although I've been slacking lately...oops!).

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!!

On to the next blog:
Jan's ART FRIENDZY (<----- click here!, click here! ) Lots of beautiful cards to be seen here so you don't want to miss out. Super, duper cute Inchie cards...WOW! And make sure you scroll down to see her fabulous-o Copic pen holder. I don't have enough Copics for one of those...yet. (If that link doesn't work for any reason, please use this link: http://artfriendzy.blogspot.com/2009/05/get-involvedcards-for-heroes-everyone.html)

(*Edited - all links updated for the end of the blog hop so that you can still access Jan's CFH blog hop post.)




{Recipe for this card:
cardstock base: SU! Riding hood Red (also used for corner punches which were done with Paper Shapers, Photo Corners Fancy.), SU! basic black used to mat the photo. DP is from freedigitalscrapbooking.com or go here for the FULL link to the patriotic paper : http://tinyurl.com/plqzr3 . The "Land of Free..." was typed in MS Word, then cut and embossed using Nesties Ribbon Tags Trio, and the ribbon is Navy Organza from Michael's. The photo I snagged from Google Images (credit goes here: http://tinyurl.com/qgxuwg ). The Scor-Bug was used to make a tiny little border on the "stars" paper and I then used my Sakura Gelly Roll White Pen to connect them to try to make it look sewn or stitched. Oh...and the black brads are from Making Memories. I think that covers it! :) Whew! }

Cards for Heroes, Blog Hop!

Okay, I've never done anything like this before but when I got "added" by this wonderful, WONDERFUL organization from Twitter (of all places) I just knew that I had to take part in this.

The organization is called Cards for Heroes, and they send out cards for our servicemen and women who are serving our country all around the world away from their loved ones. My jaw dropped and my eyes welled-up with emotion when I found out what they do and I knew I had to take part.

They are having a "Blog Hop" on Saturday, the 23rd and for those that sign up you simply get linked from one blog to the next. You just hop from one blog to the next during the day. Of course, you DO need to make a patriotic/Memorial Day themed card to keep in the spirit of things.

I'm looking forward to participating and can't wait to do more for this very worthy group!

Most Beautiful Paper!

So, I finally got off my duff and placed an order with Paper Temptress (links, blinkies, all over my blog). I had a really hard time deciding what I needed, though, right? Well, Patricia is just amazing. I shoot her an e-mail and just a few minutes later she replies and tries her best to help me make an educated decision on what to order.

Now, let me just say say that Paper Temptress is running TONS of specials right now so now is a great time to order all kinds of specialty cardstock, too. Leathers, metallics...just beautiful paper. I knew I had to get in on this!!!

I had my order placed and because she lives so close the order was shipped yesterday and I had it TODAY!!! Woo-hooooooo!! *happy, happy, joy, joy* There are absolutely no words though for how beautiful this paper is in person, however. It is just gorgeous.

I highly, HIGHLY recommend ordering specialty cardstock and text-weight paper from Paper Temptress. It's not ALL "specialty", but I love the metallics, iridescents, "leathers", lustres, etc. There are many other varieties to fall in love with, as well. If you make cards...PLEASE check out her website!! You won't be sorry.

Oh yeah...and for all you Mom's? (Even though I'm not one.) HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

So far behind...

Oh my goodness...I feel like I haven't made a card in forever! And I haven't blogged in a while, too.

I just got back from my trip to see my family and do the Race for the Cure (17,000 attendees!) and now I'm getting ready to go on another camping trip (to Sunset State Beach) and then my mom comes out...ONE day later. Not much rest, but I can't wait for her to spend some time with us.

I really need to get working on some cards, though. The good news is that there are TONS of specials going on all over the place! Yay! Paper Temptress has some good ones (check out the new blinkie down there to the left) and I found a fabulous scrapbook store in Las Vegas while I was home that gave some really wonderful discounts, too, Scrappin' Time. Really beautiful store!! If you're ever in the SE/Henderson area of Las Vegas I highly recommend it.

Oh, yeah...and I've started Twittering! Can you believe it? Not sure what I think of it yet. Seems like a pure waste of time so far, but maybe it'll grow on me. Ha!

Happy Spring!

Vegas & Racing for the Cure

I'm leaving bright and early tomorrow morning to go back home to Las Vegas, NV to see my family and friends and to do the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.

This will be the 3rd time that I've done the race with my mom and it's always an uplifting and emotional experience. So many people gathered for such a singular purpose...to "help save lives and end breast cancer".

I don't run (THAT would be funny!) but I do the 5k walk. I even looked into doing the 3-day walk here in the Bay Area, but my health isn't that great and they make you have health insurance and raise a bunch of money just to participate, so that one's out. Maybe someday.

It'll be great to be home again. And it'll feel wonderful to be participating in such a worthy cause. I'm all packed up and ready to go and I even hope to make a few cards this afternoon before I leave. How's that for feeling inspired?

Please click here for more information on a Race for the Cure near you: Find a Race for the Cure

Have a great day!

