the Paper Crafting Diva designs

getting behind

2010-12-19T17:05:00.004-05:00

I've been pretty busy the last month working on new stuff every day for my Etsy store. I've uploaded several minis, some really cute gingerbread men, snowmen and bears. They are already starting to sell! I am very excited about that, I sure can use the extra money.

I don't have any extra money so I will be making my Christmas gifts this year. I am thinking of making my daughter some soap and candles. If I make them for her, I'll have extras to sell on Etsy. My grand daughter is 5 and loves to scrapbook with me. I am going to put together a scrapbook kit for her. For my son in law I am making a scrapbook for showing his tractors to his friends. I am not sure at all how I am going to do that one. I've never made a scrapbook for a guy. I am thinking maybe a small photo album with a new cover with a few tractor themed pages in with the empty photo sleeves. I am giving my son a set of sheets that I bought on clearance last year. I was going to use them on my bed this winter but I gave it to him for his apartment and the sheets won't fit the

one I have now.
God bless you and I will try to update more often.

vintage lady tag

2010-11-22T21:12:00.002-05:00

I made this tag for my new mini.

Wow, it has been a long time since I updated this blog!

2010-11-19T16:26:00.003-05:00

Well too much has happened in my life to even go into that. But I have been really busy lately working on my new business, the Paper Crafting Diva designs. Here are some minis I have on ebay they will be ending next week.

Still not feeling creative

2008-03-23T15:48:00.009-04:00

I am still in a creative slump. I did manage to make a couple cards that I needed to get in the mail. The first one is CTMH products and the second is SU stamps. I copied it from one I saw on Split Coast Stampers.

I have been doing some knitting and crochet. I've made four afghans and a few dishcloths. I've also made some layouts to sell on Etsy or Ebay. Most of them are partially completed because I scrap with friends on Friday nights and don't want to take along all the embellishments I need. I've probably got about 30-40 pages that just need finishing touches. I just don't feel like working on them at home. My personal life is a total disaster right now and it is taking a toll on me emotionally.

It's been a while...

2008-02-27T17:25:00.004-05:00

I haven't posted in what seems like forever. My creativity level is about zero right now. The only creative thing that I have done is made a few layouts to sell on Etsy but I haven't scanned them yet.

In January my personal life came crashing down around me, everything changed in a matter of a few short days. What I thought was my life was really just a fairytale/nightmare depending on how you look at it. Now, I am struggling to slowly pick up the pieces. The soonest I could expect to return to a "normal" life would be about three months. But even then my life will never be the same, I have to create a whole new "normal" life for myself.

I've been struggling with my fibro and arthritis and will be glad when winter is over. The cold really makes my bones ache. I am still having lots of sleep problems and finally going to have a sleep study done. I've started doing Weight Watchers again and this time I will succeed. It would be so much easier to deal with my fibro and arthritis if I could loose the excess weight. I've been doing it for two weeks and have lost three pounds. I know that isn't a great loss but at least it is a loss. My doctor is finally going to test me to try to find out why I can't loose weight. I've had my thyroid tested so many times I can't remember but it always comes back normal. Now I am going to have a free cortisol test done. Maybe that will provide us with some answers.

That is about all I have to say for now. Until next time God bless.

Altered book

2007-12-29T23:32:00.001-05:00

I finally finished my first altered book. I've been working on it off and on for a couple months. Last night I worked on it at my weekly crop then I finished it this afternoon. I used a kids board book from the Dollar Tree. First I peeled off the shiny pages and I was left with a rough board book. I glued the pages together in groups of two for the cover, first page and back cover. Then I cut an ATC size hole through the remaining pages except the last one to make a niche, gluing them after they were all cut. I collaged all the pages then used lots of distress ink on them. I made two pockets that hold tags and one that holds an old letter I cut from a clip art book and aged. I used photos from my personal collection, collage kits and the web. For the embellishments I used buttons, stickers, a poker chip, brads, photo turns, beads, fibers, a metal key, Grungeboard, a tea bag and micro beads. Click on the pictures for a better look.

Here are the tags

Here is a close up of the beaded sticker from page three.

I made a bunch of ATCs last weekend and with the Christmas preparations, I didn't get a chance to upload them.

We had a good Christmas, I cooked a big dinner and Bob's dad came over to eat with us. I got a laser printer and can't wait until I get it set up. I need to make room for it first and get a USB cord. I'll probably do that tomorrow after church. My birthday was Thursday and Jessica took me out for lunch then Chris took me out for dinner. Chris's girlfriend, Liz, got me An Officer and A Gentleman - my all time favorite movie! So my birthday went pretty good too except that Bob didn't get me anything. Well, it is getting late and I'd better go try to get some sleep so I can make it to church tomorrow. Until next time, God bless.

My first inchies and lots of new ATCs

2007-12-19T15:30:00.001-05:00

I've been wanting to try making inchies for a while and finally signed up for a swap. Here are my Christmas inchies.
They were super simple to do because I used images from ArtChix, all I had to do was cut them out and mount on cardstock. I added a word and rubbed on some Stickles. Here are my newest ATCs all of them are for swaps on Swap-bot.

I used magazine pictures, Tim Holtz words and gold stickers on these. Next are some made using stickers. I've had these floral stickers for quite some time. But never thought of a way to use them. I also rubbed a little Stickles on these.
These were made using Tim Holtz stamps, gold stickers and a script background stamp.
The last four cards are for a 5 partner swap. I need 10 cards and have 5 ready.

ATCs and lots of rambling...

2007-12-13T00:11:00.001-05:00

Here are a few ATCs that I made last week. They are all pocket ATCs for Swap-bot. The first one is a pocket watch ATC.
I stamped and embossed the watch image then added a page pebble for the face. I used an old necklace and some jump rings to make the chain. I used the sewing machine around the pocket and added some snaps. The next two are lovely ladies. In the pockets are tags that say something I made up about the lady.

