Radio Silence

Test...Test...anyone there?

So, blog friends, it's been a while. That might not even be a fair statement - it's been a long while.

It's safe to say that life derailed the blogging train I was on, but I'm back! I thought it would fun to catch up a little on where I've been, what I'm doing now, and where this little blog is headed in the future.

Where have I been?

Since the last time I posted, I started a new job, graduated with a masters degree, remodeling half the house, T started a new job (or three), attended lots of weddings and pre-wedding functions, traveled like crazy, hosted a couple of parties, and in general had a ton of fun.

What's going on now?

Here's what I realized after graduation - I lost my mind during grad school. No question about it - almost every conversation was about grades and papers and whatever environmentally based project I was working on at the time. It's been nice to take a step back and just breathe. And that's what I'm trying to do...relax, breathe, enjoy things. We're still working on the house one DIY project at a time. I'm gathering inspiration from all over and T still is cursing under his breathe when I say "I saw this on Pinterest..."

So what about the blog?

When I first started this blog way back when it was a medium for me to share my cards and other crafty projects with crafty friends. I'm still going to do that, but I also hope to showcase more of the other things a well, such as home improvement and home decor projects, a little cooking, a little make-up...just a whole lot of life.

The blog will be seeing some changes soon, starting with a new name, a move to another platform and a facelift (More on that later).

I hope you'll stick around as the dust clears and thanks for sticking around through the radio silence.

One-of-a-kind Dad

I'm so excited I'm finally able to play along with RetroSketches this week. I've wanted to since the first one, but I haven't had time until now.

This week's sketch is by one of my favorite gals, Laurie.

{Apparently, I missed the deadline to link up, but it was fun to play anyway.}

Here's my take

My daddy was a farmer for a long time, so I think he'll appreciate the cows. 

 

Happy Summer

Today I'm supposed to be writing a paper on fish, but since I'm working on a second degree in procrastination, I thought today would be the time to make a couple cards for the ladies my husband works with. Tuesday is the last day for students in our county, and Friday is the last day for teachers. To say Tim is ready would be a complete understatement. 

When I sat down at my craft table, I knew I wanted to use the new flip flop die from PTI, but I also wanted to challenge myself to make my own patterned flip flops.  I didn't buy the coordinating set because I knew I had enough sentiments in my collection that could be used, and I couldn't see paying for the set just for the flip flop patterns. 

I started by looking through my sets for patterns that were the right scale - for both the flip flops and the mini-cards - and was surprised at how many I found.

I started with cardstock from LilyBelles Paperie. For the orange card, I used the small scale argyle pattern from PTI's A Little Argyle and for the pink card I stamped the stripes from PTI's Background Basics: Retro. Both cards were stamped with Amuse Watermelon and Papaya inks.

For the yellow card I used the solid heart from PTI's Heart-2-Heart #4. On the purple card, I used the squiggly line from PTI's Little Bitty Bird. These were stamped with Amuse Lido and Heather inks.

The turquoise card uses the four smallest butterflies from PTI's Beautiful Butterflies. The green card I believe is my favorite. I used a tag from PTI's Daily Designs and selectively inked it so only half the pattern was showing. I added the corresponding image over the top.  These were stamped in Amuse Ocean and Grass inks. 

The sentiment on all the cards is the same - happy summer - from PTI's Tag-it's #4 in Memento Tuxedo Black.

I made a total of  18 of these (three in each color) that will be delivered in mailboxes later this week.

PTI Blog Hop

It's been so long since I was able to participate in a PTI blog hop, but the inspiration picture this month was just too great not to play along.

The inspiration: 

The first things that stuck out to me in photo were the colors and the bold, graphic patterns. 

I decided to use the hexagon stamps from PTI's Rosie Posie set to convey the graphic feel. I added a sentiment from PTI's Movers & Shakers Sentiments. I love the font of this sentiment and it just truly feels happy. 

