Mojo Baby!

Hello!
I managed to tackle the Mojo Monday sketch early this week!  I was quite proud of myself!

I had a customer request a baby card for a new niece but the parents of this adorable bundle are not big fans of pink.

I went with the square card. The round cards still intimidate me!!!  This card is 4 1/4" so it would fit in a regular A2 envelope.

The baby carriage is embossed with white embossing powder to add a bit of texture.  I used the vanilla velvet stitched ribbon to soften up the card a bit.  The pink rhinestones add a bit of girliness (is that even a word?!) to the card without it being too pink.

Supplies:
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip
DSP: Chocolate Chip DSP
Stamps: Baby Bundle
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Versamark
Other: White Embossing Powder, Vanilla stitched Velvet Ribbon, Mini Library Clip, Pink Rhinestones, Paper Flower,  Heart to Heart Punch

Thanks for stopping by!
Jen

CASE Study Challenge Card

Hello!
Just a quick card today!  I tried out another new challenge, well, new to me anyhow!  The CASE Study Challenge.  I really enjoyed this weeks example card (pictured below) and really wanted to just copy it BUT knew I needed to come up with my own design.

I love my Create a Cupcake stamp set and so grabbed it and ran!

I used my Stampin' Up! Scoring tool to create the lines below the Pool Party Baker's Twine (featured in the Occasions Mini Catalogue).

I added a little glitter to the cupcake so it would sparkle a bit more!

I didn't have the greatest lighting taking the picture of my card and realize how it looks rather dull...sorry about that :(

Supplies:
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Whisper White
Ink: So Saffron, Pool Party, Island Indigo
Stamps: Create a Cupcake
Other: Pool party Bakers Twine, Dimensionals, Glitter, Cupcake Punch, SU Scoring Tool.

Thanks for stopping by!

CAS-ual Fridays Sketch

Well, it's almost Monday (or maybe Monday by the time you're reading this).  I don't know where the weekend went!  We had a nice weekend as a family catching up on some missed time together and my husband catching up on some missed sleep!

I managed to sneak in a few minutes to try my hand at the CAS-ual Friday's sketch challenge.  So the goal is to keep the card clean and simple (CAS).  I normally would even keep the card as white as possible but decided to step out of my comfort zone a little and try out some melon mambo.  I tried a different technique while embossing my cardstock.  I used Versamark on my embossing folder before I put the cardstock in and ran it through the Big Shot.  It usually leaves a fabulous texture on my cardstock but it didn't seem to work as well today :(

I tried out the new Elementary Elegance stamp set from the Sale-A-Bration catalogue.  I hadn't used it yet and I must say I do LOVE it!  I actually made another card with it this weekend which I'll post mid-week!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Melon Mambo, Basic Gray, Whisper White
Stamps: Elementary Elegance
Ink: Basic Grey, Versamark
Other: Melon Mambo embossing powder,  Basic Grey Taffeta Ribbon, Elegant Lines Embossing Folder, Curly Label Punch


Thanks for stopping by!
Have a great week!
Jen

Lego Card Dimensions

Hello!
Just wanted to add a little post in with the dimensions for the Lego card...

Basic Black: 5 1/2" X 4 1/4"
Real Red: 5 1/4" X 4"
Whisper White: 5" X 3 3/4"

Red/Black/Daffodil/Pumpkin Lego Blocks: 1 5/8" X 1 5/8"
Pacific Point Block: 1 3/8" X 3 3/8"

Circles made using the 1/2" circle punch

Now I'm off to make three more!!!
I'll add a new post with a new card tonight!
Thanks for stopping by!

MOJO Monday and Lego!

 Hello!
Oh how I love weekends!  The weather is blustery here so I was happy to spend this afternoon working on cards!  I finally got around to the MOJO Monday sketch.  I thought by the time I got around to it we'd be back at Monday again!!!  So many challenges, too little time!!!

As soon as I saw this sketch the thing that came to my mind was LEGO!  Our oldest son is 5 1/2 and he LOVES Lego.  Usually our basement floor is covered in it but this week he's been great at cleaning up!  My youngest (3 1/2) isn't so great at cleaning it up and this week played in my craft room with me calling his Lego "garbage" and filling up his garbage truck.  I've been stepping on the stray pieces and so Lego is fresh on my brain!

We will be in need of lots of boy cards this year so I figured it would be great to have this one on hand!  Right now all the boys in my son's kindergarten class are HEAVY into Lego!  I think they all eat, breathe and sleep it!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Real Red, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie
Ink: Basic Black, Real Red, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie
Stamps: Loved Ones
Other: Dimensionals, 1/2" Circle Punch

Thanks for stopping by!

