Is it Saturday Already????

This week has absolutely flown by. It was Stamp Club week, so that accounted for the busy-ness of the first half, and then last night was my bi-weekly scrapbooking night with Susan (which I LOVE) and our new friend Des. Today will be busy, too. I have a BBQ to go to this afternoon, which is a potluck, which means I've got to get my "pot" ready or we'll be outta luck! And if I don't get a mani/pedi and my car washed... well, maybe the world won't come to an end, but I'll have to hide in shame!

So, dear friends, I'll be back to stamping and blog surfing and trying to catch up on email, etc., tomorrow. I'm sooooo excited because I start my Jr Design Team term with Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps on Wednesday! And I get to start out by participating in a Blog Hop! For the schedule of events, see my right side bar... and please HOP with us!

Speaking of Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps, I'm sharing a card I made for Susan's mom Nita, who is a dab hand at quilting and sewing. And that is putting it mildly. Nita was recently honored as a Life Member of her quilting guild in Vancouver WA. Plus, out of the blue, she treated me to a beautiful purse made with Laurel Burch fabric that features cats. A congratulations/thank you card seemed feeble, but was certainly heartfelt. And this is the card I chose. As far as I'm concerned, Nita's work IS The Craft's Meow!

The stamp set is called Purr-fect Day, and that's what I'm hoping all of you will have!

Thanks for stopping by for a visit, and I'll be in touch soon!

4th of July Lemonade Stand

Did ya know that Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps hosts a sketch challenge every week? Did ya? Did ya? Well, yes indeed! Hop on over to The Sweet Spot, where a new sketch challenge is posted every Saturday. Why not play along this week? It's a great sketch!

This week's sketch has a spin of using red, white and blue. That's a very good idea since I checked the calendar and... yipes... 4th of July is coming up fast!

I couldn't resist using one of the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps digi images. This one is called Lemonade Stand. Isn't it cute??? One of the fun things about digi images is that you can resize them to fit the space, which is exactly what I did for my card. I also added "Happy 4th of July" to the top of the stand. You can leave it blank or add your own text... whatever strikes your fancy!

I colored the sweet image with my Copics, and added a touch of sparkle to the lemonade with my yellow atYou Spica pen. Nothing like a cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day. Yum!

It's a short post today because I still need to finish prepping for Stamp Club. Thanks so much for stopping by to visit. I absolutely love hearing from you!

Happy Father's Day!

No, I didn't suddenly decide to take the clean and simple look to the max. LOL! This card was made by my youngest Avery (age 12) for Paul. Isn't it great? Avery did everything except cut the paper, which he picked out. That's my boy! The next Stampin Kub, perhaps?

Actually, I'm just thrilled that one of my four boys enjoys crafting as much as I do. Avery even tried his hand at a latch hook rug this past week and did a super job. He also likes to paint things, especially those wooden birdhouses you can buy at Michael's. We have several... and so do Nana Jo and Grandma E (hee hee). Anyway, I can't make too much noise about it around him or I might scare him off... goodness knows his brothers like to tease him about being "Mommy's girl." But I always tell him that many of the great artists are men. So far, so good.

I have to share the inside of the card with you as well:In this version of the image, Avery colored right onto the stamp with markers. He has the patience... and preference... for stamping this way. When he asked me which one I liked better, I suggested it's his choice as artist, but I didn't see any reason why he couldn't use both.

Anyway, when I read what he wrote, it made me smile... for two reasons. One, Paul's favorite response to everything these days is "Relax." Such as, "Paul, can you come fix the vacuum cleaner, something's wrong with it." To which he would reply, "Relax." So pretty much everything you ask him about or ask him to do elicits the same response. It used to be "whatever." We tease him about this relentlessly, of course.

The second reason is because the second "Relax" wasn't really intended to be there. Avery signed his name "Avery Hjulberg." I asked him if he thought his dad didn't know what his last name is... hahahaha... and Avery got mad and crossed it out, which made a mess. Then he got upset. Which is when I told him the tried and true remedy that all of us stampers use from time-to-time, and that is to cover up our mistakes with something else; ergo, the second "Relax."

