When I was a kid...

...I did not understand why this photo was referred to as "the bombshell"....



But, NOW, I do.

That's my beautiful mom! Just the other day, whole family got together to celebrate her 71st birthday - and it was WONDERFUL and yes, she's still AMAZING!




I was inspired by this FANTASTIC photo of my mom, our shared appreciation for Tim Holtz {she REMEMBERS the ephemera, and I have a ball using it!}, and this OUTRAGEOUSLY fun sketch by Card Patterns....





I had to do a little tweaking to make this all work, but I was delighted where this sketch took my materials and creative flow!



Just a fun journey of wonderful memories, juicy embellishments and scrumptious materials - Yeahoooo! What a hoot! I am SO grateful to have a mom who truly inspires me - so making a card, using her, as a beautiful, classy & elegant embellishment, was great fun! Speaking of classy, I thought I'd toss "mom" into the Moxie Fab Classy & Elegant challenge!!! {Go, MOM! hee hee} She's someone I look up to, look FORWARD to talking to, and look to, for continued enlightenment and inspiration. If it weren't for her encouragement, I would have missed so many of life's treasures... If it weren't for her, I would have never been brave enough to pursue my art, and go for... something like - this:

1st place in the in the Sonoma County Fair - Yeeeeeeeeee Haaaaaawwwwwwww!

Also, if it weren't for mom, I wouldn't have MY girl, and her happy ribbon moment...!

We were AMAZED and delighted by our good results in our LARGE{-er} local fair, where the competition is SERIOUS, but the rewards are SWEET! There is some AMAZING local art and talented crafters a-plenty in our lovely county, let me tell ya! It's a HUGE honor for the little gal and me to share a piece of our recognition... Hope you don't mind - we're standing a bit taller for the big nod! Truly!

I am SO delighted that you took the time to stop by my scrappy, crafty lil' blog! Here's hoping that you're enjoying the BEST of what summer has to offer where you live and create! Have a WONDERFUL day!

Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up!
D/P - Stampin' Up! {Embossed script}; Tim Holtz {Movie Theater ephemera}
Stamps - Stampin' Up!
Ink - Tim Holtz Embossing Ink, Dye Ink
Micro Pearls Powder - Tim Holtz/Ranger
Distress Stickles - Tim Holtz/Ranger
"Mother" die-cut - Cricut
Scallop Border - Stampin' Up!
Word Beads - Michael's
Vintage Rhinestone Buttons - My stash
Fragment - Tim Holtz
Antique Index Holder - Tim Holtz

I've got my {FISH} eye on YOU!

Always watching... ALWAYS watching!




That's the look of any well-drawn fish, in my opinion, and that's what I think is so cute about these fish by Kerrianne from WPLUS9designstudio... {Adorable!} Can't stop playing with these babies and I recently thought of a really cute & fun way to make use of these images and sentiments all in one fun, interactive card! Just for fun, I thought I'd toss this fish in with the Moxie Fab Cute & Fun Challenge!

Every good fisher-person knows that the way to win the prize is with good spinnin' action - and I couldn't agree more! The left side of the card is the "spin" side...!



On the right side is the "window" of fun! {The BUSINESS end of the card!} Check out the assortment of surprises that await the unknowing recipient of this lil' keeper......

#1) .... the bait



#2) ...the switch!



#3) ... Set the HOOK!



#4) WIN the prize! The lunker! The old Grand Dad of Lake Owonnahavu-fr-eva!




Of all the fish on the sea.... I'm hooked on all-o-you! {Who else would accept my silly humor!}

I hope you like this zany lil' card! I had a ball making it! I just kinda let those fish SWIM and let me tell ya, the water was FINE! Yee Haw! {THAT'S RIGHT!} Here's hoping that you're having some splashing good fun this weekend! Whoooopeeee!


Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up!
Stamps - WPLUS9designstudio (all except for small letters - those are by S/U!)
Ink - Stampin' Up! & Versa Fine
Chipboard letters - Medium size - 7Gypsies; Larger size - DCWV
Chrystal Effects - Stampin' Up!
Pearlescent Water Colors - Jarquard
Spin Mechanism - My design

Just a little something... Off the WALL!

With CRAFTINESS, babies!

