KWernerDesignBlog: December 2008

Good morning! I don't have a Color Inspiration Challenge for you guys quite yet (hopefully tonight after I get home from work), but I do have all of my Q&A videos. Enjoy!

If you watch all four in one sitting, bless you. They're long. Just a warning. :)

And there were a lot of questions about my craft space. I'm planning to make a separate video for that, so I didn't address that question in the videos.

Also, because they are long, I'm embedding the normal quality here. For the HD versions, click the links below each video.

PART ONE (Inspiration / Design / Technique):

(Watch in HD)

Questions answered in Part 1:
- What colors of ink/paper do you always keep on hand? Can you have too many?
- How do you translate colors in a photograph into Stampin' Up! colors? (i.e. Color Inspiration Challenges)
- Do you have any tips for working with 4 or more colors?
- What about the inside of cards? What do you do there?
- Do you create something each day? Do you ever let days go by without creating something?
- Do you create cards in bulk?
- Do you keep pre-made cards on hand?
- How do you store finished cards?
- When inspiration/motivation is gone, how do you get it back?
- What inspires you?
- Do you leave ribbon exposed on the inside of cards?
- When cutting out letters, how do you cut out the inside spaces? (i.e. A's, P's, and O's)
- How do you get a clean stamped image from stamps with large, flat areas?
- Would you ever consider making a font of your handwriting?
- Will taking a calligraphy class help with my handwriting?
- What is your favorite type of card to make?
- How do you find the time to do what you love?

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PART TWO (Products / Recommendations):

(Watch in HD)

Questions answered in Part 2:
- How thick is the vellum you use for circle cards?
- What are you opinions on the Making Memories Slice cutting machine?
- Which die-cutting machine would you suggest?
- What can I do in addition to scoring to prevent cracking card stock?
- What is the difference between acid & lignin free card stocks and those that are not?
- Do you have any tips for using photopolymer ("acrylic") background stamps?
- Tell me about photopolymer ("acrylic") stamps and ink. Is chalk ink best?
- Is it okay to use waterproof ink on photopolymer ("acrylic") stamps?
- Which stamp would you never part with?
- What are three tools that you always grab?
- Can you use regular white ink on acetate cards?
- What stamp cleaner should I buy?
- Is there a trick to using a Coluzzle craft knife?
- How often do you replace your Coluzzle mat?
- How noisy is the Stampin' Up! heat tool?
- Do you have a ribbon type preference? (i.e. satin, grosgrain, sheer, etc)
- What crafting product do you go through the most?
- How long does your embossing powder last?
- Which do you prefer: embossing or regular stamp pads?
- How should wood-mounted stamps be stored?
- Are there different types of watercolor paper?
- What scissors do you recommend?
- Do you have a favorite pen to use?
- What was your first stamp? Do you still have it?

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PART THREE (Video / Photos / Digital Scrap / Blogging):

(Watch in HD)

Questions answered in Part 3:
- Did you sell your old camera? (Canon Digital Rebel XT)
- How can I get colors to show correctly in photos?
- How can I improve the quality of photos of my cards and pages? Do you use Photoshop?
- What equipment do you use for making videos?
- What's your film set-up?
- Why did the format of your videos change?
- What was the song in your holiday ornaments video (before the music was replaced)?
- Where can I find royalty-free music?
- What comes first-- the card or the video?
- Do you plan to ever sell cards online?
- Do you have any advice for those interested in digital scrapbooking?
- What software do you use for digital scrapbooking?
- Do you receive free product from companies?
- What is your monthly craft budget?
- There's a lot of cute craft stuff out there. Do you think we're wasting money buying it?
- Are people paid to be on design teams? Can you make an income?
- What do you love most about blogging?

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PART FOUR (Makeup / Television / Miscellaneous):

(Watch in HD)

Questions answered in Part 4:
- What is it like working for Stampin' Up!? Do you do crafty stuff all day?
- How many dinner rolls does your sister's recipe make?
- How often do you paint your fingernails?
- What foundation do you use?
- What is your favorite lipstick color?
- What is your favorite character on The Office and why?
- What is your favorite episode of The Office?
- Is your house messy, or organized?

Good morning! I hope you all have rested up a bit after Christmas and are ready to head into New Year's. I, for one, could do with a bit more chocolate. ;)

How did I spend my weekend... Well, we had some major snow hit us. I spent most of Friday outside shoveling snow (even while it was still coming down in a blizzard!). I took it pretty easy though, and did it in small increments so I wouldn't hurt my back. So far so good! Back seems to be okay. :)

I didn't feel like going out and driving in all the snow so I gave myself a LOT of time in front of the computer (yes, I'm a nerd) so that I could learn Final Cut Studio 2. I've finally made the leap from iMovie to Final Cut, but there's a HUGE learning curve. Believe me, it's not for pansies. This software can kick some major tail.

Anyway, after exporting and uploading this week's MACM video to YouTube about a million times, I finally got it to work in HD with synced audio. Hallelujah! Let us all rejoice!

