Adios 2010!!

Just a quick post to wish you all a Blessed, Happy and Wonderful 2011!




..... And just for fun, the top three crafty things I learned in 2010:

1.  Play with your existing stash of papers, stamps and embellies!  YES!  It's always nice to drool over and buy the latest and greatest, but eventually "too much of a good thing" takes over and the folks from "Hoarders" will hit you up for an episode of filming!  *Use what ya got!*

2. Scan the craftroom floor for lost/dropped/scattered embellies! ....... stepping on an oversized brad in the bottom of the heel is not a pretty site - it hurts!!  A LOT!!  {and not to mention you are now 1 brad short! *grin!* }

3.  If you give a puppy an empty cardboard spool to play with, he'll want some ribbon to go with it.  And if you give him that scrap ribbon to go with it, he will run through the house, happily tossing it in the air.  And as he's running, he'll spot another roll of ribbon and not understand why the  silver, embossed  shimmer ribbon @ $11.99 for baby shower invites isn't the same ...... :)   


Adios 2010 ......... 2011, I welcome you!!!!

Blessings!
~Kelly

Celebrate a New Year ........ a New You! :)

It's almost 2011!  Can you believe it?!  So much of this last part of a year has literally passed me by in a daze and I'm hopeful that this New Year will bring restored health and prosperity.   As I look back on the past year, I realized that I was in constant motion - being a mom of 4 can surely accomplish that!   I'm not one who makes new year resolutions ~ but I do set "goals" for myself ... this year right at the top:  reclaim my fitness regimen and continue my weight loss journey.    Which is why I LOVED this digi by Fresh Brewed Designs the second I laid eyes on it - Skinny Latte!  It's perfect!  My fave coffee  at that oh-so-famous-coffee-place isn't exactly figure friendly if you have too many *wink!* so the lighter version is just right! 

This week at Fresh Brewed Challenge Blog, the challenge is celebrating the New Year!  For my card, I paired the Skinny Latte digi with some festive dsp from S.E.I., colored it with my prismas and used my scallop die to make my favorite embellie - Ric-Rac!!   I hope you get the chance to play along this week - stop in here and share your new year celebration card!

And just for laughs, this is me driving to yet another one of my kid's schools and/or activities - Buddy, our 1 year old Jack Russell, often rides along.  While I was drivin,  my dd16 apparently thought it would be cute to let him *share* - NOT!!   That is liquid gold in that cup, rofl (not to mention about the price of gold, too!) 

Blessing to you and I hope your New Year is a safe, happy and blessed one!

Christmas - Miami Style! :)

Hi everyone!  I pray you are all doing well this Christmas Eve's eve!  One more sleep 'til the sleigh leaves the North Pole! :)  I spent a good part of the late morning/afternoon at the mall and that was such a wonderful reminder of why I never shop this late in the year :)  I felt sooo bad for the families waiting to take pictures with Santa - 2 hour 15 minute wait!!  I don't think I've stood in a line that long at the theme parks! :)~  I hope you are enjoying wonderful moments together with your families, shopping and wrapping gifts, baking goodies or even heading out to church services. 

Today's card is one I made for Deedee's Crafty Challenge Blog ~ truly a Miami style holiday card!  If I had made cards this year (bwack!), this is what mine would have looked like :)   But having zero time to craft, a huge lack of mojo and inability to go anywhere near my craft room, I'm so blessed to have completed this card weeks ago for the upcoming DT blog (wow, how lucky to have my post turn on Christmas eve!)  You can find this digi, and MANY more, here in the shop.  There is also a sale on all Holiday digis and New Year's digis for just $1.00 ..... and while you are there, be sure to stop by the Crafting Blog and see this week's challenge!  

Blessings
~KellyDeets:  Stampin' Up Pink Passion, PTI white:   DSP = Basic Grey; Prismacolor markers, Large RicRac scallop; Tombo, Basic Grey Button, twine

Take a seat!! :)~

 Happy Saturday!  Today was a hopping day, and now it's pouring rain, we are late getting out of the house for a function but the house sure smells good with the Cinnamon Buns (homemade!) baking in the oven - YUM!

