Gone but not Forgotten

Hi everyone!  I know the Christmas holiday has passed, but before we go too far, I wanted to share with you a quick project Ainsley and I did using a few fun products from the YMH store.

A few weeks ago, I saw Tracy from Helmar glitter the inside of a glass ball using the Hemar V2 Vellum Spray and thought I would give it a try.   I had a few clear glass balls lying around, and Ainsley wanted to make a special gift for her cousin.  I sprayed the inside of the glass ball with the adhesive (the ball gets cold, be careful) making sure to get good coverage.  Then I dumped in some glitter.  Handing the ball over, she swirled the glitter around inside until we had good coverage.  After dumping out the excess glitter, we got to the fun part....decorating.

A few Prima flourishes, a couple of flowers and my trusty Scrap Dots and we had a beautiful ornament.  My youngest was so proud to show off her handiwork.

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs.

Nancy

Merry Christmas

So, here we are, Christmas Eve.  What a fabulous, fun filled holiday season we have had around here.  You may not see me for a few days as my inlaws are camped out in my scraproom and so I haven't had much of an opportunity to scrap.

Before I go though, I wanted to share a few cards I made for Christmas.

Merry Christmas All!

Hugs!

Nancy

A Fun Sketch

Some of you may have seen the super cute sketch my friend Heather made for the Ideas for Scrapbookers blog post yesterday.

I promise...this layout is straight in real life...I am just computer challenged right now since my computer is acting up.

I used lots of Crate Paper Farmhouse with a bit of lovely trims.  So super simple and so done!  I loved the way these papers coordinated with the characters shirt...and you know how much I love Heather's sketches.

Well, back to work.

Hugs.

Nancy

A Small Gift

Hi everyone!  I hope you are having an amazing holiday season.  We here are in full swing preparing for Christmas.  Two sets of grandparents arrive today, the children have completed their semester's work and there are only a few days left till the big day.

I have been crafting like crazy to try and get all the handmades done.  And you know the children always have a few last minute requests for friends and coaches.  Eeeek

Here is a request I finished, a gift holder and coordinating card.  I used lots of Prima goodies from my Grab Bag from Your Memories Here (can't wait till spring to see what my next box holds.  hee hee).

The little posy can be filled with yummy holiday treats, or even a gift card. 

For the card I used some Prima Vines and paper from my box and some older letter stickers from My Minds Eye.  After inking the Prima Writers Tape with some Distress Inks, I used a bit of Stickles to brighten and add a bit of sparkle.  The posy was made by forming a simple cone and then embellishing with lots of flowers and another vine.  I used a bit of lace to make a handle for the posy.   I even managed to sneak a little more sparkle in by lightly spraying my tissue paper with a bit of Glimmer Mist. (be careful here, too much water and the tissue will start to dissolve.

Well, lots to do, lots to do.....See you soon!

Hugs.

Nancy

A Fun Mini

Hi Everyone!  Hope you are having a fabulous day!  I know I am.  Christmas here is in full swing with the grandparents here and the cookies all baked.  We are so lucky this year to have two sets of grandparents visiting.

Before the month ends though, I wanted to share with you one last project I made with the kit I received from The Sampler.

This fun little mini album has only a few pages, but there are plenty of pockets to tuck little extras in.

I simply love all the cute patterns and colors in this kit and can't to fill it with fun photos of Christmas day!

With two sets of grandparents and my two year old niece (oh yeah...my sister will be here too), as well as my immediate family;  I am sure the day will be filled with fabulous fun.

And speaking of the two year old niece...time to see what she and the girls are up to.

Hugs.

Nancy

Busy, Busy

Hi everyone!  Still busy around here.  Lots of baking and housework going on today, but I wanted to pop in and share a few more projects I made with The Sampler's December Kit.

 I started with a fun layout using bunches of the beautiful papers and pop dots.  

I really loved the glitter on the tags so I added a few stickles to the other chipboard.

And, being that I am still working on my Christmas cards....

