Stamp Act

Happy BOO to YOU!!!

I have wanted Booglie Eyes for quite some time and bought it recently but hadn't had a chance to use it!    When I saw the sketch challenge at SCS on Wednesday, I immediately thought of this set and my scraps of old KI Memories Halloween paper.  I also used the coordinating KI Memories glitter brads, striped paper clip and star jewels.  The miscellaneous ribbon I used was Oriental Trading and Jacksonbelle Embellishments. 

The base of the card is Pumpkin Pie and then a mat of Basic Black with the decorative KI Memories papers.  I used my coluzzle to cut out the witch and mounted her on a punched piece of decorative paper from my scalloped circle.  I colored her with SU! markers and then used purple, orange and yellow Stickles for lots of shine!  I used the large tag punch to punch out the Happy Boo and then added extra DP on the bottom.  I matted the tag on Basic Black CS.  The stars, striped paper clip and orange glitter brad are from KI Memories as well.  I glued the bows on with good ole Elmer's glue!  I think that is about it.  It was a very simple card which works great for me these days!!!  Thanks for looking!

~Lynda

What a Week.....

I am not going to say "what else could go wrong" because when you do that ~ something else goes wrong!!!  We recovered from my flat tire, burning the house down, killing the dog, getting my kid to the Dr. and begging them to get him in because I had had a rough day only to hear that they aren't sure what is wrong with him, day....  Today my husband's car broke down and we had to have it towed.  We really can't complain though because it does have 230+ thousand miles.   

Well, enough of the unimportant things ~ I have a couple of cards to share with you!  The first one I had done last weekend and just hadn't had a chance to post!  I have to first tell you that the "inspiration" for this card was from Mytime ~ Lauren Meader's SCS gallery.  OK, OK, so it wasn't just "inspired", it probably is more close to a CASE!!!!  Her's is beautiful so be sure to check it out!

This was a super easy card and I intend to make more.  It is really pretty IRL.  I am going to order the Blue Bayou double stitched ribbon as it would add more color than the wide white organdy ribbon I used.  I added a little bit of Soft Sky double stitched ribbon.  The base of the card is Whisper White.
The stamp set used is Season of Joy and boy is it pretty.  I know I will use this one a lot!~  I stamped the words using Soft Sky and then stamped the tree just over the exclamation point using Blue Bayou ink.  The swirls were stamped twice (offset) using Soft Sky at the base of the tree.

I added Dazzling Diamonds glitter with a 2-way glue pen on the swirls , star at the top of the tree and the snowflake in JOY.

Speaking of Lauren, the following card was made based on her Saturday sketch #11 on her blog HERE.
I needed a sympathy card for a friend who recently lost her grandmother.

The card base is Chocolate Chip, with a mat of Regal Rose.  On the Regal Rose mat I first stamped my floral background in Rose Red and then on top of that I stamped French Script with Basic Brown ink.  I sponged around the entire card with Basic Brown ink.  The brown mat that has the Antique Brass photo corners is Basic Grey from their Mellow line.  The mat under the flowers is Rose Red stamped with my Sanded BG stamp and Basic Brown ink again.  I sponged this piece as well.  The flowers from Natural Beauty were stamped on Whisper White with Basic Brown ink.  I cut an oval out of a scrap piece of paper from my Coluzzle and then placed it over the top of the flowers and sponged around it with Basic Brown and Rose Red ink.  I colored the flowers with my watercolor crayons and added clear micro beads to the centers of the flowers to add a little dimension.  I used Crystal Effects to glue them down.  The green ribbon is from the Theatre Ribbon Originals.  That's pretty much it.  Not a real exciting card but I wanted to get it out today!  Thanks so much for looking!

