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Monday, February 28, 2011

New Running Shoe Day

Today is new running shoe day! They were waiting outside the house when I got home from work today. Thanks, UPS man. I will try them out when I get back from my trip to Canada later this week. Check them out...they are hot pink! Well, kinda. I even have hot pink toes to match.

I hope the Travel Gods are on my side tomorrow. Anyone want to lend me some good travel juju for a few days? I'll give it back. Promise.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Just Run

9 AM: Oh, what a nice day outside! Great weather for running. I'll do that later.

12 PM: #$%* printer.

1 PM: Man, I'm stuffed from lunch. This sunny weather is awesome. Oh, look, Ginger is sleeping. I guess I could follow her example.

5 PM: ::groan:: I don't want to run outside. Blahhh. But the 8K is in 2 weeks. Crap. Ok. Sigh. Gear up and run.

For me, the fear of not finishing that race is enough motivation to go, so I did 4.85 miles around the neighborhood this afternoon as the sun was setting. New shoes should be waiting for me when I get home from work tomorrow, hooray!

My Wee Memories challenge #44 was selected as a Fabulous 4 this week. :) My personal challenge for today's card was to use some of birthday goodies. I decided to use some of these flower stickers that had pearls AND bling. I thought the bee theme of the paper went well with the flowers.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Charcoal
Stamp: Studio G (sentiment)
Stickers: Jolee's Boutique- Cream Buds
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials
Ribbon: Sweet Petites from A.C. Moore
Paper: American Crafts- Dear Lizzy

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Busy Bee Saturday

Today was quite eventful! I ended up not going to spin class this morning, which was probably for the best because I would have missed an important work related call (yes, on a Saturday...). I ended up making cupcakes for the family dinner tonight and hung out with my sister when she came back from her grad school visit. She gave me the other half of my crafty presents: more stickers and a set of clear stamps. :)

Two of my cousins came over to drop off birthday gifts because they wouldn't be able to make it to dinner tonight. They recently went to the Harry Potter theme park in Florida and brought us back a chocolate wand and a chocolate frog, like from the movie! So awesome.

This afternoon, I went to my friend Laura's bridal shower. It was hosted by her older sister, who had a lovely house and adorable toddler and giant (but gentle) Great Dane. Laura thought the bridal shower was next weekend, but little did she know that there was a secret plan to have it today. She looked genuinely shocked when she entered the house and eventually saw that it was filled with friends, family, and presents! The event was a tea party, and the hosts definitely hit the theme on the spot. It was nice to see some friends and meet some people in person finally. I caught some amusing moments with my camera: the baby trying on the bridal cap and the cat sneakily playing with the ribbon on the present. Bite, pull, boing.

After the tea party, I came home for the birthday celebration with the family. Mmmm, Italian food, yum! I had borrowed Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian from the library on Friday and watched it tonight with my sister and cousin. Meh, it was okay. I enjoyed the first one a lot more.

Card making will resume tomorrow. :)

Friday, February 25, 2011

Fall-To Layout #129

Mmm, monthly staff breakfast this morning at the office, woot! French toast, eggs, sausage, and potatoes. I was fueled up to work on formatting a 70 page document...ALL DAY. I give communications/graphic design people props for doing that kind of stuff for a living. Whew.

Here's my take on this week's Fall-To Layout challenge #129. I wanted to use the other stamp that my sister gave me yesterday. I suppose it could be used for a card to your significant other, but I wanted to put a baby spin on it. After assembling all the paper and ribbon elements, I thought Glossy Accents on the bottles was a nice finishing touch for added dimension without the bulk.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Charcoal, Prussian Blue
Stamp: K.I. Memories- It's a Girl (bottle), Studio G (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Martha Stewart Doily Lace border punch
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
Other: Glossy Accents

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Crafty Presents!

My new running shoes have been shipped, yay! I love prompt customer service!

After a day of conference calls, I wasn't sure if I'd make it to the gym tonight for spin class, but I forced myself to go and got a good workout in return. Go me.

My sister made a pit stop at home before driving to a grad school visit and left me some crafty presents on my desk (the other half to be opened on Saturday at the family birthday celebration). 3 packs of stickers, 2 rolls of glue dots (I'm down to 3 glue dots...this was a necessity!) and 2 stamps, and each crafty item came with a little note written on a Post-It note. My challenge tonight was "to incorporate at least one of these items" in my cards tonight and tomorrow night. "Bonus points if you can incorporate more than 1 item. Glue dots don't count!"

Alright, I'm up for a challenge! I had a kraft cardbase already cut out so that's what I started with. Then I looked at the stickers: animal, fish, and floral. I really liked the cream colored flowers against the kraft cardstock. Then I chose some bright colors that would go well with the flowers. The stamp was one that she gave me, so I definitely get bonus points!