Supplies:

Stamps: Rosie Posie, Movers & Shakers Sentiments (PTI)

Cardstock: Stampers Select White, Aqua Mist, Harvest Gold (PTI)

Ink: Bermuda, Buttercup, Slate (Amuse)

For Janelle

I'm so happy to be back today to celebrate a wonderful, inspiring, truly strong woman - Janelle. My friends Laurie and Dana have organized a special blog hop just for her!

If you don't know Janelle's story, you can find it on her blog, along with her beautiful creations. 

While I've never met her in person, it didn't take long through our online interactions for me to realize she is one of the sweetest, most genuinely caring women I know. Her faith and strength are truly inspiring. 

Janelle and Ken, I think of you both often and hope that this blog hop provides some sunshine to your day. 

To see the other cards to celebrate and honor Janelle or to participate in the hop, stop over at Laurie's blog. 

This card also fits for the CASE Study #83 Challenge.

Thanks for stopping by! 

Supplies:

Stamps: Love and Marriage, Faith and Hope (PTI)

Cardstock: Simply Chartreuse, Soft Stone (PTI)

Patterned Paper: Simply Chartreuse Leaves (PTI)

Ink: Grass and Slate (Amuse)

Other: Rustic Jute Button Twine (PTI)

I mustache you a question...

Things have been hectic since we moved. We've been working on several different projects with the house, hosted our first Christmas at our own house (which could be a post all in itself), and are really starting to settle in.

As we start to settle, things in life are starting to pick up. I'm working through the last part of my master's degree and it's been killing any free time I've had. I was really excited to sit down and get to craft something tonight.

This week was a little tough at work, and I have three girls on my team who have been great - shoulders to cry on, and rocks when I wasn't sure what to do next and I made these to thank them for supporting me.

I started with the Movers & Shakers: Zipper dies from Papertrey Ink. LOVE these! They are so fun and add just the perfect little something to a card.

 I stamped these with the mustache from the SP&Company Mustache Madness set.

 Then I added the arrow from PTI's Movers & Shakers: Sentiments and the dotted line from A Little Argyle.

 Each card has a different hidden sentiment, perfectly selected for the girls. 

 On each card, I used a matching base, with a layer of polka dot patterned paper from PTI. 

 The cards looked like they needed something else and a double layer of ribbon was just the ticket.  

Grosgrain in the matching color with a layer of white twill on top. 

It's such a cute set and I'm so happy to have gotten to create something this week. It definitely reminded me how much I love to be in my craft room. 

Thanks for stopping by, 

Supplies:

Stamps: Mustache Madness (SP & Company) Movers & Shakers Sentiments, A Little Argyle (PTI)

Cardstock: Simply Chartreuse, Raspberry Fizz, Aqua Mist, Stampers Select White (PTI)

Patterned Paper: Simply Chartreuse, Raspberry Fizz, Aqua Mist Polka Dot (PTI)

Dies: Movers & Shakers: Zippers (PTI)

Ink: True Black (PTI)

Other: Fresh Snow Twill, Raspberry Fizz, Aqua Mist, Simply Chartreuse Grosgrain (PTI)

Our new addition

We added this guy to that family last week

Before much needed haircut

Tim and I have both really missed being able to have a dog while we were at the rental and he just really makes things feel complete.

Have you ever seen the movie Up? Bandit reminds us a lot of Dug, the same kind of "I just met you and I love you" demeanor. The perfect dog to sit by your feet as you read a book or make a card. 

After haircut

Sorry these pictures aren't any better - he's not a big fan of the camera. 

Hope everyone's keeping warm this weekend. We have snow and the ground and have been hunkered down getting projects done. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Work in Progress

I can describe everything in our house right now as a work in progress. A giant series of puzzle pieces as to how the house can go together, a list of things that need done before other things, and a series of almost finished projects. 

Today, I wanted to give you peaks of two of my current favorite works in progress. 

First up in my craft room. My hubby endured 2 weeks of late nights and road blocks to get it done for me. (Who knew that adding wainscoting to the wall would cause such a snowball effect!?!) I'm not the easiest person to please when it comes to home improvement. I'm not really good with the middle area where not everything is perfect. Definitely something I'm working on improving as we tackle the rest of the house. 