I'm jumping in to a {New to ME!} color challenge by sweet and crafty, herself, Kim Wilson! She has a delightful little blog called, Off the Wall Craftiness - {isn't that perfect!} and a color challenge by the same name... And honey, babies, sweethearts!!! She's got some serious prize action to share! I'm jumping into the game at the very last minute, but she's already hinted that the next few weeks will be VERY exciting in the prize category! So, I'm in! Check out this delicious and delightful montage-o-color inspiration! Ummm - hmmmmm!

Probably wouldn't have thunk that I'd be inspired to go from wedding reception...
to the BARNYARD!!! {Or would YOU? hee hee... Mwahhhhaaaa haa!}

I just kept contemplating these lovey colors {... get the BALLOONS, I mean c'mon! How ca-ute!}

And thus, I was called to the livestock department of Scrapland... "October Afternoon FARMYARD stamps - please report to the scrap desk... Please, report to the scrap desk for some coloring fun!" Really, when you think about it, these colors were a natural translation: pig, lamb, cow! But of course!

And even though I dumped some seriously old tackle {I bought that die-cut picket fence about a million years ago - not even sure who made it? Stamping Station, ur... something like that..} Anywhoo, I kept it kinda simple {Wait, wha?} .... I know! - DEADLINES! Whatcha gonna do?

So there we have it. A fun {new to ME!} challenge - AND, if it's new to YOU.... Make a note to catch some "OFF THE WALL CRAFTINESS!" Yipeeee!

Thanks for peeking in the barnyard today! I shor' am glad dropped in!

YEE HAW!


Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up! & Bazzil
Stamps - October Afternoon & WPLUS9 {Clouds!}
Ink - Stampin' Up!
Die Cut Fencing - Stamping Station {?}

It's time for a meeting...

I'm over-due for another meeting of EMBOSSING TOOLS anonymous... {Are YOU a member?}

Lucky for us, the ever crafty, Dawn, from Stamp Away with Me & WPLUS9, is urging us with her "study" in paper crafting... In her monthly feature, "All Eyes On..." she is inspiring us with EMBOSSING!



Now, WE may begin... "Do you own/collect/hoard or lust for embossing tools, colored powders and high powered hair dryers..? WELCOME!"



I got busy with just a few myself - AND added some clear embossed clouds with a watercolor resist, just for good measure! WAHOOOO! But, I didn't stop there, just to add to my little adventure - I decided to get all WESTERN with some of Dawn's stamps! Working from three different sets, I found a way to let the old paint mare RUN! Yee Haw!

Hope you feel inspired to get all EMBOSSY! Check out Dawn's blog for her dazzling tutorial and peaks from some of the other DT members!



Embossing IS awesome fun... But so is participating in challenges.... {And whenever you can do both, EMBOSS- ON!} Because I hit a vein of crafty delight in Scrapland, today - I'm going to add some challenge fun to this post!



Here's a little BOOK {hold on to you seats... I ZUTTERED!}.... inspired by THIS sketch, by THESE awesome folk.... The CARD PATTERNS people! {They are MY kind of people!}





AND.... COLOR! From THESE crafty folk, at the Play Date Cafe! {Some of my FAVORITE crafty folk combine flawlessly in color/composition challenge! Ain't life GRAND!?!}



Just one more shot. I'm kind of THRILLED that I finally used my ZUTTER{Bind-it-all} for something more than a decorative edge! I made a boooooook! {And something tells me I'm going to knock some items off the old Christmas list with this puppy, this year! Yeahooooo!} Thanks for sticking with me though this action filled post! I'm ALWAYS delighted when you stop by! Hope you get inspired to emboss something WONDERFUL and then JUMP into some challenge fun for good measure - you'll be glad you did!

Supplies - (All Eyes On - Embossed WESTERN card)
C/S - Stampin' Up!
Stamps - WPLUS9design studio
Ink - Stampin' Up!
Water Color Pencils and Crayons - Stampin' Up!
Embossing Plates - American Traditionals; Stampin' Up!
Embossing Folder - Cuttlebug
Colored Twine - Stampin' Up!

