The Box I Made My Secret Swap Partner

I was so relieved yesterday when I got word from my Secret Swap Partner, GrannyAnne, that she LOVED the box I made for her.  I worked really hard to create something beautiful that she would enjoy sitting around her craft space or even in her bedroom for jewelry, etc.

                               We all started with this plain cardboard box from Cricut.com.

                    You could then alter it however you like to match the desires of your swap partner

                 who had filled out a little questionnaire about their wishes for box and scrap goodies.

                                                                        

Here is the top of the box I made.

I painted the box white, added layers of papers

that I had inked up.

Then added lots of pretty lacy flowers, pearls and doily for the top of this garden inspired box.

And to personalize it for GrannyAnn...I added a glittery "a"

Side view of the box.

More layered, inked papers were added and some pearls too.

I even added painted wooden feet to give it the feel of

a little jewelry box.

I also decorated the inside of the box

using more inked papers.

                                                  And of course, the inside of the lid too !

Note: I used ModPodge on the entire box to paste on the

papers and then to seal them. It gave the box a slightly shiny matte finish

that added to the overall loveliness of the box.

Then the box was stuffed full of goodies for GrannyAnne...

Flowers, journaling spots, buttons, twine, brads, paint daubers,

metal charms, labels, trims, ribbon, paper pad. Plus a little

birthday surprise since her special day is coming soon

that included a birthday stamp, bling, flowers and a rhinestone pin.

And of course, a little chocolate treat too!

Well GrannyAnne...so glad to have had you as a Secret Swap Partner. 

Can't wait to see what you make with all the goodies I crammed in your box !

Circle Box Swap ...Yipee !

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I was in a Cricut Circle Box Swap. We each had a secret partner who make a box for each other and filled it with goodies.  Well today is the day we got to open the box from our Secret Partner.

My partner was CouponLover aka Jen.  The box she made for me was so PERFECT FOR ME.

 I just love all the little touches she added to personalize it for me.

Here is a view of the lid. She even made the Circle

image look like my own avatar !

She even decorated the inside of the lid. so cute !

And inside the box...ALL these GOODIES!

I love each of the embellishments , papers and

more importantly the Picket Fence Distress Marker 

that I have been searching for !!!

And on top of all those goodies, she even

handmade me a little box with custom brads !

CouponLover...you did fantastic ! Thank you from the bottom of my heart !!

My supplies have arrived !

My supplies from DCWV and MayArts have arrived so I can get busy bringing my idea to life for their Craft Challenge project.  I can hardly wait to start cutting the paper and crafting with the luscious ribbon they sent ! 

I can't share my idea just yet, it will be posted on their blogs in mid-June.  Will post more about that later. 

Happy Mother's Day Ladies

I want to wish all the wonderful Mother's out there a very Happy Mother's Day.  Hope your family treats you especially extra nice. We are celebrating with my Mother in Law and Daughter at our house this year.  Hubby is grilling up some Shrimp Tacos for lunch...yummy !

I made a few things this year for Mother's Day gifts..can't post those cause the special ladies haven't opened them yet, but I did want to share two of the cards I made to honor the special mother's in our life.

this card was made using a doily that I glimmer misted pink,

then added some distress ink to it to mimic the vintage

feel of the My Minds Eye patterned paper I used.

I made the flowers out of paper roses, inked and added leaves.

this card was made with some pretty patterned paper

as inspiration. Again, I added a doily but only distress

inked it.  I did distress ink and glimmer mist the sentiment.

And I loved added the pretty antique lace trim I had in my stash

to this card as well.

Hope each of you have a wonderful Mother's Day...whether you are being celebrated Or

you are celebrating a special mother in your life. 

Can NOT Believe I WON !!!

Today it was announced I get to be a Challenge Winner Designer on DCWV Blog!  My project idea  was selected for the May Arts/DCWV Craft Challenge !  I am so thrilled to have been chosen since my project idea is so vivid in my head that I really want to see it come to life !

A couple of weeks ago, they asked for ideas to be submitted for a project using their awesome

Snapshot Stack

and some lovely May Arts Ribbons

which they will furnish to the winners to do their final project to send them.  Erin Madsen of DCWV Blog and Bethany of May Arts Blog review all idea entries and pick a few people to win.

