SBC - Sketch #421

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas! Here is my layout for Scrapbook Challenges sketch #421. All of the papers used are from Stampin' Up! The title and the road embellishments were free png files I found online.

Merry Christmas!

Here is this year's Christmas card. The idea came from Pinterest (of course). Credit goes to Paula Reid, a fellow SU demonstrator. The Wondrous Wreath stamp set and coordinating dies are from SU.

SBC - Sketch #422

Here is my layout for Scrapbook Challenges sketch #422. The background paper is from Stampin' Up! and the embellishments are from various sources.

Christmas Card Preview

For the last decade or so I have been making my own Christmas Cards using supplies from Stampin' Up! Over the years, some of them have been very elaborate and I've often found myself asking, "What on earth was I thinking?" For the last few years I have been getting my card ideas from Pinterest and they've been much more practical and have not required extra postage. So, here is a preview of this year's card.

Tim Holtz - 12 Tags of 2014 (Dec)

Here is the final tag for Tim's 12 Tags of 2014. The deer was a free printable that I inked in gold and then embossed in clear embossing powder with touches of classy copper on the edges. The red ribbon was off of a gift and the green yarn is leftover from one of my mother's knitting projects. The gold button is from SU and the words are from Tim Holtz. All inks and papers are from SU.

SBC - Sketch #420

Happy Saturday! My niece won her 4th/5th grade spelling bee and will be moving on to the County wide competition in January. I used sketch #420 from Scrapbook Challenges.

SBC - Sketch #418

Here is a quick layout that I did for Scrapbook Challenges sketch #418. These are our two adopted lab mix rescue dogs...and no, they're not related but looking very serious. The wordart cluster is a freebie that I got from Meagan's Creations.

SBC - Sketch #416

Here is my layout for sketch #416 from Scrapbook Challenges. This is a picture of my brother and his family taken in mid-October 2014.

Photo Contest 2014

Every year the Daily Press in Victorville, CA runs a photo contest for amateur photographers. The theme of this year's contest was Spring, Summer, Winter and Fall. This year two of my photos received an honorable mention. Can you guess which two were selected?

OWH - Sketch #242

Here is this week's card for Operation Write Home's sketch #242. The butterfly is from SU's "Wonderful Wings" set (circa 2001). I embossed it with Classy Copper embossing powder and cut the image into 3/4" strips.

Tim Holtz - 12 Tags of 2014 (Nov)

Here is this month's tag for Tim's November challenge. The leaf stamp is from Stampin' Up's "Autumn Splendor" set. Since I did not have a coordinating leaf die, I cut the leaf out with an exacto knife.

Owl Punch - Card Swap

For this month's card swap I used the SU owl punch again. This time I cut off the ears of the owl to create the turkey and used a flower die to create the feathers. The beak is from the tip of a star and the wattle is half of a heart. For more great ideas I recommend going to Pinterest.

SBC - Sketch #413

This is a quick page that I did for Scrapbook Challenges sketch #413. I used a free cluster from Paty Greif to frame the photo.

OWH - Sketch #238

Here is this week's card for Operation Write Home's sketch #238. The tag is adhered with a strip of velcro so it can be removed by the recipient and used as a bookmark or a keepsake.

Tim Holtz - 12 Tags of 2014 (Oct)

Happy Fall! Here is my tag for October's challenge from Tim. The witch is from SU's "A Howling Good Time" set and was colored using SU's Write Markers. I cut the spider out using my silhouette and covered both the witch and the spider with Crystal Effects. The embellishments, paper and inks are also from SU.

National Black Dog Day

Black animals altogether, are the least adoptable pets in shelters because of their color. All too often, black dogs are overlooked because of many stigmas such as; the color black is evil (the same stigma that cats have), black dogs do not show up as well in photographs as muti-colored or light colored dogs and black dogs look scary and intimidating because you cannot see their facial expressions as easily, etc. They are easily overlooked when people are searching for a new dog and the first to be euthanized in overcrowded conditions.

This special day is devoted to creating public awareness about these beautiful, shiny fur babies that offer just as much unconditional love as any other dog and deserve just as much love back. Black dogs also show off colorful accessories much better than any lightly colored dog! Try buying your black dog a neon green or hot pink collar!

