Occasions Swaps

I entered another one of Jami's swaps - this time we are using stamp sets from the Occasions Mini Catalog which comes out April 1. You can view it HERE. Right now (until the end of March) you can order these stamps to get started with your Easter cards from the new mini:

An Egg-cellent Easter $21.95

Wagon Full of Fun $34.95

Eight Great Greetings $27.95

Egg Hunt Stampin' Around wheel - $6.50

I started working on my swaps as soon as my order arrived last Thursday and finished both sets this weekend (I only had to do 8 cards for each). I had to get them done since I am going to DC and New York next week!!

I am really loving this cute Golden Oldies set and can see myself using it a lot! Most of the gals who participate in these swaps and young (at least, younger than me!). So, when I told Jami I would do Golden Oldies, she was glad 'cause she might have a hard time getting someone to do that one!

I paper pieced the old man's outfit with Manchester DSP and used my white gel pen for his hair. He's just a hoot. Actually, this is how I remember my grandfather dressing .... but not flip flops!!

This one is from Scene in a Garden. It has lots of things you can put on the table - gourds, pots, bird, plant, birdhouse. And, I love the galoshes under the table. Reminds me of my gardening days in Gig Harbor (Washington).

I watercolored this one with my watercolor crayons. The DSP is from Good Morning Sunshine. Isn't this bright and springy?? I also used the My Way Punch to stamp "thank you" (from Upsy Daisy).

American Idol .... week 2

So the judges make another grand entrance and Paula hugged all the judges before they sat down. I love that necklace Kara has on .... wonder if it's Paula's design? So, tonight is Classic Country. I love country music so it'll be a good night for me .... IF they do well! Randy Travis is the mentor tonight.

• Michael Sarver - Texas boy - Ain't Going Down Till the Sun Comes Up: Well, it's hard to be another Garth and Garth, he's not. He had the energy and country is definitely his genre.
• Allison Iraheta - She hit this one out of the park! Great job on the song - even Simon thought it was good! Simon thought it was verging on "precocious" and Randy thought it was "dope" .... whatever all that means!
• Kris Allen - another Garth song, a ballad this time. Singing without his guitar tonight. Randy said he is a ballad singer and I think he is right. I'm not familiar with the song but I like it a lot. Wow!! Simon said he thought it was terrific (Simon hates country!). I'll be voting for Kris tonight.
• Lil Rounds - Independence Day (by Martina McBride) - she's a R&B singer ... not country - should be interesting. It was ok. She's got too good a voice not to do justice to any song, but this just wasn't her forte. I thought it was kind of boring. The judges thought she could have picked a better song for her voice and I agree.
• Adam Lambert - Ring of Fire: Randy Travis was definitely taken aback by Adam and his nail polish. His version of this song was indescribable... think mid-Eastern style with sitars playing. I hated it! Doesn't his hair remind you of Liza Minnelli???? Simon was right - it was "indulgent rubbish!"
• Scott MacIntyre - Wild Angels (Martina McBride) - He surprised Randy Travis. He's one of my favorites and he didn't disappoint me tonight. His voice is just so pure. Paula thinks he should mix up his performances and connect more with the audience without his piano. The judges think he needs to "up" his game and pick better songs for his voice. Since he is blind, he is going to have a hard time moving around on stage.
• Alexis Grace doing a Dolly Parton song, Jolene: I think she did great with the song and hit the notes even if Randy didn't think so. The judges didn't agree with me (except Paula). They want her to be "down and dirty" every time. Simon thought she was forgettable and sounded too much like Dolly .... that ain't so bad!
• Danny Gokey doing Carrie Underwood, Jesus Take the Wheel. Danny is one of my favorites. He started out pretty slow but then got going and did great. Kara and Randy agree. I can see him winning this competition .... or have I said that before? The judges liked him. I do agree with Simon with his outfit - looked a little 80's.
• Anoop Desai - You're Always On My Mind (Willie Nelson) I thought Anoop would have a difficult time with country. But his version of Willie's classic was super!! As Paula said, "Anoop is back!" This song "fit him like a glove." As Simon said, he went from Zero to Hero and this was one of his favorites of the whole night. Simon actually ate his words from last week that Anoop didn't deserve to be in the competition. Randy thought the arrangement was "dope" - guess that's the new word this year.
• Megan Joy - I Go Walking After Midnight: Randy wasn't too sure about her choice at first but after hearing her, said her rendition was great. Well, she didn't do anything for me. She needs to quit doing her little twisty "Rockin Robin" moves. I think she's sick or has been sick. Her eyes look a little weird. Yep - Kara says she has the flu and has been to the hospital. Judges think she was fantastic. Simon wants her quirky dressing to come back.
• Matt Giraud - Love Is All That Matters - another Carrie Underwood song - I thought he did good. Kara says he is a true artist and is amazing. He pierced Paula's heart. Simon thought he out sang Danny!! Wow ... that's a great compliment. Randy & Simon both thought it was the best performance of the night.

