Life...As it happens

Nuts About Sketches 197

2012-01-24T14:30:00.000-08:00

It's reveal day at Nuts About Sketches!

This week's sketch was a 2-pager, but I opted to do only the left side of the sketch.

The photos were taken at one of my husband's work functions in 2010. We were able to take Baby Z with us and my husband loved showing him off to his colleagues. Baby Z was only 7-months old at the time.

I used Rich Razzleberry textured cardstock and Pocketful of Posies DSP. Several of the other elements such as the paper flowers, letter stickers and phrase stickers are from my stash. The journalling card is from a scrap piece of Newsprint DSP which was retired in 2011.

What you can't see here is that I used some of my (hoarded) glimmer brads as the centre of the flowers. Slowly making my way through those treasures.

Thanks for looking! Play along with us at Nuts About Sketches!

Letter from Santa

2012-01-19T07:30:00.000-08:00

Baby Z and I wrote a letter to Santa Claus in December. Santa responded the week of Christmas.

I wasn't on the ball enough to photograph this for our December Daily, but the Letters to Santa DSP is perfect for preserving Z's first letter from Santa. I had to trim the sides of the letter just a little bit to get it to fit onto the page.

Thanks for visiting!

Nuts About Sketches 196

2012-01-17T08:06:00.000-08:00

My first layout of 2012. The layout was inspired by a fabulous sketch at Nuts About Sketches.

The photos were taken in June around my birthday. As you can see from the open mouth which could only be letting out a shriek, Z had a great time.

Some details:

The butterfly punch and dots embossing folder for texture.

A ribbon charm from long, long, loooooooong ago. Remember when ribbon charms were everywhere? An oldie, but a goodie. I was happy to put it to good use.

Thanks for visiting. Let's see your layouts! Play along at Nuts About Sketches.

Project 365 2011 | Wrap Up

2012-01-15T07:08:00.000-08:00

I spent the first couple of weeks finishing up my Project 365 for 2011. This involved printing photos and adding some journalling that I missed as well as inserting all the photos into their respective pockets.

Let me share some of our photos.

Will I do this project again for 2012? No. I did it for two years and I'm a little burnt out by it. This doesn't mean I have stopped recording our daily adventures/non-adventures. We love looking back at our year and seeing how much Baby Z has grown.

I plan on taking a different approach. Maybe Project 12? One layout a month highlighting our lives. Most likely in a digital format.

Stay tuned. Thanks for visiting.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-10T00:42:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year! Hope 2012 is starting off the way you like it.

I'm around. I have lots of crafty stuff to show you, but I'm taking an extended break. Let's call it "The Post-Holiday holiday".

I'll be back next week. Take care.

The Merry Newsinator is back

2011-12-29T07:55:00.000-08:00

This is a fun, free, quirky newsletter to send to family and friends who don't get offended easily.

www.merrynewsinator.com

Thanks for visiting!

On my desk...

2011-12-27T23:22:00.003-08:00

It's been a very long while since I've linked up. I'm glad to see that there are still many familiar faces and new ones who link up each week.

My desk this week...or rather..What's under my desk?

A selection of stamp sets and accessories that I will be selling this week/into the new year. It's my spring cleaning...several months too late. :) The top of my desk is frightening. I'm afraid to look at it.

And here is my Baby Z. Not a baby anymore. A walking, running, screeching toddler at 20 months old.

He's well aware of the camera now and making funny faces is the norm, especially at Christmas Eve when he should be in bed before Santa arrives

Thanks for visiting and happy new year! May all your dreams come true in 2012!

What’s On Your Workdesk Wednesday? Or WOYWW is a weekly blog hop hosted by Julia Dunnit at Stamping Ground. Join in and share your creative space, no matter what state it’s in.

December Daily 2011 | The Home Stretch

2011-12-27T09:25:00.000-08:00

I hope you've had a fabulous Christmas. We certainly did.

Baby Z tore into his gifts from Santa and decided that the packaging was more fun than the actual gift. We spent most of the day in our PJs which, for us, is a rare treat. I wouldn't have spent Christmas any other way.

Onto the December Daily. This is the fastest project I've completed this year! All I have to do is print out the photos, add a few embellishments (maybe) and insert into the album.

Thanks for following along with my December Daily this year!

Our 1st Family Christmas

2011-12-26T09:40:00.002-08:00

I finally got around to scrapping Baby Z's first Christmas and, of course, our first Christmas as a family. I used sketch 192 from Nuts About Sketches. I missed the design team deadline for this sketch, but I wanted to play along since this is such a fantastic sketch.

All that fabulous Stampin' Up! Christmas DSP that I had been using for cards finally made its way onto a layout.

I noticed after photographing and editing the layout that an ampersand from the letter stickers package escaped and found its way onto this layout! ;) Oh well, I'm still in holiday mode.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-25T00:30:00.000-08:00

This year's Christmas card photo:

Photo by Matt Kennedy Photography

I'll be posting on and off the next few weeks. Hoping to spend time just winding down the year.

Wishing you a joyous and blessed holiday season.

Merry Christmas!

Photo Gift Tags

2011-12-22T08:17:00.000-08:00

A great way to use up some scraps and photos that didn't make it into your scrapbooks.

I turned these 2 1/2" circles (leftover from another project) and turned them into gift tags for my nieces' Christmas gifts.

I had taken a bunch of photos of the girls & Baby Z and these photos were the ones that didn't make it into the album. I stamped a sentiment on a small strip of Whisper White cardstock, added a rhinestone and adhered it to the tag. A string of Cherry Cobbler baker's twine to attach the tags to the gift and - tada! - done in 5 minutes.

Quick projects. I like that.

Thanks for stopping by!

2011-12-21T07:07:00.000-08:00

This Snow Much Fun set is a blast! I absolutely love all the images in this set. If you don't have it, you should get it. Really. And the Letters to Santa DSP.

A simple card where I stamped the Christmas tree image twice - once on Whisper White cardstock and on watercolor paper. I painted the image with Lucky Limeade on the watercolor paper. Once dry, I cut the image out and added some sparkles with Dazzling Details. Although it is difficult to see from the photo, the tree is popped up with foam dimensionals.

I think I'll be making a few more of this card.

Thanks for visiting today!

December Daily 2011 | December 19

2011-12-20T21:24:00.001-08:00

Thought I would get a head start on my resolution.

Thanks for visiting!

Colorful Ornaments Card

2011-12-20T08:20:00.000-08:00

A bright and colorful card using the Merry and Type set.

The bold typeface and images of this set make it so easy to emboss and watercolor for that WOW kind of card. Merry & Type coordinates beautifully with Letters to Santa DSP.

With this card, I heat embossed the ornaments image and the "25" with pewter embossing powder. I could heat emboss all day. It's probably my favorite technique! The ornaments image was colored with classic ink and the aquapainter in Marina Mist, Cherry Cobbler and Lucky Limeade. A strip of velvet ribbon for additional texture and some jingle bells added for a tinkly sound.

Thanks for stopping by!

December Daily 2011 | December 17-18

2011-12-19T21:22:00.000-08:00

The weekend.

Thanks for stopping by today!

December Daily 2011 | Dec 12 - 16

2011-12-18T08:40:00.000-08:00

The whole week! I didn't forget. I just don't have the time to post each photo daily. Here's all five days...

I am really enjoying this photo format vs the traditional format for this project. I like that I will have a completed album once Christmas Day arrives.

Thanks for looking!

Sweet & simple thank you

2011-12-17T07:00:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, I needed some thank you cards. I needed them FAST!

The Easy Events set came to the rescue!

The hardest part about the card was placing those tiny halfback pearls onto the flowers. This was truly a 10 minute card.

Thanks for looking!

Comfort & Joy

2011-12-14T06:58:00.000-08:00

A quick and simple card I made using the Comfort and Joy set from the Holiday Mini Catalogue.

