Let it Snow (just kidding)!

I think I'm officially "over" snow.. but I was excited to scrap these snow pictures I took this winter! I found a cool challenge called "Project 12". You create 12 layouts, one for each month of the year.. what a great idea. And I love the 2 page sketches they provide.

I used my new Echo Park "Wintertime" collection -- love the accents of red, it went perfect without new snowblower. It got plenty of use in January!

(click to view larger)

I just love how it turned out!

Okay, now bring on spring :)

A Pop Up Card!

The challenge this week at the Cuttlebug Spot was to create a pop up card! This sounded fun, so I gave it a whirl. I used my favorite Create a Critter cartridge for the challenge at Scrappy-Mom Stamps, too!

I just love the bright colors! The patterned paper is Basic Grey's Lime Rickey (from my scrap bin!). The "Just 4 You" was cut using the phrase feature for the snake. I believe I cut it at 3 1/2 inches. I ran my red cardstock layer through my Cuttlebug "Tiny Bubbles" folder.

Sorry! I couldn't bring myself to using the snake on the inside! LOL! I cut this adorable dinosaur at 2 inches and embellished him with black pearl eyes. The sentiment is from Scrappy Mom Stamps!

This was fun to make :) Thanks for stopping by!

Dear Santa?

During the after Christmas sales, I found the CUTEST "Studio G" stamp set for 25 cents! What a steal! I was just bummed that I'd have to wait 12 months to use it. 

However, I stumbled upon a challenge blog called Jingle Belles! They have a Christmas card challenge every week this year, so you can slowly build up your stash before the holiday rush! What an ingenious idea.

They also teamed up with Sketchy Thursday this week! Here's the sketch:

And here's my card:

Isn't that stamp the cutest?! Love the font. The Santa is from my friend, Kim, who cut him from the cartridge Jolly Holidays. He is from the "Cricut Cut" swap we had last month. So much fun!

Have a great night!

Sew Much Fun!

It's going to be sew much fun at The Paper Variety this week! 

And Abby has donated an awesome October Afternoon prize.

When I saw the sketch at Frosted Designs this week; I knew it would be PERFECT for a wedding layout I've had in the back of my mind for a while.

My best friend since 2nd grade was able to come to my wedding! We send Christmas cards to each other every year, but I hadn't seen her in at least 10 years. I was so excited she could be there on my special day. These photos are so precious to me I wanted to really go all out on this layout.

You can click to view it larger and see the details. I used Basic Grey's Cappella patterned paper - it matched her mint green dress perfectly. There were some soft pinks in the paper, too, so I pulled those out in cross-stitching around the outside edges. Then, I zig zag stitched in dark green around the bracket. The beige in "childhood" better matches the bracket mat in real life :)

I have been hoarding these beautiful "bridal satin blossoms" from Tessa! I bought them over a year ago to go with this layout. I'm so glad I held out and waiting for the perfect time! I'm so proud of this layout. It's probably my favorite so far in our wedding album - and my hubby isn't in it LOL. Go figure! ;)

Be sure to swing by The Paper Variety and see what the rest of the DT created and link up your projects.

Speaking of which, next week we have something EXTRA special going on at TPV...

You don't want to miss it! 

Thanks for stopping by! :)

Cricut Cardz Challenge #63

Good morning! There is a fun challenge going on over at Cricut Cardz! Create a St. Patrick's Day card with NO shamrocks!

I turned to my favorite new cartridge, Simply Charmed!

Isn't he the cutest? I used a Peachy Keen face and accented his little belt and button with my "Golden Rod" stickles. 

Stop by and see what the rest of the design team created and enter the challenge :)

Congratulations Tessa!

My friend Tessa is celebrating 3 successful years of her Etsy shop, Precocious Paper! :)

Stop by and check out all of the deals and giveaways on her blog.

♥  Daily Deals: Each day there will be a different sale or special.  It could be free shipping, it could be a discount, it could be anything.  The daily deal will be posted in the shop announcement, on Facebook, and here.

♥  Facebook Fan appreciation: If you like the Precocious PaperFacebook page, you are automatically entered to win a $25.00 gift certificate to Precocious Paper.

♥  Blog Follower appreciation: Do you follow her blog? Would you like to win a $25.00 gift certificate? Simply leave a comment on THIS POST.  Only comments from followers will be entered to win.

♥  4000th Sale: sHE am quickly approaching a milestone - 4000 sales!  If she reach 4000 sales by the 26th, all sales from now through then will be entered to win a $25.00 gift certificate to Precocious Paper.

