From Red & Green to Pink

Here are a couple of simple Valentine's Day cards I created yesterday:

Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; Making Memories paints, "Simply Fab" foam stamps, TinyAlpha stickers, and rub-on.

Supplies: Die Cuts with a View card; My Mind's Eye and Chatterbox pattern papers; QuicKutz heart die (RS-0010); Making Memories "love" rub-on.

2ps Blog Challenge:
Do you have any plans for the last day of 2007?
Yes, I'm working today. Tonight Trent & I are going to stay in and watch a movie.

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Small Space Organization {Crop In Style}

Probably my favorite new scrapping piece is my Crop In Style modular unit. It's a combination of four pieces - (2) Accessorizer cubes with added inserts and (2) 3-drawer Organizer cubes. I constructed a base for them to sit on using wood 2x4s and base molding. That idea I lifted from a user at Two Peas - abrandstetter.

The top left cube holds my patterned papers in a Cropper Hopper Vertical holder. I have them divided by theme and a few by category using the Cropper Hopper paper files and page planners. The latter are great when you want to organize papers with scraps or certain flat embellishments. For example, I use one of the page planners for my Disney papers and keep stickers in the smaller pocket.

Also in the top left cube are two magazine files - one for scrapbooking magazines I'm keeping for reference and one to hold blue plastic document holders I bought from the Target dollar spot. I keep chipboard shapes and 6x6 papers in the document holders. Next to them are the Pioneer Space Saver photo albums I mentioned in my Photo Organization post.

The top right cube holds my albums horizontally. I personally prefer to store them this way versus standing upright. Also it enables me to lay a few recent and/or in progress layouts on the top album until I'm ready to place them into their album.

The drawers along the bottom hold a variety of fun scrapbooking goodies. I added labels using the same font (Two Peas Old Type) that I used on the foam stamp jars. They are categorized as follows: alphas, ribbons & punches, tools, embellies, stamps, and misc.

The alphas drawer is as the name says - a drawer dedicated to alphabet embellishments [except stickers....I'll cover that in another post]. I split up all of my various alpha embellies (metals, plastics, chipboard, etc) by letter into large Cropper Hopper embellishment boxes. I labeled each box with the appropriate letter or symbol using some Making Memories alpha stickers from my stash. The boxes fit perfectly (with a few extra to spare) and still leave some space in the back for larger alpha and chipboard items that won't fix in the boxes. Another $$ saver tip here - I'm using index card cases by Better Office Products to house some of those larger items. These cases sell for $1.00 at CVS and are basically a freebie when I shop using my CVS ExtraCare Bucks.

Next to the alphas drawer is the embellies drawer. I keep those items separated with a Crop In Style Drawer Divider. I choose not to use the middle insert so I would have larger, rectangular spaces for some of the bulkier items. In the front you might notice the Cropper Hopper 3x3 Embellishment Bags. I recently bought a second package of those. They are very handy for storing little items such as brads and sequins.

The final drawer I'll share an inside photo of is the ribbons & punches drawer [pardon Cali's tail - she was curious ;)]. I don't own very many punches so it's easy to share the space with these two items. I keep them separated with an old paper file we had laying around collecting dust. I was about to add it to our donation pile when I realized how perfectly it divided this drawer.

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Gift Cards for the Salvation Army

Looking for a way to help out? Last night I saw a news article on a local tv station's website about how your unused gift cards can assist the Salvation Army. The idea is simple. If you have a gift card you don't plan to use or maybe has just a small bit of change left, send it to the Salvation Army. Then the Salvation Army forwards the cards to a company in California to exchange into cash and they get 70% of the converted cash for use in the area donated.

Per the Salvation of Wake County website:

It doesn't matter what store it’s from or how much is left on it. We can convert it to cash to serve the most vulnerable of our community. All cards – used and unused – will help. So please, check your wallet, your purse, your dresser drawers or wherever you stash your gift cards and drop them off at your nearest Salvation Army location or mail it to us today. We’ll put them to use to ease the burden of our poorest!

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Small Space Organization {Scrapping Desk}

Each year after Christmas and with the New Year on the horizon, I tend to get into a spring cleaning mood a bit early. This year I thought I would share some of the scrap room organization ideas I've incorporated over the past year. I'm going to break it up into multiple posts over the next few days. Hopefully, you'll find a bit of inspiration. :) Click on any of the images for a better view.

