A 15 minute card

I'm back.

I dispensed with bringing my good camera on vacation because I figured I'd use the camera on my phone. I find that I'm pickier about photographing my cards than I thought. Not sure I like the quality of the photos I took of a card that I whipped up today but I'll deal with it.

In a quick trip through Michaels yesterday, I picked up a new Love Letters DP stack by Recollections and a cute 3 bird cling stamp set by Inkadinkado. (My dh realizes that I don't cook on vacation so he's turning a blind eye to the fact that I've converted half of our  kitchen into a studio. Lol.) The sentiments I used on the card are from Print Works (outside) and Stampendous (inside).

I've said this many times. I like taking really pretty collage paper and letting it do most of the work on my cards. This one just needed matting, a fussy cut bird and the sentiment stamped directly on the background paper.

I continued with the same paper inside the card and a birthday stamp. My sister-in-law's birthday is coming up on the Jan 3rd so I'm ready to fill it out and mail it. All in about 15 minutes.

Thanks for dropping by. I hope you're anticipating a fun, crafty New Year.

*smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

Greetings from vacation....

On hiatus in sunny Florida but still keeping in touch with my favorite blogs (and if ds will let me use his computer, I may just be able to post a card made here if I can overcome the obstacles of a photo taken with a phone! Stay tuned!)

Let me at least enable you about your chance to win a prize this week. Over at the Paper Smooches blog (www.papersmooches.blogspot.com) there's a blog hop going on featuring sneaks of three soon-to-be-released sets. If you scan my blog, you'll see that I love their stamps (most recent card using PS stamps can be found on my Dec 14th blogpost.)

They are offering lots of chances to win the set. Just head over there and read how.

If you use the Paper Smooches gadget on my sidebar, just click on "Blog" to get over there.

Now to try and get my card-making mojo started....

Have a great day!

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

Checkin' in...

Hello,
I haven't mastered the photos-from-a-phone-to-the-iPad skill yet so I just thought I'd check in sans photo today. It's time for you to shake your heads and click your tongues at my admission that I'm still addressing holiday cards (while on vacation, to boot!) I just do these madcap things to entertain you, truth be told... Lol. It wouldn't be so bad if I did what I usually do and that is gear my card greeting to a Happy New Year, but no, these cards refer to the pre-new year holiday season... Sigh. They're pretty and colorful and handmade so I figure they will still be enjoyed.

Since I have no new project to show you, I thought I'd introduce you to one of my favorite sites. Lynn is the queen of shabby chic. She decorates beautifully and always has gorgeous simple cards and projects to enlighten you with. Her Dec 21st blog post gives you a link to a paper bowl that looks so easy to make, I may just try it and see if it'll hold lightweight crafty stuff. Lol. Her blog is located at www.millers-ink.net. (my iPad refuses to link today so please cut and paste...*smile*)

I wish you a happy and healthy new year!

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

Nothing like a new project before the other is finished...

I totally forgot that ds#2 would need a card for a Sweet Sixteen party tonight. I went into overdrive. Of course, the day was supposed to be spent putting the finishing touches on my very late holiday cards but that's Murphy's Law for you.

I used My Favorite Things latest sketch challenge (MFTWSC51) and some MFT stamps that I always go to for Sweet 16 cards. Cheers for the party girl and Time to Celebrate for the sentiment. I think I colored her dress with 3 different Copics before coming to the conclusion that I wouldn't be matching her dress to the pink cardstock anytime soon. I just squint when I look at it and accept it as it is. Lol. The gorgeous papers are from a K&Co pad called Lotus by Amy Butler. I used a couple of MFT dies: an open scallop border and that cool label.

So, did you ever wonder what a card with 12 layers looks like? Hee hee. I kinda went wild with the matting only because without it, the papers kinda blended into each other. Considering the layers, it isn't that heavy. The bow and pearls would be responsible for the extra postage, I imagine. Good thing ds is hand delivering it!

I hope Murphy's Law isn't catching up with you, too. Enjoy your holidays.

Back to work. *smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

WOTT is WOYWW and it's Hanukkah!

What's on Tap Tuesday (WOTT) is What's on Your Workspace Weds (WOYWW) as well.

As usual, a quick thought turned into a card. The first night of Hanukkah caught me unawares. The bad angel almost convinced me to let it go. The kids are teens, do they really care anymore? Our celebrating was always geared to their adolescent joys... little presents every day, chocolate gelt (money)....

But the good angel whispered in my ear, "They still like lighting candles and eating corned beef and latkes.... " So I picked up fresh warm corned beef and pastrami from our favorite deli and bought the ingredients for potato latkes (pancakes) and just before I started on the cooking, the good angel added, "you know, you could take a chance that they still like your annual scavenger hunt for gifts."

So I left the kitchen, gathered up some hoarded Hanukkah supplies and literally made two quick cards to tuck a little cash in. Then I left clues in five different places and after dinner, they rolled their eyes but smiled and indulged me in running around the house following the clues. We're talking about 6 foot tall teenagers. That did the parents' hearts good.

