ten tags

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these are mine, and the last one is my favorite.

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these are katie's, and the last one is my favorite.



more cards for mom...

these look alot like spring...
i took out a bunch of su! stamp sets.  i wanted to use chalk.  here is what i came up with.

book club invitations for my mom

every year i make invitations for my mother's book club.  and, every year i have to figure out another theme.

i happened to see the banned book list in the aarp monthly magazine.  i reworked it a little.  i folded it in half, stuck it into the folder, and it peeks out nicely.

this measures a-2 size.  the first picture shows the folder closed.

i put "reading list" on the file folder with the dymo label-maker.  i had to staple it because the sticky on the label wasn't doing it's job - probably really old.  hay...it adds to the cruddy look of the folder. 

on the front is a blue post-it note that i cut down to fit the stamp, and the stamp is from stampin' up!    i don't know the manufacturer of the other two: "rush" and "first class". 

on the inside, i made a "memo", which is the actual invitation.  the stamp on the left side is another one from stampin' up! 

i used one of those fasteners (the kind used for doctors' or lawyers' notes).  who knows where i picked those up...a thrift store probably.  glad to use them here. 

i sign my cards, so what better than to use a self-stamping "rush" stamp for the back.  i added 10/10 for october, 2010. 

"books give you wings" is stamped on the front of the envelope, and "to be read between the lines" is stamped on the back.  (i don't remember the maker of these stamps.)  

now, i have to make a book for my mom to give in the book exchange.  maybe i will follow the same theme...or not.  last year's is around here somewhere: "not the beginning...and never the end".  you can see it here.

[cool... i learned how to link!]

notes on my mental state:

bipolar sucks; depression sucks more.

cards for mom...

happy birthday, mom!!!!  oops!  scratch that...

happy birthday, sister crystal!

when we went to columbus in august, friend joyce, who has a big shot and nestabilities, helped me to make these scalloped circles.  i thought they turned out quite nicely.  joyce had better watch out...i just might send her some paper!







i sent the card on the left to my mom for her birthday.  my favorite is this blue one with the glittery gold thread and the dragonfly brad.

   


although the bottom two are a little plain, i thought they looked sweet with the purple bows.



i like to stamp over printed paper.  it is unexpected! 
i will have to do more of this.

i give up! i have messed with this for about 2 hours, and i still can't get it to look the way i want it to. the top two pictures should align at the top. that's what the "preview" screen shows. this screen is new and is a wysiwyg. ha!

lung transplant anniversary card for friend, sue

 

our friend sue celebrated her lung transplant anniversary.  yee haw, sue!  we had lung-shaped cake, chicken livers and gizzards (the closest peggy could get to lungs!) and other kinds of snacks.

Your secret from Jean-Sebastien Monzani on Vimeo.

the "-z" ending, and yard sale fuss...

when new products come out, they seem to push out some of the old ones. for example, "fibers" were THE embellishment for cards. it has been replaced with rhinestone swirls and paper flowers. that's about the same time the "-s" turned into a "-z".

my fibers were not the ordinary, run-of-the-mill yarn-age. it was DIFFERENT... sparkly, soft, furry, unique, multi-stranded, etc. the closest i got to ordinary was "eyelash".

so, what to do with the "fiberz"... i suppose i can knit with them. after all, that is why they were invented, i guess. i would have to take up a new hobby, and i don't wanna. maybe i could just use them for what i had intended... to use on cards. i have to spin it in a new way, and i don't think my brain is up for that just yet. ideas: some people crochet flowers, use the wider stuff in place of ribbon...

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we are cleaning and clearing out! we had a flop of a yard sale yesterday. the threat of rain kept away our shoppers, i hope. also, we neglected to get the signs out earlier in the week. we weren't really into the sale itself. i was really into cleaning the house and ridding it of excess. i did fine with the set-up, but when it came to the sale...

the reason for the clean-out? we are having family and friends over for girlfriend-katie's graduation. yes... there will be a doctor (Ph.D) in the house!

katie and i are taking a few days to recover. our bodies are achy and bruised. then, back at it again. of course, the two rooms i left for last are not the ones that i like to clean. i should have done them first, but i know that there wasn't much to get rid of. the studio... stuff needs to be put away...getting rid of anything in there? forget it! and the combination computer, acquarium and studio spill-over... nothing much to get rid of there, but there is lots to clean up after listing on ebay for about a month. most of that went out to the yard sale.

well... it's off to a third round of contemplating my navel...

another worthy blog

"frost it pink": http://frostitpink.com/blog/?p=655 this is another website that i will be following. not only do they have neat ideas and goodies, melissa phillips is there, too. i love her work, so anything she does, i want to see! so, check it out!

here's another: http://avintagechic.blogspot.com/ i was drawn to it for the blogs on the side bar.

i wish everyone had an option to follow by email. this is the only way for me. if it's in my face, i read it; if it isn't, chances are i won't go to my blog list, feeds, etc. i guess i had better add a way for folks to follow by email, huh? on my list of dumb-junk-i-gotta-do....

http://karolakraftuje.blogspot.com/

http://www.gadaboutmedia.com/ looks like a nice place to play...many different categories

cards - favorites

this is the first time that i embossed an image over patterned card stock. i like the effect, and i will definately make more. the cards need so little extra embellishment. i like keeping it simple.

cool video!

found here: http://papierenavonturen.blogspot.com/

beat it to death! card-making at it's finest

february/march: more cards i made for my mom.

