New Cards

Hello There......Well, here are a few, of the photos, I tried to load yesterday.  These are the cards I made recently and I think they are adorable.  By the way, the softball games last night were back to back and the night was chilly...the moon was full on Amazingly beautiful...it felt like one of those you had to be there kind of nights...and they did have hot chocolate...that I held and smelled and stirred... till my husband came and took a sip, and then another, and then took it away... into the dugout with him... and then came back for his coat...while I went to go get some more of the warm chocolatey mood elevator....I think the subliminal messages in the background helped with the mood elevating effect....they kept blaring over the overhead speakers from the concession stand..."Come on over... and warm up... with some fresh hot chocolate...new batch just made...get it quick, it's going fast..."needless to say that worked for me...as they ended the first game, before the second one started (in about 3-4 minutes, did I mention the games were back to back literally) I was back in line for another warm comforter....Rebecca made a great play with the throwdown to second in the first game...no hesitation...she came up firing...the ball was a missile straight and low to second (its fast, hard and scary and if it hits you and not your glove, let's just say you will be bruised, dazed, possibly knocked over, and you WILL have the stitches from the ball temporarily tattooed on your body on impact...recently she was clocked throwing 47mph and that was not even warmed up yet....Softball, there's nothing soft about it) Skyler, shortstop, hurtled herself to second...caught the ball and spun around and tagged low...OH YEAH, she got the OUT !!!! AMAZING... I should have been taking pictures, I should have recorded the moment...you should have seen Rebecca's face....Huge...Huge...smile...she lit up like a christmas tree....did I take a picture...well, no...why?...because, I was living in the moment....I was watching the action....I was cold, in a coat, with a scarf, and gloves, and a blankie...and clutching Hot Chocolate in my gloved icy hands...that I was sniffing and stirring....but I do have the memory...I don't think I will forget it...that smile...I could see thru the catchers mask...coaches were yelling did you see her face...Yes.... Yes, I did... its forever etched in my memory bank that I know I will replay over and over in my mind...Well, apparently, I have digressed down the softball bunny trail and seem to have forgotten to tell you about these cards...take a look...feel free to copy them...these are simple and fun to make....

Isn't this adorable...there is something about pink and purple, they just go together, like peanut butter and jelly.  I used some new Close to my Heart stamp sets for the sentiment and the image.  I colored the image with some Tombo markers and fussy cut her out. I used my Cuttlebug to die cut the white background with a Spellbinder shape and then embossed it with one of the Cuttlebug folders.  I then popped it out twice with pop dots, the white background is popped out from the card, and then the image is popped out from the white...the 3D effect is fantastic and adds a lot of dimension visually...I used two different shades of purple to add a touch of whimsy...and three simple gold brads because, well,  just because....I have noticed that the brads are not in a straight line...but then it adds to the handmade feel of the card...so, I'm OK with it not being perfect...I have been using the Tim Holts distress ink on most of my sentiments and it seems to be working well, the ink seems richer and deeper than some of the other inks I've tried....The card is purple, the border is lilac, the top paper is pinky purple and they blend beautifully...this makes me smile....

This card is similar in style and color theme.  I used the Spellbinder circle die in my Cuttlebug and  layered the image on the white circle and then popped the white circle out with pop dots.  The sentiment is one stamp, so I just inked each word seperately and stamped directly on the card where I wanted the words to be.  The roses are done from the new Cricut cartridge that is exclusive to Close to my Heart...I think it's called Artsy...something....these were really fun to make...The purple ribbon bow is hard to see in the photo, but it is sheer and looks great on the card... 

This is how I did the inside of both of these cards.  I used  the same  pinky purple  swirly paper as on the front of the card background.  The border is one of the Martha Stewart punches...and the sentiment I just wrote out on my computer and printed off.

This is a card I made for my sister's birthday, I think it's beautiful.  I used a beautiful fall wired ribbon  that my friend Sarah gave me recently...and it's stunning on a card....very excited about the possibilities of other wired ribbons in the future.  The roses are cut from the Cricut cartridge from Close to My Heart, and the cardstock is a salmon color.  I used a green shade of cardstock for the card and over laid it with a salmon designer paper, and over laid that with white vellum, and then the fall wired ribbon, and then the roses.  I also used my Cuttlebug again with a spellbinders die (it looks like a topnote,,,but its a label one).  I embossed it with the Cuttlebug "Swiss Dots" folder and then inked it with the Tim Holts "Vintage Photo" distress ink (this is one of my favorite colors).  I then used a stamp for the sentiment, used some decorative scissors to edge it like a postage stamp and inked the edges.  Then I popped out the sentiment with a pop dot, and popped out the inked, swiss dot form from the back as well.  The scalloped border on the green cardstock and white vellum is a Martha Stewart punch...I love her punches they always work great...