Clean and Simple Flowers

Hello!
The weekend is here!  I'm so excited.  A little break from our routine is always good!

This week's Clean and Simple (CAS) Challenge (CAS154) on Splitcoaststampers was a huge challenge for me.  This week instead of a sketch challenge they had a colour challenge:  Pink, Celery and White.

The goal of CAS is lots of white or open space.  I do enjoy open spaces but I also need texture...hence the embossed polka dots.

I really do love scrunched flowers.  They're super simple to make and I love the way they look when they're done.  This one I made using the Fun Flowers Bigz L Die and the Boho Blossoms Punch.  I crimped the paper first then ran it through my big shot, separate the flowers and crumpled them up!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette, Whisper White, Certainly Celery
Ink: Certainly Celery
Stamps: Create a Cupcake
Other: Fun Flowers Bigz L Die, Bird Punch, Pleated Satin Ribbon, Glitter Brad, Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder

Hope you enjoy the CAS card!
Thanks for stopping by!
Jen

Fresh Elements

 Hello!
It's almost the weekend!  I'm rather excited!  I've been MIA most of this week.  My husband was away, my youngest decided that napping wasn't for him and by the time they were in bed at night, I was too tired to even think!

This week's sketch challenge on Freshly Made Sketches was a bit more of a challenge.  I actually made two cards for it but the first one I did for a customer and forgot to take a picture before I packaged it up to mail out!

It's hard to see in the picture but I used clear embossing powder on the stamped image just to make it stand out a bit more.  I also have embossed the black strip of cardstock using the Finale Press Embossing Folder.  THe edging on the vanilla cardstock is done using the new Edgelits die from the Occasions Mini Catalogue.  I am a texture person and tend to go overboard!

I've been lacking inspiration the last few days but hopefully it will start to pick up as the weekend draws closer!

I will be back tomorrow with another card.  I tackled the CAS challenge on Splitcoaststampers this week.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Very Vanilla
DSP: Mocha Morning Specialty
Stamps: Elements of Style, Create a Cupcake
Ink: Basic Black, Versamark
Other:  Edgelits Die, Clear Embossing Powder, Glimmer Brads, Finale Press Embossing Folder

Sale-a-Bration

Hello!

Sale-A-Bration starts today!  January 24th is one fantastic day!!!  I am so excited!  This is my favourite sale of the year.

It's very straight forward...just purchase $60 worth of merchandise from the 2011-2012 Idea Book and Catalogue and/or the Occasions Mini Catalogue and you will be able to pick something from the Sale-A-Bration (SAB) catalogue for FREE!  For every $60 you spend, you get to pick another freebie!  I love it!  What could be better?

The sale doesn't last very long so get your orders in soon!

Click here to see the catalogue!

CAS-ual Friday Field Flowers

Hello!
Sorry I didn't get posting yesterday!  My husband and I went out for dinner at the CN Tower in Toronto and we ended up getting home WAY later than we anticipated.  This afternoon we took the boys to Monster Jam!  What a hoot!  I think my oldest may end up driving a monster truck one day!

I found a great challenge to take part in!  It's called "CAS-ual Fridays".  I love CAS (Clean and Simple) cards!  Though sometimes I fall in love with very overdone cards as well!

The challenge this week was in honour of Penguin Awareness Day and so the designers wanted us to create cards (CAS) that only used black and white!  I love the field flowers stamp set and really felt like I should use it for this card.  I added some black glitter to the centre of the flowers just to make them sparkle a little.   As much as I love the new pleated statin ribbon from SU!, I also love pleating my own satin ribbon!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White
Stamps: Field Flowers, Petite Pairs
Ink: Basic Black
Others: Black Satin ribbon, black glitter, dimensionals

Wedding Bells

Hello!
I decided to give the Splitcoast Stampers Card Sketch Challenge a whirl today.  I'm not sure how I faired out...I am not completely satisfied with the results.  I am also not sure why I chose a wedding card!  I think I chose the paper then decided it had better be a wedding card!

This sketch seems super easy but man did I have a tough time coming up with colour combinations etc. I have started a second card but again...not sure about the combinations I've chosen so I may need to change it up a little tonight!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White, Silver Glimmer
DSP: Mocha Morning Specialty
Stamps: Petite Pairs
Ink: Basic Black
Other: Glimmer brads, Curly Label Punch, Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder, Daisies #2 Die, Dimensionals

The Open Sea Sketch

 Hello!