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackbird
Stamps: Studio G (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Martha Stewart Doily Lace border punch
Stickers: Jolee's Boutique- Cream Flower
Paper: Die Cuts with a View- Stack 7
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

One-Layer Wednesday #42

Today was awesome...let me count the ways.
  1. I wore one of the dresses that I bought over the weekend. I bought it, I might as well wear it right away! No sense in have it sit in the closet. It had a bright pink floral print. Hello, Spring! Are you here yet?
  2. I went for a 4.85 mile run this afternoon after work, inspired by this running post by BenDoesLife. 4.85 miles used to sound daunting, but it's beginning to feel normal. Woot!
  3. I got an Etsy sale today (4 cards!) from a repeat buyer (I love fans).
  4. Related to 2 and 3, I bought new running shoes online on RunningWarehouse, and they let me pay via PayPal. I like how money from one hobby (selling cards) is supporting another hobby (running). I can't wait to give them a whirl when they arrive in the mail.
  5. I made this yummy tuna pasta salad with peas that I found on Budget Bytes. I did my own spin on it by adding some mustard, one more can of tuna, and one whole diced orange pepper for some extra veggies. Yum.
I haven't done a One-Layer Wednesday challenge in a while, but I'm glad I stopped by tonight because it gave me an excuse to use my music score background stamp. Challenge #42 focuses on music. I masked off a little panel so that I could put the sentiment inside the music. I like the splashy color against the subtle background.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackbird, Warm Green, Warm Red, Wisteria, Prussian Blue. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Antique Linen
Stamps: The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment), Fiskars- Friendship Garden (leaf), K.I. Memories- Logo Sushi (red flower), Inkadinkado (blue flower), Heidi Grace- Paradise (purple flower), Stampendous (music score)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Tuesday Trigger: Flower Power

I wore my hair down today (sorry, ponytail), and my haircut got good reviews at the office today. "You look more professional..." Well, dang, I should have cut this haircut sooner!

For this week's Tuesday Trigger (Flower Power), I had already die cut some flowers for the card and was just about to use them until my sister gave me another idea- sea anemones. Ah hah! What a neat spin on the Trigger photo. Sea anemones are kinda like flowers under the sea, right? I ended up punching out some suns in the colors seen on the flower pillow and stamped some sea life in the background. The white faux stitching didn't turn out as well as I would have hoped against the blue background, oh well.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackberry, Tangerine, Prussian Blue. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Vintage Photo, Wild Honey, Chipped Sapphire
Paper: Die Cuts with a View- Stack 7 (blue)
Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels 8
Stamps: Fiskars- Just Between Friends (sentiment), Fiskars- Flip 'N Flop (fish), The Paper Company Studio- Island Lagoon (shells)
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Marvy Uchida (sun)

Monday, February 21, 2011

Wee Memories Challenge #44

I went shopping today to look for some work clothes and came back with some dresses from JCPenny (50% off), score! I found out when I got home that it's supposed to snow tonight, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to wear any of them tomorrow to work. But at least I'll be ready for spring! :)

This week's Wee Memories Challenge (#44) focused on inspiration. I looked through the new March/April 2011 Paper Crafts magazine and was inspired by the "Heart Sing" card by Sarah Jay on page 78. I used similar elements...
  • Solid cardstock card base with a stamped background (I love how the Antique Linen ink left a subtle impression of the dots)
  • Diecut label popped up on foam adhesive
  • Ribbon bow
  • Rhinestone gems
  • Bird image
Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackbird, Warm Red, Prussian Blue. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Antique Linen and Broken China
Paper: Die Cuts with a View- Sweet Stack (blue)
Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels 8
Stamps: Fiskars- Just Between Friends (flowers, sentiment), Studio G (hummingbird), Hero Arts- Cling Dots
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
Ribbon: Sweet Petites from A.C. Moore
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials

Sunday, February 20, 2011

CPS #206

I got some great shopping deals today!
  • My ATG gun adhesive ran out, so I went to Michaels and got a 2-pack. Originally $5.99. Used A.C.Moore 55% off coupon. New price $2.70. I also got 3 small containers of buttons in the dollar bin (red, white, black...Twilight, anyone? It wasn't on purpose, I promise).
  • Went to Tuesday Morning and bought 3 stamp sets (2 for $1.99 each, 1 for $2.99) and a Martha Stewart sticker pack for $0.99.
** TMI alert **

Earlier this week, I asked Meg for advice on how to prevent blisters while running, and she suggested the I find some moisture wicking socks. After making my crafty rounds this morning, I went to Sports Authority to get some athletic socks. I felt like I was in the cereal aisle at the grocery store because of all the options. No joke. Despite picking up a 3-pack of new socks ($10), I still ended up with blisters on my feet (one on each foot, matching locations) when I went out for a 4.85 mile run this afternoon. At least I didn't feel the blisters at all. Maybe I just need to give in and buy new running shoes.

