Jennifer McGuire, ink.

Links, links and more links... and enabling...

(Before I start, I wanted to send out a message to Marinanne Gonzales.  Marianne, if you could please email me again with your address, I would appreciate it.  I deleted it by accident.  Sorry and thanks!)

Hey!

Today I am sharing a bunch of cool links. And a bit of enabling, too. :)

We should start with the enabling, huh?  Well, I found some realllllly cool foam pop dots.  You know how much I loved them - I can't create without 'em.  Recently I tried a really inexpensive kind from scrapbookbakery.com and I fell in love.  Woohoo!  They are a good size and price.  Can't beat that, huh?  You can find them HERE.  She also has my favorite adhesive now, too... HERE and HERE. 

Speaking of Scrapbook Bakery, I know a few people were interested in the great Mistletoe Memories kit that they donated for the Card Drive.  Well, she put together a few more of the kits and they now are available HERE.  Thanks, Heather!  Oh, and if you are local to Cincinnati, email Heather first via her site and she will always give you free shipping!

Oh, and I just noticed there is a great new kit with guest designer Laura Vegas up at Scrapbook Bakery HERE.  I am off to buy it...

OK.  Enough enabling for today. Now on to some great links...

Thank you for sharing with me your favorite blogs!  I thought I would pull a few of them together here in case they are new for others.  (BTW, you still have time to tell me your fave blog for a chance to win a Studio Calico kit HERE!)

Here they are... (Click on the names to be linked to their blog.)

Ali Edwards
Ah, yes... everyone knows of Ali's incredible blog. And I can honesty say that she is even cooler in real life.  I remember when she was a student in the back of my class at CKU Vancouver many years ago.  She took the class project and reworked it in her own way.  And I can tell ya - it looked a heck of a lot better than the layout I had planned!  We had such fun that weekend - she is a good egg.  (My grandpa used to call good people that - does anyone else say that?)

Debbie Olsen
Oh my.  This girl has got to be the most talented cardmaking stamper on the planet.  If you haven't seen her site, you must.  Wowsers.  Her cards are like little masterpieces.  It is a fave of mine, too.

Nichole Heady
Nichol is a class act.  Her blog is classy.  Her cards are classy.  Her products (Papertrey Ink) are classy. And, when I met her recently, I am happy to say she is classy too. :)  I admire her work and her so much.  I look forward to buying some of her stamps soon to play with here!

Hero Arts Blog
So many of you mentioned this place.  I hope you all visit this coming week especially... hint hint. :)

Cathy Zielske
This girl is good for the soul.  Her blog makes me belly laugh.  I can't thank her enough for making me smile so very often.  I really like Cathy.  Such a good person... and so very talented.

Jamie Waters
I am so glad many of you have been to her blog.  There is this amazing sweetness about her.  Her family, her work, her writing... all are sweet.  God was in a very good mood when he created Jamie. :)  Oh, and her little Elsie and my little Colin would look oh-so-cute together.  Hee.

Tim Holtz
We all know he is talented.  Uber-talented.  But what is even better is that he is simply a good guy.  I really enjoy him as a person, and his blog is awesome.

Sasha Farina
This one was new to me and I am so glad a few of you recommended it.  Wow... Sasha is super talented and fabulous with the details.  

Donna Downey
She is just as funny in real life.  And, boy, is she talented...

Kristina Werner
I am so glad that many of you mentioned her site.  I remember seeing this one some time ago... and I will now be remembering to visit often.  I can't decide which is more adorable - her or her cards.  And her videos rock.  She has got to be one of the most talented people I have seen in the industry.  So many of you mentioned her!

Stephanie Howell
This girl defines talent.  And she is so very kind.  I admire her in many ways.

Michelle from Purple Onion Designs
Although I already loved Michelle and her stamps, I am new to her blog. I can see why so many of you like it.  Her cards are refreshing and fun.

cardoftheweek.com
I am new to this one, too.  Can't wait to go back and spend lots of time checking it out.  Looks incredible!

Christine Middlecamp
Another new one for me.  Looks amazing!  Many of you mentioned this one.

Becca Feeken
Another one many mentioned that is new to me.  I love what she does with the Cuttlebug and Christian greetings.  So pretty.

Lauren Meader
Glad you all pointed out this one, too.  I can see myself spending hours looking at her creations.  Wow.

Heather Meeson
Oh my.  This is one incredible blog.  You must check it out.  Her creations are pure eye-candy. 

Jen D
This sweet girl pointed out that last blog to me (thanks!) and I checked out hers.  It is great.  Her cards are priceless.

Many of you also mentioned the blogs of my sweet friends, Nichol Magouirk and Jana Millen.  They are faves of mine, too.

Ok... I think I have procrastinated enough. :) My husband and I are watching Signs.  But I have seen it and remember it is pretty freaky, so I think I am going to head up to bed.  Movies don't usually shake me, but this one did!

