Card-Blanc by Kathy Martin

Thank You & Giveaway

2012-02-18T09:11:00.000-05:00

Hey Crafty Peeps!

Thanks you for dropping by yesterday to have a little blog party with me at Doodlebug Designs yesterday! It wouldn't have been any fun without you!

The giveaway, this colorful Birthday Celebration collection, is up for grabs just by leaving a comment here on my blog AND at Doodlebug. One comment per person, please. Comments will be open through Sunday, February 19. A winner will be randomly chosen from comments and announced here on Monday, February 20.

Kathy :)

Come Join the Fun!

2012-02-17T08:53:00.001-05:00

T.G.I.F!

As I've mentioned a couple times on my blog this week, today is a special day because I'm blogging over at Doodlebug Designs! :) It's my opportunity to have a little fun with you so I hope you can swing by!

Here's just a little crafty peek at what you will find when you arrive.

Lots of color! A party hat? A present? Hmmmm! What's she up to?

Take Me To Doodlebug to find out!

Kathy :)

You're Invited!

2012-02-16T09:07:00.000-05:00

Hello!

I'm popping in today to invite you to have a little fun with me tomorrow when I take over the blog at Doodlebug Design! It'll be a fun way to spend some of your Friday! You just might win a prize while you're at it! I'm not promising anything....just sayin'! ;)

And since I'm a paper crafty kind of gal and Doodlebug is a paper crafty kind of company, there's probably going to be a paper crafty share going on. And since a post is ultra boarding without some eye candy, I'll leave you all with a little paper crafty sneak peek!

Ooh la la! Look at all these bright and happy colors!

So...stop by the old blog here tomorrow or go straight to Doodlebug Design! Okay? Alright! See ya then!

Kathy :)

More Valentine Goodness!

2012-02-15T09:40:00.000-05:00

Hello!

So how did your Valentine's Day go? It was a lovely day here! If you stopped by yesterday, you may have read that my hubs took the day off so we could spend our Valentine's Day together. We had a grand time! We didn't go out to eat or do anything special, we just hung out together and that's heavenly to me! I had planned to make my boys some chocolate chip cookies for a Valentine treat, so hubs hung out with me in the kitchen. In addition to cookies, we filled the crock pot with ingredients to make Teriyaki Chicken for dinner and made a pot of Lentil and Sausage Soup for lunch.

The house sure did smell good with all the cooking and baking we did. And the cookies...Dan said they were my best batch to date! For the past year + I've been doing a lot of cooking and baking and I'm finally getting the baking part down!

Anyway, in honor of Valentine's week, I made a bunch of cards that I've been sharing with you this week. Have you enjoyed them so far? Here are another couple...

I've been into rosettes lately! They're great fun and as I've mentioned before, I love dimension!

The patterned papers are from the Love Me collection from My Mind's Eye. Except for the lined paper which is old Scenic Route. I bought a lot of it because it goes with everything!

The die cuts I used for the little piece of notebook paper and the reverse sentiment alphas are from Papertrey Ink.

I also tossed in a bit of wahsi tape. Oh, and there's a button...always a button or two. Or three! ;)

For my next card, I also used the Love Me line.

For this card, I created a little pocket to fill with some Valentine goodness.

A bingo card, Jack of hearts, hugs and kisses ticket, another piece of notebook paper...lovely little tokens of love.

I topped the little pocket with another fabulous rosette and what else? Buttons!

Hearts a plenty to go around! Fun, fun, fun! That's what I had making these Valentines! I hope you enjoyed them!

Before I go, I want to tell you about a project-packed newsletter that's out today. The February edition of the Bella Blvd. Buzz has been released! It's full of Valentine projects and more!

If you would like to take a peek, click here to go to the Bella Blvd. blog where you can download your copy.

I hope you have a wonderful day! It's sunny here which makes it the perfect day to have a fabulous day!

Kathy :)

Happy Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T09:18:00.000-05:00

Hi!

It's Valentine's Day! I hope you enjoy spending some time today with those you love! My hubs surprised me this morning with a special gift...the gift of spending time together. He took the day off so we could just hang out! Isn't that the sweetest? I have a keeper!

For you, my blogger friends, I've made cards during the past couple weeks to share with you this Valentine's week.

Today's cards have been created with the Flirty line from Bella Blvd.

I love the non-traditional Valentine colors of this line because you can create a lot more than love and Valentine's projects. This elephant, for example, would be adorable on a baby congratulations card, don't you think? Everything you need to create great looking projects, borders, stickers, phrases, and more are included in each Bella line!

Darling pink elephant!

Love, love, lovin' these stickers! And I love the color gray paired with pastels!

Using the same line, I was able to create this next card with a whole different look using the green heart paper.

Same funky cool flowers though!

Stephanie can even makes snails look adorable!

There's the Miniatures stickers again! I know...I'm an addict! ;)

I hope you enjoyed these Valentine cards!

Before I go, I'd also like to share with you the lovely Valentine tulips hubs brought me this weekend.

Today these beautiful blooms have risen above the stems and they're looking so pretty! I'll have to get another photo!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Kathy :)

Love is in the Air

2012-02-13T09:25:00.000-05:00

Hello!

Oh boy, remember the cold I talked about last week...the one that I was expecting and the one that just didn't seem to be doing much? Well, it reared its ugly head Saturday afternoon and wiped me out all day yesterday! So I didn't post a Valentine card yesterday as I planned to. No worries, right? I'll just post two today!

In honor of Valentine's week, I made some lovey, mushy cards with hearts to share with you.

This card was so fun...I had a roll of old Valentine tickets from Making Memories and thought it would be fun if I attached a bunch to my card base. I like the way it looks!

These tickets have all kinds of great Valentine phrases! Just like conversation hearts.

I embellished the card with some buttons and Love Me paper from My Mind's Eye. The red plaid paper is from My Family by Fancy Pants.

The rosette was created with a Tim Holtz die and the hearts were made with a die from My Favorite Things.

How about another card? ;)

Last December, while at Arichivers, I saw the Love Me collection from My Mind's Eye and had too have some. I bought just four patterned papers and a die cut sheet. I'm glad I remembered that I had it and got it out in time for some Valentine crafting.

I really like the vintage, worn look of this line! And I love the banner!

More die cut hearts...this large scalloped one is from Spellbinders. And more lovey dovey phrases.

Lots of stitchy goodness included too!

So tomorrow's the day of love. Do you have something special planned with your sweetheart? My hubs and I enjoy celebrating Valentine's Day, but not always on the 14th. Going out to dinner is no fun with crowds. We kind of do our own thing when we feel like it. Hubs always gives me flowers and treats. I always make him a card. That's my specialty, you know! ;)

Well, I hope you enjoy your day and Valentine's Day tomorrow. I'll be back to share some more cards with hearts and mushy sentiments!

Kathy :)

Hello

2012-02-11T09:39:00.000-05:00

Hi!

Yippee, it's Saturday! Time to hang out with my family! It's a cloudy day here...perfect for taking it easy! Plus, I've got a cold so I don't have a lot of energy to do much else!

Yesterday I popped in to share a springtime card with you and today I have another. I told you I have a bad case of spring fever!

This card is a bit funky. I'm not sold on it yet. What do you think?

I used the colorful Bella Blvd. Spring Flings & Easter Things collection along with the new High Five alphas and a pretty little red button from the new Button Market line. I think these little heart flowers are so sweet! They remind me of my favorite flower, tulips!

Tomorrow, in honor of Valentine's week, I have a Valentine card to share with you each day. I hope you can stop by for a look see! And, next Friday, I get to take over the Doodlebug Design blog! I have a bit of fun planned for all those who can join me...so mark your calendars! :)

Hope you have a great Saturday! I'll be back tomorrow with the first Valentine card of the week.

Kathy :)

I Love Springtime!

2012-02-10T09:03:00.000-05:00

Hello!

My cold is pretty mild so I'm here this morning with another crafty share for you.

Do any of you have spring fever yet? I get spring fever the minute all the holiday decorations are packed away...which is the first week in January! I'm not a winter person. I do think a freshly fallen snow is beautiful and cuddling up with the one you love in front of the fireplace with a hot cup of cocoa is lovely. And I also enjoy a hot jacuzzi bath when I feel chilled to the bone. There are some positives about winter, but I really can't wait for the longer warmer days of spring!

