Scrap Chat & Coffee Talk

HERE WE GO!!! The begining of the LET'S SCRAP BLOG HOP

2012-02-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

THIS POST WILL REMAIN ON TOP UNTIL THE END OF THE HOP. PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR NEW POSTS :)

Welcome to the Let's Scrap Leap Around the World Blog hop!!! I am so glad you could join us!! I am the very first stop on this HUGE blog hop! There are 50 wonderful and incredibly talented hostess that will inspire you as you Leap Around the World.

I am proud and honored to be on the Design Team at Let's Scrap which is a fantastic sketch and challenge scrapbooking and card making website. It is a community that encourages and motivates everyone and their love for scrapping! We have over 3,600 members from every part of the world. That is how we can "Leap around the World"!

So, without further ado, here is the sketch from Let's Scrap that I am showcasing for the hop.

I have 2 examples I have created with this sketch to share with you.

This card will be given to my BFF as a thanks for all she has done for me lately.

For this card I used

DCWV Cotton Bloom stack, Stampin Up! Thank You stamp, A la Mode embossing powder, Darice Heat tool, Versamark embossing pad, Peeled Paint Distress Ink, Studio G glitter glue (on sentiment), Tim Holtz Curiosity stamp on left background, Cutter Bee scissors, gems unknown stash

This is secretly for my DH for our anniversary next month ;) Here are the supplies I used:

DCWV Rockstar 8x8 stack, unknown glitter cs, Blood Omen font for title using SCAL and my Cricut(from acidfonts.com), Graphix foil board-silver (the scanner killed the shine), EK chain punch, Brown Zig Writer around the title and star, SCAL and Cri-Kits metal embosser, Cri-Kits metal, fussy cut the wings with my Cutter Bee's and my sewing machine

NOW FOR THE FUN PART!!!! I HAVE CANDY!!!!

A spool of American Crafts ribbon, wooden buttons, Studio G gel pen 5 pack, 2 packs Studio G Rhinestone Clusters, Michaels Vintage Finds rub-ons, Bella Blvd adhesive chipboard and TPC Studio Brush Stroke Greetings Rubber cling stamps. I will ship this anywhere in the world!!!

You love it?? You want it?? SO super easy to enter!! I will even give you 2 chances!!

~~CHANCE 1 for my draw~~

*Be or Become a member of Let's Scrap which you can do by clicking http://letsscrap.ning.com/. It is free, simple to do and once you get there, I am sure you will love it!!

*Become a follower of my blog. I always love making new friends!

*Leave me a comment and let me know what color you use the most when scrapping/card making

(We arefinding that using Google Chrome or Firefox as your internet browser is the best option as Internet Explorer or IE does not always "playnice" with Blogger)!

~~CHANCE 2 for my draw~~

*Create a card (or layout if you wish) from the sketch I have posted and upload it into the gallery at Let's Scrap. You can do this from your "My Page" and adding photos. When you upload it, there will be a place to insert a tag. Please tag your card from this sketch as such

1-18-12, LEAP1

Please note LEAP is all capitals and there is no space between LEAP and 1. Also, don't forget the comma.

*Leave a comment with a link to your card on Let's Scrap. If you need help with linking, you can find instructions here http://letsscrap.ning.com/forum/topics/how-to-copy-and-paste-a-page-link

PLEASE NOTE-the card needs to be newly created for the hop

Doing more than 1 card for my stop will not get you more chances at my candy, but no worries! With 50 hosts with 50 different sketches, you should have plenty to keep you busy! All winners will be drawn at random, so don't be shy! No matter what level of card maker you are, you will still have a chance to win! So clear off your desk and grab your scraps, there is a serious amount of cards to be created!! Don't worry, you don't HAVE to do all 50 cards! If you only have time for a couple, that is fine. You will get the second chance in the drawing for the blogs that you did create a card for.

The hop begins at 10:00 am Central standard time February 1, 2012 and will end at 11:59 pm February 29, 2012 Central standard time. This is the time zone that the main page of Let's Scrap uses, so you can always check there for reference.

All 50 winners will be announced March 3, 2012 in the Let's Scrap forum and after that announcement, each host will also be announcing their winner on their individual blogs.

THANKS FOR VISITING AND LEAVING ME SOME BLOG LOVE!!

Your next stop is the super talented, inspirational paper artist and fellow Design Team member

ELIZNA PARSONS

http://www.eliznaparsons.blogspot.com/

Here is the entire hop road map, since it is HUGE! If you lose your way, each hostess will have a link back to me to help you get back on track :)

1-18-12,LEAP1 Mindi Brown http://scrapchat-n-coffeetalk.blogspot.com/

2-5-12,LEAP2 Elizna Parsons http://www.eliznaparsons.blogspot.com/

9-21-11,LEAP3 Jennifer Russell http://scrapinexpecttheunexpected.blogspot.com/

4-15-09,LEAP4 Betty Anne Orr http://letsgetscraphappy.blogspot.com/

5-2-11,LEAP5 Sue Colerick http://creativitybug.blogspot.com/

12-15-10,LEAP6 Debby De Wilde http://drdewilde.blogspot.com/

11-16-11,LEAP7 Margaret Kieser http://www.deniquecrafts.blogspot.com/

10-21-09,LEAP8 Keely Yowler http://www.keelyy.blogspot.com/

2-18-09,LEAP9 Cathy Van de Bruinhorst http://cathysobsessions.blogspot.com/

10-19-11,LEAP10 Judy Rakes http://judyrakes.blogspot.com/

12-23-09,LEAP11 Sherri Priest http://www.sherripriest.blogspot.com/

2-4-12,LEAP12 Wilna Cremer http://scrappinpreciousmoments.blogspot.com/

3-16-11,LEAP13 Jody Spiegelhoff http://spiegelmom.blogspot.com/

5-3-11,LEAP14 Katy Drogos http://iliketocutandpaste.blogspot.com/

3-17-10,LEAP15 Debbie Butcher http://workinscrappinmomof4.blogspot.com/

2-3-12,LEAP16 Jenessa Franco http://jenessafranco.blogspot.com/

8-17-11,LEAP 17 Kristin Perez http://somescrapsugar.blogspot.com/

8-18-10,LEAP18 Kay Wallace http://kaywallacescrapbooking.blogspot.com/

2-10-12,LEAP19 Jen Leeflang http://jencraftsa.blogspot.com/

9-16-09,LEAP20 Peggy Ruiz http://peggysplace-peggys.blogspot.com/

2-11-12,LEAP21 Sesil Cratin http://sesilcratin.blogspot.com/

1-20-10,LEAP22 Sharon-Lee Coetzer http://shazleescrap.blogspot.com/

5-1-11,LEAP23 Anne Gaffney-iehl http://annes12x12stepprogram.blogspot.com/

2-6-12,LEAP24 Michelle Rigg http://allthingsbling-michr.blogspot.com/

2-13-12,LEAP25 CarolSue Bentley http://carolsuedesigns.blogspot.com/

6-15-11,LEAP26 Tenny Kusuma http://createwithtenny.blogspot.com/

4-21-10,LEAP27 Andrea Green http://papercandie.blogspot.com/

2-9-12,LEAP28 Jodi Ethington http://talkingtwineandtrim.blogspot.com/

1-19-11,LEAP29 Sue Down http://4scrappitite.blogspot.com/

5-18-11,LEAP30 Carolina Garrido http://caromgar.blogspot.com/

8-19-09,LEAP31 Rachelle Seierlein http://crafti.blogspot.com/

10-20-10,LEAP32 Susanna Granroth http://suscu.wordpress.com/

2-16-11,LEAP33 Tamytha Jenkins http://www.paperheartist.com/

7-15-09,LEAP34 Diana Taylor http://moshiesmoments.blogspot.com/

4-20-11,LEAP35 Jodi Releford http://we-remember-moments.blogspot.com/

7-20-11,LEAP36 Sharon Fritchman http://www.thatgirlfritchey.blogspot.com/

2-17-10,LEAP37 Jeaunes Vilijoen http://jeaunes.blogspot.com/

2-7-12,LEAP38 Michelle Looi http://scraposition.blogspot.com/

6-16-10,LEAP39 Dawn Tavela http://www.scrapmyworld-dawn.blogspot.com/

5-19-10,LEAP40 Chriss America Real http://chrissandlou.blogspot.com/

5-10-09,LEAP41 Heather Hunt http://www.creativecoconut08.blogspot.com/

11-24-09,LEAP42 Lynn Shokoples http://scrappyhappymom.blogspot.com/

7-21-10,LEAP43 Kim Wiseman http://www.paperartsy.com.au/blog

5-5-11,LEAP44 Janet Petersma http://www.ofcatsandcardstock.blogspot.com/

2-12-12,LEAP45 Carla de Zinger http://sweetscrappins.blogspot.com/

9-15-10,LEAP46 Eniko DeLisle http://enikodelisle.typepad.com/enikos-playhouse/

2-2-12,LEAP47 Tory Frail http://tfraildesigns.blogspot.com/

6-17-09,LEAP48 Moira Coward http://onesmartbug.blogspot.com/

5-20-09,LEAP49 Chelsey Davis http://www.scarycutecreations.blogspot.com/

11-17-10,LEAP50 Betty Hornbrook http://scrappingfleas.blogspot.com/

T-13 Modeling-Another form of Art

2012-02-15T19:32:00.000-07:00

Hey blogger friends, I would like to introduce you to my brothers. (names have been changed to protect the guilty LOL)

Skendo

Fennie

Do you see the family resemblance?

Anyhow, these 2 cool dudes have started a blog, T-13 Modeling. To start with, the picture on the top of their blog is our Pa, many years ago, in front of his stock car. Yeah, my Pa was pretty bada@@!! Since I was the wayyyy youngest in the family (10 years younger than Fennie, 12 less than Skendo), these 2 really looked out for me and I have always looked up to them. I remember they would tell me "If you tell us where Ma put the cookies, we will give you one"! How sweet!! Wait a tick......I could have kept my mouth shut and had all the cookies!!!! LOL

Anyhow, their blog is about working on models (like the ones they are pictured with), music, and whatever awesomeness and humor they come up with. If y'all wouldn't mind going over and giving them some blog love, that would be way cool!

If you have a husband, boyfriend, or anyone in your life that enjoys models, send them to T-13 Modeling also. They could trade tricks and tips, chit chat or whatever.

Thanks in advance for spreading the love to my bros! Tell them Newt sent ya :)
Cheers!
~Mindi

This week's Let's Scrap sketch!

2012-02-09T11:23:00.000-07:00

I posted my cards yesterday, but forgot all about the new sketch. Shame on me! If you go to Let"s Scrap you can join in on the fun.

I kind of took liberties with the sketch this week. I only used the left side and I rotated it for my picture. So, here is the sketch

and here is what I did with it

Yes, another honeymoon page, but I am getting closer to done! I tried to replicate the elements in my dress. I added satin ribbon, fringe, feather and fuzzy yarn. The masking (Tim Holtz) and inking I did in the corner is similar to the curtain. I also used my Cricut and vinyl to make my own mask for the title. This is my first attempt at misting, and I am sure if I had the proper stuff to use, I would like it better. Not bad for watered down acrylic paint tho!

Have a great day all!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Got some cards done today!

2012-02-08T20:15:00.000-07:00

I don't have my list in front of me, but I will put the LEAP tags with each of these cards. They were all created today for the blog hop. There was no good way for me to choose which blogs to visit first, so I let random.org do the choosing for me! I am not going to say that I will be able to play at every blog, but I will certainly try. Today was a good start!

This is LEAP22 for Kay Wallace's blog. http://kaywallacescrapbooking.blogspot.com/ I used DCWV Tattered Time, Tim Holtz stamps and distress ink.

