One last post

  I got this last Christmas project done today. Jeff brought home some awesome wooden crates a few months ago and I saw this on pinterest so  a project plan was born.
 

I really like how it turned out. Jeff cut the boards and built the base for me from one of the crates. I then weathered the boards by soaking steelwool in vinegar overnight and painting  the "rusty vinegar" on the wood. I was amazed at how it actually worked. Then I cut the vinyl a few coats of varnish and it is done! And it will be back with us next year !I put it at the corner of the house as no one uses the front door.

Tomorrow the crew is coming in early so who knows when I will be back. Hopefully when I do get back it will be with some awesome Christmas pictures.
I hope  everyone of you have a blessed Christmas day. Please find a way to slow down and appreciate the gift that God gave us. The gift of unconditional love.
Brenda

Rainy/Crafty day

  The weather has been really messy the last 2 days.... while everyone else is racing around I have been able to stay home and hang out in the craft cave..... yep, tomorrow will begin the total craziness we call family Christmas. I can not wait to have all the kids home.
   I have wanted to try my hand at a charger plate. I have seen several done with pretty Christmas trees but just could not find a file I wanted to use. today Miss Kate Cuttables had an awesome file for the freebie. It was exactly what I was looking for. At Thanksgiving my granddaughter Emme gave me a sweet little bow. I really wanted to incorporate it into my Christmas decorations somehow and this was the perfect opportunity. I really hope she likes it. What a fun easy project!

  Then I decided to see if I could get a layout done. We had our Christmas program at church this morning and a church member took some really great photos. So I decided to scrap the event..... I know there are no children involved....shocking!
I was inspired by sketch #258 at Creative Scrappers
Here is the sketch.

 And here is my take...

I know I managed to stray quite far... oh well I think all in all I like it. Everything was from my stash...... Yes this long unemployment is helping the scrap hoarder in me to clean some things out...lol

 I hope that you have a moment during this busy time of year to stop and count your blessings and enjoy the moment.
Brenda

A layout and a challenge

My plans fell through for this evening so I took advantage of it and went in to the craft cave to do a scrapbook page. I also managed to get pretty close to getting all the stuff that was gifted me put away. I have had this stuff  for almost a month and just have not had enough time to dedicate to getting it all done.
Here it is

There was a ton of really good stuff in there, including the paper that I used in todays layout. Skyler and Neal were wise men in the childrens program last week and they were a riot. So had to get a few of the classic pictures on a page.I journaled in the blue border added a title and lots of snowflakes and the simple layout was complete. I am entering it in the sketch challenge at Lets Capture Our Memories it is sketch # 49.
The sketch

My layout

I know they are adorable aren't they!
  I guess I need to get back to getting ready for my family coming for Christmas. I have so enjoyed a day to play....... hope it is not so long until I get back in the cave.

 I hope that in all the Christmas business you have  few minutes to slow down and remember the true gift of the season. The gift of love.
Brenda

The twins turn 8...can it be?

  Thought I would share today my absolute LOVE of Make the Cut! Yesterday due to weather my plans were canceled........what to do with myself? So I hit a couple of big box stores and bought the gifts for the twins birthday. This close to Christmas it sneaks up on me every year........ Then I was totally wiped out but decided to push on and make them their cards. Surfed around Pinterest for awhile trying to get inspiration nada! So decided to go the lazy route...... I googled clipart of Mario for Eli. Imported quickly into MTC. and print and cut. Onto the sentiment....Back into MTC  I used chiller an already installed font...And printed it onto the cardstock. Added some dimensionals a bit of twine and a button and I have a card that I know Eli will like.

 Net up is  Emme.... hers had to sparkle.. found some scraps of glitter paper and decided an envelope full of butterflies. I just inherited a tiny butterfly punch so punched a bunch from the scraps.... Then back into MTC where I quickly found an envelope file in the gallery. Import, size, cut, fold, done.

  I know these are incredibly simple cards but they were made with love by a grandma that had a very busy week. I absolutely love that this program allows me to find inspiration quickly and results in a flash. During the holiday season we tend to get so busy I wanted to share that in just a few minutes you can create something personal that is made with love.

 Thanks for your time!
Have a very blessed holiday season.
Brenda
  

What fun!

  I have seen other peoples take on the "cake taker" they were all generic to sell. So I bought one today to take a stab at it myself. I decided to visit pinterest and saw several done for football teams...interesting that they were all SEC teams...just sayin'. So since one of our tailgating buddies had a birthday this week decided that I would try and make a birthday gift for her.

