SeaStar Creations

I am in love ...

2010-05-26T11:17:00.008-05:00

with two new blogs I have happened upon. These women are crazy creative and very generous to share their ideas, and often downloads, with visitors! Check them out :)

Skip To My Lou
She is going to do one awesome craft a day throughout the entire month of June! Hurry, sign up now. Its free and June is right around the corner.

Today's Creative Blog
Wait until you see what she can do with duct tape! Awesome :)

My baby turned 5 on May 17th! I can't believe my chubby baby girl with the big gummy grin is now a super skinny and sassy chick about to start kindergarten! Boo Hoo! She wanted a mermaid birthday party which we morphed into a backyard water park theme. Which would have been super cute but the weather did not cooperate. We attempted to turn the garage into a tiki hut. It was the best we could do. The kids had a blast splashing around in their bathing suits even though it was only mid-60's! Brrrrrr! Here is her invite and thank you note.

Happy Crafting! Remember its COOL to craft and when its 90 degrees outside, do you really need another excuse?

Crafting with YouTube

2010-05-24T13:09:00.003-05:00

Did you know there are thousands of cool creative videos on youtube.com? Probably. I am always a bit behind the times. I found some fun ones for you to try out. In the search field on their main webpage, type in these as keywords:

Erin Bassett
Jyn Designs
LexiconLover
LiveLoveScrap
ShopCropSuey
Dawn McVey
CreativityPrompt

I am sure you will find more. Now I am off to play with used laundry sheets ;)

February Creations

2010-02-09T08:26:00.005-06:00

My wonderful SWAP group had taken off December, and maybe November (I can't even remember!!) but we regrouped and started back up in January. I am running late, however, but did get my design all worked out. I have a few more to make but here is the final product:

My sister-in-law just moved into a new house, so that was my inspiration. I love to multi-task! The new clear stamps from SU! are wonderful. I love that they take up so much less space, of course. But, they stamp very nicely, too. Just like the wood, really. This set, Good Neighbors, is from the Sell-A-Bration set and so is the paper, Welcome Neighbors DS. It's so cute. Not sure what I will use all that paper for but it is adorable. You can never have too much paper, right??

And, I was asked to make a friend's birthday card, because we were going out for margaritas last night (in a small snow storm, I might add). My sister suggested the "Cheers to You" stamp set which was perfect for this occasion. Here is what I came up with:

Thanks for looking,

January Craft Club Projects

2010-02-01T10:07:00.004-06:00

In case you missed my January Craft Club, here are the projects. I will also sell kits for $17 a piece. Let me know if you are interested in purchasing one!

The next class is Saturday, February 20th from 10am-1pm. Cost is $15. There will be 4 projects plus a bonus. Kits will be available for $17 following the class.

Kimberly

Craft Show 2009

2009-12-02T16:23:00.003-06:00

I was talked into doing a craft show, by a good friend, and I am so glad that I was! It was a couple weeks ago and Parkway Central High School. I shared a both with three other fabulously creative new friends. I wasn't too sure how I'd do but as it turns out I'd chalk it up to a success. I didn't have a ton of product but here is a glimpse of some of what I took with me. I didn't bring all that much home which was kinda nice!

Thanks for checking me out :)

Kimberly

Teacher Gifts

2009-12-01T17:14:00.006-06:00

Well, having sick kids for about a month has given me some much needed craft time. I was asked by Kammy's teachers to whip up some notecards and such for a student teacher who has been in their classroom all semester. She leaves this week so here is what I delivered this morning. I think they turned out cute and had a little bit of a hard time letting go :)

And here is what all the teachers are getting for Christmas. My fabulously talented friend, Roxanne, made the cute "snow" shovels. We added hot chocolate, a yummy chocolate bar, and some marshmellows for snow :)

Thanks for looking! Happy Crafting!

Kimberly

Boxes, Boxes and More Boxes

2009-09-17T14:44:00.005-05:00

I had a moment of insanity or spurt of creativity and bought a ton of cigar boxes. I got some on ebay and some on craigslist. I had no plan whatsoever for them. I had never done anything with them prior. I just felt like I needed to have them and thought I was getting them for a steal -- which I have confirmed :) They are so cool! Lots of different sizes, shapes; some cardboard, some wooden. And I have been making jewelry boxes! The insides are covered in felt, some have dividers to keep your jewels nice and tangle free, and they include a mirror on the top cover to check out how beautiful you are :)

What do you think??? I am going to charge $15-$25 per box. Anyone want to order one??

Thanks for looking :)

Sew, What's New?

2009-08-21T08:00:00.005-05:00

I purchased a sewing machine from a family friend's garage sale sometime in the early 90s. The machine itself was her first sewing machine and dates back to 1975. Almost as old as me. She took fabulous care of it. I had grand ideas about learning to sew and, I don't know, making curtains for my residence hall room or something?? Anyway, I have moved this machine too many times to admit but it has been in several states! My children have done a number on my couch and pillows ... juice boxes, bottles, spit up, throw up, etc. So I purchased some fabric on sale and thought maybe, just maybe, I'd pull out that old sewing machine to make new pillow covers. Well, that was months ago. And yesterday I got the urge ... not sure why! Coupon from JoAnn's maybe?

So, thanks to the organization of this family friend, I was able to reference all the original instruction manuals and such. After fighting with the bobbin for a very long time, I finally mastered sewing in a straight line. WooHoo! So here are my first two creations ... SNAKES :) A girly snake for Kammy and a boy snake for Teagan. Just used some old fabric I had lying around. Cute, huh? Hee hee!

Well, then for the second reason the sewing machine came out. I have always wanted to donate to Locks of Love. I have very curly, very thick hair, though. And my hair has been short since grad school. My hair does not just get longer, it gets wider. I am badly in need of a hair cut but this LOL thing has been on my mind so yesterday I decided that I am going to *TRY* to do it. And in order to get through the hell that this will undoubtably be, I need to have some nice tight and wide headbands. Viola! Another sewing project. I made three of these :)

I might even attempt one of the 6 pillow recovers today ...

Happy Crafting,

Octo Purse

2009-08-16T09:51:00.006-05:00

Morning! This is gonna be a quick post, as my kids are parked in front of the TV and we are all still in our PJs. Definitely need to be productive today! I made this card for a friend who was so kind to give me birthday present last month. Thanks, Sandy!

I also made a set of four cards for a Party Lite friend. She had mentioned maybe buying some cards from me a while ago but we just kept talking without any specifics. So, I decided to be assertive and just make her some to see if we could "make a deal". And it worked :) So, these were a gift. I didn't get a good picture of them unfortunately. They are square cards with a window in the center. I punched some scalloped squares from printed paper and cut out the window. Than, on the inside, layered another scalloped square of printed paper, a smaller solid colored scalloped square and than the candle party stamp which I thought worked perfect for this occasion. I popped up the candle stamp so it comes through the window a bit. Than tied a ribbon along the side, after running the front of the card through my Big Shot to add the embossed polka dots. Not sure you can see any of this in the pictures so hopefully this will give you an idea. I like how they turned out and were actually very quick to do!

Thanks for looking! Happy Crafting :)

One Project Finished

2009-08-07T08:24:00.006-05:00

I have actually had a lot of time in my craft room lately. Not sure exactly how I managed that?? And Tim starts his marathon of work in August. So, that should continue for a while. I am officially a married single mom. Just until after Labor Day.

Anyway, next Tuesday, I start a book club at Kammy's preschool and wanted to have something to take notes in for that. Plus I wanted to post some altered composition books on my etsy store, Creations By SeaStar. So here is my finished project!

We are reading, No! Why Kids - of All Ages - Need to Hear It and Ways Parents Can Say It by David Walsh, PhD. I have only read chapter 1 so far, but it is really good! I am super excited about the club and the book. So, now I am already with my cute journal, too!

I have also made some progress on the other two projects on my craft table, but not enough to post yet. I want them to be completed -- who wants to see another sneak peek at the same unfinished project, right? Besides that gives me a little incentive for finishing them up.

Thanks for looking! Happy Crafting :)

Works in Progress

2009-08-05T10:07:00.006-05:00

I don't usually start more than one project at once, but for some reason I was feeling a little ADD at my craft table this past week or so. Nothing is finished, of course! Thats what happens with too many things in progress at once. But I didn't want to disappear from my blog again for too long, so here is a super sneak peek!

My sister won the "whats the weirdest thing you have used in a stamp project" question. She made a pencil box for her desk out a tampon box. In fact, she made three of them because they turned out so cute :)

So, here is a sneak at her "prize". When its all finished I will show the complete picture.

Then, I wanted to alter some composition books since school is coming up fast, I thought those might be quick sales on my Etsy Store. And I am starting a book club at Kammy's preschool so this will be used as a sample for the store and my personal journal for that.

And lastly, another work in progress using some fun flocked paper I found on sale at Hobby Lobby. This one is really rough but stayed tuned for the finished masterpiece :)

Happy Crafting,

Don't Count Your Chickens

2009-07-27T08:25:00.005-05:00

I was given this very cute Southern Living wire basket a long time ago. I had decided (separately) to do my downstairs powder room with a garden theme -- seed packets and such. So this basket seemed to fit in with that theme. Up on the wall it went. But what to put in it? At first it sat empty. Then I stuffed some straw colored bag filler in there. Looked pretty blah. Still, it stayed that way for a L-O-N-G time. Then I had a vision of paper covered eggs. I think I must have seen this in magazine somewhere but can't remember exactly where. I have made pinecone Christmas ornaments but those are time consuming and hard on the fingers! These were much easier and super fast. I whipped out four of them, with the help of my neice who handed me the small punched circles, in less than an hour. That was working slowly, too, as I had four kids running around my craft area at the time.

Making them was super easy. I got a package of 4 styrofoam eggs at Michael's for a couple bucks (if that). I picked out four different patterns of designer series or printed paper. Cut 1 inch circles with my SU! punch. Than randomly attached the circles to the egg with a straight pin. On some, I used the same pattern for the entire egg, others it was totally random. These are fun to make and make a good filler for that spare basket or decorative bowl you have lying around.

Happy Crafting,

My Birthday Party

2009-07-25T09:36:00.008-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday, and while I am not excited about birthdays anymore (as the number is advancing toward a milestone I'd rather ignore), I thought it would be fun to throw myself a party. I work really hard on my kids parties and I LOVE it, so why not do it for myself once to see how it feels. ** It was fun! **

I made cupcakes and put cute flags in them. I used a dollar stamp from Michael's, circle punched it and a back peice, sandwiched it with a toothpick in between using a pop dot. Viola! Easy and it really added a lot. The stamp I used said: "of all possessions, a FRIEND is the most PRECIOUS". I didn't want to be too self-indulgent so skipped the overly "happy birthday" stuff!

I also used my beloved Big Shot to make pillow box favors. I used almost all of my Robinhood Red paper which makes me a little sad, but it looked so cute with the fun polka dot ribbon I found at Michael's. Besides I have to make room for my new In Colors! I had also found some birthday paper supplies (plates, cups, etc) at Hobby Lobby on sale and so that color scheme went together, too. I filled them with M&Ms. I did use a birthday stamp from Eight Great Greetings but it said "You Take the Cake" so I figured that could be more about the attendee ;) I really like that set - I think it's going to get used a lot.

And lastly, I wanted to try to make a pennant banner, as I have never had the opportunity to do so before. What better excuse, right? Again, not wanting to go over board with the "birthday stuff to me", I opted for a WELCOME banner, hopefully, hung tastefully in the family room where we would be spending most of our time. It was fun and I will definitely make these again!

What I loved most about my party is that some of my very favorite people came to celebrate with me. It gave me a good excuse to craft for a reason and now I can share with you. I hope you do something nice for yourself today -- big or small!

Happy Crafting,

I am a TWEETER ....

2009-07-23T15:11:00.004-05:00

Come follow me on twitter

By the way, this is a card I did for my swap group a month or two ago! I just love this little bird and the polka dot ribbon. Really, this might be one of my favorite cards of all time.

Thanks for looking,

Why, Hello There ....

2009-07-22T09:12:00.007-05:00

Its been a while, huh? No promises when I will blog next since I keep making promises that I don't keep. I don't like it when people promise me stuff and then don't follow through, so no promises from me! Here are a few things that I have done while I was away doing God knows what :)

And I even participated in a challenge which I have not done FOREVER. This one is from The Cats Pajamas Co. and it was a fun color challenge. I was inspired immediately. This is actually a pocket calendar cover, but it could be used for a checkbook cover, also (although its a tad big -- didn't fit in my wallet). The image is from the Tickled Pink set from The Angel Company (circa 2008). And I have had those flip flop brads (from OTC) for almost as long as my youngest child has been alive. Okay, exaggerating ... but its been a long time. I thought they were cute and then when they arrived didn't know quite what to do with them. Does that happen to anyone else?

And I thought, as incentive to myself, I would pose a question. Answer the question and I will randomly chose someone to receive a small token of my appreciation for helping me get back to my blog. Let's consider this "baby blog candy" :)

QUESTION FOR THE DAY:

What is one "strange" item that you have used to craft with?

I will start:
I might try to stamp anything that will hold still long enough. But one that comes to mind is when I made the most adorable (IMHO) container to hold my tacks for my bulletin board out of those Laughing Cow cheese containers -- you know the circle ones with the lids? I also just bought some clear tubing from the hardware store with visions of bracelets dancing in my heads. I will have to let you know about that one.

Your turn!

Father's Day

2009-06-03T10:21:00.005-05:00

As Father's Day fast approaches, I have been on a mad dash to get some new and fun cards posted on my ETSY store.

Check me out:

And send your friends and family, too! I will be posting more today and hopefully in the hear future, too :) Here is a preview!

Christmas and Valentines -- A little late

2009-03-30T22:09:00.004-05:00

Well, I have finally gotten around to taking pictures and downloading my Christmas card and our family Valentine's card. So here they are:

The Valentine's Card is very simple but I had this cute heart paper that I didn't want to go to waste. I am famous for buying paper and then hoarding it. So I have been trying to make a concerted effort to use what I have bought. This economy is starting to get to my crafting hobby addiction, so instead of visiting my usual hangouts (Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Archivers) I have been raiding my own stash. And who knew ... I have a ton of cute stuff! I actually purchased this "old" SU! stamp set from a local demo having a garage sale last fall. It reminded me of sweet tarts which were/are a favorite around here. I added a cute glittery brad to the top and some pink ribbon which is a must for this holiday, right? Inside I used that super cute SU! sentiment: You're one of the GOOD ones!

