Details

I just love details! Trying to create simple projects is just beyond me. Some of my favorite gals do amazing, simple, graphic work. I love looking at it, but I can't create it! Isn't that funny?

So, speaking of details, here are some projects that I think have lots of them.
This is the layout that I did for Webster's Pages for CHA. I used the Hello Beautiful and Inspired lines. The chipboard tree is from Maya Road and the stamp came from a Scarlet Lime kit (I think). I added some distressed and painted corrugated cardboard behind the photos.






Here is another Webster's project. This one was in December cards. I love the color of the Ting A Ling line!




Finally, this is the card I did for Emma's last week using Melissa Phillips' sketch. I'm loving the MM Lovenotes line. I added a Hambly sticker, SEI chipboard and some Prima flowers.




So, did you know that today is Cuddle Day? Grab someone you love and celebrate by snuggling up on the couch together. That's one of our favorite things to do around here! Thanks so much for stopping by!

Colorful

Well, it's a dreary, snowy, morning today! Very gray. So, I thought it would be fun to post some colorful projects. First up is a layout I did a while ago. It was in the October '08 Memory Makers. I absolutely love the photos on this one. I took them one day when we were at the shore. I think I'm going to frame the one of the swings.
I used lots of Queen and Co. stuff on it and Doodlebug glitter on the letters.




Next up is my 2S4Y card. I got a bunch of Jenni Bowlin stuff the other day. YUM! I absolutely adore her products. I added some American Crafts chipboard and that yummy ribbon is from M&J Trimming.



(Forgive the less than stellar photos. Remember, it's grey and dark here this morning.;) )

And finally, here is my card based on Rae's bonus sketch at 2S4Y. I used some Pink Paislee and K and Co. goodies on it. It's also my card for the Cardaclicious challenge. We were asked to use orange and green and a journaling card/tag.




I have been enjoying all of the sneaks from CHA! The new Webster's Pages is to die for! My hands are itching to get a hold of it and to start creating. Speaking of Webster's, there's an online chat at Inspire Me tonight at 9PM EST. Stop by!

Here are some of my other favorite things that I've seen so far: (Warning: lots of photos ahead...)

The Melissa Frances Fresh Twist collection. All I can say is YUM!!



I'm also in love with Bo Bunny's Love Shack collection. It's gorgeous!!


I'm so happy that Pink Paislee came out with some more boyish lines! But.it's their chipboard that I'm drooling over most!



Prima has outdone themselves this time! I can honestly say I want one of everything. Their flowers, papers and embellishments are all stunning. I love these flocked transparencies and the flowers are amazing.





Finally, here's Jenni Bowlin's newest release, Farmer's Wife. I'm just in love with it ALL!!! So glad it's ready to ship, because I'll be buying it ASAP. These milk caps are the cutest things ever!



Thanks for stopping by and bearing with my photo heavy post! Have a great day. ;)

National Blonde Brownie Day

I just found a great new blog. It's called Zany Holidays. It's the perfect site for card makers who enjoy sending cards for 'different' reasons. Yesterday was National Blonde Brownie Day. I love those! So in honor of this awesome occasion, here is a yummy recipe for you. (It's from recipezaar.com - a favorite site. I love that you can read the reviews for the recipes.)



Applebee's Blonde Brownies
1 cup sifted flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Sauce
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 teaspoon maple extract or maple flavoring

Directions
1. Brownies: Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
2. Add nuts, mix well, and set aside.
3. Melt butter, add brown sugar, and mix well.
4. Add egg and vanilla and mix well.
5. Gradually combine with flour mixture, mixing well.
6. Stir in white chocolate chips.
7. Pour into a 9-inch square pan and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.
8. Sauce: Combine syrup and butter, cook over low heat until butter is melted.
9. Stir in brown sugar until dissolved and remove from heat.
10. Beat in cream cheese and maple extract until smooth.
11. Heat again in the microwave until it reaches desired consistency.

So, onto something a little less calorie dense. Here is the layout I did for the 'I Believe' portion of my MMM entry. It was published in the Januray/February issue, which is kind of ironic because it was my LEAST favorite page of the entry. But, I still like it. Everything on here is either a scrap or repurposed(cardboard, plastic packaging, paper bag.) To make the leaves, I cut them from the packaging and dyed them green with alcohol inks. The little rolled up things are pieces of paper bags.




