Welcome Christmas!

A quick post to showcase some REALLY quick cards I made using the Simple Stories paper in preparation for my upcoming fancy folds class at Scrap A Doodle Doo this Thursday... These cards are the "extras" after my "two step" class featuring the stepped card format...

Anywhoo, it was SO nice to make cards when the baby was sleeping, the tree was lit, and the Christmas music was playing that I actually scrapped a page too! :) I'll post that shortly once the stickles dry! :)

(Sneak Peek ofthe two stepped cards for Thursday's class!) 

Thanks for looking and happy holidays!!

All I need is a little...

Inspiration! :( I've tried swapping and challenges and staring at my stash, but I CANNOT get my mojo going anymore!! What do I do?????????????? Any ideas blogland? I mean, I make cards when I HAVE to these days and I haven't scrapped a page in like forever... HELLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!

Missin' my crafty peeps...

Just a quick hello to blogland today... It's been too long since we've "communicated" and I miss my bloggy crafty friends... So hello, happy holidays, and happy crafting. Hopefully I'll be able to play and share sometime soon! :)

It's beginning to look a lot like Halloween...

And Halloween is honestly the one holiday I rarely celebrate with my children! Melanie dresses up for Trunk or Treat at church but I refuse to buy her a new costume... we spend so much money on dance costumes that she can usually adapt one of those outfits for Halloween. And yet I found myself signing up for every swap imaginable over the summer... Making Halloween cards turned out to be a little difficult for me because I don't really collect the traditional Halloween embellies... But I was able to play with my Magic of Oz collection, which DID make me smile! :)

I'm submitting these for One Stop Craft Challenge (Anything Goes) and Card Makin Mamas! Thanks, as always, for looking! :) I have GOT to make time to blog more... Maybe it'll be a New Year's resolution... :)

"The rain continued the whole evening without intermission." (Pride and Prejudice)

So don't believe the naysayers... Hurricane Irene was NO joke... She left quite the devastation behind, and because of her, my basement (and, scrap room!) was flooded with up to three or four feet of water... But I have to thank God I escaped relatively unscathed... She damaged SOME of my prized scrappy goods, but the advance warning and dire predictions helped salvage my more sentimental items, such as my unscrapped pictures, favorite papers, and more portable goods...
(Here's a shot of Main Street in my town, Lodi, NJ, where ALL commerce was shut down... this is down the block from my house)

My Cricut, however, suffered the wrath of my husband's angry hose... The machine ALMOST avoided destruction because I placed her on the windowsill in the basement, high above where the waters would have collected... But since Andrew chose to switch the hose's position as we were pumping our waters out of the affected areas to the same exact window that housed my prize machine, well, you get the picture. I can't say that I'm not highly affected emotionally by the loss of my bug... I may not be as attached to the machine as I was when she first arrived in our household three years ago, but I still cannot figure out how to title a scrapbook page without her... A memorial service will follow. :)

Today we hiked up to Sparta to visit my parents, and I dragged my bag of salvaged Graphic 45 papers with me... I had a pad of Memento Tuxedo Black ink along and my tape runner. And some cardstock that escaped the wet bucket... (Ugh, just for future reference, even if a bucket SEEMS watersafe and is plastic and seems durable, it may not be... I had a nice sized bin full of papers, embellishments, and other scrappy goodies (e.g., stickles, bling, flowers... RIP Prima... that floated out of my basement when we realized we had gotten so much water. After, of course, all the contents sank to the bottom :(.

Anywhoo, I dragged my papers along to see if I could still scrap a bit with limited supplies. Though I would've LOVED to add a flower or two to this project or even some bling, I was able to eek out two cards for some educators who are going back to work this week using the new ABC Primer Collection from Graphic 45. I'm SO glad these papers were in my Scrap-A-Doodle Doo tote and NOT stored with my older G45 papers (like my Romance pack... that was a painful loss).