While I'm day dreaming of leaves returning, flowers blooming, and bees a buzzing, I like to create brightly colored cards and scrapbook pages!

I made this card during one of my springtime daydreams. Pretty papers, tulips and a sunny little flag.

You may recognize these papers since I've made quite a few projects with them. They are from the Bella Blvd. Spring Flings and Easter Things collection. Along with one of the new flag embellishments that debuted at CHA.

Thanks so much for spending a bit of time with me today! I really enjoy your visits and comments! Have a great T.G.I.F!

Kathy :)

Enjoy the Simple Things

2012-02-09T09:02:00.001-05:00

Hello!

How are you this fine Thursday? I've been better! My son decided to share his cold with his mama! So sweet of him, isn't it? ;) I know this one is going to hit me like a ton of bricks based on the way Christopher felt last weekend! So....if I'm not here with a post tomorrow, you know why!

Today I have a scrapbook page to share with you.

These photos were taken last summer when we found this adorable little turtle at the strawberry patch. We kept him for a few weeks and then released him at a big lake where other yellow bellied sliders live.

We called him Turtle and he was was pretty little. His shell was smaller than a fifty cent piece. He grew quite a bit in the weeks he was with us! By-the-way, I have no idea if Turtle was male of female.

I created this page with the Year-o-graphy collection from Simple Stories. It's the same line I made a birthday card that I shared with you last week...you may recall. Anyway, I mentioned that this collection suits all levels of crafters. You could easily piece together a beautiful page in no time at all or you can get as artsy as you want to!

Personally, I love to get creative with my pages because I can't resist texture and the look of stitching.

I'm so glad that the sticker sheet that's included in the kit has two of these tweet little blue birds! I used one on my card last week and have one perched on this page. Isn't he the cutest?

So that's my page and I'm sticking to it! ;) I really like the way it turned out...the Simple Stories lines are fun and easy to work with!

I'm so happy that you all like my Pinterest recipe revues yesterday! I made another dish for dinner last night...Chicken Cordon Bleu Florentine Casserole from LDSLiving magazine. Have you ever had Gorgonzola cheese? I think it tastes a lot like blue cheese, which has a very distinctive flavor. Anyway, I don't care for blue cheese and therefore didn't care for the Gorgonzola cheese either. Needless to say this wasn't my favorite recipe. However, my boys (hubs and Christopher) ate every morsel so I'm thinking that if you like Gorgonzola, you're going to like this recipe.

Well, I must go and get some crafty projects done. Send your best wishes that this cold doesn't knock me on my rear! And please leave comments with your best cold remedies, okay? :)

Kathy :)

2012-02-08T10:23:00.000-05:00

Hi!

If you were here for a visit yesterday, you may have read that I was going to spend some time in the kitchen cooking and baking with recipes from Pinterest. It was a big success so at the end of this post I'll let you know what recipes I used.

Today I have a couple of cards to share that I created using the new Bella Blvd. Baby Boy collection. I had so much fun creating CHA projects with this line that I went ahead and made a couple more!

One of my favorite things about this new collection is all the adorable animals!

These monkeys remind me of that children's song and book, "No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed!"

I have to have at least one button on every project! :)

The button on this card is hidden under the round OXOX sticker.

That sticker fits the top of the button perfectly!

I'm thrilled that Bella Blvd. came out with a variety of alpha stickers, like the ones I used here, are the perfect size for cards! They are called High Five alphas.

Now to let you know about a couple Pinterest recipes I tried yesterday. Don't you wonder sometimes when your pinning a recipe if it's good? Or if it's too difficult to make?

The first recipe is a slow cooker Red Bean and Rice soup from Weight Watchers.

I picked this recipe because it looked good...then I found out it was Weight Watcher which was a bonus! The only thing about this recipe that I changed is that I used quinoa instead of rice. It's a very tasty, and spicy soup. The sausage is what heats this soup up. So, if you don't like spicy soup, buy a milder sausage.

After I loaded up the Crock Pot with all the ingredients for my soup, I started making cupcakes! :) Gotta love cupcakes!

These babies are Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting from Nook & Pantry. And they are sooooooo good! How good? I woke up in the middle of the night and stole one! Yep, I did! I sat in bed and scarfed down one of these at 1:00 a.m. Now the hubs is going to find out 'cause he always reads my blog! I was sleep walking honey! ;)

For those of you that prefer a lighter frosting, one not so sugary sweet, this frosting recipe uses cream cheese and maple syrup only while your tradition cream cheese frosting uses a couple cups of powdered sugar.

While we are on the subject of recipes and sweets, I should tell you about some cookies I made a couple weeks ago.

These are Chewy Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies by The Pink Apron. Oh girl! These are wonderfully chewy and full of banana and chocolate flavor that go so well together! Even though they are quite delicious, I didn't steel any in the middle of the night. Thank goodness that's not typical or I'd be a few hundred pounds! ;)

So go forth and bake or cook up something tasty for you and your family...you know they would love you for it! :)

Have a great day!

Kathy :)

2012-02-07T09:09:00.000-05:00

Hi!

Looks like we made it through Monday okay. ;)

After I finish my post today I'm going to spend a bit of time in the kitchen. I'm making a crock pot soup for my lunches and I'm making chicken cordon blue for dinner. Both are recipes from Pinterest. Have you used any Pinterest recipes? Did they turn out? I've had pretty good luck and I make a couple each week. The one that I didn't like, that stands out in my mind, is a 3 minute, 3 ingredient fudge. I made it for the holidays and it tasted more like a Tootsie roll than rich chocolate fudge.

Okay, enough food chat. I have a scrapbook page to share today.

This photo makes my page look a little warped. Just pretend it's straight, okay?

I used the Mr. Boy line from Bella Blvd. I finally got around to creating something with this very cool and masculine line of papers. This rocket is a Cute Cut. I topped it with a Ciao Chip star.

I also used the brand new High Five Alphas. I love the variety of sizes!

This page is about my son wanting to take apart all of his Lego kits, that's a lot of Legos and a great big project. He did a little each day and it took about two weeks! He said the reason he wanted to do this is so that he can make anything he wants. One of the first things he made is this red transportation item. I told him it was a great airplane and then he corrected me and told me it's a futuristic car. So folks, this is what your future car is going to look like! That is if he goes to work designing cars for Honda! ;)

I used the awesome new Flags accents that were debuted at CHA. The chevron printed flag was for the Tail Waggers and Cat Naps line and had a dog icon on it, but I don't have a dog so I put a sicker over it. The green one was blank which makes it fun to create your own theme.

As always, lots of stitching. Such a funky cloud!

Here it is once again, all put together. I enjoy making playful kid pages, how about you?

Whatever it is that you are doing today...I hope it's a great day! Thanks for dropping by

Kathy :)

Country Drive

2012-02-06T09:08:00.000-05:00

Hello!

Happy Monday! Do I hear a bit of growling? Okay, I know Monday isn't the best day of the week. But with a good dose of caffeine, we can face it, right? And how about a dose of crafty inspiration while we're at it!

Last week I was in the mood for color and sunshine so I pulled out my stash of Country Drive papers by Echo Park. Oh how I love this collection! I've made some pages, lots of cards and I'm still having fun with it!

Since Valentine's day is coming up, I created a mushy, lovey dovey card. Those two love birds helped me pull it off!

Aren't they tweet?

I think I mentioned before that I like buttons! ;) These remind me of candy! Like Sweet Tarts or Smarties. I used lots of the patterned papers in this line for my background, the letter 'u' is from Jillibean soup. No, I don't think they come in yellow. I painted a white 'u' yellow. And I made a big mess of it! And after cleaning up said mess, I realized I could have used my Copics! Duh!

I'm beginning to notice a trend around here! Another mushy lovey card! Looking at this card I can imagine a picnic in the park on a beautiful afternoon with my hubs...it would be so lovely!

All materials used are Echo Park's Country Drive with some Doodlebug rhinestones and a sentiment sticker thrown in for good measure.