I played along with Kristina Werner's Color Challenge this week. It's really fun! Here are the colors we had to use:


And here is my card. I used Doodlebug papers, Cosmo Cricket and EK Success chipboard and a Melissa Frances rubon. I love the mix of colors.It's hard to see, but there is a white strip on the left side. I based it on CPS Sketch 53. Love killing two birds (or challenges) with one stone!




Well, thanks for reading my novel today. Hope you all have a great day!

Inauguration Day!

I have been glued to the TV all morning. Today is truly an historical day! I'm so proud to be an American today! My prayers go up for a peaceful transfer of power. I pray that Barack Obama is blessed with wisdom, clarity and the ability to unite our country. There are so many things going on with the economy and with the wars and injustices that are ocurring even as I type this. I know that no one person can right things overnight. I just hope that today, and the change it brings, is the first step towards a more peaceful world.

Also, as a Delawarean, I'm just so excited to see Joe and Jill Biden standing alongside the Obamas. Delaware is a VERY small place. We go to the same church and I've met him on several other ocassions. It's so exciting to know that 'Delaware's Joe' is going to play such a crucial role in the new administration. Many prayers are headed his way, too.

OK, enough political stuff...Today is my day on the MMM blog. As you know, I'm working on Lisa Pace's Cupid's Workshop. This cute little bird was our first project. I LOVE how it turned out.



You can see what I did with this cute little guy by checking out the blog here.

Have you seen the new Webster's releases? They are absolutely stunning! My favorite lines so far, for sure. Terri Hayes has the photos posted on her blog. Just leave a comment on her blog here for a chance to win one of the new collections!

Finally, here is my card that I made with Kazan's sketch for 2 Sketches 4 You this week. I used a Prima lollipop flower, the packaging it came on, and some of my awesome new ribbon from M&J Trimming. This is also my Cardalicious card for the week. The challenge was to use a circle, a flwer and some bling. The flower kind of acts like the circle, too. I figured the little circles in the scalloped border count, too.




Check out the site for amazing DT inspiration, too!

Well, that's it for now. I have to get back to the TV!
Have a great day~Anabelle

Color Challenge

Can you believe it? This is my third post this week!
I have been wanting to do Kristina Werner's Color Challenge for a while now. I have been lurking on her blog and love the colors and inspiration pieces she chooses. I finally was able to put together a card this morning!

Here is the inspiration piece and colors. The funny thing is I have that exact same mousepad.



And here is my card:




That's it for today. :) Thanks so much for stopping by!

Ever Notice....

That when kids get the stomach virus it always starts in the middle of the night? Why is that??? Well, it hit us at 1Am last night. My poor little guys slept on the bathroom floor all night. He finally scraped himself up this morning. The first thing he asked to do was to go play Wii Carnival Games Mini Golf. So, he can't be that sick! He is obsessed with this game rignt now. So, even though, he's still running to the bathroom ever once in a while, at least I know that he's having fun in the meanwhile.

Onto happier things. This page just makes me happy! I love Valentine's Day. Ryan has taken after me in this respect. He gets so excited to write out and open his cards. This week at Emma's our theme was Valentine's Day. Wow, did the girls ever come up with some great projects. Go see them here. I think this is my favorite group of projects yet! (Haven't I said that before???)






Anyway I used lots of yummy Making Memories papers on here. I used the Paperie journaling pages and artisan paper. And the blue paper is from the Noteworthy line. I added some Melissa Frances hearts, Chatterbox felt flowers and BG chipboard.

Here is a card that was in Card Creations 6. I LOVE this line from last year. It's MM, too.




Well, that's it for today. I have to head back and be a nursemaid. ;)
Thanks so much for stopping by and for your sweet comments. They mean so much!

Colorful

It has been so cold and dreary here lately. I've decided that a burst of color might boost my spirits! Red and blue are my favorite colors these days! I loved using these Jenni Bowlin and Pink Paislee papers together on this page I did for Emma's. Our color this month was turquoise. These pictures of Ryan cracked me up!







Pink and green is another one of my favorite combinations. I loved this little birdie. The green flocked Doodlebug paper came in my Cards goodie box yesterday. I HAD to use it!