** Ok, we're good **

I wanted to dive right into the paper supplies that I got from Meg and Robyn last night. This card that I made is based on CPS #206 and incorporates paper from each of the ladies (the blue is from Meg and the flowers are punched out of elephant poop paper...no, it doesn't smell bad). I couldn't resist folding an origami elephant to accompany the flowers.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackbird
Stamps: The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Carla Craft sakura punch, Marvy Uchida (3 inch circle)
Paper:`Die Cuts with a View- Sweet Stack (blue), g.c.d. Studios- Chianti Collection, Peekaboo (red)
Other: Black Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Happy Birthday to Me, Part 2

This morning, at the end of spin class, the instructor rummaged around and said "Ok, who took my shoes?" One of the ladies that was just about to leave realized that she was the culprit and gave them back. I guess she was running on auto-pilot, even though she had put her street shoes in a bag before the class started. Ha ha.

I went out with my friends Robyn and Meg for my birthday dinner. Although the wait at The Cheesecake Factory was over an hour, it was totally worth it. I got the chicken marsala and because the portion is so big, I'm happy to report that I have leftovers for tomorrow. After dinner, we went to Borders, which was having a storewide going-out-of-business sale. And then we ended up back at the house to finish our cheesecakes that we got to-go and rehashed stories from college, which, yes, are still funny the 10 billionth time. Meg got me some paper crafting supplies (candy/cupcake themed this time, instead of the tropical theme last year) and Robyn got me a cute cat coin purse and some paper made from elephant poop. Yes, there is such a thing! :)

When I was reading some blogs this afternoon, I saw Christine from ScrapTime create some fabric flowers, and I wanted to try it out for myself. I had bought some fabric last week and this was a great opportunity to use it. In the video, it looks like she's using something like a giant glue dot to get the fabric to stay put when rolling the flower together. Since I don't have that product, I just used my ATG gun and dabbed some Glossy Accents in some of the folds to keep the flower together once the adhesive dries. I guess I could have used a hot glue gun, but it has a tendency to be messy (although, that's what I used to stick the gem in the center of the flower).

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Warm Green, Blackbird
Stamps: Inkadinkado (leaves), The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Martha Stewart- Classic Butterfly
Brad: Recollections
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials
Ribbon: Sweet Petites from A.C. Moore

Friday, February 18, 2011

Happy Birthday to Me + Fall-To Layout #128

Happy birthday to meeeee. Thank you for the birthday messages through Facebook, text, phone, and even snail mail! Y'all know how much I love snail mail! See fun examples below: my sister drew/sent the one on the left and my friend Laura sent the one on the right. The lady looks so fashionable! :)
I decided to take the day off work and do some fun things. First up, a haircut! The last time I had one was over a year ago. I didn't like the bulkiness at the bottom and I didn't like that it was all one length. The salon that I had gone to last time had closed, so through reading reviews on Yelp, I found another one that was nearby my house. The lady that cut my hair was really nice and gave me many tips on how to keep my 'do looking nice. For the first time in a while, I actually have bangs! Here are the before (left) and after (right) shots. What a difference, right? I guess it would have helped if I took the pictures facing the same way, but whatever...
After the haircut, I went to a mall that was further away from my house. I wanted to investigate Big Lots, since I had seen many YouTube scrapbook hauls where people had good luck there. I only came out with 1 pack of paper from g.c.d. Studios. I didn't see a lot of Basic Grey or any stamps there though. Marshalls and Joann's were in that same shopping mall, but I didn't get anything in either one of those places. :/

I went home, ate lunch, and went back out to do some grocery shopping. I had my sights set on making Creamy Taco Mac and Red Velvet Cupcakes (from scratch) this afternoon. I found the Annie's Eats cupcake recipe through TasteSpotting.com (new favorite food site to browse). I haven't frosted the cupcakes yet, but I will tomorrow. I ate one as a test, and it was fabulous (it will be even more fabulous with the frosting! Frosting has that effect on desserts). As for the Creamy Taco Mac, it was yummy, definitely something I'd try again. I added one large red bell pepper in the recipe to add some texture and vegetables.

Here's my take on this week's Fall-To Layout (#128). I had a white cardstock panel sitting around with floral Dear Lizzy paper, so I figured I could start with that. I broke open the package of red cardstock I got last week and ran an embossing folder over it, adhered it to a pale blue piece of cardstock and stuck the duo onto the Dear Lizzy paper. Then I worked on the label/flowers/sentiment part.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackbird, Yellow Ochre, Warm Red. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Wild Honey, Broken China.
Paper: American Crafts- Dear Lizzy (pink floral)
Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug (Victoria)
Die: Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels 8
Stamp: Fiskars- Just Between Friends (sentiment)
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Birthday festivities will continue tomorrow and next week. Stay tuned. :)

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Pals Paper Arts #81

I was looking for a new sketch challenge to try out tonight and found one at a site that I had never come across before (Pals Paper Arts #81). I also wanted to try running felt through my Cuttlebug because I was inspired by cards that I had seen online with DIY felt flower embellishments. The Sizzix die cut through felt like buttah! I dunno why I was surprised, since the manufacturer says the steel rule dies can cut through many things. I wanted there to be some more sparkle and visual interest in this card, so I used this opportunity to use up a bunch of my purple bling.