I also figured out how to embed HD video here at the blog. What does that mean? That means that all of you with fast internet connections no longer have to click over to YouTube to see high quality and HD versions (at least from now on you won't). For those who prefer the normal quality, I'll give you a link to head on over to YouTube to watch it there.

(If you're wondering how to embed HD video, go here. Just be aware that your video has to be available in HD over at YouTube for this hack to work).

Let's see, what else happened? On a whim, I applied for the YouTube Partner Program again and... I was accepted! Yeah! This is a direct result of my awesome YT subscribers and blog readers who watch my videos every week. You guys are awesome and I'm so thrilled to be given the opportunity to be a YT Partner.

One of the benefits of being a YT Partner is that I don't have a time limit on my videos now (the cut off used to be 10:59). This is particularly great because I've been editing the Questions and Answers videos--all FOUR of them! Holy crap! You guys had a lot of questions. Nearly all four videos are over 10 minutes long... um... I guess I talk too much. :)

So, anyway, here's this week's Make a Card Monday video. Sorry for jabbering on and on this morning... Now we'll get to why you're actually here. :)

The buttons I use in the video can be found here: Making Memories Rouge Paperie Blossom & Button Box. The flower I used on a Finally Friday card a couple weeks ago is from the same Making Memories box, but I don't think I showed the container in the video.

Seriously, there are a TON of buttons and flowers in these little plastic containers. I didn't realize how many there would be and when I ordered them from TwoPeas, I ordered two other colors as well... Uh, yeah. I have buttons and flowers coming out of my ears! There are so many!

So, here's the video. And if you prefer to watch it in normal quality, it's available over at YouTube.

Thanks again, everyone!

Supplies - Rouge Paperie Blossom & Button Box (Making Memories); Real Red marker, Kraft card stock, and corner rounder punch (Stampin' Up!).

Good morning, everyone! I hope your Christmas was wonderful! I spent the day at my Dad's house and just spent time with family. It was fun! :)

Anyway, this week's Finally Friday came about because I really wanted to use this American Crafts Teen paper, but hadn't quite figured out how to use it. My friend Allison LOVES bright colors and animal print (which this collection has), so I wanted to make something for her.

I eventually landed on homemade notebooks. Easy to make and everyone needs a little spot to write things down, right? So enjoy the video, and I'll catch up with you guys later. As usual, the video is available in HD over at YouTube. However, YT is still doing the strange video-speed-up-audio-out-of-sync thing, so my voiceover will be out of place. But it's still worth it to watch in HD for the quality of picture. :)

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Remember these little guys from... oh, a million years ago (it seems)?

They humored their Aunt Kristina this afternoon and let me take pictures. Such cute little guys. Doesn't seem like it was nearly four years ago when the photo above was taken. :)

Hope your holiday is merry and bright!

Hi everyone!

Wow, was it just me or were there a lot of really great submissions for the last challenge? Whoa. I had a hard time picking just ten! :)

Before I get to the top ten, I wanted to let you know that I'll be skipping this week's Color Inspiration Challenge because of all the holiday fun and craziness this week. We'll resume next Tuesday with CI #36. With that taken care of...

TOP TEN

Good morning, everyone!

First of all, thank you to everyone who has purchased this month's Virtual Card Club. It's been so fun to see what you've all done with it--even after posting it just over 36 hours ago! If you've created something using the card print-out in this month's VCC, send them along to me. I'd love to see them!

Anyway, this week's Make a Card Monday is all about finishing up those last minute gifts, and this takeout box it perfect for it. I found this pattern over at Kim's website and she was kind enough to allow me to adapt her pattern for my digital cutter, the Quickutz Silhouette.

So, here are the files I mention in the video for you to download:

Illustrator EPS file (for those cutting to the Silhouette using a Mac and Adobe Illustrator)
JPG image (for those on PCs who are cutting to the Silhouette or other digital cutters that allow jpeg images. For the instructions for the Silhouette, click here.)
PDF template (for those who want to just cut the box out. Also, this is the file that shows the scoring lines).

If you have any questions about the box, or from the video, please leave a comment. Thanks, and have a wonderful day!

As usual, an HD version of this video is available over at YouTube. But like last week's Finally Friday video, the audio if out of sync... not sure why. Hmm... must do with how I encode it. I'll try to figure out why and hopefully it will be fixed by next week. :)

Supplies - Oh Joy patterned paper (Cosmo Cricket); Old Olive wide grosgrain ribbon and Kraft card stock (Stampin' Up!); chipboard stickers (Basic Grey).

Hi everyone! It's time again for another Virtual Card Club and this time we're focusing on Valentine's Day cards. Yes, Valentine's Day--can you believe it?! It's not quite Christmas, but I'm planning ahead. :)

The PDF is only $5 and is 7 pages long. Included in the PDF are instructions for three cards and large photos of the finished cards. Also, I wanted the cards to say specific things, so I created the text and included it on printable pages at the end of the PDF. That means you can print them out and then use whatever supplies you have on hand to finish the cards! :)

Here's a little photo so you know what I'm talking about (this is before I decorated the cards)...

I've also created them in both letter size (8-1/2" x 11") and A4 for all of you overseas that use a different size paper. Please make sure you click on the correct size when you buy the PDF.

