"Hills are your friends," said Jeff the spin instructor at tonight's class. Yes, how true. If you don't have any obstacles in your life (physical, emotional, and mental), how will you every find out how strong and resilient you are? I guess it's the going up part that's tough, and it's not always clear how long it takes to get to the bottom. However, when you do reach the bottom, you can look behind and see what you've accomplished. (Yes, very deep...)
I don't have a unique card to share with you all tonight. I came home from spin, took a shower, battled with my computer for a little bit, worked on cards, watched Real Housewives of NYC, and made more cards. I'm pooped. Gonna try to make it to Anna's Super Spin class tomorrow. It'll be my second-to-last class before I go to Dallas for work next week (I'll be missing Monday and Tuesday's class...wah!). Later, gators!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
With Sympathy
Random stuff that's not important enough to get their own long paragraph:
that's at my old high school passed away unexpectedly today. Although I wasn't in any of his classes, I could tell from the outpouring of support that he was loved very much by his students. He leaves behind a wife and 3 children. This event reminded me that I needed to make sure that I had some "With Sympathy" cards with me at the craft event on Saturday. Although people give cards to celebrate happy occasions, I think that cards given for support during tough times are just as important and probably more so.
- Did you know that there's such a thing as a raspberry 3 Musketeers? Oh yes. You have now been informed. I tried a mini one at the CVS check out line yesterday. The cashier told me that she wasn't a fan. I should have took that as I sign. The raspberry flavor was a little overwhelming. Blech.
- On my way to spin class yesterday, I saw a dog strapped to the child seat on the back of his human daddy's bike. Wheeeee!
- On my way home from work yesterday, I saw a girl walking while reading a book. I hope she didn't trip! It looked hazardous.
that's at my old high school passed away unexpectedly today. Although I wasn't in any of his classes, I could tell from the outpouring of support that he was loved very much by his students. He leaves behind a wife and 3 children. This event reminded me that I needed to make sure that I had some "With Sympathy" cards with me at the craft event on Saturday. Although people give cards to celebrate happy occasions, I think that cards given for support during tough times are just as important and probably more so.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Laura's Sketch #49
Whew, it's hot. I mean, turn-your-air-conditioning-on hot. The first time I asked Mom if we could turn the AC on, she just gave me a look. No? Ok. About an hour later, I just couldn't take it anymore. Because heat rises, my room gets extra hot. I asked her again, and she relented. Ha ha. I win. Neener neener. I hope this is not a preview of the summer to come. It's only April 6!
There was a new spinner in class today. She mentioned that she was training for a 5K. Go her! :)
Tonight, I worked on some more origami troll cards, but I
took a break do to a card sketch challenge over at 2 Sketches 4 You. As you can see, my affinity for Prima flowers hasn't diminished one bit. I wanted to in corporate some ribbon above the sentiment, but then it didn't look as good as I had envisioned. Plan B was to use a scalloped border, and I think it tied the other elements in the card nicely.
Brads: Making Memories Brad Value Pack- Chelsea's Place collection
Paper: Die Cuts With A View
There was a new spinner in class today. She mentioned that she was training for a 5K. Go her! :)
Tonight, I worked on some more origami troll cards, but I
took a break do to a card sketch challenge over at 2 Sketches 4 You. As you can see, my affinity for Prima flowers hasn't diminished one bit. I wanted to in corporate some ribbon above the sentiment, but then it didn't look as good as I had envisioned. Plan B was to use a scalloped border, and I think it tied the other elements in the card nicely.Card Specs:
Ink: StazOn in Jet Black
Punches: Fiskars Threading Waters border punch
Stamp: My Sentiments Exactly!- Mother's Day
Flowers: PrimaBrads: Making Memories Brad Value Pack- Chelsea's Place collection
Paper: Die Cuts With A View
Monday, April 5, 2010
Where Did Spring Go?
Seriously, where did spring go? I feel like we skipped it and went straight to summer. I mean, I appreciate it, Mother Nature, since you pounded us with snow a few months ago, but I think this is a little quick. Oh well. I'll just enjoy the "no jacket weather," roll down my car windows, and rock out while I drive. Yes, I'm in the annoying car next to you with the loud music. Ha ha.
This morning, I found that one of my origami dress cards was featured on the Invitation Buzz Blog. Check out the post here. What a neato surprise! :)
Did anyone watch the 2-hour 24 tonight? It was awesome. So was spin class. 'Nough said.