This is the inside of the card, on the left is the Spellbinders label image that I die cut  using my Cuttlebug, and then used the Cuttlebug Script embossing folder, and then inked it with the Tim Holts "Vintage Photo" distress ink...I have a few slits cut into this to hold a gift card for her, the slits are from a Stampin Up punch that is discontinued... I hope they bring it back because it's a wonderful tool, I'll talk more about later....I then popped it out with pop dots...On the right side I used more of the fall wired ribbon, and the salmon designer paper to accent it.  I chose a pale gold cardstock for the sentiment, and used my decorative scissors to edge it like a postage stamp, and then inked the edges and popped it out with some pop dots.  I chose to leave a hand written note for a more personal touch, my handwriting is not so fabulous...but the love is there...

I will probably come back and add the names of the products, punches, dies, etc.  I just have to take the time and look them up....but I'm not promising...just saying I might...have a beautiful fall day....

Catch up time

Hello There,
The weather here is amazing today, crisp, sunny and a slight chill in the air....makes me want to get in the kitchen and watch christmas movies and start baking....ummmmmm Pumpkin Bread and Banana Bread sound great . I love the way the house smells when I whip up a few loaves.  I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving is right around the corner....Amazing....Rebecca will be out for the Thanksgiving Break by next friday...wow....and then Christmas will be here before you know it....I'm thinking about making some christmas cards this year to mail out and also to send to a Veterans homeless shelter that I just found out about, I have been informed that they have about 70 men staying there at all times.  So, this many cards may be a stretch...but I think I'm up for it....I just want to make them special, and I want to give each of them the WOW factor....we shall see, I will keep you posted...I want to start on them while I have the Thanksgiving break...  I have been finishing up a few projects that have been on my mind...Rebecca's volleyball end of season party was a huge success...I think each of the girls had a great time...I made the coaches some cards and had the volleyball players each fill out a tag for each of their coaches...they had two, who, by the way were amazing....I put the tags together with a large brad and made a tag book which I then slipped into a pocket...On the back of the cards I made an extra pocket for the notes from the parents to each of the coaches as well...I took one of the photos of the coaches from this season and put it in the card, which I think made it very special for them....For the girls I made brownies and treat bags for each of the girls...and in the treat bags were bubbles, candy, a black and white hair bow (their uniform colors were black and white), a magnetic pink memo pad with a pen, magnets, large paper clips and a individual volleyball scrapbook  for each of the girls, complete with pictures....the girls had such a great time looking at their scrapbooks.  These were so much fun to make....pictures and photos to come.....I have also been making some new cards....with some of the new close to my heart stamp sets that I recently purchased.  I am about to try my hand at using copic markers, and making some christmas ornaments....oh the joy of the holidays, so many wonderful things to do...for some unknown reason I can't get my pictures to upload for you so I will work on that for awhile....have a blessed day...Oh,yeah one more thing tonight is Rebecca's last fall softball tournament.. first game tonight starts at 8:30pm and then she has another game tonight time unknown...you will find me in my green chair with a coat, scarf, gloves, earmuffs and a blankie....hopefully clutching some hot chocolate....the temperature is dropping and its getting windy and chilly....time to make some snowman soup.....I'll tell you more about this later...well,  hot or cold it's always a good game for Rebecca....did I tell you basketball practice has started as well....sooo I am looking for that basketball paper for the team, there will be eight girls on the team this year, so far anyway....it's going to be a great season...

Renaissance Festival Field Trip

Hello There..., well fall is definitely here.  I went on my daughters 8th grade field trip yesterday to the Renaissance Festival and we had a great day.  It was school days so it was open to the schools with kids in mind, they closed down all alcohol and weapon booths.  I was asked by countless people in costume that worked there if I was enjoying the atmosphere of school days.  They really cleaned it up for the kids...very family oriented and really nice.  The weather was perfect not hot or cold, and beautiful.  Here are a few pictures of the day...I had forgotten how many beautiful trees surround this place.  On the two hour bus drive we saw countless patches of land and trees that had just recently been caught up in the wild fires of Texas in this area around Plantersville and Magnolia.

We have just arrived and are waiting for our tickets...there were countless buses and kids everywhere when we first arrived and were waiting to get checked in...notice all the green trees the drought has not seemed to affect them that much...it was beautiful...driving in it felt and looked like we were going camping....

Our group is now in the festival area and even with all the people it is so large and spacious, it does not feel crowded and you can really branch out and have some breathing room...

Just looking and waiting for all the group to come back together and then we head out...be prepared to walk and walk and walk and then walk some more....

We are now on the move again to see what we can see...I love all the green trees...

Some of the kids are looking in the shops so we are waiting for them, the buildings are decorated and very ornate and detailed.... 

One of the teachers is going over the map with the kids to see what they want to do next...

and we are walking again....it is kinda like being camping and walking around and  looking at the trees and stuff...a great day to be in the company of friends...and these kids get along great...

There is some sort of pavilion thing to the left of our group...quite a lot to see,  you will not be bored...I'm sure we did not see half of what there is to see today....

More walking and looking....

The kids are doing archery...but I had to get a shot of these lions...Rebecca's school  mascot is the lion and there was a row of lions here when we came....

Oh the places you can go and the people you can see....

Kids were playing with the hats so I snapped a few memories....

We are headed back to the front because its time to head back to the bus for the two hour trip home...it was a great trip and I hope that you can visit the Renaissance Festival and experience it for yourself...I think we are going back as a family before the season is over this year...have a great day and thanks for stopping by.