I hope you all enjoy it! Please click on the Buy Now button below and it will take you to PayPal. NOTE: You will need Adobe Reader to view the file. Download it for free here.

And thank you all so much for support. Ya'll are the best! :)

8-1/2 x 11 - Those of you in the US will want this one

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A4 SIZE - Those in Australia, UK, Europe, just about everywhere else will want this one. :)

NOTE: The first 4 pages of instructions are still letter size. But the last three of the printable cards are A4 formatted.

Happy Friday! It's less than one week until Christmas--can you believe it?!

I thought I'd squeak out one more holiday card before Christmas, and I hope you enjoy it. I'm in love with these flowers from Making Memories, so I just had to get one on this week's card. See the full list of supplies over at the page in the Designer Garden. :)

Anyhow, you can catch the video over at YouTube in HD (click on watch in HD below the video). NOTE: YouTube had some issues encoding the HD version and the audio is out of sync (it sped up the video slightly). But you really can see things more clearly, so it's worth it.

Man, I have a lot of catching up to do!

As I mentioned in my Color Inspiration Challenge post this week, I've been feeling a bit under the weather, but with some extra sleep, I think I'm shaking whatever it was off. Of course, here I am staying up late to post this, but... whatever. ;)

Anyway, Monday was the 15th so that means there was a new Garden up at TwoPeas. The seasonal theme for this month was Christmas and this is the 8x8 digital page I created for it. More Christmas photos. Love! :)

Click here to see the page over at TwoPeas with all the supplies used.

I've recently sort of switched to all digital scrapbooking. Strange for me because I was so against it even just 6 months ago. I think all I needed to see was some really cool examples of digital scrapbooking. Speaking of, I absolutely love this month's Guest Garden Girl elizzylee. She has a very calm style that I really respond to. Great use of negative space. Ahhh....

:)

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In other random things I've forgotten to share, here are some calendars that my awesome roommate Jen made. She made them a while ago, but I'm a bum and forgot to show you all their awesome-ness. :)

Yes, I share a craft room/office with her. And yes, it is amazing. :)

I know that a bunch of you were wondering if I was going to post calendars like I did last year, but I've just been too busy. But Jen made these last year for our co-workers and worked them up again for 2009, so I figured I'd point ya'll in the direction of her blog. Perfect idea for last minute gifts since you can print them out at home.

EDITED TO ADD: Just noticed that she'll be posting blank ones (great for customizing with stamping or whatnot) tomorrow, so watch for those! :)

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And yet another truly random thing... I'm currently obsessed with my new digital cutter, the Quickutz Silhouette. Oh. My. Word. I love this little thing.

The Merry Christmas block in the photo above was one of the first things I created in Illustrator and had it cut. (Their software doesn't work on Macs, but there's a plug-in to use with Adobe Illustrator--my favorite program ever so it was right up my alley.) Sweet, huh?! I was so excited!

Will this replace my Making Memories Slice? Probably. It just cuts so much better. Gets sharper corners and it's just overall amazing. I just might sell my Slice sometime soon. I'll let ya'll know if I do. It's still a good little cutter, but I just love being able to create things in Illustrator and cut it out on my Silhouette.

For those with Macs, and who also have Silhouettes, here's a little video I made showing how to merge letters and send it to the Silhouette. I was chatting with the TwoPeas Garden Girls and some of them were wondering how I made the Merry Christmas block. So here ya go...

Hi all! It's late here and I'm working on Friday's video, so I thought I'd wrap up last week's color challenge while I wait for the video to upload to YouTube (no, it's not live, I just upload it early). :)

There were so many great cards this week. And quite a few scrapbook pages, too. I was truly impressed. And because the colors were so soothing, it was so wonderful to go to everyone's sites and galleries and see the different interpretations. Everything from baby cards to Christmas cards to sympathy cards. There were so many!

Anyhow, here are my top ten...

TOP TEN

Hey, guys!

I'm actually writing this up a night early because I'm not feeling well and want to get to bed early and sleep in. Headache and weird feeling stomach. Hope I'm not getting the flu. :)

This week's Color Inspiration Challenge features a sweater that my co-worker Joellyn was wearing at work today. She walked past me, I said hello, and then, "WAIT! Can I take a picture of your sweater?"

LOL! Thanks, Joellyn, for letting this weirdo take a photo of your sweater. Apparently, she bought it at Anthropologie. Isn't it gorgeous!? I love those colors. I wish I had a nice pale minty color, but I suppose Baja Breeze will do. :)

Have fun! I'll catch up with you later on Tuesday to post the round-up from last week. I figured getting the challenge up was more important since I know some of you need to see the challenge early to carve out enough time to tackle it. :)

Join us: Make a card/scrapbook page/whatever in the colors above. Color Inspiration virgins, please read the Color Inspiration FAQ first.

Deadline: Thursday, December 18 at 8:00 pm MT.
You will know when the deadline has past because you will not able to submit a new link through the Mister Linky box.

Grab this week's swatch-only image.