(Wine Journal)
C/S - Stampin Up!
Stamps - Clear & Simple Stamps; Stampin' Up!
Ink - Stampin' Up!; Versa Fine; Staz On
Scallop Edge Punch and Sizzix Die - Stampin' Up!
Pearls - Kaiser Craft
Embroidery Thread - Yaley
Acrylic Tags - Ranger/Tim Holtz
Metal Tape - Ranger
Ribbon - My stash!
Metal Decorative Corners - Tim Holtz
Wine Corks - My stash!

Fishin' for COLOR inspiration...

You NEVER know where you might find it!





I caught me some RIGHT HERE, at Dawn's wonderful Color Cue! Do these colors say "make a fish card" to you? They sure were a challenge for little old me. Plus, I am SO loving this stamp set from Dawn's latest release.... And while I'm totally smitten for the supremely elegant, Mehndi Medallions, I just can't STOP playing with these little fishies, from Kerrianne's hand, and her darling, Hooked On You set! and their wonderful sentiments - the possibilities for fun card craft are endless! So, I just kept my "line" in the water until the conditions were right and I MADE me a fish scene out of these colors - FISH ON!




I've said it before, but it always helps to admit my problem... I'm kind of a literal girl. I have problems s t r e t c h i n g colors to fit non-traditional subjects.... ie... Using kraft as my underwater scene... But then I just "swam around in the idea." I thought of a shallow tributary of water, via snorkel and mask... and it kinda just came to me! Then, I got the idea to use real sand... combined with a wrong way splatter of glue, the sandy outcroppings of coral were born! HEEEE HEEEE! {Don't we love when a mistake turns... HAPPY!!!}



Forgive me, but I had to show you this card from an additional angle, so that I could share the JOY of using a happy bottle of Lumiere that's been living in a special drawer for, too many, years... {never used! DOH!} Today, it got out to play! Yes, I did! And it was "legal" in the color scheme and gave that adorable lil' fishy just the character she needed... next to this guy!




What a doll! I'm NEVER going to tire of Mr. Wormy, here! Don't these two make a darling pair!?!



So, there's my CATCH OF THE DAY! Color fun + happy fish + IT'S FRIDAY! Yeahooooooooo!

That's for swimming by! Hope it's flawlessly seasonal summer weather for you this weekend!

Enjoy!

Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up!
Stamps - WPLUS9design studio
Ink - Stampin' Up! & Versa Fine
Eyelets - Doodlebug
Embossing Folder - Stampin' Up!

A WINNER, indeed!

I am DELIGHTED by the momentum and FUN generated by the Color Throwdown and their fabulous 100th celebration... It was SUCH an honor to be a part of that WONDERFUL party ~ my head is still spinning! hee hee I can't get over the amount of participation - you all, ROCK!

As promised, the WINNERS are in! There are SO many, and SUCH generous prizes... it's a COLOR-COMBO MIRACLE, my friends! LOTS AND LOTS OF FANTASTIC prizes! SERIOUSLY!

However..., it should be known that the MOST fabulous prize {IMHO!} is given by the fine folks at CLEAR & SIMPLE STAMPS..... Yes, friends, that's right... THAT'S the award and WONDERFUL sponsor that supported my little corner of fun....

THE WINNER of the 100th Color Throwdown Prize Extravaganza is......

#179 - Nancy Ward!

Nancy wins a $25 gift certificate to Clear & Simple Stamps! {You can get even busier with all of those Christmas cards, now, NANCY! Hee Hee} ~ She's a little Christmas Elf, she is...! I hope you'll go by her blog [SHE has the most DARLING blog-header!] and give her fantastic work a gander, and sprinkle a lil' love upon her site - SHE'S a lucky gal! {Who knows, maybe it will rub of on some of the rest of us!}

In the meantime, there is TONS of loot and judging by all of the participation, there's a good chance you may have won at another blog if you played along with the FANTASTIC Color Throwdown Celebration! {See the CTD blog for the particulars - you NEED to check in with them by the 19th to claim your prize... YOU'LL BE GLAD YOU DID!}

Run along and GET SOME GOODIES! { I sure hope you won! }

AND!!! Don't forget, there's already a new THROWDOWN palette to play with! Lovely Laura is the hostess this week... She did the majority of "designer wrangling" during the planing of the CTD celebration and WHAT A DOLL! She'll take good care of you, I'm sure! Wahooo! And happy coloring!

LOOK ~ Up!

That's my motto for the day!

Things are looking UP!

