Just a quick post to share with you my Paper Crew Challenge card this week.  I used MDS2 (as usual) and had fun with these hexagons.

We worked out in the yard most of the day Tuesday pulling weeds and cleaning up some of the mess that the contractors left in Ashley's yard.  There are a lot of issues with the work that was done and Ashley called the contractor to come by today and look at things - fence, concrete work, sprinkler system not working, trash and planks from original fence just left laying in the yard, etc.  He was not happy when he saw some of the shoddy work that was done and told Ashley he would make it right.  We've got the irrigation people coming on Thursday and hopefully, some of the other workmen to fix things.  We went to the movies Tuesday night to see Bourne Legacy.  It was pretty good.  We are going to Brenham on Wednesday to take a tour of the best ice cream company in the world .... Blue Bell!  I have been there before but it was on a weekend and the tours are not offered on the weekend. 

I lost a good friend and fellow Stampin' Up demonstrator this weekend.  I just learned of her death today.  I knew she was close to the end but was still shocked and saddened.  Becky was such a great gal and always so upbeat even while she was fighting for her life for the past year.  She will be missed by a lot of people.

Subway Art

I forgot how hot it is in Texas!!  When we arrived on Thursday afternoon (at 5:30) it was still 100 degrees!  The forcast for this week is 99, 99, 99, 98, 98, 98 ..... get the picture?  Pretty boring, huh??  We've gotten a lot done at Ashley's though.  She's about worn out her credit card though!  Friday I think she spent about $400 at Home Depot and today was another $100 at Garden Ridge!  But hey ... the labor is free!  Sonny has been working on putting two ceiling fans up on her patio.  He should have them done tomorrow.  Saturday I spent most of the day planting plants and flowers in big pots in the back yard.  We planted Texas sage, lantana, pampas grass, potato vine, basil and rosemary.  Plus, I dug up some morning glory from the back that had pretty much overgrown the alley and stuck it in one of the pots.  Today, we went shopping and bought a couple more pots at Garden Ridge plus got some material so I can cover some pillows and do some other home decor,  We've hung pictures in the house and bought a couple more today that we'll have to hang tomorrow.  Sunday we took a break.  My brother and his wife, daughter and three grandchildren came over plus my brother in law who helped Sonny do some work that he was having problems with.  We had a nce visit, swim and cooked some yummy fajitas on the grill (plus made some margaritas that hit th spot.)

Subway art seems to be all the rage right now.  So, I thought I'd try it with MDS2.  What do you think?  It was fun!

Scrapbook Challenge #1

Well, I am in Texas and it's hot!  We left Charlotte at 12:45 with an hour's layover in Atlanta.  No hitches - until were on the plane in Atlanta to go to San Antonio.  After we were all boarded, they announced that there was a mechanical problem and the technicians were working on it.  If it couldn't be fixed, we would have to get off the plane until they could get another plane for us.  Thankfully, it was able to be fixed but we were about an hour late in leaving Atlanta.  We ended up arriving in San Antonio about 5:30 instead of 4:30.  But it was still hot - 100 degrees at the time we landed!  It was still 91 at 11:00 pm while watching the news!!  We had our first (of many I'm sure) Mexican dinner tonight.  Yum - guacamole, enchiladas, tamales, sangria, chips, salsa and sopapillas!!   It's good to be back!

The Paper Craft Crew is having it's first scrapbook challenge.  I made mine on the plane coming here yesterday..  I used pictures from our recent trip to the Outer Banks.  Here is my take on the sketch we were to use:

Here is the project list that was used:

Background

Color = POOL PARTY

Embellishments

_Designer Kits\Sunny Day - elements\Sunny Day - cloud 1
_Designer Kits\Sunny Day - elements\Sunny Day - cloud 1

Stamps

Epic Overlays\Epic Overlays - ink splatter 1, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Epic Overlays\Epic Overlays - ink splatter 1, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Splatters\Ink Splatters\Ink Splatter 6, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Epic Overlays\Epic Overlays - ink splatter 1, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Splatters\Ink Splatters\Ink Splatter 6, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Splatters\Ink Splatters\Ink Splatter 6, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Splatters\Ink Splatters\Ink Splatter 6, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131
Designer Kits\Day in the Life\Day in the Life - 3 frame, Color = SUMMER SUN
Splatters\Ink Splatters\Ink Splatter 6, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131A
Splatters\Ink Splatters\Ink Splatter 6, Color = CRUMB CAKE 179,161,131

Circle Flowers

This is a very simple card I made using punches.  I just punched circles to make the flowers and placed them randomly on the card.  The leaves are also punched and for the stems, I just cut a few strips of cardstock.  The DSP I used is the SaleABration paper which I have hoarded!