Reader submissions for Color Inspiration #35:

1. Arielle ~ SnappyStamper
2. Meg H.
3. Donna/ ButternutsageDesigns
4. Tracey Old NZL
5. joy leith
6. Travelingmama
7. Amy, Ottawa, Canada
8. Rachel Hope
9. Leah
10. Karen Giron
11. Sarah from the UK
12. Yapha
13. Melanie Brown
14. Kira Carter
15. Molly Stadin
16. MacKenzie Bruckler
17. Sherri Barron
18. Selene
19. Heather M
20. sari hänninen
21. Yvonne
22. Clouds
23. Julie Davison
24. Karen Motz
25. Lisa Martz
26. Amy
27. Kirsty Brown
28. Jodie
29. Amy Fleming NZL
30. Margo Morgan
31. Nancy McKinney
32. Ashley C. Newell
33. Cath Thompson
34. Bellaelysium
35. Shelley G in Iowa
36. Heather Ruwe
37. Sharlene
38. Nellie M.
39. Caroline - carobdesign
40. Caroline Bisson
41. brittany
42. Karina

43. Lori
44. Michelle Habib NZL
45. CeeCee
46. Jaded
47. Judy
48. Sylvia Nelson
49. Melissa Sauls
50. Sandy
51. Kathie B
52. Robin
53. Rachael NZ
54. Evonne Y. (Australia)
55. Sandra Wetzel, Australia
56. Patrice NZ
57. Katt Adams
58. stampersuzz # 1 #2
59. Julie Cameron
60. Ashley M
61. Kris (Kween Bee Kreations)
62. Stephanie Herbert
63. Jessica Ingold
64. Jessica DiMartino
65. CriA
66. Mercy
67. Katy M.
68. Amy Gwinn
69. Brenda Weaver
70. Dori S.
71. Lisa Henke
72. Kiara Lee
73. Anthonette
74. Stef H
75. Mandy S
76. Regina Cornelius
77. Hannah-Cherie & Katelyn
78. Zeila Perez
79. Elizabeth Goliber
80. Amanda D
81. SmilynStef
82. Vera
83. Ann
84. Cindy Major

85. Ellen Woodbridge
86. Debbie Pamment
87. Kylie
88. Renée/prchvs
89. Natascha
90. Ange Kelly
91. Kathy White
92. Lisa
93. nikki schmaltz
94. Savitri
95. Becky (nawlinslady)
96. Kelly Jo
97. kim/ohradiogirl
98. Kay Kalthoff
99. Jackie
100. Christina
101. Adriana M.Q. Weingart
102. Kristen
103. Bianca from Germany
104. Karlita
105. Regan
106. Kristi P (Paper Miniskirt)
107. SuzieQTT
108. Lisa (sideoats scribbles)
109. carriegaskin@shaw.ca
110. Carrie
111. Jill D.
112. Tenia Nelson
113. Jennie Harless
114. Dawn McVey (dawnsing)
115. Carol Dunstan
116. Natasha from Australia
117. Sankari Wegman
118. Diana Ball-Seitz
119. Tara Kieninger
120. Kathy V.
121. Jean
122. Lisa Bohler
123. Kristine Macabare
124. Kari V.

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Good morning, all! Was your weekend good? Did you get some holiday shopping done? :)

I broke out the clear tags I've used a few times recently in order to finish out the pack (they come in packs of 5). I decided to create some gift tags for all the Christmas gifts I've been buying and wrapping up with the last three tags in the pack. I also thought I'd film it for this week's Make a Card Monday. They're not really cards, but I suppose they're close enough, right? :)

Anyway, I used a boat load of Papertrey Ink stuff on these tags. So cute! I really do love their stuff. And you know me--even though I work for Stampin' Up, I am an equal opportunity crafter! If it's cute, I'll use it! Who's with me?! :)

Be sure to check out the HD version over at YouTube. It really does make a HUGE difference in the quality of the video.

Supplies - Clear tags (Pageframe Designs); 2008 Holiday Tag Collection stamp set, Holiday Vintage Prints paper, Pure Poppy, Cream, and Ripe Avocado card stock, Ripe Avocado ribbons, Vintage Cream ink (Papertrey Ink); 1-3/4" circle and scallop edge punches (Stampin' Up!); Chesnut chalk ink (Colorbox).

Hi all! We drew names for Secret Santa gifts at work. I have my boss Paula (shh!!! Just kidding. She already knows I drew her name).

Anyway, Paula is the queen of craft. She can and does make everything under the sun. From knitting to sewing to scrapping to stamping--Seriously, people. She does everything. Anyway, I made this little mug for her...

It reads, "The world is my craft room. I can make anything. I'm awesome that way." LOL! I love it!

I ordered it from Zazzle.com, and it won't arrive until next week so I don't know the quality of the product yet. But I'm optimistic! I read lots of reviews online and people seem to be really pleased with Zazzle. So, here I am, waiting anxiously for the mug. :)

You can actually customize it quite a bit, too. Feel free to take a look. Maybe if you guys are interested in other crafty items, I'll whip up a few more this weekend. :)

Happy Friday!

