The True Meaning Of Christmas

Hi!

I wanted to be sure to wish a very Merry Christmas.



Merry Christmas,
M.E.

The Reason Behind Christmas

Hi!

I know some of you may still be out there shopping for Christmas presents.

But, I'd like to share this short video with you.



Happy Holidays,
M.E.

Love at Christmas

Hi!

I hope y'all are having a wonderful December.

Today's card is a reminder of what truly matters at this time of the year.

For today's card I used the AHSC Sketch 34.

Also, they are doing a design team call at this time. Some of the lovely ladies on the team will be leaving in January. So if you've ever wanted to be on a design team this is your chance to try out.

Stamps: Unity Love in the Room at Christmas
Ink: Tombow ABT
Accessories: QuicKutz Deck the Halls Tree

If you have a chance to play along with us at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge. We'd love to see what you create. And don't forget that if you do play along with us, please mention that Mary Ellen sent you.

Happy Crafting,
M.E.

CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop

Hi!

Thank you for joining in our " CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop". The hop goes in a circular path, but if you happen to get lost you can find the blog hop list at the end of this post. The starting point for the hop is The Happy Scrapbooker.

If you are on track you should have just visited, Paige's blog, and you are here now.

This month I made a CAS (Clean and Simple) card. Even if you are short on time, there's still time to make a wonderful Christmas card for your family and friends. 

Stamps: CTMH Perfect Fit - Holidays, Frosted Cardmaking Workshop
Paper: CTMH White Daisy
Paper Size: A2
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, CTMH Lagoon, Crystal Blue, Pacifica
Accessories: Studio G Gems

Your next stop on the blog hop is April.

CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop Line up

1. Diane Tuggle - The Happy Scrapbooker
2. Carol Loftus - Close to My Heart News! 
3. Linda Pekrul - Blue Sky Scrapping 
4. Jamie Barney - Scrapping with Elsa and Sophie 
5. Paige Dolecki - Stampologist
6. Mary Ellen Driggs - Cr8ive M.E. (y'all are HERE)
7. April Grigson - Imagine the Possibilities Studio
8. Theresa Miller - The Sassy Scrapper 
9. Brenda Lapp - Crafting for sanity? Or insanity? 
10. Ashley Denny - Be "hoot"iful Scrapbooking 
11. Mary Schwimer - Ida's Attic

Happy Crafting, 

M.E.

CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop

Hi!

Thank you for joining in our " CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop". The hop goes in a circular path, but if you happen to get lost you can find the blog hop list at the end of this post. The starting point for the hop is The Happy Scrapbooker.

If you are on track you should have just visited, Paige's blog, and you are here now.

For this hop, I created a Christmas card. After all, Christmas will be here in 40 days. Can you believe it?!?

Are you ready for it? I'll admit this year I'm not ready. Hopefully, I can get all my Christmas shopping done the day after Thanksgiving.

There's still time to order supplies for making your own Christmas and holiday cards. Plus, if you've got some paper crafters on your Christmas list or you need to give your family some ideas on Christmas gifts, you should definitely check out my CTMH shop, if you don't have a consultant.

Stamps: CTMH Santa Claus, Merry & Bright
Paper Size: A2
Ink: VersaMark, CTMH Cranberry, White Daisy, Tombow ABT
Accessories: QuicKutz Cutting Dies Nesting Doily Circles, Cuttlebug Snow Dots, Memory Depot White Detail embossing powder

Your next stop on the blog hop is April.

CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop Line up

1. Diane Tuggle - The Happy Scrapbooker
2. Rebecca Brown - Show me Scrapping 
3. Michelle Bowley - Wandering Scissors 
4. Carol Loftus - Close to My Heart News! 
5. Linda Pekrul - Blue Sky Scrapping 
6. Jamie Barney - Scrapping with Elsa and Sophie 
7. Paige Dolecki - Stampologist
8. Mary Ellen Driggs - Cr8ive M.E. (y'all are HERE)
9. April Grigson - Imagine the Possibilities Studio
10. Theresa Miller - The Sassy Scrapper 
11. Brenda Lapp - Crafting for sanity? Or insanity? 
12. Ashley Denny - Be "hoot"iful Scrapbooking 
13. Mary Schwimer - Ida's Attic

Happy Crafting, 

M.E. 

CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop

Hi!

Thank you for joining in our " CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop". The hop goes in a circular path, but if you happen to get lost you can find the blog hop list at the end of this post. The starting point for the hop is The Happy Scrapbooker.

If you are on track you should have just visited, Paige's blog, and you are here now.

For this hop I created a sweet snack bag using the NEW Season's Tweetings Gift Bag Kit by Close to my Heart. You can use this kit to make so many things, like a last minute Hostess gift for the upcoming Holiday parties, a stocking stuffer, or even if you are having a holiday party you could use them as place cards. 

Plus, you can't beat the price. For $14.95, the Season's Tweetings Gift Bag Kit includes:

• 1 – My Acrylix® Season's Tweetings Stamp Set (C-size)
• 6 – Season's Tweetings Gift Bags (3 Topiary chevron, 3 Ruby polka-dot)
• 9 – Die-Cut Tags

Your next stop on the blog hop is April.

