Okay, here's a new list of my favorite things. I don't know where to start, so I'm just going to jump right in. I'm absolutely in love with Echo Park's Dots & Stripes collection. It even comes in a 6x6 pad for us card makers. LOVE LOVE LOVE! Now, if I can just find a place that sells it!

Baker's twine is another love of mine. I think I have it in every color you can imagine. I tend to hoard it rather than use it all too often though. I do that a lot. Several companies are making this stuff now, so you can get it just about anywhere. Don't they look yummier than candy?

Label stickers are another thing I hoard. I just love them. They're good for making sentiments 'pop' on cards and even for fun gift tags. I love finding new ways to layer them too. October Afternoon always has the cutest colors and shapes. Take a look at these...

I can't go without mentioning something from My Mind's Eye. I adore absolutely everything they make. I bought every single one of their 6x6 pads from the last release. They always have great sentiment stickers and die cuts that are so versatile for both scrapbookers and cardmakers. Here's one I can't wait to get my hands on...

How about buttons? You know I love buttons. GCD Studios and Melody Ross have some SUPER cute ones. Just look at them. I need them!

Another thing my cards rarely go without are either Thickers or rubons from American Crafts. I have two huge buckets full of alphabet stickers and another one full of rubons. I can't get enough. I just wish more companies would get on board with the cute rubons. I gotta have them. Maybe I should just design my own line!? :-)

And though certainly not the last thing I love, but probably one of the most loved would be ribbon. I looked through all of my cards, and I didn't see one that didn't have ribbon on it some way. It's essential to my cardmaking, so this ribbon from May Arts is on my wish list too...

I hope you enjoyed my Friday Favorites. As always, I'd love to hear what your favorite things are too. Happy Friday!

True Love Never Grows Old

Optometry

We've been in such stormy weather lately. It's really making my pictures crummy. I guess that just shows you what a crummy photographer I am! :-) I cannot adapt to anything other than perfect variations of sweet sunny skies for picture taking. Ugh! Anyway, today I start my Veteran's Affairs medical appointments. First up: Optometry!

P.S. So weird! I just noticed that the Trigger Tuesday challenge over on the Moxie Fab blog just happens to have the same color palate and shabby country vibe that my card does. Even the scallops on my card look kinda like the mirror frame. So... why not play along?! Here's the provided inspiration photo:

Michael Buble is super cute, but it just reminds me that my hubs is super hot. Love him!

Friday Favorites

I have so many things saved in my favorite links, but once they go there they never seem to resurface, so I thought I'd start sharing them here. Maybe this can be my virtual rolodex of favorite things.

I've been eyeing teired wire baskets for a while now, but I haven't commited to one yet. This one from Pottery Barn is nice and big. I'd spray paint it white if it were mine, but the price tag defiintely keeps me from buying this version.



On with the Pottery Barn theme... I would love to have this as my tool table in the closet. I'd even love to have that mini fridge in there too. I can always go for an ice cold Coke and chilled chocolate bar when crafting!

This would be cute in Ethan's room filled with stuffed animals.

These are very familiar. I have candy jars in my scrap room storing all of my ribbon rolled onto clothespins. I bought my jars from Walmart.

Super storage like this would be awesome. Can you imagine the shelves filled with brightly colored bins and knick-knacks? Yummy!

And since I happen to have some pictures of my crafty space already on my computer...

Here's a picture of one of the rows of ribbon candy jars I mentioned.

I definitely swear by organizing everything by color. Here's how I keep my paper. The tabs are secured to clear page protectors that I sliced the 3-ring holes off of, so they're just pockets. I keep the scrap pieces in there, so I reach for them first. It really pays off.

I even organize my closet this way.

Okay, my mom is here visiting from Texas, so I'm off for now...

Challenge

What a treat to find out I was a vendor challenge winner over at Two Peas for one my favorite companies. This little ditty won me some cute cute papers.

I can't wait to get my inky little fingers on this cute scooter paper.



Okay, I'm going to choose the scraplifter of the month this weekend, so please post your links here in the comment section. You can scraplift any card or project here on the blog to enter. Just post your link, so I can share it here with all the other readers. I'm sure we would all love to see what you've made. I know I would! :-)

Totally Me Right Now

except I have to get to work by 0630. (I wish it was nine though!)