SOOOO, simple as they are, I am submitting these to Crazy 4 Challenges and One Stop Craft Challenge, as their challenges this week feature a "Back to School" theme....Thanks for looking, and hope you are all DRY!!! :)

"Dinner was soon followed by tea and coffee" (Mansfield Park)

This week's challenge at Card Makin' Mamas is to incorporate food or drink into a project... AND I'm currently signed up for a swap with Splitcoast Stampers featuring caffeine, so this double whammy came in QUITE handy!

Quite honestly, this is the MOST clean and simple card I think I've EVER made, lol! I added stickles to the sugar cubes and some bling on the ribbon trim, but even though it's got all my favorite things (like Graphic 45 paper, ribbon, lace, bling, copic coloring), It's still so... clean! :) But I like the look, although oddly enough I'm not too sure I can always repeat the effect!

Although it doesn't have a Some Odd Girl image (though I generally LOVE using 'em!!), I am also submitting this one into the SOG challenge this week, which is a "Thank You" theme (cause the DT's terms are up... If you HAVEN'T checked out SOG, you should definitely hop on over there... My pal Kristy is beyond talented and has some AMAZING artwork for sale!

Thanks for looking and have a sunshiny day!

Christmas in July!

It has been a SWELTERING week here in Jersey... So hot that we lost power on Friday and have been pretty much exclusively indoors all weekend. The only good thing about being stuck inside is the time to get crafty! :) I signed up for like a bazillion swaps to keep myself busy, not to mention the fact that I'm still working on samples for my Copics Club classes at Scrap-A-Doodle Doo...

But my mojo has been semi-MIA... I haven't scrapped a single solitary page in FOREVER... Cards help me get the creative juice flowing, but nothing has helped me crack the lack of scrap mojo... What to do??

BUT, I did check out the Kraftin' Kimmie challenge this week (awesome sketch, btw!) and it definitely helped me get some craftiness goin'... I was stumped on what to do for my Pink n Green Christmas Card swap, and though I am not 100% sure how reproducible this card is (it took me about six hours to make... I had fun making it, but to repeat six more times for a swap? Not too sure...)

I had tons of fun coloring in and paper piecing this cutie, Christmas Clara... I used some old Basic Grey Nook and Pantry paper for Clara's dress and then added highlights using Copic markers R10, R13, T0, and T6... I colored her skin in with E000, E00, and E11... Then I went to town on her hair. :) I used E50, E53, E31, E33, E25 and E27 to get the shades correct for her hair. And sadly, I think I am still in need of other "E" shades... :) Since she came out so cute, I did think to include her in Papertake Weekly's challenge... :)

AND I finally got a Cuttlebug Machine... I've been in denial for years and gave in recently... So featured here are the script Cuttlebug folder and the Spellbinders Labels 8... SO much fun being able to emboss and cut with the Cuttlebug... And less noisy than my Cricut, so I was able to play with these pieces at 1 AM this morning! :) SOOOOO... I'm also entering this card into the Simon Says Stamp challenge (Newspaper) for the printed embossing on the side of the card.

Well, I've got to run, but thanks so much for checkin' out this lil' cutie, and STAY COOL! :)

Steampunk Vintage Time!

So I got sucked in again... Swaps do it to me EACH and every time... :) But it's honestly been a long time since I really was involved in swaps via Cafe Mom, so when I saw a couple of interesting swaps on Splitcoast, I had to join in...
These ATCs were created for a Steampunk swap that was DEFINITELY up my alley, particularly since I haven't played with my entire pack of Steampunk Debutante paper from Graphic 45, and it's probably still my favorite line they've released recently... So here's the whole lot of nine:

And here are a few of the cards individually:

 

I had lots of fun making 'em... I used some corrugated cardboard (my alltime favorite backing for ATCs, btw!) and added some light gel medium mixed with Paprika Glimmer Glam that I then dripped on top of the coppery blend... Then I layered my favorite Graphic 45 papers, inked em up, added a stamped Tim Holtz Millinery image that I colored in with my Smooch ink and then of course there's some lace, some Tim Holtz sprockets, and CRACKLE accents (without which no project is ever complete!)... Oh AND I played with the Viva Decor Bronze pearl pens for the pearl accents...



