Happy Birthday Card

Lately I've realized just how dependent upon my Gypsy Girl I have become.  I don't do anything without her.  This became blatently apparent when I was asked to demonstrate the Cricut Expression 2 and all I could do was turn the darn thing on and off.  How embarassing!!  So, one of my New Year Resolutions is to re-learn my Expression, E2 and Imagine without my GG (insert eye-rolling here).  Today I decided to put away (blow-off) my valentine cards that I've been working on for an upcoming class and work on something totally new.  I grabbed my Just A Note cartridge and worked on this cute tri-fold birthday card.  Of course I had to add some Stickles for the balloons.  I kinda like how it turned out, and the fact that it was easy-peasy was a bonus. 

First flap open:

Inside of card:

Now back to those valentine projects.

Link for Article

It has been brought to my attention that the article posted below can't be zoomed.  Sorry about that, I'm still trying to figure out this blogg-thing.  I'll post the link to the actual article in case you are interested.  I'm "happy" to say that I actually used the oven last night for the first time in...well that's not important.  My husband read the article and started asking questions about why the reporter called the oven a storage unit blah blah blah.  I quickly removed the shoe's from the oven and put them in the extra ice box in the laundry room that never gets used.  It's an experiment to make sure the cold does not harm the shoes in any way.  A friend of mine said he'd heard of "cold cash" but "cold shoes" was new to him. 

I'm finishing up my Valentine cards for a Kids Kamp I'm co-hosting next week and will post pictures when they are ready.  Thanks for stopping by!

Article link:  http://www.upclosemagazine.com/floor-you.jpg

Magazine Article

I just received a sneak peek at the article that will be in the magazine. The photographer had me put on that apron, usually it's hanging on the laundry room door as decoration. Yes, I always wear stiletto-heel boots when pouring tea. I am such a nerd!! I hope you can read it, it's pretty funny!!

Here is my favorite picture that they didn't use. 

For some reason, they took some shots of me in the living room.  I think Beignet is much more photogetic than I!

Photo Shoot of kitchen

When we moved here, about 4 years ago, the house was in a disasterous state.  The previous resident had a VERY different decor from what I wanted.  Slowly I've been re-making the rooms into our tastes.  The latest project was the kitchen.  Now, for the record, the kitchen is my least favorite room in the house.  I rarely venture in there, except to refill the dogs' water bowls.  I was dreading this project because it really didn't interest me.  I tried to talk hubby into letting me close it off and use it as a shoe closet.  That was a project I could get interesed in! Apparently there is some unspoken real estate rule that every house needs a kitchen, so my idea was vetoed. Bummer.  Ok, so here are some "before" pictures, so you can see what I was working with. 
This is the kitchen from the back door:

This is the view of the living room/breakfast nook taken from the front door:

And finally, a picture of our cook-top.  Two of the burners didn't work (which I only discovered after living here for 2 years):

Needless to say, everything had to go, from the floor to the ceiling lights.  Here is the end result:

Some habbits die hard.  Here is our oven:

Yes, I store new shoes in there for a period of 2-3 weks before incorporating them into my closet.  That way when my hubby asks if they are new, I can honestly say, "why no, honey.  I've had them for a few weeks." 
Today some photographers came to take pictures for a local magazine.  The company that worked on the kitchen and living room wanted to use our house as advertising for their store.  Apparently we have a show-kitchen!  How funny is that?  The article will be published in the February edition and I can't wait to see them.  Even our dog, Beignet, was included. 

BLOG CANDY

I am just thrilled to have so many Followers and NONE are relatives!!  Thank yall for being so supportive of my little blog!  I especially wanted to thank Maria Nestor for being the very first follower and just mailed her a small token of my appreciation.  Maria, be watching your mailbox!  I am thinking that if I can get 50 followers I'll have more Blog Candy to give out. 

I'll be working on Valentine projects today and hope to have some pictures to post tomorrow.  Have a great afternoon, yall.

GEAUX SAINTS!!

Chocolate Candy Bar

One thing you'll learn about me is that I have a huge sweet tooth, especially when it comes to chocolate!  I try to keep something chocolate around because I get cravings each afternoon.  Usually a few M&M's (sorted into different colors, of course) will do.  Sometimes, however, I need something a little more...substantive.  While at the grocery store last week, I was trying to fight off my craving but ended up buying a pack of the large Hershey chocolate bars.  Not the regular size ones, we're talking the BIG BOYS.  After scarfing down the first one, I thought it best to get the others out of the house and fast!  I made this cute little wrapper for my son.  The dog cut came from my very first cartridge, Paper Pups.  I still love this cartridge and use it quite a bit.  Some googley eyes and a black Stickled nose finishes him off.  I think he'll be popped up on an Action Wobble for the next wrapper so that he actually waves. 

Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the post office and I ate the chocolate the next afternoon.

More Valentines

This is a simple cupcake postcard that is perfect for a child's classroom swap.  On the back, I'll stamp  "To/From" and it's done.  Super easy!  The cupcake came from the Cricut cartridge American Alphabet that was pre-loaded on my E2 and was cut at 5 inches.  The papers are from K&Company and each page is cuter than the previous.  Usually I'm thrilled to be able to use 2-3 of the papers in a stack, but with this one I'll be able to use every page! 

I'm working on a Valentine class so will be posting more picture of the projects I'll be teaching.  There are a bunch of projects, so the girls will be very busy!!

Matchbook candy covers

The two matchbooks hide a packet of Fun Dip.  The Bee is from Create A Critter, the hearts are punched from my Creative Memories punch and the sentiment is a little stamp from a Close To my Heart set I've had forever.  To add more dimension, the bee is popped up on an Action Wobble so she dances.  If you have never used Action Wobbles, you are missing out!!  I use them as often as I can!  Which of the covers do you like better? 

Here's what the insides look like:

Valentine Spinner Card

I just LOVE spinner cards!  They are super easy to make and make such cute, interactive cards.  Once finished, I could play with it all day (ok, I'm easily entertained).  This one I will be teaching as part of a Kids Kamp.  We'll be making Valentines for their parents, a different one for their teacher, sour cream containers and matchbook Fun Dip candy covers for their friends.  This is the spinner card and I'll post the other ones when I've made the samples.  The frog is a dimensional sticker I picked up at the local craft store and the sentiment was printed from my computer.  His little face makes me laugh every time he spins across the card! 

I HATE being late!!

Ok, first off, I hate being late...to anything. That said, I can't believe it's taken me this long to join the blogging world! Even my son started a blog for a school project over 7 years ago!!

I have been a crafter for many years, finding inspiration from lots of other blogs and though it was about time to start posting my creations. I mainly make cards, but have started branching out to other mediums. It's always fun learning new techniques and I'll try to post pictures of my latest obsessions.

Since I'm new to this blogging adventure, please bare with me. Any tips or suggestions you can share about improving this blog are welcomed.

Geaux Saints!!