Sympathy Swap

And this is the final card (as of right now) for those swaps I signed up for on Papercrafts MB. I used the new Basic Grey paper, as I thought it went fabulously with the Pressed Flowers stamp set. I'm wondering if it's too 'cheery' for a Sympathy Card, but it'll have to do! I used Watercolor crayons with a spritz of water for the flower, and the sentiment was printed on the paper using my computer.

I love this card!

I got the idea for this card from this month's issue of papercrafts. The original had a wedding (or birthday?) cake, but I thought the giraffe would be much cuter. I'm going to make a bunch of these in pink and blue to sell at the Woman's Exchanges that have my cards. It would be good for any tall, skinny stamp (which I always have a hard time with).

Christian Themes Swap

I absolutely love the "Precious Girl" set from TAC. I colored the stamp with watercolor crayons (LOVE THEM!) and gave it a quick spray of water. Then, I stamped it on white cardstock. The verse is from the "Scriptures" set... this is one of my favorite cards, even though it is very simple. I've got more like it using other stamps from these sets. I'll be posting them in a few weeks.

Birthday Boy Swap

This is my first attempt at a spinner card, and now I am TOTALLY hooked! When you tilt the card, the soccer ball spins and rolls to the other side. It's VERY entertaining! :-) The patterned paper is from Basic Grey (they are discontinuing this line, I think, so I had to use it up!) and the soccer ball is from the "Sports Fanatic" set from TAC. The 'Happy Birthday' is from the Squiggle Ladybug set.

Birthday Girl Swap

Another swap I signed up for on Papercrafts Message Board. This uses the Grand Birthday set from TAC (Thanks, Anita, for letting me borrow it!) The card actually looks much better in person, because I added Crystal Stickles on the cake icing, so it really sparkles.

Swaps for PaperCrafts Message Board

I have decided to branch out and do some swaps on the Papercrafts magazine sight. I have signed up for several of them this weekend. I made the ladybug card for a get-well swap. On the inside it reads "heard you caught a bug. get well soon." The patterned paper is from Basic Grey, which I am just loving right now. I stamped the jar and ladybug on vellum, then colored the ladybug using markers on the back side of the vellum. It's a cool look, and my favorite way to color images stamed on vellum (it just takes a bit to dry).

Scrapbook Class

Today I taught a scrapbooking class for other Navy wives who live in military housing. I was expecting 9 people, but there were only 6 of us there. It turned out okay, since it gave up more elbow room. This is a picture of the spread we made. All of the materials came from Oriental Trading. I learned that it's really fun shopping for supplies when someone else is paying for them! (In this case, Lincoln Military Housing). Hopefully, we can make this a monthly get-together. Of course, I'd love to do a card class, too!

Almost Famous!

So, every month The Angel Company has contests for their demonstrators. The winning card-maker gets $75 worth of free stamps. I never win. It always seems to be the same people. So, I get frustrated. I hadn't entered in several months but decided to send some cards in for the January contests. One was called "Snow Glad We're Friends". I made this card, and although it didn't win, it WAS chosen for the TAC website. It was a little encouraging. I'll be entering next months contests, too. May be this time I'll win!

A Valentine

This card is very simple and looks better in person. The patterned paper is from Basic Grey, which you can get through TAC or at any better LSS (That's "Local Scrapbook Store" for those who don't know the lingo). I am loving their shabby, antiqued look. I chose pink and green cardstock to match, embossed the cherubs in gold, and added some brads for texture. How easy! I'm also a big fan of paper-tearing, as you can see.

A Warm Hello!

This is a card I made recently using one of my favorite 'sketches'. It's great for any square-shaped stamp. I added Crystal Stickles to the snowman so he sparkles. All you need is a piece of patterned paper and two pieces of matching cardstock. In this case, I cut the patterned paper and the greenish paper to 5 1/2" x 2 1/8" and adhered them to the cardfront. I cut a strip of blue 1/2" x 5 1/2" and glued that over the seam (you could also use ribbon here, if you want.) Then, I stamped the snowman on white, matted it with blue, and attached it. Color the image and add a sentiment, and you are good to go! Easy, huh?

A new venture!

For awhile now, I've been playing with the idea of having a monthly newsletter with project ideas for all of my family, friends, and customers who enjoy stamping and scrapping. So, I'm going to try to do it in a blog format just because I think it may be fun. (Wish me luck!) I may post a project every week or so, and do a newsletter once a month, but who knows. It will depend upon how much crafting time I can get in!

I am an independent demonstrator for The Angel Company (www.theangelcompany.net) but I don't do parties. (One of the reasons that I am a stay at home Mom is so that I can STAY HOME!) However, I do give classes occassionally in my own home to a small group of friends. We have lots of fun.

I'll also use this Blog to update you on the status of my card business for those interested. Basically, I am selling my cards in several boutiques (which "The Angel Company" allows me to do... you can't do that with the OTHER company) and I am in the middle of trying to put a group of samples together to send to a sales rep in Texas. I'm really excited about the possibility of expanding my business, but I don't want to bite off more than I can chew!

So, I guess that's it in a nutshell. I hope you will check back often and find some great ideas to inspire you!