Friday, October 31, 2008

5 Fave Fridays...HALLOWEEN EDITION!

Happy Halloween everyone! I just love Halloween. Ghosts, goblins, fairies and princesses...and I can't forget to mention CANDY! I always look forward to Halloween every year. I thought today I would post a Halloween edition of my Friday Faves.

5 Fave Halloween movies:

#1. Rocky Horror Picture Show- Let's do the time warp again!!!! This is at the top of my list for sure. I have always wanted to go watch a live theatre version of the movie and dress up and play along with the show as it is going, but have yet to do that. Can you believe it? Of course, no where around here does that, so it would require a drive to P-town but I still want to do it before I die. I also have to confess that I think Tim Curry is hot in drag.


#2. Nighmare On Elm Street- Gotta say that Freddy creeped me out as a kid and still tends to give me the willies today.

#3. Sleepy Hollow- MMMM Johnny Depp! This movie has it all. It is scary, funny and has Johnny in it. I watch this every year without fail. Ohhh and I just read that Johnny has been cast as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. I hope to God that Tim doesn't murder Alice like he did Willy Wonka. What a nightmare that was!



#4. Nightmare Before Christmas- Tim Burton again ;) Clever, witty and fun to watch with the kiddos.

#5. Hellraiser- This movie terrified me the first time I watched it. John and I watched it the other day and were laughing. Pinhead is one scary ass dude though!



Other notable movies- Little Shop of Horrors, The Shining, The Exorcist and EVIL DEAD (all of those are FANTASTIC!!!)


5 Fave Halloween Treats I like to "sneak" from the bucket-
1. Mini Milky Ways

2. Caramel Twix

3. Snickers

4. Banana Laffy Taffys

5. Nerds

Now for my good ol regular 5 Fave Fridays. I have to make up for missing last week, ya know!


#1. Stephenie Meyer- I read Twilight and New Moon this past week. I now know what all the stink is about. Loved them, couldn't put them down and it only took a few hours to read each of them. Now as for the movie casting....Edward and Bella look NOTHING like how I had them pictured in my head. I am sorely disappointed in that. UGH. But the movie does look like it is going to be fantastic. If you haven't read the books yet, I highly urge you to do so! I also just checked out her website and it was pretty cool too.


#2. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris- This book is what True Blood from HBO is based off of. A friend from Bad Girls mailed it to me (THANKS FRANCES!) and I read that puppy in about 4 hours. The book is fantastic, the show sticks to it almost completely but has added a few things here and there. The only bummer to reading the book while watching the show is that the book finishes up what will be the whole first season. So now I know the ending. I do think that I like the show better because they have done a superb job of breathing life into this incredibly story.



#3. Knocked Up- I can't count how many times I have seen this movie. Every time I watch it, it just gets funnier. Plus I have a huge crush on....Paul Rudd! Ever since Clueless. And while you are renting Knocked Up, you might as well grab Anchorman and 40 yr. Old Virgin while you are at it. Both hilarious and both have Paul Rudd LOL
#4. Stew- Is there a better Fall meal than a big bowl of stew made with some yummy beer and of course a bottle of said yummy beer to go with your stew? I had my friend Pam over for dinner the other night and we had just that! If you haven't put beer in your stew, TRY IT! I used Mothership Wit, which is a spicy organic brown ale and it was delish!

#5 Scrappy Fave of the week- Heidi Swapp Ghost shapes. Especially her cute little bird. You know how I love birdies ;)

Soooo hopefully I have made up for my long disappearance. I will leave you with a peek from the upcoming Bad Girls Kits ohhhh and I have to say congrats to Bethany Kartchner and her new bouncing baby boy Quinn!













Have a FUN and SAFE Halloween!
































Tuesday, October 28, 2008

I am alive

Just checkin in to say, yes I am alive and no I haven't abandoned my blog. ;)
I am drowning in a sea of incredibly short deadlines over here and I will post when I come up for air.
Til then, take care and I shall see you shortly!

P.S.
thanks to Mary and Lisa for sending postcards for Zoe's class. She was so excited and thrilled to be able to put some up on the map :) We sincerely appreciate your time and effort!

Monday, October 20, 2008

Seriously, I HATE Mondays!