I loved our Christmas card this year, although it was time consuming! I need to shave my list down a bit but that makes me sad ... so each year I just keep saying "next year ..." I used my big shot to emboss the back layer and to cut out the large scalloped circle and the picture. I don't know what I ever did without that machine :) I absolutely adore the Sweet Serendipity stamp set and use it a lot. I liked this sentiment for Christmas: 'Tis the Season to Sparkle ... Believe. I just used the computer for our signature and punched those all out, too. A lot of punching on this one. I also ADORE the thick felt chocolate ribbon that SU! had in the holiday mini this year. So that had to make the card, too. This is an extravaganza of texture and I love it!

Thanks for looking! Happy Crafting and Creating!

Favorite Kammy Page

2009-03-24T18:39:00.003-05:00

This is one of my favorite pages in Kamryn's baby book. She loves to play dress up and it started at a young age as you can tell! I was blessed with a very girlie girl which is a nice balance for Teagan who is ALL boy. I am not usually a fan of stickers on my scrapbook pages but these blingy stickers were perfect! And I found the cool jewel brads which really fit perfectly with her over abundance of beads. And my favorite picture on this page is the one with her little piggy toes showing through her glass slippers. She has the cutest feet :)

My etsy store is booming all the sudden so I am going to be spending some serious time in my craft area the next few days. I will be cranking out some orders and getting some new stuff up there. I should have some new stuff to show you soon.

Oh, and someone who ordered some of my cards lives near me which is fun! Check out her cool blog (and awesome etsy store). She was so nice to feature my store in her blog so I am going to do the same!

Thanks for visiting! Happy crafting!

Kammy's Birthday Book

2009-03-11T08:22:00.007-05:00

Here are Kamryn's birthday pages. Sorry the pictures aren't super great. I will try to work on my photography skills when it comes to scrapbook pages. But these will have to do for now. I have some cards I need/want to make but with five kids hanging out today not sure if I will make it to my craft area today. If not, I will find something to post :) I am really going to try not to disappear again!

Kammy's half birthday was a very quiet family affair. I am really not good at journaling so this page still needs some writing on it. Ah, someday!

Kamryn's 1st birthday party was suppose to be a garden party but it RAINED! Go figure, so all my cute party ideas had to be moved inside. She still looked adorable and we all had fun.

Kammy's second birthday was a bunny party. These pages are some of my favorites I have ever done! They turned out as cute as the party was :)

And her third party was at the Butterfly House. The party was wonderful but these pages are so crowded ... I may redo them at some point ... not sure.

Thanks for looking! Happy Crafting! CHECK OUT MY BLOG CANDY BELOW!!!

Scrappin' Sisters

2009-03-10T07:43:00.003-05:00

My sister, Christy and I have been scrapping together for quite a few years now and I have not posted much of my books so I thought I'd share some of my pictures from my kids birthday books. I have Kamryn's up-to-date (amazing) and need to do Teagan's latest (age 5 in November) and am pretty happy with how they have turned out. They love looking at them and these are easy to keep up with since its just two a year. Scrapbooking can be so overwhelming but I think doing "theme" books like these is such a sense of accomplishment it keeps me going.

Teagan's Half Birthday Party

Teagan's First Birthday was a Cowboy Theme -- mostly 'cause I loved this overall outfit from Gymboree! This is probably my favorite two page spread. I love the linen thread looped around the page like a lasso.

Teagan's 2nd birthday was Veggie Tales. He was a huge fan of Larry the Cucumber (and still likes to watch the videos occasionally) so it was natural to do this as a theme. And Oriental Trading Co. had a great pack of paper that made this super easy.

Teagan has always been quite obsessed with cars and trucks so this was an inevitable theme. We focused on construction vehicles because we had just attended the "Big Truck" even at The Magic House and backhoe loaders were a favorite at that point.

And when he turned 4 we had his class (almost all of them) over for the Pixar Cars themed party. This was a huge party! Yes, I was crazy that year. But it was fun.

I will share Kamryn's birthday pages tomorrow. And this is a good reminder that I need to get Teagan's 5th party pages finished. Hopefully you will see those soon, too!

Thanks for looking :) CHECK OUT MY BLOG CANDY BELOW!!

Blog Candy with a TWIST!

2009-03-09T08:32:00.007-05:00

THIS WILL STAY AT THE TOP UNTIL I HAVE FIVE NAMES ON THE LIST!!
SCROLL DOWN FOR CARDS/PROJECTS I HAVE COMPLETED RECENTLY.

This is a great Candy Idea, I found it when visiting MADE ON THE FARM. Check out Jenny's blog - she is wonderfully talented. So here we go with the Candy!

The first 5 people to respond to this post will get something made by me - my choice!
(I may include a few other items (not homemade), too).

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It'll be done sometime this month.
4. You have no clue what it's going to be.
5. The catch? Oh, the catch is you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog (then come here and post). If you don't blog, you can still participate -- just share my blog candy post with five bloggers that you visit frequently. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did it will WIN! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!
New point - 6. The first person on your list must be the person who's list you left your name on!!

SO what are you waiting for...................who will be the first 5 people????
1. Jenny Made On The Farm
2.
3.
4.
5.
Please email me your address so I can get your candy out! seastarcreations@hotmail.com

Now don't you think this is a great idea!! (Thanks, Jenny)

I am back!

2009-03-08T20:33:00.005-05:00

Okay, so I am making a "Spring Resolution" and that is to get back to my blog :) I may have made the same resolution at the beginning of 2009, but that obviously did not work out so well. I have not been crafting as much as I would like, which is part of the absence. But I finally got some stuff done and uploaded some pictures so here goes:

I was inspired by the cute stacked canisters in the new SU! catalog. I have been storing my markers in these altered canisters but they were standing up and I worried about the ink. So, this was the perfect solution. They also save space and makes them easier to get to when I need them.

I have been meaning to make these plaques for my kiddos for awhile now. We can now hang these nifty little things and clip their artwork to them for display.

Here is an album that I made for my hubby for Valentine's Day present. We were going economical and this was a heartfelt and inexpensive gift. I found the LOVE album at Archivers (on sale) and had always wanted to try making one. It was super easy and I can almost guarantee that you will see more of these suckers on my blog in the future. Fabulous fun!

I am embarrassed to say that I did not make my kid's valentines this year. Ugh! But I couldn't let the whole holiday pass without some craftiness going on. These were quick and easy. The kids got to help with the cookies (good ol' slice and bakes) and with a quick and easy bag topper they got rave reviews from the teachers.

Thanks for looking :)

Happy New Year

2008-12-31T09:44:00.004-06:00

My house is finally back in order after all the Christmas festivities. However, all my Christmas cards have not gone out yet. And I am sending them late! I worked too hard, and I dare say, they are too super cute not to send them just because I missed the big day. I am guessing people will still appreciate them even late. They have now become Happy New Year cards :)

We are planning a little family party tonight with all the appetizers, champagne, noise makers, sparkling grape juice and silly hats the four of us can handle! I am excited. Of course, there will probably be a mock midnight around 9pm for the kids. There is no way we are keeping them up until midnight! They don't do well with less than normal sleep. Gotta love night terrors!

Anyway, I hope you all have a blessed and safe New Year's celebration and that 2009 brings you lots of love, laughter and adventure. Here are a few of the cards I made for special orders this past month. I will post my Christmas card soon!

Thanks for looking!

Holiday Crafts

2008-12-23T10:41:00.006-06:00

Two more days until Santa comes ... the threat is not working (and never really did) on my kids. They are so excited they are driving me a little nuts. I still have some wrapping to do but luckily have spent my last dollar on presents. We are good to go :) Tonight I anticipate watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, settling in with a cup of hot chocolate and surrounding myself with lots of toys to be wrapped.

Here are a few of the crafts we did this year (and one from a few years ago that I still love):

This is one that I made with hurricanes from my wedding. okay so this one was quite a few years ago. But he is held up well and makes an appearance every Christmas. I think he is adorable :) Super easy to make and a good gift.

The kids and I made this cute little guy from a kit I got inexpensively from Michael's. He was easy and they had a ball putting him together.

This fun garland of stars was made from the SU! die cut kit in the holiday mini catalog. I really enjoyed making these and thought they looked cute on our kitchen valance. I might keep them up for a while after Christmas. I am looking forward to putting almost everything else away this year. The clutter is getting to me!

My Christmas cards are *almost* done so once I get them all in the mail I will post a picture. I like them and thought they were pretty simple but elegant.

Happy Holidays!

excuses ....

2008-12-21T09:40:00.005-06:00

Okay, so if you have tried to keep up with my blog lately you will have noticed that I have not been posting much (or anything!). So here is my excuse ... we had to get a new laptop as our poor, overused, other one had finally seen its last download! We loved it to death. And I transferred all my pics to Shutterfly, as to not lose them completely. Learned that from experience when Teagan was 4 months old. But I can't download pics from Shutterfly to blogger. So, I don't have many pictures of my cards and projects to share as of yet. And, my back-up/secondary excuse is that I had a lot of special orders the last few months (yea!) and so wasn't doing much card making or crafting for myself.

I am almost finished with my Christmas cards so will post those once I drop all the ones being mailed at the post office. Until then here are a few samples or recent work:

These were all made for a friend to use as her Christmas cards. I made all the samples and she liked them all (that was nice and easy!) She requested a mix of all them. I will share some others in the next day or so :) Meanwhile here is also a pic of my crazy kids during our annual Christmas card photo shoot:

Needless to say, this was not the one chosen for this year's card but one of these years we must may send out a goofy card because this type of picture is much easier to get!

Merry Christmas :)

Thanksgiving

2008-12-18T10:26:00.002-06:00

I am sitting here with my newest neice all snuggled up in my arms and the older kids watching Max and Ruby in the other room. All is right with the world. I am so grateful for my healthy, beautiful children and my husband and the home we have made. I love being home with my kids to hear all the silly things they have to say and watch them discover new things every day. I do have this nagging little tick-tock, tick-tock feeling that I want another baby. I am trying to fight it but I just don't know that its going to go away.

We went to a Frosty and Friends event the other day and Santa was there. Kamryn was feeling kinda shy and didn't want to talk to him. Teagan, or course, jumped right up and asked for a Wii! Which we are not getting him -- he's only just turned 5 -- doesn't that seem too young?? Anyway, I was trying to prompt Kammy to ask Santa for something and mentioned that what she wanted had a mirror. And Santa guessed that she wanted a princess vanity! She (and I) were shocked -- the look on her face was PRICELESS!

Last night we went to have pictures taken with Santa at the mall. All the way there I kept trying to get Teagan to think about asking for something besides the Wii. So his next best answer to give to Santa's "what do you want" question was -- one of every boy toy! Yes, that is what he said! He is so "ilarious" -- that's what T and K have been saying lately -- everything is "ilarious"! So, I have been praying that he is not too disappointed Christmas morning when he does not get a Wii and does not have one of every other boy toy under the tree waiting for him.

Ah, kids! I am blessed.

Thanks, Bridgett!

2008-10-31T15:34:00.002-05:00

Bridgett was so nice to give this award to me a while back, and I was in the midst of crazy prep for the craft show so my blogging took a hiatus. I am back in the swing of things and wanted to thank her :) So here is my wonderful award. Thank you, thank you, thank you :)

1. THE WINNER CAN PUT THE LOGO ON THEIR BLOG.

2. LINK THE PERSON YOU RECEIVED THE AWARD FROM.

3. NOMINATE AT LEAST 5 OTHER BLOGS.

4. BEFORE LISTING THE NOMINEES GIVE A BRIEF REASON WHY YOU CHOSE THEM.

5. PUT THEIR LINK ON YOUR BLOGS

6. LEAVE A MESSAGE ON THEIR BLOGS

I am nominating the following people because I am consistently inspired by their blogs! This goes for Bridgett's too ... check her's out she just made the most adorable bat sour cream container!

Jami : http://westamphappy.blogspot.com/

Kristin: http://sunshinesmilesstamps.blogspot.com/

Deena: http://acreativeneed.wordpress.com/

Tabitha: http://tabithastamps.blogspot.com/

AnnMarie: http://didsomeonesaystamp.blogspot.com/

Oh, and check out this blog candy: http://angeldrummer.blogspot.com/

Happy Halloween and Birthday To Teagan :)

2008-10-30T13:46:00.003-05:00

My baby is going to be 5 on November 3rd! I can't believe it and might cry! This feels like a big one. He decided that he wanted to have an UPSIDE DOWN party ... fun is that? The boy did get some of my creativity! The party is on Saturday and we will have about 25 people squeezing into the house for the fesitivites. It is going to be cozy and chaotic but tons of fun, too. We are serving upside down cupcakes, playing silent chairs, seek and hide and doing an upside down birthday globe craft. I think I am probably more excited than he is. And the icing on the bottom of the cupcake (hee hee) is that my Mom is flying in on Friday and neither of the kids know! They are going to be SO EXCITED!!

Here is a pic of this invite:

While I was sitting at the Craft Show, I decided that I could probably get a little crafting done so I worked on these super cute Halloween cards. I love these Little Monsters from Unity. I think their stamps are so cute. I have a few others I can't wait to play with :) I felt like it needed something else but I had limited supplies to work with there ... only what I brought with me. So, its a tiny bit plain but I just love Frank!

Thanks for looking! Happy Crafting :

Craft Show Withdrawal!!!

2008-10-29T15:07:00.005-05:00

My first craft show is over and done with it! It was lots of fun and I made some money. Not sure if it was "enough" to make the hours and hours and hours of work ahead of time worth it but I did have fun doing all the prep so maybe?! Hubby isn't so sure, but what's he know :) Just kidding! Below are some pictures from my practice set up the night before. My best sellers were the journals with beaded pens ($5) and the tic tac purses ($1). I pretty much sold one of almost everything else. This was a very small craft show (only the 2nd year) and got pretty slow towards the end. I was happy with my first outing, though. I will be posting the items that have not sold in my Etsy Store. I was contemplating another show at a local elementary school but I think with my sister's baby coming around that same date, I might be over committing myself. Still haven't decided for sure but I do need to make a decision very soon. Hmmmm?! Well, I have been working on some other stuff since the show ended but I will post those projects tomorrow :) Thanks for looking! I am going to try really hard to get back to posting almost every day. I have missed blogging and and blogging friends!

