Michaels contest update

Happy Monday everyone...I got an e-mail this morning that they've accepted my entry and is now loaded in their gallery. If you would like to vote for my advent calendar in their contest you can go here.... Michaels Contest Entry I have to run for now...DH needs some help with a couple of things..I really wanted to share my good news...thanks so much...... Hugs from a very wet Charm City.....

Happy Christmas Advent Calendar

Happy Belated Thanksgiving everyone. I'm sorry I haven't been able to post much lately, but I have been extremely busy with work and trying to get this calendar finished for the contest over at Michaels.com. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with alot of memories to cherish with family and friends. I don't know about you all, but we are still munchin' on left overs here in our home. Or the greatness of Thanksgiving left overs...yummmmmmmy...lol... So here it is. This took me a couple of weeks to make off and on. Every little spare moment I got I worked on this little booger...lol...I made the frame out of foam board and the little boxes from Tags Bags and Boxes Cricut cartridge. I'll add the rest of the recipe below if you are interested in them. I made this for our little one. I wanted something different for her this year and I have always wanted to make an advent calendar. So I took the plunge and this is what I came up with. What do you think? Think she will like it? The front I made into a window. You all know how I just love to make window cards with little scenes inside. So this was my take on it this year. A little different from years past. Remember you can click on the photos to get a better view if you would like to this is the outside of the calendar in the photo above and this is the inside.... Look at that very sassy kitty sittin in the chair. Isn't she just the cutest. The photo on the wall is one of our favorites with her sitting on Santa's lap when she was 5yrs. old. And holy moly, those darn nut crackers gave me such a fit with their size. I could not get their faces right to save my life...lol...I think they look dorky...lol ...I used cranberry re-inker to dye the cheesecloth that I used for a blanket and the bulbs on the tree. And a ton of stickles...oh man, did I use the stickles...lol... a closer view....

can you see the kitty in the window...she's looking at you...lol....

Cartridges and sizes Tags bags boxes heart box blackout 5” cut the lid off and punch a half circle in top front of box Christmas Cheer Snowman- 3 ½” Presents- 2” bag 1 ½” Present2- 1 ½” Storybook Frame- 4” --trimmed off sides

numbers blackout-1” Christmas Solutions Santa and sleigh-5” Happy Christmas 1 ½” Nut crackers- 3” Trees- 4 ½” and 5 ½” Ribbon and bows- 3 ½” Stretch Your Imaginations Bike- 1 ¾”---under left side of tree..can't see it to well...sorry Joys of the Season’s Stockings- 2” Fireplace- 3” Rocking horse- 2” Star garland- 1” Paper Doll Dress Up Christmas tree- 6” ...used the Martha Stewart leaf punch Design Studio George cartridge- I used the squares to cut the window and frame out

Well that's it for now...I hope everyone has a wonderful week ahead. Try to stay warm. It's gotten abit windy and chilly here...Hugs from Charm City....

Holiday Greetings spinner/easel and a Christmas Bingo Cards

Hello bloggers...just a little quick post to share a couple cards I made last week. I haven't had much time to post lately.... The first card I actually made for a challenge, but didn't get it uploaded in time for Crazy 4 Challenges easel challenge...this was my take on it...I made the card fronts (6X6..not made in DS) and welded the trees snowflakes and Santa's sleigh/reindeers to a square/oval each layer in Design Studio...then I took Santa and made him into a spinner to fly across the front...kind of like I would picture him being on Christmas Eve night as he went from roof top to roof top....lol...but he always comes out with a smile on his face...I can't remember where I got the instructions to make the spinner card, but if I can find it again I'll share the link...I truly couldn't believe how easy it was to make a spinner card....our little one keeps playing with this card and just giggles everytime he goes spinning across the card....

the card below I made last week also. I had seen so many bingo sheets being used on cards that others share across the net, that I decided to make one myself. It was abit time consuming, but I really like how it turned out....I also made this in Design Studio but it can easily be done without it....if you get a chance, my dear freind Miss Donna (popsicle toes) has made some also and has graciously share her DS file....so pop on over to her blog and check out her designs...not to mention all of her creativity...and let me tell you, she has so much creativity it just oozes out of her toes....