I can't remember the last time I had a good Monday! ughhhh. So if you can't tell I am in a crappy mood LOL.

But I guess a good thing is that the latest Design Experiment is up today and it was my turn to come up with the prompt. Wanna hear it? It's a good one! Here it goes:


Can you think back to five years ago? What was your life like then? Who were you as a person? Do you think that person from five years ago would recognize who you are now? That's what this week's challenge is all about!Sometimes it's hard to live in the now. To be aware and thankful of all the wonderful things around us right now. The days fly by so fast and memories seem to fade just as quickly.


So our challenge is to write a letter to your future self to be opened in 5 years.


This letter could be a reminder of all the wonderful things that you have in the here and now, a list of things you would like to have, or where you think you will be in 5 years from now. Just make it real, make it heartfelt, just make it you.


Our Guest Designer this week is Jenn Olson and her layout is truly stunning! I have been a huge fan of her work for a LONG time now.


Here is my layout, I used all Webster's Pages products minus the green gaffer tape ribbon BUT if you look hard enough the green lace by the butterflies is the NEW Webster's Trim!





I hope that you all come check out the blog and are inspired to play along with us!

In some other scrappy news, Jessica Sprague is starting up a new FREE class on her website. I love her work, her designs, they way she tells her story and this class is called Stories In Hand. Check out her blog for the details, registration starts TODAY!

And last but not least, the beautiful Dani Flanders tagged me on her blog today.

(The rules....link your tagger and list these rules on your blog. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.)

#1. I think I hate peanut butter. My family eats it on EVERYTHING. Every morning Zoe wants either pancakes or french toast with peanut butter and syrup. I have made this so often, that every time I open the jar of peanut butter, I gag.

#2. I long to write the great American romance novel! I love reading them and have wanted to take a shot at writing one for years now. But I feel like any writing skills I may have possessed at one time are LONG gone now. One can dream though, right?

#3. I have turned into a hermit. At one point in my life, I had tons of friends. Had something to do all the time. Now I am lucky if I see one other adult human being more than one time a week. It is sad really.

#4. I never had Sr. pictures taken. I am not the most photogenic person and I was afraid that they would turn out horrid and ugly, so I never got them. I am now wishing that I would have.

#5. I have never seen a James Bond movie ever. And I really don't feel that I am missing out on anything. Oh and I have never seen any of the Rocky movies. John tells me that the first one is really good, I refuse to watch it.

#6. In high school, my friend Jamie and I used to go thru all the drive thru's in our town in reverse. We thought it was totally HILARIOUS too. God what dorks we were LOL.

#7. One of my biggest regrets is never finishing college. I want to go to design school and I can't believe how stinkin much it costs. I think I need to win the lottery to ever be able to go.


So there are my random 7 facts, I am going to tag: Leslie, Brandi, Jamie, Jeni, Lori Renn, Audrey and Corinne.

Well I hope you all have a better Monday than I am having. I have a pit I call a scraproom I have to clean before I get lost in here. Have a great day!

Friday, October 17, 2008

Five Faves Friday

Another week down the drain. Time has just been flying lately.


Here are some of my fave things this week:


#1. Zoe has caught the cheerleading bug! I just knew she would inherit my love of cheerleading. I signed her up for a week long cheerleading camp put on by the Roseburg High cheerleaders and this kid is having a blast. I took some cute pics of my mini cheerleader and have blurred out any of the other people in the picture for privacy purposes. But I now introduce you to Cheerleader Zoe:





I have to admit that I was hoping to see my fellow cheerleaders kiddos in camp as well. We missed you Moriah and Faith!

#2. The Sarah Silverman Program- Sarah Silverman is HILARIOUS! I love how she is unapologetically herself. Rude, crude and well this girl has balls is all I will say. My all time favorite episode is the one about TAB soda. I love Brian Posehn and that episode is just the best ever. Oh I do have to say her taste in men leaves something to be desired. Jimmy Kimmel?!?!



#3. Coconut Creme CoffeeMate- Jamie you got me hooked sister! I normally do not like coconut anything but yum this is the good stuff. My next favorite would have to be the Vanilla Chai Spice.



