Happy Weekend!

Hope your weekend was a good one.  Ours was bittersweet.  Our friends, Margaret and Graham have been here all week and we took them to the airport Saturday morning.  We met Marianne and Greg and after we went to the airport, the four of us enjoyed breakfast at The Original Pancake House in Charlotte.  Marianne and I each got the Dutch Baby, one of their specialities.  It is an air filled yeasty pancake served with lemon syrup, lemons, butter and powdered sugar.  Yum!!  It was delicious but I didn't eat anything the rest of the day!!  (I didn't count the calories!)

After breakfast, we drove around Charlotte reminiscing as we drove past our Grandparents house and the house we were living in when Marianne was born.  Then we went to the memorial service and the celebration of life for our cousin, Bobby.  It was a really nice service with many sharing their stories and memories of Bobby.  He was such a "bigger than life" guy who never met a stranger whose flame was snuffed out too soon.  May he rest in peace.

Today we picked up my mom to take her out to lunch.  When Sonny walked by her hanging fern plant that was on her front porch, a bird flew out and perched on her roof.  Upon further investigation, we discovered there was a nest with an egg in it in the fern.  The mother bird kept her eye on us and her nest.  When we went inside, she resumed her perch in the fern on her egg.  I was able to get some pretty good pictures.

We thought it was just a pigeon but a couple of people have told us it looks like a Mourning Dove.

We had a nice bar-b-que lunch with Mom, Angela, Marianne, Greg, Derek and Harrison at Sonny's where all mothers ate for free!  That makes it a little better for everyone!  After lunch, we went to BJ's and then home.  I had a few cards to make to mail out as well as coming up with ideas for Stamp Club this month.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!  I hope to be spending much of the day with my mother.  And although I won't be with my own children for Mother's Day, I hope to at least get a phone call!  I will see Ashley next week in Charleston and can't wait!

This is the card I made for Mom using the wonderful Blendabilities!  I love them and will be sharing more in the coming weeks.

Sketched Birthday Card Set

Birthday cards are needed all year long, and this ensemble includes four cards featuring fun polka dots and a handy decorated box to hold them. The box will hold four cards and four envelopes, or you might prefer to fill the box with two sets of cards. Perfect for a class, this project would also be a well-received and useful gift.

This fun and very useful project comes to you designed by Regina!

To get the instructions for Regina’s project, just subscribe to Craft Project Central for May!  And if you have a minute, please leave Regina a comment on her project!  Have a wonderful crafting weekend!

Fresh Prints Place Setting

This Fresh Prints Place Setting is a great way to brighten up your table! This place setting features a wipe-able placemat, a place card, a coordinating napkin ring and a sweet treat envelope to finish your meal! Use this place setting as a gift, for a party, or to just brighten up your morning meal!

This is a project featured over on Craft Project Central.  This was designed by Michelle Wecksler. To get the full step-by-step instructions for Michelle’s project, just subscribe to Craft Project Central for the month of May!  And if you have a minute, please leave Michelle a comment on her project!  Have a fun crafting day.  Michelle will be randomly selecting one lucky winner to receive a free subscription - IF you leave a comment!

 

Craft Project Central Card Sketch

Each month Craft Project Central hosts a monthly Card Sketch Challenge.  For every ten cards submitted, one winner is picked for a free month subscription on Craft Project Central!  The winner(s) will get to select the month of their choice!  So if they have 15 submissions this month they will randomly pick one winner from all submissions*.  If they have 40 submissions they will randomly pick four winners from all submissions, and so on! They really want to give away some free subscriptions, so please do join the challenge!!

(**If a project designer submits a card for the inspiration, they won’t be in the winner random-selection pool, but their cards will count towards the “for every 10 cards submitted winner total”.)

This month Christy Fulk is the designer and creater for the sketch challenge.

Here is the sketch:

 And here is my card using My Digital Studio and that great DSP, Kaleidescope!

Proud of My Grad

Get ready for that special graduation celebration with this display for guests to leave a special message for the graduate. The So Proud of You tasseled garland, draped along an everyday yardstick, will inspire your guests to add a message on one of the handmade note cards. The ‘Memories’ and ‘Wishes’ labeled jars will hold those messages for the grad!

 Julie Beltramo designed this project and her tutorial can be found at Craft Project Central. 

To get the instructions for Julie’s project, just subscribe to May!  And if you have a minute, please leave Julie a comment on her project!  Have a wonderful crafting day!

And if you would like to see all the designers (and me!) for May, check this out!

Long Envelope Mini Envelope and Card

This mini album, which was made with the Envelope Punch Board, has three two-page layouts.  It also has three pull-out pages that can be used for journaling or more pictures.  Along with the matching card, this would make a wonderful gift for any occasion.  It would also make a great scrapbooking class.

This beautiful project comes to you designed by Christy Fulk!  And if you have a minute, please leave Christy a comment on her project! 

If you would like to learn how to make this project, you will want to subscribe to Craft Project Central for the month of May. Each month you subscribe to will give you access to 10 projects with detailed, full-color, step-by-step instructions. Projects are easy to duplicate, are practical, and functional projects that you will have fun making and be able to use yourself or give as gifts! Not every project you get on Craft Project Central will be unique, never-before-seen projects, but what you will be getting are projects adapted to current and popular Stampin’ Up! products with easy to follow instructions.  All of this for only $10 for each month that you subscribe!  New projects will be loaded every two to three days.  Once you subscribe check back often for your new projects.  Projects once posted will stay on the site for one year.