Card Specs:
Embossing powder: Stampendous! in white
Embossing ink: VersaMark
Punch: Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment border punch
Stamp: The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment)
Die: Sizzix- Tim Holtz Alterations Tattered Flowers
Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug (Victoria)
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
Brad: Recollections

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Nope, Not in Canada Today

One of my coworkers this morning: "So, Tina, did you break the plane?"

Mmmnope. The reason why I'm not in Canada right now is a little more complicated than that.

I heard from my boss that the Prince Edward Island event was receive positively, and everyone else that was supposed to make it did so safely. I'm so glad that everything worked out!

I made my sister's birthday card, but just so that I don't spoil the surprise for her, I'll show it to you after her birthday next week. I, instead, made a card built around this "love you" panel I had on my desk. I liked the idea of layering my background stamps: first, the music, and then the leaves on top of that. Check out all that glitter...BING!

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Warm Green. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Pumice Stone
Stamps: Inkadinkado (leaves), Stampendous (music score)
Paper: Die Cuts with a View- Citrus (butterflies)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment border punch, Martha Stewart- Classic Butterfly
Stickers: American Crafts Dear Lizzy Christmas Glitter Thickers-Sparkling Cherry

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Tuesday Trigger: Comfy Cozy

Well, I did not get very far today. I didn't even get past my own airport this morning, and therefore, am not in Prince Edward Island as I had planned/hoped. Here's how my day went. Just scroll down if you're looking for today's card.

5 AM: Woke up
6 AM-ish: Arrived at Reagan National Airport and found out my ticket had be voided. HUH? What the (*beep*)?! Fortunately the lady at the ticket counter was able to book me another ticket.
Between 7 and 9 AM: Found out that the flight to Ottawa was delayed 10 minutes (ok, fine) but then canceled due to a plane mechanical problem (crap). The airline was able to book me on a flight to Montreal that will leave DCA around 1:15 PM (ok, fine).
9 - 11 AM-ish: Waiting. Bored. Skimmed through 2 issues of Martha Stewart Living. Drooled over the recipes and food photography. Witnessed someone getting a ticket by police and a K9 sniffing dog. Interesting stuff.
11:30 AM-ish: My boss's boss's name and my name are called up to the counter (uh oh). Apparently, the flight to Montreal was further delayed, which would have prevented us from making our connecting flight. Our only option was to fly to Nova Scotia today and then fly out to Prince Edward Island tomorrow morning. If we chose this option, by the time we would get to the event, the day would have been well underway. My boss's boss made some phone calls and decided that it wasn't worth it to hike all the way up to Canada for half the event. I'm glad that he was with me so that I could just follow his lead.
1:30 PM: Ended up back at home. The end.

I'm crossing my fingers that everyone else that was supposed to be there was able to make it. At least I have my trip to Nova Scotia coming up in March. Hopefully, it'll work better the second time around!

Update on my recent "blast from the past" story: I saw the guy from high school again at spin class, and he took the bike behind me. Again, I debated if I should say anything, but it ended up not mattering because he said hi first. Ah, so he remembered who I was. We made some small talk...he's moving to the West Coast next week and I wished him good luck.

This is one brave birdie. I dunno many cats that would be so tolerant.

Ok, enough yammering. Let's talk about cards. a) I was chosen as one of the Trigger Targets from last week's challenge. Woot! b) Here's my take on this week's Tuesday Trigger challenge. I saw the pillows and they reminded me of a paper punch that I had. I dug through my paper stash to find some papers that matched the colors found in the inspiration photo (red, blue, yellow), punched them out, and adhered them with the foam adhesive. I drew in the lines to define the space and then added some gems for some dimension.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Blackbird. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Wild Honey, Broken China, Tattered Rose
Paper: American Crafts- Dear Lizzy (pink floral), American Crafts- Letterbox (yellow)
Stamp: The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment)
Punch: Family Treasures
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
Other: Black Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Monday, February 14, 2011

Off on Another Adventure!

Sorry, no card tonight, folks. I'm leaving for a work trip tomorrow, to a far away land called...

Canada.

Prince Edward Island to be exact. I dunno much about this place except that it's going to be cold cold cold. I'm glad that my boss and my boss's boss will be there to experience it with me (and to make sure I don't get lost).

