God's Strength (Mojo Monday Curtain Call)

Hi all, here is a card I made for 2 challenges this week Curtain Call 67 and Mojo Monday #176. This sentiment is a cool digi stamp from a set over at my friend Arielle's digi shop The Wax Fruit Company. LOVE the way you can color in the letters:) Of course, the butterfly stamp is Verve. I did make the border between the patterned paper wavy like the sketch, but by the time I covered it with flowers, you couldn't tell anymore! Whoops. I made the border on my card with a fancy corner punch, printed my digi out on the Amethyst paper & went from there. No new techniques, just a pretty card for fun! :) 

Hope you are all having a wonderful day! Check back tomorrow for a VERY special scrapbook page for this week's challenge at colourQ!

-Noelle:)

DUST IT OFF! : those small paper flowers are around five years old, also the Amethyst cardstock has been around for AGES:)

supply list: patterned paper: K and Company; digi sentiment stamp: Wax Fruit Company; paper flowers: Prima; butterfly stamp: Verve; corner punch: Martha Stewart Crafts; solid cardstock in Almost Amethyst and Whisper White: SU!; glitter brads: American Crafts

Inspiration, peace, and feeling whole

Hey folks, no challenge today, just a little something I made that I wanted to share, as maybe you are needing some inspiration too. I haven't shared lots about my personal life on my blog, just because it's not really that kind of outlet for me. Normally, you won't see this kind of post, just my crafty creations;) 

I have to say this last few months has been rough for me. I have two wonderful, sweet friends fighting cancer and it's hard to see them get weaker, thinner, and sicker with each round of chemo. Also, my sweet Gramma is in a nursing home and really going downhill fast. I don't know how much longer she will be with us & I hate the fact that she seems to be in so much pain & she is so confused. Additionally, stress & conflict in a personal relationship is making me realize I need some major change and distance. To top it off, many groups, etc. I've been involved in for the last 3 years are disintegrating. I have been sad and confused, spending a lot of time praying, because as Abe Lincoln once so eloquently put it, "I have nowhere else to go."

Yesterday I got a chain email from my aunt, one of these "I love this woman, Lord, hold her in your arms" kind of things that you are supposed to pass on. Normally, I would read something like that, smile & if I liked it, go ahead and pass it on to some like-minded friends. For some reason this one affected me more. Somewhere in the middle it said something like "let this woman shine in the darkest places where it is impossible to love." and then at the bottom it had the sentence that is on my sign above "Do not ask the Lord to guide your footsteps if you are unwilling to move your feet." I did pass that email on with tears in my eyes & I realized that God is here, He hears me, He is listening and He hates to see me hurting. The other thing I realized is, no matter what happens with any of it, I will be ok. I need to keep moving my feet & I need to follow the path that is laid before me. That does not mean there will be no hurt or fear, it means that I will get through it and hopefully be able to inspire others to also keep "moving their feet." Sometimes we walk with other people & sometimes we feel walk alone, but no matter what, we always walk with God. 

So I made my little sign today since I was needing some craft therapy and some faith therapy too. I'm going to hang it by my kitchen sink since I spend WAY too much time doing the dishes with 3 boys, lol;) If you are reading this, no matter your personal struggles, I wish you peace today, I found some & I'm hoping to share. 

Much love, Noelle

supply list: Kraft printed paper: K&Company; Pacific Point patterned paper, Old Olive solid cardstock, Pacific Point and Old Olive ribbons, upholstered brad:SU!; patterned flower: Hero Arts; solid flowers: Prima; sparkle brads: The Paper Studio.

Ev's Rodeo and Western card(CQC #69)

Hello there, my little chickadees;) Lol, that's what I call my Theater students & I thought you might get a chuckle like they do;) Hope you all are well. My sweet little Ev had his "rodeo" at school today, a little program and activity day they have been working on since before Christmas! Sooooo CUTE to see all the little preschoolers dressed up in their Western costume, singing their little songs and then they had some cute, fun activities to boot (get it? "Boot?"sorry, I know I'm being corny, I am on a significant lack of sleep this week, and that never bodes well for my sense of humor!) Isn't my little cowboy handsome? Anyway, as I was driving home I was thinking how Western these colors seemed to me & decided to go that route with my card. VERY simple and easy card, I used my fringe scissors at the bottom and then covered it with a subtle patterned paper in the Razzleberry color. Cut half of a Top Note die out of Peach Parfait and stamped my sentiment on Cajun Craze in coordinating ink. Tied some ribbon around and added a simple embellishment I made from some punched stars and a button:) Go check out my DT buddies samples over at ColourQ and make sure to play with this fun and unique color combo this week! So far, I've seen LOTS of super fun valentines with this, such a nice change from the classic red and pink. :)

