A while back...

A while back Barb (another TAC angel) gave me this award, and I misplaced the announcement. So here it is another award to add to my collection. It tickles me when people give me awards, it makes me feel like I've truely done something good. That blogging and sharing my creations with everyone is not gone un-noticed.

To play along with the rules of this award:
1. The winner can put the logo/award on her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people who you’ve nominated.

Now, I nominate:

• Toni - Stampin Diva
• Betty - Stampin and Scrappin with Betty
• Barb - Barb's Cards
• Kemi - Kemi's Design's
• Patty - Patty's Stampin Spot
• AnnMarie - Ink n Glitter
• MaryBeth - Stampin Space

Thank you again Barb!!

Have a great day!!!

I've got another award....

My dear friend Stephenie has given me another award. This one is a BFF Gold card!!

To pass on this award, these are the rules that must be followed:

1. Only five people allowed.

2. Four have to be dedicated followers of your blog

3. One has to be someone new or recently new to your blog and live in another part of the world.

4. You must link back to whoever gave you the award.

Steph gave me this award and I am glad. She is new to the blogging world but her blog is awesome. You must go take a look! And best yet, she just became an Angel ~ we now have even more in common!!

So here goes, I pass this award on to:

1. Gabby - Confessions of a Stamper
2. Becca - Amazing Paper Grace
3. Nicola - Gorillamama Greats
4. Linsey - Outside the Lines
5. And last but not least Mel @ Mel Stampz. You rock girl!!! She is new to my blog & she lives in another part of the world!

These are a fabulous & talented bunch of ladies! I hope that you all have time to go check them out ~ you won't be disappointed!!

And there are so many more that I'd love to give this award to, but the rules say 5. If you are in my blog roll then count yourself as awarded! You all are great!!!

This is what I've been up to, again!

Just a couple of creations for today! I wanted to make a couple of thank you cards and now with my clear $1.00 stamps hanging on my hillbilly hanger I thought that I'd use them.

The base cards are Pixie Pink. I layered them with some paper that my friend Betty ran thru her Cuttlebug for me. I then used a crayon that I ran over the embossed paper to give it a little more color. I added a length of ribbon and that was the base of the card.


I took my Giga scallop circle punch and punched out the larger circle ~ then the Mega scallop punch to punch out the smaller circle in a different shade. I stamped the images from Studio G (woo-hoo to my Michael's for finally getting those in!!) in Pink Passion ink. I layered that image on top of the scallop circles. Then the bottom corner looked a little plain.


I took my designer label punch, my 1 1/4" circle punch and my word window punch to make the layers for the bottom saying. I stamped the saying 'very much' in Pink Passion ink. The saying is from Hero Arts. I added a couple of brads and taped it to the corner. Quick and easy.



This card took me a few days. You know why? Well it was "Mom" this and "honey" that. I finally sat down and finished it ~ and I was happy with the outcome. I used the TAC set A Bit of Camping and the SU! set Lovely as a Tree for this card.

The base card is Creamy Caramel. I took Close to Cocoa ink and stamped the sleeping bag all over the card. I layered Handsome Hunter and some DP from TAC's Kamalaht collection and layered it to the card. I added a couple of eyelets on the bottom piece.


For the main images I stamped the tent, fishing pole & fire with the TAC set. Since I do not have any trees from TAC yet I had to use SU's Lovely as a Tree set. I masked off the tent and fire and stamped those images. When everything was colored I then used a stipple brush to apply ink to the sky and ground. I was pretty happy with how it turned out.


Now, I'm off to do some blog hopping! Have a great day!!
Hugs,
Joani

A little of this & that day.....

Good morning everyone!

The first thing that I wanted to show you was a couple of RAK's that I've receieved. I am part of a small group of people ~ who really don't know each other ~ that promised to send RAK's to each other often.

And part of the "rules" is that we do not have to post them if we don't want to. No need for recognition, we just do it because we want to.

But I wanted to.... I really like my cards, and they are in my keeper basket for sure.





What do you think? I'm a lucky girl, huh???



















Now this card I made yesterday. I needed a quick and simple card to pop in the mail and this is it. Unless I am making a card for someone in particular, like for their birthday I make cards in multiples of 2 or 4. It really does not take that much more time to do so I do it.

This card I used my TAC set Friendly Greetings. it was a cute stamp of the month set a while back and I just love it!

