HAPPY MAIL

Hello everyone. I hope you all had a great 4TH of July holiday. I sure did!
I received 'happy mail' from one of my fellow design team member from Designs on Cloud 9. I am so excited to share it with you.

 How great is this USA banner? It is ironic that my kitchen is all patriot, red, white and blue themed.

I love these rosettes. She made them on her Scor-pal. Seeing this has really inspired me to break out mine and give it a try.

I have no idea where she got the bling that she embellished these letters with but I love them. They are a size I have never seen and so crystal clear. She did such a great job! I love it so much. I will think of her every time I walk in my kitchen :) Thank you so much Staci!!!
You can see more of her work here on her blog...http://preciousmem.blogspot.com/2012/06/patriotic-banner.html or you can click on 'Staci's blog' at the bottom of this page.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

 

 Happy Independence Day!!! This picture was taken last night after a road race that I ran along with my nephew at Gillette Stadium ~ Home of the New England Patriots!!!

UNDER THE SEA BLOG HOP

Welcome to the 'Under The Sea' blog hop. You most likely have just come from my friend Ashley's blog, but in case you missed it...  http://theglamoroussideofscrapping.blogspot.com/

This is my two page scrapbook layout featuring 'the aquarium' pattern set along with the 'photo mat fun' set from Designs on Cloud 9.

Page 1

Page 2

I believe that my favorite creature in this layout is the clam. I used foam tape under his lips to make them stick out more!

I love how sparklie this rainbow fish is too. It is hard to tell in the pictures but the school of small fish have purple sparkle accents too.

Here is a close up of the stingray and a bit of the octopus with their googly eyes.

This picture shows how sparklie the photo mat paper is, as well as some great sea life creatures.

Thank you so much for taking the time to look at my 'under the sea' scrapbook layout. Please feel free to leave me a comment, and look around at the rest of my blog as well. Ok, now onto your next stop...

http://prettypaperprettyribbons.blogspot.com/

ON THE GO!

Hello again. I wanted to share two fabulous cards that I started about a month ago. They have just been put on 'hold' due to the equipment failure of my sewing machine. I am happy to say that I believe my machine and I have come to an agreement and hopefully there will be no other problems between us.

Last month, I was presented with a fantastic opportunity to buy a used vehicle with low miles in great condition. I was currently driving a 1996 F-150 pickup with 300,000 miles that I bought brand new. I really wasn't looking for a new vehicle but thought 'nothing lasts forever' and so maybe it was time to get something more reliable. Both my Mother and my Godparents offered to give me a loan in order to purchase my new Ford Explorer, so I made these cute easel cards as a 'thank you' to them.

                                         Here they are fully open.

 I used the 'on the go' pattern set (for the car and the driver), the 'dogs' set, as well as the 'journal tags' set (for the flower) from Designs on Cloud 9.

 I cut 9 different scallop shapes and crumpled them all up and glued them together. Then I attached leaves from the 'fancy flower' set from Designs on Cloud 9.

                    Here is a close up picture of the inside title.

Most likely both my Mother and my Godparents will see this post before they get their cards in the mail. So thank you again from the bottom of my heart and Hairy's. It is so nice to have not only a reliable vehicle but great generous parents that continue to support me even as I get older. You guys are the best!!!

SCRAPS TO TREASURES ~ DAY 2

Welcome to another fun filled day of ideas to use those little scraps that are lying around everywhere. Most likely you have just come from  http://www.nanasscrapspot.com/

but if you missed the beginning of the hop you can start back at  http://scrapandchat.blogspot.com/ 

I came across this awesome idea on the 'Fiskers' website just about a year ago, paper flowers using corner punchers.  It was love at first sight. I will show you how to make a basic one and then show you a variety of ones at the end.

To begin, I started off with two 2 inch by 2 inch square scraps.

Next make an incision in the middle of each side. I never measure, I just eyeball it. Be sure not to cut all the way to the center or it will rip if you are using brads for the centers.

Insert each of the corners into a corner punch of your choice. I used one of the designs from Fiskers 'romantique' punch.

Next you want to fold down each side of the punches in a diagonal. The square on the left is what it will look like from the top. The square on the right is what the underneath will look like.

If you are using a brad for the center insert a hole directly in the middle of each square. I use a thumb tack but it might be easier if you have a piecing tool. Then insert your brad of choice. This is what a basic/base of the flowers look like. This one is simple and sweet.

