I love Halloween!

I've decided to post a few things from my office computer while on my lunch break. I uploaded a few photos from my camera to this computer weeks ago but can't edit them, because I don't have PSE here, so bear with me if they are a bit dark. I did lighten this one a bit with MS picture manager, but it's not the best.

I'm still alive and kickin', but can't use the internet at home (STUPID COMPUTERS!) so if you have emailed me, hang in there until I get a chance to check things at work. Because I'm a federal officer there are only so many websites I can visit on my Government computer and only a few minutes to do so if I'm in my office. (I'm usually out in the field or on the road)

I adore Halloween, (we call it Samhain) and we usually celebrate in a big way around our house. We like to do lots of natuire inspired craft projects to remind us of the end of the harvest season. Winter is coming!

This little card makes me happy and I might keep it for myself. All PTI supplies.

I miss you guys and can't wait to catch up on all my blog hopping when our new computer arrives!

(I'm totally dreading the loss of my photos and our itunes files though...blahhh.*pout*)

Thanks for stopping by today!

Posting woes and an old card...

Do you know what the most frustrating part of this is? The fact that I actually HAVE photos to share of some really fun cards! ARGHH! This computer virus/trojan thing is driving me batty!

I have tried everything recommended by the experts, and short of buying a new computer (I can't even do a system restore) I'm at a loss. Besides, if I purchase a new computer, I still lose the photos that were on the old one! Typing this at the library makes me sad, but I wanted to give you all an update and let you know that I'm still alive. *smile*

I'm including a photo of a card I made in April of 2005. Isn't it hysterical to look back on your older cards and see how much has changed? Not only what's "in", but style, LO and design too. Don't judge too harshly, I'd only been stamping for a few months when I made this card! And I hand drew those letters too!

CARD FROM 2005! Bazzill CS and Hero Arts stamps (these were the first stamps I EVER owned!)

Make a card today!

I'm sure you all know what today is, but never-the-less I'm going to say it again. It's WORLD CARD MAKING DAY! Are you going to be making cards today? I'm hoping to find some time to get into my studio and accomplish a few things myself. I have heard word that several prizes are out there for the taking! So hop around and see what you can find.

In the meantime, here is a card I made last weekend.

  Orange is my favorite color, and I love it combined with pink! My mom always decorated our home in pink and orange for the Christmas Holiday and I like to do the same. No red and green for us!

This card is for my niece, Kayla. She turns 18 this month and I'm so excited for her. (She doesn't read my blog, so I'm safe in posting it!) Isn't it fun?

Just some simple stamping on the card base using a scroll-y stamp from PTI's Vintage Label, an actual label stamp, a large damask image from Damask Designs and a sentiment from Mega Mixed Messages. Not many layers or embellishments besides a few black buttons, a simple black rhinestone and some grosgrain ribbon. Oh, and I added some glitter using a spica glitter pen.

Can you see it here? Not vey well I guess. Well you'll just have to imagine it then! *smile*

Alright, enough chatting, I'm off to take care of some chores and hopefully find some time to make a card today. Happy WORLD CARD MAKING DAY!

Thanks for stopping by!

I know why the caged bird sings...

Hello everyone! Although our computer woes aren't completely fixed, I have been working all day to be able to access my photos so I can share a card or two with you. Plus, tomorrow is WORLD CARD MAKING DAY and I intend to post. Computer troubles aside! (I can be just as stubborn as this piece of...well, machine, I mean *grin*)

I was playing around with some background stamps last weekend and ended up filling an entire sheet of CS with the dotted stamp from Background Basics: Retro. I then used a copic marker and colored in the inner circle with various colors. Liking the red and yellow combo, I built this card around it.

I love how the PP from the Men Of Life Colletion matches the stamp pattern! I covered a chipboard bird from Maya Road with the PP and then stamped a small piece of lemon tart with Text Style and covered the wing. After using a Paint Dauber in Pearl to paint the cage, I adhered the bird on the outside.

A touch of ruffled red saddle-stitched ribbon, and some Spring Rain CS stamped with Fancy Flourishes, and it was done!

Thanks for stoppping by today, I appreciate your patience!

It figures

For once, I have a ton of things to share with you. I had a period of frenzied card making this past weekend, got quite a few done, and then...*kerplop* our home PC got a trojan virus. The entire computer is infected and nothing works and I'm not able to access any of my pics nor PSE to edit them! Incedibly frustrating!

So I'm using a computer at the library to post this photo of a card I made when I got my newest PTI order and put aside because it wasn't quite..there. KWIM? I wasn't satisfied with it and put it away to maybe work out some kinks later. BUT, at the moment, it's the only photo I have for you, so we'll "make do" for today! Hopefully, I will soon retake the pics of all the stuff I created last week, and will post from the library (without the use of PSE to edit them, they might be darker, but oh well!). Thank goodness the public library is a block away from my home!