"He talked of foregrounds, distances, and second distances — side–screens and perspectives — lights and shades.” (Northanger Abbey)

And it is lights and shades that I too am working on! :) I'm still trying to figure out exactly where the darker shadows should go on a complex image and how to add the light element to said picture... A fun image to work with for shadows was this Cinderella stamp from Kraftin Kimmie.

And I was able to find the lil gold shoe in my stash to add with the gold stickles and gold paper matting to qualify for this week's Kraftin Kimmie's challenge: gold. :) These images have so much depth to play with so I'm thinking I'm going to have to dig 'em out more and more! :)

Cutie Patootie...

Hey there blogland! Just a quickie post cause we're in the middle of final exams (thankfully!) and cleaning up and all that good stuff... I'm SO looking forward to the summer months so I can get crafty! But in the meantime, I may have mentioned my darling Leah was around this weekend... Check out HER blog cause I'm sure she's showin' off her FOURTEEN cards... BUT I did get to make THREE measly ones while she visited! :)

THIS one was made using Toby from Some Odd Girl... And since the "manly" challenge is up tonight, I thought I'd squeeze him in there before it expired! :) ALSO, I stumbled across this lil blog called Card Cupids... WELL, their mission is to provide some love to lil' kids who are suffering, via handmade cards, stuffed animals, and the like... Since I've been teaching my students to make cards for troops, I think we're going to add Card Cupids to our list for next year and send some love out to little ones as well... This one is being submitted there cause of Toby's li'l doggie, and I'm DEFINITELY making something with butterflies on it for their newest call for happy mail... And I think I'll enlist Mini Me Melanie to help out too! :)

"Nobody minds having what is too good for them." (Mansfield Park)

And it was TOO good to see my darling friend Ms. Leah yesterday for our all day cropping adventure... Leah got her cardmaking mojo rolling and made a whoppinig fourteen cards to my THREE... :) BUT in my defense I was also working on some layouts for Scrap-A-Doodle Doo's use at the upcoming CKC.

This card was made using the Lil Victorian Steampunk Lolita Evie from Tickled Pink... This week's challenge was to incorporate texture, and my darling Leah hooked me up with some GAWJUSS Core'dinations paper that I sanded down to show the fabby texture underneath... paired with crackle accents on some of the clocks (yes Jill, I'm still a crackle accents addict!), and a couple of little embellies, this one was SO much fun to make... Did I mention how much I'm lovin this lil lady?? :)

"Woman is fine for her own satisfaction alone. No man will admire her the more, no woman will like her the better for it. Neatness and fashion are enough for the former, and a something of shabbiness or impropriety will be most endearing to the latter." (Northanger Abbey)

SO... I was ogling the new Victorian Steampunk beauties released by Tickled Pink recently and poof, up popped an announcement that Kellie was giving away some freebies to the first fifty respondants... I SO didn't think I would've made the cut off, but then Kellie updated the blog and mentioned there were still some spots! SO... whoo hoo, I was blessed with a Lil Victorian Lolita Evie! :)

Here she is in all her shabby chic splendour, fully colored in copics (oooh ooh, did I mention that I JUST got copic certified this week in Philadelphia? The two hour ride was SO worth the pretty certificate and all the awesome techniques I learned from Lori Craig!!! BUT that's a whole other post in and of itself! :)

For this card, I used the Super Sketchy Sunday design from 365 Cards, and the Tickled Pink challenge is Anything Goes (as long as you use an image from them!). Paper Sundaes also asked for Sentiments along with or without images...This sentiment came from Paulette over at TLC, and totally fit this Victorian fashionista!

Copics used:

Skin: E000, E00, E11

Dress: T0, T6, 0, E04

Hair: E23, E25, E27

Accents: Viva Pearl

Thanks for looking! :) Stay cool... the forecast is up to 97 degrees tomorrow, and we have officially cancelled schools because of the heat advisory!



Wings n Things

Here's a quick card made using the Bo Bunny Gabrielle line... I LOVE making accordian flowers now (now that I know how to that is! :) ) And this one is a clean and simple card using some of the VERY cool Glimmer Mists I was lucky enough to win on Facebook, which made this card lots of fun to make... I'm submitting it for the Creative Card Crew's Wings Challenge, Charisma's Something that Flies Challenge, and the Bo Bunny Flowers Card Challenge.