Lots of sponging and blender pen use with this one. I cased this card right out of the mini catalogue. I just swapped the colours.

I added some texture with the velvet ribbon in Very Vanilla and baker's twine in Cherry Cobbler.

Thanks for visiting!

December Daily 2011 | The Weekend

2011-12-13T06:40:00.000-08:00

Here's a look at the weekend for my December Daily.

Walking around downtown and a visit with Santa Claus.

Thanks for looking!

Nuts About Sketches 191

2011-12-12T08:54:00.000-08:00

It's another week of sketches at Nuts About Sketches! The design team created some fabulous layouts with this week's sketch.

Here is my layout.

I had these small proofs of Baby Z's photoshoot and I wanted to used them on something besides bottlecap magnets.

I punched out the images with a 1"punch. To create the circle matte, I punched out a larger circle as a template and sponged inked around it before adhering the photograph.

The die cut letters were popped up using foam adhesive. Love this stuff!

Thanks for stopping by. Share your layout with us at Nuts About Sketches!

December Daily 2011 | Days 6-8

2011-12-10T08:02:00.000-08:00

And here we are...Days 6 through 8. I used Trim the Tree embellishments from My Digital Studio to add captions to each day.

Thanks for stopping by and looking at my progress with December Daily.

Snow Much More Fun!

2011-12-09T07:56:00.000-08:00

Yes, yet another card created using the Snow Much Fun set. I can't get enough of it.

I won't go into too much detail about the card. Basically, I did a little bit of watercoloring and mounted the image onto some dotted glimmer paper.

Check out the jingle bells attached to the Old Olive satin ribbon. Cards with sound. I like that very much.

Thanks for dropping by today!

December Daily 2011| Day 5

2011-12-08T07:02:00.000-08:00

Here is Day 5.

And that was Day 5. Thanks for following along with my December Daily.

The Sounding Joy

2011-12-07T09:52:00.000-08:00

I cased this card from the Holiday mini catalogue using the colors Cherry Cobbler and Lucky Limeade. The card was simple, but still packs a visual punch.

The background was stamped using a large background stamp called Wonderfully Worn. I love the background stamps. They add so much richness with just one application. The sentiment was heat embossed with a pewter embossing powder adding additional texture.

Love this combination of Cherry Cobbler and Lucky Limeade. It's still working for me. Maybe I can stretch it to Valentine's Day??

Thanks for looking!

December Daily 2011| Days 3 & 4

2011-12-06T08:45:00.000-08:00

Here we are at Days 3 & 4. Not bad for me. Usually the December Daily project ends for me at around here.

I remembered how wonderful it was to send a letter to and receive one back from Santa Claus every year. I thought it would be a nice thing to start with Z. Although he's too young to know who Santa Claus is, I wanted to start a tradition with him and keep it to letter writing, rather than e-mail or video chat. Can't wait to see what Santa says to him.

We decorated the Christmas tree this weekend. Still sticking to the classic colors of red, green and gold.

And there we are. Thank you for visiting today.

Nuts About Sketches - 190

2011-12-05T08:41:00.000-08:00

This week's sketch at Nuts About Sketches is a two-pager, but I chose to use only the left-hand side of the sketch.

Keeping it simple by limiting the color combos to Tangerine Tango, Island Indigo and Calypso Coral. The die-cut paper was an oldie from KI Memories that was sitting in my stash for a very, very long time. The embellishments were minimal. I attached a paper clip to the top of the photo and added some hearts.

My two best boys.

Thanks for looking! Please play along with us this week at Nuts About Sketches!

December Daily 2011 | Days 1 & 2

2011-12-04T11:23:00.000-08:00

The other day, I said that I was going to participate in creating a December Daily for 2011. So, here I begin. I mentioned that I was going to keep the project simple and use a 4x6 mini album to store all the photographs and stories.

I created a template in Photoshop using digital products from Paislee Press & Biografitti. All 25 days will be based on this template. Once I print out the photos, I may or may not add some product for texture. We'll see how much time I have.

The first couple of days of December started with some fun. A visit to Krispy Kreme to try their new holiday donuts: red velvet and this very cute, but extremely caloric snowman donut.

Starting on the Christmas cards. Stampin' Up! has these cute mini jingle bells which I feel I have to add to every single card. They can be a little hard to to attach, but oh-so-merry when attached to a card.

Thanks for stopping by and looking at Days 1 & 2 of my December Daily.

The glittery cards

2011-12-03T09:36:00.000-08:00

I can't stop playing with the Snow Much Fun stamp set! I made several cards, which I showed you in previous posts, and now, here are a few more.

This card has last year's very popular glitter DSP. I punched out the image of the snowman and adhered it to a punched glimmer scallop circle. Love the red glimmer paper. No mess!

This card uses a new favorite combination of colors - Cherry Cobbler and Lucky Limeade. Check out the texture on that Very Vanilla velvet ribbon. It's so soft and chic.

For this card, I added some glitter to one of the trees, added pearls to the sentiment and a jingle bell. Nothing like a bell to add some cheer.

Here's a closer look at the card. I cut out and popped up the glittery tree. It's much more sparkly in person.

I have more cards to share with you in another post.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tracking December

2011-12-01T10:18:00.000-08:00

Like many scrapbookers today, I decided to join Ali Edwards and take part in creating a December Daily. Basically, I'm recording our holiday memories leading up to Christmas Day. It's very different from Project 365 (which I am still keeping up with & have been neglectful in posting my progress). Ali explains everything in greater detail on her blog.

I made a December Daily in 2009. It was a 6x6 mini album.

I am going to make things easy for myself and using a small photo album which holds 4x6 photographs. I'm going to do as much of this project digitally and have a template in place to just pop in the picture.

Here's a look at my cover page.

I will probably post my photos in batches rather than daily. I'm so excited for this project

Yay for December!

Around Here...

2011-11-30T21:58:00.001-08:00

Around here...

A little someone is running through the leaves at full speed.

Someone is lining up his cars for a big race.

A family went to Seattle for the weekend and enjoyed the city all over again.

A little boy tried talking to the penguins, but all they understood from him was,"Ooooh!"

Thanks for stopping by. I'm slowly getting into the holiday spirit. Stay tuned for some more posts from me in the coming days.

Family Photos

2011-11-17T09:02:00.000-08:00

In early October, I decided we needed our first family portraits taken, so I scoured craigslist and found Matt Kennedy. From the moment I contacted him to receiving our photos, he and his team made everything so easy. I love that. Quick, simple, to the point.

We were looking for candid, colourful photos which showed our personality. Matt nailed it!

Here are a couple of shots!

Thanks so much, Matt. You are wonderful photographer.

Visit his website: http://www.mattkennedyphotos.com/
"Like" him on Facebook

Thanks for visiting today!

1st Haircut

2011-11-15T08:49:00.000-08:00

When Z was 12 months old, we decided it was time to cut his hair. That is, we decided to shave his lovely baby locks all off.

I based this layout on this week's Nuts About Sketches sketch 187.

I broke into my package of Big Top Birthday DSP for this layout and used up a lot of stashed goodies. I have been hoarding several styles of brads in my embellishment collection like the star brads, the build-a-brads and the bar brads. It was time to use them all for this layout.

The letters were die-cut using the Big Shot and my favourite alphabet set. Each letter was sponged with early espresso ink and popped-up from the page using dimensionals. I love the effect a pop-up letter gives this layout.

Finally, the most important piece, the first lock of hair snipped from Z's head. I tied a bashful blue ribbon around it and enclosed the hair in a glassine envelope. He looks like a boy than a baby these days. :(

Join us at Nuts About Sketches and show us your take on Shawn's awesome sketch!

Thanks for stopping by!

Snow Much Fun Cards

2011-11-12T07:25:00.000-08:00

Since I received the Snow Much Fun stamp set, I have wanted to watercolor. So that's what I did.

