I don't stamp...

...but it doesn't look like it, does it?

I really don't consider myself a stamper, just a stamp owner. 

I did break out the alphabet stamps for years there though - I think that counts for something. 

I've got a heat gun.

I've dabbled in backgrounds. 

I've sprinkled embossing powders.

I've added sentiments on cards.

Okay, so I do stamp, just not to a great degree.

It doesn't mean I don't want to though. 

I really like stamped backgrounds and sentiments.

I don't like all the blending/alcohol inks/distress inks and messy stuff. I'm not into messy, it's just not me.

In the meantime, I just enjoy looking at them around my room. They make me feel happy, even if I don't use them. 

How's that for funny?

The dog mini - part 2

Here's the rest of the mini,

"Live and Love like a dog" 

The advice still makes me smile and so does he! 

We didn't even have a dog at the time...

...and yet I made this mini album.

It was 2007 and I got one of those emails that everyone sends around the internet. It was called, "How to love and live like a dog."

I liked it and ended up doing a mini album about it.

Hey, the thing I've realised about art is that you don't have to explain it all the time, you just have to do it and you'll be better for it. Plus, I liked the Making Memories metal embellishments and wanted to use them. I knew Andrew would get a dog one day too, I remember thinking that at the time. Not that that has anything to do with the album really.

Okay, here it is.

It's little - about 10 x 20cm. It's one of those Maya Road chipboard albums. I like them, but the covering part can be a bit tedious. Or therapeutic, depending on how you look at it.

All the edges are sanded - that's the theraputic part. Except having to get up and wash my hands and wash the desk. That's most definitely not therapeutic.

Who cares why I made the album, it's cute. I've always liked it...

Still love those metal embellishments. So gorgeous. I love the bone. Love the hydrant too, not that we have those over here. We have bones though!

Remember those PSX alphabet stamps that everybody had? I got permission from them to use them in my third book. Just wanted to make sure it was okay and they said it was. I hammered those stamps over the years. Should pull them out again sometime.

I can't remember what paper I used - it was a pet line because it had the animal sayings and bits.

And that's a picture I cut out of a magazine because of course, we didn't own a dog. Think he looks like somebody?

Like him?

I've always liked Goldens, but I like Cody better. He's goldie/sandy, my favourite. And he has sticky up hair that needs brushing. And (right now) he needs a bath. He stinks cause he rolled in poo. So gross.

Okay, gotta go for today, will share the rest tomorrow!

A little story...

About a month ago we were having dinner and all of a sudden I noticed the whole backyard was pink. 

I looked to the west and exclaimed, "Look at the sky!" 

We both flew outside to have a look while I grabbed my camera on the way. We've seen these pink skies before and they don't last long! 

Look how gorgeous.

Simply breathtaking - I love it when my backyard is pink.

A minute or so later the sky had turned to this...



He stood there and watched it all happen.

Another minute later it was all gone.

They're over so quickly, but I'm glad I was able to capture this one. They're very special.  

More cards using the Happy Birthday punch...

...and the Gifts border punch too.

Nice combo here - very reminiscent of Valentine's Day. Two shades of pink (even three) with cream and sparkle and you're on a winner.

I actually made this card at the October craft show last year. Quite amazing really. There's so much activity, talking, demonstrating etc going on that it's rare for me to do anything fab. 

Sounds great, doesn't it? Debra, can you come and demo at the show? Sure, but I don't do anything fab.

I mentioned sparkle above. There's Marshmellow Glimmer Mist on the cream background. It's a real shame I didn't get it in the photo.

Marshmellow is my favourite GM colour. It's white. It's fab. I'm on my second bottle, I think.

The HB border here was a bit of serendipity. I bought the punch and tried it out when I first got it home. The piece of paper I picked up to try it on was about 12cm square and I turned it 90 degrees each time I punched it to get it in the spare space.

Anyway, what I ended up with was a messier version of the above and tucked it away as a cool idea for later.

It looks hard, but it's not. The hardest thing is working out the size of the card (blue bit above) to start with. And you don't even have to do that. It's 10cm square.

