Heading South

We will be driving down to Florida and having Christmas with 2 of our 3 kids .... I look forward to sharing my art with you -- watch for me to post on or around Jan 10.

Hugs on a ring

I was part of a group that collected 3 x 3's and sent them as a ring of recovery to a fellow stamper who needed some hugs ... here is a photo of the ring. Each card was decorated on the front, but flat, with a personal message on the back. Isn't this a great idea? Not my idea, mind you, but a great idea nonetheless.

Teapot Tuesday

Teapot Tuesday is always my favorite challenge. I pulled out my pens and my copics and drew this lady, manga style, and will be sending the card to a 15 year old sweetie in Colorado who is fighting some nasty cancer and could use a smile.  I hope my card brings a grin to her face.  I always create a poem to go with my teapot cards, and my splitcoast friends convinced me to publish my poetry on my blog too... so here goes ...

Shoes were always ... better than slippers

That’s what my mom used to say

When we’d grow and poke holes in our shoes through the toes

From running around every day

She knew that good health is a gift much like gold

So she’d smile and just nod her head

She was happy to see us up running around

And glad that we weren’t sick in bed.

I think back to mom when I start to feel guilt

At the cost of a new pair of sneakers

How lucky I am to wear out my shoes 

Instead of slippers - and hospital gown peekers.

I’d rather be dropping big bucks on a bike

Than to be paying cash for a walker

WIth big fat tennis balls clipped on the wheels 

So that I can sneak like a stalker.

How often do I really stop and think

How lucky I am to have health

It is a gift and a treasure that cannot be matched

By any amount of wealth.

Cool Idea to organize Copics

Lookee lookee at this ... http://purpleoniondesigns.typepad.com/photos/organizational_ideas/copic_color_swatch_ring_tags.html

Is that not the coolest idea ever ... I am starting one right now!  Can't wait to punch 'em and organize 'em on a ring.  I ordered a 72 marker holder from 7 kids and guess what .. I just counted 89 markers. How DID I get so many????

School is winding down ...

You can tell school is winding down when I start posting to my blog more often --- most the papers are corrected, I have 3 kids coming in for conferences today and they will re-write their papers, but the end is clearly in sight. That said ... here is the Splitcoast Sketch that I will be working with today. Hmmm. I need a couple of birthday cards, wonder if it will do. Managed to get a card posted before I left for school at noon.

D2D poinsettia

Designed 2 Delight had this pretty poinsettia as a free digi this week. I have always been fascinated by blue poinsettias, and the variation of color --- it was fun to try to imitate nature with my copics. Actually I have a whole table full of poinsettias in various colorways, this is the only one that got finished into a card.

After making 10 cards a month all year, I actually don't NEED any more cards, but who could resist!

In the style of Tim

This isn't my style at all but I do love it ... tried to make a card that Susan would enjoy.  The patterned paper was really fun to add hills and valleys to with a cotton ball ... and the dies were to die for. Bought the signpost die just for the card; borrowed the snowman from Amy.  

Friendship 4 x 4

My yahoo group of friends decided a 4 x 4 book would be more fun than Christmas cards. So here are the pages I submitted for my part of the book.

Class cards == Cuttlebug!

Wow am I having a fight with blogger to get these all arranged ... but here are some of the cards I made at a cuttlebug class last week. Fun, huh!

Card for an 88

Gotta be great to live to 88 ... this is the card I made for a lovely lady who crochets. I am sure my little crocheted flower is NOTHING compared to what she makes!

For those of you following progress on the sweater I am knitting ... front is finished, back is finished, and one sleeve is done up to the armhole where I got stuck on the directions. Gotta run out to the local yarn store and ask if I decrease every row or just on the knit rows ... directions aren't really clear on that.

However, I am a bit leery of stepping inside the store since I already have my eye on another pattern of a sweater I would LOVE to have.  The cold weather is coming, can't get too much wool

Here's a photo of the sweater I am doing now.

WInd beneath my Wings

There's a new challenge on splitcoast, to make a card inspired by a song. This week's song is the Wind Beneath My WIngs ... and somehow dragonflies just seem to float on the breeze. The sparkle and color on the wings doesn't show very well, but it really looks pretty ethereal in real life. Oh and the green border is actually even, I just cut it off on the scan.

Thinking Sunshine

I was playing with my brayer and my copics.

Amanda likes her card

Amanda told me this is the best Halloween card I have ever made .... and coming from my daughter, that is quite a compliment.

Happy Halloween!

Based on this card sketch:

Teapot Tuesday

Mothermark really encouraged me to do a card for this week's Teapot Tuesday. I have let my cardmaking go in favor of knitting, teaching and just sulking that summer is over. But when she said we needed to make cards for a young man who was attacked by a vicious dog, I had to respond, been there done that, understand completely!
So here is the card that I made for the young man who loves racing and Dale Earnhardt.

Man’s best friend? Oh gimme a break

That’s more than a friendship should have to take

I know how he feels, been there and done that

I too had a dog make a vicious attack

It happened a year ago, really was bad

That’s why this teapot story made me quite sad

But I healed and went on with the help of some friends

I hope all our cards will help Jesse to mend.

Cardmaking on hold

Here's what I have been doing instead of making cards.

It is the back of a sweater ---

I won I won I won!

My sketch card was chosen today for last week's sketch # 300  big prize give-away at Splitcoast -- ok, there were lots of cards chosen, and they were chosen by Random.Org  but Mr Random Org picked ME !!!! And I was the very first card chosen. You might even say I won first place!

My nurse card actually looks so much better in real life, the colors got lost on my scanner bed. Guess a scanner bed is to copics the opposite of a tanning bed to people.

Anyway, here AGAIN is the winning card ... yeah, you saw it last week on Wednesday but it wasn't a winner then!

Tuesday Teapot

A most unusual pot today - cute idea, but I am not sure I would want a teapot like this.

Oh well, a card based on a computer will be a cute thing for David.   Unfortunately my mind is coming up blank.

Amanda's Birthday

I have a package ready to mail for Amanda's birthday. Last year for her 30th she received 30 cards. This year she only gets one ... and this is it.

Somehow my scanner washed out the cuttlebug-colored green cardstock.

sketch challenge Wednesday

I should be correcting essays ....  but this looks like more fun.

Teapot Tuesday

This teapot is so cute.  I got a little carried away!

The thank you will go to someone who works with alzheimers patients ... see this link.

Late cards

Running late this month .... I guess I spend more time on school stuff than I realized.

Sketch challenge Wednesday

This was a quick and easy sketch but I love how it turned out..  The paper really looks like candle flames to me.

Teapot Tuesday

 

Thanks Chuck!

One of the other professors took the last hour of my class so I could leave for Dayton where Mike will be running the Air Force Marathon on Saturday. I made the flower for a thank you card out of the rubric that we use for correcting essays.  It is really fluffier, but I squished it down to fit into the scanner bed.

On the inside I thanked him for taking my class so I could make other plans.

It's a Rainy Day in Midland

Raining outside, and there are frogs all over my workspace.

Inside of card