I love this time of year. The leaves have all turned colors. The air is crisp. And pies are baking in the oven. In my family, Thanksgiving means pie season! My mom hates to make pies, so she only does it at Thanksgiving. But she makes everyone’s favorite, so we end up with about a dozen pies. What’s not to love about a dozen pies? (I think Joscelyne Cutchens agrees.)

"Homemade Pie" by Joscelyne Cutchens. Creating Keepsakes, Nov. 2009

I also love this time of year because there’s a built-in reason to be more consciously grateful for all I have in my life. I’ve made it a tradition to write down each of the things I’m grateful for as I think of them throughout this month. The list gets pretty long, and I realize how truly blessed I am and how great my year has been.

A few years ago, I decided to add to that tradition by letting the people in my life know how grateful I am that they are the people in my life. To that end, I’ve been making thank you cards and sending them to arrive the week of Thanksgiving. Inside the cards I write a little note about why I’m grateful the person is in my life. Each year the list for cards gets longer too, and I’m grateful for that. You can never have too many great people in your life.

"Thankful" card by Mandy Douglass. Creating Keepsakes, Nov. 2009

This year, I’m grateful to be at Creating Keepsakes with all the wonderful, creative and caring women who work here. They’ve made my new job a joy, and I’m grateful they are in my life. (In fact, I may even create a card for each of them based on the Mandy Douglass design above or this Becky Higgins design below.)

"So Thankful for You" card by Becky Higgins. Creating Keepsakes, Nov. 2009

And all of us at Creating Keepsakes are grateful for you. We love that we get to share your creativity and passion. We’re grateful for your support. We’re grateful you are open and honest in sharing with us what will make Creating Keepsakes a better magazine for you. Thank you for being the people in our lives who give us a reason to come to work, to create and to share our passion for scrapbooking!

Don’t forget to photograph the fabulous feast you enjoy today, like Christi Spadoni did for the layout below!

"Aunt Sheila's China" by Christi Spadoni. Creating Keepsakes, Nov. 2009

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

—Lara Penrod, Senior Editor

P.S. In the spirit of Black Friday tomorrow, we’re offering an incredible sale at our shop. The sale consists of discounts of over 60% off select products PLUS free standard shipping and handling (on U.S. orders only) on purchases of $25 or more. You’ll even find books and CDs as low as $5. The sale ends at midnight on Monday, November 30. Check out ShopScrapandPaperCorner.com for these great deals.

C’est le BAZAR !

Eh oui, c’est dans ma chambre que se trouve mon coin scrap…

Pas toujours facile, car j’ai peu de place, donc j’en mets partout et je m’étaaaaaale….. au grand dam de Laurent le soir venu !

Il faut souvent déblayer le terrain pour aller se coucher !

¿Me extrañaste? Hacen días que no escribo, pues andaba muy ocupada desempacando 25 cajas. Ahora que ya  casi todo esta en su sitio ya es hora de dar gracias y comenzar a reflexionar en el verdadero significado de la Navidad.

Y la nueva razón para estar agradecida hoy es que Stampin’ Up! nos traer ofertas especiales. Si eres como yo y te encantan las ofertas, pero odias las filas, estos especiales están super fáciles. Compra desde la comodidad de  tu hogar y espera que te lleguen los productos por correo a tiempo para los regalos de Navidad, o mejor aún, regalate tu misma. Esta venta termina el 30 de Noviembre, asi que date prisa antes de que se terminen los productos. Visita mi tienda virtual para ver los detalles en cientos de articulos a precio reducido. Y que tengas un excellente Dia de Acción de Gracias. Gracias por tu patrocinio,

Sandra

P.S. Sale ends November 30, visit my virtual store for more details.

One of our newest favorite stampers, Christi, posted on her “Blessings On Paper” blog a couple of fabulous recipe cards, and one using a Stampendous stamp. We think her projects are so cute that we could just eat them up! And we really can’t wait to try the recipes! Giving handstamped recipe cards is one of the cutest gift ideas we’ve seen for Christmas or any time. Here’s hoping your family has a wonderful Thanksgiving full of fun food and stamping!

