Fabby!

Do you know anyone who has just accomplished a personal goal...well I do and I'm so excited for her!



To commemorate the occassion I decided that Christy Croll's Fabby was the perfect image! And I just realized I was so quick to take a pic of her I forgot to add glitter! I will definitely be adding some! As always, she was stamped on Bella's bestest paper and coloured with copics. The flower embillishment is Maya Road...I have a good stash of them from a prior Pickle sale...I LOVE them. The blue shading was started with copic color BG0000 with the outer edge softened with a colorless blender. After it was good and dry I added some Caribbean Sea prismacolor pencil just close to the image and blended with a stump and gamsol. It is an easy way to add a bit of depth if you are timid about blending those copics.

Not much exciting went on here this weekend....except that we did book our Dave Matthews concerts for this summer....(thanks Heather, but as fan club members we get the scoop when it is announced! LOL!) And we did go to Windsor yesterday to hit Costco and go out for dinner with my folks. We took along little poochie with us for the ride and she is always SOOOOOO excited when she gets to come along. She loves my mom! It was so cute, when we got there, after she ran around and barked to announce her arrival, she jumped up on the sofa next to my mom, snuggled up and put her head on my mom's knee! SOOOOOO cute!

Today I finished up my images for my class at Stamping Bella. I should get those to her tonight or tomorrow so if you are registered in the class, give the store a call later tomorrow for the required colors. For those who have taken my prior classes I tried to reuse a lot of colors you already have so you shouldn't have to break the bank. And we will also be adding a bit of pencils to our images!

AND finally...I have a super exciting post for you tomorrow so be sure to stop by and check it out! I'm so thrilled!!!!!!!!!!!!

Addy's Birthday Sparkle

It's Bellarific Friday folks and our theme for today was Birthday. How easy peasy was that! I hope lots of you had time to play.


For this birthday card I chose ADDY 'tude loves to Sparkle. See that Swarovski crystal on her finger? Well, one of the girls I work with loves LARGE chunky outrageous jewellery so for Christmas her hubby bought her a gargantuous Swarovski crystal ring! This card will be safely tucked away in my stash until her birthday rolls around in June.

I even got somewhat creative and finished the inside of the card! One thing you may not know is that I NEVER finish the inside of the card until I absolutely have to. It's kinda like I love to sew, but hate to hem! LOL!

As always she was coloured up with copic markers and shading done with prismacolor pencils and gamsol. I wanted to use the sentiment that comes with ADDY on the front of the card but had to cut it up to make it fit....it's a Paula thing!

I'd best be off here and get ready for work but before I go I want to give you a heads up on next weeks challenge. It's a sketch! Do I hear a big YAY from all you sketch lovers out there? Here it is so get that rubber inked, pencils sharpened, markers juiced up and get busy!

Pretty in Pink

Since our Bellarific Friday theme this week is Birthday I decided to extend that to a week long event! Heck, we all need a healthy stash of birthday cards, don't we?


This is Curly Surpriseabella and I paired her up with some American Crafts paper that I picked up on my Paula visit. I think the colors scream 'bella'. As always I used my copics to color her and surprise, there is NO glitter on here! I just couldn't figure out where to put it. But I did use my .005 pen to draw the stripes on the pink gift box just to add a bit more interest, then added some clear glaze pen to the green stripes. The flower is Maya Road and the large brad is from my stash and I have no idea where it came from but my guess would be Making Memories.

Well, not much else exciting going on around here. I'm glad you all liked my bathroom. Let me tell you, it was a LONG time coming and LONG overdue but so worth the wait. Once I get my act in gear I'll show you the before and after pics of taking out the wall between the living and dining room. Another messy but worthwhile endeavour that just makes me smile every time I walk through there.

Fur Babies!