I took an Old Olive base and layered it with a piece of Cameo Coral that I stamped the the saying 'dog on it' with Chocolate Chip ink on. I added a length of ribbon and attached it to the card. I stamped the little guy and colored him with pencils. It's a little hard to notice but I stamped him again and cut out the muzzle and added another layer with pop dots. If you click on the picture you can see it larger. I also stamped the saying again on scrap and added it to the lower corner. Before I was done I used my corner rounder to round the right edges and added a piece of white cs to the inside and I was complete.


This next card I made for my stampers group. So if your in my groups this is the time to close your eyes~

I stamped the image from the Butterfly Swirls set ~ this image is gorgeous!! ~ on white cs and colored it in with my pencils and gamsol. I layered it with a piece of Lavendar Lace and Certainly Celery. The other layer is Lavendar Lace and some DP from the TAC Amberly Grace collection.

I took my tab punch and stamped the word 'happy' from TAC's gift with purchase stamps and the work 'thoughts' next to it in Lavendar Lace ink. I assembled the card and finished the image panel off with Stickles and my sakura gel pen and I was done.

This set is such a pretty set. I'm not too much into butterflies but this set is a must have!!

Well, I hope that you all have a wonderful day ~ I've got a few things on my plate today but I will be back tomorrow for sure!

Just a little to share

I just have a little to share today ~ life actually had me a bit sidetracked yesterday. But I want to show you a nice surprise that I received in the mail the other day!

I was voted on my MSN site member of the month. I shouldn't of because I'm the manager of it ~ I like to save the special things for the members. But my dear sweet friend Nicola sent me this for being member of the month. When the mail came and I saw a little padded envie from her I thought "what??". Then I opened it and I was so surprised. I just love that little monkey! And the card, she did a fabby job on the card. I would not have the patience to punch out all those little leaves then glue them down. That card is in my keeper basket for sure!

I hope to be back tomorrow to show you some new things I've been working on.

Have a great day!
Hugs,
Joani

Happy Friday

Woo-Hoo today is Friday. It seems like this week has taken forever to finish. It was hubby's 1st week back to work after shut down. They close down the plant every July for maintenance and such ~ and this was his first week back after 9 days of being home. Let me tell you after getting to sleep in for that long then going back to getting up at the crack of dawn to get him going was hard. I feel sorry for my daughter who's got to go back to school soon ;-)


Well, here's my first card to show you today. I made this card using my TAC set Kid's Praises.

I started off with the scor-pal and made some score line on the piece of cs. Then a nifty little trick that I learned from Mel over at Mel Stampz was to use a crayon to highlight over the score marks. My daughter, yes even still at 16 loves to color ~ so I "borrowed" her crayons to do this.

I colored the image with my pencils and gamsol, layered it on to the card with scrap pieces from the Mimi paper collection with a length of ribbon and I was done. Quick and easy.


Here is a card that I somewhat cased from Becca over at Amazing Paper Grace. I just love all of the layers on her cards. And everything is always so pretty.

The base card is Creamy Caramel. It is layered with Chocolate Chip, Really Rust and a piece of DP that I have no idea where it came from - but I like it.

I punched the scallop circles with my Mega and Giga punches. Then I punched a square with my 1 3/8" square punch out of the center of the rust panel. I punched another square with my 1 1/4" punch in Creamy Caramel and the acorn with the 1" square punch. I glued down the Chocolate Chip panel then the ribbon and tied a knot and then used pop dots to place the Really Rust panel down. Once I did that I doubled the layers of pop dots under the acorn and placed that down in the center. I used my word window punch to punch out the sentiment and I "made" another word window punch in Really Rust to go under that and glued that down in the corner.


I want to leave you today with a few of the things that I've been working on to sell at the Peddler's Mall. It seems that the notepads and post it notes are good items to sell. So here are a few that I've made to put there.

This batch I used my SU! paper Au Chocolat. I just love this paper, and if I knew where to get my hands on more I would.....

These are post it note holders with matching clips.





Here are some more post it note holders. I covered the coasters with some TAC paper from the Brighten my Day collection. I also made the little clips to hold them to the coaster and beaded pens.

These are along the same lines as the post it note holders ~ just note pads. I covered some chipboard with paper from TAC's Uptown Girl collection with the clips. I thought that the ribbon was perfect to go with the paper.

And last but not least more post it note holders. This one I used TAC's Rustic Chic paper. I just love how it looks all distressed and you don't have to do a thing to it! These are a little bit more "fancy" than the others :)

I wanted to say that there is a whole world out there of knowledge. I can say that since we've moved here I have not been able to attend any stamp shows or classes. I miss the stamp shows that we used to go to in California ~ but everything that I've learned since then has been off the Internet. So even if you make something and you thing "nah - I won't post that" please do. You never know who might be out there just wanting to re-create what you just made!

