Friday, April 23, 2010

Verve Beach Party Release Challenge #4

My last card of the evening, I wish I'd done a bit of a stamp off of the flower so it was a smidge lighter, but whatever =)

I used a new stamp set, a new nestie AND old DP....look at me go!

Stamps: Verve Feel the Sun
Paper: Delicate Dots DP, Certainly Celery, Sahara Sand, Bashful Blue, So Saffron
Ink: Bashful Blue, So Saffron
Accessories: Nestabilities, Button, Celery Ribbon (x2), Brides Flowers, Flower Brad, Blue Rhinestone

Verve Beach Party Release Challenge #3

This was the first card I completed tonight and I LOVE the crisp stamping of that sentiment! Being a Graphic Communications graduate at one point in my life (then learning I didn't REALLY like certain aspects of graphic design, but that's another story), I have a love of fonts and Julee really picks some of the best!

Stamps: Verve Happy Birthday, Just for You
Paper: Bella Blue DP, Kraft, Very Vanilla, Not Quite Navy
Ink: Not Quite Navy
Accessories: Dimensionals, Half Pearls, Kraft Color Ribbon

Verve Beach Party Release Challenge #2

Well Taylor Swift and I rocked out three cards tonight, this being the second of the bunch. My goal was to get some of the Verve sketches done AND use up some of my huge DP collection.

It's now 12:30am and I've completed three, watched a show, talked to MrP, drank a beer and best of all - enjoyed my evening!

Stamp: Birthday Wishes
Paper: Spring Break DP, Old Olive, Blue Bayou, Soft Sky, Pumpkin Pie
Ink: Blue Bayou
Accessories: Half Pearls, Silver Cord, Paper Piercer, Sakura Gel Pen, Signo White Gel Pen, Dimensionals

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Some people make the world special


What a true statement - and it's just like Verve to have made it into a stamp!
I created this card using Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #65 and my latest Verve stamps Feel the Sun. Some retired SU! designer paper and a little sakura gel pen, plus a button and paper piecing....easy peasy.

Today is the day my NYC schedule falls into place - the NFL schedule is out at 7pm Eastern and I cannot wait. That means we'll be able to hopefully get some tickets to the Jets home opener and depending on how ridiculous those tickets are, we'll decide how far up the cheap seats we choose for the Yankees game. Yahooooooo!

MrP is off enjoying Vegas, so I'm enjoying a whole lot of bike riding while he's away (since he sold his last bicycle to purchase my engagment ring and hasn't bought a new one yet). I always feel a little guilty about it, but it was far too much bike for what he really needed anyways =) Plus, yesterday my 15K ride was to get home after dropping his car off at the dealership, so really....nothing to feel bad about other than I finished my horseback riding lesson and sleeping like a log from the exhaustion. I doubt he's sleeping as well since he's up early for conference and late to bed because he and the other attendees are enjoying the Vegas nightlife. I'd much rather be home than there, but apparently I'm a bit of a weirdo for not loving Vegas. I blame the 7 days we spent there as part of our honeymoon when I grew sick of it....and now I have zero interest in returning.

Hope you have a wonderful Tuesday!

Stamps: Verve Feel the Sun
Paper: River Rock, Ginger Blossom DSP, Riding Hood Red, Whisper White, Old Olive, Cameo Coral
Ink: Basic Black, Riding Hood Read
Accessories: Dimensionals, Button, Sakura Gel Pen

Monday, April 12, 2010

My next vacation is official!

Sorry - more than a little excited as New York was to be our 2008 vacation destination until we were married in San Diego in 2006 and MrP developed an awful un-love of flying. Well, so did I, but I've gotten over mine in the years since (for the most part), but he remains very dopily medicated for each and every flight he takes. 

As a result, the hours required to fly to New York were a little much, resulting in a trip to San Francisco instead, which in turn resulted in my absolute favorite vacation of all time. I LOVE that area! (as evidenced by my blog header?! Yeah....I took that...along with a few photos that decorate our house that were taken in Muir Woods) Plus, we bought a picture something like this that I had to have from the California Academy of Sciences because I thought it was too awesome that they had a picture of a beaver. As it turns out, it's a California Sea Otter...and I feel like an idiot every time I look at this cutie in our somewhat aquatic bedroom.