Aren't these flowers beautiful ! I gave them some adhesive foam tape underneath and then another small piece to make a single flower stand out on top. I'm a huge fan of adhesive tape! I like dimension!

I hope I made your visit worth while! I know how busy all of you are! And whatever it is you are doing today, I hope it's a good day for you!

Kathy :)

2012-02-05T09:25:00.000-05:00

Hi!

How's your weekend coming along? It's been a drizzly wet one here, the perfect weather to relax, read and get crafty. Maybe bake some yummy cupcakes! ;) I don't know about you, but I've come down with a major crafting bug, perhaps due to CHA, so I've been creating a lot of projects to share with you. Today, I'll start off with a couple Doodlebug cards.

I suppose I have spring fever too because many of my projects have a spring feel to them!

I really like these Doodlebug card bases. The colors are so pretty and they're all in Doodlebug's signature colors so you can always find one to match the collection your using!

I did a bunch of hand stitching to accent these adorable die cuts.

My card is all a-buzz with bees as sweet as honey!

Here's a yummy card for you. I had just a couple scraps of this adorable paper, I'm not even sure what it's called. That delicious cupcake is a brad...Doodlebug has the cutest brads out there in craft land!

All the accents I used for this card are from Doodlebug...rhinestones, brad, twine and sentiment sticker. They are a complete package!

Well I hope I've inspired you to spend a little time in you craft room today!

Kathy :)

Spring Mini Album

2012-02-04T10:16:00.000-05:00

Hello!

Oh Happy day! I hope it's a happy day! I recently saw a quote on Pinterest that I like. It said, 'Today is a great day to be happy!' Shall we? :)

How about a happy project post? I've mentioned from time to time that spring is my absolute favorite season of the year so I created a mini album about it.

For this album I used the Bella Blvd. Spring Flings and Easter Things collection along with a few new embellishments, Button Market, High Five Alphas and Flags.

This spring banner was created with Alpha + Bits stickers.

Here's one of the new flags I love! I attached it to the page with some adhesive foam tape on the back of the flag and I stuck the pin into the adhesive foam dot that's under the little pink egg.

On the first page I wrote down the things I love about spring.

Here's a detailed shot of the second page showing the accents up close. I made the butterfly wand with a toothpick and a die cut. And there's another adorable Flag!

April showers brings May flowers. The umbrella boarder is perfect for this photo of Christopher.

A new flag accent with a cloud on it.

This strawberry picking page has a pull-out card with a picture of Christopher admiring a big juicy strawberry.

I had to include the dogwoods that bloom for just a couple weeks of the year in early April. And the adorable bunny I found one day while weeding.

This bunny is just so precious! The alphabet stickers were released at CHA. They're the Sophisticates High Five alphas. I like the different colors and fonts. They mix together well.

Mother's Day and Easter are some of my favorite events during spring.

There's another flag! I should have a contest to see if you kept track of how many flags were used in this mini album! ;)

Aren't these colors pretty and perfect for spring? This line is a must have for spring projects!

I hope you enjoyed looking at my mini album. I haven't done very many of them. Do you like mini albums or make them often? I think that Northridge Publishing recently came out with an issue dedicated to mini albums. I love the kind that have different size pages and all kinds of stuff sticking out of them! Next time around, I think I'll try something a little more daring like that!

Have a great weekend!

Kathy :)

Happy Birthday Card

2012-02-03T10:07:00.000-05:00

T.G.I.F!

This is my second post for today. If you scroll down you will find my Bella Blvd. CHA project.

I've been a busy little bee making cards and scrapbook pages these past couple weeks during the new Bella Blvd. reveals. Today, I'd like to share one of those cards.

I created this card with the Year-o-graphy collection from Simple Stories. It's a really cool line that suits all levels of crafters. You could easily piece together a beautiful page in no time at all or you can get as artsy as you want to!

This collection comes with a large sheet of coordinating accent stickers and another sheet of alphabets. I really like this blue bird sticker!

I used some of the alphabet stickers for my sentiment.

Love to add pennants and lots of stitching to my projects these days!

So there you have it. What do you think? I don't make very many masculine cards.

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Inspiration Unlimited Week and CHA Projects

2012-02-03T09:44:00.000-05:00

Today is our last day of Inspiration Unlimited week and our goal is to inspire you with the new Button Market accents.

I created this card with my favorite button...flower shaped and red! I also added some of the new Designer Tape. It's awesome stuff!

I wanted to do something a little different with the Designer tape...so I used a Fiskars border punch and made a scalloped edge.

I hope you have enjoyed my projects and those of my teammates this week!

I've been making a lot of things while blogging about all the new Bella Blvd. projects and I'm looking forward to sharing them with you!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Inspiration Unlimited Week and CHA Projects

2012-02-02T09:27:00.000-05:00

Today's inspiration subject is the new Bella Blvd. We're Expecting Mini Series.

These papers and accents work seamlessly with the Baby Boy and Baby Girl collections!

I have a few projects to share with you today to inspire and show you how fun We're Expecting is.

I think this little delivery bird is very tweet!

We're Expecting Mini Series includes some fabulous Ciao Chip too. On my card, I included two of the new Bella Blvd. accents, a crochet flower and button. I love that the centers of the flowers are buttons 'cause I'm a button kind of gal!

As I mentioned, the We're Expecting Mini Series works seamlessly with the Baby Boy and Baby Girl line. Here on my page, I mixed it with Baby Boy papers and accents.

I can't get enough of the cute animals in these baby collections! This lion is so sweet!

I used my little peanut's very first picture for this page.

I'm happy to see this tweet little bird made it into the Ciao Chip! Another crochet flower...lovin' those too!

I hope you felt inspired by my projects today! There's a lot more to be seen at the Bella Blvd. blog and on each design team members blog. I hope you have a little time to go check it out.

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Inspiration Unlimited Week and CHA Project

2012-02-01T09:24:00.001-05:00

For today's inspiration project post, Bella Blvd. and some of the design team gals are showing off projects made with the new Baby Girl Collection.

The project I have to share with you today is from the Spring Flings and Easter Things collection.

I've made a number of projects with this line so far and I always enjoy working with the bright colors, patterns and accents. I've said it before and I'll say it again...these Miniatures stickers ROCK!

Thanks for stopping by today. Now you have to go visit the Bella Blvd. blog today and check out the samples made with the adorable Baby Girl line!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Inspiration Unlimited Week

2012-01-31T09:14:00.000-05:00

Welcome to day two of the Bella Blvd. Inspiration Unlimited Week! Great to have you stop by! Today we're revealing projects made with the oh so awesome Sunshine & Happiness collection!

Just like you, I can't wait to get my hands on this new line! With a limited amount of supplies, we designers didn't get to work with everything new. So...instead of showing you sample projects of this collection, I'm going to show off some Winter Wonder projects that I created for CHA.

You probably know by now just how much I adore Winter Wonder! I've made lots of projects with it and I never run out of ideas or inspiration to create more!

If you dropped by yesterday, you may remember me saying how much I love the Miniatures stickers. Can you tell on this project that I went a little crazy with them? ;)

Here's one of the new Flags that Bella Blvd. is debuting at CHA right now. I can tell already that these are going to be just as popular with me as the Miniatures!

Look, a Flag on this project too! I told you they are going to be showing up on a lot of my projects...I just love 'em!

If you would like to see some project samples of the Sunshine & Happiness line, hop over to the Bella Blvd. blog and you will be dazzled with a few!

I hope I've done my job to inspire you! And show you how awesome the Bella Blvd. collections are. They're truly a lot of fun to craft with!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Inspiration Unlimited Week

2012-01-30T09:11:00.000-05:00

This week while Bella Blvd is in California at the CHA Trade Show debuting all the brand new products that we revealed over the past two weeks, the design team is going to share with you our projects, projects and more projects of everything new! Each day we will be featuring one of the new Collections and/or Embellishment products and showing you some great ideas! So, get ready for a fun energy boost ... here we go!

First up the Baby Boy collection...'It's a Boy' card...

This new Baby Boy collection is absolutely precious! I'm smitten over these adorable little onesies and the gray chevron paper!