Monkey Bread Recipe Card

Stampendous Products Used:

• SSC137 Changito the Monkey Perfectly Clear™ Stamp Set (to find this sticker, ask your local retailer. Find your local retailer here)
• SSH34 Medium Rectangle Acrylic Handle

Jag gillar svart bakgrund!! Så nu vet jag det.

Den här var jätterolig att göra och gick rätt snabbt och smidigt. Vågade slappna av. Det var en chansning att skriva på fri hand men funkar, tycker jag. Är inte så bra på att texta fint.

Har ingen aning om jag har följt några “regler” men jag är rätt så nöjd! Och det är väl  huvudsaken?

3D-tema.. är inte helt nöjd med den, men det var så bra det gick missinassen..

Ett litet kort till.. lacket har såklart inte torkat ännu..

Och nu.. *trumvirvel* kommer mina nya tatueringar!

Strumpsöm.. med små söta rosetter..  skuggningen kommer att blekna markant. just nu är den för mörk, men medan det läker så bleks det rätt mycket som sagt. skönt att rosetterna är lite assymetriska, det ger dem lite liv. Är sjukt nöjd med dem. kan ju säga att det gjorde helvetiskt ont i knävecken och över hälsenorna.. det värsta i smärtväg jag varit med om, blir svårt att toppa det… barnafödande är det ju inte tal på för min del menar jag..

over and out.

Today we have a special AccuCut Showcase for you displaying another layout from Jeni Glover, our featured scrapbooker for The Paperie’s November Spotlight…

Click to enlarge

Jeni used the AccuCut Typewriter font with some older Scenic Route patterned grid paper for the main word in her title. Thanks for sharing another great layout with our Blog readers, Jeni!

Check back on Friday for our weekly feature – we have one last layout to share from Jeni!

Are YOU interested in being featured in one of our monthly Spotlights?! Drop by the store with 5-10 examples of your work, we’d love to see it!

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.  I enjoy bright sunny days with a crisp chill in the air, being warm and cozy at home with family.  This is also a time of year where we think about all that which we are thankful.

Gratitude is a key factor when in business; however why does it always have to be shown in the form of Thank You?  How much do you GIVE this time of year?

Do you have employees?  What are some ideas for giving to them?  Depending on your business and your employees needs you can give them extra paid time off to spend with their families or a gift card to the local market to help them with their holiday meal.  Better yet, ask each one how you can make this year’s Thanksgiving the best ever?  Listen to their answers and do your best to follow through – you may hear some simple requests that are easy to accomplish.

What about your customers?  How can you give to them?  For the rest of the year, make a genuine offer to help.  You can say something like, “Jim, what are you struggling with the most in your business right now?  I would love to see how I can help you overcome this”.  It may not even be related to your business but you may have knowledge, resources and/or referral partners who can really be of benefit.

How can you give back to your referral partners?  Have a similar conversation with them that you have with your customers.  How can you help them move their business forward from now until the end of the year?  What do they need to accomplish?  Offer to have a brainstorming session to help them get to those goals.

During these days of gratitude, I find fulfillment and pleasure when I know I have selflessly given to help others.   How can I help you?

So I have a thing with nicknames.

I go by Nicole or Nic, and it has to be spelled that way. I won’t respond if people call me Nicki. There once was a time that someone introduced me to a group of people as Nicki and it made my heart stop since I now had a bunch of people calling me Nicki and with every time I heard it I would shudder. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care if anyone else goes by Nicki. It’s just not me, it does not fit me.

Anyway, Price and I have a bunch of nicknames for each other.  Things range from Goose, Squishy* or Squish, to Moosh(a). 

*So I have never seen Finding Nemo in its entirety but I think this clip is funny and that is why Squish is a nickname I call Price.

“I shall call him Squishy and he shall be mine and he shall be my Squishy. Come on, Squishy Come on, little Squishy.”

Fazer scrapbook é mais do que combinar papéis e fotos, fazer colagem, criar journalings, títulos. 

Fico pensando como podemos criar coisas tão lindas, apenas com alguns papéis, uma tesoura, cola e algum material mais básico de papelaria. E fora o que é mexer com fotos que nos lembram momentos tão especiais, queridos, que temos a oportunidade de eternizar, não é mesmo?