Ethan Laughing

I've never made a video before. I'm just one of those people who thinks my camera is supposed to do just one thing. I forget that it's more of a Swiss Knife of imagery than one of those disposable cardboard enwrapped things. If anyone knows how to edit a video or has any other video tips, I'd be more than happy to hear them. Here's Ethan...

CARDS - March 2011

Yeah, it's finally the time when I can reveal the cards that were published in CARDS this past month.

The first one here was in the Masculine section...

...and this one was for the Springtime section: 



It's strange to see cards after keeping them in hiding for so long. Publications usually want your projects about six months in advance. A line of cards I'm working on now isn't even scheduled for publication until December! It's difficult to keep up with the trends, products, colors, and seasons that far in advance. Finding items of season when we're far from it can be tricky too. Summer CHA hasn't happened yet, so I'm going to need to either get creative with the spring/summer lines or use some of last year's products. More than likely I'll end up with a combination though. Using product that's not current can be a quick way to get overlooked if you're attempting to squeeze into your favorite magazine's pages. I'm constantly looking at fashion and home decor magazines and TV shows for inspiration. I'm not fashionable by any means, but it really does translate into the crafting world. Just take a stroll through the mall even and note color combinations, hardware styles, and recurring detail themes of pieces that catch your eye. This is beginning to make me feel  like taking a stroll to the mall... maybe if Ethan keeps chipper I'll grab the camera in the next week and show you what I mean all the way from fashion to creation.

Ujjwal's Card

Have you seen this card by Ujjwal yet??? She did a scraplift of the Thinking of You Card from earlier this month. Her version so very yummy. The twine, stitching, and wooden heart are so shabby chic! I can't help but love it! See a picture of her card below, but don't forget to stop by her blog and leave some sweet comments too. She deserves it!

The deadline for the any other entries for the scraplifter of the month is this weekend, so be sure to send me your links. You know I love to share scraplifts!!! :-)

Good Morning!

Music Monday

I think I'd like to start a series called Music Monday. I'm really into finding songs that express how I feel or songs that just make me feel good. Music was such a huge part of my life growing up. I miss singing and performing so much. It's one of my few happy places. I need to find it again. Anyway, please feel free to suggest songs that make you feel good too. I don't think we can have too many, right?!

I love this little man too...

I just downloaded pictures from my camera. I had to reset the whole program for some reason yesterday. It was just another thing that was driving me nuts lately. Anyway, I think we had just come home from the grocery store here. He was sleepy and cranky, but I realized he had never seen grass. I sat him down and he ran his fingers through it over and over. Then he just looked at me with this worn out little face. Muah!

An Anthem for Tough Times

I can't stop singing this song at the top of my lungs.

I know we all have struggles and pains, big and small.

 I am not alone.

We're in this life together.

I will be okay.

I love this man...

Sweet Little Treat

I've been surfing blogs like I usually do, and I ran across this sweet little treat at the Create blog...

Didn't Hannah make an absolutely adorable scraplifted creation? Please leave her some love, and tell her I said, "Hi!" You know I LOVE scraplifts!!! :-)

Contest

Check THIS out! There's a contest going on over at the GCD Studios blog in partnership with Fiskars and Brave Girl Camp hosted by Melody Ross. The prizes are way outta control, and here's a little inside info... there are 27 prizes, but as of now there aren't even half that many entries. We can't let a free trip go to waste!!! I want one of my readers to win this thing baaaaaaaaad!

New Look

Do you like the new spring look of my blog?

Yep, I even changed the title. I'm starting to let go of the "Stampin' Soldier" persona. I won't be a Soldier in a few more months, and I really don't stamp very often. I think stamping was one of those obsessive phases for me. I'm sure it will come back to my craft here and there, but it doesn't define me. I'm at a point in my life where I'm trying to rediscover, redefine, and rejuvenate myself. Have you ever felt that way???

What "re-" word would you use to describe yourself or your life right now?

Here are a few more I like...

reorganize
revive
refresh
recreate
reform
release
realign
refocus
rebirth
rebuild
recoup
refresh
redefine

My Favorite Thing...

Back to School

In the publishing world it's that time of year again...

SUPPLIES: Cardstock: American Crafts; Patterned Paper: Studio Calico (apples & handwriting) & My Mind's Eye (green geo); Alpha Stickers: October Afternoon ("back"), American Crafts ("2"), Sassafras ("school"); Ink: Colorbox; Chipboard: Maya Road; Ribbon: Papertrey Ink; Brad: Sassafras; Floss: Karen Foster; Border Punch: Martha Stewart Crafts

Quick!