EDIT: Zazzle has a super deal on mugs this afternoon. For a few more hours, you can get $4 off any mug! Use code 5HOURZFRIDAY at checkout.

Good morning! This week's card is super quick and easy. There's a bit of paper piecing, but other than that, it can be duplicated very quickly. :)

Anyhow, enjoy! And be sure to check out the full supplies and description. You also can watch the video in HD over at YouTube (just click on "watch in HD" below the video).

A few years ago, we started a choir at work. SU! demos who attended Convention last July saw the choir perform on stage then. Well, today was their annual Christmas performance. :)

I LOVE these performances. It's so fun to see your co-workers doing something away from their cubicles, ya know? Just fun to see everyone having so much fun!

Anyway, we had cookies and hot cocoa while we listened to the music. And I was able to snag a couple minutes of video to share with all of you! :) The pictures in the video are mostly of people in Creative Services (my division)--I wish I would have had time to catch everyone! I swear, nearly every employee was in the atrium.

So, enjoy the pictures and the video at the bottom of this entry! I sure did! :)

(You can watch this in high quality over at YouTube...)

This week's Color Inspiration comes from a photo I took while I was in New York last spring. All these colorful bits of yarn were in the window of Purl Soho. I don't know how they fit all that color in one little itty bitty shop! If any of you have the chance to visit this awesome knitting shop, you'll know what I mean. :)

Anyhow, enjoy the colors. And as usual, feel free to add a neutral color (like white or vanilla). Have fun!

Join us: Make a card/scrapbook page/whatever in the colors above. Color Inspiration virgins, please read the Color Inspiration FAQ first.

Deadline: Thursday, December 11 at 7:00 pm MT.
You will know when the deadline has past because you will not able to submit a new link through the Mister Linky box.

Grab this week's swatch-only image.

Reader submissions for Color Inspiration #34:

1. Julie Allain
2. Ange Kelly
3. Travelingmama
4. Leah
5. Molly S
6. Michelle Ranieri
7. Sankari Wegman
8. Becky Teusink
9. CeeCee
10. Jessica Ingold
11. Amy, Ottawa, Canada
12. Christina
13. Cath Thompson
14. debi hadley
15. Vera
16. Dawn McVey (dawnsing)
17. Sharlene M, NZL
18. KarenR
19. SmilynStef
20. Amy Fleming NZL (sorry this one)
21. MacKenzie Bruckler
22. Kylie
23. Selene
24. brittany
25. SuzieQTT
26. Ashley Newell
27. Sam
28. Melanie Brown
29. Jaded
30. Sylvia Nelson
31. Nancy McKinney
32. Sari Hänninen
33. Evonne Y.
34. Dori S.
35. Theresa Forseth
36. Susan Daly
37. Deanna W
38. Kathy Clark
39. Elizabeth Goliber
40. AmandaRae
41. Sarah from the UK

42. Arielle~ SnappyStamper
43. Jenyfur
44. Dianne Eure
45. nikki schmaltz
46. Karen Giron
47. Ari Vega-Macias
48. Julie Davison
49. Rachael NZ
50. Kara
51. Becky (nawlinslady)
52. Tracey Old NZL
53. Judy
54. Shaz Hank
55. Yapha
56. robin
57. Debbie Pamment
58. Karla
59. Karen Motz
60. Kathy V.
61. Kathleen
62. Amanda Kranzusch
63. Butternutsage/Donna
64. Katt Adams
65. Regan
66. Lisa
67. Lisa Bohler
68. Katherine Allen
69. Angie Tieman
70. Lori Tisdale
71. Hannah-Cherie
72. Sandra F Canada
73. Savitri
74. Kathie B
75. Esther S
76. Patrice
77. Clare Bird- UK
78. Diana Ball-Seitz
79. Sarah-Jane Kale\'
80. Leenamummi
81. Natascha
82. nikki schmaltz (again:D)

83. kim/ohradiogirl
84. Amanda D
85. Julie Cameron
86. Kim Schofield
87. Denise Thomas
88. Lori
89. Polka Dottie
90. Barcelona Red
91. Barcelona Red #2
92. Brenda Weaver
93. Kay Kalthoff
94. Kiara Lee
95. Sherri Barron
96. Lisa (sideoats scribbles)
97. Stephanie Herbert
98. Clouds
99. Carol Dunstan
100. Melissa Sauls
101. Jacquelyn Stamp Happy NZL
102. Michelle N
103. stampersuzz
104. joy leith
105. Andrea R
106. Patricia Weitzel
107. Brit Swiderski
108. Daniela Hendea
109. Carolyn Mustopa
110. Shelley G in Iowa
111. Beth
112. Kari V.
113. Tara Kieninger
114. Kirsten
115. Snadypooh
116. Anthonette
117. Sharlene
118. maria fiscella
119. Deborah
120. Jerry
121. Ashley M
122. Staci M.

Links are disabled. Join us next week! :)
I reserve the right to delete links that are posted incorrectly.
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Hi all!

So many bright and cute cards this week, huh? I was super impressed. I really threw a curve ball at ya, but you took it in stride and there were a ton of submissions! :)

Anyhow, here are my top ten picks...