I'm also thrilled to see that Bella Blvd. kept the Miniatures because I absolutely adore these little photo turn/banner stickers!

I have to tell you that it was so much fun to play with this new line that it brought out the best in my work! I adore this page of my son when he was wee and this giraffe is so stinkin' cute!

That monkey is just about as adorable as the giraffe!

I'm giddy that this scrapbook page made it into the Bella Blvd. catalog! Yippee! Fun stuff!

I just had to fussy cut some of these little onesies and hang them on a line! Had to! Just had to! ;)

So, what do you think of my Baby Boy projects? I really hope you felt inspired by them! Remember that the Bella Blvd. blog has more projects to show you! And each design team member has projects posted on their blogs too.

This is going to be one awesome week!

Kathy :)

Butterfly Card

2012-01-29T08:57:00.000-05:00

Hello!

Happy Sunday! It's a beautiful day here in North Carolina. What's it like your area? It's been a pretty mild winter so far all over the U.S. I don't know about you, but I like it!

Today I have a happy, colorful card I made with Doodlebug Design's Colorwheel collection.

I don't know if you can tell from my photos that the white embossed portion of my card is lifted with adhesive foam tape along with the floral scalloped die cut circle.

I love yellow, it's so bright and sunny! And this glittery flower is giving my card some sparkle along with a couple gems.

To give this butterfly sticker dimension, I folded the wings up from the body and then added a bit of adhesive foam underneath. That makes it look like my butterfly has just landed or is about to take off again.

I hope you enjoyed my card share and that it makes your day just a little bit brighter!

I'd love it if you join me tomorrow because I finally get to show you my Bella Blvd. projects that are at CHA. Oh, I wish I were there! How about you?

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - Kits

2012-01-28T09:27:00.001-05:00

This post marks the end of the Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek weeks. I hope you've enjoy seeing all the fabulous new collections and brand new accents. I think this last peek is the perfect product to end with, Bella Blvd. Collection Kits! Now you can purchase your favorite lines with coordinating accents all in one package!

There are seven new Collection Kits in all, but I'm just going to show you the Baby Boy kit. You will have to hop over to the Bella Blvd. blog to see the other six!

And now it's giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give two lucky blog readers a chance to win one Collection Kit of their choice, before they even hit the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the giveaways for sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Starting Monday the Bella Blvd. Design Team gals will be posting updates from the Bella Blvd. Booth at CHA! Also, we will be posting the projects that you've only been given peeks at. Hope you can stop by!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - Flags

2012-01-27T09:20:00.000-05:00

I couldn't be more excited about today's new Bella Blvd. reveal...flags! I love flags and can't get enough of them! I often make themfor my projects, but now I don't have to! There are so many whimsical flags for every collection and then some! And here are just a few peeks at how I used these fun flags.

Don't you just love them? You should see the way Diane Payne and Laura Vegas used these flags! Those two are very creative! Their pages are on display on the Bella Blvd. blog.

And now it's giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own 10 Flags of their choice, before they even hit the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the giveaways for sneak peeks week will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Thanks for stopping in again! I hope you've been enjoying all the darling new collections and accents from Bella Blvd. And I hope you are commenting on their blog for your chance to win these new goodies!

T.G.I.F.

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - Crochet Flowers

2012-01-26T09:05:00.000-05:00

I'm in heaven.....simply heaven......because today's Bella Blvd. reveal is oh so fantastic...Crochet Flowers! Just think of all the possibilities for these beauties! Here's just two...sneak peeks of my projects using Crochet Flowers.

If you know how much I love buttons....than you know I'm especially smitten with these Crochet Flowers with their button centers! If you would like to see an amazing scrapbook page using these flowers, just stop by the Bella Blvd. blog.

And now for giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own a set of the new Crochet Flowers, before they even hit the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Good luck....I hope you win some of these fabulous flowers!

Kathy :)

Everyday Moments

2012-01-25T09:26:00.000-05:00

Hi!

This is my second post for the day...please scroll down to see Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek. There's a giveaway you don't want to miss!

Last weekend I had some time to scrap just for the fun of it! I decided to create a scrapbook page using supplies other than the collections from my design team gigs. I had some old Fancy Pants "My Family" patterned paper and challenged myself to create with that.

I love to scrap the everyday stuff....the small things we would not remember years later. This is my hubs Dan reading the paper at the kitchen table with our cat Latte standing on the table next to him. Latte's wanting a little attention, don't you think? ;)

I spent a bit of time creating tags, rosettes and adding stitching to my page. Love details!

I used the Silhouette to create half of the title and the scalloped circle. Border punches were used for the bottom of the page.

Other embellishments include buttons, brads, washi tape and die cut butterflies.

I really enjoyed tinkering around with this page. I hope you like it! Thanks for popping in!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - Sophisticates

2012-01-25T09:10:00.000-05:00

Hello! Thanks for stopping by! The Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek week continues with some gorgeous new Sophisticates High Five Alphas! I'm so thrilled about these 12x12 alphabet pages because there five different fonts and styles to choose from...perfect for scrapbook pages and cards!

Here are a few sneak peeks of my projects using these fabulous High Five Alphas.

Aren't these alphas great? I 'll be using these a lot! If you have a moment, you will have to visit the Bella Blvd. blog to see some awesome scrapbook page examples from Laura Vegas and Becky Williams.

And now for giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own all 5 of our the Sophisticates High Five Alphabet stickers, before they even hit the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the giveaways for sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - Sunshine & Happiness

2012-01-24T08:47:00.000-05:00

Today's an awesome Bella Blvd. reveal! A brand new collection called Sunshine & Happiness! This line is appropriately named as it is truly as bright as sunshine and the colors and fabulous designs make me very happy!

Be sure to visit the Bella Blvd. blog to see these papers and accents up close and Laura's scrapbook page using this awesome new line!

And now for giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own the new Sunshine & Happiness collection, before it even hits the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Wasn't this a great reveal?

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - New Sophisticates

2012-01-23T09:38:00.000-05:00

Good day! It's Monday and the beginning of the second Sneak Peel week at Bella Blvd! Today we are revealing some fabulous new additions to the Sophisticates line!

There's are three new yummy colors added to the Sprinkles & Lace patterned paper line!

And five additions to the Sophisticates Ciao Chip! Oh so so CUTE! I love those chipboard borders! For larger detailed photos be sure and pop over to the Bella Blvd. blog to check them out!

And now it's giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own all the NEW and the old Sprinkles & Lace papers, along with all 6 new chip boards. This is a great chance to get it before it even hits the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Thanks once again for popping in and sharing all the exciting new Bella Blvd. products with me!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peak Week - Stamps

2012-01-22T09:41:00.000-05:00

We're back from our Saturday break to continue revealing the latest and greatest from Bella Blvd. This coming week you will see another collection and more embellishments to get excited about! Today Bella Blvd. with Unity Stamps presents a new collection of stamps!

Don't you love stamps? I can't wait to work with these which means I don't have any projects of my own to show you, but if you head on over to the Bella Blvd. Blog, you can see the entire set of stamps and some projects! I'll just show you a couple of my favorite ones! ;)

Aren't these adorable?!?! I want to color this dress with Copics...those little flowers are just begging for some cheerful color!

And now for giveaway time! Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own a few of our new Itty Bitty Stamps from Unity Stamp Company. If chosen, you will receive 3 stamps of your choice, before they even hit the stores. Just leave us a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the Bella Blvd. giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed today's reveal and can join me again tomorrow!

Have a happy Sunday!

Kathy :)

Home is Where the Cat Is

2012-01-21T09:22:00.000-05:00

Hi!

Oh joy...it's the weekend! And a drizzly day in my area! Perfect for reading, spending time with my guys and getting crafty!

Did you expect to see another Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek reveal? Ah yes, there's a lot more to show you, but we're taking a day off from all the hoopla! It can wear you out, you know? That means, however, that I get to share a scrapbook page with you! Since my CHA projects are complete and in transit, I decided to play with an adorable Doodlebug collection called Welcome Home. It's an older one, but so stinkin' cute!