Tonight, I focused my work on origami troll cards. At past craft events, they were a big hit. I found it amusing when people would peruse the table, and I could tell the instant that they found the troll cards because the people would laugh. I'm hoping that they'll generate the same reaction on Saturday. I finished my card making off tonight with a card that we'll be giving to the neighbors with a baby blanket to welcome their new baby boy to the neighborhood.
This morning, I found that one of my origami dress cards was featured on the Invitation Buzz Blog. Check out the post here. What a neato surprise! :)
Did anyone watch the 2-hour 24 tonight? It was awesome. So was spin class. 'Nough said.
Tonight, I focused my work on origami troll cards. At past craft events, they were a big hit. I found it amusing when people would peruse the table, and I could tell the instant that they found the troll cards because the people would laugh. I'm hoping that they'll generate the same reaction on Saturday. I finished my card making off tonight with a card that we'll be giving to the neighbors with a baby blanket to welcome their new baby boy to the neighborhood.
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Sunday, April 4, 2010
Happy Easter!
Happy Easter to all that celebrate it! This morning started out with the "to spin or not to spin" question. I remembered that the instructor today wasn't someone that I was enthusiastic about, so I decided not to spin today. I didn't go yesterday either (oops), but I do plan to go tomorrow for Anna's 1-hour class.
It has been a card-filled weekend. I have about 175 cards ready for the April 10 craft fair, which is by far more than I've had for any crafty event and I still have a few days to prepare. I spent yesterday folding many origami dog and cat cards. This morning, I worked on several Mother's Day cards like the one below. I used up all of my large dimensional adhesives and almost all of my glue dots. I hope I can hold off buying more supplies until after the craft fair.
Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Dark Peony, Charcoal, Blue Lagoon, Blue Iris, Lavender
Punches: Fiskars Twist & Flip 2-in-1 corner punch, Fiskars Apron Lace border punch
Stamps: K.I. Memories-Blooms (flowers), My Sentiments Exactly!- Mother's Day
Ribbon: From Michaels
Foam adhesive: Making Memories
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Mom tucked Ginger in. Isn't that cute? I think the cat thought it was way too hot (she does wear a fur coat after all), so not long after this picture was taken, she crawled out and slept on top of her pink towel.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Flowers, Chocolate, and Cards
Hello! Happy Friday, peeps! Oh, speaking of peeps, have you seen the Washington Post peep contest? Very clever and creative stuff! For a day off from work, today was really productive. This morning started out with a 1-hour spin class with Anna (second class with her this week). At the end of class, she was talking about something "absolutely fantastic" (spoken in her British accent) that she did recently. It was paintballing. "I was rather gun-happy." I don't know why that amused me so much. Maybe because she's a 40 something year old mom.
I came home and inhaled a bowl of strawberries and pineapple, took a shower, and headed off to Brookside Gardens to take some pictures. It would have been nice to go to the National Mall to take pictures, but there was probably going to be a crowd and I wasn't willing to make the trek there. The Gardens had some beautiful flowers; I was especially impressed with the orchids (see some of my favorite shots below). The turtles were interesting to watch as well.
I went to a nearby mall after my garden excursion. The Easter candy section at Target totally had a gravitational pull on me. Darn you, Target! ::shakes fist:: I ended up buying some chocolate and gummies. The SweetTarts Bunny Gummies were especially yummy. Oh well. That's why there's spin class.
This is how my afternoon went: cards, nap, dinner, cards, Smallville (good Ollie and Clark episode), more cards. Check out the carnage that is my room. Cardstock, ink, paper. Click on the photo below at your own risk, especially if you are a clean freak. I have since put my craft stuff in their rightful places. Here's one of the cards that I made tonight. It's very similar to one that I've made before, but I didn't use any dimensional adhesives and I added ribbon. I made about 7-8 cards like this one with varying colors and sentiments. Hooray for my new chalk ink!
Pictures from today...
I came home and inhaled a bowl of strawberries and pineapple, took a shower, and headed off to Brookside Gardens to take some pictures. It would have been nice to go to the National Mall to take pictures, but there was probably going to be a crowd and I wasn't willing to make the trek there. The Gardens had some beautiful flowers; I was especially impressed with the orchids (see some of my favorite shots below). The turtles were interesting to watch as well.
