Canvas love ♥♥♥

I love making my own Christmas cards but more often than not, I run out of time. This year I decided to start early and simplify. Ever since I got out the stencils and the canvas I have been a painting machine, so it was easy to narrow it down to a few designs.

This first set is my favorite, just simple and clean but with a natural look.

I added a little glitter to make these stand out. The edges are inked in red, I love the red/blue combo for Christmas and the glitter worked like a charm :)

This last set are larger cards and not my favorite but they are growing on me.

Well that's this years design, I hope my friends and family like them :) Now I just need to make about 100 more...wish me luck!


Thanks for stopping by,

Kxxx

Christmas Music...

Well it's officially freezing in California(no for real, look it up)
and Thanksgiving is over, so Christmas must be close, right?
Right :) so, I thought I would share some ATC's I made for a swap with my Sheilas.
The theme, our favorite Christmas music and how it inspires us.

This was a cool swap for me, not only because I love music but Christmas music in particular just puts me in a great mood! Each of these songs have a special place in my heart, whether from my days spent in a cold Parade building during the holidays with goods friends, my memories of my Mother and my Grandmothers singing aloud or decorating the tree with my family every year, each one makes me smile. I hope you enjoy them and they inspire you to think about your favorite Christmas songs and the memories that go along with them.


**Above picture: Songs: Deck the Halls & Let it Snow! Both are on canvas, I painted the surface of the Let it snow ATC with a white acrylic and used Tim Holtz seasonal papers. For the Deck the Halls, fired brick distress ink and Autumn Leaves stamp.


Songs: Merry little Christmas & Joy to the World. Again both are on canvas (my new favorite thing) Merry Christmas is stamped with acrylic paint, using a chunky stamp (not sure of the name) and another Autumn Leaves stamp for the merry Christmas in peeled paint distress ink, with Martha Stewart golden berry fine glitter. The Joy to the World, is black ink and a Autumn Leaves stamp.


Songs: Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas & It's the The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Merry little Christmas has a combo of Webster's pages and Tim Holtz seasonal papers, with more Martha Stewart glitter and some twine. Most wonderful has a few layers. I first painted the surface with a creamy yellow, then coated it with a layer of Martha Stewart Mica flakes glitter, the Santa image is Graphic 45. I used foam squares to add dimension and some twine.


Songs: Here comes Santa Claus & Sleigh Ride. Here comes has a Tim Holtz Seasonal paper background of a Christmas song and Santa image, with a splash of canvas strips in the corner to soften. Sleigh ride is a Lasting impressions background paper, with Graphic 45 images, vintage pipe cleaner and Dymo title.


Song: Carol of the Bells, My favorite Christmas song of all time, not my favorite ATC however. I used the Tim Hotlz Seasonal paper for the background, some Webster's Pages ribbon, gold transparency paper and a bad image of a bell, with some Stickles to make the lights pop and the song title is Life's Journey clear alpha stickers.


Songs: Noel & A Merry Little Christmas. Noel is painted canvas with white acrylic, a Graphic 45 image, Webster's pages ribbon, Life's Journey alpha stickers and an American Crafts brad. Merry Christmas is another painted canvas with green acrylic, Tim Holtz seasonal image a top of burlap with 3D foam squares for dimension and twine.

Song: Let it snow, both are images from the Tim Holtz seasonal papers, the one on the left has a frame of Martha Stewart mica flakes and Making Memories letters, the one on the right has some twine wrapped around the bottom and Lasting Impressions polka dot paper as the background.

Thanks for stopping by, have a great week!

K xxx

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends. No matter where you live, I hope you are thankful for the good things in your life. May you have a wonderful day with Family and Friends.

A few inked Thanksgiving tags for my MIL and SIL. They both love to cook, so that was the theme. I used some of Tim Hotlz Holiday papers, burlap and several inks to capture the Fall colors.



I forgot to post my Twinchies from my virtual vacation, these are the places I took us to this year and they will be the stamps in my passport :)








Have a wonderful day!

Kxxx

Sunday Randomness...

My Sunday started out with a fairly clean desk, so I thought I would tic a few things off my To Do list... turns out that list is always longer than I think it is, so I'll start with a few things and see how far I get...



I recently took a vacation, no, not that one, another one, a kinda fake one, but not really. I mean, it felt real, I traveled to far away places (via youtube videos) with great friends, experienced cranky travelers, got held up at the airport, had some fun stories to tell and best yet I didn't get felt up by the TSA agents. But, the stamps in my passport are actually twinchies and it was a virtual vacation. I have to say, all in all, it may be the way to travel in the future :) The trip could not be completed without the following awesome Sheilas, whom I hope to take an actual vacation with some day; Tonz, Julz, G, Di, Megz, Melz, Melanie, Joyce, Erica, Conz, Debz, Lori & Kelz. A few sheilas were not able to make the trip (Amber & Rob) but we hope you can join us on our next one. Thanks for the memories Sheilas :)

My Photo album cover from the trip


Our lovely destinations
Edinburgh Castle, Scotland~Eiffel Tower, Paris France~Trevi fountain, Rome Italy~Wulai, Taiwan~London Eye, England~Sugar loaf & Rio, Brazil. I can't wait until next year.

