A Jacksonbelle Challenge

This weeks Jacksonbelle challenge is to create a spring card. I have some new Jacksonbelle goodies and couldn't decide what to use first! I opted to use this BEAUTIFUL Prima flower! It's soooo pretty! The colors aren't exactly 'screaming' spring but the flower is AMAZING! Take a peek....

I LOVE this flower! I added a little bit of ribbon and some of my favorite Kraft and ...EPLS!

Be sure and check out the rest of the Jacksonbelle team....AJ Otto, Beth Thomas, Heather Lee-Reppen, Jill Dunn, Kimberly O'Rosky, Kisa Peters. Lynda Benden, Maren Benedict, Melissa Bove, Michelle Woerner, Rachel Baird, Shannan Teubner, Taylor Usry.

Hope you all have a great day! I will post you soon! :)

Monday Throwdown!

Happy Monday! This weeks challenge is to create a card using a cut out flower....only rule is that it can't be a die cut. Yikes! ;) I pulled out You + Me = Happy for this one and opted to stamp, color and cut out the flowers. Take a peek....

I LOVE this kit! It's one of my favs! Now check out the rest of the Monday gals ....AJ Otto, Amber Height, Brooke Lien, Jeanne Streiff, Maren Benedict, and Jimmi Mayo.

Hope you all have a great day! I'm sorry for the short post but I need to dash to get a few things done around here. Post you soon! :)

Clean & Simple Challenge Take Two

Happy Sunday! It's time for the second Clean & Simple Scrapbook Challenge! I had so much fun with last weeks and have really enjoyed seeing all of your beautiful creations! Please know that although the prize has already been given away you can still play along.

Now on to this weeks challenge. Last week my sweet friend AJ and I worked with one of my card sketches for Unity's hip hop. You can see AJ's sample here and mine here. Take a look at the sketch...

I love using sketches when I am 'stuck' on a project. With scrapbook sketches, however, I am usually stumped as it's so hard to find a sketch that is CAS. What's so great about ALL sketches is that no matter what they were created for you can use them for anything!

This week we are taking this card sketch and we are going to use it for a layout. There are NO size requirements for your layout as it works with any size. I have two samples for you today. The first is an 8 1/2 X 11 layout.....

For this one I opted to use the text box as a space for the title of the page. The picture is my middle son, Carter during a trip to the park. I just LOVE this photo of him!

Now I am taking the same sketch and using it for a 12X12 layout.....

This time I opted to journal in the where the text box it. I had to explain a bit about the 'Budder & Chachies'. ;) Hayden loves his peanut butter and it's usually all over his face! He never eats it on his crackers though....he uses a spoon! ;) And he's always running around asking for a 'chachie' which is cracker in Hayden speak. ;)

What are you playing for this week? How about some little goodies to help your future layouts? Take a look.....


There's some PTI designer paper, summer chipboard pieces, a chipboard alpha, and some buttons. If you get the chance to play, please remember to upload your creations to SCS using the keyword CASSB02....and don't forget to upload and link your cards in the comment section of this post so that you can be entered in the drawing by Friday, April 3rd. I will pick a winner and post that winner Saturday, April 4th.

Want to see another amazing sample? Head over to AJ's blog to see what beauty she has created with this sketch!

Thank you so much for playing last week! I hope you all get the chance to play again this week!

Have a wonderful day! :)

World Record Inspirational Blog Hop

"The fact is, that to do anything in the world worth doing, we must not stand back shivering and thinking of the cold and danger, but jump in and scramble through as well we can." Robert Cushing

"Insist on yourself. Never imitate." Ralph Waldo Emerson

If you are looking for the World Blog hop you have come to the right place! It all started at Angela's blog and is winding it's way through some really incredible creations! I am so excited about this!

I'm keeping my post really short as I know you have lots more to see! But I wanted to share this little something, something.....

I used Floral Friends for this one. It's one of my favorite new kits! The dsp is Making Memories.

Now let's keep this party moving! It's time to head here to see what Arielle has in store. Hope you are all having a great time! I will post you soon! :)

And The Winner Is....

