...and to all a Good Night!

Hi all! Yes, I am still working on all things holiday. I will be doing a great count down to Christmas in November with a new and different idea for you. But right now I am just playing. Here is one of my latest ATC's. I really was having fun with my metallic ink and chipboard pieces parts. I am totally falling in love with the mixed media aspects of creating. I have some fabulous vintage images from old Christmas cards that my mom had so kindly tracked down for me a while ago. They sat here in this pretty little box and now they have been coming out to get cut up and played with.

When I was a kid my dad would stand beside the large white book shelves in our room and read to us "The Night Before Christmas" poem after a wonderful Christmas Eve celebration at my grandmothers. He was very animated so you really got the true excitement of the poem while he read it. When I saw this card front from mom, it is the first thing I thought of. And at our house time and clocks truly where a big part of the holiday season. We would look at that big Grandfather Clock to see how long before Santa arrived. Plus, that was where my father would perch a present for the entire family every year. The box would either contain the present as it sat on top of the clock. Or it would have something in it that would represent something else that was too large to fit up there. For instance, the year we got a trip to Disney World. Kind of hard to fit the castle and mono-rail up there so there where travel books and plans. Or the year we got our dog DUKE. It wouldn't have been nice to leave a puppy in a box on top of a clock that rang every 15 minute during the holiday season. Any who, time was important during the holiday's for us so adding CLOCKS means something to me. What in your work means something to you? Add something to a layout or project that maybe only a sibling of yours would understand and the "...oh I remember that" statements are sure to follow!

Alright, back to work for me, so please....

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

HE MAY MELT IN THIS WEATHER!

So I am working on somethings for up coming classes I will be teaching. I love to teach and share techniques with people that have never seen them before. There are so many things that you can do with the supplies you all ready have. Many of us that have worked with paper for a very long time have a huge stash of paper and products to create with. So next time you go shopping just pick up a couple of additions or as I like to call them "BASE PRODUCTS" and work from there. For instance, I grabbed some crackle paint from Ranger the other day while out and I have had a ball with it. I love making my projects look old and worn. The crackle and some layers of ink that you already own can give that effect in no time. Not to mention the inking of ribbon. At the last class I taught I inked the ribbon and I thought this woman was going to fall over. She realized with just a couple of ribbons she had multiplied her options. With some ribbons they are very bright, by rubbing a bit of ink on them they become dull and blend in so well.

One of the things I learned when I first started out was the great effect layering. If you take the time to layer even one thing on your project it will add to the interest. This is shown here with the snowflakes as well as the word.

So see what you can ink and layer today. You will be very happy with your results!

p.s. Here is one of the new papers I am carrying in my shop. They are fun and double sided. But they are a limited set, so if you like them you better grab them before they are gone!

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

"NEW" Vintage Turkey Decoration

So last year I really was very behind come holiday time. I pushed things off, and the great ideas in my mind never came about. So this year I am working over time to get some things created. I have also done a lot of decorating around our home. So I would like to add a little home dec to my seasonal decorating that I don't currently own. So if I don't own it, I must CREATE IT! So create I have been. Now I know that it is humid outside here in the Northeast. But my heart and mind have already turned to the upcoming season of AUTUMN. And then I ran into this really great little Vintage Turkey and it was time to make something. I made these to hang off the metal tie backs on my glass doors, in the family room, to the back yard. When ever people come into our home they gravitate to those doors to see the view of the water. So I know that it is a perfect place to hang something that I created because it will not be missed. I love making things and having them in places like the half bath. You know that someone is going to see them there for sure. I think people like to find something unexpected. I really think people get how much you care about your home when they find a little something like that.
Now as far as MR. TURKEY is concerned, so easy to make. I started by layering some chipboard with paper to give it strength. Then I layered one of my bingo cards from Brambleberry Lane. Then I stamped on some of the vintage music paper from my store, the words. Next, I handstamped a leaf and used some stickles to give it a bump up. The turkey I printed off line and stickled him up as well. Now I distressed it "all" with some brown ink. I added some great screw head brads and a fab fiber and that was it. Totally looks like a old deoration that I found at a antique store. I hope you all like this as well!