 What do you think? Cute!! I printed the Au on printable Square1 masterpiece. Love this stuff a safe PVC free alternative to vinyl and it prints and cuts like a dream! I think that I am quickly becoming addicted!
I think tomorrow I am going to get another cake taker for me!
Thank you for taking a moment to stop by.
Have a blessed day!
War Eagle!
Brenda

Square1 Holiday Showcase

  Today is the time to really check out what Square1 can do. the Creative Consultants have been busy making projects for you to see. The amount of talent and creativity in this group astounds me. So take a few minutes to sit back and hop along. Be prepared to get inspired. Then get busy playing with this wonderful versatile product!
  I hope this gets you ready to start working on a few Christmas projects today!
Have a most blessed day.
Brenda

Christmas Project Number 1

  While I am unemployed I am trying to find some ways to supplement our budget. I am exploring venues to sell my work and am having some success in that arena. Have even been asked to teach some classes. But also trying to revive the Christmas decorations that have really needed work for a few years without spending much money. This is the first project truly hoping that time will allow many more. This is an old window that I bought several years ago for another project that never got done.......so I drug it out and cleaned it up Add some vinyl, some square1 and a banner and now it is the focal point when you walk in my back door!! I think it delivers it's message.

This is actually the second  project this year. I did a wall tree for the wall behind our pool table that is just difficult to deal with. I think it is just plain fun. Can't wait for my grands to see it.

 Thank you for your time.
I hope that you all our preparing your hearts and homes for this most special season.
Brenda

I know lousy picture.....

  I have been debating whether or not to share this because I could not get a good picture of it before I gave it as a gift. This was a gift for my secret sister so there are no second chances until after I am revealed at Christmas. But I decided to share as this is one of my favorite projects EVER! I just love everything about it. This is my first ever floating frame (actually had not even seen one until I did this one) Here it is.

I got the pictures off of facebook of her granddaughter and backed them in vellum. Then a quick addition of vinyl and voila a one of a kind gift. The frame is one that is designed to frame an article it is a floating frame just different than the standard dimensions. They are cheaper than the others and I loved working with it. The big draw back is the simplicity of the actual frame but it suited my project perfectly.
  I would love to do one of these for everyone as it was such a fun project! I can't wait till Christmas to find out if she liked it!
  Thanks for stopping by.
I hope today finds you counting your blessings.
Brenda

Super quick project!

And super easy too. I decided to give this a shot with the  square one printable.

 I printed this on my standard inkjet printer. I have a Canon pixma and it prints beautifully. Then I cut it to fit my yucky plastic switchplate and wrapped the edges to secure. I sprayed it with clear acrylic sealer.....I tested it with a wet washcloth and it did not bleed at all.... Skyler and Neal will be the true test though. Then I  cut x's for the switches, used a  skewer to get the screws started and voila. I really like the way it came out. (I think I may paint the screws but have not decide what color yet...)And I can change with the seasons if I want and save this to reuse later. Repositional is truly an awesome product. I would love for you to try this simple project for yourself. Click on my affliate link and order you some of this infinitely versatile product. Then show me your masterpiece.

  Thanks for your time.
Have a blessed day!
Brenda

LOVE these so much!!

     I have just started to try and create some things with the wonderful product called Square1..... It is an alternative to vinyl that has NO PVCs!!!! Yep safe around your children and on tumblers! I love the versatility that the printable gives me. Anyway on to the project.
  A friend in a yahoo group just adopted a beautiful baby girl and she posted pictures of her with month stickers on. At month 4 that precious baby crumpled up her sticker. That picture got me thinking. These are going to be much harder to destroy and they are going to remain sticky for multiple times just in case the first attempt you do not get a wonderful picture and then it is totally safe to add it to the baby book or a scrapbook page and already sticky!  And I designed these for a friend that just had a boy last week. I can not wait to see them in a picture!

Thanks for looking at my work.I would love to hear what you think!
Have a ridiculously amazing day!
Brenda

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Mojo monday ..... once again

   I am in need of quite a few "Thinking of you" cards so immediately went to Mojo Monday for inspiration. I made 2 cards using this sketch and think I like it well enough to make a couple of more today. I always love their sketches! This is certainly no exception!
The awesome sketch

Here is one that I made today....

Thank you for taking a minute to stop by.
Hope today someone takes the time to make you feel special.
Brenda

Family vacation!