Here is the room with no furniture in it. I have moved in, but I'm not 100% pleased with the layout and design yet, so we're headed to Ikea this weekend to see if I can find anything that will work better. New paint and wainscoting in the room. 

All of the trim and doors in the room had been cream so they got a fresh coat of high gloss and new knobs on the closet doors. 

This is one of my favorite features. I picked up this light fixture at the local ReStore for $10. Tim took it apart and spray painted it to match the rest of the house. 

The second project I want to share was inspired by this project. 

Thanks to some lovely forum friends who loaned me their dies so I didn't have to kill my shoulder cutting out circles one at a time, it's been really simple project. 

I still have to fill in the middle of the circle so you can't see the styrofoam when it hangs, but it's almost complete. 

Thanks for stopping by today!

Dear Blog Readers...

I have missed you.

I never really intended to take a blogging break, but sometimes life just happens like that sometimes.

I'll recap quickly what's happened since I last had time to blog:

• I started classes again and was faced with the toughest course I've had yet - luckily that course finished yesterday
• Went on vacation to Asheville
• Saw Wicked in DC (AWESOME!!!)
• Had our offer accepted by the seller's short sale bank
• Found out there was a second lien on the home and we were back to waiting
• Got approval from the second lien and started the appraisal, inspection, water, termite, etc, process
• Lost a good friend and a co-worker, both under 25, suddenly and senselessly
• Closed & moved into our new house
• Had numerous break-downs from stress - the funniest now, but worst at the time, involved me sitting on the kitchen floor late at night with the crock pot on my lap crying because the people who lived in our house before us left stuff in the freezer and then turned the power off in the house. Talk about a gross smell! 

Tim has been wonderful enough to work on my craft room first, so it's in the process of being repainted, and having some other cosmetic updates before I start to settle in an unpack. I can't wait!! I'm definitely getting the itch to make something!! 

Thanks for stopping by, 

Pinwheel Thank You

Hey there!

I'm back today with a card for this week's Summer Card Camp challenge.

Can I tell you how much I love this color combo?!? I interpreted it as PTI's Vintage Cream, Fine Linen, Kraft, Pure Poppy and Dark Chocolate. 

I broke out my Lil' Inkers Pinwheel Die (an absolute FAV!!) and had a lot of fun putting this together. 

Thanks for stopping by today! 

My Favorite Things...in June!

Hi guys!

I just wanted to pop in today for my traditional monthly favorite things post.

1. The One
For Tim and I, June revolved around one huge all encompassing thing:

We were house hunting for about 6 weeks when we stumbled this gem nestled in the woods. Good news: the listing agent had done a terrible job marketing it (in my opinion) with lack-luster pictures that don't showcase it's best features. Bad news: it's a short sale. We put in an offer the same day we saw it and have been anxiously waiting for an answer. We're still hopeful, but the wait is beginning to take a toll.

2. Pin It!

Pinterest has pretty much taking the crafting world by storm, and I'm definitely no exception. I love that I can file all the inspiration out there into one place. But it's also been a great way for Tim and I to keep track of ideas we have for the house we hope will soon be ours.

3. Love is in the Air

Two of my high school best friends tied the knot this month, and Tim and I were so honored to be invited to share the day with them. Isn't her dress beautiful?! A beautiful wedding, a beautiful reception, and a beautiful couple!

4. Childhood Fun

As far back as I can remember, before my grandmother really got sick, we played some kind of game as a family each time we visited - which was pretty much every weekend. Since she passed away 3 years, games have felt slightly forbidden.

My grandfather turned 80 this month, and my uncle was visiting from out of town, and it seemed like the perfect time for a game of UNO. It brought back so many great memories, and I'm looking forward to playing  many more hands in the near future.

5. Country Livin'

I love hay season - seeing all the bales spread across the fields and the patterns created from where the bales are dropped. The only bad thing is that alfalfa makes me allergies flare now, but I still love the smell and driving with the windows down. This is what summer is all about.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Today...

is all about one thing.

This guy

My Jeep-driving, bear-hunting, powder horn-carving, old stuff-appreciating, dinner-cooking, art teaching other half.