This is LEAP22 for Sharon-Lee Coetzer. http://shazleescrap.blogspot.com/ I used a page kit I had sitting around from K&Company

This is for LEAP25 for Carol Sue Bentley. http://carolsuedesigns.blogspot.com/ I used DCWV All Dressed Up and some hot pink stash. I love the silver chrome liquid pearls. They are so fun to play with!

This is LEAP47 for Tory Frail. http://tfraildesigns.blogspot.com/ I used DCWV Taj Mahal stack and some stash gold glitter stock.

So, quite a day! I also cleaned house, took 2 of 4 kids to the dentist, made dinner and did dishes! But to the other mom's out there, that is probably sounding pretty familiar!

Have a great night, and Mom's~kick your feet up, you deserve it!

Cheers!

~Mindi

A little behind...(picture heavy)

2012-02-07T20:58:00.001-07:00

So with all the festivities of the hop, I have failed to post a couple of my latest creations! Shame on me! Doesn't mean I haven't been scrapping LOL I am going to make my descriptions brief, as I am sooo ready to get off the computer for today! No offense blogger friends, I still love you all!!

This LO is from the current main page sketch at Let's Scrap. There will be a new sketch tomorrow. Like I said, a little behind! This is my awesome Dad, RIP, pointing at the car with a huge story behind it. Maybe another day for that one. The smaller picture is the tattoo on my left shoulder. I had one of my Pa's old drivers licenses, so the artist scanned it and I have his writing on me.

This is one of the 3 vineyards we went to a wine tasting at on our honeymoon, Sonoita Vineyard. Beautiful place and they had some great wines. On the left side is a candied hibiscus flower that they put in the sparkling wine and when the glass is empty you eat it! It was cool, so cool that we bought a jar of them and will partake next month for our 1st anniversary.

This is also from the honeymoon. The Butterfield Overland Coach. We took a short ride around Tombstone in it. Mark Twain rode in one of these coaches across the west. He wrote about it in one of his books, but my memory fails me. I do remember that he wrote he was less than comfortable LOL I can understand why! This particular coach is original and pulled by mules! They were sweet girls!

Last day in Arizona, at the Tucson Airport specifically. I am thrilled with the picture of the humming bird I got.

The last of the 3 vineyards we went to. The Village of Elgin Winery. The have wines called "Cheeky Monkey" and "Playful Monkey" LOL I am going to have to admit right now, I had tasted A LOT of wine by time we got to this vineyard. I would not be the right one to give an honest critique of the products that they sell LOL

It has been awhile since I have done a wedding page, I was about due. I tried to match my background to the bottom layer of the cake and then the pearl dots around the border of the white paper to match the middle layer. I promise that all my elements are as square and straight as can be, photography is just not my strong suit!

Well, that was a quick review of what I have been up to! Let's Scrap will be posting a new sketch tomorrow. Since I am on the Design Team, my example is already done BUT no peeking, you can't see it until next time!

Have a great night all!

~Cheers!

Mindi

Let's Scrap Leap Around the World Blog Hop

2012-01-31T22:30:00.000-07:00

This will remain on the top of my page until January 31. Scroll down for new posts :)

As one of the 50 international host blogs, I am gearing up now for the upcoming Let's Scrap "Leap Around the World" February blog hop!! This is the largest scrapbooking blog hop I have ever heard of! This fun event will start at 10:00am on February 1 and end on February 29th at 11:59pm according to the main page clock on the Let's Scrap website (your clock may vary, so check the time difference).

I would love it if you joined me in this big hop! There are several things you can do RIGHT NOW to be prepared:

Make sure you are signed up as a follower on this blog. Just scroll up to the right-hand corner and click on JOIN THIS SITE.
Click here to join the Let's Scrap website. It's free, simple and quick!
Find all those scraps of paper you have been setting aside for the last 5 years. You will need them because the blog hop is all about making CARDS!
Clean off your scrap table
Get ready to make a massive amounts of cards, each from a different sketch, so lots of variety!

OK, a few more details. You did read correctly: there are 50 blog hosts! Once you have joined Let's Scrap, at each blog, you will get two chances to win some blog candy (aka: booty, prizes)! Do the math! You will have 100 chances to win free stuff...and good stuff, too! This is also the perfect opportunity to restock your card stash! The first chance comes when you join/follow each blog and leave a comment. The second chance comes when you use the card sketch on each blog to create a card, layout or other project based upon the card sketch appearing on each blog--they are all different! You then must post your creation in the Let's Scrap website gallery, then go back to each blog and leave a second comment linking back to your gallery post. Don't be overwhelmed...you are doing only one card at a time! Our hope is that you will visit every blog, but, remember, you have the whole month of February to do this.

I am stop number 1, so keep an eye on me and we will hop the month away!

Liebster Blog!!!!

2012-01-31T09:31:00.001-07:00

I received the Liebster Blog Award from my dear friend, fellow DT member and inspirational scrapping buddy Cathy Van de Bruinhorst at http://cathysobsessions.blogspot.com/!!!

I have heard of this award from seeing it on other blogs, but I was shocked to be a recipient! What a wonderful feeling to be acknowledged by your peers!

The origins of the Liebster Blog award are somewhat

unclear but general consensus is that they originated in

Germany. Liebster, meaning - favorite or dearest to

showcase bloggers with fewer than 200 followers. Upon

accepting this award the recipient must then pass it on to

five more blogs.

I received this award along with 4 other wonderful and talented scrappers. I am honored to be listed among them

Kay Wallace at http://kaywallacescrapbooking.blogspot.com/
Debby de Wilde at http://drdewilde.blogspot.com/
Michelle van Wyk at http://homespunscrap.blogspot.com/
Jeaunes Vilijoen at http://jeaunes.blogspot.com

I have many blogs that I enjoy following, but these are a few of my faves with less than 200 followers.

I give a Liebster Blog Award to:

Andrea Green http://papercandie.blogspot.com/

*Andrea is just full of such fun and it shows in her beautiful work

Katy Drogos http://iliketocutandpaste.blogspot.com/

*Katy has such wonderful ideas, tips and tricks that she shares on her blog

Sharon Fritchman http://thatgirlfritchey.blogspot.com/

*Sharon has a great scrapping style and I love the colors and products she uses

Lynn Shokoples http://scrappyhappymom.blogspot.com/

*Lynn has such beautiful pages that are just perfectly embellished

Betty Hornbrook http://scrappingfleas.blogspot.com/

*Betty has such an awesome spirit and it always shows in her work

I could really say so much more about each of these ladies, but I am very excited to pass this on to them!!

Have a great day all!

Cheers!

~Mindi

Timeless, LOAD 15

2012-01-26T15:20:00.001-07:00

Yes, I realize today is the 26th and I am only on #15. I may not do 31 pages, but I am getting more done than I would have.

So, this page has a story. I was going thru Mike's pictures and COULD NOT resist to do a page with these beauties!

I had all sorts of awesome titles in mind about mullets and "business in the front, party in the back" etc. I found this chipboard, and realized it was perfect! I sent Mike a text message with a picture of the page. His reply was "Real mature...or not I guess. Shoulda put the old tux pic next to the new tux pic". I am going to pause here and say I love this man to death and the fact that he has input and really good ideas for my pages makes me swoon. So, here is the new version of the page

I have to admit, I really do like this one better. As much fun as it was to laugh at his mullet pictures, the tuxedo's are great with these papers. So, Kudos to Mike for being my "artistic director" of sorts!

papers are DCWV All Dressed Up

EK Dahlia punch

Studio G-chipboard title and glitter I put on it

Celebrate it ribbon

random sequins for fun :)

Have a great day all!

Cheers!

~Mindi

It's Wednesday, new sketch at Let's Scrap!

2012-01-25T08:35:00.001-07:00

Good morning all! Hope everyone has been well. I have been busier than a dog trying to bury 3 bones, but I did get a page done! I used this week's sketch at Let's Scrap

and this is what I created

This is my darling son on his 5th birthday. Yes, it was 2000 so he is 16 now, but I love these pics we had done with he was just a little bugger! The papers are My Mind's Eye Lost and Found as are the embellishments. Brown stock is DCWV, ribbon is Craftsmart from Michaels and I used my sewing machine.
As most of you can tell, I am a more simple scrapper, clean lines and neat, so this sketch was super easy for me!

Have a great day all!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Exciting News!

2012-01-23T18:49:00.001-07:00

I have been slightly absent from my blog for a couple weeks now. I haven't gotten much scrapping done either, but I have been productive! Besides organizing the awesome Let's Scrap Leap Around the world blog hop, I am so much closer to opening my scrapbooking/papercrafting store!!! It has been a long road and a lot of planning, but finally everything is coming together! It is a mix between terror and sheer excitement!

I do have a Facebook page set up for it. I would love to hear from all my blogger friends! Even "like" it while you are there ;) Even if you are not in my local area, I would love to hear what things you like to see at your local store!
Butterfly Papercrafts

The picture is a mini oil painting that my wonderful and super talented BFF Susie did for me! Keep a look out, because once the physical store is open, I will be doing online orders!
Cheers!
~ Mindi

LOAD challenge #10

2012-01-18T21:14:00.000-07:00

Very excited to finally be in double digits!! I am still quite a bit behind, but if I can keep going today that would be awesome! I used Let's Scrap sketch 1-4-09

My honey is a drummer, which I think is totally HOT! LOL I haven't gotten to see him play yet, since his drums have been stored since we met. They do take a lot of room to set up! This is the first band he was ever in. I played with the top photo with Photoshop so you could at least see the shape of his head! I do love that it is a smoky, blurry bar picture, adds to the awesomeness!

supplies

all papers are unknown from my stash

drum set - Jolee's Boutique

cardstock stickers (rock n roll and lightening bolt) The Paper Studio

orange stars and title cut with Cricut

font-Blood Omen from Acid Fonts (free site)

I used my Cri-Kits gel pen to write the title then with SCAL I used the shadow function to cut it out. Then I made the shadow bigger to cut the orange. I lightly colored it with black colored pencil so the paper texture would show. It kind of matches the bubbles on the paper.

I am kind of on a roll today, so back to scrapping I go! Have a scrappy day!

Cheers!

~Mindi

New sketch at Let's Scrap today!

2012-01-18T09:16:00.001-07:00

Since it is the third Wednesday of the month, today's sketch is a card sketch created by the talented Debby De Wilde

and here is my card, which I am rather proud of :)

The scanner kind of killed some of the shine, but oh well. I am not a super flowery kind of gal, so I had way to much fun making this! I do find that it is a little harder to make masculine cards. This is actually going to be given to my husband for our anniversary in March. Funny, cuz he was giving me input as I was making it teehee!!

Supplies
background DCWV Rockstar 8x8 stack
chain - EK punch, Graphix Metallic foil board (it is actually shiny silver)
glitter paper unknown stash
outline on title and star - Zig Writer, Chocolate
metal and embosser- Cri-Kits
font- Blood Omen from Acid Fonts (free site)
misc - Cricut, SCAL and sewing machine

It is EVIL cold here, so I am hunkering down and gonna try to get some scrapping done today! Stay warm everyone!
Cheers!
~Mindi

You make me smile! LOAD 8

2012-01-12T12:09:00.001-07:00

Hello Everyone!! For more info on the LayOut A Day challenge, click the blinkie on my sidebar! I was challenged by some of the gals in the chat group at Let's Scrap to make a layout about coffee. It is really neat to see the brands and types of coffee from all over the world. This is my favorite coffee that I can get locally. I used Let's Scrap sketch from 6-24-09 and just the left side.

I figured since it was Snowy Mountain Mudd, I would take a picture of it in the snow LOL I used photoshop and added the poster effect to it. Background cardstock is DCWV Main Street, all other papers are random stash. I used my Cricut, SCAL and Cri-Kits markers for my title. The font is BaaBookHmkBold and I believe it was pre-installed in my computer. The coffee mug stamps are Stampin Up! and I used Versa Mark ink with Hampton Arts embossing powder. I can't remember the brand that the coffee mug brads are, but I didn't have brown. So I embossed it with bronze A'la Mode powder. The green twine is Trendy Twine and I don't know the maker of the brown. I also used Tim Holtz distress ink in vintage photo and peeled paint.