I found a few minutes at nap time today to create a card for the Freshly Made Sketches challenge this week.   Thanks Linda for a great sketch!

The Sketch was clean and simple which is totally up my alley!  I decided to focus on a more masculine card this week since they're tough to make and I always am in need of one!  The Open Sea is one of my favourite stamp sets and works perfectly for those masculine cards!

If you haven't tried out a Freshly Made Sketch challenge (or any challenge for that matter) I highly recommend you do!  Having a starting point makes the card creation process go so much faster!

Oh...I forgot to list the supplies for my box project yesterday so I've added those in!  That's what I get for doing two things at once!

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Early Espresso, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
DSP: This is terrible, but I can't remember the name...
Stamps: The Open Sea, Petite Pairs
Ink: Early Espresso, Crumb Cake
Other: Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Sponge Daubers, Dimensionals

Box of Love

Hello!
We've made it past hump day and we're rolling into Thursday!  I'm excited!  It's almost the end of the week!
I have just a quick little project today to share.  I love mini pizza boxes.  I think they're super cute for little note cards or even chocolate!  With Valentine's Day just around the corner I thought I'd do one up as I'll probably drop a few off to some special friends!
This box is super easy to make.  Mary Fish from Stampin' Pretty has a super easy video that explains exactly how to make this box.  The box is just big enough to hold 3" X 3" notecards.

The sleeve is just there as a decorative touch and holds the box firmly closed!  I do love the PS I Love You stamp set in the Occasions Mini Catalogue.  I think the chocolate covered strawberry is so delicious looking!

Now, before everyone wonders why I have Easter Eggs in my box...I love chocolate!  I really do and therefore I usually don't keep it in the house because I'll eat it.  However, I don't like Easter eggs and as you can tell, neither do my kids since I found these hiding in the pantry!  I didn't want to buy my Valentine's Day candy too soon or it wouldn't make it to the 14th!

Enjoy your day!  Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Real Red, Whisper White, Real Red Glimmer
Stamps: P.S. I Love You
Ink: Real Red, Green Galore, Early Espresso

MOJO Monday Challenge

Hello!
Sorry for not posting yesterday!  I had two little boys up all day and I didn't step foot in my craft room!  I wanted to tackle the MOJO Monday challenge today!  This is a great blog updated every Monday...check it out!  They have some fantastic sketches and a fabulous design team to provide some beautiful examples.

I had to use the Everyday Enchantment DSP again! I can't help it!  I just LOVE it!  I can't wait for the Sale-a-Bration to start so I can hook myself up with some more!

I love the flower on this card!  My mom taught me how to make them! I love my mom!  She finds the greatest things online and then teaches me!!!  To make this flower, you run cardstock through a paper crimper 15 times (at least I think it's 15...I couldn't actually remember)!  This breaks the fibres in the paper and allows you to be able to pull the layers apart.  After you've crimped your paper you can punch out your flowers.  For this particular card I used the 2 3/8" scalloped circle, the 1 3/4" scalloped circle and then the boho blossoms punch.  Once your shape is punched out you can very carefully pull the layers apart.  I only separate the circles into two layers...they can be pretty thin.  Then I take the individual layers and crumple them up into little balls.  After that, spread them out and put a brad or button in the centre and voila!

Hope you enjoy today's card!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral, Pool Party, Lucky Limeade
DSP: Everyday Enchantment
Ink: Crumb cake (for sponging), soft suede, calypso coral
Stamps: I Believe
Other: Very Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon,  Everyday Enchantment Brad, 2 3/8" Scalloped Circle Punch, 1 3/4" Scalloped Circle Punch, Boho Blossoms Punch, Bird Punch, Lattice Embossing Folder, Vintage wallpaper Embossing Folder, Dimensionals

Freshly Made Sketches Challenge

Hello!
I hope you had a wonderful weekend and are gearing up for a new week!

I am a little slow getting around to the Freshly Made Sketches challenge this week.  I thought I would be faster getting this card done given that it was a fairly straight forward sketch!

I used a lot of blue on this sketch including some of Stampin' Up!'s Denim ribbon (which I have had for ages but haven't used!).

The stamp set is "Fresh Vintage" from the Sale-A-Bration catalogue.  It is very cute and I really enjoyed using it!

The part of the card you can't see very well from the pictures are the Basic Rhinestones on the flowers and one on the "stamp".