If you look up adorable in the dictionary, you just might find this line!

The Icon stickers in are so darn fun! I felt like a young girl playing Barbies, setting up the living room in my dream house! All these pieces are separate stickers that you can arrange anyway your heart desires!

And look at this neighborhood! All these individual houses are part of one long border called Fancy Frills. I added some adhesive foam tape under some of the houses and the sun to give it a little pop.

There are coordinating die cuts, buttons and brads...love this little house brad!

And this bird brad! Too tweet! ;) All the supplies I used for this page are from Doodlebug, the twine, the buttons, stickers, borders and die cuts. What I love about Doodlebug, besides the bright colors and adorable factor, is that all their collections are this fabulous, fun to work with and color coordinated to work with their other lines!

Purrrrr-fect, I'd say!

Well, I'm off to play some more! I'm purrrr-fectly content working away in my office with this cutie of a cat and his brother! I hope you enjoy your weekend too!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek Week - Designer Tapes

2012-01-20T10:00:00.001-05:00

I've really enjoyed this sneak peek week! Haven't you? All these fabulous new products and collections from Bella Blvd. are awesome! Well, it's not over yet, not by a long shot! We've got another whole week because all the new products couldn't be squeezed into just one! I'm excited to show you today's new embellishment, it had me jumping up and down for joy! Designer tape! You know, washi tape! Woot woot! Until now I've only owned one roll of the stuff! Yep! Because I was resisting getting into yet another thing I had to have! Now that's all changed! :)

I'm in heaven! Simply heaven! And I have a peek project share!

I gave my piece of Designer Tape a fancy edge! Edgy, huh? ;)

As usual, head on over to the Bella Blvd. blog and leave a comment if you would like to win some of oh so fabulous Designer Tape!

Thanks for your visit. I hope to see you again tomorrow for another exciting reveal!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek Week - We're Expecting

2012-01-19T09:08:00.001-05:00

This is the second post for today. Please scroll down for a "sweet" Doodlebug project.

Are you ready to see more brand new Bella Blvd products? This next collection pairs beautifully with the new Baby Boy and Baby Girl collections!

Would you like a tiny peek at a couple of the projects I created with this sweet new collection?

What an exciting week it's been helping Bella Blvd. to reveal their new collections for CHA! And how fun that each day you have a chance to win the collection of the day! To enter for today's giveaway click here.

Tomorrow I'll be back with another exciting new product announcement! Hope to see you then!

Kathy :)

Doodle Card Sketch

2012-01-19T09:07:00.000-05:00

Hi!

How about a little break from all the Bella Blvd. new product reveals? Only a short break since there's so much more to show you! :) And I know your going to love this! Doodlebug's fabulous Sweet Cakes line for Valentine's Day Projects is a must have! Last week I posted a scrapbook page created with this collection and today I have a card!

I want to eat that cupcake!

It's topped with yummy gems and a sugar coated heart!

Have you used these Doodles sentiment stickers? They're easy, fun and come in lots of phrases! I'm addicted! ;)

To add a bit more spice to my cupcake card I made some faux ribbon and topped it with a yummy red Boutique Button.

I tell you, Doodlebug makes it a cinch to create beautiful projects! And they also have a Doodle card sketch for you to play along with here.

Thanks for dropping by and letting me share my card with you!

Kathy:)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek Week - Baby Girl

2012-01-18T09:08:00.000-05:00

Are you enjoying the new Bella Blvd. collections? Would you like to see some more? I'm sure you could guess what's coming next!

Isn't this line adorable? Bella Blvd. wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own the new Baby Girl collection, before it even hits the stores. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All giveaways for our sneak peeks will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Be sure and come back tomorrow for exciting new product reveals and more chances to win these fabulous new collections! And I'll have more peeks of my projects!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek Week - Button Market

2012-01-17T09:19:00.001-05:00

Here we go! This is your first peek into some of the brand new embellishments for Bella Blvd! They've mentioned how excited they are to introduce new embellishments! Buttons are such a timeless embellishment that we all love to use so much! Now you'll have plenty to mix and match with your Bella Blvd papers and stickers! They've produced 20 different button items for you including plastic buttons, wooden buttons and button mix collections! You're going to love how affordable they are! All the plastic and wood button items will retail for only $1.75/each and the Button Mixes for only $2.99. Don't you want to have them all?!

I'm absolutely giddy about the addition of buttons to the Bella Blvd. line up since I'm a huge fan of them! And look at these designs! Swoon! How about a couple project peeks using these fabulous new buttons?

Such a lovely red and pretty flower shape!

Must have hearts! Sweet!

And now for giveaway time! Want a chance to win some buttons, before they even hit the stores? Bella Blvd. will be randomly choose three winners from today's reveal. One will receive all the plastic buttons, one will receive all the wood buttons, and one will receive the button mixes. Just leave a comment here to be entered. One comment per person, please. All of the Bella Blvd. giveaways for sneak peeks week will be left open until Saturday, January 28th. All winners will be announced on Sunday, January 29th, which is the first day of the Winter CHA show!

Good luck!

Kathy :)

Bella Blvd. Sneak Peek Week!

2012-01-16T08:44:00.000-05:00

It's finally here! Time to show off all the new collections and goodies from Bella Blvd! And because there are so many amazing new products to show you, they've decided to make it a full TWO WEEK reveal! Starting today, join Bella Blvd. and the design team as we share everything that's new for Winter CHA, all the way through January 27! We will have full product reveals, along with some layout inspiration from our Design Team. And you know we can't show you all our fabulous new products, without giving you a chance to win-it-before-you-can-buy-it ;) Are you ready to get started? Let's check out the first new collection!

"It's A Boy" exclaimed the doctor as your new bundle of joy was born! During the next few years he will become Momma's Boy and be constantly On The Go. Capture those baby moments before he grows out of his wardrobe of Baby Blue!

Isn't this the cutest baby collection EVER? Would you like to see a couple peeks at my projects for this adorable line?

This guy makes me happy! I would love to have a stuffed animal just like him!

I've been having a lot of fun playing with this new Baby Boy collection! It's so cheerful and the patterns are absolutely adorable!

Would you like a chance to win this collection? Bella Blvd. hopes you're loving what you see so far and wants to give one lucky blog reader a chance to own the new Baby Boy collection, before it even hits the stores. Just leave us a comment here be entered.

I hope to see you back here tomorrow for another look at the Bella Blvd. releases for CHA.

Kathy :)

Project 365

2012-01-15T09:46:00.000-05:00

Hello! Good Sunday to you!

Here at the Martin house we lead a rather simple life, one that we strive to keep that way in a world that gets a little more complicated by the day. We like to keep the calendar light and spend lots of time at home together reading, crafting, cooking, playing guitar, and taking care of our home. That's the way it was not too many decades ago. My husband's grandmother said they didn't have restaurants to go to or a mall to walk around, nor did they have the money for extras. If they needed to get out of the house for a while it was to go for a country drive or a long walk.

Our Project 365 photos reflect our simplified lives. There aren't a lot of travel photos or shots from numerous outings. Hopefully you will enjoy them...they're a little glimpse into our everyday.

Last Sunday while the sheets were being washed so the coverlet was hanging off the foot of the bed. Java thought this was a perfect little spot for relaxing.

If you've followed my blog for a length of time, you might have noticed that I love Pinterest? I find lots of great ideas, recipes and inspiration on that site. Here I have my hair in a sock bun, an overnight, no heat, no product bun that leaves your hair curly when you take it out in the morning.

I love to decorate our home with vintage goodies and items from nature like this bird nest found in our yard. This one I believe is a robin's nest which is a bit on the muddy/dirty side so I think we'll leave this one on the front porch.

Most evenings I spend a little time packaging up orders from my Etsy Shops. Here's the lot for the day.

Last Thursday was a gorgeous sunny day of about 60 degrees. It was so pretty outside that I decided the photo of the day should be looking out over our sunny front yard.

We do a lot of reading in our house! Now we read newspapers, magazines and books on our iPads. Yes, I miss holding a book and I love the way they smell, but we've decided to make the switch since it's important for the environment. I'm currently reading Baby Proof by Emily Giffin.