Now if I can stay off the computer long enough today, maybe I could create something!

Have a great day!
Hugs,
Joani

I can post.....

My goodness, I've been having trouble... I've been wanting to post pictures and I could not. I've even been having trouble with my MSN group. I guess the past couple of day's it was meant for me to blog hop not to post :)

So I guess I will get to it. I've been busy, so I've got a few things to show you.... Here we go.

I'm not sure if I told you all about the lady who left a note for me at the Peddler's Mall? She wanted me to make a few things for her. She stopped by the other day to pick them up and she is the sweetest. She reminds me of me kinda. She works in a doctor's office and she sends cards to people who she feel's needs a little "pick me up". I thought that is so sweet. That sounds like me. I like to send cards out just because. She also wanted a few Thank You cards and she needed a wedding card that I will show you too today.

Now, on to the card.

I've been neglecting all of my SU! stamps lately. So I took the boxes out one by one and looked at each set. I have them all in order by category and listed on paper ~ but I thought that I'd look at each one and if something jumped out at me then I'd use that set. Well this one did.


The set is an old one called Feathered Hope. I stamped the image and colored it in with my watercolor crayons. I like the look it gives, and it is a pretty fast way to color.

The base card is a burgundy linen paper that I've had forever. I layered it with Groovy Guava and some DP from K&Company. I then took the image panel and sponged some Cameo Coral ink around it, layered it on to Groovy Guava and placed it on the card.

The sentiment is from the In My Thoughts set stamped with Purely Pomegranate ink and layered onto a scrap of the burgundy linen paper.

I've also been adding a 1/4 sheet of white cs to the inside of the cards. It's a whole lot easier to write in a card when you have white cs layered inside. Oh yes, the envie matched too...

Here is the wedding card that I made for her. I thought that I'd do something a little different. I made a gatefold card ~ nothing special, just a plain old card and I'd make a belly band to go around it. That's where I did the stamping.

I used SU! Life's Special Moments and used my watercolor crayons to lightly shade the images. I did not want too much color, just a tad. Then I cut the image out with my coluzzle. I then cut out a piece of Bashful Blue and a piece of Chocolate Chip. I know, they are not colors that I thought I'd use on a wedding card, but I actually liked the way they turned out.

I used some DP from TAC's Amberly Grace collection on the gate folds along with pieces of Creamy Caramel. For the belly band I used a piece of the Amberly Grace paper with a piece of the Chocolate Chip. I added a few primas and brads to it.

On the inside I stamped the roses from the set and colored them with my pencils and gamsol. I stamped the swirls from my Butterfly Swirls TAC set (I think that's my new favorite set) in Creamy Caramel and the saying from the SU! all layered on a piece of Creamy Caramel. All in all I think that it turned out nice. Judging from her reaction when I gave it to her I'm sure she is more than pleased with it.

And yes, the envie matched too ~ of course!





When I give people a set of cards I always have the dilemma of how to package them. I never know what to put them in. Well I had a few cards to give her and I went blog surfing and found this cute little holder. I am truly sorry but I can not remember where I found it. If I remember I promise to post the link....

I used a piece of Amberly Grace paper to make this. My Mom had bought this ribbon and I really did not know what to do with it ~ I don't like to use ribbon that is too bulky on cards especially if I'm mailing them ~ but it was perfect for this card holder.






When the holder is open the bottom flaps fold down and the ribbon is what holds the cards in.

It is supposed to hold 10 cards and envies, but I did squeeze 12 in there, I would not add more than that.

Well ~ that's enough for today. I hope that you all have a wonderful day! I hope to be back tomorrow!

I'm really trying....

Ok everyone ~ I've been trying to upload pictures to by blog and for some reason it won't let me.

I've been busy working on things and I'd love to show them but blogger is not benig very nice.

I'll keep trying for a bit and see if I can ~ if not I may have to post tomorrow.

You may want to stop on over....

You may want to stop on over at Limelight Papercrafts. They are having a call for Design Team members......

I also wanted to let everyone know that I've been a little busy, but tomorrow I promise to be back with some items I've created.....

Have a great rest of your weekend.

Hugs,
Joani

Some TAC specials....

