Quirky Twerp

Valentine Card Sentiments

2012-02-01T20:49:00.000-08:00

New this week at The Digichick are my Arty Pants Valentine Sentiments. They're 30% off through the 5th.

Look at this gorgeous layout by Cathy. She is such a creative person and always does such a beautiful job when she makes something. I'm jealous! :-)

And this is a lovely card by Joana. She's so creative. Look at that fluffy petal heart! CUTE!!!

I hope these have inspired you to create something for someone you love this Valentine's Day.

CU Textures

2012-01-27T06:31:00.000-08:00

This week I have two new packs of Commercial Use overlay textures in my Quirky Twerp shop. Hopefully these will help my fellow digital designers create something fabulous!!!

CU Overlay Textures 1

CU Overlay Textures 2

My Favorite Kind of Valentine!

2012-01-13T08:13:00.000-08:00

I absolutely love these little retro Valentines. They bring back so many memories of grade school. Of decorating a "mail box" for other kids to deliver Valentine cards to me. Memories of signing and addressing my own Valentines to give to my classmates. And laboring over which card to give to which child! And then, of course, the class party where we passed out treats and opened our boxes of Valentines.

Now you can create some new memories of your own with these charming Retro Valentines....my third set!

Have a WONDERFUL Valentine's Day!

New Stamp Sentiments

2011-12-07T20:58:00.000-08:00

Just in time for your handmade Christmas and Hanukkah cards, I have some new sentiments in my Arty Pants shop. They're 20% off Thursday and Friday. Fourteen different sentiments in the Christmas Collection and seven sentiments in the Hanukkah Collection. Happy creating!

Christmas Sentiments Digital Stamps

Hanukkah Card Sentiment Digital Stamps

Bunches of New Stuff!!!

2011-12-01T05:50:00.000-08:00

I have a variety of things debuting in my shops today. First up is my new collection called Snowman Central. Who doesn't love a snowman? Or two? Or more? I have such great memories of building snowmen in the winter and then coming inside for a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows.

Snowman Central Scrapbook Kit

Snowman Central Paper Pack

Sweater Weather Element Pack

Sweater Weather Paper Pack

Frosty Flowers Element Pack

Santa Collage Digital Stamp

I hope these new products inspire you to create something wonderful this holiday season! Stay warm!!!

I've Lost My Mind!!!

2011-11-08T21:56:00.000-08:00

The stray neighborhood animals have a way of finding me. I think they pass the word along "That lady on the corner feeds us and loves us." About a week ago, a little kitten showed up on my porch. She's been there every night since then. During the day she goes somewhere, who knows, but in the evening there she is perched on my porch again. She made friends with my new puppy, Buddy, so I named her Amie (French for friend but I pronounce it like Amy.) Tonight I broke down and brought her into the house. It's misting rain tonight and I figure I can put her back out in the morning.

My 13 year olds, Winky the cat and Frances the dog. are not too thrilled about this new little interloper. And Buddy is having a few pangs of jealousy about sharing my attention, so I've been doing my best to make him feel as loved as before.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do....keep her or find her a home. I know of someone who is interested in getting a cat but I also like the idea of Buddy having a playmate closer to his age. What I don't like is having a four-pet household. Too many animals....too much money on food, treats, vet bills. It's never ending.

BUT, I sure do like the purring noises I'm hearing right now, coming from this warm little lovey dovey lying on my lap! Ugh! Sometimes I wish I weren't such a sucker for animals.

Getting Ready For Halloween

2011-10-06T07:02:00.000-07:00

A couple new things in my two shops this week. At Quirky Twerp I have a new girly Halloween kit called Trick or Sweet. Not all costumes are scary and ghoulish so a few pretty Halloween papers are a necessity!

Trick or Sweet Scrapbook Kit

And at my Arty Pants shop, a set of Potion Labels. The pack includes six labels that are available as shown, and also a distressed version, and a blank version. What can YOU create for Halloween?

Frolic & Friends Collection

2011-09-29T06:08:00.000-07:00

Hey there! Happy Fall. I'm sooo happy it's cooler outside. Much nicer to be able to open the windows and not have the air conditioner running constantly.

My little puppy, Buddy, is growing like crazy. It's weird to see him sitting next to my other dog Frances because they used to be the same size and now Buddy is a head taller than she is. I wonder how big he'll get!

This week I have a new collection in my shop called Frolic & Friends. I hope you enjoy....I think it's very versatile.

Frolic & Friends Scrapbook Kit

Frolic & Friends Word Art

Frolic & Friends Paper Pack

Summer Chick Fix!

2011-09-01T13:08:00.000-07:00

It's time again for The Digichick Chick Fix. Try saying THAT five times really fast! Quite a few designers have participated so there are bunches of coordinating products that you can mix and match to create layouts, hybrid projects and albums. Or any other thing you might think to create! The possibilities are endless. And the prices are fantastic!

My contributions this quarter are paper packs, a stitch pack and a flower pack.

Another addition to my Fabrications line, here's Fabrications Damask.

And then I also have Pretty Patterns.

And of course some coordinating elements are a necessity!

Chick Fix Stitches

And Chick Fix Flowers!

All four packs are just $2.00, now through Sunday. AND free this quarter, with any purchase of $10.00 or more of items from the Chick Fix category, this adorable Digichick Shop Collaboration. Isn't this cute?

Here's a gorgeous layout from Pamie.

Tracy created this pretty layout.

Jennifer created this gorgeous layout. Look at those beautiful photos, too!

And Andrea made this beautiful creation! Amazing.

I hope you feel inspired. Go check out the Chick Fix section of the shop and see what YOU can find!

Introducing the Happy Day Collection

2011-08-17T20:07:00.000-07:00

It's possible that I was inspired by the fact that we are no longer experiencing 100+ degree days! That was excruciating and now the weather is so much nicer and makes me very HAPPY! So, I'm guessing that's why I created the new Happy Day Collection available now at Quirky Twerp.

The paper pack is available separately.
Happy Day Paper Pack

And here's a cute little tag pack that includes tiny alphabet and numeral tags.
Happy Day Tag Element Pack

And last, but certainly not least, I have a freebie kit for you. I'm putting up three links just in case one or more hits their limit of downloads, but these are all the same download so please don't click more than one link.

Just choose one of these links:
Happy Day Freebie Link One

Happy Day Freebie Link Two

Happy Day Freebie Link Three

Sneak Peek of New Kit

2011-08-16T16:04:00.000-07:00

I have a new kit releasing on Thursday that I'm really excited about. I think it's very versatile and completely HAPPY! Also, watch this blog because I'll be posting a freebie for you. :-)
Here's a little sneak peek!

A New Puppy!

2011-07-20T17:47:00.000-07:00

I used to have four pets but lost a dog and a bunny to cancer this year. I'm sad that they're gone but glad I've had less responsibility. Well, all that changed on Sunday night! I was out jogging with my neighbor's dog, Miss B, and I always take her to a big park in our town so I can turn her loose to run around and explore. As we were heading toward our exploring area, suddenly right in front of us was a little black puppy. He was hopping around on three legs and looked like he'd hurt his front left leg. I picked him up so that Miss B wouldn't scare him and he just settled into my arms as if he belonged there. I asked around if he was anyone's dog and of course he wasn't. Someone had most likely dumped him there! That makes me so mad!!! I couldn't bear to leave him there with a hurt leg so home with me he went.

The next day I took him to the vet and after an x-ray they discovered he had a broken leg. Both lower bones!!! Poor little guy. He hadn't whimpered one little bit when they were doing an exam.

Originally my plan was to find him a home, but after taking care of him and getting his leg set and all that I have decided that he was meant to be mine! My friend Lisa says that my dog Pepper sent him to me. Maybe that's how his leg got broken...he landed wrong when he fell from heaven! Ha I've named him Buddy.

Here he is riding home from the vet after spending the night and getting his leg set and splinted.

We are all adjusting to a baby in the house. My dog, Frances and my cat, Winky are not too thrilled. They're both old and don't have time for a rambunctious toddler. Hopefully, after a week or two they'll all adjust and it'll be business as usual. Luckily, the neighbor's cat Fidget (who hangs out on my porch about 23 hours out of the day) is very friendly and playful. He and Buddy have been doing some wrestling in the yard.

So here I go into pet ownership again! This is my first official puppy since I got my other two dogs after they were grown. I'm really a cat person, but I keep ending up with dogs for some reason. Oh well, I think this was meant to be! :-)

Sacked out after a bit of rough housing.

Deciding that his new kennel is a pretty nice place to take a nap.

Curled up in a cat bed I happened to have in the basement.

Chewing and chewing and chewing!!!

Hello!

2011-07-04T15:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I can't believe it's been so long since I blogged. It doesn't feel like that much time has gone by. I have been busy working on sanding and painting my kitchen cabinets. They needed a fresh coat and whoever painted them before didn't sand the finish off the original wood so that paint wasn't sticking well. It peeled off almost like a sunburn. I think this time around it's going to stay.

Here are a few photos. My kitchen is only about five and a half feet wide and about 15 feet long. And I turned the far end into a laundry room. It's very compact and cute and I love it! On the cabinet doors, I still have to add some trim to cover the seam between the yellow beadboard and the white part of the doors but I might put that on the back burner for a bit. I have other priorities right now. I'm just happy that I've made this much progress.

Today I went to the rest home to give my dad a haircut. He was in the most smiley mood. It was really cute. His wheelchair is one of those geri-chairs that is sort of reclined. Mom and I sat him up straight for his haircut and we think he was liking just being able to sit in a new position and have a different view of things around him.

Here he is right after his haircut. CUTE!

And here he is telling Mom something....it's not making any sense but it was still sweet.

And here he is with me. He had started to lean to the side in his chair. That's one of the reasons we don't leave him sitting upright....he doesn't stay upright for very long!

So, after we got done there, Mom and I went to her house so she could have a haircut, too. Then we each had some corn on the cob and a piece of cheesecake! That's my kind of Fourth of July.

Last night though....was a dream come true for me. I got to go to the Steve Miller Band concert at the Downstream Casino here in southwest Missouri (Northwest Oklahoma.) HE WAS AMAZING. What a talented guitarist. And his voice was spot on....I was blown away. It was such a wonderful concert. I went with a friend named Terri and we just sat on a blanket on the hillside. After the concert, they had a fireworks display set to music and that was also impressive. The weather was great....very cool, surprisingly. I had prepared to be sweltering and I ended up shivering a bit. It was very cloudy and threatening rain, but no rain. During the fireworks we saw plenty of lightning in the distance and it was funny to hear the crowd ooo-ing and ahhh-ing at the lightning more than the fireworks!

It wasn't until we stopped for an after concert snack at Applebee's that we had a little downpour. Perfect evening all around!
Here's the concert stage taken from my phone. haaaa

And here is Terri and me posing for the camera on my phone, forgetting that it was dark out and I didn't have a flash! Doh. I'm the one on the right. When I shot the photo, I turned my phone around so we could see and we both burst out laughing. Thanks to Photoshop I was able to get this much detail because on my phone it was completely black!

Time to Get Adventurous!

2011-06-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

We've started something new at The Digichick and it's called The Chick Fix. It gives YOU, the one with the creative ideas, to pick and choose products from a variety of designers and those items will all color coordinate!

My contribution to The Chick Fix is my new Adventurous collection. I wanted to do something that could be used for the GUYS in your life, but I wanted it to be not too specific so that it would work for active girls, too!!! :-)

Adventurous Paper Pack
Only $3.00 through Monday.

Adventurous Elements Pack
Only $3.00 through Monday.