TOP TEN

Annie, of last year's cookie baking fame, showed me how she makes her fabulous Chocolate Chip Cookies on Saturday night. Believe me, they were yummy! Here are the videos (it's in two parts) and the recipe follows. :)

(watch Part 1 in high quality)

(watch Part 2 in high quality)

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup of butter-flavored Crisco
1-1/2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
2 eggs
1 teaspoon (plus a little extra) vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon (plus a little extra) salt
1-2 cups of chocolate chips (amount depends on personal preference - I prefer about 1.5 cups)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl, cream together the Crisco and brown sugar then add the eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture in the mixing bowl. Once all dry ingredients are mixed in then add chocolate chips. Scoop out dough with a cookie scoop, roll into a ball in your hands, and press the ball onto the lined cookie sheet (I use a Silpat). Press down the ball so it forms more of a disk shape about ½" thick and round the edges. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-11 minutes, or just before cookies turn golden brown. Drop the cookie sheet on a sturdy surface after you remove cookie sheet from oven to let cookies flatten a bit.

Morning, all!

This week's video came about because of this adorable stamp set from My Cute Stamps. Come on now, who doesn't love chocolate?! :)

I have to apologize in advance... This video is loooonnnngggg. I never meant for it to be so long. I just kept going and going and going. I was up late editing, so I think I might have been a bit loopy and didn't realize how much I kept babbling on an on! :)

Speaking of how late I was up last night, while I was exporting the video from iMovie (which took FOREVER since it was HD quality), I watched some TV over at abc.com... Man, I love their HD video player. It looked amazing when I expanded it to full screen. It made my little geeky heart nearly burst. :)

Anyway, I uploaded the video to YouTube this morning, so when this posts, there might not be a high quality version available quite yet. But once there is, you really ought to head over there to watch the video. Seriously. The quality of the video is attrocious below, but when you watch it in high quality, it's a TON bettter.

Enjoy!

Supplies - Sweet Chocolate stamp set (My Cute Stamps); Polka Dot Basics stamp set, Cream, Sweet Blush, and Dark Chocolate card stock, Berry Sorbet ink and ribbon (Papertrey Ink); Kraft card stock, Chocolate Chip marker, and Very Vanilla embossing powder (Stampin' Up!); VersaMark ink.

I'm going to create another Questions and Answers video like the previous ones from last spring (part 1, part 2, part 3). If you have a question or questions, please leave it in the comments on this entry.

Oh, and even if you've asked the question in the past, but I haven't answered it yet (sometime I see them in the comments and think, "Oh, all have to answer that tonight" and then I forget to go back and check), leave the comment here again as a little reminder, would ya? Thanks!

Just saw this video over at YouTube. It's one of the featured videos today. :) So touching. I love it. Please visit their site at playingforchange.com.

Hello! The winner from yesterday is...

Congrats, Danielle! I'll be in contact with you to get your mailing address shortly.

And thank to everyone who entered each day's drawing. It was so fun to read through your comments and get a small sense of who ya'll are. :)

Hopefully, I'll be back later today with the Color Inspiration #33 round-up. I just reformatted my harddrive and I'm copying over all my backed up files, so I'll be strapped to my computer for most of the day. But on a positive note, the problems my computer was having before are non-existent! I think a reformat did the trick! :)

Happy Saturday!

Good morning! Here's the winner for yesterday's giveaway...

Congrats, Robyn! I'll be in contact with you to get your mailing address. :)

And today's giveaway...

Today I'm offering what I call "The Clear Package." :) I have some clear tags (like the one I used here on the Christmas tag), and Fontwerk's Choice Words clear stamp set. Good luck, all!

To enter just leave a comment on this entry. International readers can join in on the fun, too! :) I'll post a winner tomorrow morning.

I'm still on my Christmas card kick! Hopefully by making all these Christmas cards, I can actually send some out this year! :)

In this week's Finally Friday video I wanted to make a card that didn't have any extra layers--just the card base. Man, it's hard to do that sometimes! I had to do this card twice because the first time the ink I used for the background was too dark and you couldn't read the stuff stamped on top of it.

Head on over to TwoPeas to see the supplies used and more info.

Anyway, here ya go and I hope you enjoy the video. This is the first video I've made that's 16:9 (the size of letterbox and HD videos). YouTube just updated their video player last week and now it is HUGE when you watch over at their site. So, be sure to head over there to see it a bit larger and in high quality (click on watch in high quality below the video).

Image above is Copyrighted Two Peas in a Bucket

Good morning! Let's start the day with the winner for giveaway #3...

Congrats, Peyton! I'll be in contact with you to get your mailing address. :)

Today's giveaway is...

Giveaway #4 consists of a pack of Stampin' Up! Chit Chat rubons with about a million sentiments on them (perfect for cardmaking!) and two packs of Hero Arts Gemstones. I see a large amount of cardmaking in your future. ;)

Just leave a comment on this entry and you'll be entered in the drawing. International readers are welcome to enter the drawing as well. :)

Good luck, all!

Hi, all! I really miss being able to pick out some holiday songs for videos this year. :( So, I thought I'd write up a quick little post with some holiday music recommendations...