I've had to go underground for a few days to get some work complete for ANOTHER local fair, here in Sonoma County, Ca. However, I've been blown-away by the fun y'all are having with the Color Throwdown FESTIVAL! {Wahoooo!} And I'm hopeful that I can get a chance to catch up with the crazy action later in the weekend! The response to the super generous give-aways has been overwhelming! Thanks for all of the fun comments and the wonderful participation - I can't wait to inspect all of the creations you have made with the Color Throwdown Colors! If you are looking for my 100th challenge celebration post, please scroll down or click here!

In the meantime, I've been taking that romantic vision of local color, fairly seriously! I don't have time to share a card, but, instead, a little something I have submitted in the Fine Arts Category, of the Sonoma County Fair, under watercolor + VITICULTURE! {I think I'm falling in love ~ again ~ with where I live!}

And then in another Fine Art category, my personal FAVE ~ animal art!

Unfortunately, I'm not able to share pictures that really display my husband's participation in my fine art submissions ~ he MADE the frames, himself! And with NO time to spare, I'll say. I would, ordinarily have my PERSONAL, favorite framing goddess, Helene, of Helene's Framing and Scrapbook Store do this for me, but since I finished up these babies with only a few hours to spare, Husband had to pitch in. Although he is supportive of my art, the whole thing still mystifies him, quite a bit. It was nice to include him in the fun - MAYBE he'll even go to the fair to see how "we" did! hee hee

Anyhow, sweet friends ~ THANKS, for stopping by! I'll have A LOT more craft to share with you as the week progresses! It's always a delight to share and ENJOY what you have been up to ~ I'll see you SOON!

Celebrating 100 Challenges....

with the fantastic crew from the Color Throwdown!



It's TODAY, it's today! The big BLOG HOP and CELEBRATION to honor 100 Challenges-o-FUN! And those funny, talented and sassy girls who throw-it-down EACH and every week, dazzling us mortals and inspiring some of the most fun color combinations - EVER {!} have put together one SUPER-FABULOUS celebration! I have such a soft spot in my heart for the personalities of the gals who give and give, over there! I had the honor of being a guest designer for a month last year, and all I can say is that I felt like a most cherished guest of a big, warm and wacky family... all of whom are MASTER PAPER CRAFT GODDESSES, generous and FUN! I was thrilled, beyond thrilled when they invited me to take part in this celebration. Not only are we hoping that you'll take the time to visit each and every gal on this list, but we're practically BRIBING you! Wait! Oh, just WAIT, until you see the booty and the bounty of prizes and fun that await you as you make the rounds! Because the CTD is so loved and respected and ESTABLISHED after 100 {Hello!) challenges, they have some AMAZING sponsors! You will have a chance to win some fabulous prizes from each stop on the blog hop! {Hey! I like the sound of THAT!}

Speaking of sponsors.... I was given the extreme privilege of representing Clear & Simple Stamps ~ what AWESOME folk they are! I was allowed to pick out a stamp set of my choosing, to play with the colors of the current CHALLENGE ~ Check it OUT, babies!



A little vino with that? YES, please!!! But, wait, let's hold off on HOW awesome these stamps are, for just a sec... Check out this slammin' color palette!



I was SO excited, I made another!




Here's the FANTASTIC set I got to use for the fun, and trust me ~ I LIVE in the Sonoma County, Wine Country! {You'll be seeing a lot more from me with this powerful little set!} It's a keeper!



YOU! You, as a visitor of my lovely little blog, are eligible to WIN * WIN * WIN a gift certificate for $25.00 from Clear And Simple Stamps! Just leave me a comment {which, WHO doesn't love comments to begin with.... HEYYYYYY!} on THIS post and link a creation {including direct links only, PLEASE!} at the Color Throwdown Site, before the 12th of July, and YOU might be in some SERIOUS crafty-craft material goodness! Check out THIS post for all of the details, rules and prize sponsors....! What fun! MEANWHILE, there's just a few other inspiring stops for you to visit and the bounty keeps flowing!