Adventurous Alphabet Pack
Just $2.00 through Monday.

And I wanted to share some layouts from our creative forces at The Digichick. They always amaze me.

This one is by Anne. Check out the blocking. Very neat and precise! Two things I love. :-)

This one is by Lisa. I just love motion and those photos are so perfect!

And this one is from Kim. SO cute! I love how everything is piled around. It makes it fun to look at!

Thanks girls! I really appreciate your creativity.

A Little This and That

2011-06-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

I have unpacked my Arty Pants Grab Bag and now have new stamps in the shop.

Card Sentiments 3

Bird Collage Digital Stamp

Ornate Borders

Sentiment Circles

And here is a little freebie for you!

On a personal note, I had to say goodbye to my sweet bunny Buster on June 1st. For almost five years, I thought Buster was a boy. Then this year discovered I had a girl bunny. What I didn't know is that you should get a girl bunny spayed because around four or five years old, they can develop cysts or cancer in their reproductive organs. Well, that's what happened to Buster. Poor baby! She was a trooper. She didn't act like she felt bad at all and when I took her to the vet he said that her condition was very advanced. So, I decided the best thing to do was have her put to sleep. We shared lots of bunny kisses before she drifted off and I gave her lots of pets. She was a beautiful, spunky bunny and I'll miss her.

Here's Buster as a little baby.

Here's Buster's cute feet hanging out of her condo!

And here's one having a "Spa Day". :-)

As a teenager, being bold and jumping up on the bed. She was such a beautiful girl.

Stitches, Stitches, Stitches

2011-05-11T21:58:00.000-07:00

Every digital crafter needs a great set of stitches to add that "little extra interest" to a layout or hybrid project. This week I am introducing a line called Stitch Medley. They are available in sets of borders, frames and elements.

And I HAVE to brag about my boyfriend, Steve. He is a pretty amazing guy. Last Friday the florist's van pulled up in front of my house and she delivered a most beautiful pink bouquet. The card was signed with my three pets' names. I called Steve and said "Did you give my pets some money to go buy me some flowers for Mother's Day?" He said "I might have." CUTE. What a sweet and thoughtful thing to do. He doesn't ever cease to amaze me with his kindness...the guy is just that....amazing! (Which I already expressed at the top of that little Lovefest!)

I have never been happier than I am right now! It's nice to be loved and cared about by someone who is a genuine, good and wonderful man! :-)

Arty Pants Grab Bag

2011-05-05T14:08:00.000-07:00

I created an Arty Pants Grab Bag for National Scrapbook Day. There are plenty of versatile and creative stamps in this bag...32 images in all.

Here's a sneak peek of some of the stamps you'll get in this grab bag.

There's also a big sale going on over at The Digichick. 30% off all products store-wide....unless of course there's an even BETTER deal! All my paper packs are on sale for $2.00 per pack. Go get creative!!! :-)

Wild Scrapbooking Weekend

2011-05-04T21:24:00.000-07:00

It's time for National Scrapbook Day and The Digichick has a LOT going on. A 30% sale storewide for four days, lots of challenges and a bunch of beautiful grab bags!!!

Come take a look. I've got a pretty awesome Arty Pants grab bag at a steal of a price. Hope to see you around the nest!

Have You Seen....

2011-04-28T06:20:00.000-07:00

My latest Arty Pants Stamp? This week, I have released a lovely stamp called Floral Collage. And this one comes with clipping layers for easy coloring.

You can see on Joana's beautiful card how she was able to color specific areas really easily. And then she stepped it up a notch with the 3-D and glitter touches! Beautiful job, Joana. :-)

And I have to report on my sweet honey, Steve. For Easter he gave corsages to me and my mom. How nice of him to remember my mother. THEN I went to see him last night and he had this big basket, jam-packed with candy, waiting for me. By the time I took this photo, I had already eaten one big Reese's Peanut Butter cup and two or three small ones! Oh dear. Looks like extra jogging is in my future! I need to rein him in so he doesn't make me fat. He's so good to me and we always have fun when we're together.

I hope you're enjoying your SPRING!!! It's sunshiny here today. YAY!

The Daily Digi

2011-04-20T20:23:00.000-07:00

I am being featured at The Daily Digi on Thursday. For this month, I created a kit called Playful Sunshine which is part of The Digi Files and will be available in my Quirky Twerp shop in the future. For now, here is a freebie add-on as a gift to you. These products coordinate with Playful Sunshine. Enjoy!

Here's an extra freebie link if the first one runs out of downloads. These are the exact same files as the other link, so you only need to download one time. Thanks!

Easter Stuff

2011-04-12T10:57:00.000-07:00

I have been swamped with work for my "real" job so not much time for creating Quirky Twerp and Arty Pants products. Darn it! :-) But I wanted to post this link just because I love the bunnies in this kit so much and thought I should give it a little bit of spotlight time.
I hope you're having a good Spring. I am, except for the allergies! My heavens....it's been terrible this year for some reason. My yard is in dire need of being mowed but I'm afraid to get in the middle of that for fear I'll REALLY suffer.

Happy Little Easter Scrapbook Kit

I'm proud to say that I have hung a shelf by myself. I had some nifty screw thingies that didn't require any drilling first. But they're very secure and can hold something a little heavier. So it was easy peasy and it makes my kitchen look so cute.

My father made this shelf for me about 10 years ago and it's gone through a few transformations. Originally it was crackled and white. Then I painted it an earthy green. But now, to match my cute kitchen, I had to paint it pink. So sweet. Now, if I can just get motivated to paint my cabinets!

New Baby Kit

2011-03-31T06:27:00.000-07:00

During the last two weeks of April, The Hybrid Chick will be bringing you ideas for baby shower projects, baby announcements, baby banners...you name it! So, my new kits this week are, of course, baby-related.

Welcome Baby Scrapbook Kit

Welcome Baby Paper Pack

I don't have a lot of other news to report. I've just been working and waiting impatiently for Spring to arrive. I know it's "officially" Spring, but the frost on the grass this morning isn't helping!

My sister is coming to visit next week and I'm hoping we can go dig around some flea markets in northwest Arkansas. I saw quite a few recently but haven't stopped to take a look yet.

Easter Vintage Loveliness and some Happy Words!

2011-03-23T20:36:00.000-07:00

I have such a love for vintage postcard artwork, and I'm SO HAPPY that it's finally Spring, that I decided to continue with my Retrospect series of kits. Introducing this week, Easter Retrospect scrapbook kit and paper pack.

Easter Retrospect Scrapbook Kit

Easter Retrospect Paper Pack

And here is the cutest layout ever from Sharyn, Little Miss Talented!

Also this week, I have added to my Card Sentiments line at Arty Pants with
Card Sentiments 2 Digital Stamps.

Happy creating!!! :-)

Update

2011-03-16T20:11:00.000-07:00

I have been terrible about updating my blog lately.....busy, busy, busy with my graphic design business. I was up until 3:00 a.m. working last night/this morning. But, that's good. Being swamped with business is a very good thing. I just don't like disappointing anyone if I have to juggle between clients. It's always nice to keep everyone as happy as possible.

This week I am releasing some little retro Easter Cards that are perfect starters for making your own little Easter cards, favors, banners, or whatever your mind dreams up. As you know I am a big fan of retro and vintage goodies so no big surprise that I find these to be quite adorable.

Retro Easter Cards

Things are going swimmingly with Steve and me. He is such a wonderful man. Who knew that out there in the universe was a guy who was masculine and sensitive and thoughtful and fun? God did I guess. I'm glad he steered us in each other's direction. I'm very content.

The weather has been getting warmer and I'm so happy for Daylight Saving Time. Next on my list will be to plant flowers in the little gardens in front of my house. I didn't last year because I was too busy with remodeling and such. This year I can focus on some of the little details. But I still need to finish up my kitchen and paint my cabinets. That little project is way past due.

Nothing more than that to report. I hope you are enjoying the beginnings of Spring!

New Arty Pants Stamps

2011-03-03T09:38:00.000-08:00

I have added a new selection to my Arty Pants shop. It's a variety pack of card sentiments and greetings.
I think it's quite versatile if I do say so myself! Ha

Card Sentiments Digital Stamps

Sale at The Digichick!

2011-02-23T20:32:00.000-08:00

We're having a storewide sale over at The Digichick! Everything is 30% off!!! Who can beat that?

I wanted to share a photo of the gifts that Steve gave to me for Valentine's Day. He was so sweet to come to my house and take me out to eat. The gift bag was full of theater-sized boxes of candy.

My first attempt at a photo was interrupted by Winky who happens to love chewing on the leaves of a bouquet! What a goober.

Not much else is going on. I'm just happy that all our snow has melted and the weather is more mild. Come on Spring!

Vanilla Noir....New in The Shop!

2011-02-09T22:04:00.000-08:00

I have a new collection this week called Vanilla Noir. I received such a positive response from my Fabrications Classic Scrapbook Kit that I decided to create another classic black and cream kit, this time with some minty aqua accents. I really like how it turned out.

Vanilla Noir Scrapbook Kit

Vanilla Noir Paper Pack

And the creative team made some fabulous things once again.

This beautiful card was created by Sylvia. Love the dimension.

This adorable card was created by Sharyn. So cute!

This lovely layout was created by Cheryl and she used one of her new Fiddle-Dee-Dee Fuss-Free templates.

Holly created this lovely layout. Her daughter is so adorable and photogenic!

This pretty layout is by Jen. Nice clean lines. They're one of my favorite couples. Cute!

Lynn created this layout. Don't you love that cluster behind the photo? Awesome!

Monique created this heartfelt layout. Very pretty!

I love how different each of these layouts is! So many different things from one kit. Amazing. :-)
Thank you everyone.

I Love Cupcakes

2011-02-03T07:22:00.000-08:00

Don't cupcakes just make you happy? This week I have a new cupcake digital stamp in my Arty Pants store. As always, it is available as a JPG, PNG and as a .psd with clipping layers. Just think of the fun you could have creating fantastic cupcakes on your computer.

Three Cupcakes Digital Stamp

Freebie Collage Hearts for You!

2011-02-01T12:33:00.001-08:00

Click here for a little gift from me to you. Happy Valentine's Day! I hope these inspire you to do something crafty. :-)

New Valentine Kits in My Shop

2011-01-26T22:05:00.000-08:00

I just LOVE vintage Valentine artwork. It makes me so happy. I had a blast creating these papers and it seems that some members of The Digichick Creative Team had some fun creating some amazing projects, too!!! (Well, so did I and that doesn't always happen. Ha)

Valentine Retrospect Scrapbook Kit
Valentine Retrospect Paper Pack
Vintage Valentine Tags
Sharyn was on a roll with the scrapbook kit. She created some beautiful layouts and pillow box (from one of Kelleigh Ratzlaff's templates)!
Holly created this heartfelt layout. :-) She does such a great job with her layering.
Cathy made this amazing little box. So, so sweet!!!
And then Sharyn created this pretty little tag album with my Vintage Valentine Tags. Precious.
I had to do a little scrapbooking myself. You know I'm a fan of PINK! :-) Plus, I have someone special to scrap about now so maybe you'll see a little more out of me in the future.
And my darling Winky looked so pretty basking in the sunshine AND on a pink chenille bedspread so I had to shoot a photo. (She's not as sweet as she looks though. A little unpredictable, but I love her anyway.)

At home, my sewer is back together and I can shower and use my toilet! Woo hoo. Bless my carpenter. He's a jack-of-all-trades. I have a big section cut out of my concrete driveway though, dang it, and a very long ditch that will need to be smoothed when the weather warms up a bit.

