Scrapbooking my life...one page at a time

Look What I Found ....

- Reindeer Cake Pops -

OMG, are these not the cutest little Christmas munchies ever!  Rudolp is just too cute!

- Sheep Cake Pops -

Look, here's some more ...

 
Sesame Street Cake Pops

I'm totally in {love} with these little guys ...

 

- Hello Kitty Cake Pops -

 
- Santa Hat Cake Pops -

These oh-so-charming and oh-so-yummy-looking little inventions are the brainchild of Bakerella over at www.bakerella.com. 

- This whole box of chocolates is edible -

Talk about creative!!  The great thing about Bakerella is that NOT ONLY DOES SHE GIVE YOU STEP-BY-STEP Baking INSTRUCTIONS for making these little pops & bites but she also gives you step-by-step instructions for decorating them TOO!  And, if you can't find the 'nuts & bolts' needed to create these little wonder-pops ---- she'll hook you up with the the supplies too!

 

Hey J ~ another SUPER Fan!

These creations actually look fairly easy to make -as in - easy enough for Nancy to try!  Come-on, it can't get any easier than that.  I'll show you what mine look like this weekend after I give them a try.  If they turn out even half way decent than I am going to be BRINGING some Rudolph's & Santa Hats to the 'Annual BOULANGER  Christmas Eve Gathering. 

 
- Jack-o-man Heads! -

HELLO, Okay, well - what's everyone waiting for???  Let's head over to www.bakerella.com for a look.  I guarantee you're gona be inspired!  I know I was!  Okay, see you over there ....

 

I'm so excited to be sharing something great I found floating around in cyberspace ....

I hope everyone has a Cake-Pop kinda Day.

-N-

Urban Craft Uprising ...

 

Seattle Public Art   

(Since 1973, the City of Seattle has required that 1% of all City funded Capital Improvement dollars be set aside for Public Art - we have a lot of public art)

On Saturday Dana & I went into Seattle to check out an Arts & Craft Fair that Jessica had told me about.  Dana met me at my house about 11am and we went & grabbed a quick bite to eat before hurrying over to the 520 bridge to get across the lake before it the Seafair backup started.  During Seafair Weekend (and the week before) they close the I90 bridge down for part of the day when the Blue Angels are practicing or preforming - with only one bridge open the 520 backs up BIG TIME.  

Blue Angels (I didn't take this photo: in fact I didn't see them at all this year but I did HEAR them)

I must say, as we crossed over the 520 bridge (we did beat the backups) Dana & I were amazed by the hundreds of boats we saw rushing full steam to get down to the south end of the lake to watch the Blue Angels and other Seafair activities.  Dana tried to get a picture of them all racing across the lake but it was hard as we were driving about 65 mph.

Boats heading down to Seafair

   It was such a nice day and there were so many people down at the Seattle Center.  I don't get into the city much and I always forget how beautiful Seattle is.  In the middle of the Seattle Center is a GREAT big fountain that many people use as a watering hole.  There were tons of people down in the fountain trying to cool off ...

 

The Seattle Center Fountain

It was hot out but there was a cool breeze blowing and so it made the walk through the center very enjoyable.  The Urban Craft Uprising, as it is called, took place in the Exhibition Hall.

 

The Urban Craft Uprising was more Arts than Crafts and I was amazed at how truly talented & creative some people are.   Although neither Dana nor I bought much we did have a great day together.

 

I Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!

- N -

 

Crop-tastic!

On Thursday I attended a crop at my friend Trista's house.  We had such a lovely time visiting together, chatting, reminiscing, and scrapbooking for 3 hours.  Trista is a Creative Memories (CM) consultant and so she always has TONS of great scrapbooking supplies available at her crops.

She has decided that for most of the year (she is a tax accountant and so Jan - April is off limits to scrapbooking, visiting friends, shopping or any other activity not directly associated with the IRS, W2's, Pencil Pushing or 1040 forms) she will hold once a month crops.  I love it because now I can just pencil in every THIRD THURSDAY of the month as CROP NIGHT AT TRISTA'S.