And I put the paper in 7mm from the edge. My punch is marked at that 7mm mark (I used a pencil and did a little line - did it on both sides actually - 7mm from each side. Do you do that? Mark your punches, I mean? Makes life so much easier).

Go around four times and hey presto, easy birthday frame. Hope that makes sense!

Note: Above I put three dots in each corner. Regretted it as soon as I did it. I know, sounds weird because it's such a simple card, but I've been really pulling back on the pen detail lately.

Note no dots here. Much better...to me, that is. You may disagree. That's okay.

I do agree that the cream square may need something, but dots are not it. A slight embossed edge like the Nestabilities give might work.

Anyway, the Happy Birthday Martha punch is a good one. Wonder what they're going to come out with for us next?

Since we were talking about donuts...

...last week, I thought I'd post these today. They're keeping in with the theme and I'm all over themes.

They're not cards, per se, they're things.

Things that could be used as cards with a flap on the back, or not. They could just be used as gift tags or whatever.

Sometimes a small amount of space to write something is a good idea, don't you think? The card says it all most of the time, so the less I have to write inside is good.

Made the circle using my trusty (and very old, but still fab) Creative Memories circle cutters. They've been a good investment and I still pull them out and use them. Yep, 10 years later.

The icing is another circle of the same size that I trimmed with my regular scissors. I just wobbled them as I went around.

The Happy Birthday, oh, do you see the Happy Birthday? That's a Martha punch - I put off buying this one for a while, but I knew it had some serious potential and I would get it eventually. I was right on both counts. It's technically a border punch, but cutting the sentiment out rocks. Hey, I think I've talked about this before. I remember saying I wanted a Merry Christmas version...rats that they didn't do one.

And the little cupcake punch is from EK. So cute.

The scallop rectangle is Sullivans Pink (the biggest size).

This is my favourite.

It makes me smile everytime I see it.

:o)

See? I'm smiling now.

Hope you are too!

Smash Journals

Interesting name, great concept.

Someone (I can't remember who) is coming out with Smash journals. They're notebooky type journals with pictures on some of the pages that you just smash your bits and pieces into. I've linked you to the video - that'll explain it.

What do you think?

I love the idea.

It's kinda reminiscent of my 2010 Dec Daily where I used a blank visual diary and put all sorts of bits and pieces in it each day.

I left spaces for photos. I used up scraps. I recorded bits and pieces that I never would've recorded. I stuck bits of junk mail in. I used my punches. I wrote with a ball point pen (I don't like archival pens that get wedges on the tips). I loved it.

Biggest thing? I missed it when I was done.

Hmm, the Smash Journal - might look into them when they're available to buy. They've got six styles, so there's options.

Why wouldn't I just use another visual diary?

The blank pages! They're all white and intimidating because they're so blank. The Smash journal has coloured pages with pictures on them. Would definitely help with the blankness.

Full props for the glue/pen combo too - did you see that? Pen on one end, glue on the other. Fun.

Here is the perfect piece of memorabilia to put in the journal. I found it in my grandmother's party list/Christmas food list/Christmas card list/Christmas present list/shopping list/take on holidays list/what to pack for a picnic list book (she had a two books with tonnes of lists in them. The first started in 1969! Amazing. I got my list makingness from her).

Anyway, I found this little clipping in her book and photocopied it. It went in my Dec Daily, but if I had a smash journal, I'd put it in there.

Nobody knows for sure if it was Grandpa, but I'm certain it was. And if it wasn't, why was it kept?

He was a gentleman, my grandfather, very much so.

So, perfect piece of history for a smash journal. Great concept - love it, good for them.

Here's a link to the Smash Stories blog.

Have a great day!

PS.

Donut man left me a Valentine's Day note on the floor - had to bend down to read it! - with some left over hearts scattered around.

Oh, and he used deco edge scissors on the paper.

He thinks he's quite clever.

I think he rocks.

:o)

Have you ever done this before?

Have you taken your camera to the shops?

We did in 2006.

Like I said, it feels weird and people look at you, but who cares?

One reason I wanted these photos?

Because I'd love to see my grandmother in the supermarket in 1973. How cool would that be?

Hey, it's about 4.5 years since I took these photos and I think they're cool now. Who knows how much cooler they'll be in 20 years?

