Card Candy

Ok, here's the Card Candy I promised Carrie!

First an explanation. This was a swap I was in for "Card Candy". Card Candy is like the Jolie Embellishments that you can buy, except you make this. I was a little worried at first, but you know what??? I don't know why I worry!

The theme for the first batch was Birthday.
It's hard to tell from the pictures but there's a lot of 3D going on here.

Look at the cool way it's packaged. We were supposed to package it with a label and all. I tried, but I wasn't quite this fancy. Isn't it neat!

This one is mine, and for a first timer... it's not so bad! It's hard to see all the stickles and glitter I used from the picture, but there's a lot!


This next set had a theme of Summer/Tropical/Beach. I really had fun with this one. I used my Life's a Beach cartridge from Cricut. I still stressed over this one so don't think I didn't. I bet I cut out at least 12 different things before I finally settled on 7 to use.



Look at the Flip Flops! Aren't they just the cutest!


Can you tell this ones mine? look at all the bling and stickles.


So that's it for this round of card candy. I've still got another one I need to mail off. The theme for this one is colors. I picked Hot Pink (surprise there) and yellow.
Thanks for looking!

A Dog's Life

Ever wish you had one? Where all you had to do was sleep and eat. Do you ever think your dog has it made? I know mine does. She is so rotten that we need a new word to describe rotten!

We come home at lunch so we can let her outside. Kiara greets us at the door all dancing and prancing ready to go out. Now if you don't let her out right away, then she follows you until you do! Still dancing and prancing. Now that it's summer time and the sun is shining... this is her favorite thing to do!




She doesn't have a care in the world. Her eyes are shut and she has tuned out all the traffic on the street. Has the sun on her belly and happy as can be. Why she has one of her little paws up in the air, that's how prissy she is.

She's in need of a trim and a bath and as rotten as can be, but she is mine. She will also be in the bed tonight awaiting her belly rubs as David calls them.

Ahhhh, she has the life now doesn't she.

Is It Friday Yet?

Talk about a rough day at work! I know it's a short week, and that's most likely what the problem is, but I am so ready for Friday!

We've had sunshine for 4 days straight now I think. I'm so glad. It's been nothing but rain on the weekends for some time now.
The first of June is Monday and I've hardly even planted any flowers yet this year. What I did plant look terrible. We had a storm come in and beat the poor things down! It was just awful. I was looking at some pictures that I took when I first got them and they were still in the pots. They looked much better then than they do now. And you know how it is when you first plant them, before they bush out. Well I am ready for them to start bushing. Here's what they looked like before I planted them and the storm almost killed them.





Aren't they pretty? They sure do not look like that now though. I'm actually thinking about re-doing the whole front bed.

Hoping to work on a swap tonight, although with everything going on over at one of the sites I swap on I'm actually thinking about just dropping them all. I have never seen so much arguing and name calling. This is all supposed to be fun and I have to admit it's making me a bit nervous to send anything off for fear of it not coming back.

What is on it's way back though is a Flower CJ from a swap hosted by a lady that lives in Japan. Below are my pages that I made and when it comes back it will have pages from 4 American swappers and 4 Japanese swappers. I'm really excited about getting it and I know it's in the mail headed this way as I type this!
(Sorry Carrie, tomorrow I'll do the candy!)


This is page 2 of my pages. I took a Stampin Up stamp and using brown ink stamped the background on the beige cardstock. I just feel in love with that. Have a little more stitching on this one also. Don't expect to see much of it, not a big fan. Although it did help tie the page together. The paper is also from Stampin Up and I love this line. Think I'm out and in need of some more.

This page was another simple one using some inks and stickles. I tried not to over do and crowd my pages as I personally prefer. I wanted to make sure I left enough room for those swapping to put pictures in. I'm sure after I get mine back and add pictures that I will add more embellies to my pages as well.

I still need to practice practice practice on inking the edges, but I'll get there.
All in all, I like the way my pages turned out. And did I tell you guys that I'm excited to get the pages back. I'm going to use my Bind It All to put the CJ together, that's going to be another first for me.

It's almost time for DA and I to go ride the bicycles. Then off to my scrap room!
Thanks for looking.

Spring is in the Air!

Here are the circles I rec'd from the circle swap I was in. They are just so colorful. I think we had two drop from our group so our hostess made 3 of the ones I rec'd back.

Would love to know what she used to cut these patterns with. It's fantastic. I'm so loving the way she added the square on the side. What a neat take on this. And do you see the tiny little pearls?

Isn't that just the cutest little bird paper. Would be perfect to use on a layout
with hummingbirds!

Love these colors. You just look at it and it makes you think spring.

