Happy Mother's Day---and an update

I wanted to wish all of you Mother's and Mother's to be a wonderful Happy Mother's Day!!!! I hope you all have an enjoyable day!!!! An update--- the week before last, our water heater took a turn for the worse. Really bad. I was in our little one's room and noticed that her floor was wet so I, being a Mom, went to investigate. Well I didn't like what I found. Our water heater was leaking. We couldn't tell for how long, but her floor was soaked and mold had started to settle in. It had gotten to her carpet, walls and even her bedroom set. In the area that joins up with the wall for the heater is where her desk sits..her set contains the bed that is on top, with a desk that joins on one end and a bookshelf at the other end, and then the bottom bed that comes out that faces outwardly from the top bed...it's like a bunk bed but the bottom bed we took out and left her with a cubbie hole like underneath her bed on top....did that make sense...anywhoo, you just couldn't tell that water was coming in her room....I think it ruined her bedroom set, and I know that we need to lay more carpet and maybe even the walls...the insurance guy came out but we haven't heard back from them yet...We went a purchased a new heater, got it put in the next day but it ended up leaking..so needless to say, we are back on track and it has taken me a few days to play catch up with house hold chores and what not's around here...... So, this week I am hoping to play catch up with everything here in blog land...I miss you all so much....and thank goodness that blogger has a scheduled post thingie ...hence my post for Burtonesque's first challenge...have you been over there yet? Our first challenge was on stripes...come on over and play along...and have you seen what the DT has made for this challenge? I tell ya, them Dolls just RAWK!!!! They did a fantastic job with the digi's and the challenge....so hop on over to the blog and check them out....Our next challenge is this coming Tuesday....so make sure you come back and see what it is....and be ready to play along.... Yesterday was the first day that I was able to sit in here. I had planned on blog hopping, but I realized that I had not even made my Mother's Day cards...so I spent the morning working on them. The cards posted below are for my mother and both my mother-in-laws. How cool is that..I have not one but 3 mother's....and I feel like I am the luckiest person in the world. They are all just so awesome. You know what they say about in-laws. Well I have to admit I have the best in-laws in the world. Not to mention My Mommy...I know, I'm an oldie ( but a kid at heart), she is still my Mommie....lol...Enjoy!!!!!!

I am soooo hooked on feathers right now!!!!! Can ya tell!!!! Papers are from American Crafts and the orange flowered paper is from Basic Grey....

outside...

inside...

I just loved this rick rack when I purchased it, but never found a way to use it until now....

inside...

do you think black is appropriate? I really loved this Basic Grey paper and wanted to use it........the heart charm in the center is actually from our little one's girlfriend's bracelet that had broken here one night....we couldn't fix it, so she was just going to throw all of the pieces away....helloooooo, not in my house. We don't throw away things like that....we keep them....lol....I just added the beads and a pin to the ends.....

inside.......

Well that' s all I have for this morning....remember to have a wonderful time with your families today....Hugs from a chilly Charm City....

2S4Y Kazan's Sketch

How's it going peeps? Thank goodness this week is over. It's been one hard week for us here. I just hope that your week has been better than ours. I just wanted to pop in here real fast and post this card I made using Kazan's sketch from 2 sketches 4 you . I had alot of fun playing with this. It's a little out of the ordinary but I really love how it turned out. Enjoy!!! you can click on the photos for a better view I got this stamp from a dear friend Betty (the Scrappy Witch). It's one of Kraftin Kimmie's stamps. If you look at her face, look at how she looks like she's in so much pain with all of the little kiddies she has...lol...my first instinct was to use it as a Mother's Day card with matching envelope. So I used Kazan's sketh this week to make a Mother's Day card. The paper is from Cosmo Cricket (earth love and the boyfriend), DCWV stitch rub ons, Stampin Up heart punch, buttons and some pearls on the inside of the hearts. I used Prisma pencils to color in the image. There are other stamps that Kimmie makes and are all just as adorable as this one...I can't wait to use some more of her stamps.

the outside of the card..here I added some stickles for some added glitz.

this is the inside..I thought this was just so fitting. I used EK Success corner punches and printed the saying off the computer.

this is the outside of the envelope. I left it blank in case I wanted to mail it in the mail.

this is the back side of the envelope...

