Samantha's Braces Are Gone!

This is my granddaughter Samantha, who is 12. She called us yesterday with wonderful news...... she is OUT of braces!! Her teeth are beautiful!! I asked her how it felt, and she said she had a lot of room in her mouth, all of a sudden. I asked her what she was going to do about that, and she replied,"Fill it up!" I figure she will be eating Marshmallow Fluff and peanut butter sandwiches, gummy bears, and all the things she hasn't been able to eat for quite a while!! I thought you might like to see this happy and smiling face!!

Autumn Trees

How cool is this.......a wood bg for autumn trees!! I just noticed it (obviously I'm not smart enough to plan that!!)! This is for the WT today - variegated something. I chose to use variegated ink, which I think makes FABULOUS FALL cards. Thanks for joining me here today. Make it a good one! Oh! Almost forgot....I put this in the RedDivas Gallery on SCS because I thought there was enough to qualify. PLMK if you think that's okay, or if I should remove it. Hugs!

Out-of-the-box Baby Giraffe

This card is doing double duty today. The sketch at SCS is easy, and so different. I wanted to make a nontraditional card for my cousin's baby boy, and I think these colors are great together!

This is also for the Doubledog Dare Challenge, and I am this week's hostess. I dared the group to make an out-of-the-box card.......no other requirements. I love the look, and seldom do it......I wonder why that is??? Anyway, if you would like to join us in this challenge, just put DDC in your keyword. Simple.

Have a wonderful day. Hugs. And if you didn't see my BIG NEWS yesterday, check below.

Big News!!

I am pleased to announce I have been asked to join the Divine Divas! Lori Rider contacted me, and I promptly accepted the new challenge! The Divine Divas Inspiration Challenge (DDIC) posts every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month. Above is the Badge I am adding to my blog sidebar, and this is the list of members of the DDIC Team:

Angela Jones

Chat Wszelaki

Chris Olsen

Julie Warner

Keri Brown

Lori Rider

and ME!

I am so honored to be a part of this fabulous group of creative artists! Watch for the DDIC here on August 20th. That's when I submit my first post. YAY!

Bleached Trees

I have to admit that this is my all-time favorite SU set, Lovely As A Tree! Whenever I'm stuck for an idea, this set jogs my memory. The CC today was very interesting..........bleach, take the color that comes from it, and add a neutral. I chose a very dark RED, and the vanilla it became with the bleach, and black as a neutral. Instead of doing a bg, I used the image itself as my focus, and had this fabulous matching dp to go with it! I had a little trouble with what to do with embellishments. I didn't want to overwhelm the trees, but it looked a little bare. I hope you don't think the corners are over the top.......the ribbon works really well I think. Anyhow, I am pleased with the results. I decided to also post this card in the RedDivas gallery. It's dark, but still the right color, don't you agree??? Have a great day. Hugs to you all.

Bling Anniversary in RED!

Happy Monday! The headache I woke up with is finally gone, and I have been to my addict...ahem...craft room for the CAS challenge. Today we had to use BLING, and I think this anniversary card says it all. I even used my xyron for the FIRST TIME....can you believe it?? The dress is paper pieced, and I knew I could never get the glitter to stick with just my glue pen, and then I remembered that I had that sticky machine. Now that I have used it, I think I'll leave it out. Who knows what will hapen next?? I HAD to do RED today. Isn't her dress glamorous in the RED glitter??? I also used gold metallic for the stars and under both the image and the heart punched border. This card also qualifies for the RedDivas, and if you make a card (in my favorite color), you can add it to that gallery here:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=all&si=RedDivas&what=keywords

The only requirement for the RedDivas is that you have used RED.

Thanks for looking, and have a great day!!

Roses For My Sweet Joanne!

My VERY DEAR FRIEND Joanne (sleepyinseattle) is the FS at SCS today!! How wonderful, and about time, too! Joanne is so fabulously creative, and so willing to share her expertise with us all! Congratulations Joanne! I am in and out of her gallery, so it was especially hard for me to choose a card to case, but I finally chose this one called Here For You :

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1359230?&cat=500&ppuser=14567

Joanne makes such beautifully embossed roses. Rather than try to replicate hers, I changed the image to one that is smaller, and used two roses. Never again will I emboss white on white and then try to cut it out!! I had to keep turning it to catch the light so I could see where to put my scissors!! Oh well, live and learn! I also reversed the colors and orientation. I hope you like my version of her card, although I could never do what she does!! Congratulations again, Joanne!!!

Sage is food, right?