Just for fun, I thought I would show you the mess I made creating this one little page!

I have been super busy with the plans for the blog hop! It is going to be an incredible amount of fun! I will be posting updates and details, so stay tuned!

Have a great day!

Cheers!

~Mindi

Tombstone Miscellany

2012-01-11T08:59:00.001-07:00

Good Morning All! It is 4 degrees here and covered in snow. Nothing unusual for Montana at this time of year, but still is yucky!

It is Wednesday, so that means a new sketch at Let's Scrap! Here is this weeks wonderful sketch from Cheri O'Neill

and here is my creation

My background is DCWV Main Street Stack. My solids are Wausau. I used Tim Holtz distress ink Peeled Paint for the title. The twine, metal buckle and saddle were inherited from Granny's stash when she passed.

These are all pictures from our honeymoon that I liked, but couldn't really see making pages for each one. The honeymoon album is going to be huge anyway!

So, starting on the right

Mike on the mechanical horse inside the OK Corral

Me with the gentleman who plays Wyatt Earp and looks ALOT like Kurt Russell!

3 cowboys from Helldorado town, one using his "cowboy communicator" lol

Me with "Trashy Tricia" on a ghost hunt

Mike standing in front of the bar that used to be Campbell & Hatches, I think

the Hipp-alo (hippy buffalo) seen at the OK Cafe

butterfly at Sonoita Vineyards

Scolds, or gossip bridle at Rose Tree Museum

Mike, day 1, forgetting he is on vacation

Grizz the blacksmith, making our horseshoe

Mike's hand next to my ribs at The Longhorn

I will tell ya, I would (and will) go back to Tombstone as soon as I get a chance. We had so much fun!

Have a great day all, and stay warm!

Cheers!

~Mindi

DCWV January Stack A Holic

2012-01-10T12:42:00.001-07:00

Greetings to all! I have been a little MIA lately. Putting together a blog hop with 50 hosts is a lot of work!! It is going to be great reward tho! All the gals are really excited, including me, and all working hard on some awesome examples to post!

I haven't gotten much scrapping done, but I did get my page for this month's DCWV challenge finished!

I used the High School stack and a piece from the Metallic stack for his name. This is the first page ever I have sewed on! My dear friend Susie brought me over a sewing machine and I had to play with it right away! The chipboard is Colorbok. I inked the gold with Pamass gold ink and the brackets with Tim Holtz black soot. I did add just a dab of gold on top of the black. "Cliff" was cut with my Cricut using SCAL.

I haven't had this stack for very long, so I will have to go back and do Freshman next LOL

I hope everyone is doing well and avoiding the dreaded winter cold. Until next time,

Cheers!

~Mindi

Let's Scrap Leap Around the World Blog Hop

2012-01-05T15:32:00.000-07:00

I can not even begin to tell you how excited I am to be organizing and hostessing this blog hop! We have 50, YES 50, super talented and really cool ladies hosting for this! Each hostess will be offering blog candy and 2 chances on each blog to win! That gives you 100 possible chances to win!

HOLY COW!

It will be from February 1 to February 29, so mark your calendars and be ready to make some cards and win some candy!!! You only get a chance to Leap Around the World every 4 years :)

Cheers!
~Mindi

LayOut A Day (LOAD) Challenge from Let's Scrap

2012-01-03T19:08:00.001-07:00

Well, it is January 3, and I offically have 3 pages done. I am ok with breaking even!! If you click the blinkie on my side bar that says LOAD, it will take you to Let's Scrap and tell you all about the LOAD!!

So, I don't have a lot of time this evening, so here it is

Hope you got a chuckle out of my goofy hubby!

Have a great night!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Blog Hop from Let's Scrap

2012-01-03T08:29:00.000-07:00

Hi blogger friends! Just wanted to give you a heads up! As a Design Team member at Let's Scrap I have the privilege of organizing and being a hostess for a blog hop!

There are a lot of talented ladies that will be hosting with each one offering some wonderful prizes!

You will have 2 chances to win on EACH blog!! Join us February 1-26 for tons of fun and inspiration! More details to come, but make sure you bookmark this hop, as it is going to be huge!

Cheers!

~Mindi

1st Layout of 2012!

2012-01-01T11:48:00.001-07:00

Hi all! I hope that you had a wonderful New Year's celebrations whether it was wild and crazy or cozy at home! I would be part of the cozy at home crew! I am taking it easy on myself this year with the Resolutions! I hate to set myself up for failure! My scrappy resolutions are to be better about writing the completion date on the back of my LO's and to try more new techniques. My home resolution is to try new recipes from the tons of cookbooks I have. Easy cheesy!!

So, here is my first page completed in 2012!

This picture was taken the day we arrived at Tombstone Arizona for our honeymoon. The cowboy that was watching us and laughing told us that the county has spent thousands of dollars replacing these signs because people kept stealing them! I think it is a cute sign, but not cute enough to want to go to jail! LOL

My awesome husband Mike bought me ALL the Cri Kits accessories for Christmas, and I gotta say I love them! I wrote on the background cardstock, the journaling and the dates with my Cricut! It is nice to have all the fonts exactly the same!

I used a go coffee holder for the journaling and behind the dates.

Yes, I put the cardboard in my Cricut! I am telling you, he can sure pick good gifts!! Love him!

I am very excited that I completed 120 layouts and 154 cards in 2011! I have to admit, I am going to start making cards for the craft fair earlier this year, since the bulk of those cards were made in a 2 week period! ACK! I am hoping to get 200 layouts in 2012 since I really didn't scrapbook in 2011 until May. The beginning of the year there was crafting, but it was all wedding stuff.

I hope everyone has a wonderful and prosperous 2012!

Cheers!

~Mindi

This weeks sketch @ Let's Scrap

2011-12-28T10:11:00.002-07:00

Good morning all! I hope everyone is recovering from the holidays!
Well, it's Wednesday, so that means a new sketch at Let's Scrap. Here is the sketch for this week

This sketch is great for a Christmas page or any page that you have a lot of pictures for, but only want to do one layout for it. If you tape or tie or whatever you would like on the right side, you can "hide" 6 more photo's on to one layout! So here is my take on the sketch

and here it is with the right side open (sorry for the camera glare, it is very overcast here, so I had to use the living room lights!)

Isn't that an awesome way to add extra photos!!

I used DCWV Harvest Gathering stack for all my pp's. I sanded the tan cardstock background. I used a banner stamp that I got from a yard sale for 25cents that I have had for months and never touched! Instead of using regular ink, I used VersaMark and embossed the banner gold. I really like the way it turned out!
Here is a close up of it and you can see the polka dots shimmering from the pp.

So, I hope this sketch inspires you to grab a stack of photos and get scrappin!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Challenge 125 @ Let's Scrap (picture heavy!)

2011-12-21T14:24:00.001-07:00

My dear friend Cathy van de Bruinhorst posted the Design Team Challenge for this 2 week period at Let's Scrap. The challenge was to use a song title or part of a song as your page title. Click here to go check it out. So here is my submission

Of course the song is "Still the One" by Orleans. It fits with the pictures, as the older ones are from my folks' first couple years of marriage and both pics on the left are from their 40th anniversary, 12/25/1992. Even though my Dad passed 8/17/1995, he is still the only one for my Mom. He was the only man she was ever with, and they were faithful and loving to each other for over 42 years. Of course they bickered and had the occasional "disagreement" but they stood next to each other through thick and thin. I think it is funny that in the pic that has the 1953 corner on it is dated June 1953. They were married 12/25/52 and she is already "glowing"! LOL My sister, who was the oldest, was born November 1953 teehee!

The bottom left picture is my Mom and Dad kissing 12/25/92. My Dad bought my Mom a ruby ring for their 40th. It is the ONE and ONLY piece of jewelry my Dad EVER bought my Mother. I turned it black and white which I thought I did for the flow of the pages, but in hind sight, I wish I would have left it alone. Oh well.

Just for fun, here are the other pics from the pages. Some of them are not the greatest, especially the one where you can barely see my Dad's face, but this is all I had to work with.

1955

undated

June 1953

undated

Here are some close-ups of the page

First, I just got an EK dimensional flower punch "Dahlia" and I had to play with it. I gotta say, it is cool! Esp using the gold metallic cardstock! I put a little piece of the lace in the middle, just for funs.

Here is a closer pic of the lacing I did. Used eyelets from my stash and green and gold DMC embroidery floss. I also used the gold floss for the french knot centers of the smaller flowers. NOTE: it really sucks trying to make a french knot with the metallic floss!!! The buttons are also stash from stuff I got from Granny's house. The smaller flowers were made for my MS punch.

All the papers I used are from The Paper Studio's Bella Bohemia stack.

It wasn't the easiest thing in the world doing this page, but I really am glad I got it done before Christmas. In my heart, it will be their 59th Anniversary. <3

Cheers!

~Mindi

This weeks sketch at Let's Scrap

2011-12-15T14:48:00.001-07:00

edit to post~ I forgot to bling the tree, so I changed the close up pic, which now has bling!!

Hello fellow crafters! Since I am on Design Team A at Let's Scrap, I don't HAVE to do this weeks sketch, but it's so cute, how could I not?

Anyone is welcome to join and play along! Just click here to get to Let's Scrap!
So here is my jovial take on the sketch

First and foremost, I always want to give credit where it is due. I saw the idea for my Christmas tree SOMEWHERE blog hopping in the last few days. I wish I could remember where, but unfortunately, blog hopping has became a new disorder that I have to cope with. So if it is YOU reading this, please let me know so I can give you proper credit. :)

So here is the products I used, in no particular order
red cardstock is unknown stash. (I find it really hard to keep up with the makers of my solids)
All of the different pp's are from Cloud9 Seasonal 180 sheet paper pack (including the tree which is strips of the paper wrapped around a pencil then glued)
gold cardstock DCWV Glitter Stack-Metallics
white cardstock Colorbok
ribbon - found in a Christmas decoration box (and yes, I took it and ran!)
ink around 2 ovals - Colorbox Cat Eye Gold Brocade
"Merry" stamp - Recollections
"Merry" stamped with Colorbox Cat Eye Silk Green
title cut with my Cricut using SCAL and Gawain font (found online for FREE!)
bakers twine is unknown maker as I bought just a few yards at a LSS

So, this was Mike's Company Christmas party last weekend. It was in a ballroom at a local hotel, so sorry for the poor lighting on the pics. We did a White Elephant gift exchange and were told to bring something free/cheap and funny. So I will explain the pics. The small pic with the 2 guys is Mike and his co worker. Mike got himself a boot ornament. He was incredibly impressed with it at the time. As the Crown Royal wore off, he was slightly less impressed! LOL The gal top left got an aluminum foil bikini, the gentleman got some groovy sunglasses, the next guy got a plate of sausage made to look like poo, the next gal got a rather large pair of men's underwear with prison stripes that say "most wanted", and the best for last. The guy on the bottom got a deck of cards wrapped just perfectly so when he opened it, he had to play 52 card pick-up, whether he wanted to or not!! LOL A great time was had by all, especially my DH Mike. He may have taken too many trips to the open bar, but I have to forgive him. We never go to bars downtown so this is his one time a year for letting loose. I was apprehensive of what he would think of me putting the pic of him on the LO, but he just laughed at himself. So with that,

A MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL,

Cheers!
~Mindi

Creating from the Heart Blog Candy!!

2011-12-14T12:55:00.000-07:00

So my friend from Creating for the Heart * Keepsakes by Melissa is going to make someone's holiday cheery and bright!! Below is listed what her blog candy is, you REALLY need to check this out! Click here to go to her blog!!

