Bottoms Up??!

Hello my lovely friends and a very Happy Friday to you all!  Yay it’s the weekend---hope y’all have fabulous plans.  As you read this I am flying overhead on my way to Chicago this morning, renting a car and driving to Memories & Beyond in Downer’s Grove, Ill. to teach for two days.  Let’s hope Suzanne has NO adventures during the flight and drive ok, LOL, I MUST be at the store ontime to teach   I have 2 days off on Sunday & Monday which is nice and I’ll be in the Windy City to play and see some sites with my friends.  I usually don’t get to do that so it will be fun for sure---singing perhaps? (you never know, lol)  Then I work all week at CHA which is always tiring but super fun to meet and see everyone—I love that!

And yes I have another STORY for you today---when do I not huh? LOL!  I seem to attract the weird, funny, and strange around me and I’m not really sure why but it sure does make my life interesting!  I finished all my class prep, laundry, packing & grocery shopping yesterday so Alexa and I set off to get pedicures and nails done.  Its something I do every 2 weeks as a treat and break from work for myself—I don’t work but just sit & relax for a bit.  So I was having my nails done after having my pedicure and a man walks in to get a pedicure—not very strange as I’ve seen lots of men there.  To set the stage as well where I go is owned by a Korean family—very nice but sometimes hard to understand KWIM as far as speech goes.  So he sits down and he starts in---OMGoodness I was like what the heck!  He’s super loud and has a Southern accent that carries across the space--reminded me a bit of Nathan Lane in the "BirdCage" movie if you get my drift, LOL (love that movie btw)!  So he wants a pedicure BUT he also wants her to paint animals on some of his toes, LMBO—which they do there but usually not on men.  The salon lady is one of the quieter ones and she just cocks her head and looks at him.  He’s going on & on about this beach party this weekend and how he wants all kinds of Sea Life painted on his toes like dolphins,crabs & fish LOL.  And he’s Southern so he has an accent and I can TELL she does not understand him, hee hee.  So he finishes his request and she’s quiet for a minute before saying “so you want feet done and crabs all over you?”  LOL—I about died! I was trying so hard not to laugh but it all bottled up and YEP I SNORTED LOUDLY and that was it for me, I couldn’t stop laughing.  He just stared at her for a bit and then said “WELL, I don’t want JUST crabs dear, I want some fish & dolphins too!” very seriously.  I was hyperventilating at this point and Alexa was just glaring at me and laughing too—even the gal doing my nails was laughing.  So the lady sat down and started his pedicure and the whole ENTIRE TIME he giggled and was like “whoohoo that tickles, hee hee hee” loudly each time she scrubbed/polished his feet.  It was a RIOT!  Usually its very quiet and peaceful in there but NOT today, no way!  I left before I could see his feet (which he invited us ALL to see, lol) but I’m sure they were OCEAN FRIENDLY!! LOL—oh my!  You just never know do ya!?

NewsBitz:


-Pre-order all the NEW Spellbinders dies at 7 Kids College Fund!  There are a few beauties that I MUST have!  Also pre-order the beautiful new holiday Stampavie Stamps and the cool NEW I-Zing products (must try these me thinks)

-Remember I have a Summer Special going on for all my Online Copic Classes at the CMC Classroom thru Aug. 15th!  Also check out the current challenge at the CMC Challenge Group too!

-If you email me and its urgent over the next week while I’m gone, please put 911 in the subject line.  Otherwise I will check in on my emails when I can during the day & evening!  Thanks!

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Bottoms Up??

Today is another fun Copic Creations Challenge and we have been challenged to use all PASTEL colors! We have a fabulous sponsor this time “Sparkle Creations” who provided the DT with images to use today so generously.  If you haven’t checked out their cute designs take time to do so—they are just adorable and so fun to use!



