Teacher Gifts

I have known since the school year started that I needed to make some Christmas gifts for the girls teachers..so when did I start them?? The night before I needed to take them of course!!! I started at 9:00 pm. I went to bed at 12:30 am and did about 30 minutes more the following morning! But they turned out kind of cute if I must say so myself...

Here is a pic of the whole batch:

Here is the inside of the stationary folder:

I made 4 cards with matching envelopes and a large paper clip bookmark ..all matching with the great "Always" decorator paper..this paper reminds me of ice cream!

Here is a look at just the cover and the bookmark:

and here are the four individual cards:

So I made all the kids in the girl's class and my wonderful stamp club ladies AND my monthly swap group these great stockings from Lauren Meader's Timeless Templates..this is a free download and a great one!!

http://www.papertreyink.com/timeless_templates_download_here.html

Here's mine:

Mine aren't nearly as cute as the ones she has on there with fur cuffs and such but hey, I was mass producing!!! I made 3o of them! I was actually cutting out stockings at a playground while the girls were climbing..a busy Mom has to multitask you know!!!

So there they are..this year's batch of teacher gifts and such. I have a few more projects I hope to finish up this weekend and show you soon! Merry Christmas to all..I am gathering up some faboo recipes to share with you all next time! My holiday favorites! Oh and I have to leave you with this cute card I saw while blurfing the other day:

http://chicnscratch.typepad.com/chic_n_scratch/2008/11/many-merry-messages.html

I had to copy them they were so stinkin cute!!!

Ciao for now!!! Deidre

Christmas is Coming!

Well we survived last week's outbursts...we seem to have one per day now so I am getting more used to them.  Can't imagine what life we be like when they are teens...hopefully they will  have developed some really good drugs by then so I can survive! 

We are enjoying an unusually cold and rainy day here in San Diego.   So the girls are watching Shrek which is their favorite movie right now.  I just finished ordering the last of my Christmas gifts online and I spent most of the morning packing up my club orders and finishing my club members Christmas gifts.  They are going out a little later than I wanted but I had to wait on a few folks to get their orders to me this time so I apologize about that!  They will all be airborne by tomorrow though and some went out Saturday. 

For those of you following my yoga experience I am happy to report that I have lost 3.5# now and finished my 12th class.  It is getting much easier to handle the hot room and I feel great when it is done so I am extremely pleased with how well it is working.  Joel says he can already see a huge difference.  Here is a link if you want to watch an interesting 60 minute interview with Bikram himself...I think the McYoga reference is funny, but San Diego is the first place I have ever lived that had it...click on the picture of Bikram and download the interview.

http://www.bikramyoga.com/ 

So here is a card that I did for my club's technique this month and my card swap....it uses one of my favorite techniques, reverse masking!   

Basically you cut a shape out of cardstock and use that as a template to sponge your color inside your mask.  Here is a look at what my mask for these ornaments looked like:

I used a 1 1/2" inch circle punch, a 1 3/8" circle punch and a 1 1/4" circle punch.  I also used the Top Note Die for the Big Shot.  I held the mask in place and stamped my snowflake background on each of the ornaments and then used a green fern branch from a retired set hostess set called garden sillouettes to look like a branch. I used Red Riding hood ink and cardstock, baja breeze ink  and cardstock, kiwi kiss ink and always artichoke ink for the branch.  I also used the set Short and Sweet for the sentiment. 

Here are some other cards you may recognize using the same technique..one uses an oval mask:

and this one uses a heart mask:

It doesn't take many supplies...so give it a try sometime!

Ciao for now!  Deidre

I understand why animal mothers eat their young!

What a morning we had here in the Mooney household.  What is up with girls and clothes?  I swear as soon as you get an outfit on them, they are tearing it off and wanting something else.  By the time we reached outfit number 6, I had had all I could take and when Matilda came into my bathroom where I was blowdrying my hair trying to take that dress off, I took her out to her carseat in the garage and buckled her in.  She still kicked off  her shoes but she couldn't get to the clothes anymore.  Matty was being pretty good although the screaming was starting to get to her too...she decided that fruit chews were not a good enough special treat for her lunch box today  and threw them down on the floor of the car, where I had no problem leaving them.  Then to top that little tantrum off she didn't like the movie playing, poor thing, and screamed at me to change it.  SO.... I shut it off completely and turned the radio on.  You would have thought I was stabbing them with a knife.  So what did I do?  Turned the radio up louder and sang along!  Luckily it is only 1.2 miles to the school.  So we all went in red faced and with tears.  They went to lunch and I needed a drink but I sufficed with a gingersnap skinny latte at starbucks.  Am I a horrible mother?  I sure felt horrible, but I did not eat them.  I could see how it would happen though!