This past weekend was no fun at all! Saturday I decided to get ready for the Christmas tree. Our living room is pretty full of furniture so I have to re-arrange to make room. I had to move a chair and small bookcase. Then I decided as long as I was moving things around, I should really do some detailed dusting. The bookcase is home to part of my Liberty Falls collection. There is about twenty houses and lots of tiny people on two of the shelves. So I took them all off and gave them a good cleaning. I only do that about one or two times a year because it is such a pain. So I got the stuff moved then decided to sort/organize Allison's toys a little - they take over the room if I don't try to control them once in a while. Next I decided I needed to do something with my yarn. It was kind of out of control too. I put some in a big basket and the rest in an old hatbox so now it looks lots nicer. Last I decided to do the rest of the weekly cleaning that I didn't do on Friday. That includes dusting, vaccumming, and cleaning the bathroom. By the time I was done, it was pretty late and I was of course in lots of pain even though I took lots of breaks and sat down to work when I could. I didn't get any sleep Saturday night. I had taken my sleeping pill and was still up until some time between four and five. Then of course, I couldn't get up for church. I tried but my body just didn't cooperate. I got up around noon and was still pretty sore and had a good head ache. We went a got a tree and Bob put it up.

Now Bob and Chris go deer hunting every year but haven't managed to shoot anything for quite a few years. Saturday, Bob shot a deer. I thought no big deal, he always takes it somewhere to be proccessed. Not this year, he decided we could do it - wonderful. I was already feeling crappy from over-doing Saturday I sure didn't need this. He decided he wanted to can some of it. I haven't canned anything since I started working full time twelve years ago. I could not find the seal for the pressure canner, and he got mad about that. I also couldn't find the cord for the grinder. I ordered a new seal and it should be in the mail tomorrow - I hope. Any way, I told him we could cut the meat up and freeze it and when the seal comes I will can it (just what I really want to do, oh yeah). He cut the meat from the bones and I chunked it. We did part of it then I went to WalMart to pick up a new grinder (the other one was ancient anyway)and some sausage to mix with the ground meat. When I got back we finished up. By the time we were done, my hands were so numb I could not feel the knife any more. I didn't go to Bible study for two reasons, one we weren't done yet and that wouldn't have went over well and two I was just hurting too bad any way. Another wonderful day of pain and another sleepless night.

Monday, Allison was here at about 6:30 and of course I didn't want to get up. Luckily Chris was home and he kept an eye on her until I was able to get up and moving around. Well not exactly moving around much, my hands were swollen and sore and I ached all over and all I wanted to do was sleep all day. Tuesday morning wasn't much better but as the day went on I didn't feel too bad then...

Since I was feeling somewhat better I figured I should do something with the naked tree. I got the lights on but then I dropped four/broke three ornaments and decided to quit. I spent Wednesday shopping about an hour from home. I really dislike shopping. With fibro and arthritis it is just not fun any more. The drive is awful, my hands and some times feet go numb from driving and I usually get fatigued after about half hour or so. But, locally we don't have much to choose from so off we went - Chris and I. First we went to the mall and had some lunch. Then walked around a little looked at where Santa sits and decided that Allison would like their "North Pole" way more than the one at our mall. We only shopped at one store. I was hurting pretty bad so that was it for the mall and the main reason we were there was for Toys R Us. It isn't in the mall so I needed to save some walking strength for there. I managed to walk around and pick up her toys. The pain was getting pretty bad but I still had two more stops to make. I needed some gifts for my scrapping friends so I had to stop at a scrapbook store. There isn't one where I live so I need to visit them as I see them. Luckily it was a small store but that made it difficult to find nice gifts that I could afford. I managed to choose something for each one. There was one more store that I really wanted to go to, I only go that way once or twice a year so I had to stop there too. It is a craft store and I really should have stayed out of it! I spent way too much, all on myself too. So now here I am, not asleep when I should be and in pain again. I guess that is about all the rambling I have in me for tonight. I need to get some meds. and try to sleep. Hopefully I will be able to finish the tree and other decorating today.

Until next time, God bless.

ATCs...

2007-12-09T00:45:00.000-05:00

I made a few new ATCs Friday night. There was one more vintage Santa. A second card in the elephant series. I used the same elephants and just placed them a little differently.
And last is a bird ATC. For this one the background was downloaded from Lisa Vollrath's holiday countdown last year. I spritzed it with some watered down CTMH sand re-inker mixed Perfect Pearls. The bird is from a magazine. The last thing that I had ready to scan is a piece of embossed Pepsi can. I stamped on the back with Staz-on then embossed it. I coated it with black paint, let dry then rubbed some off. I also made eight tags but they all need just a little more work before I scan them.

I spent Saturday cleaning and getting ready to decorate for Christmas. Our living room is pretty full of furniture and Allison's toys so I had to do some re-arranging for the tree. I also decided to get my yarn stash organized. Most of the skeins were in a box behind a chair. I put some in a large basket and I found a big hatbox that I put the rest in. It looks lots better than it did. I am hurting pretty bad now from all the moving and cleaning. I took frequent breaks but still overdid it for the day. I hope I have the energy to get the decorating done.I hope to get started after church. I want to put up a real tree in the living room and an 6' artificial in the dining room. I also have two 4', one for the living room on the radiator and one for the kitchen radiator. Then I have a 3' for at the top of the stairs. The smaller trees are already decorated. Last year I hot glued everything on. I got that idea when I was working at Michaels from the floral designers. I just tied a garbage bag over them and took them to the attic. What a nifty idea! If it gets warm again, I think I'll try to hang some lights outside. I haven't had any up for several years but Allison will like to see them so I'll give it a try.