The room where I "play" is the smallest bedroom in our house - 10 feet by 10 feet - but carries a LOT of responsibility. The computer area, my scrap space, and cats' litter box all squeeze in. Until about 3 months ago, the treadmill lived in there too. Yup, chaos! LOL :D The floor plan to the right will give you an idea of how tight things are.

My scrap desk is located opposite the door. I like this spot where I can see the tv and see the furkids coming and going. Sometimes they just lay in the hallway outside the door and watch me or nap. ;) LOL The desk itself was the first official "scrapping" furniture purchase I made when we bought the house. I got it at AC Moore for $50 using a 50% off coupon. That's just the start of my "deals" [remember, I'm a big coupon-er and money saver ;)] in this space.

The light fixture next to the desk was a hand-me-down from a friend who was moving. So glad I scooped that up as it gives me excellent lighting when working on my projects.

The wallboard and shelving are from Pottery Barn. It's a discontinued item called "Wayne Modular." I was eyeing it in their catalogs and online late last year, but it was out of my price range (the board alone was over $100!). In January, they slashed the prices by up to 90% so I managed to get 2 boards, 2 shelves, 5 ledges, and 1 pin board for about $120 (original price about $600!). The other board hangs over our computer desk, but that will have to wait for another post as this one is already getting long.

On the ledges over the desk, I keep a variety of embellishments and tools in Making Memories storage jars. The top ledge has the large size jars with foam stamps. I've added a simple MM metal rimmed vellum tag to each and printed the stamp types in Two Peas Old Type font.

The ledge below it has a collection of 12 of the smaller MM jars with buttons, tabs, flowers, etc. The jars are flanked by two metal tin containers I picked up at the Target dollar spot in the spring. The one on the left holds my MM paints and the one on right right I use for miscellaneous loose embellishments I'm currently using.

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Quick Update

Last night I went out with a friend of mine from college (Hi, Kim!!) who is in town for the holidays. We had a blast and I didn't get in until after 10. Which, on a weeknight, is late for me. I hurried to bed and didn't get a chance to post.

The turkey casserole on Christmas night was good. Trent really liked it a lot. Personally, I think it was a bit too cheesy. I'll try it again (maybe even with chicken) but cut back to 1 cup of cheese and toss in a can of vegetables. It was so easy to make though and very little clean-up. Both very good things any night of the week.

As for the movie, we did things a little backwards in a sense. On Christmas Eve, we saw National Treasure: Book of Secrets at the theater. I had never seen the first movie and it turns out Trent had TiVo'd it just in case earlier this month. So, on Christmas night, we watched National Treasure. Loved both of those movies. Very well done and kept me thinking!

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Merry Christmas!

Trent & I have spent a quiet day at home. I've done a little scrapbooking but nothing is complete just yet. Hopefully I'll have time later this week to finish what I've started.

We baked a turkey breast for lunch along with some traditional sides - green beans, cranberry sauce, biscuits, and sweet tea [a southern staple at any meal ;) ]. We're having some of the leftover turkey tonight for dinner. I found a recipe online for Turkey Macaroni Bake. It's in the oven as I type. Now to pick a movie to watch. :)

Digi image credits: Striped paper from the Winter Sparkle Kit at Peppermint Creative; Blackadder ITC font.

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Five More Altered Cards

I did it! :) All caught up on my altered playing cards. Here they are starting with last Thursday's card:Supplies: Chatterbox patterned paper; Making Memories brads, anchors, wordfetti, and rub-ons; Angelina font; misc. off white cardstock; Micron black pen; Me & My Big Ideas woven label.

Friday, December 21:
Supplies: Bazzill and misc. cardstock; Making Memories definition and letter stickers; Uniball Signo white pen.

Saturday, December 22:Supplies: We R Memory Keepers patterned paper; Micron black pen; Studio G acrylic stamp; red stamp ink; misc. red cardstock.

Sunday, December 23:
Supplies: a2z patterned paper; Imagination Project coaster (scanned & downsized to fit); Micron red & black pens; Dymo label; misc. green cardstock.

Monday, December 24:
Supplies: Chatterbox patterned paper; USPS stamp; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock; QuicKutz Tangerine font; misc. green cardstock; Uniball Signo white pen.

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What a Wonderful Weekend

Trent & I were away from home Friday through late last night visiting with family. The photo above I took of the tree at my mother & stepfather's house. It looked so beautiful at night all lit with the reflection on the wood floors. We had a fun weekend with them and my brother. Then headed to Trent's parents' house yesterday for Christmas with them, his siblings, aunt, uncle and grandparents. A fun time all around. :)

I'm behind on my altered playing cards and will be playing a bit of catch up. I'll post them as soon as I finish. Have a very blessed Christmas Eve!

