Valentines for the Kiddos

The sweet mouse is from Sweet and Sassy Stamps.  I used cuttlebug highlights on this one.

I did something brand new to me too!..........I cut the hearts behind the mouse with my brand new Cricut and the SCAL2 program.  I created the heart myself!  The scallops really came out a lot smaller than I imagined....a learning lesson for sure!  The looped red border is also a freebie from SVGcuts.com.  I thought that it need a little glitz so I glittered the layer under the mouse.  The mouse is colored with copic markers and cut out.  Ugh!  I hate cutting little stuff.  I'm NOT a very good cutter. 

I'm actually making three of these so I'm going to be ahead of my resolution goal.  Good for those bad stamping days, right?

After the other day, I'm not sure I want to reward the little twerps!  But I guess they were just being kids.  I watched all four grandkids while my daughter-in-law was getting her Monday Makeover that she won on a local radio station.  Which is a great story.  My middle daughter, Leah, nominated my oldest, Angie for Monday Makeover on 104.1 The Fish.  Angie won!  To thank Leah, Angie nominated her.  Then Leah won!!  I got to thinking that I should nominate my daughter-in-law, Ahtia.  So, I did and SHE won!!  Cool, huh?!!  Anyways, all three of the little kids were arguing and crying over one of the train set toys I have.  I sent all three to the corner where they ran and started to cry.  I told them they had nothing to cry about and to be quiet.  Which they all did.....amazingly enough!  So, I told them that the train set was MY toy and if they wanted to fight and cry over it and not share that I would just put it away.  I let them get up to go play again and no arguments over the train set!  At least for the 5 minutes they played with it.  Then it was on to a different toy.  After three hours of watching them all, I was really pooped.  I don't know how Ahtia does it for the whole day!!  Hopefully when the little three get a little bigger, it will be easier.  Breauna (who was here as well) was a jewel and happily reading her homework story to me.  We always have a wonderful time together!

Nope......I haven't fallen off!

It has been so long since I posted on my blog, I bet you thought I fell off the face of the earth!  Nope....just terribly busy!  Here is the card that I made for my Mother for Mother's Day.  It uses the Masked Spellbinders technique from the April 2010 issue of the Technique Junkie Newsletter. 

Today I received a card in the mail from Cathy Yamashita and it was just beautiful.  It inspired me to create this card.....since I didn't have it done yet!  The stamps are from Stamp Camp and Hero Arts.  The inside over flowers are colored with copic markers. 

When I stamped the sentiment, it marked where it shouldn't have....drat!!  So, I decided to cover up the mistake by drawing the rosebud.   When problems like that happen, try to cover them up in a creative way. 

The bird is cut out and mounted with foam tape.  The green layer is lighter in real life.  The lighting really did funny things to it.  My overhead light also illuminated the pearls.  They don't really shine like that!!

This will be a busy weekend........ Ray and I will be working at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden all weekend.  He helps with judging and recording and later plant sales.  I am in charge of the trophies, their purchase and display, as well as the judging process to award them. 

This has been a good week for me.  I've felt the best I have since the accident.  A general feeling of well being.  The shoulders are still a little tight but the hip is hurting less.  The toes are still numb but I think they are getting a little better too.  Yeah!!

Spritzed Stone Turtle

Isn't this turtle just darling?  This image is from Dustin Pike and is colored with copic markers.  I've had such fun with his images.  You can see them on his blog:  http://www.dustinpike.blogspot.com/  He sells many of his designs but some are available for free too!  The mottled background behind the image is a Technique Junkie technique called Spritzed Stone from the December 2009 newsletter.  Super easy to do.  I chose the light application method so I could get some mottling.  Hope you enjoy it!

Now for the accident update........well.....we are supposed to have our car back sometime this week.  No word from the shop on Friday so now it will be next week!.

Still seeing the chiropractor and getting massages and slowly getting better! 

So....................as my grandson, Zander, says when he is saying goodbye.......C'Ya!  ;-)

Going Gray is great!