I am overwhelmed! You guys created some AMAZING samples for this weeks Clean & Simple Scrapbook challenge. I LOVEd seeing all of your interpretations of the sketch.

I used random.org to pick the winner and it picked lucky layout #1...


Here are your random numbers:1
Timestamp: 2009-03-28 04:19:00 UTC

Take a peek at Kerry's beautiful layout....

How sweet is this picture! I LOVE it! I also love how she pieced the sentiments below the picture. It's super cute. You can view more of Kerry's beautiful work at her blog.

I hope you all get a chance to stop by on Sunday. I am so excited to share another CAS challenge with you.

I will post you all soon. A couple of little notes....Don't forget the big inspirational blog hop today starting at 11 Eastern. Also, VSN! Woohoo! My challenge actually posts at 11AM as well. I am so excited about this one! It will be so much fun! You can find all the deets in the SCS VSN forum! :)

Stamp Simply

It's time for another Stamp Simply challenge. You can get all the deets at Sharon's fantabulous blog. This weeks challenge...to forget the rules. How much do you love that! I LOVE this! So let's get busy and create something without rules.

I opted to mix it up a bit with a little Crate Paper, the stamp is Papertrey Ink., and this BEAUTIFUL ribbon...that I just happened to pick up from Sharon! ;)....I mixed up the circles with the stripes...and as far as my mom would probably be concerned, you don't leave the house dressed like this...and yet, somehow it seems to work for me. I like it! Yeah...I tend to be pretty easy..... ;)

Be sure and check out the rest of the team to see what they have in store for you....Dee, Tammy, Janine, AJ, Julie, Becky, and our March guest designer Barb.

Hope you are all having a good one. I will post you soon! :)

Best Friends

Hip HOP!

It's that time again, and as you have already gathered, this hip hop is geared around best friends. I feel so truly blessed to have so many wonderful friends in my life. Have you seen this weeks new releases? Aren't they the cutest! They are the perfect sets for cards for your best friends! :)

Here's a picture of my best friend Meg. She's the greatest! If ever I have a problem...or want to hang out and laugh....whatevah...she's there. She's the best. This is one of my favorite pictures of us from last year....

I feel so fortunate to have made so many wonderful friends through stamping. Some I haven't had the pleasure of meeting in real life but some I have had the great pleasure of meeting and forming some really great friendships with. I feel so very blessed to call them friends. Here's a shot of me with some of them at CHA...you will recognize their faces! ;)

These gals are wonderful! I feel so very blessed to be their friend!

...and then there's these little guys! ......

They are best friends. This was taken at the grocery store one afternoon....and is why I bring my little camera everywhere I go now! Can you imagine missing this moment? I LOVE these little guys and when Hayden greets them after school with 'Buddy' it melts my heart!

Ok...now on to the rest of my projects for this week. Here's one more card with this new stamp set Floral Friends.....

....and here's one more with another CUTE kit, Birdie Inspiration, I LOVE, LOVE this kit! It's sooooo stinkin CA-UTE!

Ok...now moving on with the hop....take a hop over to the ever so talented Heather Brown. I'm off to hop as well and will see you all in the forum! :)

It's Time For Jacksonbelle!

Are you ready for another Jacksonbelle challenge? I am....ok...well, sort of! ;) Todays challenge is to create something with rubons. The problem is I LOVE rub ons! So why is that a problem? Well, because I am OUT! Totally out of rub ons! Dang!

Ok...so moving on. I decided to use one of my favorite Inkadinkado stamps and create something EPLS (easy peasy lemon squeezy). Take a peek...

Be sure and check out the rest of the team for more...and probably many with rub ons!....beautiful creations!

AJ Otto
Beth Thomas
Heather Lee-Reppen
Jill Dunn
Kimberly O'Rosky
Kisa Peters
Lynda Benden
Maren Benedict
Melissa Bove
Michelle Woerner
Rachel Baird
Shannan Teubner
Taylor Usry

Post you soon! :)

A CAS Challenge: Blog Candy

Do you scrapbook?

Prepare yourself for a super long post here! I first want to share a bit about how I got started with paper crafts. About four years ago my friend and neighbor, Amy, invited me to a crop. She was a Creative Memories consultant at the time and I was completely naive to the whole industry. I went, I scrapped, I left a bit confused.