Well, I guess I'd better try to get some sleep or I won't want to get up for church or do any of the decorating later. Until next time, God bless.

lost ATCs :(

2007-12-07T14:00:00.000-05:00

Apparently a set of my vintage Christmas ATCs got lost in the mail. Now my perfect rating at Swap-bot is tarnished :( I mailed the swap to several partners all in the same day in mid November and all but one received them. I just finished a replacement set and am sending them along with the blue tag I made yesterday in hopes that she will accept them and change the rating. This is the first time I've ever had a swap get lost in the mail. Actually it is only the second thing that I have ever mailed that was not received. The other thing was a set of stamps that I sold on EBay. I mailed two sets out the same day and only one was received. That was an expensive lesson for me - always get delivery confirmation on EBay sales. Funny thing, I had my return address on both items and nothing came back to me. Well, here are the two replacement ATCs.
I sure hope she likes them. Oh, I tried the technique on Tim's blog for the background on these. I liked it but I think too much embossing powder stuck to the paper. I will be working on this technique more.

One more for tonight

2007-12-07T01:49:00.000-05:00

I should have been in bed long ago but it is another sleepless night. I took my sleeping pill about an hour ago and I think it is starting to kick in. While I was waiting, I decided to catch up on my tags for The Artist Circle group. I used an acrylic wash for the first set.
The next set was done with distress ink. I rubbed the green inkpad on waxed paper and dropped some water on it. Then I smooshed the tag over the ink. The Blue tag was done direct to paper, I just rubbed the ink pad over the tag. And the red was done with a foam brush - my favorite wat to use distress ink. I also added some soot ink to the edges.
The last set was marbled using the shaving cream technique. Was that ever a fun technique! I went on a mini marbling spree. I also did some tags that were not coffee dyed, and ten ATC backgrounds. I could have done more if I wasn't getting tired. Here they are. That really is all for tonight, I am off to lullaby land - or nighmare land as is more common for me. Until next time, God bless.

Christmas tag

2007-12-06T23:43:00.000-05:00

I am a big fan of Tim Holtz and have been following his blog. He is demonstrating some techniques using tags for the first 12 days of December. I finally got around to trying one of the projects. I had the most important stuff he used for this technique already and then improvised what I didn't have. So far this the only technique that I had all the important stuff for. The technique uses alcohol ink, alcohol blending solution and glossy card stock. He also used some cool stamps, beaded ribbon and Heidi Swapp ghost snowflakes. I don't have any of those so I used fiber, ribbon, brads. stickles and a piece of plastic packaging. Here is my tag, I am not fond of the stamp and I think I wish I wouldn't have used the Stickles. I don't have any of the beaded ribbon (I want some now though)so I used some fiber and ribbon to make my own trim. I ran a line of adhesive along the bottom of the tag then put three rows of fiber down and a piece of inked ribbon. Then I just added brads on top. The only choices I have for local shopping are JoAnn and Michaels. Neither have Heidi Swapp stuff. I have never seen the ghost stuff in person. But it just looked like clear plastic die cuts to me. I figured I'd try to make my own ghost snowflake. I have some grungeboard that I hadn't played with or even opened yet. The package is pretty big so I opened it, and cut off a hunk of plastic that was the size of a Sizzlet snowflake die. I used my Cuttlebug to try to cut the plastic but instead I got a nice embossed snowflake on clear plastic. I ran it through four times too. So I used my Cropadile to punch the circles, Exacto knife to cut the inside parts and scissors around the outside. It was more work that I wanted to do but I think it came out pretty good. From there I just followed what Tim did his snowflakes. I think if I had a Sizzix die I would have been able to cut the plastic. I am going tomorrow to look for one and to get more alcohol inks and some of that beaded ribbon. I had lots of fun making this tag but it took a very long time. It was the first time I had used the alcohol inks that I bought over a year ago. Now that I've done the technique, I am sure next time it will go much faster. I always do things slow the first time around. The only problem I had was when I first made the background it was too dark. I tried stamping on it with archival and Stazon inks and neither looked good so I erased it with the blending solution - how cool is that! I ended up using lots more blending solution to lighten the paper and when I tried stamping again it came out much better. That's about it for now.

Don't worry too much about what lies ahead. Go as far as you can see, and when you get there, you can see farther. Until next time, God bless.

More ATCs!

2007-12-03T22:58:00.001-05:00

I made several more ATCs over the weekend. The first are a few hand-drawn. Be gentle, I am new at drawing.

Next are some using photo stamps from The Stampsmith. I am still trying to get the "perfect" image from these stamps. They are kind of hard to work with. I used glossy cardstock, Ancient Page and Archival inks this time.
The next three were made using pages from an old book, images from Pennywise and some SU stamps.

Last are two for Swap-bot. Both were made using images from the web.
Other than the ATCs I've been trying to finish a prayer shawl that I started knitting in the spring. My hands go numb after about two rows so it is slow going now. I only have about five more inches to knit and it will be done. I really want to make some socks. I've got the yarn and I found some crochet patterns earlier this evening so I might try one tomorrow. I tried to knit some socks last year but it just didn't work for me. I haven't tried crocheting since my hands started going numb. I am sure it will be slow going also. Even typing is getting to be hard some times. My fingers just started numbing and I haven't typed much at all in this post. Well I'd better go before I can't feel the keyboard. It's time to try to sleep any way. I've been pretty tired all day, I could have slept all day if Allison wasn't here. With fibro. it's always either not enough or too much sleep, no happy medium for me. Until next time, God bless.
PUSH - Pray Until Something Happens

New artwork - lots of ATCs and a circle page

2007-11-30T12:52:00.000-05:00

I just finished the last of my November ATCs for swaps and before I get started on December I figured I'd go ahead and post them. The first is an elephant ATC. I found both pictures on the web and the background is a page from an old book. I picked up a box at an auction a few weeks ago.Next are the four seasons ATCs. The background is a dictionary page. The images are from a magazine ad selling artwork. I used the packaging tape transfer method on them.

The next four are for a swap on a Yahoo Group.