The deadline to submit my project is June 8th, and the entries will be posted on June 11th.  And they will announce Winners for prizes on June 15th.

I am in HEAVEN !  I can hardly wait to receive my supplies and turn my idea into a reality.  I am waiting for the details to be sent to me so I don't think I can share my idea just yet...hoping I can do a few sneak peeks though :)

So Hard to Part with this Project...

Some of us are in a Box Swap on the Circle Message board...we all ordered the same paper box and altered it for a secret partner and then filled it with scrap goodies for them. This was so fun to do.  Mine is ready to go in the mail to my partner.

I know who my partner is that I am sending to but no idea who is making a box for me....I am so curious and can't wait for my box to arrive. We are all opening them on the same day...well, unless someone gets a little impatient and opens theirs ahead of time... LOL

Here is a little sneak peek of the box I made...using some of the colors and items my partner mentioned she liked.

Well, all I can say is my partner better LOVE the box OR she can just send it back to me !  I so want to keep it...may need to order another box so I can duplicate it for myself. 

I promise to post full pictures of the box I made ... of course, after my secret partner opens it for herself.  Okay, counting down the days until we can all open our boxes...what day was that again?!?!?

It's Here, It's Here....

YEAH, NATIONAL SCRAPBOOK DAY IS HERE FINALLY !!!  It is always the first Saturday of May.  I ALWAYS have it marked on my calendar each year.  Doesn't everybody?   It is a great time to get together with other scrappers and enjoy a full day of scrapbooking and comraderie. And there is always a bit of chocolate too :) 

What are you doing this year for NSD?  I will be attending a Charity Scrapbook Crop with a bunch of other scrappers to raise funds for March of Dimes. I love the fact that I get to enjoy my favorite hobby PLUS get to support such a worthy cause.   My bag is pack and ready to be put in the car.  I can hardly wait.

I plan on getting a few mini albums finished up for Mother's Day gifts and maybe a few layouts done.
 I will be back later to post some pictures from the crop day and my projects.

So, what are your plans for National Scrapbook Day ? What are you hoping to get done? 
Whatever you do, whether scrapping at an event or just scrapping at home with some friends or even by yourself, enjoy yourself !!! 

P.S. The NSD image at top of this post was something I snagged from Google Images by way of the Leelou Blogs.blogspot.com .

Just call me HOP ALONG

No, it's not another blog hop I am in.  I actually hurt my left knee pretty badly after the MS150 weekend and have been having to take meds and rest my leg.  Luckily the xrays did not show a tear in my LCL, just a severe sprain.  Who would have thought a little twisting of my knee in the wrong direction could wreck such havock ??

Last weekend I hosted a Pre-National Scrapbook Day Crop for about 24 ladies.  We had a blast but it was a bit challenging getting ready for it.  Thanks to some of my dearest friends, I was able to stay off my knee most of the day...thanks ladies for your help !

I had planned to post some pictures of the crop, however, because I was grounded with my knee propped up on a chair all day long, I completely forgot to take any photos of the event.

The only picture I have to share is of the Matchbook Style Paper Bag Mini Album class that I taught in the afternoon of the crop.

I will post a few more photos later.  Blogger is taking forever to upload today.

While the knee is a bit better and the swelling has mostly gone down...I am still kind of Hopping Along on it....if it isn't better next week, I may have to go see the orthopedist.  Praying that doesn't have to happen.

Well, just wanted to check in. Be back later with more project photos.

Perfect Weekend !

This past weekend my dear hubby rode his bike from Houston to Austin to raise money for MS.  He did a great job raising over $1,500 and had a wonderful time on the ride. It was bit windy the first day
but weather was nice over all. I always get to drop him off that the starting line in Houston at 6 am !!

Here he is looking at me right before crossing the finish line in Austin.

And then after he got back to the party tent area.

So you may be wondering what I was up to this weekend, while he was riding his bike 150 plus miles.

hmmm, let's see....