Anyways, now that I've embarassed myself further by reiterating that ridiculous tale, back to the good stuff! We've booked our flights from Edmonton to Newark for Sept 7-15 with my fave airline and now it's time to book some sporting fun. We'll hit up the Yankees game on the 8th against the Orioles, *fingers crossed* the Jets home opener and possibly check out a match in the US Open (tennis tournament for those not 'in the know'). Maybe if I'm a REALLY good girl in the meantime, we'll luck out with tickets to see Federer, Nadal, Roddick or the Williams sisters. I'd be pumped for any of them. But we're 'event' people, so it won't really matter who we see...I can't wait!

After our amazing experience at The French Laundry in 2008, my goal became to eat at a whole lot of Michelin 3 star restaurants. Well, in truth, I said every one, but that's a WHOLE lot of fine dining - and most of it's in the UK and France, so that's really unlikely given my travel companion's aversion to flying. This time around, we're aiming to visit Le Bernardin for one of our meals. (To get an idea of how exclusive a three star rating is, there's one in the San Francisco area (The French Laundry), one in Las Vegas, five in New York for a total of seven in the United States and a grand total of 85 in the world. Sadly, there's not one in Canada. Heck, there's not even a single Michelin star. I think this might be an oversite?! HAHA)

Sadly, I did not have a craft-productive weekend. That tends to happen when you get food poisoning, though. I'd love to meet someone who has been productive after that. I just wanted to die on Friday night, but I think we've all been there. My stomach's a fair bit flustery this afternoon, but I'm hoping that's just jitters to sign our garage contract tonight. It's what we've been saving for the last four years, but it's still a little unnerving when you see how much you're taking out of savings. Plus, I'm a worrier.

Oh yeah - and I signed myself up for another 10K in support of the Stollery Children's Hospital. Yay!

Anyways, I hope you're having a great Monday - I know I am, even with a questionably happy stomach and an apparently neverending bout of verbal diarrhea. LOL!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Big Wish of Mojo

Could I get any more in love with this sketch?! I don't think so! Mojolicious - and I was able to get in some more Old Olive. HAHA! Mojo Monday Sketch 133 will definitely going into my fave sketch bin. For this card, I pulled out some uninked new Verve - Big Wish.


My poor skills with the new camera are really showing since I can't seem to get dimension or embossing to show up, but maybe practice will improve that. Just means I'll have to get crafting - hopefully you'll bear with me. I tried to show the dimension in the below image.

I hope to get in a creation for the Verve Fun with Flowers Project Parade because those talented ladies have me inspired. Too bad I have to work =)

Also, be sure to check out the absolutely amazing project that Lisa from The Sisterhood of Crafters created for her Earth Day project. I've been such a gong show lately that I wasn't able to get a project done this week but she and the rest of the ladies really did up some amazing recycled projects that I hope you can be inspired by. Oh - and there's a prize this week!

Stamps: Verve Big Wish
Paper: Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Whisper White, Pink Passion, Delicate Dots DSP
Ink: Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Pink Passion, Black
Accessories: White Mini Brads, Dimensionals, Pink Rhinestones, Pink Ribbon

Monday, April 5, 2010

Robotic Mojo

Oh my goodness! I found my mojo - or rather the Mojo Monday sketch found a semblance of what used to be my stamping mojo - and I ended up making two cards with it!

I picked up the adorable Tinheart family from Peggy at PaperworksCo on Saturday and I just had to get this sweetheart colored for a birthday card for my old roommate. I really wish I could master my camera because the photos I took of the cards I created tonight just really don't do them justice (at least in my mind!) Isn't Buckley Tinheart adorable?!


And since I loved the sentiments, I picked up an entire robot bundle to mix & match sentiments - in their perfectly robotic font. Speaking of perfectly matched - how about that awesome robot paper from My Mind's Eye - works great with Buckley, hey?! Darn you, Peggy!


The Mojo Monday Sketch 133 is a contest because it's the first of the month, so get your entries over there! (Oh yeah - and I hope you had a wonderful Easter break/long weekend!)

Stamps: PWCO Tinheart Buckley
Paper: Night of Navy, Whisper White, Old Olive, MME Robots
Ink: Night of Navy
Accessories: Navy Half Pearls, Nestabilities, Sponge, Dimensionals, Reused Ribbon from a Renaissance by Design order =)