~ A $150.00 Gift Card to Michael's Craft Stores

~ 1 Copic Air-Brushing Starter Set System

~ 1 Copic Color Swatch Book

and finally....

~ 36 Copic CIAO Marker Set!

Are you kiddin' me, WOW!! Good luck to all and thanks to Melissa for such an awesome giveaway!

Cheers!

~Mindi

Blog candy @ Scrappingmamma

2011-12-13T21:10:00.001-07:00

My friend Deb @ Scrappingmamma is giving away this awesome blog candy! While you are there, you should really check things out. She is super talented and creative!

http://www.scrappingmamma.net/2011/12/hello-my-friends-its-december-only-22.html

Cheers!
~Mindi

Stack-a-holic time again!!

2011-12-13T15:56:00.000-07:00

For those few of you that follow me, you have probably figured out that I love to participate in the monthly challenges from the DCWV blog!!
Here is the sketch this month from Susan at Sketch Savvy

Super cute huh? So, this is what I did

If the title looks familiar, then you know of the Fray, since this is the title to one of their hits. I used Roulien's awesome tutorial from Let's Scrap to use a corner punch to make the beautiful circle. I ripped the edges of the cream cardstock and inked with Tim Holtz Vintage Photo distress ink just a little to make them pop. The flower is 4 circles cut from the corners of the sheet from the Once Upon a Time DCWV stack that was left after making the big circle. I chalked the inside of the flower since it was not a double sided cardstock. The button is vintage from some stuff I got from Granny's house. I also put a little glitter on 2 of the petals and a smidge more on the edges of the mat of the kitty picture. The title was cut with my Cricut using my SCAL and CK Beauty font that I got on Free Font Friday from Creating Keepsakes. Here is a closer pic of the flower and circle.

So, the touching story that goes with these pictures. The little kitty Queso had to go to the vet and have her girly bits taken care of. She was knocked out completely for a couple hours after she got home. The vet reccomended that since there was a dog and another cat in the home, to leave her in the carrier until she was moving around on her own. Our boxer Aoife (pronounced EE-fa) was very concerned about her little friend. She layed there for hours. Every time Queso would wiggle, she would jump to attention and make sure everything was alright. When the other cat Floki came within 10 feet, Aoife chased him away. It was the most precious show of affection and concern between animals. In my opinion, completely worth scrapping!

Thanks for looking and have a great evening!!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Finally got my hubby's surprise done!

2011-12-12T19:53:00.001-07:00

So a couple of days ago I promised I would show you what I was planning to surprise my DH Mike with. Well, here it is

Mike and I are both big Raiders fans, so we have Raiders tree! I made paper ornaments with black, white and Raiders cardstock. I used my SCAL and Cricut to cut black vinyl "Raiders" and shields for the glass balls, (which were only 1$ for all at a thrift store!) and silver and white vinyl and black cardstock for the topper. I was lucky enough to find 70 count lights on white cord at a yard sale this summer for 25 cents each! I may be slightly biased, but I LOVE our tree! Partly because of the Raiders, partly because it is something different than traditional.

Been a long day, good night all!
Cheers!
~Mindi

No longer a secret!!

2011-12-07T10:44:00.001-07:00

Here is the sketch that I submitted for the Design Team at Let's Scrap

I am very excited to see it on the main page, along with my pic under DT also!!
If ya have a minute, you should go see what we are up to over there ;)
http://letsscrap.ning.com/

As far as the secret project for the hubby, he caught me! I am making Oakland Raiders paper ornaments for our Christmas tree. I will post pics as soon as I get some done.

Happy Hump Day all!
Cheers!
~Mindi

8 Years Straight

2011-12-05T21:13:00.001-07:00

So, with craft shows over (and being total wash outs!) and my new-to-me corner desk is in my room and everything is tidy for now, I have scrapped! It seems like with everything going on and all the cards I made that I haven't done a layout in forever! So this is what I did with this weeks sketch at Let's Scrap

These pictures were taken at the Birdcage Theatre in Tombstone, Arizona on our honeymoon. This is the card table that is in the basement. It is exactly as it was in the late 1800's when the game stopped. Minus the rude people who have no respect for history and thought it was a good idea to throw coins over the barrier. Sorry, but being someone who enjoys history, I didn't find it in good taste. So, I will now jump off of my soap box and move on. It is said that Doc Holiday and Johnny Ringo both played faro at this table at some point during the game. Of course, not at the same time :) It is said to be the longest running poker game in history, playing continuously for 8 years, 5 months and 3 days non-stop. If someone went broke, or was shot (which happened a few times) a runner would immediately find the next player on the list. I find this absolutely fascinating!
The center "straight" with the cards is a mini poster I bought at a yard sale for just this page. I started this page in August and could never quite get it how I wanted it. When the sketch for this week came out at Let's Scrap, everything just fell into place. The red stripes are fiber paper that was crumpled and inked with distress ink. The "8 years" was cut with my Cricut. I really liked the way it FINALLY turned out!

Stayed tuned tomorrow, I have a special "secret" project that I am going to do for my honey and I will share with you ;)

Cheers!
~Mindi

TOP 10

2011-11-30T11:53:00.001-07:00

So, the page I posted yesterday made the top 10 at DCWV! Very exciting to be chosen, everyone does such beautiful work. It is very humbling and I am honored!

Check out the DCWV blog here dcwvinc

Off to clean the kitchen, oh the life of a queen LOL
Cheers!
~Mindi

This week's sketch at Let's Scrap

2011-11-30T07:58:00.001-07:00

C'mon over to Let's Scrap and join in on the fun of this weeks sketch!

Birthday dinner last night was wonderful! You know it was good, when you are angry about how full you are! LOL Thanks to Brian and Susie for a wonderful birthday! and my honey of course!!
Cheers!
~Mindi

DCWV November Stack-a-holic Challenge

2011-11-29T08:11:00.001-07:00

Good morning all!! Today is my birthday, but by now, just another day. My awesome hubby called it in to the radio and said it wasn't really my birthday, but the 10th anniversary of my 29th birthday LOL

So anyhow, here is my page

I tried taking a pic last night, but it turned out very yellow instead of black and white. Obviously it is another page for my wedding album. My father passed away 16 years ago and my mother has been in a nursing home for over 5 years now. She is no longer able to travel, so my Aunt Gloria stood in for her. She would be my mom's sister. Gloria has been a rock for me, and I have called her every time I have had a "Mom" emergency. She always listens to me, lets me cry on her shoulder and shares in my joys. I do love her dearly. <3

The veil netting may seem out of place, since I don't have a veil. I originally thought I wanted one, and Susie and I tinkered with it over and over until it was so small that it didn't even look like a veil anymore. Then I came to the realization maybe I didn't want a veil. So we moved on to the feather headpiece that you see Gloria putting on for me. The brooch was my mother's for my "old" item and the blue feather is my "something blue".

Hope everyone has a great day!!

Cheers!

~Mindi

My stamp storage

2011-11-28T22:34:00.001-07:00

I am not completely done with my room re-arranging, nor will I ever be, but here is how I have my stamps right now

Of course, I have a few more inks now ;) I stamp each of my stamps as I get them onto a piece of white cardstock and put them into my binder by category. holidays/seasons, hearts, sayings, etc. I them write the company name and cd case number next to it. Makes for super easy access. I got to my binder, look for stars, I can see the image of each one, pick one, find the cd case and start stamping!

I know that this is not a new idea of storage by any means, but this is my little version! Thanks for stopping by.

Have a great night!

Cheers!

~Mindi

My little project

2011-11-26T18:01:00.001-07:00

So, instead of working on the cards I am supposed to be, I was making a ribbon holder yesterday and this morning.

I have came to the conclusion that I am not a millionaire, nor is my husband LOL. So I decided instead of ordering 3 of the Cropper Hopper ribbon holders that I wanted, I would make one. I used some cardboard boxes, packing taper, a sacrificed skirt that I purchased at a thrift store and lots of tacky glue. It is about 30 inches long and holds lots of ribbon spools. I am pretty pleased with the way it turned out, and for only the $1.25 for the skirt. I am also making some other smaller boxes with other random black and white fabric, and I will post pics when I get them all finished. You really don't have to spend a lot of money to get creative, cute and functional storage, but having a lot of free time on your hands is helpful. :)
Cheers!
~Mindi

My fellow DT's at Let's Scrap

2011-11-26T17:43:00.001-07:00

I haven't had much time to be on the computer with Thanksgiving and my little projects I am working on, so I didn't get this posted the other day. I am pleased as punch with all the wonderful and talented ladies I will be on the design team at Let's Scrap with. They are listed below, just click on each name to go to their blogs. I think you will be truly inspired by all of their work!

Kay
Beth
Cathy
Susanna
Jeaunes
Sue
Roulien
Elizna
Betty
Michelle
Erica
Wilna
Teresa (as far as I know, Teresa doesn't have a blog.....yet lol)

So, I hope you enjoy their work, and maybe even follow them :)
Cheers!
~ Mindi

Great News! I was chosen as a DT at Let's Scrap!

2011-11-24T21:52:00.001-07:00

I am delighted to announce that I am one of the new DT's at Let's Scrap !! My term begins December 1 and I can wait to start! I am excited and nervous to take on the challenges and rewards that will come with the position! If you haven't, you should really check it out, such a wonderful group of folks and super friendly. I never used sketches for my pages before, and I have found that I get a lot more done now that I have.

I hope everyone that celebrates it had a great Thanksgiving! We certainly did! Brian, Susie and the kids came over for dinner. We had way too much to eat, which in itself is something to be thankful for. Great company and a great time. Susie helped with dishes and Brian and Mike went hunting, to no avail. It was just really a wonderful day and I feel very blessed.

I had the craft bazaar I was preparing for last Saturday. This was my table (the laundry baskets and hats belong to the lady that was behind me).

I enjoyed myself, but was not very successful. I don't know that it ever got above zero outside with the wind chill and it was the day of our in-state football rivalry game "Cat/Griz". It was my first time selling, so the fact that I sold anything was a thrill. I am going to try again next weekend and I am hoping that there will be more advertising and that the weather will co-operate. I might as well since I have a file box full of cards still! LOL

It has been a long day of cooking and chatting and eating and I am ready for bed! Have a great night all!

Cheers!

~Mindi

Let's Scrap Design Team Call

2011-11-10T19:23:00.001-07:00

It is that time again. Let's Scrap is looking for design team for the December to March 4 month term. They will be accepting applications until November 15, there is still time!!! I have already sent in my app, and *patiently* await the results, to be announce November 20! Below is the sketch you would need to use for inspiration. The link below it will take you to Let's Scrap and you can get full details.
Good luck and happy scrapping!

Let's Scrap

~Cheers!
Mindi

Gearin' up for the Christmas Bazaar

2011-11-10T18:43:00.001-07:00

I have been a busy, busy girl lately. I wish it were scrapping, but it has been making Christmas cards and goodies to sell at a local bazaar November 19. Here is a few of the cards I have made. I tried to get the first picture to flip to no avail, and to be honest, I am just to tired to care anymore LOL

I was scouring the internet this morning for gift card holders and came across this blog post
http://blog.ginakdesigns.com/2008/11/10/preview-day-1.aspx and had to try making these adorable buggers!! These are what I came up with so far, but I am going to do some Christmas ones also.

I also have some fantastic news, but I am going to hold off on that a bit until everything is mailed, received, etc. I will keep you guessing for a little bit :)

I am gonna watch some X-Files on Netflix with my honey and cuddle in for the night.

Have a great evening!

Cheers!

~Mindi

DCWV October Stack-a-Holic Sketch Challenge

2011-10-12T08:28:00.000-06:00

Good morning everyone!! I have had to deal with sick kids for the last 2 days, so the quiet house is a nice break! That also means I have time to post my challenge that I got finished!

