Closed for the Holidays!

Dear friends:

I have decided to "pull the plug" from this old Mac and focus on sharing the holiday spirit with my dear husband, family and friends until after the new year. I will miss blogging and all the commenting, challenges and chatting, but I must make some priorities!

Thank you for your kind support during this past year - it has been a wild ride! I send along to you only the very best of holiday wishes and lots of love - and I hope to see you here in 2012! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Holiday hugs, Maureen

Merry Christmas Week

Good morning - are you all worn out from preparing for the holidays? I had the nicest long holiday weekend with my dear husband - lots of special holiday fun!

This is the card that I made for a few family members and friends. It was inspired by a design that we made in a class taught by my dear friend, Bibiana. It uses one of my old winter Stampin Up favorites, "Winter Post". I love this stamp set - it brings back memories of my early childhood in Pennsylvania. I am nuts about this color combo.

Just so you know, I plan to "pull the plug" later today, turn the computer off and focus on time with friends and family, enjoying the holidays. I plan to have visions of sugar plums, rather than challenges, cards and blog/flickr comments! I will return to my blog after the New Year.

Thank you for a year of amazing support and friendship - it has been a unique and wild ride! Wishing each of you lots of holiday blessings and a new year filled with happiness and health.

Button Up!

I am crazy for vintage buttons. I have fond memories of being very young and playing with my Mom's tin of buttons - sorting and counting (no swallowing!).

Now, whenever I see old buttons at thrift shops or garage sales, I simply must have them! I love the shapes, colors, and the stories they hold. I have jars and boxes of vintage buttons and I love them all!

Anyway, I put together this quick final (Yay!) Christmas card for a special lady using some of my stash.

The wreath is Hero Arts CG215 and the ribbon and patterned paper are from my stash. I may submit this for the Simon Says Product Challenge over at Lily Pad Cards - check it out and join in the fun.

She's Baaaaaack, Again!

Sorry that I haven't been "plugged in" for several days - that darn bacteria hit me hard again and I was down for the count. But I'm back in training again and will soon be up to speed. I really missed commenting on your blogs and flickr photos and I even missed the unveiling of the super Moxie Fabber of the Week, my dear and ultra-talented bloggin' buddy, Barb. If you haven't already checked it out, please do so and leave her some lovin'. Yay, Barb - you go girlfriend!!!

A couple of weeks ago I took a Marathon Cardmaking Class at a scrapbook store not too far from my home. We made 14 cards in one day (10:00 am - 5:00 pm). Now, that's a real marathon. I have promised that I would share some of the cards with you. I don't have alot of info on the materials. They promised to email that to us, but it has not yet arrived. You will note that I did not watermark these pictures because these cards are not my design. The first two are made with Hero Arts, taught by my friend Julie Kelly.

This card is really cute. The front is a sleeve which lifts up and the inside of the card has a pocket for a package of cocoa.

I think that my favorite is this last one. It uses Memory Box dies and lots of glitter. Love! Enjoy your holiday weekend!

Happy Holiday Monday!

Today's card was made for the Moxie Fab World's Celebrating Hobbies Challenge. Did you know that there is a national Book Lover's Day? Well, there is! It is August 9th.

I used a great stamp from "Shirley's 2 Girls" for the main image, stamping and coloring three images so I could layer them for dimension. The background doily is white-embossed Hero Arts CG168. I dipped into my collection of vintage buttons for embellishment. Lots of rich inking, too.


For more inspiration, check out this great Paper Crafts publication.

Big Hugs

My dear friend called me last night, worried. I hadn't posted a new card in several days and she figured that something was wrong. No, Jill - it is just the holidays (trying to get those packages mailed) and the wonderful sunshine (but it has been frosty and cold in the mornings and nights) we have had here. Too many distractions. All good.

So, today I will share a little card that I made last week. I got out the dictionary (an old one I keep for cutting) and an old favorite stamp (Stampin' Up from 1992!) and I had some fun. The cute kids are colored with Copics and look lots better in person. The sentiment is Hero Arts CL 456.

