For You Just Because!

I'm so glad it's Thursday - I need some time to get caught up and ahead and the weekend is just what I need!! The weather is supposed to turn cold and yucky again so it will give me the perfect excuse to stay in pj's and create all day - either that or sleep!

For today I'm sharing a card using a new stamp set from the NEW Serendipity that went LIVE this WEEK!! Woohoo!!

I used a couple of past challenges for this card - Mojo Monday and Stamping 411 Color Inspiration. The stamps are The Joy of Easter and Savvy Sayings.

I used my Copics to color and the pink cardstocks are embossed with my Sizzix folders. So whatcha think?

Thanks so much for stopping by! I'm hoping to get some pictures ordered so I can start scrapbooking again!! Oh how I miss it - Abby is growing so fast and I want to document so many things. Lucky for me I'm pretty organized and have books of quotes, happenings and such to refer too. Still I want the pictures in books for all to see!

Flutter By Wednesday - Butterflies

I decided to change it up a bit for today. My card today doesn't have any coloring on it - that's right there is stamping but I took a break from the 'ol Copics and Prismacolor Pencils. You know what? It feels good too - and I so {HEART} this card!

I guess I should step back and give you the details about the challenge this week! It's an OPEN one - but remember you MUST USE A BUTTERFLY, FAIRY or ANGEL on your card! It's only fair you follow the rules to be included in the challenge. And how do you do that? Just stop by the Flutter By Wednesday Blog and link your creation using Mr. Linky. While there check out what the guest designers have created - I'm sure you'll love them!

Now for my card - it was inspired by some cards I saw in the new edition of Stamp It! Also, I've seen so many creations with big bows and buttons that I knew I wanted to do that. I recently bought a retired TAC set (thinking it's Flutter By) that has a gorgeous butterfly in it. I knew I wanted to use that as well. So here's my card:

Don't you {heart} it? I know I do!! I decided to also put a little sparkle on the butterflies so I used my trusty Stardust Clear Gelly pen. Here's a close up of that

It's really hard to capture. I think you can click on the picture and it will enlarge and you should be able to see it better. I think the butterflies are so pretty that they didn't need any additional coloring. Love them the way they are - and love that I can whip this card out rather quickly!

Well I hope you enjoy my creation and decide to play along this week. Needing more inspiration? Check out the other DT members blogs (on right side of blog) - I'm sure they'll provide you some awesome inspiration!! Thanks so much for stopping by - have a terrific Wednesday!!

The Talent Show

Well as promised (more to Abby than anyone else) here is a blog post dedicated to her and her performance in the talent show last night. First off, she's 6 years old and to have the courage to do this in front of her peers and parents is AMAZING!! That takes guts and I'm so freakin' proud of her!

She was super excited about doing this and I know our practices went fine but I wasn't sure how it would be doing it on stage in front of a full gym. Here is a picture of her outside of the gym right before the show started.

Once we got inside, there were chairs set up in a special section for all the performers. They went in order and guess who was first?!?! Yep - Abby. She's a Kindergartner and her name starts with A. It didn't seem to bother her though. Here she is in her seat waiting for the show to start.

I showed her where we were sitting. We as in Me, Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Shannon. Yes, we brought our own cheering section! I told her when she got on stage if she was nervous to just look at us. Here she is on stage right before her song starts. As you can see she looks a little unsure but once the song started she belted it right into the microphone!

Sorry for the pictures. Jay and I tried different settings but honestly I think the problem is the camera. It's VERY old and just doesn't do well. Part of the problem is the flash and probably a little bit of the user but seriously I need a new camera! Here is a picture of her singing

She did really well. There wasn't as much dancing as we practiced but that's ok. She sang the entire song. We decided that she can sing and now is the time to get her into some music classes - piano or voice or something. She loves music and with some practice and guidance I think she'll be wonderful! We were all so proud of her - I performed in my talent show when I was in 9th grade and I remember how bad my stomach felt and how nervous I was. I honestly would have backed out if I could have...Abby though she's already talking about next time. I say YOU GO GIRL!

I forgot to get a picture of her and the flowers that we gave her. The talent show didn't get over till 8:30 and we hadn't had dinner so she was ready to get something to eat. We got her a bouquet of flowers and she received a certificate from the school. She was very proud of herself - as she should be!

Thanks for all your well wishes - she loved hearing them and I think they helped! Thanks for stopping by today. See you tomorrow for Flutter By Wednesday!

TGIF

So glad it's Friday!! How about you? Sorry for the late post - you probably think I slept in but NOPE not today. I got up and met my Dad so we could run an errand together and then we had lunch. It was nice - I don't get to spend a lot of alone time with him and since we were in the car quite a bit we were able to chat. I treasure times like that!

