I'm Back!!!

I know it has been a long time since I posted but things are crazy in this household. Hubby is going in on Monday for a quadruple by pass and we have been going to doctor's appointments and getting things in order. In addition I did a class at the Memory Keeper on Thursday night and I was designing and preparing for a beginner's copic class at the store and a Christmas card class at my house. Yesterday I finally decided I needed to relax and get my mind off of things so I sat down and played for a few hours. Heavenly!!! I can not believe how colouring with my copics gets me into another world. I made a get well card for our niece who also underwent surgery on Wednesday. Annie is doing fine and will be home today. Annie is an amazing artist so I wanted to make a card for someone who is so card-worthy. I used a new Molly Blooms stamp from Sir Stampalot and then decided to try my hand at adding a lot of flowers. At the card class on Thursday Amanda and I were discussing how I just do not seem to add a lot of flowers to my cards. She gave me some great advice. I'm going to share it with all of you. She said "Just go for it. Do not do a lot of planning. Start with your largest flower and go out from there. Glue them down and play as you go." Thanks Amanda. This was my first attempt at this type of grouping and I am feeling OK about it but will want to play some more to work on the technique. The picture does not seem to show how vibrant the colours are so I think I need to check the settings on the camera.

Well I am off to clean the house. I am having a birthday party for my hubby tomorrow. His birthday is Wednesday but I am sure he will not feel up to celebrating then so all the kids are coming and some family members so I really have to get cleaning and cooking.

Hope to post some new Christmas cards for the October class at my home. Really I don't know how I worked before and I am sure my husband must wonder if I ever do anything around the house when he's a work.

New Art Impressions

I'm showing two cards today because I am making Christmas cards and preparing for a class so I thought I would share both with you. While I was in England I made a visit to Sir Stampalot and found those adorable Molly Bloom stamps and I also picked up one new Art Impressions stamps from a new line they have for Christmas. It's called Jingle Tots and they were all adorable but I only bought one. See I am getting a handle on my addiction. Today I didn't even look at the new Christmas stamps at the Memory Keeper so I really think I'm making progress.

This card uses the new Bo Bunny Christmas line which I think is very modern using lime green, purple, and turquoise. I think I will send some of these to friends so I am keeping it simple with just the image and a few small embellishments. I am going to play around with cutting out a few of the jingle tots and using them inside the card along with my sentiment.

At the store tonight I am doing "All things Tim" using his dies, and inks. I am also showing how to make your own homemade grunge board which is so much cheaper than buying Tim's. I love to save money on stuff like that so I have more money for stamps!!!!

I will try to post again later in the week but my husband is going into the hospital for a heart procedure on Thursday and depending on the outcome I could be busy playing nurse. This is a role I do not play well especially if I end up with a whiny patient. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of the week and if the weather is good in your neighbour enjoy these last few glorious days of summer.

Molly Blooms

Well here is the first card I made with my new Molly Bloom stamps. I just loved the bed, and it really is a very large stamps. My card measures 51/2 x 51/2 so you can see it takes up a lot of space on the card. To include Molly with the hot water bottle I decided to make a step card so it wouldn't look too busy. The stocking on the bed post is also a separate stamp. Many of the sitting Mollys could also work with with the bed. I thought the sentiment "Warm Wishes" worked with the hot water bottle.

I have been cocooning the last two days working with my copics and new stamps and yesterday it poured rain all day so I had an excuse to stay in and play. Today I really have to get back to doing chores and errands and working on cards for October classes at the store. My grandson is coming for the weekend so I will not have time to play with stamps until Monday. Instead I will be playing trains and going swimming. Have a great weekend everyone and I hope it brings happiness and joy with friends and family.

Penny Black Halloween

I have a confession to make. I am a very mature (AKA old) woman but I just love Halloween. I always have. When my sons were young I looked forward to making costumes, decorating the house and baking goodies. Then when my great nieces came along they were little girls who wanted to be fairies, princesses and even fairy monkeys. The joy of it all to be making pink, frothy costumes and of course a cute brown monkey with beautiful pink wings for Katie who is unique and delightful in her idiosyncrasies. So of course when I discovered card making I just had to have Halloween stamps. I started with just a few. Afterall how many Halloween cards can you send? I promised myself I would buy no more Halloween stamps BUT this summer at CHA I saw this appealing little witch at the Penny Black booth and just had to have it!!! Really I have will power I just choose not to use it.

