Hat, Hats, Hats

A few people have asked me for the directions for the Top Note Box that I made HERE.  So, without further ado, here they are:

I got the directions from THIS blog.  Enjoy!

Yesterday a few of my Newcomer Club friends came over to work on making hats and baskets for our upcoming "Hats Off to Spring Tea".  We worked almost 5 hours and made 60 little hats (wrapped around Hershey Nuggets) and 50 baskets.  The hats were really labor intensive.  The hats consist of about 20 circles punched with the 3/4" circle punch.  The brim is punched with the 1 3/8" circle.  I had a lot of the circles punched out in advance, but it still seemed like it took forever to glue all of them together!!  Hope the ladies attending the tea appreciate our efforts!  We are going to fill the little baskets with Easter grass but haven't come up with what we will put inside them.  It has to be something cheap because most of the budget is going toward the food, teas, renting a clubhouse and the entertainment!  Any ideas?

The boxes are made using the Scallop Envelope Punch and the Sizzix.

American Idol Results Show

And here we are again. Well, whaddya know? Simon’s backtracking. Now he says that everyone was good last night.

OMG. That food fight. What a mess! All I could think of was, who is going to have to clean up that mess? Well, the bill for $6,000 maid service was given to Danny!! Ha Ha!! Guess he'll have to win now to pay for it.

First up to be critiqued - Matt .... to the right of the stage

Danny ... to the left of the stage

Allison ..... next to Danny

Kris ..... next to Matt

Adam .... next to Kris

Bottom three ..... Adam, Kris, Matt .... WRONG!! This is the first time Adam and Kris have been in the bottom. Well now. This is certainly interesting, but in light of the Chris Daughtry upset of 2006, not at all surprising. And it ain’t over yet, now is it?

I know someone has to go home, but this is the hardest year ever to pick just one winner. They are just all so good.

Natalie Cole performs while we're waiting for the results.

Next is Taylor Hicks ... my choice a few years ago. Unfortunately, he hasn't done much in the recording industry. My son and daughter-in-law recently saw him in Grease live in .... Tucson!! I'm not so into this song he's doing tonight. Maybe the album is good though.

Kris is safe! Whooo Hoooo! That was what I was hoping for.

That leaves Matt and Adam. I'll be ok with either one but I believe it will be Matt going home.

Did American get it right this time?

Now, Jamie Fox performs. I really like him .... maybe not this song exactly even it it's the Number One song in America. He's sorta singing like my boy from a couple of years ago, Blake!! He has it right though when he says these final five are true artists.

Ok ... the moment of truth. American got it right - Matt is going home.

Top 5 ... American Idol

Tonight is Rat Pack songs ... big band standards. Most of the singers from that era are dead but Jamie Fox can relate to the songs and he is the guest tonight. Cool! I loved him in the movie, Ray. Should be a good mentor.

OK .... what about Paula's dress????

First up is .....