Well.....if you know me then you may think that the title of today's post would have something to do with my hair.......BUT.....you're wrong!!  ;-)  Hee Hee!  Today's card was made using a stamp from I Brake For Stamps that I've had for a while and hadn't seen ink.  I was having a hard time making this collage stamp look the way I wanted.  THEN I decided that I would stamp it with SU's Going Gray stamp pad and color it in from there.  I really love the look......very subtle with a very different look.  The image was colored using the Pencil over Marker technique from the Technique Junkie newsletter.  After I colored the image I went through my background stash and found this piece of Veined Marble (another TJ technique) that was just the perfect color!  I added some purple rhinestones that were round.  Got them on a rhinestone sheet from Hero Arts.  Funny how they caught the light in the photo.  They really aren't that bright!!  Hope you enjoy!!

Party Mouse

When I saw this little mouse in a set at the Crafty Secrets booth at the Portland Rubber Stamp Convention, I just had to have it.  I saw it last year and didn't get it so.........when I saw it again I decided not to pass it up this time!  The background on the card is a technique from Technique Junkies called Spritzed Stone.  The colors on the BG are very subtle.  I also embossed it and rubbed a little color over the top.  The mouse is colored with copics.  I also used the "out of the box" technique with my spellbinder label die.  The color of the ribbon really came out quite odd in the picture.....it really matches much better than it looks!!

Hope you like it!

Sounds like our car should be ready by Friday....we'll see! 

Easter Goodies

Here are the Easter goodies I made for my grandchildren.  The little nuggets with the Easter bunny faces were an idea I originally got from my friend, Judy.  The bunny face was an idea originally from my friend, Cindy!  Thanks guys for the inspiration.  I put Cindy's bunny face on a box I made with Cardstock and voila!  A cute (really inexpensive) Easter Basket!  I hope you enjoy them and it inspires you to create some yourself........for next year!!

Below is the card that I made for my granddaughters.  I posted the same image several weeks back.  THAT card was for my grandson.  I already had the image colored up so quickly made it into a card.  It has two techniques on it.....marker tapping and out of the box.  There were techniques from the Technique Junkie newsletter.  Marker Tapping was a technique I had submitted.  ;-)  The image is from Dustin Pike and is colored with copic markers.

Car wreck update:  My DH is not complaining....don't know if that means he is trying to be a guy or really isn't bothered.  Me, on the otherhand........My neck, hip, and a little on one hand and knee are bothering me.  Seeing the chiropractor and getting adjusted along with massages.  I love masssages but wouldn't recommend this method of getting them!  Car.....$5,500 in damages and we are hoping that they won't total it. Here are a couple of photos.  One shows the other guys car with its smashed hood.  The Explorer is ours and this picture from home shows the damage a little better.  You still can't see how much it is dented in or the angle of the wheel.  Makes my neck hurt just looking at them.  You can see how far he slide after hitting us.....we're the car with the hatched raised.  The guy that hit us was traveling towards us originally. 

A cute birthday card for you!

I was cleaning out my e-mails.  THEN......I saw it........the e-mail from a friend reminding me to bring her a birthday card with cats.  Dang!!  Ran down to the Stamp Hole and looked through my stash.  Nope....nothin'.....nada.  I'd have to create it.  It was 10:30pm on saturday and I needed it for Sunday morning so I just bit the bullet and created.  I've had this piece of Simple Sumi background (from the 10-05 Technique Junkie newsletter) that I've been hoarding.  I just didn't want to use it......I thought it was so pretty and didn't want to see it go bye bye.  If you haven't tried it before, it is one of the most addicting techniques.  You can click on the Technique Junkie banner down on the right to read more about being a subscriber!!  I digress...........After grabbing it, I searched through my cat stamps and found one that I thought would work nice from Magenta.  As I was cutting it to show the pretty background, I decided to actually separate the two cats (they originally were together on the stamp) apart.  Add a little copic work on it and voila!  My friend at church loved it.  I decided to also enter it into the Gingersnap Birthday Challenge!  You can see the challenge page HERE.  Hope you have enjoyed it!

Plethera of Pink Polka Dot Phew!