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

ANOTHER GREAT DAY IN THE ADIRONDACKS!

Living here at the foot hills of the Adirondack Mountains and right around the corner from great places like Saratoga there is so much to do. Thursday was the perfect day to go sit on the shores of Lake George in the Town of Bolton Landing. What a great little place to visit. There are cute little shops lining the streets. Wonderful places to eat and of course have some coffee. But we took the most advantage of the beach and playground. Ten of us get together and we have a ball once a week. This week we added a additional three to our group. Tiff, her daughter Emily and my moms sister Renee. This week was no exception. The views where perfect, the water warm. But the cake and pie where even a better taste when enjoying them sitting next to the water. Logan has some of those great tastes still left around his lips!

Meg and I after enjoying the warm waters of Lake George!

Everyone having fun in the water!

Noah loves digging in the sand at the playground!

Another great summer day in the Northeast with the kids. Create a memory with your family today because these are the days that SCRAPBOOKS are made of!

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

HALLOWEEN ATC/ACEO

So this week is my birthday. Yes I know that some people have a problem with the next year coming. Well not me. I love getting older. I love to see what I can get done in a year. But as always, when birthday time comes around I start feeling really creative. I start making things like crazy. I dream about creating, I think about it while I am driving. It even is on my mind while I am drinking coffee. And as many of you know when I drink coffee, I savor every second of it. This year is no exception. My mind and hands are racing. If I am not making something, I am making a list to make something later. Yup, I am a summer baby that just loves the fall and winter seasons and all the fun the goes along with them.
So here is my latest little ATC/ACEO. It uses my chipboard ATC blanks as well as some of the new little bits and pieces from my new package of ATC fun. You will get to play with some great tiny calendars and a finger or two to point your way. Keep an eye out for the entire package that will be featured this week!

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TO STICKER OR NOT TO STICKER...THAT IS THE QUESTION. YEAH, LETS STICKER!

Oh my gosh, do I LOVE THESE STICKERS! This is my New RETRO STICKER SEAL SET! They are truly bright and bold. They are from the new Basic Grey papers that just arrived and I want to stick them on everything. As soon as I saw the paper I said to myself..."self, you would be crazy not to make these into stickers". And so I did. They would be a great addition to a boys birthday invites or gift bags. Maybe you are having a Woodstock Event, wow they would be perfect for that. They give you the strong feeling of tie dye. So what ever fun and great thing you would like to do with them drop me a line and let me know. I love to hear what great ideas people come up with to do with my handmade products!

Back to creating....so remember....

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

OUTDOOR FUN COURTESY OF ED AND LINDA

So I finally finished the swing for the yard. It was the hardest thing I have ever painted. And then add the huge amount of rain the Northeast has had this year and you can see why it has taken me weeks to finish. It was white and I had the bright idea to make it brown. I am not always very smart. But it is done now and I love it. There is a table that goes in the middle of it. Perfect for reading the morning paper. It just needs to dry and I will be all ready to go. Once again, a very generous gift from Mom and Dad has a wonderful place in our lives, and for that I am grateful!
Next is my Moon flower. The vine has been growing up the side porch. It has finally given me a flower. The flower blooms after dinner and is gone by morning. Hence the Moon Flower name. I have not had one in years and it really is beautiful!

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HERE COMES THE NEW CHRISTMAS LINE OF STICKERS!

Well here they are. Some of my new Holiday Stickers for Christmas 2009. The colors are rich and I just know you will enjoy them. The red sheet music can really be used all year long but what a great accent to those gold envelopes.

The Ice Skates are one of my favorite sets. There is glitter on the skate blades. They have a really fun old fashion feel. This is the perfect snowflake blue for the back round. Once again the colors are strong so they will stand out.

And these mittens make me feel all warm and fuzzy even on a really hot day. They feature some great bling with glitter on the blue mittens. These will be a fab addition to your stash.

And last but not least, this years addition of Peppermint Candy. Last years where so popular and I was afraid I was not going to have as great of a pattern to go with but I am in love with these. A strong red is hard to find but this one delivers. The backgrounds go from off white to white so you will love every moment of these little hard candies!