Last is a circle page for Swap-bot.I used several Christmas themed papers to collage the background. Next I used Distress Ink. The wood Santa was aged with walnut ink.

Hostess gift...

2007-11-28T23:49:00.000-05:00

I had a gathering Monday night. I altered a mini composition book for the hostess and door prize. This was such a cute, quick, cheap gift. The books were either 4 or 6 in a pack at the Dollar Tree. I used 2 sheets of B&T paper and a couple Connections Club gems. So here they are, I also included a 1x1 stamp with each.I didn't get the cards we made scanned yet. That is on my list for tomorrow.

I've been working all week on a Christmas circle book swap. I finally got it finished tonight. I'll get it scanned and posted tomorrow too. I have some pages listed on Ebay. They both took so long to make, lots of details.
I don't have to babysit again until Monday. I plan on getting some major work done this weekend in my craft room. I need to make a few ATCs first then get busy on the scrapbook that I am making for Ebay. I have the basic layouts done but I want to sew on all of them. Then I need to add the details, that is the hardest part. I have to come up with titles and make some paper piecings and/or tear bears. I also have another layout that is almost done to sell. I really need to get my butt in gear with this or I won't have any money for Christmas. I have stuff to make bath gel, lotion and incense and candles for Etsy but don't feel like doing it. Those are quick things to make. I probably should start with them then work on the scrapbook. It would only take a few hours to get done. Oh well, I guess I'd better try to get some sleep or I can forget about getting anything done tomorrow.
Until next time, God bless

Need a bigger craft room!

2007-11-18T17:17:00.000-05:00

OK, I think my room is packed as full as I can get it. The problem is that I still have two big totes, two boxes and a XXL scrapbook tote full of stuff that needs put away! I think it is time to unload some stuff on Ebay. I've already sold several boxes of scrapbooking supplies. I need Christmas money any way so now is a good time to get selling. I have five layouts that need to be listed too. Here is what my room looks like now.

New artwork and a wee bit of rambling...

2007-11-17T23:26:00.000-05:00

I must really be losing it because I made three of the six cards I needed for the phonebook background swap and lost them. I looked everywhere for those dang cards. So yesterday I just decided to make three more and when I found the others I could swap them. I made three cards last night then my work table started to collapse so I was done for the night. Yep, you read that right my table was collapsing on me. I guess I had too much weight on it, who would have thought. I only had all my CTMH stamp pads, a shoebox full of paint, six mini crates and a few small baskets full of assorted art supplies - OK I knew I was pushing it. It was a cheap craft table so I got my money's worth of use from it. The first thing I did was grab my Wishblade from underneath. I sure can't afford to replace that now. Next I took everything else off and put it on the counters. Then I went to bed, after all it was 2 AM what the heck was I still doing up any way? Didn't get to sleep until around 3:30. First thing this morning I moved all the stuff that was on my craft room floor to the spare bedroom so I could bring a banquet table we had in the garage in. It fits and I can have four students in my room now which is cool. So starting in January I am going to offer week night workshops along with the weekend ones.

After a much needed nap, I started moving stuff back in here. I got all my stamping stuff put away and cleaned out all my cupboards - hoping to create some more room. I did manage to clear off a couple shelves in one cupboard. That's better than nothing. I only worked for about an hour because I am in plenty of pain from the work this morning. Mostly I just sat in my desk chair looking around and trying to figure out what to do with everything. I have a Scraprack that took up a table that is a little bigger than a card table. That table won't fit anymore so I need to decide what to do with it. If I do some major rearranging on my counters I may be able to squeeze in the Scraprack but then I'd have to figure out what to do with all my Sizzix stuff. I guess that won't work, I'd just be creating another problem. I had several boxes of supplies under both the work table and the Scraprack table so all that now needs new home. I have no clue what to do with all this stuff! Looking around right now, all my shelf space is full. The only thing I can think of is adding more shelves but there isn't really much wall space that can be shelved left either. I could probably add another four foot section with two shelves and that would be about it. I can put lots of stuff on a four foot section though so it would help. Maybe if I ask real nice Bob will put up the shelves. What I really need is a bigger room but, that won't happen any time soon.

After I decided that I'd had enough work for the day, I thought I'd play just a little. I've been wanting to do some stamping on dominoes but couldn't find the Staz-on. I found it today when I was putting away my stamping stuff. I stamped a few dominoes and will color them later. I got an order from Pennywise earlier this week and there was a free project in the package so I figured I'd do it next. It is a beaded slide mount. It was so much fun to make and I am LOVING these tiny beads! I have used the micro beads before for shakers but not for covering anything. I stamped a floral pattern on the slide mount, colored it with chalk and then the beads. I put put a pretty lady in the frame from a collage sheet - also from Pennywise. Here it is. OK so here is my bit of humor for the day... When I went to scan the ATCs from last night and the slide mount, guess what was in my scanner? The missing ATCs! I am so scatterbrained sometimes I scare myself. So now I have all six cards I need for the swap and three extra backgrounds for later. At least now they are nice and flat. I left the new ones in there to flatten too - but I will remember where they are this time lol. Here are the cards from last night.

Well, my neck and back are really hurting so I guess I'll go soak in the tub a while, rub on some Icy Hot and try to get some sleep. Until next time - God bless.

Wow...

2007-11-09T12:19:00.000-05:00

I can't believe that I haven't Blogged in so long! Nothing too exciting has been happening around here. I did go with friends to crop in Ohio last weekend. It was lots of fun, there were so many scrapbook stores in the area! We don't even have any that are nearer than a hour away so we were all in awe. We shopped at four stores that were all within about 15-20 min. of each other and there were still more to go to. But, we were all broke so four was enough for us. I worked on pages to sell all weekend. I need to get some cash together for Christmas so it is time to get serious with Ebay and Etsy. Of course I'd love to get in a few CTMH Home Gatherings too.