Night...

How-To Video: Watercoloring with Ink

Hey!

Got a video for you!  It is very stamping-oriented - hope that is ok.  A more scrapbooking-oriented video will be coming soon.

I did this video long ago to go with a card I put on the Hero Arts blog.  Here it is...

(c) Hero Arts Blog. Supplies can be found HERE.

Spending some time looking at the blogs you all mentioned.  Thanks for the links!  I will post some of them next week for everyone to see.  Thanks!  

Good night...

Happy Friday... and a giveaway...

I love Fridays.  It means that the next two days I get my husband home all day.  And this weekend?  Three days!  Woohoo.  I was he was home all the time.

Anyway... the folks at Studio Calico are so nice that they said I could give a Sophia Add-On Kit away here on my blog!  (That was the one I ordered for myself after seeing it!)  Thanks, SC!  So, just leave a comment here sharing your favorite scrapbooking/stamping blog by Monday (9/1) at 11:59pmEDT and I will pick a winner of the kit.  (Edited to add: Don't say this is your favorite blog, you dorks!  Hee... tell me about another one. :) Here's the kit from Studio Calico:

And... since so many people are interested in good ol' Roxie, I thought I would share a page that was just in a recent Creating Keepsakes with her.  Just a chipboard background painted to be all the same color.  Used my favorite photos of her.

(c) Creating Keepsakes Magazine, October 2008 issue

Speaking of Roxie... she is begging to be fed.  Gotta run!  Oh... is anyone else just struggling to make it until new seasons of our favorite shows start?!?!  It is killing me! ;)

Now THAT was fun...

Howdy!

So... apparently there are a lot of scrapbooking kit clubs out there, huh?  Wow!  I was clueless.  I normally don't get to take the time to play as a designer for these... just hard to work in.  I was able to once for Scrapbook Bakery, which is owned by a local and kind gal, Heather Ruwe.  Well, at a CHA show long ago, I met this wonderfully sweet gal named April.  We talked about how cool the University of Kentucky is and I quickly liked her.  So, when she asked me to guest design for her site, Studio Calico, I had to say yes.  I told her I needed to wait several months for things to settle down (ha - someday it will) and I am glad I waited.  Why?  Because the kit I got to use had October Afternoon papers, American Crafts goodies AND vintage text book paper in it.  That, my friends, is heaven for me. :)

Oh... and one more reason this kit is heavenly: it includes a Studio Calico stamp.  A stamp.  A stamp!  Woohoo!  I LOVE that.  So fun.  I like that they offer add-on kits, too.  I am going straight over there to purchase extras.  Here is the info...

Here are the projects I came up with.  On this one, I changed the yellow embellishments and the letter thickers to black with a permanent marker.

All supplies from Studio Calico's September Kit.

I love that October Afternoon paper.  Yummmmmm.

This layout was done with thin strips... just like in my last video.  A simple one to hang on my wall.  (I have used this picture before but I love it.)

All supplies from Studio Calico's September Kit.

The colors in this kit remind me of the colors currently at Pottery Barn. So cool.

See the bottom of this layout below?  That green on green is one of the stamps.  It is in the Sophia add-on. Love it.

Oh, and I just got a couple emails this week asking about Roxie.  Yes, we still have her and love her more than ever.  She is so good to Colin - just lets him climb all over her.  I just am scrapbooking Colin a lot lately so that I can catch him up to the rest of the family.  Since I don't scrap as much anymore, I gotta get moving!  :) But here are the buddies...

All supplies from Studio Calico's September Kit.

Now, you gotta check this out.  Look at that stamped background on this card. It is the coolest number stamp that comes in the Marilyn add-on kit.  This stamp has earned a permanent place on my counter.  It now resides with my handful of must-keep-these-within-quick-reach-at-all-times-because-it-is-so-fab stamps.  I just stamped it repeatedly on the background.

All supplies from Studio Calico's September Kit.

Whew... that was fun.  Be sure to go look at the gallery over there - they have some great designers who do some great work.  Thanks, April!

OK... off to finish up a great book: Tell No One by Harlen Coben.  I haven't taken the time to read a book since our vacation in January to a secluded island. :)  I figured it was time - and boy!  This is a good one.  I recommend it.  Thanks for stopping by.

Old layouts by request... and a giveaway link

Hey!

I have gotten a few emails about a couple pregnancy layouts I did long ago.  Thought I would share them here.  I do have a video coming soon, but have to get some work done today.

On this one, I hand-drew and hand-cut all those designs.  What was I thinking?  Crazy me. :)  I would SO die cut them now! :)

(c) Creating Keepsakes magazine

I loved being pregnant.  I loved loved loved it.  Every twisted, strange, miraculous moment of it. :)  I would be pregnant all the time... if it didn't result in another child each time.  Ha!  It will be a long time before we have another, but I sure do miss being prego.