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The Fallen Ornament Mystery

I found inspiration for tonight's card on Toni's blog. She commented about her kittens knocking ornaments off the tree. Fortunately, neither Cali nor Chester have ever paid too much attention to the Christmas trees (well, except for Ches loving to sit under it). When we lived in apartments, we had a 3' tall artificial tree and they'd sniff it out (like all new things) and then go about their usual daily activities. I worried a tad bit the first Christmas in our house what they would do with a real tree. About the same it turns out - sniff it and then move along. This year we did catch Cali sitting on the loveseat armrest pawing at an ornament after we finished decorating it. I figured since she had seen us "playing" with them earlier in the evening, she thought it must be ok.

Since then, they have left the ornaments alone. Well, we think. About 2 days ago we found Cali's ornament on the floor. I intentionally put the less delicate ones down low just in case. Honestly, I don't think they were batting at it. I think Chester bumped it while heading under the tree for a nap. I've witnessed him brushing the lower branches with his back as he heads to his current napping spot. But the truth remains a mystery and the ornament still sits on the floor in front of the tree:Supplies: Daisy Hill rub-on; misc. red cardstock; Uniball Signo white pen.

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Pause

Besides playing with my blog set-up, I've been working on my altered playing card for today. Yesterday, my friend Katy, left me a comment regarding Sunday's card. The last sentence caught my eye: "What a fun thing to play with, and they are so small, it really makes them seem do-able!" The small size was part of what enticed me to start this project. Doing a 12x12 scrapbook page (or even 8x8) would be too time-consuming for me to fit in every day. However, a little secret here, there are days (like today) that I stress about these things! Seriously. Why do you think yesterday's card was about socks??? LOL Some days a little occurrence (i.e., Sunday's Starbucks outing) will jump out at me and I think to myself "that's it! That's what my card will be." A typical workday doesn't always have those moments. ;)

Tonight, I had no idea what I was going to do. It was after dinner as I sat at the table looking at our peace lily that I decided to take a photo of it's single flower. After coming upstairs and opening it in Photoshop - the idea hit me. Something so simple. Pause to enjoy the season of Christ's birth. It's been evident all around me (from my own blog to the hurried shoppers I bumped into tonight) and a blog post by my friend Theresa on Saturday - Christmas has become so "stuff" focused (parties, gifts, etc) that we overlook the best gift we've ever received. And so I share this simple card with you all. May you feel Christ's love for you tonight and each day forward.
Supplies: 2Peas Old Type font by Two Peas in a Bucket; misc. light green cardstock; Micron black pen.

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New blog toys

I've been having fun playing around with my blog and discovering cool new web gadgets and gizmos. Most recently I added 3 new features. The first has been around for a few weeks and you may or may not have noticed it. It's called SmartLinks. Basically, I added a small piece of script that, when I include supported links in my blog, you'll see a little blue icon beside the link. Click on it and get a variety of links related to that item. For example, the book I'm currently reading is Saving Graces by Elizabeth Edwards. Click on the SmartLinks icon to find book reviews, etc. AdaptiveBlue, the company behind SmartLinks, is also the brains behind the Amazon Gift List widget in the right hand column. A fun way to share some Christmas ideas with friends and family.

The third fun tool I added is located at the bottom of my posts. It's a bookmark button by AddThis. Simply click and you can bookmark my post. ;)

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Fuzzy Socks

So long to the hot weather we had a couple weeks ago - looks like winter may have found us yet. Tonight's temps are dropping into the low 20s. A far cry from the 70s & 80s I had enjoyed! So I'm bundled up which led to tonight's inspiration - my fun, fuzzy socks. ;)
Supplies: Making Memories metal index tab and wordfetti & TinyAlpha stickers; misc. dark blue cardstock; Uniball Signo white pen.

I worked on my altered card both standing at my scrapbooking table and sitting on the floor. A little someone stole my chair. Chester looked too comfy to move. (He's still there by the way - only now he's napping.)

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Peppermint Mochas

This afternoon one of my neighbors and I got together at Starbucks and enjoyed Peppermint Mochas while taking care of HOA business. We've become the lone two on the architectural review committee. This was a nice way to get the work done and then enjoy a bit of catching up.