So please enjoy all of these new latest and greatest holiday stickers from Brambleberry Lane. Keep and eye out for a couple more as well. You know I can't stop my self!

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New Amy Butler Paper Has Arrived

Love, Love, Love these new Amy Butler papers that have come the way of Brambleberry Lane. As always they are double sided and the colors are the perfect combination of vibrant and laid back. She always adds a few less busy sheets to her line and that thrills me. Sometimes you just need a plain old background that compliments the bright and fun patterns. And Amy Butler delivers as always. I have a bunch of the 6 x 6 packs in this great card stock. And it looks like the old sticker queen is itching to turn some of these papers into a new group of stickers, so stay tuned for that!
You can also tune in this week for some great new sticker/ seals for the holiday season. Some of our favorite paper companies have sent me some GREAT papers and what else is a girl to do but turn them into stickers! Oh and I have been playing with the new ATC/ACEO Embellishment set. I have everything from tiny pointing fingers to buttons to base cards and I think your going to like it.
Alrighty, time to get to creative fun here at Brambleberry Lane and I will check in with you all again soon!

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

THE CHRISTMAS HOUSE IS DONE!

This has been on my mind to show you all some quick and easy projects for the holidays that you will have for many years to come. I picked up these house shaped boxes a while ago. They have been bothering me on how I was going to decorate them. I really wanted to do a Halloween house but I kept coming back to a sketch I did for the Christmas season. So I will have to do a Halloween one next because here is the Christmas one. This started with the old sheet music I sell on my site. I can make a list for a month of Sundays on what I want to use this paper for. It already has the aged look that we all try so hard to recreate.

Next, with a 1" circle punch and brown ink, I created the roof. I love the layered look. The windows are just layered paper to make the look of shutters. And as far as the wreaths are concerned. The large on on the roof area, I cut a 2" circle. I then took a leaf punch and with just the tip of the punch made the lace look on the outside of the wreath. On the inside a used a whole punch and did a random pattern to once again give the look of greens. Then I added the ribbon and a brad for the front door. Add a little ink here and there and you have a cute little Christmas house to give a gift in or use for decoration this holiday season!

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SOME HALLOWEEN FUN!

Yes they are spooky but here and ready for your creative needs. Halloween creations are perfect for a rainy summers day. I have these white chipboard ghosts that you will be able to just add to a page or card without much work because they are already white! They also look great if you add a little antique look with a bit of brown ink. Or make them sparkle and shine with some stickles. Leave them alone or dress them up...you will really like the outcome!

Next from Brambleberry Lane, we have some great Halloween stickers for you. This set of 16 1"(2.5cm) stickers are so cute and offer many uses from candy bags to page embellishments.

Next we have the Journal Tags. I love these. Plenty of room to write on and great Halloween images to finish off the embellishment. There are 6 in this set.

And lets not for get one of my favorite sets for Halloween, the flash card set that comes with metal rimmed words as well. I love the flashcards and the dimension that the metal rimmed tags add to a layout!

So please enjoy these and many other items for the up coming seasons from Brambleberry Lane!

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

MY LATEST SET OF STICKERS!

Here are my new fun stickers. I love this color combination. These papers are so great. They are double sided and they scream lets have a good time. So I decided to have a good time and make stickers out of them. You should see the papers listed here shortly as well so you can make your own projects with them. The oranges and blues compliment each other so well. There are metallic sections on them as well as glitter. I love, love, love this set and you will too.
Anywho, it is a big Saturday night here in the Northeast. What to do? Well there are some wonderful videos on You tube. Plus I am totally into Hulu. You can pretty much watch anything on there. I love it. Some show I have never heard of and there they are. Well I better get kids to bed!

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Family Room Fun!