This is for the DCWV October Stack-a-Holic challenge. Susan at Sketch Savvy provided this great sketch

I used the Downtown Loft stack and really enjoyed doing this page. It seems like drinking coffee and hangin out is what Susie and I do best! :) All of the coffee cups are embossed as well as the quote at the bottom. I inked some of the edges with Tim Holtz distress ink in Vintage photo. Some of the other edges are sanded and I added the 2 cute red coffee cup brads. I cut "coffee" out of a sheet of the stack and left it to look like old school collage style. I remember cutting up magazines when I was in high school like that all the time!! Brings back a lot of memories, and really it was the begining of my addition to scrapbooking! LOL

Well, since I have a quiet house, I am going to take advantage. Gonna get my room tidied, and work on some Christmas cards hopefully :) Hope everyone has a great day!!
Cheers!
~Mindi

It's been awhile

2011-10-04T21:08:00.001-06:00

It seems like I haven't been on here in forever! It's been like 3 weeks! It has also been that long sinced I have scrapped. Well, minus the 2 cards I did for World Card Making Day. LOL

I have been super busy tho. I have been helping my friend Susie pick from the garden and get some canning done. She came to my house and helped me can some apple butter for my awesome hubby! I also got my room redone, again. I will post pics soon, but I love how cheery the room looks with the bright yellow shelves!

So, I have uploaded my latest layouts in my pages section, updated my blog candy sidebars, so all the links should work, and I am so done with the computer for one day.

I am gonna finish watch the new "Transformers" with my honey!
Good night all!
Cheers!
~Mindi

September DCWV Stack-a-holic challenge

2011-09-20T15:54:00.000-06:00

I really loved the sketch they provided at DCWV this month! It took some thinking, but when I came up with my concept, I ran with it.
I used Nana's Kitchen stack. The letter stickers are also DCWV that were in my stash. The flower is handmade from a search-a-word I printed out several times. I then inked it with the orange/yellow color in the middle and blue on the edges. The green ribbon is also stash that I bought at Target in the 1$ bin LOL. The "my" metal eyelets are Making Memories and a gift from a dear friend. The "priceless" fabric sticker was stash, as were the silver alphabet brads and the green button.

This is the sketch provided by Susan at Sketch Savvy

TFL and have a great evening! Off to cook dinner :)
Cheers!
~Mindi

Deanne's 500 Follower giveaway!!

2011-09-11T07:18:00.001-06:00

My friend Deanne is giving away not one, but TWO cricut carts as candy when she hits 500 followers! There is a pic on my sidebar and you should go visit her and see her wonderful work!
http://deannescreativejuice.blogspot.com/p/500-follower-give-away.html#comment-form
Cheers!
~Mindi

Roberts Crafts Freebie Friday is....

2011-09-08T21:32:00.001-06:00

DCWV Street Lace package! Woot!! We all know I love me some DCWV!! Head to the blog to get your chance at these awesome goodies!!!
http://blog.robertscrafts.com/2011/09/freebie-friday-dcwv-street-lace.html

Cheers!
~Mindi

Helldorado Town - Tombstone, Arizona Territory

2011-09-04T18:48:00.002-06:00

I have to put Arizona Territory, cuz it tickles me. The tour guide we had while we were there, and now friend of ours, called Arizona that. It just kind of stuck. This is a layout I just finished for this weeks sketch at Let's Scrap. I blurred the picture of Mike just because I thought it may be in bad taste for a public site. BUT this is my blog, and I think it is funny and all meant as harmless fun.

Anyhow, here is the Let's Scrap sketch for the week (hurry over, you have until Tuesday at Midnight if you want to play along)

and here is my take on it

We named the jailbird "Bob" just because it seemed to fit LOL The cowboys at Helldorado Town put on a good show. The cowboy in black with the black hat was actually an extra in the movies "Tombstone" and "Brokeback Mountain". As it says in the journaling, this is the first activity we did when we got to Tombstone. The cowboy with the light shirt on was standing out on the corner selling tickets for the show. He is a really nice guy and we chatted a bit, then his cell phone rang. He said it was his "cowboy communicator". LOL The mini cowboy hat and bandana are Jolee's and the cowboy boot is an old metal pin I found at a yard sale. The border above the pictures is an old leather shoelace.

I have been super tired the last couple days, been trying to catch up on some sleep while the kids are visiting their grandparents. Have a great Labor day weekend everyone!

Cheers!

~Mindi

Top 10!!

2011-09-02T10:52:00.001-06:00

See previous post for a look at the page. I am so honored and happy and humbled that my work was chosen as top 10 at DCWV's blog!! WOOT!! Tell me that isn't scrapping fuel for the day!!

Have a great weekend all!!!
~Cheers
Mindi

DCWV August Stack-a-Holic Template Challenge

2011-08-29T15:39:00.000-06:00

Nothing like the last minute! I gotta quit with this BUT I did get it done and on time!
I love the sketch they provided from Susan at Sketch Savvy. Here is the sketch

and here is my take on it

I used the Mod-Retro stack, which I love!! I thought the zig-zag of the rick-rack has an awesome retro-funky flair to it. The "Cherish", flower and metal embellies are from my stash. I have had them for so long I couldn't even begin to know where they came from. :)
TFL and wish me luck!!!!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Back to School!!!

2011-08-27T18:16:00.001-06:00

So, school is back in session! I will be getting a lot more scrapping done. Well, I will after we get Susie's craft room done. I am somewhat of a pretty good organizer, so I am helping her move things around and sort. A lot of what is left is going to be on her, but I am a wonderful cheerleader! LOL

So, I haven't done a weekly sketch at Let's Scrap for a few weeks now. Between going on vacation and getting back to school stuff ready, just haven't had time. BUT I did this weeks sketch, and I did it up good.

Here is the inspiration sketch

and here is what I did

I flipped the sketch around a bit so it would fit the pictures I wanted to use. With 4 kids, this was the perfect sketch. It is hard to tell by the picture, but for the crayons with their names, I used construction paper to make the labels and colored pencils to make the ends. I am very extra special super excited about my mini embellies I made.

The clear yellow ruler is made out of a piece of a plastic page divider and marked with a Sharpie. The folder is made from construction paper and the notebook loose leaf is plain white paper. I used colored pencils to make the blue and pink lines and a paper piercer to make the holes. The tiny pencil is a toothpick I colored with a yellow Zig marker. I used a silver gel pen to make the eraser holder and a pink marker for the eraser. Susie broke out her calligraphy set and used the tiniest tip to make the "2". The picture doesn't show it well, but it is very tiny and very perfect! I colored the sharpened tip with a pencil and I actually wrote with it LOL The little notebook was also a lot of fun to make. I cut the cover off of a full size notebook. I pierced the holes and wound thru it will Making Memories wire. I love mini's!! The background paper itself is just white card stock with Office Depot columnar paper randomly glued to it.

Another page that I have done in the last couple weeks is this one which is the month long challenge for August at Let's Scrap. Here is the link to the challenge http://letsscrap.ning.com/forum/topics/august-month-long-challenge

Here is my take on it

I have loved the SteamPunk look ever since the first time I saw it, and this is my first attempt. I am pretty proud of it. I got new goodies in Spokane, so I had to use them. The metal flowers are Graphic45, I got the new chain border punch that is EK, the blue rhinestones are new and of course the blue glitter card stock. The keys were in my stash. The birdcage is actually a clip art I found online, put into my SCAL and cut with my Cricut onto copper vinyl. The picture on the bottom left has been questioned as to what was going on. I am actually upside down in the dumpster! When I trash a dress, I am literal and take it the whole way! I am really pleased with this and I actually submitted it to Creating Keepsakes reader gallery. I guess we will see.
That is it for now, dinner is almost done cookin'.
Cheers!
~Mindi

my memories suite sketch contest @ pagemaps

2011-08-26T08:20:00.002-06:00

Yay!! School is back in session!! I haven't done much scrapping in the last 2 days as I have been helping my bestie get HER craft room in order! It is looking good and soon I will be able to go to her house to scrap!

Anywho, this is what I have gotten done. This sketch is from PageMaps for a contest. Here is the link to it
http://pagemaps.blogspot.com/2011/08/my-memories-suite-sketch-contest.html

This sketch was interesting because of such small pictures. This is actually the 1st page I have done for our engagement picture album (yes, I have been slacking since I was rushing to get my brother's done before we went there for vaycay!)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my ring, it is so beautiful and so unique with the black diamonds! I just wanted to make sure that it was included that the meaning of the ring is more important than the ring itself. I would have been thrilled with a Cracker Jack ring just as much, because Mike's proposal was so sweet and thought out the ring was secondary. :) Of course I had to include a picture of the set, which was taken when we got them back from being soldered together before the wedding.
All of the cardstock is from the DCWV Latte Stack and the brads with the letters, buttons and flower were all from my stash.
TFL and hopefully in the next couple days I will post the other LO's I have gotten done since last time I blogged. With vaycay and getting ready for school to start, not a lot of time to be on here. That should be changing, because I do have some great pages I would like to share.
Cheers!
~Mindi

1000 sheets of paper giveaway from Creative Diva

2011-08-23T07:35:00.000-06:00

The blog candy just keeps coming! This is from the talented Creative Diva

just click on the link and follow the instructions to enter
http://athousandsheetsofpaper.blogspot.com/2011/08/1000-sheets-for-thousand-sheets-again.html
Good luck to all! This is open until September 23, 2011

Awesome Blog Candy from Crafter's Cafe

2011-08-23T07:25:00.000-06:00

Look at all this awesomeness!! go to http://crafterscafe.blogspot.com/2011/08/crafters-cafe-best-blogning-candy-evah.html and get your chance at this great candy!!! Good Luck!!

PageMaps BasicGrey-Flourishs card contest entry

2011-08-08T17:30:00.001-06:00

So, in comparison to how many pages I do, I make a tiny amount of cards. I am not sure why, because I always enjoy doing them. Since I am heading out to my brother's house in 2 days, I thought it fitting I make an anniversary card for his oldest son who was married August 17 (not sure the year, 2002 maybe?). Anyhow, the date is special to the family because that is the day my father passed away in 1995. My nephew got married on that date as a tribute. It is a wonderful sentiment. Long story straight, here is the card I made using the supplied PageMaps sketch for the challenge.

The inside sentiment says "May your love always be as strong and exciting as on your wedding day"
I have had the Paper Dolls Cricut cart for almost 2 years and never used it until now. Not sure why, because I had a blast! I stamped the bouquet, added bling to the tiara, and gave the groom some silver buttons and cuff links! It was like being a kid again! I will def be using it again soon. I also added some glitter to the flower and the stamped flourish is actually a chrome silver color.

Well, thanks for stopping by and wish me luck! I will certainly have adventures from our vacation when we get back!

Cheers!
~Mindi

DCWV July Stack-a-holic template challenge

2011-07-27T12:35:00.001-06:00

I love my DCWV stacks, so when I ran into this challenge yesterday, I was so excited!! Nothing like last minute, since it is due today :)

I used my Immortal stack, which is my absolute favorite!! I glittered it up a bit for the banners. Since the paper is white on the back, I inked it black and added glitter before I curled it for the vertical strip on the right page.

I really enjoyed this sketch that is from Susan at Sketch Savvy.

Cross your fingers for me, cuz I would love to win some more DCWV stacks!!!
Cheers!
~Mindi

D'Awwwhhhh

2011-07-25T11:54:00.001-06:00

So, I am back in the saddle!! I got a card and a LO done since yesterday afternoon! WOOT! So I used the Let's Scrap weekly sketch

and I made a Thank You card to leave for my brother that we are visiting next month.

I used popsicle stick broken in half for the poles, some string for the clothes line and I have had the little clothes pins in my stash forever. I went online and searched for a t-shirt clip art, then loaded it into my SCAL for my Cricut.

