Some Oldies, But Goodies!

Hello, and Happy Sunday to one and all!  Not all too excited that tomorrow is already Monday, but it is what it is, and I may as well enjoy the rest of this day off!

 

So today, I thought I would break out some oldies (well not too old, just not too recent either) that have previously been published to share with you all.  I know that not everyone subscribes to the magazines and may not have the opportunity to flip through them on a monthly basis either, so I wanted to show some of the things I've created which you all may not have seen before. 

 

These are all from last years Summer issues of Cricut magazine.  The following "Best Wishes" tag and envelope card from the May 2012 issue really turned out beautifully I thought. 

 

This is the envelope, which  I wanted to be just as fancy as the inside tag.  I cut both the envelope and the tag using the Cricut Damask cartridge.  You will see in the next photo that I cut out a tag with an intricate damask design.  But, I then used a portion of the leftover intricate pieces as a mask for the outside of the envelope.  This was sprayed with a teal Glimmer Mist.  I really like using negatives from Cricut cuts as masks for my projects... definitely a favorite technique!  

 

 

The patterned papers that I used for this are from Glitz Design and all that gorgeous ribbon and trim is May Arts! The black crinkled silk ribbon adds just the right amount of elegance!   

 

Here's a look as well at the reverse side of the tag...

 

This last card features some My Mind's Eye papers and I must say, I loved the way this card turned out so much that I'm not sure I can even give this friendship card to anyone.  I think I may just frame it and keep it for myself!

 

 

This card was published in the July 2012 issue and the cuts for this card came from the Give A Hoot Cricut cartridge.  I'll tell ya, the combination of the yummy plaid paper with the Core'dinations Vintage cardstock just makes me squeal, lol! 

 

Here's another close-up of the detail...

 

 

Remember you can always click on the photos to view them larger!  This card really packs the layers and texture that I love :)

 

Okay... I guess that it all I have to show you today.  I also want to tell you to head on over to the May Arts blog this week.  Tomorrow, Monday, July 15th will be the kick off to them sharing all the Design Team finalists' projects.  I'm so excited... and eager to see if I'll be one of the new May Arts Prima Ribbonistas!  The announcement and revealing of the new DT will be made on July 29th!!  I am so nervous, so please keep your fingers crossed for me... THANKS! 

Happy New Year... With a Recap of My Top Ten Layouts of 2011!

Happy New Year 2012!  I do hope everyone had a terrific and memorable holiday season!  We had a very nice and low-key  New Year celebration ourselves... did some fun outlet shopping and enjoyed eating a delicious meal at one of our latest favorite restaurants, Texas Roadhouse.  And of course we couldn't help but join in with the countdown to the ball drop in Times Square!  But, I have to say, I am really looking forward to getting back to some normal routines and schedules around here!  And I have missed scrapping and crafting.  Sure, I did squeeze in some bits of time in between all the hustle and bustle, but I am ready to get down to some serious business, lol!  I guess that first means I need to clean up my craft room which is a total wreck!  Here's proof...

Such a disaster!  I can't possibly create til it's back to order.  So this week I will be doing some major organizing and purging. 

  So, does anyone have any scrappy or crafty goals for the year ahead?  I know I was completely blessed in 2011 by reaching some awesome publication goals!  The most awesome aspect as far as the publications was that I had projects featured in every single issue of Northridge's Cricut magazine which debuted this past February.  I'm also excited that I will also have projects featured in all the upcoming 2012 issues thus as well!  And of course the number one crafty thing that excited me for 2011 was that I joined the Core'dinations Cardstock DT.  What a great and rewarding ride that has been.  I must say that I will make it my primary goal to continue on with Core'dinations for a very long time... I love and believe in this company and their products sooo much! Core cardstock has totally improved the look and the way I craft!  And, as far as other fun goals to aim for... I sure wouldn't mind being featured as a cover girl!  I really would be stoked to have a project of mine featured on the cover of a Cricut magazine!  Wow, what a thrill that would be for me :)

 For today I also  want to join the other blogger scrappers who have shared their Top Ten layouts of the past year, 2011 on their blogs!  I wanted to do this the previous year but never did, so I thought I would get it done this time around.  As I was looking back through my files though, I realize that I probably didn't do as many pages this past year as I did cards.  The card making bug had really hit me pretty hard, lol.  Also, various pages which I would have loved to share as favorites have been out for publication too, which is a good thing, but I just can't show here right now. 