The image stamp is by Penny Black, and I LOVE it. It can be used in so many different ways, and I attempted to make it "christmas-y" for this card. Sentiment is from PTI. I like the colors of Ocean Tides, Poppy Red and Kraft together, but didn't get quite the right mix here. The vintage cream made it pop, but I still know something isn't right. Whatever. You can judge for yourselves!

Thanks for stopping by today, hope your day is fantastic!
Hang in there with me while our computer woes straighten themselves out.

PTI Princess challenge-No white!

Cheryl issued the newest Papertrey Princess challenge...man oh man was it hard! We were not to use any cream or white on a card. Not ink, ribbon, cardstock...anything! I thought it might be challenging but it was more than challenging...it was hard. Seriously. I tried so many different samples before finally finding something that worked, at least IMHO.

All supplies PTI except black ink and black brads.

Hope everyone is having a relaxing, productive weekend. I'm off to finish the yard work!

Wordless Thursday?

Orange Zesty Sweet potato pie Fall card

My favorite color is orange, so when Papertrey ink decided to realease Orange Zest, I was delighted. Of course the first card I made with it was this autum inspired leafy one.

The leaves aren't actually..well, leaves. At least not leaves like you think of when referring to fall; oak, maple, ash, birch, hickory. But, I think given the colors of ink I used, they work just fine!

The image and swirly stamps are from the Spiral Bouquet set. Sentiment is from the 2009 Autumn Tags set, and the surrounding border is from the new Vintage Labels set.

Here's a photo of the sweet potato pie that my BFF and I made last weekend. We actually made two pies and now she has one in her freezer! I thought the colors in the pie were a perfect match for the card above!

SWEET POTAOT PIE RECIPE

(courtesy of my mother in law, Beth)

1 1/2 c. cooked, mashed sweet potato

2/3 c. granulated sugar

1/2 c. evaporated milk (can use soy)

1/2 c. flaked coconut

6 T. melted butter

1/2 t. lemon extract (or 1 T. lemon juice & 1/2 T. lemon zest)

2 egg yolks (can use vegan versions)

1 9 inch pastry shell, unbaked

2 T. dark brown sugar

Blind bake the pie shell in a 375 degree oven for about 9 minutes--no browning should occur. When removed, sprinkle brown sugar over bottom of hot crust and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine rest of ingredients and pour into pie crust. Bake at 375 for 15 mintues, then lower the temp to 350 and continue to bake for another 30, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

I like to top mine with a butter, brown sugar, pecan, brandy drizzle and some whipped cream, but feel free to experiment to your liking!

Thanks for stopping by today. If you try the pie, let me know how you like it. Sweet Potato pie should NOT be a 'remake" of pumpkin, so no adding cinnamon and all those other spices, you hear me! *grin*

Birthday Buttons

I thought I had this post scheduled...appears I was wrong! I couldn't figure out why no one was leaving me comments! Duh. *smacks forehead*   So this is the birthday card I made my best friend about a month ago. I just loved it and really enjoyed inking up Guidelines II to create the background. At the time it was still summery out so the colors stemmed from how warm I was feeling, but now the nights are cold and the days are cooler and trees are changing color rapidly. Here comes Autumn!

I had a fun time visiting my BFF, Mary, in her new place. We made sweet potato pie, and vegetarian philly cheese steak sandwiches on kimmelwick rolls, ate blueberry coffeecake, scrumptious ratatouille, and even some yummy seaweed at a tiny Korean restaurant. We also did a lot of shopping. More than I would do in a month to be honest! (I'm not a big "shopper", unless it's online for stamps!) We laughed, gossiped, and hung out with her boyfriend Erik, (who is an AMAZING artist, BTW. Check out his website here!) who creates giant chalk art on commission.

Thanks for stopping by today friends, hope you have a wonderful afternoon.

Sheetload Fall sketch challenge

Through a very lovely comment on my blog by Denise, I discovered Sheetload! They host monthly challenges and I liked this round so I decided to play along. It was a sketch, and although I rotated it and switched out the circle for an oval, I think it still works.

This card is a bit more involved, accessory wise, than I've been into lately, but it was fun to keep adding things, and hard to stop once I got started! *grin*

The challenge was to make a Fall themed card using the sketch provided in the Online newsletter/ezine, and I think the stamps from PTI's First Fruits were the perfect choice.

I also used a small piece of the patterned paper from the Autumn Abundance collection, but I had to change it a bit. Can anyone see what I did?  I began my card using white CS, so when I went to grab a piece of PP, I noticed it was made to match the vintage cream CS and was disappointed. But then I thought," Why not color in the cream lines with yellow to match the rest of the card?" So I did! I loved how it turned out, and, as you can see, the yellow matches perfectly and there is no cream to clash with my white!

