A Couple of Cards

Hello!  I submitted some cards last week for Paper Crafts recent call, but unfortunately none were accepted.  So now I can share them here instead.  I had one card accepted last fall, but haven't had any luck since then which is a little frustrating.  I know there are so many talented people that are submitting as well, so it shouldn't come as a surprise.  So I will continue to try, and most importantly I want to enjoy the process.  I need to always remember that this is supposed to be a hobby!  Getting a card accepted in a magazine would just be a huge bonus.

So without further ado, here are a couple of those cards:

The "hi" card is from Cosmo Cricket's Girl Friday line, and the "happy Birthday" card uses Cosmo Cricket's Early Bird line.  I love both of these lines!  A hint on the scallops on the "hi" card:  I just used a circle punch and then cut them in half to make the scallops.  On the birthday card (which is now in my sister's hands - hope your birthday was great!), the flower is made from 4 scalloped circles.  (I have the Stampin' Up scallop circle punch.)  I fold each circle in half, then overlap them, like you do when you're trying to close up a cardboard box, gluing them down as you go.  That might be as clear as mud, so if anyone is interested, I can try to show pictures to better demonstrate that. 

I'll save some more for next time.  Until then, have a wonderful and safe 4th!

God bless!

-Rachel-

SMILE!

Happy Friday, everyone!  Hope you've had a good week.  Ours was pretty good.  I tried to get some things done around here, plus we picked strawberries yesterday and I made 4 batches of jam.  My kids were amazed at how much sugar went into each batch of  the jam.  Yeah - I guess that's why it tastes so good! :)  I know there's a low-sugar recipe out there, but I just stick with what I know works and we love it anyway.

I did manage to make a couple of cards today.  This one is my second card for the Everything but the Kitchen Sink Challenge, since I like the sketch and had another idea to go along with it.  I'm still loving this little camera stamp.

My next one is my second card for this month's Paper Crafts Sketch Challenge.  Patterned paper is Pink Paislee, pom-pom trim was from Michael's, and I've had the green paper to long to remember.  I save ALL of my little scraps of paper, and some day I should just challenge myself to try to use them up. They accumulate so much that's it's hard to find anything, but I just can't throw my favorite pieces away.  I store them in large, clear zip bags, separated by solids and patterns.  Anyone out there have a better idea for organizing them??

Enjoy your weekend!

-Rachel-

Birthday Gift

Hello everyone! 

Hope you all had a good weekend.  My daughter was at Bible camp all last week, so it was so nice to get her home again on Saturday.  Yesterday we went to an Express baseball game in Eau Claire, which was fun.  Since it was Donavon's choice for what we did yesterday, shopping wasn't at the top of his list, but he did give us about 45 minutes in the mall while he looked in Scheels.  Brooke needed a birthday gift for a party later this week, so we found a little something at Aeropostale.  And this morning she made a cute coordinating card to go along with it.  Since I'm still struggling to find any time to create something around here, I thought I'd show you her card along with the gift. 

I know I'm her mother, but I do think she did a great job!  :)

Well, have a great week, and hopefully I'll be visiting with you here again soon. 

-Rachel-

Just a Note

Happy Friday!

Well, I'm still trying to get back into the swing of things around here.  Summer is naturally busier with the kids at home and I'm being reminded that I won't have as much time to sit and craft like I'm used to.  But that's ok with me - I love having my kids home for the summer.  I'm also still struggling with my cards.  It's just not flowing like I wish it would! 

This is what I came up with today.  It's for the PaperCrafts Connection sketch challenge of the month. 

Hopefully I'll find some more time to create next week.  I still have 350 pictures from our D.C. trip to go through and decide which ones to print out.  I haven't scrapbooked in a while, but I really want to make a nice book of our trip. 

Have a great weekend!
God Bless!
-Rachel-

I'm Back!

Well, we survived our trip to D.C. and New York City! I would definitely describe our week as an ADVENTURE, but it was a wonderful week to spend with Brooke.  We saw and did so many things that we never would have if we had gone on our own.  Some of our favorites were the Capitol, the monuments, the Smithsonian museums, the Sunset parade (an awesome show by the Marines), the Statue of Liberty, and the Lion King Broadway show.  I can't say I loved the countless hours on the bus, but I guess it just made me appreciate my own bed even more!

So after that long break from crafting, I finally sat down today to try to make a card.  And let me tell you, it wasn't happening very easily!!  It's like I forgot how to do it!   But I finally settled on making this one for the Everything But the Kitchen Sink Challenge.

I'm hoping it will come easier as I continue trying this week.  I've missed it, but I hate for it to feel like work!  Let's hope I can get some creative juices flowing again!

Have a great week!

-Rachel-

Flower Cookies

Hello!  It's been a busy week around here since it's the last week of school.  Plus, my oldest daughter and I are heading to Washington D.C. on Monday for her 8th grade class trip.  We'll be spending the week in D.C. and New York, which we've never been to before.  So we are getting very excited for it all.  (Except maybe the 24 hour bus trip!)   Unfortunately, with all of this busyness, I haven't had any time for card-making.  So today I thought I'd share some treats I made for Lexie's kindergarten party. 

I just made chocolate chip cookies and put a popsicle stick into the dough before baking.  Then we used frosting to adhere m&m's in the shape of flowers.  We finished them by putting them in a baggie and tied them with green ribbon..  While I was making these, I had a thought of doing something more with them as a little gift for her teacher.  So I bought a clay pot and some floral foam, stuck some of the flower cookies into the foam, and then covered the base with some tissue paper.  Here's the pot of "flowers" all wrapped up in cellophane:

Hopefully I'll get back to some paper-crafting after our trip.  I miss it!  Until then, enjoy the beginning of summer!

-Rachel-