I chose this cutie called “Cocktail Emily” as I thought she was perfect for summertime fun!  I have a friend (ahem…ahem) who loves purple so this card may end up at her doorstep if I remember to mail it (I am notoriously horrible at sending stuff, lol).  I chose these beautiful SEI papers for the color scheme of lilac, spring green and pale yellows.  The swirls are made with Marianne Designs dies and then I added some layered Prima flowers/roses.  I added some Stickles to the flowers so they would be sparkly too.  The mats behind the image are from SB’s dies Labels 20 Mega Nesties.  Some blingy rhinestones and a bow finish this cutie off!



She was of course colored with Copics YG67,YG03,G20 / V17,V15,V12,V000 /E11,E00 / Y11,Y00 /C1,C000 and Colorless Blender.  The edges of my images as always were done with my fave Inkssentials Blending Tool.  The glass/drink got a coat of Diamond Glaze and then I sprinkled Deco Art’s Glamour Dust in the glaze while still wet so it suspends within it—cool effect.  The line got some stickles too!

That’s all for me today---hope you enjoy your weekend! Make sure to stop by the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see the DT projects & join in the fun!! And make sure to stop back by here on Monday for a fun Magnolia-licious Blog Hop!!

Let's Go Riding!!

Well Happy Wednesday to you all!  As you are reading this I am soon headed home from my trip to Vegas--I have a red eye so I get in tomorrow morning at 5 am LOL.  Hope the flight is quiet and I'm actually able to sleep KWIM.  I am pre-typing this so I don't have any fun Vegas stories for you.......YET LOL!  There is definitely dancing and singing for sure though and I do know we are seeing "LOVE" which is the Beatles Cirque de Soleil.  No hangover movie-like stories for me though---I don't drink much at all cuz it makes me sleepy.  I'm much more fun after TWO Cherry Cokes hee hee ;)

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Let's Go For a Ride!!

Today is the 15th so that means its another fun Copic Creations Challenge!  Our fun and fabulous sponsor is Penny Black and they generously gave the DT some of their new stamps---love them!!  The challenge this time was to use our multi-liners in new or fun ways---easy yes!  I love my multi-liners & I always suggest in my classes that you have 2 black SP's (one thin line & one thick line).  Splurge for the SP's as they are refillable and worth the extra bucks.  You can find out more of the challenge details and the DT projects HERE!

I'm entering this Vrooom Vroooom baby into the following fun challenges: 

Going Grey with Scrap-Creations (anything goes)

Creative Cowgirls Challenge (summer fun)

Paper Sundaes (girly girl)

My image is "About Town" by Penny Black and I think she is ADORABLE!  Hmmmm reminds me a little of myself driving in my new BMW Convertible which I hope to get back next week (if you remember I only had it 2 weeks before I was rudely rear ended in April) and start driving it again.  My papers are by SEI called "Sunny Days" and I loved the bright & cheery colors---fun and perfect for summer projects.  The scrolls and flower are made with a Marianne Designs die and then I added some rhinestones for bling.  The sentiment is from a PTI stamp set--perfect eh'?

Of course my image got colored with Copics R05,R02,R00 / C1,C00 / E43,E42,E41 / Y15,Y11 / E11,E00,R20 / E25,E31,E50  Then I used my black multi-liner (0.3) to create some fine line shading on the car, marks on the tires and to give the road some texture.  I put Diamond Glaze all over the car so its nice and shiny, and of course some Stickles on the headlight, wheels and the girl's shirt.  She is blinged up and ready to ROLL I tell ya!!

Ok I will see you back here on Friday and I will also post the last Blog Candy winner then too so stay tuned!  AND don't forget to keep track of Waldo this summer--someone will win a $150 craft prize if you keep track (and yep I'm taking him to Vegas, lol).

Feelin’ Old?!!