Stickers, paper, and pictures oh my! What is this scrapbook stuff about!

Amy, recognizing my frustration with the limits of the precut card stock and stickers and introduced me to Stampin' Up!. An addict was born! But, I stopped scrapbooking....after the 3 or 4 layouts I had made...and started card making. Scrapbooking has always seemed so intimidating. To many rules, to many embellishments. My style didn't fit. I could always come up with some reason to not scrapbook. (....little side note....I must apologize to Amy...sorry, I tell this story all the time! ;) I'm sure you are so tired of reading it! ;) Thanks girly! I'm so glad you introduced me to this world! You're the best!)

So here we are. If you are here reading this today, you are here for the inaugural of my Clean and Simple (CAS) scrapbook challenge. Because one of the things that I have come to realize is that there are NO rules! We are creating for ourselves...for our friends....for our family....we should create what we love. ...and we should NOT be intimidated because we feel like our style doesn't quite 'fit'. If you were to come into my home you would find yourself in the midst of 'CAS'. I am a minimalist type person so it's no wonder that is often reflected in the projects I design. I'm also, now, quite the scrapbook fan.

So are you ready for some fun, EPLS (easy peasy lemon squeezy) scrapbooking? Would you like to win some yummy prizes? If so I hope you will play. Even if you don't get that 'lucky' random number you will walk away with a beautiful memory to either add to your ever growing scrapbook, put in your new scrapbook, or frame and hang on your wall.

So on to the challenge! This weeks challenge is a sketch. I actually had the idea when I posted my layout for Thursdays hip hop. Here's the layout I am talking about.

This is one of my favorite pictures ever! As I was picking the paper and title, I kept thinking of the day I took it. I really didn't want to showcase anything other than the picture. It's a pretty basic layout, but what better way to get started. So here is the actual sketch......

The one thing to remember is there are NO rules! This is a sketch. It's always a plus if you can recognize the sketch when you are finished but I have participated in enough of these to know that sometimes your vision will lead you in a totally different direction! If that's the case just go with it!

Here's my new sample for this sketch.....

I added a few more chipboard pieces to this one but otherwise the sketch is the same. I'm uploading to Splitcoast using the keyword CASSB01. If you decide to play please upload with the same keyword so that we can all see your creations. ....and of course, link back here so that you can be entered in the drawing for the blog candy.

Want to know what you are playing for this week? Take a peek.....

You are playing for a 12X12 package of designer paper from Stampin' Up! Sell-a-bration catalog. The stamp set and ribbon are also from this catalog.

Wowzers! Sorry for the long post. I feel like I owe you all a prize just for reading the whole thing! ;) I hope you get to play. Next weeks posts will be much shorter! There is no deadline to play but if you want to be entered for the blog candy please have your project linked by Friday March 27 at midnight so that I can announce the winner Saturday morning.

...and one more FUN addition....my sweet friend AJ is also playing and has made one of the cutest samples ever for this sketch! Be sure and stop by her blog to see her creation.

Thanks for playing! I can't wait to see what you come up with! :)

A Day At The Races

Tag. I'm it! My sweet friend Carole tagged me. I adore her! She's my soul sister. Seriously....I think we were separated at birth! Anyhoo....the mission, post the 6th picture in the 6th folder on your computer. This is kismet! Today is my Carter's (Carole has a Carter also!) birthday and it just so happens that the 6th picture in the 6th folder is of him!

I did crop some of the other kiddos out of the picture since I'm not quite sure if their moms would want me posting it but this is it! This was taken at his pre-school a couple of years back. The checkered vests were for the race day activities. They had these cardboard cars that they raced back and forth in. OMHeck! It was such a riot! They had so much fun! Today he is 7. Where does the time go! It really does fly, doesn't it!?

Now I need to tag 6 others.....so I tag....

Michelle

Beate

Cambria

Julie

Charmaine

Brookie

;) I'm off to leave her a comment and to go pick up the cake.