Albums and Placecards

2008-10-15T09:54:00.006-05:00

Here are a few more projects that I have been working on for the upcoming craft show. I have not spent as much time downstairs as I probably should be. I think I got a little intimidated by what I was doing and needed a break. Plus I think I am having wisdom teeth issues and have had migraines several times this past week. My new doctor gave me some meds though that help but getting them is annoying and discouraging! Okay, on to the pics, I have to apologize because my batteries are about to die in my camera so I was trying to get these really quickly and the lighting was not so great. Not the best pictures but hopefully you can see how cute the projects turned out.

First, two decorated linen albums. The top one is decorated with SU! Home Decor and Rub Ons, plus some fun brown fibers. I love this color blue and brown together. You may have noticed that in some of my other projects ... hee hee! And the bottom picture is of a light green linen album embellished with felt boy stuff and fun ribbon along the spiral. Even though I have a boy, its sometimes hard to do projects that are masculine. I know I am not the only one who struggles with this!! I thought this was a good boy project. It'd be perfect for camp or scouting pictures.

Oh, these pictures are so not good ... sorry!! The next two photos are of placecards that I plan to sell in bunches of 10. The top one is wrapped around a pumpkin shaped peppermint patty. And the bottom three are a little more traditional placecards -- just three different styles. The bottom three are all embossed to add a little more formality but that is hard to see in my awful picture! Trust me they look pretty elegant in real life :)

I will be working on some more stuff today ... Magical Reindeer Food and hopefully some cards. I am also doing some not so fun organizing, displaying, signage and packaging ... nothing worth taking pictures of, but I may blog a little about that later.

More Craft Show Stuff Shown By Vanna, I mean, Kammy!

2008-10-08T11:42:00.004-05:00

Kammy being "Vanna" to show off the gift boxes that I plan to sell at the craft show. I got a pack of 6 boxes at a SU! garage sale for a real bargain. I think they turned out really cute and who doesn't love a gift box you don't have to wrap yourself. Throw a little tissue paper and your gift in there and viola! A perfectly pretty little present!

Okay, so once Kammy got in the picture than Eliza and Teagan wanted to pose, too! So here are the other two kidlets. Peighton was at school but we were thinking about her :) Notice Teagan's "owl eyes" -- is that not the funniest thing you've seen!

And here they are alone so you can actually see them. The front and one to the right were covered with American Crafts paper (from Archivers) and embellished with ribbon and some a tag. I love the new curly tag punch from SU! The box on the left is covered with Bella Rose paper ... it is so cute and cheery!

And lastly, for today, is a little PMS (Pamper Me Silly) Kit. I have two of these to sell. They are small tin lunchboxes from Joann's and I used PMSabella on the outside. The poem on the back reads:

We all have "one of those days" from time to time.

When you are feeling sad, mad or irritable with no rhythm or rhyme!

Don't Despair!

Don't pull out your hair!

Turn to your P.M.S kit for a quick repair.

Inside you will find lots of goodies to make you feel divine!

So hopefully everything will be better in no time.

And I also found some good BLOG CANDY ... check out Susie's and Jenny's

Happy Craftin'!

I have emerged from the basement ...

2008-10-07T19:40:00.005-05:00

long enough to give you another sneak peek at my craft show items. My back is killing me, my kids were in their pjs all day and my house is not as neat and tidy as I'd like it to be. But I am making good progress on the craft show. I am just not sure how much I should be taking with me. So I guess I will just keep working until the day before. So ... drum roll, please ... here they are:

These glass ornaments are so easy to make and look so sweet. I just love this Snowman Nativity set from TAC.
These are lollipop Halloween treats made from a very old SU! set that I still think is adorable. I don't get tired of it since I use it only once a year.

I saw something similar to these on SCS and just thought they'd be a big hit at the craft fair. They are kid oriented thank you notes that they can fill in the blanks on. I made six different sets of five cards with matching stamped envelopes.

I have been so anxious to try this pinecone paper ornaments. I found the instructions last year and even bought the styrofoam balls ... but by the time I got around to them I was tired of holiday crafts so tucked them away in the cabinet. They were easy and so cute. I do need to invest in a thimble though ... ouch!

I also really wanted to try to to make these cute tic tac holders. I thought about selling "Cold Play" but this set came in handy for these so I will probably keep it. My kids are addicted to tic tacs right now so were super excited to see them used in this way. I was inspired to try to make them into little purses. Too cute ;)

Well, time to get the kids in bed and turn on the presidential debate ... and of course, continue to craft! What do you think of my stash so far? Thanks for looking!

Craft Show, October 25th

2008-10-06T09:34:00.003-05:00

I have committed myself to doing my first ever craft show at Messiah Lutheran Church in Weldon Springs on Saturday, October 25th from 9am - 3pm. I hope that if you are local you will come check me out. I am very nervous and have been working my fingers to the bone to get ready. I am still not even close, to be honest, but still have some time so am not in a full-fledged panic yet. I am including a picture of just a few of the things that I will have available for sale at the show. Other than getting ready for that, I have an order for birth announcements that need to be completed, Teagan's birthday invitations and our family Christmas cards! Things are a bit crazy, as I am sure they are for everyone. I know that I have been MIA from my blog since returning from vacation pretty much so just wanted to pop in. I hope to be able to begin posting some every day or so again. Thanks for your patience :) Any suggestions, advice, comments on doing crafts shows would be much appreciated.

Tagged ....

2008-09-22T09:36:00.004-05:00

I have been tagged by Bridgett so here goes:

The rules:

1.) Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2.) Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3.) Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4.) Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

The facts:

1.) I am the oldest of four kids
2.) I have a puppy named Rocky -- my third child
3.) I have lived in 5 different states and have moved 12 times in my life
4.) I have my own Virtual Assistant business and an Etsy Store
5.) I have not been crafting in almost a week! Ugh!
6.) My aunt made me a sock monkey when I was 6 months old and I still have it!
7.) My pride and joy is my husband, and our two children

I think everyone I know has been tagged so I am going to skip that part of it :) This was fun, though! Be sure to check out Bridgett's blog.

Instead of tagging someone else, why don't you leave me a comment and share a fun fact about you!

I really have been crafting ....

2008-09-16T20:52:00.005-05:00

Here are some things I have been working on:

An altered composition notebook using some of my new TAC stamps. I am going to have a few of these at a craft show I plan to do in October. I also made a matching beaded pen. I did these while I was on vacation and the pen is currently MIA, which is why its not shown. Hopefully I can find it!

I purchased some plain albums with the thought of embellishing them. I was so nervous, though, that it took some time for me to use them. They have been in my basement for months! I finally got brave and did a couple. The baby girl one was fun to do because I got to dig around and use some embellishments and paper that I was saving for God knows what ... I guess this :) Now, if I just knew someone having a girl soon. I think this will make its way to Etsy or the craft show, too.

On this linen album I wanted to try rub ons. I had read on SCS that they would work but, again, I was a little nervous. I think it turned out so cute. I am really pleased. I stamped the word FAMILY in stazon ink and it isn't as crisp an image as the rub ons, but I don't think it takes anything away from the album at all. I got these rub ons at an SU! garage sale so you may see more of these in the future.

And these cute little suckers I am SO EXCITED about :) They are coasters covered in last year's Halloween Designer Series paper, and embellished with binder clips to hold the pictures and stand the coaster up. Viola' the most adorable frame. I am in the process of making some of these for Christmas, too. The pictures is one of my favorites of Teagan right before he turned one. Does he not make the cutest monkey with a binkie you ever saw?? I am also using this as my entry into Shelli's SoShelli Creative Contest for October where her challenge was to create something for Halloween.
I hope to get some more stuff done soon. I have been trying to get caught up on cleaning and straightening after vacation so the basement has not been used much. I am itching to be creative, though, so maybe tomorrow.

Thanks for looking! G'night!

Back from Vacation

2008-09-14T16:49:00.004-05:00

Hello :) We got back from Gulf Shores, AL last night. I woke up this morning in my own bed in St. Louis and it has been raining and windy -- thanks to Ike. I am not complaining though, because, although, we were on the Gulf shore we got very little impact from Ike this past week. We had two days of very high surf (very cool and humbling to see) and two short but heavy rain showers. Otherwise, our vacation was wonderful. I did take my crafting stuff with me but its still packed. I will take pictures to post tonight.

Hope everyone survived Ike as well as we did. My prayers go out to the Houston and Galvaston residents who have been displaced. I hope you can return home soon.

Challenges Galore

2008-08-30T19:15:00.004-05:00

I have never really done challenges, but have been feeling inspired lately. I don't know if I am even getting these three in on time, but they were fun to do and maybe they will inspire you to try a challenge or two :)

Here is my entry for the MOJO50 challenge. Did I mention I am recently in love with Verve Visual? Well, in case you didn't get that memo, here is another card using the "cupcake affairs" set and the sentiment is from "artful elegance" and reads, "life is good" (that's kinda hard to see in this not so great picture ... sorry!).

Here is my entry for Shelli's "Celebrate" challenge. Shelli's blog is so fun and I have enjoyed seeing her creations, hearing about all the fun things she gets to do to help grow and promote SU!, as well as, just enjoying her family. She seems so down-to-Earth. I am very inspired by her success and creativity! If you haven't checked it out go now :) Even if you just love babies ... she has a beautiful new grandbaby.

And here is my entry for Beate's Inspiration Challenge. I love this designer series paper (SU! Rebecca) it has always been one of my faves! And when I saw the inspiration piece of this challenge, I knew this would work. I went to an SU! garage sale, a week or so ago, and this is one of the retired sets (Friendly Flowers) that I picked up. Not sure why I never got this out of the catalog. I really like it. I pierced the black mat around the edges but it didn't show up so well. I was trying to multitask and take pictures of my cards while I let my puppy out in the backyard. It was really too late in the day to get good sunlight, unfortunately!

Back to the craft room as soon as the kids are tucked in their beds for the night ... half hour and counting!

Verve Stamps and Soccer Practice

2008-08-30T09:02:00.007-05:00

Another busy week is over and I am so glad it's a holiday weekend. Tim's busy time is almost to an end although he left at 8am this morning and won't be back until midnight or 1am tonight! Tomorrow and Monday he will be home all day and night :) Then next Friday he took off and we will head to Gulf Shores, AL for our family vacation with all my sibs -- provided Gustav and Hanna cooperate some! So, the end is near and we will be a family of four again soon :)

It's been a bit challenging to find stamping time lately but I did get some stuff done this week. I ordered my first Verve Stamps and I am SO EXCITED! I got the Anni-VERVE-sary set so that gave me lots to play with! These could keep me busy and happy for a while. These are going up on my Etsy store (see sidebar for link) soon.

I am also working on some notecard sets for Etsy and a few craft shows I am considering this Fall. So, here is a peek at those:

They are embossed. Simple, but super cute, I think! I have a friend on bedrest and one set of these are for her. I figured it will be hard for her to get out to buy any cards she might need and she will have time to write some notes to friends. :)

Well, that's it for now. I hope to get some good crafting time in this evening since Tim is working late. Oh, and I was going to share one cute picture of Teagan playing soccer :) That started this week. It was so hot that day and half way through I had to bribe him with a Dilly Bar from DQ. ;) We will see how next week goes!

Happy Stampin'!

Star Student

2008-08-26T21:26:00.006-05:00

I have not been very crafty lately ... so busy around here. I hope to get some stuff done soon. I am itching to do the challenge on Shelli's blog and this week's MOJO50 challenge and Beate's inspiration challenge.

I volunteered in Kamryn's class today and she was the "star student" so here is her presentation that we worked on together. She was SO cute I could hardly stand it :) Her presentation went well and then she got to also do show & tell today and brought her very favorite doll "Pinkie". The class asked questions (which were hilarious, like "what color is she wearing" and "do her shoes come off") and Kam very proudly answered them all.

Well, goodnight! I hope to post some creations tomorrow :)

Unplug and Put Your Feet Up

2008-08-24T10:39:00.004-05:00

I have not been getting much crafting done this past week. My DH has been putting in super long hours and my energy level has been low. He was able to come home relatively early yesterday so we could hang out and have dinner together. I made him this card:

to let him know how much we appreciate all his hard work. The inside says 'Glad you can "unplug" and hang out with us' -- he seemed grateful. This one came together kind of slow. It needed something and Teagan was playing with a box right beside me. So, I tore off a piece and stuck it on there. Gave it a little texture. This isn't my favorite card but its okay. I also used my rubber craft scissors to snip off the back of the screw brads in the upper right hand corner and attached them with glue dots. That way I didn't have to worry about getting the back lined up and not peeking around that small corner punch.

And, my friend Jen is pregnant and due in October. I hadn't sent a card to congratulate her! Am I the only one obssessed with make cards and suck at sending them??? What is the deal with that??? Anyway, my prego sister just got craveabella and this was a great excuse to use this. This sketch was inspired by the 12 Days of Verve for their anni-VERVE-sary. I didn't get to participate but I printed them out and hope to play with more of them very soon.

So, I hope to be able to find time to be creative this week! Thanks for looking :)

Jaime's Back To School Blog Candy

2008-08-22T22:04:00.003-05:00

Check out Jaime's blog candy -- a cool clear alphabet stamp set from CTMH :)

Good Luck,

And the WINNER of my 2nd Blog Candy is ....

2008-08-18T19:25:00.005-05:00

WOW, that was hard! I don't know if I am going to make you all work for blog candy again ... it was probably harder on me than it was on you :) I had five great entries:

Lisa (not a blogger, so she hand delivered me her entry ... thank you!!)

It was a very hard decision but the blog candy this time around is going to DONNA! YEA! I will contact you to confirm your mailing address and get your candy out to you asap :) You can click on each name to see their entry. They are all very inspiring!

Thanks for playing :) I had some new friends join in and I really appreciate that. I wish I had something to send all of you. Please play again soon.

A Crafting We Will Go, A Crafting We Will Go ...

2008-08-18T08:16:00.007-05:00

Another song to get you started! I sing so much better on my blog than in real life :)

I had another good crafting weekend. My swap group met this weekend at my house to crop, craft, chat and eat peaches! We had a good time and I got some beautiful cards. Here is mine:

Some of the members of my swap group are also in a stamp club with me so I did a make-n-take for them. This was a last minute card but it turned out so cute :) I used a sketch from I{heart}2Stamp .