I {heart} the idea of attending regular Crop Nights because it will push me to get more organized and get more done.  We are going to meet from 6:30 - 10:30 so I will have at least 4 hours of dedicated scraptime every month - being able to visit with fellow scrapbuddies is wonderful added bonus too!

This month I started work on my Italy Picfolio.  I absolutely love the CM picfolio's.  They are an easy & fast way of organizing for the short or long term an occasion or event for which you have millions of pictures that you want to save but don't necessarily want to "scrapbook" in the tradition way of 1 or 2 pictures per page.  With the picfolio album you can create 'mini' scrapbook pages for each picture but load the album with 4 or 5 pictures per page (the pictures each fit into their own little sleeve)  You can click on each picture to enlarge it and get a better looks. 

As you can see above I have 4 pictures per page and left a single spot on each page for journaling.  The pictures are now together in an album, protected and can either live in this album forever or if/when I decide to do a fancier scrapbook I can removed all of some of them.  I love this new picfolio that CM has come out with because I can add as many pages as I need AND I also have traditional pages in it because I have the option of adding single pages which you put a traditional 12x12 page into.

I also bought another 'Quick Kit'.  I love these little 8x8 albums that come with the pages already loaded in them and also comes with the matching stickers, word art and other embellishments.   

These kits are great if you have a LOT of pictures (I do!) and either don't have a lot of time (I do!) or don't just never seem to get around to getting your pictures put into albums (me again!).  I am thinking this will hold my 2008 family reunion photos!

Holy Crop!  Look what I won! 

I won a door prize at the crop - this super cute little bag and a matching mini album.  I think I will load the bag up with extra crop tools & glue so that it is always ready to go with me to every crop I attend.  Trista is thinking about planning an 'end of summer' weekend retreat and I am already looking forward to that PLUS ... Jess and I both signed up for the Abby 'BC Crop for Kids' which an annual crop for charity that raises money for the BC Children's Hospital.   It sells out every years and so we were excited to sign up in time this year ... it sold out in 2 hours! 

Oh YEAH - Mike & I were at our local 'home improvement' store yesterday (getting a dripper system for my yard) and as we strolled past the paint department I noticed this super-cute paint sample cards in the 'Disney' Paint section.  As you can see - I grabbed a bunch - I am going to find a use for them in my Disneyland album.  If anyone wants a couple just let me know - as you can see I have lots!

YUP ... it's beginning to look like a CROP-TASTIC year!

Have a great day!
- n -

Life at the Beach ...

This is a recent scrapbook that I made for Mike's sister & her husband to Thank them for inviting us to stay out their beach house in Delaware.  It took me a while to put it together but I think it was well worth the time. I was one of those projects that just came together in the exact way I wanted it to.

Oh, by the way,  I love how it turned out.  It is so cute - the perfect colors, perfect pictures and just 'reeks' of a beach cottage at the edge of the sea ...

Follow me along the construction trail ...

The first I did was to gather some beach glass nuggets that I collected over the years and then I researched how to drill holes in the middle of them because I knew from the onset that I wanted to make some Beach Glass Buttons. 

I found some directions online about how to drill glass and found out that you needed to do it with a diamond tip drill bit - I already had my trusty Dremel [this is the best tool ever for people who like to partake in the Arts & Crafts]  but had to go down to Ace Hardware to get the drill bit.  Done.  Next the directions instructed me to get a bowl of water and a block of wood to drill on top of.  So, the key to success is drilling very, very slowly under the water.  There is definitely a 'knack' to drilling through the glass without breaking it - I ended up destroying quite a few pieces before ... SUCCESS!

Next I gathered up the chipboard book paper and acrylic sheets that I was planning on using.  I LOVE the look of the acrylic - it is one of my favorite scrapbooking mediums. 