I was packing some stuff after dinner and I mumbled something about having to change currency when I get to the airport. My mom left the table and rummaged around to find some extra Canadian money leftover from the last time we were all there...like 10+ years ago!

I hope to be able to take some pretty pictures tomorrow afternoon before meeting up with the group. Night!

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Cards Magazine Challenge

I cranked out another 4.85 miles around the neighborhood this afternoon. I didn't even get through my first mile and I was already thinking that I wasn't sure if I was going to make it to 4.85. It just goes to show that running is also a mental activity. With about a month left until the 8K race, I WILL be ready for it!

This week's Cards Magazine challenge is cards using border punches. I looked at some of my kraft cardstock and figured that if I used a scalloped border punch on the scraps and layered them, it could look like the shingles of a roof. I also had some flower punch outs that I was going to use for another card, but didn't. So then I punched 4 flowers, layered them, stuck a brad through all 4 layers, and crumpled them up a little. I thought the card needed some more elements for it to look like a scene so I added an "upper crest" grass border and a sun.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Warm Green, Charcoal. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Wild Honey, Vintage Photo
Stamps: Fiskars- Friendship Garden (flower stems), Fiskars- Thank You (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Fiskars Upper Crest border punch, Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment border punch, Marvy Uchida (sun), Carla Craft sakura punch
Paper: American Crafts- City Park (pink, blue), American Crafts (pink), Die Cuts with a View (ledger paper)
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker
Brad: Making Memories Brad Value Pack- Chelsea's Place collection

Song of the day: "Don't You Wanna Stay" - Jason Aldean (ft. Kelly Clarkson). I heard it on the drive home last night from dinner.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Deals and Dinner

I felt like a ping-pong ball and a gopher today. A ping-pong ball because I was bouncing from store to store, looking for good crafty deals all afternoon. And a gopher because I had to dig, dig, dig through the messy aisles to find good stuff. The hard work paid off because I was triumphant today! Let me count the ways:
  • From Michaels: large music score stamp (originally $10+) and it was on clearance AND I had a 40% off coupon. $4.45
  • From Tuesday Morning: 1 pack, 25 sheets of 12x12 inch red cardstock. $2.99
  • From Joann's: 1 pack, 50 sheets of 8.5 x 11 inch green cardstock (originally $3.99). 50% off sale + 40% off coupon. $1.20
  • From TJMaxx: 1 pack, 180 sheets of Die Cuts with a View paper- Stack 7. $5.99
I bought 2 $1 stamps and some "fat quarter" fabric today (for my fabric flower pins) from Joann's, but they were not on sale. Oh, and the funny thing today was that I used competitor coupons today and they still worked! It doesn't hurt to try.

When I came home from my errands this morning, I made some more blueberry muffin tops. They went buh-byE very quickly when I made them on Tuesday.

Earlier tonight, I went to Arlington to have a dinner pow-wow with my friends Meg and Robyn. The last time the three of us had hung out was at the National Zoo in early December. We went to a Thai place, and I got my go-to order of chicken pad thai. We also shared dessert: sticky rice + mango and banana bread pudding. Yum!

Yeah, so I'm definitely going for a run tomorrow. I'm going to try for 5 miles again!

I was very excited to use the background stamp that I purchased today. I was also determined to use scraps. The only piece I used that wasn't a scrap was the white card base. Everything else was from a piece that I had cut from before. I'm not big on the vintage, but seeing as I used a lot of darker colors and an ink called "antique linen," I think my attempt at vintage-y came out pretty good!

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Maroon, Charcoal. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Antique Linen.
Stamps: Inkadinkado (sentiment, bird), Stampendous (music score)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Fiskars Threading Waters border punch
Paper: American Crafts- City Park (brown)
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Song of the day: "Paralyzer"- Finger Eleven. I heard it at spin this morning.

Friday, February 11, 2011

Fall-To Layout #127

I am happy to report that the dental appointment went very smoothly this morning. I was in and out of there in about 30 minutes. It really does pay off to floss and brush regularly!

My boss let me work from home today. Hooray for not having to drive across town and saving on gas. I stopped by a Marshalls on the way home from the dentist and even though I saw some American Crafts paper packs, I told myself that I didn't NEED them and prompted walked out of the store. Similarly, tonight, I went searching for my sister's birthday present and some crafty stuff for me (Michaels, Tuesday Morning, TJMaxx, Ross, and A.C.Moore) and ended up with 2 things for my sister and a box of Milk Duds for me. I even had 2 alphabet stamp sets in my hand in the Tuesday Morning checkout line, but ultimately, I walked back to the aisle and returned them to their rightful spots. Check out that self-control. Boo-yah.

The Big Boss sends out birthday cards to staff. I got mine today because my birthday is next week. He wrote a note below his signature: "Sorry, I couldn't make the card myself :)" Ha ha.