I would like to share a few of the specials that The Angel Company is having. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at joanmcdonald@roadrunner.com

TAC has just released a SIGN UP SPECIAL! And it is a goodie! If you have been thinking about becoming an Angel Company Demonstrator - you should check this out:
Come join The Angel Company™ family from July 21-August 11 and pick one (1) of the following add-on kit options for free with the purchase of a starter kit.

Simply Stamps
• Choose an additional $50.00 worth of T-Coded stamps from the Fall/Winter 2008 Inspiration Book & Catalogue

Kit & KaboodleReceive one (1) of each of our fabulous paper kits:
• Sydney™ Circle Album Kit• Woodrowe™ Keepsake Album Kit

• Natalee™ Accordion Album Kit• Pemberley Bay™ Matchbook Kit

• Rockin’ Roxie™ Matchbook Kit

Gung Ho!Go Gung Ho! and choose:
• One (1) $19.95 T-coded stamp set from the Fall/Winter 2008 Inspiration Book & Catalogue

• One (1) $15.95 T-coded stamp set from the Fall/Winter 2008 Inspiration Book & Catalogue

• Three (3) $6.95 TAC™ Soar With It™ Paper Collections

Customize your starter kit and your add-on options to meet your needs and learn why at The Angel Company™

“Being an Angel is just more fun.”

*Starter Kit add-on options are available ONLY from Monday, July 21, 2008, to Monday, August 11, 2008. No exceptions.

*All Starter Kit requests with add-on options must be received by 5:00 PM CST, Monday August 11, 2008.

*Starter Kit payment must be made by credit card, debit card, or money order. Personal checks are not accepted for the purchase of Starter Kits.

*Please note the choice of add-on option on the Starter Kit order form to avoid processing delays.

*No other special offers or discounts apply.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just Dreamy

This “dreamy” Limited Edition Set is only available July 15 through August 15, 2008, so hurry and grab yours today! You can purchase this specially-sized stamp set with a $30.00* purchase.

• Net total before shipping, handling, and applicable taxes.

• No other discounts may apply to this offer.

• Limited Edition Stamp Set has a retail value of $10.95.
  
  • Guests may purchase one (1) Limited Edition Set with a $30.00* purchase for $7.95.
  
  • Guests may also purchase the current SOTM with this $30.00 purchase.
  
  • Limited Edition Set counts toward FUNshop™ totals.
  
  • Limited Edition Set will not be available after August 15, 2008.
  
  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You Deserve to CELEBRATE!

Everyone loves a great surprise, and we at The Angel Company have gathered a wonderful array of our favorite products from past TAC™ catalogues and put together some amazing Surprise Box Collections for you! These fun bundles of discontinued product have a retail value of at least $150. Available only while supplies last, don’t miss the opportunity to surprise yourself or your customers with the great papercrafting goodies found in these one-of-a-kind special boxes. This special Surprise Box promotion is available from August 1-August 15 or while supplies last so don’t miss your chance to own some great products at a fantastic price.

SB 2008 Surprise Box Assortment $75.00

Due to the special nature of this promotion, Surprise Box Assortments are only available while supplies last, and the products they contain are non-returnable and non-exchangeable.

*Surprise Box Assortments are ONLY available while supplies last.
*No other special offers or discounts apply.
*The promotion runs from August 1-August 15 OR while supplies last.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Would You Like to Meet Woodrowe™?

From August 1 - September 2, 2008, come meet our fantastic Woodrowe™ Keepsake Album Kit and say “Hello” to the simple, smart, sophisticated style of The Angel Company™. Available only for a limited time, this special offer includes:

• Woodrowe™ Keepsake Album Kit

• Antique Copper Hardware• Willoughby/Woodrowe™ Ribbon Collection

• Reece/Woodrowe™ Ribbon Collection

• From A-Z Limited Edition Stamp Set

• A-Z Alphabet Limited Edition Stamp SetA specially discounted price makes this the perfect time to welcome Woodrowe™ and introduce your memories to simplicity.

AUG08 Meet Woodrowe™ $49.95

*From A-Z and A-Z Alphabet Stamp Sets are ONLY available as part of this special promotion.

* From A-Z and A-Z Alphabet Stamp Sets will not be available after September 2, 2008.

* Retail value of From A-Z Stamp Set is $39.95. Retail value of A-Z Alphabet Stamp Set is $19.95.

* Retail value of entire package is $89.25.

A new venture....

Lately I've not been around too much ~ hubby and I have been thinking of a new venture.

