30 Days of Inspiration- Day 17

So how are all of you liking the 30 Days of Inspiration project so far? I've really had fun and I hope that I have helped you become inspired. I will share a great tip today...ready?....when you're really in a slump and have no creative mojo, just hop on over to Wendy Sue Anderson's blog and I promise you will be inspired! :)

I was lucky enough to have Wendy create a project for the 30 DOI. Wendy's inspiration came from a tag from a shirt she purchased recently...

and here is her gorgeous card...

I'm in love with this color combo...

Thanks so much Wendy for sharing your talent with us! Remember, you still have time to play along. Feeling inspired by Wendy's inspiration piece? Create a project and leave a link to this post. You could just win a prize at the end of the month. ;)

Be back tomorrow to celebrate our hobby's holiday! Thanks for stopping by!

30 Days of Inspiration- Day 16

I'll admit it. I'm a sucker for home decor projects. I love all of the vinyl wall decals that are popular these days and have been browsing on several sites, such as Wonderful Graffiti. I was inspired so I decided to try and do it myself and make some decals for a wall in my scrapbook studio.

Here are the supplies I used... My Slice machine (I have been using it more and more and I'm in love!), A roll of self-adhesive white vinyl (I purchased mine at Hobby Lobby and didn't even use a full sheet!), and two different slice image cards (Just Chillin' Teen and Spring).

I'd thought I would show you a before and after of the wall. Here is the BEFORE...and AFTER...
Some more shots...The view from my desk...I'm already inspired by it and it only took me a few hours to complete the project from start to finish!

If you feel inspired, make a project from today's inspiration and leave a link to your creation in the comments. (Click HERE for more details)

Gotta run. Getting ready to go shopping. Have a great night!

30 Days of Inspiration- Day 15

As mentioned here before, I've met so many great friends through this hobby. Carla is one of them. She is a super talented girl and so very sweet. I got to meet up with her in Chicago last year. We had so much fun. I asked her to participate in the 30 DOI and I'm so glad she agreed.

Here is Carla's inspiration picture...

and her card that was inspired by her picture....

Super cute! I love the crepe paper along the top. Carla said she used that to represent the tissue paper in the bags. How clever! Great Mother's Day Card!

Thanks for playing along Carla! Oh, and today is her birthday. Help me wish her a great day....HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARLA!!!!

Okay, off to bed. Be back soon.Thanks for stopping by!

30 DOI- Days 12,13, & 14

Catching up tonight on The 30 Days of Inspiration. First up is a layout inspired by some clothes shopping on the web. I really like this sweater from New York & Co.: Love the argyle pattern which was the starting point for this layout...Journaling reads, "You are 16 going on 40. LOL You are such a mature teenager and I love that about you, but it brings me such joy to see you being silly."

Isn't that spinner fun!? ... Next I have a card to share inspired by something I've been craving, because it reminds me of summer...
Yum. I really wanted to use the pink and green color combo...I also thought that this Hero Arts background stamp (that I used for the card's background)...
looked a lot like watermelon stripes... :)To create the plaid pattern on the background, I simply stamped the background stamp vertically, then stamped again horizontally. A great tip to get more from your stamps!

And finally, I've been buying (and hoarding) lots of Dear Lizzy products from American Crafts. Elizabeth Kartchner inspires me and so does her products....So I gathered them up and created this layout...
Not the world's best pic of me...self portrait taken on a road trip...but I wanted to document how much fun I have on my weekend crafting adventures.

Journaling reads, "I smile when I see this picture. I was on my way to my favorite scrapbook retreat for a weekend of creating and relaxation when I snapped this self-portrait. It's my reminder to slow down and just enjoy life. Right now, it seems like my life is so busy. I'm always worrying about something and feeling stressed. So I enjoy seeing how happy I am to just get away from it all, do the hobby I love so much, and take some time to stop and smell the roses." (Summer 2009)

and how gorgeous is that ribbon!? ...

Hope you can play along with these challenges...click HERE to find out how. Thanks for stopping by! Be back soon...

