Friday, August 12, 2011

Oh Happy Day!!

My laptop (Gateway NV53A) is home, safe and sound! Thank goodness! A couple weeks ago I kept getting these messages that said my hard drive was failing. I wasn't sure if it was for real or just a pop-up so I called Gateway. Th e message was for real! YIKES!! I didn't understand it since I just got this pc in March. Uuggh! So, I had to "clean" it out. I backed up all my pics, my videos, etc... and took it down to ship it to the repair center. Of course I was still under warrenty but I had to pay to ship it. $60! I'm so relieved to have it back. My hard drive has been replaced (I still don't know what happened there...) and so far so good. I need to reinstall a couple programs but everything else seems to be fine.

I've been working on a couple tags for my swap with Cassie - one boy tag and one girl tag. I think they came out so cute, and now that I have my pc back I will upload a video and pics of them. I also started working with my Graphic45 Steampunk Debutante papers. I'm finding it very intimidating...challenging but fun.

My sister is visiting this weekend from Ct, and on Monday Logan heads back to school. Highschool, a Sophmore. Yikes! I can't believe it! Time flys and all that.

Thanks for listening! :)
Karen

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Try Something New...

I finished my 'My Family' mini album -with pics. I'm pretty pleased at how it came out except that I wish I had larger Bind-it-all rings. I think this album would lay better if I was able to use my bind-it-all. More importantly though, I have put some precious family photos into an album! Better in there than in the file folder in my desk! Its always a great feeling to finish a project, but I'm ready for something new.

Yesterday I bought two of the little unfinished birdhouses at Michaels. My plan is to alter them in a shabby chic style. When I was in Ct I bought a few birds...artificial little ones that will fit sweetly with these birdhouses. This will be the first time I have ever altered something besides a box. I'm looking forward to this project! I bought new paint (on sale at Mikes) and plan on using the crackle medium I have. I am debating on whether to use paper on a portion of the birdhouse, as a backround. I have gorgeous Websters pages...we'll see. Maybe I'll paper one and completely paint the other as a comparison. Decisions, decisions...lol.

I'm also looking forward to starting my Steampunk Debutante mini from the kit I received from Cassi. I may do a tag mini since I just received the TH tag and bookplate sizzix die.

I'm truly enjoying the YouTube community of scrappers! I'm learning so much and it is making me a better crafter. Thank you all for your videos...I'm addicted to watching you all! LOL

TTYS-- Karen

Monday, July 18, 2011

Home Again...

"Home again, home again, jiggity-jig". Thats what I used to say to my boys when they were little whenever we would pull into the driveway. Anyway, I'm home. Back from my vacation in Ct. Logan and I had a GREAT time! I always do when I'm with my sister Judy. It was such a relaxing visit. Every night we put on some music and worked on a puzzle, or cozy up in Judy's bed to watch a movie.  It was so nice to share this trip with Logan too. I took him to the 'old' neighborhood where I grew up which was very cool for me, even if he wasn't that impressed. LOL I think its important to know your family's history and growing up in Naugatuck Ct is a big part of my history.

One huge highlight for us though was our trip into NYC. As you all know, I have been there before but this was a first for Logan. Actually, we took him when he was about 4....obviously he didn't remember much of that visit. Judy was very generously able to get tickets to 'Spiderman: Turn off the Dark' on Broadway!! OMG!! It was amazing! All of the stunts, the music...incredible! Logan loved it too! We also went to the American Museum of Natural History and toured a lot of Central Park. Words can't express what a great time we had, and all the fantastic sights we were lucky enough to see. I'll post a couple pics.

Now that I'm home, and my parents are all moved into their condo, I've got more time on my hands. I've put that time to good use and finished my Shabby Chic paperbag mini!. I'm so excited about it! It came out beautifully...just as I hoped it would! I'll be posting a video soon. I'm going to put pics of the special ladies in my life in it. Like my mom, my sister, my cousin, my step-daughters...etc. It is such a femine album, perfect for girl pics. No boys allowed! LOL

Also while I was in Ct I did some scrapbook shopping (of course!) at the Stamping Station. It is a great Scrapbook store. I finally found the Tim Holtz tag die! Yup, I bought it! Along with Graphic45's Curtain Call 8x8 paper pack. I'm so excited about that! I'm hoping to do a haul video to show what other treasures I picked up.

Thats it for now...my scraproom is calling. Its a mess as it always is when I complete a project. Time to clean it up, maybe reorganize a little and then onto my next project! Happy Scrapping! :)

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Fun in Connecticut!

Logan and I have been in Ct for a couple days now and we're having such a great time with Judy. Last night we went to a Concert in the Park in Woodbury, the Waterbury Symphony and Beatle-mania! It was great and the weather was perfect. Later this week Judy is taking me to a local scrapbook store. I'm really looking forward to that. Well...must go. We're headed to the movies.  Bye all!

                                        Karen

Sunday, June 26, 2011

I GOT IT!!!

