Thanks...

...I think.


Let me explain. Whenever I sit down to create a new card or work on a new art element I do some of my best work alone. I think more clearly, and I find it much easier to design when I am by myself, but I always have a "post-design" ritual.


If it is during the daylight hours, I run my card by Little Miss. The thing I like about this approach is two-fold. First of all, she is brutally honest. If she doesn't like something I have done she will tell me flat out, and let me tell you, if you haven't had your bubble burst by a four-year old, you should try it sometime. The second part of this gamble, however, is she will always tell me something nice about even my very worst cards, which proves to me that she has a kind heart and is empathetic to the feelings of those around her.


Either that or she is preparing for a future career as an HR director for some large computer/software corporation. I can almost hear her in my mind right now:


"Well, Tom, I'm sorry to have to come here today and tell you that your new tattoo that shows all of your co-workers nekkid running down the length of your arm is considered offensive, and the row of strangely accurate voodoo dolls lined up in your cubicle might be creating a 'hostile work environment' for those around you, so those things have to go. But, I must say, your latest manifesto against the 'Capitalist Corporate Man' that you had delivered to the CEO and the Board of Directors was all spelled correctly and did not contain a single comma splice. Nice job with that! Now, if you will just go with these gentlemen out the door..."


I bet Tom will even thank Little Miss for her approach one day.


Now, if it is after hours for the pre-schooler I go to the next best critic in the house, the dog...err...my husband. I finished this card the other night and showed it to the husband, and do you know what he said?
He actually looked right at me, and (most sincerely and without a hint of the danger that he was putting himself in) said, "Wow, honey! I really like that. It's like a real card."


I'll just let y'all digest that for a couple of minutes.

Now, those of you who are faithful readers know that I like to watch Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, all of those great nature type shows, so I'll try to relate what he said to one of those shows. You know those penguins all waiting to jump into the water that has that one killer whale just waiting right there for a tasty little Oreo-cookie looking treat? Now, you know that one penguin that gets all cocky and thinking that he is invincible so he is going in the water before everyone else? Does it ever end well for that penguin? It does not. And the last look you see upon his face right before he gets to meet Shamu all up close and personal like is the exact same look that was on my hubby's face about 0.2 seconds after he gave me that "compliment".


I haven't seen that kind of backpedaling since Ringling Bros. Circus was in town and one of those high-wire guys was on a unicycle trying to get from one end of the rope to the other. I have to give him credit, because he suddenly found a lot of great things to say about everything on my craft table, including a piece of cardstock that had a coffee stain on it and nothing more. I think I am going to have to catch him off guard a bit more often. It is almost as much fun as stalking my UPS man.


As for the card, I have spent a lot of time admiring from afar the talents of Michelle Zindorf and telling myself that one day I would try some of her brayer techniques out myself. This card is the result of my first try at it. Here are some details on how I made this card. I started using my Martha Stewart circle cutter (thanks for this tool, Martha!) to cut a 1 3/8" circle out of a post-it note. I stamped the image onto my stamp-a-ma-jig so that I could use it as a guide to line up where I wanted the moon to be on the glossy cardstock.


When I had it lined up I held down one corner of the imaging sheet so I could slip the moon mask into place. Then, it was time to get down with the brayer. I started by putting Baja Breeze ink over the entire piece of cardstock. After that I brayered/sponged Pacific Point and Basic Grey onto the bottom of the cardstock, then sponged some of the Pacific Point in the upper right corner. I lightly sponged a little Grey onto the top part of the sky.

I removed the mask and then lightly sponged some So Saffron ink onto the moon to add a little dimension to it. Next I lined up the imaging sheet so that the moon outline on the stamp met the edges of the masked moon on the cardstock, then stamped the house image using Black Staz-On. The green mat under the card is Kiwi Kiss that has been swiped with the same color ink as well as Basic Grey ink.

I encourage you to try some of these new masking/brayering/embossing techniques to see what kind of art you can come up with. And if your hubby/significant other tells you that this one looks like a real card, call me. I'll come post your bail.