Supplies: Starbucks beverage wrap; snowflake punch; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed white cardstock; misc. green cardstock; Uniball signo white pen.

edited to add...
2ps blog challenge:
What is one thing you look forward to during these last few days before Christmas?
Time with family. :)

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Good Eats

It's been a busy couple of days! The Christmas shopping is all done. Almost all the gifts are wrapped. And the few I need to ship are boxed. I just need to weigh them tomorrow and print the labels. :)

Last night we had my annual company Christmas party at Zely & Ritz Tapas Restaurant in downtown Raleigh. This was the first time either of us had eaten there and it was delicious! Just a great evening overall.
Supplies: Chatterbox patterned paper; logo from Z&R; "Berry Sticker" from Kate Teague's Berry Days digikit at Two Peas in a Bucket; Mistral font; misc. green cardstock; Making Memories epoxy sticker; Micron black pen.

Today was the big "bake off" day here at home. I made our typical holiday sweets - ginger snaps and date nut balls. Yum!
Supplies: Scenic Route and Paper Salon patterned papers; Heidi Swapp photo corners; Making Memories rub-on & wordfetti stickers; Micron black pen.

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Wrapping Gifts

A simple little card for tonight inspired by Dec 7 of dw2007 to use wrapping paper as patterned paper:
Yes, I just began wrapping presents tonight! Good thing too since I had almost no tissue paper. Looks like that will be on the list for my errands tomorrow. I have lots and lots of wrapping paper though. :) Each year I go shopping at Hallmark after Christmas and stock up for the following year. I also buy my cards at that time and just pack them up with the Christmas decorations so I can easily find them the following year.

Supplies: Hallmark wrapping paper & label; Die Cuts with a View adhesive backed cardstock (for carrot nose & arms); Making Memories snowflake rub-ons; Uniball Signo white & silver pens.

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Yellow Glass Ornament

Angela Daniels posted a photo of her ornaments last week on her blog. It got me thinking about how I should start photographing and recording why certain ornaments have special meaning to me. Our tree has some typical shiny "filler" balls that are just ornaments. But it also is full of ornaments that tell a story. With that idea in mind and the prompt from Dec 6 of dw2007 ("create a unique border..."), I created tonight's card:
Supplies: "Black Frame" (I changed it to white) from the Color My World kit by Rhonna Farrer (Two Peas in a Bucket); Bazzill cardstock; Uniball Signo white pen; Making Memories epoxy sticker.

2ps blog challenge:
10 of your greatest joys...

1. my marriage :)
2. my family
3. my faith
4. my scrapbooking
5. my furbabies
6. helping others
7. teaching the preschool Sunday School class

Surely there's more! I'm drawing a blank at the moment. Probably because I'm up past my bedtime. ;)

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An Early Gift

I was soooo excited [can you tell I was excited? ;) ] to come home today and find my prize package from Autumn Leaves! I won the September designing with 2007 contest at Two Peas in a Bucket and was allowed to select a prize. I asked for the "A Rhonna Christmas" line by Rhonna Farrer. Also, they sweetly added the Autumn Leaves book Designing with Details. Loving it all! Here's a photo of the goodies:
My winning entry for the contest was this fun envelope I created for our Disney trip in November. On our previous trip in 2002, I had packed small printed laminated sheets with information such as park hours and the 10-day weather forecast. This time I planned ahead a bit and made a mini album.

Finally, here is today's card. Inspired by the prize and by Dec 24 of dw2007:
Supplies: Paper Salon patterned paper; Autumn Leaves swirl acrylic stamp, button, and part of the button package label; silver glittery stamp ink pad; Micron black pen.

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Hey, Baby, it's HOT outside!

Recording setting hot no less. Today is officially the warmest December day in history around here and the next couple of days look to be just as hot. The a/c was flipped on at work. So far Trent & I have not turned it back on at home, but the windows are open and ceiling fans running.

Last week Trent & I talked about how nice it would be to take a walk to look at Christmas lights and maybe we would do so over the weekend when the lows were only going down to the 50s. As it happens, we didn't get around to that walk until tonight. It was a great night as it was in the low 70s at the time. Perfect walking weather. :) And my inspiration for tonight's card:
Supplies: Basic Grey patterned paper; $1 stamp from Michael's; Doodlebug, My Mind's Eye and Making Memories rub-ons; 5-day weather graphic from WRAL.com; misc. cardstock; Micron black pen; Studio G acrylic stamp; black ink stamp pad.

