SIMPLE SATURDAY #12

MORE VALENTINES

After a week of non-stop activity, I finally got a morning to spend all by myself in the Stamping Tower. Here are some of the Valentines I came up with to send to my Silver Stamper friends. Since I need at least 20, they are all simple--so feel free to CASE!

DE-CLUTTER DE HOUSE (Linens, Cleaning Supplies)

The challenge for the next week is to clean out our linen closets. As you can see from my "before" picture, it really IS a challenge! The "after" picture, however, proves that it's not impossible!

Here's a tip I just heard about recently for storing sheet sets: neatly fold the top and bottom sheets together with one pillow case and use the second pillow case as an "envelope" (or the only pillow case for twin sets.) Why didn't I think of that??? It works, too--as seen on the lower shelf (plaid pillow cases.)

For bulky items (like quilts and blankets) try using those plastic bags that you compress by removing the air with your vacuum. They sure do save space! (Stacked on the floor under the lowest shelf, so not seen here.)

Old towels can be moved to the garage or basement for car washing or pet drying. Otherwise, out they go! The rest can be folded and stacked on a shelf, or rolled and stored in a basket. I used the wall space over the toilet in our master bath for a chrome towel rack (like the ones they have in hotels) where they're handy and also add some extra color. You could even match towels to the colors of bedrooms and store them there. This is an especially nice touch for a guestroom. Or buy only white towels for all so you don't have to bother matching them up or separating them in the laundry. Be creative!

An additional challenge for the coming week is to pare down cleaning supplies under the sinks in the kitchen and bathrooms. I discovered so many duplicate or unnecessary products under mine. Consolidating really makes sense.

Remember, getting organized is not an end in itself. It's a way to take some of the stress and chaos from our lives so that we're free to use our time in serving others. Go for it!

SIMPLE SATURDAY #11

NEW TOYS HAVE ARRIVED!

Look what my MIB brought yesterday in my favorite box! I love the way the new bird punch folds flat for storage. As you can see, I already tried it out on a card.

What a nice stack of new stamp sets, too--and they take up so much less room than the wood-mounted sets. Not shown are two additional punches, (curly label and 1 1/4" square) and a pack of Rich Razzleberry cardstock, which I plan to use with Easter cards. Also included in this delivery was the butterflies Embosslit--soooo easy to use in my Cuttlebug.

Another nice part of this order was that 3 of the sets were FREE, thanks to Sale-a-bration and Hostess benefits.

With bad weather forecast later this week, I'm sure there will be lots of activity here in the Tower!

JUST HORSIN' AROUND

Here's what Joan and I came up with using one set for two different looks!

The card on the left was done with Chestnut Roan ink (how appropriate is that...) featuring one of the images within the Nestability circle.

The card on the right was stamped across the bottom with Versamark and chalked. The horse image and greeting were stamped with Chestnut Roan ink.

The jute was used on both cards in two different ways, although I think the knot works best for both. Either of these would make a nice masculine birthday card. Enjoy!

De-Cluttered Stamping Tower

NOW YOU SEE IT, NOW YOU DON'T!

I've exchanged the messy look of a pile of things waiting to be dealt with and/or put away for the neatness of a beautiful 12" x 12" box from Hobby Lobby. They were on sale for 2/$10; but I bought only one so I wouldn't be tempted to let things keep piling up.

Here's what's in there:

a book to put in the bookcase
SU catalogs
two small notebooks
2 decorated notepads that can be given as gifts later
a package of cough drops (no longer needed, thankfully)
a red tote bag zipped up into a square to go back in my purse
a magazine article on exercises I want to do
another notebook for card ideas from other blogs
23 items to be filed, shredded or put away
15 items to be thrown away (done!)
and a collection of my grandson's artwork from his first year of preschool.

Here's what's left:

the catalogs
the notebooks
the gift notepads
and the magazine article.

AMAZING!

DE-CLUTTER DE HOUSE (Paper)

Today was our first week of the usual Winterim at our Ladies Bible Study. We are using the newest Vanderlaan video series as the basis for an informal discussion. After this series, which we use to give our teaching staff a break before the start of the Spring Semester, we'll return to our regular format of Lecture series and electives.

In addition to the video, I'll be putting out a different challenge each week to encourage us to get our houses in order before the warm weather returns. Since it's such a popular series, I thought I'd share it with you to follow along with us!

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS: each week, a new challenge is issued for a specific area of our homes. When we come back the next week, we get to share what we accomplished, otherwise known as bragging rights (or rites!) Then the next challenge is issued.

This week's challenge is to attack and de-clutter all the piles of papers, magazines, books, and any other paper clutter in our house and reorganize or purge like crazy. Books and mags that might be of interest to others in our group may be brought in as giveaways; but whatever is left at the end of the session will be either donated to the church library where we meet (if appropriate) or discarded.

For those of you who are following by way of this blog, you could donate or discard things where you are. Maybe you could form a small group of your own to encourage one another, even if only for the next 6 weeks. Then check back here for the next week's challenge on Tuesdays. Meanwhile, I'll label all these challenges under De-Clutter De House so you can find the posts later.

As for your bragging rights, you can publish them here under comments. I'd enjoy hearing from you and sharing your comments with our group!

My Computer Is Back!

Thanks to a great computer doctor, my Dell was released from the hospital today. I'm so glad to have it up and running again!

Computer Problems

My computer is now at the computer hospital being purged of a nasty virus! I can access my blog and email with my laptop, but won't be able to post photos of cards until I get my PC back. Don't know when that will be (or how much it will cost.)