Yes, he has hung my mirror. Now I usually buzz around the house hanging and moving pictures around. But this mirror is verrrrry heavy. It was in the living room but the wall it was on was too large and mirror was totally lost on it. The telephone pictures around it I made from my sticker images. AHHH the wonder of enlargement. Then the little shelves that are currently holding two of my Longaberger Baskets. I purchased two "WALL PLAQUES" from A.C. M and then the two bottom brackets from lowes. Painted them black and for about $4 per shelf I saved a bunch of money. Ones smaller then these where starting @ $15 each. We made two for $8. Now that was easy and cheep. These will be changed out with the seasons I am sure. But it really makes me happy to see some of my pride and joy baskets there. All and all I think this little project turned out so well. It was a giant bare wall that just never made me happy. I was always back and forth on what I was going to hang there. This grouping really takes up the large space and adds a bunch of interest to this otherwise bare space. It totally works with the leather chair and tan couch. I am sooooooo happy to see it all done.

It is hard to tell from the picture, lots of overcast here in the northeast, but the walls are a cool green. I love this color. The family room and kitchen have a open floor plan this really flows together well. Pretty much any color of red looks FABULOUS with it. And I love reds in these two rooms.

Well it is back to creating new stickers and journal tags. I have a list of to-do's that I would like to create so I am off to do that.

Make it a great day, and remember to...................

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

ATC/ACEO ROUNDER DIVIDERS FOR THE SEASONS!

Oh how I love creating ACEO/ATC's. So as I am getting ready to fill a new rounder of fun things that I have created, I realized they all pretty much go by the seasons. So that is why I made these four dividers. I love to tell a story with one little ATC. Many people pass thru here and are able to take a quick look at what we are up to rather then 12 pictures of how cute the baby is riding his bike. Or Morgan in the play, just one will do to tell her story. A photo on front and a little journaling on back and bing bam boom it is all done.

The reason for the seasons really stems from the colors of paper used to document the time of year as well as the event attended. I have mixed a combination of die cut letters, stamped and hand written letters. As much as I hate my own hand writing, it is not so much for me. It is for that person 2 or 3 generations from now that get a peek into who their relative was. I know, I know how much you truly don't like your own hand writing. But down the road it will be a way for another generation to feel a bit of attachment to the past. Example time...My grandfather(my dads father) built the field stone fireplace in the home I grew up in with his own two hands. There was a piece of one of those stones that was out and I have kept it with me ever since we moved. It sits here on top of my computer screen. This is a man that passed away before I was born, but I have something I know for sure he laid is hands on. Connection is important I think. And a strong family is built on connections. Isn't this why we scrapbook in the first place, so we can connect with our pasts. So from my rock to your memories, always leave at least some journaling for the future generations to enjoy.

When ever I create dividers for my rounders, I like to make them a little bigger then the normal 2 1/2 x 3 1/2. So what I do is start with the 2.5 x 3.5 as a base and then add to it to plump it up. The SPRING 09 card I added a orange card stock to and then fringed it with scissors to give dimension.

The SUMMER one I added rounded corners to the back layer and stamped the letters on curves.

FALL is my favorite time of year. I love, love, love the colorsof autumn so I kept it simple so they would shine and layered multiple solid colored textured cardstock. With this one I used my FAV Souffle pen in white to mark the season.

And finished this all up with WINTER. Lots of glitter here. I love doing snowflakes in blues and whites. But here I did snowflakes with some more of the traditional Christmas colors to account for the winter as well as the holiday.

Anywho, just some fun ways to make your ATC/ACEO rounder flow as well as being able to sort out the year!

CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!

IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR AGAIN...CHRISTMAS IN JULY!

I know what you are thinking...Why is she talking about CHRISTMAS? Well that is simple to explain. Many moons ago, the retail gods decided to come up with this thing called "CHRISTMAS IN JULY". I know you are on either one side or the other of the fence with this one. Some people think it is great and others are driven crazy by it. I am not bothered by it either way. But as a biz I need to roll with the punches if you know what I mean. So I am giving you a bit of a look at the future to come.

Many companies have not released their holiday papers and some will still have last years patterns in stock. I get so happy when I see some new great and fun patterns that I can create with and pass on to you. As far as my Christmas Stickers selections, I have started listing some with many more to come. I know there are many of you out there that take advantage of the summer to start working on some of your holiday projects. I am so inspired by the ladies that make ALL of their own cards for the holidays. YOU GO GIRLS! So over the next few weeks I will be releasing some great holiday fun and some of my ideas that you can create as well yourself or with your kids!
CREATE SOMETHING FABULOUS TODAY!