The challenge today was to use only food colors and a food as a theme. I figure a take-out box of rice covers the theme, and I used Vanilla and Sage as colors. They are spices, but I think they are food too, aren't they? My friend Heather K. (tankgrl) sent me the template for the box, and I just love it! Thanks, GF!

Mom arrives this morning for the weekend. We are planning a quick trip to Ink About It, then back here for a day with son Paul and family. Tomorrow we go to DGD's Irish Step-Dancing Competition, then to friends' for dinner. In between, mom and I will make....oh....maybe some cards!!

Have a great weekend, and thanks for stopping by. Hugs to all.

Pleated Harlequin

DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME! This card was a real nightmare! The challenge was to make a card with pleats. Sounds simple, right? WRONG! I thought I had this great idea to make the skirt and neck ruff in pleats, and it would be fun and cute. I couldn't get the pleats to stay down. I must have tried every kind of glue, paste, tape, and sticky stuff in the universe, and I'm still not pleased. Needless to say, this will not be repeated! I love this image, I love the print pattern stamp for the bg, I love the RED as you well know, and I love punches and gold metallic paper. I don't love pleats.

This card is also for the RedDivas, a group of us who really love one color, and whenever we make a card in this color, we put that in our keywords. If you would like to be one of the RedDivas, the next time you make a card that fits, please join us. We have a fun gallery on SCS. Take a look.

Have a great day.......we have errands, I'll be reading by the pool, and then to DS's for a corned beef dinner......he's been corning the beef himself for a few days! (He's a wonderful cook!) Hugs to you all.

CBC#71 Wood is the Theme!

The theme of the Creative Belli Blog this week is WOOD. I got a little crazy, and decided to make a wooden 'out-back' house that is virtually IN the forest. I made a bg of leaves, then ran the cs through the cb of Forest Branches after I rubbed it with brown. You can figure out the rest. The girls of the Belli Blog have made some amazing cards. Please check them out, and if you care to join us, post your card to CBC. We'd love to see what you can add to ours!!

Time Runs...........

I am no longer suffering withdrawal! The sketch challenge today gave me an opportunity to use a stamp I bought in NH in May. Isn't it incredible????????? My only dilemma was in choosing which of my RED markers and paper I would use! The clock and the main panel are distressed, and the sickle is silver embossed. I had lots of fun making this card today, and I hope you get a kick out of it too. Oh! and it is also for the RED Divas! Thanks for joining me today.

CLOSE TO RED Roses for the DARE!

Is Cameo close to RED???????????

A twofer today.......for the CC aat SCS, and the Dare. This week's hostess, Beverly (beestamper) gave us this sketch to follow, so I thought I'd combine the two. Please join us...the sketch is wonderful! I spent a lot of time on this card, and now that I see it blown up, there are some things I would change if I were doing it again. For one thing, I would make the panel smaller so you could see the roses by the trellis THAT TOOK SO LONG TO CUT OUT! And I would use a thinner ribbon so things were easier to see. The sentiment is a little off......well, you get the gist.

Another lovely day......DS and family are coming back with steaks for the grill. We'll be outside all day, and they will probably stay to play cards and listen to the RED Sox, so I may not get to your blogs today.

Enjoy the summer......it's going FAST!! Hugs.

Black and White and NO RED!

A quick card this morning. It's going to be a perfect pool day, and I have just heard from #2 son Paul. He and family and a little friend of Jake's will come and enjoy the day. We had nothing planned, so this will be fun and relaxing. We will cook on the grill and just be laid back. Have a wonderful day too. See you tomorrow.

Daisies Make Me Smile!

Teresa Kline is the FS at SCS today! I love her gallery.......her layouts are simple and clean. She combines wonderful colors and images, so it was very easy to case her card. I changed the colors and sentiment, and the shape of the card to accommodate the image I chose. I saved a bunch of her cards to case later. I hope you like what I have done, and that you have a wonderful day.

Quilled and Die Cut Extravaganza!

Okay. I have NO idea in the world what possessed me to get involved in this card. It started out all right, but it took on a life of its own as it grew and grew! This is for the Limited Supplies Challenge at SCS. The supplies really are limited........only die cuts and one sentiment. This was nothing but trouble, and I really have to apologize to all the people who are great quillers (especially MariLynn!). This was my first, and probably LAST attempt. What a pain #$@%$##!! Anyway, this will never fit in an envie, and I guess it will be hand delivered to someone who will appreciate the TIME and WORK in this. I like it, but I'll never take on such a project again!! Hugs to you all!

Hello Office Friend

Here is my card for the WT today. Below is my DGS Jake, who is spending the day. We'll be playing with the star wars stuff we gave him for his B'day, and watching Indiana Jones movies. No time to check in with you today. Have a great one.