I started with a cat photo and now I'm ending with one. This is our other cat, Latte. He's quite the laid back guy...a great mascot for our home!

I hope you enjoyed my photos. And I hope you have a lovely Sunday!

Kathy :)

Walk Layout

2012-01-13T09:28:00.000-05:00

Happy T.G.I.F. everyone!

You've been hearing me talk about the exciting CHA projects that I've been working on for Bella Blvd. over the past week and starting next week, on Monday, I get to start showing you some peeks! If you aren't already subscribed to my blog, you should sign up because you don't want to miss all the new collections and brand new product that will be revealed! There will be give-a-ways too!

For now, how about a little taste of Bella Blvd. goodness with one of their latest releases, Spring Flings and Easter Things?

This adorable peanut is Christopher before he started kindergarten! These photos are from a March of Dimes walk that his preschool organized. The kids were so darling and excited to walk laps around the building!

I love these big bright Blooms a Bella flowers!

These colorful Spring Flings and Easter things papers are perfect for Christopher's clothes!

Those star sunglasses have me cracking up and if you click on the photo to enlarge it, you can see him peeking over the top of the rims...cute!

If you like this Bella Blvd. line, you're gonna love what's coming next week! See you then!

Kathy :)

Family

2012-01-11T09:16:00.000-05:00

Hello!

I've been anxiously waiting to show you the this scrapbook page! Doodlebug just released a new Valentine collection called Sweet Cakes and it's so colorful, cheerful, fun and full of glittery sparkle!

This line is a blast to work with and makes vibrant projects! I really like how my page turned out.

My teammate, Aphra, created the sketch for this page and I went crazy with the pennants! I used some of the die cuts and many of the pennants are topped with brads, rhinestones, stickers, twine or stitching.

It's all in the details, right?

I had fun with all these heart stickers and was able to incorporate pops of green from Doodlebug's Valentine line from last year...they work seamlessly together!

So what do you think of this yummy Sweet Cakes Collection? It's a must have in my book! If you would like to see more, visit the Doodlebug Designs blog.

Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to stop by!

Kathy :)

Take Time to Play

2012-01-10T10:53:00.000-05:00

Hello!

Do you ever run across a darling project on a blog or gallery that makes you stop in your tracks to create something similar? You know, drop the assignment that you're working on and just play? Yesterday while I was working on a page I found the cutest card on Andrea Budjack's blog, Creative Paper Trail. Her card was colorful, fun, creative and just made me feel happy so I lifted it and created this tag.

I couldn't resist! You have to go check out the card Andrea made that inspired this piece of happiness! Hers is even cuter than mine!

I chose to use the Country Drive collection from Echo park for this project because I knew the polka dots and bright colors would fit perfectly.

I hope my project puts a little smile on your face like Andrea's did for me! And maybe it'll even get you to drop everything and play!

Kathy :)

Pinteresting!

2012-01-08T10:14:00.000-05:00

Hello!

What's a girl to blog when she's creating secret CHA projects she can't show you? How about I share some of my favorite Pinterest finds? While I craft, I'm always blog hopping, lurking around Two Peas and spending a great deal of time on Pinterest! It's addicting and time consuming and I would probably get my projects done faster, but I love it! And I also use a lot of recipes and ideas I pin so I guess it's worth the time.

This is the cutest Father's Day card I've seen in a long time! This little masterpiece was created by Amber of Damask Love.

I'm in LOVE with these conversation bubbles that Lisa Truesdell created on her Silhouette for Project 365.

I can't resist quilts and I couldn't resist pinning this quilted card by Vicki Burdick. Swoon!

How about using rosemary to accent you home? This lovely idea is from a la parisienne.

I have the perfect old coffee table that desperately needs a makeover and I think this sheet music decoupage idea is perfect. This fantastic table is from Miss Mustard Seed.

Now for something sinful...Cake Mix Waffle Ice Cream Sandwiches from Tip Junkie. I can't vouch for these yet since I haven't made them myself, but I'm hoping to remedy that real soon!

Perhaps one of your New Year's resolutions is to eat healthier? This Banana Oatmeal Smoothie looks delicious, don't you think? I'd add just a touch of chocolate to this! A little chocolate never hurt anyone and has antioxidants! ;)

If you love banana recipes like I do, maybe you would be interested in trying this cocktail...a Banana Daiquiri! It's the drink of the week at Drink of the Week! All you need is white rum, sugar, ice, half a banana and juice of half a lime. Hmmm....I have all those things! Too bad it's only 10:00! Well, they say it's 5:00 p.m. somewhere! Gotta go! ;)

Have a happy day!

Kathy :)

Cards on Thursdays

2012-01-05T09:35:00.000-05:00

Hello! Great to have you stop by! :)

I finally have some crafty projects to share with you! Today is Cards on Thursdays at Bella Blvd. so if you're up to getting crafty with us, we would love for you to join in! One of the design team gals created a card sketch to go along with her projects...one I bet you would enjoy using!

It’s a new year and what better collection to get crafty with than Socialite!?!? It’s all about celebrations, New Year’s Eve and getting together with friends!

I created some rosettes to give this card a festive look.

I also added some brads, buttons and rhinestones for confetti.

I don't know about you, but a New Year kind of reminds me of birthdays. The Family Dynamics collection has a lot of bright and happy colored papers...perfect for a celebration!

The birthday cake sticker and 'You Rock' tag are from the Bella Blvd. Miniatures Card Sentiments stickers. Love, love, love them!

For my third card I chose to create a Valentine with the Bella Blvd. Flirty collection since Valentine's Day is on it's way!

Hearts, hearts and more hearts! Loved layering hearts on top of hearts and stitching them on!

I hope you enjoyed my cards and can make a stop at Bella Blvd. for more fabulous projects and Gretchen's sketch.

Have a great day!

Kathy :)

Big Improvement

2012-01-04T10:15:00.000-05:00

Hi!

I'm happy to report that after forgetting to take a photo on the first of the year, for project 365, I have taken one for the past three days! Whew!

I'm still working away on CHA projects and a couple fun new crafty things with the Doodlebug Designs new Valentine line called Sweet Cakes. I'll get to show those to you pretty soon. I've been up to some Pinteresting things that I can share...like this recipe from Weight Watchers for Summer Corn, Bacon and Potato Chowder.

This is what's on the menu for lunch this week! Yum! Since it's not summer and there wasn't any corn on the cob, I just used frozen and it's probably just as delicious! It has just a bit of kick from some hot pepper sauce. I want to go eat a bowl right now and it's just 10:00!

Would you like to see my project 365 photo for today? It's a cute one! You might recall from previous posts that we have a couple new pet sugar gliders? Well, just about everyday they sleep in a pocket, zippered pouch, or wrapped up in a t-shirt on my lap. This morning when I took a little peek at them, I snapped this photo.

Cinnamon woke up just as I was about to snap the photo. She did have her head down, right up against her sisters! They are always bundled together! They are so soft and sweet and I just love 'em to pieces!

So, have you taken down the tree and decorations yet? I did most of that yesterday. I just have our Department 56 Christmas Village to box up and then I'm done. The house could stand a good cleaning too. Hopefully I'll be able to work that in between craft projects!

Hope your day is a great one!

Kathy :)

I Crack Myself Up!

2012-01-02T09:03:00.001-05:00

I'm really quite funny! Not as much in a witty sort of way, but in a have to laugh at myself way! I've been thinking of doing a combination of project 365 and project life this year. The only thing that's held me back from a 100% commitment is that I know it's quite possible I will not make it through the first couple months let alone an entire year! But, I decide to go for it because I think it'll be a good exercise regardless. So what do I do? I forget to take a photo yesterday...THE VERY FIRST DAY! Remarkable, huh?!?!

Well, I'm not going to throw in the towel just yet. I'm going to use a photo of our cats since it was on thas day, seven years ago, that we adopted the two! They made it to our front door via a few neighbor boys who found the two running around the creek near our back yard. The boys went door-to-door to see if they belonged to anyone. Seven years later, we have ourselves a pair of very sweet and adored kitties!