Go HERE to win some fabulous giveaways, and maybe you'll see this girl...

Yep, that's me! I'm so excited to be on the GCD Studios Design Team. I can't wait to get started!!!

Here's a little card I forgot to share with you last week. I'm still waiting on a couple addresses from the winners, but I've already started packing those TWENTY SEVEN little boxes. I also have a BIG announcement that I hope to be able to reveal tomorrow, so be sure to come back around. I know I'm sure pumped up about it. It hasn't been easy to keep this little secret...

Seven Months

At seven months he...

...is a bit wobbly when he sits up.

...gets his knees under him, but falls on his face when he pushes forward.

...eats three times a day with bottles just at nap times.

...might seriously need a haircut before Daddy gets home.

...wears 6-9 month clothes.

...cries when you take away something he's interested in.

...still doesn't tilt the sippy cup back when he's drinking out of it.

...sat through my entire CPR class yesterday, and even seemed fascinated by the whole thing.

...has blanched gums, but no teeth.

...twirls his wrist around when he's holding anything that makes a noise.

...loves lemons.

...reaches his arms out when he wants to be picked up.

...laughs until he can't breathe when I tickle him under the chin.

Me? Moxie Fab???

Haha! I love how the "reject card" made it to the Moxie Fab blog. Life is full of irony...

Anyway, here's a card I really think has much more moxie and is way fab to boot!

Look for this card in the September 2011 issue of CARDS Magazine!

Oh, check out the thread on this card too. It changes color from yellow to orange and back again. I bought variegated threads in a few colors. I think it might be my new addiction!

And the 100 Google Readers Celebration candy goes to....

1. Teri
2. Ash
3. Deborah
4. Smita
5. Sharla
6. Valentina
7. Kate
8. Manis
9. Joanne
10. Bonnie
11. Jen
12. Khristen
13. Jennifer
14. Get Scrappy
15. Redlinda
16. Dee
17. Mrs. Bann
18. Danielle
19. Silvana
20. Lisa
21. Antoinette
22. Katf
23. Ujjwal
24. Tejal
25. Aimee

You know, when I made the guidelines for the blog candy last week asking you to tell me why you follow my blog I really didn't expect what I ended up recieving. Some of you really sent me through a gammot of emotions.  Here are some of my favorite exerpts:

Khristen made me laugh: "Well, let's see...I came here because you are a fellow DT over at XOXO, and I follow because I just love your work :) Congrats on getting hubby to follow you! I asked my hubs to check my blog out and he was like "um, but why? You show me all you make. I don't need to see it again." Pssssh. Whatev."

I reflected with Joanne: "Laura, I found you on an old friend's blog quite some time ago. You were in A...I followed you through the street markets with your friends, watched the four of you eat...was it ice cream?, and saw your 'room' all the while praying for you and your return safely to the US. Have cried for you, laughed with you, and watched Ethan grow into the wonderful little man that he can be at 6 months. the entire time have admired you and your cards...I even remember Vince making one in Afghanistan. And they say my memory is fading!!! I love to check my emails every morning to see if you have something posted. Seeing your fabulous cards is uplifting first thing in the am. So bright and full of wonder. Yes, girl you hooked me some time ago!!! "

And Get Scrappy brought back some emotions along with a few tears too: "I found your blog after reading a comment you left on a Becky Higgins blog post. I was caught by the pictures of your tour over seas. Hit close to home with my brother-in-law being there at the same time. It was interesting to think that he was seeing the same type of things. Then when I read the post on New Years on why you joined in the first place you brought tears to my eyes. It was the most selfless thing you could have done. You are an inspiration both in life and in creative express." (She's talking about THIS POST.)

So, as you can see EVERYONE who left a comment for the blog candy is a winner. Please send me your mailing addresses so I can get your yummies to you as soon as possible. Thank you so much for sharing your time with me. It means way more to me than you know!

And the scraplifter of the month is...

...Smita!

Smita's card is on the left. She did a great job representing the original card on the right. Isn't her card just perfect?  I love her layering, the mixing of patterned papers, and the faux stitching too. It's all just right.