Although I haven't had the chance to craft in like forever due to being swamped and busy with 900 projects at the same time, I wanted to show you the gift I worked on this week!   Being my son's homeroom mom, I thought of a really cool idea for her Christmas gift "from the class".  She sits in the front of the class to teach and read on a really uncomfortable wooden stool so the idea for a comfy chair was born after I sat in the class helping one day and sat on that same chair for over an hour ;)  I had them embroider her name on the back of the chair and each of the children dipped their thumb or finger(s!) into the paint and became one of the insects in their "from catepillars to butterflies" school theme. It was such a touching way to get the kids to imprint on this gift that will last long over they have moved on to other grades or schools.  It was tons of fun and I have heard from "sources" that other teachers are stopping by to see it - maybe an idea for their classes, too! :)

Enjoy your night, whatever it may be this last weekend before Christmas!

Blessings!~Kelly

Dueling Darlings Card Kits ~ My favorite things :)

Ay!  Long time no blog!  I have missed you all and visiting your blogs ~ December is truly a month of pure chaos for me and this year has been no exception - and as most of the snow in the upper states, no sign of slowing down!

Speaking of snow, how cute is the theme of this lil card!  The Dueling Darlings - a group of us SCS friends that got two teams together to "duel" each month with one theme and two different card kits - were given them theme of "my favorite things".   Our lovely hostess, LJ, chosen this lil snowman from Inky Antics and a smorgasboard of yummy papers, snowflakes, ribbons and more!  Her kit for us was so fun and so full - definitely a 2nd card to be made :)

She asked us to think/describe some of our favorite things that others might not know about.  I talk often of some of my favorites {Starbucks, my babies, Buddy!!}  but a few things that come to mind this holiday season are:

* The ornaments on our tree from all the places we have visited as a family - from cities in Europe to the Bahamas and beyond!  In one glance on the tree, I'm transported back :)

* My grandma's bible - all worn and dog-eared, but exquisite and beautiful in my eyes.

* My i-pod shuffle .... truly old-school compared to what's out on the market but I love having my favorite 'tunes' at the click of a button!

* My childhood dollies and stuffed animals that have survived being moved to 5 different continents back and forth over 25 years - missing eyes + arms + tails .... I love them all! xoxo

I could go on but I have to squeeze my card in here! :)   Using some gorgeous Rich Razzleberry and Pink Passion, I used the enclosed Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses dsp from LJ - all three sheets are in there in some form :)   I didn't color much of the adorable snowman due to it being white - I'd LOVE some tips on how to color mostly white images!  I layered my signo pen on the ice blocks and then added some Martha Stewart super fine glitter - sadly my camera's memory card is not doing so well and I'm using an old camera w/ poor photo quality ~ ribbon and a matching button and some pink bling and this cutie is ready for slippin' and sliddin' to a new home this holiday! 

PLEASE be sure to see the other Darling's blogs ~ using this kit, you can see what the other lovelies created!

Dueling Darling Divas                 Dueling Darling Dazzlers
Barbara                                                April
Carol                                                     Debbie   
Laurajean                                             Jeanette
Jamie                                                    Melina
Joan                                                      Michelle
Judy                                                     Paola
(me!)                                                    Terry

Thanks for stopping by today - I will have a second card from Fresh Brewed Designs up shortly! :)

Blessings!
~Kelly

Deets:  Cardstock:  Su! Rich Razzleberry, Pink Passion; GinaK white;  DSP = Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses;
Image:  Inky Antics; accessories = Cuttlebug, nesties; primascolor markers, white signo pen; SU ribbon; MS Glitter; Button, ribbon; scallop punch, tombo, 3d dots

It's Kit-Cat Sunday ... featuring an ornament from the heart!

Good SONday morning to you all!  Sorry for the late posting - church ran a little long today!  I was way too tired to post last night - after 3 Nutcrackers shows, 1 Winter Concert after an already extra busy week, I could not even see straight! 