DUST IT OFF! Check out these old stamps, plus those star punches, both are from 2007. 

have a stellar day! -Noelle:)

supply list: 

Stampin' Up!: stamp set "Priceless," solid cardstock in challenge colors, patterned paper in Rich Razzleberry (Razzleberry Lemonade DSP), star punches, button, twine, Top Note die, Cajun Craze inkpad.

Martha Stewart Crafts: Fringe scissors

& ribbon is generic. 

CQC #69

Hi all, no fancy card today, but I did want to remind you to play at ColourQ this week! I am one of the scrap designers for "even" weeks, but, even though I don't have to play this week, I'm going to try, because this is one SWEET color combo! :) You have GOT to get over there and check out the truly FABULOUS samples my DT buddies made for you! I am hoping to get back here with a fun card or page for this this week, if I do I will just attach it to this post;) 

Have a stellar day! 

-Noelle:)

A canary that's spotted... or not:)

Hi everyone! I hope you are all having a good Friday. My kids are off today (again!, this is their 3rd 3-day weekend in a row!) So is hubby and we are sloooowly realizing how MUCH stuff we really have going on this weekend! Holy cow, theres the play I'm directing, I need to get t-shirts made up for that and help my middle son get his lines memorized for it. Then there's the going to friends house tonight and having other friends visit us tomorrow night, then theres the ortho and dental appts. for my oldest (he and hubby are there right now), trip to the library, major school projects for my 2 older boys, haircuts for them all (got that done this am), science fair projects due Monday, need to clean the house, oh and did I happen to mention hubby and older boys will be gone skiing all day on Sunday? I am getting fried just thinking about it all! Ack! :(

The good news is... I won another prize package from SpottedCanary.com! It came on Thursday and oooooh, what fun goodies I got! Some great papers, 3 stamp sets, a few punches, and 2 single stamps, markers, stickers and some other fun things:) They have the best challenges over there and it's fun because the winners are drawn at random, so whether you're a new crafter or really experienced it's fun to play! This is the second prize I've won since last Spring. Look here to see the post on my last prize, sooo cool! :)

Since I've been on a craft-spending "freeze" (maybe we should go with "chill" because I have to admit, though I've been pretty good, I haven't stuck to it 100%! lol) it was super fun to get some new goodies I didn't have to buy. I made the card above with some of the new things, pretty cute, huh? I stamped that new Inkadinkadoo stamp down and colored it with pastels and mini sponge daubers. I figured it was soooo detailed I might make a mess with markers or Copics and the chalk added to the soft look I was going for. Then I used some of the Martha Stewart Crafts papers I got in the package. The wood grain paper I also ran through the ol' Cuttlebug with a woodgrain embossing folder and sponged. 

My "old" product for this card is that copper tag, it actually started out silver. That tag has GOT to be at least 7-8 years old SU! I know I bought it when my middle son was a baby and now he's 8 1/2! I used an old technique as well, using several layers of embossing powder and a heat gun, when it was thick enough I impressed my border stamp into the warm, sticky powder, forgot how much I love that look! 

Well, I have been way too long winded already! So, I'm going to fly, hope you all have a stellar weekend, and if you get time, challenge yourself to pull out an old product and use it in a fun new way! :)

Take care, Noelle:)

supply list: patterned papers: Martha Stewart Crafts; bird stamp: Inkadinkadoo; mini tag, library clip, pastels, border stamp, solid cardstock, flower stamp, vintage brads, and inkpads: SU!; copper embossing powder and heat gun, taupe grosgrain ribbon

ColourQ # 68

Hi there everyone! This scrapbook page is my first post as a ColourQ DT member! :) You have got to check out these pretty colors this week! I decided to use them for a page (well, 2 page spread actually...) about my son's last day of 1st grade. His teacher had a very COOL way of ending the year with a ladybug release. I thought these colors really gelled with the event and the colors in the pics. I usually scrap in a 2 page spread format, but often make the left page my "focus" page. In other words, do most of the embellishments and design elements on that left page and have the right page be additional pics with a few coordinating elements. The reason for this is to remember how we read, left to right. The left page will always be where your eye lands first, so it makes sense to have your bolder design elements on the left page.

