Altered Keys

 

 

I have a thing for keys. I love to use them in my altered art whether they are old or new. My favorites are the skeleton keys but I have not been lucky enough to find many of them. I had seen some altered keys on Pinterest last year and I decided to make some of my own. My favorites are the three that have faces and wings on them. The one on the top right I used a mustache to look like wings. I used gems, rhinestones and very small bottle caps to glitz them up. If you click on the image you can get a closer look.

 

I thought I was excited about my trip to Hawaii but after 5 inches of new snow, I am beyond ecstatic. It still doesn't seem real because it was such a spur of the moment trip. I always imagined a trip like this taking a lot of planning. Several people have told me that the best trips are the ones that aren't planned- I hope they are right. I didn't think I would go to Florida this year because of the cost of the Hawaii trip but my friend was disappointed I wasn't coming and my DH said the Florida trip doesn't cost that much so I should do both. It didn't take me long to start planning the Florida trip and I even found a flight that is cheaper than last year.  I have to admit I was really torn about the Hawaii trip after thinking I was going to miss spending time with my pal in Florida. As I said before, being in Florida is such a relaxing trip and I come back ready for anything. It is going to be a very wild spring.

~Have fun and enjoy!

 

Some old fashioned Valentine's

 I wanted these Valentine"s Day cards to look old fashioned like the die cuts. I started with pre-made cards from Studio G. that I got in the $1 bin at JoAnn's. They had several different designs and shapes in pink and white. These are all the same color pink but I photo shopped each of them individually and I didn't have the same setting for the saturation and contrast- something I need to remember when doing multiple images. They are actually a lighter shade of SU's Melon Mambo like the last card of the little boy. I stamped the Stampendous Carte Postale stamp in brown as a background. Then I rubbed distress ink around the outside edge. The cards already had a 1/8th embossed frame and down in the lower left corner there are some swirls which can be seen better in the pictures below. To highlight the frame even more, I dry brushed some acrylic cream paint over it.

The Valentine die cuts are from K & Company and I distress these a bit also with Vintage Photo distressed ink. The hearts were cut from Prima's 6x6  Botanical collection with the Scallop Hearts Spellbinders die. The sentiment is a Studio G.

 

 

My sister called me at work this week, which she very rarely does, and the first thing I thought was something was wrong with my dad. She asked me if I wanted to go to Hawaii with her. It took me a minute to realize what she had said since I was expecting the worst about my dad. Once I got it together, my head was spinning with excitement. Someone on her husband's side of the family has a place on Oahu that offered it to her for her son's spring break. Her hubby can't go because he has too much work and then her crazy son didn't want to go, so she said let's not pass up this opportunity and make it a "Sister Trip". We fly out on March 10 until the 21st. Now I just have to get past the guilt of not taking the rest of my family. As much as we would have loved to stay the entire 2 weeks, we thought we would need some time to rest up from the jet lag before we went back to work. We have never been on a sister trip before so this will be exciting. We both love to do the same things and we both like the sun and water. I can hardly wait, but it looks like I will have to pass up my Florida trip this year which makes me a little sad. I have such a great time with my friend Carol and it is so relaxing and peaceful at her place in Cape Coral. But since I didn't win the lotto I can't do both. Decisions decisions!

 

~Have fun and enjoy!

Not what I had envisioned

 

This card is a bit different than what I had in mind. I knew I wanted to use this image but after I stamped it on regular card stock I pushed it aside. I think it would have turned out better had I used glossy paper. None the less I picked it back up and decided to use it. Sometimes things have a way of evolving into something totaly different than what we envisioned. I stamped the Hampton Arts image of the girl in SU Midnight Muse. I layered the stamped panel onto gold brushed card stock. The DS paper is from Prima's Botanical Garden. It is very faint but on the left side of the DS paper I stamped a vine by Impression Obsession. There wasn't a name on the package of this cling stamp but it is an individual stamp that is about 1"x5". I stamped the vine onto a piece of scrap paper first and then I re-stamped it without inking it up again. This gave me the faint image I was looking for. I layered this on SU Not Quit Navy card stock. The gold flourishes are from Jolee's Boutique called Leaf Flourishes. The seam binding is Claret Brown which looks more like a gold. The sentiment is from SU Loving Thoughts which was layered onto a brushed gold scallop oval from the SU punch.  

