You & Me for Curtain Call

I finally have a little card to share.   I love the Kissing Booth challenge that Curtain Call has going on and wanted to play before it ended.  There's just something about black/white/red that I love!   This card is super simple, but I think it's a perfect guy card.  

 I am in a huge slump, so I haven't been stamping much and what I have been making is better filed in the circular file.  Hopefully I can ditch this crappy mood soon and get back to making things I enjoy.  I have been trying to mail off some cards and read until that happens.  I am finally on the last book of the Game of Thrones series, so I'm having to read it slowly since we don't know when the next one will be released.

She wanted me to take her picture.  I told her to smile.  lol

Stampin' Up! Perfect Pennants

Time for a new Freshly Made Sketch!  :)  Jen T. is our pilot, I mean hostess, this week and she has an awesome sketch for us.  I don't feel like my card really does it justice as I struggled a bit and ended up with one that I don't really like.  I think I was just trying TOO hard.  Do you do that? Not a good thing.  Anyway...I love the retro colors and I really loved the retro pattern on the DSP.  I tried to find a file for my Cameo that would go with it and I don't know that I did really?   I cut out a funky squares border (Design #9877) 4 times and layered it on my base to try to add a bit of texture and fun.   Hmm....

Isn't it great?  A fabulous sketch to give those banner dies a workout!  And I can't believe I missed a change to use a button!  I LOVE buttons! Darn!

Someone really loves my camera phone.  She doesn't really like taking pictures, just watching herself in it.  She does the same thing with mirrors.  lol  We had a nice day yesterday which was great.  :)   

Stenciled Class Projects

What a week!   We still don't know what's going on with Bandit other than he has an enlarged spleen and they are recommending a biopsy.  I spent almost 4 hours (most of them being aggravated that it was taking so long) at the vet on Thursday. Long, long day!   I do have something fun going on this weekend though.  I signed up for a class at Online Card Classes with a few of my buddies at Freshly Made Sketches and it started yesterday.  It's all about using stencils.  This is my first project for the sponging lesson taught by Debby Hughes.   It will be the one and only time you'll see me embossing on vellum; I have a trash can full of mistakes on that one!    

Everything is Stampin' Up! except for the sequins.  :)  Oh, and the stencil of course.  

My second project is all about misting and was taught by Julie Ebersole.  I have been having a rough time with these projects, so this one is simple to keep down on my frustration levels.  I tend to get very flustered, stressed, and aggravated when trying new things, so this class has been a stretch for me.  

I used rubbing alcohol, some Pool Party reinker, and the Stampin' Spritzers/Misters whatever they are called on a chevron stencil for a pretty easy background.  The hello was cut with my Cameo.  Easy and simple! 

Peanut butter and jelly... Oh my!!!!

Stampin' Up! Leadership Update and Swap

I thought I'd share my swap card that I made for Leadership.  I didn't do general swapping, so it was just 20 for an organized swap.  I hope people liked it as it was much different than most of the ones I got back.  They were mostly soft and bright, not the dark masculine thing I created. lol   I was happy that I got to meet a few friends at the swap, especially Pat Smith who I was hoping to run into.  (Hi, Pat!)

I'm trying out a new thing for the supply list, so you'll have to let me know what you think.  If you are in the mood to shop, you can click the links and go directly to my store to buy all these goodies!

• Banners Framelits Dies
• Early Espresso Baker's Twine
• Hardwood [clear]
• Lovely As A Tree Wood-mount Stamp Set
• Naturals Designer Buttons
• Neutrals Core'dinations
• Perfect Pennants [english, clear]
• Stampin' Sanding Block
• Woodgrain Textured Impressions Embossing Folder
• Early Espresso 8-1/2X11 Card Stock
• Soft Suede 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock
• Very Vanilla 8-1/2X11 Card Stock
• Big Shot Die-Cut Machine
• 2-1/2 Inch Circle Punch

I had a fantastic time at the event.  My roommate was super fun (Love ya, Anne Marie!) and I got to meet some awesome new people and a few blog followers too!  It did make me think about where my business is at the moment and where I want it to go.  I'm down to very few customers and the thought of dropping has crossed my mind more than once over the past few months.  I am now hoping that maybe I can turn things around a bit.   If you are local, please consider coming out to an event, contacting me about any questions or needs you might have, and let me know if there's any type of event you'd be interested in.

I'm sure if you've been on any Stampin' Up! related blogs or websites you saw the awesome information about the new markers that are coming soon.  Exciting, right?!  Learning to color was on my list to practice and improve on this year, so they are totally helping me out there.  ;)   I need all the help I can get, so yay!  Here's a peek of the colors:

Finally, there's an awesome new promotion for new My Paper Pumpkin subscribers.  We got to see the next 3 months of the kits and let me just say, if you aren't subscribing yet, GO DO IT NOW!  I am so in love with the March kit!  If you are a new subscriber, sign up NOW to get the Welcome Kit in February and then you can get the March kit that I LOVE!  Plus if you sign up before February 10th you get a free set of markers! Between the markers and the clear block included, it's like getting all the cards and stamps for free! Who doesn't LOVE free?!   If you sign up before January 25th, I'll also be sending out a little freebie.  I'll also be hosting a My Paper Pumpkin night for my local subscribers to get together to assemble their kits.  Fun, fun!  So head on over and sign up! 

The other big announcement was also AMAZING!  Demonstrators who signed up after July of last year and those who sign up before Convention registration ends get to attend Convention for free*.   Well, free in that they don't have to pay the registration fee.  You'd still be responsible for travel and hotel expenses.  Saving almost $300 off the registration fee helps a ton though!  I wish I was new again.  lol  Be sure to contact me today if you are interested in signing up and getting in on that! 

Laila and Jason survived okay without me, so it was nice to get away and not worry too much.  Maybe I'll have to do it again! Ha!

Stampin' Up! Perfect Pennants

I got myself together this week and am back on track with Freshly Made Sketches!   Narelle, who is seriously the layer and bow queen, is our hostess this week and she has a fabulous sketch.  It is so fun!!  I used some new products that arrived Monday.  Now they were supposed to be here last Friday, but we won't talk about that... 

See?  Fabulous?  I had to turn it to make it work for my sentiment, but that's the fun of sketches.  :)  The sentiment is from the Perfect Pennants stamp set that will be in the Occasions catalog and a fun embossing folder that is a Sale-a-Bration item this year!  Oh, and those bit of designer paper are from my new favorite thing from the Occasions catalog, the Fresh Prints Designer Paper stack.  

She LOVES cars and trucks right now.  My mom had bought this truck for Eli not long after he was born and it had been sitting in our closet for years now.  I got it out for her and she loved it.  She is also enjoying the Hot Wheels that he never got to play with.  It's a bit sad, but I'm glad we kept them and can enjoy one of our children playing with them.