Oh the weather outside is frightful.....

Winter is here with a vengeance and it's frosty cold outside. Of course, it was bound to happen given that it's almost January so I guess we're lucky we've made it this far.

A quick post tonight as I am exhausted. Too many late nights and early mornings. This is a wedding card I made with some pretty "My Mind's Eye" papers. The chipboard frame I had laying around for months and it matches perfectly with the paper. Rub-on is Melissa Frances and the heart border is done with a Fiskars punch.

I very bravely hit the Michaels sale tonight on the way home from work and the store was pretty deserted, most likely because it's freezing out. I was able to pick up a Cricut cartridge on sale for $47.99, marked down from $119.00. Who pays full price for these things??

I wish everyone a very happy and prosperous 2010. Hope Santa was good to you!

Paw Prints

Three days before Christmas and all is peaceful. I am taking a day to relax. No stores, no hustling or bustling or fighting traffic and just me time. My poor Kenya has his urinary tract infection back again so it was off to the vet yesterday for some medicine.

I made a couple of cards last night for a girl who recently lost her dog and wanted to send out some thank you's. The first is done with DCWV paper for pets, a Melissa Frances rub-on and some grosgrain ribbon. Below is all Making Memories paper, Melissa Frances rub-on and the heart border was done with a Fiskars punch.

It's so hard to lose a pet and very sad when it happens around Christmastime. Christmas is for family time and sharing and that includes all our beloved 4-legged creatures.

A final post for today

One final card to show you, made with "My Minds Eye" paper and a beautiful Melissa Frances Christmas tag. I love her tags - you can put them on the card as-is and it looks like you spent hours making it yourself.

All things Christmas in my life are now completed - sending out cards, buying, wrapping with just a little bit of baking left to do. I'm not much of a baker but thought it might be nice for a change this year. We are having our Secret Santa exchange at work this week and cookies are the perfect complement for gift opening. Cookies are the perfect complement for breathing, as far as I'm concerned.

It's not bad enough you gotta buy the stuff.......

But you gotta wrap it too....bah, humbug! Actually, I don't mind wrapping, if I have the time to do it properly. And, if I'm not doing 20 at a time which I have been lately. I was busy wrapping the other night and had literally every square inch of space in the living room covered with paper, ribbon, bows and you name it. The cats, particularly Kenya, cannot keep out of the bags and love to eat the ribbon (again, not naming names but....Kenya) which inevitably shows up again a short time later when he throws it up. Well, this night, they were particularly bad and the final straw was them running through the mess at about 100 miles an hour, simultaneously jumping up on the back of the couch and knocking over the tree. I screamed as I saw it hurtling towards the glass-topped coffee table but it stopped short, lucky for them.

Speaking of Kenya, it's his birthday today - Happy 11th Birthday! I used to buy them a specially-made cat cake that I ordered from a store in Toronto. They would deliver the cake, along with cat bow ties, all for the low price of about $45 (trust me, that's sarcasm). Of course, neither cat had any interest in eating it which, for the price I paid, made me tempted to eat the damn thing.

Ho, ho, ho

Two weeks before Christmas and I have finally found the time to get some festive cards made. The first one is made with 3bugsinarug paper to which I added a cute little embellishment I found at the dollar store, a Melissa Frances rub-on and some ribbon and buttons.

I love the rich colours in the second card. Paper is from Anna Griffin and Making Memories, the holly wreath design in the centre is a rub-on, heart design is from a Fiskars punch, sentiment sticker is from a kit and ribbon and lace are from my overflowing ribbon drawer.

I cannot begin to tell you how busy I have been these past couple of weeks and I know I'm not alone. Everyone is stressed, trying to get things done and spending way too much money. At least the weather has been fairly decent. November was a great month weather-wise and, keeping fingers crossed, with the exception of one bad day, December has been liveable. It is no secret that I detest winter and pray every year that global warming will sweep the nation and make all the cold and snow go away.

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

Christmas Kits

My girlfriend gave me a couple of cute little cardmaking kits. They are simple and quick and provide you with everything you need - paper, cards, envelopes, embellishments, ribbons, etc. I made two of the cards tonight and, though they are not as fancy or detailed as what I normally make, they would be great for adding to a gift or as an enclosure card. For the time it took me to make them - which was minimal - I think these kits are a great idea.

