Procrastination and Pressure

I am continually inspired by my friends who seem to keep up a blog AND a hectic life. I am finding more and more that the hectic life seems to be bumping right along but it's the blog that seems to suffer in the day to day bustle.

This has got me thinking about why I am completely unable to tackle the blog world with the same passion I do in my day to day life and the answer is (drumroll please)..............PRESSURE!!!! I have put far too much pressure on myself to maintain this blog and will only post when I think I have something incredibly inspiring to say or if I have a layout that I've worked on that I absolutely love.

So no more! I am going to tackle this blog and ride it like a wild horse with abadon. Whatever is on my mind is what will come out on the page and I think I like it better that way anyways.

So today.....we purchased this fantastic vase for our hallway yesterday and some twigs to go into the top of it. I am in love with the vase. I love decorating but haven't always had the funds to do so as a student. Slowly I am starting to decorate and make our "house into a home" as my husband would put it.

So here's the picture of our vase. What do you think?

Altered Chipboard Alphas

I was inspired this morning to start creating a LO and then I thought I would get even more creative and try out something fun with my chipboard letters. Since this was something I hadn't tried before I thought I would take pictures along the way in the event that it turned out so I could share on my blog. Fortunately it did turn out so here it is.

I first took my chipboard letters and painted them white.


Then I gathered my versamark stamp pad and my dot stamp. The idea here is that I wanted a polka dot look but you could really use whatever shape you wanted here.


Stamped the alphas with the stamp and then poured on clear embossing powder. I wanted the white to show through.


Heat set the embossing powder. At this stage you will want to let the melted embossing powder set before going on to the next stage.


Then selected an ink, in this case I used brown and just started inking all over the letter.

Once you are done you will notice that you have some ink on the embossing as well. This is easily removed with a kleenex.



Keep going until all the letters are inked. and voila a nicely decorated title.

And then the really fun part- creating the LO to go with these alphas and attaching them!!



Thanks for looking!!!

Sweet Joys of September

Well I am back from a fantastic vacation to London, Scotland, and Ireland. We had a blast!! The country side was incredible and the people were so friendly. It was a fabulous trip and I cannot wait to do it again sometime.

So back to the grind this week, unfortunately I brought home a cold from Europe so I spent most of last weekend in bed but I am determined to make up for it this weekend! Last night I spent some time with my fantastic girlfriend...seriously we always have a blast together. In fact last night was so much fun that I was literally crying from laughing so hard!

This morning I got up early and got some dishes done and then headed into the kitchen to try my hand at some monster cookies. I have a nut allergy but have found this "pea butter" that works perfectly as a substitute for peanut butter. I am completely addicted!! Check it out here


And check out pictures of the yummy cookies I made! We have a family BBQ tonight so I hope they all enjoy them!

The Yummy Batter: I modified the recipe and added craisins as well!


And the finished product! YUMMY!!!

Cricut scrapping out of the box

So I just completed one of the August challenges over at SkrapNChat! I know I am a keener this month. I am trying to make up for my lack of creativity in the month of July! :) Anyway, the challenge was to scrap using white space. I like this design element although it is definitely not my "go to" and so therefore I typically admire it from a distance rather than actually use it!

So here is the LO that I created. The fun thing that I used to still keep the page open with white space was to use a stencil. I know what you're thinking, I picked up an expensive stencil and some glimmer mist at the scrapbook store that I am only going to use a few times and it may not be worth the money. If that is your conclusion I am happy to report that you would be wrong.....I used my cricut to cut a large star out and then held it down while I spritzed the shape with my spritzer tool I bought from Stampin' up and my markers. It turned out awesome and the benefit of the cricut shape is that I can cut out just about anything to use as a stencil!! WHOOO HOOOO! Also the spritzer tool from Stampin' Up! can be used with any of the markers so you really have unlimited color choices which is awesome and reasonably priced. Marker= $5 Glimmer mist= $10 Don't get me wrong, I am not giving up my glimmer mists anytime soon but at this point they are cost prohibitive to own in all the colors I would like so I am happy to be using my markers to fill in the color gaps!

Scrap Your Crap

So I totally forgot to post here, but I am guest designer for Scrap Your Crap blog this month! Really cool!!! Come check out my LO and their blog here: http://scrapyourcrap.blogspot.com/ The girls are super talented and so much fun! This month the challenge is "5" so gimme five and get your butt over there to check the fun out!!!

Family in Florida

So I am finally getting around to more of our vacation pictures from Florida....I say finally because we took this trip in June of 2008. There is nothing like taking your sweet time to get to trip pictures lol!