I did not do any scrapbooking at our crop. I was just not feeling inspired after all the work to bake, set up the house, clean, do the makeNtake, etc. But I had spent the previous night cutting out 13 stamp sets I just ordered from Bridgett, TAC Angel :) OUCH! I am used to cutting out Stampin' Up! stamps but it has been a long time since I had 13 at once to do. It took me hours and hours to do it. But here is my end result. I could get into this unmounted thing. Look what little space 13 stamps sets take up!!!

And I was able to make two projects with my new TAC stamps :) Teagan's first year of Tball season is about to end. We got his pictures at his last game. I got the "Your A Winner" set from TAC so I could do some cute scrapbook pages. His teammates all look like the guys from Spaceballs on the field with their gigantic batting helmets on. The first few games it resembled a gentle version of tackle football while about 10 little 4-5 year olds ran to get each ball hit. Its just too darn cute! There is ribbon along the side of the frame that has soccer, footballs and baseballs.

And I am sending this card to my Mom who lives in FL. I think these pink flamingos are so adorable! This is another TAC set. So, Mom, watch your mail. I am sending Teagan's tball pic and something else :)

And lastly, I figured out what to do with some of my $1 spot items from Target. Anyone who buys a catalog from us gets a cute little post-it note holder like these below :)

Now we are off to Target so I can check out their $1 spot and, most importantly, so Teagan can get Grave Digger, the monster truck, he has been obsessed with lately.

OH, I ALMOST FORGOT ABOUT BLOG CANDY! I will pick a winner after dinner tonight so you have all day to post your creations. I will post the winner tonight, too.

Happy Craftin' & Stampin'

In Color Comparison

2008-08-15T17:36:00.005-05:00

If you are interested in seeing how the new In Colors look next to some of our other SU! colors check out Dawn's Awesome Blog (the entire thing is wonderful). This is such a great idea. Wish I had thought of it myself. I did find it for us though ... might I get some points for that one? Hee hee!

By the way, for local folks, I have all the new In Colors if you want to see them live :)

crafting queen, she a crafting queen

2008-08-15T10:09:00.005-05:00

Okay, now that I have firmly planted that silly song into your head ... here's what I did all day yesterday. I promise that I did not neglect my children. I was on a roll and things were coming to me fast. None of these projects were particularly time consume and most of them were completed after the kids went to bed. I have the Olympics to thank for that. I have been staying up WAY later than normal 'cause I just have to watch. I love the Olympics! And last night's Women's Gymnastics All Around was so fun! Yea, USA! I don't get into the track and field stuff quite as much so I am guessing that my late nights won't last throughout the entire event. But in the meantime, let the crafting continue ....

1.) Top Left Corner: Another wine tote using the paper that I got from Archivers (American Crafts) -- LOVE IT!! These are so easy and so pretty afterwards, I wish I had gotten more from Michaels! I used a shipping tag covered it with the matching printed paper and use rub ons to jazz it up some.

2.) Top Middle: Got these cute popcorn containers from Target's dollar spot. I am pretty sure I bought a few, but my kids most have found them so I will be hunting high and low for some others. I think it turned out cute. I am contemplating doing some craft shows this fall and think if I fill this up with some microwave popcorn and maybe a gift card holder it could work.

3.) Top Right Corner: I found these jumbo binder clips on clearance at Office Max and had been wanting to try these cute little frame/note holders. It was a little tricky getting the chipboard flower attached. I have never seen a tutorial for these and wasn't sure what the back should look like. This will require a little more playing but I learned a lot doing this one. Plus, I adore this picture of my daughter from a couple years back :)

4.) Bottom Left (Two Cards): While searching through my craft area cabinet for my other popcorn containers, I found my stash of acetate. I have an entry for my blog candy (SEE BELOW -- THERE IS STILL TIME TO PARTICIPATE) that is an acetate card and was inspired to finally try one on my own. I did one at Archiver's make-n-take weekend last week but this was solo. I sold some bella images to someone from Etsy and so I had a few left overs. Winobella is my sisters -- but since I was stamping, already, I made a few for myself. I wanted to paper pierce her dress but realized she's NOT MINE! So, had to settle for coloring. I used some bling to make her dress shine. Not sure you can see that so well on my picture. I also thought beads might be fun on acetate, and I hardly ever use them, so dug them out to add a little sparkle to the Christmas card.

5.) Bottom Right: My wonderful hubby bought me some bulletin board squares for Christmas which I hung right away and then realized that I did not have an push pins!! Dah! So, I grabbed some of those on clearance at Office Max, too. Then I wanted something pretty to put them in. I have been saving my Laughing Cow containers for something ... and decided this was one of those "somethings"! Then it looked alittle plain. So, I had been perusing the resources page of SCS the other day and saw this paper bow that I had always wanted to try and decided that was exactly what this cute little box needed. And it was super easy! I used scraps for this entire project. I love that.

I am going to post all these projects on SCS in my gallery (there is a link on my right sidebar) if you want to see them individually. That might not happen until late tonight during the Olympics again, though.

As I mentioned above, I am seriously considering a craft show or two this fall/winter. Any suggestions would be great. Pricing, items to sell, tips, warnings ... share your knowledge, I'd appreciate it greatly!

BLOG CANDY -- Drawing EXTENDED until Monday, August 18th, 2008

2008-08-14T07:51:00.007-05:00

Here is my second blog candy give away! In addition to what you see here, I will include some stamped bella images and some ribbon.

Blog candy challenge: Make a card or some sort of paper craft using this clinque lipstick case as your inspiration. I am including mine.

I am including my card inspired from this case. I have gotten three fabulous entries so far. Let's see if we can double that!! Thanks, in advance, for playing. Don't forget to link my blog to yours and let me know where I can find your entry.

I will recruit the help of some little friends to help decide which is the "best" -- I can tell already this is going to be tough! I love all them so far.

2008-08-13T06:57:00.005-05:00

Thanks, Bridgett! Look what I got :) How nice!

The rules of the award are:

1. THE WINNER CAN PUT THE LOGO ON HER BLOG.
2. LINK THE PERSON YOU RECEIVED YOUR AWARD FROM.
(I did, just click the word "blog" above.)
3. NOMINATE AT LEAST 7 OTHER BLOGS.
4. PUT LINKS OF THOSE ON YOUR BLOGS.
5. LEAVE A MESSAGE ON THE BLOGS OF THE GIRLS YOU HAVE NOMINATED.

DRUM ROLLLLLLLLLLL, PLEASE!
I nominate:

Susie

Heather

Jane

Deena

Jaime

Sarah

Michelle

TADA! What a nice way to start one's day! A special note from a blogging friend and the ability to tell others that you appreciate them. Hopefully my day continues to be so sunny :)

Challenges

2008-08-12T08:15:00.008-05:00

Here are my "entries" into the challenges that I mentioned yesterday! The first is for my own clinque lipstick case challenge. The ribbon gave me fits and I am not sure I like that part of it but I wanted to give it some texture and liked the thought of some stripes on this one. I don't think I have ever used rub-ons on a card ... don't ask me why!?? And I like them, except, that the thanks a bunch on the bottom is crooked! Darn it! Anyway, I also played with the SU! new In Colors and think they are so fun!

This next card is my Black -N-White attempt for Susie's wedding challenge. I got this super cool paper at Archivers at their free make-n-take weekend which ended up costing me $90!! But this card helps make that worth it. I think it turned out quite pretty. I also am in love with the pretties kit. My next adventure with that is to dye the flowers :) Check out Susie's blog here: http://www.whiteribboncards.blogspot.com/

And lastly, Bridgett challenged us to make a birthday card for a little boy. Her son is turning 1 soon! I just got this stamp at Hobby Lobby when they had their stamps 50% off. I hardly ever buy single stamps from retail stores like that but with their sale and a gift card from my hubby for my birthday I thought I'd splurge! I absolutely adore this printed paper and this is the last of it :( I got it at my LSS that closed its doors forever last month. I am not sure I like the scallops behind the monkey layer but I wanted to do something special to mimick the scallop circles on the paper. Hmm ... gotta think about that decision?! Check out Bridgett's blog here: http://www.hoosierstamper.blogspot.com/

Thanks to the Men's Olympic Team who stunned everyone by battling for the silver metal and going on to win the bronze against many, many odds, I got all these cards done -- I was up way too late and am dragging this morning!! Go USA! :) I gotta say, though, that I was so excited for the Chinese Men's Team -- what an amazing win!

Later,

Want to know what some of the SBS18 girls are up to??

2008-08-11T10:42:00.006-05:00

Check out these:

BLOG CANDY to celebrate the 1 year anniversary of Jane's fabulous blog: http://www.carrollscreations.blogspot.com/

BABY BOY B-DAY CARD CHALLENGE: Bridgett's little one is turning 1 soon check out her challenge at http://www.hoosierstamper.blogspot.com/

BLACK N WHITE CHALLENGE: Susie is getting married and wants to see what we can come up with in this elegant color combo! Check it out here: http://www.whiteribboncards.blogspot.com/
visit all my SBS sisters -- links on my sidebar :)

blog candy you gotta work for ....

2008-08-11T07:54:00.009-05:00

Its been a whole week since I posted and since I've been gone, I decided to offer some blog candy to my loyal readers who stuck around and checked back in with me :) But I am going to make you work for it this time. First, the blog candy is an array of tags, brads, clear stamps, rub-ons and I am also going to include some bella images (not shown) and maybe some ribbon, too! The final package will be a surprise to the winner, but this will give you a taste! I will choose the winner on Friday, August 15th, 2008.

Now, here is the catch -- you have a make a card, scrapbook page or any other paper related project and use this fabulous clinque case as your inspiration. I was putting on lipstick yesterday (which I rarely do) and the fun colors on this case jumped out at me. I will post my own creation later today. So, leave me a comment here with a link to your card/project and I will pick a winner. Sorry my pics are a little blurry but I think you will still get the jist of the color combo. You could use the colors or the stripes as your inspiration!

Then, I also thought it would be fun to post some pictures of birthday cards that I received from friends and family! I loved them all -- thank you!! Hope they give your creativity a boost, too!

Oh, and of course, the SU! Fall/Winter Idea Book & Catalog is LIVE TODAY @ NOON! YEA! We have still not gotten our shipment -- cross your fingers for today!! But I will post the link to the catalog here. Christy doesn't love it (yet) but I really, really do :) Can't wait to hear what you all think.

Happy creating!

Shelli's Blog

2008-08-04T13:26:00.004-05:00

The co-founder of Stampin' Up! Unveiled lots of fun and exciting new ventures and products and ideas at Convention this year. One of them is this exciting blog she has started! Check it out :) I am sure it will be very inspiring! I will put this on my blog roll on the sidebar so if you don't want to bookmark it yourself you will be able to find it easily!

http://www.soshelli.com/

Enjoy :)

Stamps for Sale! AND an Original Sizzix Die Cutting Machine!

2008-08-04T09:10:00.004-05:00

A Little Love (2004) $8.00
All About Autumn (2002) $10.00
Along the Same Lines (hostess set, level 2 - 2005) $12.00
Announcements (2000) $14.00
Around the Block (2005) $8.00
Bitty Blossoms (BG - 2004) $8.00
Dots & Checks (BG - 2004) $8.00
Down to Business (2006) $12.00
Frame Greetings (2004) $14.00
Good Times (2003) $14.00
Holiday Tag Team (2004) $14.00
Lexicon of Love (2005) $8.00
Mini Messages (2004) $8.00
Monogram "I" (2006) $10.00
Shapes and Shadows (2004) $15.00
What Could Be Better (hostess set, level 3 - 2004) $15.00
Wonderful Weaves (2005) $7.00

Original Sizzix Die Cutter $30 - SOLD

All items are gently used but in good to excellent condition. I love my stamps and take very good care of them. If you need pictures of any of them, let me know.

The Sizzix is also used but it is in great working order and condition. I will also include a couple gently used cutter plates. $1 per stamp set to cover shipping expenses but if you purchase more than one I will discount. The Sizzix is *heavy* so I am not sure what shipping will be on that but the buyer will be responsible for that. If you are interested in it I will figure out shipping expenses prior to finalizing the sale. Locally, I would be happy to meet somewhere to deliver.

I prefer PayPal. Otherwise, a money order will do :)

Thanks,

check out this blog candy ...

2008-07-31T18:36:00.003-05:00

http://jacqui47.blogspot.com/

you're gonna want to win :) you have until august 2nd to jump in!

best wishes,

A Gazillion Cards for Gugger

2008-07-30T17:44:00.008-05:00

Gugger, my Grandmother, recently sent me a not so cute birthday card and apologized for not having pretty cards to send -- you see, she is 86 years old and has vision problems so doesn't drive anymore. So, I am sure this was not a hint, or anything, but I have decided to make her a stash of pretty cards that she can send when she needs one. She won't have to wait for someone to take her to the store and then try to figure out with her limited vision which is appropriate. And its been raining all the live long day so I, still in my pjs at almost 6pm, have been in my basement parked at my craft table the entire day! HEAVEN!!

So here are the cards I have made:

My Gugger lives in Florida and although never goes to the beach, I thought this would be nice for her to give out.

All the above are birthday cards. She has a daughter and two sons, 13 grandchildren, and 18 great grandchildren plus a ton of friends :)

She also loves to cook and is famous for her home baked bread and apple pies. So these two are "just because" cards and I left them blank inside.

And this last card is my submission for Heather's "Good-bye Challenge" -- check her blog out here (its great!!): http://hksginger.blogspot.com/

Okay, I need to give my kidlets some attention and get started on dinner for my husband, who is on his way home now. I will post again tomorrow or very soon!

Happy Creating!

Okay, here's another chance to win a free card :)

2008-07-30T12:17:00.005-05:00

Check out this awesome blog

http://hogwildaboutstamping.blogspot.com/

... she is giving away a free card and we have until Noon on Thursday, July 31st! I want to win but I will let you in on the secret, too :) Hey, maybe if you win you could send it to me!!!!

ps ... she gives a free card away EVERY wednesday ... bookmark her :)

Win a Free Card!! -- Opps, a day late! Sorry!

2008-07-30T09:24:00.005-05:00

Yea, its rainy today in STL so I am off in my PJs to craft all day :) woo hoo! I will post some of my creations tonight or tomorrow morning so be sure to check back!