  Well, back to reality.... but wanted to get a start on the vacation scrapbook before the responsibilities demand my time. I am so bad to jump all over the place really want to get this one done quickly. I do not have all the pictures yet so starting with this one that I got from Ashlie's facebook page. Love that I can snag them there......
  I am using the October 18th sketch at My Scraps and More Sketches. That seems to be my go to recently for sketches. I absolutely love the design team inspiration and they usually get me going on a page quickly.
 So here it is the sketch

And my take.....

I used all papers from the EP A Perfect Summer collection by Lori Whitlock.
The circles are cut from some specialty paper that was given to me by a fellow scrapper way back when I first starting scrapping. I am working on my hoarding problem and trying to use the things I love even if it means they are no longer in my stash.
The big bubbles are just punched from acrylic and inked. Really liked how they came out.
The title was created in MTC.
  Thank you for stopping in to share my vacation with me.
Brenda

So very blessed

  I had to share a few of my favorite pictures from this incredibly amazing week.I can not believe that God has allowed us to have an entire week at this beautiful place. He graced us with perfect weather and beautiful views. There is no greater joy than watching my children enjoy each others company and the cousins draw closer. I am so thankful that we are making memories for a lifetime. As a parent there is nothing greater than seeing my family be able to enjoy time together.And to see my grandchildren to grow up in happy homes. So here are a few pics. I am sure that soon you will see many of them again as scrapbook pages.

I will not bore you with anymore right now.....but I will be sharing more from this amazing gift I was given.
Count your many blessings.
Brenda

Happy Halloween

  This card is for Eli. I am now done with all my Halloween cards! It has been a crazy couple of weeks and We are finally at Gulf Shores for family vacation. The house is quite..... yep insomnia and the Grandma,,,,,,,ugh,,,,,,, it is going to be a long week.....So thought while I had internet I would post this card. I am submitting it to the Creative Cutting Challenge. The challenge is pretty simple. Create a halloween card using a diecut that is cut using an svg. Love that!!!! Challenge closes October 19th.
 Here is my card

The monster is a Scrappydew file. The sentiment I created in MTC. 

 Thanks for taking the time to stop by.

 Hope you have a montrously wonderful day!
Brenda

A giveaway! And a baby shower!

Brandi at Lucky Flutterby Creations is doing a giveaway!   I do not often post giveaway on my blog but love the fact that she is going to customize the prize to reflect what you favorite thing to create is...is that not the best!So hop on over and get your name in the drawing!.


  While I have your attention I will throw in  a few things that I created for a fall baby shower. The banners.....

The diaper cake

I do not get all the credit for the diaper cake. Adrienne did all the real work of putting it together and she was the major creative genius behind it! Love having talent in the family!
and here is the card

Thanks for stopping by and please be sure to check out Brandis giveaway!
Brenda

I just love Mojo Monday!

  This seems to be the one card challenge that I come back to when I am trying to get my groove back...... something about Mojo Monday really does help me get my mojo back. This is yet another sympathy card. I lost a very dear friend tragically right before I left on my trip and never got a card made and out. I really want to let her children know what a blessing she was to our family. I just love this sketch.....I used a cut file that I have had forever (not even sure who's it is) but I will not be using it again just impossible to match up....ugh. That being said here is the sketch

And here is my card

Thank you so much for spending time with me.

I hope for you some therapeutic crafty time today!


Brenda

One dirty layout.

  A real quick post so that I can get this into the My Scraps & More Sketches challenge.This is for sketch#47. I am also going to enter this in the first challenge at Boy Meets Girl. The challenge is to scrap a boy and the layout has to be grungy or messy.
Here is the sketch

And here is my take

Thank you for stopping in to see my precious grandsons once again. They just make me happy.
Brenda

Well I did it......

   I am involved in a facebook group that is doing a project a day in October. Yesterday was a challenge for me so I decided to turn to  Pretty Pink Posh for the 10 minute craft dash. Unfortunately I did not pay close enough attention to the colors so I had a really pretty card planned out for when I got home from church. Opps checked the challenge again that is black not brown..... had to rethink...... so decided to do a super quick sparkly Halloween card. Yes it is tacky and over the top, perfect for a kid!!! (I hope)
  So here it is the color challenge

And I used the October sketch from Artful Delight.......

And here is my flashy take on both challenges....

 I did this in record time.... yep stickers are the best lol.......

That makes the time I actually worked on card 7 and a half minutes....I am glad that the picking the paper portion did not count since I had to do it twice.........