 

 

 I know a lot of you will be involved with crafting in some sort of way; either creating or surfing the web today as it is such a big day for the men in our lives. Superbowl Sunday- I can hardly wait. Darn those Packers. Had they won, I would have had the house all to myself this weekend. The DH isn't as into the game as he would have been had his beloved cheese heads been there. It really doesn't matter because I can still enjoy a day in my studio whether I am home alone or not. I plan to spend the whole day there warm and cozy in my PJs - A crafter's heaven. Just have to find some chocolate.

~Have fun and enjoy!

Happy Valentine's Day

Beat me with a wet noodle. I know I am overdue for a post but I have been crazy busy at work. We were short staffed and I have been busy waiting for one to switch from another department and started training an additional casual employee, along with implementing a new process for digital reports. Everything is to a point that I can sit back and relax and now life is good. I actually don't mind a bit of the craziness every now and then because it makes the days go by faster and I find that I stick to my diet.

I was feeling so organized I thought I would get a jump on the holiday and make a Valentine's Day card. The DS paper is Honey Pie : Avery from Cosmo Cricket. The label is from Sizzix called Labels Fancy  3 and it is the largest of the four that are in this set. These are the only dies that I have from Sizzix and they do not emboss around the edge. I believe Spellbinders has a patten on that feature. All the same they are very nice but I think they feel a bit more flimsy than the copper Spellbinders dies. After I cut out the label, I ran it through the cuttlebug with the Swirls embossing folder. I found a package of the red foil hearts and the red ruffled ribbon at Jo-Anns and the tags were from the dollar store. The pearls pulled the white out of the paper and tied in the label.

 

 

 

Still trying to keep warm here in Michigan. We got a few inches of snow along with some chilling weather. Looking on the bright side of things, our winter started later this year. Let's just hope it ends at the usual time. Just a phone call from Florida gives me hope of warmer weather. Looking forward to Stampin' Up's Sale-a-Bration. They are several things I put on a wish list. Who am I kidding-it's not a wish list, it's a must have/can't live without list.

 

I have to cut this short because I have a stamping buddy coming over for an afternoon of fun. I hope all of you in the northern regions stay cozy and warm in whatever method required. Be it beverage, physical activity or whatever suits your fancy. All of you in southern states just keep sending us warm wishes as you sit by the pool.

~Have fun and enjoy!

Fit for a Lady

 I love Thinking of You cards because I can use them for so many situations. This one was for one of the girls in my group of friends that had surgery a few months back. We had pitched in to by her some new pajamas because there is nothing that makes you feel better after surgery than new PJs and took her out for a good meal since she wouldn't be eating much in the following days (she has since fully recovered and we are glad to see her on her feet and back to work). I thought the image of the three women was very appropriate. This also allowed me to fancy it up a bit since the women were so proper and dressed to the nines.

The image of the women is from Graphic 45 which is an older line of paper. I layered it on SU Cajun Craze and Soft Suede. The Fancy Tag from Spellbinders was cut out of the Soft Suede as was the inside border (in the picture below it looks more green but it really isn't). The sentiment was stamped on a tag punched out with SU Modern Label punch. When I punched the right side of the card with the Martha Stewart Vintage Floral edge punch it didn't show up very well due to the cream inside of the card. That is why I decided to put the same border punch on the inside of the card. I typically don't decorate the insides except for a sentiment, but in this case it was needed. To balance out the card, I ran a brown satin ribbon along the left side of the card. Click on the images for an enlarged view. Now that I look back at the card, the only stamping I did was the sentiments. Oh my, what would we have done had they not come out with dies and punches.