Pretty in Pink

Just a quick post today after another busy week. I am sitting here listening to a late November thunderstorm which seems very odd for this time of year. Still....I'll take it. If it's raining, it means it isn't snowing though the cats don't share the same sentiment and immediately ran under the bed when the thunder boomed.

This card is made with paper I have used several times in the past because I really like the colour combination. It's from Anna Griffin who has some of the prettiest papers out there. The ribbon and lace are from my bag-0-ribbon, crystal brads are Making Memories and rub-ons are Melissa Frances.

Happy Weekend and for all my American friends, hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

Where does the time go????

My sincerest apologies for my lengthy absence from the blog world. My life has been so hectic these last couple of months. First of all, I am working tons of overtime; second of all, Christmas shopping takes up what little time I have left and third of all....well, third of all, I just need some chill time now and then.

However, I am back to the cardmaking world as I took off a couple of days vacation to try to catch my breath. Wouldn't you know it, it rained and rained and rained today but, that's OK - it gave me a chance to get some inside stuff done.

I made this first card for my mom's 85th Birthday which was today - Happy Birthday, Mom! The family took her and some of her friends out for Sunday brunch a couple of weeks ago so today was kind of anti-climatic for her but a day filled with lots of good wishes from friends and family. The flower paper is from a company called "Scrapbour", matched with some yellow polka-dotted paper from Bazill. Lace and ribbon is from my overstuffed ribbon drawer, rub-ons are Melissa Frances and the rhinestone swirl is Making Memories.


This second card is for a 50th Wedding Anniversary and is made with paper from "The Paper Company". The chipboard frame is "Making Memories", rub-ons are Melissa Frances and the gold corners are peel and stick. All flowers are from Beatriz Jennings' etsy shop at http://iralamija.blogspot.com/ .

I hope we can talk again sooner than later. Rain, rain go away and enjoy your weekend.

Endless Love

I made this 50th Anniversary card with some gold dotted paper from The Paper Company and some gold foil. I added a large heart which I painted gold and covered with some stick-on pearls. The rub-ons are Melissa Frances and the lace and ribbon are from my collection.

I was gone for a few days for a work conference in Regina where it was absolutely freezing. However, there was a casino directly connected to the hotel so that made up for it all. We managed to take half a day to see the farmlands and, all in all, it was a nice diversion.

Gratitude

Just a quick post before I head off to work. I managed to get another of the New England thank you cards done so, hopefully, the cruise ship staff will be pleased when they receive them. This was made with some bits and bobs of paper I had, a Jolees embellishment sticker and Melissa Frances rubon.

Gotta run and get ready for work. Enjoy the weekend!

Shades of New England

A friend of mine who regularly cruises is on his way to New England at the end of the month and has asked me to make some themed thank you cards. Having done the New England cruise, I can say he is going to have a great time and will, hopefully, get to see some of the trees turning their beautiful colours.

The above card is made with some Anna Griffin paper and a copy of a very pretty New England watercolour. The rub-on is Melissa Frances and the flower is one I got from one of my favourite bloggers, Beatriz Jennings http://iralamija.blogspot.com.

Below is a cute whale and dolphin card made with embellishments from Jolees. The paper is Making Memories and the rub-on is Melissa Frances.


What could be more New England than a lighthouse, again from Jolees. I added some rub-ons, a brad and some ribbon and the bottom edge with some Paper Shapers decorative scissors.

It's a grey, dull day here with rain. I guess I shouldn't complain since we had almost 3 weeks in a row with no rain at all. I am still suffering from wasp infestation on the balcony and keep hoping they will simply tire of the scenery and move on. I spray them when I can but I don't like to use a heavy chemical spray as the cats go out there and I'm afraid it will make them ill. Back to the cards....I have a couple more to make so will post again later in the week.

Celebrate

One more card to share that I made with some black Prima paper, Creative Imaginations cream paper, Prima flowers, Making Memories brads and some vintage lace. After the cardmaking, I managed to get some vitamin D outside in the lovely sunshine though I am still fighting off my wasps that seem to think the balcony is their home. It has been a busy, fairly productive day and a good week off. All goods things must end and tomorrow it's back to work. Hope the nice weather continues into the weekend - so few weekends have been pleasant, I almost feel bad for those who are off when I'm working!

Dreams

What a beautiful day it was today though I didn't get to see much of it. I was obviously tired because I didn't get out of bed until after noon. I hate doing that; it makes me feel like I have accomplished nothing but, sometimes, your body just needs a good rest.