If you have one, you know I'm talking about those four-legged friends of ours that work their way into our lives and make you wonder how you EVER lived without them! When I was a kid I wanted a dog more than ANYTHING....one with long hair down to the ground that I could fuss up and brush and groom and cuddle. I did end up getting a dog, but not until I was in my 40's, and although Bessie IS cute as a button (see my sidebar!), she is a bit of a tom boy and would rather kill vermin or roll in a dead bird than let me make her all pretty!


This is Muffy Ketto and she is the vision of what I would have had as a pet if my parents would have allowed it. I coloured her up yesterday when I was visiting Paula and I think some of her uber colouring vibes wore off on me because I was very happy how she turned out...although the picture looks a much cooler grey than the real life version which is more of a warm french grey. Lots and LOTS of fine feathered strokes were used here to create what I hoped would look like silky hair. Shading with prismacolor pencils and gamsol and a bit of glitter and stitching finished her up. I also used my new Martha punch that I picked up on my travels on the way to Paula's.

It is always so much fun at Paula's house. It is cosy and quaint, VERY comfortable, and I feel right at home there. AND it seems she always has some sort of little gift for me when I go! Not only is she talented, she is over the top generous! It is not unusual for me to visit and have some sort of little gift waiting for me. Hmmmm.....isn't it the guest who is supposed to bring the hostess a gift?....I'd better work on that!

Here is a little pic of what I came home with yesterday....that beautiful oh-so-zen-like tea light holder on the shelf....could you faint!!!!!!!!!!! I think I might need to pour me a glass of merlot, put on some Dave, light those candles and just soak in my tub!

And since I never did show you pics of the bathroom reno....here are a few more...a full shot of the vanity...hmmm, note to self....slide the scale out from under the vanity and put it in full view where I will use it!

The tub....I really should take a pic from the other end because it is the more impressive side with a built in wall shelf equipped with a iHome to dock my phone when I am taking a shower.

and finally, this uber cool piece of wall art that I bought at Crate and Barrel when Mark and I were over at Somerset fooling ourselves that we were there to do some xmas shopping!

That's it for today. A silky haired dog, a zen tea light holder and some bathroom pics. And, if you are at all interested...I'm about to throw on the start of Dexter Season 3 while I start prepping Beef Bourguignon for dinner tonight.

It's finally here!

Bellarific Friday is here and I FINALLY get to show you the card that I have been gazing at ALLLL WEEK!


This is Bessie Lulu and she got twinched! Why do I luv her so much? I dunno...I just do. I love the simplicity of the card. I love the way she is so perfectly offset on the twinchie, I love the soft grey mauve color of her dress, and I love the way the flourishes of the Memory Box paper look like they are radiating out from behind her. What else can I say, I just luv her!

I stamped her with Brilliance ink directly onto a twinchie and coloured her with my copic markers. If you have never tried copics on a twinchie, you should because they take the ink beautifully and blending is a breeze! I absolutely LOVE the way she turned out...oh ya, I think I said that already...LOL!

At the risk of repeating myself, but because I loved her so much, I even jotted down the copic colors...just because I wanted to share the luv!

E0000, 000, 00, 11, Y11, YR31
W00, 0, 1, 2
E30, 31, 33, 42, 49
RV0000, 000, 91, 93, 95, 99

Don't forget to see what the other babes have come up with, and be sure to check out Emily's blog to see what all the sistah's have been up to!

Next weeks challenge is something we all NEED to have on hand so there is NO EXCUSE not to play....the challenge is Birthdays! And if you play along, you will not only have a birthday card in your stash to have ready when you need it, but you will also have a chance at some of those Bella Bucks!

Lovey da Izzies!

Have you seen the new Izzies designed by Christy Croll for Stamping Bella! I'm totally uncontrollably smitten with them. I have always been drawn to Christy's images because they are really fun to color, but these knocked me flat! They have adorable kinky curly hair (which I wish I had)...wear cutie little shoes with ankle sox and are dressed in what I might consider a somewhat vintage looking outfit! All things that make this babe HAPPY! Emily released two of them this week and I'm sooooo hoping we will have more soon. Maybe I can get on my knees and beg next time I am up in Toronto! What do ya think? Do you luv them too?