I'll be back later on tonight with a card I'm working on using an ADORABLE Tickled Pink stamp... We have NO SCHOOL tomorrow cause of the heat advisory, so I'm WAY excited... :) Pool n sun tomorrow! :)

A Magnalicious li'l card...

I still LOVE LOVE LOVE my Magnolia stamps... they're just the cutest. I actually just finished a swap over at split coast and got some cuties so I have GOT to crack em out and play. But in the meantime, I did play with the Cuttlebug over at the Doo the other day and was able to dry emboss the background to this li'l card... And I SO want a cuttlebug now, but my hubby will KILL me if I get another machine (did I mention I'm itching for the Copics air compressor too? But, that too must wait until forever lol...

Anywhoo, here's my li'l creation...

She's still one of my favorites... I have a few others that rarely see the light of day, but I've had fun playing with this one in particular... This week's challenge over at Magnolia Stamp Lovers is to use dry embossing, so this card was definitely a fit, but more than that, it was just fun to make! :) Thanks for lookin' ya'll and hope you are staying cool! :)

I'm STILL a Card Makin Mama...

Even though I've been crazy hectic busy and going crazy hectic nuts here... Whatever scrap time I DO have is usually spent catching up with projects for the Dollies (of which I have severely fallen behind, and I feel horribly about that!) or for Scrap A Doodle Doo (of which I again, have severely fallen behind on...)... Gee, the general consensus is that I'm way behind on stuff! :) Including teacher projects for Melanie's teacher... she's getting married in July so I have a canvas all gesso'ed up for her... and that's about as far as I've gotten on the canvas for over two weeks. I have a picture in my mind's eye on what it will look like... but right now it's a blank slate lol.

HOWEVER, I have a card, lol! :)

And the ONLY reason I was able to finish this one was cause I had some scraps laying around at work and I had no classes until 11 AM... and the rest is history. :) (Which works for the "use your scraps" challenge at Card Makin Mamas!) AND I've been kicking myself for not using enough of my digis these days... I have TONS of the Some Odd Girl images and a handful of the Kenny K ones, and they do NOT get enough love... :( BUT this one finally got some action, which was fun... I am still working on my copic collection, but this one was actually all colored in using my itty bitty copic stash, so that too was fun... We are actually starting a Copics Club at Scrap A Doodle Doo in June, so that SHOULD help my stash significantly! :)

Ok ya'll, thanks for looking, and have a wonderful week!

Rainy days and Mondays... :(

What a gray, rainy, wet day! :( BUT I am glad to be here, typing away at my computer, while all my little seniors are getting ready for prom on Thursday and sighing happy sighs that school is, for all intents and purposes, OVAH... :)

I too, am SO glad! :) Is that wrong of me? To be glad to be bidding farewell to the young ladies who tormented, frustrated, and terrorized me with their senioritis for the the past few months? But who, nevertheless, will ALWAYS hold such a special place in my heart? I will miss them, I believe, once the summer is over and I do not hear their (LOUD!!) voices in the hallways... or their infectious laughter... the BA graduating class of 2011 is such a dynamic, energetic group full of POTENTIAL, and I truly hope to be able to witness some of their continued growth...

The biggest hazard of my profession, besides going gray early, is the fact that you lose a piece of your heart to each special student who crosses your path. And you hope beyond hope that they will remember you fondly and hold onto the life lessons you tried so hard to impart on them. Content aside (I mean, really, once you graduate, who CARES what an asyndeton is??), I do hope I was able to touch their lives in a fraction of the way they touched mine...