I wanted to share a card though because I finally was able to do Sparkle's Christmas Card challenge. This is good practice for me since the Christmas Stampin' All Year Long team is on a break! We will be back in February though and we'll be having our challenges on Friday instead of Monday! I got some really cool Christmas stamps and Lord knows I have tons of Christmas paper so I'm ready to get back into making Christmas cards again.

For Sparkle's Christmas Challenge this week it's a sketch. You can see it HERE. I changed it a little bit - instead of having a scalloped paper strip I put a sentiment.

My friend Danni, is having a Bella Weekend and I decided to play along. What's a Bella Weekend? Well basically we buy way too many stamps and don't use them. So we need a reason too. This weekend we'll be using Stamping Bella stamps on our creations. Tangled Stella was the perfect choice for my Christmas Card.

For the sentiment (which is an Autumn Leaves stamp), I added rhinestones and did a little piercing. Whatcha think? I'm hoping to make a few more cards using my Stamping Bella so I'll share those when I have them done.

Well that's it for me today! I probably won't have a chance to post this weekend but I'll be back on Monday with a few things. On a side note, Abby has signed up to be in the talent show at her school. For those of you who aren't aware, she's 6 yrs old and in Kindergarten. I was so shocked she wanted to do this and told her that it will be on stage, by herself, in front of lots of people. She responded by telling me "Mommy, don't you know I was born to sing and dance on stage in front of people"!! Can you believe that - she sure didn't get my shyness. She picked Hot and Cold by The Chipettes (from Alvin & The Chipmunks The Squeakquel) She's actually pretty good too - and that's not just coming from me. I'm not like those other American Idol parents who want to yell at Simon for not putting their kids through when their kids totally SUCK!! Besides she's only 6 - this is good practice for her and who knows...maybe one day she will be an American Idol. I know she's already my Idol :) I'll have pictures to share - tonight is the rehearsal and the talent show is Monday! Wish her luck :o)

Have a Happy Day

Yep that's right ANOTHER post from me this week!! I'm on a roll :) Today I'm sharing a new little cutie from TAC with you. I used Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #98 (TESC98) for the layout. I don't have any of her stamps but I know she's a fan of cupcakes. I got this new set, which will be available in the new Serendipity called Cupcake Cuties. I knew it would be PERFECT to use on one of her sketches.

The paper is some that I picked up at Target a few years back. The sentiment is also from TAC and is a new hostess set available in the Serendipity. I stamped the image and colored her with Copics. I LOVE how the cupcake turned out. I paper pieced the cupcake holder. I then used Liquid Applique on the cupcake. After applying it I sprinkled ultra fine glitter on it. Then I heat set it to give it the puffy shiny finish. Here is a close up of the cupcake

I wish I could get the sparkle better but trust me it's there and oh so cute!! So whatcha think? Makes me want a cupcake :)

And speaking of the new Serendipity...

My copy just arrived!! Along with it were copies for you - that's right I have them now and you can get one just for you!! They are $3 (plus shipping) and are full of new stamp sets and awesome ideas! There are tons of how to tutorials plus 4 pull out idea cards in the back! It's a steal at only $3!! Contact me to get yours today!!

Flutter By Challenge #93 & Blog Candy

Hooray it's Flutter By Day! I hope you got a chance to play along with our challenge last week. If you took the time to visit the Flutter By Wednesday Blog you'd seen that some of the DT members were giving away blog candy! Well I was one of them!! Here's what I'm giving away:

I had 44 comments and random generator picked #9:Anita Hovey

Anita Hovey said...
Beautiful card. Love your coloring.

Congrats Anita!! Please email me at made4ubymichelle@gmail.com with your mailing address by Saturday, January 23rd. If I don't hear from you by then I'll have random generator pick a new winner. Thanks to everyone that played along! I loved reading your comments and visiting your blogs!

For this week our challenge is to EMBOSS it - you must use a BUTTERFLY, FAIRY or ANGEL along with some sort of embossing. I decided to use an embossing folder on my creation.

I know - bright, huh? But FUN! I don't normally use these colors and yet I love them. It seems I always pick the colors I feel used to. I wanted to branch out a little and this is what I came up with. Image is from C.C. Designs - yes, another Swiss Pixie. I don't even own them all, lol! Papers are Basic Grey. The sentiment is from The Angel Company. Here's a close up of the beautiful pixie...