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To Do List

Already "having a Monday" and it's not even half done. Thought I would share a comic strip I found posted today on Mutts Comics for everyone who also needs a laugh. I'm betting it pretty accurately portrays the day Cali & Chester are having. Of course, their list will also include "eat" and "chase my sibling." LOL

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Just call me 'Cinderella'...

minus the crown and fancy digs. LOL And, yes, this tale will explain the reason I have a photo posted of my laundry closet. Actually, Trent said I should take a photo. I think it's to prove that there was a time when it really was clean! ;) The tale starts earlier today when Trent commented on how he wanted to move our toolbox (which currently lives in the coat closet) into the laundry closet. As I have mentioned before, we have a small home and it lacks storage space greatly. Well, the conversation turned from moving the toolbox (which still lives in the coat closet, by the way) into let's tidy up the laundry closet. The dryer had stuff stacked on top. The closet itself was a home to more dust bunnies than I've ever seen in my life.

So, Trent pulled out the dryer. Yikes! I grabbed the vacuum and jumped behind to clean up all the lint. We also wanted to redo the vent attachments because it seemed as though we must have a gap somewhere with all that lint. Before doing so, I turned to vacuum behind the washer and WOWZERS!! (that's my nice terminology for it...not exactly the word I used at the time). Forget the lint, there was a messy, soapy, sticky pool of something behind the washer. *sigh* Well, the dryer was in the hall so might as well move the washer over and figure this one out. Turns out the detergent sitting on the wire shelf above the washer had a tiny whole halfway up the back and had been dripping for some time. Ick. This is where the Cinderella part comes in. I ended up on my hands and knees with a scrub brush, bowl of water, a spatula (to scrape at it) and a couple of towels. 30 minutes later the floor was sparkling clean and my knees were very unhappy. Not exactly the fun I planned on having today, but I do have a very clean laundry closet now. And that, to quote Martha Stewart, is a good thing. :)

Now, let me put away my violin and sob story. I did get to enjoy some creative time today. Finally completed the blinkies (aka animated images) for the designing with calendar group over at Two Peas in a Bucket ...

Created our Christmas return address labels [notice the "berries" are 2paws ;) ] ...
And, of course, made my card for today ...
Supplies: EK Success patterned paper; Christmas lights beads photo from Renee Beads; Making Memories epoxy sticker; Dymo labeler; misc. white cardstock; Micron black pen; Studio G stamp; green stamp pad.

2ps Blog Challenge:
Do you make big plans for New Year's Eve?
Our plans usually consist of a relaxing evening on the couch - watching a movie and eating popcorn. Neither Trent nor I are big "party" people and, truth be told, often end up asleep before midnight anyway! ;)

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Christmas in Downtown Raleigh

What a wonderful day! Today Trent & I went into downtown Raleigh for my birthday present. Instead of giving me an item, his gift to me was a trip to visit some of the historic sites in our own county. We've toured lots of interesting places (historic homes, museums, parks, etc) in various other cities we have visited over the years, but keep missing out on some of the special places in our own "neck of the woods." We decided a couple weeks ago to go today so we could see the Executive Mansion with the holiday decorations. As it turns out, there were holiday celebrations and open houses throughout downtown Raleigh and it was sunny, mid-60s so the weather was perfect.

We started at the Executive Mansion. There we were allowed to peek into each of the rooms off the main corridor on the first floor. I took lots of photos. But I did get a curious look and comment from one of the security guards when I snapped a shot of a door hinge! He said most people don't notice the little details. I explained - I'm not most people. ;) I have a degree in architecture and design buildings for a living so I tend to look for the "details."

After touring the mansion, we walked a few blocks to the State Capitol Building. We've both been there before, but not since they opened the third floor to the public. It was fun to take a look around the rooms up there - the State Library room and State Geologist room.

Next we stopped for lunch at the Seaboard Cafe for a sandwich & a burger. It's a great local place and nestled into Logan's Trading Company. While tempted to wander around looking at garden decor after we ate, we hurried over to Mordecai Park to catch the last tour of the day on the Raleigh Trolley. This became our one disappointment. The trolley is in the shop so a bus is being used instead. We decided to skip the tour - as we would rather do it on the trolley for the whole ambiance of riding a trolley versus a bus. So we're saving this fun for the spring when everything is blooming again. We did spend some time touring the Mordecai house and other buildings at the park (Andrew Johnson's birthplace, St. Mark's Chapel, etc) before heading back towards the Capitol Building to see the Dinosaurs exhibit at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences.

If you've read this far, you might be as tired as my legs! I'll end this post with the card I created for today. The front is a photo of the Executive Mansion. Supplies: Bazzill cardstock; 7gypsies foldover sticker; Uniball Signo white pen.

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