Okay, so here goes... my Top Ten Fave pages for 2011 are...

* TIS THE SEASON *

- Using Webster's Pages and featuring Gemstones Core'dinations cardstock.

* EAGER BEAVER GROUNDHOG *

- Nikki Sivils product with a mix of Core'dinations cardstock.

* VALENTINE MANTLE DECOR *

- A hybrid page using Chris Hertel designs and lots of Cricut cuts.

* LOVE INSPIRATIONAL & UNCONDITIONAL *

- My Mind's Eye product with MME and Vintage Core'dinations cardstock.

* OUR WEE PUNKINS' *

- No cardstock, mix of My Mind's Eye collections.

* SUMMER BLOOMS! *

- My Little Shoebox product with Core'dinations Whitewash cardstock.

* LIVING PROOF *

- Basic Grey Out of Print collection with BG Whimsy and Ornate Core'dinations collections.

* ENJOYING TALL TIMBERS *

- Pink Paislee Nantucket collection with Pink Paislee Modern Prints Core'diantions collection.

* TOGETHER *

- Basic Grey Nordic Holiday with BG Ornate Core'dinations cardstock.

* WINTER WONDERLAND*

- Basic Grey Nordic Holiday collection with a mix of Core featuring Glitter Silk and Vintage.

That's it!  Now I just maybe inspired to share my Top Ten cards of 2011... in some other post!  Enjoy the rest of the week... I'm already looking forward to Friday!

Saturdays are Great Days!

Yes, Saturdays are wonderful days for lots of reasons, but NOT for snow and especially not snow in October!  How disappointing!  I thoroughly love my Fall wheather every year and I enjoy October in all it's wonderful Autumn splendor, but snow does not belong in the category of "Autumn  splendor"... at least not for me!  But, it is what it is, and I guess we just have to deal, lol!

However, like I said, Saturdays are great days, and today, well... today is a great one to stay home inside all curled up cozy on the couch enjoying one of the last days of October... watching AMC's Fear Fest on the telly!  It's also a wonderful day to bake some Chocolate Chip Pumpkin muffins and to finish up some crafty assignments with my Core'dinations cardstock and Cricut! And it's also a great time to finally catch up my blog posting with some previous magazine publications I've had!  So, for today I'll share with you various cards that I had showcased in the Cricut magazine's "Cards" issue...

 

My first card uses the fun martini Cricut cut on "From My Kitchen" and some of my favorite Summer Soiree papers from Fancy Pants. 

Second card is a heart shaped card from "Wild Card" and I used Basic Grey's Green at Heart collection... I love the turtle stickers that I Cuttlebug embossed!

Then I had one of my favorite cards featured!  I love this one because I used different cuts to make and form a totally new image.  For this one I combined a birdcage cut from the "Straight From the Nest" cart along with a flower pot cut to create a hot air balloon! 

This card uses the "Dad's Day" phrase from the "Designer's Calendar" cart.  I love the textures displayed on this one from the Green Vintage Core base and the shape cut from Prima screen-printed canvas! The Basic Grey Marjolaine collection was also used.

Next up is a card using some fun Core Amour Collection in Onyx (Darling print).  Other patterned papers are by BoBunny and Cricut cuts from "Lyrical Letters" and "Straight From the Nest".

And last, a wedding card featuring cuts from "Stamping Solutions", "StoryBook" and "Wild Card", along with papers by GCD Studios. 

And that's a wrap!  Okay, it's back to enjoying the rest of my wonderful, but snowy Saturday!  I hope everyone else enjoys their day as well!  