Take care with what you click on while you're online!

SIMPLE SATURDAY #10

Hoppy Valentine

Here's a Valentine I made for my grandson. The dsp is from the scrap drawer and happened to be just right for the frog with his green spots.

The gel heart is inserted slightly under a slit in his mouth. The eyes were added for a little extra interest. The red scalloped oval helps "ground" the heart, which is mounted with SU dimensionals.

The hardest part was trying to decide whether to label this one "Valentines" or "Scrap Drawer." (I decided against the latter since the scrap drawer isn't shown.)

Congrats to Blog Candy Winner!

And the winner is...

#13--ChrisD! Please contact me by email with your snail mail address so I can get your package out right away.

Thanks to all for your wonderful comments. This past year had a lot of ups and downs, with the loss of 2 family members along the way (in addition to my mom in Nov. of 2008.) Time in the Stamping Tower was a precious refuge from the storms of life, both literal and figurative.

I am constantly praising God for His gracious blessings of stamping supplies and fellow bloggers who share in this wonderful world of creativity. I feel as though I know some of you as well as stampers I've met face to face. The ideas we all share with one another go well beyond cyber space.

As I've said before, stamping (especially cards) gives us the opportunity to bless another person's life in a special way--so keep inking up!

HAPPY NEW YEAR--Blog Candy Style!

I can hardly believe another year has gone by. It seems the older I get, the faster it goes.

Once again, I'm offering some blog candy and this challenge: Look back over all my posts for 2009 and choose a favorite; then leave a comment here with your choice. On January 15th, I'll choose a winner at random and announce it here. Until then, I'll leave this post at the top of my blog (so be sure to scroll down for the latest posts.) Meanwhile, send some of your friends over to the Stamping Tower.

Also included are some clear stamps for Valentines!

Happy Stamping in 2010!

Phresh & Phunky Valentine

While going through a folder of Basic Grey papers, I came across a batch of pinks and reds that I had saved from last year. This Phresh & Phunky combo worked well with the cardstock I already had. Since I'm not fond of pink (yellow is my favorite color) I like the way these non-traditional colors toned it down a bit.

From the sheets of letters and tags, this tag was chosen to serve as a bookmark after the card is received. I hand-printed "remove for bookmark" beneath it and used the Slit punch to hold it in place until it is removed.

(After photographing the card, I repositioned the circle overlapping the large heart so that it's now completely on the heart for better balance.)

SIMPLE SATURDAY #9

FIRST VALENTINE FOR 2010

Here's the first Valentine I've designed for this year:

The silver x's and o's are stick-on letters from Making Memories alphabet stickers. The small sticker on the large heart is a dimensional sticker from EK Success. The red and silver gel hearts are stickers purchased at AC Moore.

The lacy heart was made with a Martha Stewart heart punch. To make it "adhereable" with all the cutouts, I used double stick tape on the back. Although it doesn't show up well here, (unless you click to enlarge) I sprinkled glitter in the holes and "mushed" it into the double stick tape beneath.

The right panel is also perforated to be used as a bookmark with a brad and embroidery floss to finish it off. I used some dsp on the inside where I will stamp something underneath where the large heart overlaps.

More Valentine ideas coming!

Stampin' Fun

Here are my stampin' buddies working on Valentine designs for the Mothers Class which resumes in February. There were six of us gathered around my dining room table: three from PA and three from NJ. The sunshine was so warm, we actually had to open the window a bit--delightful!

Of course, we also made some of our own cards as we tried various combinations of the dsp and embellishment supplies we shared.

We had quiche and cold drinks for brunch. Before cleaning up we enjoyed coffee and cake (made by Linda--delish.) Leave it to me to focus on the food (lol) but the best part was all the laughter. Every once in awhile, someone would say something that ended in a familiar phrase where we all burst into song--a sign that we're all in the same age bracket!

If you look closely, you can see my reflection in the mirror of the curio cabinet as I take this photo.

Scrap Drawer #5

When I came across this unfinished Easel Card, I headed for the Hero Arts birthday frames and the Scrap Drawer. Like the previous birthday post, I'm thinkin' chocolate again!

The cupcake icing features dollops of Frosted Lace Stickles and a Stickles red cherry on top.

Using scraps can be like a walk down memory lane as I re-use pieces from past projects. January is such a great month to use up leftovers while enjoying the bright sunshine streaming through the window--no cabin fever here!

Scrap Drawer #4

How can you miss when you have a nice large scrap of double-sided dsp and a simple Hero Arts clear stamp!

Matching the colors in the stripes, I used my SU markers to "decorate" the cake, with chocolate icing, of course. I "lit" the candles with pale yellow glitter and "wrapped" the image with blue and green embroidery floss. Three blue gems at the bottom give it just a little more sparkle.

This would serve well for a masculine birthday, don't you think?

SCRAP DRAWER#3

Here are two cards made from the same batch of scraps. The first is on blue textured cardstock
with narrow stripes and the sunburst design. The orange ribbon was a leftover piece which was taped over the "seam" and attached on the back. The knot was tied separately and added with a glue dot.

With a scrap piece of orange cardstock, some smaller scraps of dsp and the Boho Blossom punch, there was enough to make the oval greeting and the layered blossoms. The oval outline was colored in with a matching orange marker. For embellishment, I happened to have a tiny blue flower brad which also matched the blue cardstock.

The second card uses the white cardstock as a base, with wider stripes and oodles of gems for some sparkle.

Both cards turned out to be bright and cheery--nice for January!