Unfortunately the below story happened toward the end of the first day of travel...




~Delayed Reaction~

My daughter was in a car accident recently and maybe because she was banged up pretty bad (a fractured sternum, bruising...everywhere and a banged up foot with staples) and we were freaked out, I didn't mention it. Now that she is on the mend, can I just tell you not all teaching hospitals have Hot Attendees and Sassy interns. I know, I know Grey's Anatomy is only a TV show, but Seriously! I would have much rather watched Cristina Yang come waltzing into the ER complaining about how boring and beneath her staples are, than the three that did stumble, literally into the room and ask if she was the one with the huge gash in her foot. Needless to say, probably not the best thing to ask my worried daughter who was convinced she couldn't breathe because her heart was broken :) Together, the three musketeers could barely figure out where the staples went, let alone how to take out the one that was put in the wrong place...whoops?! Sadly among the 10 other people that were in and out of the room, taking x-rays and poking random parts of her body, not one McDreamy or McAnything was on that list BUT we still have a daughter breathing and walking with, I am happy to report, no broken heart
and for that we are thankful :)

On the upside, the hospital had just gone through a remodel so that looked like
Grey's Anatomy :) The banged up couple
(who could not stop holding hands...awww,
young love :)
my stir-crazy husband, and pretty decor around the hospital.
*Please note, the bottom right picture was not on the hospital patient menu but was our dinner that night when we finally got home!


On to Scrappy stuff!

I cleaned up a bit in my studio which also inspired me to capture some of the happy corners of it. These are the corners that when I am stressed out and trying to BE creative, they make me smile, relax and eventually BE creative...I thought I would share a few:

















































My Scrappy Creation of the weekend and my new favorite corner in my studio:
My Thankful Project for The Scrappy Tree




Last, but certainly not least, my first award from my dear friend and fellow Scrappy Treeer, Gayle, who is one of the most creative people I know and I am so glad to call her a dear friend. She can, with the smallest amount of effort, make the most beautiful textured background that screams look and admire me because I'm fabulous! Check our her work here!
Thanks Gayle :)

The Cherry on Top Award;

The 3 requirements for accepting this award;

1. Post the award- ✔

2. Share 3 things I enjoy-
a. Taking pictures (good or bad) I do it all the time!
b.Being creative (good or bad) it doesn't leave my brain...
c. Spending time with the people and things I love, nice work if you can get :)

3. Pick 5 fellow bloggers to pass it on to (So unfair that we can not play tag backs here); let's see...

a. Julie- A joy to see what she creates and the Salt of the Earth!
b. Michelle- A master picture taker and professional Mom.
c. Joanna- One of the most unique scrappers I have seen.
d. Erica- Always a pleasure to see what vintage find she has up her sleeve.
e. Jennie- Always Fab! Enuf said :)

I hope you have an enjoyable week &
find that you are Thankful for the good things in your life

Kxxx

Celebrations R good!

I know it's only Tuesday but it's been a week of celebration so far!



My daughter Amanda's birthday was yesterday so after making plans for her to come over for dinner, I had to put my butt in gear to make her a card, shop for home-made lasagna fixin's and bake some yummy cupcakes. Of course all of that took time I didn't have but after your kids leave home, you find yourself agreeing to almost anything, just to see them there again. In the end, the stress of Monday at work combined with the running around to get it all done ended as a lovely family dinner of catching up and laughing, the perfect end to the day .




The other celebration is over at the Scrappy Tree, where we are celebrating our first anniversary! It's been one heck of a year but my two partners in crime make it all worth it. They are beyond creative, great listeners and people I am proud to call friends and I couldn't do it without them. This month we combined Julie's November Inspiration Challenge with our anniversary so this was the inspiration piece Julie picked.

It's not too late for you to give it a try, head over to The Scrappy Tree for more details or our Scrappy Community to upload your inspired piece. This is what I came up with for the challenge;



I hope you find a reason to celebrate this week too, thanks for stopping by :)

K xxx

Vacation Part Deux

Okay been slacking on the vacation part two so be prepared for a delayed vacation photo blast...


First up my new favorite place in the world, okay well in California at least; The Garden Gallery. Nestled closely to the bay itself, on Embarcadero street in Morro Bay, CA. From the outside it looks like a left over hippie retreat but once they open their doors and entice you inside with their beautiful pottery, mini cactus and wide array of statues & fountains, you will quickly forget the outer shell as you discover the inner beauty of this simple and divine place of peace and tranquility.

Not only do they grow all of their own cactus and succulents, but they pour and bake all of their own pots, create & design all of their own waterfalls, wind-chimes & art pieces and display it in such a way that makes you want to take home each and every treasure you lay your eyes on. Around every curve and corner is a new beautiful piece to discover and love. I highly suggest this peaceful wonder if you are anywhere near Morro Bay in the future.



Next up, the beauty that is the Pacific Coast Highway. We have each seen the movies that glamorize the beauty of the California coast along the scenic PCH and for once the movies are not exaggerating. From the blue coves, to the green capped cliffs overlooking the most beautiful sunsets in the world, PCH never disappoints.

