Saying Thank You

If you're like me,

you've been busy making thank you cards for all your family and friends who presented you with a gift this Christmas. I have found it easiest to use pre-folded card bases with envelopes and one 6x6 paper pad with one group of matching embellishments.

Since these cards

have to fit in flat envelopes, I had to make them CAS, which is a real challenge for me... the woman who loves layers upon layers! With the blank cards being white, I chose kraft cardstock for all the mats since it seemed to go so well with most of the patterns that were in the My Mind's Eye Portobello Road paper pad. 

This is an old Lost & Found

collection and has some beautiful blue/green shades that I thought had a sort of wintery look.

Along with rhinestones,

pearls and ribbon, I cut snowflakes using my Alterations mini dies. I also used: Spellbinders Fleur De Lis Squares, Vintage Photo Distress Ink, Jet Black Archival Ink, Scrappy Cats Thank You Clear Stamp Set and May Arts Satin Snowflake trim. I have several more to show you all using this same combination of product. 

I hope you're all having 

a wonderful, relaxing weekend. We have tons of snow here (not really... just a few inches but I like to think big!) It's that heavy kind that likes to cling to the tree branches and make everything look so gorgeous... a true winter wonderland! Time to grab a cup of steaming coffee, pull up a chair and look out the window... a perfect Saturday!

Thanks for stopping by!

Linda

Grungy And Sweet

Todays journal page

is a result of inspiration I received from Zorana (remember the printables) and Anna Dabrowska (Live with Prima video). 

Well, my little page

in no way comes close to what these mega talented girls produce... but they surely inspire me to stretch myself and try something I normally wouldn't do.

Lots of stamping,

rub-ons, spray, molding paste, gesso, cheesecloth, paper scraps, masking tape, ribbon, lace, tags, pearls, a Prima clock, Chit Chat stickers, mini paper clips and flowers.

Thank you ladies,

for giving me a push to be adventurous!

I'm linking my page at:

Balzer Designs - Art Journal Every Day

I hope you all had

a joyous Christmas and are looking forward to new creativity in 2013!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Linda

Merry Christmas

To all our dear friends & family!

We love you!

 Linda B & The Penmaker

Quick Gift Wrapping Ideas

The Penmaker and I

are heading out for a days jaunt to Ikea in Pittsburgh, then our annual drive through Oglebay in Wheeling for the Winter Festival of Lights.

This year there are

seventy-eight light displays including the new amusement part themed Strong Man display added next to a Ferris Wheel and Carousel. There is also a new Leaping Frog display and an animated Volcano. Can't wait to see these!

This is the extravagant

Cinderella display that took two years to complete... one of my favorites.

The gorgeous Poinsettia 

Wreath and Candles display... this is breathtaking!

This is just a sampling

of the beautiful displays that decorate the 300 acres over the six mile drive we take through the resort. We've been making this trip for years, starting when our children were young. Such a fun and inspiring event! If you're in the area, the displays are up and lighted until January 6th, 2013.

I had a few small gifts

to wrap for some of our grandchildren that I had purchased after the bulk of the presents, and had already put away most of the papers, ribbons, etc. So I pulled out tissue, dies, jute and scrap papers from my card making stash, and did some quick creating.

 These are just some

ideas for you if you have a last minute package to wrap. Have fun and enjoy the season!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Linda

Happy Christmas

Zorana has the cutest

free printable for December here. When I downloaded it this morning, I immediately started work on a journal page using her darling bird trio. 

The background is a

blend of titanium white, cerulean blue and grey for the sky with parchment, titanium white and raw umber artist acrylics for the yard. The stars were made with Golden's molding paste and Crafter's Workshop Mini Punchinella stencil.

The houses were stamped

on paper from 7 Gypsies Lille 8x8 pad, fussy cut and glued to the page. The trim was "painted" in using Barn Door Distress Ink... the windows with Mustard Seed DI. The fence was done the same way using Vintage Photo DI. The Christmas greenery and bow are from my vintage stash.

The tree stamp and

the sentiment are from old sets from Sweet 'n Sassy. I used Jet Black Archival for them.

To complete the page,

 I edged it with Black Soot DI. May you have a Happy Christmas!

I'm linking my page at:

Balzer Designs - Art Journal Every Day

Thanks for stopping by today!

Linda

Candy Canes And A Gingerbread Man

Unless an unforeseen

emergency arises, this will be my last Christmas gift card holder. Yes!... I love checking off items on my "to do list".

These sweet papers from

Graphic 45's Nutcracker Sweet collection are "Land of Sweets", "Holiday Magic" and "Endearing Sentiments".

I did lots of fussy

cutting with this one. I just adore these candy canes with the ribbon swirls.

I'm linking up at:

Jingle Belles - Anything Goes/Holiday

Make It Monday - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by today!