Standing in a really long line in Lexington, TX on a gorgeous Saturday morning

To get some of the best bbq in the state according to

Texas Monthly Magazine.  (sorry about the lack of food

on my plate, it smelled so good I wolfed it down

before I remembered to take a picture.  LOL)

And next,

I traveled on to Austin and checked into a hotel

(and yes, the bed was as comfy as it looked)

And later on Saturday, I met up with

some friends to scrapbook and

of course, have a Margarita , TEXAS sized !

And on Sunday, I went to the MS150 race and cheered by hubby

across the finish line, enjoyed some food and then

drove a very tired man back to Houston.

Perfect weather, perfect company = Perfect Weekend !



Look What I Found !!!

I went to Hobby Lobby yesterday evening to pick up a few things for the Crop I am hosting on April 28th in Houston.  They had completely re-arranged the scrapbook section so I had to "hunt" for the things I went there to buy.  And low and behold, look what new products I found and just happened to jump in my shopping cart too ! {insert evil laugh here}

Yes, It is the fabulous new Tim Holtz Distress Markers !

You get 5 markers for only $14.99.  Use your 40% off

coupon and it was only $9.  That makes each marker

only $1.80 each !!  Woohoo !  I have been

wanting to try these out and was so excited to get them.

Will be doing a demo and posting soon for sure !

Next up, they had the new Cricut Chip Decor Cartridge

that is Exclusive to Hobby Lobby only

PLUS....

All the wonderful chipboard to match it!

Very cool !  I didn't buy this (YET)

but was thrilled to see it in person.

They had all these great shapes and letters.

All you need to do is cut out the shape on the

cartridge and glue it on your chipboard shape.

That is a HUGE time saver.  I can only imagine

how cute and fast you can make adorable

projects for your home or to give as gifts using this cartridge.

Next I found all this awesome new

Canvas Corp and Maya Road items ! 

Love all the texture with the canvas and burlap items.

And I really really loved the flowers !

They even had kits !  I bought this cute banner one

but they also had a Recipe Book and a Canvas

Photo Album.  They come with everything you need

and instructions to put the projects together.

As you can see...I had a lot of fun looking at all this eye candy !

So, if you have a Hobby Lobby near you, you might want to

check out all the new things they have hitting the shelves.

Crafty Me Blog Hop

Welcome to the "Crafty Me" Blog Hop hosted by the Design Team at the The Bug Bytes. If you found the blog hop starting with me, please go back to Pam's Blog and start at the beginning so you don't miss any crafty goodness.

All the design team members had a challenge to create a layout or card using sketches and the color green and the theme of crafting.  I had a ball putting together my layout to share with you today.  We encourage you to create a project and link up at The Bug Bytes so everyone can see your project too.

Here is the layout sketch we were asked to use:

I decided to take the sketch that Pam created for us to use and stretch it to a two page layout to accommodate some photos I had of the word CREATE I made on the wall in my craft room that I wanted to scrap.

I wanted to be even more creative on my layout so I

decided to PUMP UP my journaling by coloring in

some of the words using Colored Pencils.  It was

so fun and really matched the playfulness of my layout.

And I made a fun paper rosette and added an embroidered patch.

I had such fun participating in this challenge!

Thanks for stopping by. Be sure and leave me a comment and let me know what you thought of my challenge layout.

Next up is LORI, hop on over to LORI's BLOG  to see what she made for the challenge.

If you got lost along the way in the blog hop, here is a list of our designers in the hop.
1) Pam - http://www.thebugbytes.com
2) Elizabeth - http://www.217creations.com
3) Michelle - http://ladyofleisureink.blogspot.com/
4) Beatrice -  http://beatrizguzman58.blogspot.com
5) Jen -http://3catsandabug.blogspot.com/
6) Debbie - http://debseclecticthoughts.blogspot.com  (YOU ARE HERE)
7) Lori - http://scrappinmystressaway.blogspot.com/
8) Bobby & Jill  http://cricutcouple.blogspot.com
9)  Kelly  http://kamscraftyplace.blogspot.co.uk
10) Chris - http://chatterscene-mom.blogspot.com/
11) Kimberli - http://kimberliscreations.blogspot.com/
12) Sheila - http://shesasassylady.blogspot.com/

Blog Hop TOMORROW !!

Be sure and stop by starting tomorrow, Saturday April 14th for a Blog Hop hosted by the Design Team at
THE BUG BYTES.  We decided to do this hop as a Challenge Hop.  Each Design Team member will  either do a CARD or LAYOUT, using the color GREEN and the theme of CRAFTING.  It will be a blast so be sure and start at the THE BUG BYTES and hop along back to me and the others. 
See you tomorrow....I can't wait to show you my challenge project !

My "Cute" New Marker Storage

I recently purchased several sets of the Spectrum Noir Markers by Crafters Companion at Consumer Crafts.  These alcohol ink makers are for stamped image coloring and are comparable to the popular Copic Markers but for about half the price !  While I love the few Copics I own, I certainly appreciate a quality product at a better price, don't you ?

The markers showed up today and while I was excited to use them, I needed to figure out how I was going to store them.  Since I bought 8 color sets of 6 markers each, that is quite a few markers to store.  They do sell a case specifically for the Spectrum Noir Markers, however, it only holds 36 markers and I have more than that and plan to get even more sets to complete my collection so I needed bigger storage in one case.

As I looked at the large pile of markers waiting for a home, I had a brain storm of an idea !  Off to Target I went, hoping my idea would work....and here is what I found to use.

It is a cosmetic travel bag from Contents by Allegro.

It was only $14.99.  And it certainly didn't

hurt that is was hot pink and white polka dots :)

They also had it in all teal or all black.

It even has a handle...Can you say perfect!

Next step was to use some thin chipboard and make

dividers for the inside.  I cut the chipboard 8 1/2" by 4"

to make (8) horizontal pieces, then (1) piece 5 3/4" X 4 1/4"

for the cross piece down the center.  I then cut the

8 1/2" piece at 4 1/4" down the center from the bottom up 

stopping about 1/4" from the top.  Then  slid

the center piece into the 8 long pieces to form the grid.

The dividers fit 6 markers in each section perfectly.

There is enough room to hold 96 of the Spectrum markers.

I have left room for the other color sets that I am missing but

hope to soon acquire to fill in my collection.

As you can see in the picture, I also put my few Copic

Markers in there too...I could get 8 Copics in each section. 

I even added one of the color charts of all the markers

that is part of their packaging to the inside top of the case

for ready reference. I used double sided tape to hold it in place.

And the color set packaging has so much great information

with each marker color code on it,

I decided to use that to create a reference set of tags.

I  cut off part of the package, hole punched it and put it on a binder ring.

I love my new marker storage and the fact

there is plenty of room to grow my marker collection.

And of course, the cute pink polka dot case makes me happy too ! 

Hoppy Easter Everyone

From our family to yours,

We are wishing all of you

A wonderful Easter today full of love,

family, friends and of course, Bunny activities !

Fun Post It Note Holders

I made some fun post it note holders for a few gifts for friends recently.  They were so easy to make but a very useful gift too.  Wanted to share now since with Graduations, End of Year Teacher Gifts, Mother's Day and Father's Day coming up it might spark some creativity in you !

This is a 4X6 Acrylic photo frame I found at the craft store.

I cut a pretty piece of scrapbook paper to fit inside instead

of placing a photo. It also holds a post it note pad that I used

double sided tape on the back to make sure it held well.

And there is even a pen attached to the frame

for fast note taking.  I hate it when I can't find a pen, don't you?

I added the pen by using sticky backed Velcro

I cut into thin pieces to fit on the pen, then the opposite

side on the frame. Works great!.

To embellish the frame, made a Monogram

with the receivers initial using a

rhinestone sticker alpha on a punched

piece of cardstock, then layered on top

of some stacked flowers.

I also added some crinkle ribbon tied in a

bow to the top of the frame for some added pizzaz !

The front of the ribbon is on the outside of the frame but

the backside of the ribbon is actually placed inside

the back of the frame to help hold it in place.

Hope this easy project inspires you to come up with a cute, inexpensive but useful gift for

your upcoming gift giving occassions !