Tonight was a special night. Steve met my mom, my sister and my brother-in-law. We went to dinner together and he was cute and fun and ever the gentleman. I sure adore him!!! Next I need to take him to the rest home to meet my dad. :-) And this weekend I'm going to hang out with him and his kids a bit AND meet his mom. Happy, happy, happy!

Sneak Peek

2011-01-25T17:26:00.001-08:00

I have been working on some yummy Valentine stuff. I just LOVE vintage Valentine art. It's so pretty! So, check my shop out on Thursday for some beautiful new products. Here's a sneak peek.

I have been escaping into this world of loveliness because in reality, I'm having SEWER issues! What a pain. My carpenter came yesterday and tried and tried to get the lines cleaned out but it just wasn't happening. So today, it was time to break out the big guns. We rented a little backhoe and he had to dig through my driveway and my yard! There was quite a clog in the line that looked like it had been building up for years. He should have it done tomorrow. I hope so because I haven't showered for THREE DAYS!!!
I keep telling myself that I will survive and there are a lot of people in the world who never get showers. So, back to my La La Land of creating little pretties for my shop. :-)

New Products

2011-01-19T21:37:00.001-08:00

Last week I got together with Danielle Engebretson and we created a collaboration kit called Girlfriend Getaway. I had noticed recently that a LOT of women focus on nurturing their friendships with their girlfriends and that includes taking trips together. And I was pretty sure that these women probably document every activity by taking photos. Who wouldn't? Girls can have a lot of fun when they get together!!! :-) The kit turned out SO CUTE! I love the palette! Thank heavens I shared this little venture with Danielle because I had a different palette in mind and she suggested this one. MUCH better than what I originally thought to use!

Girlfriend Getaway Scrapbook Kit

Also, this week I have a little Valentine offering. I LOVE these little retro Valentines...they remind me of grade school and how I worked so hard to create my Valentine mailbox to bring to my homeroom class. What fun!

More Retro Valentines Element Pack
On my home front, it appears that I'm having a plumbing problem! I sure hope it's an easy fix. When I was taking a shower today, the tub started filling with water. I went to the basement and there was water dripping from the ceiling, which was right under the bathtub. Then my toilet wouldn't flush! Ay yi yi. The joys of living in an old house.

But, on a bright note, I got to spend the evening with Steve and he is still as dreamy as ever. And getting more dreamy the more I know him. I'm over the moon and feel very blessed. :-)

Rest In Peace my Sweet Pepper

2011-01-15T13:06:00.000-08:00

On Friday, I decided that it was time to let Pepper go to heaven. She had been vomiting again, and couldn't eat much at all. She had the desire but then would change her mind and she was getting so skinny. Her attitude was really good though, so it was a hard decision. When we got to the vet, she got out of the car and was prancing along with a smile on her face. I choose to think that she was happy to be headed to greener pastures and that's why she was in such a good mood.

My vet's office is a dream come true. They are all so nice and caring and there is a little chapel where they can administer the injection. She went quite peacefully with me kissing her face and telling her I loved her very much. And they gave me a little flat round piece of clay with her paw print on it. It was still a little soft and I was able to carve her name and the date in it and then bake it in the oven when I got home. Now I have a nice little paperweight of her pretty little paw. She was such a dainty little lady. I loved her very much.

The top photo is of her when she was a young girl, probably three years old. And I love this one of my sister and Pepper having a little love time together. It was all about the love for her. She would soak up any love that was given.
And Steve, that sweet wonderful new man in my life, was there for me that evening so I wouldn't have to spend it alone. He is so caring and thoughtful. I adore him quite a lot. We both feel really lucky and blessed to have found each other.

So things are a little quieter around here, but I'm happy for the memories I have. I will cherish them forever.

Update

2011-01-10T07:22:00.000-08:00

It's snowing here! EEK. I ran out early and got a couple big bags of dog food for my neighbors. They have very little money and really need to find new homes for these two dogs in their yard, but alas, I can't convince them to do that so the next best thing is to make sure those dogs are well fed. I was a little concerned about getting back into my garage because my little driveway is on a slope and can get slick but it all went well and I'm back inside where it's cozy. This snowstorm is different than what normally happens. We usually get rain first, which freezes, and THEN we get the snow. I'm SO thankful there was no rain this time.

Pepper is doing pretty well, so far. She doesn't seem to be in pain. I had been giving her pain medication but she really, really hates having pills shoved down her throat so I thought it's best that I don't bother with that. I've been feeding her chicken breast and hamburger, both raw and cooked and that seems to do well in her tummy and makes her feel satisfied. I have to credit my ex-husband for that. He was very concerned about Pepper and kept texting me to please feed her just meat. So, thank you to The Farmer. I appreciate that he cares. Pepper ADORES him so much. The interaction between them is heartwarming.
And I want to update you on Steve, the new guy in my life. The longer I know him, the more impressed I am. He came over Saturday night and I fixed dinner and then we just watched football and hung out together. He was complimentary of the dinner I served. That's one of the things I like about him....he doesn't hold back with compliments. Lucky me!

Stay warm! Have a wonderful week.

A Kit for Girls

2011-01-06T15:08:00.000-08:00

This week I have a pretty new kit called Sugar Blossom. I have been so tired of these dreary gray days of winter. I'm ready for Spring. This time of year in the Midwest isn't pretty at all. It's kind of depressing, so I needed to create something happy.

Here's a little layout from me.
And this is one from Holly. Such a pretty creation!
And Jane created this layout. Another pretty one!
And look at these cards! Sharyn made this one.
And Cathy made this one! What a bunch of talent. Whew!

I also have an update on my darling Pepper. I took her to the vet yesterday because she had been acting poorly again. This time I went to a new vet and he said he could feel some masses in her abdomen. So he did x-rays and said that she has cancer. I suspected as much so I'm not shocked. I am sad though. But sad for her...I don't want her to suffer. We'll take it one day at a time. She's such a good dog.

Happy New Year!!!

2010-12-31T06:33:00.000-08:00

As of this morning I have no plans for New Year's Eve. That's okay. I'm not a big party animal anyway. Maybe I'll rent a movie.

I have some new products in my stores this week. At Quirky Twerp a new group called Gridiron Grit. I had a special request to create a football kit that has a vintage grungy feel and I'm pleased with the result.

Gridiron Grit Scrapbook Kit
Gridiron Grit Paper Pack
And from Arty Pants....
Game Time Digital Stamp
Recently, I have gone on three dates with a really wonderful guy named Steve. Our first date was just meeting and getting to know a little about each other so we met at a Dairy Queen for hot fudge sundaes. Then we enjoyed each others' company enough that we decided to go on a "real" date so he came to my house, bouquet of flowers in hand, and took me out for dinner. We had a very nice time.

A couple days ago, he came to my house....this time with a stocking full of candy! The kind of candy that he knows I like!!
Then we went out for dinner and had another wonderful time. He's a very impressive guy and I'm looking forward to the next date!

I'm FREEZING!

2010-12-28T11:19:00.000-08:00

Oh how I don't like a Midwestern winter. I grew up in Montana so one would think I could tolerate winter a little better, but something about a Midwestern winter....it just feels colder. I sooooo look forward to SPRING! I have a new kit I've been working on that I'll release next week, I think, but I was noticing that it's reflecting my wishes for a speedy arrival of Spring. Pretty, bright, clean florals. Ahhh. Just what I'm looking forward to!

In the meantime, this week, talented hybrid chick Cathy, asked that I create a football kit for something she's working on. So, I fulfilled her wishes and my football kit will be available on Thursday. I tried to keep it pretty generic so each crafter can make it work for their favorite team. Here's a sneak peek!
I also wanted to report that my sweet dog, Pepper, is doing pretty well. She's skinny but seems to have a really good appetite and a decent amount of energy for being a little old lady! She turned 13 on Christmas Day.

Now, here's wishing everyone a safe and happy New Year's holiday!

Update on Pepper

2010-12-20T07:44:00.000-08:00

I brought Pepper home on Thursday afternoon and she has been doing wonderfully. Her appetite is great and she hasn't vomited. She seems to have a decent amount of energy for her age and she always has a smile on her pretty little face.

We DID have a struggle with pill taking. She is far too smart to fool. No hiding medication in food...she won't eat it. Wrapping a pill in a piece of lunch meat...lunch meat devoured, pill drops out onto the floor. Wrapping pill coated in peanut butter surrounded by a bit of bread...bread eaten, peanut butter licked off, pill drops out onto the floor! Next I resorted to forcing it down her throat. I was actually successful twice. Once because she didn't know what I was doing. Twice because I had her pinned between my legs and we were on the kitchen floor where she couldn't get traction. I was unsuccessful four times and finally gave up. I sure hope she is healed enough that missing out on those pills won't harm her too bad!

The past few days I have felt REALLY busy but I can't think of much that I accomplished! Ha I DID finally get my Christmas cards addressed, my little insert written and the envelopes stamped and in the drop box at the post office. I hope they arrive at their destinations before Christmas.

I've been messing around with some new kits for Quirky Twerp but I don't have anything to put in my store just yet. A little more work is required!

Stay warm and have a happy week!

A Little Update

2010-12-16T09:41:00.000-08:00

Oh my...my world went into a little bit of upheaval last weekend when my beloved dog, Pepper, got sick. I had to take her to the Pet ER on Sunday morning. She stayed there overnight and they gave her IV fluids and various medications. Her blood test revealed that there is something wrong with her liver but it's a mystery, unfortunately! Monday morning I took her to her regular vet and they also performed a blood test with similar results about her liver.

She has spent three nights at the vet, poor little thing. I went to visit her Wednesday afternoon and she was in good spirits and wagging her tail. Pepper will be 13 years old on Christmas Day so I know she's a little old lady and heading toward the end of her life, but I would really like to get her home where she is surrounded by all her loved ones. I don't like her being in a little metal pen at the vet hospital.
They were going to do the blood test again this afternoon. I really don't want to leave her there another night!!! She was so happy to see me on Wednesday and we just sat and cuddled for the longest time. She's a dream dog. She's really smart. She's very polite. She's sweet and affectionate. She is kind to other animals. And she's protective. So maybe you could send Pepper some good thoughts that she gets better. I'm not ready to let her go just yet.

Since I've been focused on Pepper I don't have much to release this week...but what I have is pretty stinkin' cute! I did this Christmas alphabet to match my Sweet & Crafty Scrapbook Pack.

On sale Thursday and Friday, Sweet & Crafty Alphabet Pack.
And here is a sweet layout from Jacinda. She always does an amazing job with her creations.

A Little Gift from Arty Pants

2010-12-03T08:44:00.000-08:00

Click Here for an Arty Pants Christmas Stocking Digital Stamp Freebie

I tried my hand at making a card...my first attempt so it's pretty amateur. Of course the ribbons and such could be real after printing out the illustration, but I don't have a great printer so I just did everything digitally.

I wanted to show a "before and after" because my Arty Pants stamp downloads include something wonderful...a layered .psd file, with separate layers, for easy clipping. For my card, I used my new Quirky Twerp Sweet & Crafty Pack and also one paper from my Christmas Retrospect Pack.

Easy as can be and really fun! Enjoy....now go create! :-)

Sweet & Crafty Kits

2010-12-01T21:11:00.000-08:00

Since I did "pretty and classic" last week, I thought I needed to do "cute and fun" this week, so here are my new products:

Sweet & Crafty Scrapbook Pack
Sweet & Crafty Paper Pack
Santa the Drummer Digital Stamp
And here are a couple cute layouts.
This first one is by Holly. So adorable. Look at that cute photo. :-)

And this one is by Jacinda. Always sweet from her, as well.
I sure appreciate these chicks! They're very talented.