This is Izzy has balloons and CHECK OUT THAT HAT! I LOVE IT! It is not my usual color scheme...I'm really not a purple lover...but I really wanted to use the new Basic Grey Sugar Rush paper. She is also a hybrid color-job...that is I stamped her on Bella's bestest paper with Brilliance ink and started colouring her with copics with a BIT of copic shading, then added some deeper shading with my prisma pencils and gamsol. Even with throwing pencils in the mix I still used a 'generous' amount of copics in this image, but adding pencils is a way to add some depth to your colouring without investing in the deeper shades of copic markers which you may not often use. So if you are just starting to build that copic collection....start with the palest colors and continue to love those pencils.

Another short post today...I still have paper to finish cutting for tomorrow's Pickle class and I'm not done yet plus I must be suffering from the February blues in January because I've been so tired these last couple weeks all I seem to wanna do in the evening is sleep! Is spring here yet?

I'll see you all on Friday for that twinchie challenge! It totally amazed me how a twinchie can transform an image and I'm so excited to see what everyone comes up with!

Where does the weekend go!

Man, when you work all week those weekends just do NOT last long enough. One of the boys came home this weekend to go to the Detroit Auto Show with dad, so of course I had to do some cooking, and I've been busy planning for upcoming classes in Chatham and Toronto. By the time I got this card put together last night it was late and I was tired so i decided to wait until today. And guess what!...I'm still tired! But not too tired to drop in and say hi and show you this cutie Green Bean Baby by the name of Chloe!

She was stamped on Bella's bestest paper with Brilliance ink, coloured up with a mix of copics and prisma color pencils and paired with some Pink Paislee paper that I recently picked up. This was NOT the piece that I had envisioned using, but a girl can change her mind, can't she!

Well, sorry for the short post today, but I got a kitchen that need some cleaning so I'd better get to it! Don't forget, this week's challenge is twinchies! Use a twinchie, or any 2x2" square on your card. I have the most AMAZING creation that I can barely wait to show you. I'll just say that is my most fav card that I have made in a LONG time!

Thanks for dropping by...Linda

Lovey Dovey Friday!

It is here folks! Another Bellarific Friday and a Lovey Dovey themed release from Stamping Bella!

This little sneak peek I have for you today is one of my beloved Green Bean Baby images named Olivia and she is part of the release line up that Emily has planned for today! AND...shocking I know....but I made an attempt at colouring her hair something other than deep auburn! After that somewhat snide remark from my better half about colouring all my images with the same color hair, I felt it was time to branch out and try a blonde! It is not a 'yellow' blonde, but more of a golden blonde....resembling the custom mix that my hairdresser painstakingly prepares for me every 5 weeks! LOL!!!! I'm not too sure what colors I used, but I do know for sure Y26, 28, E33, 35 and likely E30 were in the mix! If you wanted more of a yellow blonde you could start with Y000 or Y0000 as a base. I really should make a little recipe card just like my hairdresser does! But, truth be told I'm a bit of a free spirit when it comes to colouring, I use a kajillion colours and rarely use the same combination twice.

Now, if you are in need MORE inspiration, I strongly advise you to check out the rest of the Belllarific Babes blogs to see what they have been up to because I KNOW there are more sneak peeks in store for ya! AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, watch Emily's blog throughout the day cause we all know that is where she introduces the new stamps!

After you have been shopping and are waiting for the new rubber to arrive, why don't you play along in next week's challenge and get Twinched...that's right, it's a Twinchie theme! Use a twinchie, or any 2" square on your card and show Emily some love by emailing your creation to her by Thursday Jan 21st.

Until next time....Linda!

I love Quickutz dies!

