Holly Jolly Christmas card

Now that Thanksgiving is done I've been working on Christmas cards. I've been making paper too so I just HAD to make a card using the new papers. This card is layered with a highly textured green paper and a red (well, it's sorta pink) paper that is also highly textured. It was quick and easy. I plan to make more to send out to friends and family this year.

Goal

Isn't this a beautiful dress? I used a special setting on my camera to showcase the wonderful color in this dress. It has a fishnet overlay with some sparkles (love those sparkles). I bought this dress to wear to the Ball this year. It was on sale this summer and even though I knew it was a size too small, I thought I had time to lose a little to fit into it. Well, I just didn't even try. I've been struggling for so long with my weight and nothing seems to really motivate me. So I've let things get out of control. This dress is not just one size too small. It's more. I hadn't even realized how much I've "grown". So, this is my goal. I will wear this dress to the MC Ball next year. It is our last. This will be my last chance to really dress up in a formal gown. If I lose more than this, great! I will have the dress altered or shop for another one. I always wanted to wear something vintage. You know, form-fitting with a beautiful flare at the bottom. Something elegant. I have 12 months. 12 months to fit into this size 11 dress. I know I can do it. I know I've never posted anything quite so personal here, but I am hoping your support with keep me going. Thanks everyone! Tomorrow is a new day!

Fall Leaf Card

I was in two swaps last month. One was for the Fall ATC in the previous post and the other was for a Fall Leaf Card. I made this card using my crayon papers (the red background paper and the leaf punches) and some tree cardstock. I also painted the word "HELLO" on the top with acrylic paint. I need to work on my painting penmanship!!!  I also made a matching envelope by using the crayon papers.

It seems very fitting for this time of year. We have leaves all over the ground. Happy Autumn everyone!!!

Fall ATC

My online craft group is having a Fall ATC swap. This is what I came up with. The leaf is just from a little package of leaves I bought at the store, the glitter around the edges is Stickles Golden Rod. I printed the quote on manilla colored paper and cut out the words and glued them to the background piece which is crayon paper.

We have nine participants in this swap. I hope they all like it. The leaves already had glitter on them. Couldn't pass those up!

Been busy!

I have been busy making handmade paper over the last 6 weeks. Here are the results:

I got through the rainbow. Now I am working on neutrals and junk mail paper. :)

I finally got one listing in my Etsy shop. I am hoping to list one item a day (at least this week).  Hopefully by next weekend I'll have some more paper ready to go into my shop! You can check this listing out here: Craftstudiopaper at Etsy.  

Thanks for looking! 

Today is my Birthday

Today is my birthday. It has been a very good day - even at work. :) My Hubby sent me a fruit basket which was very yummy and enjoyed by my co-workers.

Today is a big birthday for me and I am determined to not let that number get me down. :) I've really enjoyed today, no worries, no negativity, just a good day with a great attitude. :)  Now, if I could just keep that up everyday. That is my goal for this year.

Have a Happy Day everyone! Enjoy the day!

New cards

So, let's see... Since my last post we've gone through Spring and most of Summer. From the end of school to the beginning of school. Through Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. I know some of you will be shocked that I've updated my blog! LOL!!! I just can't believe it's been so long since I've really made anything that I can share.
I found myself in need of cards this week so I just sat down and made up a couple of very simply designed cards. One is for a friend who lost her father to cancer recently and the other is for a co-worker who will be getting married next month. The paper is all my handmade paper, except for the flower image (can't remember where I got those). I covered the flowers with Stickles (Distress - Crushed Olive and regular Yellow Stickles). The words were printed on my handmade paper with my printer here at home.

I think the design works well. Sorry the photo is so fuzzy...

Until next time! (Which I hope won't be another 5 months!)

A little bit O' Luck - Tag

My ARTHaven craft group had a tag swap in February. The theme was St. Patrick's Day. Here's the tag I made. The base is my green crayon paper. The images were from a free clip art website and I used Stickles as gold. I wrote the letters on some heavy duty handmade paper. I didn't make the paper. It came out of a set of sheets I bought a while back. I loved the texture and thickness so just stored it in my paper stash.

Scraplings

My ARTHaven Art group had a swap using paint sample cards. This was my version of these "Scraplings". You can also see some here at my friend Diann's blog. These little cards are so fun to make and would make nice cards for gifts or maybe to give to a friend or co-worker. There so many colors to chose from and they are kinda addicting to make! :)

Custom Handmade Papers

Recently I received a custom request for handmade papers. I am always excited to make paper by request. This order is for 30 sheets in different shades of 3 colors: pink, purple and blue. They are approximately 8.5 x 11 inches. It was a fun project for me - I just love making paper!!!

These papers were made with a mixture of scrapbook paper scraps and shredded ivory paper that I rescued from a gift basket at Christmas.

I hope my customer will enjoy using them as much as I enjoyed making them! :)

My Daughter the Rock Star

I took some photos of my daughter this weekend. I think my favorite is the "poster" version. I am hanging this one up in my office. She was a great model. :)  She had been asking to have her picture taken with her bass guitar so we got out Saturday and played around a bit. The sun was shining and it was warm for a change. We both had fun.

Love is in the air!

 It feels like only yesterday we were celebrating the New Year and now Valentine's Day is right around the corner! Gee whiz - 2011 is off to a flying start. In honor of the upcoming Lover's Holiday I am posting some of my own Valentines. Enjoy!