The Hotel Café presents... Winter Songs - This is a new favorite holiday album for me. It's awesome! Some of my favorite artists collaborated on this album that my roommate Jen first introduced me to a few weeks ago.

BTW, go to Jen's site, wish her a happy birthday and tell her to update her blog... hee hee!

It's amazing! Get a look at this list: Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson, Brandi Carlile, Lenka, KT Tunstall, Alice Smith, Nicole Atkins, Fiona Apple, Holly Conlan, Meiko, Katy Perry, Colbie Caillat, Priscilla Ahn, Kate Havnevik, and Catherine Feeny. AMAZING!

I'm particularly in love with the title track Winter Song by Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson. Here's a little YouTube video about the song and album...

And I'm also obsessed with Faith Hill's A Baby Changes Everything ... Oh. My. Word. I cry every time I listen to this song. It just gets me... right... there.

For some awesome remixed Christmas tracks, check out:

Christmas Remixed - Holiday Classics Re-Grooved (a couple songs from this album were in the old MACM videos)
Holiday Dance Party - The Christmas Remixes (love the Rosemary Clooney remix on this one)
Holiday Lounge - The Christmas Remixes (love Bing and Ella's Rudolph)

Anyway, have fun and I'll catch ya'll tomorrow for another giveaway. :)

Morning, all! First off, a winner for yesterday...

Congrats, Mabel! I'll be in contact with you to get your mailing address. :)

Today's giveaway is what I call "The Christmas Ribbon Pack"...

It consists of Papertrey Ink's Pure Poppy Swiss Dot ribbon and American Crafts Christmas Box Holly ribbon! I love these ribbons! And I'll be mailing out the giveaways next Monday, so the winner will have plenty of time to use up some of this ribbon before Christmas. :)

To be entered into the drawing, just leave a comment on this entry. Again, please be sure to use an email address you can be contacted at. International readers can enter as well. :)

Good luck!

Hi all! This week's Color Inspiration Challenge comes from my latest visit over to my local Target store. You'll have to excuse the poor quality of the photo--I took it with my cell phone!

I was walking through the aisle with all the notebooks on it and saw this journal with about a million buttons on it and thought it was adorable! Anyway, the colors are above. There's actually some red in the photo, but I thought I'd narrow it down to just five colors. Six is bordering on too many colors to deal with, ya know? :)

Just a quick clarification after the hot-linking entries last week. For these challenges, I encourage you to save the above graphic to your computer and then upload it on your blog if you'd like to. I am giving you all permission to use the graphic above. Feel free to use any of the challenge images. :)

Join us: Make a card/scrapbook page/whatever in the colors above. Color Inspiration virgins, please read the Color Inspiration FAQ first.

Deadline: Thursday, December 4 at 7:00 pm MT.
You will know when the deadline has past because you will not able to submit a new link through the Mister Linky box.

Grab this week's swatch-only image.

Reader submissions for Color Inspiration #33:

1. Julie Allain
2. Christa Halbesma (Netherlands)
3. Dallas
4. Julie Davison
5. Selene
6. Sarah from the UK
7. Mª Engracia
8. Tessa
9. Amy Fleming NZL
10. shaz hank
11. Ellie
12. ButternutsageDesigns
13. Brittany
14. Yapha
15. MacKenzie Bruckler
16. Katt Adams
17. Leonie
18. Ashley Newell
19. Donna
20. robin
21. Christina
22. Tracey Old NZL
23. Tracey Old NZL
24. Leah
25. Jessica Ingold
26. Arielle~ SnappyStamper
27. Evonne Y.
28. Sita
29. Stacey Schafer
30. Amy, Ottawa, Canada
31. Jodie
32. Karina
33. Tenia Nelson
34. Snadypooh
35. Sylvia Nelson
36. Melissa Sauls
37. Carol Dunstan
38. Debbie Pamment
39. Diana Ball-Seitz
40. Deanna W
41. Sarah-Jane Kale\'
42. Jo in the UK

43. Susan Daly
44. Travelingmama
45. joy leith
46. nikki schmaltz
47. Rimna
48. Stampersuzz
49. Rachael NZ
50. Karen Giron
51. Patti
52. Yankee in England
53. Jenyfur
54. Trish Hughes
55. Mary
56. Kirsty Brown
57. Sharlene M -NZ
58. Karen Sullivan
59. Elizabeth Goliber
60. Brenda Weaver
61. Regan
62. Jenna M.
63. Melissa
64. Kokie Larson
65. Zeila Perez
66. Jerry
67. Dawn McVey (dawnsing)
68. Chloe NZL
69. Lori
70. Kathy V.
71. Ange Kelly
72. Amanda Kranzusch
73. Kylie
74. Nellie M.
75. Caroline - carobdesign
76. Jen Sannes
77. Nancy McKinney
78. diana
79. Savitri
80. Kristen Bragg
81. Kelly Adams
82. Anthonette
83. KarenR
84. Diane Bell-Robertson

