Lawnscaping Challenge: Let's Party It's Our Birthday!

Lawnscaping Challenge #66

Halloween is definitely one of my favorite holidays. Pair that with my favorite color (purple) and that's a recipe for a super fun Lawnscaping Challenge for me. =)

Hope everyone is having a good week so far. Happy crafting!

xoxo

Lawnscaping Challenge No. 64

My entry for this Lawnscaping Challenge, using Distress Inks! I used Ripe Persimmon distress ink, Plus One and Harold's ABC's stamp set, Lawn Fawn's heart dies, SC background stamp, and SC background paper. Thank you so much for visiting, have an amazing day. <3

After a bazillion years. . . Project life Post #1

I'm back with a blog post! this one will be photo heavy as I'm posting what I have completed of Project Life so far. I'm using a Studio Calico Handbook, SC scrapbook kits and lots of Papertrey Ink supplies. 

**Notice: I have occasionally used explicit language throughout my scrapbooking and therefore will appear in these photos. Not really too bad, but I am giving fair warning anyways.

I primarily scrapbook project life on a monthly/event-based basis. If I take photos I scrapbook them, if I don't I might journal. I have a very laid-back approach to it. ;)

These first pages are of January this year, when my boyfriend DJ took my best friend Dana, Chris and I to a Japanese Teppanyaki restaurant in Flagstaff, a city that is roughly a 1.5 to 2 hour drive away from us.

 Since Project life is currently my main form of scrapbooking, I'm finding myself in a rut of way over-embellishing. When I first noticed it I was frustrated, but I realized that the enjoyment I had during the process outweighed my concerns about the pages looking congested. 

The fire show and food preparation was amazing, but the food was equally so. I had Mahi-mahi for the first time at Sakura, and egads, it is so delicious!!!

 

Thank you so much for looking! More to come, have a safe Memorial Day everyone. 

Hugs, Megan 

PTI 6 year Anniversary Project #1

Hello everyone! I have been pretty busy this week but I managed to create my first project for the PTI anniversary release. Last year I felt so behind and I really only participate in one contest. Hopefully I can stay ahead of the game this year. ;)

 I absolutely loooove Melissa's style, and I had pulled all of the supplies out to create a card inspired by her star jar card on the bottom left. However, the person I made this card for is turning 13 (my niece) and I ended up taking a much more clean-lined and graphic style of approach. So although my card probably looks light-years away from the inspiration card, I can promise that it started the spark in true crafter's fashion.

A big mix of PTI (oh but of course, haha), Technique Tuesday, Basic Grey, Studio Calico and American Crafts products. I am finding that the SC kits are helping me branch out of 'staying to one brand'. Don't get me wrong, PTI is still definitely my favorite stamping company, it's just nice to know that I am able to creatively mix and match more.

 

I can definitely see the influence that my Project Life album is having on my cardmaking style. I definitely like it! let's see where it takes me, shall we? ;)

Hoping that everyone is having a great time enjoying all of the anniversary festivities! There's a party goin' on ya'll!

xoxo

BACraftygirl's Valentine's challenge

So I have been wanting to get the crafty juices flowing, and after I watched this video by BACraftygirl, a youtube channel I love to watch. She does lots of PTI hauls and this month she is sponsoring an inspiring contest.

The main goals of the contest are to make:

1. a valentine treat holder

2. use two or more stamps

3. use NO red or pink

"Hmmmmmm!" I thought to myself as I rubbed my chin in contemplation at this challenge. Valentine's is one of my favorite holidays (any time of year I can get especially giddy over my beloved bf I am a happy camper); and purple, a color that I adore but strangely don't use very much, would be a perfect element to add to this project.

I loved getting a change to break out my new PTI goodies, and utilize some older supplies too! This treat box is a lot of fun to put together. I typically don't like to use ribbon, and I don't have much PTI ribbon, but as it just so happens, I had some plum pudding saddlestitch,

I got a bug up my butt one day to make my own dangly-charms, because all of the others I had found shopping online were either not quite what I wanted, or rather too expensive. The Tim Holtz tiny paperclip holds it quite well!

Happy crafting! I hope everyone is having a great day to start off their week. xoxo

PTI Make It Monday #98

Howdy doody!! I couldn't resist trying out Betsy's chalkboard technique this week. I didn't really expect to have a finished card at the end of my crafty session, but I am excited to show the end result!

 My white gel pen got really gunky while trying to create the border. But I have tried to craft by one of Melissa Phillips' mantras: "the less perfect, the more homey it feels". Having always adored her style so much, I can definitely take her outlook to heart.

I wanted to mimic the look of a coffee shop sign that I often see on the sidewalks in my town's historic district. I have wanted to use this mug from Candy Cane Christmas forever, haha. 

I'm hoping everyone's New Year is starting out wonderfully. I can hardly believe it's already here! It'll take me months to get used to writing out "2013". Sheesh.