I used up some of last year's patterned paper and played. That hasn't happened for a while. I won't write too much today as I'm a bit tired. Each card is a variation of the other.

Please enjoy.

Thanks for looking!

Cluck Cluck

2011-11-04T09:36:00.000-07:00

This year, Baby Z was a baby chick for Halloween. His cousin, Holle, gave him her old costume which she outgrew a few years ago.

The little chick went door-to-door for two blocks and then we called it a night. He got right into the thick of things and picked out his own treats when he was offered a choice. His uncles Matt & Carlo did most of the carrying of him and his candy bucket, but he was quite tired at the end of the night. He was really entranced by all the decorations and the lights. I think he was most excited with seeing older kids trick-or-treating.

He dug through his stash of candy when we got home and picked out a bag of chips. I don't think he'll be eating those any time soon.

A quick shot with Daddy before he leaves for work.

Mommy and her little chick. I can't believe this is my baby's second Halloween. Time sure does fly.

Thanks for stopping by!

Project 365: Week 43

2011-11-02T08:10:00.000-07:00

I have been MIA the last few weeks because I was preparing for our big road trip to San Francisco. We went on a week-long road trip. Although we all got sick part way through our vacation, we still had a fantastic time. San Francisco is a great city.

Before reaching California, we stayed overnight in Klamath Falls, OR. Such a gorgeous place. It was so peaceful and a great way to start off our vacation.

As we played in the playground at the resort, we noticed some deer at the edge of the basketball courts foraging for food. Amazing!

Once we reached San Francisco, we did all things touristy.

Like hanging out in a jail cell in Alcatraz...

Walking across the Golden Gate Bridge...

Chasing pigeons at the Fisherman's Wharf.

Of course, we rode a cable car, ate Chinese food in Chinatown and lots of other tourist attractions. They were all a "must"!

Now, it's back to the grind and getting into the groove. I hope I can find my mojo again.

Thanks for visiting!

Baby Z's 1st Halloween

2011-10-31T09:29:00.000-07:00

Last year was Baby Z's first Halloween. We dressed him up in a pumpkin bunting bag that was given to us. This year, he will wear another costume given to us; this time, from his cousin Holle.

It took me a year, as it usually does, to create a layout about his adventure. I made this layout for the Nuts About Sketches challenge last week, but I wasn't able to submit it on time.

I used Pick Your Poison DSP as the base cardstock. The border was really creepy and so much fun. This paper is rockin'. I'm planning on making a Halloween mini album with the rest of the paper pack. I have so much Halloween stash from stickers to punches that I stuck as many as I could on a page.

The first page:

The journalling reads: Z's first Halloween. He was a pumpkin in a bunting bag suit. The cutest pumpkin ever! We took him around the block for trick-or-treating. He did not has the entire round. He fell asleep at the last house in Uncle Matt's arms.

The second page:

I have various candy corn stickers, pumpkin punches and spider punches which I used quite liberally on the pages. I added some die cut DSP as well and die cut leaves. Let's not forget the cute spider punch from the Kidoodles stamp set.

Thank you for visiting! Happy Halloween!

18 Months Old

2011-10-24T11:33:00.001-07:00

Hi! I'm Baby Z. I am 18 months old. My mommy hasn't had a lot of time to blog lately. Mostly, that is because of me.

I am into everything. Mommy spends a lot of time making sure I stay out of trouble. But what she doesn't see me doing....hehehe...

Mommy bought me a new car seat because I am finally big enough to be in a big boy seat and face forward. I can see so many more things when I face forward. Trees, birds, houses. I really enjoy seeing Mommy when she drives.

I have recently discovered coloring. Mommy only gives me two crayons at a time and I am only allowed to color on paper, but it's more fun to color on myself and on the walls.

Everyday, we read a book. I love looking at the same books over and over again. Sometimes, Mommy reads a story and other times, I make up my own story. It's always fun when it's story time!

Thanks for visiting! Hopefully, my mommy will have more time soon to create and post projects.

Nuts About Sketches 183

2011-10-17T07:53:00.027-07:00

Well, it's been a couple of weeks since I blogged and posted anything new. I've been very tired lately and I think it's because of the weather. It's getting colder and darker and I'm not liking it.

For this week's sketch at Nuts About Sketches, I decided to create a layout that is both sentimental and in a warmer season. I finally made a layout about my first mother's day.

I love punches, especially my butterfly punches. I used every butterfly punch I own on this layout. The butterflies were sprayed with vanilla smooch spritz and given some time to dry before I place them on the page.

There was finally an opportunity to use the Flirtatious DSP die cut that I had been hoarding. I also used up quite a few half-back pearls. Not to worry, I still have several packages left!

Love how the vanilla smooch spritz sparkles!

Threw in some punched hearts from the glitter paper. Mess free and sparkly!

Thanks for looking! Come on and play with us at Nuts About Sketches!

Nuts About Sketches #181

2011-10-03T21:50:00.008-07:00

It's been over a week since I last posted. The end of September was really busy and it doesn't look like October will be slowing down anytime soon.

There's a new sketch challenge at Nuts About Sketches! Yay! I just love Shawn's sketches.

For this sketch, I decided to flip it 90 degrees.

This is a layout about Baby Z and his first impressions of his new playpen. He was pretty excited about it for a few moments, but the novelty wore off quickly and he soon demanded to be taken out.

The following pictures are a little blurry.

I used the new Pick Your Poison DSP and retired Pumpkin Pie grosgrain ribbon. I needed some birds too, so I heat embossed the bird image from the Best of Everything stamp set in orange and black.

I added another chipboard bird with sparkly black brad for an eye and a few buttons.

A great sketch at Nuts About Sketches! Join us this week.

Nuts About Sketches

2011-09-20T23:26:00.000-07:00

Back in December of last year, I was lucky enough to get a special copy of Baby Z on the cover of Today's Parent.

Of course, on top of the several copies I ordered, I also had to create a layout about it.

This week's sketch at Nuts About Sketches was the inspiration!

I flipped the sketch to accommodate the photograph.

Although the sketch called for smaller photos, I chose to use squares of stamped hearts. I used a variety of retired and new Stampin' Up! DSP as well as Basic Grey Offbeat paper which has been sitting forever in my stash of stuff.

Play along at Nuts About Sketches. Thanks for looking!

Z & Diego

2011-09-18T08:47:00.068-07:00

On the Labor Day long weekend, we spent an evening with our friends and their amazing dogs. 4 of them. Yes, 4 dogs!

Z fell in love with Diego, a Jack Russell terrier. They spent most of the evening playing and talking to each other. Poor Diego! His ears must have hurt after all the screaming Z made.

Diego was so sweet, so cute and so calm toward Baby Z that it was hard to believe that he's a Jack Russell terrier. Most people are well-aware of this breed's temperment.

I was more worried that Z would harm the dog than the other way around. ;)

What it really comes down to is the training of the dog, as I was told.

Our friend, Jeff, who is Diego's owner, is a dog trainer and operates Sit Happens, a dog training company that provides dog training throughout the Lower Mainland.

Jeff and his dogs are amazing. Never once did my husband I feel scared that the dogs would hurt Z even when Z was poking and prodding them. Our evening with our friends was fantastic. The dogs & Z kept each other entertained. A few commands from Jeff - no shouting, no harsh words, no force - seriously, amazing.

This is not a paid advertisement. We were just in awe of how well-behaved these dogs were around our baby. If you're looking to have your dog trained, I highly recommend Jeff & Sit Happens.

Check out the website: http://sithappensdogtraining.com/
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Thanks for visiting!

Stampin' Royalty 89

2011-09-17T16:03:00.025-07:00

A fabulous picture inspiration challenge at Stampin' Royalty.