#4. I couldn't pick between the following two blogs so I am going to share both. I have spent countless hours this week at both Modish and DesignMom. If you find yourself bored today with nothing to do, go have some fun checking out these sites. Something for EVERYONE!


#5. My Scrappy Fave of the Week- my sewing machine. I have gotten it out twice this week which is a LOT for me. I created this layout with it. My skills leave much to be desired, but I am getting more and more comfortable with how my machine works. Haven't lost a finger yet!


So there we have it! As always link up here if you decide to post today.

Here are a few reminders: don't forget to go check out the Webster's Pages blog for our free giveaway over there, and the contest for Cards For Heroes at Paper Trunk will be ending soon!

Have a fantastic weekend!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Paper Trunk newsletter

Is live today! So come on over and check out what the DT has to offer and our guest designer for the month is none other than Kayla Aimee Terrell! I love her work!

come on over and check out the newsletter :)

and here are some more cards that I have made for the Cards For Heroes fundraiser that Paper Trunk is participating in:



have a great Wednesday all!

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

WANNA CHANCE TO WIN SOME NEW WEBSTER'S?!?!?

Brandin is at it again over at the Webster's Pages blog! She is giving away, drum roll please
.....................
.....................
.....................

THE COMPLETE COLLECTION of Hello!Beautiful!


If this this tasty treat looks like something you would be interested in winning, head on over to the blog and enter for your chance to get the goodness before anyone else does!
GOOD LUCK :)

Monday, October 13, 2008

A layout and a couple of cards:oh and a challenge too!

That's all I have for ya today. Still trying to wake up even though it is 10 am and I have had 2 giant cups of coffee. Have I mentioned I HATE MONDAYS?!?!

Here is a Webster's Pages layout I made this weekend. It uses the Reflections of Nature "Bee Balm" paper (backside) and I did some sewing on it! surprise surprise

And here are a few cards I made on National Card Making Day but was just too lazy to post.

Isn't that social butterfly pin super cute? I picked that and a few other pins up at Pier1 the other day for a whole 50 cents! I also got one that is a night owl one that is adorable. Just couldn't resist.

Ohhhhhh and I almost totally forgot! This weeks DESIGN X Challenge. How could I forget that? Here it is:

What are your favorite things about the fall? Is it the cool weather, the changing of the leaves, fun fall recipes? What do you love most about fall?

Here is my layout I made this week using a few new freebie kits I downloaded by FeiStuff at Oscraps.com. I had a LOT of fun experimenting a bit in PS and tried a few things I haven't done before.

So if you love Fall and are feeling enticed to scrap about it, come join us at the Design Experiment! We would love to have you join us :)

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Cards for Heroes

Carrie at Paper Trunk has put together a wonderful contest to help support the organization Cards For Heroes. Here is some info about the organization:

CARDSFORHEROES.ORG is a group of hundreds of private citizens - artisans, paper crafters, card makers - who have come together through our common love of our craft and our desire to honor our armed forces serving on our behalf. Regardless of what we think about the conflicts currently going on around the world, we can agree that our heroes are brave, honorable, and deserve our support! The cards allow them to keep in touch with their loved ones, and thus we get to also bless the families who bravely keep the candle in the window at home.[quote from their website]

So what does Paper Trunk have to do with Cards For Heroes? Well we are hosting a contest this month on the blog to help Cards For Heroes with their quest. Here are the details:

1. CREATE A CARD (or more). Please read the organizations requests regarding card donations and the types of cards they are looking for- FAQ*Cards must be handmade by you, no store bought cards for this contest, please.


2. SEND PAPER TRUNK YOUR CARD. Please mail your completed cards to the following address:

Paper Trunk
PO BOX 203
WILSONVILLE, OR
97070-0203.

3.ENTER TO WIN. For every card you send in, you will receive one entry in our random drawing for a HUGE Paper Trunk goody box!***Cards must be received no later than October 25th to qualify for the drawing***

If you need a starting spot for creating your cards, our resident card maker and sketch artist galore Janelle, has provided the following sketches (note: you do NOT have to use the sketches in order to participate in the contest!)



Here are some cards I have made using Paper Trunk products to donate to the cause (warning: I am HORRID at making cards!)