I applied Crystal Stickles to her wings. She's a perfect garden fairy IMO. What do you think? I hope you'll find some time to play along. Last week we had the most participants EVER!! Isn't that awesome!! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE seeing all the wonderful creations. Don't forget to check out the other design team members blogs to see their fabulous cards this week. Remember if you decide to play along, just go to the Flutter By Wednesday blog and link your card using Mr. Linky. While you are there make sure you are a follower so you don't miss the wonderful opportunities that may come along...like the blog candy giveaway from last week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Bookmark Card

Good Morning! For today I'm going to show one of the projects that we did at my FunShops last month. The ladies really liked this card and I have to admit it's one of my favorites as well. I saw a card on the sample boards at seminar that I fell in love with it. That is where I got my idea from. Not sure who made that card but thanks for the wonderful inspiration!

This card may look like a regular card but there is a special surprise for the recipient. This is the front of the card. We used the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder for the background. Since we used DCWV white core paper we sanded it slightly to bring out the white. The stamp used is from the Watercolor Plants set from The Angel Company. LOVE that set - and it would be so fun to use with Flower Soft as well. Haven't tried it yet but bought tons of Flower Soft to do it, lol!

I stamped using Versamark Dazzle in Frost. I then took my shimmer chalk set and applied chalk over the Versamarked image. Love the look! Next I took a strip of paper and tore the edges then crinkled it up. I kept doing that till I got it nice and worn. I then applied double stick across my image and started adhering the strip. As I did it I would fold it and give it pleats. I added ribbon and bow over it.

The inside of the card has a great sentiment for that super friend that we all have. The set is a Hostess Level B set called Beyond Measure and it has tons of perfect sentiments for those special friends in our lives!

On the inside is also a bookmark. Made similar to the front of the card and it's perforated so that the recipient can remove the bookmark without ruining the card. The sentiment here is from Tiny Tidbits. A very useful set with tons of phrases and in a small size perfect for even the smallest tag.

The total dimension of the card is 10 1/2 x 5 1/2. I then scored at 4 1/4 and perforated at 8 1/2. It folds to make a normal A2 sized card. So whatcha think? I think any friend and book lover would so enjoy receiving this in the mail!! I know it would bring a smile to my face!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Don't forget to check back tomorrow for another Flutter By Wednesday and I think I might be announcing something special. Not sure what I'm talking about? Well then you didn't see this post, did ya?!

Flowers For You

Happy Monday to you! I'm a little late getting this posted but with no school Abby and I stayed up late and decided to sleep in. It was nice but now I need to get busy!! I have a card for you today that I made for 3 challenges! One challenge, CPS Sketch #149, has already passed but that's ok since I LOVE the layout!! Definitely one I'll use again!

The second challenge is for the Softpencil PCP group where we had to use a favorite layout. And the third challenge is for Digital Tuesday Challenge #41 where you had to use a digital image and embossing. The digital image is from Softpencil and it's called Flowers for you.

Don't you love those fat polka dots? It's a Sizzix embossing folder. The sentiment is from a TAC set, Dear Friend. I colored dear old rabbit with my Copics. I used W1 and W3 for him...just wanted him to have a little color. On the flowers I went over them with my Stardust Clear Gelly Pen for some added sparkle. Below is a better picture of that.

Pretty cute, huh? Would love to hear what you think!

Thanks so much for stopping by!! I've got another project already ready for tomorrow. I'm trying to get back into posting every day (Monday through Friday). So hopefully you'll check back to see what's in store!

FBW Challenge #92

Welcome to another Flutter By Wednesday challenge! I'm so glad you stopped by! This week our challenge is an OPEN one. ANYTHING goes as long as you INCLUDE A BUTTERFLY, ANGEL or FAIRY! Last week we debuted the new Flutter By Wednesday blog - and we had the most participants who played along which is AWESOME!! Thank you and if you didn't play along, why don't you this week? All you have to do is follow the challenge and link your creation using Mr. Linky on the Flutter By Blog. That's it!! Easy peasy... so what's stopping you?

I'm ready for the bright colors and something different. I had a chance to stop at Archiver's and found some yummy KI Memories paper there. I knew it would be perfect for those Valentine cards that I'm in the mood to make. I searched for the right image and found an image from Paper Makeup Stamps that I had received as a RAK. Since I was using a PMS image I decided to go ahead and play along with their Friday Makeup for the Weekend #11 challenge which is a sketch this week. Here is my creation:

In the sketch it shows the circles behind the image and a sentiment in the lower right corner. Since my circles were my sentiment I decided to put them on the outside of the image. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE how my image turned out. I got some new Copics and love that I can do some blue coloring and some different brown. Here's a close up of the image:

Isn't she beautiful! I wish I could wear boots like that! Not to mention look that good in a dress, LOL! I added Crystal Stickles to the heart and wings.