Here are some recent ATCs that I realized I hadn't posted yet. I will be taking pictures of my Ebay stuff this weekend and will also post them here.

More Christmas ATCs

2007-10-13T00:28:00.001-04:00

This is the last set of ATCs for my current swaps on Swap-bot. I'll be checking my Yahoo groups tomorrow for more. I made them the same way as the vintage tags.

More gluebook pages

2007-10-11T19:26:00.001-04:00

Wow, this gluebook thing is addictive! I did three more pages today. The first is called Child at heart. I started with the elderly couple and the lady already had the child's face. I thought it was the great beginning for a collage. All I had to do was add the title words. The idea for the second page came from the Yahoo Gluebooks group daily prompt. Today's prompt was crisp. At first I was thinking of crisp food then the idea that a autumn day is crisp came to me and I liked it better. Last is a page about some of the symptoms myself and so many other people who have fibromyalgia have to deal with. I found the scupture picture first and the page came together from there. I love the ease of expressing myself through my gluebook journal. I can just look through a magazine and soon enough a picture will catch my eye that has some kind of meaning to me. All I need is a few magazines, scissors and some glue and I am a happy artist :)

New artwork - gluebook page

2007-10-10T22:55:00.000-04:00

I started a new art journal today, it is a gluebook. Basically, a gluebook is a collage journal. You just glue things to the pages. Everyday things like magazine clippings, tickets, flyers, receipts, newspaper clippings - anything that appeals to you. I searched around and found a couple old magazines that I felt I could cut up - I can't bring myself to cut up any of my scrapbooking, stamping or art magazines but I did find a few travel magazines. I came up with this quick collage for my first page.
It was really fun to do. First I saw the old man with the camera and thought he needed to go on a page. Then I found the lady's legs and thought that is what he was taking a picture of. I just couldn't seem to get him positioned on the page so that he was looking at her. So I cut around her leg, then he could slip in behind her. I think he looks quite natural there,in front of the moon watch and behind the leg. I found the title and other words and thought they'd just fit perfect to describe what was happening on the page. I thought the page was done until I found the guy peeking in from the edge of the paper and he just had to be glued on too.

On another note, I had a doctor appointment Monday afternoon for Social Security Disability. I think it went well but I guess I will have to wait for the decision to say for sure. I have been having terrible headaches for a couple weeks now so I tried using Head On - yeah I know you hate the commercial right but guess what, it helps the pain. Other than that, I have been really tired every day for the past two weeks. All I want to do is sleep, good for the night but not so good for the day. Last week I didn't have Allison so it wasn't too bad, I could sleep as much as I wanted to. But this week, I have her Mon, Tues, Thurs and Fri. How can you sleep with a 2 year old to keep track of? It is so hard to stay awake some times so I've been spending more time reading to her and working on my art during the day than usual this week. I have the most trouble when she wants to watch TV, that's when I could drift right off before I know it. This afternoon, I was working on some handmade postcards - my first. I was using the Gamasol technique on one and my dang hand kept going numb. This is a brand new fibro occurrence for me, it started about a month ago. My feet have been doing it for about a year now. Speaking of the postcards, here they are

The first one was made with CTMH stamps, then I colored it using the Gamasol technique. I was going to do all three that way but when my hand was going numb I decided that was not such a good idea. So instead, I used Karen Foster paper for the background edged with Tim Holtz distress ink. Then I tore out a vintage Halloween card scan, inked it and glued it on top. I think they all look good, I sure hope the recipients like them too.

vintage Christmas tags

2007-10-09T22:13:00.000-04:00

I made these Christmas tags for a swap on Swap-bot.
First I inked the tags with Tim Holtz distress ink.
Then I printed scans of vintage postcards on photo papers, mounted them on distressed Christmas patterned paper then on the tag.
Last, I added some gold ribbon and stamped to/from on the back.

I also made these ATCs for a swap called random letters. I just used up the extra letters from several sets.

New artwork - my first CTMH ATCs! and of course lots of rambling...

2007-10-06T10:51:00.000-04:00

OK, so I went scrapbooking last night but I didn't do any scrapping. Instead I made ATCs. Just in case you don't know what ATCs are, they are artists trading cards - cards that are 2.5" x 3.5" and you trade them with other artists. I trade over the internet because I haven't found any local trading partners but someday I'd love to meet other ATC artists and do some live trading. ATCs can me be made using any medium, the only two rules are the size and you must trade them - not sell them. I made seven ATCs. They are all for trades on Swapbot. I also made an altered notebook for another Swapbot swap. It is intended to keep Chrismas lists in. I haven't decided if I should divide the book into two sections - one for shopping lists and one for cards. I was thinking it would be cute to do that and put little tabs on the side. I made one greeting card too.

I used CTMH products on all of these.

These last four ATCs were made from Valentines Day cards, slab paper - sorry I can't remember what slab it came from and penwork. I added just a touch of glitter to them too.

I made this set of Christmas cards and a mini Christmas scrapbook for upcoming workshops. The mini book was made using a workshop template designed by another CTMH consultant. The only thing I changed was the binding of the book. I used my Bind-it-All instead of purchasing a scrapbook. I designed the workshop template for the card set.