The deer transparency was just beautiful.  I partnered it with one of the gorgeous trims in the kit along with some sparkly paper and one of the sweet tags.

For something a little more whimsical....

I ran my field paper through my sizzix machine so I could highlight the fun color cored paper in the kit.  A bit of stickles for sparkle and I was ready to hit the mailbox.

Thanks for stopping by.  And be sure to grab this gorgeous kit for your holiday projects.

Hugs.

Nancy

It's Friday, Friday....

Hooray, it is almost the weekend...and thank goodness.  The mad dash...the last few days before we have family coming in from out of town.  I have so many half completed projects that need to be done before everyone arrives.  And although I am home every day, and you would think that would give me plenty of time to get things done....schooling the children just gets in the way.  hee hee....You think making Christmas Cards can count for math?

Well, I wanted to share this layout I have had sitting on my table for a while.  It is one from our time in Alaska.  Skagway was simply beautiful, but the day we were there it was cold...and drizzly.  Thank goodness the excursion we had booked came with wet weather gear.  Since we would be canoeing out to the glacier they plan on people being wet.  So extra layers were provided.  Of course, once we were all bundled up, we looked a bit puffy.

Basic Grey everything.  hee hee

The kids had a great time.  We were able to pluck icebergs (baby ones) out of the lake for the children to suck on. The extra layers made for some interesting body shots...and so many seals.

OK, guess I should do something constructive.

Hugs.

Nancy

A Quick Little Mini

The holidays are in full swing around here and with my sister moving.....well, looks like I am making more excuses.  hee hee

I made a quick little mini album to highlight a few of my favorite photos of my niece.  (which I still need to add)

The base of my mini is A4 Prima Londonerry papers from my Your Memories Here grab bag.  I embellished the front with a gorgeous Prima flower, a super fun canvas resist die cut and a bit of bling.  Finally I tied it all together with some seam binding I dyed with Olive Vine glimmer mist.

This cute little album is made from two pieces of paper folded and taped together with Prima canvas tape that I dyed with distress inks.

I can't wait to find some cute photos to add to it.  And you know, I will be adding lots more flowers and other embellishments.

Hugs.

Nancy

Great News and a Contest

So, I shared a few projects I did the other day for The Sampler Kit Club as the December GDT.  Well, today I am happy to announce that I am officially on the full team beginning in January!   And to top that, The Sampler is having a huge giveaway on the blog!  Five bundles of Crate Paper goodies!  You have got to go check it out.
And be sure to check out the December Kit!

Hugs

Nancy

Hi everyone!  When my friend Holly asked me if I would like to GDT for The Sampler the month December I jumped at the chance.  The All that Glitters kit this month is gorgeous and I couldn't wait to jump in and play right away.

I made tons of goodies with the kit, but thought I would share two of them with you today.

There is such a great variety of alphabets in this kit I really wanted to take advantage of it.   I left space for a photo of my family Christmas Stockings and plan on slipping wish lists inside the the cute little envelopes.  I put one for each child...how perfect is that.  hee hee

I also made a cute little home decor item

.   

The little Santa was just too adorable and I loved the cute Crate Paper word paper.  I made a few pinecones with a bit of scrap paper and some stickles.  I have been loving pine cones this season.   The Coredinations cardstock in the kit worked well for distressing the holly and branches, adding just a bit of texture.

All in all, this kit is just so fun!  Be sure and grab one.

Hugs

Nancy

Something is Wrong

So, the other afternoon, I was sitting at my scrap table, finishing up these two projects.  Such a lovely day.  Ainsley was singing Christmas Carols at the top of her lungs.  So, what was wrong?

Echo Park Apothecary, Pink Paislee alphabet, The Twinery twine.

Thank goodness these Halloween photos are just about done!  At the rate I am moving I should be getting around to my Christmas photos somewhere around July 4th!  lol.  Thanks to Scraptastic for the super fun papers.  Back to work.

Hugs.

Nancy

Woopsies

I would love to share with you all the totally awesome excuses I have for having been neglecting my blog these last few weeks.  hee hee....but I am still crazy busy so I just wanted to pop on and share a layout I did for Your Memories Here.