The main yellow BG piece is embossed in a square pattern using a Score-Pal and again using the score-bug to make embossed dotted lines along side the original ones. I think it looks sort of quilt-like. So then I added the sentiment on a half-piece of a vintage label die-cut and covered it with twill. But the twill covered part of my pine branch up, so I stamped another one and after trimming it out, placed it on top of the ribbon. I added white gel-pen dots around the sentiment, and two chocolate buttons tied together with rustic twine. The pinecone is cut out and popped up to add dimention, and then, as a last touch, I faux stitched around the card with white and called it done! Phewwwww. *wiping brow*

(You can see in the right photo above, that I decided to add a flat bow to the card too!)

Thanks for stopping by today friends. I'm off for a weekend with my best friend, Mary (no hubster and kids!), to see her new apartment, celebrate her most recent birthday, explore the city of Binghamton and eat yummy foods (She mentioned wanting to make sweet-potato pie! *drool*)

Dana

Three Cherries

Since you already know I love fruit, I won't say it again! How about a story instead?

My dad used to love to tell the story of how I got lost and found in a cherry tree. I was 2 and my parents were picking cherries in our orchard while I was playing on a blanket nearby. Suddenly my dad realized I was not on the blanket anymore and had disappeared! He and my mom walked all over our orchard calling me and looking everywhere they could think of to look, becoming more frantic by the minute! Finally my dad looked UP and there I was, at the top of the ladder, high in the cherry tree, happily eating all the cherries I could reach with my fat little 2 year old hands! They never could figure out how I had gotten past them and up the ladder without them seeing me (sneakly little girl that I was! *evil laugh*). Maybe that was the beginning of my love affair with fruit!

Some real and faux stitching, Everyday Button Bits, PP by Magnolia Ink, all CS, ribbon, twin, buttons and ink by PTI.

Thanks for stopping by today friends,

A partridge in a tree?

Today's card was made several weeks ago. I'd been putting off posting it beacuse it was Holiday-ish and by no means do I want to rush things! But because the colors aren't traditional red-n-green I think you will forgive me.

Image stamp by Impression Obsession, sentiment by Inkadinkadoo (I think). CS, ink, twine by PTI. Glitter, white gel pen, and buttons from my stash. Punch by Fiskers.

I was trying to keep it simple, but then couldn't resist adding a touch of glitter! And don't you just love adding snow to branches? I've gone through several white gel pens in recent years, but never tire of them.

Hope you are having a wonderful Tuesday morning at your house. Thanks for stopping by,

Christmas in September Tutorial

I've been inspired by all the holiday cards that the PTI Design Team have been showcasing on their blogs to prepare for the new Holiday stamps release on the 15th. And I don't even send Christmas cards! I do send out New Years cards though, after the hustle and bustle of the holidays has slowed a bit and people are less frenzied (meaning ME!).

Anyway, I thought I'd share a tutorial with you today. I don't know what it's called, but it sure looks pretty! You need an open image stamp, white EP, versamark or other pigment ink, heavy white vellum (I used 40 lb.), an XL ball stylus, and some bee's wax.

1. Stamp your image with versamark or white pigment ink on the heavy vellum, sprinkle with white EP and heat set.

2. Turn the vellum over and place it on a soft mat (I use a pergamano mat made for this purpose, but a mouse pad would work also).

3. Be sure to use an extra-large stylus, and occasionally rub it in some bee's wax, NOT parafin. This helps the stylus to glide smoothly over the vellum without tearing it.

4. Start rubbing the BACK of your image while it's on the mat, in small circular motions. Continue until the entire area you want raised and white, is covered. Press gently at first, until you can feel the correct pressure you need without tearing the vellum.

5. I usually stamp and dry emboss at least three of the same image because I like to layer them for dimention, but this particular image doesn't lend itself to layering IMHO. You can also see where I decided to try rubbing the entire image, not just parts of the petal.(I didn't like it as well)

6. Now turn the vellum back over to the front and carefully trim out the images, staying close to the embossed edge.

7. Here are my three images dry embossed and cut out, on my Pergamano mat. I'm so inspired by this photo that I base my card on it! *smile*

Using a Smokey Shadow card base, I score-pal'ed several embossed lines on the CS, and added a simple black satin ribbon through the middle. Next I added three rhinestones to the center of each flower and a pop dot on the back to adhere them to my card. I heat embossed a sentiment from the Holiday Wishes stamp set in black EP and called it done!

Wouldn't this technique be perfect with an open pointsettia stamp? You could layer several of them on top of each other for dimentional effect and it would be so pretty!

Thanks for stopping by today, hope you enjoyed my tutorial!

Feeling blue?