So I stamped her up yesterday for the first time and all the other Halloween stamps were envious of her cuteness. They also wanted to be stamped so I will be doing some more cards soon. She is coloured with copic markers and the paper is from last year's Basic Grey collection. Look for some Magnolias is the next few weeks as I prepare for the most wonderful time of the year--apple picking, pumpkins, lovely landscapes and Halloween!!

I'm Back!!!

I know I have not posted for some time but the summer was filled with CHA, child care responsibilities, classes at the store, and getting ready for our trip to Europe. I've returned and done all the unpacking and washing and now I am so excited to reconnect with all my rubber stamps. I had a great time on my Mediterranean cruise and visits with friends in Wales and England.While I was away I had a visit to Sir Stampalot in England and found some Molly Bloom stamps I just had to have. As luck would have it Clare, the artist ,was in the store doing demos and her cards are so darn adorable. Visit her blog and see for yourself. I will be doing some of these in the coming week and sharing these cute images with all.

Today's sample is from Impression Obsession. It is such a simple image and so easy for beginners to colour. I used copics and the colours were RV0000, RV00, RV10. Some stampendous stickers were used for the domes on the sleeper. So simple yet makes a cute card for a new arrival. I think this image could be easily made into a small favour for a baby shower, or an invitation.

Check in tomorrow for a cute Halloween card! Hugs to all.

Tilda's Ready for Trick or Treating

I know it is hard to believe but I have started playing with my Halloween stamps. I pulled out this Tilda from last year and coloured her with my copic markers. You can not see in the picture but I pop dotted the pumpkin to give it some dimension and used the Magnolia spider peeking out from inside the card. My local scrapbook store, The Memory Keeper, just got in some new Studio G cards and of course I bought a few (honest just a couple of different ones) and put together this cute Halloween greeting. I still haven't received my order for some additional Halloween Edwins and I'm getting mighty anxious for them to join my collection. By the time the new Halloween Maggies get released and we get them into our local stores or by post it is almost too late for me to make my cards so I am usually one year behind with my Halloween images. As I said before, it is one of my favourite "holidays" and I love to decorate and send spooking greetings to all the little goblins I know. A few big goblins too!

I am off this evening to teach a class using distress inks to create backgrounds and I know everyone is going to do a great job experimenting with the different colours from the Tim Holtz line. Next week I'm off to CHA and I am excited to see what some of my favourite stamp companies have in store for the next season and of course Christmas. I hope to do some blogging from Chicago and send some pictures of all the gals going. Road Trip!!!

Happy Stamping and hugs to all.

Love Those Distress Ink Backgrounds

I'm still having fun playing with my distress inks and I think they are de-stressing me! I love to play with the colours. I usually choose the image I want to stamp and then decide which colours would look good for that stamp. This stamp is from Impression Obsessions and I just love the look of it. I used the Ranger Distress Inks in Faded Jeans, Weather Wood, Brushed Corduroy, and Fired Brick. I stamped the image in Walnut Stain. The patterned paper is by Basic Grey and I embossed it using two different Cuttlebug Embossing folders and matted all with a copper metallic paper. I think it is a versatile card and could be used for so many different occasions. A very simple card to make but I think it has some impact.

OK I know it is early but I am excited about Halloween. That's right Halloween. I have to confess one of my favourite "holidays" and I really think everyone should be sending spooky wishes to family and friends. My local scrapbook store The Memory Keeper in Hamilton just got in some Studio G stamps and cards with a Halloween theme. I only bought a FEW! Really I was very good. I have some Magnolia Halloween stamps on order and I am waiting for them to arrive along with some new Cornish Heritage Farm stamps. Every time I see the mail carrier go by without leaving a package I am so disappointed. Maybe I will have to lure him to my mail box. How I will do this I do not know because believe me I lost the knack to attract men years ago and I don't like to cook or bake. I'll just have to be patient.