Here is one that is a little bit more complicated. The base is a Martha Stewart punch with a smaller version of the original punch I used on top of that with a little rose in the center. (I have a rose making video tutorial here on my blog ~ May 1st.)

Here is one using a Martha Stewart circle corner punch for the base. I used the same Fiskers punch as in the demonstration just a different shape, and added a matching rose in the middle. This one is all glued together with no brad needed.

Here is another one using a Martha Stewart corner punch (can you tell I have an addiction to her punches???) Then the same Fiskers punch as the one before for the middle layer and attach the rose with a purple colored brad in the middle.

I just love this next two toned pink one. The base is the same as the middle layers from the two previous pictures. Then the middle layer here is the base that I used in the demonstration. Once again with a rose all glued together. This to me just screams 'romantic victorian'.

Here is the demonstation base, but I added a blue top layer with a fabric brad in the middle ~ just perfect for a baby shower.

This one I have been told looks more like a snowflake.

Now before you move onto your next blog  http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fmzlavr2.blogspot.com%2F&h=EAQGCpa8J

Be aware that for those of you who attempt to make these...they become addicting. I am always making them, trying to find different ways to make them unique. I have used brads, eyelets, stickles, every corner punch combo possible. Good luck and enjoy the rest of the hop.

SCRAPS TO TREASURES ~ DAY 1

Hello and welcome to this super fun blog hop titled 'scraps to treasures'. This hop features projects using all our scraps that seem to accumulate faster than anything else. You most likely just came from http://www.nanasscrapspot.com. If by accident you have missed the beginning of the hop you can start at the beginning by visiting http://scrapandchat.blogspot.com/

 For my first project, I decided to share a really cool idea. I actually made a bunch of these several years ago for my 'almost' adult nieces as Christmas gift.

It is an altered rolodex. You can buy blank ones at any office supply store, Walmart or even ebay.  I just covered each of the letter separators as well as the individual cards with my most favorite paper scraps. Most of the patten paper used on these cards are MY absolute favorites. They are covered in specialized glitter paper or flocked. I just love how they look and feel.

The papers do not really have to match each other. I just used whatever I have left over from special projects.

Then you can add business cards. This one is from a scrapbooking company that I discovered at a trade show. I promised myself that one day I will go and visit :)

Something that those close to me probably don't know is that I collect address labels. Whenever someone sends me a card with either a professional, homemade, or just a hand written return address ~ I will cut it out and add it to my rolodex. I will make sure to include their birthday, cell phone, home phone, work phone, as well as email addresses. I will also add little photos of the person if I have them.

After you have the addresses or business cards in place then you can decorate with anything you want. I have used stickles, glitter, brads, eyelets, buttons, ribbon, anything at all. You can specialize a card to a specific person. For example a friend of my mine Dawn loves Halloween. So her index card has her return address label onto Halloween paper with Halloween stickers along with black and orange ribbon attached. Another friend of mine Linda loves dogs. Her index card is covered with paper that has paw prints. It also has stickers of a dog dish, bones, a ball etc. Be creative when making cards for your family and friends. Another idea, use all the extra alphabet letters from stickers sets~you know when you get left with a bunch of 'z's that you don't want to throw out but don't know what to do with...stick them on the 'z' separator card. It can be cute to see all the different fonts and styles all on the same card.  This card has a cute girl tear bear.

Here is a great cosmo flower I made just out of paper. I love how it just 'pops' against the background paper.

These pictures do not do this project justice. I just LOVE how it came out. Plus if you ask my nieces, they love theirs too. It's so much more personal than a regular address book. It will also act as a photo album if you include pictures. Thanks so much for looking. Please feel free to leave me comments ~ I love reading them. Come back tomorrow for more great 'scrap' related ideas. Now onto your next blog...
http://mzlavr2.blogspot.com/

I LOVE YOU MOWER EACH DAY

Happy Father's Day to all the Dads celebrating on Sunday. Unfortunately, My Daddy passed away back in 1995. (It has been without a doubt the toughest thing I have ever experienced.) Not only was he an amazing man but he was also the founder and president of A. Prata Landscaping Inc. In honor of him (and my brothers who continue to run the family business today), I created this two page layout.

  I used the 'me and dad' as well as the 'backyard fun' pattern sets from Designs on Cloud 9.

                                                     Page 1

                                                      Page 2

Although it was rare for my Daddy to wear a tie, I thought it would be cute to match the photo mat paper.

                     Is there anything cuter than a bubble mower?

 I honestly do miss you mower and mower each and every day Daddy.