Well hope everyone has a wonderful week...I'm trying to make something to enter into Michael's contest...I'm just at a brainfart right now and don't know which way I want to take this project....hugs from Charn City

Winter Fun--Circle Journal Layout

Happy Tuesday...Just a quick post today...I just wanted to share this layout I made for the circle journal I'm in. The theme is Seasons...And with snow being our favorite, then I just had to make this. Our little one and us just love to play once it snows. And our dog (even the neighbors dog) likes to play...I used Cosmo Cricket's Wonderland Holiday Cheer paper set for this....Enjoy!!!

This layout has been featured in the Scrapbooking Magazine January's issue

this is an 8x8 double page layout

this is the left side

this is the right side All the things I used Winter Woodland Cricut Cart snowman--6 1/2" winter fun--2" trees--2" snowflakes--4" and 2 1/2" flake circle--(this is what I used to make the cut out circle on the left side) 5 1/2" and 5" Well have a happy day...hugs from Charm City

Caardvarks and The Pink Elephant Challenges

Here's a couple cards I made for the Caardvarks circle challenge and another for The Pink Elephant's color challenge. Enjoy!!! this is the outside of the card wild card--circle card blackout--5 3/4" and birds--2 3/4" paper dolls--fence--1 1/2" plantin schoolbook--flower border--1 1/2" zoolballo--clouds--2 1/2" and trees--4" and 5" pooh and friends--kite--2" stretch y. imag.--birdhouse--1 1/2" this is the inside of the card this is the card I made for The Pink Elephant challenge for last week. I didn't get a chance to post it for the challenge though...we were asked to use brown, yellow, nuetrals and a color of our choice. Well that's if for today. Have a great week ahead...hugs from a very warm and sunny Charm City...

Miss You and Merry Christmas Cards

Good Morning blogland---I wanted to share some photos and a couple of cards with you today. This is our little one in this years costume. I have to tell you though, it is such a chore to go costume hunting with her. I just dread it every year. You know, one of those shopping trips when DH goes with us. That's the way I feel with her. It takes forever as she needs to try on ever single one in the store. But anywho, this is what she decided on. A little witch. Somedays it truly fits her...lol...must be that pre-teen thing going on with her...she had alot of fun and that's all that matters. .......I hope everyone had a great Halloween time... ---oh---the little pumpkin head she made at a girl scout trip a week or so back.they went to a farm for the day and this is what she came home with....isn't she just dazzling.... This is our little GB. It's his first Halloween. Isn't he just the cutest....

And this is him with our poochie. Do you see the sad eyes that he's portraying? He hates his costume (poochie). I mean really "hates" it...the day our little one came home from shopping with DH and she put this on him he came running to me and gave me those sad eyes like, please help me. I knew exactly what he was thinking. I look like a dork....lol...I'm a boy and this is for girls...lol...although it's a very nicely made costume, it's big and bulky and just not him. Our little one (Kait) was planning on taking him trick or treating this year with her. So come Halloween, he laid around all day, not eating basically not doing anything. We thought something was wrong. So we pampered him that day and I wouldn't let Kait take him out treating with her. Needless to say, it really broke her heart and I felt really bad. Anywho, this is the best part, after everything was over with he was all jumpity and barking and being his old self. When I seen that I told DH that he was playing possum cuz he was not wearing that pumpkin costume out in public....lol...I could not believe that our dog was smart enough to do something of this nature. Maybe I'm wrong, but I tell ya, I really don't think I am....and we laugh about it when see his costume sitting there.

The next 2 cards were inspired by my friend Donna (popsicle toes) . She does such amazing work with the Cricut machine and her DS it just makes me drool over everything she makes. You have got to go and check her out....you truly won't be disappointed.... I sat down last week and started playing with DS alittle more and this is what I came up with...Enjoy!!!!

above photo carts used:

my world--tree 4" zooballo--grass 2"

hello kitty--clouds 1.5"

sesame friends--sun 1.5"

storybook--for the scallop frame pg 49-- 5.5"

plantin schoolbook--card 6"and bird 1" (pg31)

there is a total of 4 layers on the tree and 3 layers on the sun...

inside view of card...nothing fancy...

the one below I actually welded Santa and the tree together using DS.

the cart I used:

Christmas Cheer--santa 4"--scroll 3"--tree 6" & 5 3/4"--christmas 1 1/4"--merry 1"

here a sideview of the popped up layers.... And here's a great big surprise I received from her (Miss Donna) this week to. An award.... That was the sweetest thing girl...thank you...

here are the questions with one word answers....