I GOT IT!!  The Cricut Expressions!! The Pink Journey Bundle! I'm sooo excited....can you tell? Heehee   I wasn't planning on getting one, even when I saw that Michaels had them on sale for $199.00. But when I was offered a 50% discount...I jumped all over it! I've had the original Cricut for about 7 or 8 yrs now. It still works great and I use it all the time. As much as I wanted an Expressions I could never justify the price (since I already had the original..and it wasn't broken! LOL). But with this discount I couldn't justify NOT getting it! I am so tickled! I almost want to postpone my trip to Ct. this Friday just so I can stay home and play! Of course...I would never do that. I'm going to see my sister and she is a treasure to me. Yes, even more than my NEW PINK EXPRESSION! LOL Oh, and it came with 3 cartridges. They aren't full cartridges, however the Pink Journey Campagne Rose cartridge is very cool. It has 3 images of women- a lady jogging, and 2 who look like they're shopping. It has several beautiful flourishes, and roses with the stems, and several words including: Live, Love, Fight, Walk, Run, My Story, Believe, Courage, and several more that are encouraging and promote the Race for the Cure. Also, Provo Craft donates a portion of the proceeds toward fighting breast cancer. How great is that?!
  My Michaels has just put out their new "dollar spot" stuff. They have new chipboard albums, with the binder ring, in a few different shapes along with beautiful acrylic butterfly and flower embellies. Excellant because they will go with the mini I am currently working on. It is a paperbag mini using DCWV The Linen Closet stack. It is turning out to be Shabby Chic. Unfortunately I don't see myself finishing it before I leave for my trip. I'm working hard on it and am learning so much from the many videos I've been watching. I truly appreciate those of you who take time to post them!
  Well, thats all for now...Happy Scrapping!! :)

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

The Wedding

Its over. For the past few months there has been a nervous excitement in the air as my step-daughter's wedding date approached. There has been a lot of anticipation and anxiety, making sure every detail was in place. Friends and family arrived from Texas, Arizona, Georgia, and right here in Florida. And on Saturday, June 18th, a celebration took place as Jennifer and Jr exchanged wedding vows on the beautiful House of Refuge Beach. It was 6:00pm and the weather was perfect, the lighting was soft and we all cried during the simple but beautiful ceremony. And now...its over...it seems quiet around here now. And I'm exhausted! LOL  Next on my calender is a trip to Ct to see my sister. My son Logan is coming with me and I'm getting excited! (So is he!) 
On the creative front I have finally posted a couple videos! One showing off my altered Junk Journal and another showing my one-page-binding mini album! (Elsa from Justafewdesigns method). I didn't realize it took so long to upload onto YouTube! LOL  Next I am working with another paperbag mini, but a little different style than most. I was inspired by Steffogal1. I'm using some Colorbok paper...Green Moss I think. I picked up the whole collection at JoAnns during thier 40% off sale. I love working with a complete collection! It takes all the guessing out of most of the embellishing. Also in the works is a mini for Jennifer for some of her wedding photos. That will be a fun mini to put together! I'm thinking it will be a chipboard mini...we'll see. 
Anyway, thanks for checking out my Blog. Leave a comment or suggestion! TTFN! (ta-ta for now...like Tigger!LOL)

Thursday, June 9, 2011

A Busy Time

So much is going on ...I've been BUSY! First, my step-daughter is getting married June 18th. It'll be a lovely ceremony on the beach, right here in town.  A week and a half to go and we are bombarded with details!! (We finished the centerpieces tonight!)  Next, my parents are moving into a condo. I'm excited for them! But of course they need all the help they can get so I've been helping mom sort through her things and pack them up. Soon I'll be helping her sort through and unpack in the condo! And to top it off my car was rear-ended while running my many errands! Not to worry- no one was hurt and the damage is minimal, but still! This means getting to the insurances' mechanic, getting an estimate and giving up my RAV for 3 days! Ugghh! Thank goodness the other drivers' insurance will provide a rental car. Its just one more thing to deal with. So there you go...this explains why I have spent only minutes at a time in my scraproom instead of hours at a time. LOL I MISS MY SCRAPROOM and my scraptime!   After all this craziness I have a trip to look forward to -- my son Logan and I are headed to Ct on July 1st-11th to see my sister! We are so excited! We are planning a couple days in NYC and some day trips to see the sights in Ct. I'm so glad to be taking this trip with Logan. He is 16 and I figured I better take a trip with him now while he still enjoys my company! LOL Actually he is great company - very funny and thoughtful. But of course this means more time away from my scraproom. Its worth it! I adore my sister and treasure my time with her.
So...as I said, its a busy time. I wonder if I can sneak in a nap?.....

Monday, May 30, 2011

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope you all had a safe and happy Memorial Day! I took advantage of the awesome sales and coupons to JoAnns.com! I just ordered the Cricut cartridge Wild Card, Tim Holtz Adage Tickets (finally back in stock) along with some black and sunflower yellow Glimmer Mist. The cartridge was only $33.99 on sale, and everything else was 40% off! I can't wait to start incorperating some of the cards and tags from the cartridge into my minis!

I'm still trying to figure out how to post pics of my latest creaations on this blog....I admit it. I'm more than a little confused about how this all works! lol I'll figure it out, in time. Patience is required! :)

Happy scrapping everyone!

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Its a Start!

 I've done it! I've been wanting to start a blog for a while now. I'm hoping this can be the interactive tool I need to draw creative inspiration, and maybe even inspire you all with some of my ideas and creativity. This is very new for me and I'm still learning my way around...I'm not very computer savy! But with patience and time I'll get there. If anyone has some blogging tips feel free to share! My next task...figuring out how to post some pics!