85. Sharlene Torres NZL
86. Ellen Woodbridge
87. Angie Tieman
88. Lisa Bohler
89. Kay Kalthoff
90. Dori S.
91. AmandaRae
92. nikki schmaltz (again:D)
93. Stephanie Herbert
94. Julie Cameron
95. Cath Thompson
96. Lisa (sideoats scribbles)
97. Deb Pierce
98. Erika Hyde
99. Andrea R.
100. Amy Lee
101. Joni
102. rebecca
103. Sankari Wegman
104. Kathy W
105. Karen Motz
106. Hannah-Cherie
107. Daniela Hendea
108. SuzieQTT
109. Sara Hayes
110. kim/ohradiogirl
111. Molly Stadin
112. Leenamummi
113. rachel
114. Linda
115. Marian Garcia (Bay Area)
116. PolkaDottie
117. Barcelona Red #1
118. Barcelona Red #2
119. Nancy Riley
120. Alina
121. debi
122. Jacquelyn Stamp Happy NZL
123. Kari V.
124. Staci M.
125. Katherine Allen

Links are disabled. Join us next week! :)
I reserve the right to delete links that are posted incorrectly.
Has your link been deleted? There's probably a reason why. Check the FAQ.

Good morning!

First of all, a winner for yesterday...

I used random.org to get a number, and the comment number was 270! Congrats, Diana! I'll be emailing you this morning to get your mailing address. :)

Today's giveaway pack consists of some Thickers from American Crafts (these are felt) and some flowers from Li'L Davis Designs. You can't see it in the picture, but the flowers are glittery--so cute!

Just leave a comment on this entry before 11:59 pm (Mountain Time) tonight and you'll be entered in the drawing for the giveaway. All readers for all countries are eligible. Only one comment/entry per person. :)

Good luck, all! :)

NOTE: If the comments get above #181, they might display weird in some internet browsers.. If you're browser is displaying things weird, it's just the browser... I am still receiving comments and can see them. No worries. :) Thanks!

I've had a few things go up at Two Peas over the last few days, and I just realized I hadn't updated my blog with them, so here they are. I made card for a community challenge (to stamp on patterned paper), and then two digital scrapbook pages from the most recent Designer Garden release... (Click on the images to go to each page at TwoPeas)...

It's pretty late here, and I'm heading off to bed, but I wanted to get the round-up for this week up before I post a new Color Inspiration Challenge tomorrow morning. So, here they are, and I know you'll enjoy them this week... :)

TOP TEN

So, Two Peas started their 36 Days of Christmas not too long ago. Currently, there are 36 Garden Girls, so we're bringing you holiday projects--one per day!

Today is my day, and I have a ornament, tag, and card for ya. :) To see more pictures and a supply list, head on over to it's individual page at Two Peas. And here's a link for all the days that are out so far. :)

Image copyrighted Two Peas in a Bucket.

Hi all!

I'm planning five giveaways this week, so stay tuned. I'll have details at the end of this entry. :)

This week's Make a Card Monday came about because I wanted to use the Bitsy Flower stamp set from Basic Grey. So cute! I love their Urban Prairie line of papers right now that coordinate with this set, so when I saw the whole stamp set--I couldn't help myself!

The swirls are sort of formal looking, but also very playful. I thought that would be perfect for a Christmas card. I also broke out that Colorbox ink that I used in last week's Finally Friday video--the gold ink. Seriously, people. This ink is awesome. They also have a silver ink! I'll have to work that one into a card sometime soon. :)

Oh, and my tip about the embossing powder in today's video? Here's more details... I have a box of fabric softener dryer sheets that I keep with my craft supplies. If I remember to, I'll always gently wipe across the card stock before I stamp in VersaMark. Then when I apply the embossing powder, it doesn't stick as much to non-stamped areas. Just a tip. :)

And onto the video! As usual, you can view it in higher quality over at YouTube (just click on "watch in high quality" below the video).

Supplies - Old Olive, Real Red, and Very Vanilla card stock, Very Vanilla taffeta ribbon, embossing powder (Stampin' Up!); Christmas Colorbox Queue ink and Merry Christmas stamp (Hero Arts); Bitsy Flower stamp set (Basic Grey).

----------------

Okay! Giveaway details... I'm doing giveaways as a thank you for all your support with the Virtual Card Club. I had a great response and I can't wait to get going on next month's projects. :)

So, each day this week (Monday-Friday), I'll be giving away a few things. Just leave a comment (be sure to leave an email address you can be contacted at--it won't be published here, I just need it to contact you), and you'll be entered in the drawing. Please only one comment per person. :) And yes, international crafters are welcome to enter, too! :)

Today's giveaway is...

A pack of Bazzill Dotted Swiss paper (Plum Pudding Trio) and Sassafrass Lass In a Stitch buttons (Green). I love this stuff! BTW, in the picture below, the dotted paper is enlarged quite a bit. The dots are actually quite small. :)

So, leave a comment before 11:59 pm (Mountain Time) tonight and I'll post the winner's name tomorrow. :) Good luck!

NOTE: Comments are displaying weird in some internet browsers past comment #181... If you're browser is displaying things weird, it's just the browser... I am still receiving comments and can see them. No worries. :) Thanks!