I came across this talk from Brene Brown on the most recent episode of Paperclipping Roundtable. I liked her message about the power of vulnerability, especially how she ended the talk: "Because when we work from a place I believe that says, 'I'm enough,' then we stop screaming and start listening, we're kinder and gentler to the people around us, and we're kinder and gentler to ourselves."

Here's my take on this weeks Fall-To Layout (#127). I decided to do a little paper piecing with this lion stamp. I stamped the lion on the white cardstock and then again on scrap yellow cardstock. I cut out the body and head from the scrap and adhere them to the white cardstock. The paper on the left side is from an assorted pack that I bought right when I was getting into cardmaking, but hadn't used in over a year. I thought it'd be a good time to bring back an oldie.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Chestnut Roan
Stamps: The Paper Company Studio- Jungle (lion), Savvy Stamps (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Carla Craft sakura punch
Thread: DMC- Ecru
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Deperate Times

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Let me explain by setting the scene from earlier today when I was in search of a snack.

I wander across the hall.

me to administrative assistant: "Where's that Snickers bar you offered me yesterday?"
AA: "Tina, that was yesterday. I already ate it. You TOLD me that you didn't want it, remember?"
me: "I know, but I'm hungry. What else you got?"
AA: "Crackerjack...and Pop Tarts." ::notices my expression when he mentioned the PopTarts:: "Do you want a Pop Tart?"
me: (pauses) "Ok." ::tears into the box and wrapper:: munch munch munch.

I wouldn't normally eat a Pop Tart, but I was that hungry. It held me through the rest of the day (1 hour). And for anyone that thinks I'm a mooch, I am. BUT I do bring cookies to the office from time to time, so doesn't this mean that we're even?

I went to Marshalls this afternoon, and while their scrapbook selection was very minimal, I did find 2 great deals: 4 x 6 inch acrylic block (originally $3, I got it for $1) and a Martha Stewart clear stamp set ($2.99). Mwah ha ha ha. And for any of you that have been following my blog, the 1-month moratorium of buying new craft supplies ended on Wednesday. I survived a whole month of not buying new crafty things, and guess what? It wasn't that hard. Try it sometime!

And, of course, I used one of the stamps from the set that I bought today. These toy transportation stamps would be great for masculine cards.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Yellow Ochre, Prussian Blue, Ice Blue, Chestnut Roan, Blue Iris. Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Wild Honey
Stamps: The Paper Company Studio- Surf's Up (wave), Martha Stewart- Toy Transportation (sailboat), Fiskars- Baby (sentiment), Inkadinkado (bird)
Paper: Die Cuts With a View (yellow stars), American Crafts- City Park (pale blue), American Crafts Specialty Paper in Pearl (dark blue)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Marvy Uchida (sun)
Brad: Making Memories- Fresh Anthology
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb

I checked the mailbox this morning before I heading to work and saw that I got a letter from Suzie and the current issue of Paper Crafts Magazine. My mood instantly lifted. Behold, the power of snail mail.

Dental appointment tomorrow morning. Oh, joy of joys.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Tuesday Trigger: Decadently Yours

In the fridge last night, I found a container of blueberries, and I suddenly got the craving for blueberry muffins. So with some coaxing from my sister via IM, I baked some and had fresh muffins in less than 30 minutes. Woot. You'll notice that I didn't use any muffin cups. Meh, they aren't necessary. I basically used a ice cream scoop to make the ~15 muffin tops. When I was watching NCIS this evening (which was a great episode, by the way), I bit into a muffin and some of the berry juice ended up on my shirt. Graceful I am not. Sigh. It was a good muffin though!

This week's Moxie Fab World's Tuesday Trigger focuses on truffles, which is totally appropriate since Valentine's Day is quickly approaching. I decided to make my own paper truffles out of scrap brown cardstock and decorate them with either rhinestones or embossing powder for some added texture. Nom nom nom.

Card Specs:
Embossing powder: Personal Stamp Exchange- Black, Stampendous! in white
Embossing ink: VersaMark
Paper: American Crafts- City Park (brown), Dear Lizzy (pink)
Punch: Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment border punch
White Gel Pen: Inkssentials
Die: Cuttlebug- Flowers (flowers)
Stickers: American Crafts Chipboard Thickers in Darling (white)
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb

Monday, February 7, 2011

Surprise Snail Mail

Hope everyone enjoyed the Super Bowl last night! I have to admit that I'm not really a football follower, but since my cousin invited us over last night to watch it on his big screen TV and eat dinner, I figured "why not?" After watching all those commercials (the Darth Vader Volkswagen ad was my favorite...either that one or the beaver Bridgestone one), I forsee myself going to the movies frequently this upcoming summer. They played quite a few movie trailers during the game. I would pay the $10 or whatever to oogle at Chris Evans as Captain America. I'm a sucker for comic book-turned-movie movies. Transformers 3 also seemed promising, as well as Thor. Not to mention that Harry Potter 7, Part 2 and Breaking Dawn are coming out too. I wonder how much a reserved seat at a movie theater would cost.