A Card For All Occasions - The PTI Anniversary Set

OMHeck! How excited was I when I got my mail today! Aaaaaaaaaa! ....That's actually a scream of excitement! I'm over the moon! I got my new Papertrey today and in it....well, one of the cutest sets EVER! The PTI anniversary set, Everyday Classics! Holy smokes this is one of the cutest stamp sets I have ever seen! EVER! REally! I took all of 10 minutes to whip it out and stamp. Seriously, 10 minutes! I didn't even bother to stick the whole set to the CD....I just grabbed one of the flowers and went to town! I love that there is a sentiment for everything...EVERYTHING! I decided to make a card for all occasions....ok...one design...different colors, different sentiments...take a peek...

I really love this flower! I went for EPLS for these so that I could get a bunch of cards finished in a hurry....and because CAS is my favorite style! Here's a close up of one of the cards....

I am so excited to have this set! I can still remember seeing last years anniversary set and just loving it! This one does NOT disappoint!

I'm off! We have another birthday tomorrow. I cannot believe it! :) I have to get some sleep so I can get up early and pick up all of the birthday stuff. Yay! Time for cake! I will be back on Sunday for a little something special. I will have blog candy! :) If you are interested in winning I will have an EPLS challenge for you! I can't wait to share!

Hope to see you then! :) Hugs!

Stamp Simply Time!

It's time for another Stamp Simply challenge! This weeks challenge is to use ribbon tabs...at least one ribbon tab on your card. You can get all the deets at Sharon's blog...and check out her fantabulous sample!



I pulled out one of my Papertrey sets for this weeks challenge. The stamp set is Birds of a Feather. Here's my card....

Love this set. Be sure and check out the rest of the team to see what they have in store for you....Dee, Tammy, Janine, AJ, Julie, Becky, and our March guest designer Barb.

Sorry for the quick post but this has been the longest day ever! I will post you all in a bit! :)

Hope you have a good one!

An Eggstra, Eggciting Hip HOP!

Happy hip HOP, Thursday! How eggcited am I! There is the CA-UTEST new stamp being released today....you know I LOVE new stamps! I get down right eggstatic over them! This weeks is one of my most favorite ever!


First off....have you been to the Moxie Fab World lately? If not you have got to check it out! Hey, I've got coneggtions! ;) lol...ok...only with my kids!....but you have to check it out! They are showing off some super cute stuff and giving a few things away as well!


Now back to hip hop....I've got two samples for you today. First up a little Easter gift set. Here's a picture of the card and candy box....


I was soooo eggcited about the matchbox! I LOVE these little things! They are the perfect little something for a party favor or just a little something-something for someone special. Here's a close up of the little matchbox....


The dsp is from Cosmo Cricket. The window sheet is from Stampin Up. The ribbon is PTI.

Now moving right along. Time for a layout. The picture for this one is actually from a few Easters ago. The boys were having so much fun hiding and finding...and hiding and finding their Easter eggs....we tend to do this all day around here!


They are best friends. They truly love each other and love hanging out together. They even signed up for their school science fair project together this year! So cute! My little geniuses created a metal picker upper. They used one of their remote control cars and a sheet of sticky magnets. ...photos coming to a layout soon! ;)


That's all I have for you! Now head on over to the eggceptional Brooke Lien. She's so talented!

...then be sure and hop on over to SCS for all of the days festivities! They will be eggstra eggciting today! ;)


Hip HOP!

A Jacksonbelle CASE

It's time for another Jacksonbelle challenge and this week we are CASEing Kisa. So much fun! I perused through Kisa's gallery at Splitcoast and decided on this card. I really love the layout. I pulled out some of my favorite Cosmo....and viola.....


This card totally makes me smile! I LOVE how bright and sunny it is! ....just like the day we had! I am so ready for warm weather! We had a beautiful day today and the boys enjoyed playing outside for a change! I think that is part of what inspired this one for me.