In particular, Emilie, who is the most dedicated and passionate individual I have ever met...senioritis aside, this Princeton bound young woman is going to take the world by a storm... And Chisom. Who will EVER forget Chisom? Such a huge smile... and the "ahem" before her speech (really, it's better than the Snickers commercials when you need a moment to think... she ALWAYS clears her throat before BSing!!). And Carolline. Oh. My. Goodness. This kid was the BIGGEST pain in my rear all year long. She did NOTHING. And gave me a headache with her stories to make up for why her work was just NEVER completed. But then she turned out to be the absolute BEST writer I've ever had the pleasure to read... if only I could've read MORE of her work, her "shout out" would be VERY different! :) And Paola... Oh wow, this kid is the sweetest thing since apple pie... but she came out with the FUNNIEST out of left field comments EVER... Our valedictorian Geraline... I offended her once by implying she was on the rag, lol... I don't think she has ever forgiven me... My lovely Christie. The Meanest Mean girl in the class, but with the most heart...Chelsea (or was it Sara?) who wanted to trip me in the hallway but refrained from doing so because I was pregnant (Elijah thanks you for that...). Ugh, I think I'm going to go home and cry now. Tears of joy that the stress is OVER, but also some tears of sadness because they will be missed... With love...

Altered Mirror ala Webster's...

Hey there bloggers! :) Today I'd like to share a little project that I hold near and dear to my heart... I ran across these AWESOME unfinished wood mirrors at Ikea a few weeks ago and decided to update the mirror a bit... And in the end, I got to play with some chalkboard glimmermists, Webster's Pages paper, crackle accents, Prima flowers, and a FABBY Dusty Attic chipboard dressform!

This week's Charisma Cardz challenge is to create anything BUT a card, and as much as I used my card making supplies for this one, it's definitely NOT a card, lol! :)

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention that I will be teaching a class on this project at Scrap A Doodle Doo on Friday at 6:30 and on Tuesday, June 28th at 12:00 PM. So come on out and join us for some scrappy fun! :)



It's all in the Fold with the Dollies!

This week's Elements challenge at the Dollhouse is to play with creative folds... I've been perfecting the Easel card over the past few weeks, and having fun with different techniques and styles as I've been trying to come up with fun ideas for classes at the Doo... This Easel card was at first scheduled to be used for my Back to Basics: Coloring class in addition to being my "folded" technique card for Design Dollies... but the card got so complicated it was yanked, lol...

But still, I do love Whiff of Joy images SO much... And these kind of cards just ASK for lots of love... :)

Please do forgive the clutter behind my picture... I took it last minute at the end of a crop and haven't been able to get a better shot since I already gave it as a gift! :) Thanks for checking her out! :)

A Shabby Concept...

Hey there ya'll! : ) I am MISSING my bloggy friends! :) AND missing my scrappy time! :) But with only a month or so left to the school year, I'm optimistic that I'll be able to get much more crafty really soon! :) In my limited spare time I did finish this two page layout featuring Bo Bunny's Gabrielle papers (Cameo and Romance) and some distressing, crackling, and of course LACE! :)

It's Time to Get Shabby Chic at the Doo!

Come join the Doo Crew for a Shabby Chic layout class featuring Bo Bunny's Gabrielle papers, some distressing action, and lots of crackly fun... And of course, you can't forget the lace!

Class will be held Friday, May 6th, from 6:30 PM till 9:30. For more information, visit Scrap-A-Doodle Doo's website and click "Classes".

Have you been playing with Dollies?

This week's Elements challenge with the Design Dollies is up until Sunday night at midnight and asks you to get creative with BUTTONS! :) AND the Whiff of Joy challenge this week is to include THREE buttons, TWO papers, and ONE ribbon... SO, here's my take on the challenges:

So head on over to the Dollhouse and upload YOUR cute as a button project for a chance to win a $15 gift certificate to Scrap-A-Doodle Doo, and check out Whiff of Joy for some ADORABLE inspiration! :)

It's a Flutter of Cards, comin up at the Doo!

So in my last post I showed ya'll how I played with Bo Bunny's Gabrielle line to make a mini album that I presented to the gals at the Doo on Saturday... Well, my infatuation with the line is still not over, lol! :) I HAD to get my hands on some more of the stuff to play with in the form of some cards! SO, I'll be presenting a "Flutter" of cards over at Scrap-A-Doodle Doo on Thursday, April 21st at 6:30 PM (contact the store directly to book your seat today!), in which we showcase some more of the awesome possibilities with this gawjuss line... Here's a sneek peek: Hope you can join us for another fun filled evening at the Doo! :)

We Hopped with Bo Bunny this past Saturday!