Also, you might want to check out this Holly Jolly Grab Bag by The Digichick Designers. A $55.00 value for just $10.00!!! It's only available through the 12th of December and it's jam-packed with products so jump over and grab it while it's in the store. Included in the pack is an alphabet I created which matches my new releases this week.

Now on to my house!!! I have been working on my kitchen floor tiles. I had been procrastinating for quite awhile but decided that the weekend after Thanksgiving would be a good time. I had plenty of free hours, I had all the supplies and my best friend helped me move my appliances into the dining room. It was actually pretty easy and I should have and could have done it months ago!!!

When I went looking for flooring, I wasn't sure whether I wanted vinyl or ceramic tile. They were all so boring to me! Everything is beige, tan, cream, NEUTRAL. Well, as you can tell from previous photos, my house is NOT neutral! When I saw these commercial composite tiles and found out they came in "hot" colors, I knew this is what I wanted. I hope I don't regret it. :-) They had so many funky colors! I chose yellow and hot pink. The kitchen is looking very bright and cheery now.
I really should have sanded my cabinets first, but I've been doing everything backwards so that will be the next step. I need to buckle down and just get that done! I have a vision for those and I can't wait to see them complete.

Thank you for looking and have a wonderful rest of the week!

More Love for Victorian Vintage Art

2010-11-24T21:13:00.000-08:00

I really love old postcards and turn-of-the-century die-cuts. After the success of my Retrospect 365 Paper Pack, I thought I needed to apply that style to some new Christmas products. I'm thrilled with the results. The art is beautiful and the colors are so rich. I'm in love!

Christmas Retrospect Paper Pack

And here's a fun set of tags just in time for the holidays.
Vintage Christmas Tags
Look at the beautiful tags that Holly created! So pretty!!!
I also have three sets of Christmas cards in my shop. Each pack includes the card design in two different sizes AND in two versions....with sentiment and blank for a sentiment that you create yourself.

Retrospect "Holly Jolly" Christmas Cards
Retrospect "Peace on Earth" Christmas Cards
Retrospect "Magical Christmas" Christmas Cards THEN...hang on there's more! I have three new stamps at Arty Pants this week, also Christmas themed.
Cookies for Santa
Christmas "Believe" Digital Stamp
Christmas Wish Digital Stamp
And I don't think I posted this one before but I also have this cute snowman stamp.
Snowman Digital Stamp
And take a little hop over to The Hybrid Chick so you can see this little snowman in action. Cathy did such a cute job creating a pocket card and he's the star. :-)

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and find some time to relax and maybe be a little creative!

New Products

2010-11-23T15:07:00.000-08:00

I was really busy last week and I have a bunch of Christmasy stuff releasing for both Quirky Twerp and Arty Pants! YAY! Papers, tags, Christmas cards and stamps. Lots of pretty pretties.
Here's a little sneak peek of some of the paper.

Update: And here's a bigger sneak peek I made this evening.

New Stamp

2010-11-11T16:44:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I'm already working on winter-related stuff. EEK! Too soon, too soon!!!
Well, here is my latest stamp file. As always the folder contains a JPG, PNG and a layered .psd file with clipping layers.
Snow Kids Digital Stamp
I would also like to thank my ex-husband, The Farmer. He was kind enough to buy me an Eden Pure heater (which was NOT cheap) so that I could heat my house without having to rely too heavily on gas heat. I appreciate that very much!!! I feel like I will never recover from what he put me through, but I do appreciate his attempts at making it right and I miss him every day.

New Little Stamp and Some New Art for my Bungalow

2010-10-28T09:53:00.001-07:00

This week I have a new stamp at Arty Pants. Just in time for fall, called Fall Scene Digital Stamp. It's 20% off Thursday and Friday.
I haven't been doing much around my house lately. So frustrating! I really need to get back at it. My kitchen floor tile is calling out to me! I did, however, create this artwork for my living room. I always want artwork that means something to me, so most of the time I have nothing hanging on my walls! So, I decided to make a scan of my Malibu Ken and Malibu PJ (because I LOVED playing with them as a young girl) and I turned them into some funky art. When I had what I wanted, I sent the artwork off to a place called Canvas 4 Life and they did a great job. It looks just like I envisioned!
Here is the image I sent to Canvas 4 Life.
And here is a close-up. I wanted it to be sort of like comic book art.
And here is my original scan of Ken and PJ.
Have a good weekend and create something wonderful!!!

New Collection and a Pet Surprise

2010-10-20T21:37:00.001-07:00

My latest collection is in my shop and on sale Thursday and Friday, 20% off. I'm always excited about a new kit so I shouldn't gush, but I AM excited about this one. It's called Enchanté. So pretty! Also included, but not shown in the main preview, are some of the elements that are available with a light pink glitter instead of silver. (As if you didn't already know, I love pink.)
The Enchanté Paper Pack is also available.
Look at this lovely layout that Dani Engebretson created for me.
And of course Holly Takatsuka never ceases to amaze me. And I can always lure her with a little cheetah or leopard print. Bwaaa haaa haaa
And this beautiful one created by Jane. Just stunning.
So go take a little spin around the store and see what you can find.

Now, tonight I made a discovery that kind of freaks me out. I think my bunny, Buster, is a GIRL. I can't believe it. I've had him (her) for almost five years and all this time I thought I had a buck but I really think now I have a doe. When Buster was a tween, I did the little "guess the sex of your bunny" test, from directions I found on the internet. Well, I think the description wasn't quite specific enough...obviously! It's so strange to think Buster is a girl!

Anyway, tonight I pulled his litterbox aside and lo and behold there was this amazing nest with a bunch of bunny fur lining it, along with some hay and wash clothes. (The wash clothes have been like toys...fun to arrange and rearrange.)
So I read some more on the internet and apparently the doe will pull fur off her tummy to make a nest. I held a Wheat Thin cracker up high for Buster to get out of my fingers and looked at his tummy and there are a bunch of bald spots! But also I have noticed prominent nipples and apparently the males have tiny nipples that are undetectable. AND I read that the females are usually a bit bigger and have that big fat dewlap under their chins. Sigh....I thought that was a male trait! Doh. I feel like a dork. Oh, one other thing is that the females can be more aggressive because they have those instincts to protect their young. Well, Buster can be really aggressive if you do something that startles him....her.

But, I think I'll just keep saying "he" and I'll just keep calling him/her Buster. He just looks like a boy to me!!!!!! Ha

I'm old....and a sneak peek

2010-10-18T11:22:00.000-07:00

Saturday was my 48th birthday. I can't believe I'm that old. I am happy to report that most people are shocked when they find out that I really AM that old so that's encouraging.

My wonderful friend Lisa sent me these beautiful wind chimes. They are hanging right outside my office window and play the most lovely music for me off and on throughout the day.
And my sweet girlfriend, Sherryn in Australia sent me these yummy chocolate-covered Oreos. Naughty girl. They're yummy. I haven't eaten them all in 24 hours which is amazing. I usually don't have that much self-control.
I haven't gotten to the lower level yet so I'm proud of myself. Ha

This week I have a new Quirky Twerp kit releasing on Thursday. Here's a little sneak peek.

I hope you're enjoying your fall. The weather has been lovely here. :-)

New Products

2010-10-13T21:23:00.000-07:00

My work load has subsided a bit for my regular job so I had a little extra time to create for Quirky Twerp and Arty Pants again. Here's what I have available in the shop this week and 20% off Thursday and Friday.

Autumn Zinger Scrapbook Pack
Autumn Zinger Patterns Paper Pack
Autumn Zinger Solids Paper Pack
Into the Cauldron Element Pack
Parlor Collage Digital Stamp
Here's a cute layout by Jen. I love how it's clean and simple with some nice little touches of dimension.
And this layout by Lisa, a member of The Digichick creative team. So cute with lots of photos and details.
Jane did this one for me. So yummy!
I love seeing how different all the layouts are coming from the same kit!

Have a wonderful, creative weekend. :-)

Sneak and Update

2010-10-12T21:06:00.001-07:00

Hello! I have a fab new kit debuting on Thursday and it's jam-packed with lots of papers and elements for tons of options. Here's a little sneak peek.
Also, I can't remember if I mentioned this but I signed up to take a woodworking class this fall. So far I have used the miter saw, the table saw, the biscuit hole cutter machine (not sure of the official name), and I've glued and sanded.

Here is a photo I took with my phone. I'm making a tall skinny cabinet to store my brooms and my laundry detergent and stuff. These are the two sides which are made from three boards glued together and then clamped to hold them in place while they dried. And then tonight I sanded and sanded and sanded!
I'm going to paint it to match my kitchen cabinets. I hope I complete the project by the time the class comes to a close. That's the week of Thanksgiving and the class only meets one day a week so EEK...I had better get moving!

New Stamps and a Re-release

2010-10-07T08:34:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone! I hope you've had a great week. I can't believe how it just flew by. This week I have three new stamps in my Arty Pants shop and at Quirky Twerp I'm re-releasing my vintage Halloween Pack All Hallows' Eve.

Baby Girl Clothes Digital Stamp
Baby Boy Clothes Digital Stamp
Snowman Digital Stamp
All Hallows' Eve Scrapbook Pack
Come on over and take a peek!

EEK PEEK!

2010-10-05T11:48:00.000-07:00

I'm re-releasing a Halloween kit this week at Quirky Twerp. Here's my (sn)EEK peek! :-)
I also have three new stamps debuting in my Arty Pants shop.

The Digichick is currently working on a site upgrade and so far the changes are really beautiful. Classy and clean. You'll have to jump over and take a little spin around.

Afternoon with Mom

2010-10-02T14:17:00.000-07:00

I don't get to spend a lot of time with my mom but today we went to the fall festivities that were going on around here. There were some crafters, artists, food vendors and musicians down on the square. Some of the crafts are a little too hillbilly for my taste but it's still fun to see everything. I think the big hit right now are little fairy skirts made from a piece of elastic with stripes of tulle just tied on in a knot. Very simple. There were so many little girls running around wearing them. Sweet!
We also went to a similar event at a local historic farm. Besides all the crafters they had a petting zoo, horse rides, a pumpkin patch and some big farm equipment, to marvel at I suppose.
I bought myself a funky gawdy watch. It has a hot pink rubbery band and there are rhinestones around the face! Haaaa It's cute though. Sounds really tacky...and it is a bit tacky...but it's fun. I also bought this hat! Don't you love it? It's a mohawk knitted hat.
It's lined with polartec fleece so it's really warm. I'm wearing it around the house right now. Hee hee
I have nearly wrapped up the work I was doing for all my clients so I'm able to focus on Quirky Twerp and Arty Pants again. YAY! I have some new stamps coming out this week and I'm finishing up a couple kits that will be out the next few weeks. The Digichick is in the middle of an upgrade and it's looking quite beautiful. I can't wait until everything is finished. Very exciting....it's such a wonderful shop and I really enjoy all the chicks who hang out there. :-)

A Couple New Stamps

2010-09-22T18:41:00.000-07:00

I am still super swamped with my clients for my graphic design business so my upcoming Quirky Twerp stuff is still in progress, but I was able to squeak out a couple stamps for Arty Pants Digital Stamps. I hope you like these! I enjoyed drawing them. :-)

Birthday Art Digital Stamp
Wedding Cake Digital Stamp
And look at these cute cards! This birthday card was created by Heather. I've gotten a great response from the design team at The Digichick about the layered files and how versatile they are.
Joana created this adorable card from my Wedding Cake stamp. It looks like it works for just about any type of cake and doesn't have to be a wedding theme!
I'm sorry I've been missing lately. I hope to be more on top of things in a couple of weeks.