For more details, please refer to the Paper Trunk blog and make sure to check there often because the team will be posting cards on a regular basis throughout the month :)

Friday, October 10, 2008

Five Faves Friday

Hey all! Today is a teacher inservice day, so I have kiddo at home with me :) Thusly, I shall make it short and sweet. Well, at least try to!

There were so many things to choose from this week that I have had a hard time narrowing my list down. I think some just might have to carry over onto next weeks list. But I digress.

Here we go!

#1. The Colbert Report- I love this show. Stephen Colbert is hilarious and THIS episode the other day about killed me.
#2. Homemade Clam Chowder- Fall has definitely arrived in the Pac. Northwest. It has been chilly and cold all week long. One thing I love to eat is a good clam chowder. This week I decided to strike out on my own and make some from scratch. I didn't know how it was going to turn out because I pulled a Dena and just made up the recipe as I went along. But here is a pic of the final product! And it was downright tasty if I do say so myself.

#3. Dingbat's Agenda-Found this blog the other day and it is LOADED with inspiration and just cool stuff all around. I followed links for about an hour yesterday from there. Go check out her site for yourself. She makes INCREDIBLE letterpress cards such as these from her etsy site!


#4.vi.sualize- I found this awesome site via Jessica Sprague's blog (which by the way it is Photoshop Friday over there!!)- This site allows you to save, store and organize images on the web. I found a TON of inspiration on the site itself, plus you can save images that YOU find while out surfing the net. Definitely worth checking into people. Wasted a LOT of time there this week!


#5. Scrappy Fave of the Week- Making Memories Paperie. I am sure by now that you know that I LOVE MAKING MEMORIES! This line is a must have. I need to do some shopping. ASAP!


So there it is. Trust me, I could have gone to like 10 today LOL. Funny how that goes. Some weeks are definitely harder than others to find the goods! Once again, HOOK US UP here if you have posted your list today!

I also have a quick favor to ask of you my friends :) Zoe's class is trying to collect postcards from every state in the U.S. They have only collected about 1/2 of the states. If you live in any of the following states and wouldn't mind sending a postcard, please let me know and THANK YOU!

  • Tennessee
  • Wisconsin
  • Indiana
  • Kentucky
  • New Mexico
  • Arkansas
  • Louisiana
  • Mississippi
  • Oklahoma
  • Nebraska
  • North Dakota
  • Iowa
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Alabama
  • Florida
  • South Carolina
  • West Virginia
  • Pennsylvania
  • Delaware
  • New Jersey
  • New Hampshire
  • Maine

Have a FANTASTIC weekend!

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

So what's your soundtrack?

That is the question today for this weeks Design X challenge!

What is the soundtrack to your life? Are there certain pieces of music that define moments for you?


Music is such a powerful force. It can bring tears to your eyes, transport you to a specific place and time, can help fix a broken heart. So for this challenge, I thought of songs that could do and have done all of the above for me. From Joan Jett (who was one of the first people I remember listening to as a 4 yr old) to Pearl Jam (the music of my teenage years) to Zeppelin and the Beatles (because they ROCK!). This challenge also panders to my love of making mix tapes, well CD's now. So with the help of Itunes and my computer, I have a CD to go along with the page. I think my daughter will enjoy finding this years down the road.


Here is my layout:

So take a moment to think about what songs or music has influenced your life. It could be the song you danced to at your wedding, the first record you ever bought, your favorite hymns. We all have music that moves us, that is in the very fiber of our being, the soundtrack of our lives. What's YOURS?!

Friday, October 3, 2008

Five Faves Friday

Pheww! I have been on the move all morning long! ACK.
Ok so here is my 5 fave this week

1. Pushing Daisies season premeire- I have been hoping and praying this show would come back for a second season. John and I weren't sure if it would or not because it is just so quirky and unlike anything else on television. So we were both happy to see it back on for season number two. I love everything about this show! If you haven't watched it but are a fan of quirky shows ala Northern Exposure meets Tim Burton try it!

2. Pacifica Hawaiian Ruby Guava perfume-I got a new smiff today! woo hoo. You may remember my post about the Italian Blood Orange perfume. Well I officially ran out of perfume this morning. So after coffee with some friends this morning we went down to Cellar Doors and I switched it up a bit and got the Hawaiian Ruby Guava. I hope I like this one as much as I loved the last. If not, then I guess I can always go back and get my good ol stand by!

