Happy Halloween

A quick post to say HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I was adventurous this year and carved something other triangle eyes & nose with a toothy grin. I think it turned out pretty darn cool. I'm sure my grandchildren will love it (and the candy I have for them).

Enjoy the day and stay safe!!

Holiday Stamp Camp - November 8th

I can't believe it's time for my Annual Holiday Stamp Camp. My fellow demonstrator, Sue, and I have been putting together this stamp camp for about 4 years. It's always well attended -- well, Sue has more customers come than I do but it's always a fun time for both of us. The event is being held at my church. If you are interested in attending, please send me an email.

I wanted to give everyone a "sneak peek" at what Sue and I have designed (cased) for the event. There are 8 projects. Here are the 4 cards everyone will make.

Participants will also make 4 gift items. Here are peeks at 2 of the giftables. The little snowman is a neat gift card holder and the Merry Christmas bag is a "genie" bag.

As an added bonus, everyone will make a mini Name Badge Holder "brag book." I don't have a picture of the brag book. I'll post it this weekend. I made it using the Frosty Days Designer Series Paper. It's adorable if I say so myself.

I'm off to cut paper for our event!

A Fall Day with Guinevere

A few weeks back, my almost 4 year old granddaughter, Guinevere (Guin), stayed with my husband and I for the weekend. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and we decided to go to the park. Guin was hesitant at first to go done the slides. She seemed a little afraid of heights. But before long she had made a friend, Ella, who helped her go down the slide. However, Guin still didn't want to stand up and walk along the walkway between the slides -- she would crawl on her hands and knees. She was so cute.

Swinging was Guin's favorite. She kept telling me, "Higher, higher, Grammy!!" Apparently heights don't bother her on a swing. She swung with her friend Ella for what seemed like hours. We finally coaxed her off by telling her our next stop would be the pumpkin patch. That worked but she was all tears when she had to leave Ella. Guin told me she loved her and didn't want to leave her. I sure hope we can meet up with Ella again because they became such close friends that afternoon.

Guin enjoyed the pumpkin patch. It is a little farm just up the road from our house. She helped us pick out the perfect pumpkin for our front step and she got a "little spookie" for herself. It was a great day!


I didn't get any stamping done that weekend but it didn't matter. Time spent with my grandchildren is precious and I wouldn't trade it for anything. They grow up too quickly -- every moment with them is special.

"Crazy for Cupcakes" Birthday Kit

Here is my Emergency Birthday Card kit that will be a class with my stamp group next Friday. I got the main idea from one of my favorite blogs. I used my new favorite (I change each time I use a Designer Series Paper) DSP - Sweet Always. I also used my FAVORITE stamp set - Crazy for Cupcakes. I've always loved making and eating cupcakes. Well now I can stamp and color them too!!!


I had so much fun designing the cards. It's fun to make the cupcakes look yummy. You almost want to eat them!


One more picture of the cards. If you would like to have a workshop and create this fun Emergency Birthday Card Kit, please contact me by email.

World Card Making Day

I know World Card Making Day was October 4th but I held my event at my church on Sunday, October 12. We made cards to donate to our Care Team Ministry. The Care Team sends cards to shut-ins in nursing homes, retirement centers and members who are ill. The group was small but there were some first-time stampers and it was exciting to see how amazed they were after they made their first card. They soon became comfortable and I'm hoping that some may have found a new hobby and will try one of my classes. Besides making two cards of each design, everyone could make a card of each design for themselves to keep. Since I was donating all the supplies, I tried to use up some of my retired paper. Below you'll see the cards we made.

More Holidays/Christmas/Winter Swaps

I wanted to share with you some of the beautiful cards made by our Gateway Glitter 'n Ink group. We have a fantastic group of stampers and I get so many ideas when we exchange swaps. This particular swap has provided me ideas for the remainder of the year. The card below is by Rochelle. She is one of my favorite stampers and a very successful demonstrator. I'll probably be using this design for my Stamp Camp in November. Thanks, Rochelle.

by Rochelle E.

Here's another card from a very talented stamper, Sarah. She is a good friend and another successful demonstrator. She is always an inspiration to me. At our group meetings she always gives us a motivational "pep talk" to help us keep balance in our lives and enjoy what we do. Her card is simple yet graceful. Thanks, Sarah.

by Sarah K.

The last card today is from Sue. She attended her first convention this summer and came back energized and full of great ideas. This is my favorite stamp set from the Holiday mini. I know it has a lot of coloring to it but the kid in me still loves to color. I also love the glitter. I'll be casing this design (minus some of the glitter) for my personal Christmas cards. Thanks, Sue.

by Sue D.

Winter/Holiday Swap

I joined a swap last month with our Gateway Glitter 'n Ink group. The cards were to be anything Holiday, Christmas or Winter. Here is my submission. I love the "Snow Swirled" stamp set. The technique is embossing resist -- I sponged Baja Breeze over the tree to make it pop. I cased this idea from Tessa Wise. The card design is SCS challenge SC173. I used the new Ski Slope DSP and Old Olive grosgrain ribbon. It turned out so nice that I'm going to use it at my Christmas Stamp Camp on November 8th and for my Christmas cards this year. What do you think?

Crop the Night Away - Oct. 10

I can't believe it's October already. It's one of my favorite months.

Here is the Halloween layout for my October 10th Crop the Night Away. I used my Cricut and the new SU Designer Series Paper. It says "No Tricks - Only Treats." I hope you like it.

We had fun at last month's crop so I'm looking forward to Friday. Participants come to my workshop, make the layout and then bring projects they are working on and use my stamps, inks, etc. We crop until midnight, have a lot of fun and get things done! It's a fun way to spend a Friday night with friends.