Meanwhile, I am a member of the Etsy Greeting Team to help promote my Etsy Store (http://www.creationsbyseastar.etsy.com/) and to help others who handcraft cards and stationary be successful, too! So, on our blog today you can leave a comment and potentially win a free birthday card that is super cute.

You can click on the EtsyGreeting banner on my sidebar or follow the link here (and favorite it so you can visit often):

http://www.etsygreetings.blogspot.com/

Thanks for your support ... GO HANDMADE!

PS -- Opps, I posted this a day late but visiting will give you a taste of the other stores on Etsy and we do offer free prizes frequently so please check back! I feel bad ... maybe I will offer some BLOG CANDY to make it up to you all ... keep watching ;)

Success!

2008-07-27T08:27:00.006-05:00

I have mastered the wine tote! I wasn't feeling very optimistic after my first try to alter this thingy but after some risky and destructive moves I have come up with something that I love :) There is only one thing I would do differently on the next one but I am not going to tell you what that is :) Hee hee! This is for a housewarming present for the friend I mentioned in my last post.

I also finished her card. I found this sketch in an old SU! Idea Book which was kind of fun. I think it was actually a scrapbook page but it just jumped out at me. I also love the Bali Breeze paper so use that a lot ... and I have a lot of little scraps of that I can't part with so those come in handy for the photo corners punch. I have also made a point of using my hodgepodge kits. I am just waiting for some new finishes to come out in the next catalog so better make room! I am also trying to use old In Colors that I was hoarding. Again, I think I am going to be in love with the new ones so need to make some more room. So I used Marigold Morning on her card and paired that with Close to Cocoa - I like this color combo a lot :)

I also had picked up some stuff at the dollar bin my last trip to Joann's that I have been meaning to do something with. So, here is a coupon booklet that I thought turned out pretty cute. I totally screwed up the first attempt so need to figure out how to fix that one. This was was stamped with some foam stamps from Archivers using Stazon ink. The purse and cell phone were block foam stamps from Michael's and used up some spare ribbon. If I can "fix" the boo boo on the other one I have I think I might make it a photo booklet for scrapbooking.

I am scrapbooking with friends today and also have some album type projects to work on for Pixie Posie - the photography company of my friend, Jennifer! She takes the most adorable candid shots of kids that you will ever see ... check her out here: Pixie Posie

Catch you all later :) Have a blessed Sunday and be creative!

Happy Birthday to Me :)

2008-07-24T15:29:00.008-05:00

Yep, its my birthday today and I am admitting it! I have come a long way in the year. Last year's birthday had me in tears. Today I am thankful for another year and decided to grin and bear it! My brother and I have decided that we are 20 somethings this year so that made it even easier ;)

I have treated myself this week to some quality stamp time down in my craft room. Here is what I have come up with:

A friend has just recently purchased a house and here is part of a housewarming gift. I also have a wine tote that I'd like to alter but am having some challenges with that. I will keep you posted on my progress on that. I am not so optimistic, unfortunately.

I also made a few cards for my ETSY store (stop by ... give me feedback, buy something!!):

I also finished my swap card ... and maybe I should keep it a secret, but we are swapping on Sunday so I am going to go ahead and post a *version* of it.

Thanks for looking! We are going out to dinner and to the Cardinals game with OUT kids tonight so I won't be stamping or crafting again until Friday evening, probably! Hope you have a wonderful crafty day!

Kids, Kids, Kids ....

2008-07-21T10:40:00.007-05:00

Oh, my gosh, I am on serious KID OVERLOAD today!!!! I have my neices so four running around terrorizing my poor puppy is just TOO MUCH TODAY! They all look so innocent, huh??

Anyway ... :( .... it is so hot here, also (probaby making me even more crabby!) so I have been trying to spend some time in my cool basement which is where my craft area is located. My sister and stampin' pal has been in a funk lately so I made her this coffee can full of some stuff to help get her in the mood and reenergized! I wasn't sure what this would look like altered but in the end of I loved it. And she was excited to get it, too! My hubby drinks A LOT of coffee so I have a few of these to alter. I don't drink coffee, myself, but love the smell so I am hoping that the faint yummy smell of coffee might also motivate the receipent! hee hee!

Because of the craziness which is my life today I am going to keep this short! Hope you are having a calm and peaceful day ... if you are a praying kind of person, please say one for me -- I need some patience today!

School Starts!

2008-07-18T09:24:00.010-05:00

Hello! We are in a year round school district so yesterday, July 17th, was my kids' first day of school. And my brother's birthday, HAPPY 23rd (hee hee, if he WERE 23, I'd only be 28 which works fine for me) KEVIN!

Teagan and Kammy were both so excited, and because neither one of them have the tiniest bit of shyness in them, it was an easy day. I didn't even cry ... which makes me feel a little guilty, because I bawled my eyes out on Teagan's first day (and second, too). I promise, I love Kamryn just as much but I am very much looking forward to two mornings a week to myself! Here are a couple cute pictures of them getting ready for school.

Although, I didn't get to stamp while they were at school, I did get to go to the grocery store by myself. I spent the most of the morning at the school so it was a rushed trip and very crowded so I can't say I enjoyed myself but its done. And that also means I can get back on Weight Watchers 100% -- the last two weekends at weddings and traveling and then coming back to Old Mother Hubbard's empty cupboards has been rough!! Today is a new day :)

I have been stamping and being creative a lot in the evenings, though! Here are some samples of what I have been up to:

The top cards are made with the new punch I got 50% off at For All Seasons and a hostess set I didn't think I liked. Check out A Little Bit of Happiness in the current Idea Book. I got it in my last order because I already own all the other level 1 hostess sets -- I didn't think I'd love it but as soon as I saw it these cards popped into my head. I think I might bundle them for a gift.

My friend Cheryl is about to have her second baby and called me yesterday with some labor related questions because she just wasn't sure if she was IN labor or not. So, to be prepared I made this card for her. She isn't sure if its a boy or girl so I tried to make it neutral.

And Tim's Grandfather is turning 90 next week. He's never met our children so we wanted to send him some pictures along with a birthday greeting. This card opens up like a gate and has two side pockets where you can tuck pictures or notes.

And my Godson, Daniel's birthday is also in July. I am still working on getting his present together but the card is made. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE sock monkeys and have had one of my own since I was 6 months old. He went everywhere with me, including college, grad school, and to the hospital when both my kids were born! So, this is an ode to "Honkey". He was a little time consuming because I paper peiced a lot of him but in the end it was well worth the effort. I can see my using this set A LOT. My friends and family might sick of seeing him ;)

I have also done some scrapbook organizing -- have finally titled and journaled on some of the pages that I have recently done and got them in the appropriate albums. YEA! I was up until 11:15pm -- very late for me -- doing that.

Be Creative Today!

Blog Candy From White Ribbon Cards :)

2008-07-15T14:16:00.003-05:00

One of the fabulous SBS18 gals has a birthday coming up and she is offering blog candy to celebrate :) Check out her out here:

http://www.whiteribboncards.blogspot.com/

Happy Birthday Susie :)

Emerging Colors Technique

2008-07-15T07:32:00.005-05:00

My Mom's birthday was on July 8th and I was able to hand deliver her card, a bit late ... but seeing her in person is rare so this was especially nice :) I love this card! It is so super cute and the technique is easy but would look so different and beautiful depending on the paper and ink that you chose. Try it! There is a link to the SCS description of the technique in my previous post, but I will tell you how I did it.

I chose Bali Breeze DS paper which I love for its bright colors and bold design. I cut it to fit my square card -- just in a square mood, plus, thought I'd be able to include a larger piece of the DS paper on this shaped card. I used Ginormous Flowers set (which I just got) and stamped a few of the flowers using my versamark pad. I embossed those with crystal clear embossing powder. Then I took my brayer and chose a color from the DS paper -- Tempting Turquoise. I brayered all over the DS paper with that. As you can tell some of the colors changed, some were covered up and some still popped through. Then I took a paper towel and rubbed off the ink from the embossed flowers which really made them POP out so pretty! Voila! I embellished with some turquoise brads and added a few of the Build-A-Brads punched with another piece of paper from that same pack. I love those brads and hope they stay in the next catalog!

Remember the Retired Accessories list comes out in a couple days -- July 15th. If you are on the Stampin' Sisters email list you will get it that way, otherwise, check the SU! website for a peek at it. The accessories tend to go quickly so if you see something you like grab your nearest demo and place your order!!

I received a catalog -- my first ever -- for The Angel Company! I love it :) Thanks, Bridgett! I have a long wish list and shared it with my sister and of course she has one, too. So, maybe we will get an order together so we can try these super cute stamps for ourselves.

And lastly, I was able to preorder the new IN COLORS and a stamp set. I hope to play with this some today/tonight. We still have swim lessons and tonight is our second (but really first cause of the thunderstorm) night of T-Ball. Hopefully after a long day and four kids I will have energy to stamp :) Here is a peak at the in colors:

Pink Pirouette - a very light, soft pink

Pacific Point - think denim colored

Riding Hood Red - deep red, similar to cranberry crisp, i think

Kiwi Kiss - not as bright green as a real kiwi, sort of reminds me of river rock, actually

Baja Breeze - pretty light blue with a tinge of gray

Tangerine Tango - a fun color unlike any we have seen - orangy like a tangerine, go figure!

Catch ya later! Happy Stampin'!

Christmas In July

2008-07-09T08:06:00.009-05:00

Morning! It has been a super busy week for us. The kids are in swim lessons which has been lots of fun but pretty much blows my mornings. How can a half hour lesson blow an entire morning?? Not sure, but it has everyday this week! And we have had something every evening this week, too. I guess this is a preview of times to come as my kidlets get older. Teagan started Tball last night. We only got about 20-30 minutes in before we had a wicked storm. He was disappointed but DQ afterwards helped cheer him up. Gotta love a Blizzard in a thunderstorm!

Well, I did get to make two cards yesterday but I can only show one. The other is for my Mom's birthday and since I know she checks out my blog I can't post it yet. It is really cool, though, so early next week, I will post it. I tried a new and super easy technique that I know you will love. Its called Emerging Colors and I used Designer Series paper. Check out the tutorial here:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/ee/index.php/resources/tutorials/emerging_color/

My second card evolved into a Chistmas card -- the first of 2008. It started out as a potential wedding card and then I kept playing with it and playing with it. Below is what it turned out to be :) I think I fixed the problem of not being able to click and see the pictures larger thanks to some blogging friends on SCS. Try them out and forgive my lack of photography skills -- some are blurry especially large!

And I got together with some friends this weekend to scrapbook. I got a few pages "almost" done -- you know me ... need to title and journal :) Here is a peek at those! I found a cute little punch in Mike's clearance for $1.50 -- there is a close up of that ... it looks like a little paper buckle! Adorable :) On the "dressing up with Nana" page I used my 1" circle punch all the way around the paper to make it look like a stamp. I thought that turned out cute, too! The pages of Kammy's 3rd birthday are quite crowded so I may end up starting those all over again. I like the colors but it might be too much. I don't love it. Feel free to make suggestions -- I like the feedback, really! The Cutie Pie page turned out simple and cute, I thought. I used more of my felt pieces. I love those but don't want to overwhelm my books with them. I might add some of those to the next blog candy I give out. I have so many I need to share! Can you even believe the baby in the Cutie Pie page is the same in the 3rd birthday party page?? She looks so different and BIG :( In a few weeks, I will be doing her first day of preschool page!!! I might cry! Boo Hoo!

I hope to post again before we leave for my cousin's wedding in Pittsburgh this weekend. Happy creating in your inspiring corner of the world :)

Happy 4th of July

2008-07-04T10:55:00.005-05:00

I am off to a party but had gotten some stuff done last night so thought I'd post really quickly :) I hope everyone has a fun and safe Independence Day celebration! Here are some gifts for a friend who will remain nameless unless she checks out my blog! She is going through a rough patch so I am sending her a worry box (top pictures) and a gratitude journal (bottom two pictures).

And my brother's birthday is this month so I finished his card -- he is a big beer drinker ;) so this card is perfect for him!!

And some cards that will go up in my Etsy store soon :

Hope you find inspiration in fireworks displays or simply in the red, white & blue of the flag :)

Happy Stampin'!

New Additions to Etsy :)

2008-07-02T09:20:00.003-05:00

Morning! Hope you are feeling creative today. I got to work last night on some fun cards that I have put in my Etsy store. Please check out my store if you are in need of a gift or card for a friend or family member. Remember, I also do custom orders :) The link to my store is under the pretty SEASTAR in the upper left hand corner of my blog!

Above are some of the cards that I put together last night. Our family has a ton of birthdays in July so I am in that mode. I hope to sneak down to my craft area sometime today.

Also, if you are in the STL area (or St. Charles) there is a great scrapbooking store closing its doors in just a couple weeks ... SO SAD! For All Seasons is closing! They are reopening as a home decor store on Main Street which I am sure will be great, but no scrapbooking supplies after their current locale shuts its doors. So, check them out ... I am betting there will be good prices on great stuff! And also plan to check out Scrappin' Annie's on Hwy 94 in Weldon Spring. I haven't been there myself yet but she is one of the last locally owned scrapbooking stores and we have to support her so she can stay open!

I am getting together with friends on Sunday to scrapbook .. yea!! I will post some of my pages next week.

Hope everyone has a fabulous July 4th weekend. I am not 100% sure I will get to post again before then :)

Happy Stampin'!

back in the swing of things ...

2008-07-01T12:12:00.004-05:00

Well ,I have gotten myself somewhat organized after my weekend jaunt :p) Here are two cards I whipped out using the Bellas that I had colored a few weeks ago. That is kind of a nice stash to have -- it made making these a cinch!

The top card was for my sister for watching my kidlets and furbaby! And the bottom is for the winner of the blog candy, Carla :) I hope to get some more stuff done tonight so check back tomorrow!!

Happy Stampin'!

And we have a winner ....

2008-06-30T08:57:00.006-05:00

Congratulations to CPullum -- she won the BLOG Candy this time :) Teagan picked his favorite number -- 14 and thats who won this time around. I have contacted her and will get her goodies out to her ASAP! Thank you everyone for playing. I am fast approaching 600 -- and I originally gave candy to get to the 500 mark! WOW!

