Resist the Temptation

My niece posted on Facebook last Sunday that it is just three months until Christmas. It is going to fly by, just like this month did! But I'm ahead of the game this year because of the Christmas Stampin' All Year Long challenges.  I have so many cards/3-D items in my stash that weren't there this time last year!  Yeah me!

This week we are sponsored once again by Perfect Presentation.  The challenge is called "Resist the Temptation"....no stamping!  With all the embellishments and beautiful papers out there, this was an easy one.

The template I chose to use is called Perfect Parcel.  This is the cutest little template!  I thought it was going to be bigger, but it's the perfect size for some candies inside.  I recently saw these candy corn candies in a caramel apple flavor and bought them because I thought I could use them for one of my Christmas projects.  This little template was the perfect one for it.  You can fit a nice bag of these in the box.  The colors inspired me to use this retired dp from SU called Holiday Treasures.  I can't get enough of this paper...LOVE it!  All I did was cut the template on my Circut with the red cardstock and the panels from the dp.  I then tied it up with this beautiful chocolate satin ribbon (also SU, retired I think).  I was going to put the poinsettia flower on the front of the box, but it didn't look right.  So I added it on top covering the knot.  The front then looked so plain, so I added crystals to the chocolate designs on the dp.  That's it!  Sooo simple and stunning!

If you want to see more inspiration from the CSAYL girls, stop by the CSAYL blog.  They never disappoint!  And if you play along with us, you will have a chance to win a template of your choice from Perfect Presentation!  Thanks for stopping by and I love your comments!  Have a great Friday!

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Hello friends!  Gosh, it's the end of September....seriously, where has this month gone?  I don't ever think a month has passed me by so quickly!  I guess it's because it was such a busy month for me!

Anyway, one good reason to get September out of the way is to make room for the new release from My Time Made Easy, which is anxiously waiting in the wings for you!  The new release is chock full of gift giving goodness!  I'm here today with the first preview day.  I've used the new template called Topped Off.  What a cute little template this is...and Lauren has given you all sorts of options to "top it off" with! 

This is what the template looks like with the top on.  The lid is actually just a little square that fits into the top of the box (I didn't take a picture of it...but Lauren has one that you can see on her blog).  I've used the previously released Perfect Poinsettia cut file to "top off" my box.  There are three other options to top it off that comes with the template.  So versatile!

Here's the box open.  I used a new pattern paper from the new Mrs. Candy Claus digital paper pack.  (We have three new digital paper packs being released this month too!)  I added some pink Perfect Pearls around the perimeter of the decorative mats on all sides, and the poinsettia has been edged with Star Dust Stickles for some sparkle. 

I thought this would make a cute hostess gift to give to that perfect hostess. It's filled with Godiva strawberry truffles.  I loved how the pink wrapper matched the paper!  Now if I could only keep away from those delicious little buggers!  ;-)

Now you really need to stop by the other girls' blogs to see what they have up their holiday sleeves!

Lauren Meader

Katie Cotton

Tangii Crain

There's another preview day tomorrow, so check out Lauren's blog for details.  And all the new products will be ready for purchase on Saturday, October 1st!  It's all digital, so you can click and craft immediately!  Thanks for stopping by! 

PS...Did you see my cousin's audition for the X-Factor?  She's made it to the LA stage!  You can see her audition in this post.  Enjoy!

My First Submissions (and Rejects!)

Hi everyone!  I finally broke down earlier this month and submitted some cards to Paper Crafts Magazine.  They had a call for baby silhouettes, and Paper Makeup Stamps was releasing some baby silhouettes that same month!  Serendipity...or so I thought! 

So a-crafting I went and submitted two cards.  I used the newly released Shelby Fairy Silhouette.  This first one was created and sent off without even thinking about it!  It was like pulling the bandaid off quickly!  When I took another look at it a little later on, I thought that this one would not be picked up.  While I really like it, I thought it was a little blah...I could have added more black layers to make the dp pop a little more.  I do like the ribbon treatment, though.

But the with the next one, I took more time and thought this one just might get picked up.  Alas, it wasn't!  But I really like this black, hot pink, and kraft combo!  I think this is Graphic 45 paper (I didn't write it down cause I listed all my supplies when I submitted it.)  I thought the text printed on the flower was a nice match to the print on the dp.

So I guess I was a little naive, but I think I'll try again when the next call suits my crafting style.  What do you think?  Thanks for stopping by!

My Cousin Auditioned on X-Factor!

***This is not stamping related, but it is entertaining nonetheless!***

Hi everyone!  I just thought I'd share this here on my blog.  My cousin Cathy's daughter, Caitlin Koch, auditioned for X-Factor in front of Simon, Paula, Nicole, and L.A. and got rave reviews!  She is off to Los Angeles! She has always been very talented and has sung at various family occasions.  It's so amazing to see her in front of these judges!  Watch the video and see for yourself!

If you like her and watch the show, consider voting for her.  It would mean a lot to her and our family!  Thanks for watching!

Just Us Girls - 3-D/Template Challenge

Happy Saturday everyone!  I've been so waiting for this day!  I need a restful weekend!  It's been a crazy couple of weeks!  Anyway, I'm finally back with my beloved JUGs girls!  This week Maria has a great challenge for all of us.  She loves fall, as do I.  It is my favorite time of year.  I love the cooler temperatures, the colors, and my comfy sweaters!  So the challenge is to take a box you have around the house (think recycling) and alter it with a fall theme.  My friend Diane Zechman created a great tutorial for a tissue box cover which she posted on Splitcoaststampers in the resources section here.  So I used her tutorial and created this fall-themed tissue box cover.

I created the base of the box from crumb cake cardstock according to the instructions.  Then I used this paper from PTI called Fall Prints and Patterns to decorate it with.  I added the ivory scalloped crocheted trim around the lid of the box.  The leaves were cut with Cuttlebug dies and the pumpkin in the middle is a button.  I just cut the shank off of it so it would sit flat.  I then added some scrapper's floss that I curled.  This was a super easy project to create.  I think I'm going to make these for the secretaries at school because they've been so helpful to all of us 5th grade teachers that are new to the Middle School.  They really are the heart of the building!

Stop by the JUGs blog to see the fabulous fall-themed creations the girls created.  Don't forget that our JUGs team is looking for a new member!  You can see the details here.

Dana Gustafson

Elise Durenberger

Kathryn Berthiaume

Maria Levine

Pam Imholz

Monique Hansen, Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Stampin' All Year Long - Clean and Simple

Happy Friday everyone!  I haven't been posting much because my mom has not been feeling well and I was tending to her, but I did find time to create this week.  This week over at Christmas Stampin' All Year Long, we are being sponsored by Karber Digital Images. 

We were all given this cute Rudolph image to work with.  The challenge this week at CSAYL is to create a clean and simple card.  So I headed right to the Clean and Simple challenge blog for a sketch and went creating.  Here's what I did.

I started with a Crumb Cake base and ran the front of it through the linen impression plate from PTI.  Then I chose this paper from Eskimo Kisses by Basic Grey.  It matched nicely with the image.  The scalloped border is Purely Pomegrante and was punched with an SU punch.  The image was sized to fit into this nestie, printed on my computer, and colored with copics.  I added some Star Dust Stickles for some sparkle.  The sentiment is from PTI (I wrote down the set, but misplaced the piece of paper I wrote it on!), and was stamped in the Purely Pomegrante ink.  Easy peasy and clean and simple!

If you play along with us this week, you could have the chance to win two digital images from Karber Digital Images.   Stop by the