In my grab bag of Summer CHA Prima goodies there was a tube of the Pixie Glen Essentials.  The colors were gorgeous and worked beautifully with the Random Collection from Crate Paper for this layout.

Patterned Paper, stickers Crate Paper.  Prima florals, bling, resins Prima.  Hero Arts/Sizzix stamp and die cut, Cricut Doily

There were so many flowers in this tube I think I hardly made a dent.  I used my Cricut to make the doily behind my photo and added a bit of lace I had from the YMH store.

 I added in a bit of Ruby Violet flowers.  The enameled flowers added such an interesting texture...

And of course I cut up a few Prima flourishes to go with the pearl and jewel centers.

I even added a little resin birdhouse in the corner.

Well, got to run.  Hope you are having a great day.

Hugs.

Nancy

Boys....

Homeschooling over these many years has had many challenges.  Some when the children were younger we had battles over getting work done (well, ok...I still battle with Ainsley).  Lately tho there is a new battle, one that was really affecting the children's ability to do well.  See, as Brighton has gotten older, I am teaching less and less, and he is doing more online work.  This semester he is taking three online AP courses.  Well....Does this look like a good study environment to you?

WRMK patterned papers, Basic Grey Felt, chipboard.  EK Success border punch, unknown ribbon

We have had to put an end to this.  I now check to make sure that he is doing his work at his desk.  But....It is kinda funny.

Gotta run!

Hugs.

Nancy

Kissing Ball

Sorry I have been MIA, but with the holiday...life has just been crazy.  Did you know that we put up 4 trees?  Yep, I am a bit obsessive.  Not totally tho!  Phil keeps me in check, and even refused to let me put up a 5th tree this year in the office.  Scrooge.  hee hee

As I am sure you know that when you step under the mistletoe you are inviting a kiss; but did you ever wonder where the tradition came from?  Like many of our current traditions, this one comes from the middle ages, but was updated during the reign of Queen Victoria.  I found a detailed story here if you are interested, but here is an excerpt....

People would take a potato or apple and tie a pretty ribbon around it as a hanger.  Then they would stick sprigs of evergreen, holly and sweet herbs into the potato or apple until it bristled with them.

The herbs in the sweet ball took on the highly romanticized symbolism common to the Victorian area. Simon and Garfunkel weren't the only ones singing about "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme".   Each of those herbs plus dozens and dozens more flowers, herbs and plants spoke a unique and private symbolic language to Victorians.  The choice of herbs, flowers and boughs could state love, affection, charity, piety and more.

I decided to create my own version of a kissing ball using some beautiful flowers, Distress Inks, and Glimmer Mist from the Your Memories Here store; a bit of seam binding and a styrofoam ball. 

I used Festive Berries from the LE Winter Distress Inks to color each flower from the Prima Wildflowers Pillar. (a handful of flowers was all I needed.)

 And then spritzed them with a bit of Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Mist to give them some sparkle and shine.

 I cut a few holly leaves with my Sizzix....

And inked them with the other two colors of Distress Ink that were in the kit, Evergreen Bough and Iced Spruce.  (hint, a quick fold down the middle, run the fold directly over the pad, and you get a nice vein)

I attached the flowers to the ball using my Helmar 450.

To finish off my project I ran a bit of seam binding across the Evergreen Bough,  and added a Prima Rose.  A few Prima pearls in the center of each flower and my kissing ball was ready to hang.

I hope I have inspired you to create a little holiday magic in your home this season.

Hugs.

Nancy

Ruby Wednesday

Hi everyone!  Hope you here in the US are enjoying the day before Thanksgiving!  I know I am.

I recently received from Your Memories Here some gorgeous, fun products from the new Prima line, Ruby Violet.   You know, when the package arrived I couldn't wait to dive right in!

 There are so many gorgeous flowers.  So fun, so funky.

The necklace kits can be assembled in any way you choose, but for those who are new to making jewelry, there are photos of finished projects you can just copy.