All CTMH products

And on to the rambling...
I got home last night around 1 AM and of course couldn't go to sleep right away. So I turned on the TV and saw that one of my all time favorite movies was on - An Officer and A Gentleman. Gotta love Richard Gere! Of course I had to watch it, I figured as soon as it was over I could go to sleep... Wrong!! I still couldn't sleep so I watched The Jeffersons then Good Times... after they were over I turned off the tv figuring surely I could go to sleep... Wrong again! It was around 5 AM when I finally drifted off for some of my normal half asleep half awake dream time. I heard Bob and Chris at around 8:30 and tried to ignore them so I could sleep more. I did drift back off until about 9:30 when Bob decided to come in the bedroom and watch tv. Seems he decided that he got up too early this morning and wanted to take a little nap. Of course he had the tv up too loud so I threw a pillow over my head hoping I could sleep some more. No such luck I could still hear the tv so I got up at about 10. Now of course, I am even more tired then my usual fatigue. I've had the worse heartburn for the last three days and woke up with it again this morning. I don't know what's up with that but I am getting real tired of eating Tums. YUCK

I think I will go to JoAnn today to see if there is anything I can't live without this week - gotta use that coupon ya know :) I do want to get a new punch but I am not sure if they carry it. After that I think I will make some more ATCs or maybe alter something else. I've been collecting stuff to alter and really should start working on some. Or maybe, I should get some candles poured or mix up a batch of soap. I planned to do both this week since I didn't have to babsit but of course did neither. Instead, I slept late and then just puttered around the house all week. What a waste of time! I wanted to get some stuff ready to upload to my Etsy store and a few Ebay auctions going because I have two crops coming up and need the cash to go. If I get something altered then I can put it in the Etsy store - that is if I can bear to part with it. I'ts so hard to sell something that you've put your heart into. I also need to get some jewelry made. I got some nice beads last week and haven't even touched them yet - OK well I did open the package, look at them and decide that I didn't feel like beading. I have one necklace and a matching bracelet ready to go. I just need to take some pictures and write up a description. I also have some lotion and bath gel that is ready to go. I just need to print some labels, take pictures and write them up. If only I wasn't such a procratinator maybe I'd get some of this stuff done...

Well enough rambling for today, I am off to get ready to go to JoAnn. Until next time, God bless!

Home party expo and some rambling...

2007-10-01T21:40:00.000-04:00

The expo started Friday and ran all weekend. I was there 8am-9pm Friday and Saturday. Sunday the mall opens at 11 but I didn't go until after church, I was there until 5pm. I had a total of four people buy from me. Two have bought before, one I knew and one stranger. I did not get any bookings. Lots of people liked my work, a few wanted to buy my cards and some took my newsletter and business card. I hope to hear from them. I can't say that it was a total flop until I see if anyone contacts me who took my info. I have to admit that physically the weekend took a toll on me. It will probably take me all week to recover. I am so exhausted today and have a terrible head ache. I hope I sleep tonight, I haven't slept good the last couple nights. I did get a few hours of sleep this morning. Tomorrow, I don't have to get up for anything so I am planning to rest most of the day. But if I do get an energy spurt, I need to go grocery shopping. Well, I am going to end this now because my head is throbbing so bad. Until next time, God bless.

Been busy

2007-09-25T23:03:00.000-04:00

I've been busy getting ready for the home party expo at the local mall this weekend. I have one more display board to make up. I need to finish my October newsletter so I can have it available. I want to print up some flyers for on my tables. I have several free make and takes planned. I have some of them ready but still need to cut a few. I am working hard to make this weekend a success. I would really like to get some sales and bookings out of it. I really need to expand my customer base. Gotta go now, it's late.

Until next time, God bless!

Zoo Fun

2007-09-20T10:09:00.000-04:00

This is my son and his girlfriend at the Pittsburgh Zoo this spring.

All CTMH products:

Expedition Level 2 Paper Pack
My Accents Autumn Terracotta
Natural Hemp
Coluzzle File Folder
Imagine (the fabulous new CTMH layout book)

Inks:
Olive
Autumn Terracotta
Desert Sand

Stamp sets:
Safari
Nature Walk
Rustic Alphabet
Adventure
Sans Small Caps

Another sleepless night...

2007-09-20T01:41:00.000-04:00

Here it is almost 2AM, why am I still up? This dang fibro. I wish I could get something to make me feel better. I take a muscle relaxer at night it is supposed to help me sleep but it doesn't work most nights. When I do fall asleep, my mind stays active all night. I wake up frequently and have vivid sometimes very scary dreams. At least I got some scrapping done tonight while I was waiting to feel tired. I did a zoo layout that I am pretty happy with. I'll scan it tomorrow. I used the Expedition Level 2 paper. I really like the color combination for this set. I am going to start going to a new church. I've visited a few times with one of my cropping friends and feel that I need a change. I am meeting with the pastor tomorrow because I have a few questions. Then my friend and I are going out to lunch. I hope I am not too tired after being up so late because when I get home, I have to do some major stamping. I have a table at the home party expo. at our local mall next weekend. I am working on making display boards with several paper packets and stamp sets to show how versatile CTMH products are. I'd also like to have samples ready for my upcoming workshops. I have them planned but no samples made up yet. I don't have Allison again until Monday so I should be able to get lots of work done this weekend. Oh well, I guess that is enough rambling for tonight. God bless

Found the lost cards!

2007-09-03T16:08:00.000-04:00

I found the cards I made last week and got them scanned again. I also reformatted my desktop but lost most of my stuff that was on it. :( Now I have to reinstall all my programs, what a pain. Oh well, here are the cards. I used the CTMH Christmas Magic stamp set,CTMH colored pencils, cardstock and inks.

Did August fly by or what?

2007-08-31T20:10:00.000-04:00

I can't believe August is over already. I didn't get any scrapping done at all this month. I've been off my diet all month too. August was pretty bad all around for me. Hopefully September will be better.

The county fair was this week. I went Wednesday night to see Trent Tomlinson, an new country star. Every song he sang was about drinking. OK, so I know lots of country songs are about drinking but not all of them. He also sang a few rock songs, if I wanted to hear rock I'd go see a rock star. Overall, I didn't think he was very good. It was the first time I didn't stay for an entire show. Today Jessica and I took Allison to see the animals. She loved everything but the chickens. They scared her for some reason. I think it was all the roosters that kept crowing that did it. Tomorrow is the demo derby, that's my all time favorite event to attend. I haven't been able to go for at least four years because I could never get the day off work. Now that I am not working, I get to do so many things that I missed out on.