For my regular readers, you know I am focusing on mixing the old with the new this year. The old on this page are those swirl stamps; Autumn Leaves brand, circa 2005;)

Well, that's it for me today! Be sure to check out all the AWESOME samples the rest of the colourQ team has for you today! You can link up on the sidebar of my blog. :)

Have a stellar day! -Noelle:)

supply list:

swirl stamps: Autumn Leaves

ladybug stickers: Sticko

Cricut cartridge:

dot paper & school days sticker: October Afternoon

yellow print paper, solid cardstock, green ink, black ink: SU!

punches: EK Success

green patterned paper:BasicGrey

font:

stitching stamp: Hero Arts

ruffled ribbon: MFT

Unscripted Sketches #89 and 2s4y is going away :(

Hey all! I was very VERY sad to find out that one of my VERY favorite blogs 2Sketches4You is closing down after 2 years.... *sniff sniff* It has been a WONDERFUL blog with just fabulous inspiration week after week. Head over there and say goodbye if you get the chance. :( Kazan and Laura have been AWESOME and I am following their personal blogs now, such talented designers!

So, I'm on the hunt to find a new sketch challenge blog to keep me busy! I stumbled upon Unscripted Sketches while checking out some blogs I follow. The challenge this week is a good one & they have added the challenge of making a card for a MAN, always a toughie, even for me in my world of men! Here's my take, the circle is a gloss cardstock that I stamped in Versamark and then brayered. There's lots of "old" goodies on this card. If you are a new visitor, I am challenging myself to dive into the old products this year and use them in a fun new way! Those denim stamps are CTMH, the only set I have from them, and they are old, the Rock Star stamp is a couple years old SU! hostess set stamp. I was trying to add interest to this, so I used multiple shades of blue and Basic Gray as well on this card. I also distressed around the edges to give it a more "rugged" look. I hope you like it!  

If you are new stopping by, I hope you like this blog! I started blogging in May & am LOVING it! Please comment or follow if you can, I'd LOVE to hear from you! :)

xoxoxox,

Noelle

supply list: solid cardstock in Pacific Point, Not Quite Navy, Night of Navy, Whisper White, glossy white, and Basic Gray, inkpads, circles stamp, rock star stamp, star brad: SU!; denim stamps: CTMH; Fathers Day stamp: Inkadinkadoo; embossing gun and silver EP; star punch: EK Success; brayer; circle guides and blades: CM

Curtain Call 65

Hello all! Here is a fun card for the color challenge over at Stacey's Stamping Stage. As you may already know, when it comes to bold color, I'm a fan;) However, even I struggled with this palette a little, so many bold colors at once! But it was lots of fun and I'm glad I tried. Pretty simple card, my "old" item for this card is that swirly stamp, I am not even sure of the manufacturer, but I THINK it's Autumn Leaves, if you happen to know for sure, fill me in! 

Ok, my card, base is Wild Wasabi and I stamped the swirl stamp down in Garden Green ink (I actually don't have the Wild Wasabi inkpad). Distressed the edge on my blue patterned paper (if you want a better idea of what it looks like in all it's glory, the card is sitting on a large piece of that paper...) and went over it with my Pacific Point marker so the white core wouldn't show. I layered my multi colored patterned paper over the blue print and adhered that down. I inked up my sentiment (I just LOVE that sentiment, don't you? One of my faves....;) with multiple markers and then die cut it out. Finally, I made a REALLY bold multi-loop bow and wired it with a cool button. 

I hope you like my card! Please comment or follow if you can, I'd LOVE to hear from you! :)

Have a stellar day!