~Lynda

RAK Request for Maddy Mason

Hi Everybody!
I got a couple cards done today I would like to share with you.  First, I want to give some information on the first card.  Maddy Mason is a fellow SCS stamper.  I don't know Maddy but I have seen that she has left comments on my cards in my SCS gallery which is so encouraging AND appreciated!  She takes the time to make others feel good which is really nice, as we all know!  Anyway, if you have time, check out her gallery HERE.  She has been diagnosed with Breast Cancer.  She is going through lots of tests and seeing lots of doctors so Cindy ~ AKA Mothermark ~ has asked for anyone interested to send Maddy a card.  Cindy has gone into more detail HERE , so if you have time, contact Cindy for Maddy's address and send her a card.  It will make HER day like she has done for so many others!  Here is the card I am going to send her but I must tell you that the layout was inspired (darn near CASED) by Dana's beautiful card HERE.

The base card is dark brown Bazzill CS and is a 5 1/4" square.  The decorative paper is Basic Grey's new Mellow line.  I thought the clouds were beautiful!!!  The stamp set is SU! Garden Collage, the brown ribbon is SU! ~ Theatre Ribbon Originals.  I used mustard prima flowers on the bird collage and used SU! red jeweled brads to hold the flowers in place.  I used my crayons and a blender pen to color the image.  I sponged the edges with Basic Brown (I used watercolor paper this & Basic Brown ink) and Real Red.  I punched the decorative square from the brown Basic Grey Mellow paper and wrapped silver cord on 2 of the edges.  I used dimensionals to mount the bird piece as well as the cloud piece.

I am also going to send some thank you notes to Maddy because I am sure she could use them but probably hasn't felt much like stamping lately....  this is the card ~

Do you feel like you have seen this card before????  Well sure you have!  I just changed the colors!!!  These colors are the color challenge today on SCS.  The colors to use are Purely Pomegranate, Pretty in Pink and Old Olive.  The base card is Whisper White.  I colored the bee with my markers and Purely Pomegranate ink and blender pen.  A couple of the flowers I left white and added Ice Stickles for bling.  I also added yellow stickles on the wings.  The sun wasn't cooperating when I took the picture! 

The background on the Pretty In Pink CS is embossed using my Cuttlebug!  Oh I love my CB!!!!  I want to get the snowflake embossing folder but our AC Moore never has it!!!  I am not sure the brand of the pink polka dot dp ~ it is OLD!!!  I used my scallop scissors to do scallops along the edges.  The ribbon is narrow white organdy. 

I have another card to share but will have to post it later.... 

I had the worst afternoon!!!!  I went to pickup my kids from school and as I am halfway up I-95 I realized that I had left the Sculpey clay things my kids had made and I PROMISED my daughter that I would bake them, in the oven.  My heart sunk.  My dog was in the house and all I could see was smoke (toxic no-less) filling my house,  he is dead when I get home and my pictures and scrapbooks are ruined, etc.....  I went all the way to my kids school exit, turned around and headed home.  I was going 75 MPH because I needed to get home ~ air out the house  and get back to school because my son had a Dr's appt. at 3:30.  I was halfway down 95 and my tire EXPLODED!  Oh my gosh, you know how you see the rubber from tires laying on the side of the road?  Wow, mine did that but didn't come off.  I was lucky enough to get to keep it but it blew out on both sides.  When I called my husband to tell him what happened and that I left the oven on (I held the phone away from my ear at this point because I knew he was going to yell!! LOL).  He didn't yell but did explain that the oven would not catch on fire because it was not high enough.  There could be smoke but it would not catch on fire (I received a physics lesson this evening and was told I should read Farenhiet (see I can't even spell it) 451) ~ I think that was what he said.......  Anyway, he left work and by the time he would have gotten to me, VDOT came by and SAVED me!!!  I was getting the tire, jack, etc. out of the car ~ not sure what to do with them but wanted to make it look like I was an independent woman that didn't need some MAN to change my tire ~ and the cute VDOT men came and changed the tire in like 5 minutes! hahahahaha!  Meanwhile, I called my neighbor and asked him if he would go to my house and save my dog!!!!  He was so awesome.  He came over, took my little clay things out, turned the oven off and locked up.  There wasn't even any smoke!   I won't bore you with any more of my crummy afternoon details but I must say, it all worked out just fine!!!!  The best thing was, I didn't have to cook ~ my husband was scared to have me anywhere near the stove!!!

