Birthday Wishes

Do you know what tomorrow is (it may be today by the time you read this!)? It is my sweet friend Claire's birthday.

Inspired by this week's Tuesday Trigger, I made a card for her.

Isn't that a beautiful photo? So soft and airy. Here is my card.

I used the Loopy Blooms die from MFT to make the felt flowers. To make them different sizes, I just trimmed down the amount of felt I used... a shorter length makes a smaller, less full flower. The birthday sentiment is from the Earth Angel set.

Happy Birthday, Claire! Sending you big hugs and a day full of love.

Thanks for stopping by, friends. I think I will have PL Week 3 ready to share tomorrow - please stop back!

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: Earth Angel - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Crumb Cake - Stampin' Up!; Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink
INK: Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink
OTHER: Loopy Blooms Die - MFT; Fine Linen, Melon Berry, Vintage Cream Felt - Papertrey Ink; Score Board - Martha Stewart Crafts

In My Thoughts

Hi there - how are things?

I'm late posting today, I had hoped to get here earlier, but you know how it goes. This morning I had a doctor's appointment - had some trouble with kidney stones a few weeks ago and am still trying to track down what's going on. After a CT scan and some other tests it seems I'm stone-free, but a little uncomfortable right now. At this point, the only recommendations are to watch the coffee/tea intake and drink lots of water. Hopefully I won't have to repeat any of that entire experience.

I made a card yesterday for this week's Play Date Cafe Challenge. Very woodsy colors this week.

Here is the card I made.

Was in a fussy cutting mood. I used images from the Wplus9 set Guiding Light to create a little scene on my card. I particularly love the grass and bird images in this set, and it was a joy to put them all together. I so enjoy using these stamps.

I thought the colors suited this design well - something serene and calming, which plays perfectly off of the ocean scene. My Mom is having surgery on Friday and I think she will like this card.

Thank you for stopping by - take care!

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: Guiding Light, Guiding Light Sentiments - Wplus9
CARDSTOCK: Early Espresso - Stampin' Up!; Soft Stone, White - Papertrey Ink
INK: Slate - Amuse|Studio; Crumb Cake, Mellow Moss, Early Espresso - Stampin' Up!
OTHER: Linen & Canvas Impression Plate - Papertrey Ink

Project Life Week 2

Hi there. I should be getting ready to go out right now, but I promised to share my second week of Project Life, so here it is.

Lots of food photos this week.

Here's the first part of Week 2. My husband started a new job this week, so I made a favorite dinner for his first day. Cookies, too.

This week I felt pretty comfortable with the number of photos I had. I like incorporating photos into the 3x4 slots. My only beef is that I feel like I spend all of the daylight hours at work - so any photos at home I'm fighting light issues. It will get better (or I will get more creative) I'm sure.

Here's the second part of Week 2. I felt much more in a creative groove with this week.

It seems like with the way our weeks flow, this second page ends up being mostly our weekend, since so much stuff is put off until then. Our weeks are pretty routine until we hit Saturday.

My mom brought mini cupcakes. I journaled right on Washi tape for this photo - I've got a few others where I did this. I like adding little labels or notes to all the photos even if I did journal about them somewhere else. It helps me to feel like they aren't just hanging out there on their own, but I'm a labeler, so that's just me.

I need to find myself some more puffy letters - stat. Love these.

We took our Christmas decorations down this weekend and snapped one last photo of our tree. We used the TTV camera for this, so I cut the photo down to size and matted it with some Clementine patterned paper.

So there's my Week 2! I'd love to hear your feedback. Hope you have a great night.. we're heading out to a movie, and I'd better scoot!

Anya

Miles Apart

Happy Friday, friends.

Rough week - I'm kind of cranky. But the weekend is almost here, so I should cheer up. We are forecasted to get some sleet and snow tonight, so I will be happy to stay inside in my jammies.

Here is a card I made for the Moxie Fab Map to Your Heart Challenge.

The stamp set and coordinating dies are MFT's First Class Friend.

This challenge inspired me to create another project as well. I fell head-over-heels with the map lampshade that Cath featured in her post. I just happened to add an old lamp to my desk that needed a lampshade update, how lucky was that!