ALSO.. this adorable page I did for my brother. The weekly DT challenge 105 from Let's Scrap was to use at least 5 types of ribbon for a back ground or main embellie and use a Let's Scrap sketch. I used ls117 for inspiration. I think I nailed it.

The pictures are adorable to start with, especially the dog in the buggy with them!! The whole background is ribbon that I made into a plaid. I started on one side with the large ribbon, wove in the vertical ones and glued as I went. Quite a project, but I love the way it turned out. Even with all the ribbons and buttons, the black and white pictures really stand out. I used decorative scissors on the photos to replicate the way the old pics looked. At the top I glued some buttons on a piece of rick rack. Added a few to the names and on the bottom corner. VIOLA! I really like this page.

So I have been playing for 2 days now, the house has been neglected. I need to make some lunch and do some house cleaning. Hopefully I can make it back to the crack room today :)
Cheers!
~Mindi

My First Blog Award

2011-07-22T08:49:00.000-06:00

Thanks so much to Linda at http://www.lindaspinkcraftroom.com for this cute blog award!!

I am a very, very new blogger and this means so much to me :) You should check out her cool blog and follow her, you could win some blog candy ;)
Lots to do today!
Cheers!!
~Mindi

Inspired!!!

2011-07-21T16:03:00.001-06:00

So, I think all the crack room re-arranging did me some good! Looking out the window is a lot better than staring at a wall! So I had already done challenge104 from over at Let's Scrap, but I had a hair in my hiney to try embroidery on paper. It was interesting to say the least! Things you can do on paper but not fabric and vice versa. It was a learning curve, but I love the way it turned out! This is the only picture that I know of that I have of my gramma Myrtle. She was my Mom's mom. This photo is from spring of 1933. That is about all I know. I tried calling my Aunt to get some specifics for my journaling, but she has out of town company and didn't answer her phone. I will just fill that out later. I am usually such a minimalist in my scrapbooking, so I purposely made myself keep adding stuff LOL What do ya think? Did I go to far??
So here is the sketch from Let's Scrap that I used for inspiration. I only used the left side and I turned it sideways.

and here is my page of my beautiful Grandmother whom I never got to meet.

She was quite a seamstress from what I have heard, so I figured the stitching would be special for her page. I also saw she had on pearls, which any lady would back then, so I ran with that. The large lace and the doily were both white, so I used my chalk ink and colored them green to coordinate better. Here is a closer pic of the embroidery

I did have a helper in my room today, she wasn't much for conversation.

So now I have to tidy my crack room up after the mess I have made. We are gonna start a fire pit and roast hot dogs for dinner. I am sure the kids will love that!!
Have a great evening!!
Cheers!!
~Mindi

Holy Cow Blog Giveaway!!

2011-07-20T23:21:00.000-06:00

Michelle at the blog below is giving away an extremely huge and generous stash!! Lots of beautiful stuff! Go to her blog, follow her, add the giveaway to your side bar and blog about it. It is that easy, and you could win!! (even tho selfishly I want to win!!!)

http://scrappinforkenzie.blogspot.com/2011/07/100-follower-giveaway.html

My room is finally organized how I want it for now, I really enjoy the new set up. I can look out the window now instead of at the wall!! Pics to come, Mike is way late going to bed!
Have a great night!
Cheers!
~Mindi

What a long weekend!!/my older pages

2011-07-18T07:55:00.000-06:00

We had beautiful weather here all weekend, so not a lot of scrapping got done. Saturday morning I hit a couple of yard sales. Then 2 of the boys got a "new" bunk bed that we bought from a friend. So there was a lot of cleaning and moving stuff around. I took yard sale stuff that didn't sell to our local thrift store. I stopped and chatted with my friend from out of town who was doing an Herbalife (?) open house. I spent a lot of time cleaning the crack room and rearranging, and sorting damn buttons LOL Mike's brother brought his boys over to play in the evening and he and Mike played some horse shoes. So it was a full day!

Sunday I spent 4 hours outside digging up my "flower bed". It was here when we moved in, but I just hadn't gotten around to doing anything about it. After that I was pooped. I showered, got some groceries, made dinner and I was spent! lol Played on the computer for awhile, followed a few blogs for chances to win goodies and watched Falling Skies with Mike.

Since I don't have a new page to post right now, make sure you check out my pages on the left. They are albums of my work. Some are pretty old, some newer, and a lot of them are pages I did from Let's Scrap sketches. I am hoping after Dr's apt today for my son, I can get some scrapping done. It is supposed to hit 100 degrees, so inside is the place to be!!

Have a great week all!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Button stash/latest page

2011-07-15T22:05:00.001-06:00

So, my friend Angie came over this morning to scrap, and we took a break to hit an estate sale that a church was holding for someone. I got a huge box of sewing supplies for 5$! There was aida fabric for cross stitching (which I also do), tons of thread, needles, etc, and at the bottom of the box was a manilla envelope full of buttons!!! I dumped them into the lid of one of my Iris containers.

So, Let's Scrap can throw any button stash challenge they want at me now, I am READY!!! lol

Anywho, I started a page yesterday and made very little progress. I was way A.D.D. or something, I just couldn't quite get it together. I knew I wanted to sew an oven mitt for it, but that is as much as I could figure out. Well, lucky me, the Let's Scrap DT Challenge given today was to sew on your page! WOOT! That worked out just nicely! Here is where the challenge is http://letsscrap.ning.com/forum/topics/challenge-104
I used one of the very first Let's Scrap sketches as my inspiration

And here is my awesome page!!!

Sew, (laughing at myself!) I am so excited about how cute my little oven mitt and apron are!! I am not much of a seamstress, obviously, but they are adorable!!! The buttons are from my newly acquired booty load. I stamped my journal tag and wrote on the inside. I love love love the clip art I found online with the burning oven and the chef! I printed it on cardstock, then fussy cut it. Then, just to be safe that I got the sewing challenge covered, I hand stitched the corners with green and peach and the sides with purple. This is the first page I have been really excited about in awhile! I have a previous blog of the stove saga if you want to get the story behind the page! I do love that I was able to get pictures of Mike crushing the old stove with his garbage truck! Something satisfying about being able to see the destruction in person!

I am gonna drink my wine, watch a movie with my honey and hit the hay! I have tons of buttons to finish sorting tomorrow, and hopefully the scrapbooking muse will still be upon me and I can get another page done!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Finally...

2011-07-13T16:58:00.000-06:00

I got a little bit of scrapbooking muse in me today! I have been plotting this page in my head for a couple days, then when Let's Scrap posted the new weekly sketch, I knew this would be perfect!!
This is the weekly sketch http://letsscrap.ning.com/

and here is what I did

This is another one for my brother Matt's album. He is the oldest boy. I love their fancy nehru(sp?) collared shirts!! Gotta love the 60's!! I don't have a lot of older pictures to work with and this one of the few occasions that there was multiple pictures I could put together. I guess they were having a hard time getting everyone to smile (obviously) LOL

I just love the pages that the gals can just keep putting stuff on it without thinking twice but I am one of those people who start out with a whole bunch and slowly take them off!! LOL Just my style I guess, that is why everyone is different.

I do wonder though, does everyone take as long as I do to make a page? I measure everything to get it straight and fuss back and forth with papers forever it seems to get the right color combination. Is it my mild OCD that keeps me from being a "throw it together" kind of gal or am I just really way to anal and over thinking things way too much?? Hard to know!

I haven't heard anything about design team yet, but the deadline is the 15th. Not sure when they announce or how they do it. Either no news is good news or they are trying to think of a way to let me down nicely LOL! I have been in a scrapping slump lately so I wouldn't blame them. I can't wait until the end of August comes and school starts again. That way I can sit down and concentrate without having to get up every 2 minutes to solve some tragedy or another.

Well, it is fittin' on stormin' so I better get this posted to Let's Scrap and get dinner started.

Cheers!

~Mindi

All I got done today

2011-07-12T16:12:00.000-06:00

So, I did get one page (or two depending on how you look at it), done today.

This is the weekly Let's Scrap sketch I used

I also killed two birds with one stone and did this sketch for the weekly design team Challenge 103. The challenge was to use a Let's Scrap sketch and use something other than letters in the title.
Anyway, this was 4th of July between eating dinner and lighting fireworks. The horse shoe pit was already here when we bought the house, but it needed a little love. Mike sprayed the weeds, put some new braces on the back boards and we put some sand in it. It still needs more sand, but works for now. Brian was really excited about playing and so was Mike. Like the journaling says, it is great that we all live so close together and can do things like this when we feel like it.
That's all for now, I have to start dinner soon. My work is never done :)
Cheers!
~Mindi

Out with the old...

2011-07-12T08:53:00.000-06:00

So, here is my story of the stove and the rhubarb crumble. Saturday morning I was going to bake a crumble to take to Mike's company picnic. He took a picture of our toter and I used my SCAL and Cricut to cut a logo out of paper. Then I used some cinnamon to make the logo. This is what it looked like before I put it into the oven.

and this is what it looked like after baking only 7 minutes of the 25 it is supposed to cook

Sooooo........ I was so upset that I had put so much work into this stupid thing and it burnt!!! So we turned the oven off and Mike went and got me some more rhubarb. I got it all made and waited to turn the oven on until I was ready to put it in, since it was already pre-heated. So round 2, was in the oven less than 1 minute and this is what happened

So then I was pissed! Out of time and completely out of patience!! So I turned the oven off and went to get ready. Mike went to check it out and the oven was still super hot. Even tho I had turned everything off, the broiler was still on going full blast. Of course, I wasn't even using the broiler, so that's really wierd!! He was gonna pull the stove out and unplug it but it was way too hot. He had to take the drawer out and unplug it. We waited until it had cooled down before we left the house.
When we got home, he plugged it back in, hoping we could at least use the burners until we could get a new oven. Not the case. As soon as he plugged it back in that dang broiler came right back on at full blast. So, stove is dead!!! Brian and Susie came over, along with some of Mike's co-workers, and we played horseshoes and had a great time. We figure we would get online Sunday and order a new one.
Sunday we got up and started shopping.Found exactly what we wanted and it had free shipping. Went to order it, and they wouldn't deliver to here. Downfalls of living in the boonies I guess. So I called Susie because she has a pick-up and asked if she was up for an adventure. So we drove to Billings, 130 miles one way, to get me a stove. I found the one I wanted at Home Depot and we brought it home. We didn't get home until 11pm and poor Mike had to be to work at 5:30 in the morning!
Not everyone has a garbage man for a hubby, but since I do, I got to enjoy the demise of the old stove. Mike brought the truck by on his way home yesterday.

Ahhhh, when we get rid of something, we do it right!!! So, here is my beautiful new stove! It has 12" or 9" burner and convection oven, WOOT!!!

Ain't she Purdy?? lol So that was my adventure for the weekend. Of course there will be a scrapbook layout of all this coming soon!
I am so gonna try to get some scrapping done today!
Cheers!
~Mindi

p.s. Google Chrome is fantastic for blogger, it uploaded faster and I can actually leave comments without any problems!

My "Crack Room"

2011-07-08T09:25:00.000-06:00

My DH lovingly calls my craft room, my "crack" room. It just kind of stuck, we think it's funny anyway :)

So, it's not very big, 11ft by 13 I think. That is counting the space all the way into the closet I took the doors out of. I had more room, but now that I have friends coming over to scrap with me, I just recently completely rearranged to make room for another person. I don't mind at all, I love that they come over :)
So I will start behind the door and move around the room.
This is the small wall behind the door

So, the stand is part of a 3 piece set Mike already had. The shelves on it I got for 50cents, the grey bins with ribbon, etc had 4 braces and 16 little buckets for 2$, the ribbon holder is from Michael's. It was in the "scratch and dent bin" as we call it. It was 15$ but it was returned because the hardware was missing. So I got it for 3$ and Mike put some screws in it for me:) The thing with the ribbons hanging off of it, is this

1$ at a thrift store. I painted it, clipped binder clips to it, and I have the lace, etc on large paper clips are that hanging from the loops of the binder clips.
Then the wall to the right of the door

Representin' the Let's Scrap group 100 Layouts in 2011. Chalkboard 1$ yard sale.