Thanks Abound

Let me tell you how amazing the people are who work for/operate/own Papertrey Ink. When PTI formulated their new inks I was delighted! I imediately purchased all the new available colors, and intended to return my old ones for credit (how amazing is THAT?!)

Then, when I didn't like the color of one of the new ones (Spring Moss), I asked where I could purchase the refill of the original ink formula and was told they were all out and would not, of course, be restocking them. Sad, I posted to the forums that I was disappointed, but still loved the other new inks, and would continue to use my old Spring Moss until it ran out. End of story...right?

Wrong. Both Nichole Heady and Jennifer Ellefson pm'd me saying they would be willing to give me their old Spring Moss refill! Can you believe it???? Not only did I get a pm from Nichole AND Jennifer, but they both were offering to GIVE me something they paid for! Amazing. And I received both just recently. So now I have two refills!

These two ladies were just so sweet in offering to donate something to a complete stranger, that I wanted to make them both a special card. Let me tell you how intimidationg it is to be making a card for THE Nichole Heady! lol.

The green one above is for her. I used Text Boxed for the image and Mega Mixed Messages for the sentiment. Colors are Ripe Avocado, Spring Moss, and Scarlet Jewel.

This one below is for Jenn. I think she'll like the colors. I love her blog and visit frequently, so it was a real treat to get something in the mail from her. And she made ME a card too! (I'll post it later)

I embossed the chocolate base with the swiss dots cuttlebug folder but it's hard to see in this photo. Stamps used are Green Thumb and Limitless labels for the sentiment. Colors are Sweet Blush, Melon Berry and Ripe Avocado.

Thank you so much Nichole and Jenn. I am thrilled with my Spring Moss ink refills!

1st Day of School

Just a random 4.25 x 4.25 card made a few weeks ago. Nothing special. I always need thank you cards, so when my mojo is on hiatus, I go with what's comfy!

All supplies PTI except small piece of cotton crocheted lace (MM).

So today was the first day of school for my boys. Stickyfingers(age 4) was so excited to be entering Kindergarten and riding a school bus! We are trying a new school this year (private catholic) so Crumbgrabber (age 10) was excited too, albeit a bit nervous about making new friends.

Know what I love the most about this new school? UNIFORMS!!!! No more arguing about weather or not this is a "school shirt" and "No, you may not wear holey-kneed jeans to school!" Everyday it's navy dockers and white polos with the school logo on them. Period. Ahhhhh, one less thing to yell about in the early mornings. *grin*

Thanks for stopping by today friends, I'm off to start dinner...(home made veggie burgers on the grill, broccoli & cauliflower au gratin, green leafy salad, and whole wheat kaiser rolls with home canned pickles!)

Raspberry Suite Color Challenge #16

 Everyone having a good Labor Day? We've been laboring on our new patio and it's coming along great! The boys were disappointed that we took their sandbox apart, but they had fun tamping down the sand anyway. My hubster also has been trimming our hedges and cutting off dead branches from the trees on our property. They made for a wonderful bonfire last night. Fall cleaning maybe?

I LOVED the colors that Dawn choose for the newest color challenge she issued. Aren't they pretty?

I actually made several different cards using these colors and I like all of them, but I'm only submitting one for the Raspberry Suite Challenge.

I bought this awesome tree and owl stamp at the StampScrapArtTour convention last weekend. It's by Memory Box and I just love it. I stamped it in brown and colored it in with my copics. Then I stamped it again, and cut out the owls and popped them up on the original image. Then I cut the entire thing out and adhered it to an oval of kraft CS.

I used PTI's Polka Dot Basics for the background, and Friend's 'til the End.

I'm super-pleased with how this turned out! Even my hubster commented on it (which is a miracle indeed!), and told me his Aunt Martha would love it because she and Uncle Joe collect owls. Hey, the fact that he even noticed it made my day! I took this photo on the carpet in the early morning sun, and I like the shadows of the owls...aren't they cool?

Thanks for stopping by today friends,

We have a winner!

Sandy Kay! Come on down! You have won the crafting goodies for your entry in Monday's Guess the PTI sets Contest. Congratulations! Of the 11 entries, only 6 folks got the answer correct, so I used Random.org to give me the winner.

Sandy, be sure to email me (link on my sidebar) with your full name and address and I will put your goodies in the mail as soon as possible!

Here is a photo I snapped of the loot before I packed it into a box:

Doodlebug Designs Chipboard bouquet

2 jars of Bazzill flowers

Poetry Beads

3 Layover Layouts by MME

a brass stencil

a wood mini-book kit

1 Large flower

 Set of clear stamps by Verve Visual

1 unmounted stamp by Magenta

Also, Sandy, if you'll tell me what kind of stamps you like, I will throw in a few wood-mounted ones from my giant gift basket last weekend. There are cute bears and bunnies, cartoon type characters, religious, large background stamps, strange/funky, etc. Let me know which you might prefer and I'll throw some in with the rest of the goodies!