I think Michael Sarver will get the boot tonight.

My votes are: Kris; Scott; Danny; Anoop and Matt!

Every year, one artist gets to benefit from the contestants demise. This year it is Carrie Underwood who gets to benefit from American Idol all over again. The name of the new song being used to say goodbye to the eliminated contestants on American Idol in 2009 is called Home Sweet Home by American Idol winner Carrie Underwood

American Idol .... week 2

Color Throwdown

I made this card this weekend for a "Color Throwdown Challenge!" Not exactly colors I would have picked, but there are some cute cards HERE.

• Recipe:
  Paper & Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive, and Elegant Eggplant
  Stamps: Itty Bitty Buds and Great Friend
  Accessories: Dew Drops, Anna Griffin Butterfly Punch; Decorative Corner Punch;
  Cuttlebug Embossing Folder
  
  The Great Friend stamp set is actually a sneak peek of the new Occasions Mini Catalog. Isn't it great?
  
  

Happy St Patrick's Day

Happy St Patrick's Day to You!

Here's the card I sent to my Monday Mailer partner:

And here's a few Irish recipes you might want to fix today!

Corned-Beef Dinner, Irish Style
Ingredients :
3-4 lbs corned beef brisket
2 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
6 whole cloves
6 medium potatoes, pared
5 small carrots, pared
1 medium head of cabbage, cut in 6 wedges
Preparation :
Place corned beef in dutch oven, and barely cover with hot water; add onion, garlic, cloves, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer (do not let boil) 1 hour per pound of meat, or till fork tender. Remove meat from liquid; add potatoes and carrots. Cover; bring to boiling and cook 10 minutes. Then add cabbage wedges; continue cooking 20 minutes longer or till vegetables are done.

Spice Glaze:If you like, glaze the corned beef while vegetables cook. Spread fat side of meat lightly with prepared mustard. Then sprinkle with mixture of 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves. Place in shallow pan. Bake in moderate oven 350 degrees 15 to 20 minutes or till nicely glazed.

Reuben Casserole

Ingredients :
3/4 cup cubed rye bread
2 (10 1/2 ounce) cans cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
3/4 lb deli sliced corned beef, chopped or leftover corned beef brisket, sliced and chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
32 ounces sauerkraut, drained
2 medium baking potatoes, thinly sliced
2 cups shredded swiss cheese
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preparation :

Heat oven to 250⁰. Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven until dry. Crush or process cubes in a food processor until you have medium crumbs; set aside.
Increase oven temperature to 350⁰. In large bowl, mix together cream of mushroom soup, milk, onion, corned beef, dry mustard and sugar. Set aside. Spread sauerkraut evenly in bottom of a lightly greased 9x13" baking dish. Place potatoes in single layer, slightly overlapping, over 'kraut. Spoon soup mixture over potatoes and top with cheese. In small bowl, combine melted butter with rye bread crumbs, and sprinkle mixture over cheese. Cover and bake 50 minutes. Remove cover and bake 10 minutes more.

Chocolate Potato Candy

Ingredients :
4 cups powdered sugar
4 cups flaked coconut
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup cold mashed potatoes (without added milk or butter)
1/2 salt
1 pound chocolate or candy coating

Preparation :

Combine sugar, potatoes, coconut, vanilla, and salt and mix well. Line a 9-inch pan with foil covered with a non-stick spray (or use butter or shortening on the foil). Spread the mixture evenly into the pan, cover and refrigerate overnight. Cut into rectangles. Cover and freeze. Melt the chocolate and dip the bars into the coating. Place on waxed paper to harden. Store in an airtight container.