Please adopt a black dog and show the world how much light they have inside and out!

OWH - Sketch #240

Happy first Sunday of Fall 2014! Can you believe it? Here is my card for this week's sketch from Operation Write Home. I used Stampin' Up's new photopolymer set called "Yee-haw".

SBC - Sketch #411

Happy Sunday! Here is my layout for sketch #411 from Scrapbook Challenges. Despite all the crazy hot weather and fires in CA, it's starting to feel a lot like Fall here in the mountains.

Card Swap - Owl Punch

Well I finally broke down and purchased SU's owl punch after seeing all the cool punch art on Pinterest. One of my favorite cards posted on Pinterest was done by fellow demonstrator Jill Hilliard. So, I totally CASE'd her card for my monthly card swap. Thank you Jill.

SBC - Sketch #410

Here is this week's layout for Scrapbook Challenge's sketch #410. These photos were taken at Brown Dog Ice Cream in Cape Charles, Virginia.

OWH - Sketch #239

Happy Saturday. Here is my card for Operation Write Home's sketch #239. The focal point of my card is SU's new "Wondrous Wreath" stamp set and matching framelit sentiment which SU offers as a bundle. Since the wreath was so large I couldn't follow the dimensions of the sketch but I tried to maintain many of the basic components. 

SBC - Sketch #409

Happy Friday! Here is this week's sketch from Scrapbook Challenges. The silhouette of my niece was created using PSE11.

Tim Holtz - 12 Tags of 2014 (Sep)

Happy September and thank you for visiting my blog. For this month's tag, Tim featured a new technique using alcohol blending solution applied through a stencil to glossy paper. Unfortunately I could not get this technique to work and believe me I tried and tried with different inks, applicators and stencils. In the end I applied versamark through the stencil and embossed with clear embossing powder. The appearance is somewhat similar but the stenciled text ends up being slightly raised.

SBC - Sketch #408

Happy Labor Day weekend! Here is my layout for Scrapbook Challenges' sketch #408.

SBC - Sketch #407

Here is my layout for sketch #407 from Scrapbook Challenges. For some reason it took me forever to figure out the title and the journaling; still not sure about the placement.

OWH - Sketch #237

Happy Saturday! For this week's sketch from Operation Write Home, I CASE'd some punch art from fellow demonstrator Mercedes Weber. Who knew a hippo could be so cute? Hope you have a great weekend and thanks for visiting.

SBC - Sketch #406

Here is my layout for Scrapbook Challenges' sketch #406. I started the layout using Stampin' Up's MDS software and then exported the file into PSE11 so I could add shadow to the embellishments. Many of the elements were freebies.

SBC - Sketch #405

Sketch #405 from Scrapbook Challenges. Cape Charles, Virginia. 

OWH - Sketch #236

Here is this week's card for Operation Write Home's sketch #236. The stamp set is called "Life's Adventure" and the embossing folder is called "Cloudy Day" (on clearance now) both from SU.

SBC - Summer Sketch #1

Last weekend we went to see the Dodgers play the Cubs at Chavez Ravine. Here is my take on Scrapbook Challenges Summer Sketch #1.

Tim Holtz - 12 Tags of 2014 (Aug)

This month's tag from Tim is a collection of all his favorite things and techniques. For my tag I used a vintage sewing pattern image placed over embossed letters and tissue tape (i.e., in lieu of texture paste).

Monster Make-n-Take

Here is this month's make-n-take from my card swap group. Who knew monsters could be so cute...especially when they're made with Stampin' Up's owl punch. If you're looking for even more reasons to buy the punch just go to Pinterest and you won't believe what you can do with this punch.

OWH - Sketch #235

Happy Sunday! Here is my card for this week's sketch from Operation Write Home. The fish is from the Stampin' Up! set "By the Tide." All other products  are SU.

SBC - Sketch #403

Here is my layout for sketch #403 from Scrapbook Challenges. These pictures were taken near Butler's Bluff in Cape Charles, Virginia, looking towards the Chesapeake Bay.