Look for some Halloween soon Have a stamping great week. Cheers

I'm Up for the Challenge

Well I am getting back into the stamping mode after a short break. I was really in a funk but it has passed (I hope) and I have spent the day with my stamps and a happy heart. I came across the great blog of Angie Hunt and she is sponsoring a blog challenge and some great blog candy. When I saw the picture of the distress inks I was reminded that I love to experiment with these inks and would love to win this great prize. I decided to play along since the challenge involved the colours red and brown which I happen to like a lot. I used a Stamping Bella Mo Manning image and a sentiment that reads "A Happy Birthday is Always in Fashion." Some stripes, some dots, and kraft paper and Voila an easel card for the challenge.

Also through the Magnolious group I found a tutorial for a four drawer attachment to an easel card and so I decided to combine them both. I have completed the card and now I am going to attempt the box attachment but I need to get some paper. I should really whisper that because my DH would probably have a stroke if he heard that. Really do we really need more paper? NO! but we WANT more paper!!! I am convinced that every scrap booker and card maker is just a collector and probably collects something else like oil lamps, antique crocks or teddy bears. I know you are nodding your heads yes!. Well off to find paper to complete my projects.

Photo cards

Well I've been unable to post for some time but finally today I am ready to put up a few new cards. I have been experimenting with some new card designs using photographs in sepia tones to get that vintage look. The one I posted here is for David. The outside of the card reads "A picture is worth a thousand words" and the inside sentiment says"In this case none of them good!" The picture I used is from 1955 and features him dressed like a cowboy. I know he will appreciate this uniquely designed card for his 60th birthday. Luckily I was able to crop myself out of the picture since I am dressed like Elmer Fudd. What were we thinking?

I have used Bo Bunny paper and a small camera charm. I layered several papers and using a craft knife slit some of the designer paper so I could slip the picture under it like a photo corner. It was fun to design and of course made with tons of love for a special guy. Happy Birthday David!

Tomorrow I will post for a challenge using red and brown. Love that combination of colours so I am very excited to get out some new stamps and my copics and go to it. It's been so long since I coloured I am looking forward to it! Hope your week is great. Hugs to all.

INKY ANTICS

This is another of the Christmas in July cards I am doing for my class. The image is from Inky Antics and I coloured it with my copic markers. I experimented with a new colour combination for the dress and I am pleased with the results. The colours were E00, E01 and E04. I'm not sure how accurate the picture is but in reality it is a soft peachy colour. I think the image is quite versatile and could be used for birthdays and other occasions.

Today I really have to clean out my frig (AKA the science experiment) and do some grocery shopping. Tomorrow is Canada Day and we are having a BBQ. What I really want to do is play with a new stamp I got yesterday from Crafter's Companion. It is a Popcorn Bear Kid birthday celebration and I think he is adorable. The other image is of the bear in a baby pram and he is also adorable. Thankfully my friend Brenda bought that one and we are really good at sharing!

I'll post next week the time and place for my Christmas in July class. I hope some of you can make it. Happy Canada Day to all us Canadians and Happy 4th for all our American friends.

Girlfriends!!!!

Here is one of the cards I made with my new girlfriends stamps from Art Impressions. The image comes with three sayings all of which make me chuckle. For this card I used the Happy Birthday tutu you for the outside and the inside says "Dance like no one's watching who can have you committed." Teh Teh!! The other saying is so perfect for a card for my neice. The saying reads "Note to self...too much tequilla." I just know I am going to have fun with this one.

I have to admit this was a bit tricky to colour with my copics because some of the spaces are very tiny. To acheive some shading I used the tip to tip method. But on the positive side if you want to practice shading skin this image is great. For the skin I used E50, E41 and R20. I like the look of those three colour with these gals.

Well I am off for a day of scrapbooking with my scrappin' buddies and I am working on a page for my grandson's third birthday. Happy crafting everyone.

Christmas in July is Here

Well I said I would be posting some Christmas cards for a class in July and here are the first two. I do enjoy the whimsical stamps so I used one of the Penny Black hedgehogs and added some paper die cuts from the Silhouette. The image is coloured with copic markers. I will admit this card is a little picky to make with all the gluing of the die cut pieces but I think they add dimension to the card. I can honestly say I will not be making many of these to send but it will be fun to do three or four for some special people.