This card is based on this week's 2S4Y sketch. Laura's sketch was really fun to work with. It also fits the challenge at Cardalicious to make a 'For You' card with green on it and incorporating letter stickers. Both sites are in my links. Check them out for some fabulous DT inspiration!!!





Well, that's about it. Have a great day! And thanks for stopping by. I always appreciate your kind words and comments.

Saturday

Just a quick post today. I did this card using this week's CPS sketch. I used a Crafty Secrets cotton scrap along with some Websters papers. Are you sick of seeing that cream felt? I'm down to my last scraps and don't know what I'll do when it's gone, because I love it. I guess that's fairly evident since I've used it on a bunch of projects.




I'm really excited! I'm going to be doing Lisa Pace's Cupid's workshop. It starts on January 15. I did her Christmas class and thought it was awesome! Her projects were fabulous. I adore Lisa's vintage style and was so inspired by her ideas. I'm hoping that I'll be able to actually complete a few more things this time around. Here is a sneak peek of the projects that she will be doing.



Aside from presenting the projects, Lisa posts recipes (yum), decorating ideas and fun downloads of vintage images that you can use. If you are interested in checking out Cupid's Workshop check out her blog: It's In the Details.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great day!

2S4Y

Finally getting around to getting a new post up this week. Fran and I went to New York on Monday and Tuesday. We had a great time! I ate and drank a bunch, but probably walked off most of the calories I consumed. I grew up on Long Island, so NYC is kind of like home. On Tuesday, my BFF from home came and met me and we had lunch and did some shopping. Well, let me tell you, I hit the motherload! We found the most amazing store. It's called M and J Trimming. Holy Moly! This place is floor to ceiling ribbon, trim, buttons, lace, etc. I was in heaven. I could have stayed there and shopped for hours. But since Jen wasn't nearly as excited as I was, I refrained. I did leave with a bunch of awesome ribbon, though.

Check out this photo. Seeing it online isn't nearly as cool as in person, but you get the idea...

Photo

Here's the link: M and J Trimming

So, onto some projects...

I did this for Kazan's sketch at 2S4Y this week. Once again, I was totally inspired by the sketch and the team's fabulous interpretations. I flipped the sketch 180 degrees. :) Ever have a card that just comes together really easily? This was one of those cards for me. I used Creative Imaginations and Jenni Bowlin papers, CI and Karen Foster stickers and a Prima rhinestone swirl. I LOVE those!!




Here is a layout that I did for the POC blog this week.






I love flowers. I have so many of them that I could use them on every project I create and still have tons left over. Since I'm the only female in my household, I usually use them on cards, layouts about me, or altered projects. But, I do sometimes use them on masculine pages, too. This page is an example of how to add them without making the page look too 'girly'. First, I started with a strong plaid backgound. I used small flowers and embellished them with buttons and star jewels. That way the flowers work as an accent, and your eyes aren't immediately drawn to them. Finally, I adhered the red and white cord around the circles to add some more texture to the page. And, yes, the journaling lines ARE all stitched. ;)

Well, that's it for now. Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!

It's Monday!

Back to school. Back to routines. Can't believe the holiday season is over. We took down the outside lights yesterday. And, sadly, the Christmas tree will be coming down soon. The first week of January is a tough one for me. I lost my dad 4 years ago tomorrow and somehow Ryan has ended up in the ER both this year and last year. (Thank goodness he's OK!) So, I think next year, I'm going to go straight from New Year's to Martin Luther King day!

Anyway, here are some fun scrappy projects that I have to share.
This first one is the project I did for Emma's Paperie this week. We did a workshop using these Mint Tins.





I created the tags using Creative Imaginations stickers and stamping them with Making Memories stamps. You have to check out the Emma's Blog. There are some really cute ideas posted with the tins, including one with a lip gloss recipe!!

This next project is a card that I made for Iris Babao Uy, one of my Webster's teammates. She just had a baby girl on Dec. 30. We all created cards for her. I used Webster's papers, K and Co. chipboard and brad, a vintage image by B. Shackman and a Prima flower and jewel.





Finally, I posted a layout on the MMM blog. We are all sharing projects done using The Scrapbooker's Creativity Kit. It's a really cool book. It comes with two decks of cards. One with words and one with colors. You choose a word and two or three colors then create a project. Here's what I picked.


And here is a sneak peek of my page.

You can see the rest of it here: MMM Blog

That's it for this Monday. Thanks for stopping by!!!