I'm bummed that I don't have a project to share with you today. I've been a busy little bee creating some fun stuff for CHA that I'll get to share with you later. So today I thought I'd share a fabulous new blog I discovered these past few days. It's called Funkytime.

This is a fabulously fun blog with a lot of awesome free downloads! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Happy New Year!

Kathy :)

Snow Day

2011-12-31T09:20:00.000-05:00

It's New Year's Eve! Do you have any special plans for tonight? We always lay low on New Year's. We're not crazy about crowds and I can't stay up past 10:00 p.m. anyway! I'm such an old lady! ;) How about you? Do you enjoy ringing in the new year?

For this last day of 2011, Bella Blvd. has a Saturday Sketches post. Maybe you have a little time to create something with their fabulous sketch and can take a peek at the awesome projects my teammates created?

Since we’re just beginning winter, I thought it would be fun to use the Bella Blvd. Winter Wonder collection and create something with these adorable snowmen!

These guys wouldn't last throughout the day at our house since it'll be in the 60s today! So far we're experiencing a mild winter, but it's just started and Tuesday is supposed to stay in the 30s. Yikes!

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you all have a safe and fun New Year's Eve!

Kathy :)

Eleven in 2011

2011-12-29T09:22:00.000-05:00

Hi!

There are only a couple more days left in 2011 and then a whole new year begins! I always find it fascinating to look back over the year through the memories and accomplishments we made. Equally amazing is to look forward to the new year and anticipate the possibilities it holds.

Today I thought it would be fun to share with you eleven favorite projects I created this year. Sound fun?

Thank you for being a part of my blog this year! I hope that I have made spending time here worthwhile and inspiring!

Well, I hope you enjoy whatever it is you have planned for these last couple days of the year!

Kathy :)

Free Downloads

2011-12-27T10:01:00.000-05:00

Hi!

I hope you all have been having a wonderful holiday! I sure have! It's been lovely spending time with my boys and it's been lazy and relaxing! I barely came up to my office for two days! It felt so good to have a little break!

Today I'm going to try and ease back into things....slowly. Thought I'd start by leaving you a couple vintage downloads to play with when you get a chance.

Here's an image you can use for a New Year's card.

And since Valentine's Day is on its way, here's a cute image for your sweetheart!

So, will you be working this week? My husband and I are. Christopher has the week off to play with his new toys. I know some of our neighbors are on vacation for the week. Sounds lovely, doesn't it? Enjoy these last days of 2011!

Kathy :)

December Daily

2011-12-24T09:41:00.000-05:00

Hello!

It's Christmas Eve! The festivities are in full swing! Hope you all are having a merry time! I'm popping in to share a few pages of our December Daily and then it's off to bake our favorite sugar cookies. Must leave Santa fresh cookies, right? ;)

Our 10th and 11th of December is about giving...to the poor and to Christopher's teachers.

It's so important to give year round because there is so much need out there! And during the holidays it's time to give a little extra to help make every one's holiday special. We gave the Toys for Tots drive, at our local Whole Foods, a set of Melissa & Doug wood blocks. I figured every child should have building blocks!

Every year we thank Christopher's teachers for their dedication and hard work by giving them gift certificates to Target and sometimes Starbucks. We're sure they receive plenty of ornaments, candy and apple themed gifts and that they could really use some money!

On the 12th and 13th days of the month we featured our kitty Java and a snowflake handmade by Christopher!

It's been a tradition for many Christmases to unpack the reindeer antlers and plop them on one of our cats for a good chuckle. This year poor Java had the honors, but he doesn't look to thrilled about it does he?

I'm not the only one who gets to play with paper and craft up some fun during the holidays! Christopher made a snowflake at school that I folded up and placed in this tiny envelope.

I hope you are spending these holidays enjoying some baking, carols, crafting and family time! Enjoy!

Kathy :)

Dreaming of a White Christmas

2011-12-22T09:25:00.000-05:00

Hi!

Today is the first day of winter! I hope you are enjoying December and all the festivities! I'm lovin' it! I have a girlfriend coming over in a bit to bake today...our third annual holiday bake off! The house is going to smell so good and we're going to be jacked up on sugar and coffee! Life is good! ;)

I must be dreaming of a white Christmas because I choose to use the Winter Wonder collection and adorable snowmen images for my Bella Blvd. cards today !

I love this color combo for winter projects, don't you?

I went crazy with snowflakes here...I think they're making this little snowman very happy!

These snow dudes are so festive with their colorful hats and I love the blue mittens!

They are wishing you a white and wonderful Christmas!

If you have a few moments, please hop over to the Bella Blvd. blog to see all the fabulous Cards on Thursday creations....love them!

I'll be back tomorrow to share some more of our December Daily. I'm trying to keep up! I managed to finish day 14 yesterday. I'm a little behind, but it's an improvement over last year!

Hope you have a wonderful first day of winter! The days will get longer and longer after today! :)

Kathy :)

Thanks

2011-12-21T09:25:00.000-05:00

Hi!

Winter has just begun and I already have spring fever! What’s a girl to do? When I find myself dreaming of warm spring days, I like to break out a colorful collection of papers and accents, like Colorwheel from Doodlebug Designs, and craft up something fun! Doodlebug even has a Doodles Sketch up on their blog today to help inspire you!

Nothing says spring better than pretty posies and bright happy colors, right?

Oh and a glittery butterfly!

Add a lovely lime button, some bakers twine and a few rhinestones and you have yourself a happy little card!

It's a busy week with Christmas just days away, but if you'd like to take a break from the holiday rush or if you have a couple last minute holiday cards you need to whip up, come join us at Doodlebug for some crafty fun!

Kathy :)

Happy Birthday Stephanie!

2011-12-19T06:00:00.012-05:00

Hi! If you are joining me for Stephanie's surprise birthday blog hop from Carina Lindholm's blog, you're on the right track! Welcome! And for those that are just joining the party, you will want to begin at the Bella Blvd. blog so you can start at the beginning and not miss a thing!

I just recently started working with Stephanie at Bella Blvd. and I've got to tell you that she's a real doll and very generous person so we all wanted to do something extra special for her birthday!

I made this card for Stephanie using her adorable Lovey collection and my favorite Card Sentiments Miniatures.

It's always fun to work with Stephanie's products because of the cheerful colors and patterns that coordinate so beautifully!

Even thought it's Stephanie's birthday, we have some gifts for a few of you lucky readers as well! We know how generous and giving Stephanie is, and we know she would never have a fun blog hop, without a few giveaways up for grabs too. So we got permission from Robin, who works alongside Stephanie in the office, to pick TEN lucky winners, who will each receive a Bella Blvd. collection. All you need to do to be entered in the random drawings, is to leave Stephanie your birthday wishes in the comment section. You have lots of opportunities to up your chances, since you can leave a comment on each blog you visit, as you go through the blog hop. There are 26 blogs, plus the Bella Blvd blog, for a total of 27 chances to get your name in the pot. We will randomly choose winners, from 10 randomly chosen blogs, and announce them on Friday!

I don't know about you, but I'm excited! I can't wait to see all the beautiful handmade cards everyone has created for Stephanie! Your next stop along this surprise birthday hop is with Stacey Michaud.

Thanks for joining the party and good luck in the drawings!

Kathy :)

December Daily - Days Eight & Nine

2011-12-17T10:09:00.000-05:00

Hi!

I'm getting back on track with our December Daily after taking time to work on Christmas preparations and design team projects.

Here's our eighth and ninth days of December. On the eight I started working on our annual Christmas ornaments.

I've been using a lot of my favorite thin metal dies for our ornaments and December Daily.

Ahhh...hot chocolate! We drink a lot of cocoa during the holidays! With fresh made whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon! And we enjoy sipping it from these adorable cups a friend of mine gave us a few years ago.

Well, this is the last weekend before Christmas. What's on your agenda? Since I've got most of our Christmas preparations taken care of, I'm not venturing out into the hustle and bustle! I think I'll whip up a cup of hot cocoa and keep working on our December Daily! ;)

Hope you have a great weekend!

Kathy

Bella Buzz

2011-12-16T10:01:00.000-05:00

Hey!

Have your heard the latest news? The Bella Buzz is out and there's a fabulous prize package to be won!