I am all packed and ready to go. I got my hair cut today as well as a manicure and pedicure so I am all "spruced up."  We leave tomorrow for Texas and are excited to be going again.  I have not been there since last March but it has been since Christmas for Sonny.  I can't wait to see the remodeling that Ashley has done on her back patio and yard.  I think Sammie (cat) is tired of seeing me get out my suitcase.  She knows she's going to be left alone again.  But this time, my mom and sister are going to come over and stay at our house for several days.  They will be attending the state Association for the Blind convention next week and it is being held here in Sherrills Ford.  It will make it an easier commute for them to stay at our house.  (Plus, they both want to use my whirlpool tub which I never use!!)  This is a good time for us to be leaving since the Democratic Convention is going to be in Charlotte next week.  I don't want to be anywhere near that!!  I hope Charlotte pulls it off but I really don't think they are a big enough city for this type of event.

Paper Crew Sketch Challenge

Please say a little prayer for my computer!  I'm worried it is on it's last legs.  I spent yesterday working on trying to speed it up and think it helped a bit.  But it's getting old in computer years I guess - about 5 years old (I think) so looks like I'll be shopping for a new one in the near future.  Hoping it can hold on until Christmas when there will be some sales.  I also worked diligently yesterday on my MDS2 Alaska album.  The deadline for the 31% off sale has been extended to mid September so I'm hoping to get it finished and off to the printer by then.  We leave tomorrow for Texas for a couple of weeks so I'll be working on the album on the airplane as well as at Ashley's (while Sonny does his handy man jobs!!)  That is another thing I like about MDS - I don't have to be hooked up to the internet and can work on it in the car, plane, etc.

(Well, my computer must have know I was talking about her .... the power went out as I was typing this for about 30 minutes!  Luckily, this was saved!)

So, I didn't get to post my Paper Crew Sketch Challenge last night as my computer was "defragging" whatever that means.  It was actually still in the process this morning so I don't know if it really did anything or not but I turned it off.  I had things to do, people to see ......!!!!

I once again did my sketch using MDS2 and I love it.  This card also was for a color challenge from Heather where I am taking her MDS2 classes.  The colors are:  Sahara Sand, Basic Gray, Crushed Curry, Bermuda Bay and Whisper White.  Go ahead .... create something with those colors.  They are probably colors you wouldn't usually use, isn't that right?  And I know my good friend, Margaret has lots of Crushed Curry cards stock!!!   That is my challenge to you today.

Again this would be a very easy card to duplicate using good old card stock and ink! 

POSTING END TIME:  If you'd like to be considered as one of our spotlight cards, please be sure to link your project by Monday 7 AM EST and  link your post over to here too


VOTING: Starting on Monday, August 20th at 7 AM EST, you can start voting on the entries.  The voting will end on Tuesday, September 4th at 10 AM EST.

Outer Banks pics

I made a few scrapbook pages using My Digital Studio from our trip to the Outer Banks.   These were super easy to make.  I used the Template / Kit called Sweet Details.  The pages are predone ... all I have to do is drop my pictures in. 

But after I got MDS2, I decided to change up the pages a little bit ,,,, adding different colors, overlays, text in a circle, etc.  What do you think?

Weekend Projects

How do like the new blog background and banner?  I had such fun designing it.  I'm taking an on-line class and learning so much!  I just love that I can recolor the DSP and embellishments now.  It makes matching everything so easy.

It was a beautiful weekend here in the Carolinas ... hard to believe it's August.  Sonny and I got some fried chicken and fixins' from the grocery store, gassed up the boat and went out on the lake in the late afternoon after I got home from playing cards.  We threw the anchor over near Queen's Landing and settled in to listen to the band that was playing, Too Much Sylvia.  They were really good and I would love to go hear them again some time.   I would highly recommend them if they ever play in your area.  We didn't cover the boat at night and went out again on Saturday for a few hours before it got too hot.  And I still had time to play on Saturday afternoon.  I saw this cute snowman card on Pininterest and just had to give him a try.  Isn't he so cute?   The card base is white and I just freehanded the black and red cardstock on the top and bottom.  I used the Star Punch for the nose (sponged with Cajun Craze).  I used my white gel pen for the accents on his hat.  The felt holly is retired from Stampin' Up.

Another project I worked on this weekend was making Sour Cream Containers.  These have been around forever but I have never made any.  I volunteered to make the name tags for our Southern Living Bingo Dinner.  We auctioned the dinner away at our Bingo Night in June and got $300.  So, our group is preparing and serving a dinner for 10 people next Thursday. Sonny and I will be on our way to Texas on Thursday so this is my contribution.  I decided these Sour Cream Containers would make great name tags.  I bought some dinner mints at the Dollar Store to fill them. 