I've wanted to get a clip it up for a while now, but the cost is just too much for me. So I thought and thought and then passed the idea over to hubby. Well, with him being off work this week we took a trip to Lowe's. I actually think that he hates it when he takes me there. I start to see things in a different light and I think of different ideas. So off we went and we picked up this and that and brought it home. This is what came to life.



Now this is what I am affectionately calling the "Hillbilly Pin it up" because it is a make shift version of the original. But this is the before picture. I've got little clips on it ready to go. And I was a little excited that it spins. I was not sure that it would spin - but it does!!!










This is the after version with my clear stamps on it. I actually started out wanting this for my ATC's and cards that I've received that I am running out of room to place. That way I could get them out of the little shopping cart and box that they are stored in and put them someplace nice to be seen. But then I was thinking (yes again!!! scary huh?) that hanging my clear stamps would be nice. I'd get them out of the drawer and maybe use them once in a while.

Now, I just need a place to put it....







Then I was thinking (yes, again) and thought well ~ lot's of other blogs have ladies who's hubby's make things for them to sell. Things that make our lives as crafters a whole lot nicer. So I asked hubby-like this:

"Hon, you know this is really a nice thing that you've done for me." "Yes, I know ~ what do you want?" he says. "Oh nothing. I just thought" this is where I could see the bead of sweat forming on his forehead "I just thought that if I post this on my blog and people liked it, well, um, maybe you could make them to sell". He sat there for a minute - thinking why in the heck did I agree to make this in the first place..... And he said "Yeah, that would be alright". I was excited!! I thought Yippie!

If anyone is interested in purchasing one of these just contact me at joanmcdonald@roadrunner.com to order one. I will place it in the sidebar so it will be easy access for all to see. We are asking $30.00 each plus shipping. I don't think that it is a bad price considering that the real deal is almost $95.00 for the upper and lower tiers.

Tomorrow morning I will be back with some goodies that I've cooked up.
Have a great evening!

Monday, Monday - Happy Monday!

Good morning everyone! I hope that this weekend was a good one for you!

I wanted to show you what we did on Friday but the pictures did not show up good so I will save that for another day. But here's a couple things I've been working on....

This first card I made using an old SU! set called Knobbly Gnomes. At first I did not care for this set too much when I saw it in the catty. But then it grew on me. I really think that those little guy's are adorable.

The base of the card is Purely Pomegranate. I stamped the mushroom images all over it with versamark. I then layered it with Creamy Caramel and another paper I've received in a RAK that I'm not sure what it is..... It's textured that's all I can say ~ and I sponged Purely Pomegranate all around that panel.

I used my coluzzle and cut out the oval in Purely Pomegranate and cut another of the image. I sponged around the image panel also.

Before attaching the panels to the card I took a piece of purple ribbon and secured it with a purple crystal brad. Yes, I love purple!!!

The sentiment panel is stamped in Purely Pomegranate on Creamy Caramel and attached with pop dots. I also stamped the mushrooms on the envie too to match!

The next card I made is yes, mostly purple! The base card is Old Olive. I stamped the image and colored it with my watercolor crayons. I sponged Lovely Lilac around that panel and attached it to a piece of Lavender Lace cs. I've got some mulberry paper that is sitting around collecting dust and thought that I'd pull it out - so I tore some up and used that.

The DP is some from SU! that I've had - I'm not sure which collection it is from. I sponged some Lovely Lilac ink around that too.

Before I layered the panels down I added a length of white organdy ribbon to the card. For the sentiment panel I stamped the saying, tore the edges then crumpled the paper up. I then smoothed it out and layered that on to a piece of Lavender Lace paper and added a couple of brads to the sides.

Once the card front was complete I've been adding a sheet of white cs to the insides of the cards with a coordinating stamp. I don't know but I think that it looks a little more "finished" this way. And yes, I stamped the envie to match.

I hope to get off the computer soon so I can get to work to show you what's up my sleeve now.

Have a great day!!!

Photo Corners & some cards to share...

Hello there everyone!! I just thought that I would post a few things that I've been up to.

Betty stopped by the other day and we had an afternoon of fun. She brought her cuttlebug and I've got a stack of paper to prove it! She finished some swap cards while she was here. She also had never done the shaving cream technique and we showed her that. Actually my DD was the little "instructor" and it was cute. I even sat my SIL down while we were making a spring card and I goofed that one up! Betty had not made one yet and I said "Oh it's super easy" well, don't say that if your going to goof it up! I folded in the wrong spot and now we have all these little fold lines! Oh well, I will figure something out to use the paper with....