When I picked them up everyone was in a much better mood.  We are going to see the Nutcracker tomorrow, hopefully that will interest them and won't be a battleground.  Say a prayer for me....is it just me or are the 4's the worst?????

So here is a card I made a few weeks ago:

It is an old set from SU called Espress yourself, I think!  It may be even older.  I actually had borrowed it from a friend years ago and stamped the marshmallows and embossed them, and I had stamped the coffee cup about 20 times so I just punched it out with a Marvy Circle punch and sponged some chocolate chip around the edges and added some liquid applique for the foam, and some crystal effects to the cup to get that shiny ceramic look.  I layered two oval punches crossed underneath my sentiment to look like  a heart to mimic the cup.  (This won't be necessary in about a month...we will have two different type heart punches in the new catty!!!!  Woohoo!)  I finished it off with some real red striped ribbon and voila...a card I started 5 years ago is finally done!  

Ciao for now....Deidre

Christmas in California

I have been so excited to show you guys some of my Christmas decorations this year, but I was waiting on my new Decor Elements to arrive to put on the finishing touches!  They are so easy to use.  I have had this idea in my head ever since convention and was so excited to finally see it finished.  Here it is:

I found an oval mirror at the salvation army for $20.  It was perfect..nice beveled edge on the mirror, crappy gold frame and in need of painting!  I took it to Michael's to  have them add the wire hanger on the back, the original hanger hung it vertically.  I painted it with cream color acrylic paint and then with crackle medium and then barn red acrylic paint on top.  It didn't crackle as well as I would have liked but it worked out fine...I attached the red and cream striped ribbon with a glue gun (it isn't actually hanging from that..the mirror is too heavy, and then rubbed the decor elements in the middle and I love it!!!  Here it is over my mantle:

I used three rolls of the red and cream striped ribbon in my christmas decorations..here you can see it on the tree:

and here it is on the staircase:

I will have some more Christmas gifts posted soon using more decor elements..I am so loving these things!

So for my Bikram update:  9 classes done....dare I say it is getting a tad bit easier, although I am not correct in all, scratch that, ANY of the positions, I don't feel like throwing up constantly and the room heat isn't bothering me much anymore..in fact last night we all thought it was not hot enough!!!  Another big change I am seeing is in my skin.  It is getting so soft!  Huge change!  I am not very good at moisturizing and in the winter my legs looks pretty chaffy.  Especially as dry as it is here, but I am not having that problem at all this year and it is so soft!  there is something to be said about sweating a gallon every class! 

Ciao for now!!!  Deidre

SCORE!

and no I am not talking about football!  Although woohoo for the OSU Cowboys (my alma mater) I found out about a week ago that they were ranked number 12!  Impressive....and pretty sad I did not know about it until then.  I went to school there during the Thurman Thomas, Barry Sanders and Hart Lee Dykes era.  I actually tutored Thurman in a class once!   So it is nice to see OSU back in the game so to speak! 

So what did I score???  Well I have been welcomed into a great group here in San Diego called the Rubba Sistas.  It is a group of orphaned demos as well as downlines and sidelines of the wonderful Gail Reed.  When I knew I was moving here I actually emailed all the demos in the area to see if anyone was nice and wanted to stamp together like the group I had in Columbia. (Hey Claudia and Marci!!)  Anyhoo, Gail responded back right away and we started corresponding.  She has been very warm and invites me to anything they are doing.  It was actually kind of funny because the first time I met these lovely ladies I was actually picked up on the street corner by Gail to go to a meeting near LA.  My husband says to me.."Are you crazy going to go get in a car with someone you have never met and drive 2 hours away from here?"  I was like, "honey, they are stampers..trust me they will be fine and safe!"  And of course I was right!!  They have adopted me into their group and we have been having so much fun!  So we had a Christmas Party on Saturday and I can't wait to show you all what I scored ...so here goes!!!

from the lovely Pam Gaynor who hosted the party:

you can see how to make these here:

http://prairiepaperandink.typepad.com/amyr/2006/12/how_to_make_a_g.html

We all did a card swap and here are some of the pics:

how cute are these tags????

Here are some other little trinkets made from the big shot and dies that Pam and Judy made for everyone..Judy gave me two extra for the girls..so sweet!

we all had to bring a gift for a dirty santa exchange where you can steal the gifts...here is the tag I made for my gift:

and lastly here is what I ended up with going home..how appropriate is this????

okay so the bikram update is:  7 classes finished..2.5# lost so far!!  Woohoo!  Only 17 more to go in a perfect world...hey I was that weight at 35..surely I can get there again at 41??  keep your fingers crossed!

Okay and I think my favorite gift of all from the party...from the wonderful Carol from Wisconsin:

Don't you just love this????