• Kris Allen - he gets the unlucky number one. The Way You Look Tonight - can he croon it? Jamie Fox thinks so. He said if Idol doesn't work out for Kris, he & Kris can get together and make it happen! I love this song. If was a favorite of mine when sung by the Letterman in the "old days" and it is still great. Kris makes it new and gives it his own touch. Randy thinks it is his best!! Kara thinks he set the standard high for the evening and he is truly a dark horse in the competition. Of course, Paula loves it and calls him a "contemporary crooner." Simon is not as enthusiastic and thinks it is a little "wet". What the hell does that mean???? Not dry is what he says! Simon is WRONG this time and is all wet! Is Simon trying to discredit a contestant that he doesn’t want to see win, even if he doesn’t really think the performance is that bad. Is American Idol rigged? Hmmm…
• Allison - the only chick left in the competition. She celebrated her 17th birthday yesterday. She looks cute tonight. Someone to Watch Over Me is her choice. Jamie thinks she is too young to have the incredible voice that she has. I agree .... she has a great voice and should go far in the music world. Just don't know that she will go much further in this competition against the guys. Randy says she looks "dope"!! Go figure - where do they get this language? Guess I'm just not hip! Kara thought it was a gut wrenching rendition. Paula has been waiting so long for Allison to do a ballad and is really proud of her. Simon asks her if she thinks she can win and of course, she says yes. He doesn't feel like she has confidence in herself and thinks she could be in trouble. Simon, you are a jerk. Kara, you tell him! Simon really seems like he’s trying to throw the competition. Unlike past years, at this stage, I think it’s anybody’s game. Let America decide!!
• Matt - My Funny Valentine - Someone needs to sing an upbeat song. It was just too much like the last two, and I’m ready for something modern and rockin’. Randy thought it was "pitchy"; Kara wasn't thrilled with it either. Of course, Paula likes everyone and never criticizes so I have to throw her comments out. Ironically Simon is full of praise for Matt after informing him when he used the Judges’ Save a couple weeks ago that he had no chance of winning. I really don’t get Simon tonight AT ALL.
• Danny Gokey — Come Rain Or Come Shine: A really jazzy number! I love it which is no surprise since he is my favorite. How many pairs of glasses does he have?? He keeps upping the intensity. This is definitely a different sound for him, and it suits him. Randy was worried about everyone singing ballads but he thinks Danny is the only one he has heard that could do an album of ballads and he could WIN! Kara has been missing the "rat pack swagger" all season! Paula's one-liner .... stellar! Even Simon is coming to his senses. Simon even thanked Jamie Fox for bringing out the incredible-ness in Danny. This performance by Danny overshadows the first three. It had that little something extra that the others didn’t seem to have.
• Adam Lambert — Feeling Good Another quintessential Adam Lambert performance. He is so incredibly talented. He just seems like a "kiss up" to me. I don't know what it is about him but he rubs me the wrong way. Maybe it's his theatrical and dramatic actions. The audience loves him. Randy thinks he is consistently "in the zone" even if he is theatrical. Kara thinks he is "shocking" in a good way and loves him. Paula .... words cannot describe. Simon thinks it was the best entrance (strut) they've had all year.

They were all incredible tonight. I cannot pick a bottom 3 ... but my bottom 2 picks are: Allison & Matt. I think their time is up and I think it will be Matt although I am worried for Allison too.

My favorite of the night is Danny with Kris a close second.

Top Note Box

Today was another gorgeous but very WARM day here in NC!  We put our boat in the water yesterday and went out for a few hours and I got a little bit of sun.  Last night, my sisters came over and we cooked chicken out on the grill - Jamaican Jerk Chicken from this month's Southern Living magazine.  It was very good!  After it cooled down a bit (got to 90 degrees on Saturday!), we had a good old-fashioned camp-fire in the back yard and toasted marshmallows for Smores!  Another yum!!  Today we went back on the boat for a few hours and met up with some friends for a late lunch/early supper at the Lake Norman Deli.  Such is the life!!

Tonight I made this Top Note Box.  It was super easy.  If you want the directions, just let me know.  I used the Top Note die and my trusty Sizzix for the top and bottom of the box and some retired designer paper.  The flower is the Sizzix Flower Layers (p. 199).

Michael's Finds!

I made a trip to Michael's last week. That coupon was burning a hole in my pocket! But, I ended up not even using it .... and I had 3 coupons! Funny how it is when they put coupons in the paper, they have everything you want on sale but when things aren't on sale, you don't have a coupon!

I tried to use the coupon on the EK Success Circle Plus Cutter, but all their cutters were on sale. So, I just got it at the sale price. I used the Circle cutter to make this baby book for a good friend who happened to have a little girl (Cassidy) on my anniversary!

I got this paper at Scrap Shack in Mooresville. They also had the pink chipboard which was great to cut my circles out of! Won't this look cute with some cute baby pictures inside?

Here is the card I made to send with the little book .... another quilted card. I am loving these cards. I used the same paper I used in the little book and punched the squares out with my 1 1/4" SU punch. I adhered the squares to a piece of white paper and made little stitch marks with my black pen. Then I ran it through the Top Note Die and sponged Certainly Celery around the edges. Then I adhered it to my Pink Pirouette card and ran the whole card through my Cuttlebug folder (the swirly patterned one). Inside I used a Saleabration stamp - Congratulations.