SO here is one that I just finished up tonight, I had most of it done but added the journalling and some more bling (you can never have enough sparkle on your pages!!). I had fun with the glimmer mist on this one mixing the orange and brown together to accent the paper colors. I also used the Big Shot to cut out and emboss the butterflies- I absolutely love the butterflies and the embossing on them just adds that something special. The flower on the left hand side is a cuttlebug embossing folder strip. I had no idea they made embossing folders in strips-SOOOOOOO incredibly COOL!!

Thanks for stopping by!!



Close up of glimmer mist and butterflies.

Playing with Flocking

So I finally got some scrappy time with my Mom this weekend and it felt GREAT!!!! There is something about fun colors and textured papers that just makes me happy!!



So I broke out the bottle of flocking that I have had for sometime now and gave it a play and this is where it lead.....just a tiny touch of flocking but now I think I will be a bit more brave and add more on following pages, so that means stay tuned for what hopefully will be flocking mania!! lol!

I used my glue pen from Stampin'Up! To trace the lines over my stamped image and then added the flocking to the stamped image in three lines. I like the effect and the flocking actually worked with the glue, which was great. I have a few other colors of flocking that I am now dying to try out so hopefully I can get to that sometime this week!

Here's the close up.

Needed a break

So I know it's been awhile and I do apologize for that....it's just that the last month has been a difficult one. We lost a member of our family at the end of May and I guess it just hit me hard. It's been a trying time, but I am feeling better and getting back on my feet. I haven't been scrapbooking or creating as much and I am going to get back to that as well. So please stay tuned and yes, I promise that I will be around more!

Stress Monkey!!!

Okay so I offered to make this card for one of the Executive Directors in my area that is leaving....why I do things like this I will never know. I think I am addicted to stress, so on top of getting ready for vacation, painting walls in my home, being crazy busy at work and getting sick, I had to make this card. NO PRESSURE!!! lol!

So infact I did stress about it for several days/weeks but tonight I final told myself "make the darn card already" so I did and I am quite please with how it turned out. You can't tell in the picture but that base of the card is a bit shimmery which makes for a nice effect. The patterned paper is Basic Grey and the butterflies I cut out using my Cricut. Jeremy loves it when I actually use the darn thing since it was my Christmas gift a few years ago and he is so proud of himself for buying me "the best gift ever!"

Thanks for stopping by!!

Man do I ever miss NYC!!!!

Have you ever been somewhere that touched you so deeply that you feel like you left a piece of yourself behind when you returned home? That's how I feel about New York. I went there last summer with two of my girlfriends to celebrate one of the girls 30th birthdays! We had a BLAST!!!!! Seriously, best trip of my life. Anyways, this LO just came together and I loved how it turned out. I had a little help though from the beautiful and totally creative Design Team at Scrap Your Crap you can check them out HERE

Anyways, I was totally inspired to use some of my alphas that I didn't have enough letters for the title so I improvised and used some of my alphas along with two shapes a puzzle piece and a heart the title reads "I lost a piece of my heart in NYC". Hope you like it!!

This is the new me!!!!

So I did it, I bit the bullet and here is my new blog template. The colors make me happy but the white background for posts makes me even happier!!! It's simple and clean with enough funkiness for me! Thanks for checking it out and I hope to have a couple LOs posted soon! ;)

Bloggie Makeover

I really am feeling the need for a bloggie make over.....something cleaner and more streamlined but I am aprehensive about making changes for fear that I may loose some of my badges, etc......Any hints or strategies about how to make a seamless change over would be welcome!!!! Hopefully I can have it changed over by the end of the weekend, that is my grand plan anyways!

Crop, Glue, and Paint oh my!

So I started the weekend off with a crop with my bestest scrapping friend Jessica! She's a ton of fun and we always laugh our butts off!! So she tends to scrap all night at the crops and then goes home and scraps some more so she gets TONS done the nights we go out....so this time I vowed I would go home and continue to scrap this time. So I did....I only got 3/4 of the way done the LO though b/c I was EXHAUSTED.....so well- I finished up this LO today and here it is! I should also mention that it was inspired by the incredible collage challenge for April over at Nerdy Victorious Scrappers blog. Such a fun blog and you can check it out HERE
They've partnered with Snobby Walrus for the prize this month!! Super fun goodies up for grabs!



And you might just be saying "why did you list paint in your blog title? This LO has no paint on it!" and you would be right! There is no paint on this LO but there is a first coat of paint on my dinning room walls!! Yes siree, I am determined to finish painting the main floor of my house this summer and I thought today was a better day than any to start. So once these walls are done, they will be done tomorrow night after I go to the store to pick up a can of paint, then I will only have 6- count them- only 6 more walls left to do and then I will be DONE!!!! Ahhhhh-the taste of sweet victory!