So tonight's makeshift workspace is on top of the last post's card pieces (still being worked on). The chocolate Riesen you see on the table were attached to the card envelopes with big fat glue dots.

Card #1and #2 (I told you they were quick ones....)

Once they were made, stuffed with cash and hidden for the scavenger hunt, it was time to make the latkes. Cooking tip: skip the frustration of grating potatoes (and knuckles) and pick up a nice bag of frozen hash browns for starters. I added 6 eggs, 6 tablespoons of flour, salt and pepper and mixed together.

I like to drain them after cooking so I lined a cookie sheet with these adorable paper towels. So apropos, no?

I dropped large spoonfuls of the mix into hot olive oil. Wonderful crunchy yumminess to eat with sour cream and applesauce... comin' up!

First night is one starter candle in the middle and one candle below. We add one more every night for 7 more nights.

Hope you liked the tour and I wish you a merry season of joy ahead whether it's Hanukkah or Christmas. Enjoy!

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

A Conversation and the card that resulted....

Bad Angel: Well, it looks like it's too late to send cards to even the inner circle... let's just watch a movie....

Good Angel: It's not too late. Remember that we have that cool DCWV Four Seasons Stack that has a few glittery holiday papers? Cut those up into 4"x6" panels, add a quick stamped image and sentiment and we can have a few done in no time.

Bad Angel: I don't know....

Good Angel: C'mon... we should at least send to the people who've sent cards to us so far... and then there's the aunts that say how much getting our annual card means to them....

Bad Angel: But I don't know if I'll be happy with a simple card...