I used a retired DSP to make them.  I cut the DSP 6" x 4 1/2".  Here is a tutorial for them if you want to make one.  Warning - they are addicting!!  I think we will be making them at Stamp Club soon.

Button Jar

How about another card with Perfectly Preserved?  This time the jar is filled with buttons.  Did your grandmother have a button jar?  Mine did a lot of sewing but I never found her button jar.  But, I do have several buttons that belonged to my great Aunt Love.  I keep them in a container in my vintage guest room along with a lot of items belonging to my grandmother.

I punched out a bunch of different colored buttons from cardstock (Daffodil Delight, Rich Rizzleberry, Tempting Turquise) using the Big Shot and the Button Sizzix die.  Here is what I did to make this card:

• Use the jar framelit to cut the opening in the front of the card
• Stamp the jar onto vellum and adhere to the back of the opening
• Sandwich the buttons between the vellum and a rectangle of white card stock
• Adhere a piece of Summer Smoosh DSP inside to cover the jar opening and vellum

 

I cut the curvy piece of DSP using a template that I bought at CKC.  I think it adds just the right touch along with the banners at the top and the card stock button.

Inside of card

I was at the grocery store earlier in the week and saw a display for Hatch Peppers.  There was a big sign announcing that Hatch Chilies were back.  Well, I had never heard of them and had no idea what to do with them but I bought a couple of them anyway.  After looking for recipes on the internet, I found a recipe for Quesadillas and made them for dinner tonight. They were really good but pretty hot.  If you like HOT, these are for you!!  Even Sonny thought they were hot!  Here's the recipe if you want to give them a try:

• 2 hatch chiles (the recipe actually called for 4 but 2 was plenty for us)
• 1 T butter
• 1 t olive oil
• 1 med. onion, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• pinch Kosher salt
• 4 flour tortillas
• 1 1/2-2 C shredded pepper jack cheese (I used a Mexican pre-packaged shredded mix)

1. Broil chilies (with oven rack 6" from top) until skin is blackened & blistered about 5-6 minutes.
2. Transfer roasted peppers to a paper bag & close for about 15 minutes.  This allows peppers to sweat making removing the skins easier.
3. Remove the skin, seeds & stems of the roasted peppers (you should wear gloves but I didn't have any.)  Chop peppers.
4. Heat butter & olive oil in skillet.  Once butter has melted, saute onions.  Cook until they start to brown, about 15 minutes.  Stir in roasted peppers, garlic and salt.  Remove from heat.
5. To assemble quesadilla, place one tortilla on a flat surface; sprinkle half cheese & half of pepper mixture onto tortilla.  Place the other tortilla on top.  Cook quesadillas in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until the cheese is melted & the tortilla begins to brown.  Slice and serve immediately.

Tortillas are a staple in our house and ours are large ones.  One quesadilla was plenty for both of us although I had made 4 of them with the above ingredients.  Luckily, I did not cook the other two and froze them for another time.

Paper Craft Crew Challenge

I have spent the past few days with my nose glued to the computer screen.  I am taking an MDS2 on-line course with Heather Summers who is one of the top Stampin' Up demonstrators in Canada.  She does some awesome MDS pages and projects and I am enjoying her tutorials.  I'm even learning a few things!  If you are interested, you can join in anytime.  It's only $20 for a month of daily tutorials and projects.  You can check it out HERE.

Meantime, I have also got a new sketch challenge for you. I forgot to post this earlier!!   Of course, I did the card in My Digital Studio.  But the good news is, with the new   I am loving MDS2!!  I worked with the free trial for a few weeks but have finally downloaded the real thing.



Paper Craft Crew Challenge 53

Don't forgot to check out the other cards the team created HERE and TO VOTE for your favorite!

Only 26 Letters!

Good Morning!  I wanted to share a few more pictures from my Storybook ABC album I made with My Digital Studio.  Jayce should have received it by now and I hope he is enjoying it.  I had so much fun making it.    You'll notice on some of the alphabet letters, I had to stretch to come up with a word to fit the pictures I had (like N & Q!!)  But some of the letters, I could have filled the page with words.  Speaking of the alphabet, I had a funny thing happen last week.  When I was in Charlotte, I stopped for lunch at a cafe and had a book with me.  Whenever I go out to lunch by myself, I always take my book so I can read while eating or waiting on my meal.  Actually I had forgotten to take my book that day and stopped off at a store in the shopping center to buy one.  Anyway there were two older ladies sitting a table near me.  As they were leaving, they stopped by my table and asked me what I was reading.  One of the ladies commented, "Don't you think it is amazing there are only 26 letters in the alphabet?"  I thought that was kind of odd but the more I've thought about it, she is right.  Think of all the millions of books that have been written and only using 26 letters over and over!