Before I show you the cards, I want to show you a little way that I make my photo corners. I guess I'm just not ready to spend the $15.95 on the punch. I could get 3 packages of paper for that :)

But this is what I do.

I take my 1 3/8" square punch and punch a square out of DP.













I then take my 1 1/4" square punch and punch out a square of coordinating cardstock.















I tape them together then I cut them down the middle diagonally.
















Once I do that I cut a little 'v' out of the center and your almost thru.








If you want you can tie a piece of ribbon (this is a good thing to use those scraps for) or as I did here I used my paper piercer also.

I'm sorry for the bad picture ~ I think that my camera is going ka-putz.








Now, this is what I used the photo corner on.

I still had out my old SU! set Country Charm. I stamped that and colored it with pencils and markers.

The base card is Night of Navy. I layered it with Baroque Burgundy, Cameo Coral and a piece of DP from K&Company. I sponged Night of Navy around the DP and layered the image on to it. I stamped the sentiment on the lower corner with Night of Navy and sponged that a little also.

I added my photo corner and I was done!


Here's another card that I made. Linda who is so kind to let me take up a corner in her booth at the Peddler's Mall needed a card for her niece who graduated. She said she knew she was late but asked if I'd make the card. Well, of course!

The base of this card is Brocade Blue. I layered it with Night of Navy and used Not Quite Navy also.

I stamped the images in Brocade Blue and sponged around the edges as well. I used my Marvy Giga Punch and Word Window punch. Before I layered the panels together I took a strip of ribbon and laid that down. Once all the panels were together I used my white gel pen to add some dots around the card. I was not too sure I liked it, but then I kept looking at it and it reminded me of a movie marquee sign. Yes, I know.... I see things that other's don't sometimes. But maybe that's what makes me a little creative???

I hope that you liked the post today. I'm off - I've got to get things ready for tomorrow. Betty is coming back and Stephenie will stop by too. We've got some shoe box things were going to do.

Have a great day!
Hugs ~ Joani

Woo Hoo & an award too!

I'm excited! Today Betty is stopping by to have a "play day". She's bringing her cuttlebug (someday I will get mine!!) and we're going to have a good time!!!

Something that I do miss a lot from California is having the ladies over. We used to have a great time. But now I've got a couple of friends here that come to play. Betty's hubby is in town working and she thought that she'd hitch a ride with him and stop by. Lucky for us!!

And I also wanted to share that Stephenie my other stampin buddy gave me an award.

It seems I rock her socks :)

So I will in turn pick my fav's who rock my socks!

Gabby

Linsey

Mel

Mary Beth

All a fine bunch of ladies! You all rock my socks for sure!!!

Have a great day! I hope to!!

I've been a bit busy....

Good Morning Everyone!

I hope that you had a safe and wonderful 3 day weekend! It was nice here. It was supposed to rain this weekend, but once again it didn't. It did rain for a bit on the 4th. We were sitting there waiting to watch the fireworks display that the town puts on and I was under an umbrella. But almost as soon as the fireworks started the rain let up. How cool is that!?

And for fear of being yelled at (I will take my chances) here's a picture of my Mom and daughter. Yes, I'm always pointing the camera in some one's direction!

Well - on to business....
First I want to say that I am going to keep the post about theangelcompany™ and their giveaway at the top of my blog until the end of the giveaway. I want to make sure that everyone get's their chance at it. It really is a great giveaway, and all you have to do is take a minute to enter - it's that simple!

Now, on to the cards.

I've got a bit of creating to do. This first card is for a dear friends birthday that is coming up. Actually I've got a few birthday cards to make. The SU! Loads of Love set has been one of my favorites for a long time. The first time I saw the set it was used in a magazine and the little truck was smooshed into a tree. I knew that I needed that set because at the time I worked for a body shop and what perfect card to make! And when the Boatloads of Love set came out I had to add that to my collection, of course!

Well this card was created with that very set. I used some of the wonderful paper that Betty gave me that she ran thru her cuttlebug. I'm lucky, she's supposed to be coming over tomorrow and she said she will bring her machine :)

The base card is Always Artichoke that I layered with a piece of Tempting Turquoise. I then stamped some swirls from my Autumn Leaves set with Rose Red ink on Rose Red cs. I layered the image panel on to Cameo Coral and placed it on top of the Rose Red. Before I adhered that to the card I placed a couple of big eyelets and some ribbon thru the paper.