Here are the rest of my Michael's "finds" for all you bargain shoppers. The turquoise and yellow "ribbon" was in the Dollar Bin and it is felt! Pretty cool. The middle ribbon is grosgrain but I just loved the vivid colors! The two Sizzix were on clearance - one was like $2 and the other was about $4! What bargain have you found lately?

Project Sharing

Here's a few things I've been working on this week.  Remember - you can click on the pictures to see them better.  Just remember to click on the "back arrow" to return to my blog.

This is a Rolodex file I made a while back to keep track of birthdays, anniversaries, etc.  I used SU's circle punches for the month tabs and stamped the months with the Just Rite alphabet set.  Believe it or not, but I got this Rolodex 2 summers ago at CK Convention and just couldn't decide what to do with it!  My sister has one and I think she is going to make a drink index with hers!  Hmmmm ... not a bad idea!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a flower pot card I made last Friday when Marianne was here.  We saw a similar card posted on Splitcoast (think it was a challenge a few weeks ago) and decided to made our own.  I only had to take the flowers off my card about 2-3 times to get them the way I wanted them!!  I meant to send this card to a friend who has been sick, but forgot!  She's probably well by now .... huh, Margaret?  Oh well, they say it's the thought that counts.

Happy Earth Day

Happy Earth Day to you.  I did my part yesterday to beautify my little portion of the earth.  Aren't these flowers beautiful?  Dahlias and Gerber Daisies (Ashley's favorites!) for Breast Cancer (from Lowe's).  I planted them today in a pot .... just hope they get enough sun!

Sonny and I started out the day visiting with our lawyer to get our wills and medical releases up to NC law.  All our important documents were made out about 10 years ago when we wee Texas residents.  Friends had told us that NC might not accept the documents from another state.  You might want to check on your important papers also if you have moved to another state.  Also, do you have your papers in a fire-proof box and do your loved ones know where they are?  Important things to know!

Then we went to the movies to see State of Play.  It was really good.  Russell Crow, Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams and Helen Mirar are in it.  Crowe stepped into the role after Brad Pitt dropped out.  Crowe played a very interesting character in this role as a scruffy hero in a newspaper movie that is acutely aware of the crisis affecting newspapers.  There are a lot of surprises in the film and it is a good thriller.  I recommend it.

Next was a stop at Lowe's to pick up bird seed and a few plants.  Sonny has a tendency to over-trim my trees and plants when given the chance.  Last year, he chopped down 3 rhododendrons on the side of the house.  They were a little lot over-grown, but really only needed a good trimming.  Anyway, they are gone with no greenery showing up this spring.  They were covering up the ugly air conditioners so now, I have to come up with another plan.  Our yard gets very little sun because of all the trees around us and we don't want to give up that precious shade!  (especially after living in Texas.)  But, trying to find plants that don't need sun is a little tricky.  Here's what I planted today.

The two shrubs are called a Leprechaun Shrub.  I planted the Nandina in the middle a few days ago - dug it up from the front yard.

To the side, I am going to try a Hosta garden.  Here are two I planted today.

In the back yard, I planted a hosta and Bleeding Heart last year and they are coming up nicely.  So, I added a couple more plants to them today.  Now, I want to find some nice sized rocks and outline their area so Sonny doesn't mow them down!

This is a close-up of the Bleeding Heart ... and my azaleas blooming.  

Idol - Minus 2

Disco Night continues as Paula choreographed the Final Seven in a disco number. I thought it was pretty good ... even though I think they were lip-syncing.

First one to be called - Lil Rounds makes the walk to the far side of the stage (as predicted by moi.) Wow - no surprise, but they didn't make her suffer. They gave her the bad news right away. When she sang her final song, Paula told her she should have sang like that last night. Simon told her he was going to miss her family screaming in the audience!

A medley of old timey Disco singers -

Freda Payne singing Band of Gold. I think she's got to be at least 60 years old if not older! As Sonny said, she's been "rode hard and put up wet." (one of his favorite sayings!) Did you see her belly flopping around?