Tammy Hershberger - Stamp Happy

Broni Holcombe - Splashes of Watercolor
Barbara Anders - Paper Pursuits
Danielle Kennedy - Wild Dragonfly Designs
LeAnne Pugliese - Wee Inklings
Laura Pryor - Lil' Inker
Kisa Peters - Kisa's Paper Cuts
Carol Longacre - Our Little Inspirations
Deb Horst - Sendable Sentiments
Debi Southard - Debi's Crazy Life
Elise Durenberger - MamaCow Creations
Juliana Swanson - Stampin With Inky Fingers
Lisa Kind - Kind Creations
Makiko Jones - Makink Studios
Maria Gurnsey - Scraps By M
Pam Speidel - Stamping With Serendipity
Sylvia Nelson - Sylvia's Stamp Corner
Teresa Kline - Enjoy the VA Sunshine
Wanda Cullen - Cullen-ary Creations

CHECK OUT THE JUICE - AND refreshments (aka PRIZE PACKAGES!!!) provided at these exciting blogs! I guarantee you'll find something that looks incredible and the odds of winning wonderful prizes is GOOOOOOOOD! BUT WAIT! Don't forget - PLAY the Color THROWDOWN this week and win, win, win! Just think, how easy: visit the designers & leave a comment...GET INSPIRED, make something... link YOUR fabulous creation to CTD and ENJOY the fun!

Maybe they should have called this CHRISTMAS in JULY! YEEEEEEEEE HAAAAAAWWWW!!!


Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up!
D/P - Basic Grey
Stamps - Clear & Simple Stamps - wine images and sentiment background; Clouds - Practicing Creativity; Stampin' Up! - "Delight In Life" sentiment
Ink - Stampin' Up!; Staz On!; Versa Fine; Color Box Chalk
Stickles - Tim Holtz / Ranger
Border Punches - EK Success & Fiskars
Chipboard Letters - American Crafts
Ribbon - Michael's

Oh, what an EXTREMELY, Happy Day!

Hi friends!

I started to make this card in a symbolic salute to answered prayers....

But THEN, I noticed the latest challenge from Everything But the Kitchen Sink ~

And it inspired just the "oomph" I was looking for! {Plus, WPLUS9 is the sponsor! Yeahoo!}

I, RECENTLY, gave myself permission to order SEVERAL {more!} stamp sets, from the lovely and talented, Courtney, of Practicing Creativity Designs. I was eager to use the rays from "You're A Dandy"... on something... ANYTHING...! THEN, there was a little tidbit from Ann {you KNOW Ann, the super craftilicious card crafter who HAPPENS to be hostessing the current EBTKS challenge.....} She recently used this image from a Cosmo Cricket "Snorkel - ELEMENTS" page, on an amazing card. For a comment, I swooned about how impressed I was that she was willing to part with that image.... {Once you use it.... *gasp!* it's gone, you know!} Well, she'd done such a spectacular job..., I decided to try and muster some courage to let one of my faves.... go!

Suddenly, a little paper piecing and JUST the right graphics-o-inspiration... AND THEN FOIL!




And this triumphant card was born! The sentiment is PERFECT and that lovely sunbather gal reminds me of how I felt when our WELL was recently fixed, thanks to some dear friends and extremely caring neighbors! (Sure! That's just how I look, running through our sprinklers! hee hee ~ NOT!) Anyway, this was a VERY happy creation for me on MANY levels!

I hope your weekend is filled with the RIGHT AMOUNT of water, lots of good food, dear friends and FUN! Be safe and have a WONDERFUL holiday!

Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up!
D/P - Cosmo Cricket
Stamps - Practicing Creativity
Ink - Stampin' Up! (craft) & Versa Fine
Foil - Reynold's

Say HELLO to my little friend....

I'm HOOKED on this darling set, by Kerrianne!

It's from WPLUS9 design studio's latest release {see Dawn's blog for more info!} and it's such a blast to create with! There are SUCH darling images & sentiments, and hey, it's summer! I love sushi, fishing and kids swaddled in brightly colored, brand new beach towels.... combined with some groovy colors influenced by the old SNORKEL paper collection from Cosmo Cricket! And YEAHOOO! I caught me a heap of craftin' fun!

The water's FINE, so jump on in! Get YOUR craft ON, and have a splashing good day!



Supplies -

C/S - Stampin' Up!
Stamps - WPLUS9
Ink - Stampin' Up! & Versa Fine
Chrystal Effects - Stampin' Up!
Die Cut Letters - Cricut