Meu maior barato em scrap é criar (fazer mesmo, by myself) os elementos que pretendo usar. Não tem preço que pague a satisfação de olhar um trabalho e entender o quanto aquilo é pessoal, personalizado porque foi criado por você para usar especialmente naquele trabalho.

Participei de uma troca de amigo oculto no SD, e tínhamos que enviar um cartão de natal feito por nós e um mimo (ou mimos) que era opcional. Para a minha amiga secreta (que nao é de SP -  a única dica que dei!) fiz um cartão de natal e um porta bloco de anotações. Aqui ó:

Fiz um cartão em cardstock verde que na verdade eu comprei para encapar um pinheiro de natal de chipboard. E num dia enquanto fuçava nos meus (poucos) papéis olhei pra ele e logo imaginei um cartão para a minha amiga oculta, que ficou assim:

Aliás, gostei tanto desse cartão que vou publicá-lo no DSM para o concurso de cartões de natal.

Todos os elementos do cartão foram feitos por mim. Adoro desenhar e pintar, então copiei a “elfa” de um livro japonês. Colori com lápis aquarelável, usei um pincel fino umedecido com água e contornei com canetinha preta. Os bicos de papagaio deram o maior trabalho. Fiz duas tentativas com estilos diferentes e na terceira saiu este que está no cartão. Cada bico de papagaio são dois sobrepostos. Usei tinta True Colors vermelha e dourada num cardstock vermelho. Os botões, amarelo com glitter dourado, super combinaram. Os detalhes:

Pra fazer o Merry Xmas, escrevi com um canetão acid free italiano e colei sob uma carimbada com fita banana. Envelheci tudo com Tim Holtz (Glória a Deus pela vida e criativida do Tim Holtz! haha):

O mimo que eu enviei foi um porta bloquinho de anotação. Fiz em mixed media. Aliás, meu primeiro trabalho em mixed media:

Usei o KIT Canvas by Luzinha que comprei na Feira de Scrap desse ano (by the way, ainda não fiz o PAP! Mas pra quem quiser eu acho que ainda tem pra vender no SD). E Deus abençoe a Luzinha por essa ”aula” porque ele está muito bem explicado, cada detalhe de cada passo. Só fiz uma mudança de material e usei Massa Acrílica ao invés de usar Gesso. Usei tintas acrílicas na cor lilás, roxo e rosa. Usei True Colors roxo e prata. Não lembro quantas camadas eu fiz, mas até terça-feira eu tinha as cutículas roxas. HAHAHA. Estou apaixonado por esse mixed e se não fosse o amigo oculto eu juro que eu guardava na minha caixa portifólio!

Usei e abusei de coisas de elementos que eu acho legais: páginas de livro, rubons, carimbo magnólia, partituras e até selo! O cenário do prado verde e o céu, o Betto que me deu a idéia e me ajudou. Eu adorei! No meu sketch mental eu queria os ticker pretos e só para isso fui até a Pedaços pra comprar. Só tinha roxo e como já estava todo rosa, fiz mais duas camadas em roxo. Na real, eu acho que era pra esse projeto ser roxo, pq fui comprar True Colors rosa ou pink e também não tina, mas tinha roxo! Espero que minha top secret friend goste da cor… Vejam os detalhes.

Eu sempre quis fazer aquelas rosinhas que a Luzinha ensinou. Mas nunca conseguia. Teve um domingo que eu trabalhei e no momento do ócio criativo eu tentei fazer alguns e deram certo (lucky me!). Aleluia! Peguei o macete e agora essas rosinhas vão invadir uns layouts que estão no minha TO DO list. Aqui ó:

E ele aberto:

Adorei fazer este porta bloquinhos! Espero que minha amiga goste de recebê-lo tanto quanto eu gostei em elaborar e pensar em cada detalhe. E estou aqui na maior ansiedade esperando o meu cartão!

30×30cm

moje nowe naklejki scrap.com.pl

Fancy Pants Felt and Fancy Pants 12×12 Chipboard

Click Logo Above to take you directly to the “SnS Scrappy Special”

Click Logo above to take you directly to the “A Ribbon a Day” Special

Fairytale Grosgrain & White Satin Edge Organza

I have a couple of layouts up on our Stamp A  Memory blog this week . Please check them out,

Here’s a sneak peek….