(c) Creating Keepsakes magazine

And... I know of a giveaway you may be interested in.  My dear friend, Jana, has a wonderfully cool sister named Julie.  And, since Jana and I are like sisters, Julie is a sister of mine, too.  Anyway... Julie just became the owner of a store in Michigan.  To celebrate, Jana has a giveaway on her blog HERE.  Julie... I am very proud of you!

More later...

Adhesive...

I have had questions about other places to get adhesive.  Stampin' Treasures (who carries all Hero Arts and more) now has the dispenser HERE and the refills HERE.  Prayers answered... I always hoped more stores would carry this fab stuff!

A few things to share...

Hi!

Just a few more random things.  I am random a lot, aren't I?  Ha... sorry!

First: a cool link.  Lisa Spangler has a great video on the Hero Blog today.  Go HERE to see it.  Love her projects.  Way to go, Lisa!

Second: a FAQ.  I have had a lot of people ask about what trimmer I use.  I mostly reach for THIS one from Fiskars.  It is just quick and easy to use and the Triple Track blade system is pretty straight.  It comes in several colors, but I like the red. :)  Important: make sure you get the orange Triple Track refill blades for it.  I also have their rotary one that I use for kitting (bulk cutting), but I prefer this one for regular use.

Third: A lot of people have asked how I create small photos.  I finally have figured out how to share this with you in a video.  It will be coming soon (and finally).  :)

Fourth: A card share.  Pretty straight forward.

Supplies:
Hero Arts stamps (greeting and other) and notecards and gems
Colorbox/Hero Arts Chalk Ink
McGill label punch
Creative Impressions ribbon
Prismacolored pencils and gamsol
String

That's it for now.  Have a good day.

How-To Video: Using the Quickutz Revolution (and a lot more...)

Good evening.

Quick note before the video: I have a new email address.  It is over there on the sidebar.  So if any of you have me saved in your addy book, please swap it out.  Thanks!  (I love Mac's MobileMe!)

I have a great link for you.  Check out THIS Color Challenge Blog.  It is a fabulous blog with fabulous inspiration.  I am one of those that isn't really good with color.  It is one of my biggest challenges.  So, finding a site like this is good for me.  Lots of good ideas!  I was happy to create a project for them this week, and I have the video for it here.

This video shows a lot of fun things to do with the Quickutz Revolution.  I love this baby.  He sits proudly next to my Cuttlebug.  They make a sweet couple. :)  There are several other tips, including using thin scraps and masking.  Enjoy...

  

Supplies:
Quickutz Revolution and Circle Dies
Scrap patterned paper (that green Scenic Route is my favorite)
Hero Arts gems
American Crafts letter stickers
Fiskars star punch
Tim Holtz Distress Ink
Ranger Inking Tool
A boy with many cheeseball expressions

Let me know if you have questions.  Have a good night...

My addiction to clear cards continues...

Hey!

Just got back from a date with my hubby (thanks mom and dad!) and we are watching the Olympics closing ceremony.  I have to admit, I haven't watched as much of the Olympics as I have in the past.  I just get so sad when people lose - it bums me out.  Weird.  Anyway...

How about a card share?  :)  This was from my Stampaway class.  Nothing new, but rather a few of my favorite techniques combined together.  For tips on stamping with white on clear, watch THIS video.  For coloring dimension on the butterfly, watch THIS.  I am still very addicted to clear cards...

Supplies:
Hero Arts stamps (circles, butterfly, greeting)
Hero Arts Clear Notecard
White Staz-On Ink
Ranger White Pen (butterfly trail)
EK Success punches

By the way, this uses my favorite white pen.  I finally found one I like... even better than the famous Signo.  It is the Ranger White Inkssentials pen HERE.  This one doesn't stop working mid-writing.  A good trick - if you write slowly, it looks even better.  I love this pen!

OK... off to snuggle in for a bit of lazy time. :)  Night!

Time to share again...

Hi!

First - quick - there are still a few winners I haven't heard from for the Card Drive.  Please email me when you get a chance so I can mail you your goodies!
           
            Crystal Krueger (CANADA)
            Marti Cirillo (MD)
            Marianne Gonzales

OK... time for some quick shares.  I have been doing videos most of the day, so those will be coming up soon.  But for now I have a few other things. 

This was a page I did for lisabearnson.com several months ago.  This was a fun foam stamp kit - you can see it HERE.  Ooo!  Looks like you can buy this again on pre-order.  (I have a set I don't need - email me if you are interested.)

(c) lisabearnson.com

Oh, and some cards to go with it...

(c) lisabearnson.com

(c) lisabearnson.com

(c) lisabearnson.com

(c) lisabearnson.com

I really recommend you go check out the idea gallery for each month.  These kits are really good.

OK... off to edit more video and watch Juno.  That movie has some great one-liners that make me laugh.  The music is fun, too.