I am also entering this at Lets Get Sketchy . They are having a September week 5 challenge to do a fall or halloween card.

 This was a clean out project for sure. the papers are all from an old old stack that is still hanging around. All the embellies are things that I got in Micheal's grab bags. I do not do much with halloween so I had to dig deep....lol. I sure hope Olivia will like it.

Thanks for stopping by.
I hope that you are enjoying some wonderful autumn weather.
Brenda

A super quick layout!

  I am in a facebook group that is challenging us to do a project a day in October. We are sharing our projects but also adding links to challenges along the way. This one was posted this morning and the deadline is today!! It My Minds Eye September Sketch challenge. I have a ton of  the Ooh La La for her line that I have been hoarding...just love it! So decided to use some up.

This is my super quick take on the sketch.

I used all embellies from the line. It sure made for a super quick and  cute layout  Yes I am going to enter the challenge!
 Thank you for stopping by again!
Brenda

A Really Great Night!

  Sunday night was Ryan Snows Cd/ album release concert. What a fun night it was! I am going to digress a bit so feel free to skip. Gwen came up for the week end to go to the concert with me. The evening started with the headlights in my car baling on me... Ugh! That leaves me driving through Atlanta in someone elses car (at the same time as the Falcons fans) going somewhere I did not know. Some of you will understand that this was a bit stressful. But Gwen's calm guidance and a good gps got us there with time to spare. The concert was great and Adrienne looked fantastic as she "assisted" Ryan. Then it was time for the awesome after party. We all danced the night away and had a really amazing time. I am so blessed to be able to spend nights like that with my children and friends. Gwen had a much needed great night and I felt it needed to be documented. This picture was taken at the after party, I just love it!

    I used sketch #48 at My Scraps and More Sketches. Yes I am going to actually enter a challenge. It has been soooo long.

And here is my take.

I had fun with this one. The heart and diamond paper were left over from the "big shoe" project. the music was digi paper I already owned from Lane+May.

The crinkle paper ribbon at the top was something I had never done before and I LOVED working with it. That ribbon and the ribbon in the "flower" are both from The Papermart. I definitely want more of the paper ribbon. I bought both ribbons for Georgia wreaths so only got one color....sigh.

 I love the look of all the texture paste I see on layouts lately. I have none so yep google to the rescue. I used the recipe from Such a Pretty Mess. Really not sure of its longevity but had fun working with it. I cut a stencil in MTC. I am totally addicted!

 The title card is the Cd liner re sized.

  I am also going to submit this at Frosted Designs  the challenge was to add texture.


Thank you so much for stopping by and allowing me a minute to share my life with you.
Brenda

First layout from our trip

At the yahoo group Scrappin-n-chattin there is a 24 hour  sketch challenge. I have been so creatively challenged lately that I was determined to participate. This is the first picture that I have scrapped from Olivia's 12 year old trip. She has been talking about it since she was 6 and I can hardly believe that it is over. We had a wonderful time and really covered a lot of territory in a week. this picture was taken on the boardwalk in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. We walked down to the water after a very long day in DC.
Here is the sketch

This can be found at Sketch Savvy.
 And here is my take.

I used Simple Stories Summer Fresh collection. This is one of those rare layouts that I used the collection almost exclusively. Sure saves time!!!
I think it is a fun collection to document a fun trip.
Thank you for stopping by.
Have an amaing day!
Brenda

PAD in October

My friend Kim is hosting a  project a day challenge for October. This is just for fun so if you do not make all 30 it is okay, but I think it is going to be fun to try! It can be any kind of project you would like to share from a card to home decor. Yep, I am looking forward to many awesome projects shared! I will be gone for a week during October on family vacation so I am hoping to have some childrens projects to share!  Actually just crossing my fingers I will have enough energy to post at all lol. I am working on my list of projects I would like to make during October and adding in a some to make with the grands at the beach. (if anyone has any ideas for this part let me know, please!) Geez the list is long!
  We would love for you to join us. The more projects the better to be inspired! So come along and share what you are working on and maybe make some new friends in the process. Leave me a message with a way to contact you and I will get you all the details. She is hosting this through a private facebook page. Looking forward to seeing you there!
Counting down the days.
Brenda

Giveaway Winner!

  I used random number generator to choose a winner from the birthday bloghop honoring Danni last week. Thank you all for your sweet encouraging comments. I appreciate every one of them. But I can only choose one. Maybe I will just have to do another one very soon.
The prize is

The winner is

Congratulations Jean.
Thank you for stopping by.
Brenda