The second card is a more elegant and much easier to make. I used distress inks to create the background paper. The ink colours are bundled sage, peeled paint, vintage photo and spiced marmalade. I then stamped the image twice with peeled paint and used perfect pearls in copper to complete the image. The image is from Impression Obsession. Yes I have a confession to make. I went to Exeter through London and stopped at one of my favourite stamp shops and picked up a few new stamps. Really some of them are so bold they jumped right into my shopping basket and of course I couldn't disappoint them so I brought them home with me to join all the others. I have been having fun playing with my new images and I will upload one tomorrow. It is from Art Impressions and features their new girlfriends line. They are a hoot and have great sayings with them.

My great niece's graduation was wonderful and I am proud to say she won the citizenship award. She was so surprised but very happy. Congratulations Katie!! She looked beautiful and now I am going to start on making her a special scrapbook to record all the memories. Oh boy some pink paper is coming my way!

The Earth Moved !!!

We had a small earth quake here in the Toronto area yesterday. At first I thought it was just me so excited because I got new stamps but it turned out the earth moved for everybody!

Well here is another Golden Oldie I ordered from Art Impressions. It just tickled my funny bone and reminded me that you are never too old to have fun. I try to live by that. I coloured with my copic markers and then added a saying from the Underwater Sentiments from CC Designs Also from Art Impressions I bought a sentiment that reads "Happy Birthday from the King of Cool and his Happenin' Babe" which I thought I could use inside the card. I just made a simple card without a lot of embellishments because I wanted the image to be the focal point.

I'm off to my great niece's grade eight graduation tonight and as luck would have it I have to drive right through London Ontario - yes I know there are faster shorter routes but that's my story and I'm sticking to it. While in London I will visit the Rubber Room and Stamp Art and I will only buy what I really need...OK I know I don't need anything so maybe I'll just have a quick peak. LOL Nancy at Stamp Art carries Art Impression stamps and I am hoping she has some Impression Obsession stamps because I really want one of the scenes. I am also looking for Christmas stamps. That's right you heard me Christmas stamps. I am going to run the class Christmas in July so I would like to find something new to work with. I am afraid to even look at my Christmas stamps before I go because if I do I will feel so guilty buying more. Hope everyone has a great day and enjoys the sunny weather.

YIPPEE NEW STAMPS!!!!!!

My order from Art Impressions came yesterday and of course I just had to play. I also had to convince my DH that I was carrying on a science experiment in the refrigerator and it could be several days before it was completed. I'm not sure he bought it but it has given me a few extra days to play before I tackle cleaning out the frig!

The stamps I ordered are all quite humourous and just working with the images has given me a lift and a smile. I also ordered some sayings and I am playing around with masking a part of the saying and combining it with other stamps. The outside of this card reads "Another birthday..." and the inside says Yippee! Cheers to you. I think Ella is just adorable with her coconut bikini top and tiny clown like hat. I can see using her for birthdays, girls nights or a swimming party invite.

I coloured her with copics and got a chance to practice the new techniques I learned when I took the copic certification class. The pattered paper is from Basic Grey, lemonade line.

Well I am off to teach a class at the Memory Keeper and then tonight I can play with a couple of the other stamps---that is the great part of menopause (yes I am trying to convince myself there are positives ) I can stay up all night and play since I don't sleep anyway. I'll post again tomorrow. Happy stamping everyone.

Magnolia Birthday Bash Challenge

I really wanted to do a card for this challenge since it was all about bling but quickly learned that maybe I am not a bling kind of gal. I think I have been scrapbooking for boys for so long that I have lost my touch for all things frilly and shiny. I used a very subdued paper from Cosmo Cricket and added some brown. Really not all that girly but I do gravitate to those muddy colours. I coloured my Tilda with copics and then added the pearls and rhinestones. I tried adding some flowers but really they just didn't work with the card layout. I'm not totally pleased but the most important thing is I was challenged by it and found joy in doing it! As I have hopped from blog to blog looking at all the submissions I am awed by the talent and creativity in this group. You inspire me.

