been busy

CHA really should not be right after the holidays! Do you think I could convince the Craft and Hobby Association to move the show to March? Jill and I have been working like crazy finishing the new collections and getting them ready for print. I can't wait to share.

Because I can't share any of the new designs, I will share some pages that I created for the blog this month!

 All of the pattern paper on this one is from Jillibean 6x6 paper pads! Those little pads come in handy for other projects than cards. The scale of the patterns are much smaller and look great when combined on pages.

Sweet 16 was created for the Jillibean and Petaloo blog hop.  I used our summer line Watermelon Gazpacho and lots of flowers to create this BOY page!

December PageMaps

The Jillibean Girls were invited by Becky Fleck to be a part of the December PageMaps! It was an honor for us all to be a part of Becky's fun. She creates amazing sketches that can really jump start your design when feeling a blank.
I was chosen to work with a 8.5x11 Horizontal Sketch


And this is what I came up with:

Lots of Watermelon Gazpacho Soup on this one! Be sure to check out this month's gallery and the PageMaps blog as well. Thanks Becky for having us!

Jillibean Projects!

Don't tell my boss...but I never shared my Jillibean Projects from October or November here on my blog!

I had fun making this card, trying something new. I took mini pop dots and crushed one exposed end into red flocking for the apples. I use thin micro dots from Plaid for all my projects. They are my favorite brand because they are thinner than most. Just the right amount of pop.

I made this card in about 5 minutes using the Sweet and Sour Pea Pod Parts (diecuts). Love them almost as much as I love Soup Labels!

Finally getting to scrap my end of school year photos. Ah Emmitt my cutie. Already in second grade.

Leftover photos from last Christmas. The entire family was ADDICTED to Just Dance. In fact, our extended family threatened not to come this year if we didn't agree to play something else!

Snow Days at Progressive Field last December. If you live in Cleveland, GO! It's really fun! And I am SO not an outdoor person in the Winter.

My father and Steve and their beloved Browns. Every season is the same, they never give up on their team.

If Max looks funny in this picture, it's because he was holding back tears. He helped coach Cooper's team last year. They lost their last bid in the tournament by one point. Max was so sad...the 8 year old boys were over it in about a minute.

I'll be back soon!!!

Holidays and Celebrations Winner!

I am very late on this one...been busy with CHA Winter products and holiday preparations.

The winner is....

3

Random numbers generated Nov 23 2011 at 22:7:29 by www.psychicscience.org
Free educational resources for parapsychology, psychical research & mind magic.

 April said...

This looks awesome! My favorite Holiday is Christmas. I love that feeling I get every year around Christmas time and that I get to spend time with all of my family. :)
- April W

April - send me your address so I can get your copy out to you ASAP!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Let's giveaway ANOTHER!

Sorry - my basement remodel got in the way of life yesterday! Happy to report that we are almost done! the carpet installers are on their way to my house as I type.

Let's announce the winner of the new CK Fabric & Notions Book first:

9 
Random numbers generated Nov 15 2011 at 7:46:42 by www.psychicscience.org  
Free educational resources for parapsychology, psychical research & mind magic.

 Marcie said...

Thanks for the giveaway! My favorite notion is ric-rac

Marcie - send your addy to lainalamb1@gmail.com so I can get your copy out to you!



Since we had so many great entries....let's giveaway another great CK book!!!

Scrapbooking Holidays & Celebrations goes on sale today!

Whether your holidays and celebrations are casual get-together or formal events, this special issue from Creating Keepsakes magazine is sure to be a trusted source of scrapbooking inspiration! The gallery of 50 outstanding ideas is a quick source of scrapliftable layouts, and you'll also discover ways to make your relationships shine on your scrapbook pages, photo-taking tips to catch meaningful moments and details of your celebrations, and journaling ideas to capture the points of view of your loved ones. Learn ways to create easy holiday accents and even ideas for storing your holiday-themed supplies. Pick up this issue today for non-stop scrapbooking inspiration for all your celebrations during the upcoming year! 

You can purchase the book here and see a special sneak peek here.

To win a copy for yourself, leave me a comment and let me know your favorite holiday or celebration below by midnight Sunday. I will announce the winner next Monday morning!

Oh yeah...my favorite celebration to document? HALLOWEEN!

Another CK Giveaway!

I'm back from a fantastic weekend spent cropping with friends and family. Trish from WIP Kits hosts the best crop each November at the Bertram Inn in Aurora , Ohio. I look forward to having three days to catch up on my pages and socialize with my gal pals.That's my mom and my friend Dawn (who I have been friends with since 9th grade!) in the bottom of the picture. I was able to put a huge dent in my Disney Vacation book. I got through our 2010 trip and started in on our 2011 visit as well. I was able to make 18 pages. I need to go back and add the journaling and then scan all the pages. I never journal at a crop...I'm too busy talking out loud!