Thanks for popping by!

It feels like summer

So it is +24 today, smokin' hot! Which is totally awesome! I love the warm weather as long as it doesn't get too hot. I have been scrapping a bit more lately and thought I would share this one that I did for a SkrapNChat challenge.

It's funny but I have been drawn to two different types of photos lately. They've either been Christmas or heart of the summer photos....strange how opposite and how I've been into scrapping both lately.

So here is a LO from the Calgary Stampede in 2006...yes, I am that far behind in my photos but I am determined to catch up one of these days!

A bright and fun LO

I am trying to do my best to update at least once a week with a LO I have created. Life has been a little hectic lately but I still wanted to get one of my recent LOs posted for your viewing pleasure. I really like this picture of Jeremy and I taken a number of Christmas' ago while visiting his parents. I have wanted to journal about how opposite we are for some time. This LO reminds me of those differences and how we used to view them as the reasons for our arguements and fights and how I now see them as opportunities for us to learn from each other and grow.

This LO is a lot brighter than I usually do, but I am pleased with it. I actually made the background paper myself with my watercolor pencils. Thanks for checking it out!!

On a roll and twisted sketches challenge

So I am back in the game and scrapping away. I was feeling kind of burnt out lately with everything that is going on but definitely thought that I needed some creativity in my life to get me going again.

Today was a good day. Jeremy and I slept in, set up the lamps I bought for the living room, started a new renovation project, took a trip to costco, stopped by Michaels (I just HAD to go, I had a coupon) and then came home and I finished off this LO that I started this morning.

The frame idea was taken from a magazine I was looking at awhile ago and I am sorry I don't remember which one or who the artist was. I just loved the idea of filling a frame with buttons. In my LO I also used a few of those pebble embellishments and filled in some spaces with stickles. Who doesn't love stickles?!?!?!

The sketch is the latest from TWISTED SKETCHES I just love Anam's stuff!!! The twist was staples and I've added them on the top to attach the heart and to attach the lace as well.

Thanks for stopping by!!



Close UP #1
Close UP #2

Two Challenges= one great LO

So I have been in a slump lately so I guess my creative juices have been all saved up and I seem to be back on a roll. YEAH!!!

So here is my LO inspired by design goodness at SkrapNChat and Scrap The Girls. It's LOAD (Layout a Day) at SkrapNChat if you want to come and check out the fun! It's always a good time!

Opposites Challenge

It's been awhile since I posted. I actually haven't scrapbooked much in the last little bit as my Grandpa has been pretty sick and in the hospital. However, I did sneak away for a few hours yesterday to get in some much needed scrap therapy!

This LO was created for a challenge at ScrapNChat called opposites. You had to use 3 opposites from a list of 10. I used fav/not fav color, even and odd embellishment numbers, and soft and hard embellishment.

The tree in the LO is a whole package of prima flowers. Gotta love those Primas!!! I am pretty happy with this page. THanks for looking!!!

Christmas in January and Project 12

So I am participating in scrapbook and cards today Project 12. You can find all the details of the year long challenge HERE

I think it's a great idea and hey, that means I will likely stay caught up for this year! Total BOnus!

Anyways, totally loved the sketch for January and have been working on this LO for awhile. SPent a lot of time sewing around the LO and punching out details. The circle with the snoflake is chipboard that I painted and then embossed with blue embossing powder. Really loved how it turned out!!!

Thanks for checking out my work and hey.../..head over to Project 12 and come play along!!!




This LO is from our Christmas in January. We always get so busy in December so my sister decided that she would host Christmas in January. It was a blast! We went sledding and then back to her place for good eats and a gift exchange. It was the perfect way to celebrate Christmas stress free!!!

Design Dollies

So this marks my first time playing along with the Design DOllies as well, although I watch their blog quite closely. Their challenge was vintage so I busted out the lace, an oldish picture, and some beige cardstock. Thanks for checking this out and be sure to check the dollies out Here

Mission to Create 009

I am embarassed to say that this is the first mission I have participated in. THese ladies are so incredibly talented and if you haven't had a change to check out their blog please do so HERE

Here is my LO for mission 009 using raw chipboard, fabric (sticker), and three flowers (prima pebble and two stamped flowers). Strength is my word of the year, so here is the LO that I am hoping will inspire me all year long!

Come Out and Vote!!!!!

Hi Everyone! I made a LO for the Nerdy Victorious Scrapbookers Blog January challenge. Voting is now going on for the winner and I would love to win!!!