Have a great night!

~Lynda

To Be Or NOT To Be......

I finished a couple of pages I had started just over a week ago.  I was so excited to finish these because I knew exactly what I wanted to do and the pages actually turned out like I had planned !!!!  Usually I have these grand plans and then they don't turn out like I had hoped and then I am disappointed and then I say bad words and then my whole day is ruined and then......  LOL!!!  Anyway, usually I don't journal this much because I don't have that much to say but the story about "Cutey Patootie" is funny so there was a lot to write about!!!  I couldn't even fit everything but there will be more about Cutey.... 

To make a long story short, last year my daughter's first grade class hatched some eggs.  Because we donated the eggs (we HAD roosters at the time), it was understood that if any hatched, we would take them home.  Well, only 1 egg hatched and boy was she active and strong!  The kids teacher let them all write a name down on piece of paper and picked the name out of a hat.  Well, Cutey Patootie it was!  The kids were so darned excited and Cutey just loved them and all of the attention she received.  She was sad to leave the classroom but we brought her home and showered "her" with attention (we had to because we had her in the basement and she would peep REALLY loud until someone would come pay attention to her).  Mary took her little piano down there and sang and played for her.   Anyway, the entire time we have had "her" we have been hoping that she is not a rooster.  We cannot keep roosters as they are so mean.  They attack the other hens as well as us!  I have a scar on my ankle from our first rooster Bob. 

Cutey follows us around and actually comes when I call her.  I try to give her special treats when the other hens aren't around and she will jump up and down like a dog trying to get them!  As you can tell, we REALLY love her!  She now lives out in the coup with the other girls (and 1 Guinea named Oscar).  Anyway, we will cross our fingers and hope that she stays a SHE!!!!

This is page 1:

Of course my journaling is crooked.  It is not you and your eyesight, it is me and my ability to NEVER journal straight!!!!  The base cardstock is Ballet Blue.  I also used Celery and Really Rust SU! cardstock and Brown, Mustard and Winter White cardstock from Bazzill.  The decorative paper is Oh Baby Girl from Basic Grey and Frances Meyer ~ Passionnant.  I added Heidi Swapp bling to the 2 (SU! lots of letters chipboard) as well as the lower right circle.  The bling color is a yellow/orange.  The corners were punched from the SU! photo corner punch and layered and adhered using SU! Rust brads.  The 'be" is American Crafts foam letters.  I stamped the chicken feet (from Best of Cluck) using Timber Brown Stazon.  The font used on the right side of this page and the second page is Quickutz unicase Blossom.  I used my Xyron to stick the letters on.

Here is my second page:

For the fence and the tree trunk, I used my LSS's Sizzix (or something like it) to die cut them.  The grass is from my Quickutz, the wire mesh is from Making Memories and I made the tree "fluffs" by punching green Bazzill paper with a cloud punch.  I sponged the edges with Close to Cocoa and layered them for dimension.  I also used the Heidi Swapp bling on this page.  Mr. Rooster and Mrs. Chicken from Cornish Heritage Farms are so darn cute!  I stamped them using Basic Brown ink on watercolor paper and then colored them with my watercolor crayons and a blender pen.  I then cut them out and mounted them using dimensionals.

Here is a close up of the bottom part of the page (as you can see, I am very proud of that part!).

The chicken and rooster were really easy to cut out and were large in size as well.  Under the "we shall see" I used my paper piercer and made a little swirl.  I have no idea why I did that except I didn't want the letters to go straight across and thought I NEEDED something underneath to show that I WANTED the letters to go like that.  Now, with my track record, if I didn't put the little swirl underneath, some peeps (AKA ~ Smart Alec Friends (you know who you are!) would have thought I was getting old and THOUGHT that the letters were straight!!!  This was done on purpose!!!  I stamped the chicken feet from Best of Cluck using Timber Brown Stazon.