Tulips in RED

As you can probably guess, I was going through withdrawal from lack of RED in my cards, so for the SC today, I gave in. I love the dots........wish I had this paper in RED, but alas, I've NEVER had any! *sigh* I hope you like this......I also made it for the RED Divas.

DH just came home from the office. I have been invited to the British Beer Company for lunch. Waddaya think? Should I go??????? I'm not a beer kinda gal, but their lunch menu is FAB! What a day! This afternoon, DS Paul, DIL Debbie and DGS Jake are coming with LOBSTERS (oh, this is New England - LOBSTAHS!) YUM! No cooking for me today. YAY!

The new neighbors are very young and cute! Laura and Rob. All I could think of was Dick Van Dyke's old show - they were Rob and Laura Petrie. No problem remembering their names!! They looked really tired, but they invited me in. I said later, when you are settled, and came home. Thought you might like the update. Seeya later.

2nd Post....The Doubledog Dare!!

Today's hostess for the Doubledog Dare Challenge is Anne (Itsapassion). She dared the group to make a 'good enough to eat' card, meaning something edible on the front. In addition, the only CS we could use had to have the name of a food in it, and NO DP.

My butler is bringing me a sweet and juicy Granny Green apple on a Pomegranate RED tray with a lovely doily, since I am so refined!!

I used only Celery, white and Pomegranate RED, per the instructions. I versamarked the apple, then inked it in celery, and embossed with sparkly clear EP. It doesn't show up well in the pic, but it's there. I had some new ribbon, and truthfully, based the card on that! Thanks for looking.

Welcome to the Neighborhood!

New neighbors moved in next door yesterday, so in doing the CC, I made a welcome card which I will add to a coffee cake. I don't know their names yet, but they have a one year old DD named Penelope. I got this info from DH and DS who said hello to them when I was making dinner. Of course they didn't remember the mom and dad's names! MEN! Anyway, today I will find out, and give them our names and phone number in this card. I hope you like it.

Busy day today, don't know if I will get to your blogs, but I will check in when I can. DS and DIL here this AM for the day, Dr. appt for my feet this PM. Have a great day!

Thistle and Plaid

For the clean and simple challenge at SCS today, there was a sketch. I'm sure you are shocked to see I used purple, when the sketch showed RED, but I guess this is just a purple kind of day. I am doing odd things this morning so I won't think about the dentist appointment I have later. Not just a checkup...I think I am due for a crown or two (to go with DH's he's getting next week!). Aren't we glad we saved our $ !!! NOT! Have a great day......I'd rather have a sharp stick in my eye than go to the dentist, but that's life!!

2nd post......Birthday Tag

I found another card in Lori's gallery I just HAD to case. She made this card in RED with a snowman. Can you believe I changed the color?????? I had this wonderful paper, and needed a generic birthday card, so this is what I came up with. Thanks for looking.

Birds on a Wire

I just love this image from Impression Obsession! I used this to case Lori's card, Love Blooms (FS129 at SCS). Her layout was very simple, and so were her colors, so of course I kept them. Thanks for looking, and have a great rest of the weekend.

Do-Bees are on Time!!

FIRST: To those of you who left comments for my DGD Erin, a BIG thankyou. She was thrilled!!

This card is for two challenges, the LSC (theme: motor) and the Doubledog Dare Challenge. This week's hostess, Charlene (LilLuvsStampin), gave us a real toughie.......remember Romper Room? We were to do a card that taught a child good manners, and also it had to have a BEE on it. If you would like to join us, put DDC in your keyword.

I tweaked the motor idea a little.......this clock is electric, and all electric clocks have motors. Is this a reach??? It's limited supplies, right?? Anyway, I think it fits, so here it is, and besides, the clock hands are RED. There.

Have a great day!

Erin makes more cards!

In Erin's words:
The card on the left is a birthday card, that says "Do the math, you're old", which I think is hilarious! (this, from Erin!) The one on the right is really cute with those little owls. Thanks for looking.

TWo more by Erin!

Here are two more cards Erin made this afternoon. She had fun with the new shape that stands up, and found a card on SCS she wanted to case. Aren't they fun??!

Belli Challenge #70

The Belli Challenge this week is to make a card with METAL on it. I think this HUGE tag sure qualifies!! Please join us on the challenge.......put CBC in your keyword so we can find it!!

Two more for today!

Erin's card is on the left with the pretty green swirl and the medallion, and mine is the single flower. We like this pattern and will probably do some more. We hope you like them too.

Sc238........By Erin and Grammy

Erin is staying for a few days, and we just HAD to do the challenge. She loves zebras and I love giraffes, so you can probably tell who made which! thanks for looking.