My default supermarket - the chain and the actual supermarket I like in the chain. Not all actual supermarkets in the chain are created equal, now are they? Similar, but not equal.

Hands up if you love your favourite supermarket because you know where everything is?

Hands up if you've gone to a non-default supermarket because you only had to get a couple of things and then you ended up walking around and around because you couldn't find those couple of things??

Hands up if you said you yourself, "Always go to your default supermarket, Debra, it's just easier!"

You probably wouldn't have said Debra because chances are that's not your name, but hands up if you get me on the whole default supermarket thing?

Those makeup sections aren't there anymore. They're juice/butter ie. cold sections now. It's interesting to see how things change...

They have some self-serve checkouts here now. I love the self-serve checkouts. I like to pretend I'm really good at it and beep, beep through as fast as I can. Hey, I'm not good now, but I once was. Worked at Woolies for three years during Uni and was pretty quick sticks at the old scanning. Loved all the buttons and money and all that.

Ahh, she's checking her list...she always does this. She is a list maker and list crosser off-er like her grandmother. And her mother.

They have all new trolleys now, I think. I don't remember seeing those double decker ones up there for a while.

At the time we bought our fruit at a separate fruit shop. We don't anymore, we get it delivered. Have done for years.

Have had the groceries delivered a couple of times too. That rocks - no carrying the bags up the stairs.

Pink Lady Apples were $4.99 in 2006. There you go. Some history for ya. How much are they now? I wouldn't know - I buy our fruit per piece through the delivery service, rather than by the kilo. $4.99 sounds pretty good for apples, I'd say.

Ah yes, on this particular day we finished with a treat to keep him happy. If he's happy, I'm happy. If she's happy, I'm happy, he'd say. Staying happy on grocery shopping trips is extremely important for a marriage...

There you go, that's our "I'm going to take some photos while shopping today" excursion that was originally met with a raised eyebrow and an "Are you serious? How embarrassing" look from donut man.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Just thought I'd pop in and say Happy Valentine's Day whether you celebrate it or not. 

And I'm usually a "not".

Go figure. 

It's been fun. 

Have a great day!

Another Valentine's Day card? Maybe?

If you like cutesy?

If you call your Valentine, cupcake?

If you do, well, this card would work.

If you don't, it wouldn't, but it could.

If I was giving this to my Valentine, I'd change 'cupcake' to 'babe' and change the red circle to a red heart.

I'd also make an envelope and put it somewhere where he would find it.

Maybe on top of here?

Plan!

(So far the Valentine plans include donuts, chocolate milk and something on top of the peaches. It's kinda fun, really.)



:o)

The new garland

Okay, so I did it! 

I went out and ripped (they were only stapled with one staple) the doilies off the top and ah....so much better!

I knew it was the doilies...

I love it now. 

It's nice to love (and therefore enjoy) something that you put a bit of time into :o)

Now when I look at them from the other side of the room, they look as if they're floating now, just how I like them.

I particularly like the five hearts hanging down there - there's only one string of them, so it's a feature.  

There's the full pink pom pom - remember that's four of the ones on the video. It's kinda a lot, but it's good. 

And you can see the heart pom poms too (there's another light pink one out of shot). Jury's still out. Andrew reckons they're okay. I think they look like apples.

He liked the garland. I did it on Weds night and he saw it yesterday morning. 

He then saw it again last night when I ripped the doilies off. He didn't notice the difference though - I didn't expect him too either. 

Now, I'd spent time making the doilies to stick on there in the first place, so I wasn't going to waste them. I ended up doing this...

It's the purpose of having a dresser - to stick garlands on!

I've since adjusted the bottom one - needed to dangle more. 

Just out of interest, Andrew doesn't like the doilies - lol. 

He thinks they're old fashioned and he just doesn't like them. He also said he's a boy, so that's probably why too. 

I just said okay and we let it go (I wasn't offended at all). At least he didn't ask me to take them down. He wouldn't do that, but it's funny when he expresses a real dislike to stuff I make.

He likes the other garland though and thinks it's a nice display. Thanks, babe. 

So, what do you think? 

With?

Or without?