So if you haven't seen the new Gabrielle line from Bo Bunny, you have GOT to check out this scrappy goodness... the colors are fabby (very springy and surprisingly versatile!), and I LOVE the fact that you can go butterfly crazy... or skip 'em entirely and still embrace the "look" :).

I played with the collection quite a bit on this mini album dedicated to my little girl... who's getting to be not so little anymore! :( The journaling on the backs of the glimmermisted cards has the lyrics to the song "In my daughter's eyes" by Martina McBride... Tear jerker if I've ever heard one! :)


SO, if you missed our entire day of Bo Bunny related classes at Scrap A Doodle Doo this weekend, I've got a peek at my Gabrielle-inspired mini album for ya! :) As always, thanks for looking... and happy scrapping! :)

Spring is in the Air at the DOO!

And what better way to get ready for Spring than to spend some time celebrating the Spring with crafty goodness? :) Today's class at Scrap A Doodle Doo will feature the Graphic 45 Once Upon a Springtime line in the form of a Tri-Fold Shutter card:

Getting our craft on at the "Doo"!

TGIF!! :) And Thank God I am about to get my SCRAP on with my favorite gals at the "Doo" (Scrap-A-Doodle Doo, of course!). Today we will be working on a perpetual calendar (influenced by my friends over at Whiff of Joy!). We'll be working on handmade flowers and all sorts of stampy scrappy goodness!

Here's a look at what we've got going on....

It's an adorable little desk topper, and was tons of fun to make... Thanks for looking! :)

Take a Bow...

This easel card is the second of three cards I'll be featuring at Scrap-A-Doodle Doo on Saturday, March 19th, from 1-4... This "Fancy Folds" class will showcase the Tri-fold shutter card posted earlier today, this easel card, and another format using the Cirque line from Graphic 45... I just haven't figured out WHAT kind of card to make using that fabby paper, so any suggestions would be appreciated! :)

Yummy Graphic 45...

I know I'm probably behind the times with the Once Upon a Springtime pack from Graphic 45, but I have had NO time to play with my goodies (gasp, I'm still drooling over Steampunk! lol... Everyone else has moved on to Le Cirque and Curtain Call!!)

BUT here's a sneek peek at my next class (March 19th) at Scrap A Doodle Doo, where we'll tackle some Fancy Folds (e.g., the Trifold Shutter, Easel, and... TBD lol!)

Now to crack open my Curtain Call and get cracking on that piece of the puzzle... yum!!

Time Goes On.... :)

Hey bloggers! I'm so psyched to announce my next class at Scrap-A-Doodle Doo! It's scheduled for Friday, March 4th at 6:00 PM, and we'll be making a Perpetual Calendar using a customized stamp and featuring handmade flowers... Check out the sneek peek! :)

My new favorite Austen blog...

I HAD to share this... (click me, click me!) I'm making my students read it... I'm excited lol! :) A whole blog with CURRENT discussion on Jane... And all things Austen! :) Whoo hoo! (ok, ok, I know...)

Love is in the air...

Actually, it's ice in the air today... Stuck home again due to a CRAZY ice storm that's STILL going on... I am SO over this weather! We have had the snowiest January in like the history of Januaries, and February is not starting out so hot either (no pun intended!).

BUT, with February comes all the lovey dovey stuff associate with Valentine's day... (Yuck)

I may not be the most romantic of women and I truly dislike flowers on VD (when I was in college we actually would go out for lunch or dinner with a group of friends to boycott "VD")... BUT the concept of love is still all well and good lol...

SO, I have been trying to empty out my stash of hoarded stuff... I have SO much scrap crap lying around that needs to be used. Not trashed, just used. Especially with CHA stuff arriving every day, lol! :) So, I'm on a mad dash to use all my pretties up over the next few weeks so I can make room for new stuff!