A simple card of encouragement for a dear pal who is going through a rough time. I do send her lots of love and great big hugs.

I am entering this in the Moxie Fab World "Pay It Forward" Challenge. It is inspired by Papercraft's  amazing publication, "365 Cards". Check it out an play along - you have until December 12th.

Thanks for looking and have a great day! I hope to get out and enjoy the sunshine while we have it.

A New Car!

The young gal down the street passed her driver's test and, for her 18th birthday, got a new car. A VW Bug. Seriously - I got a dictionary for my 18th birthday. Nonetheless, I wanted to make a card for her to celebrate these big events.

Cath at Moxie Fab World has been featuring the new November/December Paper Crafts Magazine (get your hands on this for great inspiration). And, there is a series of challenges. I have made this card for the "Championing Award Medallions Challenge " which ends today.

I used my Tim Holtz die for the medallion. The paper is from DCWV's Travel Stack and the stamp and matching die is from Papertrey Ink's "Enjoy the Ride". I added Stickles for some glitz and a key from my stash. Thanks for looking and have a great week!

Party Down!

I thought that I would take a break today from all the holiday fa-la-la. Here is an invitation to join us at our tiki bar. We aren't big drinkers, but we thought it would be hilarious to have a tiki bar and now we do - in full Hawaiian fashion with far too many tiki mugs and vintage memorabilia. Wish you all could drop in!

I had this amazing tropical textured paper in my stash - I've been hoarding it for years. There is some sparkle to it, if you can see it in the photo.

The stamps are from Rubber Soul and Rubber Anarchy/Toad Hall (both oldies). I used a Memory Box die (Marquis Border), the drink is a Jolie sticker and the happy bartenders.....well, they are way too famous to mention without agent approval!

I made this for the Moxie Fab World Random Fun Challenge - if this isn't fun, I sure don't know what is! Check it out an play along - you have until December 12th. I am also entering this in this week's Simon Says Stamp! Challenge, Anything Goes.

Thanks for looking! I love giving a peek into my blessed and happy life every once in awhile!

Goodie Bag!

Every year I attend a little holiday get-together with some lovely gals and we bring small gifts for each other. I make a couple of thank you cards for each person and I like to present them in unique and special ways. This year I saw an idea on Julie Ebersole's blog, Paper Trufflez. If you don't know her, check it out. She is so talented and fun. She decorated ATC-sized brown bags (available from Ellen Hutson - a great store!) for tiny gifts and I loved them.

I was able to find some larger brown bags on etsy - I love the kraft paper look and they are perfect for tucking in a couple of cards and envelopes. I used white paint (which looks so great on the kraft) for the snowflake and I had fun with my Tim Holtz die and made double-decker medallions (or rosettes) out of some vintage-looking patterned paper. These are so much fun to make - see Tim's video here! The snowflake and the sentiment (embossed in white) are both Hero Arts stamps (CG214 and G5453).

I have tucked two cards in the bag and still have room for a candy cane - can you believe I found one that is color-coordinated? Hershey's chocolate mint! I have a stash of tiny clothespins and used one to secure everything. This will be my last entry in Hero Arts monthly challenge for November!

Now I need to get cooking on making the cards to place into these cute bags.......mass production is not fun.

Tag Along!

I don't usually post on the weekends, but I quickly wanted to share another gift tag that I made. I love the Tim Holtz dress form die and I thought about Mrs. Claus getting ready for Christmas....I cut the Santa Hat out of an old and very sweet Hero Arts Santa stamp (E853 from 1994!).

Other HA stamps are S5067 (another oldie) CL359, E853, CG211. I used the new "limited edition (seriously, please!)" Holiday Distress Inks and some vintage buttons and ribbon from my stash.

Lots going on here - maybe too much?! A little busy. At least it is festive! Thanks for checking in. Have a lovely Sunday.