I didn't even know they made buttons in these colors. I have to find them. And I love this paper! Not sure you can see it in the picture, but on the right side of the square is the word spring.

The blues in this one are so pretty. The bigger circle is actually a lighter blue than what shows in the picture and inked around the edges. The letters are foam. I've never used foam letters before. She used some Stickles also I am thinking. It really makes the die cut pop.


Now that I have them, not sure what I will do with them. While I really want to use them I sure hate to cover them up with pictures.

I'm really thinking we just may have to do a swap on MM of these. They are just to cute, so simple to make, and I need more!

Thanks for looking.

Circles-Circles-Circles

These circles are for a swap I was in on 2 Peas. We were to make 6 - 6" circles, embellish at least 3 times, using a spring theme.

When I started my circles I forgot all about the theme we were to be using. I picked the colors red and brown. Red because I'm just loving it right now and brown because Jenn sent me a mini album she made when she was my secret sister and it's made out of a brown paper bag and she used a lot of red since I'm lovin' red right now. (I'll have to post a pic of that, it is so super cute!) Anyway, so I start my circles, get them all done and realize that Spring is the theme and they don't look very Springy at all! Major panic. So I cut out the word Spring in a light green and then inked it about half way up trying to give it that faded look. Don't think it worked to well. Threw some purple in there along with different colors of flowers and buttons to try to make it all tie together. While they aren't half bad I think I could have done much better if I'd just been paying attention from the start! Oh, and check out the "Xs" that are stitched on... that would be another first for me this month. Stitching with needle and thread! WooHoo!

They are just so cute and I can't wait to use them. I've really thought about starting a swap like this on MM, but not sure if now is the right time or not.

On a different note.... look at the second picture, the one of only one circle. Do you see the spot/dot in the upper left side corner, or almost corner... just upper left? That's the dirty spot that has been on my camera and showing up in all my pictures. Most annoying! We took it into the shop and $50 later, it's clean and just perfect again! Thank you David! I love my camera... almost as much as I love my husband!

I've created a monster!

In myself! Now that I've gotten started posting pics I can't stop! Not only is it fun, but I've got so many swaps that I've been doing and all these pictures to post of them. Elaine is always saying send pics, so by golly I am.

Speaking of Elaine, she live in CT. One of the states where in the fall the leaves really do turn. It's not like here where one day it's summer with green leaves and the next it's winter and all the leaves are on the ground.

So when I joined a circle journal group a few months ago, and one of the ladies in it picked the theme fall, it didn't take me long to figure out where to get pics from for that cj. These pictures are of a tree in Elaine's front yard last fall. Isn't it so pretty. I have hopes this fall to go and see that tree and those leaves in person!



Have a couple of more firsts here. The leaves and the word autumn are from chipboard. I ran them through my xyron and then glittered them. A little trick I learned from Sassy Sandi on the Memory Makers forum. (Thanks Sandi!) Thread in my buttons. Never used thread before, reminds me to much of sewing.



Close up shot of the glitter and buttons. Why, I don't know!

All in all, I think it turned out very good. I used colors on this layout that I don't normally use, but I was going for the fall theme. It worked, or at least I think it did.

Guess it's time to go back to work now. Wishing everyone a great day!
Thanks for looking.

Hey Look ~

I did it! I added pictures and it wasn't hard at all! I've been dreading it for some reason. My mind always seems to think things might possibly be harder than they really are, go figure!

Here's the mini book I made to put in Melissa's Paint Can.
I have a few firsts with this album. I've never made a mini one before, and you know, it's not that hard! I not only made a tag, but gave it a little pocket to hide in, another first for me. I used rub ons, something I do not like doing. I did do quite a bit of inking on this one. I'm really starting to groove on the inking, thank you Elaine! This was also the first time I not only made my own embellishments but actually used them. How great is that?





Stay tuned, there will be another post with pictures coming!

What's the point?

In having a blog if you aren't going to blog? There's not one.

Over the week-end DH pointed out to me that it had been almost a month since I had posted, and he's right. I keep saying I'm going to I'm going to, but there's always a reason I don't. My reason of late has been because I keep intending to put some pictures up of swaps I've been in and I just don't get to it. So today I am going to get it! I may do a couple now and then a couple later... depends on my mood.
Plus, it is also going to depend on how hard it is for me to figure out how to load pictures on here. I hope to be able to figure out how to load the picture and then write under it???? Keep your fingers crossed!





This is a paint can swap that I was in back in April. I say that like it was a long time ago and it was just last month! My can was for Melissa. She's so sweet and really talented so I was a little nervous making a can for her. I used a spring theme and a lot of stickles. It was also my first big project using my cricut. I really like the way it turned it.

Now I'm off to get something for lunch and then I'll post the mini album I made to go in the can.