Well I hope everyone has a wonderful evening. I think we are going to get a couple movies and chill for the night. It's just been a long week. Hugs from Charm City

Did you feel the ground shake

yesterday? LOL!!! The card below was the cause of that. I was doing the happy dance...lol...I really don't know how to make simple cute cards (let alone, stamped) and that's how this one turned out... simple and cute..well at least I think so. I soo resisted the urge of inking the edges so much as to, I had to walk away everytime I went to grab my ink pad to ink the edges. I soo love vintage, but I am trying to venture out abit from my norm. Not to mention using these very cute and adorable stamps that I have been collecting over the years and not using. So what do you all think. It's a card for my sister in law's birthday this coming weekend. I added some pop dots under the owl and the circle saying and some glitter to give it jsut a little touch of added depth. The box set below is for (I think) my Mother in Law for Mother's Day. I used a template for this from Split Coast Stampers. And once again stamped..I am starting to get the hang of this stamping stuff. And now I"m seeing why all you stampers love them sooooooo much....I cut the flowers from Storybook Cricut cartridge (hibiscus--pg 46--- 4 1/2" ). I inked them up using Distress inks, stamped Tim Holtz' letter stamp onto it. Stamped the center flowers using See Dee's stamps and added some flower soft to the top layer. I think these turned out to be just a simple set of note cards. I think she will like them. She's always sending notes in the mail...

inks I used were old paper, worn lipstick and broken china.

Well that's it for today. Off to make another set of something. I have 3 Mom's that I need to have something ready for.

Oh, if you get a chance, over at Bitten By the Bug, the DT is having a blog hop today. So hop on over and check out all of their designs they are sharing. I think it starts at Regina's blog, Hand to Paper .

Have a Happy Monday everyone.....hugs from a very sunny and pretty Charm City

World's Best Mom

Just a quick card I made for a Mother's Day card for my Mother in law. I hope she likes it.

I used some flower soft for the flowers on this card. Thanks fopr stopping by and have a great Friday. Hugs from Charm City

Hellooooooooooo

It's been awhile since my last post. Things have been crazy since I lost my job a month back. I wanted to share a few things that I have worked on these past few days. Our daughter's baby shower is coming up real fast and I wanted to make a little set to put something inside it for her. I don't know what yet, but I'll find something...

If you get a chance pop on over the the Hallmark Ladybug blog and check out the easter bags that DeeDee just posted yesterday. They are awesom, cute and jsut too adorable...

here's what I have been working on...hope you like them....

I used the tags bags and boxes, paper dolls and my community cricut carts, cuttlebug embossing folders on the treeglossy accents, stickles and some distress crackle paints on the number 4 from Tim Holtz' grungeboard. You can purchase all of these in the store at Hallmark Scrapbook. Take a gander over to the store and check out all of the new things and the deals that are still going on. You totally won't be surprised.

You can click on the photos to get a better view.

here's a layout of our little one and her adopted sister (friend)...I used the grungeboard and distress crackle painted from the store. I don't know about you, but I just love this stuff. If you don't have any of this yet, you need to have this in your supplies. It's so fun and easy to add dimention to your cards or projects. You can get these in the store also...

here's a layout of a day trip we took down to the beach to help celebrate Dad's 70th birthday. I used the Sesame Street cricut cart for the crab. Used some washers that I purchased in the hardware store and aged them with some chemicals. I made a border around the layout using the MArtha Stewart doily punch and used tea dyed material through the holes that I punched out with the Bind it all machine. I also tea dyed the 2 tags and used alot of Distress inks to age the layout.

here's a card I made for a challenge over on the message board at Hallmark Scrapbook. I had asked everyone to use the border flower cut from Walk in my Garden to make a card for Mom. Hallmark Scrapbook is having a sale on Cricut carts still. Pop on over and check them out if you're looking for some new ones. Or you can pre-order the new carts that will be in later sometime.