I hope you'll check out the other design team members blogs. And if you haven't checked out the Flutter By Wednesday blog you'll definitely want to - I PROMISE you won't be disappointed - that's all I'm going to say {wink, wink}

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today - I hope you've enjoyed my creation. I know I enjoy having you here and reading all the comments that you leave. It really means a lot!

Stain Glass Technique & A Cutie pic

Good Morning! Is it any warmer where you are? We are finally getting to be in the 30's which is a nice welcomed change! Plus it's been sunny - woohoo! Today I wanted to share a quick card using the Stained Glass Technique. We did this card in our Funshops last month.

I thought this would also make a good anniversary card as well as sympathy and get well. The rose is a Level A Hostess set from The Angel Company.

I mentioned last week that we were going to a birthday party. Here's a picture of Abby and the birthday girl, Natalie.

Aren't they adorable? Love their smiles! That's what Chuck E Cheese will do - for them anyway...me kind of overwhelming. WAY too many kids running around. Heck one party there had 26 kids at it! And there were 4 parties going on at the same time. So I'm not kidding when I say there were WAY too many kids!

Thanks so much for stopping by - be sure to visit tomorrow for another Flutter By Wednesday creation!

Two Challenges - SSS37 & Softpencil

Hi! I stumbled upon Softpencil digital stamps - have you seen them? Oh so cute! I was doubly excited to see that they have challenges. I don't know about you but sometimes I get overwhelmed with all the different blogs, forums, etc. I was able to participate in the Softpencil challenge over at PCP as well as use The Sweet Stop Sketch for this week. Both new to me and yes it is amazing - two challenges with one card!! I am patting myself on the back, lol!

So the challenge at the Softpencil group was to use a Softpencil image and have something glitter/sparkle/flock or liquid applique on it. The images are just darling - so cute and fun to color! The image I used for my card is actually a freebie! DARLING and FREE...can't beat that! I flocked the little chickies and used my Clear Stardust Gelly Pen to add a little glitter to her little hair bows.

The sketch from The Sweet Stop is SSS37 which is fabulous! Love the circle and the room for a large(r) image. The paper is Imaginisce and the flowers are from Prima. Here is a close up of the image so you can see the flock and glitter better.

Such a sweetie I tell you! I fell in love with the Softpencil images and decided to place an order. Lots of cute stuff and since they are digital images I can use them right away!

Here are the colors of Copics that I used. I'm not sure if I'm going to do this for every card but it comes in handy for me to know what combinations work and to have everything in one place.

Thanks for stopping by! I have a pretty busy weekend ahead so more than likely won't be posting again till next week! Have a fabulous weekend and stay warm - it's FREEZING here!!

Valentine's Day Class

Join me at The Shabbi Shack (4435 NW 25th St. in Topeka, KS) for a Valentine's Day class on Wednesday, January 13th at 6pm! You'll leave with a completed 12x12 layout, card and treat container ready to give to that special someone. This project will make a great gift for husbands, significant others or even your kids! Email The Shabbi Shack or call Shannon at 640-0227 or Bobbi at 224-7996 to register! There is a limited number of spaces left so contact them today!! Can't make it? Don't forget we can ship out a kit (postage is extra) with complete instructions and pictures so you can make it at home!

A Flutter By Hop

WELCOME - what an exciting day today!! Today we official open the NEW Flutter By Wednesday Blog and what better way to celebrate then by having a blog hop! If you are starting with me - you need to flutter back to DANNI's BLOG and begin the hop from there. We'd hate for you to miss anything...you just never know what you might see that will inspire you! Now if you've come from CHRIS's BLOG, well then you are fluttering on the right path!! REMEMBER if you ever get lost along the hop, just go back to DANNI's blog to see the master list.

The challenge this week is NEW - this can be however YOU perceive NEW. Just remember you must have a FAIRY, BUTTERFLY or ANGEL on it as well!! For my card, I used NEW papers from Bo Bunny and a NEW stamp from Sugar Nellie that I received for Christmas. I also, followed the Mojo Monday 120 Sketch - which is NEW for me since I'm trying to do more challenges this year. I was also hoping to use my NEW Copics but they haven't arrived yet.

Super CA-UTE huh?! Love how her legs are outside of the circle! Thinking I got that idea from my friend Barb. Such yummy paper colors - one of my FAVORITE color combos for sure! I colored Manga Fairy with my Copics and added some Crystal Stickles to her shoes, wings and wand. I tell you this card looks oh so cool IRL! Here's a close up of the super sweet image

So what do you think? You know I LOVE reading your comments so feel free to leave them!