And it's Kit-Cat Sunday!  I LOVE this time for us kittens and our postings!!  This month, it was my turn to send out kits to the other kittens :)  I was truly worried about sending a non-traditional "card" kits but thought of how hard it is for so many right now at this time of year, and how gift giving has been changed by the economy, job losses, and names  on our lists to buy for are getting shorter and shorter.  For this wonderful season of giving and gratefulness, I challenged the other kittens to think outside (inside?!) the box and take a plain metal tin and plain wooden ornament and "make it their own!"  And wait til you see what the other kittens created for you!  Oh.  My.  Word!   They reached the bar with this challenge and passed it!  The ornament fits perfectly inside the tin for easy gift-giving or storage for the years ahead :)

For my ornament and tin, I wasn't intentionally going to "go pink!" (my least favorite color! LOL!)  I added pink glitter to the rim showing my daughter a trick and went back for more ornaments and you guessed it .....  gone!  So I had to rethink my tin and  star! 

 Using glitter for the rim, I added the DSP to the center and kept it pretty simple.  I also covered the tin, the inside section with a detachable matching To/From tag and set the ornament inside.  I added it to the tree for picture taking it just sparkled and blinged right along the rest of the ornaments :)   My ornament has already found a new home to the wonderful art teacher at my son's school that teaches the children to rise above their inability to color in the lines and create from the heart :) 

PLEASE make sure to hop on over and see what the other kittens have created for you!  Truly breathtaking work and show-stoppers, each and every one!

Blessings to you all as you celebrate this CHRIST-mas season!
Happy Craftin!
~Kelly

* Jeanette *
* Lorie *
* Michelle *
* Susan *

Jesus is the Reason for the Season Hop - Blessings Blocks :)

Good morning, everyone!  What a joyful moment to bring you this post - one I dedicate to my 15 y/o daughter's {public} school teacher who reminded her that it's okay to have Caedman's Call in her i-pod when everyone else said it was lame :* ( How my heart swelled with intense gratitude for those words and reassurance!  :*)

I'm just one of the stops in this "Jesus is the Reason for the Season" blog hop!  You should have arrived here from the fabulous Karen!  If you need to start at the beginning, please start here!

Today I bring you Blessing Blocks ~  a humble yet faith-filled project I made using simple wooden blocks I found at a craft store for under $4.00 for a bag of 20 identical 1.5" square blocks! 


 I knew instantly what I wanted to make with them when I put them all out on the table and took 5 off to the side :)  Using designer paper from My Mind's Eye called "I believe", I glued down the paper, added the chipboard letters & then used Modge-Podge to keep them safe.  These are wonderful to display on the mantel, side table, etc and really bring the focal point of Jesus being the reason for this CHRIST-mas season to the forefront.  

And they are reversable! If the blocks are turned, you will see I added some CHRIST-mas scriptures {you can find them here!}  This is a very humble yet heart-felt gift that is perfect for gift giving, especially on a tight budget.  So easily these could nestle into a holiday box or small basket - perfect for Sunday school, church helpers, neighbors, families, friends and beyond!

And the blocks that started it all :)

I wanted to share with you some really wonderful news as well!  There are prizes to be one for completing the hop and these sponsors have generously provided prizes to 3 lucky winners for completing the hop ~ Thank you to these following sponsors:

 

*Fresh Brewed Designs: 4 Christmas/Faith digital images plus 2 of winner's choice

*Simply Betty Stamps: Jude & His Shenanigans Crew Christmas Collection (6 digital images)
*The Stamping Boutique: 2 Faith digital images plus 4 images of winner's choice!

3 winners will be chosen (one for each store prize above) from comments on select blogs, but we can't tell you which blogs they are! :)
 
Thank you for stopping by today! I hope you enjoyed your stop today as much as I enjoyed sharing with you this little project! From here, you'll continue the hop by stopping in to see what Lori has made for you today!  And for a quick overview of the hop order, here you go .........

Heather 
Kadie
Karen
Kelly {you are here!}
Lori
Lorie
Maria
Paola
Sammi
Stacy
Susan
Catherine

Blessing to you and yours as you celebrate this most amazing season and the beauty of celebrating the birth of our Savior!


In Him,
~Kelly