We got surprise snail mail today. Martha Stewart Living magazine, February 2011 issue. Addressed to Dad. HUH? Domestic is not a word that I'd associate with Dad. I asked him about it and he gave me a puzzled look. And then the light bulb turned on. He had some extra credit card points or something and decided to use it for magazines. I guess he checked off all the news and business related ones that he could because MSL is the most randomist choice ever for him. But, I'm not complaining. At least I get to enjoy the magazine. The photography (especially the ones where food is the subject) is awesome.

I wanted to use up these 1.5 inch rounded corner square that I had on my desk that was going to use for another card, but didn't. I punched out 2 butterflies and used embossing powder on the last square (StazOn ink wasn't leaving as much of an impact as I would have liked). Then I used a strip of purple cardstock leftover from my friend Cristina's wedding invitation scraps. I considered putting a purple stamped image in each of the white circles but thought it'd be overboard so I only did one column of them. As a finishing touch, I adhered some rhinestone gems, rounded the corners of the card, and drew in some faux stitching. Now I'll have to figure out what to do with the butterflies that I punched out.

Card Specs:
Embossing powder: Personal Stamp Exchange- Black
Embossing ink: VersaMark
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Wisteria
Paper: American Crafts- Dear Lizzy (teal)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Martha Stewart- Classic Butterfly
Stamp: The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment, flower), Fiskars- Friendship Garden (heart)
Other: Black Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Song of the day: "Shake It"- Metro Station. I listened to it many times at work (I wonder if anyone at the office saw me headbopping to the music while I was listening to it via my headphones), and Anna even played it during spin class tonight.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Run, Tina, Run

Ah hah! FINALLY! I was able to get a run in outside today. The sun was shining. The snow was melting. It was above 40 degrees. It was an awesome day to go running. I haven't been on a run since mid-January, so I wasn't sure how much my body could take. But I surprised even myself. I was able to crank out 4.85 miles today! Woot! If I had run another block or two, I would have been able to hit 4.9 miles which is equivalent to the 8K distance I'll be running in the St. Patrick's Day 8K in March. Fortunately, I have a little over a month to go before the big day.

Here's my take on CPS #204, and this was take #2. I wasn't a fan of the first card I made and I was determined to produce something that I liked. I wanted to use up some scraps, so I took out a piece of the Dear Lizzy paper and blue cardstock that I had cut into for previous cards. Even the white cardstock piece that I stamped on was from my scrap pile.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Rose Coral, Aquamarine, Prussian Blue
Paper: American Crafts- Dear Lizzy (pink)
Stamp: Fiskars- Friendly Flowers (all)
Foam adhesive: Thermoweb
Other: Black Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

I'm taking a box of my cards that I don't anymore and putting them in the office kitchen tomorrow. I hope to come home with an empty container.

Hope y'all are having fun watching the Super Bowl. The Black Eyed Peas rocked it. :)

Saturday, February 5, 2011

(Insert Catchy Title Here)

I made it to spin class this morning with no problem and was able to get a bike without fear that someone was going to bump me off. It helps to have a reservation! I usually take the bike that's close to the mirror, but recently I've been taking a bike that's next to the window. It's definitely a better view, but I'm hesitant to make it my new bike, because it kinda goes against the unspoken rule that the bike you take on your first few classes becomes "your bike." Maybe I can subscribe to the "first come, first served" rule.

After spin class, I zoomed over to a local diner to have breakfast with some friends. I found out that one of them bought the house next to a family friend. What a small world we live in! It was nice to catch up with them and chat about life/recent adventures and get a pep talk. It's nice to have cheerleaders. :)

For tonight's card, I wanted to use some of the pink City Park paper that I already cut into last night. I started out with a piece that covered the whole card front and built from there. I cut the strip of cream cardstock leftover from my friend Cristina's wedding invitation scraps and laid it out at an angle across the card front. I started to diecut a bunch of light green flowers, but then realized that it didn't really match with the pink background. I went with Plan B and diecut flowers from a blue paper that was also from the City Park collection. The gems added some extra sparkle, visual interest and texture.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Chestnut Roan
Stamp: Studio G
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Marvy Uchida sakura punch
Paper: American Crafts- City Park
Die: Cuttlebug- Flowers (flowers)
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Friday, February 4, 2011

Sup?

