From Me to You

Have you ever placed an order not really knowing what to expect, but when the package is delivered and you delve into it you think "Dang! I ordered this? I kinda like it." Well, that is exactly what happened when my Close to My Heart order came and inside was the September Promotion to celebrate National Stamping Month... "From Me to You".
There are a few things I LOVE about this promotion package. There are times when I get into a rut and make the same style of cards over and over again (see my post of Life's a Jungle). With this promotion it included ALL the supplies needed (stamp set, card base, pre-measured and cut cardstock, ribbon, brads, pop dots, envelopes, sandpaper, sample ink pads, and a lovely recipe book)to make 16 original cards (2 of each of the 8 designs) . Within the recipe book are tips on how to do specific techniques used on the cards, such as sanding, second generation stamping, and paper curling, just to name a few. So, what I decided to do was to take a peak and make a few of the cards and leave the rest for my mother to try when she visits in November. The following are the three cards I made.
This first one was fun because I really liked the random stamping (although I really do not know how random it all is) of the sunflower and the hollyhock cardstock. The three flowers toward the top look like little button attached to the ribbon. During the entire process I never really had to think and create, just read and do what the recipe book told me to do. Perfect for a Sunday morning when thinking is the last thing on my mind.

From Me to You

This second card was simple, but I am not sure about the curved title at the bottom. It almost looks like I didn't use enough adhesive. I like the paper piercing technique in the middle of the little flowers on the sunflower cardstock. I am also a BIG fan of pop dots, which were used on the big flower.

From Me to You

This final card is probably my favorite of the three. I love the way the brads and ribbon add just a little something that takes the card from being boring and simple to whimsical and fun. The most difficult part of this card was cutting out the flower, but even that wasn't so bad.

Praxis...

Four weeks ago I took the Praxis exam for the school guidance counseling masters program. It is a national exam...I refer to it as my national board exam. After 4 long weeks of waiting for the results, they arrived yesterday. I will admit that I was hesitant to open the letter because I was not confident at all that I passed (neither were the other girls in my program who also took the test with me). I passed. I was so excited that I started to cry. A huge feeling of relief swept over me and the pressure of the Praxis is a thing of the past...thank goodness. To celebrate Jay took me to dinner at a local nice restaurant, Houstons, tonight. Sorry that I am using my blog for tooting my own horn, but damn I am proud of myself.

Life's a Jungle

I love this stamp set, Life's a Jungle, from Close To My Heart. It was the July 2007 Stamp of the Month. I was so eager to use this set that I raced to make the cards and they came out very simple and basic and need a little something. This would be a great starting block for someone to let their imagination run.

The 3 inch Paper Shapers scalloped circle punch was a new purchase from a LSS. I hole punched the little dots from each scallop with my 1/8 inch hole punch. The ribbons were from Michael's and the brown card stock was embossed with my Swiss Dots embossing folder from Cuttlebug. The sentiment inside says "No Lion, You're The Best!" I love the innocent look on the lions face. Don't think this is the last time you will see a post using this stamp set.

Life's a Jungle

Like I mentioned above, these cards are very, very simple. They lack something, but they will do in a pinch. I like this little guy. In my scraps of paper I found an 8x8 piece of this green graphic paper. The alligator came from the Life's a Jungle stamp set from Close To My Heart. I used pop dots to get a little 3-D effect.

Halloween IV

This might be my favorite card (or at least a close second with the martini one). I saw a card similar to this in a card magazine (I believe it was Card Trends 2007 or 2006) and decided to do my take on it. The "Happy Haunting" stamp is from another Stampin' Up set, but the hat and shoes are from the beloved dollar bin at Michael's. The ribbon is also from Michael's. I colored the band on the hat and her socks with colored pencils, but the buckles on her shoes were done in orange stickles.

Halloween III

I absolutely love anything I can put googly eyes on and this stamp set from Stampin' Up is no exception. I kept this card very simple and just added some color to the "characters" along with their googly eyes. Oh, I also used pop dots to lift the objects off the page to give it a little 3-D effect.

Halloween II

Halloween is my least favorite holiday, but for some odd reason it is the holiday I have the most stamps for. The haunted house stamp is from Stampin' Up (2000), but I am not sure of the name of the set. The haunted house sign on the bottom left is from the dollar bin at Micheal's as is the yellowish glitter ribbon. To add just a touch of color I used stickles for the pumpkins and also for the ghosts, but you cannot quite tell in the picture. I thought the gold star paper background added to the night theme.

Halloween Cards

Well, here they are...a few of my Halloween cards I have been working on. I bought this first stamp of the martini glass in the dollar bin at Michael's for a New Year's card, but I saw an idea of this in a craft magazine and decided it was perfect for my girlfriends on Halloween. To add a little sparkle I used orange stickels around the edge of the glass to symbolize sugar. The embossing on the card is courtesy of my Cuttlebug (divine swirls) and the ribbon is another dollar special from Michael's. The "eat, drink, and be Scary!" stamp is from Impress Rubber Stamp.

Introduction

Hello everyone. Welcome to my blog. I hope you enjoy reading my thoughts and browsing my ideas.

I welcome you to use my artwork for inspiration or to help get your creative juices flowing, but please do not COPY or use MY artwork for publication, contest submissions or for selling purposes. Thank you.

Let me tell you a little about myself. My name is Janene and I live in Los Angeles, CA with my wonderful husband and our baby...of the four legged kind. I have many hobbies such a scrapbooking, card making, reading, traveling, cooking, and working out. I have also been a teacher for 14 years and am currently working on completing my masters degree to be a high school counselor. I am in the final stretch of my coursework and am scheduled to graduate in December and have everything finished by February.

My goal is to post thoughts and/or artwork once or twice a week. Please be patient with me as I am learning how to be a blogger.