So please come out and vote for me!!!!! I'm the third LO!!

Here's the link:

http://nvsgirls.blogspot.com/2010/02/vote-for-january-winner.html

Thanks! Love you all!!

Weekend Party at ScrapNChat

So we are celebrating SkrapNChat's first birthday check it out HERE



So one of the challenges that was posted by the fabby design team is a layer challenge and this is my LO for it! I just am so happy with how it turned out that I had to share.

Here's the LO:



And a couple close ups. I added the pink ribbon to the popsicle stick by hand. It was a labour of love but I love the pink loops!!

Feeling a Bit Better

So I haven't been doing much of anything lately. I have been sick with Bronchitis since last Saturday and today is really the first day in the last week that I have felt like doing much of anything.

I wanted to do this challenge at the Nerdy Victorious Scrapbookers blog for sometime now and had the perfect pics for it. My last office was as nerdy as they come and I loved them for that. I will never have an office quite like this one and never have officemates that are the same. We had some wild, crazy fun that I will never even dream of having in any other job. The best part is that we still keep in touch! Love all my nerdy gal pals! Thanks for looking!!

Check out the Nerdy Victorious Scrapbookers blog

HERE

Sorry!

It's been awhile, I know......I am sick. I would love to post another lovely LO but it's all I can do to hold my head up....my darling husband got sick and decided that it would be a good idea to infect me.....I still love him, but I would rather not be sick. Hopefully I can update something for you all by the end of the week! (insert me crossing my fingers here)

All things pretty

So I have had this picture sitting on my desk since I came back from a girls trip to NYC. I love this pic of my friend and wanted to do something special with it for her. SO here is the layout that I created (helped along from a challenge issued at SkrapnChat by Jenn!- you rock Jenn). The title and lyrics are taken from the broadway musical Wicked. Totally go see it if you ever have the chance! I am going to pick up a frame this week for it so she can display it.

Skrap the Girls

So I came across this blog awhile back, totally by accident called Scrap The Girls The whole concept of the blog is to scrap LOs of girls. THey have a strict "no boys allowed" rule which is cool. I figured their blog will help me scrapbook my girls trip to NYC and other such girliness that I have hanging around waiting to be scrapped. SO here is the first challenge I completed on their blog. It's for the January sketch, so ABSOLUTELY perfect for these pics of my girlfriends skipping through Central Park!!!

Thanks for looking!

Pup Pup and Twisted Sketches challange #31

So I guess you could call us puppy foster parents. Jeremy's family lost both of thier dogs in a short period of time; they had been a part of the family for many, many years so you can imagine how hard it was when they both had to be put down. So as a Christmas present in 2007 we all pitched in and purchased Mom a brand new puppy. He stayed at our place for a few weeks before he headed home to Saskatchewan. We just called him Pup Pup so that Mom could pick a name that she loved when they finally met. His name ended up being Morley and he is a wirey, full of life, dog. This page is a tribute to the time he spent at our place. Thanks to the sketch challenge at Twisted Sketches I really love how it turned out!!



And a close up of some of the detail.

Twisted Sketches Transparency Twist

So I had to join in on the fun over at Twisted Sketches again!! This sketch was the perfect fit for this LO of my sister and I. When we were in Vancouver in 2007 we wanted to go scrapbook shopping so bad that we ripped the page out of the phonebook (we didn't have any paper on us) and took a $60 cab ride on our way to the airport just to go scrapbook shopping!! I love to tell this story and I am so happy to finally have this fun picture scrapped and the story written down! What a fun memory!

First LO of the year

So I think that I am doing fairly well keeping my blog updated....I think it helps that I have a better idea of what I am doing! lol!

Anyways I just posted my Guest Design Team Challenge at Skrap N Chat I am really quite please at how this LO turned out! It actually started out as an entry for My Minds Eye challenge on their blog here MY MINDS EYE I love working with these sketches! What a talented sketch artist that Anam is!!

but as December would have it, I was super busy and didn't have time to finish it up so I decided that I would at least get it completed by January 1 to post it as my challenge at Skrap N Chat . The flowers on the LO are all handmade by MOI!!!! I am pretty proud of myself. It was a bit of a trial and error but when I had the idea, I just had to complete these. The tulle is hand twisted and wrapped to make roses and the paper flowers are hearts punched out using Stampin' Up! heart punch and then glued inward on a circle base. If you give these techniques a try I would love if you would post back here so I could check out your work and a shout out to my blog would be fabulous too!

Here is the LO! Thanks for looking!



And of course a close up of the flowers!