Today was my kids first day back at school.  Mary is starting Second grade and Joey is starting Fourth.  Mary was so excited because she could FINALLY wear her new school clothes!  Joey was excited but nervous too.  There are only 18 kids in his class and he knows ALL of them and has gone to the school for 2 years (this is his third) but he doesn't like NEW.  He does like NEW shoes, clothes, toys but a new teacher and classroom makes him a little nervous.....  Well, school is almost out and I need to go pick them up but wanted to post this first since I haven't posted for a few days!

Have a great day!

~Lynda

How FUNNY is this????

Now, if my husband is reading this post, he WON'T think this is funny at all!!!  LOL!!!  I find this to be quite amusing although a bit embarrassing too!!!!  I have a SU! workshop this weekend and let me begin this by telling you that I have known about it for at least a month!  Now, I did not know that 16 people have RSVP'd until Wednesday but Trudy, the hostess, and loooonnnngggg standing customer & friend was gracious enough to give me "early" notice (I usually ask for a head count by Friday for a Sunday WS).  I thanked Trudy for letting me know "ahead" of time so I could prepare accordingly!

Well.....  Here it is Friday, I have a few cards to choose from and still need to come up with a Christmas card.  2 of the cards I have done you may have seen before but I re-did them to make them a bit easier and use less material because 16 people are a lot of people!  I have a hard time making a simple card.  I really do try but I have trouble leaving empty space and god forbid not using ribbon, brads or glitter!!!!!   Also, I have this problem called PROCRASTINATION!  I admit it and yes, it drives my husband crazy!  He is the complete opposite.  He will do one thing at a time ~ immediately and finish it completely.  I will start 14 things at once and yes, I do eventually finish them but usually at the last minute.

For example, I started painting our powder room (yes, powder room is a tiny room that you can barely turn around in that has a toilet and a sink) last February.  Well, I ran out of paint and moved on to other important things!!!  I have since got more paint but just haven't had the time!!!  What will happen is that his parents will plan a trip to come down and the embarrassment of them seeing that I still haven't finished, will push me to do it ~ last minute of course!!!!  This little "quality" of mine is not very funny to my patient husband......

Now that you know ONE of my problems, I want to show you what my CRAP ~ Oh I mean CRAFT room looks like when I am working on a couple things at one time.

This is my main desk.  I have another one which my kids will work at sometimes when I don't have stuff on it.  Now, I swear, the rest of my house does not look like this and once I figure out what cards I will be doing on Sunday, I will clean up!  I just don't have time right now!

It was so funny because when I was putting the stars on my Bareback card (see below), I had to do it in my lap because there was no space on the top of the desk!!!!  I know, I know, how embarrassing!!!! 

Here is a picture of my floor.  Now, keep in mind, I started other cards too that I just could not get creative with (like a Christmas card) and just got frustrated and set the stuff aside (why put it away now when I can do it later???).

The next 2 cards you have probably seen a variation of before.  I re-worked them so they were a bit easier than the first ones I did. 

This card uses the Wanted stamp set, Bareback and Weathered Background.  The Weathered BG was stamped on Creamy Caramel with Chocolate Chip Ink.  The medallion was stamped on Close to Cocoa with Chocolate Chip ink.  I punched it out using the scallop circle punch and cut it in half.  I then cut one of the halves in half again (these were for the corners).  The strip on the left is Outlaw decorative paper with the stars stamped on Close to Cocoa with Chocolate Chip ink & cut out.  I mounted them on dimensionals.

The horse head was stamped using Close to Cocoa Craft ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.  I sponged the entire card with Chocolate chip.  I also used the ticket corner punch and aged copper brads.