I also got a great pair of earrings made by Wanda, but I couldn't get a good picture of them..thanks though... they are beautiful!!!

Got to love a Christmas party with stampers....the absolutely best presents!  Ciao for now.....Deidre

Greek Yogurt!

Okay so another thing that I have found since moving to California is Greek yogurt.  First let me explain that I love yogurt, but have been very frustrated trying to find one that tastes good with low sugar and nothing artificial.  I was eating the healthy and fit stuff, but wasn't crazy about it.  So I decided to switch to plain yogurt to eliminate the sugar.  One thing at a time right?  After getting used to the tartness I liked it.  Plus I could definitely see why you should use that instead of sour cream so that has been an easy switch.  Then someone told me about Greek yogurt, so I was at Trader Joe's one day and thought I would look for it....if you don't know about Trader Joe's I could write a whole piece just on that store..maybe another day...anyhoo...saw the greek yogurt with honey on the side and thought I would try it!  OH MY GOD!  So thick and creamy and utterly yummy and LOWER in sugar than the healthy fit stuff!  A little tangy (but I have come to like that!)  I mix honey in for the girls and everyone is happy!  I have even found it at the local Commissary....go try it..you won't regret it!!!

So my Bikram Yoga update is, I just attended my 6th class....getting through it like a trooper and dare I say it actually is starting to feel a *little* good.  Noticing some improvements, I was actually able to get my arms under my body tonight..one of the postures is you lie on your stomach, lips touching the floor to keep your spine straight and you put your palms face down on the floor underneath your hips and lay your stomach on your wrongly turned elbows..yes it sounds painful and yes Virginia it is painful!  Especially with my bad elbow, so until tonight I had never been able to lie on them I just had them real close to the side of my body with my hands only underneath me.  Tonight I did it...not as far as you are supposed to go..your elbows are supposed to touch...yeah right....anyways the elbows were definitely under the body tonight and although it still hurt like the dickens they actually feel better now!  Amazing!  Yes, I am still sweating in there like a sieve, I have to keep wiping it out of my eyes because it is blinding me....oh and this is even better...THERE IS A 9 MONTH PREGNANT WOMAN in the class can you believe that...All I can say is WOW or she is really wanting that baby to come out!  She said today she is due Dec 31.  YOWZERS!

So how about a card since you guys have patiently read through all this???? 

I love this card...it says Welcome Christmas into your heart and I used a cuttlebug heart folder to dry emboss the hearts on the ruby red background.    Tree is from Lovely as a Tree (have you guys guessed that this is my favorite stamp set yet???)  Kiwi Kiss paper from Bella Rose collection, and cute button bouquet button in kiwi kiss with red taffeta ribbon tied to accent the sentiment.  All supplies SU.

Here is another...

Simple card....sanded background stamped in so saffron on the same color of paper.  the image is brayered first in the saffron on glossy paper and then in the rust masking off the rest of the yellow so it wouldn't get to mixed together.  then flowers from Upsy daisy were stamped in black stazon on top and I used black stazon to shade the edges....some gold organdy ribbon (retired SU) finishes it off...and yes Claudia..I figured out how to add the copyright....I'm learning...

Ciao for now!  Deidre

Still learning!!!

So I am trying to get the hang of all this computer stuff.  I can't figure out how to add the watermark to my pictures..my dear friend Claudia is trying to help me so don't flame me for not having it right yet, ok? 

So I just got back from Bikram Yoga.  My fourth class!  I didn't pass out, have to leave the room or have to stop this time so woohoo..we are making progress.  For those of you unfamiliar with Bikram (and I was blissfully unaware before moving  here) it is 26 posture series of yoga in a room that is 105 degrees!!!  Yikes!  There are a couple of different reasons for this...first of all your skin is your largest organ and by making it sweat (profusely, I take that back..like a fire hydrant!) you are making it function.  Secondly, by working in a heated room your muscles are already warm helping to prevent injuries and doing the postures in a heated room also provides a cardiovascular workout.  Top it all off it is an hour and half class!!!  So the first time I went to La Jolla, home of all the beautiful people.  The room was really nice there as were the people.  I had to lay down a few times but finished the class.  Second time I went to Mira Mesa, which is closer to me and cheaper and a more diverse group.  I felt more at home here despite the studio not being as nice.  Fast forward to 10 minutes before class ended and I had to leave the room.  Couldn't catch my breath.  3rd Class...they had the heater off during the day due to work being done in the building, so it wasn't as hot..made it through with flying colors!  4th Class tonight..totally packed, totally hot and I made it through!!!  Wooohoo!  Progress!  Uh I still can't see my toes  in the front mirror when my leg is supposed to be wrapped like a snake around the other one..uh they are plainly visible because I can't wrap my legs!!!!   But slowly I am seeing some improvements.  There are some people there..I call them Yogi's..not sure what the official term is so forgive me..they literally look like they are flying on a magic carpet at times, with just one base leg at the bottom..absolutely amazing.  Will keep you guys updated if I see any progress!