We're having a very low key Father's Day because the US Open is on TV and so everyone is glued. I walked into the family room a few minutes ago and there they all were, in various lounging poses, on the couch: Paul, our four boys, my "fifth son" Brendan, who is Collin's best friend and practically part of the family, plus the two dogs. They all looked up at me for a moment. I had to stand there shaking my head... this is my life, people! LOL

Since the boys are occupied, I shall slip back into my craft room and prep for Stamp Club. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all are enjoying your day!

A Little Break for Me!

No, you aren't in the Twilight Zone... it is still Saturday (or Sunday for some of my friends). Yes, I'm posting twice in one day! LOL

After looking at the Hanna stamps earlier, I had to jump back into my craft room and whip this up. I've had this set (Cafe) for awhile, but hadn't inked it up in ages. Plus, I couldn't wait to dive into the new SU In-Color cardstock and DP. This is Melon Mango cardstock, and Razzleberry Lemonade DP. Now I have a serious craving for some lemonade. I think I have to make a run to the store!

I love the new In-Colors, so stay tuned for more samples.

I colored Hanna with my Copics. For her dress, I colored the entire dress and then went back with my white gel pen to fill in the polka dots. I cut the table out and popped it up in front of her with some Dimensionals. And did you notice the bit of bling at her ears??? I love bling! Those are Taylor's Tiny Twinkles; they, and the ribbon, are from Taylored Expressions.

Okay, seriously, I have to get some lemonade! And I'm not exactly dressed for a run to the store, so off I go to whine, I mean sweet talk, my husband into going for me. (*wink*)

Night all!

Living the Life of Riley...

I'd sure like to be living the life of Riley right now... somewhere on a beach, lounging in a hammock, drinking a fruity cocktail... pure bliss! I have to admit that one of the things I do love about living in So Cal in the summer is the beach. There's nothing we enjoy more than to head down to Corona del Mar for the day. You can always find us because we are the people with the most stuff!!! {LOL} You gotta be ready for anything with tons of food, drink, sunscreen, umbrellas, beach towels, toys, boogie boards, chairs, magazines, etc. But it's like a mini vacation, so worth all the effort to get there and set up for the day.

Even better, of course, would be a trip to the Caribbean or Hawaii... or maybe even Florida to visit my sister. I hear the water is warmer there, and the sand is white... unlike our beaches, were the water is cold and the sand is brown. But it's beautiful, and the sound of the ocean waves, and the smell of the salty air are like heaven on earth to me. Oh Paul Honey, I have a great idea about how we should spend Father's Day tomorrow... ha!

Anyway, enough of that daydreaming. I was inspired to whip out my re-inkers and watercolor this Riley beach scene (Hammock Riley Moose). Just about everything you see is from Taylored Expressions Beach Bum Key Ingredients, except for the yellow cardstock, which is Crushed Curry, one of the new In-Colors from Stampin Up. And don't you love the sand? I used Brown Sugar Sparkly Fluff to give it that dimension and sparkle. I love it!

If you love Rileys like I love Rileys, you should click on over to Hanna Stamps. Oh Baby, you won't be disappointed. (Click on Unmounted Red Rubber Stamps and Wood Mounted Red Rubber Stamps in the side menu to find the Rileys.) And while you're there, check out the Hanna stamp sets. Now that I'm in the summer and water fun frame of mind, I might just have to get Ahoy Hanna, or maybe Fun in the Sun, or maybe both!!!

Thanks for stopping by to visit me today. I've been busy with my chores today, so not much time to blog surf, but I'll be by to visit you soon. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Beauty and the Beast

Have you heard of the Cinema Saturday Creative Challenge? I've been staying on the sidelines of that challenge until now. The current inspiration challenge is Beauty and the Beast. I LOVE that movie! It's one of my favorite Disney flicks ever. I even love The Enchanted Christmas. So let's just say the inspiration to jump in finally hit!

If you've seen the movie, then you know my card was inspired by Mrs. Potts (voiced by the wonderful Angela Landsbury). I've been wanting to ink up my Papertrey Ink Tea for Two stamp set, so this was the perfect time!

The background was stamped with PTI's Damask Designs, a set created by the very talented Dawn McVey. Dawn just happens to host a weekly color challenge, and my card uses the colors from the June 13th challenge.