The top hutch is part of the set Mike had, the dresser was my Mom's, all the paper racks 75cents total, Cricut was birthday present in 09, printer Christmas present 2010. The dresser has pictures, office stuff, stash specifically for my wedding album, my scraps and my Cricut mats.

The small shelf with the humble amount of punches 25cents, the drawers with my Zigs and various markers are from WalMart. They were $4 for each set of 3 and I painted them also to match all my shelves.
Then the wall you see when you walk in

My big desk, free from friend, my AWESOME funky green and yellow metal canisters are from a thrift store all you could fit in a box for 5$, so pretty cheap. The shelf on the desk was 50 cents and all the spice jars with the buttons were 50cents for all of them. The buttons are from yard sales, when we cleaned out granny's house and from Susie's farmhouse. The little milk glass jars holding my various Zig glues were either 25cents or from Susie's farm.(I love milkglass!! I have a huge collection!) As I posted earlier, the flowers are all from yard sales or dollar stores and I cut them off of the stems. The glass jars are all from 25cents to 1$ for the bigger one. The chairs (this yellowish one and the one at the other desk) were garbage :) Of course, I have my hot wheels on the wall. I love old wagons!!

On the left, the wooden shelf holding my paints was 1$ for both (there is 2 on top of each other). Below that is shelf for 50cents with my glitter glue. Under the window is my glitter. The shelf was 25cents and I have most of my glitter in old salt shakers from various places. On the other shelves is my crop-o-dile, eyelets, brads, craft wire, etc. On the desk is my "kitty jar" and of course my Let's Scrap sketch for this week :)
This is the closet wall

On the right is my peg board with my decorative scissors (my DH cut and hung it for me) and them some storage. On the right is 2 old cupboards that I stacked, free from Mike's aunt. The wooden bookshelf was from my Mom's house free, canisters free from Susie's farm, and the blue striped boxes I have had forever.

The black metal cabinet was from granny's so free, the Iris containers were a birthday present in 08.

The metal paper rack with my 8 1/2 cardstock was 25cents, the shelf was a set of 3 from Michael's I got with a 40% off coupon, DH drilled holes in the side and I put a dowel on it with keyrings and binder clips to hold my larger acrylic stamps. The rest of my few stamps are in the cd cases (the cd rack was garbage). My few inks I have are in the the set of grey hanging buckets. My FAVORITE part of my room is the paper rack the Mike made for me!! What a Sweet Prince!!

So there ya go, more than ever wanted to know about my room!!!

I am off to scrap!!!!!!
Cheers!
~Mindi

hummmm

2011-07-08T07:44:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was July 7, 1 year. meh. that is all.

Oh what a baby face!!!

2011-07-06T21:24:00.002-06:00

So I got 2 pages done today, amazing!!! I got Challenge 102 done for Let's Scrap. http://letsscrap.ning.com/forum/topics/challenge-102
I used the left side of this sketch for inspiration

The challenge was to do a page about myself with pics of me at any age. I figured this is the age I was the cutest!!

So the wide pink ribbon is from a yard sale, I got the whole roll for 50cents. The pink pearl strand was also a yard sale, in a baggie with a bunch of random rick rack an etc for 50 cent. The flower is actually from the dollar store. I took 2 of them apart and used my chalk ink on them since they were white. I did half of them pink and half lavender. I think it turned out pretty well. My favorite part of this is the cardstock. I just recently got DCWV stack "Once Upon A Time" and I love it!! It inspired me to do a page for Mike just for fun!

This is also a Let's Scrap sketch. I will be doing a "now" set to go with this "then" set of pages. I think it will be cute! The brackets around the journaling is actually pale yellow cardstock that I used a brown chalk on.

So, I have materials set out to start another page tomorrow, so I better get some creative sleep.
Cheers!
~Mindi

TIL

2011-07-05T21:25:00.000-06:00

Today I learned (well, in all honesty it was Sunday) that my little desk I bought for 1$ at a yard sale a couple of weeks ago, has more to it! It is a Saginaw desk, extensol desk to be exact, and opens up to 7 feet long!! Of course I didn't have the leaves for it, so my dear husband cut me some out of wood that was in the shop when we moved here. So, for still that 1$, I have a table for when the gals come over to scrapbook.

What an amazing find!!!!

So, over the weekend, I had a yard sale, realized my table got HUGE, transferred all my pictures from my old laptop to my new one (finally!), bbq'd for 4th of July, took some phenomenal pictures of fireworks, and was outside just long enough to burn my shoulders. So it was pretty much a successful weekend! I am really glad I got my pictures transferred. There were so many I wanted to scrapbook, but hated dragging out the old laptop to get them.

So, it's Tuesday night, and I just finished my weekly sketch from Let's Scrap a little bit ago. I have been pushing my luck lately. Hopefully now that the holiday and yard sale are over I can get a lot more scrapping done!! Anyway, here's the sketch from Let's Scrap
http://api.ning.com/files/0WXMY0RUH-cAP9-O6DsT4yE*GU*zg4hGsP0Hbvr29IyHE-SM0FVhvSuQTCjFjyg*sxDtDQjwqmgzjZavaxtZIx5m7gN0ujZZ/Sketch.JPG

and here is what I did.

I didn't have any cardstock with camera's, etc, so I figured the gears would work. It is from the Tattered Time stack, which I am in love with!! The "cheese" is a family joke of sorts. If you see a pic with someone with a huge grin, then they are "Mayor McCheese" lol! I used some old film I have been carrying around for years and put a vellum quote on it and put it into an envelope I cut from a stencil.

I was short on embellishments, so I had to be creative! The camera on the right side page

was my first attempt at paper piecing. I found the pattern on www.scrapbooksetc.com, for free! Not bad for a first shot and it was a great way to get an embellie I didn't have.

Like I said, I am trying to get some scrapbooking done this week. I still haven't heard anything about the Design Team at Let's Scrap yet, but it is still pretty early. I would like to get some more pages done so they have something to look at, lol!! That, and I just REALLY need to get a few more pages done for my brother's book before we head there.

Well, I better get my sketch posted, so sweet dreams to all, including me soon!
Cheers!
~Mindi

Sunday Morning Coffee...

2011-07-03T08:25:00.000-06:00

So, here I sit in my chair, with my coffee and my baby kitten sleeping on my lap. I am pretty pooped. Yard sale was a great success, thanks to the fact that 90% of it was given to us from Mike's Aunt! As all great plans I have, this one too has been altered. The yard sale money was originally going to be fun money for our trip to Spokane next month. After the flat tire incident last week, this money is now tire money so we can go to Spokane. I guess we are given what we need sometimes and not always what we want. At least we will still be able to go. I did take my 10% of profits for my scrap kitty jar. I think I earned it :)

I have quite the exciting day planned today, oh boy! I have to pay bills and figure out the budget for the rest of the month, make some phone calls about tires, call my brother we are going to visit and let him know that tattoo's are gonna have to be cut from the vacation budget AND (this is the big one) organize my photos! Part of my pics are on my old laptop and part are on the new one. I was smart enough to put all of them from the old laptop onto cd's, but I got bored and lazy with it toward the end and only labeled the cd's with dates. Not so useful. It is gonna take a huge part of my day, but it needs to be done. I can't find any pictures I am looking for to scrapbook. As much as I am dreading doing it, it will be so wonderful after it is done to be able to find the pics I am looking for and be able to just print and scrap!!

Summer school is over for our girl, so I won't have to be driving from one end of town to the other twice a day every day, so I hope to get a lot of scrapping done! I need to use up some of my stash so I room for all the cool stuff I am gonna get in Spokane. =)

So, I am gonna finish my first cup of coffee, and get my butt moving!
Have a great day and a wonderful 4th of July everyone, CHEERS!
~Mindi

p.s. I try to leave comments on other peoples blogs, but google just loops me between signing in and writing the catpcha codes over and over! any suggestions anyone??

Finally, today is almost over!!!

2011-06-29T21:36:00.000-06:00

It has been a long, challenging day today. I am surprised I got my page done! So first off, this is the page I finished today for my brothers album.

This is a sketch from Let's Scrap,
http://letsscrap.ning.com/photo/februarys-sketch-for-lets?context=album&albumId=2186252%3AAlbum%3A161537

He has a great sense of humor, so I am sure he will appreciate the "Grease 2" throwback. lol In the photo is 3 of my 4 brothers and ironically I called the 4th to find out what type of motorcycle it was. So I Googled the logo and found one! I loaded it into my SCAL and cut it with my Cricut. I had to cut it twice, once in white vinyl and then in black. I wanted to use vinyl so it would look more like an actual decal. The strips above and below the flames is actually silver chrome, but crappy weather here, therefore crappy picture, sorry about that. The "Cool Rider" title is actually 3 layers, red, blue then chrome, also hard to tell in the picture. I am guessing that the photo was taken in the early 70's but I am not sure since it only had names on the back and no date. So, one more page down for his album, however many more I can get done before our trip to go.

So then, my day. A friend came over for a bit to scrapbook this morning. She couldn't stay long, so it was more of a chit chat, then scrapping. That is ok tho, I needed some adult interaction. Children are such a blessing, but days like today were surely a test. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. I still have yard sale pricing to do and really wanted to work on my flower garden some. The bind weed is coming in nicely and I need to get rid of it before it chokes out my hollyhocks!

I am showered and have posted on Let's Scrap and here, so I think I am done for the day!
Good night to all and cheers!
~Mindi

Inspired!!

2011-06-29T07:12:00.000-06:00

After days of thinking and scheming, I have figured out what I want to do with my brother's next page. I am very excited about it, and hope since I have it mostly put together in my head, I can finish it today. I will post it as soon as it is done!!

Also, I can sure tell that I am just way too tired at night to be blogging LOL! My last post was Monday and I said my Let's Scrap weekly sketch was due that night. It wasn't due until Tuesday night! Gotta love summer, can't even figure out what day it is.

So, I will get the monkeys up and moving and then to the crack room to start my page. Crossed fingers for progress!

For now, Cheers!
~Mindi

Something done is better than nothing done

2011-06-27T20:44:00.001-06:00

Well, I did get my Let's Scrap sketch done today. Good thing, it is due tonight by midnight! lol I guess I work better under pressure. This is the sketch for this week(well ending tonight lol) http://letsscrap.ning.com/photo/62211-1?context=featured

and this is what I did with it

All of these flowers are from my yard. The peonies are spectacular, especially in real life. They are actually a bright fuscia color, even tho they look red in the pic. The purple flowers on the left are still a mystery, no one can figure out what they are. I won for my LO from the sketch on 6-8-11 and got an awesome prize from Scrappy Doodads. You should check out her Etsy store, some cool embellies and what not. Any who, the butterfly was from my prize pack, total score!!

I did actually get to the little house for a little bit to get a feel for what I had for the yard sale this weekend. Mike helped me out and we got all the stuff out of his shop. Now he has no excuse for cleaning up :) I really don't care, it is his sanctuary, he can have it however he wants it.

I didn't get my newspapers sorted, but they aren't goin anywhere, so whatever. Not gonna stress on it. Lots of stuff to do tomorrow again, staying busy keeps me sane I guess.
It's that time of day, so.....
Until next time, Cheers!
~Mindi

why did I forget....