Diva Challenge - Big Shot

I made this card for a swap and for the challenge HERE . I used the Big Shot with the Loopy Flowers die and the Little Leaves die. The flower is the Scallop Punch that I slit and rolled up with a bamboo stick.

Rainy Weekend Projects

What a dreary rainy weekend we had .... cold and rainy!  We took met some friends Friday night at a local fish camp.  Fish camps are big here in the south and our friends are .... Yankees who live here now.  It was their first trip to a fish camp and they loved it!!  Plus, the food was delicious - probably not on my Weight Watchers diet (fried and fried!), but oh so yummy!!

I took a class on Saturday at Stamper's Alley which was really fun.  Debbie taught the class and she is really talented and oh so organized!!  She is doing a series every couple of months of sketches and colors.  This month the colors were Turquoise; Kiwi and Yellow and the cards were very simple but so pretty.

Today is my sister, Marianne's birthday (Happy Birthday, sis!).  We went out to eat with her and her family on Saturday and I gave her some stamping goodies for her birthday.  It was also my nephew's girlfriends birthday.  Here is the little gift I made for Kelly:

 

This is a little Gift Card Folder that we did at convention last year.  It unties and opens to hold all the little gift cards seen below.  Here are the dimensions if you are interested:

Very Vanilla card stock (9 3/4" x 6") scored at 4 3/4" and 5".  Rotate 90 degrees & score at 2 1/2".  Fold on score lines to create card folder.  Wrap ribbon around folder and adhere to front of folder using Sticky Strip.  Decorate front of folder.

These are the little gift cards and envelopes I put inside the folder.  I used SU's Scallop Notes.  I put designer paper inside the envelope and stamped the outside of the envelope.  The stamp set I used was Pun Fun and the little birdie is from Best Wishes & More.

Last night, I cut apart a couple of my wheels.  I had never done this before (I know, a lot people do it!!) and was a little scared.  But, I had bought the Friendly Words wheel for $8.50 and ended up with 13 stamps from it!!  Then I took a retired wheel of baby clothes on a clothesline (don't remember the name) and cut it apart in one long piece.  I backed the stamps with Easy Mount and now, all I have to do is put them on one of my clear stamp holders.  Get brave and give it a try!!  Now, to find a use for the empty wheel!!  Any ideas?

Fifth Ave Floral

Well, I resisted for a while, but finally broke down and bought this stamp.  I love it!!!  It is just gorgeous.  I made a birthday card for Judy with it last week but forgot to take a picture of it!!  But, I did this card this week for a friend.  I found this floral paper that I have had for ages and the stamp matched it really well ... don't you think?

I watercolored the flower and cut it out.  Then, I used a gel pen to go around the edges.  I just love how it turned out!  Here's the flower close-up.

Thank You

As a parent of children who served their country in the US Army ... my daughter is still in the Army .... I found this to be wonderful.

Recently, a gentleman from Seattle created a gesture using an ASL (American Sign Language) sign of “Thank You” (which is then being gestured from the heart rather than from the mouth), and has started a movement to get the word out. A Thank You from the Heart.

Please everybody take just a moment to watch.... The Gratitude Campaign; .... and then forward it to your friends!

THEN START USING THE SIGN.

More Swaps

Here are a few more of those swaps.

The first card is by Maria Richie.  It uses Dream a Little; Gallery; and Sincere Salutations with vellum paper over the flowers softening the look.

The second card is by Beth Weinstein.  She used Hope Happens stamp; the Top Note Die and Sixxiz Flower Layers #3 die.  She used Crystal Effects in the center of the flowers.

The third card is mine!!  I used the stamp set from Garden Greeting and embossed the vellum.

The first card is by Mary Haugen.  She used Simple Friendship with the Simple Flower Embosslit.  I love this pink and gray!!

The second card is by Sabrina Beinlich.  She used Le Jardin Botanique,

The third card is by Maggie Haas.  She used the popular set, Cheep Talk with Good Morning Sunshine DSP.  She also used a sewing machine on the bottom .... something you won't see me doing!!

The first card is by Amber Hight.  She used Quilt Quips and the Eyelet Punch.

The second card is by Toni Sizemore.  She used Three Little Words stamp set with designer paper and ribbon from Saleabration.