Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker!

Friday, August 15, 2014

Total Craziness!

Right now I am the epitome of the expression, "Flying by the seat of your pants!"

My room at school is finished. Today I am writing lesson plans for the first week.

Travel arrangements are still being made for next week's Runway LOUD event.

Packing has begun.

2 college visits with Kyle this week.

Broken window in kitchen fixed.

Van taken in for low tire light.

My life is total craziness right now. (In a good way)

So I am taking the next half an hour to enjoy a cup of coffee and write a blog post.

I feel like I've been a bit out of touch with you this week.

I created this card many moons ago when I was part of the Cricut Circle DT.

I used the Flower Shoppe cartridge, some dimensional foam squares for the basket and bit of white paint.

A couple of week's ago my family went on a weekender to a resort in Wisconsin. It was a much needed getaway. We needed time away from life's stress and just reconnect with one another.

Brian and Kyle took time to rent a wave runner and enjoy some "guy" time.

Cortney and I watched from shore. :)

Have a great weekend my friends!

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Flurry of Activity!

I've decided that I must be crazy.

Certifiable.

I am 2 weeks out from school, heading to Branson, MO, and have one million and one things to do.

So what do I do? Drive 3 hours to Indiana yesterday with Cort for a photo shoot.

As if I didn't have enough going on in my life! LOL!

I will share pictures later this week. ;)

First, let me share a card I made using Crafty Secret's Love and Support set. I printed it on cream card stock and colored it with my Prisma colored pencils.

The polka dot paper is a digital paper available from Crafty Secrets as well. It is part of the Vintage Valentine kit. I used various Spellbinder's dies to matte the image. The flower was cut from my Silhouette and was saved from a previous project. I added ribbon, string, book paper leaves, and a couple of stick pins.

Two weeks ago a very sweet gal, Karie took pictures of Cortney at a local wildlife refuge.

She was extremely patient and kind to Cort and was able to capture some great shots of her.

She is located here in Illinois and her business name is, Smile Through the Rain Photography.

You can find her HERE. Feel free to "like" her page. I know she would appreciate it. :)

I have to get my head focused on school today.

My room has to be ready before we head out to Branson.

No pressure. ;)

So that's where you will find me today.

Knee deep in books, pencils, and teacher's manuals.

Have a great day!

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Shaker Card

I am headed out the door in a bit to take photographs of 14 very special kids.

I have been getting more and more photography opportunities and I couldn't be more thrilled!

Now if there were only more hours in the day, I would be a happy camper! ;)

Before I head out the door with Cort, I had to share my card that is up on the Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L blog. There is a step by step tutorial there.

I used the Keepsake Pouch to create the clear window and filled it with my favorite colored sequins.

The colors do indeed make me smile. :D

I bit of doily, a crocheted flower, silver glittery leaves, and a sentiment from SRM, and my card was complete.

Yesterday my husband's side had a family reunion. His gram is 94 and it was a great way for her to see all of her kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids.

I took a lot of pictures....if you are interested in seeing more you can head over to my Facebook page. :)

3 generations.

The whole clan!!

Wish me luck that I am able to capture great photos today! I always get a bit nervous!

Happy Sunday!

Friday, August 8, 2014

Images

I have always been a girl who loves images. I love photography and have been fascinated with it since I can remember. I think that is why I love Pinterest so much. Yes, I love the content that is there, but more importantly, I am interested in how things were staged and then photographed! From food, clothing, animals, whatever the subject is. I think it has helped improve my photography skills. So I have been practicing on anything that doesn't fight back. My poor pups are defenseless against the Nikon. (And a yummy dog treat!)

Flowers are another obvious choice. My son and I took a bike ride recently with camera in tow. He was very patient as I took pictures from every possible angle.

In 2014, this is what teens do when their moms are busy taking photos of flowers. ;)

He usually hates his picture being taken, but a little bribery and I was able to get one shot!

And by the way, I would love to follow you on Pinterest, if I don't already! Please leave your link below so I can do that! And in case you want to follow me, here is mine.... Michele Kovack at Pinterest.

Have a great day my friends! Off to take Cortney for her school physical and shots today! Woo to the hoo!

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Day 4 of JustRite's August Release-Sympathy

Sympathy cards are not the cards you want to have to make, but we all know that they are necessary. I like to make them up ahead of time to have on hand.

I used JustRite's new set called, Sympathy Vintage Labels Eight and Nine.

I colored directly on the stamp using Tim Holtz Distress markers. I softened it a bit by brushing each flower and leaf with a water brush. I added glittery Stickles to the center of each flower.

I used Spellbinder's Labels Eight to cut out the image. I inked the inside a bit while the die was still in place. I used the new Spellbinder's die, Vintage Flourish One, designed by Amy Tedder. I covered it with glossy accents and sprinkled it with glitter. I stamped the sentiment in Hawaiian Shores by Papertrey Ink and cut it out using a Spellbinder's die. I layered it all and added ribbon, posies, and string. As a final touch I added coordinating rhinestones.

Oh! And I almost forgot to mention, see the pretty scalloped card? This is also available through JustRite to cut with your Silhouette! It is called, Elegant Stationary Elements. The pretty edge just ties the whole card together!

SVG Elegant Stationery Elements Cut File Digital Download

We are just two weeks away from the Runway Loud event in Branson, MO....which means it is time to get Cort's hair cut and highlighted. So that's where we will be spending part of today. I can't believe that we are so close to the date now! We are getting really excited!

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

JustRite's August Release-Celebrations Sentiments

I have another new set to show you today by JustRite! It is called, Celebrations Sentiments. One can never ever have enough sentiment stamps! I use them with my shaped cards, boxes, altered projects, or just a "regular" card. ;)

I used the rose from last month's release called, Rose Bouquet. It was embossed in white and given color with my Tim Holtz Distress Markers. Then I colored directly on the white embossing with my Spectrum Noir markers. I wanted to add just a touch more color.

I ripped the paper on an angle and tucked a bit of lace underneath it. I added a bit of tulle, ribbon, flowers, and some coordinating string. I stamped the sentiment in Hawaiian Shores by Papertrey Ink and hand cut it into a banner.

The bottom of the card used a stencil and embossing paste. It is difficult to see in the photo, but it adds a bit of interest and texture. A few sequins were added as a final touch.

Here are all the sentiments in this set! A total must have if you ask me!

There are several sets being released today, so be sure to check out what the rest of the ladies are up to!

Today is day 2 of this math workshop. Then I guess this gal is going to have to start lesson planning and finish getting my room ready.

School is definitely on the brain.

I've even had dreams about it at night.

Yep.

Dreams.

Guess that means I am ready? ;)

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Vintage Fan and Sentiments

Good morning! Today is day 2 of JustRite's August release!

Today's set is called, Vintage Fan and Sentiments.

As you know, I am a huge fan of shaped cards, so I wanted to create and actual fan card.

I stamped the fan 5 times and colored it with my Spectrum Noir markers. I added glitter to all of the colored parts. I cut each one out using the Spellbinder's vintage fan die. I folded a piece of card stock in half and adhered the fan to it starting at the fold. I used my scalloped scissors to cut around the fan except a small area by the fold so that it opens.