New Stamps at Arty Pants

2010-09-16T06:55:00.000-07:00

My Arty Pants Digital Stamps store is open now so I wanted to share a couple of the stamps you'll find there. And in case you didn't know, your download (unless otherwise stated) includes a JPG, a PNG and a layered .psd with clipping shapes. The freedom to create and the options are endless!

Witch Girl Digital Stamp

Unique Frog Digital Stamp
Fall Leaves Digital Stamp

Music and Swirls Digital Stamp
Next week I hope to have something new in both my Quirky Twerp and Arty Pants stores.

Arty Pants

2010-09-14T05:50:00.000-07:00

I have been incredibly busy with my graphic design work so I haven't had much of a chance to work on Quirky Twerp stuff. But I did want to introduce a new little store I will open this Thursday at The Digichick. It's called Arty Pants Digital Stamps.
I had some requests to turn my illustrations into digital stamps and I figured that it would be better to keep them separate from the scrapbook kits, for ease of searching. I like organization! So, I contacted my good friend Lisa who is so witty with naming things and SHE is the one who thought of Arty Pants. And since I'm such a Smarty Pants, I thought it was the perfect name!!!

When you download one of my stamp files, you'll get some little extras. Not only will you receive a JPG, with a white background, but you'll also get a PNG file, with a transparent background AND a layered .psd file with clipping shapes to get even more creative!

So if you know a stamper or a card maker who likes stamps, let them know there's a new digital stamp store in town! :-)

Freebie Add-on

2010-09-01T10:04:00.000-07:00

I have a new kit debuting this week at The Digichick, called Vita Tranquilla so I created a coordinating Freebie Add-On that you can download by clicking the name or the image below. Enjoy and please check out my new Vita Tranquilla Scrapbook Pack.
I also wanted to share some things created with Vita Tranquilla.
This gorgeous layout is by my friend, Jen. She did an amazing job, don't you think?
And this card was created by Sharyn. Love all those layers!
And this one is by me. I was two years old enjoying the toasted marshmallows at a church picnic. That the explanation for the dirty face. Marshmallows and campfire dirt don't mix very well. :-)

Store Wide Sale and a New Kit

2010-08-25T20:48:00.000-07:00

I have not created a brush and stamp kit before so I thought I'd give it a try! Introducing my new Flourish Brush & Stamp Kit. It's a really good deal Thursday and Friday because we're having a Back to School Sale throughout the store, so rather than the normal 20% discount, everything is marked down 35%!
Today, my mom, sister and I had to put my father in a rest home. It was a hard day but I just tried to stay positive and I hope that this is something he might enjoy. (He likes nurses to fuss over him so this might be right up his alley.) We certainly never wanted to do this but his dementia has gotten so debilitating and the burden has been overwhelming for my poor little mom. She wasn't able to leave him alone at all because she never knew what he was going to do. For example, more than once she found him chewing on his hearing aid. Poor guy! I hope my mom will adjust to being apart from him. They've been married for 51 years!
I bought him this little board book to read. It's that book about the bunny boy and dad called "Guess How Much I Love You." He enjoys tearing paper...including books...and so I hoped that this would be indestructible. It lasted about two weeks. He read it over and over for hours and days on end. But then he began disassembling it and now it's in separate pages. Oh well, he enjoyed it and still has the separate pages. I'm glad I got this photo while it was still intact. Look at his poor bent arthritic finger.
Also this week, I got some gridwire panels to put across the doorway of my office as a barrier for Buster. He used to be able to run freely when I was married but has been cooped up in his condo for over a year now. I felt bad for him so now I can let him out every couple of days and he can run around my office. One of these days it's my goal to have a secure backyard so that I can let him run around in the grass. He would LOVE that!
Happy creating everyone! Hug your family. :-)

Freebie Just In Time For School

2010-08-18T17:15:00.000-07:00

This week, I have a new kit debuting, called Little Classroom and I thought it would be nice to offer a freebie of coordinating borders which you can download by clicking on the image below.
Enjoy and good luck with the start of school. I hope it goes smoothly for everyone!

Also, please check out Hand-Picked Freebies she always has links to quality freebies. And if you're a designer, consider advertising with her because she gets quite a bit of traffic and it could increase your sales!!!

New Collection

2010-08-12T08:36:00.000-07:00

I have a new collection of products this week called Little Beach Bum. I've seen so many photos of families playing at the beach that I thought this would be the perfect collection to scrapbook those memories.

Little Beach Bum Scrapbook Pack

Little Beach Bum Paper Pack

Little Beach Bum Element Pack

Little Beach Bum Alphabet Pack
Also, one of my high school friends posted her class reunion photos on Facebook and this one was in with the rest of them. CUTE! This is that cute guy I got to spend time with while I was in Montana. Isn't he adorable? I look tired, which I was. A little jet lag and then constant activity. This was taken late after the reunion and I was obviously worn out!
And last of all, I am starting the remodel of my kitchen. I'm going to make it yellow and white with bits of red and pink. Right now it's that horrible Band-aid color so I'm anxious to get the walls painted! I figured I'd start with curtains though, just to get me moving in the right direction.

A Few New Things in My House

2010-08-06T16:55:00.000-07:00

I was so lucky that my favorite carpenter had a free morning to come help me out today.Recently, I ordered two ceiling fans...and got a good deal, to boot. Free shipping and only $99.00 each. And I think they are adorable! So, my cute carpenter replaced the one in the living room. It wasn't working and I had considered just replacing the switch but discovered that there was some black charred stuff among the wires and it looked like a fire may have started in the inner workings! EEK I don't want a fire hazard in my house! So, that one is gone and this cute one took it's place.
Then, I had him put one in my office, too. I don't yet have central air conditioning and the window air conditioner cools the house really well, but it just doesn't make it around the corner into the office. Now this little fan will help get that cool air moving! YAY!
And since he's so handy I asked if he'd hang this curtain rod in my office so that I would have an art rod to hang my creations. Now I can switch things out whenever I feel like it. (That's Buster's bunny cage below, in case you didn't know that either.)
Here's a close up of my little creations.

New Products

2010-08-04T21:53:00.000-07:00

Last week, I had fun creating some new papers and elements for the Studio 365 series. Vintage stuff is my first love and I had a great time putting these together. Everything coordinates with the Studio 365 color palette so if you are working on your own 365 project, these will coordinate with the other items available at The Digichick.

Retrospect Paper Pack
Retrospect 365 Tag Element Pack
Retrospect 365 Journaling Elements
Here are some projects created with this new collection.

This is a layout by me. My skills are still pretty novice when it comes to scrapbooking but I thought I'd share this anyway.
This layout was created by Monique. I am so impressed. I love what she's done here!
And this little hybrid tag book was created by Sharyn. Isn't this adorable? I want to see more!!!

Sneak Peek

2010-08-03T20:12:00.001-07:00

Here's a little sneak peek of some new products I have releasing on Thursday. This is an interesting collection and I'm anxious to see what you all create with it! So far our creative team has been quite creative! Ha

Was on a Vacation

2010-07-28T14:53:00.001-07:00

I disappeared for four days and took a trip to Montana to attend my 3o year class reunion and just immerse myself in the beauty and scenery of the northwest. In the past I've always had a husband or boyfriend with me but this time I went alone and it was so much nicer. I didn't have to worry about entertaining someone else! I just did what I wanted. PLUS, a friend from high school set me up with her brother and we had a wonderful time. :-)
Here are a couple photos of the beautiful views.

Where does the time go?

2010-07-19T20:33:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been eleven days since I posted! What's up with THAT? I'm still a little busy with projects for my clients but more than anything I've been busy doing all the things that were neglected while I WAS so swamped! So, I took the dogs to the vet, got my hair highlighted and trimmed, went to the dermatologist for a checkup, painted my desk, painted my office, ripped out some bushes in front of my house that were dying, bought some rocks to make a flower garden in those spots (all along the front of the rock wall) took the dogs to the groomer, did a little bit of "dad-sitting" so my mom could get out of their house without having to wrangle him and his Alzheimer's and who knows what else! Whew! That's a lot of stuff.

Here's a photo of my desk. It turned out lovely. My uncle did a great job building it.
Please disregard the baseboards and the closet door. I didn't get those painted yet and I still need the quarter round to be put back on the baseboards. But you can see the wall color and how bland it is. I was trying to be conservative and neutral. I'm not very good at that! Ha It's just a cream. Nothing exciting. I think I'll leave it for now. I need to get something on the windows and get some art on the walls and I need to put some pretty ephemera on the screen window to the right of my desk. Then maybe it'll be just fine. Some day I'll get around to all that!

Flowering Crape Myrtle

2010-07-08T11:35:00.000-07:00

I know I just blogged yesterday but today I discovered some lovely blossoms on the trees in my front yard. I didn't know what they were so I looked on the internet and now I know....Crape Myrtle. Very pretty!
So here's a close up of what's starting to pop out. I can't wait for the whole tree to be in bloom.
In the meantime, here's a view of the front of my house, too. I need to tear out a couple bushes. One is dying. I'd like to plant Hydrangea. And also, my grass needs to be cut again. It's been raining here the past few days and the grass is loving it.

New Kits and The Latest News

2010-07-07T22:15:00.000-07:00

I decided to add some more products to the Studio 365 section of the store this week. So here are my three new products. These coordinate with most things with the Studio 365 logo through out the whole site and match any of the Studio 365 things in my shop.
Quirky Paper 365 Paper Pack

Quirky Flair 365 Element Pack

Quirky Rosettes 365 Element Pack
And here's a little layout I created with my new stuff, along with some Twigs 'n Sprigs and some tidbits from a couple other kits.
Also, I wanted to show the progress on the house next door. The people who bought it are fixing it up to sell. It was in sad, sad shape when I bought MY house and I felt like I was living in the slums. Luckily, things are looking MUCH better around me. Here's what it looks like now and then below is a section of a photo I took back in December right after I bought my house. BIG difference!!! It sure is looking nice. YAY!

Free Gift from Sharyn

2010-07-02T10:32:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday I introduced my Happy Little Fourth Paper Pack and Element Pack. Sharyn of An Altered Life made that cute little card with my paper pack and to celebrate the upcoming 4th of July we wanted to share this gift with you…a printable version of the card shown, along with another coordinating card.

Both cards, ready to print and fold, are just perfect to give that party hostess or family member you may be sharing Independence Day with. Go check out Sharyn’s tutorial and article on the card and see how she added the cute yellow button to dress it up a notch.

Download your free 4th of July printable card here. Available through Friday.
Happy Little Fourth!

New Kits and The Latest News

2010-06-30T20:11:00.000-07:00

This week I have some Fourth of July goodies. As part of my "Little" series, I'm introducing Happy Little Fourth. It's available in a paper pack and an element pack.

Happy Little Fourth Paper Pack
Happy Little Fourth Element Pack

And look at this beautiful card that Sharyn created. The papers printed out so nicely and she did such an amazingly neat job assembling the parts. WOW!
And here's a cute layout by Jen. Cute, cute, cute! And look at those darling kids.
So do any of my American readers have plans for the Fourth? I've been invited to a picnic and fireworks party at my handyman's house. I'm hoping my best friend can go with me (she's invited too) because I won't know anyone but the handyman and another guy. Or maybe I WILL and don't know it yet! I am usually very outgoing but when I'm attending something like that where I don't know how everyone knows each other, or if there are some people like me who are new but I don't know if they're new or not, I just end up being shy and standing on the sidelines. Hopefully, I won't feel awkward and it'll be a good time. I hope everyone gets some time to relax and have some fun no matter what your plans are!