I found a lampshade I liked in the As Is section of Ikea for just a few bucks. I knew I was covering it, so the dirt marks on it didn't bother me. Then I tracked down some map paper - I really love the look of the map in the pictures, and wanted to find something similar. Here's the finished product, what do you think?

I think I love it. :) I used the paper I had left over for my card.

Hope your weekend is fab. I think I'll share Project Life Week 2 tomorrow, so I hope you'll stop back.

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: First Class Friend - My Favorite Things
CARDSTOCK: Kraft, Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink
PATTERNED PAPER: Et Cetera Collection - Bo Bunny; World Map Wrapping Paper - Cavallini
INK: Onyx Black VersaFine - Tsukineko; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries
OTHER: Vintage Cream Grosgrain Ribbon - Papertrey Ink; First Class Friend Dienamics - My Favorite Things

Project Life - Week 1

Well, chickies, here it is! My first week of Project Life. Yay!

A few notes before I share my pics:

• I am using the Clementine Core Kit. I love the colors and designs, and they mesh well with lots of things I already have in my stash. This is a good thing, and don't ever underestimate how much fun it is to go shopping in the craft supplies you've already accumulated :)

• I am basing my layouts on the Design A Photo Pocket Pages. I don't have the pages yet (still OOS), but am eagerly awaiting February when I can hit the 'buy now' button.

• I printed my photos for the first two weeks all at once at Target. I don't have time to go out of my way for this kind of stuff, so it was easy to just make it part of an already planned trip. This is how this is going to stay easy for me - when it starts to be a pain, then I'm going to start to pull away. So, keep it easy!

Here's my first page for Week 1 (click for a larger version):

Can I tell you how excited I was that our mail carrier left us a note about our new mailbox? My husband called to tell me and I made sure he understood that we had to leave the scene intact so I could take a photo! LOL! I think I might need to add that bit of journaling in to my album..

And here's the second page for Week 1:

I loved Mish's idea for doing a week in review, so that was one thing I plan to include for each week. I also love the idea of including stuff - here I'll be stuffing our hockey tickets in the same slot with the journaling about the game. I didn't include any close ups this week, but will start that for next week. The thought never even occurred to me.

I have to say, I *loved* every second of doing this. My second week is already done, and I think I loved that one even more. I am figuring out what sorts of things I want to include - I like the idea of having little bits on the photographs, whether its a blurb or a sticker or what, I like including photos in the 3x4 slots, and I like incorporating bits of our lives. I still struggle a little with feeling like I'm including silly things but always try and remind myself how much I enjoy looking through not only photos but ephemera from past times.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope if you're starting PL you are having a good time with it, too. I'd love to see what you are up to... this means you, Renee! I hope you took pictures of those boys with their undies on their heads! ;)

Big hugs,

Anya

January WMS Blog Party

Good morning, my dears. Today is Blog Party day for Waltzingmouse Stamps. This month's theme is 'sweet things' - perfect for Valentine's Day ideas, I'd say.

Here is the card I created for the party:

The jar and candy images are from Candy Jar Christmas Fillers. I am so glad some of the images in the set, like these candies, aren't specifically Christmas images. With a little holiday-appropriate colors, they are now Valentine's Day candies :) I am going to challenge myself to see what other images I can add to these jars, they are just too cute to put away until next Christmas.

Anyway, I colored my candies pink and red and glittered them up. The sentiment, from Sweethearts, was a perfect fit with my images. A bit of patterned paper, some subtle background stamping and this cutie will be perfect for one of my nieces.

I thank you for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed your stay. I'll see you at the party!

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: Candy Jar Christmas Fillers, Sweethearts, L'il Buddies - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Rustic Cream - Papertrey Ink; Pretty in Pink - Stampin' Up!
PATTERNED PAPER: Yours Truly - Echo Park Paper Co.
INK: Tuxedo Black Memento Ink - Tsukineko; Whisper White - Stampin' Up!
OTHER: Maraschino Baker's Twine - The Twinery; Diamond Stickles - Ranger Industries; Copic Markers

Life is Wonderful

Hello friends. Boy, I've missed you!