Yummy cupcakes with a cookie wedge. Mmmmm.... At least, a photo is a calorie-free alternative...unless you can gain weight by devouring cupcake with your eyes?? Oh, I hope not or I am in deep trouble!

I really enjoyed putting together this card. I really love challenges that involve cupcakes.

My card. I kept true to the chocolate, pink and white in the photo. I cut into a precious piece of the Flirtatious Specialty DSP for the background. I stamped the cupcake image with the Create a Cupcake set and punched the images with the coordinating set.

Can you see the stash of hoarded supplies (ribbon & buttons) that I am slowly getting through?

The fun part. I used the new Dazzling Details to add sparkle and sprinkles to the cupcake. So fun. No mess. I love glitter glue!

The sentiment in Whisper White craft ink.

Thank you for stopping by!

Color Q challenge 102

2011-09-17T09:36:00.014-07:00

Fantastic colour combo from Colour Q

Of course, I could not resist using the Elebration stamp again. It's so cute and perfect for all the birthday parties that are coming up.

This card is another of my CASED from the catalogue series. This time, I cased the card on page 17 of the current Stampin' Up! catalogue. Not exactly like the card, but close enough and still cute.

Thanks for stopping by!

My Best Boys

2011-09-16T08:33:00.004-07:00

A bit blurry, but I love Z's expression. Pure joy!

An uninked stamp

2011-09-15T05:59:00.011-07:00

I found a craft challenge site that will help with my hoarding issues! Use It Tuesday's challenge is to create a project with an uninked stamp. I have quite a few stamps that have never been mounted, much less seen ink!

This card uses the super cute a la carte stamp Elebration. Both the elephant and the sentiment have never seen ink until now...

The image was stamped onto watercolor paper and colored with markers and an aquapainter. Come to think of it, some of the markers were never used until now. The rest of the card is pretty much simple.

Thanks for visiting!

Nuts About Sketches 178

2011-09-14T11:23:00.001-07:00

Check out this fabulous sketch at Nuts About Sketches. I contributed my first layout as a new member of the NAS design team this week!

I created a single page layout using the right hand side of the sketch.

The layout, obviously, is about Baby Z and his first swimming lessons. I used a lot of turquoise and shades of blue for that swimming pool/watery feeling.

A close-up of the journaling and the textures.

Play along with us at Nuts About Sketches! Thanks for visiting!

So long, summer!

2011-09-13T22:03:00.000-07:00

The end of August/beginning of September means it's time for the PNE. This year, unlike past years, I didn't take as many photos. I just wanted to enjoy the experience of seeing, smelling, eating and more eating.

Baby Z, who is nearly 17 months old, had a great time too. It was so fun, we went twice!

A new ride at Playland. I didn't get a chance to try it, but it sure looks fun.

Stuffed animal prizes.

Baby Z picking apples at the interactive farm.

...being a hockey egg.

Wiped out. A great day!

Thanks for visiting!!

Wheeeee!

2011-09-10T22:22:00.000-07:00

Down the slide. He climbed up there all by himself.

He sat down and with a little coaxing from Daddy, slid all the way down. Once he started, he didn't want to stop.
"Wheeeeee!!!!" he cried, all afternoon.

Baby Z is growing up.

Thanks for stopping by!

CASEd from the catalogue

2011-09-09T11:50:00.001-07:00

Let's be real here, folks. How many of us would like to make those fancy cards with all the latest and greatest techniques and products on them? How many of us drool over the sheer creativity of fellow crafters and think,"I wish I could do that?" How many of us just want time to craft?

ME, ME, ME!!! I want to make the fancy, schmancy cards with all the cool layers and products like all the cool kids, but not my reality. I'm sure you know the drill: work, baby, life. Add in a 2-hour commute and crafting is not a priority. Sleeping is!

Thus, I bring you: CASED from the catalogue. I made the following two cards copying the ideas from the 2010-2011 SU catalogue. (So, the catalogue is retired, but that's not the point!) Using retired stuff is kinda my theme this week.

The cards I made were simple and took less than an hour to put together. Actually, about 20 minutes...the other 40 minutes I spent looking at the catalogue over and over...never mind that it was in my possession for over a year now. I digress...

Simple. But wow-ee! Or so I think. If I remembered the page number, I would tell you. Alas, mommy brain.

Notice how these cards use Newsprint DSP. I told you I had a lot of it!!!! And this second card has a little rich razzleberry polka dot grosgrain ribbon. How 2009! <smirk>

The new 2011-2012 catalogue has lots of fabulous ideas too and - BONUS - it's current. Take a look at it under the catalogue tab.

Thanks for stopping by!

Conquering the hoarding Part 2

2011-09-07T11:34:00.031-07:00

If you read my earlier post on hoarding, you will see more of the fabulous, retired Newsprint DSP on my projects. I decided to throw in the retired pom-pom trim from the last occasions mini catalogue and a stamp set from there too.

"Whoa, whoa!" you're asking me. "Aren't you a Stampin' Up! demo? Why aren't you showing the current stuff?" That's because I haven't ordered any new stuff yet. GASP! Are you kidding me?!? Nope. I have not ordered anything.

I'm trying to rid my very small space of all retired product. I have lots! If you want to help in that regard, please click on the "Retired Stamps for Sale" link above. :)

Now, onto the cards.

I used the Element of Style set and stamped randomly on the paper. I spent the evening coloring in the blooms while watching TV and engaging in lovely conversation with my husband.

Some pom-pom trim was added to the cards. Then, I decided to get fancy and make a banner for the sentiment. Whoo!

This sentiment is from a set called Thanks for Caring. It probably didn't sell very well and I'm likely the only person who bought it. It was a great set for those cards that needed to evoke just the right amount of sympathy.

Thanks for looking!

Conquering the hoarding

2011-09-05T23:33:00.000-07:00

Took a little break from the blog, unplugged and enjoyed the end of summer. It was busy, but I found some time to make a few cards.

If you are a paper crafter, then you know all about hoarding supplies. I was determined to conquer the hoarding issue by using up all the retired DSP in my stash. I started with Newsprint. LOVED this paper and I'm sad that it's gone. You'll be seeing a lot of this paper in several projects. I stocked up on sooo much.

I took some inspiration from Mary Fish and her simple cards from a couple of weeks ago. I kept the layout and color scheme simple - Basic Black & Very Vanilla - so that I wouldn't get caught up in trying to match everything. I was able to finish several cards in an evening.

A closer look. This card has a background stamped in Calypso Coral. Happily, I used up my remaining vanilla grosgrain ribbon.

Can you see the shimmer? I sprayed a little bit of vanilla smooch spritz on it.

Thanks for stopping by. Stay tuned for more cards and scrapbook layouts using my hoarded supplies.

Stacks of cupcakes

2011-08-24T07:21:00.009-07:00

I decided to CASE another card; this time, from my demonstrator rag, Stampin' Success. A similar card was on the cover of the July issue. I wanted to use the new In Colours and I needed a birthday card, so it worked out just fine.

I used the cupcake punch to make a stack of little cakes. Mmmmm...rainbow cupcakes. Makes me wanna bake. Now looking at this, I see that the candle flame is crooked. Actually, it's not crooked...it's flickering to and fro as the stack sways. Believe.

Thanks for stopping by!

365: Weeks 32 + 33

2011-08-23T10:08:00.000-07:00

Not many beach days left...

For the past couple of weeks, we have been eating our dinner outside and taking advantage of the amazing beaches near our home.

Baby Z does not like sand on his feet. His solution?

Sitting on the very edge of the beach blanket to play with the sand.

This ensures minimal sand contact with the feet. For some reason, his hands, mouth and head can have full contact with the sand. Strange child...I know.

Sometimes, we chase seagulls with a bottle of milk...

or relax in a nice comfy beach chair and watch the sun set. Excuse me? Wasn't that chair meant for Daddy??

