My Stampin' Space

Sunday .... before the big snow hit, Sonny and I took a drive into Charlotte to the new IKEA.  What a great way to burn a few hours!  I didn't purchase much - a rail for my punches, CD boxes, long shoehorn for Sonny & Mom (for $1!!) and the most delicious cookies!!!  I don't know how many were in the box - a lot - but we've eaten them all in 3 days!  When we got home Sunday, neither of us felt like eating any dinner because we'd eaten so many cookies!  (My daughter will have a laugh over that.)  They had chocolate in the middle of thin, really crispy oatmeal type cookies.  Yummm!!

On Monday, while looking out the window at the snow, I set about putting up my new punch rails.  I had bought a magnetic knife rack last year at IKEA for my punches and really liked it, so I wanted more.  I ended up buying a round rail (in the kitchen section - I think it's for holding towels) and I like it even better.  Now, I just need to go back and buy another one. 

The bulletin board beside it holds a few brass stencils, some patterns, my calendar, and other "essential" items! 

This is my stamp holder that sits on my desk with my jars of ribbon on top.  I have a tag on each one so I can sort the bits of ribbon by color.  Sonny made my stamp and refill ink holder several years ago and I love it!

This wicker shelf unit was used many years ago in a bathroom.  Never throw things away.  You never know when you can use them in the future!!  I used to have it right next to my desk, but I preferred the punches to hang there, so I moved the shelf across the room.  I have my buttons; glitter, embossing powder, Pretties kit, SU craft spots, and other stuff on it.

And here are my stamp sets.  On the white shelf are my SU stamps in loose alpha order (A-D on top shelf, etc.) and by box size with background stamps on top.  Next to it on my Target wire cubes are my clear stamps on the top shelf in the CD boxes.  On the next two shelves are my wooden stamps that are non-SU.  They are in clear plastic boxes that are numbered.  I have a notebook that I have stamped everything in so I can find which box they are in when I need them. The fourth shelf holds my letter sets - both SU & non.  Then the basket on the bottom has loose stamps, rubber bands, etc.

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blog candy link

edited - sorry about that link - it works now!!

Quick link for ya to blog candy - win a George Foreman super duper grill!! Read about it HERE.

American Idol night and personal info

I've spent most of today with my mom. Her only remaining living relative, her brother, died in his sleep last night. My sister called me this a.m. and I went over to Mom's house and we broke the news to her together. Hospice was called in last week and luckily, Mom went to see him last Wednesday. She was upset today though of course and kept saying she had planned on making him his favorite cookies this week. He was 87 and has been bedridden for about a year. The funeral will be on Friday.

So, Sonny and I sat down to watch American Idol tonight. We usually wait until it is on about 1/2 hour so we can fast forward through the commercials. We only got to hear one singer when our power went out!!!! Oh No!! It was out for about 1/2 hour and when it came back on, we were able to hear singers 1-6. The electicity being out kept it from taping singers 7-9 but we picked back up with singers 10-12!! I heard them all sing at the end (the little snippets they do) and I checked another internet site to see what she had to say about all the singers. So ....my synopsis below is partly from me and partly from what I gleamed elsewhere. I think I may have missed the ones who will win though. I didn't vote tonight since I wasn't sure about all of them.

• Von Smith - You're All I Need to Get By: I thought he started the show off great. Simon says he reminds him of Clay Aiken and that he dressed appalling! But, overall, the judges liked him. I did too.
• Taylor Vaifanua - If I Got You by Alicia Keyes: She's got a great voice but was really kinda boring. The judges thought so too and wished she had put more of her personality into it.
• Alex Wagner-Trugman - That's Why They Call It The Blues by Sir Elton: This guys is pretty dorky (and his Dad is a lot dorky!!) Paula thought he was a true showman; Simon thought it was just stupid; and Randy said he was "buck wild!" At least he sang an upbeat song but he was actually growling the words!! Ummmm, I don't think so!
• Arianna Afsar - Winner Takes It All by Abba: This girl is sooo cute - as the judges have said "she's cute as a button" which she doesn't want to be remembered by! I was really hoping more for her but the song was just too much for her. She definitely can sing though. We'll probably see her again - but not this year.
• Ju'not Joyner - Hey There Delilah: I love this song and he wasn't bad. He put his own touch to it. But again, another slow song. I think they get better reviews when they sing more upbeat songs. This guy has a darling little boy which helped him get to this point. I don't think he'll get voted in though.
• Kristen McNamera - Tracy Chapman song: I wasn't so into her when our power went out.

The itallic part of this next segment was taken from another site. Coments at the end are my take on the little bit I heard at the end of the show:

• Nathaniel Marshall — I Would Do Anything For Love by Meatloaf. Hope this guy doesn’t ruin it for me forever. Omigosh. I can’t stomach it. Okay, so you know what, he can actually sing. I can’t help but feel like I’m in a karaoke bar though. I love Simon. “Excruciating.” “Olivia Newton John headband.” Kara nailed it — he’d make a great karaoke buddy. That’s Nate. American Idol — notsomuch. I sure wish I'd heard this guy!! He's an interesting character to say the least!! He was very dramatic in Hollywood.
• Felicia Barton — No One: I like this chick. Good song choice. Finally someone tonight who is relevant. My main criticism is that you don’t really get a sense of her range with this song. I’d like to see her back next week.
• Scott MacIntyre — Mandolin Rain: This guy is SUPER talented. Top 5. For sure. Kara’s right; the imperfections didn’t matter because his passion is undeniable. I can’t wait to see him with the piano. This guy is blind!! I have been a fan of his from the "get-go" and think he will go far!