For the sentiment panel I stamped the saying from Loads of Love but it said "driving" by so I stamped the word "float" then cut ans pasted it to the panel. Just a little bit of my humor....


This next card I made, a little late, was for last Wednesday's tutorial on SCS called a Spring Card. When I was in school and I wrote notes to friends I'd always fold the paper in different forms. Well this card was super easy because the basic fold was similar to the one I used to fold my notes in. And note to DD: This does not mean you can write notes just because I did. Keep your mind on your schoolwork (just in case she's reading this) :-)

Anyway, this card was so super easy to do. Really the hard part is to place your image in the space. I think it measured 3 1/2" x 3 3/4". My image was a little too large so that's why I placed it the way I did. Next time I'll look for something smaller.



I used an old SU! set called Country Charm. It's been soooo long since I've used this set I needed to blow the dust off of it! But of course now that it's out I've got a few more cards cooking....

I used some old DP from SU! as the base. I stamped the images and colored them in with pencils and markers. I sponged some Night of Navy ink around the panel, layered it on to River Rock and then Night of Navy before I placed it on the card. I stamped the sentiment and mounted that to River Rock and Night of Navy also. On the other side I added some Primas with crystal brads and I was done. I don't think that it turned out all bad, but next time I will make the image panel a little different.

My last card today that I'm showing is some more I made for my stamping groups. I like to make sure that I give away some cards that are made with TAC™ supplies with all my orders. It's just a personal thing I like to do. Once I had a demo (many, many moons ago) that was awful. Mom and I would go to her parties every month and spend plenty of money. She would never give us any cards with our orders. Ok, maybe some don't - and that's fine. But at the time my DD was only 10 and she would charge me to have her come along. Then we'd sit there for a couple of hours and she would not even offer us water. I always thought if I did this I would be a more than gracious hostess. Ok ~ enough of my ranting.....


This card is more of a mod podge of stamp sets. I used Trendy Greetings, Floral Labels, Kid Praises and Spring Dream.

The base card is Night of Navy and I layered that with Pumpkin Pie and River Rock. I stamped the pie and sentiment on white cs and colored it in. I punched that out with my Mega Marvy punch and sponged Pumpkin Pie ink around the edge. Then I layered that on to a piece of Night of Navy cs that I cut out with my coluzzle.

I stamped the swirls from Spring Dream in Night of Navy ink all around on River Rock. For the sentiment panel I stamped one of the stamps from Floral Labels and then the words "Just a Note" from Trendy Greetings inside that with Pumpkin Pie ink. I cut that out and adhered it to the lower part of the card. I also stamped a flower from the Floral Labels set on a piece of white cs and placed that inside the card in case someone wants to write a note.

This past weekend I found out some good news! Remember when I mentioned that I was selling items at the local Peddler's Mall?? Well there is a lady who got a hold of me that wants me to make cards for her. I was a little shocked at first. She said that she "found" my items and she will never buy a card again. I was a little flattered. So I am in the process of making some cards for her. I was so excited!! That was a start to a wonderful weekend!!

Well ~ I hope that you all have a wonderful crafty day!!

Enter to Win!!!

The Angel Company has a promotion going on and I'd like to invite you all to join in on the fun!

This is what you could win!!!

• Toodle Loo™ Soar With It Collection retail value: $6.95
• Toodle Loo™ Cardstock retail value: $6.50
• Toodle Loo™ Ribbon retail value: $4.95
• Toodle Loo™ Hardware retail value: $4.50
• On Safari Stamp Set retail value: $15.95
• Running Stitches Stamp Set retail value: $15.95

Total retail value: $54.80

Just click HERE to be forwarded to the Angel Company and the form you need to fill out to win. Fill in all the fields with a red star and click the submit button only once. After you click submit you will see a confirmation page next. If you receive a "This page cannot be displayed" message, contact us to make sure that your submission was received at web@theangelcompany.net. You must sign up by 11:59 pm, on July 31st. The Winner will be notified by e-mail, as well as by phone.

So don't miss out on this chance - it's a super prize!!

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!
Hugs,
Joani

I just wanted to wish all of my American friends a safe and happy holiday! And to everyone else ~ may your day be just as nice.

I hope to be back tomorrow with more!

Until then,

Hugs, Joani

Howdy, Howdy!!

Good Morning Everyone! I hope that today is a great day for you.... as for me, well the jury is still out. I've got an interview today...

I'm not sure that I want to go to work. Well, I kind of do ~ but I don't. I mean it would be nice to help out with things around here, and I'd have more money to spend on my crafts :) but I don't think I'm ready to enter the workforce just yet. Or maybe they are not ready for me???