Have a great weekend everyone! If you get a chance, check out my friend Lydia's booth at Maker Faire...it is sure to be great. And, before I close this one, I want to give a little "WooHoo" to my friends, Kim and Cecile, who were picked to be on the Stampin' Up Survey Panel. This means that out of thousands of folks across the country that entered a chance to be on this team, these two ladies were selected to help steer the direction of new products for Stampin' Up, and in return they are going to be getting some free goodies from Stampin' Up! I just can't tell you how happy it makes me as a demonstrator to see my customers benefit directly from the company. Way to go, ladies!


That's all for now! I'll be working on my regional swaps this weekend, so there will be new pictures up soon. I hope that everyone enjoys the weekend weather and until next time, Happy Stamping!

Kim

Are you lookin' at me?

Well?!? Are you lookin' at me? That is what this squirrel seemed to be saying to me this morning when I caught him trying to make off with my hummingbird feeder. Let me tell you something about squirrels. They are sneaky. Oh sure, they look all cute with that fluffy tail, sitting in the grass eating acorns and stuff, but deep inside, there is a dark, seedy side to squirrels. Just look at this one...working on unhooking the feeder from my tree. Now mind you, my dog is asleep less than 5 vertical feet from this occurance while the little rodent is attempting to commit petty theft.


I go outside with my camera thinking that I will document his thievery for the record, and he just looks up and gives me the stink-eye. Look at him there, all big and bad and not concerned for one iota of a second that I have caught him, red-pawed, trying to take my hummingbird feeder away for his own nefarious purposes. Makes you wonder what happened to him that turned him into the daytime burglar that he has become.

I know that some of you will wonder why I feel this way about such a cute, innocent woodland creature. I promise that someday soon I will post a story about my experience with a squirrel while visiting our nation's capital that will have you running in fear every time you see one of these bushy-tailed beasts, too. I will tell you this much: squirrels easily feel threatened by bushy pony-tails on top of your head. More to follow.

So, to continue with this "are you lookin' at me" post...how about some cute, glittery, heart shaped eyes? Yes, I know, they are attached to a skull and crossbones, but they are glittery, and everyone knows you can't be scared of stuff that is glittery. There are rules of etiquette about this. If Jason Voorhees had just bedazzled that hockey mask up a bit no one would have run from him. Heck, he would have been the life of the party out there at Camp Crystal Lake!

Here is the rest of this card that I made using the cute Halloween set, "Just Jawing".



I wanted to keep the overall effect pretty simple with only two colors of cardstock, but I gave it some dimension using the Weathered Stripes Cuttlebug folder on Baja Breeze card stock, then rubbing the panel with Kiwi Kiss and Baja Breeze ink to rough it up a little. The flower was stamped in Baja Breeze and rolled in Pacific Point, then cut out and added to the skull using dimensionals, and the eyes are done with Stickles, which are one of my favorite ways to add glitter to anything.

Believe me, if I could I would put Stickles on my dogs because they make everything prettier. Of course they are onto me and whenever they see glitter come out they generally walk away quickly so that they don't look like they spent the evening drinking sangria and watching Xanadu or something.

Finally, one last card that I had the time to get finished. This one will be in my Christmas in October class. I love the "Snow Swirled" set and have all kinds of ideas on how to play with this one. We have been doing so many red and green Christmas cards that I wanted to change the focal color of this one to a deep purple, so I went with Elegant Eggplant, backed up with Bravo Burgundy and Old Olive.

The background is stamped using the two snowflake stamps in the set and the olive and eggplant ink. The tree was stamped first with eggplant, then I lined up my stamp-a-ma-jig and overstamped it with Versamark (This should go to show you what a great tool the stamp-a-ma-jig is!) The two images matched up perfectly, and then I was able to apply Iridescent Ice EP to the entire tree. I cannot describe how shiny and iridescent this is IRL...I could not get a photo that did it justice. You will just have to come to my class and make some of these beauties for yourself so that you can see it.

I hope that everyone has a great day! Enjoy the gorgeous weather, but keep a wary eye out for squirrels. You never know what they are up to!

Until next time, Happy Stamping!

Kim

Trick or Treat...

...has got to be one of the favorite things Little Miss says all year. She, much like me, has quite the little sweet tooth and loves Halloween! So, in order to make her treat giving a little more fun this year, we are making Halloween treat bags with
little toppers.
These quick little watercolored cuties are made with one of my very favorite Halloween sets that is no longer with us, "Booglie Eyes". I mean, who can resist a little green faced vampire when he has those great big, fun-loving eyes on him? I tell you, not since George Hamilton played in Love at First Bite has a vampire seemed so, well, approachable.
