I recently picked up this 4x4 Quickutz die and as soon as I set eyes on it I had this vision in my head to pair it up with Stamping Bella's Maisy Ketto. I even knew that I wanted it to be pink, yellow and orange. I also knew I had to get on it quickly before I forgot about it, that happens to me more often that I care to think about.

But this time I brought the die to work to show my friend-pod mate Kathy and even sketched out the idea that was in my head. I think that kept the idea from getting away from me and I should do that more often! It is not exactly the same as my sketch because the scale of the flowers was a bit too large, but it is the same general idea. I think I may put my bind-it-all to some good use and make myself a little idea book. That way, when I buy something with an idea in mind on how to use it I can jot down the product with my idea in my little book and look thru that for inspiration when I'm in a lull! OMG!!!!!!!!!! I wanna make one NOW!



Whew...I'll get on with the card now that I have that creative burst of energy out of me...(good thing I have it jotted down in my blog here before I forget about it...LOL!!). As I always do...I stamped Maisy on Bella Bestest paper and coloured her with copics, shaded with pencil and sponged with chalk ink. Her wings are glittered and making memories crystals are added to her crown. I also knew I wanted buttons on the flowers but genious struck again when I realized that stamping one of Maisy's flowers would fit perfectly in the center to surround the button!

In the end, I could not have been happier with how it turned out!

Finally....don't forget....our Friday theme this week is Lovey Dovey and there is a reason for that...YUPPERS...it's gonna be a Valentine Release day over at Stamping Bella!!!!! How's that to give you a reason to make a Lovey Dovey card!...we all lovey a new release don't we! There MAY even be some sneak peeks involved so be sure to check out all the Babe blogs on Friday to see what we have been up to!

Party Animal

Alright, he's more of a party bug, but I don't like bugs...so humor me and let's just go with animal okay. This little huggybug is Miles the dragonfly and he is looking so cool and aviator-like in those goggles! I love that aviator look...you know....Robert Redford, Out of Africa...if you've been with me, you know I've talked about it before! LOVE that movie!!!! And you know what is REALLY COOL.....click on the link and you'll see this card...my card...next to Miles! It always makes me smile and giggle to see my cards 'up in lights' so to speak!

I coloured him up in copics on Bella's Bestest paper in nice soft colors to match the Cosmo Cricket paper. This is one of my absolute FAV papers....you know...that aviator theme again! And you just know....I added a big thick glaze of glossy accents on those goggles so they would pop right out! I shaded with prismacolor pencils and gamsol and added a bit of detail and glitter to give that illusion of fluttering around with those biplanes. I thought that was pretty darn clever, however I WAS skyping with Paula when I was colouring it, so I may have gotten some good vibes from her! And what do ya think of those Miss Mint Scraplines tickets! Aren't they cute!!!!! I LOVE THEM!

Now for some exciting business!...The date has been set!

I'll be holding two classes again at Stamping Bella Saturday February 27th so if you are interested please contact the store and reserve your spot...I only show up...I don't take reservations...LOL! After a hiatus over the holidays I'm looking forward to seeing some familiar faces and hopefully some new ones!

Later....Linda!

Back to School!

That is our Bellarific Friday theme this week and are you doing the back to school happy dance, cause I am! LOL! So is Mark! hehehehe!


I chose Stamping Bella's Spencer the Bookworm for my card and paired him up with Cosmo Cricket's boyfriend paper. Those little atoms and molecules, pencils and computer paper made this a perfect back to school card to give Derek. After giving Alex the Batman, I couldn't let Derek go back empty handed without something special from Mom. If I lived closer to Paula I would have scooted over there to have her write his second semester course names on the books! I wasn't about to try it for fear of messing it up.

As usual, he was stamped on bella's bestest paper and coloured up with copic markers with shading done in prisma pencils and gamsol. Don't forget to head on over to Emily's blog later today to check out what the sisters have been up to. And leave Emily some love...she thinks she is losing her muse!