This year marks 10 years since I met him. Today marks 2 years since I married him. And forever that I will love him.

How 'bout a little walk down memory lane?

 The last two years haven't been easy ones. We didn't expect that they would be, really. But we've survived the constantly passing train, the midnight fly-overs, job changes, house hunting, and, most recently, a month of an agonizing wait and are all the stronger for it. (A little back-story...We live a stones throw away from a train track and less than .5 mile from the Air National Guard. Please see the above for reasons #1 and #2 why we are anxious to move yesterday REALLY soon!) He still makes me laugh every day. He comforts me when my imagination gets the best of me (thank you, Criminal Minds). He constantly amazes and inspires me with his creativity. 

Here's to many more years of laughter and inspiration!

Happy Anniversary Tim! I love you! 

Thanks for stopping by today (and indulging me)!

Card Camp

**tap-tap**

Hi there.

I know, I know, I've been MIA again. I hope you're still here.

Summer Card Camp started yesterday, and I am so excited! It's only the second day and I can feel my mojo starting to return. Now if we can just get the AC into my craft room over the weekend, I might actually get some cards posted! (Yep, that was a HUGE hint to my hubby who actually reads here!)

I can't tell you how excited I am that this card camp is all about color! Color challenges are toughest for me and I'm hopeful this will help me stretch my creativity and get me thinking outside the box.

I broke out some new Verve Stamp sets and the more I use them, the more I love the sentiments and font choices Julie makes! 

I love bright colors, but I just couldn't get these to work for me, so I decided to mute them a little by stamping off first on the purple and orange. 

Thanks for stopping by today! 

Stamps: Blue Skies and Kind Words (Verve)

Die: Picket Fence (PTI)

Cardstock: Stampers Select White, Kraft, Spring Rain (PTI)

Ink: Plum Pudding, Orange Zest, Hibiscus Burst (PTI)

Black & White Challenge

This week the CAS challenge over at Simply Scrapping Crafts is Black & White. (BTW, aren't you proud of me?! Posting a card on the day the challenge goes live!!)

For this card I used PTI's 2010 Anniversary set, and my new favorite toy - Background Basics: Diamond impression plate. I love it!

Thanks for stopping by today!

My Favorite Things...in May!

Hi guys!!

First of all I have to apologize for being MIA. I promised to be back and have projects a couple of weeks ago...obviously, that didn't happen, but I really had the best of intentions, and we all know how that goes.

So here are my favorites from May

1. So You Think You Can Dance

This is my absolute FAVORITE summer TV show. I love it. I love that the judges don't take themselves too seriously and you can just feel the fun atmosphere.

2. House Hunting

This is a favorite and kinda not. I'm beyond thrilled that Tim and I have decided to start the house hunt, but at the same time I have all of those first time home buyer butterflies. I can't wait to find our home. 

3. Summer Vacation

I started my self-imposed summer vacation officially on Monday. Two months of class-free relaxation. Tim has students for 3 more days and only works for 5 more. I'm so excited for us to have some time for fun (and house hunting) this summer.

4. Simple Little Things

This one's really personal - but this whole post is pretty much personal, so what better time to share it.

Tim and I will have been married for two years this summer, and throughout I've struggled with feelings of not being accepted by his family on a consistent basic. The picture above was taken during the party we helped to throw for Tim's Grandma's 80th birthday. The grandchildren's picture - the first one in two years I was included in. This picture also makes me laugh. We were all asked to wear white. We don't really follow directions well...

5. Winning the Battle, Hopefully the War

In August I went to war against the minus sign, and this week I won a small battle. As an undergrad "A"s and "A-" held the same weight - the minus was actually my friend. Then I realized that as a grad student it was no longer my friend and the battle lines were drawn. Until now, the score was minus sign 3, Amy 0. But not anymore! Monday I found out that I was the victor of battle 4, with a regular "A"!!! I still have 8 more courses to go, we'll have to wait and see the outcome of those!


Thanks for stopping by today. I promise to be back Friday with a card.