I had to share with you a couple of things that my daughter has been up to. She shocked me the other day when she asked me if she could alter this box I had. I said sure! And made a little spot for her. I wanted to show her how to cover it and I took my scor-pal out and started what I thought would be the lines to cover it and it wasn't. She said "that paper's ruined" and I said "no it isn't - just watch" and I used each of the lines on the scor-pal and scored the paper in both directions.

Thanks to wonderful Mel over at Mel Stampz I used a crayon to "ink" the paper up. I think that I am going to keep a box of crayons on my desk now - you've got to check out her blog for this technique, she's awesome!!!

Once Danielle had seen it she shrugged her shoulders - this is teen talk for ok - and she used it!! Score one for Mom!!!

Then she decorated the box and used the Marvy punches, primas, ribbon & crystal brads. I told her it still needed something and she made the bow for the top using the directions on SCS.

But I was tickled at the card she made. She needed to make some birthday cards for friends and I walked in the craft room the other morning and said "wha' cha' doin?" and she said making a card - like I didn't figure that out!! She SO takes after me, and I'm not sure that is a good thing....

But she had "stolen" my new copy of Paper Crafts and she saw a picture in there and decided to make the card. Well it is almost identical! She can do that. Look at a picture and voila! instant card. She's very quick too. A must help I think when I've got some production issues - ahhhh, child labor. Very good to have when they want something ;-) When she was done she jokingly asked me if I would put a picture on my blog of what she did and I said yes! She gave me a double take and said "you will?" I said of course! I did tell her that I talk about her sometimes and she said "I know". I didn't think that she read my blog - I better be careful about what I write now....

This card I wanted to show you I made a while back when SCS had it as a Wednesday tutorial. It is a double pocket card. They are SO super easy to do.

I took a piece of my au Chocolat paper (that I've been saving - for what I don't know) and the SU! set One of a Kind to make it. I also used Totally Tabs, my Mega Marvy punch, my SU! Scallop punch, crystal brads and primas. I thought that it turned out kind of nice.

Well, I'm off for now. Got to get ready - wish me luck, I think.....

Hugs for a wonderful day,

Joani

Good Morning Everyone!!

I hope that today is a great day for you! To all of my California friends I hope that you are all doing well and the fires stay far from you.

I've been a little busy making some cards for my Stampers groups coming up. I always like to put a few extra cards or goodies in with everyones orders. It shows that I care, and I like to demo the products even though it's not really a "party". I sure wish that I could go to each and everyone but until I win the lotto that's just a dream.

My first card here was actually made over the course of a couple of days. You know how that is. You start something then something else comes up. The phone rings, the door bell rings (which is fine because that means it might be Mr. Brown!!) or the laundry has to be done.

This card did not turn out anything like what was in my head ~ and I actually am still not sure that I like it, but it will have to do.

The base card is Old Olive. I layered that with some DP from theangelcompany™ Miss Moxie collection. I added a piece of Always Artichoke to the bottom that I stitched on the sewing machine. But before I stitched it I used my corner rounder to make the scallops on the bottom, and added a piece of hot pink ribbon to it before it was glued down. I also stamped the word 'hello' from my Hello There set in the lower right hand corner. I stamped some flourishes from the Swoops & Swirls set with Pink Passion ink before I adhered the little girl and the ice cream cone that were colored with my watercolor crayons and layered on to DP from the Hemingway collection.

Something else I've just started doing is adhering a piece of plain white cs to the inside of the card with a little stamped image that coordinates. I think that it makes it look a little nicer that way ~ and if the card is dark like the next one it give a nice space to write in.


This next card I made for a swap that I am in on my MSN site. It is a music swap and I've had this set forever and really never used it so I thought what the heck!

The base card is Basic Black. I stamped the drum images from Jazzed Up twice. Once on the white cs and once on colored cs. I then cut the pieces out, embossed them with clear EP and then adhered them. For the piano piece I embossed the entire piece. I stamped the music notes (from a SU! wheel that I UM) and embossed those with black EP. I then layered the images on to the card alternating Pink Passion cs and Basic Black cs. Once I had everything on the card I used my sakura gel pen and highlighted the "just a note" panel and then added some stickles to the drum panel.

As I mentioned before I added a piece of white cs to the inside with a coordinating stamp and I was done.

I hope that you liked my creations today. Now I must be off to create something else for you!
Have a great day!!!