These are 4 of the 5 toppers that we will be doing in my Halloween treats class this week, along with 2 cards to go with the theme (although I think we will be using some new sets for those cards!).

Now, a quick update on the DH: we went back to the doctor today and he definitely still has pneumonia. He has been referred to a pulmonologist for further consultation, so we are just waiting to hear from that doc and get the appointment set up.

My dear friend and blogger extraordinaire, Lydia over at Understand Blue decided to tag me, so I have to share 7 facts about myself to the general reading public. Being a person of many hats but very few secrets, I have been pondering what you might not know about me, and here are my 7:

1. I was not born in the United States. My father was stationed in Sukiran, Okinawa and my mom was able to come overseas with him, so I was born on the US military base there. When we returned to the states I spoke as much Japanese as English, but now my Japanese is limited to "Good morning, how are you", and "Thank you".

2. I had my little brother absolutely convinced for the better part of a year that the shark from "Jaws" lived in my room and would eat him if he dared to come in there. I cemented this in his little 4-year old mind when I was 12 by hiding under my own bed, waiting for him to come into my room, and singing the ominous, "DAAA-Dump....DAAA-Dump-Bump" tune from the movie (which I forced him to watch when my mom wasn't looking). Oh. Hi mom! I never did that...err...hey! At least he doesn't swim in the ocean and scare you like I do!

3. Ironically, I am now terrified of sharks. This is only all the more cemented by the fact that Discovery Channel airs "Shark Week" every year right before we go to the beach for a week. I still go in the water, but you better believe I am on the constant lookout for anything that looks remotely like a shark. Also, and this is important if you are ever in the ocean with me, remember that I know I don't have to outswim the shark. I only have to outswim you.

4. I worked my way through college as the midnight shift police dispatcher for our university police. Oh yeah! Telling cops where to go and what to do all night long for $5.00/hour. That was fun. Although I have to admit you find out alot about the seedier side of college life when you get to help process the folks that come in between the hours of 11 p.m and 7 a.m.

5. I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education, with a minor in Science, and I finished my degree when I was 20. I know I am dorky now, but I was the super dork back then. I even started work on my Master's Degree in Education before I decided that a better career choice would be to ride around like a monkey with my tail on fire in the back of ambulances playing "Johnny and Roy" for a living. "Rampart, this is Squad 51." If you don't know what I am talking about, please click here to find out about what the subconscious mind of a young child watching TV can do to a girl.

6. I met my DH on a blind date, and married him exactly 6 months later. We were set up by a police officer we both knew at the time. About 2 months into us dating the I completely stood the hubby up on a date, which caused him to say, "OK, I'm not going to see her anymore," until he found out that I had broken my neck playing softball that afternoon and was a little too, um, how can I put this?? Oh yes! A little too nekkid in the trauma room of the local hospital to let him know I wouldn't be able to see him that night. This weird series of events is what led me to knowing that I did really love him because once I got home from the hospital he would come by and just leave me books, videos and CDs on my porch in the morning after he got off from work so I would have something to look forward to each day. Kind of proved himself to be more than I ever imagined, and I do not wish that injury away because of it.

7. After college I spent the summer marching with Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps. Since my instrument is flute (just like Sarah P.) I knew I would not be able to audition for a "musical" spot. Instead, I learned how to spin a flag. I did not make the cut the first year I auditioned (1990), but got the last open spot for the 1991 season. It was the hardest and at the same time the best thing I have ever done, and if any of you ever have the chance to get down to San Antonio to see the big DCI show there, you will not regret it. If you know any kid that wants to march drum corps, you need to really encourage it. I promise, they teach a level of discipline there you won't find anywhere short of the Marine Corps.

OK, that is all for now! Just a few little tidbits about me, hope you enjoyed them! I hope everyone has a great night, and until next time....Happy Stamping!

Kim

Pretty blue flowers...

...all over my card. I have been wanting to play with this set ever since I got it, and finally found some time a couple of days ago. I love any images that lend themselves to watercoloring, and this one fits the bill.

I started by diving into the vaults of my retired paper and getting out the Cool Caribbean. I loved that blue. I miss that blue. I have my own private stash of that blue but I will deny it if you ask me. So, if anyone asks you, dear readers, just tell them that I found one lone sheet of the coveted blue and used it for this card.