The next card is using Baroque Motifs, Soft Sky and Sahara Sand ink and Whisper White, Sahara Sand and Soft Sky cardstock.  As you know, I love this color combination and love this stamp set!  The strip across the bottom is Soft Sky Prints Designer Series paper.  I had used ribbon and Hodgepodge on my previous version but for a workshop and 16 people on top of it, I had to reduce the costs and time involved!  I cut the flowers out that were stamped with Sahara Sand ink on Whisper White CS.  I used silver brads to mount them.  The rest is pretty self explanatory!

This card is a new one!  Wow!  Original thought!  I wanted to add more to this but again, it is a large group and we don't want to be there all day!

I do like this though!  Stamp sets used were Garden Whimsy and Priceless.  I also used the scallop punch and punched out a flower from the Cutie Pie papers and then layered additional circles inside.  I used a Bashful Blue brad and mounted it on the stem with dimensionals.  The stem was made using Celery grosgrain.  I put a small line of Elmer's glue on it and stuck it down.  The "leaves" are just a knot ~ tied 1 time ~ and used a glue dot to adhere.  The "grass" on the bottom is the flourish from Priceless and was stamped using Celery.  The snail was stamped using Rose Red and I masked the snail when I stamped the grass. 

The butterfly was stamped 1 time using Bashful Blue and then I stamped again on vellum.  I cut the wing out and used my 2-way glue pen and adhered the wing to the body.  I added dazzling diamonds glitter to the snail and butterfly body.

My last one was an easy one and new.  The base card is Basic Black.  For the next layer, Chocolate Chip, I stamped my Sanded BG stamp with Basic Black and sponged the edges with black as well.  The strip that has the trees, from Lovely as a Tree, is from the Outlaw DP's.  I stamped the trees using versamark and embossed using Silver EP.  This strip is matted on Rust and sponged with black.  On the bottom right I stamped the horses from Bareback in black and then embossed with silver, Happy Birthday, from It's Your Birthday.

The ribbon is black grosgrain and is tied below the trees in which I tied a star (from Wanted and embossed with Silver on rust) using Linen thread.

We will not be doing all 4 of these cards.  I will let Trudy decide which 3 she would like to do.  She wanted to do a masculine card, Christmas card and another.  I still need to make a Christmas card sample.  I will first need to clear a path in to my craft room and I am sure, once I sit down, the creative juices will start flowing....  if not, maybe I will just go mow the lawn.....  I don't understand why I am having such a time coming up with something as I have been making Christmas cards for months now!    Sometimes I think I try too hard!  I will post once I come up with something!!!  Thanks for looking and have a great day!

~Lynda

I have been busy!

I got a couple of challenge cards done today and am in the midst of working on a few more for a workshop I have this weekend.  I will share those later....  The first SCS challenge was yesterday's color challenge.  The colors to use were Soft Sky and Groovy Guava.  The stamp sets I used were Short & Sweet, Priceless and Garden Whimsy.

Since the sun hasn't shined here in a few days, my pictures aren't that great.   The base of the card is Soft Sky with Soft Sky Prints Designer Series Paper layered on top.  The Groovy Guava strip is cut on the top and bottom using my scallop scissors.  On the bottom scallop I used my 1/16" hand held punch to punch holes in the scallops.  I then cut a scrap piece of Whisper White with the scallop scissors and lined it up underneath.  The top scallop is just decorated with a strip of Soft Sky double stitched ribbon with white zig zag ribbon from the Beachfront ribbon set.  I used a glue dot to put a knot on the top.  The swirl from Priceless was stamped using Groovy Guava and highlighted the centers of the flowers with my white gel pen.

The scallop circle was punched from Whisper White and again with Soft Sky.  I used the 1/16" hand held punch again on the white scallops so the Soft Sky underneath would show through.  The butterfly from Garden Whimsy was stamped with using a black marker on the body only and stamping.  I stamped the wings on vellum (2-times) and cut them out.  The first set of wings was mounted flat on the cardstock and then the second set, I bent them up at the base so it looks 3-D.  I used my 2-way glue pen on the body of the butterfly and glued the wings on.