Now our power came back on!!

• Kendall Beard - This One's for the Girls: I like country and Martina is one of Sonny's favorites, so this one was a hit for us. She was a little shrilly toward the end which the judges commented on, but on a whole, they like her. Simon is definately not a country liker so he was not as sold as the others.
• Jorge Nunez - Don't Let the Sun Go Down: This guy has gone above and beyond the call of duty. He is from Puerto Rico and has an accent big time, but had a linquist he has been working with to make his English more understandable. He really sounded great! I'm not sure about him. He was crying at the end he was so emotional and said when he got that emotional, he couldn't think in English!!
• Lil Rounds - a Mary J Bilge song: She was great! The judges loved her and so did I. She has 3 children at home so this would be a big deal for her.

Ok - IF I had voted - I would have voted for: Von, Taylor, Scott; Jorge and Lil Rounds; Kendall

I think these will get through: Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre; Jorge Or Kendall

Three Little Words

I recently got this stamp set ... mainly because it was inexpensive ($13.95) and I thought I could use those three little words a lot. The verses are:

• you, you, you
• i miss you
• thanks so much
• i love you
• so very sorry
• thinking of you

(you can click on the pictures to view it all)

I used my Nestabilities for the ovals and colored the flowers and the "T" with my Copics. Don't you just love that ribbon??? I found it at Michaels a couple of weeks ago. It's hard to tell, but I used my Big Shot to emboss the white piece; then used my SU scallop punch for the edge. Those are three little buttons up in the corner. You'll probably be noticing a lot of buttons on my cards! I sorted through all my buttons the other day and put them in little jars that Margaret had brought me. Well, let me tell you, I definitely have some buttons!!! I think I've been collecting them for a long time. I used to use them much more than I do now.

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Snow Day

Wippee!!  We have snow.  What is it about snow that make 60 year old women (and 50 and 80 ....) act like a kid again??!!  It's just so beautiful.  It started snowing here last night about 7:30 and was still snowing at midnight.  School closings were already posted along with businesses for Monday.  I just remember when I was a kid, I was so excited about those cherished snow days!!  Also, as an adult, I worked at our local high school and loved it when the schools closed and we got to stay home for snow.  (Although, living in Texas, it didn't happen that often!!)  These March snows always bring to mind 1960!  My sister was born in 1960 and it snowed every Wednesday that March ... yes, she was born on a Wednesday!!  But those memories officially make me an "old-timer!"  Yesterday's Charlotte Observer make mention of the 1960 March snow storms and said "old-timers in Charlotte always remember ...."  Old well ... guess that's me!

Here are pictures of our SNOW!!

Preorder SALE!!

Starting TODAY, Stampin' Up! is offering customers a special opportunity to pre-order select sets from the Occasions Mini Catalog , which won't be released in full until April 1. (Pre-order means you can order it & receive it now before the mini is released) They are just in time for your Spring and Easter craft needs. You can download the flyer here to see the sets larger and in living color!

Remember that with every $50 you spend you can select one of the FREE 6 Products from our SAB flyer.
Wagon Full of Fun 113262 $34.95



Eight Great Greetings 113822 $27.95

An Egg-cellent Easter 113196 $21.95
Egg Hunt Standard Wheel 113833 $6.50


You saw it as a sneak peek in SU's catalog (p. 202). Starting today, Stampin' Up!'s exclusive Manhattan Flower Textured Impressions Die (114517) is available to purchase.

• Exclusive Stampin' Up design
• Coordinates with SU's Manhattan Collection
• Use with standard cutting pads & Big Shot
• Creates a deep, bold embossed image
• Does not cut
• Clear design makes alignment a breeze
• Sized for a standard card front
  

CALL ME to place an order!!

Stamp TV

I've just discovered a neat site (thanks, Jackie!).  It's Stamp TV by Gina K.  It's pretty neat and has some good discussion groups, videos, a gallery and thousands of members.  Click on that "blinkie" on the sidebar and check it out!!

While I'm giving advice, thought I'd share this also.  I recently got the stamp set, Thoughts and Prayers and made this card with it.  The set is one of those double mounted sets from SU (that they are actually going to do away with!!).  Anyway, I also usually cut some of my stamps apart when I am mounting them.  This one was no exception.  Since I didn't have enough wood for all the sayings, etc.  I found a set of dominoes that I wasn't using and mounted the stamp on one of them!!

American Idol Results

Well, my predictions were "spot on" this week. The winners were Kris, Adam and Allison. Guess I could be a judge!! Although, there really weren't a lot of good ones to choose from this week so it was easy! Brooke White, the nanny who was the top 10 last year, sang her new single that was just released on ITtunes this week (Hold Up My Heart). It was really good. Hope she does well - she was really sweet.

Diva Coffee Break Challenge

Well, since I didn't follow all the rules yesterday with this challenge, I thought I'd give it another shot today.  I've had such fun the past couple of days making cards.  Everyone deserves a fun day or two!!

 

Remember - this is the color palette we have to use. 

 

 

 

My card uses Basic Gray for the card base.  I ran the Whisper White piece through my Big Shot with the Polka Dot Texturz plate; then I dabbed green chalk on the dots.  The turquoise paper was stamped with the Polka Dot background stamp (dormant) and embossed with white powder (as was the cupcake).  The green strip of paper is little drops of Crystal Effects with a turquoise ribbon tied around it.  The cupcake is from SU's Sizzix Cupcake die.  It makes it so easy!  I sponged the oval with green galore chalk ink.