So how about a card after all my ramblings???

This uses an old set from Su called Artifacts..it is one of my favorites!  It uses a great technique called emboss resist.  First on white Glossy paper I stamped the scroll stamp in so saffron.  Then on top of that I stamped the clock in versamark and embossed with clear EP.  heat set and then brayered over the top with really rust until the rust color was smooth.  Distressed the edges and matted on so saffron and mounted on artichoke which had been background stamped with canvas.  Sentiment is also from a retired set..can't remember the name right now and little clock is a charm that I have been holding on to for 4 years and finally found a place for it!!!  Hoarders Unite!!!

Here is another card for putting up with all my ramblings:

All images copyright SU 1990-2008....Sanded background on vanilla in so saffron ink, Godspeed image (thanks Nancy!) Stamped in choc chip on sahara sand and then using some bleach and a small paint brush, bleached out some of the image..matted on choc chip and distressed that edge.  Then cut out summer sun ribbon and mounted it on top!  Great card for the soldiers..they are in our prayers everyday!

Enough ramblings for today!  I promise I will get the watermark thing figured out soon....

Ciao for now!  Deidre

I'm exhausted!

So I have had two days of shopping and am only half way done with my Christmas shopping....Yikes!  Combine that with thanksgiving day on my feet all day and I am one pooped puppy!  We had a great meal with some people Joel works with, the other wives and I split up the cooking and that made it very manageable.  That, plus all the recipes I got from www.thepioneerwoman.com which is my favorite non stamping site!  She has it all on there...photography, cooking, gardening and some funny stuff.  If you go check her out, check out November 07 and two entries, Chaps and Dirty Rotten Sinner.  Hilarious!

So I haven't gotten to stamp in a few days with all this running around but I did make some different items last week and thought I would share a few of them with you guys!

Here is a little card I made using an image I had stamped a long time ago:

It uses Lovely as a Tree, Wonderful Words.  The base is kiwi kiss background stamped using Sanded in Creamy caramel over the top. The main image is stamped in brown craft ink and embossed with clear embossing powder.  I used a old klaidoscope pad in autumn with a brayer to make the background for the trees.  The main image is matted on choc chip and I used the 5/8" grosgrain in vanilla.  all supplies SU.

 

So the other big project I worked on recently was a baby gift for one of the guys Joel works with.  Here is baby Matthew's name frame:

 

This uses Nursery Necessities and a retired decorator paper.  All supplies except for the green polka dotted ribbon are SU.  I love my star punches!!

And here is the card I made to go along with it which is a CASE (Copy and Share Everything) of Kelly Rutherford.  Her screen name is Atomic butterfly on SCS.... she is one of my favorite artists, check her gallery out and you will see why!  Here is a link to her card:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1138305?cat=500&ppuser=78862

and here is mine:

 

So I made some spinach lasagna for dinner tonight.  We had our neighbors over.  They have 6 year old boy and girl twins, so I guess we will survive the 4's somehow!

I am looking forward to getting all the Christmas decorations out tomorrow and Joel is going to the Chargers game so I am going to just stay in my jammies all day and play Christmas music while we get the Christmas tree decorated and make some Turkey Soup for dinner!  Can't wait!!!  Ciao for now...

Deidre

In the beginning....

So I finally decided to do it. I am not very computer savvy so this is going to be a real challenge for me, but I thought it would be easier than trying to remember who I had emailed and who I had not. This way you can sign up and get updates whenever I post rather than me having to send mass emails and missing a few folks in the process. I hope to share my love of stamping with you here and hopefully inspire you each to do a little stamping yourself.

Stamping is most definitely therapeutic for me and I love being able to custom make things for people without having to run to the store! (although a trip to the dollar spot at Target or the dollar tree are also wonderfully therapeutic!)

I will share some things about the family but my husband really doesn't want any pics of the girls out there floating around cyberspace, so those will probably only be shared by email. I am sure you will all hear about our new life in California on here and things that I love such as cooking and traveling (although who really gets to do that with twin 4 year olds???) I also will have lots of links to fabulous projects as I find them so that you can see them to! That way if you ever loose something you can come back here and find them again!

Most of all I just want to stay connected to everyone and hope that this will find you all well! Stay tuned for me to upload some projects over this weekend as I learn how to do it! Miss you all and Happy Thanksgiving!

Smiles-Deidre