CTMH Festive Friday Blog Hop Line up

1. Diane Tuggle - The Happy Scrapbooker
2. Rebecca Brown - Show me Scrapping 
3. Michelle Bowley - Wandering Scissors 
4. Carol Loftus - Close to My Heart News! 
5. Linda Pekrul - Blue Sky Scrapping 
6. Jamie Barney - Scrapping with Elsa and Sophie 
7. Paige Dolecki - Stampologist
8. Mary Ellen Driggs - Cr8ive M.E. (y'all are HERE)
9. April Grigson - Imagine the Possibilities Studio
10. Theresa Miller - The Sassy Scrapper 
11. Brenda Lapp - Crafting for sanity? Or insanity? 
12. Ashley Denny - Be "hoot"iful Scrapbooking 
13. Mary Schwimer - Ida's Attic

Happy Crafting, 

M.E. 

AHSC Sketch 22

Hi!

Today is the start of a new week and that means a new sketch over on the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge blog.

This is today's wonderful sketch over at AHSC.

And here is my interpretation of it

Stamps: CTMH Perfect Fit - Holidays Holiday
Paper: SU! Festival of Prints
Ink: CTMH Archival Black
Accessories: CM Circle Shapemaker, QuicKutz Ginger Boy, Deck the Halls Tree, Regency Baker's Twine, Buttons Galore and More Grab Bag

As you can see I went a little overboard with the circles. But that's the fun of doing a sketch challenge. As long as you can tell that the sketch was used you can go a little crazy with it.

Also I've been trying to come up with Christmas card ideas and ways to use more of that designer paper I have. Trust me, it's definitely more than some people have. And rather then being afraid of using it or having it so long that it's out of style. I figure I may as well try to use it.

So what do you think. Do you like my take on today's sketch?

Do you have a stack of designer paper that you need to go through?

What do you do with the designer paper that you're tired of or that is too old?

Happy Crafting,
M.E.

Tuesday Tip Day: Ribbon Storage Part 1

Hi!

I hope you enjoyed the last Tuesday Tip Day that I shared about storing/organizing 6x6 paper pads.

If you haven't had a chance to check it out. You can find it HERE.

For today's Tip Day we will be focusing on Ribbon Storage.

As always these are just the things that I've found that work out best for me. So you can take or leave the tips if you have found something that works better for you.

OK. They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. So today, I have to admit that  I am a Ribbon Hoarder.

I just love it.

I think it has something to do with either the fact that when my mom was growing up in the Philippines she was trained to be a seamstress. Or probably because my major the first time I was in college was Fashion Merchandising. Then again it may be a combination of the two.

Of course, it just could be because I love the patterns.

Which is why I feel that I just have to share the way I store my ribbons with y'all today.

I've tried various ways to store my ribbon.

Today, I will share the method I use for ribbons on spools.

I tried using dowel rods attached to my wall but the problem with that was

1. there just wasn't enough room to store my ribbons the way I liked
2. it was too hard to place new ribbon rolls in them and to remove used ribbon rolls

Thank goodness my craft room has a closet, so that I could still try this technique but in a way that works best for my needs. 

The method that I use is a five tiered pant hanger with a swinging arm. 

The reasons why are

1. It provides the right amount of spacing
2. It is easy to place new ribbons and remove used ribbons
3. And it allows me to utilize the closet in my craft room. 

The pant hangers that I use come from Target and you can find them HERE. 

I enjoy this ribbon storage method so much that I even use it for my gift wrap ribbon storage.

Next time, I will share the storage method that I use for loose ribbon storage.

Please, let me know if this has helped you in anyway.

Also, if you have any other ideas for craft storage tips. I'd love to hear them.

Happy Crafting,
M.E.

Christmas Mouse

Hi!

Today over on the Can You Digi It? blog we have a NEW Challenge up.

It's Challenge #25 and is "Not a Creature was Stirring".

You should definitely stop by the blog and check out what the other ladies on the Design Team created.

Ha! I wish. That never happens at my house especially when visitors like Santa come to my house.

Don't get me wrong. My three dogs are the sweetest. And they love people. They just don't realize how intimidating they can be to others, who don't know them yet.

Well the creature I featured for this card is Na-Cho Cheese by Mike Eustis. Which also happens to be on sale right now. This is the last month that this awesome stamp will be available in the Can You Digi It? shop as Mike is retiring.

The other reason I went with Na-Cho was because in my DH's family it is tradition to have a Christmas mouse.

Now we all know Santa brings the individual Christmas presents. Well did you know he has a little buddy in the shape of a mouse. Yup. The Christmas mouse stays with your family the entire Christmas season and then pops out for a bit on Christmas day to bring the "family" presents. You know the board games, books, and family movies.