Berry Meadow

2010-06-23T19:41:00.000-07:00

I have a new collection in my shop this week and everything is 20% off Thursday and Friday.
Berry Meadow Scrapbook Pack
It's also available in separates…Paper, Elements and Alpha Packs.

Look at this darling layout created by Holly. I was so thrilled when I first laid eyes on it. SO CUTE!

I always wonder if my kits will be okay or not and if they'll be fun to work with.

And this one was created by Tracy. Another beautiful layout! I wish I had the talent to create the way that these girls do.

And guess what! Tonight I had a date!!! For a year I have been recovering from my divorce and it's been so hard…wishing that things hadn't happened the way they did. But, it feels really good to take this step forward and away from all that pain. We just went for a walk on a little trail on the outskirts of town. I brought my dogs and he was so kind to just meander along at their pace, while they sniffed at things. And we just talked and enjoyed each other's company. It was very nice.

I'm Getting Back in the Swing of Things

2010-06-21T20:21:00.000-07:00

Hello! I'm sorry I've been MIA lately. So much going on getting my clients ready for CHA-Summer. I wish I were attending but not this time. Actually, I should start making plans to go to CHA-Winter because that would mean a nice trip to a warm climate while it's freezing here. That sounds much more inviting!

Even though I've been terribly busy, I did force myself to etch out some time for ME and for creating a new collection for Quirky Twerp. I felt so rusty that I wasn't sure anything good would come out of my fingers and my head, but I persisted and actually I'm more than pleased with the result!

Here's a little sneak peek of my collection that debuts on Thursday.

See those blueberries in the corner. I went blueberry picking, with my best friend, a couple days ago. YUM....I love blueberries! I like to freeze them and then eat a handful as they start to thaw. They're like tiny round popsicles.

I have been getting to know my Brazilian neighbor even more. She really is a delightful person. I'm taking her to an appointment with her attorney tomorrow and hopefully we can work toward getting her child custody more fairly distributed. She never stops thinking about her daughter and wanting to make a nice home for her.

Last of all, tomorrow is $2.00 Tuesday. My Gardenologie kits are on sale. Have you planted a garden this summer? Maybe you need to document that with some Gardenologie goodies!

A Little Love from Me to You

2010-06-15T20:51:00.001-07:00

I am still so swamped with my graphic design work...my real job...that I haven't been able to finish a collection I started this week, so I have another freebie for you. This little original watercolor can be used as a print for framing, a cover for an 8" x 8" album, or reduce the size and make a nice little mini book. A lot of possibilities! I hope you enjoy it.

My plan is to have a new collection next week. Fingers crossed!!! EEK

Fourth of July Freebie

2010-06-10T13:35:00.000-07:00

Here's a little giftie for my American friends! (Or my worldwide friends who love a little American Celebration!)
Click here or click the image to download and enjoy. Happy Independence Day!

I'm Sorry!

2010-06-10T08:29:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I have not been blogging or creating. I have been bombarded with work for my graphic design business so I have to take care of my clients first. I'm hoping to carve out some time for me and my own creations...maybe this weekend. Fingers crossed!

I've also spent some time helping my Brazilian neighbor with some phone calls and trips to the store. Things seem to be moving along for her in a positive way and hopefully that will continue.

I hope you all have a great weekend and get to spend some time with friends or family or in solitude doing whatever you love to do! :-)

Little Summertime

2010-06-02T19:52:00.003-07:00

Now that we are officially into June and unofficially into summer, I have unpacked my May Grab Bag. Here are the kits, available in my shop on Thursday. And as always 20% off Thursday and Friday.

Little Summertime Scrapbook Kit
Little Summertime Paper Pack
Little Summertime Element Pack
Little Summertime Alphabet Pack
Here's a cute layout by Jane. So sweet and fun. Thank you, Jane!
And look at this cutie! I love it. Thank you, Jackie.
I hope you all had a great week and spent some time having a little bit of summer fun!

A Little Shopping

2010-05-31T17:09:00.000-07:00

I haven't done much shopping for myself over the past year. Most of my shopping has been at the home improvement stores buying paint and other carpentry supplies. Today I decided to go to Macy's since I had some gift cards. They were having a big sale and I found a pair of Calvin Klein shorts half price, plus an extra 15% off for using my Macy's credit card. But then I didn't really use the credit card since I had the gift card so the sales woman changed it around and gave me the 15% anyway. Nice!

I also bought THREE purses! Do I NEED three purses? No. But these were all cute and the right size and functional. So often when I'm looking for a purse, they just aren't practical. I don't want a purse that's too deep. I want one that opens wide so I can actually get my wallet in and out. I want little places to keep keys, cell phone, lip gloss, all that stuff. Well, I was delighted that these three all had those features and were on sale, too. (Plus, the 15% if I used my Macy's card.)

This one photographs the best. It's a Fossil, made of cloth with a protective coating. The zipper unzips all the way down the sides and inside there are removable zippered pouches, so I can transfer those to another purse if I want! Cool.
These two don't photograph as well, but they're super cute in person. One is hot pink and the other is silver. The pink one has leopard fabric inside. The silver one is almost square. Fat and cute. :-)
I also stopped at my favorite flea market, on the hunt for a shelf I could hang over my stove. I didn't find anything that would work but I couldn't pass up this beautiful pink chenille bedspread. It's in mint condition and it was only $17.50! Things are never that cheap at flea markets! I think it makes a nice throw for my living room and it matches the paint almost perfectly. It was a beautiful day and I enjoyed myself.

What I've Been Up To....

2010-05-29T21:05:00.000-07:00

All along my block the sidewalks are made of brick. It's so pretty but since my house sat vacant for two years the grass and weeds started staking their claim, over and between the bricks. I didn't want to use poison to get things cleaned up so I've been using good old-fashioned muscle. I'm always trying to find tasks that use my arm power because I don't want to get bat wing arms! Ha
I am only about a quarter of the way finished with the job but it's looking quite nice. My lawn could use some help...it's an unusual mix of grass, weeds and clover, but that's okay. It could look worse I'm sure and I can feed the clover to my bunny, Buster, so it's all good.
I also wanted to show a couple photos from my bedroom. I don't think I posted this photo of my cat, Winky, lying on my bed. If I already did, I apologize.
And then I wanted to show off my new lamp shade. This lamp had a shade that looked a little too froo-froo for me. I like the clean lines and the white linen fabric. The lamp originally had bronze accents but I painted over them with a silver paint pen.
I've been staying busy learning more about my Brazilian neighbor. My wonderful handyman, Troy, has been working hard to get a floor in her kitchen. He has a big heart and has been donating his time to help her out. The floor is about halfway done...joists and plywood, that is. But at least it's no longer a dirt hole with rickety walls! I am hoping that has given her a boost and she's feeling better about her situation.

Today I spoke with her and she really wants nothing for herself. She said she just wants to make a nice bedroom for her six-year old daughter. So, that's going to be my focus for now and then whatever else comes up, we'll tackle that. I just don't want her thinking she is all alone with no one to turn to.

I hope you all have a good weekend and get to spend time with the people you love!

New Kits and This and That

2010-05-26T23:18:00.001-07:00

I wasn't feeling creative for a few weeks because I was busy settling into my new life. I still have so much more to do! More about that later. I did stop on my house projects for a bit though to work on some new products and I'm glad I did. I really like this new collection called Primaeval Pathways.

Primaeval Pathways Scrapbook Pack

Primaeval Pathways Paper Pack

Primaeval Pathways Element Pack

Primaeval Pathways Alphabet Pack
Jane created these two neat layouts for me. She has a shop at Funky Playground Designs called 4 Shades of Blue. Check her out! She's very creative.

And Tracy, a member of The Digichick creative team created this winner! Beautiful stuff.
I just got this beauty from Jen today. I LOVE IT! You chicks are all so talented and I'm thankful to have you there to help me show off my creations.
I haven't done any more painting yet at my house. I've mostly been unpacking and organizing and trying to decide what can be sold at a yard sale and what I can keep or toss. I think I could have a great yard sale. I have some nice things that I just don't need or want anymore.

I met the woman who lives across the street from me and you know that saying "There, but for the Grace of God, go I"? Well, that applies in this situation! I thought I had it bad when my husband had a mid-life crisis, destroyed our marriage and left me homeless and destitute. My neighbor is from Brazil. She can barely speak English. She is living in a house that should have been condemned and demolished and she's there because she is divorced and this is where she ended up. Apparently, her husband owned this property, if you could call it that, and was going to sell it. Her attorney worked to get the property for her so she would have SOMEWHERE to live. She has a six year old daughter who lives with the ex. I don't know the whole story because I can't understand her very well but no matter what happened in her marriage, the situation she's in now is HORRIBLE! She says her daughter can't stay at the house with her because it's unsafe. The house is big and old and rickety in places. The kitchen had terrible water damage and mold and now is just a dirt hole with walls. She has NO KITCHEN. She has a tiny dorm-sized refrigerator and a microwave. I don't even know if she has a bed. No air-conditioning. No washer and dryer. No car.

I talked to Troy, the handyman who installed my TV antenna, and bless his heart he has offered to help her for free. She had given some money to a man to help her fix the kitchen and he hasn't completed the job, but of course still has her money. That man said he's not sure what to do about the kitchen floor and wall situation so he just left it....a dirt hole. Troy is working to get some floor joists in place so that the original guy who baled on her can come back and finish the job he started. But if you could see this house you would be shocked. If you could see her living conditions you would be embarrassed for our society and for the men who don't take responsibility for the commitments they make. It upsets me!

But, in spite of all that, she has a surprising resilience and chipper attitude. She's bubbly and kind. I hope things continue to improve and that maybe I can find some other people to give her a helping hand. I'm going to do what I can. I gave her some towels and asked if she needed anything else. She asked me for a blanket because she doesn't have a blanket for her daughter if she comes to visit. I gave her a giant down comforter that I never use and some pillows. Sigh! This is when I wish I would win the lottery. I could do so much more.

Sneak Peek

2010-05-23T17:30:00.001-07:00

Here's a little sneak peek of the collection I have debuting this week at The Digichick.

Update

2010-05-17T06:22:00.001-07:00

I've been a bit MIA this past week or so. I've been trying to get my house unpacked and organized. It's small so I have to make sure I take advantage of the space I have in the right way. I've been digging through boxes trying to locate things that I need and I'm putting together a pile of things I can sell at a yard sale. I think it'll be a good sale...lots of interesting things!

Recently, my uncle built me a new computer desk that looks like a farm table. I need to get that painted so I can transfer my computer off of this card table that it's on right now! I had a computer desk before but it was too big and too modern to be in this house so I'm excited about this new desk.

Over the weekend I spent time trying to organize my art supplies. It's not there yet, but at least things are out of boxes and accessible now! Hopefully, I can actually do some creating again.

I still need to get some storage containers...or something to hold a little of this and a little of that.
There are just so many things to do and I feel like I've barely done a thing! But, I did take some time to rent a couple movies and just RELAX. That was fun...sitting around being lazy in my little house. That's a good feeling.

House Photos

2010-05-09T18:41:00.000-07:00

I've been unpacking and organizing my belongings. I haven't made much of a dent. There's so much more to do but I thought I'd share what I've done so far.
Here are some photos of my living room. It still looks a bit stark but it's better than it was. :-)

And here are a couple photos of the dining room which I'm using as a creative space. My father made this counter-height table for me about three years ago and I painted it.