Most days, we eat our snacks and spend some quality time together.

Hope you are all enjoying your summer!

365 Cards: Vintage + Blue

2011-08-21T22:07:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if this card is quite vintage, but it is definitely a direct CASE from the new Stampin' Up! catalogue. I simply changed the colors and replaced the large stamp with one of my faves, Medallion.

Day 170 at 365 Cards prompt was to create a vintage + blue inspired card. My goal is to one day complete the entire week of challenges at 365 Cards, but two this week are pretty good for me.

I broke out Marina Mist, Calypso Coral and Very Vanilla. The large image was heat embossed with blue embossing powder. The flower was made using the Build A Blossom stamp set and the coordinating punch.

Now, off to write a note to the recipient of this card.

Thanks for looking!

Me & Z

2011-08-19T12:39:00.001-07:00

This layout is based on a sketch from Nuts About Sketches. Unfortunately, I took this photo late in the evening, so there is a lot of glare.

The BEST PART is....I am officially part of Nuts About Sketches design team!!! This layout was my entry.

I broke out the Pennant Parade set for this one and some heat embossing. Whoo!

This layout is 90% Stampin' Up! with the exception of the thickers (a huge weakness) and a few word stickers. I'm going through my SU stash and using up a lot of retired product. As much as I'd love to hoard all this product, it does look nicer on a layout or card.

A close-up of the embossing. I like this new pennant punch!

Thanks for stopping by!

Mini Me

2011-08-18T09:30:00.022-07:00

This week's prompt at Scrap that Baby! is to create a layout about how your child is similar to you. Well, Baby Z is most similar to his dad and even more so when they wear their argyle sweaters! So handsome!

This was a very fun layout. To create the argyle pattern, I took an idea from the talented Carrie Gaskin and punched out pennants from the Pennant Builder punch. I folded a piece of paper in half and punched away being careful not to punch the crease.

A close up. The brads are from the retired Hodgepodge Hardware kit and they are wrapped around with Cherry Cobbler baker twine.

A look at the retired Build a Brads. I still have one box left. I'm really sad that these were retired, but I'm sure that there are quite a few demos who may be willing to part with them.

Thanks for looking! Be sure to play along with this week's prompt.

Scrap that Baby! delivers exciting scrapbooking prompts to encourage you to, well, scrap that baby! There are two challenges a month, along with tips, tutorials and prizes. Play along and get those baby pics scrapped for good.

Inkspirations Colour Challenge 82

2011-08-17T10:58:00.032-07:00

The colour challenge at Inkspirations would not be one I would normally use, but it's always good to stretch yourself, right?

I am not crazy about Cajun Craze. When this colour challenge came up, I decided to jump in and see what would happen if I broke out the Cajun Craze.

I decided I'm still not crazy about it.

Here is the card I made. I do like the combination of colours and the way the card turned out.

A closer view.

My distressing technique if you don't have a stamp like Wonderfully Worn or a wheel stamp like Texture: Stamp your stamp pad directly onto the paper. It gets that worn, textured look every time!

Thanks for stopping by!

365 Cards: Vintage + Red

2011-08-16T22:56:00.000-07:00

It's vintage week at 365 Cards and Monday's challenge was to create a vintage card with red as the dominant color.

My favorite red of the moment is Cherry Cobbler and created a simple birthday card.

I embossed cherry cobbler cardstock with the Manhattan Flowers embossing folder. It's a folder that I haven't used in a very long time, but I'm glad I found it and found a use for it.

The edges of the paper were distressed and sponged with Early Espresso ink. Some twine was wrapped around the card and the cardstock piece was adhered to Crumb Cake card base.

A closer look.

Thank you for visiting!

Birthday Wishes

2011-08-15T05:23:00.019-07:00

A lovely sketch challenge at Create with Connie & Mary and an inspiration challenge at Stampin' Royalty.

I used the Nature Walk set that I received from regionals earlier this year and the birthday sentiment from Bring on the Cake. The bird was sponged with a little color. Keeping it sweet and simple.

Thanks for visiting!

Totally missed this one!

2011-08-14T22:05:00.000-07:00

Where was I? What was I thinking to have missed out on the Leica M7 limited Edition Hermès camera? Only 200 were available worldwide, but there are a few for resale on eBay.

The last time I checked on eBay, the going rate was $20,000. Free shipping.

Create with Connie and Mary 161

2011-08-11T01:01:00.000-07:00

Whoo! I am so late with this challenge that I couldn't even link up! Oh well, I'll try better next week.

I made this card for a customer who was attending a wedding last weekend. I didn't want to post the finished card until the wedding was over.

This was a color challenge using Basic Black, Old Olive and Daffodil Delight.

Cute, simple and sweet.

Thanks for stopping by!

365: Week 30

2011-08-03T17:35:00.001-07:00

A beautiful week in Vancouver.

Running in the park at dusk.

Sitting on the swing with Mommy.

Standing still for just a minute.

All grown up and trying to be like his uncle.

Thanks for visiting!

Create with Connie & Mary 160

2011-08-02T22:34:00.000-07:00

Connie & Mary have another fabulous sketch challenge and design team call for those of you who love working with Stampin' Up! products. I am definitely a Stampin' Up! lover!

This week's sketch involves all things asymmetrical. This was a hard sketch for me. It's pretty obvious that I love the linear look.

This card features the little bird stamp from The Best of Everything. It's such a cute set and I'm sure I will create so many great cards from this set.

I wanted to keep this card simple and completed in a hurry. My stamping room is hot!!! Running toward the AC as this posts.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stamps sets for sale

2011-08-01T22:04:00.012-07:00

Stamps sets for sale, click the link to see all the stamps available.

It's time for me to clear out my stamp room. My very small room can only hold so much stuff.
This is a total steal for you! Some of these stamp sets have never been used!

If you are interested in any of these sets, contact me at daisyfleurs@hotmail.com

Reinkers – Still lots of ink. Used sparingly. $2 each

Glorious Green
Brilliant Blue
Orchid Opulence
Yoyo Yellow
Pink Passion
Gable Green

Stamp Pads

Pixie Pink with reinker - $5
Green Galore with reinker - $5
Barely Banana - $3

Wood Mounted Stamp Sets (used)

Extreme Snowboard - $8
Forest Friends - $10
Animal Stories - $10
Art by Design - $15
Terrific Tags (no plastic case) - $15
Eastern Blooms - $20
Bliss (Sale-A-Bration set) - $20
On A Pedestal - $20
Punch Bunch (Sale-A-Bration set) barely used - $25
Pun Fun - $30
All Holidays - $30
All Year Cheer I, II, III - $60

Wood Mounted Stamp Sets (new)

Tart and Tangy - $10
Sweet Summer (Sale-A-Bration set) - $25
Something to Celebrate (Hostess) -$25
So Happy For You (Sale-A-Bration set) - $25

Clear Mounted Stamp Sets

Good Neighbours (Sale-A-Bration set) - $10
Well Scripted (Sale-A-Bration set) - $10
Happy Moments (Sale-A-Bration set) - $10

Wheel Stamp

Always in Bloom - $5

Card Kit

Simply Sent Kit (includes stamp set) - $30

Sizzix Dies
Bigz XL Pop Up O Christmas Tree Die - $35
Flowers Strip Die - $10
Originals Flower Layers #3 - $15

Happy I Do

2011-07-29T23:24:00.000-07:00

This week's inspiration for the Cupcake Inspiration Challenge:

For my card, I used the pink puppy cupcakes as my theme color and the cupcake with the big, blingy ring as the theme. We are going to a wedding this week and, well, you need a card to accompany the gift.

This card features the Flirtatious DSP which is a new offering in the Stampin' Up! Catalogue. I used a jumbo wheel I {Love} Love to create an embossed background along with white craft ink and white embossing powder.

The sentiment was stamped, punched and sponged. A little rhinestone was added for that sparkle. Of course, ribbon and a button.