I am going to be busy today cutting paper for my class at the Memory Keeper tomorrow night. It's focus is on using distress inks to colour backgrounds and flowers and most importantly to colour our Maggies. I am using Tilda as a dragonfly. I borrowed this image from my friend Deb but then I decided I had to have her so I ordered her from Diana. She arrived last week with just a few others (honest it wasn't really that many) along with a free gift and I have been stamping her ever since and plotting how to use all the goodies I got with my gift. Happy crafting everyone.

Sample from the Copic Cerification Class

Well I was having a senior moment or should I say a full blown episode. On Saturday morning my friend Deb and I headed out early to Toronto for the Copic Certification Class. We arrived ready to go only to find out we were a day early! Oh well better a day early than a day late. So on Sunday morning bright and early again we headed out ready for a full day. I found the class very informative and met some really great gals from all over Ontario.

The instructor Sherrie Siemens shared some of her stamps with us so we could practice some new techniques and I fell in love with this dog image from Cornish Heritage Farm designed by Sarah England. I coloured the dog at the class and then came home and finished colouring the image and then made a quick card. You can see from the close up the "fur" like affect you can get with blending fluid. The company also has a cute image of the dog and a boat. I would love to add both of these to my "little" family of stamps. Really ladies I need a twelve step program!! I am excited to become a certified copic instructor and I am looking forward to sharing some of the techniques in my copics classes at the Memory Keeper.

I am going to try to put together a card from Magnolia's Birthday Bash challenge because this week it is BLING. I usually scrapbook for boys so whenever I get an opportunity to use Bling and glitter I'll be all over it. I hope to post my card soon but honestly I have to clean the frig or I will have penicillin growing in there soon. Have a great week

Friday Sketcher's Challenge

I set aside some time today to organize my craft room but I got distracted when I found a Tilda I had yet to stamp and colour so of course I stamped her and yes I created my card for the Friday Sketch challenge. I used copic markers( R22, R27, YG91, YG93, YG95 E40, E50, E30) to colour her and used some paper from my stash and also some Magnolia paper I have been saving for something special. I have lots of paper but for some reason there are some that every time I go to use them I think "This is my last piece so I won't use it" Really crafters are just collectors in disguise!!! I found some cute ladybug buttons while I was reorganizing so I added one along with a flower and some hat pins. Ribbon completes the card.

Tomorrow I am off to Toronto to do the copic certification course with my friend Deb. I am hoping to pick up some more blending techniques and I am excited to try out the airbrushing with copics. I'll post on Sunday with my feedback from the course. Have a great weekend.

Distress Inks Create Backgound Paper

Well it has been a busy week and although I had every intention of entering the Fridy Sketchers challenge last week I just didn't have time to create anything new. I've been doing child care for my grandson while his caregiver was vacationing in Vegas so I have been busy playing trains, going for train rides and most importantly cuddling with that sweet boy. We also celebrated his third birthday so all and all a very busy time. I am going to enter this weeks challenge.

I had some time last night to play with some of my distress inks to create the background paper for this card. I used tumbled glass, shabby shutters and bundled sage. Then I used the shabby shutters and bundled sage to stamp the leaves. This is an Impression Obsession stamp and it is so versatile. The Queen Anne's lacy is a Technique Tuesday stamp which I stamped with white craft ink and then embossed with embossing powder. The sentiment is from Stampin' Up. I love the colours and I am planning on experimenting with some golds, oranges and browns to create some fall background paper.

I know it is hard to believe but in the next few weeks you might be seeing some Christmas, yes I said Christmas, sample cards. I like to start early and I do three or four a month so that when the crunch time comes in November and December this is one less thing to put on my to do list. I will even be doing some Christmas in July card classes in my home and probably at the Memory Keeper.

Well the washing needs to be done and darn that husband of mine he wants to eat each day so I am off to plan dinner. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

MY First Challenge!!!

Well I got my first order from Wild Orchid crafts and I just had to use some of the new mulberry paper roses. Love them!! I also order some hat pins and some crystal stems. I used the pearl hat pins on this card and they are of great quality. The flowers are not too large and add some real dimension to the card. I'm going to venture out into the world of blog challenges so I have submitted this to the Friday Sketchers for this week. I'm excited to give this a whirl and I am looking forward to the next sketch

I had a card class today for a great group of ladies fromGuelph Ontario. Ladies you did a fabulous job today and I am so glad you went home inspired to make cards!