Happy crafting everyone! xoxoxo

Secret Santa #2 - Stay Cool Candle

 

So I'm definitely a bit behind in the Secret Santa gift giving because I don't work during a portion of the week and the event started this monday--but that gives me time to get crafty and put a special touch on the goodies I plan to give my coworker! ;D

 The tricky thing about shopping for smelly stuff is that not everyone likes strong smells. So unless you know the recipient likes smelly stuff, it's a bit of a gamble. I lost the list of things that my coworker likes (go figure, haha). But I do know it said she likes chocolate and "oh, anything!". Hahahah. So I figure even if this Winter scented candle is too strong of a smell for her to burn, it'll still make a very cute accent for her desk at work. Plus, it jingles! What's not to love about goodies that jingle? =)

 I both tied and hot-glued the bow in place around the candle so that if she does decide to light it, the hot glue won't melt and allow the bow to fall off. That would be a whee bit embarrassing.

I'm off to go spend the rest of my day off with my love-muffin (aka boyfriend) and play video games. Happy crafting everyone! xoxo

Make it Monday #94 - Glitter Detail

Hello everyone! Hope that the holiday season is starting out wonderfully for everyone. Work has been increasingly hectic lately (I work thurs-sun as a home health nurse) which tends to drain me quite a bit. On the flip side, I'm participating as a Secret Santa for work, and the coworker I am secret santa-ing for is a amazing and very nice woman. So needless to say, I am super excited to put together some crafty goodies that she'll really get a kick out of (I plan to spoil her just a whee bit! ^_~).

Favor it Box #8 is the first of the favor it boxes I've purchased, and it is soooo much fun! It's a little bit cumbersome how much space on the paper the tail die cuts take up, so it's a necessity to start with a fresh sheet of paper for each die cut. But other than that, it came together so quickly and the end result is pretty exciting. :D

 I finally. . . FINALLY bought the Friendship Jar set from PTI, as well as the Holiday Fillers. This family of stamps has been making its way and and out of my shopping cart for months now, always deleted in favor of something from the new release. Now that I have it though, I am SO glad I bought it! The sentiments, the homespun feel of it all--le sigh--I adore it. So excited. I definitely plan on getting the rest of the serious. Mmmhmm.

  

The way that this project involves this MIM strategy is that the glittered lace die strip is more of an accent or detail, just as Erin had described in her video. For me, I usually have glitter take front and center stage ('cuz it's gorge!) But I placed the strip in a way that it adds that extra pop, but is a supporting detail. 

Have a great week everyone! Go grab some eggnog or hot cocoa and ring in the season! =)

Make It Monday #90

I always enjoy incorporating challenges into cards that I need to make. It makes for a much easier springboard for the card layout and theme. I would have preferred to piece together the letters for happy rather than use the premade one, (I felt like that would have been a bit more true to the challenge) but it would have been too tedious to align and place with the foam tape with the time I had available to craft.

 

 A card for my Mom, who's birthday is on the 15th, just 11 days after mine. I just love dimension, texture and trinkets on cards. I think these three elements are what define my style, something I've been trying to figure out for about a year now (finally, sheesh!! haha)

Happy crafting everyone!

Boo to you!

Some little trinkets for co-workers and friends. I haven't decided if I will be putting a treat into the 2nd pocket or not. We'll see! I love Halloween. ;)

Papertreyink October Blog Hop

 Goodmorning everyone! Just a quick blog post for my submission into this month's blog hop. 

The layout was inspired by one of Melissa Phillips' challenges on the PTI forums: Share Your Chevron. =)

Have a great day everyone!

I'm still here, haha!

Sorry for the long break, peeps! I have been spending my time finishing up Nursing School, and graduated on May 12th. I hope to take my boards soon in June/July. =) Craftywise I have been playing with Project Life and lovin' every minute of it! I will attempt to take some pictures soon; the glare from the page protectors is killer.

In the meantime, I have two cards to show today. May is the beginning of the "Birthday Season" in our family, so I will definitely be cranking out a few of those soon. Here is the first one, for my fiance, who is turning 26 tomorrow:

I CASE'd Michelle Wooderson's technique using a blank Project Life journaling card for the focal point, as well as the use of a Kelley Purkey PL frame stamp. I love the font that "birthday" is in from Think Big Favorites #12.



This next card (for my Father-in-Law's birthday on the 28th) I will probably use for the May Blog Hop, as it uses the color scheme and some of the patterns:

I loooooove how the stamping turned out! And the use of the numbers and stars really help with a fun, masculine feel. The pull tab is from the Movers and Shakers: Sliders dies, and reveals the phrase "it's a matter of making years count" stamped with a Simply Chartreuse star from Star Prints.

Anywho, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Thank you for stoppin' by. =)

Hugs,

Megan

Quick post. . .

I haven't abandoned my blog, I've just been super busy with finals! Sorry everyone. <3 I really appreciate each and every comment or view I receive though. Here it a quick post for you guys. Have an amazing day!

Hugs,

Megan

Make it Monday #52

Geeeewwwwd evening! the festivities are underway over at Papertrey Ink for their 5 year anniversary. I had a chance to incorporate a requested card with this week's Make It Monday: Double Sided Stamped Die Cuts.