And .... drumroll please .... I have been invited to be a Guest Designer with Craft Project Central and will have my project featured later this month!  I am thrilled!! 

Collage Art

NOTE:  New items have been added to CLEARANCE!!

Yesterday was a rough day for me!  I didn't get to bed until 2 a.m. with plans to sleep in.  But I woke up around 8:30 and the room was spinning.  Darn!  That old vertigo got me again.  I haven't had it in several years.  I didn't do anything most of the morning - felt nauseated, weak and just blah!  I didn't feel like eating but finally got a piece of toast down around noon.  I had to get to feeling better 'cause I had some gals coming over at 2:30 to make a collage art piece and I didn't want to disappoint.  I finally took a pill for motion sickness that Ashley had given me several years ago.  It did the trick!  So we got our art piece done and had fun doing it.  They loved it.  We are planning on doing one in early June for 4th of July if you are interested.

After the gals left, I took a nap and then sweet talked Sonny into going out to eat!  When I got back home, I had a message on the home phone but couldn't get our phone to work - no service.  I had forgotten my cell phone when we went out to eat and when I checked it, I had a message from Marianne to call her. Evidently my family was trying desperately to get in touch with me to let me know my cousin, Bobby, had died of an apparent heart attack.  What a shock!  He was just 49 years old and the sweetest kid you'd meet.  He has had a hard life but had gotten himself back on track after being into drugs big time in his 20's. His sisters are taking it real hard of course.  Their family has had a tough few years.  Their mother died last year and their father has died since I moved back to NC.  Now it's just the two sisters, Jane and Candy, left.  My sisters and particularly, my brother, are also taking it hard.  Jane, Candy and Bobby lived down the street from us when they were growing up and they were real close to Marianne, Angela and Lee as they were all 2-3 years apart in age.  I was 12-15 years older and gone from home when they were all growing up.  Just goes to show that you never know when your time is up so you need to live your life to the fullest while you can.

I participated in the Paper Craft Challenge this month and made this card with MDS.

New Catty Premier!

I was SO excited to attend the Stampin' Up! Catalog Premiere in Raleigh, NC last night with my stampin' friends, Allison, Belinda and Sharon! Thanks so much to Allison for driving!

Allison, Sharon, Belinda

We lucked out and didn't have any rain.  The event was canceled in Birmingham, Alabama due to bad weather.  That would suck!  Stampin' Up! did a simulcast from 40 locations around North America!  We all were able to see Shelly Gardner, Carrie Cudney, Shannon West, (newly engaged) Bonnie Thurber, Brian Pillings and Donna Griffin (LIVE in Long Beach) demonstrate some of the NEW products coming out!  I'm very excited about MANY of them…and they just were the tip of the iceberg!

Shelli on stage looking very pretty in pink

On our way out, they handed us a NEW catalog and stamp set!  I'm SO glad that I decided to go!  I can't show you any of the contents of the catalog but I can show you the cover.

Isn't it fresh looking?  Love it!

Our first reveal in the theatre

The new In Colors are:

• Blackberry Bliss (dark purple)
• Lost Lagoon (a dark blue)
• Hello Honey (honey color - maybe a little like Summer Starfruit which I hate to see go)
• Tangelo Twist (looks more like tangerine from what I can tell)
• Mossy Meadow (dark green)

I think I was expecting brighter colors since our other In Colors (that are staying) are so light.  I'm not making any judgement until I actually stamp with them so we'll see.

Here's a short list of new products and announcements from last night:

• Blendabillities: The first 6 sets of the Stampin Up Blendabilities alcohol markers will be available to demonstrators May 1, and to customers June 1!  I can't wait!!  Belinda is even going to do expediated shipping so I may get to see hers next week.
• New Fast Fuse adhesive. Think ‘sticky strip’ in an applicator like Snail adhesive. (both Snail and Sticky Strip adhesives are still available)
• Dazzling Diamonds Glitter IS NOT GONE! There was a scare on the retiring accessories list, but Dazzling Diamonds was actually only being re-configured, it is not going away!!
• Stampin' Up Leadership 2015 will be held in Orlando, FL. January 29-31, 2015. All levels of Demonstrators will be able to attend.

I didn't get home last night until a little after 1 a.m. and sat in bed poring over the catalog until 2 a.m. (when Sonny told me to turn out the light so he could sleep!!)    Today I have Vertigo and have not felt like doing anything so glad I looked it over last night!!


Thought you'd love this - Guess this would have been our husbands last night if they'd opted to go with us!!

 Can you relate?

Dazzling Butterflies

Hope your weekend was a good one.  We had beautiful weather this weekend so Sonny and I took advantage and went out on the boat Sunday.  I made the mistake of not applying sunscreen (didn't realize it was as hot as it was) and got a little sun on my arms and back.  I'll know better next time!  

I made several cards today in preparation for my upcoming All Occasions Stamp a Stack.  It is Wednesday, May 7 at 2:30 p.m.  If you live in the area, you are welcome to come.  We will be making 20 cards - two of ten designs - and you can mix and match the sentiments.   Here is one of the cards we will be making.



I think this is my favorite.  It's so much prettier in real life.  Each butterfly has Dazzling Diamond (glitter) on it and just sparkles.  Hopefully, Stampin' Up is coming out with another kind of glitter since the Dazzling Diamonds has been discontinued (and is sold out).

I'm excited for tomorrow.  I'll be going to Raleigh with some other demonstrators for the Catalog Premier.  I can't wait to see the new catalog.  Every year this is such a great surprise and we demonstrators get so excited to see what's new and what has made it to the big catalog from the year's mini catalogs.