On the BasicGrey Blog Today!

Gosh I am busy today!  I had to put in a day at work and now that I'm home I'm flittering all around the house trying to be an over-achieving mutli-tasker, lol!  I'm trying to vacuum the floors and do some dusting so I can finally start putting out all the Fall decorations.  This could all be put off til the weekend, but truth be told, I just can't wait! Then I'm also working fast and furious on a Cricut project that I started earlier in the week.  I'd like to finish it up tonight to submit it to the latest Cricut magazine call which of course ends tonight.  And on top of that I need to start dinner and of course I HAD to come make a blog post too... not sure how well I'm pulling it all off! 

But onto the purpose of the blog post!  Today there are two neat things being shared over on the BasicGrey blog!  First of all, if you didn't already know, Core'dinations has partnered up with BasicGrey to bring some beautifully embossed cardstock designs, and if you go over to the BG blog, check them out and comment, you could be one of the two lucky winners to receive one of their 2 collection packs (Whimsy and Ornate) being sponsered by Core!   AND second, while you are there you can check out my layout which is featured  to show you how these two collections coordinate so well with one another and the BG collections!  And I'm just going to share my page here too because I also have some detail pix!  Now hurry, and get over to comment because there's not much time... deadline is midnight tonight, Sept. 14th!  Good luck!

SUPPLIES : [OUT OF PRINT] OUT-3327 Odds ‘n Ends, OUT-3315 Reprint, OUT-3316 Etchings, [BITTERSWEET] MET-1554 Glazed Brads, [MARJOLAINE] MRJ-2929 Sticker Alphabet.

BasicGrey Ornate Collection Core Impressions in both Antique Vanity and Aegan Cornbread, BasicGrey Whimsy collection Core Impressions with Simon Black Magic, Core’dinations Core Essentials, Cindy Loo Cricut cartridge.

Already August!

The months sure are flying by... especially these Summer months!  Can't believe it is already the beginning of August, but I'm not complaining of course because that only means my favorite time and season of the year is almost in sight!  I'm already starting to enjoy the Fall scents in the house... I can't resist, lol.  Over the weekend I was in Wal-Mart and ended up in the candle aisle (no surprise there).  They had a new item from their Better Homes collection, Scented Wax Cubes... their version of the Scentsy warmer bars! I guess they had them in the stores last Christmas season, but I missed them some how, and other Wal-Mart stores have carried them for months now, but it's the first I've seen them here at our closest WM. Let me just say they smell just as great and are much cheaper at $2.00 each! I got the Vanilla Caramel Spice to try and I'm in scent heaven because it makes the house smell just like Cinnabon!  Seriously, I keep getting cravings for sticky buns now :)  Yep, I will be stocking up on these, and they (Wal-Mart) better not go and discontinue these anytime soon like they did when I was in love with buying their wall plug-in scents they used to have that were like the Bath and Body Wall Flowers!

Since it is August now, I thought today I would show some of my past publications that were in the June/July issue of Cricut magazine.

 You know I love my Cricut and I love to share what I do with it... and I also can not say enough about the Cricut magazine!  It is my favorite publication and I can happily relay that I've had and will have some of my work featured in every single issue (regular and special issues) since the magazine has been in publication up to and through the January 2012 issue.  That's very exciting for me! 

Anyway, here's a look at what all I had featured in this particular issue (their final bimonthly, because starting with the August issue they are now MONTHLY)...

My "Lazy Days" card featured the Life is a Beach Cricut cart and the Echo Park's Sweet Summertime collection.

This next layout, I used BoBunny papers and cardstock along with a combination of the Don Juan,Stand and Salute and Wild Card cartridges to create the layered title words and stars...

(Don't forget you may click on the images to view them larger!)

And here's a layout where I got creative with embossing the diecuts... aren't those cute crabbies?

The Life is a Beach and From My Kitchen carts were used for this along with Kaiser papers.  The bottom border was created by using the negative cuts of the crab border to mask and mist with Glimmer Mist spray.