This card was made using a piece of transparancy that I've been hoarding for over two years... Do you ever do that? Hold onto something pretty cause it's almost too pretty to use? And then realize years have past and you never used it? I still get a nervous feeling in my tummy when I use my really pretty G45 or Webster's Pages papers cause I'm scared to finish 'em off... but there's ALWAYS something new! :) Ugh, I have GOT to get over it and just CUT!!

WELL, this card is full of "old" stuff... the transparancy is one I got from Bad Girls FOREVER ago, the lace edge is also from my Bad Girls days... and the "Love" sentiment was from Creative Memories, which I stopped selling over a year and a half ago as well! :) So there goes me cleaning out my stash! :)

Because it's a "loving" card, I'll submit this one for Charisma's challenge...My darling Leah is on the DT over there and they have a Valentine's Challenge going on for the next two weeks, so head on over to play! :)

Lili of the Valleys are HERE! :)

My scrappy enabler Stephanie at Scrap-A-Doodle Doo TOTALLY hooked up my addiction this weekend as we cropped the night away... She and Lorraine just got in some GORGEOUS stamps from Lili of the Valley... I've been ogling these bad boys for months now and restraining myself. Until now, lol! :) Since Steph got 'em in stock, I HAD to relieve her of the burden. :)


Here's the first card I made using my adorable new cuties... Although the card is rectangular and this week's LOTV challenge is "anything but square," I did make sure the image was cut in a circle too, just in case my rectangle was too... angular lol.
Definitely check out their challenge blog cause the DT has some AMAZING shaped cards! :) And of course, thank you for spending time in my corner of the world! :)

Trifecta Week at the Dollhouse!

Hello there bloggers... It's another Sicky Day at the Medina household... :( I kept both kiddies home today with runny noses and coughs. BUT I probably only have the patience to do so because I was away cropping all weekend long with my "Doo" Crew. More to come from THAT trip later on!

Right now I have GOT to let ya'll know that today begins Trifecta week with Design Dollies. What THAT means is we take the whole month's worth of challenges (color, elements, and sketch) and combine 'em into one HAWT project. Our monthly sponsor for the Trifecta is One Stop Card Crafts, so be sure to check out the Dollhouse and play along with this month's Trifecta challenge! :)

Here's MY go at it, incorporating light blue, red, kraft and white, freehand doodling the leaves of the flowers and the faux stitching around the title, and Kristy's amazing sketch....

So hop on over to the Dollhouse to play along this week! :) Happy scrappin!

"Nobody minds having what is too good for them" (Mansfield Park)

Yesterday I was blessed with the opportunity to teach an altered file folder class using the Curio papers from Basic Grey to a fabulous group of eight women...(AND I'm submitting this project to the Basic Grey challenge blog for their "Flower Power" challenge!)


My first scrappy class at Scrap-A-Doodle Doo was (surprisingly!) a hit... Or the gals who came along for the ride are being too nice! :) Either way, we did have fun, and the time FLEW by...
I guess I did hit a few bumps in the road... Let's see... I was WAY nervous to start out with and wasn't QUITE clear with my directions on folding the album (so I ended up having to just shut up and physically show the gals what I meant. My words weren't coming to me -- odd for an English teacher, I think!) And THEN I had the gals glue their folders closed... before they decorated the insides! Which made it QUITE difficult for 'em to get to some of the decorating without ripping the insides apart...And then of course there was the papers... I cut papers for the class members as they were decorating their folders and ended up missing some of the measurements, making some of their papers a bit too small. They had to improvise a bit to cover up the tabs on the backs of their albums!But thankfully, they made it happen and being the talented group of women they are, I do think they had a very nice time and a pretty project in the end...And to prove my friend Jill's point, yes, I am a Crackle Accents whore... :)
SO... my darling Stephanie has invited me back to teach at the "Doo" once again, and my next class ("Time Goes On") is scheduled for February 26th from 10AM to 12 PM (followed by a class by my darling friend Ms. Sherri C!). I'm thrilled to have been asked back after some hiccups... And way excited to play with the "Doo" girls again! :)