I made this card with some "My Mind's Eye" paper. The butterfly was cut from Cricut cartridge "Home Accents", the flower is Prima and the glitter is from Martha Stewart. I am back to work tomorrow for some overtime but hope to get at least one more project done before I'm back once again later in the week. Hope your Monday was a good one!

Just when you thought it was over.....

Well.....my bedroom is all put back together with the new bed and mattress. Now it's back to my real job so there is no rest for the weary. The cats are certainly enjoying the bed; Kenya slept on it all night which he never does and poor Kona tried to jump up on it but fell short so decided sleeping under the bed was safer.

Another quick project to share before I dash off to work.....it's made with some bits and bobs of paper I had laying about and some fun, bright embellishments. The recipient is a computer techie so hopefully he appreciates the cartoon.

Chaos

My apartment is complete and utter chaos as I prepare for the delivery of the new bed tomorrow. I am sleeping (or, more accurately, not sleeping) on an air mattress which is about 6 inches too short but beats the floor and everything around me is in disarray. It took me a whole day to dismantle the water bed though it went more smoothly than I had anticipated. Today was spent cleaning what I'm sure was 3 cats from behind where the bed was. No wonder I sneezed all the time with all that hair hanging around. That's the problem with waterbeds; once they are in, they're in for good.

I did manage to get a card done for a friend of a friend who is celebrating a 60th birthday and who is a basketball fan. I used some of my favourite black and white Making Memories paper, a rubber stamp for the sentiment, and stars cut from Cricut "George".


I had to take a picture of the beautiful sunset we had tonight. First, I am quite pleased that my new camera takes pretty good night shots and second, the colours in the sunset were just absolutely gorgeous. All I need is a beach in the foreground and it's like I'm back in Hawaii. Not really but I can dream.

Hopefully, next time I write, it will be from the comfort of my new bed.

It's a great day for being outside!

My cats absolutely adore being outside in the back yard. I haven't had much of a chance to take them out this summer what with all the rain and now the hot temperatures. Yesterday was the perfect day and they had a ball, so much that they didn't want to come inside. Kenya loves to get into everything that he can and promptly hopped this fence to see what was on the other side. Below, Kona just takes everything in and, to him, it's all new and fascinating. They certainly are funny little creatures but I love them to death.

A little out of the ordinary

I made this card for my brother who has 2 basset hounds. Each year, I make him a dog-themed card for his birthday so he has quite the collection. The picture of the dog is from a piece of wrapping paper and the "woof" is a stamp.

My wasp infestation on the balcony continues and I have tried every humane way I can think of to rid myself of them. However.....the wasps are not co-operating so I was forced to spray them dead. I don't like to kill any living creature but I was being held prisoner inside my apartment so I had no choice. Perhaps they will find a better place to nest.



I have to say, above is the first gay wedding card I have been asked to make. Not that there's anything wrong with that. The paper is from DCWV and the tuxedos are from Jolees. I added three stripes to one arm as one of the grooms is an airline captain. Borders are from a Fiskars punch and the sentiment is K&Company.

It looks like it is going to storm again, hopefully not as violently as it has over the past couple of weeks. This summer has brought very strange weather but, as long as it's not snow, I'm happy with it. Have a great weekend!

New Bed

Just for fun, I thought I would post a picture of the bed I ordered. The search is now on for some sort of comforter or duvet to put on it which leads to whether I need to paint the bedroom or not You can see why I have no time for blogging, what with all these crucial decisions to make!

Return of the blogger

I must offer sincere apologies for my lengthy absence from the world of blogging. I have no idea where time goes but it certainly flies wherever that might be. I have been working a lot of overtime which takes up a good part of days off and have been flitting to and fro trying to find a new bed, putting my waterbed to rest. I do love my waterbed and have sincere trepidations about a regular mattress but we'll see how things go.

On to the cards.......the first is a fun little project that a girl at work wanted me to make for a friend who is addicted to garage sales. The paper is from "imaginisce" , button is "Basic Grey", brads from "Making Memories" and the cartoon and sentiment I printed on my computer.

I love the colours in this card (I think I say that about each and every one I make). The paper is from Anna Griffin and I have to say, Anna Griffin has some of the most beautifully patterned paper out there. The musical note paper is "flair designs" and all the pretty lace ribbons are very vintage from those my mom gave me.