We had some beautiful weather here yesterday. Not quite as nice as where some of us are (I shall not mention any names). It made it all the way up to 55 with some rain that helped to wash away the snow. This is not typical for our Michigan weather and it is getting me antsy for spring. It will all be over this week when we dip back into the 30's with some light snow. Every now and then I get a call from the south to remind me of the warm weather other people in the country are enjoying. All I have to do is close my eyes and I can feel myself sitting by the pool. A big Thank you to my friend that takes me on an imaginary vacation until I can get there for real. It sure helps me to get through this Michigan winter.

Everything is rather calm here. No news is good news right! I hope to get into my stamping room for some much needed stamping therapy. I might even tackle some type of altered project-we'll see.

~Have fun and enjoy!

Another Eiffel Tower

One of my favorites is anything Paris. When I found this paper I was thrilled and I knew exactly who I wanted to share it with. I have a dear friend who has been going through a very difficult and
long journey with a very sick child. Even though her daughter is an adult with her own family it doesn't make it any easier. Unfortunately I know all too well the feeling of helplessness. The feeling that loving your child isn't enough to cure them. If that were so, I am sure there would be no sickness in this world and wouldn't that be breathtaking.

The paper was a great find on clearance at Jo Ann's. A 12x12 with 48 double sided sheets for $2.97. It's from Color Box called Antique Paperie. I used the Spellbinder Shapeabilities called French Frills to cut out the Eiffel Tower in brushed metallic gold. I had some lovely beige trim that I put down the side and a flourish or rhinestones. The font is from Stampin' Up Curly Cute stamp set. Below are a few more pictures.

Everyone is back into the routine of the New Year. I still have my Christmas decorations up. It has been quite a week at work and my DH's birthday was yesterday so we put off taking everything down until next weekend. Our weather is to hit a high of 40 later this week so it will be a perfect time to get the lights down. The tree goes in the spot where DH's recliner sits, so I know he is anxious to get his favorite spot back. I can tell the couch isn't quite cutting it for football.

Believe it or not I have already started a few Valentine's Day cards and procrastination wasn't even one of my resolutions. Actually I didn't make any new resolutions. I just want to continue eating healthy and keep walking. Thankfully I brought all the cookies into work and they were gone in a couple of days. I'm glad they enjoyed them so much. I better get going on coming up with a project for this month's stamp club or I will have a bunch of unhappy stampers.
~Have fun and enjoy!

Christmas cards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know I have been MIA for a few weeks and I apologize. Getting ready for Christmas took a good part of my free time as I am sure it did for most of you. It was a much needed down time that I enjoyed spending with my family. I did quite a bit of baking so the kids and DH each had their favorites. Even though I sent some back with the kids I still have a lot that I will be taking into work. I certainly don't need it around here or around my midsection.

I have posted the Christmas cards I sent out this year. I made 50 total and as I said in a previous post, I was going to live on the edge and make a few different styles. I didn't want to post any of them before they were received so here they are (no spoiler alerts here). The top one was my favorite, but the pictures do not do it justice. You can get a better idea of the shimmer in the second photo. The embossed trees were a sparkle embossing powder and you can see it even better if you click on the photo to enlarge it. I also used gold paper which is seen better in the second photo. That card was a 5x7.

 

 

 

 The above card was a smaller A2 size card and I used the same stamp as the first card. It is amazing how different the card looked between the stamped image and the embossed image.

 This card was also a 5x7 done in navy and silver. I did a few with red and silver but didn't like them as much. I stamped the Mary and Joseph over top of the Christmas background and added some rhinestones for extra sparkle.

The last chicklin is in the air and should be arriving home in Raleigh shortly. It was nice to have them home but I am enjoying the peacefulness now that they are gone. I've had the week off from work which was also wonderful. Back one day and then off for New Years. Hearing that alarm clock at 5:30 am is going to be brutal.

~Have fun and enjoy!