Thanks for playing everyone!

SPCC #13

Happy Saturday folks! It's a long Labor Day weekend, and we have lots of fun things in store for us here. It's a Buffalo tradition to spend Labor Day at the Zoo, where admission is only $1, and so are rides on the carousel, and so are all concession stand items! The kids are excited enough for the whole family! Plus, we are having a bonfire in the backyard tonight after we are done working on our new patio deck.

For today's card I challenged myself with SPCC #13. At first I was horrified at these colors and thought there was no way I would be able to come up with something. But then something clicked, and here it is!

As you can see, I really mixed things up here! I used the sentiment from Teacher's Apple, but inserted the word "friend" in there (from Friends 'til the End) instead of "teacher"! I also used the little birds from Bird Watching Additions, and a dotted circle stamp from Borders & Corners{Circle}. Some Hibiscus Burst twill, a bit of twine, and two yellow buttons finished it off.

You still have a chance to win a bundle of crafting goodies from me by entering the contest in the previous post, here. The contest ends at 8 pm EST tonight!

Have a wonderful weekend folks, even if you don't celebrate Labor Day.

Thanks for stopping by,

PTI Princess Challenge & a contest

First up, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my best friend forever, Mary. She's my girl! And she turns...what is it this year Mary? The big 3-oh?!? *grin* (It's actually 33, and let me just say that I am delighted she is a year older than me!) We've been friends since we were 2 and 3, can you believe it? She's the best I tell ya.

Secondly, Belinda, a fellow PTI Princess, issued a challenge on her blog Friday. And I met it! She went dress shopping at Anthropologie and picked out three dresses for the rest of us PTI Princesses to be inspired by. Here's the one I chose: Isn't it funky? I decided to go literal for my inspiration piece and am happy with how it turned out. I love it when it comes out looking like you planned in your head! But in case it didn't, I made another card too (from a different dress) to use as a backup. *wink* Maybe I'll share it later this week. Here's my challenge card:

I started with a base of Vintage Cream CS and just built it up from there. Flower after flower it became that little dress! I do wish I could have used the border punch at the top instead of the bottom to more closely resemble the dress, but no such luck.

So, here's where the contest part comes in.

To celebrate Mary's birthday, I will be drawing a random name from the list of participants who can correctly name ALL of the PapertreyInk stamp sets I used on this card. Each one! (and there are seven, folks. Yep, SEVEN different sets!) But I'm not giving you anymore hints. nada.

And I promise that you will not be disappointed by the prize. After all, I did just win a $600 gift basket filled with crafting goodies! *grin* I can afford to share!

So post away with your guesses...you have until Saturday night at 8 PM EST to enter.

Have fun, and thanks for stopping by today!

SPCC challenge #12

Well I had a wonderful time at the Make-n-Take and met some really nice people. That's one of my favorite things about this hobby...meeting great like-minded people! Yesterday at the actual convention I spent a few too many dollars, but came away with some really great products and fun stamps.

Today's card is for the SPCC challenge. I just discovered this blog and I really liked this combo so I decided to play.

HOLY COW!!!! As I was typing this, I received a phone call from the StampScrapArt Tour convention that I attended yesterday, and it turns out that I WON the GIANT GIFT BASKET worth $600! I'm so excited! EEEEEEEEK! Ok...calm down and get back to typing Dana...

So here is the card I created for the color challenge:

I have been wanting to ink up Dawn's Scattered Showers additions set for a while, so I pulled it out this morning and got to work. A Bazzill orange base, some SU Cool Caribbean and PTI's Berry Sorbet. I added a touch of glitter to the sun's rays, some bling at the bottom and a few scallops. Simple, and totally out of my realm of comfort! But that's what a challenge is all about, right? *grin*

Thanks for stopping by today. I've got to run back up to Hamburg and get my prize now!!!!!!

A little 4 x 4 card

I'm headed to a make-n-take session at the StampScrapArt Tour in Hamburg, NY tonight! So excited, because you know why? I've NEVER been to a make-n-take before!!!!! I mean, I've done a few 5 minute ones at stamping conventions, but never an entire evening! I hope it will be fun. I'm also going back tomorrow for the convention and hope to pick up a few things without spending a ton of $$. Wish me luck. *grin*

This card was made for a friend in need a few weeks ago. It's small, only 4x4. But she needed to know that she wasn't alone so I thought this card might cheer her up. Base of Scarlet jewel with Sweet blush and using Friends 'til the end for the flowers and Damask Designs for the sentiment.A few buttons and some blush twill and it's all good.