I won't go too much into the details because I have to study for another exam tomorrow, but I had a ton of fun with this technique, and it can be as subtle or as striking as you make it. Enjoy your week and hope to see ya too!

Hugs!! =)

Megan

all you need is love! =)

Goodmorning! I just finished up another anniversary card that my family requested:

I feel like this is a very Dawn McVey type of layout (which is awesome because I love her style!) and I just loooooooove the fancy flourishes dies! I think, aside from Berry Sorbet, Autumn Rose is now my favorite pink-y color. I love the look of Rasberry Fizz and Hibiscus Burst, etc, but I just don't find myself reaching for them while creating. I used the woodgrain impression plate on the white card base, but it's a bit hard to see.

I have one more anniversary card left to make, so I think I'll try my hand on this week's MIM with Nicole! =) But for now, I'm off to study for a test I have on thursday. Have a wonderful day peeps! Happy crafting.

Huggles,

Megan

Supplies:
Stamps: PTI Tag-It's #11, Fancy Flourishes, Sheet Music.
Dies: Tag Sale #5, Fancy Flourishes, Limitless Layers 1-3/4", Heart Border
Inks: Autumn Rose, Colorbox Frost White, Dark Chocolate, Classic Kraft
Topnotch Twill ribbon in Classic Kraft, Aqua Mist and Classic Kraft buttons, Mediterranean Twinery Twine, Woodgrain IP

Do-Overs!

Having missed PTI's blog hop on the 25th, I was super excited to see Amber's Do-Over Blog Hop was still open! her work is truly gooooorrrggeeeoouuusss and ingenious to boot. I can relate to how she feels about being competitive with crafting; but what it really comes down to is just showing off what you created while doing something you love. =)

I am incredibly embarrassed to show my project, but I remember it was created with good intentions! hahaha. The colors, smudging, and layout just now make me go 'ugh!'. But thanks to Amber, I can redeem myself a whee bit. :D

I carried over the use of Fancy Flourishes, as well as the generalized layout (sentiment on the left, image focus on the right, etc). And I am SUPER excited to show it off! I just love these stamps so much!

Don't forget to check out the other awesome projects submitted at Amber's Blog! Happy Weekend and Happy Crafting! =)

Luvvles,

Megan


Supplizles (for the do-over):
Cardstock: Rustic White, Soft Stone, Spring Moss, Aqua Mist
Stamps: Fancy Flourishes, Simply Jane, Happy Day, Rosie Posie
Inks: Aqua Mist, Dark Chocolate, Classic Kraft
Honeydew Twinery Twine, Classic Kraft button

New Stamps!

Hello! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! ours was very fun and heartwarming. I think most of my family went a little past our budgets for our chosen gift-recipients (we drew names), but we are all a little better of financially than we were last year so it wasn't too bad.

Here I have a card made with the oh-so stunning stamp set from PTI called Rosie Posie. Oh, where has this stamp set been all my life?? I purposefully strayed away from the other PTI flower sets because they didn't speak to me as much as this one has. It's so wonderfully graphic and versatile!!

This card is very much inspired by Nicole Heady's design:

I'm surprisingly happy with the way the Ad Sense sentiment worked with the background (at first I didn't think it would look all that stellar). I stamped the flower and leaf images in CTMH Petal and Pansy Purple inks, and PTI Canyon Clay and Autumn Rose inks. Lastly I heat embossed the hexagon background with clear powder for a bit of texture.

I felt like the Happy Day sentiment frame became a little 'lost' against the very vibrant and busy background, but I didn't want to cover up a good portion of the background with cardstock. I think the vellum matting sets of the frame just enough without hiding my handiwork.

This recent monthly stamp release from PTI is the first where I was chomping at the bit to order. I was actually poised and ready at my computer watching the clock! I picked up the filigree border die on a whim, but I am super stoked that I did; I love the unique and delicate touch it adds without being too feminine.

I'm off to go tweak the cart of my next purchase! I gotta get ready for the upcoming Online Card Class! :D

Take care peeps!!

-Megan

Christmas Tag with Ribbon Pleating

Herro again! I made it back in time to submit a tag for this week's Make it Monday Challenge at PTI. Since this is a tag, I believe I can enter it into the Simon Says Stamp Challenge as well! I'm only double-dipping, is that okay? hahah. ^_~

I definitely see myself using this card on one of Momma O's (mom-in-law) Christmas presents. I hope to kind of go crazy with crafty wrapping embellishments this year, from giant bows to specially-wrapped stocking stuffers!

The sentiment isn't as clear as I'd like, but I think it's still readable. I used Stylish Sentiments: Holiday, Half and Half (one of the dies as well), damask snowflakes with vintage cream felt, Seedless Preserves Distress Ink, Perfect Pearls Mists, and Stone twine from the Twinery.

And of course I had to top it off with some adorable jingle bells! the 9mm are the perfect size for embellishing.


Have a great one guys!

-Megan