I went to a nearby mall after my garden excursion. The Easter candy section at Target totally had a gravitational pull on me. Darn you, Target! ::shakes fist:: I ended up buying some chocolate and gummies. The SweetTarts Bunny Gummies were especially yummy. Oh well. That's why there's spin class.
This is how my afternoon went: cards, nap, dinner, cards, Smallville (good Ollie and Clark episode), more cards. Check out the carnage that is my room. Cardstock, ink, paper. Click on the photo below at your own risk, especially if you are a clean freak. I have since put my craft stuff in their rightful places. Here's one of the cards that I made tonight. It's very similar to one that I've made before, but I didn't use any dimensional adhesives and I added ribbon. I made about 7-8 cards like this one with varying colors and sentiments. Hooray for my new chalk ink!
Pictures from today...
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Thursday, April 1, 2010
No Jacket Weather
Today was the first "no jacket weather" I've had in a while. It's great! Spring is awesome!
You know what else is awesome? Colorbox Fluid Chalk Ink. I saw that Joann's was having a sale on them last week, so I bought 4 chalk ink queues, and oh yes, I did use them tonight. How could I resist?
Funny thing from spin class tonight: "La La" by Ashley Simpson came on, and the spin instructor asked the class "Does anyone like Ashley Simpson?" Silence from the crowd. "Well, I do. And I don't care what you think." Mind you, this is a 30-something year old guy. Ha ha. Hey, whatever floats your boat.
Here were my goals for tonight's card: use some sort of purple scrap, use a new stamp, and use
one of the new Colorbox Queues. I started out with the cupcake stamp that I bought last Sunday at Michaels. Then I went with a dark/light blue background. I needed to have something to balance out the cupcake on the left, so I got a lavender purple scrap, used a border punch on it, and put it on the corner. The ribbon came next and then finally the sentiment. I had been making "Thank You" origami flower cards earlier, and since the sentiment stamp was already out, meh, might as well use it. As an aside, I noticed that the fabric scissors were not on my desk tonight. I think Mom has reclaimed them.
Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Chestnut Roan and Prussian Blue
Punches: Fiskars Twist & Flip 2-in-1 corner punch, Fiskars Apron Lace border punch
Stamps: Studio G (cupcake), The Paper Company Studio- Whimsy Greetings (sentiment)
Paper: Martha Stewart
I decided to take tomorrow off from work, but I haven't decide what I'm going to do with my free time. I'll definitely be working on my inventory for the craft fair (card count: 125+) and go to spin class in the morning, but I'm probably going to spend some time outside because it's supposed to be gorgeous weather. Whatever I decide to do, you'll read about it tomorrow. Oh, the suspense!
You know what else is awesome? Colorbox Fluid Chalk Ink. I saw that Joann's was having a sale on them last week, so I bought 4 chalk ink queues, and oh yes, I did use them tonight. How could I resist?
Funny thing from spin class tonight: "La La" by Ashley Simpson came on, and the spin instructor asked the class "Does anyone like Ashley Simpson?" Silence from the crowd. "Well, I do. And I don't care what you think." Mind you, this is a 30-something year old guy. Ha ha. Hey, whatever floats your boat.
Here were my goals for tonight's card: use some sort of purple scrap, use a new stamp, and use
one of the new Colorbox Queues. I started out with the cupcake stamp that I bought last Sunday at Michaels. Then I went with a dark/light blue background. I needed to have something to balance out the cupcake on the left, so I got a lavender purple scrap, used a border punch on it, and put it on the corner. The ribbon came next and then finally the sentiment. I had been making "Thank You" origami flower cards earlier, and since the sentiment stamp was already out, meh, might as well use it. As an aside, I noticed that the fabric scissors were not on my desk tonight. I think Mom has reclaimed them.Card Specs:
Ink: Colorbox chalk ink in Chestnut Roan and Prussian Blue
Punches: Fiskars Twist & Flip 2-in-1 corner punch, Fiskars Apron Lace border punch
Stamps: Studio G (cupcake), The Paper Company Studio- Whimsy Greetings (sentiment)
Paper: Martha Stewart
I decided to take tomorrow off from work, but I haven't decide what I'm going to do with my free time. I'll definitely be working on my inventory for the craft fair (card count: 125+) and go to spin class in the morning, but I'm probably going to spend some time outside because it's supposed to be gorgeous weather. Whatever I decide to do, you'll read about it tomorrow. Oh, the suspense!