 

And since I really loved the colors and patterns mixed on this next card... I decided to award an honorable mention to Julie! Her card is on the left. I love just how girly and happy it is. She really took the original, on the right, and transformed it into her own creation. Great job!

Please send me your addresses so I can send you some yummy goodies!

Okay, so another month starts now. If you'd like to play along for some fun treats just send me a link to a card you've scraplifted of mine. I'll post your creation here on my blog, and enter you in the running for next month. I can't wait to see what you make!

Didn't Make the Cut

After visiting Betsy's blog yesterday and then a few others, I get the feeling that the fad this weekend is to share publication failures from the last Papercrafts magazine call. So, here's a card of mine that didn't make the cut...

A Couple of Reminders & One Card

Reminders:

• You only have one day left to turn in any scraplifted projects for the Scraplifter of the Month blog candy.
• You have two days left for the 100 Blog Followers Celebration blog candy.

(Click on the links to be taken straight to the details for each.)

Card:

I'm trying really hard to make some more masculine cards lately. To me that nixes a couple of my signature things: flowers & bows. It's not proving to be very easy for me. It just looks so plain. I'm a froo-froo cardmaker, and that just doesn't translate well to "masculine" to me.

Edited to add: (Yes... Ironically, I do have a card published this month in the "Cards for Men" section of CARDS magazine. Go figure!)

Thinking of You Card

I've just been posting the pictures of my cards lately. I'm sure I'll have more to blog about when I'm done with exams this week. I've been exhausted more than usual. Would you be interested in seeing cutting instructions or products used or anything else of that nature, or are you just interested in seeing the picture plain and simple? :-)

100 Blog Followers

Hee! Hee! Did you see who my 100th Blog Follower is? My sweet hubs! :-) LOVE HIM!!!

I think this calls for another blog candy....

Here are the details:

Just leave a comment here on this post for a chance to win. Let's try to make it interesting for me to read rather than the typical "pick me!" comments. So... tell me how you originally came to my blog and why you've decided to stick around. Also, since this celebration is especially for Blog Followers you must be a follower to receive the candy this time around. Oh, and there will be several winners. Like I said a couple days ago, I have a HUGE stash to dish out. I'll pick the random winners on Monday.

P.S. I'm still having the blog candy for the scraplifter of the month this weekend as well. It's candy-palooza!

Blog-Spotted

Have you been over to CARDS Magazine's blog lately?

I've received honorable mention for their Blog-Spot segment this week. Yeah! The cards are all so great.

Keep a look out for a few of my other cards in the March issue of their magazine too. If you're a digital subscriber you can see it right now. It's filled with some super great stuff this month. I'm giddy every month waiting for the mailman to deliver my issue. I get all of the other magazines digitally too. LOL! Can you tell I'm seriously in-love with them? I bet you will be too... If you aren't already! 

Just Because Card & Blog Candy

I'm still playing with my February kit from Studio Calico. I know the March kit is about to ship, so I feel compelled to whip something up before I bury it in my files. I keep my kits in 12x12 hanging files in a filer in my Arts & Craps Room. I only do this with SC Kits for some reason. Everything else I buy gets sorted by color in the same drawer. All of my embellishments get sorted by color too. The new stuff stays in a special basket at my desk though. I want to keep that stuff close by. Whenever it's time to purge (often) I just go through and move the "keepers" into the color bins, and the items I don't plan on using go into my donate/sell/blog candy bin.  It's getting pretty full too, so it might be time for something to share soon... :-) If any of you have pictures of your organization I would love to see pictures of it. Maybe even post them here on my blog to share too. I'll take some pictures of my room this weekend for you all.

This weekend I'll also be posting up all the cards that readers have scraplifted too. It's a monthly occurrence, so don't worry if you're not ready this month. I'll do this the first weekend of every month. If you've scraplifted one of my cards just send me a link asap, because I'll be sharing them right here with everyone! You may even get some BLOG CANDY! :-) Yummmmmy!

Anyway, on to the card...

Sorry, the picture isn't too great. I normally take my pictures upstairs by the big window next to my computer desk, but this one was taken downstairs at the back of the house on a bed in Ethan's room. The sun sets back there, so it was the best I could do. I suppose I could have waited until another day, but I come and go in the dark it seems being in the military and all. It would have been next weekend by the time I was actually home to photograph in some decent light.

Hey Card

Here's a little lovely for you to maybe brighten up the day...