Happy TGIFriday my friends!  Anyone have any wild and crazy plans this weekend?  As you read this I will be driving down to Greensboro, NC to my friend Betty’s store called The Stamping & Scrapbooking Room---packed to the brim with yummo goodies I also have a new friend traveling with me on my travels for the rest of 2011—yep I really do—but you’ll have to check in on Sunday to see who it is, hee hee!  Looking forward to catching up with my friends in NC and having dinner with everyone tonight and then class tomorrow.  If you see someone speeding errrrrr…..driving the posted speed limit late Saturday night up Rt. 95 N, bopping her head and singing LOUDLY---THAT’S ME!!! LOL!  Gotta stay awake and have some fun while I’m driving.  Trust me I have NO problem entertaining myself or anyone around me—in fact I feel its my mission in life to do so Life’s too short to not love every minute of it KWIM---I don’t believe in wasting more than 5 minutes on madness or pitifulness, LOL!  And NOPE I don’t feel old, at least not today---ask me after I get done with my NC trip, followed by the SC trip followed by Vegas. Then I might feel REALLY old, hee hee!

NewsBitz:

-Would you like a customized banner for your blog? How about a watermark and your very own signature?  You're only a few clicks away from having it all! All you need to do is help us tell everyone about our Party on June 5th.  All information is on the main page of The Outlawz!  While you're there, check out all the awesome gifts our fantastic sponsors are giving for the party!!

-Color Me Creative June News Letter went out last night---if you want to see it, go HERE!  There are lots of new upcoming events, groups & classes.  I'm also running the CMC Summer Special on Copic Classes too:

From June thru July 15th, 2011 the following discounts will apply

to all 4 of my Copic Classes ONLY at the CMC Classroom!

I've discounted each Copic class by $5 so you get the discount immediately!

Buy 1 Class get $5 off

Buy 2 Classes and get $10 off

Buy 3 Classes and get $15 off

Year Long Special!!

If you decide to take all 4 online Copic classes (only) I will take $25 OFF!!  Please email me if you'd like to do this and I will send you a special invoice with the discounted price--easier for both of us.

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Vintage and Distressed!!

Today I’m sharing my card I made for the Copic Creations Challenge Blog!  We are celebrating our 2 Year Anniversary and there are some HUGE PRIZES for grabs at the challenge blog!  Make sure to stop by and check them out---also some of the DT gals are giving prizes on their blogs (like me—see below) so make sure to hop around!!  And our fabulous sponsor is Crafty Secrets—they so kindly gifted the DT with a stamp set.  I picked this fun mini set called “Message on a Bottle” and there are many little stamps that you can put on the front of the bottle to customize it.



I used the new mini-sized K&Co Papers “Julianne”, I love the mini prints and vintage feel of these.  I stamped a PTI sentiment onto a Spellbinders die cut and inked the edges—the mini pearls were made with Ranger’s Liquid Pearls.  The swirls are by Marianne Designs.



The image was colored with Copics and I used more distressed/vintage colors Y26,Y23,Y21/Colorless Blender/E44,E43,E42,E40.  Then I added some stardust Stickles to the bottle stopper.  Again the Liquid Pearls dress up the label just a bit.

Blog Candy:  Leave a comment on this post and you could win (1) Free Online Class of your choice from my Color Me Creative Classroom!! Leave comment by next Wednesday, June 8th!

Make sure to stop by the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see the DT projects and how to play and win!!

Rockstar Power!!

Happy Sunday friends!  Hope the weekend has been good to you!  I am finishing up my weekend of teaching Copic Classes here in Michigan & then will make my way home tomorrow and arrive later that evening.  The weather here in Michigan has been great, much warmer than what I expected so I'm loving that, LOL!  I got to meet a lot of fabulous ladies, old friends and new while I was here.  Cindy of StampingScrapping.com had a retreat and taught classes as well so there were lots of crafty ladies in attendance for a fun-filled weekend!  Sorry for the short posts but the internet here is kinda slow (per the normal) so I'm trying to get as much done as I can while I can, LOL.  Tomorrow I have a Magnolia-licious Blog Hop post for you that you will not want to miss (and the winner of the last blog candy will be on that as well).