The black panel in the back has been run through my CB Textile Texture folder, and I finally used my Stampin Up Top Note Die (inspired by the awesome Michelle Yungbauer, who creates the most gorgeous cards with her Top Note Die). The damask design and the teapot are both heat embossed using Versamark Champagne ink and black detail embossing powder. I love the Champagne ink because it makes the embossed image sparkle. It's hard to see in the picture, but trust me, it does.

All the paper, images and embellishments are from Papertrey Ink.

I'm so glad tomorrow is Friday, how about you? I hope to get some quality time in my craft room this weekend so that I can share more next week than I was able to this week.

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure my blogging friends, and that includes you!

Happy 6th Grade Promotion Avery!

Before I get to yesterday's festivities, I want to share the card I made for Avery's other teacher (he had two this year). Avery really wanted the image to be something that Mr. Ortiz would like. The only thing he knew for sure is that Mr. Ortiz likes to bike. Well, Riley is the only stamp I have with a bicycle image, so that's what we ended up with! Avery was very happy because he loves Riley stamps.

I used Jen's June 6th Sketch for You to Try. Again, I minimized embellishments because this is for a guy. The paper does all the talking, don't you think? I believe it's from Little Yellow Bicycle (came in a kit). The stripped narrow panel is actually from a Gina K set called Ribbon Stripes stamped on Gina's digital paper called Summer Fabrics... a free download on Stamp TV!

I used Smooch Silver to color the silver parts of the bike. That stuff is cool! The rest is colored with my Copics. I didn't get the shading I wanted with Riley, but had to call it good because it was getting late.

I know it doesn't look much like a teacher card on the outside, but I put a nice verse on the inside from Papertrey Ink's Teacher's Apple stamp set.

Avery is now officially out of grade school, and there will be no more Hjulberg boys attending Taft Elementary School. How will the school cope? {LOL} I have to admit I was feeling a bit nostalgic yesterday. When we moved into our home 19 1/2 years ago, the school was still under construction. So many memories. But mostly, such a keen recognition of the passing of time... the end of an era. It's okay, though. A new chapter is ahead, full of surprises and good times.


















Here's a picture of Avery shaking hands with Mr. Ortiz and his other teacher Mr. Plewe (see the tie!) after he'd received his promotion certificate. He also receive a certificate for Outstanding Scholastic Achievement, which was totally unexpected. I was so taken off guard, I didn't have my camera ready and totally missed that shot!














And here's a shot of Paul, Avery and I.

Okay, my friends, I've got to get off this darn computer. I've been on all morning, and Paul is starting to despair of me. Chores await.

Have a wonderful day!

Teacher There's No Tie When it Comes to You...

My youngest son Avery is "graduating" from grade school (6th Grade) tomorrow morning. It's sort of a momentous occasion because he is the last of my four boys to leave grade school. My eldest son Ian is 24, and Avery is half his age at 12. We've had a child (or children) attending Taft Elementary School for 15 years (since Ian started 4th grade)... right across the street from our house. Now I'm starting to really feel time passing. (sigh)

Anyway, I've always made gifts for Avery's teachers, and he has been reminding me all week about how I need to get something done for his teachers (he has two this year). Trouble is, they are both men. Somehow I don't think they'd get excited about the handmade scrapbooks and such I've made for his female teachers in the past. Maybe I'm wrong! {LOL} In any case, I told Avery I'd make cards, but perhaps we should give them candy as a gift. He's good with that.

Here's the first card I made:


This is for Taylored Expressions Cupcake Challenge #71. I just love this sketch! And it was so easy to put this card together using TE's Boys Will Be Boys stamp set and Brilliant Key Ingredients, which is apparently sold out. I'm telling you, if you haven't tried Taylored Expressions Key Ingredients kits, you're missing out! Taylor has a great eye for putting together just the right cardstock, DP, ribbons and other goodies.

The "Teacher" stamp is from Papertrey Ink's Teacher's Apple stamp set. Inside, I used a stamp from Gina K that says "You're the Best!" So the whole thing reads, "Teacher, there's no tie when it comes to you... you're the best!"

Avery is very happy with this card because his teacher has boasted that he has enough ties to wear a different one every day for a year. Now, that's a lot of ties!

Off I go to make a card for his other teacher. Nothing like waiting until the last moment. I guess I work best under pressure. Ha!

Thanks for stopping by!