We traveled about 800 miles round trip and never once regretted taking the slightly congested and curvy beach route. We were leaving Orange County, so for us getting through the Santa Monica and Malibu chaos was a small price to pay, when we met the open road after Oxnard and the gorgeous coves, cliffs, and turnouts that lay ahead. From Santa Barbara on, you really have a thousand opportunities to stop and explore, which is what we did. Often we try to find the less traveled paths to the open ocean and in this case there were many. Some less manicured beaches may not be postcard picture perfect but still left us completely alone to wander, enjoy and capture the essence of the beach, the smell of the ocean and the chance to sit back, reflect, slow down and enjoy the simple beauty.


While on our mini vaca, we decided to visit the extravagant Hearst Castle. Neither of us had been in many years but both had fond memories of our last visit so we thought, what the heck? Being a swimmer my whole life, I had a slight obsession with the outdoor swimming pool and I could not wait to attempt to capture the beauty of it in pictures this time around. We arrived late in the day and were told they were sold out ( so much for being breezy, see vacation post part one) so we hunkered down overnight in close by Cambria (which we love) and waited until the next morning to visit. Of course the morning was totally foggy and overcast,the exact opposite of the day before but we were committed at this point. Luckily for us, the second you jump aboard the Hearst Castle bus and make your way to the top of the hill, you quickly bypass all of the fog and are treated to spectacular views of the mountains and valleys that surround the castle. I seriously could spend a week here snapping photos (my hubby had to literally drag me away in the end) but here are a few of the days visit. Again, if you make it as far as Morro Bay, go a bit further to experience Hearst Castle, it is a complete treasure tucked back in the hills overlooking its vast property.

We only traveled as far north as Hearst Castle and headed back south after our visit, we had a Jack Johnson concert to get to after all (which was awesome btw.) The next morning we left for Arizona and Lake Havasu city, home of the London Bridge, the Lake and not much else...

Our trip consisted mostly of hangin' by the pool, walkin' by the lake and driving through the vast desert. Being a water person, I get a bit freaked out when surrounded by so much sandy land but the beautiful skies and mass amounts of GREEN windmills at the end of the trip, made me feel slightly more at ease.

Thanks for visiting,

K xxx

BLUE Challenge for World Pneumonia Day-ATC's

For the folks over at Kevinmckiddonline.com. They are running a Wear your BLUE jeans challenge, where they are tweeting, creating banners and showing pictures of Kevin in jeans to make people aware of the cause, see more here.


So I combined the two challenges and came up with these :) Enjoy!



Don't forget to support World Pneumonia Day!

Thanks for stopping by

K xxx

The Scrappy Tree's BLUE Challenge!

First off my colossal BLUE mess on my table.

Not only did I not know I owned so much blue stuff but I had no idea I could use it all at the same time :)

A few things are still drying and I will post those tomorrow but I started with a few Layouts for BLUE Challenge.

Visit The Scrappy Tree if you get a chance to see others work;
http://thescrappytree.blogspot.com/2010/11/world-pneumonia-day-blue-challenge.html


In addition to our challenge at the Scrappy Tree, Kevin Mckidd, World Pneumonia Day Spokesperson has some serious fans showing their support KMK style over at;
http://www.kevinmckiddonline.com/1/post/2010/11/putting-our-blue-jeans-on.html

Thanks for visiting and don't forget to wear Blue Jeans on November 12th to support World Pneumonia Day :) Remember it's not too late to join the challenge and the FIGHT pneumonia!

K xxx

The Scrappy Tree's BLUE Challenge!

Hi Everyone! We are running the BLUE challanege for charity over at The Scrappy Tree, check it out and read below for details!


On November 12, 2010, Kevin Mckidd and the Save the Children organization are supporting World Pneumonia Day and so is the Scrappy Tree! Pneumonia is the leading killer in young children in the developing world. Everyday, 3,000 children die as a result of pneumonia...everyday! Just TEN dollars helps vaccinate a child against the most deadly causes of pneumonia. The Scrappy Tree wants to do their part and that's where you come in! Join our challenge and let us do it for you.

The challenge:
Often when children develop pneumonia, they turn blue. Save the Children wants everyone to wear blue on November 12th to show our support and make others aware, we want you to create something BLUE to show your support.

*Create a layout, ATC, wall hanging, twinchie, card, altered box or book, pendant or jewelry, etc. to show your support and upload a picture to our Scrappy Community OR give us a link to your blog so we know to include your entry. Do so by November 11th 2010 no later than 10 pm PST.


*Requirements- Your creation must be all BLUE, no other color is allowed but a combination of black and white with blue is acceptable. Feel free to email us with any questions; thescrappytree@hotmail.com.

Visit The Scrappy Tree for more details; http://thescrappytree.blogspot.com/

The Scrappy Tree team will announce the winners on November 12th 2010. The top ten winners will have a ten dollar donation, in their name, sent to the Save the Children- World Pneumonia Day fund. One top winner will take home some cool blue scrappy supplies. So start thinking BLUE and get involved!