I'd like to officially say goodbye to Stef - last week she stepped down from the FBW DT and I forgot to put it in my post. I know we'll still see you around Stef! I'd also like to welcome FOUR new guest designers for the first quarter of 2010 - welcome ladies! I look forward to seeing your creations and getting to know you!!

Now flutter on and visit DEBBY's blog!! Thanks so much for stopping by!!

Just in case you've lost your way, here's a copy of the blog hop list:

Danni

Pam

Nicola

Cassie

Jeanette

Christine

Harriet

Kris

Suzie

Karen

Chris

Michelle - ME

Debby

Shana

Heather

Kimberly

Nancy

Ann

Jodi

Lelia

Kristie

Flutter By Blog

English Everyday Cuties

Today I'm showing another sneak peek from a new TAC stamp set, ENGLISH EVERYDAY CUTIES, that will be released with the new Serendipity. I've really enjoyed the sets that I've seen so far so I can't wait to get the new Serendipity in my hands. I know I'll be an ordering fool - shhh I'll tell you a little secret...I have some more stamps on their way. I decided to take advantage of another special available for Angels only on the very last day available..I'm hoping they make it into my hands soon!

One of the things I've been working on is getting organized. There are so many awesome challenge sites out there so I've been spending some time going through them and picking out ones I liked. I've made a calendar (I'll share it another day) especially for challenges. My card for today was made using the sketch from the Cute Card Thursday blog. It's a fabulous sketch with lots of layers!

I used the WILLOUGHBY cardstock and pattern paper. The image and sentiment are both from the new set. I paper pieced the quilt and colored the rest with my pencils and OMS. I added some ribbon because I just can't seem to NOT include it :o) Here is a close up of Mr. Rabbit

He may not feel good but I think Mr. Birdy is making him smile a little. So whatcha think?

Today is my first day back after Winter Break. I hope it goes good. Since I teach the youngsters, there's a VERY good chance I'll be dealing with a lot of crying and missing mommy! Not sure how motivated I'll be to create tonight. But never fear I have my FBW card already done and am so excited to show it to you!! Don't forget to stop back by tomorrow where we'll be debuting the new blog with a BLOG HOP!! Thanks so much for stopping by!!

Love Bug

Happy Monday to you! Today is our last day of Winter Break - tomorrow Abby goes back to school and I start back up at the preschool. It was a great break seeing lots of friends and family and even getting a little accomplished! I finally have all the Christmas decorations down and the house back in order - that in itself makes me feel oh so much better!

I've been trying to make a card using the new TAC stamps that will be available in our new Serendipity magalogue which debuts February 1st. Today I decided to show a card using BUG OF FUN

When I saw the set I kept thinking slug bug - as that is one of Abby's favorite games to play in the car. I made the SCARLET cardstock panel using a heart from the I HEART YOU stamp set and NEW CANVAS Palette Pad . Once I saw that all I could think was "hey love bug". The set actually had the sentiment! I stamped the car on KRAFT cardstock and cut it out. I used buttons for the wheels to give it a little dimension. I used my SCOR-BUG to make the little line coming out the back - reminds me of the cars in cartoons. For the girl I stamped her on white cardstock and colored her with Copics. I then cut her out adhered her to the back of the car. The white borders were done with my Fiskars Border Punch and I folded them up to give them a little dimension as well.

I think it would be a cute card - perfect for Valentine's day or just to send a little extra love to that special someone. What do you think?

I'm going to try and start posting daily again. That is if I can continue to find time to create. I still need to write out my goals for 2010 - it really helps keep me focus and I like the sense of reaching those goals. I do know that I want to scrapbook more. I'm in the process of ordering prints and planning some pages. Hopefully I'll be able to share some soon! Thanks so much for stopping by!!

January Specials from The Angel Company

Lots of great specials going on right now! First up is the Stamp of the Month

Next we have the Vintage set

And a new special starting today is the STAMP SPREE!

DOUBLED hostess rewards! FREE stamp sets! NEW collection of stamps - Brighten Your Day, Little Darlins and Furry Friends! Plus 2 Limited Edition Stamp Sets!

Plus don't forget that the NEW SERENDIPITY catalogue will debut February 1st!! BRAND NEW stamps with ROLL BACKED pricing!!

Remember you can order online 24/7 at http://michellem.ismyangel.net. How about getting a few friends together for a little creating time - I'll bring two projects and tons of inspiration! Email me now to schedule your FUNShop and learn how you can earn FREE stamps and AWESOME rewards!!