I hope you enjoy the card!
Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Night of Navy, Whisper White
Stamps: Fresh Vintage, Petite Pairs
Ink: Night of  Navy
Other: Dimensionals, Basic Rhinestones, Denim Ribbon, Textured Impressions (Lattice) embossing folder.

Create with Connie and Mary Challenge

Happy Saturday!
Hope you are enjoying your weekend!  We have had a busy weekend with a sick 5 year old who seems to be on the mend!  Thankfully he heals quickly!

I wanted to take part in the "Create with Connie and Mary" sketch challenge (CCMC184) this weekend. I enjoyed the sketch though it took me a while to come up with a colour combination I was happy with!  I do find that sketches really stretch my imagination at times!

I tried out the Edgelits Dies and Textured Impressions Adorning Accents (both of which are available in the new Stampin' Up! Occasions Mini Catalogue).  They were super fun (and fairly easy) to use.  What a great way to add a border to a card!  I also used the DSP, ribbon and brad from the Sale-a-bration catalogue (which starts January 24th).

Hope you enjoy today's card!  I will be posting one tomorrow for a different sketch challenge!

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Early Espresso, Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral
DSP: Everyday Enchantement (sale-a-bration)
Stamps: Non-SU
Ink: Early Espresso
Other: Everyday Enchantment Ribbon and Brad, Basic pearls, Boho Blossoms Punch, Word Window Punch

Week 1 - Project Life

Happy Friday!

I am so glad it's Friday!  I had intended to have a fantastic card all ready to go however I have a sick little 5 year old on my hands who required some extra TLC this afternoon.

I managed to get Week 1 of my Project Life binder done!  I was pretty impressed.  It looks good except that I printed one wrong photo and haven't gotten back to Costco to get the correct one...so bear with me!

You can see there's a label that says "Canadian Warplane Heritage"...obviously the picture under said wristband is not from that museum!  That's the one I printed by accident!  Silly me!



I really enjoy doing Project Life and have been making a conscientious effort to take a picture every day or at least several times a week!  I think this will be a great way of documenting life's regular events that don't always get into my scrapbooks.

Have a great weekend!  Thanks for stopping by!

It's a Buggy Day

Happy Thursday!
If you live in the Lower GTA like we do, you're getting LOTS of rain today.  It's quite a bleak looking day and I'm finding it a challenge to find Joy today!  Needless to say I had to dig in and try hard to keep a smile on my face!

Today's card is a customer request!  She requested a card with cars on it for her boyfriend's birthday.  She also said his favourite colour is blue.  I was a little stumped at what to do and did a little online searching and found a great pattern for a Bug card from Lynn Pratt on her blog.  I thought it was pretty cute and decided to give it a try.  It took me a while to cut out...I'm not the greatest with scissors!

I do like how he turned out and I think he's a cute little guy!
I hope you enjoy the little guy and are having a great day!

Supplies:
Cardstock:  Marina Mist, Whisper White, Basic Black. So Saffron, Basic Grey
Stamps:  Mixed Messages (non-SU)
Ink: So Saffron, Marina Mist, Basic Black
Other: Dimensionals, silver glitter cardstock, basic black marker, Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

MDS Project

I hope everyone is having a great day!  I had a wonderful afternoon and enjoyed a visit with my sweet neighbour Christine and her adorable son Ian!  I haven't even stepped foot into my workshop yet today!  I am however able to share some pages from my MDS (My Digital Studio) scrapbook that I'm working on. I'm still new at this MDS thing so bear with me while I learn!

I believe I originally saw this design (or a similar one) on Heather Summers' blog a while ago and thought it looked pretty cool.  I knew our fall photos would work perfectly!

I never thought I would really enjoy digital scrapbooking and I think I still prefer the actual paper scrapbooking over the digital BUT when you're behind and trying to get somewhat caught up...the digital works perfectly! It also means I can easily scrapbook wherever I am!

Enjoy today's post!   I hope you've been thinking about your one word for 2012!  I would love to hear what you've decided on!

CAS Challenge Thank You Card

Happy Tuesday!
Today is my crazy day!  I am thankful it's almost over but I still have bootcamp to go tonight!  I don't think I'll get this post quite done before it's time to leave!

I wanted to make a quick card this afternoon while Jacob was napping (and before we had to go to the school) and decided to take a look at Splitcoaststampers CAS (Clean and Simple) Challenge.  The challenge this week involved die-cuts.  That seemed pretty straight forward to me.  I really enjoy CAS cards... they're more my style!