Then I covered the front of the album with the paper that I had chosen - After gluing the paper onto the chipboard I sanded all the edges to get it nice and then I used a blue stamp pad to ink the edges of the cover ...

So I covered both the outside front & back of the album with the paper that had the 'beachy' words on it and then I covered the inside covers of the front & back of the album.  I love the paper which I used - the word paper and  the blue & white striped paper to line the inside of the covers.  I think they are perfect colors for the album.

After the cover's were finished I attached my 'Beach Glass Buttons' to the front cover along with 2 starfish that I had.  The buttons are tied on - I punched holes through the chipboard and threaded some rope-like string I had through the buttons and cover and tied it in a knot.

Next I decided which picture I would use on the first acrylic page.  I wanted a photo that really spoke to the beaches on the East Coast and I thought this one with the dried grass and weathered fence did just that.  It was especially important because whatever picture was placed here would be seen through the cutout in the cover {see the finished book at the top}.

Here is the front cover and the next page is the beach scene which you can see through the cut-out.  At this point I just started covering the inside pages with paper and adding pictures and decoration as I went along.  The book is alternating pages of chipboard and then an acrylic page - most of the chipboard pages have cut-outs in them and so it did take some time making sure that they all lined up.

Below are a few of the pages from inside the book.

I found this GREAT new toy on the internet - it's called Wordle and I used it to create & print out this great 'word cloud'.  Click above to go check out the site - the best part is that it's FREE & EASY.   Yup, you heard me right ... FREE & EASY. 

See - I just made another one!  It really is fun and easy!  Give it a try.  I may have mentioned this site before but seriously, if you haven't tried it - you should!  I think it would make some great birthday party invitations ....

 
Anyway - that is my 'Rehobeth Beach' scrapbook.


Hope you are outside enjoying the sunshine
- N -

Monday Morning Make & Take ...

Seedling Pots

What You Need:

•    Newspaper (standard broadsheets are best)
•    Small straight-edged jar like a half-pint canning jar, but a small drinking glass works well too

 

Directions:

1. Grab a whole sheet of newspaper. Fold it in half along the natural seam. Then fold it into thirds, lengthwise. You'll have a long strip of newspaper, six layers thick.

2. Lay your glass on its side on top of the paper, widthwise. Leave a 1-inch-long strip of paper extending beyond the open end of the glass.

3. Roll the glass along the length of the newspaper, tightly rolling the newspaper up around it as you go.

4. Fold the 1-inch overhang into the opening of your glass, pressing hard. When the overhang is folded in, give the new seam extra reinforcement by turning the glass upside down on the counter and pressing hard on the seam. You should now have what looks like a little paper pot.

5. Remove the glass by sliding it out of the nonfolded end (sometimes you need to wiggle it out of there, so be careful to not unfold your paper pot).

6. On the inside of your paper pot, unfold the overhang from step 4 into the center, creating a bottom for your pot. For extra reinforcement, use the bottom of your glass to press down firmly on the inside and secure the pot bottom.

7. Line up pots in a planting tray or a stainless steel sheet pan, and fill with seedling mix or potting soil.

8. Plant your seeds in the paper pots.

9. Give your newly planted seeds a little drink of water.

10. Place your little pots in a sunny spot and wait until they sprout.

Note: You can plant the entire pot into your garden bed once the seeds have sprouted!

Happy Farming!

- N -

This is me ... "Scrapping ... This is Us"

I just finished making a little scrapbook album and I LOVE IT.  I think it turned out so cute - I love the colors!

It is called, "This is Us" and I am going to chronicle the history of Mike & I's relationship it in.  It's not a very big album so it will be us ... in a nutshell ...  but I love the idea of being able to look back and reminisce.  I have wanted to make this book for a while because I am afraid that I have already forgotten so many of the little things that have made up our life together.  So as soon as I saw this mini-kit at Treasury of Memories I ordered it.  It is exactly what I wanted.

I really like the way it opens onto both sides of the book.  This is opened from the front!