Here is this week's submission for the Sweet N Sassy Sweet Stop Sketch Challenge......wow...that is almost as hard to say fast as Plethera of Pink Polka Dots Phew!  Hee Hee!  That cute little image is from Sweet N Sassy stamps digitals.  Darling, isn't it?!  It is colored with.......drum roll please......COPICS!  Like I hardly use anything else anymore!  The pink polka dot paper was on top of the stash waiting for it's reassignment into the notebooks and I thought....hmmmm.....would be much easier to use than refile!  Right?!  I know the little dark dots are a little over the top but that's okay.  I used the Technique Junkie Technique called Out of the Box for the skunk.....stinkin' cute, huh!  (I know....bad pun.....)  I'll use it for one of my grandkids' birthday this year.  Hope you enjoy.  AND if you enjoy this card, click on the badge to the right and see what the other DT members came up with this week!  A..N..D  You can join us!  Upload your creation on the Sweet Stop blog!

Copic Winner!

Today is the day!  I have run the computer random generator for the numbers 1 - 51 and the winner is....

drum roll please...........................

That number belongs to Niki!!  Her comment is below in green.  Niki, I'll be getting ahold of you!  Congratulations!!

Anonymous said...


Ann,
Congrats on a year of blogging. Always great to see your posts.. I get some (often needed) inspiration! Please enter me to win Copics. I'm having lots of fun learning to use them.
Thanks,
Niki

What He Got!

DON'T forget!!!! Please sign up for my blog candy but NOT on this post. Go to the Thursday, Feb 18th post  for your chance to win two copic markers!  Tomorrow is the day I will let Mr. Computer decide who the winner is!




I know that Valentines day is long past but I forgot to post the card that I made for my Hubby, Ray!  This is the cutest image of Wee Henry as a chubby cupid.    Click on their badge to the right if you want to see more!  The minute I saw this image I knew I had to have it!!  Colored with copic markers and using some of nestabilities and cuttlebug folder.  Hope you enjoy!

My one and only Henry

I just love my Wee Henry.  I am THE ONLY owner of this image.  NO ONE else will ever have this image.  Isn't that WAY cool!!!  I had the winning bid on Hambo's Thursday auction where Tim has an original drawing that you bid on.  The winning bid gets the image and it is never sold.  I'm soooo tickled.  I colored this Wee Henry up for my husband's birthday card.  We are getting him something that has to do with driving (can't reveal here....you never know who will be reading!).  So......I thought I'd color Henry up looking like he would be ready to go driving.  I know.....a real stretch of the imagination.....but what the heck!  Henry is colored with copics.  The background was done with prismacolor pencils and gamsol.  My bush drawing skills need some more practice I can see!!  If you think this wee Henry is cute, you should see the other two.  One with a chef hat and cupcake, one dressed as a bunny AND my personal favorite a chubby cupid!  You can head on over there and see the fun HERE.  I hope that you enjoy Wee Henry!! 

As I look over the locations that my blog readers are from I notice that there are a number of you that are from the Portland Metro area.  If you are, leave a comment and tell me where you are from.  I think it will be a blast to find other stampers in the area!

Love ya!

This cute little girl is colored with copics. She is from a stamp company called Love ya to Bits. I have no idea if they are even in business any more. The BG paper is some older patterned paper that I have been hoarding. The 'ribbon' is more like burlap and just seemed to work well for the image. One thing about the Labels Nestabilities.....I wish their nesting of these shapes was a small border. You end up doing creative things to make smaller borders but I wish it was easier like their circles and such. I got the little girl colored up while I was in the car a couple of weekends ago.

ALSO.......I will be having some blog candy in the near future!! I trying to work out the details so that I can offer people multiple entries and get the most visability for the vendor that gave it to me! More to come........

Ooo, Ooo, Ooo!!!!

Guess What!!?? I won some blog candy!! Marianne Walker's ilikemarkers blog just turned one year old this last week. Marianne had several other blogs hosting blog candy to help her celebrate. I signed up on several and happened to win the one hosted by Sharon Harnist. There were 845 people who signed up and Mr. Computer random number generator picked comment #434......me!! What was the candy? A set of caio Copic markers pictured here. Is that cool or what!! Maybe it was my praise to the computer gods by saying... "Ooo,eeee,aah,nee, aah, nee,wah, nee." Try it.....maybe it will work for you too! As much as I have using copics these puppies will get a lot of use at my house!!

Thank you Marianne! Thank you Sharon!! Here is Sharon's blog

You can click on my sidebar to get to the Ilikemarkers blog!