I do also have 2 more cards and another 1 page layout that were published in this issue as well, but I have seemed to lost my images on the computer, so I can't share those, but maybe later. 

For now though, I am about to go get busy in the kitchen.  I have been wanting to try to make those super yummy looking cake ball truffles that are all the rage now in the world of sugary confections!  Have you seen them?  If not, this is what I am talkin' about...

And, here's a recipe! They are really dense and truffle-like because you actually fold the frosting into the already baked cake pieces, making it both dense and moist.  You really can use your imagination and do any flavors or combination of flavors you'd like!  I just went and bought some candy melts today and I'm going to first try making some lemon cake truffles with cream cheese frosting, because that's all I have here at home right now.  I'm going to coat them with both white and dark chocolate though.  Ohh, you all... I just can't wait anymore, so I'm off... but I'll be sure to let you all know how they look and taste! :)   Good day everyone!

Soooo Hot!

I feel like I am wilting, it is so humid and icky!  I've had a bad headache all day and this heat just isn't helping, argh!! Where is my favorite time of the year already?  I'm ready for October, lol!

So I know I haven't blogged again in over a week, and my buddy Ellen had to give me the nudge to let me know.  What can I say, this summer heat really slows me down, and also since I've been working at the preschool these past months, I require more naps too.  I really do, and I did just that today!  I came home and settled down on the couch for a snooze for a good two hours :)

Did you happen to visit the Core'dinations blog or facebook page recently?  Well, if you haven't you really should because there is always a lot of inspiring work being posted that you really don't want to miss out on.  Fun challenges and giveaways happening too... like this one...

It’s June 1st. Let’s kick of this month with a fun CHALLENGE!

What do you think?

We just loved this technique that Melissa Oliveira shared with us yesterday on the blog that we wanted to extend the invitation to try it to YOU!

Journaling is such an important part of a scrapbookers journey to preserve memories and tell stories.

SO for this challenge….we want to see your Journaling. It doesn’t have to be this specific technique…you can journal any way you choose.

But for this challenge there are a few things you must do:

1) JOURNAL

2.) Use Core’dinations Cardstock (it must be a visible component of the layout).

3.) Link your project to THIS blog post or post it on our Facebook page. Make sure you “like” us, too!

4.) Show off a cool Core technique and we will throw in an additional chance to win!

The rest is up to you!

And how could I forget??? Of Course a random Winner will win some CORE’DINATIONS CARDSTOCK!

                     Deadline for this challenge is two weeks…June 15th by midnight PST.

Some fun news!  This past weekend I was pleasantly surprised to open my email inbox and have it full of publication requests.  I got a total of 11 projects requested... 7 things for the Cricut Holidays Idea Book, 2 for Cricut Nov. 2011, 1 card for CARDS Nov. 2011 and my first project with Simply Handmade! 

And before I leave ya, I'll share with you a

birthday card that I submited for publication which didn't get selected.  I love this one, and I created it for a little girls birthday...

Of course I used my Cricut!  Here I used the Straight From the Nest cart (again, one of my faves) to cut the cupcake border and party hat. 

The paper collection is Cosmo Cricket's Togetherness. 

And here's another card I made not too long ago also with the Togetherness collection...

I just love the lil' bead accents from Recollections that I added as rain droplets coming from the clouds!

Thanks for checking in with me, and please don't forget about the challenge over at Core'dinations... you still have until the 15th to get yours submitted!   Have a great weekend!

A Sketch At Nikki Sivils!

Howdy!  Hope everyone's had an enjoyable weekend.  Hard to believe it's about wrapped up... those Sunday evenings sure do come around quickly when you don't want them to, lol! 