I paired it up with Pacific Point Blue (you better bet your britches I'll be stockpiling...err...stocking up...on this color before the end of the catalog year as well), Kiwi Kiss, and Chocolate Chip. I stamped the flower images and then colored them in using Cool Caribbean, Pacific Point, and Summer Sun ink and a blender pen. Usually, I like to do these kind of images with an aquapainter, but the first one I tried got too washed out and the Pacific Point ink did not stay as saturated as I wanted it to. After the card was finished and the pictures were shot, I spent some time

looking at the centers of the flowers and decided to add some Diamond Dust Stickles to them to sparkle them up. The greeting was stamped using a Spectrum pad (if you look closely you will see the variation of the ink from left to right.)


















The delicious velvet ribbon was a find...I wish I could just weave it into a blankie and wrap myself in it when I stamp. Anyone have a loom? No? Well, I guess I will have to parcel it out one card at a time then.

I want to encourage anyone who doesn't think they are any good at watercoloring to keep on trying, and start with an image like this one, where there are areas of darkness to act as your coloring "guide". Just remember, start with your lighter color, then add in your darker shade over the dark stamped areas and blend back in. It may be just finding the right tools for you. I prefer inks with an aquapainter, with watercolor pencils and aquapainter coming in a very close second. You can use crayons or pastels if you prefer. Or combine more than one color medium to get a great look.

The best thing about watercolors? Think Monet. His flowers were just beautiful strokes of color...not incredibly detailed petals. Watercoloring is very forgiving, and perfection is not a prerequisite.

I hope this inspires you to stamp some images and start coloring them in. I hope everyone has a great weekend, and until next time...Happy Stamping!

Kim

Back to life...

...and back to some stamping! Finally, I am getting back to my table and getting some cards made. I wanted to give just a little peek at what you will be making at my table during the World Card Making Day event that is happening on October 4th. I say at "my table" because this is a joint venture with me, Lydia, and Neelam. Everyone who attends is going to be making 9 great cards, 3 each of 3 designs, for free! How can you say no?

So, without further ado, here is the sneak peek:

















Now, onto a little early Christmas card that I have been wanting to do. I am a big fan of several different techniques, and emboss resist is one of them. I just really like how the finished product comes out, and it kind of has that Mr. Miagi, "wax on, wax off" serenity to it. Very zen-like.

This card uses a new stamp set that is in the Holiday Mini Catalog, "Scandinavian Season", as well as the new designer series paper, "Ski Slope". I used the colors that were in the patterned paper, Real Red, Old Olive, and Baja Breeze, and paired all of this up with the Alpine felt ribbon. Little Miss declared it a complete success, so who am I to argue with her obviously impeccable taste?

Today I am going to be working on my Halloween treat bag toppers and cards, as well as tending to the sick hubby who was officially diagnosed with what our doctor called "a serious case" of pneumonia and told to stay home and for the most part in bed the rest of this week.

I hope everyone has a great day, and until next time, Happy Stamping!

Kim

Yes, Lydia...there is an OJ....

...and apparently he is working for UPS now. Case in point: the Bruno Magli bloodstained footprint that was on my last Stampin' Up box.

For those who need further proof, I encourage you to check out a box that Lydia got here. I guess he must have stepped on my box in an effort to prove he is faster than my normal Mr. Brown. Come to think of it, I haven't seen my normal Mr. Brown lately. Let's just hope he is ok as he is supposed to come here Wednesday and I do love ambushing him at the front door.

So, even though the box looked like someone needed to encircle it with crime scene tape, almost everything made it ok. My only casualty was my new Filigree brads, which had opened and mostly escaped out of the gaping hole in the bottom of the box. Thank goodness demo support was there to console me and ship me some new ones out.

Now that I have some new stuff (and Keli is back home to serve as my muse....hey Keli!) I actually sat down to make some new things. This is a birthday card for my brother, who just turned 31 (punk!). I love him to pieces, and he loves to fish, so I figured this little Riley would be perfect. It is always so hard for me to do more masculine cards, but I think I managed to pull this one off ok with the blue/brown combo and simple striped paper. I even managed to get a few "flowers" on there using the Pocket Silhouettes set on the bottom. And since his birthday was Saturday, and I mailed it today, I am insuring that he gets to continue his celebration for a good week after the actual day. You don't have to thank me for thinking of you, brother! I'm just a giver like that....lol!