I added lots of pockets,  little inserts & hidden tabs to it so I can lots of room for journaling.   

It is really just a skeleton book right now because I haven't added any photos or journaled in it yet. (This is the book opened from the back side).  I haven't decided what kind of closure or clasp I will put on it - probably a big pink or green button and ribbon.

I gotta get journaling now - have a great day!
- N -

This is me ... Having a "Happy Fall-idays"

What a Lazy, Relaxed but Semi-Boring weekend I've had and I'm not complaining!   I have never been able to unravel the mystery behind the "I Have the House All-to-Myself because the Other Person is Gone" phenomenon.  I mean - essentially I'm home all day - everyday ALONE but it feels so different when I'm I have the house all to myself because Mike is out of town.  Does anyone know what I mean?   It just feels different - not better (cause I miss Mike like crazy when he is away) - just different!  Here are my poor little pumpkins still waiting patiently on the stairs to be craved into Jack-o-lanterns! 

I love this time of year!  I LOVE the fall  and so when I saw this project on Heather's blog (she is the "Wizard of Crafts") I instantly knew that I needed to make on for my house!  I love the sentiment "Happy Fall-idays" - it just seems to cover that awkward time between Labor Day and Christmas (and works for Thanksgiving too!).  Heather is the most generous crafter because she sharing EVERYTHING - all her "ideas & how-to's" and sells the kits to make many of them too!  I have bought several of her kits either to make myself or already put together by Heather.  IN FACT, I loved her blog so much that I started one of my own and I am sure you will see many of her great ideas on my blog!

Love her ideas - she might be too cutesy for many people but not for me!  I am totally addicted to her blog and have read it daily for over a year now. 

I made this sign over the weekend and have it hanging out under the eaves of my garage by my front gate and I have a "Fruit Swag" hanging off my gate into my courtyard.  I was going to hang the "Fall-idays" sign on my front door but then nobody would see it because my front door is kind of tucked away around a corner.   I think the overhang on my garage are large enough to protect the sign and I also gave it two coats of varnish to seal it.

The thing I love the best about my house is the courtyard and I like it to always be "happy, cheerful & inviting" and I think this sign conveys that message.  I am surprised because although most of the plants in my pots on the courtyard have died back now I have one hanging basket that is still blooming away.  True - it's no longer in it's PEAK state of being but it is still green and blooming.  Look below it and you can see my Hosta's are all "long gone". 

Yesterday I went to my friend Dana's 5th Annual "Mary Kay Christmas Open House".  It was very nice and she had a pretty good turn-out.  We just visited and people stopped by and chatted.   She had a lot of great baskets & other gift packs. Other than going over to Dana's yesterday I just hung out at home with the doggies. 

Hope everyone is having a nice weekend.
- N -

PS:  I HAVE SOME FREEBIE'S - who wants them:

Starbucks (not sure if they are doing this promotion in Canada) are running a promotion called "Song of the Day" where they give away one song for a different Artist every day. 

The promo's over now but I have been grabbing a couple of coupons every time I go to Starbucks and I just downloaded my freebies and I have a couple of Free Codes left.  I have entered the instructions below on how to retrieve them but I won't list all the codes here because they are long but if you want all or some just email me and I will send them too you.  FREE - gotta love FREE!!!

Thanks Starbucks!!

Okay - here's what you do to get your Freebie song after you get the code from me: (REMEMBER: each code can be used only once so it's "first come first serve" -

1. Download iTunes for the Mac or Windows (if you don't already have it) "IT'S FREE
2. Open iTunes and click on the "iTunes Store"
3. Click "Redeem"
4. Enter the code when promoted and your download with begin immediately

Here's who I have codes for:

• John Fogerty - "Gunslinger"    I love this song (some of you may be too young to remember him from CCR)
• John Mayer - "Dreaming with a Broken Heart"
• Joss Stone
• Suzanne Vega

PSS:  Are you all remembering to click for the FREE MAMMOGRAMS!