Stamps: Mike Eustis for Can You Digi It Na-Cho Cheese, Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Santa's Helper Cocoa

Paper: My Mind's Eye On The Bright Side - One, American Traditional Designs Holiday Cheer - Earthtones

Ink: Palette Noir Black, CTMH Cranberry, Bic Mark-it Forest Green

Accessories: QuicKutz Nesting Label Rectangle Die, Holly, CM Custom Cutting System Circles, Heart Shapemaker, hole punch, Liquid Applique White

Happy Crafting,
M.E.

It's the most wonderful time of the year

Hi!

This week over on the Can You Digi It? blog there is a NEW challenge. It's Baby It's Cold Outside.

My DT project was my Christmas present for my
DH's brother and sister-in-law.

If you're like me you've got to get your Christmas shopping done.

So far we've got a couple of ideas playing around in our heads
for the family members who live here in Texas.

But, of course, I did marry the baby of 6 and that means
we have to shop for his siblings, too. Thankfully, we have a
whole system set up where each person gets assigned a different
person each year. And if your person remembers you will receive
Christmas presents for your family, well the couple.
They have a whole other system set up for the kids
but since we don't have any. No worries there.

Does your family do something like this?
Or do you get gifts for everyone?
I grew up in a small family. So we'd buy a present for everyone.

 Well, last year we were forgotten. :( 
Yup. DH's sibling that was assigned to us forgot all about us. I won't even tell you how "kind" she was to us for our anniversary. lol

But this year the brother and sister-in-law that have us not only remembered us but also sent our gift early. :)

Well since I'm the shopper in our family I'm responsible for remembering to get presents. If it were up to DH everyone would just get gift cards. And since I worked at The UPS Store for 2 years I'm responsible for getting presents shipped, too.

I was out this weekend at KOHL's. I just love that place
and I saw a couple of gifts I thought would work out.
Since DH knows his family better then I do I was sending pics
via our iPhones to him so he could help
with the decision making process.

Now I won't share with you what the gift is
but I'd like to share with you the gift wrapping job
that I did on it.

This is the gift. I made a tag for it.

This is a close up of the tag.

Stamps: Can You Digi It? Snowpoke by Loopy4Digis

Accessories: Lifestyle Crafts QuicKutz Nesting Doily Circles 
 

Oh, I wanted to share with you that the following digi designers
will be retiring from the Can You Digi It? team 
Loopy4Digis and Mike Eustis.
Their stamps are on SALE now until the end of the month.
 By the way the Snowpoke on this tag is by Loopy4Digis.

 Starting in 2013 their digi designs will no longer
be in the Can You Digi It? shop. :(
We are sad to see them both go and wish them the best.


Happy Crafting,
M.E.

Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer

Hi!

Well it's that time of the year again. The time when all the children's Christmas specials come on. I remember when I was a little kid waiting for Frosty The Snowman's special and of course who can forget the Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer special.

Did you know that Rudolph started out as a marketing ploy from Montgomery Ward's to bring in the holiday shoppers. I only know that because of my Fashion Merchandising major and that I worked at Montgomery Ward's after high school graduation. It was one of my jobs after high school.

Stamps: TAC Reindeer Food, Northwoods Rubber Stamps, Inc. 0 4957

Ink: CTMH Chocolate, New England Ivy, Pacifica

Accessories: CTMH Round Sponge, Want2Scrap Self Adhesive Pearls

But let's go back to our childlike memories and watch a little Rudolph, shall we?



Happy Crafting,
M.E.

Holiday Ornaments

Hi!

The holiday season is upon us. Which makes now the perfect time to learn how to make handmade ornaments from the heart using three coordinating products you’re sure to love and use year after year!

Happy Crafting,
M.E.

Merry Christmas Alice (Yes, I know it's July)

Nothing like a HOT July summer to make you
think about making Christmas cards. ;)

Well, I don't know what the weather's like where
you are but I'm here in TX. Which means it's
HOT. We've been in the 100s for so long, but hey
we do get to wake up in the 80s which feels cool.

This week over at Anyone for Anya? they are
doing a Christmas in July! challenge.

For the sketch on this card I used the Card
Confidence Program Originals book. There is a
TON of card sketches inside, 128 pages worth.
This book is available through CTMH (Close to
My Heart) catalog. Which can be purchased online
or if you wait until August 1st, that's when I
will be signing up for my Consultant kit.

So do you wanna see my super cute Christmas card?

Stamps: TGF Wonderland, Bombshell Stamps Holiday Accessory

Paper: scraps from my stash

Ink: Palette Noir Black, SU Classic Chocolate Chip, SU Stampin' Write Bravo Burgundy

Accessories: Regency Baker's Twine

So what do you think?

Have you been working on Christmas cards?
Or maybe Halloween or Thanksgiving cards?

I've been working on all of the above or
at least ideas for them as I'm participating in
a card swap over  at SCS for them. There's still
time and room if you would also like to
participate here. Plus the card swap is a Clean
and Simple swap.

Hope you have a good weekend. We're at home
watching the Olympics.

We're here in the USA so we're definitely
TEAM USA!!!

What's your team?

Happy Crafting,
M.E.