Last Friday, I did make some 3x3 cards using the Christmas Magic set. I scanned them on my desktop but didn't get them uploaded. Since then, the desktop has died and needs to go for repairs. Now I can't find the cards. I cleaned my scraproom and lost them in the process. So I can't upload them until I figure out where I put them. Right now I haven't got a clue. Dang fibro, it messes with my memory way too much. Good thing I have my laptop so at least I can still do what I need to. I use my computer daily and would be lost without it. I need to make my September newsletter. I've been using MS Publisher for it but will have to figure out something else for this month since it is not installed on the laptop. I installed my scanner so I could upload this random stamped paper I made using the modern grid technique. The stamp set is the August Stamp of the Month - Free Spirit. And the ink colors are Bamboo, Chocolate, Crystal Blue, Honey and black for the lines and dots.

Until next time God bless!

Cards and stuff

2007-08-15T20:45:00.000-04:00

I had three birthdays this week to make cards for.I used all CTMH products.
The first card was for my brother.
In the Wild
Nature Walk
Wild Thing
Spunky Greetings

Next is one for my mom
Spunky Greetings
Seed Packets

The last birthday card was for my father-in-law.
Spunky Greetings
New Horizons
Majestic Blue Level 2 Paper Packet
Chocolate Waxy Flax
Pewter Brads

I had time for one last card and decided to start some for Thanksgiving. To make the grid pattern on the autumn terracotta cardstock, I used my embossing stylus and the straight edge of my paper trimmer to emboss it. Then I sanded the raised lines.
Give Thanks
Designer Ribbon Rounds Autumn Terracotta Collection
Pewter Brads

The diet has not been going so well the past two weeks. I have given into temptation and ate things that I shouldn't have. I managed to loose 1/2 lb. last week even with the cheats. This week is not looking very good so far. I went to the fair last night. Of course, I ate very tasty but not diet friendly food. I am going again tomorrow night. I don't think I will do much better.
This weekend I am going to Atlantic City, NJ with my mom, sisters and grandma. I probably won't do too good diet wise there either. But next week I will get myself back on track.

Until next time, God Bless!

Halloween cards

2007-08-04T14:02:00.000-04:00

I figured I'd better get some seasonal displays made so last night I made five Halloween cards.

I can't believe it!

2007-08-02T15:01:00.000-04:00

I am down four pounds already! This is my fourth day on Kimkins and I am totally stoked. I've never lost weight so quickly on any of the MANY diet plans that I have been on. I am so glad I found Kimkins.

Oh, I am planning an open house for the new CTMH Idea Book since there are so many new/exciting products to show off. I am working on the newsletter for August today and will be mailing them out tomorrow so if you are on my mailing list, be on the lookout for it.

God bless, until next time.

A fresh start

2007-08-01T22:46:00.000-04:00

I've decided to try a new low carb eating plan. This one is called Kimkins and many people have been doing great on it. Not only is Kimkins low carb but it is also low fat and low calories. I pray that this will be the plan that I will finally succeed on. I am on day four and have already lost 2.5 pounds.

I haven't done a bit of scrapping of stamping this week but I did start reorganizing my scraproom. I've got to make room for a table so I can have my classes there. Of course, no one has signed up for a class yet but I am hopeful that people will soon. I will be working on this project whenever I can this week. I will be scrapping and/or stamping this Friday though. I haven't been for the last two weeks and I miss my friends. Oh, I almost forgot my new CTMH Idea Book arrived today. There is lots of new product in it too! I am so excited, I can't wait until September when my customers can see it too.

Vacation woes

2007-07-29T21:53:00.000-04:00

We got back late last night. Over all vacation was good except for my pain, fibro and diet. The fibro kept me tired all day so I had to have my usual nap in the afternoon - precious wasted time. And walking the boardwalk, one of my favorite things was nearly impossible because of the arthritis. I remember only a couple years ago walking the boards end to end for exercise since I was missing my usual workouts. Now, just walking one mile took about 45 minutes and I had to ride back because my knees hurt so bad I wanted to scream. So I spent most of my days relaxing on the balcony looking down on the boardwalk or sitting on one of the benches on it. Evenings, I went down to the beach when the sun went down enough that I didn't need my umbrella. I wanted to carry as little with me as possible so I opted to go later in the day and just take my chair. I am pretty excited that I only got a very little bit of sun poisoning on top of my feet as opposed to all over my legs and feet every other year.

As for my diet... it went all to pot. I guess I should start in the beginning or at least the beginning of the current chapter of my weight struggles since I haven't really mentioned this aspect here yet. In 2003, I joined Weight Watchers and Curves For Women. I followed the WW plan to a T and went to the gym 3-4 times every week faithfully. At the end of nine months, I had lost a whopping 15 lbs. which was my 10% WW goal. I got my keychain and never went back. I was 127 lbs., about 30 lbs. from my goal weight. After that I tried The South Beach Diet and didn't loose anything in a month. Next came Atkins. I did Atkins for seven months and did not loose any weight. But I also did not gain any either. I maintained my previous loss but was not happy with it. That summer about a week after we got home from the beach, I had an episode that landed me in the hospital. It was a combination of dehydration, anxiety and who knows what else but that started me on a downslide. I went off Atkins and started gaining two lbs. a month. I continued on this trend and ended up at my maximum weight of 179 lbs. I am only 4'10" so of course I look just awful. And the more weight I put on the worse I felt inside. According to my doctor there is no physical reason for the gain and I am not in the habit of over-eating - really I know how to eat healthy and for the most part do so. I have been trying every eating plan, diet or drug I can afford during this time to stop this terrible trend to no avail. So a few months ago I started thinking about Atkins and how I felt when I did it before. I remember my nails and skin looked great, I had energy and generally felt great. Now my nails and skin are a mess along with the rest of my body, I am so tired all the time and have absolutely no energy - I pretty much feel like crap all the time. I do have health problems now that I didn't have before - arthritis in my knees, neck and back, and fibromyalgia. So any way, I decided to give Atkins another shot. Also I believe that some problems with weight are heriditary. My mom was morbidly obease and finally had to have gastric bypass. My battle is very similar to hers, she also tried everything and could not loose the weight. I am so afraid that it will get that bad for me some day too.