How about a new book giveaway to get you started on your own projects? Scrapbooking with Notions by CK is hitting newsstands today.

Discover how to enhance your scrapbook layouts using buttons, fabric, thread, and other materials from the sewing world. From using quick, pre-made accent options to creating beautifully sewn backgrounds, we'll help you learn the ins and outs of adding homespun textures to your layouts with patterns, step-by-step instructions, and more. You won't want to miss this "sew" special issue from Creating Keepsakes.

My page "Well Dressed" includes crocheted trim and a title cut from a vintage sewing pattern. And yes, those are pictures are of me as a child. My mother made almost all of my clothes! Can you imagine doing that?

Here's a link to a special sneak peek  and you can purchase the issue online right here.


Thanks to the generosity of CK one lucky reader of my blog will also win a free copy of this book. Leave me a comment below and let me know what your favorite fabric notion is! Contest will be open until Sunday at midnight. I will announce the winner on Monday morning. Thanks for stopping by and Good Luck!

Hello beautiful.

Look what showed up in my temporary scrap room on Friday...


I am SO excited to use my new Cameo! Now if only I could find the time...too many fun Halloween activities and leaf raking got in the way this weekend. I'm off to a crop this upcoming weekend at the Bertram Inn with my mother and girlfriends so hopefully I will have time to play!

Craft Room Under Construction!

When we moved to our house in June 2006, I had just started scrapbooking. I created a craft space in the back corner of our basement. It wasn't fancy but it was efficient. I always hoped that someday we would be able to finish the basement for a rec room but even more importantly, a craft room and office for me.

Every time we would get close to starting my dream room, another house expense would pop up. Finally after five years of saving, we are officially under construction!!! The main room will be a rec room for the kids to entertain, watch movies and play video games.

A low wall will separate the two rooms. I wanted to leave it somewhat open so that I could keep an eye on them ;) and not feel like I was trapped in a little space. I did have to make the room slightly smaller to allow for the walls and cabinets. What I lost in square footage I have made up for in cabinets and organization! My contractor is making an office desk for me to hold my computers, cutters, printer and scanner. I will have an additional craft table in the middle of the room to create on. I am so excited for the project to be complete.

Sizzix Fresh Vintage Blog Hop!!!

Last month I was asked to contribute to the Sizzix Fresh Vintage and Epiphany Crafts Blog Hop! I was so excited to join the amazing group of crafters helping to promote Eileen Hull's new designs for Sizzix.



I was sent the Sizzix Bigz Leaves die to work with. I loved the shape of these leaves. They are the perfect size for pages and cards. After I cut my shapes with my BigShot, I added an embossed line down the center of each with my Scor-Pal Board. I then added texture to the leaves by fringing the edges with my Martha Stewart fringe scissors.

I made this page first...and liked how the leaves turned out so much that I went ahead and made a card too!

The page uses the Epiphany Crafts Round 22 and 14 Button Maker, the Card uses just the 22. The button maker was the perfect size to highlight my Jillibean Soup apple and date stickers.

Supply List:

Leaf Die - Sizzix

Epoxy Buttons and Button Maker- Epiphany Crafts

Fringe Scissors - Martha Stewart

Border Punch - Fiskars

Pop Dots

Jillibean Soup Supplies:

Apple Cheddar Soup (milk, sharp cheddar cheese, green peppercorns)

Homemade 6 Bean Soup (navy beans)

Christmas Eve Chowder (boiling water)

Dutch Mustard Soup (cornstarch, wholegrain mustard)

Apple Cheddar Soup Stickers and Diecut Shapes

Kraft Cardstock

Soup Labels (Apple Cheddar, Journaling)

Corrugated Alphas Rockin' Red

Stained Canvas Chipboard Letters

Bakers Twine Red/Brown

Sugar Picks Red/Brown

Thanks so much for stopping by! If you would like to see more great projects made with the Sizzix Bigz Leaf Die, simply click on the blinkie on the right column of this blog.

Bella Buzz

Have you read the latest issue of the Bella Buzz? Stephanie and Laura put together and amazing issue packed with great ideas using Bella Products. I had the distinct honor of having one of my pages included in this issue. Click on this link to sign up for future issues. Thanks to Stephanie and Laura for including me!

Zombies

This Halloween season, my boys are CRAZY about zombies! No more cute pirates or clown costumes picked by mom. Nope, this year we are going for death and decay.

Our local library is great. I am in there at least once a week picking up books and videos for the family. Through their network, I can borrow materials from universities all over Ohio. It really helps when I am working on a project and need materials not always available at a branch location.They have great children's programs to. Last week Cooper got to attend a 2 hour Lego Mindstorms Robotic event. He and the other children got to build and program a robot. He loved it and is now begging for the very expensive kit for Christmas.