One of my favorite things tho is that you don't need jump rings, pliers and other jewelry making tools.

I used just a bit of Helmar's Scrap Dots to hold everything together.  But I would imagine the Gemstone glue would work just as well or better.

I had so much fun making these pieces that I think I may pick up a few more kits for my nieces for Christmas.  They are only $8.00 in the Your Memories Here store, but this weekend there is a Black Friday sale and everything is 30% off with the code TURKEY.

Happy Wednesday.

Hugs.

Nancy

It's Tuesday

I can't believe it is already the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.  I haven't even made it to the grocery yet, and here I am thinking about cutting a Christmas Tree?  eeek!!!

Before I do tho, I wanted to share with you a canvas I made for Ainsley's room.  Ainsley has been loving the She Art girls I have made and really wanted one for her newly redecorated room.  So, she picked a very large canvas and gave me some direction and said for me to make one.  Who knew such a large canvas would be so difficult?

 She wanted bird houses, and birds..... so at least I had something to fill the space.  hee hee  I am not sure I just love the background.  Definitely need to work on creating depth and dimension in my painted spaces.

 Now, those paper filled spaces....that part I love.  hee hee....give me some patterns and I am off.

 And I can junk up the simplest patterns with a few stamps and rub ons....no problem.

 How about a few flowers in the clouds?  A few more in her hair?  oh.....and maybe a bit of sparkle?

And I adore creating their clothes.  So fun.

Well, I do need to pop over to the grocery and buy a turkey before they are all gone.

Hugs.

Nancy

Time Flies

You know that old saying....Time flies when you are having fun.  I am not sure how much fun I have been having, but I can't believe I haven't had a chance to sit down and blog in almost a week.  sigh

I do have projects in the works tho!  Lovely things to share.  Let's start with a couple of layouts.....

I have been taking great joys these days in using older supplies.  Here I have more Scenic Route Paper, which I mixed with some brand new Prima leaves, an older Prima flower and a Maya Road rosette.   The layout is simple, but I was happy with it.  You wouldn't believe how much chipboard I have stashed away, just waiting to be used.  Funny the way we forget about these things once they are packed up.  This is based on a sketch from Sketchy Thursdays.

Some photos from Skagway, Alaska.  We saw some beautiful scenery and were extremely grateful for the extra layers that were provided for us on the excursion.

And the Halloween photos just keep coming.....Here is Ainsley and a few friends at a Halloween party just a month or so ago.  The girls all had a great time and their costumes were so fun.  I swear tho....I am never going to finish scrapping Halloween.  hee hee  Lots of fun, older, Imaginesce papers here....with a few of the coordinating embellishments.  And you know I could resist throwing in a bit of Prima, a flower and some bling.  hee hee

I also added in a bit of twine from The Twinery.  I am just loving playing with twine these days.

Well, I have tons of things to do...so for now....

Hugs.

Nancy

Cricut Addiction?

OK, I may not have an addiction...shoot, there are people who own hundreds of cartridges...I own, maybe 50.    That isn't at all an addiction, is it?  That said, what it is is a big ole pile of boxes that hold those cartridges which I don't have room for in my scrappy space.

So, I took the plunge and purchased a storage system for my supplies.  While I love my new Scrap n Tote, it left me with a huge pile of empty boxes...and you know I like to be green. (or in this case, pink)  hee hee

So....

With a little help from the Prima grab bag I received from Your Memories Here, I transformed my Cricut storage box into this cute little treasure.

More of my A4 paper pad, beautiful Prima blooms, gorgeous bling, leaves, an adorable resin birdhouse and the cutest little birds nest.  I even used a button on the side of my box to help open it.

I misted my seam binding with Glimmer Mist in Sugar Maple and Suede and tied it in a huge bow.

I think I will use this box to house an art journal (that I have yet to make...hee hee).  I am taking the She Art 2 workshop and am thinking I may need to practice these faces, so a little mini just for them????

Thanks for stopping by.

Hugs.

Nancy