I started doing Atkins on June 1, 2007 eight weeks ago. I lost eight lbs. the first four weeks and not an ounce since then. I didn't have any more energy than usual either. Pretty crappy huh. Well, I don't give up easily so I kept trudging along until last week... vacation.

I was going to stick to Atkins on vacation. But on Saturday morning at breakfast I thought why am I doing this? I decided to eat what I wanted and now I am paying the piper - I gained back the eight lbs. I had lost. Not that I didn't fully expect to but I had hoped in the back of my mind that it wouldn't happen. So here I am trying to decide what to do next.

Do I start over again with Atkins or try something else??? What???? I've tried just about everything I've ever heard of and failed. I am so tired of trying so hard only to fail over and over again. And I do consider my loss while on Atkins this time to be a failure. After all, I did not loose at all the second month. I am going to have to give this some further thought. I probably won't even begin to try again until next month.

I probably won't be able to do any stamping or scrapping until later in the week. But, I am excited because I got a new storage system for my stamp pads and want to get that set up soon. I also got some new stamps and papers to play with too. The new Idea Book will be arriving at my door soon and I can hardly wait to see it. It doesn't go public until September 1 so I won't be able to share any details until then but like I said there are some great new products in there.

Well I guess I've rambled more than enough for today. Until next time - God bless!

Ready for vacation

2007-07-18T15:56:00.000-04:00

I've been busy today getting the laundry done up and making a packing list. Saturday we leave for our annual vaction in Ocean City, MD and I can't wait to get there! Tomorrow I don't have to babysit so I will do the errands that need done, clean the house and pay the bills :( Then on Friday I will try to load as much as I can by myself while dh and son are at work. I want to go scrapping Friday night and if I dont get the Explorer packed early I won't be able to go. I don't know how much I will be able to do myself with Allison here and my arthritis and fibro problems but I am going to give it my best shot. I am really going to miss Allison this year. Now that I spend almost every day with her it will be hard to be away a whole week. At least I can call her, she will talk on the phone now. I sure wish they would come along with us. There is room in the apartment we rent but my SIL doesn't like to go on vacation.

We stay in an apartment on the boardwalk near the pier. I love being right at the center of all the excitement. Hopefully the weather will be good this year. I found out last summer that the rash and hives I get every year while we are there is sun poisoning so this year my goal is not to get it. I usually try to tan but never do so this year, I just won't even try. My brother and his family are joining us this year. They aren't staying with us, I got them a hotel room on 13th and boardwalk. They have four kids that are quite a handful. Our apartment only sleeps six so we consider ourselves lucky that we could truthfully say they couldn't stay with us for that reason. Now, don't think I don't love my brother and his family but we do want some peace and quiet time too. With three boys 4, 3, and 2 quiet is not something they have much of. They also have a 7 month baby girl. So we will get to spend time together and also do our own thing. Some of the things I enjoy doing are crabbing, sitting on the beach (under my umbrella), miniature golf, treasure hunting with a metal detector and people watching on the boards.

More crop layouts

2007-07-17T11:33:00.000-04:00

Here are some of my favorite new pages I made for Allison's scrapbook.

Layouts from crop

2007-07-17T11:22:00.001-04:00

I got 30 pages done and scrapped a total of 111 pictures over the weekend. I had lots of fun. There were a couple new gals there and I gave them Idea Books. I even made a sale. I made this random stamped paper, she liked it so I showed her how I made it and she bought the stamps and some acrylic blocks.

Here are some pages from the scrapbook I made for my grandma's 80th birthday party. I used the Sonata Level 2 paper packet, the matching My Stickees and the Floral Delights stamp set.

Croppin' Fools

2007-07-15T02:56:00.000-04:00

I get together with a group of scrappers every Friday night. We met at the LSS before it closed last July and have been cropping in homes since then. We've named ourselves appropriately Croppin' Fools, with all the right tools

This weekend we are having our first annual weekend crop. We rented a meeting room at the local Comfort Inn from Friday to Sunday. We've been having a great time scrapping and just carrying on together. I've been getting lots of pages done and will post some here and all of them will be on my CTMH site. I've been out so late the past two nights, I'll probably pay for this all next week. I am sure my fibro. will act up but it is worth it to have so much fun with my friends. So far, I have completed a scrapbook of pictures from my grandma's 80th birthday and several layout of Allison. I also stamped some really nice random stamped background papers. I haven't done much of that but have decided that I will start to because they are so nice and it is a great way to incorporate more stamping in my scrapbooking.

Gotta run now. Remember when you go to your knees, God will help you stand up to anything.

Allison

2007-07-11T12:42:00.001-04:00

Here she is the current star of most of my photos and layouts our Grand-daughter Allison. She is two and keeps me busy most days because I babysit while our daughter and son in law are at work. I love to spend time with her but some days I just can't wait for nap time to get here :)

I love my flower garden!

2007-07-11T12:05:00.000-04:00

My garden is so beautiful this year. It is the first time that I've been able to tend it properly because I am not working any more. So I thought I'd share some photos of it.

I have to get ready for a weekend crop but I will try to get back later and upload some more of my art.

Cards

2007-07-10T22:44:00.000-04:00

Here are some cards I made recently. Everything is Close To My Heart.

For this one I used Playful Flourishes and Flower Girls.

Give Thanks and Moments (May Stamp Of The Month) card

More To Adore Level 2 Paper Packet and Adorable stamp set.

I used the Let's Get Together Level 2 Paper Packet and Delight in Everything stamp set for these cards.