I wanted to make a new piece of art for my studio and this was what I came up with. I was playing around with the negatives from a few cuts for the background and to make the letter "L". I used polymer clay added it to the negative to make the letter and then I used the Sizzix clear stamps to impress into the clay before I baked it. Then I used bown, black paint watered down to give it an aged look. The background I used the possitives then inked the sheet using the Distress inks, then took the sheet of negative and added the swirls Sizzix clear stamps and stamped inside the scrolls. I think it's missing something, but I just can't put my finger on what I need to add yet...

Well I hope everyone has had a great month...Hugs from Charm City

Just a little "quicky"

Just been doing some things around here and there...went down to the ocean this past weekend for a convention...it's was cool, but different from past years of ones that I've gone too...but I did get to meet a couple girls that just opened a store down where I work...I loved their products that they offered at the convention too...not to mention, they loved my purse that I had made...we were chatting abit and I had mentioned that I was an instructor and loved to teach classes...so she mentioned that I should stop by and we can discuss maybe teaching in her store....woohoo...that would be great...

This coming weekend is our anniversary and my birthday...we are bak off to the ocean again to celebrate together...so it'll be a fun time...

Here's a few projects that I've worked on this past week or so....

here's a layout of one of the photos posted down below...

Here's the purse I made to carry this summer...it's the band that we go off and see every summer at the beach....nothing like being "oldie" groupies...lol....

this is the photo that will published inthe newspaper down there that I took of the group...what a party group...

these are some new photos of our grandbaby

isn't she jsut the cutest? I have some more photos to upload but I need to run for now...I hope everyone has a wonderful day in the neighborhood....lol...

Hugs from Charm City

It's a Cold Day in Charm City

Today is really cold outside for the end of April. Even though I have my window open here in my studio, I love the crispness of the air that is coming in through the window. I guess it stems back from growing up in Michigan. How cold it is there and how warm it is here. A total difference. Most winters here in MD, I don't need anything other than a windbreaker. But back home you need a full fledge winter attire...lol...I really do miss our winters there where we could play in the snow from November till the beginning of April/May. ...ok, enough of my ramblins...

I have been asked to be a guest designer (for May) from Regina for Bitten By the Bug....she is an awesom person not to mention artist...I soo love how she can just pull things together so...the colors and creativity are just awesom....If you get a chance, take a gander over to her site and check it out. And if you have time, play along with the challenges with all of us. It's going to be so fun...

http://regina-bittenbythebug.blogspot.com/

I'm in the middle of trying to get a few frames made for our daughter and significant other. ..they gave these to me back in October of last year. ..yes, last year and I really haven't done much...so I vow that I will finish these with in the next week so they can add them to their BLANK wall.....they have been patiently waiting...

Here's a few things that I've made lately for the Hallmark Scrapbook site that I design for...

here's their website too http://www.hallmarkscrapbook.com/

the first one I made for the owners for all that they have done for all of us designers...they are just the sweetest people to work for...not to mention,they are so fast on their shipping when placing an order....go and check them out...I know that you won't be disappointed....

I made this from scratch....I took the idea of a coupon folder and made a big one ...I also made little scrapbook pages that they can add their own family photos and journaling...if you'd like to see the inside pages, I posted them on the site and you can go and take a peek...

http://www.hallmarkscrapbook.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=3081&cat=500&ppuser=81

and here's some other odds and ends....

sorry for the scans....the colors are way off....

Well that's it for this post....I hope everyone has a great rest of the week....

Hugs from Charm City