I used the large oval punch on the bottom left.  The sentiment is from Short & Sweet, punched with the small oval punch and mounted using dimensionals inside the large oval.  I used the white gel pen to put dots around the edge.  It is really pretty in real life.  The colors don't show up that well in my picture....

The next card is for today's SCS Sketch Challenge.  The sketch can be seen HERE. 

The base of the card is Red Bazzill and the decorative paper is all Basic Grey.  The only stamp I used is Thomas Kincade and can be purchased from Cornish Heritage Farms if you are interested.  There are other scenes that are just as beautiful!  The image was stamped on Naturals White cardstock using Basic Brown ink.

I colored the inside square with my watercolor crayons and a blender pen.  The snowy parts are done using White Liquid Pearls sprinkled with Dazzling Diamonds Glitter.  The only other accessories used were aged copper brads, dimensionals and ticket corner punch.  I wish my picture was better because in real life, it is really glittery.

We are on the countdown for back to school so it has been really busy around here!  Sorry I haven't posted more often.  I have some other cards in the works and hope to post them soon!  Have a great day!

~Lynda

BTW ~ I didn't go in to great detail as to how this card was done as I thought when you looked at the sketch on SCS it would be self explanatory but when I re-read what I wrote earlier, I thought I should add some details!

The Thomas Kincade stamped image is approx. 3 1/2" X 4 1/2".  I stamped the entire image on the Naturals White CS, using Basic Brown ink and then used my cutter to trim it right up to the edges.  I stamped the image again on Naturals White CS (this is for the 2" window in the center).  I used a scrap piece of paper, 2x2 square, laid it on top of the second stamped image that was not trimmed, right in the center.  I marked the edges with a ruler to gauge the center.  I used a pencil and traced around the image and then used my cutter and cut it out.  The mat under this was not very big and mounted it using dimensionals. 

I then cut the full image that I had trimmed around earlier into quarters and matted it on the brown Basic Grey CS.  I think the rest is pretty clear but if not, please don't hesitate to ask any questions!

Thanks so much for looking!

I have some WINNERS!!!

First off I want to thank you ALL so much for all of the nice comments you have left!  I LOVE reading them.  Please know that I do read them all!!!!  I wish I could give every one of you a prize.....  To all of the losers....  Don't feel bad ~ I lose all the time!!!!  LOL! 

OK, the winner of the Embossing package is ~DESIMONDS!

The winner of the Prima Flowers is ~ ILENE B!

Please send me your mailing addresses and I will get your goodies out to you right away!

Thank you all again for your support!  I hope to work on some challenges this week.  I didn't do really well keeping up last week! 

~Lynda

Completed ~ 2 Scrapbook Pages!!

I am so excited to have actually FINISHED 2 scrapbook pages (I still need to add the date)!  Now, remember, I was ONLY at the crop for 12 hours so I am sure you are thinking "How did she get SO many pages done".  Well, let me tell you, when you are as organized AND focused as me, it's easy!!!! LOL!!!! 

The crop went great and it seemed as though everyone had a great time.  I know I did!  I started out by forgetting my little tool bag that had all of my hole punches, stamps, ink pads, adhesive, scissors ~ you know all the UNIMPORTANT things!!!  Instead of going home and getting it (at least an hour round trip), I just borrowed from my friends.  Here are the 2 12x12 pages ~

The cardstock I used is all Bazzill.  The scalloped heart is also Bazzill which I just cut it in half.  The decorative paper has paw prints on it and is newer dog paper.  I cut the tab with the name on it off and threw it away so I can't remember who the paper was by.  I'm sorry......  It is cute though!!!  The jewels are Heidi Swapp.  The heart around my son and dog are the same jewels from Heidi Swapp that I took off of the sticky strip (why would I want to make it simple) and glued them individually to make a heart.  Here is a close up of the SMOOCH!