CLICK ON THE PHOTOS AND THEY WILL SEND YOU TO THE ARTICLES.

I hope we can inspire you, even just a little

Tanja

Just a quick post today. I have been so busy the past week and I have so much to catch up on as well as a stack of things to cross off my ‘To Do” list. So whilst the small one is having a nap I thought I had best get started…. First on my list… post something!

I thought I would show another scrapbook layout I did using the Sweet Nothings Simply Scrappin’ kit. I wanted to show its versatility and scrapbook a blokey page for my husband.

I used the Chocolate Chip and Kiwi Kiss cardstock that comes in the Sweet Nothings Simply Scrappin’ kit and added some Kraft – Kraft is my ‘go to’ colour when doing anything blokey!. To bloke-ify it even more I distressed and sponged most of the edges, I also sponged the die cut stickers.  For the title I stamped the Schoolbook Serif Alphabet and then went over the top with the Jumbo Outline Alphabet – they don’t match up but it added to the rustic/grungy (trying to use a different word to blokey!!) look of the page.

So now I can cross off   -  post something… Is anyone else a list person?

I love writing out a list of things to do and I love the satisfaction I feel when I can cross things off! I even have my 4 year old trying to write a list of  jobs to do!  To be honest I think she has worked out that the more time she spends asking me to spell out words and trying to write them the less time she actually has to spend doing what is on the list!!

Well I am off to see what else I can cross off

Thanks Sarah for your feedback … I have included a close-up of the title!

“Mine” layout

• Stamps: Schoolbook Serif Alphabet, Jumbo Outline Alphabet
• Paper: Kraft, Sweet Nothings Simply Scrappin’ Kit
• Ink: Chocolate Chip
• Accessories: Sweet Nothings Simply Scrappin’ Kit, Photo Corners Punch, Round Tab Punch, Basic Black Marker, Sponges, Distressing tool, Eastern Elegance rub-on (retired)

I really should be going to bed. In fact, I still need to pack for going home to Chicago for the Thanksgiving holiday. But I felt the need to post here. It’s probably due to turning in the last edits, I hope, for the non-fiction book chapter I’ve been working on for the last year. My brain is in writing mode. May it stay that way as I’ve got a couple of fiction projects I need to finish up by the end of this year.

So, why office supplies? I’m addicted. Downright addicted. I’ve yet to meet a pen I don’t like. There are definitely ones I prefer, but I’ll take almost any one that crosses my way. Except at conferences. I learned the painful lesson that I must limit myself to 5 of those a conference. Otherwise my sister will yell at me. (She helped me unpack one year.) When I’m in a store and have time to wander, I invariably find myself walking down the office supply aisle at some point. Providing the store has one. A trip to Staples is a treat. Honestly, my addiction to books and shoes barely beats out the addiction to office supplies.

What is especially bad to have in addition to an office supply habit is a crafting habit. I’ve somehow managed to restrain myself to occasional beading and lots of knitting. Until this weekend. This weekend I took a step down the slippery slope known as scrapbooking. Scrapbooking: the office supply addict’s craft of choice. How can you resist the paper, the pens, the stickers, the punches, the scissors, the paper trimmers?!? Despite having a photography habit on top of everything else (I blame that one on genetics, though), I had resisted scrapbooking for so long. It helped to have a sister-in-law who’s so into scrapbooking and paper crafts that all of our birthday and special occasion cards from her and my brother are homemade. She even has a Cricut!

What happened this weekend, you ask? I hung out with a friend. A knitting friend. Who I knew darn well was also heavily into scrapbooking. I did not get blindsided by this scrapbooking event at my friend’s house. I knew perfectly well what would be happening. I just wanted to hang out with my friend and a friend of hers who I also enjoy spending time with. In fact, I even knew that this little get together would be happening basically as a show for a very popular direct marketing company for scrapbooking supplies. There would be a charge for the project we would be doing, but again, not a problem. Even at the end of the event, the consultant made a point to say to me that I did not have to buy anything, and she would prefer that I didn’t buy anything if I wasn’t going to use it. I got the most basic of supplies, a kit, a “tape runner” and refill cartridge, and a corner rounder punch. I thought, “That’s not so much, and I can totally use that tape runner and refill for other things, too.” See, office supplies.