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Birthday Card for a Scrappin' Sistah

I am part of a group of great women that meet every Tuesday for scrappin', and talkin' (mostly talkin' I think) and on Tuesday June1 our friend Dana is celebrating a birthday so I made this card for her. She has a great sense of humour and will know that it is all in good fun, after all for my birthday she gave me a magnifying mirror and tweezers so I could remove my chin hairs!!! Revenge is sweet. The outside sentiment reads "Sag you're it" and the inside sentiment is "Heard you used to be a 36C but now you are a 36 long." The stamp is from Art Impressions which has a whole line of humour stamps that I love. OK a confession while I went to the site to copy the URL to link it in my blog , I stopped and did some shopping. It is a sickness, truly a sickness!!! I also stamped the image on my pattern paper and cut out the skirt so I could add it to my coloured image. I love that effect. I flocked the pom poms on her slippers and gave her a little flocking on her blue hair to tone it down a bit. Small copper brads for earrings and she is complete. The flower embellishment is made with a scallop punch from Stampin Up and again thanks to a friend in our Tuesday group for showing me how to make it. I think for me the best part of discovering this hobby is all the wonderful people I have met through teaching classes, attending classes and crops and of course my blog buddies.

Today is simply a glorious hot day so my grandson and some friends are coming to swim. The good news I love to spend time with them, the bad news I have to put on a bathing suit!

AHH The Sweet Smell of Lacrosse Season

I have not posted for a few days but thought I would show you two cards I did from Penny Black. They have a vintage feel and I really love the papers. I finally bought a large Martha Stewart border punch and I am finding it very versatile. I can see I may have to add to my stash and pick up a couple more, using a coupon of course! I used copics to colour them. Even though I have been having fun playing with the distress inks nothing can beat my copics.

I will be busy over the next two months because Lacrosse Season has started. Nothing says summer like the "sweet" smell of a stinking hot arena filled with sweaty boys bodies. We got to the game late tonight and the place was packed so the only seats left were right behind the bench. WOW it never ceases to amaze me how bad it can be, but it is a memory that will never fade from me no matter how much Frebreeze I use. That smell will always remind me of great summers spent with other families cheering on their children in a sport that for so long appealed to only a few.

I'm excited because I am going stamp shopping tomorrow and I really am going to try to keep it within reason. My friend DEB and I are heading state side to Buffalo Stamp and AC Moore's. I'll let you know what stamps will be finding a loving home here with me in Burlington. Really stamps should not have to spend lonely days on the shelves of stores when I still have room in my craft room to make their warm and cozy.

Anniversary Card

The weather here for the last three days has been glorious so I wanted to be out and enjoying it but that meant not as much time to play. I'm posting a stampavie image of Jack and Ginger which I am using for my husband's anniversary card at the end of the month. I loved the image and I have added the sentiment inside "I'm so glad we are growing old together". I refuse to believe that even after thirty nine years of marriage I am old!!!

I stamped the image and coloured it with my copic markers. I truly believe there are no mistakes just opportunities for embellishment. The reason I say this is that I coloured Ginger's skirt last and I just didn't like the colour and so not to waste the image I re stamped it, coloured it again, cut it out and superimposed it on the first image giving it almost a paper toll look which added dimension to it. Because it was for my DH I wanted to keep it simple.

It looks like maybe some rain for the weekend so there is no reason to clean the house because it will only get muddy so I will have time to play. Really I can always justify playing with my stamps, ink and paper. Hope everyone has a great weekend no matter what you are choosing to do!

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

This final attempt with the distress inks is getting a little lighter on the colour but I still want to get more of a washed out look so I will continue to practice. I'll keep you updated on my progress and of course any feedback you can give me is greatly appreciated. I am loving doing all the flowers and "girly" stuff since I am usually scrap booking for boys!! What a treat to work with all the bling.

SECOND ATTEMP WITH DISTRESS INKS

Here is the second card I did with the distress inks and I still think I have put too much colour on the image. I love the way the flowers turned out and my distress paper.