30 Days of Inspiration- Day 11

Hello friends. I'm finally feeling back into the creative groove. Today's inspiration is a basket of flowers that I received from my sweet friend Shane. She sent these to us after Ted's dad passed away. Little did she know that my father-in-law loved to garden and had quite the green thumb! I was happy to see these flowers were in pots inside the basket, ready to be planted outside. It is the perfect reminder of him. Aren't they pretty?...And since I am so thankful for a friend like Shane, I thought it would be a good idea to make a thank you card...It was hard to photograph but there is a really pretty sheen on top of the purple. I sprayed the paper (after stamping the flower image) with a mixture of water and perfect pearls. Something I learned in one of Jennifer's class. I love the result...Okay, I need to announce some winners now! The winner from the Band Pics Review (Thank you for all of your comments...you helped me choose which ones are going up on my wall!) is....TIFFANY HEILMAN! I also chose TWO winners randomly from the 30 Days of Inspiration comments and the winners are....CANDY (CLWILKER) and DENEEN! Congratulations Ladies. Email me with your address and I will get your goodies out to you.

Remember, the prizes are not gone yet! Keep leaving your comments (I love to hear from you!) and/or participate in the inspiration challenge (by leaving a link in the comments section to the project you have made inspired by one of the inspiration pictures.) I can't wait to see what you create!

Before I go, I must share a picture of the man I am missing badly tonight....This is Alex with his Grandpa. It's hard to believe he is gone. This picture was taken one year ago on Alex's 16th birthday (and is the perfect reminder why I love this hobby so much...celebrating our loved ones-documenting cherished memories!). As we celebrate Alex's birthday this year, I never would've thought he would not be here to celebrate with us. Miss you Dad.

Okay, must go to bed....going on a college tour with Alex tomorrow. Night!

Band Pics and Prizes...

Hello. Still not feeling ready to get back into the swing of things creatively, but I still had the urge to share some family stuff. Some of you may have read from the last post that Alex's birthday was last Thursday. For one of his gifts, Ted and I decided to give him and his band members a photo shoot with the amazing Tine from TMPhotography. Tine photographed our wedding and I knew her style would be perfect for Winter Rising's (Alex's Band) photo shoot. Click HERE and type in heatherband for the password to see their gallery. (Click ENTER GALLERY and then SLIDESHOW on top right side)

I'm in love with them all but I want to hear what you think! Each photograph is numbered....let me know your favorites and I will be back Thursday night to pick a random winner of some scrap candy! I also didn't forget about picking a winner from the previous 30 Days of Inspiration posts. I will do that too. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday Alex!

First, I just have to say thank you to all of you. Your supportive comments and emails have really helped me through this difficult time. I am blessed with such great friends and family.

Things are finally settling down around here after a rough couple of days. It was SO nice to have something to celebrate today! The birth of this young man.... Seventeen. How is that possible!? Even though I was not there at his birth, he was born that day in my heart. God truly led me to him and Ted and I am blessed beyond measure to be his step-mom.

Alex,

You are so special. Every single day, you overwhelm me with your kindness, your big heart, and your unconditional love. Thank you for being you. Happy 17th!

Love,
Your Proud Mom

(I'll be back to share more when things get back to normal. Thanks for stopping by!)

Healing...

I'm going to be away from the computer for a bit. I got a call from my husband last night at the retreat saying that his father passed away. (Ted's dad had been struggling with lung cancer.) I'll be taking a little break to do some healing with my family. I'll be back to catch up on the 30 days posts when things calm down.

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 10

I have a special treat for you today. My sweet friend Shane Rieder, one of Scrapbook Bakery's designers, has agreed to be the guest artist on my blog today! I asked her to share something that inspires her and to create a project with it. Her inspiration was her kid's ADORABLE bathroom... She said she bought all the accessories at Target. How cute is that frog!?And here is her card...

How fun! Well, Shane and I are going to get back to creating at our retreat. Thanks for stopping by! We hope you can play along! (P.S. I will be drawing a random comment from the 30 Days of Inspiration posts when I get home tomorrow.)

30 Days of Inspiration- Day 9

Hello! It's Friday and I'm at my favorite scrapbook retreat with my friends. What could be better!? I'm taking a little break to show you the inspiration piece for today. It's from Pottery Barn...

And here is my card...

I changed up the color combo a bit but I am loving that chocolate brown. I used it to stamp the butterfly in. Yum....

Off to create some more and relax. Click HERE to find out how to play along with the inspiration challenges. Thanks for stopping by!