We arrived back from our weekend wedding in Cinci yesterday. We had a wonderful time. We met some new friends and had fun reconnecting with some old ones :) The couple who got married will be moving back to STL at the end of the summer so we were even more excited about the whole weekend. I had enough time to do some scrapbooking and visit a few scrap/stamp stores in the area, too! It was wonderful to sleep in and spread my stuff out without having to share or stop every five minutes. I did miss my kidlets terribly and unfortunately my puppy was not as well behaved as we had hoped, so I am sure my sister missed US terribly, too :( Anyway, we all survived and life is quickly back to our normal chaos!

I am including some of my scrapbook pages that I completed. A couple still need some finishing touches but they are *mostly* done and I am pleased with them!

this is a two page spread of Teagan's first day of school. The pictures flip up so there are actually 8 pictures on these two pages ... I still need to title and journal!

This one is of Kammy in the bath tub! I need to title and journal, again. Behind each of the two pictures on the left hand side are tags to write on.

This one is of Kamryn talking on my cell phone. I need to journal on this one and that will be under the little flap with the yellow and pink polka ribbon. A lot of the embellishments are felt. I bought these from a LSS that is closing and is discounting everything. I was anxious to use them and love how it turned out.

and this last one is going to say "FALL FUN" but I haven't attached the "fall" letters yet. I also need to finish up journal-ing .. can you tell I am not so good at getting that part done? I love the colors on this one.

Hope you find a little inspiration today -- it is a beautiful day here and hope you are having the same wherever you may be!

Happy Stampin' & Scrappin'

Off to Cincinnati for a KID FREE weekend!!

2008-06-26T06:58:00.008-05:00

Before I leave though, I have FINALLY finished my cousin's thank you notes. What a gratifying feeling to have completed 100 cards. I just need to pack them up and send them off now :) Yea! I think they look beautiful and were definitely a learning experience. I am new at this and each project is going to present new challenges. I am better prepared now to handle large projects than I was a month ago!

Also, I was able to do something for myself. I finished my sketch book :) Here it is! I have been adding to it daily and might need volume 2 very soon. I think it is so fun to find a card layout that really appeals to you, jot it down and see it transformed into your very own unique creation! You should try it. I found these STL Art Museum sketch books at a garage sale for $.25 a piece. I have three of them but you could even grab one of those $1 journals at Michaels and make it yours.

And I made a card for the wedding we are going to. Their colors are blue and brown (according to the save the date card we recieved). Those are very popular colors -- same as my cousin's wedding in a few weeks! I might need to put away the Bashful Blue and Chocolate Chip for a while after this!! I feel like I might have been able to add something to it but I couldn't figure it out so I left it. The rings are (wet) embossed and the chocolate chip frame was run through the sizzix with a cuttlebug embossing folder. Around the rings it says "to have and to hold" -- this is an older stamp set that I hardly ever use. And right now I am forgetting the name of it???

We are leaving around noon today. I have packed up my scrapbooking stuff and hope to get lots done. Tim is in the wedding so I will have some much needed "ALONE" time ... and I could NOT be more excited :) Kids and Pup are going to my sisters! Woo hoo!! I'll have a computer but will probably not get a chance to post again until Monday.

Happy Stampin'!

Still Working!

2008-06-23T07:05:00.007-05:00

Well I am still not quite finished with my cousin's thank you notes, but I am making some good progress! If you are wondering what 100 cards looks like take a peek ...

My goal is to be done by Wednesday! I will let you know if I am being too optimistic. Hmmm? The other thing I have been working on while I take Rocky outside a gazillion times a day, to avoid accidents in the house, is coloring Bellas :) I have been considering Copics but really am having a hard time justifying the HUGE expense that will be. My SU! markers are getting kinda worn and so coloring with them is difficult. So, I used a 50% coupon at Michael's and got the 36 art & craft marker set from Martha's line. So far I like them. They are "blendable" and I am trying to get the hang of coloring and shading with them before I purchase anything more expensive. So, once I get these thank you notes done I am going to whip out some fun Bellas.

My nephews are here from Florida -- Yea! And we made them journals the other day ... here is a look at Alex's. We had a little snafu with the paper on the front so it bubbled a little more than I would have liked but he seems okay with it. I also went garage sale-ing on Saturday and found some STL Art Museum sketch books that I am going to alter. I have already been using one to make card sketches in :) Once I make it pretty I will post that, too.

Personally, I have been doing WW online for a the last couple months, although the last five weeks have been truly serious and following the plan. I have lost 10lbs :) I am so excited. And things are going really well. I have been keeping it quiet because I have not always been able to stick to the plan. But I feel like I have a good solid base. I have had success before on WW right after grad school. That was years ago and I wanted to wear a bikini for once in my life. Now, I just want to feel good -- physically and psychologically. I might never look like a Bella but maybe I can feel as cute as one if I can get to my goal weight which would include NO bikini but a perfect BMI. So, I very nervously will start to share some of my progress on my blog. Oh ... feeling a little sick about this decision. But I think its time. So here is my WW tip for the day -- there are 2 actually ...

1.) Lipton Iced Tea To Go (sugar free and 0 cals) are a great way to get in lots of "water" -- and if anyone out there is addicted to iced tea like I am this is heavenly :)

2.) 100 calorie packs are a great snack if you eat just one. If you eat 12 that's 1200 calories ... don't ask me how this tip came to be ... hee hee! Just EAT ONE.

Happy Stampin' and Here's To Better Health (a toast with iced tea is almost as good as a beer, right??)!

JUNE Is ...

2008-06-21T08:23:00.004-05:00

I have been working on my cousin's thank you notes and doing 100+ cards takes a while. So I have no pictures to post today :( Although, I do have a slight injury from hole punching through CS and ribbon 200 times!!

My DH is in Orlando, FL for a conference though so I hope to get lots of crafting done in the evenings after my kidlets go to bed. We are also expecting some rain at some point and I always craft when it rains!! Hopefully I will have something to post later today or first thing tomorrow.

Anyway, I didn't want to completely disappear. So, here are some excuses to make some cards or express yourself creatively:

June is ....

National Candy Month -- what's more sweet than getting a card with a treat? wonder when national poet's day is ... hee hee!

National Iced Tea Month (YEA!! -- My favorite!!) -- send an invite to a friend to meet for tea

International Mens Month -- send your favorite man a card

National Rose Month -- use a rose image on your next card

Effective Communication Month -- writing is an extremely effective way to communicate why not put it in a pretty card made by YOU?

Dairy Month -- there are lots of cute cow stamps out there ... hmmmm!

Children's Awareness Month -- send your favorite child a card, or donate some cards to a local children's hospital or organization

National GLBT Month -- use your brayer to make a beautiful rainbow background and send a card to a friend

Fireworks Safety Month -- Send out your July 4th invites with a safety tip included

The week of June 28 - July 4 is: Fish Are Friends, Not Food Week -- make a cute card using fishy friends

And in case you need some more ideas:

June 21st is America's Kids Day

June 22nd is Stupid Guy Thing Day

June 23rd is Let It Go Day

June 24th is Fairy Day

June 26th is Hand Shake Day

June 27th is National HIV Testing Day

June 18th is Great American Backyard Campout Day

and my favorite this month is June 30th -- Please Take MY Children to Work Day!! If you are interested in mine, just give me a call ;)

Hope you are all getting creative! I have added some fun sites to my sidebar, too.

Happy Stampin'

BLOG CANDY -- winner will be chosen Mon. June 23rd

2008-06-16T08:10:00.006-05:00

I am offering blog candy ... I am really close to the 500 visitor mark and I'd love it if you helped me get there :) All you have to do is leave me a comment. Not sure what to say? Here are some ideas:

1.) Give me feedback on a project on my blog (but put your comment after this post, please)!

2.) Visit my Esty Shop and offer some constructive criticism.

3.) Give me feedback on my blog in general.

4.) Tell me how cute my new puppy is!

5.) Offer a suggestion of something you'd like to see me post.

6.) Tell me a joke.

7.) Tell me something fun about yourself.

8.) Share a crafty tip ... I am a sucker for technique tips and organizational ones, too!

9.) Share your favorite blog to visit.

10.) Explain why you should be the "winner" of the BLOG CANDY!

See, easy as that! Thanks for looking today ... hope you will be back again soon :) If you subscribe to my blog (thanks!!!) you may have to type in the URL (http://www.seastarcreations.blogspot.com/) to leave a comment. Just click on the little envelope below. I will randomly choose from those who do so on MONDAY, JUNE 23rd.

Thanks,

Retired List 2008 is HERE!

2008-06-15T08:15:00.003-05:00

To see the much anticipated SU! Retired List ... click on the "stamp on the beach" on the top right sidebar! Happy Shopping!

The list is good through August 10th! For easier shopping, Christy and I suggest either highlighting in your catalog all the retiring sets, or stamping a small image next to each. This will make shopping and decisions a cinch!

The accessories list comes out July 21st. Keep an eye on my blog for more information.

All retired sets and accessories are available only while supplies last. So if you know you want something it is best not to wait. Accessories tend to go the fastest. To place an order just drop us an email or call. We will likely put in one order in June, two in July and one in August. If you'd like to host a party to qualify for some free retired sets let us know!

GO SHOP!

Finally some crafty stuff ....

2008-06-14T20:36:00.005-05:00

Okay, so I figured I had waited long enough to make Father's Day cards. My poor Dad won't get his until next week since I have to mail it. Sorry, Dad!! Above are the cards I made and I really like them, too! I used the scalloped circle cards from SU! and two of my many fellas! Both my Dad and my husband love to golf so they just got difference color schemes. That is Golfafella. One is from me to my Dad and the other is from my kids to my DH. The last one is to my DH from me. I used Wallstreetafella.

I made the mistake of looking at the Bella website the other day and now have another long list of "must-haves" -- but I must wait as we are still recovering from vacation.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a great Father's Day :) We are off to the baseball game. Hope the puppy is okay :( He will probably love the alone time ... my kids are so excited he is here all the time he might be feeling a little too loved.

Rocky Is In The House

2008-06-14T08:40:00.005-05:00

I have gone completely and totally mad and gotten a puppy! This is "Rolling Rock" aka "Rocky" -- Teagan helped name him and has quickly decided that he is HIS puppy. I will let him believe that for a while, I guess. He is actually a VERY good puppy. He is 13 weeks old and a full bred Shih Tzu. He is completely housebroken and crate trained. We are close to "puppy heaven" -- he does nip when he gets excited (I've told the kids that his teeth get in the way while he kisses when he is super excited) and appears to have the potential to be a chewer. We are trying to nip that in the bud ... pun intended, of course :)

Anyway, he has kept me busy even before he arrived so this week has been all about pups. I really, really need to get crafting though! So, no new crafty pictures yet but very soon ... I promise!!

Also, I will post a BLOG CANDY challenge and pictures of what you'll get very soon ... I have topped the 400 hits number and I think its time!!

Don't forget my Etsy store -- link on the left hand side bar! Also, if you are local and need anything, of course, just call to avoid having to pay shipping through Etsy. I love doing special orders!!

Happy Stampin'!

Open for Business!

2008-06-09T20:40:00.006-05:00

Here is THE announcement that I have been eluding to for a couple weeks now ... I have opened an ESTY.com store and I hope you will check me out! CLICK HERE:

I added a link on the top left sidebar that will take you directly there. If you haven't visited http://www.etsy.com/ before take a look around at all the cool stuff offered on there. It is all handmade!! Pretty cool, huh? I am slowly uploading stuff so bookmark me and check back frequently. I will continue to post pictures here, although I don't have any to post tonight. I spent all day on getting myself set up and learning the ropes.

I just purchased the awesome banner and avatar from http://www.morganalexadesigns.etsy.com/ -- check her out if you are in need of anything. She also has great jewelry, too :) She was super fast and couldn't have been nicer!

Thanks to everyone who has offered they support, advice and assistance on my blog and my etsy store ... I appreciate it more than I could ever say! Hugs to you all!

Sisterhood Of The Blogging Stampers

2008-06-03T10:50:00.004-05:00

Hello from HOT and SUNNY Florida ~

The kids and I arrived safely and they did great on the flight. It was a super early morning (way before our normal "wakey time" -- 4am!!) but both woke up in good spirits and besides Teagan asking a million and one times "are we there yet?" all went smoothly.

We have already packed alot into just a few days. We are heading out to our first "official" beach day in about an hour. We have stopped and stuck our piggies in the Bay and the Gulf but this will be a big trip with buckets, shovels and snacks in tow. We have done the pool three times, visited my sister and her family twice and been to my brothers, too! I am burnt but the kids are looking very cute and tan.

I brought along some bellas and fellas to color but haven't actually gotten to them yet. If I am able I should be able to crank out quite a few cards when I return. Otherwise, I am just enjoying the inspiration :) I also have another scrapbooking sketch to get working on when I return. Look for that soon, too.

I did want to point out that I joined a fabulous group of women as the 18th Group of the Sisterhood of the Blogging Stampers. I listed their blogs on the righthand sidebar and hope you will check them out. You will be amazed at their creativity and are sure to get lots of inspiration, too. You can also click on the title of this post for more information about the Sisterhood :)

Oh, and my cousin chose the monogrammed "T" thank you card. Yea! That means I defintely did not just use her as an excuse to buy Together Forever ... I actually NEEDED it ;)

Happy Stampin'
Kimberly

I need a vacation ....

2008-05-28T21:40:00.004-05:00

I need a vacation from getting ready from vacation. I have a thousand little things to do and what am I doing?? Sitting watching some dumb show!! So, I thought I'd blog.

First, here are some pictures of the samples I prepared for my cousin's wedding. She asked me to do Thank You notes. I was so thrilled to be asked and I love her colors. I have to make 100 so although I really wanted to use Au Chocolate -- gosh, I wish I had stocked up on that paper! I love it but I would never have enough to do that many cards. So, I had to get a little creative and avoid printed paper. My cousin is not a fussy girl so I kept them pretty simple. I haven't heard back from her yet so I am not sure which one (if any) she likes. What do you think??

And I am getting so nervous (and super excited) about my puppy! I have no idea how to train a dog! According to the breeder, he is "paper trained" and out on the floor 24/7. That sounds good ... but is it? Who knows! So, I am looking on line to find some training classes that I can afford.