3. Irish Cream Lattes- Had a huge one this morning in one of those huge cute coffee mugs. I always feel so European whilst drinking from them. Every time I order a latte, this is what I get and I can't think of a better way to start the day.

4. The ability to BREATHE FREELY- After the flu virus from HELL, I am thankful to be able to breathe from my nose today. Seriously! I had a rough couple of days and am so happy to be feeling better.

5. Scrappy Fave of the Week-PURGING! I have purged some scrap goods that my friend Pam is selling today at a garage sale. It feels great to be rid of a HUGE pile of scrap stuff that has been sitting packaged in my room for over a YEAR now. I think it has been 2! And as I look here at the pile that is my scraproom, I see that I need to RE-purge. Cause you always seem to forget just how good it feels to declutter.
That is my list, what's yours? Link me up!

Thursday, October 2, 2008

Well Hello Beautiful!

It's not just a pick-up line, it's the newest Webster's Pages paper line!! And it is BEAUTIFUL!

So if you haven't had a chance to see it yet well today is your lucky day cause here it is in all its glory.

Introducing Hello! Beautiful
Designed by Terri Conrad for Webster's Pages

Here are the new journaling cards to accompany the paper line:

And the newest member of the Webster Pages family is Old World message cards:

These papers will be shipping on the 13th of this month! If you want to order directly from Webster's Pages you may do so via their website- www.websterspages.com or send an email to your local scrapbook store or online retailer OR even kit clubs asking them to order the Hello! Beautiful line. We do have a great referral program! For EVERY store that signs up because of YOU, you will receive a FREE PACKAGE of WEBSTER'S PRODUCTS! Just download this form http://websterspages.typepad.com/retailerning.jpg. For more information please read here!

We had our first inspireME chat last night and it was a total riot. Had such a great time with some wonderful people. We had several give aways and the winner of our quarterly contest was announced and it was none other than the fabulous AMY TARA!! This girl KNOWS how to use Webster's Pages products that is for darn sure. So congrats to you Amy Tara!

If you haven't joined the inspireME site yet, I encourage you to do so now. An amazing group of women, sharing some flat out gorgeous and inspiring work. I am floored every time I look in the gallery.

Don't forget to be working on those lists for tomorrow ladies. I hope we have some new comers that join along. If you have been flip flopping over trying out 5 Fave Fridays, give it a shot tomorrow, what do you have to lose?

Enjoy your Thursday!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

What it's not Friday?

Today I woke up in a panic thinking ahhhhhh I don't have a list down yet for my 5 faves...umm yeah Dena, it's Wednesday NOT Friday...Between the killer cold I have had for almost a week now and PMS, well I was all mixed up this morning.

So now that I don't have to stress about getting a 5 faves list up and posted, I can get on to sharing the new Bad Girls kit for October with you all :) drum roll please...............
Introducing STUDIO 54


This kit features Rose Moka and Basic Grey papers with a hint of Pink Paislee and has a bit of an owl theme going on with the fun stamp that Cari Fennell designed for us this month.

Here are two of my favorite add on kits this month- Pretty Little Party Girl and After Hours Party:
Here is how I used this months kit:



Make sure to check out the Design Team gallery and see what the other girls did this month. I know I was certainly inspired!

And one last exciting tidbit....Bad Girls is thrilled to have a new addition to our family, none other than Ingvild Bolme! I absolutely ADORE her work and also admit to stalking her blog. I am thrilled to be working alongside her and know that she will fit in just PERFECTLY! So welcome Ingrid!

Don't forget tonight is the chat at the inspireME site! 7pm PST! We will be chatting it up, I have now SEEN the sneak peek of the next mid release and OMG it is my FAVORITE by far. Amy Tara, girl you are going to freak when you see it :) So set the DVR to record your favorite shows (I have mine set for PUSHING DAISIES!!!) and come chat it up with us! And I will be posting the peeks either tonite after the chat or tomorrow morning.

Have a fabulous Wednesday (not Friday LOL) and I hope to see you tonite at inspireME!