I was reading a great post by Nathalie Hardy as she was discussing Project Life...in a nutshell she was saying that we can get very overwhelmed looking at what other's are doing...they may create more elaborate cards, or such amazing scrapbook pages and we can get discouraged thinking our's aren't good enough.  I really needed to read that post.  It made me realize that the clean and simple cards (and scrapbook pages) that I enjoy are good enough for me.  They may not be your style and that's okay!  So when you see a card or scrapbook page and think "wow, I wish I could make something like that"...DON'T!  Find your style and be proud of it!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler, Basic Gray, Whisper White
Ink: Red Riding Hood
Stamps: Perfectly Penned
Other: Pleated Satin Ribbon, Basic Rhinestones, Beautiful Wings Embosslit Die

Tea Mug Card

 Happy Monday!  It was back into routine for us today!  I was kind of glad!  My husband worked last Thursday and Friday which set us up a little but today was a good dose of reality!  Now back to SK for my oldest tomorrow!  I must say I am a little excited!

I had a request for a birthday card and the person the card is for is a bit of a tea snob.  I can say this mainly because I'm married to him!  Shhh...don't tell him this card is for him!  I had found an online tutorial for making this adorable cup...Lorri did an awesome job at explaining how to make this cute cup which she used as a gift card holder.  The lid pulls off to reveal an insert to which you can attach a gift card or write a message.

I created this cup to match the travel tea mug I bought my lovely husband for Christmas.  I am really excited about how it turned out and think I'll be making up a few extras of these to have on hand!   They are super fun to create and once I got the hang of it (I must say I messed up the first cup!!).

Supplies:
Cardstock: Early Espresso, Old Olive, Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla
Stamps: Tea for Two (non-SU).
Other: Ribbon, Paper Crimper

Hope you enjoyed today's card!
Have a great day!!!

Sketch Challenge Valentine

Happy Sunday!

I do hope everyone is having an enjoyable weekend.  We had a few bumps in our day yesterday but in the end we did have a nice weekend with some wonderful weather.  Have you thought about your word yet for 2012?  I have finally decided on mine.  It took a lot of thought and some consultation with those much wiser than I but I have chosen "Joy"...or "Choose Joy".  This is a concept which I struggle with and I need to change.  Not only do I want to be full of joy, I want to bring joy to others around me in whatever way I can.  I'm excited to hear what words you've chosen so feel free to share!


I decided to participate in a sketch challenge this week. There are tons of card challenges on the internet.  This one is by "Freshly Made Sketches".  I love this blog and refer to it often for ideas!

Here is this week's sketch.  All you have to do is follow it!  It's fabulous and I was excited to use some of the products from the Stampin' Up Occasions Mini Catalogue!

Here's my card1  I used the new PS I Love You stamp set as well as the new Fashionable Heart Emosslits Die.  I thought it was cute for Valentine's Day!  Try out the sketch challenge today!  It's a super easy way to jump start your creativity!


Supplies:
Cardstock: Calypso Coral, Pool Party, Lucky Limeade, Very Vanilla
DSP: Everyday Enchantment (Sale-a-Bration)
Ink: Calypso Coral, Lucky Limeade, Crumb Cake
Stamps: PS. I Love You
Ribbon: Lucky Limeade Organdy (Sale-a-Bration)
Other: Fashionable Heart Embosslits Die, Large heart punch, Modern Label Punch, Dimensionals

Love Boards

I had found online a few different ways to let your kids know you love them and why.  I had always wanted to try one of these things but of course never got around to it.  This year I'm making the effort to do actually do some of these things.

I found these cheap frames at IKEA and used some DSP from Stampin' Up! to print out the "Caleb I love you because" on.

This wasn't really my first choice of paper (or as boyish as I wanted) but it matches the colours in my kitchen/family room.  I then added a wooden airplane and some brads (I just took off the wings of the brad) using double sided tape.  We'll see how long it holds.

Using a wet erase marker I'll write on the plexiglass inside the frames what I love about my boys.  Jacob has the same frame as Caleb.  Heaven forbid they have something different!  I'm going to hang them beside the table in my kitchen low enough so the boys can see and read what they have to say!  The boys are super excited about their frames.  They love the idea and can't wait for Daddy to hang them up!

This is an easy way to let my boys how much I love them and what exactly it is I love about them.  Especially when they do something nice for one another or for their Dad or I.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Valentine's Day and a Bow Maker?