Well, I really hope this card WOWs someone because I would love to be a guest sweetie at Cupcake Inspirations!

Thank you for visiting!

365: Week 29

2011-07-25T22:45:00.000-07:00

Back on track with Project 365 and Project Life. There are days where I haven't taken any photos and days where I haven't documented a thing, but I'm pretty easy going about this whole thing. Just as long as at the end of the year, all the photos I have taken tell a good story.

Last week...

Fresh cherry pie - out of the oven - from the cherries we picked a couple of weeks ago. Mmm. Delicious.

Little Baby Z is chewing on a toy he hasn't played with for a while. He knows I'm watching and taking photos, so he's doing this on purpose.

Clever boy! Trying to change the TV channels with the remote control. It's a good thing it's the "pretend" remote.

We went to visit some friends at their office last week. The little boy was a welcome distraction. Here he is trying to "help".

An unhappy toddler. He's at the age where he wants to be free and running. Restraint only makes him angry. Angry, but still cute to me!

We held a yard sale over the weekend. A price sticker ended up on the little boy's forehead. 10 cents! He's priceless! My silly boy.

Thanks for looking!

Melon Mambo Thanks!

2011-07-23T07:21:00.017-07:00

This week, Baby Z and I went to the Vancouver Aquarium to see the belugas and visit some friends. I made a card for one of our friends who had kindly given Z a birthday gift.

This card, uses a lot of Melon Mambo. The large patterned paper piece, ribbon and the button are retired Stampin' Up! product, but all the other products are current. The flower petals and leaves were punched using the Blossom Petals builder punch.

The leaves are from a new In Color this year ~ Lucky Limeade. It's a gorgeous green. Very summery and punchy!

A close-up of the flower. Thanks for dropping by!

When he was 8 months...

2011-07-21T21:21:00.000-07:00

I am slowly getting through my stack of photos of Baby Z.

I guess it's true about the 1st born: they have the most photos taken and all subsequent children have little to no photos.

This was a simple page of photos capturing Z at 8 months of age. He was teething, crawling and standing. He also loved putting things on his head. A sweet age...I already miss it!

Thanks for visiting!

How to pick cherries

2011-07-18T09:59:00.039-07:00

Last week, we went cherry picking at Casa Dell Mell, an orchard in Osoyoos, BC, where my family has been picking cherries for several years.

This was Baby Z's first visit as well as his daddy's so it was exciting for both of them.

Baby Z really enjoyed running around the orchard, picking fresh fruit right off the tree and eating it. When he wasn't trying to denude a cherry branch, he would find alternate methods to eat cherries.

Here are Baby Z's best tips.

Step 1: Find a stick and poke around the basket of cherries mommy and daddy have already gathered. Be thorough. Be sure to poke as many cherries as possible with that stick. Bury the stick beneath the cherries to hide any evidence of your interference. Plus, it gives mommy and daddy a great surprise later when they empty the box.

Step 2: Choose the largest, juiciest cherries. The juicier, the better, as the juice dripping from your mouth will create a dark, mostly permanent stain on your clothing.

Step 3: Bite into the cherry of choice. Savor each bite and enjoy every moment. Don't forget to spit out the pit. Repeat step one.

Thanks for stopping by!

Beach Bum

2011-07-16T08:22:00.020-07:00

Scrap That Baby! has the perfect challenge this month to celebrate summer - "Fun In The Sun"! Break out those photos of your little one frolicking on the beach, jumping through the sprinkler or whatever fun in the sum means to you.

I created a double-page layout for this challenge. A double-page layout is rare for me. For this layout, I used Daffodil Delight textured cardstock and the new Pocketful of Posies designer series paper.

There are a variety of elements on this page: AC Thickers & rub-ons, vellum stickers from long ago and ribbon in my stash.

A close up of the journalling. I am a huge fan of journalling strips and black gel pens. Someone asked me a while back how large and how long I cut the strips. The strips are about 1/2 inch wide and the length varies depending on the space I have.

A close up of the sparkly Thickers. I've had these around forever. The photographs are mounted in a new In Colour: Lucky Limeade. It's a fun, summery kind of green.

Thanks for visiting and be sure to join in this month's challenge at Scrap That Baby!

Scrap that Baby! delivers exciting scrapbooking prompts to encourage you to, well, scrap that baby! There are two challenges a month, along with tips, tutorials and prizes. Play along and get those baby pics scrapped for good.

Cousins

2011-07-15T08:51:00.015-07:00

Baby Z has cousins scattered all over the globe, but only two in Vancouver. His cousins, Claudia & Holle, are his technically his second cousins, but, in the grand scheme of things, it really doesn't matter. They love each other.

This layout features the new Stampin' Up! designer series paper and lots of stamping. I used the stamp set I {Heart} Hearts to create my own patterned paper with various colors of ink. I used Tangerine Tango textured cardstock as the layout base as well as pom-pom trim and oversize buttons, both of which have retired. (boo!)

Now, the children are older and get a thrill out of seeing each other. The girls love having a baby to play with and Baby Z loves the attention he gets from the two of them.

Thanks for stopping by!

365: Week 27

2011-07-13T23:50:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to get caught up with Project 365! Yay! I haven't been taking that many photographs lately.

Our goal this summer was to get out of the house more often and enjoy the city we live in. So, for at least one night a week, we pack a picnic dinner and head out to a park or a beach. Last week, we went to Jericho Beach for some warm, evening sun and a little play.

This little boy loves the sand and he loves throwing sand into the air. He's concentrating quite intensely, no doubt plotting a scheme to throw sand at something or someone.

So much sand, so little time. It was a great day.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Snapshots of last weekend

2011-07-11T09:41:00.001-07:00

Well, I'm a little behind on Project 365. A lot behind.

I thought I would share some photos of our Canada Day.

Our flag bearer. Waving and walking wildly.

Later that day, we went to the mall where Baby Z played in the playground. He had a blast running around and chuckling to himself.

He loves crawling under objects and through things.

Thanks for visiting.

Yee-Haw

2011-07-10T21:41:00.000-07:00

I am slowly getting through scrapping the pictures I took of our Hawaiian vacation. Very slow progress. I finished another layout last week with Baby Z on a mechanical horse that we found at the outlet mall.

I created this layout for a challenge where I had to use ribbons as patterned paper. Well, I have lots of ribbons in my stash. Spools and spools...as many crafters do.

Rather than use sticky strip or other double-sided adhesives, I chose an iron-on adhesive to adhere the ribbon to the paper. I am not a big fan of ironing, particularly ironing twice, but when laying down several ribbons at once, iron-on adhesive has its uses.

The rest of the layout is pretty simple. Journalling strips, island floral die cuts and a piece of patterned paper.

Thanks for looking.

O Canada!

2011-07-01T08:07:00.001-07:00

Last year, a 2 and a half month old Baby Z celebrated his first Canada Day. It took me a year to create a page about it.

Happy Canada Day!

Cards & Numbers

2011-06-29T10:45:00.016-07:00

When it comes to milestone birthdays, the milestone doesn't really hit you until it's announced on the front of the card.

Here are a couple of cards I made using the soon-to-retire On a Pedestal stamp set. I'm sad that this set is retiring. Love, love, love it!

"85" has a lot of retired or soon-to-be retired product on it like the Newsprint DSP, Sale-a-bration button and the masterpiece ribbon from a few years back.

"65" features the new Flirtatious DSP which will be available on July 1st as well as the Build A Cupcake punch which is available right now.

I'm so excited for all this new stuff, but sad to see favorites go.

Thanks for visiting today!

Snapshots of our weekend

2011-06-28T08:56:00.001-07:00

A birthday weekend to remember.

We celebrated my birthday with a short walk around Coal Harbour followed by dinner at Oru at the Fairmont Pacific Rim.