-Noelle:)

supply list: Hokey Pokey stamp, markers, Wild Wasabi cardstock and Real Red ribbon: SU!; swirl stamp: Autumn Leaves?; patterned papers: TPC Studio; button: Melody Ross; die: Spellbinders

Vintage Valentine for fun:)

Hey all, another quick post for today, I cleaned all morning and now treating myself to some BLOG TIME!! :) I made this card a couple days ago. I have been VERY good about sticking to my "no spending on new supplies" rule. But I did slip up and buy these fun die cuts from K and Company. They look like vintage Valentines, and I just fell IN LOVE.... :) Besides, I have VERY very few valentine things, soooooo, it wasn't THAT bad, right? There are like 150 pieces in the package too, not bad for 5$, right?

 So, this was a super quick and easy card. Some Anna Griffin patterned paper, I pulled the solid colors from that. I matted the valentine in Chocolate Chip cardstock and laid it down on an angle. Around the bottom, I wrapped some MFT ivory herringbone ribbon. I layered some more of the K and Co. diecuts on top of the ribbon, and accented them with some pink gems. Up in the right corner, I cut some felt with my MFT die and stuck 2 K and Company decorative pins through it. I punched a scallop circle from a scrap of DCWV paper in my scraps basket, and layered my flower on top of that before adhering the whole accent to the card. On the inside I created a coordinating "Valentines Day panel with ink and stamps. I covered the back of the ribbon ends, etc. with a piece of Chocolate Chip cardstock and added another of the diecuts inside. 

Well, that's it for me, please comment or follow, I'd LOVE to hear from you! :)

-Noelle

supply list: Valentine diecuts, decorative pins, pink gems: K and Company; stamps: Inakdinkadoo; solid cardstock and inkpads:SU!; ribbon and rose die: MFT; patterned paper: Anna Griffin and DCWV; punch: EK Success

Baby Boy CASEd card

Hi all! I just wanted to share this cute little baby card that I cased from my teammate (and creator of the colourQ blog) Arielle over at Snappy Stampin' With Arielle. You have GOT to check out her original design, she used the Aviary stamp set and some fun, bright colors, ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE! :) 

Anyway, I thought the LO would be great for my baby card I was making. So I switched the colors out for some paler shades of blue, and used the animals from the retired set "Wild About You" The sentiment is a clear set, I'm not sure what the brand is on that. I just LOVED these offset circles with the faux stitching. I might make some more of these just to keep on hand, it was a quick and easy card and I'm crazy about the original look:) I made my card large, 5 1/2" square.

Well, that's it for me! Have a great day, please comment or follow if you can, I'd LOVE to hear from you!

-Noelle:)

supply list: everything from Stampin' Up! except for ribbons, sentiment (both unknown manufacturers) and blue bakers twine- Jillibean Soup. Colors: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, White, Brocade Blue, and Bashful Blue

Curtain Call 64 Bright Birthday

Card standing up

Hello friends! This will be a quick post for tonight, because my plan was to post this tomorrow, until.... I realized the linky closes in 7 hours! Whoops;) Clearly I haven't been very good at challenges these last few weeks, holy smokes! But when I saw these colors at Stacey's Stamping Stage, I knew I had to play along, these rich, gorgeous colors were just TOO yummy to pass up! Of course, my fave color, Pacific Point is in there, that's always an incentive for me! 

Ok, my card: The Happy Birthday panel is all stamping. Using the 4 colors in the challenge I stamped the background and then stamped the sentiment over the top of that in black. I matted the panel in black as well, and I think that keeps it nice and clean. My card base is Always Artichoke, and I cut about an inch off the right hand side of the card front. I stamped the large Medallion in Versamark Ink and attached the Pacific Point Top Note piece to the inside of the card front. That border strip is a dry embossed Cherry Cobbler strip I used a Woodgrain embossing folder on & then I matted it in the Marina Mist. Finally, I layered up some silk flowers & used an upholstered brad in the center. 

Well, I hope you like my card! I am happier with it than most of my recent projects, thanks, Stacey, for helping me find my mojo again! :)

Have a stellar day!