The font for the "Gimme A" is Quickutz Star.  The "Smooch" is Making Memories Clears Alphabet.  The have adhesive on them so I stuck them on to red Bazzill cardstock and cut them out. 

I did start on another page and hopefully will finish in the near future!  Can't make any promises as to when I will post though......

Before I close, I want to pass this blog on to you!  Nancy Riley at iSTAMP has some great pictures of her organized craft room!  She has some great storage ideas.  Now, I would have shown you mine but I don't think that would give you any help!  It may make you feel better though to know that someone else's space looks worse than yours!!!  Have a great day and don't forget to check back tonight when I will pick the winners of my blog candy!

~Lynda

St. Jude Auction Items

Good Morning!  I finished my purse last night but wanted to wait until this morning to take the pictures because I just can't get good pictures at night!  The following 2 items are things I made to donate today for a 12 hour crop I am going to.  The crop has been put together by my friend Lisa who is a co-founder of the local Tri Delta alumnae group.  Our local paper published an article about the event HERE.  Lisa did her first crop in January and was quite a success and this one promises to be even better!  The proceeds are to be donated to St. Jude which is an extraordinary organization as we all know. 

I am really happy how this purse turned out.  I had bought it a while ago and needed something to put some cards in so I went ahead and altered this!  It is really cool because the front flap has a magnet so it closes really nicely.  I think I paid $8 for it and it is by Creative Imaginations ~ Bare Elements.  I am including 10 miscellaneous cards (which I have profiled on my blog) and envelopes.  They fit perfectly!

I used acrylic paint on the body of the purse.  Basically, I layered 3 browns (light to dark) with a sponge.  The top layer is black and instead of "sponging" I used my sponge but wiped in a circular motion so it left a faux leather look.  I really don't have an exact explanation because I just keep layering paint until I get the look I want!

I did faux stitching around the entire purse and on the body I used a black Gelly Roll pen that leaves a shiny, raised finish.  I can't remember the exact name but it came in a set and I need another one but don't want to buy the set!!!

I used My Minds Eye ~ Bohemia paper for the top flap.  To adhere it I used a glue stick.  The way I did the top around the handle was to first have the complete top cut with a little bit of an edge around the entire thing ~ you can cut this off after you glue it down but it is better to have too much paper to cut than to try to add!  I then measured in from the top side to the base of the handle.  I then used my 3/4" circle punch and then cut a straight line to the circle.  Is this clear as mud????  Here is a picture because if you are visual like me, this will help with my "fantastic" instructions (LOL)~

I did not paint the entire top, just under the circles where the white showed.  I used the key tag punch after I stamped my sentiment (SU! Polka Dots & Paisley) using Basic Brown Ink.  Oh, the marker I used for the faux stitching on the top flap is Chocolate Chip.  I also sponged the darker of the brown acrylic paint around the edges of the entire top.  The medallion is from Imaginesce ~ Alladin's Charms.  I used a Heidi Swapp pink jeweled flower for the center and I also used one on the tag.  The tag is sponged with Basic Brown ink, has a silver eyelet and the chain is from Making Memories.

Here is a close up of the flap and tag ~

I think that is about it but I must say, this was really easy once I got going! 

The next grouping is also part of the silent auction.  I have made this before and it is on my SCS website but I thought it turned out cute and is a great baby gift.  It includes a gift card holder, the altered mailbox and 5 coordinating thank you notes ~ envelopes too!  I got the mailbox at Target last winter but I did see them at Oriental Trading.

The decorative paper is Basic Grey Lily Kate and the cardstock is Barely Banana, Whisper White, Certainly Celery and Ballet Blue.  The best way I found to cover the mailbox is using sticky strip.  The Mod Podge is difficult to work with on an angle like the mailbox.   Here are some more close-ups ~

Some other things I used ~ Oval scallop punch, Quickutz Revolution embossing plate, corner ticket punch, dimensionals, stickles, Riveting stamp set, Wild About You stamp set and misc. ribbon.

