That. Is. Unforgettable.

I’m so excited to share this layout with you.  It’s one that is dear to my heart.  It was published in this July/Aug. issue of Creating Keepsakes!

I love being part of a company like Spellbinders™ Paper Arts who really keep things in perspective.  I love it that they want to change lives with this passion that we all call paper crafting. 

This layout tells the story of when they took a trip to Haiti to reach out to the Haitian victims.  They joined Global Family Philanthropy in a memorable time overseas that will leave them changed forever.  I had the privilege of documenting some of the trip!

Supplies:  Cardstock – Bazzill; Pattern Paper – Basic Grey Curio Collection; Stickers -  Basic Grey Curio Collection; Spellbinders Die Templates – Fleur De Lis Accents, Grand Circles, Labels Twenty-One

We are out enjoying the sunshine on our last few days before the kids go back to school.  I am not ready for an empty house!!  It feels like summer just started.  As exciting as the first day of school is, there seems to always be a sad, sinking feeling in my heart as I watch them enter through the doors to start another year.  Maybe it’s that I begin to realize how fast they really are growing up.  Never mind that for now!  We are busy playing. ; )

Hope you’re enjoying your long weekend too!

It’s a Party!

Doesn’t this look fun? Oh my!! We had a bunch of middle school kids over for a barbeque on Saturday and I think this might have been the hit of the party (sorry honey…your burgers were yummy too!)

I did a tutorial on the Spellbinders™ Paper Arts Blog on how to make this uber cute sign! You should try it for your next party. It’s quick, easy and you instantly have colorful décor!

Rich Heritage Layout

Hi friends!  We’ve been busy trying to soak up the last few days of summer.  Tomorrow my lil’ guy (not so little anymore) starts his first dive class to get his Jr. Padi so there will several trips to the valley for that!

I wanted to post a quick layout that I did for the Spellbinders™ Blog this week.  On the blog you can read a tutorial about how to create your own embellishment using the Spellbinders Paper Arts™ Edgeabilities.  I was actually kind of tickled to see that Canadian Scrapbooker Magazine highlighted my layout on their facebook page.  Thank you! 

This is one of my fave layouts ever because I love the expression on my Grandma’s face.  She is such a classy 90 year old! 

Supplies:  Spellbinders Paper Arts™ die templates: E8-001Classic Scallop Edgeabilities®, S4-346 Labels Twenty-Two, LF-005 Grand Peony Creations, LF-006 Wonderful Wings; SCRAPBOOK ADHESIVES BY 3L™ E-Z Tape Runner; Want2Scrap Black Self Adhesive Bling; Pattern Paper: KaiserCraft Miss Nelly, My Mind's Eye So Sophie (Birds of a Feather, ) Fancy Pants Designs Summer's End Crisp and Oct 31 Shadows Pattern Paper; Scor-Pal® Scor-Tape; Clearsnap Chestnut Roan Fluid Chalk Ink; Stickers: Authentique, American Crafts, Jenni Bowlin Studios; Trim: Webster’s Pages

Hope your last few days of August are full of inspiration and sunshine!  Thanks for stopping by!

Spellbinders Window Card and trip photos!

Good morning! I finally got some of my photos edited! First, I wanted to share my card that I created for the Spellbinders™ Blog today. I stamped on transparency and added glitter. It was all inspired by the Birthday card my Mum gave me. Thanks Mum! There is a tutorial on the Spellbinders Blog where you can read more about how to create it.

On to a little family business. The rest of my post is photo heavy so I apologize ahead of time! LOL I like to post photos for my family members to see but also it’s another way of documenting memories for me. Just in case I don’t get to scrapping them! And these are just a drop in the bucket compared to all the shots I took. I was so pleased to shoot our entire vacation in manual. Huge leaps for me!

Every summer it seems like we have an extraordinary trip to Canada. This year was no exception and seemed once again to rise above the rest.

Every day was blazing, hot pool weather and I loved every bit of it and as you can tell, so did a few other swimmers in the family!

Here we are at our favorite bakery appropriately named ‘Bliss.’ It’s right on the water front and I’m not sure it gets any better than this!

I wish I had gotten a photo of the restaurant that we went to on our Anniversary. It was divine! None the less, my Mum did snap a photo of us before we left to celebrate 16 years!! My sweet hubby brought me tears when he completely surprised me with the most gorgeous ring. The bliss continues….

Of course the kids loved being on the farm and riding the horses. Always a highlight of the trip!

This year we even got to take two different camping trips. One with our good friends Tim and Karen and the second with my family up to a fishing lake.

It was surreal. There is no way to capture the beauty of it in a photo. It was exciting too! Right off the bat, Ashley caught three fish and was hooked!

Then there was this chickadee who wasn’t so sure about going on the boat at first but eventually she braved it. Either way, she was determined to have fun like she always does no matter where she is at!

This was a trip I’ll always remember. We even ended it with making pull taffy with my 90 year old grandmother!! She used to make it with us every summer when I was a kid. It meant so much to me.

If you made it this far, I have to say, thanks for stickin’ with me in this post and thank you for your patience as I’ve been gone and not had many updates.

Back to our regular scheduling!

Summer Celebration and Edgeabilities

I have another Spellbinders™ Edgeabilities card to show you!  Only this one I created the edge on a separate piece of paper and then added it to the card so it’s more like a ‘border’ than an ‘edge.’  I love this versatility!  You can read more about it on the new Spellbinders Blog. 

Every once in a while a company comes out with a paper that I absolutely can’t get enough of.  This Miss Nelly by KaiserCraft has me smitten and I find myself grabbing for it over and over again!  It is full of roses and the most gorgeous of all colors….red/teal/baby pink/green…..love it!  I also used Gina K. Stamps and Webster’s Pages Resin Flower for the center. 

We just arrived home earlier this week from the most amazing vacation in Canada.  I can’t help but to share a few more photos.  But I do want to edit a few of them first so I’ll save it for the next post.

Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Spellbinder's New Site!!!

I have BIG news!!! Spellbinders™ Paper Arts has an exquisite new site! It's the perfect place to host all the new release die templates, inspiration of what to do with them and so much more!

This new site is not only beautiful but it is so easy to navigate around; you are going to love it! Beth Pingry has done an amazing job as Spellbinders Online and Social Media Manager of making sure that you find exactly what you are looking for while being inspired along the way!

Speaking of new release die templates, the new Spellbinders Edgeabilities were such a hit at CHA and are the new 'must haves' for card makers and scrapbookers alike!

So, I wanted to share this card that I created using Spellbinders Classic Scallop Edgeabilities, Labels Twenty Two, and Wonderful Wings die templates; Pebbles Inc. Ever After pattern paper and Gina K Designs All Occasions stamp set. I sewed a bit of colored seam binding to the bottom to add a bit of softness and texture.

I wanted to post this 'Thinking of You' card for a few of my good friends who are really going through tough times right now in regards to physical health. I wish I could have it together to send a card out every time I thought of you or prayed for you. I hope you know just how often that is.

The last few days for me have been so surreal. Our family time this summer has been something I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Today I am feeling so very grateful for the beauty of God's creation that surrounds us, for being in such great health, and for my amazing family and friends.

I have many friends who mean so much to me but today, I have to say that these two gals.....they are the somethin' else. Sometimes I just don't know what I would do without them and sometimes I wonder how was I ever so blessed to be able to work with two of the most fabulous people evah? Yup....these are my fellow Spellbloggers. Together we design and write posts for Spellbinders but beyond that we share such a special friendship that is really indescribable.

Thank you, my sweet friends, for being exactly who you are!

I pray that your day is being filled with the things that matter most and that you find inspiration all around you.