I have major plans for the kitchen but I won't be able to get to that for awhile so in the meantime I think I'll paint the walls and cabinets. I have new hinges and handles for the cabinets and drawers. This is what the kitchen looks like right now. It definitely needs work!

And last of all, here is the little armoire I bought at Target so I'll have some storage in the bathroom.
Now...back to the unpacking! I'll definitely have to do a yard sale in a few months!

Spotlight and Freebie for You

2010-05-07T14:07:00.000-07:00

At The Digichick for the month of May, in honor of their five year anniversary, we're having a big month long party and you get all the gifts. :-) Each designer has been given a day to shine in the spotlight and May 8th is MY DAY...Quirky Twerp Day! Woo hoo That means, for YOU, the products in my shop are 30% off for 24 hours. Also, in appreciation of all my customers, here's a little freebie. Click the link or the image, either one.

And, here's a cute layout that Digichick creative team member, Jacinda, created with my freebie. What a great idea!

Officially in My House!

2010-05-05T19:25:00.000-07:00

I'm here! The dogs, the cat and the bunny are here. The internet is working. The TV is on for extra company. There are boxes everywhere but we're here in our new home. I'm getting things unpacked slowly. It's hard to do when I packed up 11 months ago. It's a little more difficult to remember where things are and I have also forgotten what I own! I didn't remember that I had about 18 pillows! Ha I bought a new pillow for my bed so that I'd have two and then I discovered that I had a BUNCH more that had been in pillow shams. So, if we have a slumber party, don't worry about bringing your pillows because we're good! :-)

Now, for a little reveal. These are my new kits for this week. A little bit of baby love. And the great thing about this line is that it isn't gender specific so bring on the boys AND the girls!

Sweet Little Dreams Paper Pack

Sweet Little Dreams Element Pack
Have a great weekend!

Sneak Peek

2010-05-03T21:11:00.000-07:00

Here's a little sneak peek of a kit I have debuting on Thursday. Bring out your baby photos! :-)

Also, it's time for $2.00 Tuesday and this time I actually KNOW it's Tuesday and I won't disable all the products I JUST put up for sale! Ha

We are still having our Birthday Bash all month at The Digichick so check that out, too. Lots of stuff going on.

I've been back and forth from my house and my parents' house. Just spent a couple nights at my house. I have my DSL but the UPS man didn't leave my modem on my porch when he was supposed to deliver it and he didn't let me know that he didn't leave it. So, I have been waiting for my modem to arrive and wondering where it was. It ended up getting sent back to AT&T. So frustrating! Because of that I haven't been able to take my computer to my house yet. Hopefully I'll have my modem tomorrow and can get all that up and running! And get officially moved in!!!

New Kits and Update

2010-05-01T12:04:00.000-07:00

There has been so much going on....I've been trying to take care of things at my house, my clients have projects that need to be taken care of and I had kits to put together for Quirky Twerp. It has all made me a little bit spacey so please forgive me if I've dropped the ball somewhere along the way.

I have a new May Grab Bag. It will be available the entire month for $3.25. Here's a sneak peek.

It's also The Digichick's Fifth Birthday Bash and there are all kinds of birthday products available that coordinate with our Studio 365 products. Mix and match and everything still goes together.
Here's a preview of my banner kit, Birthday Bash 365 Banners & Frames.
I spent the first official night at my house last night. It was a little weird and I must admit a little sad, too. I don't have television service yet or internet service so it was my dogs, me and the radio. The dogs were so confused! I spent the evening assembling a storage cabinet for the bathroom. It's cute. I got it at Target so you KNOW it's cute. :-) I haven't taken a photo yet but I will.

It's just not the life I wanted for myself and I miss my husband! But, I'll adjust...it'll get better. It has to, right?

One More Little Peek

2010-04-28T20:47:00.000-07:00

I had to share one more house photo. Last night one of my best friends and her husband brought a trailer, loaded up my furniture and helped me move it into my house. They actually did 95% of the work! I was finally able to get my living room rug out of the basement and rolled out on the floor. This is the carpet I had chosen for the farmhouse when The Farmer and I got married. I was so in love with it that I didn't mind vacuuming at all, and it was a pretty big house! Ha Originally, in this house, I had intended to get something different but what I was looking for was either non-existent or discontinued, so this was my next best choice. I loved it before and I'm still in love with it. (Especially next to pink walls!)

The living room still looks very empty but I couldn't bear to just leave last night with the loveseat sitting there all forlorn, so I pulled the suitcases out of the basement real fast and in the process came across this pillow I made a couple years ago. My intent was to start a throw pillow business on Etsy, but then my graphic design work picked up and I never started the Etsy site. All the throw pillows were just packed away. I had completely forgotten about making this until last night! I think it's a nice fit. The green with brown leaves is the fabric I was thinking of using for curtains. I think I have seven yards of that!

I am Such a Dork

2010-04-27T16:17:00.001-07:00

I was all geared up for $2.00 Tuesday. I had my products all marked to be on sale. Then I woke up this morning and thought it was Wednesday and took all my products off sale and back to their normal prices! I think ONE customer was able to take advantage for the limited time I had my stuff on sale and that's only because she is from London so it wasn't in the middle of the night for her. What a ding dong I am! :-) I only figured out what I had done after I was away from my computer all day. BUT, here's the reason I was away....my appliances and mattress set were delivered today! Whee heee
I ordered a teeny refrigerator and stove because my kitchen is very small and I didn't want to take up unnecessary space. You can see the refrigerator is only five feet tall in this photo of the delivery men.
Here's the front of the refrigerator. I haven't done any remodeling yet in my kitchen so the walls are still that horrible band-aid color.
And here's my little stove. It's just 24 inches wide. I'm so happy that I was able to find a smooth top in a tiny size.

Here's a bonus teeny weeny broiler pan. I put the gallon of paint there for reference.
New mattress set.
I had to make up the bed real quick. I only had one pillow so I bought another one this afternoon. It looks too lonely and pathetic with just one pillow! Ha
So what do you think? Should I keep the bedroom all aqua and white with some silvery/glass accents like the chandelier? Or should I introduce another color? I was considering a soothing green. Maybe paint my dresser green and then distress it. What are your thoughts? Maybe I should paint my dresser white. I'm interested in opinions. It doesn't mean I'll take anyone's advice, ha, but I still like to know what people think.

Latest Kits

2010-04-23T17:23:00.001-07:00

Hey there! I have some new collections in my shop. The first one is called Bohemian Rhapsody and is available in a scrapbook pack, a paper pack, an element pack and an alphabet pack.

Bohemian Rhapsody Scrapbook Pack

Bohemian Rhapsody Paper Pack

Bohemian Rhapsody Element Pack
Bohemian Rhapsody Alphabet Pack

And my other collection is called Birthday Blowout and is also available in all the usual kits. This kit is full of funky hand-drawn elements.

Birthday Blowout Scrapbook Pack

Birthday Blowout Paper Pack

Birthday Blowout Element Pack

Birthday Blowout Alphabet Pack
I also have some new photos of my house. My carpenter got the baseboards on in the living room and dining room. The original baseboards stayed in the bedroom and office but he put new quarter round trim in all the rooms. I've been mulling over in my head what to do in the kitchen and I think I've figured out a way to add cabinet space, so for now that room is just going to have to stay as it is. I might have to paint it since it's that weird Band-Aid color! But, I don't think I'll do anything else yet.

Here is a photo of the living room so you can see the baseboards. He did such a great job. Quite the craftsman. Also, I had him install the plantation blinds. It's really looking like a home now!

And here is a shot from the front door. You can see I had him redo the frame around the doorway into the bedroom and also the frame around the windows in the dining room. Those had the same newer style moulding that was in the living room and it just didn't look right. Glad to have it gone! I had him add a shelf along the bottom of the window. I thought my cat might like to sit up there and look out! :-)
Next week my bed and appliances arrive. YAY!

Settle In I have a Lot to Post About

2010-04-21T14:01:00.000-07:00

First of all I want to show you the latest on my house. I was over there today with my cutie carpenter. He hung my shower curtain rod, which had to be one of those special L-shaped ones because the end of the tub isn't enclosed. He also hung the bath towel rod and the hand towel ring. I LOVE it!

Yummy chocolate towels!

I had to buy two shower curtains so I got two different colors of curtain hooks....one set of brushed nickel and one set of antique bronze or whatever that color is called. It looks like espresso to me. :-)
Richard, my carpenter, put the quarter round trim in the bedroom. Now I'm going to paint the baseboards in that room. I would love to say "and then that room will be done" but I still need to paint the wood around the glass on the window frames. And THEN that room will be done. The bed is being delivered next week! Wheeeee.
And now, put your sunglasses on...the front door will NOT stay this color! I bought a gallon of yellow paint from a sale area at Lowe's but I didn't have a clue what color it was. I only had the small blob on the can lid to go by. It look like an earthy goldenrod color but it's more like school bus yellow! OOPS. This is only one coat and it's eggshell finish and I think it definitely needs to be semi-gloss so it's easy to clean. So, when I do the next coat or two I'll be picking a much more muted yellow!
You can see to the right where Richard had started with the baseboards in the living room. I had to leave and come back to work but I'm going to check tomorrow and see how things are progressing. He is a real perfectionist so I know it'll look wonderful!

This week I have two collections being released and they'll be 20% off Thursday and Friday.
Here's a sneak peek of the first one.

And here's the second one. This is a quicky because I've got to run my mom to the doctor...she twisted her ankle, poor thing!

Sale Time

2010-04-19T18:59:00.000-07:00

It's $2.00 Tuesday again and the following kits are on sale for 24 hours.
Babycakes Paper Pack
Babycakes Elements Pack
Confectionerie Paper Pack
Confectionerie Elements Pack
Industrial Revolution Paper Pack
Industrial Revolution Elements Pack
Festivale Alphabet and Numerals

I also wanted to share a photo of my latest remodeling project. I've been painting baseboards. I think my carpenter will start installing those on Wednesday. I can't wait to see how it all looks next to the nice floor and newly painted walls. Wheeeee!
And I have to gripe just a bit. I had scheduled AT&T to come get my internet and phone installed. They couldn't just flip a switch or click a button on their computer because I don't have the connections inside the house. This was going to require a visit from a technician. Well, AT&T will only make appointments for a certain day. Not for a.m. or p.m., not for a two hour window that you can expect them. No, they say they'll be there between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

I am not a morning person and I had been up until 1:30 a.m. getting my latest kits wrapped up so getting up at 6:30 and leaving the house at 7:15 to meet someone at my house was not an easy task. While I waited I painted baseboards. Then I waited some more and painted around the panes of glass in the living room windows. Then I waited some more. Nothing. No phone call to say "Hey, I'm running late." At 6:15 I decided to leave. I wasn't real keen on the idea of being in my house alone with a stranger after dark. I wonder what their excuse will be when I call them tomorrow. It's frustrating that they don't have any competition in this part of the U.S. because maybe if they did, their customer service would be a lot better!

Today was a Good Day

2010-04-17T20:25:00.000-07:00

I had a pretty productive day today. I finished up some new kits I'll be releasing this week. I'm soooo excited. I fall in love with almost every new kit I do, some more than others, but this one I am head over heels for. I love, love, love it! I hope you do, too. I'll post a sneak peek in a few days.

I also went over to my house to paint some more. Getting farther along. I painted the doors in the bathroom and did the cutting in up by the ceiling. When I was painting the bathroom weeks ago I ran out of paint when I was about 98% done! So, today I finished that.

These photos are of some plants that have been popping up in my yard. Aren't they CUTE? I just love them!!!