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 8

Heather Bailey. Many of you know her for her fabric designs. I was fortunate enough to meet her a few years ago at the Inspired event. Wow. Super sweet girl with oodles of talent. I used some of her fabric in my scrapbook room as window treatments and I was recently browsing her site again and fell in love with so many things, but this pattern caught my eye...

my interpretation...

I knew I wanted to use some of Heather Bailey's scrapbook products. So I used one of her laser cut border strips and placed some Bo-Bunny dot paper behind it. I wanted to draw attention to the flower image so I filled in just those holes with diamond stickles...

(and just in case you're wondering) This is the print I used in my scrap studio...Okay, still need to finish up some packing. I hope you can play along. See THIS post (scroll to the bottom) to see how you can submit your work for a chance to win some prizes!

See you tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by! :)

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 7

I'm going to keep this short because I am leaving tomorrow to my favorite scrappin' retreat with some friends and I really need to pack! I thought it would be fitting that today's inspiration be something about organization, because I need to get organized! And what fun it would be to organize with these from See Jane Work...

and here is my card...

When I saw the picture, the colors really caught me eye. I wanted the strips of paper to be "stacked" like the boxes. I also wanted to incorporate a label holder and I finally got to use some fabric covered brads I've been hoarding. They matched the colors perfectly. :)

Okay, off to pack...be back tomorrow!

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 6

Color really plays a large role in what I am inspired by. When I came across THIS print from Etsy, I thought two things. 1. I need to buy this and find a place in my home for it! 2. That would make a fantastic card! :) Isn't it gorgeous....And here is my interpretation...It's hard to see but the background was stamped with a Hero Arts background stamp and then heat embossed with white embossing powder to give it some subtle interest. The greeting is stamped on vellum...I hope you can play along! Just leave a comment to this post with a link to your creation if you felt inspired by the butterfly print. I sure was. Made me smile.

Off to craft some more! Thanks for stopping by!

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 5

I've been creating for a long time so sometimes when I feel stuck, I simply revisit an idea I already had and do a different spin on it. No need to reinvent the wheel! Like this notepad that I already shared a few weeks ago...I was working on submitting to a magazine call and needed an idea for a teacher gift. So I just changed the design to make it fit...How cute is that apple!?

Click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the post to see how you can play along and win prizes! FYI: I will be drawing a name very soon (just for fun) from ANY comments left on any of the 30 Days of Inspiration posts, so say hello! ;)

I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by!

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 4

Hello and Happy Easter! I hope you all had a nice day! Today's inspiration was pulled from one of the Easter buckets I made for my nieces and nephews. I bought my niece, Taylor a pair of flip flops that were so fun and colorful that they were just calling to me to as an inspiration piece. Here they are with the card that was inspired by them...I started with a white card and colored the background quickly with a Copic Marker to pull the yellow from the flip flops and to give it a youthful, playful look. I used my slice machine to die-cut the flower pattern and I was really inspired by the sparkly gel look of the straps so I recreated it with vellum. Here is a better look at it...I took some pink vellum and rubbed some clear sticklez on it. Vellum doesn't like anything wet, but I used it to my benefit and it gave it a really great texture! I stapled it down on each end to keep it flat and it's hard to see in the picture, but it is sparkly, just like the shoes! Fun!

Thought I'd share the "loot" that the kids received from Aunt Heather...So spoiled.Okay, long day...off to bed. Be back tomorrow!

30 Days of Inspiration-Day 3

Today's inspiration comes from Anthropologie. I am loving THIS dress...

I love the colors but felt it needed one more to make it pop. I thought about possible accessories I would wear if I could afford the dress (LOL) and immediately thought of a yellow rose ring I have. So I added a splash of yellow to my card....

The dress inspired the black and white paper from its bold print and the string reminded me of the straps. I used die-cut paper to give curves to the card to replicate all the different lines in the dress. I also added some black tulle to my card because the dress seemed "airy". Here is a detailed shot of that yummy tulle...

So how do you like the 30 Days of Inspiration so far? Remember, you can play along. I would love to see how these pieces inspired you. Click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the post to see how to submit your work. There will be some goodies I will give out at the end of the month! :)

Alright, I need to go and get my nieces and nephews Easter baskets ready for tomorrow. Night!