Tonight, after I had finished those aforementioned edits, I decided to take myself out for a treat. There were a couple more pictures I wanted to add to the project from Saturday and I needed to get some kind of adhesive. Michaels had a 40% off of one item coupon good through tomorrow. Did I limit myself to the adhesive? Of course not. I got a paper trimmer. A nice paper trimmer. When the clerk asked if I was into scrapbooking, I said I only just started. She looked again at the trimmer and I could read the cartoon bubble above her head: “You’re getting this trimmer and you’re only just starting?” My verbal response: “For 40% off, I couldn’t resist. Plus I’m a librarian, so I can always use it for work if I don’t stick with the scrapbooking.” Librarianship: the justification for office supply addiction.

i was having so much fun at work i nearly forgot to blog.  took a class tonight with Debbie Fitz, look!! look how cute!!

i’m a little overwhelmed by how sweet these are!!  and now i’m going home.  (thank goodness for the internet at work!)

Just had my novel verified on NaNo (a day early!) and now I am an official winner! I looked and I am the 223 official winner of NaNo 2009. I am super excited! I was taking screenshots all over the place (I’m putting my NaNo experiences together into a scrapbook).

I want to know – am I the only one who absolutely LOVES the squirrel on the winner tshirt and certificate?

I am pretty excited. The ribbon for the May Arts Christmas Contest arrived today. I am supposed to create a “Christmas Project” with the ribbon. Stay tuned! I have no clue what I am going to do, but the ribbon sure is pretty!

Evening everyone!  And what a lovely evening it is as we start our break for the long holiday.  This is truly a marvelous time of year.  I am grateful for so many things……….for friends and family, for my two wonderful kiddos, for our health and our home.  Life is good!  And with these warm thoughts in mind, I want to take a moment to thank all of you visitors and faithful readers of my blog.  You all mean the world to me!

As Thanksgiving sneaks closer and closer, I’m realizing how few days are left until Christmas is upon us.  I often have a tendency to put things off to the very last minute, but this year, I’m trying to be better.  I’ve been working on my annual ornaments and I came up with an idea for my neighbor gifts this year.  I’ve decided to give out sets of tags, as they are both useful and fairly easy to make.  And not only that, they use a minimum of supplies.  I’ve created 5 sets of tags so far from the images on two sheets of patterned paper, and I still have several sets yet to finish.

They are simple in design, but I think they make up a mighty cute package.  I cut the tag shape with a punch using up some old cardstock supplies that I have on hand.  This set was made with KI and My Mind’s Eye winter paper.  I also used some matching KI patterned paper to wrap up a small present for a friend.

After punching the tag, I simply adhered a Christmas tree cut out and then added a snowman cut out that’s been popped up for a touch of dimension.  I added some sparkly detail to the trees and snowmen using a glitter pen.  The effect is subtle, and doesn’t show well in the photos, but looks wonderful in real life.

Each tag is just a little bit different, with the various tree and snowmen images.  This individual quality makes them feel more homemade to me and special.  And heck, they just make me smile.

Well, I’m off to cut some more snowmen out!  Hope you have a wonderful evening.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Recently, our ward had a craft evening, and one of the available crafts were “Exploding Boxes.”  I had a great time making them, and have decided to make these miniature scrapbooks for each of our families for Christmas.  I am decorating boxes for the grandparents and great-grandparents with pictures and quotes from our kids.  For the families that are a little more removed from us, instead of pictures of our kids, I’m giving them boxes that have been decorated with embellishments and journaling spots, and including a scrapbooking tape runner and photo corners, so they can select their own favorite photos and finish it themselves.

I’ve seen several versions across the web, while searching for specifics on how to make these amazing little boxes, and I have two favorites that helped me the most:

1.  The Fine Art of Rambling On — the instructions here were the most step-by-step and clear, but I liked the other ideas and the lid from:

2.  Life as Lou — as near as you can probably get to a professional scrapbooker!

Tomorrow, I’ll be mentioning another Life as Lou craft — I hope Lou likes living her life as much as I’m enjoying learning from it!