Last Saturday the library hosted a "Zombie Party" to kick off the Halloween season. They had games, activities and a professional make-up artist to turn the kids into Zombies. My boys LOVED it.

Here's the quick page I made using photos from the party. I used my Epiphany Round 14 tool to make the buttons for the big Z in Zombie!

New Diecuts!

It has been a lllooonggg time since I released new any new Digital Die Cut kits at Two Peas. Way too many pots were stirring in the kitchen at once lol. Well, the wait is over and I am back with even better than before ideas.

I am proud to announce that I will be co-branding some of new die cuts with the super talented Kimber McGray! Kimber is a Garden Girl and is one of the best card makers I know. She has great ideas for cards and I am so excited to have her helping me come up with new kits. Make sure to stop by her blog or gallery at Two Peas for some great inspiration! Our first two kits called Oh Baby are up at the store!

I also released a few other kits last week. I am trying to focus on cardmaking as well as scrapbooking. If you have any ideas for kits, please let me know!

More Scrapfest Photos and Homecoming

Jill posted more photos from Scrapfest today on the Jillibean Blog! Head on over to see all the fun we had. Yes, I do realize what a GREAT job I have. :)

On another note...this was in our local paper yesterday. Someone spotted my son Max's dance proposal to Megan. Pretty cute, huh?

The Paper Bakery!

I had the honor of being the Guest Designer at the Paper Bakery this month! Sarah puts together amazingly cute project kits that can be used for a variety of crafts. I was able to make 4 different projects and even had quite a few leftovers! Head on over to see my mini album, cards and even a layout. Thank you Sarah for having me!

Scrapfest

I got back late last night from Scrapfest. What a whirlwind weekend! It was my first time visiting the Mall of America. The mall was huge! I didn't realize that the amusement park inside was now a Nickelodeon Universe. My boys would have loved it!

Jill and I each taught a class all three days. In my class, Darling Dots, we made a 12x12 celebration page using Spotted Owl Soup plus two Birthday cards using leftover scraps. We had tons of fun and hopefully our students did too. We went out to dinner on Friday night with the Bella Blvd. team. The Twin City Grill at MOA is a very good restaurant if you ever visit. Stephanie, Morgan and Katherine were so fun to hang out with. On Saturday night we hosted a crop at the Woodbury Archiver's where we also met some really nice scrapbookers and hopefully new fans of Jillibean Soup!

I had a really good time and realized how much I had missed teaching. Hopefully I will get back on board and start teaching again soon.

I had to pack light and didn't bring my camera. Now I wished I would have. I met so many new people and ran into a lot of old friends. I got to hang out with Jing-Jing for a short time while she was on a short break from the Graphic 45 booth. The Studio Calico girls were demoing Mister Huey's at the Archiver's MOA store. Everytime I saw them, they looked like they were having TOO much fun. Jill and I ran into Kelly Goree while we were there as well.

The trip ended with Jill dropping my off at the airport. She drove up there with all the kits and supplies while this princess got to fly - lol! I realized earlier that Nicole Harper and I were on the same flight home but when boarding we found out we were seated right next to each other! We talked "scrap" the whole way home which made the trip even quicker.

Free Journaling Spots

I had the honor of being a guest Blogger at Scrapbook and Cards Today this week. On Monday I shared my favorite tips and tricks for Handwriting your Journaling on your Scrapbook pages and projects. Today I shared a free download of printable journaling spots!

Head on over to the Scrapbook and Cards Today Blog to download your free PDF!

Scrapfest

I'm heading out to Scrapfest at Mall of America later this week to teach a Jillibean class. Jill is teaching a card class and we both will hosting a crop too! Are you going too?

Here is a new layout using Sweet and Sour Soup, my most favorite Jillibean collection to date!

Cards on Monday!

I'm on my second cup of coffee this morning...Crazy week and weekend. My middle child Cooper had an accident that required 5 stitches in his ankle and then the youngest Emmitt caught a stomach virus. I've been nursing kids for the last 6 days straight. I have forbidden Max from being sick or injured this week. No one is allowed to stay home from school!

I have a card and these quick bookmarks up on the Jillibean Blog today. Head on over to see some other great cards too!

Funny but True!

I saw this today at the Design Bureau of America. It made me laugh since this is how I feel most days. Expect for the quitting part! You would have to add in being a mom with three kids and a husband so the poster would be twice as long!

I bought an iPad last week which should be followed by the fact that I did NOTHING all weekend but play with it in my free time. It's like a Nintendo DS for adults. I absolutely love it. My kids got me hooked into Plants versus Zombies. Warning  - Highly addicting, mind numbing game. I download books, music and can even look at the Ikea catalog on it. If you have any favorite apps, hook me up and leave me a comment below!