And I am also getting so nervous (and excited) about going to FL in a couple days. My kidlets can hardly stand the wait but I am afraid they are going to be disruptive on the plane! We went out and got fun stuff to do on the plane and I have been coaching them about staying in our seats and playing quietly. They are going to pack their own backpacks (with lots of supervision, of course) and Teagan is already listing off everything he owns and thinks that it is going in the backpack!

And I am feeling emotional about Teagan's last day of school tomorrow. And Kamryn starting school -- that's not until July but this is all a big reminder! Which then brings me back to the puppy ... I am getting a puppy because my baby just turned 3!!

UUUGGGGHHHH! Sorry this was not much about craftiness today. If you got to the end ... thanks for "listening"

A Whole Week Later ...

2008-05-27T10:26:00.011-05:00

Okay, I know I disappeared for a while ... but I was busy with crafty stuff. And some family stuff ... here's whats up!

1.) I am getting ready to unveil a pretty exciting thing ... but I am going to leave you in suspense until I return from vacation. I am leaving on Friday with my kidlets to visit my Mom and Dad in FL. We are all so excited. I am flying and am a little nervous to do that with two kids by myself, but I have been saying lots of prayers!! Teagan is in his last week of school and I am a little in shock that his first year of preschool has already ended. Anyway, this endeavor has me crafting like mad. Here are a few samples:

2.) I signed up for an online scrapbooking sketch class that starts in June. Check this blog out (it's awesome if you scrapbook): http://www.valeriesalmon.typepad.com./ There is information about her Got Sketch Online class there. She has wonderful sketches that I believe come out weekly. I have not been scrapbooking much lately and want to get back to it. OOHHH, I am nervous! I have never posted any of my scrapbooking anywhere -- this is a first!! But, I thought this might be a great way to encourage myself to get on it! Look at me -- I am growing! So here is a sketch challenge that I worked on last night:

3.) And of course, Father's Day is coming up. I am hoping to get some cards in Nooks N Crannies so am starting to get a stash of those started. Here are two cute ones using my Fellas! 4.) And personal stuff ... we are getting a puppy! I know, I know ... I am crazy. Well, "we" have decided that we are not having any more children, and by "we" I mean Tim has "convinced" (kinda) me that this is the best idea. So, I am settling for a furbaby, instead! We will get him the week after we return from FL. He is a 12 week old (maybe closer to 14 weeks by the time we get him) shih-tzu. They have been calling him "Billy" but I am not so much a fan of people names for dogs so we will change it. I think I have it narrowed down to four: Stout, General Tzu, Bonsai, or Smidgen. What do you think?? Here is a picture of my cute little bundle:

5.) A very nice member of SCS also helped me format my blog a few weeks ago and I am sending her some goodies as a thank you. This is also kind of practice for giving away BLOG CANDY at some point in the near future. Here is what I made/purchased for her:

Plus I had my neices over the weekend which is lots of fun! So, that coupled with leaving for FL in a few days has kept me away from the computer. I am glad to be able to catch you up! I will try to post at least once more before I leave. And, I may be able to jump on my Mom's computer while I am there.

Thanks for looking (and reading)!

Tags, Tags and more Tags

2008-05-20T11:04:00.005-05:00

Teagan's class is putting together a basket of "gift wrapping" supplies to auction off to raise money for a local charity. Here are some tags that I made to be included. Thanks for looking ... more crafting should be happening tonight, I hope :)

Thanks U's

2008-05-19T08:15:00.006-05:00

Morning ~

As promised here are a few cards from our last Stamp Camp. We had a mystery hostess party and used only hostess sets for our cards. Here are the two I designed:

Congrats, Diane, on winning the mystery hostess drawing :) And don't forget about the chip board special! Call or email if you want more details.

And, I am also working on some thank you notes for a friend's son. Here are two of the samples they didn't choose. I will post the other a little later. Thanks for looking!

I found some cute chipboard coasters at the Target $1 spot that my mind has been spinning about ... so I am going to try to get crafty with those sometime in the next few days. Stay tuned!

Have a stampin' good day,

Happy Birthday and Inspiration Butterfly

2008-05-18T17:03:00.008-05:00

Happy Sunday ~

Kamryn's birthday was yesterday -- I can't believe my baby is three years old!!! So I have not gotten a lot of crafting done this weekend. I do have some thank you cards to finish up and hopefully deliver tomorrow so tonight I plan to hang out in my craft area for a while. It is a beautiful day in STL today (and the Cards won!) but we have been inside all day -- I know "bad mother" but my throat is killing me! Not sure if its allergies or not but it seems to bother me more the day after I have been outside -- I really don't want to go to the doctor's office so hopefully staying in today will help clear it up.

Kammy at her birthday breakfast.

Kammy at the Butterfly House.

Kammy and Teagan on the carrousel.

Blowing out the candles on her butterfly cake.

The Butterfly House is a great source of inspiration, too! Here are a few pictures to get your creative juices flowing ....

Try a color combo of so saffron, rose red and glorious green OR

yo yo yellow, pink passion and gable green OR

try a color combo of chocolate chip and certainly celery OR Brilliant Blue, Basic Black and River Rock. Hmmmm .... could be interesting :)

More crafty pictures coming soon!

Teacher Gifts

2008-05-13T08:12:00.003-05:00

Hi, I am volunteering at Teagan's school this morning so I have only a few minutes. I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day! Mine was very nice ... I got the BIG BITE :) Yea!! And some other very thoughtful and fun stuff, too! Definitely got a little spoiled this year. Anyway, it is yet another rainy day in STL so I will be crafting again this afternoon and evening, but I have been working on some teacher gifts so thought I'd post a picture really quick. I got this little wooden signs at my LSS which, sadly enough, is preparing to close for good in a few months!! Everything is 25% so I have started to stock up on some alterables. I am making three of these for Teagan's teachers.

Have a crafty day ... I will post again later, I hope!

Oh, I also learned that UN-DO is going away forever!! It contains a chemical that states (CA being the first) are unable to ship and accept. So, stock up now!!!!

And, lastly, Joann's has a 40% coupon on the www.printable-coupon.blogspot.com site (on left sidebar). Check it out ... its good for online purchases, too :)

Michaels Finds

2008-05-07T09:44:00.009-05:00

Morning ~

Check out the coupon link (in my favorite sites to visit) for a 25% off your entire order at Michaels. I used one yesterday and stocked up on some inexpensive stuff to alter.

Check out this cute frame I worked on last night. I am trying to build up a stash of stuff to open a store on Etsy.com! I am excited about that prospect but am nervous at the same time. Do you ever know when your stuff is "good enough" to be sold?? And then pricing just totally stresses me out. I don't want to undercut myself but it feels weird to charge "a lot" and what is a lot?? Plus my very responsible, more business-minded husband is bombarding me with questions (probably a good thing but stressful nevertheless!) that I just can't quite answer yet. So, what do I do when I am feeling stressed and overwhelmed? I craft!

And I organize. So, in addition to the frame last night I also worked on some tins for my markers. I did not order my markers all in one purchase so never got the marker box -- which I think would stress me out even more cause they all have their own slot to go in ... I am organized but not *that* organized! So, they were all thrown into a shoebox sized bin, but then last winter I decided I needed to purchase a whole bunch of sharpie markers to make ornaments with so those got dumped in there, too. Well, that just made it almost impossible to find anything! So, these are containers from "creme wafer rolls" that you can get from Aldi's. A lot of my craft area is decorated using the Recollections DS paper. They are the perfect size and I put a chipboard letter on each so I know where to find the s=soft subtles, e=earth elements, etc. I have one for neutrals (n, of course!) and blender pens which I have accumulated a lot of lately. Someday I am going to make In Color markers!

And I also felt like I needed something to put scrap ribbon into ... so I found this little glass jar. I put some RubOns (SAB12008) on them and Viola! a pretty storage solution. I had this glass vase that I was going to use to make a snowman a couple winters ago and decided to dump the flowers I also found on sale at Michael's into that! And Viola! a second pretty storage solution! I am also thinking about making little candy jars for Teagan's teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week -- I'd just put some RubOns on a jar like this and fill it with candy. What do you think? I am struggling with the fact that school ends at the end of the month and I will get/make them something then, too. Am I giving too much??

Alright, off to check on the kids and craft some more :)

Happy May!

2008-05-05T09:19:00.007-05:00

Hello Friends ~

Did you know that May is:

Get Caught Reading Month -- why not stamp someone a bookmark?

Gifts From the Garden Month -- stamp a tiny terracotta pot and give someone a seed packet card

National Hamburger Month -- host a BBQ and send out cute burger themed invites

National Military Appreciation Month -- send a soldier a thank you card

National Older Americans Month -- send a card or gift pack to your favorite Grandma or Grandpa or drop off a stack of "thinking of you" cards to a retirement community or senior center near you

National Smile Month -- getting mail always makes me smile!

Teen Self Esteem Month -- pack an altered paint can with teen related stuff to make your teen feel as special as s/he is!

National Family Month -- have a family picture taken and alter a frame to hang in your home or give as a gift!

You should also know:

May 6th is Teacher Day, No Diet Day and Nurses Day. And this is National Fairy Godmother Week. No, I didn't make any of these up. Check out http://www.brownielocks.com/ for all this fun information! Everyday you can find an excuse to stamp, alter or just be crafty!

Teagan's student teacher is leaving this week after having spent the majority of the semester in his classroom. So I made her this giant paperclip and a box of notecards to thank her. I used the Bali Breeze Designer Series Paper which is so colorful and fun! I also used the Very Punny SAB2007 set to make the cards. Check out my gallery on SCS for pictures of those.

And, my darling little princess, Kamryn is turning 3 on the 17th so here is a peek at her birthday invites. We are doing a butterfly theme with a trip to the Butterfly House :) This card has an interesting layout -- which is the result of a big OPPS on my part, but I ended up loving its uniqueness! The large pocket holds all the party information details. The two tags in the front smaller pocket are "tickets" to enter the Butterfly House and to ride the carousel at the park. My kids 3rd birthday parties tend to be small (??) and so it will just be our family and my sister's family. We will host a BBQ at our house afterwards. We are going to visit my parents in FL at the end of the month and might do a second party for her there with my other sisters' family, my brother's family!

Off to check on the kidlets ... they are very quiet right now and that's never a good sign!!

PS ... check out this site too ... http://www.printable-coupons.blogspot.com/ for a printable 40% coupon for Michael's good through May 10th. This site is listed on my "favorite sites to visit" section along with some other good ones: SU! color combo, the brownielocks site, and versalog (which is good if you need a poem or sentiment for a card) .

Mystery Hostess Party

2008-05-02T10:23:00.007-05:00

Hi! No new pictures to post yet, but we have an upcoming Stamp Camp that I wanted to get the word out about. And I am going to point out a few new features I have figured out how to do on my blog ... so keep reading :)

Mark Your Calendar:

Mystery Hostess Pary, May 10th, 2008

Make this an early Mother's Day present to yourself by attending. We will have a hostess set extravaganza and use only those sets to make 4 beautiful cards. If you place an order, at this event totally $25 or more, you will be entered into a drawing to be the mystery hostess **. If chosen, you will be eligible for at least one level 1 hostess set and $15 in free merchandise. The event is $10 and we ask that you RSVP by Monday, May 5th, 2008.

** If you are unable to attend the event but want to be included in the Mystery Hostess drawing, you will eligible if you submit an order of $35.00 or more. We must have money and your order by the day of the Stamp Camp. Remember that we are now able to take credit card payments.

Okay, now on to BLOG FEATURES :) I figured out how to link myself to the SU! catalogs. So now you can see both the full Spring & Summer Collection 2008 Idea Book and the Occasions Mini 2008. YEA! Especially since we didn't get Occasions Mini out to you in a timely manner ... ahem ... at all!

And you may notice my hits counter ... I am getting excited about my number rising :) I may even offer some BLOG CANDY when I hit a milestone number. Keep an eye out!!

Happy Stampin'! For those of you in STL ... rainy days are the best for stamping!

Gramps

2008-04-29T16:48:00.007-05:00

Hi! Check out this super cute baby sign that I made for my sister! I am feeling a little obsessed about "altering" things ... I am saving iced tea canisters, laughing cow wedge boxes, pringles cans and really anything else I think I can get my hands on. I guess its my way of trying to save the Earth from overflowing landfills ... how very green of me, huh?? I am not entirely sure what I will do with all this stuff but if a project just screams for an empty chinese take out container ... I've got it!! I also think this obsession is an ode to my late Grandfather, Red, who kept EVERYTHING in case he might need it someday :) I personally don't know anyone who would need 1200 kool-aid scoops or thousands of twist ties, but I do know that I now relate more to that feeling of panic when something that could be useful is headed to the trash can. So, I dedicate my stash of random stuff to my beloved Grandpa!

Oh, and one last thing ... please consider leaving me a comment (just click on the comment button at the bottom of the post you'd like to comment on) so I know I am not alone. I have gotten several nice emails from friends in my personal account, so thank you much for those. But I'd also like to know if my rambles are reaching anyone else out there :) THANKS!

Mmmm, doesn't chinese food sound good for dinner??

Kimberly

Gifts Galore - Rub Ons and More!

2008-04-28T16:32:00.007-05:00

Hello :) I have begun doing some research about selling my stuff on http://www.etsy.com/ so watch for more information coming soon.

In addition to cards, I'd also like to start selling some more home decor kind of stuff. Here are a few examples. These were so easy to make and I think turned out so pretty! SU! has just started to sell rub-ons and here are a couple of examples of how you might use them. I found this frame on sale at Walmart. The candles and taper holders came from Bed, Bath and Beyond 75% off! Rub Ons can be used on lots of different items ... but remember that they are not washable ... so if you use them on plates or cups you'll really only be able to lightly brush them off -- NO WATER! They are also great on cards and in scrapbooks. I hope to use them that way in the next couple of days.

I am also posting a few other home decor items to give you a taste of what I have already done.

1.)There is a name frame for my neice, Alaina. That was a First Communion gift.

2.) A gift pack for my nephew, Daniel's birthday last year turned out really cute. He likes to find treasures and "write books" so I included a journal, lunchbox tin, bookmark, cd tin scrapbook and a name frame for his room, too.

3.) I also designed a name for Kamryn's room using wooden letters and printed paper from my LSS (local scrapbooking store)

4.) The "E" was given to my neice Emily for her birthday last year. Got the big "E" from Archivers and found super cute matching paper and tags there, too. This was lots of fun to make.