Be sure and check out the rest of the Jacksonbelle team....
AJ Otto
Beth Thomas
Heather Lee-Reppen
Jill Dunn
Kimberly O'Rosky
Kisa Peters
Lynda Benden
Maren Benedict
Melissa Bove
Michelle Woerner
Rachel Baird
Shannan Teubner
Taylor Usry

Be sure and check out Lindsey's blog for all of the current specials. I will be back in a bit....well...probably tomorrow! ;) Tuesday will be a busy day of cleaning and the post office....and kiddo stuff....and, well, you know...all the stuff of the day.

Post you all soon! HUGS! :)

Monday, Monday....

Yeah...I know...there she goes again. lol..ok...now I have two songs playing in my head! ;) ...there she goes.....there she goes again..... ;)

Ok...sorry...slight distraction....

Are you ready for another fun Monday challenge? This week it's Grandparents day! ???? Yeah, I was a bit stumped with what direction to go with this one. I think it's actually one of those that can be interpreted in so many ways.

Well, I don't have any grandparents still around. :( So sad! I can still remember spending time with both sets of grandparents. I will share....my mom is from a southern part of Louisiana....where they are from her parents were 'Bigmama' and 'Bigdaddy'...seriously! Now I think it's cute. Growing up it was torture! We grew up in the northern part of the state and peeps didn't use those terms there!

I still remember spending weekends with my Grandmother...my Daddy's mom. We would stay up all night cooking and watching old movies. By cooking...I mean whole meals! One night she taught me how to use a pressure cooker. We were eating BBQ chicken at 2AM! We would also bake cookies and cakes. It was wonderful! I still remember Coconut macaroons and Whatever Happened To Baby Jane...the old Betty Davis & Joan Crawford movie. I was a huge Joan Crawford fan back then.....of course the whole biography...'wire hanger' thing hadn't come to light at this point....and I am really rambling! ;)

Anyhoooo...trying to get to the point! My card for today isn't exactly a 'grandparents' card...but I can honestly say that my Grandmother would have LOVED it! Ok...she would have loved anything from me....but aside from that, she would have loved the colors and LOVED the whimsical image. ...and the sentiment is perfection! Because any time spent with her did = happy!

I do really miss her! She was the best!

Now check out the rest of the Monday gals ....AJ Otto, Amber Height, Brooke Lien, Jeanne Streiff, Maren Benedict, and Jimmi Mayo.

Hope you all have a great day! I will post you all soon! :)

Unity Stamp Co. You+Me=Happy

SEI paper

PTI ribbon

Stamp Simply & A Hanna Blog Hop

It's time for another Stamp Simply challenge (ssnotime78). I am so excited about this one! Sharon has such a great challenge for us. This weeks challenge is to mat your image with white card stock. Being the clean and simple gal that I tend to be....this challenge really spoke to me! ...well, and being the extreme chick that I can also be...I kind of went all white. Hey, I LOVE the clean of that. There is just something about white on white that I love. Take a peek....

I used Hanna Stamps Rockstar set for this one. Ok...I'm an American Idol junkie and something about a lone mic seemed to fit perfectly with a 'missing you' sentiment. I printed the sentiment from my computer. The ribbon is from PTI and I colored the background with my copic markers and then sponged over it with Sahara Sand.

Be sure and check out the rest of the team to see what they have in store for you....Dee, Tammy, Janine, AJ, Julie, Becky, and our March guest designer Barb.

....AND don't forget to finish up the Hanna blog hop with Jocelyn. :)

Hope you are all doing well! Hugs! :)

Hip HOP!

Happy Hip HOP Thursday! It's time for another retro hip hop. One of my favorite sets is in the spotlight this week....Gratitude = Joy. I LOVE this set! ...and it's on SALE today! Angela also has a few more on sale so be sure and check that out at the Unity blog.

I have a couple of projects this week with the Gratitude = Joy kit. One, since it's 'retro' week, is a 'retro' card. lol...by that I mean it's a blast from my card making past! Take a peek....

This is one of my favorite cards so I thought I would share it again. I LOVE this kit! I also made this one......

How beautiful are those flowers! I really love them!

Next up for me - a layout. This one uses the Angela's This is the Time kit. Take a peek....

That's it for me. Now head on over to the fabulous Robyn Weatherspoon's blog to see what she has in store for you today....she always has something wonderful! :)

Hope you all have a great day! I will see you in the forum! :)