-Noelle:)

Card laying down

Supply List: solid cardstock and inkpads in challenge colors: Stampin' Up!; Happy Birthday stamp and background stamps on that panel: Inkadinkadoo; Medallion stamp, green brad: Stampin' Up!; Top Note die: Sizzix/SU!; silk flowers: Prima and The Paper Studio; Woodgrain Embossing folder: Tim Holtz/Sizzix

Girly Valentine for TCP Tuesday

Hi all! This is a card for the TCP Tuesday Challenge over at Dancing In Pajamas (The Cat's Pajamas). The challenge is to use ribbon in a new way, NO bows! 

Here's my ultra-feminine-very-unlike-the-normal-me-who-is-not-usually-a-fan-of-pale-pink-card! Whew;) I hope you like pale pink because I've got a WHOLE lot of it going on here! I started out with my Blushing Bride pink card front which measured 4" by 5 1/2" before I punched the bottom. I stamped all over it in coordinating ink with a stamp that reads "Valentines Day" from Inkadinkadoo. Then I punched the bottom with my fave edger punch. Then I brayered white ink onto an embossing folder, and embossed it for that extra dimension. I laid some super sticky tape down on the backside of the pink cardstock where the edges meet. I used some pink ribbon to peek out from between the scallops like a petticoat. You've seen me try this before on an autumn card here. I stamped my TCP bunny and colored her with Copics & cut her out. I layered her onto a white circle . and stamped the sentiment around the right side of the circle. For the big red heart, I punched out my heart and then put adhesive down all along the outside edge on the back, I took 6 short pieces of white ribbon and attached them near the top of the heart on the back. I wrapped them around the heart. To hold everything in place, I punched another heart and adhered it to the backside of the ribbon heart. I finished off the card front, by layering it onto a larger white card front, and adding a french bow, a fancy brad, and another upside down heart. The back/inside of card is red like the heart. 

Thanks for checking out my card! I hope you have a stellar day! Please comment or follow if you can, I'd LOVE to hear from you!!! :)

xoxoxo- Noelle:) 

supply list: solid cardstock in Blushing Bride, Cherry Cobbler, Cameo Coral and Whisper White-SU!; pink ribbon-MFT; 3 heart punch, large circle punch, large curved scallop punch, and large heart punch-EK Success/SU!; Valentines Day stamp- Inkadinkadoo; bunny and sentiment stamp-TCP; embossing folder-Cuttlebug; white craft ink and fancy brad-SU!; markers-Copic

Big and exciting news! :)

Hi everyone! I just had to share the BIG and EXCITING news that I am now a part of the Design Team over at colourQ!!!! I am a scrapbook designer & will be playing every other week with a scrapbook page for you in the challenge colors! I am so excited I already have next week's challenge done! Yea! :) Here are the super YUMMY challenge colors for this week, check it! ;) That's it for me today, but I will be back VERY soon! 

Have a stellar day! 

-Noelle

Snow Day in my little corner of the world.....

Hi everyone! Sorry I have been MIA for awhile... I started reorganizing my home office/studio and...... well, let's just say that the project took on a life of it's own! Boys have a snow day today, which is good, nice to have the excuse to stay in;) Here's some pics. When we bought this house (almost 5 years ago) this was primarily a hobby. Now that I'm trying to make a career out of it, alot of my storage and space needs have changed dramatically! I think I've mentioned before, this room is a little challenging, It's RIGHT in the very front of the house, where everyone who walks in can see. It's got no door and a arched "window" opening that looks out on the living room, but there's no actual window either (no natural light). It's also a pretty small room, 11' square. I am NOT complaining, I have SO many friends who wish they had any space at all for their "stash." So, I LOVE that I have the space, but just mentioning some of the challenges I face in setting it up. Here's a tour, some things are still in process:) Here is a link to an earlier post to give you some more ideas if you are on a cleaning jag too! :)

This shelf was TWO shelves, see where those drawers are in the middle, that's the bottom of the first shelf. On the lower one, my hubby cut off the arched top, and attached the 2 together with L brackets. These were just sitting in the basement, there was never a good place for them in this house, so I'm glad to repurpose them for this! They are very shallow which is PERFECT for stamp storage! :)

The black bookcase sitting on my desk is the only remnant of the furniture we took out of this room, there were all these (very old, drawers and doors didn't work, grr!) dresser units with shelves like these on top, but this seems to work well, without taking up too much space.