5.) I have also made toothfairy boxes for a couple of my neices and nephews (the fairy and the frog prince). These were made from zip drive boxes I got free from the doctor's office I used to work at. They are about the size of an Altoid box.

If you have any questions about Rub-Ons let me know. The options with them are limitless! I have a few other ideas floating around in my head for home decor/gift items so as I finish them I will post!

Thanks for looking,

Kimberly

Come Get Punchy With Us

2008-04-24T16:02:00.007-05:00

Okay, I am posting a whole bunch of cards that I have been working on. The first two pictures above are of a sympathy card that will go on sale at Nooks and Crannies. Buckle cards are so easy and look really nice, I think. I am not usually a big fan of Blush Blossom but paired with Close to Cocoa, I thought it looked really nice! Maybe all that paper won't go to waste, afterall. I try to make sympathy cards simple but elegant. Petal Prints stamp set is perfect for that purpose.

The second two pictures are birthday cards. One is going to Nooks and Crannies and the other to my sister, Kari :) Hopefully she won't see it here first!! I got the layout from the most fabulous blog that I have been visiting often ... http://www.poeticartistry.blogspot.com/ -- she does a Monday morning sketch (and you can download all of them in one document). She is very talented and I think you should go check it out (after you read all this, of course!)

The scalloped circle with the "Y" on it is one from the stamp camp coming up this Saturday -- Come Get Punchy With Us! I used my corner rounder to make this large scalloped circle! Isn't that fanastic!! It will fit nicely in a square envelope so no problem mailing it. The "Y" on the outside stands for "you" which is the definition (from Define Your Life set) on the inside. Its chipboard and SU! is having a chipboard promotion beginning May 1st so our guests can try that out, too. The printed paper is Le Jardin.

The little colorful Gable Green card is my swap card for this month. Our challenge was to use vellum, so I immediately knew I wanted to emboss it. I used my cuttlebug embossing folder to do the little bee and then, of course, because its finally spring AND bees love flowers I finally got to use The World Over (hostess set) which I think is so cute but hardly ever use.

And lastly, the pretty buckle card is the second sneak peek at the cards for the Stamp Camp. I just got the Together Forever stamp set to make my cousin's wedding thank you notes. I loved it in the catalog but didn't really have a reason to buy it until she asked me to do those for her. The flowers are just so pretty :) And since I have a few weddings to go to this summer I am sure I will use this card and this set more often. I have not gotten into the In Colors as much this year as I did last year but I decided to dig into that stash of paper and used: Blue Bayou, Soft Sky and River Rock with Purely Pomogranate ink, too.

Alright, hope you find some inspiration!

Teacher Gifts

2008-04-16T09:11:00.005-05:00

Morning :) It is beautiful today here in St. Louis and I will be heading outside to get these kidlets some fresh air but before I do that I thought I'd post and get you thinking! The end of the school year is coming up fast so here are a couple ideas for teacher gifts. I made these notecards for Tim to use at work (per his request, if you can believe that!) and also the thank you notes. He wanted something simple (aka, masculine) and I hadn't made many "no-layer" cards so this was a great opportunity. Notecards, Thank You Notes and Journals are all great teacher gifts! Let me know if you need any!

Enjoy the weather!

Kimberly

Nooks and Crannies

2008-04-11T11:01:00.007-05:00

Good Afternoon ~

I have been given a wonderful opportunity to put some of my cards in a friend's store -- Nooks and Crannies! Now, if you haven't been to Nooks and Crannies it is a beautiful little antique store on 2nd Street in St. Charles. I believe that part of St. Charles is called the French District and it is full of cute antique stores and little resturants! Nooks and Crannies has beautiful furniture, glassware, and just about anything else home related. And now some of the SeaStar Creations, too! I will be putting in a few Mother's Day cards, Thank you cards, Sympathy cards and Birthday cards. Hope you can stop by the store soon! Here is a sneak peek at a few of the cards you can find there! Check SCS for more information about these cards.

Also, Stampin' Sisters (Christy and I) are hosting a Stamp Camp called "Come Get Punchy With Us" where we will have four cards for you to make using various SU! punches. The cost is $10 and the camp will be held at my house on Saturday, April 26th from 10am-1pm. New and seasoned stampers will enjoy this one -- feel free to bring a friend! RSVP by Monday, April 21st to stampinsisters@hotmail.com.

Kimberly

Mother's Day Special

2008-04-07T08:28:00.008-05:00

Good Morning! Here is a peek at the last of the Stationary Boxes I have made for my friend. This one is for her Mom and is made using Au Chocolat Designer Series Paper (love, love that pack) and Natural Beauty stamp set. I bought a Martha Stewart monogram set of acrylic stamps for the letter this time. It works out really nicely to use acrylic stamps for the monogram since you can see exactly where they are going to be placed. I used Fancy Frames and Frames with a Flourish stamp sets to highlight the monogram on almost all of them. Definitely needed the Stamp-a-ma-jig for this set!!

I have decided after much delibration that $12 for this set will be a Mother's Day special price. After April 30th, I will have to raise the price to $18.50 ($2 per card, $.25 per envelope and $5.00 for the box). If you add in a beaded pen I will sell them for an even $20.00 The boxes are very time consuming and because each card is an original design those are taking a while to make too! Each set is taking me close to 4 hours to complete!!

The biggest challenge about starting SeaStar Creations was setting prices for my projects. It was harder than you can probably imagine. I have also not been in a Hallmark Store for years! I did do some research ... really ... but think I might be underpricing some stuff. I feel terrible raising prices but hope everyone will understand that making each project unique for your friend or loved one is important to me. BUT I need to be able to make sure I can replenish my stash of supplies and make it worthwhile financially, too! Hope you will forgive me. This selling adventure is definitely a learning process! If I find I can whip out a certain project and that it doesn't use too many supplies, I will adjust prices downward accordingly, too!

Anyway ... hope you enjoy seeing these cards and the box as much as I enjoyed making them! They will be delivered today :) If you'd like to order anything please feel free to email me at stampinsisters@hotmail.com! I'd love to do something special for your loved ones, too!

~ Kimberly

2nd Stationary Box

2008-04-04T13:00:00.003-05:00

Here are the cards that will neatly tuck into the Le Jardin stationary box (below). Enjoy :)

Camera has been located ....

2008-04-03T16:12:00.002-05:00

Still Alive and Crafting ...

2008-04-03T10:46:00.003-05:00

Good Morning! I can't believe I haven't been on here to post anything for a very long time! How very bad of me! Well, I have actually been quite busy being creative and am dying to share my projects with you. BUT my husband got tickets to the opening (take 2) STL Cardinals game and took my camera with him. He didn't take any pictures there (I must admit I would have enjoyed seeing Rick Ankiel) BUT I still don't have my camera back yet!! So, I will hopefully track him and it down tonight to take some pictures.

I have been working on some stationary sets for Mother's Day gifts that a friend ordered and am LOVING them. They are quite time consuming but are turning out to be just beautiful! I hope she will love them (and her sisters and mom who will receive them, too).

We are also doing some house projects which have resulted in more craft storage space for me ... yea!! We tore down bookshelves flanking our fireplace which I have hated since the first day I walked into this house. But as it turns out, I love the top part in my craft area for it has really added a ton of space for my supplies!

So, that and my Virtual Assistant endeavors have been keeping me busy. I hope to post more often in the coming weeks. Here is a link to a blog I just visited via Splitcoast and it is quite impressive! I have not gotten brave enough to post a tutorial -- not sure I ever will be courageous enough -- but I will share with you what I find in my many online crafting expeditions!

http://zindorf.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/

Oh, and don't miss out on the 50% off coupon at Michael's this week! I suggest you visit the one on Zumbehl or in the Valley rather than the one on Hghwy K ... they aren't so generous if you happen to have forgotten your coupon! The others will let you sign their little paper and reap the rewards!

Happy Stampin! Stay dry!

Happy Easter and Spring!!

2008-03-20T11:08:00.004-05:00

Well, it is finally spring here in St. Louis. What a terrible winter we had. Even I was a little sick of the snow and for those of you who know me well, I LOVE snow. And Easter is this weekend ... yea!! Hope you have a Blessed Easter.

The virtual assistant side of my business venture is starting to take off which is great. But that has taken me away from my craft area a little. I did get Easter cards out yesterday. I am attaching a picture of that. I am currently wild about Wild Wasabi and am loving the SU! textured paper. I am also attaching the three cards I designed for our last Stamp Camp which featured all Sell-A-Bration (SAB) sets. We had a good turn out and it was lots of fun. Plus, I have an order for some stationary sets for Mother's Day and had picked out the most adorable stationary box template that I was just itching to try but had no time. Last night I finally got to make it! It was a little time consuming but I LOVE IT!! The Friendship Bloom SAB set is so cute!

Hope you are being creative :) Don't eat too much chocolate this weekend!

Rolling, Rolling, Rolling ....

2008-03-12T21:43:00.005-05:00

Well, the orders have begun to roll in ... YEA! and I have had NO time to go down to my craft area. It is finally nice here (no snow and we might have hit 70 degrees today) and I can't justify putting my kidlets in the basement all day. It is suppose to rain on Friday. I don't often hope for that, but I am this week. I am going to try to get down there some tomorrow during the day, too. We will see. Once I get down there I will be on a marathon crafting kick! In the meantime, I have been doing some research and looking for inspiration everywhere ... even my own pj bottoms have got my mind whirling with ideas. I have a few orders for some stationary sets and I found the most gorgeous booklet template that I am so excited to try. Things are rolling and I really couldn't be happier. Just feeling a tad overwhelmed. I will figure out how to balance all this, though, I am not worried. Off to DREAM about being crafty!

Above is last year's Easter card if you are starting to think about yours. Again, I've not done mine yet but I know what I'm going to do when I can squeeze it in. (This card was inspired by wendyberkley on SCS)

50 Uploads!!

2008-03-06T18:46:00.003-06:00

I have just reached a SCS milestone and posted my 50th picture to my gallery! Yea! I have lots more to do but this is a start and will give anyone interested in SeaStar Creations a glimpse of some of what I have done. I got my first couple orders this past week and it was SO MUCH FUN to create for someone else. Of course, all the cards I make are for someone else but this was a new and exciting challenge to try to really cater to someone else's taste and needs. It is a scary process and I am still a little nervous about charging for my stuff but hopefully these will be the first of many orders and I will feel more comfortable as I go along. I am including pictures of a couple of the projects that I worked on for friends and others will appear on SCS as I get a few minutes here and there to upload. Off to be creative ....

Busy, Busy, Busy!!

2008-03-05T17:24:00.002-06:00

I have been busy working on some orders for SeaStar Creations and am so EXCITED! Thank you, thank you to those who have begun to place orders. I hope you enjoy the things I am making even half as much as I have enjoyed doing them for you! I will post some of the pictures later this evening. I have a fun journal that is drying as we speak that I think turned out super cute!

Remember ... STAMP SETS ARE STILL FOR SALE ... check them out below :)

Be back later tonight ....

Kimberly

STAMPS FOR SALE!!

2008-02-25T12:42:00.011-06:00

After much debating, I have gone through my stamp sets and found about 30 that I think I can live without. If anyone is interested I am including a list of the sets below. If you need pictures, please let me know and I'd be happy to send any to you. Prices are negotiable and I may be interested in a trade. If getting the stamp set to you requires mailing I will probably need to add shipping costs to the price listed.

I will have any that haven't sold available at the next Stampin' Sisters event on March 8th event .... Sell-A-Bration Stamp-A-Stack.

Happy Stampin'!

Kimberly

A Little Love (2004) $8.00

All About Autumn (2002) $10.00

Along the Same Lines (hostess set, level 2 - 2005) $12.00

Announcements (2000) $14.00

Around the Block (2005) $8.00

Beyond the Basics (2001) $5.00 -- SOLD!

Bitty Blossoms (BG - 2004) $8.00

Curvy Verses (2004) $10.00 -- SOLD!

Dots & Checks (BG - 2004) $8.00

Down to Business (2006) $12.00

Festive Fall (hostess, level 1 - 2001) $8.00 -- SOLD!

Festive Four (2004) $5.00 -- SOLD!

Frame Greetings (2004) $14.00

Good Times (2003) $14.00

Hearts and Clovers (2003) $7.00 -- SOLD!

Holiday Fun Frame (2002) $10.00 -- SOLD!

Holiday Tag Team (2004) $14.00

Itty Bitty Borders (2002) $5.00 -- SOLD!

Just My Type (2003) $10.00 -- SOLD!

Lexicon of Love (2005) $8.00

Made From Scratch (hostess, level 1 - 2005) $8.00 -- SOLD!

Mini Messages (2004) $8.00

Monogram "I" (2006) $10.00

Petite Patterns (1999) $5.00 -- SOLD!

Shapes and Shadows (2004) $15.00

Smorgasborders (2004) $8.00 -- SOLD!

Tiny Talk (2004) $8.00 -- SOLD!

What Could Be Better (hostess set, level 3 - 2004) $15.00

Wonderful Weaves (2005) $7.00

Word Play (2004) $10.00 -- SOLD!

Snow Day

2008-02-21T10:36:00.005-06:00

Hello! Well we have yet another snow day here in icy St. Louis! And I haven't posted in a week ... I can't believe it has been that long. I have been busy reorganizing my craft area and cleaning up from all the Valentine's projects. I also sent out my first batch of promotion letters for SeaStar Creations. Fingers crossed!

So, if you have gotten a letter and decided to visit my blog ... WELCOME! Please leave a comment or two if you are so moved! Just click on the "comment" button under this post (or whichever one you want to comment on). I hope you will visit frequently and be inspired to get your creative juices flowing. And if you don't feel like you can be creative -- call me and I will be creative for you :) HEE HEE!

Our MOMS group got cancelled today but, in preparation ,I had spruced up some votives for each Mom participating this session. I used the Just Delightful Simply Scrappin' Kit. I think they are much improved over just a plain votive cup. I loved the organic feel of the ones we got last session ... small pebbles were placed in the bottom of the cup but these small holders didn't allow room for that. Hopefully these will help the Moms as they find ways and places to relax and be stressfree!

Okay, enough chit chat for now ... its not like you have all day to read my stream of consciousness, right?? Go be creative :) Check back later, though!

Happy Stampin'