I had big intentions of doing a lot of scrapping this weekend, but somehow those intentions didn't amount to much at all between catching up on the loads of laundry, sweeping the floors and cleaning out closets.  The Nook was having their May virtual crop all weekend long and they had 29 challenges listed.  I really had hoped to do many of them... I wrote them all down too and was thinking about which challenges to attack first.  In reality though, I was only able to produce one layout for the #12 challenge to "Go Wild About Animals".  At least I did finally get these pix scrapped from last summer when we had a little thief amongst us... a sneaky groundhog who kept burrowing it's way into our garden to feast upon our veggies.  For this page, I used some of the adorable Beatrice papers from Nikki Sivils and also used the sketch from the Nikki Sivils blog to try to earn a Guest Design Team spot. 

And here's the sketch...

I also used a variety of Core'dinations cardstock here and the Paper Lace and Sweethearts Cricut cartridges. 

Okay, that's it... that's all I got done, so it's all I've got to share for this time.  Ohh, I almost forgot though, I also wanted to share that I had some fun scrappy happy emails this past week as well... I had one card requested for the Oct. CARDS issue as well as four other projects picked up for the Oct. issue of Cricut, so of course those really made my week super exciting!  And did you know that the Cricut magazine has gone monthly now instead of bi-monthly?!  I'm really stoked about that! 

Well, I do need to be on my way... Monday morning will be here before I want it to and I've got to go to work.  It is nice to be working outside of the home part-time again, but I don't think I can ever get used to and enjoy the Monday morning routines!  Hope everyone has a great week :)

Lazy Saturday!

It is a very beautiful Saturday, and here I sit!  I am absolutely lazy... have not done a thing but flip the stupid remote.  I don't know what's wrong but I just can't find my motivation plus I'm sad because today is Knoebel's opening day, and since the dh is working, that means we aren't there :(  What a perfect day it would be for a day at the park! 

So since I have no urge for housework, I thought I'd at least squeeze in a blog post!  How bout' a look at some recent publications?  First up, I had 3 layouts and a card in the April/May issue of Cricut magazine. 

Once more, I can not stress enough how awesome the Cricut mags are!  Absolutely my favorite publication now.   And since Mother's Day is just days away, I can show a card that I made for my mom which is in this magazine...

For this card I used the cute button frame which can be found on the Cricut Wild Card cartridge.  It worked perfect with the sewing theme!

I also had a few pages in the issue, including this fun page of a photo I snapped of my crazy niece hugging a tree.

This one is of me doing one of my favorite Springtime activities... hanging out my laundry!  I used the Straight From the Nest cartridge to create the clothesline and to show that you can easily mix your Cricut diecuts with various company product lines as I have done here with the clothesline to match up with the American Crafts Dear Lizzy collection.

And my last published item in the issue is the first 2 pager I've had published!  This one was for their banners section and I used all Bella Blvd. for this layout, and once again, the Straight From the Nest cartridge. 

For some reason, blogger is not allowing me to change the sizes of my pix on here at the moment, so hopefully you can just click on a picture to view it larger.  This 2 pager has a ton of fun details... esp. with the banner.

 

And one more publication to share... a card that I had published in the March 2011 issue of CARDS. 

The butterflies used on this card I had cut from a roll of printed kraft paper wrap...

And the other "ingredients" came from one of the Yellow Bag kits from For The Luv of Art.com!

 

Okay... that's all of my projects for now.

Before I go though, just wanted to share one more thing that's near and dear to my heart.  As most of you know, I am a mommy to 3 beautiful Heavenly angels whom I'd give anything to just be able to mother them here on Earth.  Mother's Day is coming up shortly, and although I enjoy celebrating that day with my own mom, I still can't help but to feel let down, disappointed and hurt that I do not have my children here with me on that special day (and EVERY day).  Even though in my heart I know I am a mother, it's often very difficult to "feel" like a mother.   All mother's who have experienced their own loss feel this way to some degree and that is why International Babylost Mothers Day was established.  This day is celebrated tomorrow, Sunday, May 1st.  Please, if you have a close friend or family member who is missing their child, don't forget that even though their child is not here with them, they  still deserve to be a celebrated mother!

If you know of a mother who holds her baby in her heart and not in her arms, let her know you are thinking of her that day. "United in grief, we find love and strength"!