1. Where is your cell phone? desk 2. Hair? blonde 3. Mother? Home 4. Father? Home 5. Favorite food? all...lol 6. Dream last night? Nope 7. Favorite drink? woowoo 8. Your dream/goal? independantly wealthy 9. What room are you in? playroom 10. Hobby? artist...lol...don't I wish 11. Fear? Alzheimer's ( I agree with Donna) 12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? paradise 13. Where were you last night? bed 14. Something you aren't? skinny 15. Muffins? blueberry 16. Wish list item? her truck 17. Where did you grow up? Michigan 18. Last thing you did? drank coffee 19. What are you wearing? PJ's 20. Your TV? Off 21. Your pets? cat and dog

22. Friends? Many 23. Your life? happy 24. Your mood? exhausted 25. Missing someone? daughter/grandbabies 26. Vehicle? SUV 27. Something you're not wearing? Makeup 28. Favorite store? none...yes it's true 29. Favorite color? Red 30. When was the last time you laughed? this morning 31. Last time you cried? can't remember 32. Best friend? all of my friends are my best friends 33. One place you go over and over? DD's house 34. Facebook? No 35. Favorite place to eat? Seacrets--Ocean City MD

I have to pass this on to 5 people...so here they are...

Ingvild Jeannie

The Pink Elephant Susanna

Pat Hop on over and check out these blogs....you will be truly inspired by them...

Oh, this weeks challenge over at The Pink Elephant is a color challenge...brown, yellow, neutrals and a color of your choice...come on over and play along with everyone.---ohhh--I made the top five this week too...woohoo.. happy happy happy...lol...thanks ladies...you all have the best challenges and I look forward to them every week....

Well, sorry for such a long post...I hope everyone has a wonderful week....hugs from a very fall"ish" day in Charm City....

Who says black is only for Halloween and C4C9 Challenge

heehee...Happy belated Halloween. I didn't get a chance to post yesterday so I just wanted to wish everyone a belated one. I hope it was a spooky day for you and your families. We had a great time here. We got our first "dog" trick or treater....and I loved it... she was just the cutest little thing you've ever seen. She was dressed up in a little t-shirt for her costume...Come back tomorrow and I'll post some photos from our little one, our little grandbaby and even our poochie in their costumes. And I have to tell you a story of our poochie...it's just too cute...

The card below I made for a challenge over at Crazy 4 Challenges. It was to just create a Halloween card of your choice. I have to say that I really like how this one turned out. Simple and easy. If you get a chance hop on over and play along this week.

This card below is one I just made this morning using Tim Holtz' somewhat idea...you know how it goes. You get inspired by someone else and make it your own. This is my season's postage stamp...at which I cut that from my cricut using the wedding cartridge at 4.5" and the square at 4". Seasons greeting was cut at 1.5" from the Winter Woodland cartridge.

There is so much going on and so many techniques that I used that this really took me all day long to make. I tried to make it so it looked like Mr. Snowman was coming out of a blizzard. He kind of gets lost with all of the embossing and such. I cut everything out of a file folder and used distress inks with a water bottle to color all of it in. The stamp frame I used black fine glitter with just some cheap liquid white glue. The snow flake was colored in with black soot ink then used white ink on top of that then embossed with white puff embossing powder. I did the same thing to the Holtz' sprocket brad and clock hand in the center of the flake. The inside I kept simple using the Martha Stewert icecicle punch with the inking technique. I haven't added the inside greeting yet. Haven't decided what I want....oh, I also used some Magic Scraps shaved ice to make the snow at the bottom. I first put a layer of that snow stuff then added the shaved ice, and hit it with the heat gun. I loved how the heat gun kind of melted the shaved ice. It keeps it on the card instead of it flaking off like it normally does.

here you can see the shaved ice....

here you can see that I changed the color of the sprocket brad clock hand and snowflakes using the white puffy embossing powder. I covered the hand with black glitter glue also..

this is what the inside looks like. Just a super simple one...

I thought I would post a photo of the products that I used in case you were interested.

Well have a happy Sunday and I'll post more tomorrow...hugs from Charm City