♥  Surprises: Just for fun, she'll be slipping free goodies into every package this week.

Not sure where to start? Here are a few of my favorite Precocious Paper 'must haves'...

The sweet spots are the perfect "needs one more thing" finishing touch on a layout!

These sewing pattern flowers are a definite favorite! She even sells a DIY kit to make your own.

These recycled flowers are shimmery and provide that extra bit of texture to your project! I love them!

Think spring with the fun bouquet sets! Lots of colors and patterns to choose from.

These fabric/felt flower pairs are Tessa's signature item. Be ready for St. Patrick's Day with this spearmint set!

Be sure to stop by Precocious Paper and celebrate with us!

Golden Gate Bridge

I love skipping around in my scrapbooking and working on pages/memories as I feel inspired. When I saw the sketch at Artful Delight, I  knew it would be a nice way to showcase a 5x7 picture.

When I was at my LSS recently, I picked up some of the We R Memory Keeper's "Maple Grove" collection. The rich colors and touches of gold metallic I thought would be perfect for our fall trip to San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge!

I used my new "Honey" Thickers for the title. I outlined them in a black fine sharpie to add definition from the burgundy background. Then, I took my "Golden Rod" Stickles and glittered up the word 'golden'.

I love the embossed stickers from WRMK! I popped up the tree on foam and trimmed down the border, too.

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you are having a wonderful Saturday :)

Are Wii Have Fun Yet?

I was inspired by Julie's "What is your favorite game?" question to make a layout about the wii game my hubby got me for my birthday 2 years ago. I still have a few 2009 layouts to sneak in the albums until I'm done with that year.

I used this week's sketch at Sketchy Thursdays and made it work with an extra photo.

These papers from We R Memory Keeper's new line "Funfetti" are SO fun ! :)

And I don't mean to brag... but..

LOL! Thanks for stopping by! Hope you had a great weekend :)

Born to be..

This was a tough layout to make but one that has been on my mind for awhile! As many of you know, my hubby and I are trying to start a family. As I was going through old pictures, almost every one of me - I'm holding a babydoll and playing house. I always new I wanted to be a Mom.

I was inpsired to use this month's new "sweet spot" release from Precocious Paper.

I went out of my "matching/coordinating everything" box and contrasted the purples and yellows with the greens in Basic Grey's "Origins" collection.

For the layout design, I used this recent Page Maps sketch.

The journaling explains how I've always been a caretaker (and still am) in many ways while I prepare for motherhood. And as we began to tell people of our fertility plans, one asked "are you sure you are ready for this?" and my hubby replied without skipping a beat "She was born ready." So glad he gets me! I've very lucky to have him by my side.

A few close ups of the embellishments!

I used my new We R Memory Keepers "Sew Easy" to do the random zig zag stitching. I really love the results!

Be sure to check out Tessa's blog to see a sneak peek of her March Sampler that Windy played with. The Precocious Paper store is also blooming with new goodies too!

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you have a great weekend. 

Birthday Card :)

I loved the card sketch at Peachy Keen stamps this week!

I wasn't sure what I was going to make, until I saw the new "Terrific Tuesday" challenge at Scrappy-Mom stamps! I was so excited! I just got the Simply Charmed cartridge (it's been on my wish list for A WHILE!) and without hesitation I whipped up this birthday card.

Of course in honor of these 2 challenges, I used a sentiment from Scrappy Mom's Everyday Greetings and a smiling face stamp from Peach Keen's Everyday Face Assortment :)

I think it turned out so cute! I can't wait to make more fun things with this cartridge.

Chandelier Card

I made a quick card tonight for Party Time Tuesdays! I love how this one turned out. I used a Chandelier cut for my cricut and kept it simple with a ribbon/bow and Valentine sentiment. The stamp is from Emma's My Creative Time line. Love them!

Thank goodness tomorrow's Friday ;)

Cupcakes Challenge at TPV!

We want to see your sweet tooth at The Paper Variety!

We are so excited to have Tracy from The Treasure Box Club back again to sponsor. She is offering her GORGEOUS January kit to one lucky winner!

I am sharing a project I made a few months ago but it was one of the things that inspired me to make this challenge! I made my first "cupcake explosion box" using my "New Arrival" cricut cartridge.

You can see more pictures and information on THIS POST.

I will be sharing a new project at The Paper Variety this weekend with a video tutorial so be sure to head over and become a follower so you don't miss a thing ;)

Read all the details on the challenge, see what the rest of the design team created, and enter your project before Tuesday at noon for a chance to win the prize!