Hubby put these shelves up for me when we moved in. Originally I had my desk under these. I  bought these baskets at Lowe's, one of the only 2 things I bought for this project, they have little chalkboards on the front. Next to the shelves is our computer desk, which houses our old desktop computer, my kids use it for their homework, etc. Another challenge as that desk is HUGE and had to stay! ;)

These are the Itso cubes I bought at Target, my other purchase for this room, they are on sale this week for only 7.99 a cube! They also come in other colors. A word to the wise on these, if you want to use them to store your Cropper Hopper paper pouches like I did. The CH pouches are about 1/4" too tall for them! The Itso cubes are so much cheaper than "scrapbook" type storage though. It made it worth the time taken to slice 1/4" off the top of each CH pouch. The paper and scrapbooks fit beautifully in these though:)

This corner of the room is in limbo for awhile yet. A friend is giving me her tall, 4 drawer filing cabinet that will go on this wall and hold all of my paper that you see on this folding table. These shelves will move to the blank wall above my desk. You can see my front door through that "window" opening. 

On my desk, this is a vintage makeup case/train case where I hold all my inkpads. The little drawer holds my Copics. 

In the wood shelves we repurposed are these teeny drawers, which are the PERFECT size to hold all my SU! markers, scissors, etc. :)

Vintage suitcases that were my grandparents. In these I keep upcoming projects and bulky items, such as  paint cans, tins I want to reuse, cookie sheets, etc, etc.

The vintage egg basket I use to hold all of my non-SU! scraps. The SU! scraps get stored in the folder with their color.

Thanks for checking out my blog, now that I've cut away the "dead wood" I'm ready to get working again! I also have some VERY exciting news for you on Tuesday! Make sure to stop by and check it out! Have a stellar day:)

xoxoxox, Noelle

Cute Kiddie Valentines (SC January scallop challenge)

Hi all! I hope you all are doing well and having a HAPPY NEW YEAR! I am doing great, my boys went back to school yesterday, and tomorrow I start my "labor of love" teaching a theater class to kids at my sons' school. I have my degree in theater and HATE that our schools have to be so focused on test scores to receive funding, it really squishes the arts right out of the curriculum. We are SO lucky to attend a wonderful school that still teaches music and art. Anyway, once yearly I take about 15 students and teach them about theater. We put on a play, and everyone gets to be in it and have lines. We also learn about blocking, sets, props, theater history, etc. It is a wonderful time, and since I fell in love with theater as an elementary schooler, I am passionate about it. However, I write my own curriculum, and much of the costumes and sets end up being made by me as well. Basically I will be eating, sleeping and breathing theater for the next 6 weeks,  but I will do my VERY best to not neglect my blog over the next 6 weeks in all the craziness:) 

Here are some cutesy valentines I made for the January scallops challenge over at the Spotted Canary! Here is the link to the thread in the forum if you'd like to play along, it goes on all month:) I started out by using a few of these sweet treat cups I had from SU! That is my "older" item for this post. If you missed me saying it before, I'm trying to challenge myself to use old items on every post and mix with newer things as well. Also, I'm trying not to buy new supplies right now, I need to use some old stuff up! 

Anyhoo, filled those cups up with some Valentine M&M's and used many of my trusty punches on this card. Also, those sentiment stickers have been sitting around for AWHILE. On the dog card, I layered the sentiment on a decorative address label that was never printed and on the robot card, the sentiment is layered on a Martha Stewart label that actually said "From the Kitchen Of" I just covered that part up with my other stickers. I used these DARLING layered accent stickers from K and Company and I added an adhesive epoxy dot to each of the characters bellies for added dimension. I thought these stickers were just perfect for Valentines, and may use the rest to make the Valentines for Ev's preschool class, too cute! My hubby is in the aerospace field and as such we are VERY into rockets, spaceships, robots, anything like that, so I am kind of partial to the robot. My 2 older sons BOTH have their rooms decorated in a space theme. 

Well, that's it for me today. Please comment or follow if you can, I'd LOVE to hear from you! :)

-Noelle :)

Supply List: circle print paper, layered adhesive characters, sentiment stickers, heart and bee stickers: K and Company; punches:EK Success; blue felt ribbon, kitchen label: Martha Stewart Crafts; solid cardstock and Sweet Treat Cups: Stampin' Up!