DISTRESS INK AND MY MAGNOLIAS

Well I finally got around to experimenting with some distress inks and oh my a whole new world just opened up! I had some plain white prima flowers so I played around with using the inks to colour these to match my papers. I added some Maya Mist in gold metallic to give them some shimmer. I used the distress inks and some sponge pads to colour the nestabilities to also tone in with the colour scheme and then....I started colouring my Tilda. I have used stronger colours than the style used by the Swedish designers but I think the brighter colours of my paper work better that the very pale colouring style. I am going to continue to experiment with a softer pallet once I get some pale coloured papers. I am a colour girl- love my cheerful bright colours. I rally must get out in the garden and start working but I am hoping for maybe one day of rain this week so I have an excuse to stay in and play!!

Card Classes

I am planning on teaching a card class on Thursday May 27 at my home in Burlington. I am going to use watercolour crayons and some distress inks to colour some Magnolia images and of course I will also design a card or two using other techniques. There will be four cards with envelopes and the cost is $15.00. Times are still flexible but I think it will be from 11:00 to 2:00. I will post some samples early next week so let me know if you are interested. You can email me at dawn.hedley@sympatico.ca.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CRAIG

Tonight we celebrated my oldest son's 31st birthday and of course I had to make him a card. I used a stamped image from Crafter's Companion's Popcorn Bear collection which I got from my local scrapbook store the Memory Keeper. I used copic markers to colour it and some Fancy pants pattern paper from their Rusted Sun collection. If you have not seen the Popcorn Bears they are so cute and have a good variety of images. This one would also make a great Father's Day card and I have used it before for a retirement card.

Dinner was great and Keegan and his Dad seemed to enjoy the cake. They are just so darn cute together.

INVITATIONS DONE!!!!

I have finished the twelve invitations to Keegan's Pirate Party and they were fun to do. I personalized them with each child's name. I couldn't decide if I should colour each individual image with all the colours or do all the grey, blue etc on each image. I decided to do all one colour at a time and it did take about 25 minutes for each complete image. I used copics and a gel pen. I always choose my pattern paper before I choose the colours for the image. This way I do not colour an image and then can't find pattern paper that compliments it. The image is from Magnolias and I would like to thank Dana, one of my stamping buddies for lending me her new stamp. I feel very lucky because I have a group of friends that love to stamp and are so generous with all their new stamps. We share with each other and then we don't purchase as many....or at least we try to convince ourselves of that "lie". It's hard not to purchase all the ones you want but it is wonderful to share.Next on my agenda will be the treasure maps and treasure boxes. I'll let you know how these are going soon.

It's raining here today so I have had a great excuse for playing this afternoon and finishing my invites and playing with some new Penny Black stamps. I'll try to post some pictures of these on the weekend.

May I wish all the moms out there a Happy Mother's Day. Remember.....being a mom is not for sissies!!!

Yipee High Hopes!!!
Yes I have High Hopes and I love these whimsical stamps. I have coloured them with copics and I must admit I never stopped smiling the whole time. I used some glossy accents on the fish bowl which is difficult to see in the photograph but it does add some pizazz to the card. The dragon image is just so darn adorable and the sentiment inside reads "It seemed like a good idea at the time" Check out the website for High Hopes I am sure you will love them.

It's hard to believe that my adorable grandson is going to be three next month and I am busy designing and making invitations for his party. I am using a Magnolia stamp and going with the pirate theme. I am hoping to post the example tomorrow. I am very excited about the design and I am personalizing each invitation. Treasure boxes and buried treasure maps are next on the agenda. I love making all these things and I am sure he will have a great party. I am looking forward to my daughter in law sharing pictures with me.

Well I am making my first post and I thought I would share with you some information for some classes I am doing at the Memory Keeper in Hamilton. I am sharing my love of copic markers, and I must admit I may have to start a support group to help me control my urge to buy all the colours. I am using stamps from different companies such as Magnolia, Penny Black, Stampavie, and the The Greeting Farm. The images are whimsical and lend themselves to many different occasions. These photos are the examples and I would love to see some of you come out and give copics a try but I am giving you fair warning.....they are addictive.