This one is for my mom (hi mom, it's on the way to you right now!). Sometimes she reads my blog, sometimes she doesn't. Sometimes she is so embarrassed by my unabashed, shameless stalking of my UPS man that she denies that I belong to her and refuses to let her friends/family in on the fact that they can subscribe to my blog and keep up with my daily musings.

Anyway, I still love you mom! LOL!!

This card was made with the Upsy Daisy set. I can see me getting a log of mileage out of this one as the days go on. It is so pretty, and lends itself perfectly to the "thumping" technique. For this card I inked up the image using Kiwi Kiss, then "thumped" some of the edges with my Not Quite Navy marker. After stamping, I sponged a little Baja Breeze ink on the top edge of the cardstock, then mounted it on navy and kiwi mats. I finished it off with some of the great new double-stitched Kiwi Kiss ribbon. Just goes to show that a "simple" design can really work sometimes.

Finally, I wanted to take the time to welcome my new baby to the family. Meet Saab-rina. She is the car I have been longing for, and I am still in shock that she is actually sitting in my garage right this very moment.

My dear, sweet, loving husband has known for quite some time that Jessica Jeep has not been doing well. She spits up, her rear end basically fell off, and she refused to let her rear turn signals come on. It was so bad, the poor thing jumped off the rack at the garage one time in an attempt to put herself out of her misery. I'm not kidding...the whole Jeep fell off of one of those lifting racks at the garage. Luckily, no one was under her at the time.

So, in an attempt to keep momma happy, and because of the incredible deal we were able to get at Roger Beasley (Seriously...two thumbs up to that dealership.

This is my second car from them and both times we have been treated like gold.) he got this car for us (read: ME!!!). I figured he deserved a little pat on the back for this one...so if you see him anywhere, tell him he is a great guy, because, well, he is!

I hope everyone has a wonderful night. I'll be posting more pictures soon, and I am thinking they will be Halloweeny in nature! Until next time, everyone, Happy Stamping!

Kim

Tick-tock, Tick-tock....

....goes my internal UPS Clock.

It is that time again, ladies. As I sit here and type these words, I know he is out there. Waiting. Watching, hopeful that I am out running errands or at the back of the house where I won't hear him. Little does he know that I am perched at the very edge of my computer chair, less that 2 feet from the door that he will leave my big ol' box of Stampin' goodness at any minute now. Poor, poor, Mr. Brown.

But, good for me because very soon I will have even more goodies to play with, and that means that I will have even more new stuff to show you. Until then, let me give you a peek at what I did do this week in between running back and forth from preschool, doing laundry, and having my kitchen table commandeered by my hubby so that he could put 792 new pictures in our photo albums.

The first two cards are for my upcoming "Christmas in September class" and feature two of my favorite stamps sets from last year, "Wondrous Gift" and "Punch Pals". I have used both of these sets numerous times and still enjoy them. I do have to give credit where credit is due in regard to the cute little snowman card you see here. It was designed by one of my favorite bloggers, Lynn Weiss. Just click on her name to check out her blog, you won't regret it. (BTW...thanks to Lynn who gave me permission to recreate her card and use it in my class...I truly appreciate it!)

Just to note...when you see this card in my class there will be some of the new Holiday designer paper over that Baja Breeze strip...if my UPS man ever gets here today. You can't hide from me, Mr. Brown, ok? Might as well come on and take you medicine like a big boy now and get it over with.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

This card is a 3-D pop up card that will fold flat for mailing. When you see how easy this is, you just won't believe it. I can see me making a lot more of these in the future for friends and family!

OK, that is all I have for today, but I am planning on a stamp-love-fest coming up this week, so stay tuned. Also, there will be a story about Cabelas that will hopefully serve as a public service announcement/warning to you all...lol! I am so glad to be home from vacation, and I am really looking forward to getting back to regular posts here...both stamping and non-stamping related. Remember...it isn't too late to sign up to be a part of the STAMPeders walking/running (SNORT!! Bwaahaaa....running!! Oh, I think I pulled something laughing at that one!) team for the Susan Komen Race for the Cure. We would love to have you with us!

Until next time, everyone, Happy Stamping!

Kim