Good Angel: You'll get over it....

~~~~

So the paper stack was found. A retired Lizzy Anne stamp set was unearthed because that bird and sentiment were so fitting for the paper. And that silly Santa hat from Paper Smooches Chubby Chum Pals was hauled out yet again because, astoundingly, it seems to magically fit on the head of any image I have.

I stamped the bird, colored his belly with Copics, fussy cut him, stamped the hat, colored it and popped them both up with foam dots. Stamped sentiment directly on the background paper.

Whew, success! Now to make a set of these and come up with an equally quick set with the other holiday sheet from this stack.

I'm hoping to have something new to show on the desk for What's on Tap Tuesday. Drop by if you've got a minute.

Enjoy your pre-holiday time....

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

WOYWW #132 and a Merry Moose

Something sci-fi is going on with time these days.... Wednesdays are coming much too fast. I'm convinced we are in some sort of time warp... Well, I guess I better get this post done because by my calculations, it'll be Wednesday again by the time I'm finished....

On tap this week is a desk still in holiday mode. Splitcoast Stampers had a Virtual Stamp Night (VSN) this past weekend so, if you only visit weekly, scroll down to see the challenges that I was able to complete. Today marked the last one for me. The challenge was to make a project with six layers. Amazingly, my card doesn't even feel that bulky. Good news for mailing it. I've got really cranky postal workers to deal with. They seem to find reasons to triple my charges when my envelope has bumps in it.

I'm currently in love with my Chubby Chum Pals stamp set by Paper Smooches. I've said this before: good quality clear stamps are a dream to work with. The game "Duck, duck, goose" came to mind today and I thought I'd combine that idea with the cute sentiment in the set. I even used patterned paper with mistletoe on it but because it's dark, it's hard to see. Oh, and I had to pull out the Lawn Fawn set Harold's ABCs to spell out duck and moose. The rhinestones added a little extra texture and fun.

So, the VSN was fun but now I've got to buckle down and turn some tags that didn't sell at my friend's craft fair into cards for the immediate family. Because, you know.... next Wednesday will be here in a couple of days! Come back to see the result.... Check out Julia's WOYWW blog for more work spaces today!

Thanks for visiting... *smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

Non-traditional holiday card

That's what the Splitcoast challenge DEC11VSNI called for. Actually, the challenge was to make a warm weather Christmas card since some of the U.S. doesn't get the cold winter weather much less a traditional white Christmas. So I pulled out the only cactus stamp I have (a retired Stampin Up one) and decided to decorate it with a garland of holiday lights. (The sentiment comes from a little stamp cube by Stamp Studio.) It was supposed to be made within 45 minutes. If I don't count hunting down the stamp, I think I kept within the time frame. In the last couple of days I've been using this Label 18 Nestie from Spellbinder and I love it. It makes for a cool frame. My source for Nesties is Cut@Home. If you sign up for their newsletter, you receive a 40% coupon once a month. Not bad, huh?

I wish I could say that I got to more challenges but I didn't. Maybe tomorrow. The deadline for submitting is 10pm EST tomorrow night, so you have time to play, too. Check out the Master List of challenges HERE. If nothing else, there's a lot of inspiration to be found there.

Thanks for dropping by. I'm just about ready to make a cup of tea and sit down to enjoy another episode of Once Upon a Time. The actors in the show take turns tweeting live during the telecast so that makes it even more interesting. Tonight, Jennifer Morrison, who plays Emma, will be tweeting. My reminder alarm is going off, so gotta go!

*smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

Virtual Stamp Night over at Splitcoast Stampers!

It started yesterday and continues on through the night tonight. Check this LINK if you'd like to see the challenges. There will be prizes and it's so much fun to play along. Plus, although the idea is that you try to keep your creation time to 45 minutes per challenge, you have until Monday 10pm EST to link in any creations....

I hosted the challenge called DEC11VSNK. It's asking you to create a telescoping card. Here's the LINK to my challenge. Once there, I even give you a link to Beate's telescoping tutorial so if you don't know how to make this kind of card, here's your chance. And here's the card I created as a sample. This cute snowman starts out folded up on the easel card...

...then a pull of his hat and there he is in all his snowy glory. The sentiment stamps and that little cutie patootie snowman came from Unity's November '10 Kit of the Month (Picture Perfect) and December '10 KOTM (Just Be You).

I've also had a chance to play along with a couple of the other challenges so far.

Here's DEC11VSNA which asked us to portray a warm and fuzzy theme. Lydia (over at Understandblue) is the hostess of the challenge and she actually created (and sells) the cat stamp that I used so it's a little joke for her that I used her kitty on the card. *smile*

Then I got to make a card for DEC11VSNB which asked us to use a snowflake somewhere. I've got them on the patterned paper and in my little Paper Smooches bear's word bubble. The bear comes from PS's Chubby Chums Pals set (love it) and the word bubble is from a stamp and die set called Say What?  by My Favorite Things. That luscious Maraschino bakers twine is from The Twinery.

Tomorrow I hope to play along with a few more challenges, so check back then to see if I have more to show you and consider joining in!

*smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

WOYWW#131, WOTT#34 and Lawnscaping Challenge: tags!

What's on my Wednesday Workspace (WOYWW)? The same that was on tap Tuesday (WOTT). I pulled the desk out again and have been working on more tags. How timely! I'm making tags and Lawnscaping's latest challenge is tags or treat bags.

So the desk is covered with lots of green scraps that will work well for stamping different patterns of trees. When you're mass producing (in my case, just 12 because that's how many I get from one sheet of 12x12 background paper), a lot of ink would be used to color in all the trees so... patterned paper it is. I used three Lawn Fawn stamp sets on this tag. (Each name is linked to where you'll find it on LF's site.) For the tree and jolly hedgehog, Critters in the Forest. For the "To/From," the Just My Type Too set. And for the "Be Merry," I used individual letters in Harold's ABCs. The paper is from DCWV's Christmas Stack and the luscious Maraschino twine is from The Twinery. Also, I can't seem to stop using those cute little pom poms (see previous post.) Check out Julia's WOYWW post to see other people's work desks.

Check out the challenge HERE. You can join in even if you don't have Lawn Fawn stamps. The challenge winner gets a gift certificate from Simon Says Stamp!

One more thing: I'm going to be one of the hostesses over at Splitcoast Stampers this weekend for their Virtual Stamp Night. It starts Friday night and there will be hourly challenges with prizes. I'll be on at 6pm EST with a challenge of my own. Check it out. Could be fun..... *smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

John Travolta and Another Holiday Tag

How are they related? Well, John Travolta was in a small movie called "Blowout." It was a thriller in which he plays a photographer trying to catch a serial killer. Stay with me. He befriends a young woman in the process and it's something she says that is linked to this card. She asks him how he likes her makeup job one day and he claims that she doesn't seem to have makeup on, to which she replies, "It took me 2 hours to get this natural look." I've realized from experience that my Clean and Simple (CAS) projects sometimes take 2 hours to get that look. Lol. I have a higher regard for the CAS projects I see because it still takes work to get there.

This tag uses the adorable Paper Smooches stamp set called Chubby Chum Pals. I'm beginning to love clear stamps because it's so easy to add to an image when you can see through the stamp. Like adding the hat to this cute moose. The set comes with that sentiment and more but I used a Cavallini To/From stamp. The paper is from DCWV's Christmas Stack and the twine from The Twinery.

Have a great week ahead. What's on Tap Tuesday is just around the corner. What's on your desk these days?

*smile*

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)

Friends with Flair and a Winter Tag

I came up with this idea for "To/From" tags. I can get 12 tags from one 12x12 patterned sheet and some cardstock. That  cute snowman paper is from Jillibean and the tree? From Unity's Vintage Banners. Banners are great for making trees!

The foam star is double sided so it sticks to the tag and can be embellished as you wish. I used Stampin Up's glass glitter. Easy peasy.

Thanks for dropping in! Enjoy the blog hop...  Prizes await a lucky commenter over there!

Cindy (aka Scrapcollectr)