Linda

Recycled Starbucks Sleeve

You know those sleeves

you get on your Starbucks cups? They are great to make into mini albums and (of course) gift card holders...

I always save a few of

these to alter, and still had this one from last Christmas.

I gave it a spray of

LSG Scintillating Silver Glitz Spritz, then glued on a couple of rhinestone snowflakes. Added a few embellishments, an I Am Roses flower with some Alterations Mini Holly leaves and popped in a Starbucks card.

All set to give away!

I can just see the sweet recipients sipping their hot beverages... ahhhh... bliss!

I'm linking up at:

Make It Monday - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by today!

Linda

Gift Cards

I love when someone

gives me a gift card, and better yet... I LOVE to give them!

I need to have several 

holders made for Christmas, so I started this morning with this one. Why does something so simple take me so long? Over embellishing perhaps? 

I cut out this pocket

using Alterations Pocket Envelope die and Basic Grey Oxford "Lacrosse" paper. The image is cut from Echo Park's This & That Christmas "Holly Berries" backside. The stack of die cuts are... in order from the bottom... Spellbinders Large Classic Circles, Alterations Mini Tickets, Alterations Tattered Pinecone (made this into a rose) and Alterations Mini Holly. The two Cherry blossoms are I Am Roses, that I sprayed with LSG Scintillating Silver Glitz Spritz. The French Lace paper doily is from an Etsy shop, the satin snowflake is trim from May Arts and the rhinestone is by Teresa Collins.

The tag slips into the

pocket and holds the gift card with a glue dot.

I hope you are getting

all the last of your shopping, baking, etc, etc, etc finished. Wow... I still have a lot to do!!! 

Enjoy the fun and blessings of making something nice for those you love!

I'm linking up at:

Make It Monday - Anything Goes
Sunday Funday - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

A Little Stitchery

On Tuesday the

Penmaker and I took a trip to Berlin in the heart of Amish country. It's about a 25 minute drive on back roads mostly through farm lands. We love it! of course, I just had to run into one of my favorite shops... Country Craft Cupboard. I purchased some wool to make something special for Valentines Day, and they gave me a FREE pattern. I'll post it when I get it completed. For now, I want to show you some of the snowmen ornaments I've made for our tree.

I did a bunch of these

cute little guys with green, dark red and red with black flecks backgrounds. CCC does a lot of their own hand-dying and I absolutely adore their wools. It's usually hard for the Penmaker to pull me out of the back room where all the bolts of wool and floss are. To make matters worse, they sell smaller pieces and little squares of these gorgeous goodies which make it even more tempting to spend all the money in your purse. You can even fill a plastic bag full of wool scraps and pay by the pound... which I've done many times! Perfect snippets to have on hand.

Oh... and the lower

level is filled with rubber stamps, primitive type frames and needlework books. Ah... a crafters dream!

Now, back to work!

I'm linking my snowmen to:

Anything But A Card - Celebrating the Light or Seasonal Holiday

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs!

Linda

Jingle Bells

Today is the most

gorgeous day. Looking out the window you would think it was spring. So why am I inside? Ahhhh... the lady is still making Christmas cards... that's why!

By now you may have

grown tired of seeing cards I've created with My Mind's Eye "All Is Bright". The fact is, I'm still in love with these papers and am enjoying mixing them with my Christmas scraps from last year. It's been sort of a personal challenge to see how many different looks I can get with these few paper patterns and a chipboard sheet.

I used the "Joy" 

chipboard piece as the focal point, and paired it with this scrap of Graphic 45's "Christmas Emporium". The two buttons are MME "Follow Your Heart" and tied with ivory burlap string from May Arts. The roses are Recollections and I Am Roses. The die cut is Spellbinder's Floral Doily Motif.

The big tulle bloom

is by Prima. I dabbed on a little Tombow Mono Glue  and sprinkled on Twinklets Diamond Dust... both are from Consumer Crafts, where you can get 20% off their entire site thru today - 12/13/12.

I'm linking my card at:

Cupcake Craftroom - Christmas

Make It Monday - Anything Goes

Shopping Our Stash - Sentimentally Yours

Unique Crafters - Christmas

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs!

Linda

Bulking It Out

As I'm addressing

my Christmas cards, I am finding that...

1. I didn't make nearly enough cards for family and friends
2. The ones I have made are hugely embellished with flowers, trims, etc.
3. Saving money by making my own is out the window because I have to put them in padded envelopes and pay higher postage
4. That #3 above really doesn't matter because I love making something pretty for those I love

That all said, I've

decided to try an idea that I've seen some of you doing... make mail/postage friendly, flat cards in quantity... a la Amy. Now, my four little cards in no way can compete to Amy's amazing stack of 80. This gal can crank out cards like nobodies business and they're gorgeous to boot! So much talent!!! Nevertheless, I must say I am as happy as a lark to have these four completed in such a short time, but I just realized that I forgot to do the insides. Yikes!... back to the old craft mat and paper cutter! 