I apologize for the quiet blog here.. I am working to get back to posting on a more regular basis. I do have quite a few things lined up to share with you (PL! Week 1 done!), so that's a good start.

Today I want to share my card for this week's Play Date Cafe challenge. I hate feeling like I'm always sneaking in at the last minute with these, but I always reserve time to play over the weekend, so that's my defense :)

Here is this week's color story:

And the card I created based on those rich, beautiful colors:

Always a treat to incorporate metallic colors into a design.. I love the opportunity to do so, even though its not something I think of during my regular design process.

I used the Magical Moments set from Wplus9 for this card, stamping the peacock image in VersaMark ink and heat embossing in gold. I cut this lovely out (such a sucker for bird images) and added some rhinestones to the feathers.. purple and burgundy to go with the challenge colors. I'm a little disappointed in these photos, the colors didn't come out quite as warm as this card is. I kept the majority of the design purple and just brought bits of the other colors in, also added a cream silk ribbon to (hopefully) add some continuity and grounding to the design.

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Tomorrow is this month's Waltzingmouse Stamps Blog Party (you may remember it as the 'Friends of Waltzingmouse Blog Waltz'). The new year has brought a new name along with a new format. The blog party will now be hosted from the WMS Blog using the Inlinkz tool instead of in the forum. I am excited to see this change, as I think it will make this event much easier! You can read more information about tomorrow's WMS Blog Party here on the WMS Blog. This month's theme is Sweet Things - I will be there, and I hope to see you too!

Hope you have a great day, I am so glad that you stopped by!

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: Magical Moments - Wplus9
CARDSTOCK: Royal Velvet, Scarlet Jewel, Vintage Cream - Papertrey Ink
INK: Elegant Eggplant - Stampin' Up!; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries; VersaMark - Tsukineko
OTHER: Gold Glitter Paper - 7Gypsies; Filigree Gold Embossing Powder - Stewart Superior; Victorian Lace Border Die, Silk Ribbon - Papertrey Ink; Adhesive Rhinestones - Recollections

I Love You

One of the things I love so much about this online paper-crafting community is just how abundant inspiration is. Yesterday I was perusing the WMS Blog, catching up on some of the posts I missed over the holidays and came across Claire's announcement of the winners for the tag competition.

Dana Gustafson's western-style Christmas tag was the chosen winner and my jaw hit the floor when I saw what she did with the Very Vintage Labels No. 18 set. I will admit that I never gave much thought to the little 'extras' included in the set, but the way Dana used them to add color to the label was just a lightbulb moment for me. I love the retro screenprint look it gives... like a vintage Christmas card. I wanted to play too!

I used pink and red to give a Valentine's vibe.. the pink is a little light, but man I just love this look. The circle in the center of the label was die cut, stamped with Text It and popped up. Then I added the cameos from Cameo Creations. The sentiment is from that set as well.

The red strip was embossed with a Houndstooth Cuttlebug embossing folder and swiped with white ink. I'm just slightly obsessed with houndstooth patterns right now, if you didn't know. Thank you for the inspiration, Dana!

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Project Life is going good so far. I have a collection of photos from my first week and I've started journaling about them. I don't have the page protectors yet (they are due back in stock in February), but I am collecting and completing everything else until then. I promise I will share as soon as I print my photos. I've been debating where/how I want to do that, I think I might try printing them a week at a time at Target or something and see how that works. Anyone else doing PL have any other suggestions or experiences?

Later gators!

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: Very Vintage Labels No. 18, Text It, Cameo Creations - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Sweet Blush, Rustic White - Papertrey Ink; Real Red - Stampin' Up!
INK: Going Gray, Pink Pirouette, Real Red - Stampin' Up!; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries; Onyx Black VersaFine - Tsukineko
OTHER: Labels 18 Nestabilities - Spellbinders Paper Arts; Houndstooth Embossing Folder - ProvoCraft; Adhesive Rhinestones - Recollections

Love You More

Hello, hello. The week is just moving right along... my husband started a new job yesterday and it has shifted our morning routine back about a half hour. It was a little rough this morning, but hopefully will get easier when it starts getting lighter earlier in the morning. His job change is a good thing, so I won't complain about being tired.

I wanted to share the card I made him for our anniversary back in December. I didn't get a chance to share it with the hubbub of Christmas, but now things have slowed down (and I was lazy last night :).

I used the super fantastic set Love You More from Wplus9 for this card. Love this set, the fonts are fab, the word art is so graphically yummy.. really a must-own. Love the application for anniversary or just love in general! I used the love you more word art, stamped onto a die-cut tag and embossed with white embossing powder. I dare you to keep yourself from singing the Spiral Staircase song after you see this. :)

I added some stamped and embossed hearts from Heartfelt Mix as well as some of the adorable die cut Love Notes to finish off the card.

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Today kicks off the 2012 Waltzingmouse Stamps Christmas Card Challenge. Each month, Lynn posts a challenge on the WMS Blog in an effort to help you bulk up your Christmas card collection much earlier than the last minute in December. Since I am that last minute in December girl, I am making a supreme effort to participate this year. Of course, prizes are offered (the biggie last year was a whopping $150 gift to the WMS Store) but making an effort to reduce the last-minute come next Christmas will be all the prize I need! You can check out today's post on the WMS Blog for more info. Hope you'll play along, too!

Have a super day!

Anya

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Recipe
STAMPS: Love You More, Heartfelt Mix - Wplus9
CARDSTOCK: Crumb Cake, Riding Hood Red - Stampin' Up!
PATTERNED PAPER: Thrift Shop - October Afternoon
INK: Riding Hood Red - Stampin' Up!
OTHER: Love Notes Die - Wplus9; Detail White Embossing Powder - Stampendous; Tag Sale #5 Die, Vintage Cream Twill - Papertrey Ink; Red button

Thank You

Just stopping in on a lazy Sunday to say hello and share my creation for this week's Play Date Cafe Challenge. I love lazy Sundays, when the chores are all taken care of and there's nothing to do but a little of this and a little of that. We are having a sunny day here today (which is pretty rare for winter in Pittsburgh) and while it is still chilly outside, seeing the sun makes all the difference.

This week's color story at the Play Date Cafe was a beautiful pairing of blue and green, with some cream thrown in for good measure. I love all the frosty interpretations of these colors that the challenge participants posted. Here is the color story for this week:

And my take..

Nothing like some fussy cutting to make me happy! These cute matryoshka dolls from Hero Arts have been sitting in my 'new things I should use' basket for oh.. probably six months. Finally got around to using them!

I have the trio of woodblock stamps (that I cannot located on the HA website), but these gals are also available in the Dolls Clear Design set. I just stamped them a bunch of times on different patterned paper and cut all the bits out.

The sentiment is from a set called Perfectly Penned from Stampin' Up!. I know, I haven't used anything from them in quite a while. I do think the sentiment pairs up well with the dolls, though.

Some other details here and there to finish it off. Can you resist a smile at those cute faces?

And finally..

It is here! I spent Friday night pulling out all the bits and pieces and laying everything out. I have the cards all divvied up into a divided storage tray I picked up on sale at JoAnn's. I have some pictures ready, and have jotted some notes down in my calendar. I'll be ready to hit the ground running when the page protectors come back in stock. Until then, I'll just collect things and work on the journaling cards so I can just pop 'em in.

Thank you all for your overwhelmingly positive response and support of me taking on Project Life. I am super excited!

Hope you have a sun-filled, lazy Sunday too!

Anya

Recipe
STAMPS: Russian Dolls (here in the Dolls Clear Design set) - Hero Arts; Perfectly Penned - Stampin' Up!; Text It - Waltzingmouse Stamps
CARDSTOCK: Vintage Cream, Fine Linen - Papertrey Ink; Sage Shadow - Stampin' Up!
PATTERNED PAPER: Fly a Kite, The Thrift Shop - October Afternoon
INK: Pebble - Amuse|Studio; Onyx Black VersaFine - Tsukineko; Antique Linen Distress Ink - Ranger Industries
OTHER: Dotted Scallop Punch - EK Success; Eggshell Ribbon - Hug Snug; Adhesive Pearls; Sewing Machine