Just click to be directed to the Bella Blvd. blog, download your free newsletter and see how you can win! Good luck!

Kathy :)

Keep it Simple Sister

2011-12-15T09:54:00.000-05:00

Hey!

How are those Christmas preparations going? Did I hear some groans? Didn't we all agree not to stress? We said we would enjoy the little pleasures of the season, didn't we? I know, it's a work in progress! And it might require a spiked eggnog! ;)

Well, this morning I started on my to-do list and began wrapping some presents. I reminded myself to keep it simple, that wrapping pretty gifts shouldn't take an entire day! And guess what? The first one I wrapped was so quick, easy and inexpensive, I had to share it with you!

Isn't it cute? The materials I used to wrap this little gift were all at my fingertips. The little box was recycled from last year, the Kraft wrapping papper was the center of a roll of gift wrap, the owl was colored months back when I was practicing with Copic Markers. The Kraft tag is from Martha Stewart, purchased at least a year ago, the twine and rub-ons from Doodlebug, don't we all have loads of twine and rub-ons in our stash? Lastly, that sweet little doily, I acquired long ago from a local vintage shop.

Quick and easy and nothing to buy! Gotta love it! I'll be done with my gift wrapping in no time if I can keep it simple and use things I lready have!

Hope your holiday preparations are going well, and those of you who have it all done...please let me in on your secrets! ;)

Kathy

Keeping Warm

2011-12-14T09:56:00.001-05:00

Hello!

Is the weather outside frightful in your neck of the woods? We're supposed to get up to about 60 degrees today which is not bad for mid-December, right? Many of you are probably much colder and may even have snow so I have a card today to help give you warm thoughts.

Love this pup! He's part of the Bella Blvd. Winter Wonder Collection. Don't you just love his little green snow shoes? :)

If it's chilly in your area, hope you keep cozy warm!

Kathy :)

Christmas Joy

2011-12-13T09:40:00.000-05:00

Hello!

This is my second post today so please make sure you scroll down to the first because I have a special tutorial for creating adorable little paper houses!

How are your Christmas preparations coming along? I can't believe some of my cards are being held up by lack of postage stamps! Yep, the post office was out! What the......! This is one snag I didn't anticipate! I ordered some stamps on-line right away so hopefully they'll arrive quickly and things will be back on track.

Today I have another project share, a Christmas card...'tis the season! :)

I created this card using the Bella Blvd. Christmas Wishes collection and an inspiration photo you have to check out here. I promise you will be happy you did because my teammates created some gorgeous projects that I had to Pin!

Don't you just love banners? And presents? Pretty wrapped presents?

I hope you enjoyed my share...and don't forget to check out my previous post for today for a gift giving tutorial!

Kathy :)

2011-12-13T09:06:00.001-05:00

Hello!

Oh my, did you notice that Christmas is less than two weeks away? The two week marker slipped passed me on Sunday! It's time to wrap up our presents and get those last minute gifts taken care of! So at the Doodlebug Designs blog, I have a tutorial to show you how to make the following little paper houses for gift giving.

Hope you have a bit of time to hop over and check out the different ways you can use these paper houses for gifts.

Kathy :)

December Daily - Days Six & Seven

2011-12-12T09:30:00.000-05:00

Good day!

The December Daily is moving right along and I couldn't be more happy about it. I know how much we'll enjoy it years down the road and I imagine that when Christopher is an adult, he will love reading about the activities we enjoyed during the season.

First, I have to tell you about a funny conversation that happened this morning while Dan, Christopher and I were getting breakfast together. As my husband was pouring a glass of orange juice, it reminded me of the fresh squeezed tangerine juice I picked up at Whole Foods over the weekend so I said, "I got you and Christopher some tangerine juice to try." Dan stood there looking at me like I just sprouted another eye so I said it again, "I got you some tangerine juice." I guess I'm pretty soft spoken because he just kept staring at me like I was crazy and then he said, "You got us some canned green juice?" Oh my! Canned green juice?!?! LOL I had to pull myself together so that I could say, "No! I got you some tangerine juice!" Finally he got it and was laughing too. All morning we just kept cracking up and making further jokes about it. Ah...the little things!

So here are days six and seven of our December Daily. On the sixth I typed up our family letter to send along with our Christmas cards.

For our seventh day I started addressing all the handmade cards I've been making for my design team assignments. I hope everyone enjoys the extra fancy one-of-a-kind cards this year! Usually I create a design or two and then duplicate it.

I got to do a little blog hopping yesterday and it's been fun seeing all the fabulous projects everyone is crafting and I loved seeing some of your decorated homes! Hope you are all having a great time preparing for Christmas! Thanks for stopping in!

Kathy :)

December Daily - Days Four & Five

2011-12-11T09:33:00.000-05:00

Hello! Hope you're having a fabulous weekend!

Since I posted on Friday, in a bit of panic about cards, ornaments and the December Daily, I've gotten all but one of my ornaments done and worked on our December Daily so that I'm not as far behind. I just might pull this thing off! But it's having me seriously reconsider doing a project 365! Oh my! If 25 days is difficult? Whew! We'll see.

Here's days four and five of our December Daily. I'm really liking this mini album! It's pages are pretty small (4" x 8 1/2") so there's not a lot of space which means I need to keep it simple. I like the shape of this Doodlebug Designs Plain & Simple book. And I really love that I didn't spend close to $100 dollars for the ultra cool Studio Calico version I would have enjoyed having! Oh, and of all the December Daily albums I've seen, my looks so different and unique!

On December fourth we hung our wreath on the front door. It's our only outside decoration besides seeing our tree through the window. I like to keep it simple and it looks so pretty.

On the fifth day of December we received our first gift of Christmas when Christopher came home from school with some presents for his mom, dad and kitties. So sweet!

So today I plan on finishing up a couple more pages of the December Daily and addressing the last of our cards. How about you? What's on your agenda today? Perhaps I'll have a little time to blog hop and see what you've been up to!

Kathy :)

December Daily - Days Two & Three

2011-12-09T10:22:00.000-05:00

Hello!

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can........keep up with the December Daily even though I've only finished up to December third and it's the ninth! ;) The project has been put aside temporarily so that I can make gift ornaments and address Christmas cards. I wish there were just a couple more hours in the day to get it all done; how about you?

Well, I'll make this a quick post so I can get back to it. I love making my ornaments and cards, I just don't like how quickly the days go by and that I need to get it all posted in the next couple of days so they arrive in the mail on time. After that things will calm down a bit. Ahhh.....just breath! ;)

So here's my 2nd and 3rd days of our December Daily...

I'm keeping it pretty simple, much like our 2010 December Daily. I'm adding some stitching and a couple extra accents.

Here's a little Sugar peeking out of the kitty Christmas Stocking! Isn't she adorable?

Christopher's awesome photo with Santa!

I better run and get a couple more ornaments made and I have to run to the post office with some of them. Hope you are enjoying these days and not too rushed.

Kathy :)

Christmas Cards

2011-12-08T09:20:00.000-05:00

Hello!

This month is traveling at the speed of light, isn't it? I'm bustling to get my cards, family letter and ornaments in the mail in the next few days so they reach their destinations by Christmas. How about you? How is your holiday shaping up? Do you still need to make a card or two? Can you use some crafty card inspiration? I hope you can because that's what's on the old blog menu today! ;)

It's cards on Thursdays over at the Bella Blvd. blog and three designers, including myself, were given the freedom to use whatever collection we wanted. Would you believe that all but one card was made with the Christmas Wishes line? Seems we're all in the thick of holiday card crafting!

This little penguin here is ready to deliver 'The Perfect Day' to his recipient!

I think you've heard me say it before...I LOVE these Alpha + Bits stickers! They're so fun and versatile!

Oh deer! What do you think of this card? Isn't this little deer precious?

I decked the little deer out a bit by giving him a red rhinestone nose that glows and a heart of gold!

Well, I'd love to stay and chit chat a bit more with you, but my holiday to-do list is calling! And it seems the more I check off the list, the more things get added to it! But it's all good and I'm enjoying every minute! I hope you are too!

Kathy :)