I'm also STOKED to report that The Farmer has fulfilled a promise he made to me. He told me quite awhile back that he would buy a bed for me since he tore our marriage to smithereens. Honestly, I didn't really think he'd keep the promise because he has broken so many others. But, a couple days ago I was out pricing latex mattresses and foundations. The one I wanted ranged in price from $1800 to $1300 on sale. Then a salesman at one store said "Well, we do have one that was returned recently because we have a 30 day return policy." He told me that it had been slept on, of course, and the people changed their minds and brought it back. Well, I have to say I don't know where their minds were because I think latex foam beds are the most comfortable in the universe. AND it was only $900!!! I called The Farmer and said if he was going to get it for me he had to do it right now because they wouldn't hold it. He wasn't able to get away from his job site, but he bought it over the phone for me. It's being delivered in about 10 days.

I know The Farmer has a LOT of mending to do, but just recently he has made some real efforts. He also made a trip to my house last weekend to light the pilot light on my water heater because I was afraid to do it. (I've not had gas utilities before.) He was only there for about 10 minutes but that was also a huge deal because he had to drive 25 minutes to get there and the job he's working on right now is crushing down on him, time wise. And for the workaholic he is, it really was a sacrifice to take that time to help me. So, I'm going to give him props...and I hope he will continue to patch up what needs to be fixed! Every little effort helps to heal the huge hole left in my heart. :-)

Freak Neighbor

2010-04-14T18:46:00.000-07:00

My best friend is in the middle of a stupid nightmare! I'm so ticked because she is a single mom with five kids at home and three in college and the last thing on earth she needs is a pain in the neck neighbor.

Some creep man bought the house across the street from her and about a week ago her daughter and a neighbor boy were out in the front yard playing with their little dog Frankie when that man came outside of his house and Frankie ran across the street and barked at him. The man pulled out a pocket knife!!! Frankie is NOT a mean dog...he's just energetic. He's half Jack Russell Terrier and half Pug and he's happy and busy and really lovable. If he was barking, it was probably in an excited way...not a menacing way. The neighbor boy ran over and told Frankie to sit, which he did. Then he told him to lie down, which he did. Then the neighbor boy picked Frankie up and took him into my friend's house.

Not long after that, the man showed up at my friend's front door holding a machete!!! He told her that her dog had scared him and he had heart problems and didn't want her dog in his yard. She apologized all over the place and said it wouldn't happen again. He also said that her dog "treed" him. She was a little confused for one reason, he doesn't have a tree in his front yard and for two, Frankie is a little dog! It's not like there was a German Shepherd police dog barking at him. She even questioned him about whether or not he knew the meaning of the word "treed". (And I'm putting it in quotes because it's so ludicrous.)

Frankie has not been outside since then unless he's on a leash, which is not easy for them but they have been trying to be good neighbors and comply. Well today she contacted me and said the man had filed a formal complaint at the courthouse against her for having an "animal at large"!!!

I told her she needs to find out if she can do something about him showing up on her doorstep holding a machete! What in the heck is this world coming to? I feel so bad for her because she's a wonderful person, her kids are fantastic, she's a hardworking high school teacher who has her kids involved in all kinds of activities and she's doing it all single-handed. Having a freak neighbor threatening her is NOT what she needs right now!

Living Room Paint

2010-04-12T12:36:00.000-07:00

I'm still a little freaked out about the paint I chose for the living room. It's called Cottage Rose, which sounds so calm and lovely, but now that it's on the walls it is VERY bold and very Pepto Bismol-y! I'm keeping my mind open though because when I put the paint chip next to the living room rug and a pillow from my furniture, it looks better.
See, doesn't that look nice and not too wild? Say yes. Ha

Somehow it looks a little different when it's bigger than a 3" x 3" paint swatch!!! EEK
I still need to paint the windows around the glass. I've painted the trim around the windows but now it's time to get into the nitty gritty. I'm dragging my feet. I don't like that kind of painting. Too tedious. :-)
The floor sure looks nice! I'm thrilled about that. I also have the lumber for the baseboards but need to get those painted before I call my awesome carpenter.
While the Digichick was on a week long Spring Break I could have been creating things for Quirky Twerp but I was wrapped up in painting walls instead. So, I'm now working on a new kit that I can release next week. It's pretty! I can't wait to show you a sneak peek.

Challenge Sponsor

2010-04-09T06:41:00.000-07:00

I know some of my blog readers haven't jumped into the digital scrapbook world yet but here's some incentive...today I am sponsoring a cool challenge over at the Digichick Blog. Olivia created this challenge and has even provided a free template for you to use.

Everyone who participates will receive a 25% coupon for my shop and also one lucky winner will receive my newest kit, Into Indigo Scrapbook Pack.
I'd love to see what you create if you decide to jump in and give this challenge a try. :-)

Bungalow Update Again

2010-04-06T20:39:00.000-07:00

I was not pleased with how yellow the green paint looked in the dining room, so I decided to get a new color and repaint today! So this afternoon around 4:00, I drove over to my house and started painting.

This color is called Apple 4 and in the photos it looks almost the same as the original green, but I think I was color correcting the previous photos to match what I envisioned in my head. I like this color much better and once I get my art/craft table in that room and my wonderful aqua bookcase, it's going to be one smokin' creative space!!!

And I was getting so tired of looking at that "band-aid" faux flesh color on the living room walls that I decided to slap a bit of paint on the biggest wall in the living room after I finished with the dining room. It was getting late and I didn't have a lot of light but I'm not so sure about this color. It's called Cottage Rose but it looks like Pepto-Bismol Pink to me! EEK! I'll have to go back when it's daylight and take a good look. Cottage Rose sounds so demure...this color is NOT anywhere near demure. But neither am I so maybe this color is right up my alley!

Picture it next to a chocolate brown shag rug, which is almost the full size of the living room, and moss green chunky furniture. I need to make some wild throw pillows to tie it all together. Just wait...I'm sure it seems weird right now but I have plans. :-)

Also, I wanted to share one more layout with my Into Indigo Scrapbook Pack. This was done by Amanda. She's a creative little soul who lives in Australia. I love how the internet and scrapbooking bring people together from all over the world.

Bungalow Update

2010-04-04T20:12:00.000-07:00

Because of some extra help from my best friend Barb, I now have the dining room painted! No more dark blood red walls. Now it's a cheery color called Tender Bud. These photos came out looking yellow but it's really green. I did the best I could adjusting the color of the photos but it still looks kind of wildly yellow!
This is a view from the corner looking toward the living room.

This is a view from the kitchen doorway, looking toward the bedroom.
Now I need to move on to the living room. Those are the two rooms where I am able to put new baseboards...or rather have my handyman do it. So, I want to get the living room painted next and as quickly as possible. Then put him to work so I can stay on schedule.

I can still move in even if all the painting isn't done but it would be great if I could have it all done before I move in! Well, that is if I'm not really including the kitchen. That's going to be a separate project and I haven't yet decided what I want to do or what my vision is. It's all muddy in my head right now. I suppose it'll all gel eventually. As far as the kitchen goes, I'll have some major expenses there, thanks to my "darling" ex-farmer. I had hoped he'd keep his promise and help me out a little bit financially but obviously keeping his word is not high on his list of priorities. Poor guy. I can't imagine that the money he's keeping to himself is as warm and snuggly and cuddly as I am but if that's what he wants instead of me, that's his choice. Meanwhile, I'll continue to create a wonderful little slice of heaven just for me and my four-legged kids.

Some Show and Tell

2010-04-03T17:31:00.001-07:00

First I wanted to say that I went over to check on my floors in my little bungalow today and they look beautiful! And they're so smooth. Really wonderful! I was also able to finish painting the primer in the dining room...no more dark red walls. I'm planning to paint the color this weekend so I'll take photos and post those soon. I need to get the dining room and living room painted as soon as I can so my handyman can get the baseboards put in. The other rooms have baseboards that we couldn't remove so I'll just paint those. I'm still so anxious to get moved in. I need a life! If I can't have my farm life, I need to create the next best thing.

Now, I wanted to share with you some of the layouts created with my newest kit Into Indigo.

This one was created by Jen. She bought some really cute new jeans recently, a reward for her hard work getting back into shape! She looks great. And I love how she used the little torn piece of notebook paper for her journaling and then added my Vintage Brass Stencils. Good choice! I hadn't even thought about using those.

This layout was created by Holly. She doesn't know it but I used that leopard print just for her. I was being sly and used it as bait so she would download my kit! Sneaky huh? Hee hee She didn't disappoint and created this wonderful layout!

And this one was created by Olivia. This is her first time working with one of my kits and I just love what she did. So cute! And guess what? She's 13!!! Talented little chick!

And this pretty one is by Monique. She lives in the Netherlands and many times her layouts are written in Dutch, but she has translated this one for us. It's about a quote a friend told her "Everything you give attention to grows, so if you want to let go you need to stop giving attention." She wants to work on not "feeding" the negative things in her life. Good advice!!! I need to remember that. :-)

I was just linked up to this one by Sharon. Isn't this the cutest thing? Oh my! Wonderful layout and super photos. Cute cute cute.
I hope you all have had a wonderful Easter weekend.

Latest Kit Latest News

2010-03-31T22:18:00.000-07:00

My newest kit is in my shop and 20% off Thursday and Friday. I was inspired by my favorite pieces of clothing...my jeans. I'm just a jeans kind of girl. I clean up pretty nicely, but if I could wear jeans, t-shirts and tennis shoes every day of my life, I would be a happy little camper! Here are the links to the different packs. And a special thank you to my friend Lisa for dreaming up the name. She is so creative and when I'm stuck, she always comes through for me!
Into Indigo Scrapbook Pack
Into Indigo Paper Pack
Into Indigo Element Pack
Into Indigo Alphabet Pack
Now I have to cut this short and head to bed because I'm finally going to meet my "floor guy" tomorrow to finish up my floors! Hopefully after this they'll be smooth and I can actually set a real move in date and can finish up the painting! It's been a long time coming and I'm getting so anxious because I want to LIVE THERE NOW!

Check back in a couple days. I'm going to post some wonderful layouts created with Into Indigo!

New Stuff

2010-03-30T08:51:00.001-07:00

Don't forget about $2.00 Tuesday today. My Industrial Revolution Paper Pack and Element Pack are on sale for 24 hours. And a couple other packs...that slip my mind right now! Ha

Also, I have a new kit coming out this week that I've been working on for awhile. I've been so swamped with my graphic design stuff that I've had to sneak a little time here and there toward my Quirky Twerp creations but it's finally finished and will be on sale Thursday and Friday, 20% off.
Here's a little sneak peek.

Quirky Twerp In The Spotlight

2010-03-27T16:03:00.000-07:00

I feel so honored that my little scrapbook endeavor is in the spotlight right now over at The Hybrid Chick. I always love to see ANYTHING created with my products, but when I see something printed out and then created....something you can actually HOLD....my heart jumps a little bit more. Those hybrid chickies are very creative! Go take a little look over at their site. You might find a little inspiration for your own hybrid project.
These darling little envelopes were created by Nicole Seitler using my Gardenologie Paper Pack and Kelleigh Ratzlaff's Mini Envelopes Template.

Vintage Easter Freebie

2010-03-24T00:24:00.001-07:00

Just in time for Easter, I'd like to give you this little gift which coordinates with my Vintage Easter products ... Vintage Easter Tags! And here's a little trivia, the ledger paper which is the base for these tags, is from an actual ledger book that my great grandfather used in his general store in Connecticut. I hope you enjoy and find a fun project on which to use these. If you do, link me up. I always love to see what people create with my products.

Also, included with this freebie is a little coupon to use in my shop. Happy Spring!!! :-)