It's been awhile since I have had some do nothing time to myself so I think I will sit outside and enjoy the sunshine. With my recent addiction to "LOST", I have spent a lot of time (too much time!) sitting inside catching up on 5 seasons of the show. Before I know it, the summer will be over and I'll have missed it all.

Where does the time go?

I cannot believe it's been so long since my last post and I apologize for being remiss. Honestly, where does the time go?? I have been looking for a new bed and just can't seem to find anything that I really fancy, despite having driven far and wide. Yesterday, it was a trip downtown for the dentist and Monday was spent waiting for my car to get its new brakes. In between, I have been working so my poor card making has taken a back seat.


I managed to get this pretty wedding card done up last night, made with some K&Company paper, some Prima flowers, Melissa Frances rub-ons and some stick-on rhinestones.

Summer heat

As much as I despise winter and love summer, there is also a happy medium when it comes to heat. Today would not be that happy medium. Somehow, between last week and this, the temperature has jumped about 40 degrees putting us into the 90's today. Being that today was my car cleaning day, the heat was not very conducive to such activity. Again, I would take a hundred days like today than one day of horrid winter but I'm just saying......

I used some more of my favourite 7gypsys paper for this going away/good luck card and combined it with pink, a combination I had seen in a magazine many moons ago. The pink doesn't show well in the photo but it really is pretty. I used a Prima flower, a black and pink Making Memories brad, some black Doodlebug ribbon trim and some vintage pink lace. And, as you can see, I can now almost sew in a straight line.


I'm sad that my week off is over tomorrow and it's back to work. I don't feel that I got a lot accomplished over the past few days but I was on the go each and every one of them. I've just started getting into "LOST" which is always a problem because I then do nothing else except watch DVD's and have to smack myself to do something productive. Enjoy the hot weather!

Welcome, new puppy

How cute is this card for a new puppy? My veterinarian is going to be the proud father of a baby Border Collie next week so, of course, I had to make him a card. The red print paper is Making Memories, the heart is from a punch and the dog is a cartoon I found on the Internet. New puppies are so much fun!

I hope everyone had a great Father's Day. I took my mom out for lunch then we got a big bunch of fresh spring flowers and took them over to the cemetary for Dad. Mom and I both laughed that Dad would have liked something to eat better than flowers but it's hard to leave a hamburger. The weather finally feels like summer. My back is feeling it as well after putting the air conditioner in yesterday. Note to self....next year, find a big, strong man.

What a beautiful day

Today was one of those perfect days - bright blue skies, warm but not hot, a nice breeze and all day to shop! I can feel the humidity start to creep into the air tonight so that's my cue to get my air conditioners in. They are usually in by now; in fact, sometimes, they have been in during April but this year has been abnormally cool.

I've had the Scenic Route paper I used on this card for months but never got around to using it. It's very pretty with the different patterns and I finished it off with some Prima flowers, a rhinestone stick-on swirly thing and some vintage ribbons.


It feels great to be finished midnight shift except that I need the whole week ahead to get all my chores done. It can become overwhelming so I just take it one day at a time. Anyway, I look forward to sleeping when it's dark, like the rest of the world! Have a great weekend.

Casinos and Cards and Cleaning.....oh my

My life has been so hectic lately, it's truly surprising I get anything accomplished. Yesterday, I and a few friends had a casino day, something which we try to do a couple times a year. It's always great fun, win or lose (actually, more lose than win) though it normally takes up the better part of a day, particularly since, this time, we went to Niagara.

I worked into the wee hours of the morning and was able to get these two cards done up. This first is done with some of my most favourite paper ever by 7gypsies. I painted some flowers to co-ordinate them with the paper, then added some of my mother's lace, some ribbon from Doodlebug, a rubon, and some pretty stick-on lacy corners.



This card is another for my friend going on his cruise - he needed five in total to thank all the staff on board the ship. I would love to do the same when I go away but am usually so busy getting ready for the trip that I don't have time to make anything. Note to self.....plan for this next cruise. The little boats on this card were cut using one of my Cricut cartridges, "New Arrivals". I painted the edges of the bottom half of the card then added a couple of brads and some stick-on crystals. Stick-on anything is the best thing ever invented - no muss, no fuss, quick and easy. Gotta like that!

I am SO behind in my cleaning that I'm not sure I'll ever get caught up, particularly with a week of midnights ahead of me. No sense sweating it - it will get done when it's done.