Although the sun was out, it hid behind some clouds and the weather became a bit chilly. This did not stop Baby Z from running around the grass in search of adventure.

Our sweet little boy with a big smile and lots of teeth.

Alas, his true personality emerges. Here he is in full scream - loud and glass shattering.

An attempt at the perfect family portrait. One of us wasn't playing along.

Orange chopsticks! Truly a perfect day.

Thanks for visiting!

On a roll tonight...

2011-06-27T22:44:00.000-07:00

Three posts in one evening! I'm on a roll. It's because I'm so in love with 365 cards challenges.

The final post for tonight is a "fan"tastic challenge which asks you to

Use one technique, one tool, and one embellishment that you are just crazy about on your card.

My technique: heat embossing
My tool: the heat gun
My embellishment(s): ribbon & pearls

Keeping the post short. Thanks for looking and visiting!

Just Peachy

2011-06-27T22:39:00.000-07:00

I created this card for 365 Cards Just Peach-y challenge which features the cute, chubby owls from the Animal Stories set. This set, along with the All Holidays set (where the happy birthday sentiment is from), will be retiring in just a few days.

The cardstock base is Peach Parfait, an in-color with just one more year of shelf life in the Stampin' Up! world. The chubby owls were inked up in Peach Parfait and cut out. I cut out some leaves using a Sizzix die and my Big Shot (necessary for all paper crafters!). The leaves were positioned and adhered to Whisper White cardstock; the owls were popped up with dimensionals.

The sentiment was heat embossed with white embossing powder onto Early Espresso cardstock.

These stamps sets will be going, going, gone on June 30th! Be sure to get your faves before they disappear.

Thanks for looking!

365 Cards: A Trio

2011-06-27T22:27:00.000-07:00

I'm just a week late with this card created for the 365 Tuesday Trio challenge. The challenge asks to use the following:

Beads, Floss, Stamped Image

I inked up a new stamp from a set that will be coming out on July 1st called "Snow Much Fun". I stamped the image onto watercolor paper and used markers and an aquapainter color it in.

Microbeads were added to give texture and the effect of snow. Because I didn't have floss, I used twine to finish off the card.

It's the end of June and I've already made one Christmas card! I'm on a roll!

Thanks for looking!

On my desk...

2011-06-21T21:49:00.019-07:00

Hello WOYWW! It's been a while.

The creativity has been absent, so there hasn't been much to show on my desk. Lately, I've been obsessed with bottlecaps...mainly bottlecap magnets.

I ordered 100 bottlecaps with no clear idea with what I was going to do with them. Other than magnets. Possibly pendants, but I'm not the type to wear a bottlecap around my neck. I think I will try my hand at selling some magnets this summer. We'll see.

Baby Z is 14 months old. It's hard to believe when I first linked up to WOYWW, Baby Z was only 2 months old! Where does time go? Now, he's plotting his great escape from his pram.

Thanks for visiting! Have a great week!

What’s On Your Workdesk Wednesday? Or WOYWW is a weekly blog hop hosted by Julia Dunnit at Stamping Ground. Join in and share your creative space, no matter what state it’s in.

Taking it easy

2011-06-20T23:49:00.000-07:00

Trying to get back into the groove of things...

The Stanley Cup Final is over and now it's time to enjoy summer.

Baby Z and I are trying to get out more and enjoy our neighbourhood. We have a great park nearby that's baby friendly. He is far more interested in the wood chip flooring than any of the playground equipment. At least, he was cooperative and wore his sunhat.

I received my new goodies the other day and I hope to have something (a card, layout?) to show you. I've talked about the lack of mojo before and I'm still in that funk. Let's hope new products will lift this lack of creative desire and get me crafting again!

Thanks for visiting!

Digital overlay by Karen Grunfeld.

Pitter Patter

2011-06-09T06:46:00.001-07:00

This cute little foot has been running all over the place. Cute toes. Soft soles. Sometimes, we pretend his feet are really stinky which ends up with lots of tickles, shrieks and giggles. Melts my heart everytime.

Oh, to be a baby...

Cake on a pedestal card

2011-06-08T07:20:00.025-07:00

I had time and a request to make a few birthday cards this week. I was so thrilled with the ease and the result that I'm going to make a stack of these cards in various colors!

This card uses the soon-to-be-retiring stamp set, On A Pedestal. This was one of the first sets I purchased out of the 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! catalogue. I'm sad to see it go as I've used this set quite a bit.

The sentiment was colored with various markers. Both the pedestal and the sentiment were aligned using the Stamp-a-ma-jig ~ a must have tool for wooden stamps! The cake and candle were punched out with the Build a Cupcake punch. A scallop border, ribbon and a button were added on the side for interest. A little bit of bling on the cake to give it some glam.

Want this set? Buy it now before it's gone! Contact me (daisyfleurs @ hotmail dot com) for details.

Thanks for dropping by!

Weekend Round-up

2011-06-07T06:04:00.004-07:00

Besides watching Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final, we actually went out and enjoyed the beautiful weather this past weekend.

Here's a look at some of our adventures. Hoping to put these photos into a layout...soon.

Baby Z is picking up steam and starting to run. He loves running up and down our hallway.

Poking his head out of a wooden cut out. We spent Sunday afternoon at the Vancouver Children's Festival.

Classic nose-picking.

Peering into each cut-out and looking for a surprise. It's one of his favorite games.

"Peek-a-boo! It's Mommy!"

"Hey, where's Daddy?"

One of the best views of the city.

Thanks for stopping by!

365: Week - I've lost count

2011-06-05T07:53:00.015-07:00

It's been a while since I've done a Project 365 update! I have been really good about keeping up with the photography portion of the project, just not the journalling.

Here's a look at what happened in May.

A blurry photo of some happy Vancouver Canuck fans.

Baby Z discovers the pleasures of playing outside.

13-month old baby toes.

My sister's dragon boat team. Looks like hard work.

A sweet snooze. He's been very good at naps lately. Yay!

"Awww...Mommy...stop taking my picture!"

Thanks for visiting!

Go Canucks Go!

2011-06-04T07:01:00.016-07:00

It's Game 2 of the Stanley Cup finals tonight at 5 PM PST. We are wearing our jerseys and Canucks apparel all day today...even Baby Z. Can you tell I'm excited!?!

I took some time to finally put together a layout about watching the season opener back in October. Baby Z was only 6 months old at the time. He sure looks different.

Journalling: Season opener. 40 years of the Canucks. Z's first NHL game. Jon's 40th birthday. The Canucks lost. We still partied!

Supplies: All Stampin' Up! except for
Patterned Paper: Scenic Route
Letters: Quickutz Die Cuts

Thanks for looking! Go Canucks Go!

Play On

2011-06-02T06:41:00.028-07:00

"Clang! Clang! Bang! Bang!" The sounds of Baby Z and his little fingers on the piano.

This month's first challenge at Scrap that Baby! is to create a layout about your baby's favorite toy.

Baby Z loves the piano. He scurries over the second he hears someone sitting down on the bench and demands to be picked up so that he can play too. My little Mozart can't play anything that's remotely like music, but he hums along to his own tune, which is like music to this proud mama!

Be sure to visit Scrap that Baby! and upload your layout for a chance to win a fabulous prize from our sponsors.

Supplies:
All supplies: Stampin' Up!
Except ~ Border punch: Fiskars; Die-cut letters: Quickutz

Thanks for looking!

In the Name of Love

2011-05-20T19:03:00.014-07:00

I finally got around to scrapping those photos I took in December of Baby Z looking at a row of stop signs.

A border created using Stampin' Up!'s Decorative Label Punch:

I cut the punched pieces in half and glued them side-by-side to create the border.

A close-up of the various letter stickers and die-cut used to create the title. It's always nice to use up all those stickers.

Thanks for looking!