(Erin is 12 years old, and VERY grown up!)

Happy Butterfly

This is gonna be quick. We are off to Mom's for the day. She has some repair work for DH to do. She has also had my granddaughter Erin spending a few days with her, and today we swap. I'm so happy to have my DGD for a few days! She loves to make cards and do crafts, so she will be posting here as well. DH and I have a dinner meeting near Mom's, so Erin will join us there for LASAGNE!!! Thanks for looking today, and I'll be back tomorrow.

Sometimes Life Is A Circus!

This is my card for the CAS today. How is this for a truism?? Life is certainly a circus..full of noise and surprises!! I wanted to title this "Something Wicked This Way Comes", but unless you have read the book, it has no meaning.

Maybe some of you are old enough to remember when the traveling circus came to town! The excitement of seeing the animals and the fabulous acts.......bareback riders, tumblers, trapeze artists, lion tamers, clowns...all so close! Going to see the circus today at Madison Square Garden is not quite the same. Not all things improve with time!!

I followed the rules today with color, so don't go looking for RED. Maybe tomorrow. Have a great day. Hugs to you all.

Bloomin' medallion

The FS today has a wonderful gallery. I chose to case a simple card. I used the new Medallion image from SU, which I am coming to really love. Her card had a butterfly, and I changed that image to a flower, which of course had to be RED. No surprise there! To balance it off I added a couple of brads. Pretty easy.

It's a gorgeous day here, nice sun, no humidity. I will spend some earnest time in the sun with a book, and generally lay back. My PT is done for my tootsies, but I still have Dr. appts set up, and have to stay off my feet........oh, too bad! I think I can manage that. We have leftovers from eating lunch out yesterday and I cooked for company last night, so no cooking today. Yay! have a great rest of the weekend, and I hope you like my post for today! Hugs to all.

Tunic Inspiration

Oh Gee! What a surprise! I was inspired by a RED tunic for the IC today at SCS! I loved the colors together , and thought the medallions were close enough to the new image I just got! YAY!
Of course, I never use RED, so I'm sure you are shocked! IRL, the whites do really match..lighting is so crazy, isn't it? Have a wonderful weekend. Thanks for joining me here today. Hugs to all.

RED and Gray High School Colors

For the LSC we were to use colors from either our wedding or High School. Since we eloped the night before senior year in College (almost 46 years ago), HS colors it was! How convenient the colors from Lynn English in Lynn MA were RED and gray! I had no trouble choosing the image.....my Dad bought me a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 convertible that was 18 feet long, and I could parallel park it! I sure wouldn't want to try that today!! It was RED and gray and white. Was it wonderful! But it sure got a convertible out of my system..New England just doesn't have enough days to make it worth while. Hope you like it, and that you are having a great day! Hugs, all!

Gem-collared Cats

I have had an awful day, and it's only lunch-time. I should have stuck to RED. You can't go wrong with RED. I woke at 12:30 with a migraine. Took my pills, went to sleep until 3. At 4 I went in the hot tub, checked SCS, and read until 6. I was getting sleepy, so I went to bed, and woke up with a start at 8:30. My PT appt was for 9. WHOA! Got there on time, came home to find my Night Splints had arrived, went back to PT. Spent an hour and a half making this card, and now I don't like it. I'm too tired to start over, so it is what it is. It's hot and sticky, so I'm staying away from working in the yard until I meet a couple GFs for dinner. This day is a BUMMER..........except for you guys! Hugs!

SC237 Purple Butterfly

I had a lotta trouble with this simple sketch the morning. Started with one color, ended up with another. Totally different. My camera that takes such wonderful pictures doesn't do a good job on this color..........it's really bright IRL! Thanks for looking. I'm off to weed!! Check on you later!

2nd post.......for the Dare and CC

The Doubledog Dare Challenge was posted this morning by our hostess Fran (Francie G.), who dared us to make a wedding card. Please join us, and put DDC in your keyword so we can see it in our gallery. To make it a little tougher, I combined it with today's CC of lavender, banana, white, gray, and black!! I think this would work really well for an anniversary card too. What do you think? I also posted (below) a photo of DH in the garden. Please take a look. Have a great day.

How Tall is Tall?

Here is a picture of my DH, Jay. He is 6'4" tall. Does that give you any clue as to how tall our yucca plant is??? It doesn't bloom every year. All of a sudden we saw the spike getting closer and closer to opening up with its gorgeous creamy bells......and here it is!! Not the most flattering picture of Jay, but it sure does put the plant in perspective! I was hoping the rest of the blossoms would open so I could show you all of them, but they fall off soon after opening. I'm glad I took the photo when I did!!