Thanks for stopping by this afternoon, hope you all have a great weekend!

Dana

Beep, BEEP, BEEP

I'm meddling with my blog LO and design, so ignore the construction! I've had the same LO and color scheme for almost 4 years now, I felt it was time to move on!

You can leave me thoughts telling me to revert to the old LO, or that you like this one if you are so inclined.

Little bunny foofoo, hopping through the forest...

...scooping up the field mice and boppin'em on the head!
What a horrible song...it popped into my head while I was making this card though, so I had to share it with you. *evil grin* It's like when the soymilk is bad, and you make your husband try it too just to make sure! hee hee share the yuckies, right?
I made this card for a friend who doesn't know the sex of her baby and was trying to avoid the whole pink vs. blue thing. I usually go with a rusty orange and some yellow in these types of instances, but thought maybe I'd give purple a shot this go 'round.
Although the Lavender Moon color looks pinkish, I still think it works, because the Ocean Tides color tempers it. PTI's Bitty Baby Blessings was used for this card. I love this set, it's so versatile and I like being about to paper piece the outlined images.

After paper piecing the bunnies on some PP (maybe from the Fairytale line by DCWV?), I added lavender ears and white tails, then glued them randomly onto a piece of Plum Pudding. When I cut it out I decided to allow one of the bunnies to hang over before matting it with the ocean tides and adhering it to the plum card base. I sewed the buttons on the ocean tides ribbon, and added a white border for interest. End with a sentiment and call it done! I think she'll like it.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Happy Anniversary

So although Sunday was our 6th wedding anniversary, my hubster took me on a mystery trip on Saturday to...Pollywog Holler Eco-resort! It was amazing! You actually have to hike in to get to the main lodge and even further away was our lean-to where we slept.
There is no electricity, just lanterns, and even the showers were solar-powered and from a gravity fed spring. All the building were made by hand by the owners from trees and fallen logs in the area. There was a wood-fired sauna, an amazing vegetarian meal (catered just for us) cooked over a wood burning stove and all the complimentary home-made wine we could drink! (a bit too much it turned out when we tried to walk to our bed later that night!) A fire was ready and burning for us when we got back to our lean-to and it was very peaceful and romantic out in the woods with only the crickets and frogs to serenade us, and the water gently lapping at the sides of the pond.
We were served a wonderful breakfast the next morning and spent some time hiking around the place and discovering some of the amazing art "gifts" and sculptures that have been donated and placed in the woods by many people throughout the past 30 years the place has been in business. This place is not everyone's "cup of tea" but it sure was perfect for us and our anniversary celebration! I'll share a few photos at the end of this post.

Onto today's card. This is the first card I made when I received the PTI anniversary set, Everyday Classics, in March this year. It wasn't made for anyone specifically, but I thought it appropriate for a post about my anniversary!

I also used the leaf image from First Fruits. All supplies are PTI except black ep and black ink (Ranger). I love the look of black embossing on black CS...seems elegant.

Now for some photos of our trip!

I was still clueless at this point, so when we started driving off into the woods on a dirt road I made him tell me more!

This is the entrance to the resort. I thought it looked like a giant jungle-gym!

Loved this tiny mushroom entrance building with the wild flowers growing on top! The roof was an inverted recycled satellite dish!

This was the entrance into the sculptural art forest. We hiked back into there for a ways before coming to this:

The main lodge! The stream running in front was so nice.

We took a quick photo in the woods too! Isn't my hubster a cutie?! *grin*

This was a finished dome house that you could stay in. We saw it through the woods while hiking in. It has the only 8 foot diameter "Floating bed" on the East coast. Cool!

Another view of the Phantasy Dome and the pond in front. If we go back we want to stay here.

This was our lean-to and bed for the night. It was so refreshing to sleep with only a curtain separating us from this amazing view of our own pond!

View from the bed. You can see a bit of the roof in the photo.

This was the bath house, with a composting toilet and a solar-powered spring-fed shower. Love the trees growing off the roof!

I took this photo of my hubby walking around one of the ponds and I loved the contrast of the trees reflected in the water. He almost blends in!

The fire they built for us while we were at the wine bar! It was so nice to go back to our lean-to and see this waiting for us!

The next morning we started the fire again, although we were not cold at all. We really did have perfect weather for this excursion. I'm so lucky.

Thanks for stopping by today, I know personal photos can be boring but I had to share my "mystery anniversary trip" with everyone. *wink*

Orange is the best color ever

Good Morning everyone! I've scheduled this post because by the time you read it, I will be on the road headed for unknown lands! tee hee.
My hubster has been planning a "Mystery Trip" for months now for our anniversary weekend (our actual day is tomorrow the 23rd) and he won't tell me a thing about it! I'm terribly excited, but I told him he had to let me know EXACTLY what to pack, because I was not going to pack dress clothes only to find out we were camping and vice versa. Can you imagine?! (that is SO like my husband too *grin*)

Onto today's card...isn't it pretty? OOPS. We're not supposed to like our work, right? Well, I love this card. Possibly due to the fact that orange is my favorite color of all time, but maybe because green and purple rank right up there too!