Mother's Day Made Easy

So. I have been wanting to make a Mother's Day card, right? But I didn't want to go too overboard. And, even though, I just made 2 on Friday at my SU! Demonstrators house...I just wasn't "feeling" them, the way I had hoped. I guess they weren't personal enough for me. So I really wanted to make another one or two. Here's how my "thinking" process sometimes goes:

I was at JoAnn's looking for some red embossing powder and I found this paper from Die Cuts with a View and thought I just HAD to make a Mother's Day card with it, so that part really worked out. I bought 4 pieces of paper. The DCWAV paper, a Polka Dot paper that matched it perfectly, a textured green paper, and a shimmer pink paper. And, ALL of it on sale. Perfect! I even found a pretty "Happy Mother's Day" sentiment stamp there for 40% off. Then, since I still needed that red embossing powder, I asked my boyfriend to take me to Michael's (which he did, reluctantly), but while I was there I found ribbon that matched perfectly. Woo-hoo!

Here's the result:



and the inside:



I'm giving this one to Eddy to give to his mom since it says "Madre" on it. :)

Happy early Mother's Day to all of you moms out there.

{Supplies: Ink: Inside sentiment - Pink Pirouette, outside sentiment - kiwi kiss. Paper: Various (unknown), DCWAV, SU! - Regal Rose, Whisper White. Diecutting - Spellbinders Nestabilities, petite ovals. Inside embossing - Cuttlebug. Ribbon - Michael's. Sentiment - Hero Arts.}

Paper Temptress!!

Paper, paper, everywhere paper! What's a paper addict like myself to do? Go to www.papertemptress.com , of course. It's a wonderful site run by Patricia Dunbar, a fabulous Bay Area woman who understands the needs of papercrafters and card-makers everywhere!!

I've added links to her blog over there <------ and her site over there ------> so please check them out. She really has the most glorious paper you've EVER seen. If you want samples of what kinds of gorgeous creations can be made with this stunning paper, just click the link to Melanie's stamps (also to the right) and she makes a bunch of her cards with paper from Paper Temptress.

Check her out! Great deals and a really nice woman, too!! :)

Suddenly you were gone...

This will not be a crafty or card-related post today. After reading this I hope you will understand:

I found out today that an old friend passed away from a heart attack. His name, William Grizzle. To his friends, Grizz (or Bill). Grizz was a kind, caring, soulful man. He had his mind wrapped around so many things that many of us thought were far-fetched and outlandish. He had some strange ideas at times, but he always loved his friends.

He would have been turning 60 years old on the 26th of this month. And it's still uncertain whether he passed away on Easter Sunday or Monday. I just hope that he is at peace. And that he knows how VERY much he is missed.

To share a line from the song "Afterimage" by Rush:

Suddenly, you were gone
From all the lives you left your mark upon

I'll probably cry a few more tears and then I want to celebrate the man I knew. For all his craziness, whackiness, kind-heartedness, and zest for life.

I miss you, Grizz. Godspeed.

Cards, cards, cards!!

Eddy and I made it to AND from Illinois safely. We had a really wonderful time with family. They looooved Eddy. And Grandma was (*gasp*) on her best behavior. I even made it to Hobby Lobby which made me drool. Sure wish we had one of those out here in CA!! It was a fun trip and I git to see my sis, which was the bestest!! ♥ I miss her so much.

So we got back on a Tuesday or something and I had to get busy because Stamp Club was at MY house the following Sunday. Yikes! But we had a blast and made a super cute magazine-style card holder & Easter card. (no pics of those, though...oops!) I also had to make a birthday card for Eddy's sister, Gloria, and I wanted to make a "Thank You for your Hospitality"-type card for my Aunt & Uncle for everything they did for us while we were visiting.

Here's the pic for Eddy's sister's card:



Supplies: SU - Naturals White, Baja Breeze, Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss and Chocolate Chip cardstock, Chocolate Chip pigment ink, Loads of Love (flowers), Poppin' Pastels (assorted colors), Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon. Cuttlebug - Divine Swirl. Making Memories mini-brads. Designer Paper - Basic Grey, Urban Prairie Collection. Oh...sentiment is from SU's Crazy for Cupcakes. Spellbinders Nestabilities to cut & emboss the layers of the sentiment.

AND...the pic of the Hospitality card:



Supplies: SU - So Saffron, Certainly Celery, Perfect Plum cardstock; So Saffron grosgrain ribbon. Gina K Designs - Wreath of Wishes set (wreath & sentiment) and Pure Luxury base weight white cardstock. Spellbinders Nestabilities to cut & emboss the small circle for the sentiment. Purple ribbon - Michael's. Cuttlebug - Swiss Dots. Making Memories - mini-brads. Background stamp - Bold Flourish by Hero Arts.

I also mentioned making a card for my dear friend, Kristy, for her birthday but I didn't want her to see the card before she received it. Here's the pic of that one, too:



Supplies: SU - Certainly Celery, Pale Plum, Vellum Cardstock; black embossing powder; sentiment from SU Three Thoughts. Versamark by Tsukineko. Designer Paper (and brads) - Basic Grey, Eva Collection. Eyelets - Making Memories. Ribbon - Michael's. Vellum cardstock was cut & embossed using Spellbinders Nestabilities.

I'm working on more cards right now, too. For my aesthetician. There is a remote possibility that she may want to use some as "Thank you"'s for clients. So, I'm going to give her samples of what I can do and how I can personalize them for her. That'd be cool if it works, but everyone has different tastes...we'll see.

Gotta get back to work...