OMG, I totally forgot about my Etsyversary on Tuesday! 3 years on Etsy. 526 sales. I'm excited to see what this upcoming year brings! :)

Clean & Simple Stamping didn't have their usual sketch challenge up when I sat down to do today's card, so I came up with my own challenge. Hmmm...so, what do you do when you run low of frequently used alphabet letters? You kinda have to think outside the box. That's why people invent words or abbreviate them, right? I decided on "Sup?" as in "what's up?" Clever, huh? I used minimal letters and even a question mark that came with the set. I think the juxtaposition of the informal sentiment and formal looking paper is funny and unconventional. I'm not sure what the chipboard element is next to the sentiment. I think it's a pomegranate or peach or some sort of berry. Anyway, I liked how it was glittery and added some visual interest to the card. The pink paper came as an afterthought because I thought the card needed another pop of color. Look, no ink or stamps! ::gasp::

Card Specs:
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper
Paper: American Crafts- City Park (pink), Letterbox (blue/brown)
Chipboard: American Crafts- Fieldhouse- Glitter Blue Skies
Stickers: American Crafts Chipboard Thickers in Typo
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Dessert Comes First

Today was a very busy day at work. I had 2 conference calls that I had to take care of while also participate in an all day meeting. My boss was nice enough to save me a boxed lunch that was provided for staff members attending the meeting. When I opened the box, I dove into the cookie. My boss's boss pointed out that I started with dessert first. Well, DUH. It was on top and it looked yummy...of course, I'm going to eat it first. I heard some talk about people doing some cookie swapping earlier and apparently, oatmeal cookie is low on the cookie totem pole. Funny enough, that's the cookie that I ended up with. But I had no complaints.

Even though my day ended later than normal, I made a point to go to spin class tonight, instead of taking a nap when I got home. The past few days have been really foody. I need to balance that out with some exercise. The mic system in the spin room hasn't been working properly recently, and the instructor had to yell. I still had no idea what she was saying because she turned the music up so loud. It all worked out because I could follow along just by following her lead. No biggie.

Here's the card for tonight. I knew I wanted to use some Dear Lizzy paper and a floral stamp that I hadn't used in a while. I first stamped the floral image on the card base and then cut out a piece of the paper big enough to cover the front of the card. Then I drew a faint pencil line to guide my scissors as I cut a curvy space so that you could see the flowers. I punched out a border out of some scrap paper, tied a bow, and stamped a sentiment. I stamped the flourish at the last minute over some black "oops" marks.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Warm Green, Blackbird
Stamp: The Paper Company Studio- Greetings (sentiment), Inkadinkado (flower, flourish)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Fiskars Scalloped Sentiment border punch
Paper: American Crafts- Dear Lizzy

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Foody Wednesday

Do you ever have that sinking feeling that you forgot something at home as you're reaching your destination?

I have.

Like today.

On my way to work. About 2 traffic lights away from the office.

I forgot the cookies that I baked last night for today's potluck! Noooo. ::frown:: Super. It ended up working out because I was able to get some work done for a few hours and then zoom home to get the cookies and zoom back to the office. They were a big hit, as I was able to give away all of them before I left the office. I was left with one at home that I had set aside last night. The potluck was a success too. So many people pitched in to bring or make food: noodles, veggies, hummas, fruit, and LOTS of desserts (fudge, brownies, cake, homemade banana pudding, etc.). We know how to throw a good party. The potluck was for a co-worker whose last day was today. I'm going to miss her. We had a fun time in Denver last fall. :'(

Tonight, I went to my cousin's house for dinner to celebrate my aunt's birthday and the Lunar New Year. This is celebration #2, since we already had a big dinner this past weekend. My family just likes to find excuses to get together and eat.

For tonight's card, I wasn't really sure what I wanted to make. I decided to dig through my crafty stash for the rub-ons at the bottom of the box. I'm not big on rub-ons, but since I have them, I might as well use them. I started out with just the frame and large floral image, but then I thought the floral image needed more "umph" so I tacked on the smaller floral. I hadn't intended on using a butterfly punch, but I accidentally scratched the flower, so my solution was to cover up my mistake. Hey, make it work.

Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Rose Coral
Stamp: Hero Arts- Thinking of You Messages (sentiment)
Punch: We R Memory Keepers Corner Chomper, Fiskars Threading Waters border punch, Martha Stewart- Classic Butterfly
Paper: American Crafts- Letterbox
Rub-on: American Crafts, Mini Marks, Accents, Book Three (flower), Book Two (frame)
Other: Brown Sharpie Ultra Fine Point marker

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Feeling Domestic

One of my co-workers is leaving tomorrow after being at my organization for several years. There will be a potluck at lunchtime on Wednesday to say goodbye, and my contribution will be my go-to cookie- the peanut butter chocolate chip cookie. I already consumed one for quality assurance purposes. And yep, we're good. :)

I was going to make a card today for the blog, but instead restocked a card in my Etsy shop. I'm going to go eat a cookie and go to bed. Night!