Thelma Houston singing Don't Leave Me This Way. She didn't need to be poured into that dress - oh my!!

KC - of KC & The Sunshine Band singing Get Down Tonight - Getting old is hell, ain't it? When I lived in Texas, he was on my plane once when I was flying from San Antonio to Dallas. It was a Southwest Airlines flight - about the cheapest you can fly!!

Idol was scraping the bottom of the barrel for those singers!

Back to the results - Kris is called up and he's SAFE! Adam's next and he's SAFE. Next is Danny and he's SAFE. You know, I could have written all that before hearing Ryan announce it.

Now, we have Anoop - he's in the bottom 3.

Allison and Matt are the two left - Allison is in the bottom and Matt is safe. Wow!!

David Archuletta sings next while Allison and Anoop sweat it out. I like his song - he's matured a lot it seems. His voice sounded a little raspy.

OK, back to the results - the second person going home is Anoop ... as I predicted

Final 7 on American Idol - Again!

Tonight is Disco Night. Who picks these themes?

• Lil Rounds - I'm Every Woman by Shaka Khan - sounded a little screamy to me. Paula said she was on vocal rest yesterday so she did good to come out and sing a song like that. None of the judges gave her any encouragement. Simon said this was her final night and I agree. Lil Rounds disagreed with the judges. She's also the first of the night to perform which is another strike against her. Think her time is up and it's time.


• Kris Allen - She Works Hard for the Money by Donna Summer - sure is a different arrangement for a Donna Summer song. Kara loved it as did Paula. Simon didn't understand what Paula was saying but that's OK - he loved Kris' arrangement. Randy thinks he is ready for the big time. I liked it - another great performance for Kris!!


• Danny Gokey - September by Earth, Wind & Fire- He is my favorite! He did great - just incredible! The judges agreed with me. Simon's a little on the fence about it.


• Allison - Hot Stuff - an appropriate song for her. I can’t imagine being 16 and being so confident. The judges are giving her accolades. It was just an OK performance to me. I'm not as "in love" with her as the judges are.
  
• Adam - If I Can't Have You - Wow, does he look different tonight in a suit! He re-invents his look every week. He was great! I really liked his slow version of this song. Randy thinks he is ready to make a record. Kara thinks it was his best. Paul was crying and thinks he is brilliant. Simon thought he would probably do Donna Summer but thought he was outstanding. Folks, he may be the next American Idol!


• Matt Giraud - Staying Alive - Paula's on her feet! This is the Matt we were hoping for the last couple of weeks. I agree with Kara that it wasn’t brilliant, but it was solid. Randy wasn't in love with the song but thinks he can really sing. Paula thought this was a strike for him - not a gutter ball ... whatever that means! Simon was real and of course, didn't like it. I called that one. Simon thought it was a desperate performance - not good vocals, not original ....


• Anoop - Love Don't Come Easy - This was not one of my favorites. Kara thought it was one of his best performances. Paula likes his look tonight - the "growth" on his face and his pink sweater vest! Simon of course completely disagrees with the other judges. I agree with Simon this time.

Randy said this is the most talented Final 7 they've ever had and I agree whole-heartily. I think Kris could be the dark horse in this competition. I don't know that he will end up winning but he'll be like Chris Daughtery and do better as a non-winner and be a recording star. We will definitely hear his name and his songs on the radio.


I think if your name isn’t Kris, Danny or Adam you could potentially be in danger tomorrow night. The others were good, but tonight, they weren’t nearly as original or strong. So here are my picks for going home this week: Anoop and Lil Rounds

Whoooo's Special?

I made this card tonight for a special little girl.  Have you heard of Wright Flight?  It’s a program that was offered at my granddaughter's school this year (in Tucson) and she was fortunate to be one of the limited number of students to be accepted into the program.  She attended the after-school program twice a month all year and was rewarded on Saturday with Fly Day.  She got to be co-pilot of a small airplane for a forty minute flight around town.  Isn't that pretty cool?