2nd Post - Happy Smiles for the CAS

Rich Razzleberry counts as RED, doesn't it??????? I couldn't resist the CAS today. One of the artworks Jen highlighted was a giraffe (and you know I LOVE giraffes, don't you?) in these fabulous colors, on a green bg. I have recently become more interested in simple and clean lines, and had this wonderful image from Whipper Snapper. I am enjoying my scor-pal, and with my camera fixed, you can even see the lines I scored. I'm done for today......promise!!

Penguin Popsicles

Ya think I might have gone overboard just a little on this???? I have been up since 3 AM, and don't seem to be functioning well so far. I guess this is a little busy, even for me, but I loved this little penguin, and one thing led to another, and.............there it is. I love this crazy bg dp, orange, RED, caramel. Just crazy. Hope it doesn't knock your eyes out!! Have a great day. Hugs.

OUCH! a Second Case of Kelly our FS

Got a call from Mom to say my Uncle Warren just had "thing" removed from his hand. I had seen this card (above and beside mine) Kelly made with circles, and thought it would be perfect for some bandaid paper. Since there was no room for ribbon or a big button, I used tiny buttons and a piece of the dp cut into a pennant shape (much more masculine, don't you think?) He saves all my cards.......how cool is that!....... and I think he will get a kick out of this one. Thanks again Kelly for a wonderful layout!!

FS Kelly, The Little Stinker!!

I had no intention of making a card this morning, then I discovered the FS today was Kelly (Schirmcat)! She is such a trouble-maker/fun girl!! She has a great sense of humor! She is responsible for the Naughty and Nice List (she put me on the Naughty......correctly!), and for various other infractions. Here's to you, Kelly, you little stinker!! Enjoy your day. That's good advice for us all...........have a good one! Hugs!

Pirate Gold

The Inspiration Challenge at SCS today........I couldn't wait to use my new pirate stamp set, and when I saw this cute pirate costume on the website for the IC, I knew I could ink it up! I started out with RED, but it just wasn't working, so I sneaked a little into the corner holding the pirate's gold. This is the first time I have taken out my Ranger distress inks, and I think I will use them a lot! I even gold embossed the words, and I hardly ever think to do it, although I really like the look. I hope you like the look too. Have a great weekend! Hugs to all.

Oh, Those RED Ladybugs!

The LSC today was to crop a part of an image, and use it three or more times. The stamp I used is called Buggy Borders by Whipper Snapper Designs. Today was a day for RED, and I love the combination of my favorite color with Black, White, and Yellow. I had just gotten these fab daisies from MS, and they were calling to me. This week's TLC was to make a STAND UP CARD, and it was such fun I decided to do another. It kind of put itself together, and I really like the results. Hope you do too. Have a great weekend, and thanks for taking a look !

Will He Melt in July??????

I nearly had a heart attack this morning!! Christmas in July for the WT today!! Oh boy! I'm still trying to patiently wait for summer, and here we go to winter. BLEAH!! Because I am a very disorganized person, I still had two stamps out that should have gone into the closet with my Christmas stuff, so I didn't have to go rooting around to find a stamp. I love this silly snowman, and I can't figure out if he fell down, or had too much eggnog. Whatever, he got a RED hat, nose, and soles of his boots. I love this paper, it has fabulous sparkles on the ornaments, and a plain green other side.........no matching involved. PHEW! Hope you like my effort for today. Have a great one!!

Second Post.......SC...Hang in There!

I just love it when everything goes together, don't you? I had this fabulous matching dp from Paper Patch. The wheat and pink were meant to go with each other, and I had this image from I Brake For stamps that was perfect!! The SC today gave me the layout I needed, and I had some of this wonderful corrugated cardboard from an earlier card. I even stitched the button down to hold the bow in place. I used my corner punch without the guard to make the border. I hope you can see the stickles on the wheat, and that you think the cutting I did for the out-of-the-box-look is okay. I really like how it came out. Thanks for visiting, and have a fun and creative day!!

First Post: Belli Challenge #69

This week's Belli Challenge is to make a card with texture........Flower Soft, flock, metal, whatever. I used flocked bg paper I got at...are you ready?.......BIG LOTS! I altered the Penny Black stamp by using my marker on just the parts I wanted, and added the udder, tail, and body spots. I think it came out great! The whole reason for using the cow was to get in these funny balloons! Aren't they fab???? They really make me laugh! I also love the wonderful cow print ribbon. *Ties it all together, right? (EEEEwwwww!) * I hope you like the card I made, and that you will want to join us in the Belli Challenge. Just put CBC69 in your keywords.