Basket Boy

2011-05-19T06:45:00.036-07:00

Yay! I made a layout! About Baby Z, of course.

While this layout was not created for any particular challenge, I'd like to share some techniques with you.

A close up of the left-hand side:

I create a stamped border on the right-hand side with a clear word stamp. The stamp was inked in Versamark and stamped along the side lining up the phrase as I stamped (mostly eyeballing). The stamped image was heat embossed with red embossing powder.

I punched out some circles in various sizes as well as a few glitter hearts. Yes, I'm still hoarding that glimmer paper.

The Story: We found that keeping our soon-to-be mobile little boy in a laundry basket kept him entertained for quite a long time. He loved it in there and looked for ways to make a great escape.

Supplies:
Textured cardstock: Stampin' Up!
Patterned paper: Stampin' Up!, Becky Higgins Project Life
Stamps: Stampin' Up!, Technique Tuesday

Thanks for looking!

On my desk...

2011-05-17T22:35:00.000-07:00

It's been quite a while since I've played along with WOYWW. I've missed you! I'm back to full-time work, so my crafting has been sporadic lately.

A glimpse of the neater parts of my desk:

A mess of stamps, punches and scraps o' paper. I was planning a workshop the other day and this was the aftermath of my creativity.

My 13-month old Baby Z.

A big boy with a new haircut. He fell asleep in his high chair during lunch! The photos were taken two minutes apart. Hilarious!

Off to be creative...or at least try.

Thanks for visiting!

What’s On Your Workdesk Wednesday? Or WOYWW is a weekly blog hop hosted by Julia Dunnit at Stamping Ground. Join in and share your creative space, no matter what state it’s in.

At the PNE

2011-05-16T22:44:00.000-07:00

This month's second challenge at Scrap that Baby! is all about your baby's day out. I chose to create a layout about Baby Z's 1st adventure at the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) - a Vancouver tradition.

The story: It was a hot August day in Vancouver and a perfect day to go to the PNE. Baby Z was only 4 and a half months old. We played games and ate so much food!

The method: For this layout, I kept it fast and simple. I printed the photos as 3x2's which allowed me to print two photos on one 4x6. I cut them out and laid them onto the cardstock with no particular pattern in mind. On the left side, I added a strip of Certainly Celery seam binding and on the right side, I stamped a repeating tree pattern with the large bushy tree from the Pendant Park set.
I cut out the letters using the Big Shot and a Quickutz alpha die set. Journalling strips were sponged and glued to the layout.

Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to check out Scrap That Baby! and visit our exciting sponsor!

Bottle Cap Magnets

2011-05-11T06:03:00.039-07:00

My new obsession...because it's so easy.

I have quite a few bottle cap magnets stuck to metal surfaces around my house. I found that this was a great craft to use up scraps of patterned paper, buttons and ribbons.

Here's what you do:

1. Get some bottle caps. I got my bottle caps from drinking "soda pop". :)

Be sure to clean them and remove the liner. Linerless bottle caps are available online from various retailers.

2. Grab your one-inch punch and punch out images from patterned paper or photographs.

If you are using photographs, I would recommend punching out the images from the index prints, if your photo developer provides one.

3. Arrange and adhere the patterned paper and other small objects inside the bottle cap. I used a button and punched out a heart. Decorate the outer rim of the bottle cap with ribbon or whatever your heart desires.

Allow the paper and/or objects to dry completely before proceeding to the next step.

4. Squeeze a generous amount of Crystal Effects into the bottle cap. Squeeze slowly and gently to avoid any air bubbles. Ensure that the Crystal Effects liquid covers the entire surface of your paper or object.

Leave the bottle caps to dry overnight on a flat surface.

5. From a magnet sheet, punch out one-inch circles. Adhere these circles to the backs of the bottle caps.

6. You're done! Stick these cute babies all over your refrigerator or on a magnet board.

These magnets make great crafts projects for older children or party favors. There are endless possibilties!

Thanks for visiting!

Mother's Day Charm bracelet

2011-05-09T06:02:00.001-07:00

Stampin' Up! has this very beautiful collection of charms and chains called Simply Adorned. Until recently, I never thought much about jewelery, but I am sooo in love with this collection.

For my charm bracelet, I started with the following charms:

And I created my own charm using the crochet flowers. I dyed the flowers with the Pumpkin Pie re-inker and attached the flower to the bracelet with a large rhinestone brad.

The 5/8" charm comes with an insert to help you size your photo or patterned paper. On one side of the charm, I cut up a piece of Newsprint DSP and punched a small heart out of glimmer paper.

On the other side, a picture of me and Baby Z, of course. :)

Thanks for visiting!

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T07:28:00.005-07:00

To mothers everywhere...Happy Mother's Day! Enjoy your day.

To my mother & mother-in-law: I get it. Thanks for all you do.

Check out Baby Z's haircut. He's a big boy now!

Thanks for visiting.

Cupcake & a cherry too

2011-05-06T11:09:00.007-07:00

A quick card and a special one too.

It's for a dear friend who is celebrating her birthday this month.

The colors are waaaay off on this picture, but I used Cherry Cobbler again, the Create a Cupcake stamp set and coordinating punch to pull off this card. I also parted with some more of that yummy glimmer paper and punched out a whole lotta cherries with it.

Alas, this stamp set and punch are in the Occasions mini catalogue which retired at the end of April. There's the new summer mini catalogue out, but I've yet to crack that one open.

I'm hoping that I will get more time...but I think that's what all women hope for and need...more time. ;)

Have a great day! Thanks for visiting!

Building blossoms

2011-05-04T21:10:00.000-07:00

So, I'm a little late on using the Build a Blossom punch. The Occasions mini has expired.

I needed a bridal shower card last weekend and I needed one fast! I don't have any wedding themed stamps or sentiments, but I sure do have a lot of stamps that would do in a pinch.

The neglected Build a Blossom stamp set and punch made its way onto paper.

I used Cherry Cobbler as the base of the card and for the ink; Certainly Celery for the leaves and the ribbon. The patterned paper is a mish-mash of paper stash starting with Newsprint DSP from Stampin' Up! and remnants from Scenic Route.

I love the colors. At first, I thought it might come out Christmasy, but it looks spring-like chic to me.

Thanks for stopping by and looking!

Crafting with a 12-month old

2011-05-02T21:54:00.000-07:00

I have been MIA lately for a number of reasons.

It's the NHL Playoff season and my team ~ the Vancouver Canucks ~ are still in the thick of things.
It's tax season and that's just plain yucky.
I've returned to my day job which leaves me exhausted at night. Thus, no scrapping or posting.
I have an EXTREME lack of mojo. None at all.

So, until I can find some energy and create again, I will show you what happens when a 12-month old decides to craft with mommy:

DISASTER! CHAOS! MESS! Although the process was fun, getting the paint of that wriggly body was not. Baby Z had a blast, of course.

Thanks for visiting.

Go, Canucks Go!

2011-04-21T10:11:00.005-07:00

We believe!

Baby Z has been a Vancouver Canucks fan before he was born....

and he'll be a fan forever!

Go, Canucks go!

Sitting Up

2011-04-17T21:23:00.001-07:00

Sketches in Thyme is looking for new design team members and I thought I would throw myself into the mix. This is the sketch that all potential DT members must use to create a new layout.

My take:

I kept this layout pretty simple using a few patterned paper pieces and embellishments. I found a piece of red raffia ribbon in my stash. After seeing so many layouts using twine lately, I decided to tie the ribbon in the same fashion, but a little looser. I glued portions of the ribbon down so that it wouldn't slip off the layout.

The story: At six months, Baby Z mastered sitting up. I took one picture of him without the pillows surrounding him and he was quite proud of himself!

Supplies:
Stickers: Basic Grey
Raffia ribbon: unknown (from my stash)
All other supplies ~ Stampin' Up!

Thanks for looking!