'till next time...Linda

Denby Inspired

I love Denby dishes, I have them, but totally regret not buying the mix and match nice bright colors. In my heart that is what I really wanted but my little conservative voice said..."NO, you might hate them in a few years!"...why did I listen.

Needless to say, when I saw Stamping Bella's CUPPA TEA image I knew it had to be nice rich funky colors and when I stumbled upon this scrap of Basic Grey Indian Summer paper it was just the inspiration I needed. In keeping with my resolution to use more sketch challenges I also worked this one into Mojo Monday challenge 120. It came together quite easily! The tea cups were coloured with copic markers and the ground shading was done with prismacolor pencils and gamsol. Keeping the nestie in place, I also sponged the edges with Versamagic Bisque pigment ink.

Now for some Bella business:

Did you know our Bellarific Fridays are back? The challenge this week is Back to School so be sure to get your entry in to Emily by Thursday at 5pm to see your card up in lights on her blog and be entered into a chance at winning some bella bucks.

And finally, did you know there is a new Babe on the block! Jodi Collins! She won the Bella Birthday Challenge to be a guest babe for January, but Emily couldn't let her go! Once you see her cards, you'll quickly know why! Be sure to go show her some love!

That's it for today! Thanks for stopping by.

Jake

Good Morning on this VERY LAST DAY OF MY VACATION! {sulk} Back to reality tomorrow, the boys are heading back to school today and I'll be sending them off with a full belly. My tree has not come down yet because I thought I'd wait until they leave. Then at least when I clean up the family room, it will STAY clean.

On to another topic...do you have a New Years resolution? Oh...I have the obvious ones, eat healthier, exercise, get to work on time! LOL!....but I also have decided to work more challenges into my life...NO NO NO...not the dreaded kind of challenges...FUN ones! I am sketch challenged! I love to color, but hate trying to come up with some unique fantastic layout that will blow your mind. So why bother I say! There are sooooo many sketch challenges out there so this year I think I'm gonna use them. AND....I just popped onto Paula's blog and SHE ALSO USED A SKETCH CHALLENGE! Honest...WE DID NOT PLAN THIS!!!!! It must be that sistahly bond between us that makes us think alike! LOL!



For my first challenge play along this year I chose The Sk8tr Boy and Happy Birthday from the Stamping Bella Tiddly Inks collection. I knew I wanted to use the boyfriend paper and when I saw sketch challenge SASSC46 from Our Creative Corner I knew it was a match meant to be. The card will be stashed away until Mark's nephew Jake has his birthday this summer so I used one of my quickutz tabs and my snap alphabet to add his name to the card...kids always like that!!! He was stamped on Bella's bestest paper, coloured with copic markers and grounding and shading was done with prismacolor pencils and gamsol. I also left the nestie in place and sponged some thatched straw ink on the edges.

That's it for today...off to start a nice big lunch for the boys before they leave! Bistro Steak from Cuisine at Home magazine. I most definitely see a nap coming on this afternoon!

Happy 2010 Everyone!

WOW! Hard to believe another year has past...25 years ago today I was making my trip from Windsor to Chatham to start my first day of a real job! I'm still here and tomorrow will be my 25th anniversary of working at Union Gas. So many things have changed in that time and I'm probably the last of a dying generation who will work 25 years at the same company. I've also been in the same house for 20 years...clearly I'm a girl who doesn't need a lot of change in her life to make her happy! A new stamp, maybe a new pair of shoes and the occassional piece of jewellery is all I really need!

The last week of 2009 I was busy making cards for my mom to send to family and friends birthdays and anniversaries. I have some new ones that are coloured but not mounted and I have these that have been in my stash for a while. I figure it is time to part with them. I think all but one was done pre blogging days but they may have been posted in my SCS gallery.





Lastly, I just HAVE to show you a pic of my little girl all dressed up her sweater ready to go for a walk with her daddy! Isn't she just the cutest little devil ever!

That's it folks! Thanks for stopping by all the time and saying Hi, it makes me happy and keeps me inspired!