I used pre-made card

blanks with envelopes from Consumer Crafts to save more time. These I've teamed up with My Mind's Eye "All Is Bright" collection, Core'dinations Kraft cardstock, Vintage Photo Distress Ink, jute ribbon, and Prima Say It In Crystals. The Spellbinder's die is Labels One.

The image is my favorite

for this winter. You've seen this one numerous times in my posts... from Artistic Outpost "Midwinter". It's stamped in Jet Black Archival and glimmered up a bit with Glossy Accents and Twinklets Diamond Dust.

Today the plan is to

get some more addressing done, make a tag or two, wrap gifts... then make coffee and put my feet up. Want to join me? We could even sample a cookie or two!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

Christmas Cheer

First... a huge

Thank You to sweet Audrey for the surprise I received in the mail over the weekend!

When I saw this on

her blog here... I had know idea it was for me. I can tell you... I was SOooo thrilled when I opened the package...

and this beautiful

card came with it. Thank you so very much, dear Audrey... and you said it all... blogging buddies are the best!!!

Second... another card 

made by using up bits and bobs along with the beautiful My Mind's Eye All Is Bright collection.

I cut the Christmas 

Cheer border strip from one of the last scraps of my Graphics 45 Christmas Emporium. The jingle bell is from Consumer Crafts, the Shabby Wrinkled seam binding is from Prairie Bird Boutique and the red burlap string is May Arts.

The red sheer trim

is from May Arts, the pearl trim... Comsumer Crafts, the French Lace paper doily... Henny TJ's Boutique, and the red rhinestones are TPC Studio.

The MME chipboard piece 

was a little too red for my liking, so I did a bit of coloring and shading on it with Aged Mahogany Distress Ink and some edging with Antique Linen.

Thank you for dropping by today!

Hugs!

Linda

Peace

Thankfully I have another

Christmas card finished. The inspiration for this came from my friend, Tracy, who is one of the most talented, sweetest ladies I've meet since I've started blogging. Here is her tag that gave me the idea for my card...

I again used the

My Mind's Eye All Is Bright Christmas collection along with Recollections Kraft cardstock. I'm still not sure if I made the frames right, but I like the result.

My image is from the

Artistic Outpost Midwinter stamp set stamped in Jet Black Archival and embellished with Twinklets Diamond Dust (as were the Kraft frames) and edged with Antique Linen Distress Ink. The flowers are all from I Am Roses that were misted with Lindy's Stamp Gang Creme Brulee Cream Starburst Spray. The Shabby Wrinkled Seam Binding bow is topped with a Teresa Collins brad. The greenery was cut from Alterations Mini Holly and Tattered Pinecone dies. The clear rhinestone is by TPC Studio.

I'm linking my card to:

Crafting For All Seasons - Use Flowers

Fussy and Fancy - I Love Christmas

Great Impressions - Anything Goes

Jingle Belles - Anything Goes/Holiday

Ladybug Crafts - Christmas/Winter

Make It Monday - Anything Goes

Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes

The Cupcake Craftroom - Anything Goes/Christmas

Top Tip Tuesday - Christmas

Unique Crafters - Christmas

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs!

Linda

Oh Holy Night

Hi dear friends...

I'm back to making cards today (and am hoping I made enough tags). That dynamic duo over at Jingle Belles, Lauren and Stephanie, are giving us one last opportunity to show off our Christmas cards and I wanted to join in on the fun. They're also giving us a chance to win a fabulous prize...

... and you have until Friday, December 21st.

Link up Here.

So... I have one ready to enter...

All from My Mind's Eye

All Is Bright collection with white and Pomegranate cardstock.

A French Lace paper 

doily from Hennytj's Boutique and Artisan Chipboard stars from Pink Paislee. These beautiful flowers are from I Am Roses. The "greens" were cut with Alterations Mini Holly and Tattered Pinecone dies. The rhinestones are by TPC Studio.

I want to take a minute

 to thank you all for the encouraging comments you've been leaving... I so appreciate them and your kindness! You girls are the best!

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs!

Linda

My Merry Christmas Mini

Last November I purchased

this journal kit from Tim Holtz Etsy shop...

 and it has had a home on a shelf in my craft room ever since. This Christmas season I promised myself I would put this thing together and actually fill in the pages. 

Hey, hey... I've started...

The kit, of course, didn't come

with any of the inks, so I got to chose whatever colors I wanted from my stash... which is quite extensive (I LOVE Ranger inks!!!)

Some of the handware

that came with the kit had the bronze finish, so I carried that color on to the knob and alphas using Rub 'n Buff.

I also put on a bronze

corner piece from my stash to make mine more of an original.

Now to decorate the 

pages and then actually do some journaling. Yikes... that's the hard part!!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda