New Mini Mailboxes - Lauren gets first pick

Here is a quick glimpse at the last of my mini mailboxes that I will be posting on Etsy today.  These miniature sized mailboxes are the perfect gift for that special someone!  Not only can you add your own  note, you can also add candies, toys, money (ha ha) or practically anything that might just fit inside.  If your interested in purchasing one of your own, please visit my new Etsy site.

Lauren - let me know which mailbox you would like for the girls and I'll get it shipped out today =)

Happy Valentines Day!
Kelly

Accordian Album Gone Crazy

Glitz Pack, paper pack and my "Family" Album

I was web-surfing one day and saw this really cool accordion album on someone's blog (I'm sorry I can't give this person credit...what a cool idea they had!).  I decided I had to make an album similar to the one I'd seen.  I pulled out this very cool "Hey Dude" total boy, paper pack and created a "Family" album as you'll see in my next few posts.  I had so much fun making this album.  I have the pictures in the order that the album is opened...some pages flip up, others flip right and left.   I also put pictures on the backside of the album to maximize the amount of space I had to place my pictures.  I've decided, although there was some serious "cool factor" in this album with  all it's interactive parts, I decided that next time I will only have the album flip open left and right (not up and down)...easier for others to enjoy and it will sit nicely wide open on your desktop, counter or wherever you decided to place this.    

My New "Blog Banner" and things to come

Woo Hoo!  I've been wanting a Blog Banner since, well, since I started this Blog!  I won't say how many attempts I made at creating my own banner, but I'm certainly happy I finally finished one I liked.  I decided to just add some pictures of items I've created, add my title and call it good....so I'm happy to unveil the new banner, hope you like it (grin).

So for the last 2 days I have been working non-stop in my craft room photographing, cataloging and listing some of the items I've recently made, and preparing them for their first debut in my online store!  Yes, I'm so jazzed to announce I've joined the online group of sellers and will soon have a store of my own!  I'm not giving any details quite yet, so be patient.  Dad has to help me with shipping/handling for my items and then I should be ready to go - hopefully by tomorrow (fingers crossed).

Getting Sick...

It's an awful feeling when you wake up and notice that little tickle in the back of your throat.  Not the funny ha ha tickle either....the, something is about to wreak havoc in my body tickle.   I really do dislike getting sick, being sick, or seeing my boys sick (of course not to mention cleaning up after the boys when they are sick) ....unfortunately, I am the first to start getting some nasty cold.  I felt it this morning when I woke up and it's been progressively getting worse.  We were supposed to go to parade of lights today and sadly, we will just have to wait another year (not to mention the high tonight was like 8 degrees or some craziness like that!  As soon as I'm up and running, I'd love to share a few pics of some of the fun and festive ideas we've been creating at our house lately.  Be well friends!

My Boy 12x12 page

As a parent, we all have that one photo that just makes your heart melt...this would be that photo for me!  I love this little guy.  Not sure where the time has gone!  I used my cricut to cut out the word "My" and used some chipboard letters for the word "Boy" that I purchased at Target of all places!  I found an old vintage heart button and some twine. Love, love, love the paper...so charming!

Brown Eyes 12x12 page

My "Brown Eyed" boys never had a chance of having green eyes like me.  They are gorgeous!  I chose to do a little play on the word "Brown" by using some leftover green letters.  I just love this pic of my boys.  i had a lot of fun combining a lot of different elements and a nice journaling tag in this brown paper envelope.  I accessorized by using buttons, a star punch, brads and a nice scalloped edge to the blue background.

K&Co Mini Book of Boys

I created this mini book some time last year (it's been a while) and it was a nice way to honor my family in a nice small format that I could tuck away in my purse (my husband doesn't mind taking this with him too)!  I absolutely love the papers, stickers and other embellishments from K&CO...they are perfect!  It's such a fun, eclectic use of patterns and color and it seemed to pair beautifully with the photos I chose!   After I took these photos, I decided I didn't like the way you really had to hold the book open with both hands, so I made my book a little more durable and easy to view by binding it with a nice large white coil.  Wahlah!  That did the trick, now you can lay the book flat without holding it open!  I love crafting technology!  (smile).    

Enjoy!

"Time Flies" when your having fun!

Wow, where has all the time gone? I have been a BAD blogger for so long! Who would've thought blogging could be so difficult? Ok, really, it's not that hard, it's simply a little time consuming, and thought provoking, and does take some amount of discipline - all of which I have failed to do well. I have soooo much to share so after my walk I'll get on it!

CHECK BACK IN JUST A BIT! I promise to post =)

Stampin' Up! Artisan Winning Entry 2007

I was very fortunate to be one of 10 winners for the 2007 SU! Artisan Contest. It's taken me over a year to post this to my site. Each participant was to include 3 Scrapbook pages, 5 cards and 2 3-Dimensional items. These were the items I submitted. All items use strictly SU! All products unless otherwise noted:


3-D Items

3-D item 1 "Flower Pot & Mini Scrapbook"
One special additions to my 3-D flower pot was to add a flower that was actually a surprise mini-book. I remember learning how to make this minibook when I was at the Creating Keepsakes Convention just a few months earlier. I believe I had 6 petals with pictures. After a little trial and error, I was able to get the book to hold together nicely.





3-D item 2 "Tunnel Album"
This album is one of my favorites to make. Not only does it fold down to the exact size of a card 4 1/4" x 5 1/2 but it just looks amazing when you can peer through the little holes and look at the pictures inside. there is a lot of texture, style and dimension going on! (Not to mention 5 kids who had a blast at the Kangaroo Farm)


Cards


Card 1: "Birthday Beauty"
I love this pop-up card, very simple to make, but the outcome is an exciting surprise for the recipient!



Card 2: "Ahoy Matey, Diarama"



Card 3: "You're Invited, surprise inside"

Card 4: "Ruff Day w/ Mini Scrapbook on cover"

Card 5: "Cold Twigs"

Scrapbook Pages

Scrapbook Page 1

Scrapbook Page 2

Scrapbook Page 3

Baby's 1st Birthday - Invitation

Bi-fold Sample (Front & Inside)
*This was the sample the client selected


Accordian Card (Front & Inside)

These are a few samples created for a client looking for a Baby's 1st Birthday Invitation. Both samples use SU!'s "Unfrogettable" stamp set. I used SU! patterned paper for the soft yellow/blue bi-fold card and My Minds Eye for the more colorful accordian card.