Valentine's Day is fast approaching!  I can't believe it.  How does the time go by so quickly?!  I am getting into "love" mode around here to be ready for the Big Day!  I saw a really cute card on Inking Idaho this week.  I wanted to try one of her little cards out for myself!  The card I made doesn't open - it would just be like a regular valentine that you would write on the back of.  I want to "whip up" a few more of these this weekend if possible!

Now take a look at the bow on this card....
I love bows on cards but I do not possess the most superb bow tying abilities.  This bow was SUPER EASY!  I was able to use a new gift that my Darling Husband made me for Christmas!  He made me a Bow Tying "machine".  it's wonderful!  Makes any size bow (okay there are limits) and as many loops as your little heart desires!  This bow has three loops on each side.  The bows also stay tied and DO NOT loosen!  Such a quick way to add a little dimension to cards!

Here is a shot of my bow maker!  I had found some pictures online and saw they were available for purchase but knew Trevor would be completely capable of making me one.  He even made my mom one!  What a way to win over his MIL!  What would I do without him?!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Occasions Mini Catalogue

Stampin' Up's! Occasions Mini Catalogue went live yesterday morning! It is filled with FABULOUS products!  I must say this is one of the best catalogues I've seen in a while!  I can't wait to start using them and hopefully this week I'll have some time to sit down and work on some Valentine's Day cards!

I am very excited to use my new pleated ribbon, my edgelits, scented embossing powder and don't forget the new stamp sets!  I just wish there were more hours in the day or that my boys would play so peacefully while I crafted all afternoon!

This catalogue is in effect until April 30th, 2012.   Click the link on the right hand side of the blog to see the online version of this catalogue!

Card Organizer

Happy Thursday!
Have you thought of your word for 2012?  I'm still pondering what word means the most to me.  I've heard a few good ones from readers and am hoping to come up with mine by tomorrow!

I've set a few goals for myself this year.  One of these goals is to keep my cards organized and ensure that people actually receive their cards on time.  I get my "business" cards out to my customers on time but I'm horrible with getting my own cards ready.  I needed to come up with a system that helped me get these cards in order.  I also tend to see cards I like for people who's birthdays are months away.  The cards tend to get used up or sold.  This box will hopefully prevent me from doing this (and reminding me I have them!).

I found a box at Wal-Mart (a while ago) and covered it in Stampin' Up! DSP.  This took a LOT of double sided tape!  Then I decorated it up with various flowers and butterflies.  I wanted to keep it simple.  Despite the simple this step took WAY longer than I had anticipated.

The box itself required 2 sheets of 12X12 DSP while the lid only took 1 sheet.  I tried using a regular photo storage box but it wasn't tall enough so I had to use this box instead.

The next step was to come up with monthly dividers.  I just cut cardstock to fit in the box then added month tabs on top.  I also wanted to decorate the tabs a little to make them a little more exciting.

I wanted to include dividers/tabs for miscellaneous cards as well - Baby, Sympathy etc.  These dividers aren't quite done yet...sigh.

On each monthly divider I've glued on a sheet to record what events (birthdays or anniversaries) I need cards for that month.  I want to try and work a month ahead. Thankfully we don't have many events in January so will soon work on February's cards!

Anyhow, whether or not you make your own cards or buy them, this is a great way to keep yourself organized!

Have a great day!

A New Year, A New Start

I always start the new year with this fabulous list of things I'm going to do differently. I always tell myself this is the year I'm going to stick to my list and accomplish these goals. Then about 2 weeks into January I start fading...our schedule gets crazy and life becomes hectic and my list seems to become a thing of the past.

I was reading a post the other day on Ali Edwards' blog and she chose a word for 2012. Her word is "Up". She gave her reasons for choosing this word and asked her readers what their word would be. Some said "gratitude, nourish, thankfulness". The list went on. I wondered what my word would be. There are so many to choose from. My goal this week is to come up with my word. If you had to choose one word for the year what would you choose?

I have decided to try my hand at starting Project Life by Becky Higgins. This will be a weekly glimpse into our lives. I want to capture the moments that I sometimes forget and don't scrapbook in our family albums. I want to be able to document the cute things the boys say and do in a place where they'll be able to find it! My album arrived just after Christmas and is open and ready to go!

I love the new Cobalt edition binder! The colours truly represent our family!

The first page inserts come labeled and are ready to be stuck in the pages immediately! It's so easy! I hope it continues to be super easy!!

I am hoping each week to have an update on how my Project Life Binder is coming along! I'm very excited!

I also hope to be more dedicated to updating my blog - maybe not daily but at least a few times a week - not always with cards but with other paper craft ideas and organizational things I'm trying out!

Thanks for checking in!