cards for my mom: january

i have been busy doing other things, so here are cards from way back in january. i made them for my mom, and i haven't sent them yet.

the paper is cosmo cricket and stampin' up! the stamps are mostly from stampin' up!

update

oooo...look what i did...added numbers to the top of my piece. my project has moved forward ... slightly. tomorrow, i am off to michael's for a clock hand or two. i also have a working title which i will reveal when this is complete. see this previous entry: http://rush8888.blogspot.com/2010/02/update.html

[how DO people embed a reference? something to put on my dumb-junk-i-gotta-do list.]

i won!

a free book from craftside: http://craftside.typepad.com/craftside/ they introduce books (from http://www.quarrybooks.com/), provide a review and rate different craft products. now, i don't want you to go and sign up for their updates...that would mean that there is more competition for the freebies {wink}. it's a wonderful, entertaining and informative site.

i won this book some time ago from the folks at craftside and forgot to brag about it.

happy spring???

katie found these growing out in the front yard a few days ago. how cruel mother nature is ... today, it was spitting snow. ok ... i will take what i can get ...

update

yep...it has been a month...

i am a little further along.... see the 1/20/10 post: http://rush8888.blogspot.com/2010/01/it-isnt-like-im-sitting-here-twiddling.html

the picture on the left shows the elements i have collected up to this point. (i will still use the angel. it briefly hid itself on my table, but is home again with the rest.) since last time, i added the word "H O M E" using scrabble letters and attached them with self-made links of heavy copper wire, because this is what i had. next time i am at the home improvement store, i must get a lmedium guage. the tag is a piece of copper stamping that i purchased somewhere along the way. i cut out the heading from my old postal laws book and positioned it inside this tag and filled the recess with dimensional magic. this tag and the pocket watch dial are not yet adhered. i have a large watch hand coming, and i will try that out on top of the dial. perhaps that is the final element. so until next time, i will be thinking about this some more.

mojo monday challenge

http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/2010/02/mojo-monday-125-contest.html ends 020710

and

http://vervestamps.blogspot.com/2010/01/tags-tins-and-treats-day-1.html ends 021410 lots to see in the "parade"!

challenge: posh designs and gingersnap

http://poshscrapbookstore.blogspot.com/2010/01/pdss-sketch-challenge-6.html








this has been "our" theme song for a long time. i found the image of the sheet music on the web somewhere. i added a bow tie and a garter .... romance....

also submitted to gingersnap: http://gingersnapcreations.blogspot.com/2010/02/gc41-chestnut-challenge-romance.html ends 2/28 the theme is "romance".

be my valentine?

i jumped on the bandwagon and decided to try a valentine. the biggest problem was that the paper wasn't as heavy as i would have liked and needed for all the manipulation i did. the sentiment is a little crooked, but maybe no one will notice. i think i will try this again when i can figure out how to make this particular paper heavier. this is the paper i want to use. i will figure it out....

i entered this in the caardvark's "red heart challenge":
http://caardvarks.blogspot.com/2010/01/red-heart-challenge.html there are plenty of wonderful samples made by the design team.

it isn't like i'm sitting here twiddling my thumbs...

UPDATE: still sitting there looking up at me: sunday, 2/14/10. i have to admit that i have been busy with other things, and i have run into this project a few times. i am still drawing a blank. after i get the studio cleaned and workable, i will pull this out again and make it sit with me until one of us decides what to do with it.


i have been thinking about and working on this project for about a week. some things come easy to me, like making cards for my mom; others become painfully difficult. i am a little envious of those who can visualize a finished piece by knowing what they want and where to find it. i can find stuffs, but i can't put it together in my mind. i feel inadequate. this happens alot, and it is irritating. i know i can't push the creative process.

the first element i made was the center "card". it was easy to decide on the papers to use for the top and the bottom layer. it was a little difficult to make that bow, but deciding on the ribbon was easy. using this machine stitch was a good choice, along with the thread color. then what??!!!

the card has been sitting here for 5 days.

four days ago, i cut out the backing form from heavy chipboard. i didn't want it to be square or rectangular this time. later the same day, i adhered the light turquoise and red paper to one side. it sat for a day.

the next day, i decided to put some kind of book page on the other side. so, i brought out my trusty, ancient postal worker's manual and found a page that i liked, and i adhered that.

two days ago, i found the angel form, painted it gold and toned it down with a wash. it sat for a day.

this afternoon, i pulled out a pocket watch dial and sat it on the layers.

the four pieces are just sitting there. i don't know where this piece is going, so i can't adhere anything permanently. so, it is just sitting there staring up at me. i can't figure out where this is going, so maybe i need to put it aside for now and make cards for my mom - mindless, quick, sense of accomplishment....

while this thing is sitting here, take a look at the two most recent pieces below (january 9th). they took the same journey as this one, so maybe it will be ok.

blog candy...i won!

a big thank you to su! demonstrator rachel brumley! i won a su! gift certificate valued at $25! it took me a little while to choose, and here is what showed up at my door. ( http://www.stampingbyrachel.com/ )

the first picture is of the box..."tea party" dsp, a package of real red cardstock and 3 markers in the colors that i use most when making stampin' cards - so saffron, almost amethyst and certainly celery.

the picture on the right is a photo of the packing paper. it starts at one doorway and through the room. the other picture is the rest of the paper going through the second doorway and way across the living room. i think su! should get appropriately-sized boxes, but i would never have had the opportunity to see this:

spot's kittie nest.