2011-06-26T21:32:00.001-06:00

to tell Mike that the back tire was low? ........Give up? because I wanted to come out of the grocery store to find I had a flat tire! Some nice person, unknown to me, left a note on my driver door window. It said "you have a flat tire :( " I am glad that person was nice enough to do that, because it was the back passenger tire and I wouldn't have seen it otherwise! I would have noticed after driving, but glad it didn't go down that way. I am so glad there are still good people in the world. That kind person took just a few seconds out of their day to write that note, but it saved me possibly driving on my rim and causing damage. So maybe next time you see someone with a flat tire, or needs help holding a door, or whatever the case may be, take that few seconds and help them out. Karma is a crazy cat that follows you around.

So, I did not (big surprise) get very much scrapping done today. Little to none actually. I did get pictures and paper picked out, so I WILL sit down at my desk tomorrow and do something about it! Then I HAVE to get out to the little house out back and get some yard sale items sorted and priced. Mike's aunt was nice enough to give me everything she was going to put in her yard sale, but didn't have one. So, now I am having a yard sale this Saturday. It will be nice to have some extra dough for our trip in August to Washington.

I have been on pins and needles the last week or so. I haven't heard anything about the Let's Scrap design team application yet. I did turn in my LO pretty early, since the deadline isn't until July 15. The good thing is the design team position would be for August thru November. The kids will all be going to school all day this year, so I will have a nice quiet day to be on the computer looking at sketches and hopefully inspiring others in their work. Let's Scrap a great place to meet new scrappin buddies and meet new people from all over the world. I actually really like the gals there and consider them friends. It would be such an honor to be a part of the design team there. To be a "leader" of sorts and hopefully someone that people could look to for support and ideas. So, as you can tell, I am pretty excited about this, and you will know as soon as I do!!

With neon green painted fingernails, and sleepy eyes, I will sign off for now.
Have a great night, Cheers!
~Mindi

What a great weekend

2011-06-26T11:26:00.000-06:00

So, I hope everyone is having as good of a weekend as I have!! All day Wednesday and Thursday I spent re-arranging my "crack" room. Our Aunt gave us some old cupboards so I swapped them for a dresser I had in here. Much better storage solution. I also traded out some other shelving I had. I am very pleased with the way it turned out.

Then Friday I hosted another Wine, Scrap & Chat. It was a good time for all. I did a little less wine drinking, a lot more scrapping and about the same amount of chatting this time. :) I actually got something accomplished this time. This page

This was a Let's Scrap challenge, for the scrap your stash group. Challenge 10 was to use pre-made flowers, bling it up and use pre-made journaling. I put the journaling on the back, because I felt it was private for me and Susie. That and she wanted to hang it, and I didn't want her to have to look at my handwriting on something to remind her of her beautiful mother. She let me scan the photo of her mom, which is her Sophomore school picture. The sheet music was from as pile her mother had, which means a lot to her. We actually figured out the roman numerals (googled it lol) and the page is from 1907, just amazing!! I didn't want to cut it, so I folded it to make a pouch of sorts. I had Susie's guidance throughout the process for her mom's favorite colors, etc.

Yesterday Susie and I went to garage sales. I just really enjoy spending time with her, we had a great time! I got this solid wood desk for 1$.

The black file cabinet I already had, and it barely squeezed by a fart under the desk!! That was the deciding factor if the desk would get to stay or not. Obliviously it fit and the desk stayed! I promise to do a post of my room soon, I would just really, really like to try to do some scrapping today :) I will give a sneak peek.

This is my flower storage

These jars are from several many different yard sales. The 2 largest jars were 50cents and 1$. The tall jar middle row left was 10cents!! The rest were any where from 10cents to 50cents. You just have to know what you are looking for when you leave, and you can find at least one jar at any yard sale! The shelves are from Michael's, purchased as a 3 pack with a 40% off coopin.

I am so ready to scrap, so for now, Cheers!
~Mindi

Painted with Fun

2011-06-23T20:55:00.003-06:00

I was just going to put my new scrapbook LO's in their blog pages, but this one is getting posted here! Susie is my dearest, oldest, bestest friend and has been for over 15 years now. Anything we do together we have a blast! We have been thru thick and thin and thick again together and have only became closer with time. Loves ya Susie Q!

Some detail worth noting: I was pretty proud of myself for thinking to put the paintbrush and paint blob next to the title :). The title is stenciled, painted red and then blue with a smaller brush. I dry painted the red background strip with green and blue paints. The bottom trim is a paint chip from a sample book. Susie found it out at the farmhouse. She asked if I could use it for anything. I knew I could if I thought about it long enough!

I have to tell the story of her sitting on her front steps freezing with her feet in a pan of water. Mike and I went to Tombstone AZ for our honeymoon in March. The weather in MT was cold and yuk while we enjoyed the sunshine. Susie sent a picture message of her making a snow angel and said "I bet you can't do this right now" so Mike took a pic of me with my feet in the swimming pool saying "I can't, but you can't do this" lol Leave to Susie, she sent the pic of her on the stairs saying "yes I can!!!" We still laugh about it, I would have never thought of doin that if it was the other way around. She cracks me up!!

Once again, paint chip for the bottom border. I used my cricut to cut "fun" out of some blue glittery cardstock. The green paint chip is "clover leaf" cuz I am so lucky to have such a great friend.

Have a great night all, Cheers!
~Mindi
p.s. I was exhausted last night when I posted this, I forgot to add that this is Let's Scrap sketch from 5-26-10 :)

Happy Birthday Daddy!!

2011-06-22T06:27:00.004-06:00

On this day in 1930 the greatest man was born, my Dad. He was a great father, one of the good 'ole boys, the best gardener I have ever seen and not a single person could say a bad thing about him. I never saw him go to church, but he always lived his life right. He treated others with respect and always helped out when he could. It doesn't seem like it has been almost 16 years since he has been gone. He passed away August 17, 1995 and my son and his namesake Clifford was born September 16, 1995. It's funny how time just slips by. Not a day goes by that I don't think of him and miss him dearly.

On another note, I am up early. After this I am gonna get in my "crack room" as Mike calls it, and get something done!! I think it is good therapy. Maybe I will even do a LO for my dad, just cuz!

Have a great day, Cheers!

Sometimes things are put where you can find them....

2011-06-21T21:04:00.000-06:00

I had a wonderfully relaxing weekend! I went with my dearest, bestest friend out to her farm. In the exact spot considered to be the middle of nowhere and it was great!!!! It is mostly dirt road, and our backs were relieved that we got to pavement. We were cruisin down the highway at 60/65 mph and as we drove past what I thought was mud in the middle of the road. Susie screams "those were kitties"!! Brian hits the breaks, backs up down the highway and jumped out and grabbed the kitties!!

We backed up into a pull out and went looking thru the ditches for mama or siblings but nothing. All we had in the pick-up was some queso cheese we had been munching on so we let the kitties have some. They were so hungry that the black one was trying to eat the paw of the striped one because it had cheese on it. Poor little ones :( Susie had to pry it's jaw to get it to let go. So we gave the black on the lid and the striped got the jar. They really enjoyed it

Cute cheese faces!! So black kitty is Susie's named "Nacho" and striped is mine named "Queso" lol
So I got baby home and gave her some tuna and some milk and a very needed bath.

She has been a great kitty the last 2 days, slept a lot, which she needed. I think she is pretty happy with her new home.

We love our new little kitty, an angel to say the least. Who know's how many people drove by and missed or how long those poor babies were in the middle of the highway. God's hand protected those kitties until we got there.

Little blessings are everywhere around you, you just have to open your eyes to them.

SOOOOOO EXCITED

2011-06-17T11:01:00.001-06:00

So,here it is, my entry for the Design Team at Let's Scrap. It is a sketch they selceted for the appicants to use. I spent a lot time thinking of something spectacular to do. Mike finally just told me to relax, keep it simple and classy, and I couldn't go wrong. Wish me luck!!

I am not sure how many people will get the fact that the wheat on the left side has full heads and the right is harvested, but at least I know.

We are gonna make Father's day cards this afternoon, and hopefully I will get some cleaning and arranging done in my room. If so, I will get some pics posted :)

There's no normal life, it's just life. Get on with it.~ Doc Holliday

2011-06-16T08:18:00.000-06:00

I also put that as my status on facebook, because it fits my day today. I hate people who air all their dirty laundry online, so I will skip the details. I will just say this, sometimes just when you think life is going "normally" someone throws a wrench in things to shake it up. We are a strong family, and everything will be fine, but it is hard to not to hold a gruge against the haters. Sometimes, people just need to worry about themselves more than they worry about others. Kind of like the sliver in my eye compared to the log in yours.
Anyhow, gonna work on my design team challenge when I get home, and hopefully have some progress to post :)
Cheers for now

Rhubarb Crumble!

2011-06-15T15:21:00.001-06:00

So, I did say I was gonna bake out of Betty Crocker cookbooks, but it only had pie recipes. Hubby is not a huge pie fan, so I moved onto the 1980 Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook. That is where I found this recipe

Let me tell you, it was a hit with everyone!!! So easy to make too!!

So, on another note.....
Let's Scrap http://letsscrap.ning.com/ is the website "I hang out on" and I love their challenges and sketches. I have won twice for prizes on random draw and also been chosen as "Inspiration of the Week". There is no prize for that, but it is worth more than any goodie bag to me. It is approval, acceptance, acknowledgement and most of all, an atta-girl for what I have done. You can't put a price on pride in what you have done :) So anyway, as I mentioned earlier, they posted a sketch to be turned in as an application of sorts for the design team. My hubby, my friends, and even my friend to remain anonymous from Let's Scrap, have whole hearted encouraged me to go for it! I am aprehensive, but have started my page. I will post it when it is finished. I know the design team would be a lot of work, but I am down. I have nothing BUT time! lol So, wish me luck!

Paisley

2011-06-13T16:10:00.000-06:00

Here is a close-up of paisley's I did on a page yesterday.

This is what it looks like on the page.

This was time consuming to do, but really easy. Very basic skills. I found a paisley pattern using Google image search. This is what I decided to use

I printed this on cardstock and copied in several different sizes. I picked colors from my Zig Markers that matched the striped paper. I am sure any marker or pen would work for coloring, just make sure it is acid free for scrapbooking purposes. Then the part that took awhile, cutting each one out. If you look at the close-up, some of them ended being up pretty tiny! I just glued them on the page, layering until I liked how it looked. I added bling brads to a few and used foam adhesive circles to make them stand up for a taller layer. VIOLA! Not to hard at all! The sketch I was using for inspiration http://letsscrap.ning.com/photo/2186252:Photo:300308 was a 2 page, so I used the left side. I HATE all of my circle cutters and punches, so I used the paisley's instead.

I have to go cook dinner, so for now
Cheers!

1st Blog Ever!!

2011-06-12T19:49:00.000-06:00

So here it is, my 1st blog ever, and you are reading it! Aren't you the lucky one? I have had this set up for about a month now, and never got around to adding pictures or saying anything. It is amazing that when you have a goal for something you get more motivated. Let me explain....

I am an active member of the Let's Scrap website http://letsscrap.ning.com/ but I just joined last month. It was a great time to join because May was National Scrapbooking Month WOOT!! They had lots of NSD challenges posted along with their regular sketches and Design Team challenges. So, I got a lot of pages done last month :) Anyway, how this all connects is that they have just posted a sketch that you can do and submit as part of application for August thru November design team for the site. I would like to "go for it" if you will and along with their sketch they said to link to your blog so they can see your other work. VOILA I am now getting my blog going! I may or may not get the design team position, but either way it was good motivation to get my butt movin!

I am hoping to post pics of my craft room and show tips on how I store some of my things as I progress with my blog. I would like to also challenge myself to try 1 new recipe each month (maybe week) from the 1950 Betty Crocker cookbook. Lot's of high hopes and expectations for myself, but I think I can do it!

That's all for today, as I spent forever loading my wedding album pages and captioning them today, but I promise I will progess much faster now that I have the jump start.
Cheers and good night!