Thanks for looking and if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!

Also, don't forget about my Blog Candy give~away HERE. Have a great day and hopefully I will be able to post some FINISHED scrapbook pages tomorrow!

~Lynda

What's Moo???

I made this card for CPS'  layout challenge #26.  The sponsor this week is Cornish Heritage Farms.  They have some awesome stamps so if you get a chance, check out their website!  I happen to have a bunch of their stamps so I was able to use one for this challenge.  They have a brand new line of farm animal stamps that are so cute!  I used Bossy the Cow and the What's Moo? sentiment as well as the Cow Print Backgrounder by Cornish Heritage Farms.  I also used Stampin' Up's Canvas Background stamp.

I colored Bossy with my SU! markers and stamped her using Basic Black ink.  I added eyelashes and used a touch of glitter on the ends because you can't have a card without glitter!  I made a bow out of silver cord and glued it on her tail.  The white flower is from Reminisce which I used a black marker to add dots on.  The pink brad is from Oriental Trading.  The base of my card is Pretty in Pink then a layer of Creamy Caramel stamped using my Canvas BG stamp and Caramel ink.  What's Moo was stamped using Basic Black on Creamy Caramel.  I also stamped the canvas on this piece to tie in with the other background.  I punched the sentiment out using the large oval punch and then just cut around it to mat with black. 

The Cow Print was stamped on Whisper White using a Versamark pad and heat embossing using black embossing powder.  I then matted this on Basic Black CS.  OK, the side strip is KI Memories polka dot paper layered with cow (or dog print ~ whatever works best for your card) ribbon.  I used Pretty in Pink reinker and dyed the white on the ribbon pink.  This is the funny part.  The triangles were not supposed to be there.  I wanted to just staple the ribbon down but my stapler ripped the paper and messed up the Caramel CS so at this point I was feeling rather irritated and decided to cover up my mess with the triangles.  I used silver brads to hold them in place.   I hate that when you are all done with a card or page and then screw it up.  Don't get me wrong, I screw them up at the beginning too!!! 

Yesterday the winners for Jacksonbelle's Lizzie Anne Challenge were announced.  Don't you think it is funny that when someone wins you always hear about it but when they lose, you don't ever find out and just assume the person must have lost!!!  Well.......  I lost!!!  LOL!!  That's OK though because there was some really awesome cards entered so if you get a chance, check them out!  Speaking of being a loser ~ when I finally was able to figure out how to add the Stamping Top 50 counter to my blog, it showed up and listed me at 450!  Not that I really had any expectations but 450 was a little up there!  I justified this in my mind by thinking that I was number 450 out of 500!!!!  Well, I thought that was kindof embarrassing but since it took me so long to add it, I certainly couldn't figure out how to post it without the HUGE number on it so I left it and now have moved up to number 273!  I wonder if they start you at 450 and then just try to make you feel better by moving you up a hundred or so?!?!!? 

Sorry, I got off track a little there...

Yesterday my DH and I took the kids to Monticello in Charlottesville, VA.  Monticello is Thomas Jefferson's home and is just beautiful.   We weren't able to take the kids on a long vacation this summer because we have animals to tend to so we have done a few day trips!  It was a beautiful day and nice to get away for a while.  Here is a picture of the house ~

We live about an hour and a half  away and don't get out toward the mountains very often so the kids enjoyed seeing some new sights! 

I will be posting later the 2 auction items I am donating for my friends crop which is tomorrow!  I haven't finished the 2nd one because my goodness, I still have until tomorrow to have it done!!!  I have known about this crop for 6 months so why would I start any sooner???  I am so excited because it is 12 hours of uninterrupted cropping!!!!  I should be able to complete at least 2 pages!!!  The crop is to raise money for St. Jude.   

Thanks for looking and have a great day ~

Lynda