Uses PTI's Beautiful Blooms and Mixed Messages. It's pretty self-explanatory though, don't you think? Some ink, a few stamps and buttons and ribbon! Ok, vintage cream CS, Ripe avacado hybrid ink and ribbon, orangerie hybrid ink, plum pudding hybrid ink and buttons, cream twine, orange buttons, Ranger archival black ink.

Have a wonderful weekend and I'll tell you all about our mystery trip when I return on Monday!

Thanks for stopping by today,

Pastel Autumn

Did everyone have a good Thursday evening? My hubster always has band practice on Thursdays so the kids and I usually plan a "fun-food" night. This time my four year old choose to have Spring Rolls for dinner. YUM! My sister-in-law is from Vietnam and she taught me how to make them many years ago...they are perfect for hot summer nights.So although one of my newest PTI stamp sets is called Autumn Tags, I just kept picturing pastel colors with this particular stamp. No matter what pretty fall colors I tried, it wasn't working. Clearly, I gave up! *grin*
I used my score-pal to emboss diagonal lines across the aqua base, and two of my border punches on the spring moss and white CS. Stamped with the newly reformulated Aqua Mist (LOVE it!) I added the sentiment in Enchanted Evening on top.
I added those tiny leaf clusters behind the button after stamping them in spring moss. The leaves are from the new Scattered Showers additions set!

Doesn't the button match the lavender moon PP perfectly? Shhhh...don't tell but the button is from the Sweet Blush button collection! It's amazing how well the pink buttons match the pale lavender color. Love that!

So thanks for stopping by today, TGIF!

Put the lime in the coconut...

I'm trying out a "Wordless Wednesday" post.
Well, almost...*smile*

Dana

Eat dessert first!

Yum! Anyone for a cupcake this morning?

I was going for a simple look here, with some kraft CS, a few ribbons and a cupcake topped with lots of fluffy frosting.
I tried to emboss a label shaped nestabilities onto the front to frame the cupcake, but it doesn't show very well in the photo. Can you see it there?

I love cupcakes. I used to make them frequently, but have backed off for the summer, because who wants to bake when it's hot out, right? *grin* Plus, the frosting melts too quickly and slides off the top!
My nephew just got engaged and he and his bride-to-be have asked that I make cupcakes for each guest instead of a wedding cake. I'm so excited! 200 mini cakes? How awesome is that?! The ideas are swirling around my head as to color, flavor, design, fillings, etc. It's like edible art!

This card was inspired by this one here on Taheerah's blog. I liked the look of the cupcake alone with a few lines accross the bottom. Thanks for the inspiration Taheerah!
I stitched the ribbons on, added some matching buttons with twine (LOVE how that stuff matches kraft cardstock perfectly!) and topped the frosting with liquid applique to make it puff up. I also added a touch of glitter to the frosting, but, again, you can't see it in the photo. This card uses all PTI supplies, including Cupcake Collection.

Thanks for stopping by today!
Dana

More Button Bits!

Happy Monday all! (at least it is for all you mom's out there where school is already in session, right?!) We don't start back until September 9, and we'll be changing things up a bit this year with both boys attending private school. Our youngest is delirious to start Kindergarten...me? well I'm a nervous wreck! It's quite a long bus ride too, and since we get over 300 inches of snow every winter I'm feeling iffy.

Onto today's card. I was really excited to put together all these colors, but was disappointed once I was done. Somehow it seemed better before I assembled it, if you know what I mean. The IDEA seemed better than the actual PRODUCT.

Raspberry Fizz, Chocolate, Whisper White, Lavender Moon, Aqua Mist. It looks too "put together" or something. But I do love the stamp set, Everyday Button Bits! I also used Background Basics:Retro for the chocolate card base. I can't get enough of that set and use it frequently. Don't you like white ink on Chocolate? Scrumptious! I also think the photo is a bit washed out, but because I already sent this card out, I can't re-take it! Love those buttons though...*grin*

Hope you all have a wonderful Monday and thanks for stopping by!

Dana

Sending a smile

Good morning, good morning! What are your plans for today? We're going to my mom's in the Finger Lakes (2 1/2 hour drive) to pick up our oldest son. He's been having a great time at Grandma's house these past few weeks.

I was up late last night for the newest Papertreyink release. Woohooo, what a party on the forum until the wee hours! Some lovely new stuff was released too.

