Change is good...Congrats Card

So there have been some happy and exciting developments with my family lately. My hubby has a great new job working for a cabinet company. He is the Quality Control Manager and it's the perfect job for my perfectionist guy. I'm trying to get used to him not working from home any more. It's just me and the doodlebugs now!

My newest daughter-in-love, Mary, just got a full-time teaching position! She'll be teaching junior high starting in the fall. Ben will be going to school in the fall too, finally taking advantage of his veteran's benefits. Big changes for Ben's family.

Not to be outdone, my grandson Uriah has been signed by a top talent agency in Hollywood. They think he's got potential so we'll see what happens. Kellie and Andy will be keeping a close eye on things, so no worries.

I have been pretty low on creative mojo lately so I've been organizing, rearranging and de-cluttering my craft supplies. Found lots of stuff I didn't know I had, yay!

I got a little spark of inspiration today and made a congrats card for Mary.

Lawn Fawn - A Good Apple, Penelope's Blossoms + coordinating dies, Wish You Were + coordinating dies, Science of Love + coordinating dies, Woodgrain Backdrops, Into the Woods 6x6 paper.

Every day is an adventure, enjoy!

blessings,
nancy

Mother's Day 2014

I had a great time on Mother's Day this year. We took in the Dinosaur exhibit at the Discovery Science Center with Andy, Kellie and our grandson, Uriah. They have season passes so Uriah was a very good little tour guide.
 

friendly brontosaurus

Uriah and "pop pop" reassembling a dino

"Let's go over here next"

I made a little coloring book using Lawn Fawn's Critters from the Past to commemorate our day

 I think he liked it, he had fun posing with it at least

We enjoyed a visit with Ben, Mary and Julian later in the day, too. 

Here's a lovely photo of Ben and his new family:

blessings,

nancy

A Beach-themed Anniversary Card

So 36 years ago today, the hubster and I said our I Do's (technically we said "I Will" but you get the idea). We spent many very happy days at the beach while we were dating so I decided a beach themed card would be perfect. Even more perfect is Lawn Fawn's brand new set Life is Good!

I just love that cute little crab!

Lawn Fawn: Life is Good stamps + coordinating dies, Bannerific, Sophie's Sentiments, Hello Sunshine 6x6 paper, Stitched Scalloped Border die (I used the negative to make the ocean waves).

Simon Says Stamp: color cardstock in Audrey Blue, Surf Blue and Mint

Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Pen

White and Black Sakura Gel Pens

Copics

On the inside I wrote: "There will be plenty of time in the summer". That was something Al would say a lot when we were dating. We were both working and going to school and there never seemed to be enough time. Things are plenty busy now, Al just started a new job (yay!!). I got very spoiled having him work at home the past few years but now he's commuting to his job with a cabinet company in Pomona. He's still spending Sundays with his dad and finishing up his cabinet jobs on Saturdays. I'm really hoping there will be more time in the summer for walking the dogs at the beach and just relaxing in the sand listening to the surf!

thanks for stopping by!

blessings,

nancy

A Bit More Watercolor

I wanted to make a quick card and I found that the stamped-watercolor technique is a good option. Of course I had to throw my need for perfection out the window and just enjoy playing with color and arrangement. I do love the mini size I've been using for this water-coloring, it's so much less intimidating.

I've been taking the Watercolor for Cardmakers class at Online Card Classes (I've taken almost every class and I've never been disappointed). I'm finally getting to do some playing and practicing and I'm pretty happy with the results.

For this card I used the vase from Lawn Fawn's Our Friendship Grows and the flowers are from WPlus9 Fresh Cut Florals. Distress Ink pads provided all the vibrant color. The mini art piece was layered to a kraft square then mounted on a Lawn Fawn Sunflower Notecard.

blessings,
nancy

A Tiny Bit of Watercolor

So I saw a post this morning with lovely water colored flowers by Dawn of WPlus9 and was inspired to play a bit. Here's a link to the post at Stamp Away With Me. Dawn has some excellent watercolor video tutorials, she is very talented!

My sister has a tiny framed piece of art done by a friend in France and I've always wanted to replicate it somehow. The original is a landscape but what really caught my imagination was the diminutive size. I worked on a piece of watercolor paper that I trimmed to a 2" square.

I used Lawn Fawn Penelope's Blossoms and the little teacup is from My Cup of Tea. I stamped with Distress Inks and softened the images with water and a detail brush.

I'm off to finish making mom's day cards for my daughters-in-love. You can be sure this is a technique that I will return to and hopefully refine.

blessings,
nancy

I'm still here, I think! April 2014 Recap

So I managed to lose a whole month, April 2014 doesn't exist on my blog. Holey Moley!

It's been busy around here, just completed 225 sample cards for the Lawn Fawn Summer Release. I can't show you anything yet but you will LOVE the new stamps and dies, trust me on this one!

So here's some crafty stuff I can share:

Easter treat boxes made with the We R Memory Keepers Gift Box Punch Board and Lawn Fawn paper, stamps, dies and twine.

I joined Mike and Kelly for a Lawn Fawn event at Stamp Fever. I had fun with a Let's Roll make n take.

Mike and Daphne at the Stamp Fever event.

We are having some hot, super windy days in my neck of the suburban woods. And just like clockwork, I have a summer cold. Add some wicked seasonal allergies and some smokey skies from random fires due to the wind and you get a miserable excuse for a healthy human. 

I would love to promise that I will be better with posting this month but let's just see how it goes, shall we.

blessings,

nancy

Having Fun Taking Photos

I have been making cards lately but I can't share them....yet. There will be an awesome new Lawn Fawn release in a month or so and I've been designing some sample cards to send to stores. I can't wait to share them, you will totally love the new stamps and dies!!

In the meantime I've been participating in Ivy's photo project on Instagram this month. You can check it out at #ivyfotoaday. I'm taking pictures and editing them with PicMonkey.com. The prompt for yesterday was ring and it got me thinking I should tell the story of this ring. Stop me if you've heard it before.....

My wedding ring is the only jewelry I wear. I just like to keep things simple. This isn't my original wedding ring. I lost the diamond in my first ring just before our 11th anniversary and rather than replace the diamond my hubby decided to replace the ring and surprise me!
Al worked for a wonderful man, Gordon, who just happened to be friends with Joseph, of Jewels by Joseph an exclusive jeweler at South Coast Plaza. Al would get Gordon's 50% discount. He found the ring and it was added to Gordon's account. At that time Al was being rewarded for doing an awesome job on a custom kitchen he designed with a trip for 2 to Lake Tahoe. He was thinking he would ask to have the value of the trip credited to the cost of the ring which would cut the price in half again to which Gordon agreed. The day that Al brought the final payment to his boss, Gordon told him to keep the money and take me out for our anniversary! Final cost of this beautiful wedding ring $0.00.
It originally had just the one larger diamond. The 2 smallest diamonds were from my original wedding set. The other 2 diamonds were earrings that I no longer wore but they had been an anniversary gift from Al many years before. I cherish this ring, the story behind it and my sweet hubby.

I still love how it looks on my hand even after 25 years! 

Yep, if you do the math this May we will be married 36 years!

blessings,

nancy