Onto today's card.
I thought I had previously posted this card but apparently forgot. It uses Everyday Button Bits and Background Basics: Retro. I had some scraps lying around my desk and when I saw them together I knew I wanted to use them on a card. They were so pretty! Berry Sorbet, Melon Berry, and Spring Moss PP. Paired with Kraft and a bit of chocolate it all came together perfectly, don't you think? I embossed the card base with a CB folder, then rubbed it with fresh snow ink to make the raised dots more prominent. Not having a scalloped punch, I drew and cut my own for the edge, sewed new leaf buttons onto the stamped trees, added sentiment and some ribbon and called it done! Everything is PTI.

I hope you have a wonderful Saturday, thanks for stopping by!

Dana

Life is Great!

I keep telling myself, "tomorrow's Friday, just hang in there"but it's hard isn't it? Seems like it's all I can do just to make it through the week sometimes.
Then I think about how wonderful my life really is, and I feel as if I should celebrate! How lucky are most of us, really? Things could always be worse...we have so much to be thankful for.

This card is a result of a few scraps lying on my desk that caught my eye and made me see something beyond the obvious (scraps, that is.)
It came together so quickly that I hardly had time to think any of the process through! How serendipitous is that? (is that even a word?)

I'm keeping it simple today. You guys know how to put a card together anyway! All supplies PTI.

Think happy thoughts. Be grateful. Delight in life.

Thanks for stopping by.
Dana

Raspberry Suite Color challenge #14

Trying to step outside my comfort zone with one of Dawn's color challenges. Red, pink, and purple? You must be joking! I would never put these colors together if it weren't for the creative genius of Dawn. She's simply amazing. She inspires me to no end with her talent to think outside the box!
I fiddled around for quite some time, not really "feeling it". Finally, after walking away for a spell, I came back and all my pieces just fell into place! I'm actually delighted with my effort here.
Using Tim Holtz mini masks, I covered the vintage cream CS base with some of my favorite flourish masks and sponged on Raspberry Fizz ink. Once removed, I had these pretty cream swirls that really stood out.
After adding a strip of Plum Pudding CS stamped in Vintage Cream ink with Damask Designs, all I had to do was add the Scarlet Jewel ribbon and a flower (stamped and cut out) from Friends 'til the End. Of course then I put on some finishing touches...buttons! Ending with a sentiment from Mega Mixed Messages and a line drawn with a copic marker to match Scarlet Jewel, I called it done!

What do you think? Does purple, pink, red, and cream seem like a crazy color combo? Maybe, but I think I pulled it off. *grin* Thanks for the challenge Dawn!

And thanks for stopping by this evening folks...I appreciate it.

Dana

Bicycle race

Hello all! Well, the rain hasn't stopped, but it sure has gotten muggy and humid out! We're a bike riding family, and frequently go on long rides with a picnic here in the country. Our 4 year old is learning to ride withOUT his training wheels and is very excited when he does it.
Want to know a secret about this card? I used my copics for the first time on it! Crazy huh?
I know. I've had them for months and months, but have been too scared to use them! So silly of me, as I used to LOVE coloring as a child and even as a teen too. It was just like riding a bicycle! So easy and all my coloring techniques came back to me quickly, no learning curve.
The base of Plum Pudding was stamped with Polka Dot basics in plum pudding ink and the outlined with vintage cream. I used the Everyday Button Bits for the bicycle and sentiment. Matted it with Summer Sunrise and then tied the whole thing with a Hibiscus ribbon. See how I cut out the "Wishes" part of the sentiment? I liked the ribbon where it was but didn't want to cover up the word, so I stamped it again and placed it on top!

Thanks for stopping by today!
It feels good to be blogging again.

Dana

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down...

I used to love singing that song down the halls in HS with a dear friend on Mondays. Although I like rain, we've had a surplus of it this summer, and today so many places are flooded, roads are closed, and power is out. I dropped my son off at daycare this morning (he goes to the Learning Center at one of the ski resorts here) and the entire resort had no power. It was a madhouse of yelling, running children inside that building with no lights on! *grin*

I wish it would stop raining here in western NY, and give us a few warm, summery days. Soon it will be snowing and I will have missed summer altogether!

I started this card by paper piecing the umbrella from Scattered Showers with Green Tea Leaves PP from PTI. Then I used my new score-bug embosser with my score-pal to create dotted score marks like rain on my card base. I love how that looked, and once I added some glitter, it was even better. Just like rain! (It doesn't show up very well on the photo though)

Keeping it simple, I added the sentiment and a button and a tiny scrap of ribbon. Then in a fit of insanity, I decided to scallop the bottom of the card and pierce it. I didn't like it, but I was stuck with it anyway! *smile*

So keep your chin up on this dreary, rainy Monday. Or, better yet, if it's sunny and warm where you are, send some my way, please.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Dana