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Rockin' Yellow Rockstar!!

Today is the 15th so that means another fun Copic Creations Challenge!  The challenge this week is to color yellows--a fun but much underused color, but such an easy one to use and blend!  This week our fabulous sponsor is (one of our own dt sistah's) Katie Cotton's Paper Makeup Stamps!  She so generously allowed the DT to pick a digi image or stamp to use on our projects today---she has lots of cuties so you NEED to check them out at her store!! :)

I used this super fun digi image (great for a teen or gal in your life that has rockstar status, lol) called "Moody for Rock".  I just loved her and had a blast coloring and making this project.  For my yellows I used Y13,Y11,Y00,Y000 and for the Gold Guitar I used YR24,YR23,Y15,Y11.  I colored the water drops with C5,C3,C1,C00 and then coated them with stardust stickles.  Her bangles and guitar accents got some platinum and silver stickles for more rockin' bling :)  I used some fun Spellbinders dies in star shape and pinking circles for my mats and inked the edges with black/gray inks.  I accented the stars and the card with some black rhinestones for more bling!  The gray cs is actually a silver cs from PTI for more sparkle.  The papers are a mix of scraps from Kaisercraft. 

Now make sure to hop over to the Copic Creations Blog to see the rest of the DT projects and how to join in on the fun!  See ya back here tomorrow!

Let's Celebrate!!

Well a very happy Tuesday to you all and Happy March 15th!  Today is a very special day for me---the Color Me Creative Classroom celebrates its 1 Year Birthday today!  I am so excited to kick off a fun week of challenges, contests and other fun events at the classroom for a full 7 days starting TODAY!  I have been so unbelievable blessed to have my classroom make it to 1 year and along the way have so much fun and meet so many SPECIAL friends.  I love every minute of teaching Copics and thank you all for supporting me this year thru the classroom and my On the Road classes as well.  I know not everyone gets to choose their career path/job and I am soooo lucky to really love what I do.  Yes, it's hard work everyday and I sometimes work 16 hour days but in the end it is always worth it and I wouldn't trade it for the world.  It has allowed me to meet so many people from around the world, travel to places to teach and allow me to be home with my kids and husband when I need to be.  I never thought I'd be a teacher really although growing up my favorite "pretend play" was always teaching my dolls and stuffed animals art---so I guess that was a sign back then, LOL!  But I truly enjoy teaching, motivating others and making them love and take time for art!  I think crafting and the arts is truly soul soothing and a great stress relief---so if I'm helpful in some way making you love crafting and love coloring than I'm a happy gal!  So come celebrate at the Color Me Creative Classroom all week with us---you won't want to miss a thing!

You can see today's CMC Challenge HERE!  Make sure to read all the details on how to play along this week and how to be entered for the GRAND PRIZE!  There will also be random prizes and prizes for those who do the challenges each day!  You can also see the full schedule HERE or on the blog post below this!  If you want to enter for the Grand Prize w/o playing in the challenges---you can find out how to donate to get an entry HERE!  Donations are securely made and benefit World Vision--Japanese Earthquake & Tsunami Relief!

**Also when you join the CMC Birthday Group at the CMC classroom, random prizes will be given during each day to those that comment---so you never know who might win!  Everyone is welcome at the CMC Classroom and in the Birthday Group (unless you are a spammer, lol)--so come on & join the fun!

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Little Girl Blue!!

Since today is the 15th that means its another fun Copic Creations Challenge!  This week we have been challenged to color with our favorite BLUES.  Our fabulous sponsor is Sugar Nellie and 1 lucky winner will get their choice of 4 Sugar Nellie stamps/images so make sure to stop by the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see the DT projects and how to join in on the fun!

I chose this beautiful "Simply Adorable" digi image from Sugar Nellie called "Joy Sitting"!  I ADORE these beautifully drawn girls--so unbelievably cute and realistic.  They are great for those beginning coloring with copics too as they have built-in shading to guide you---that way you can get the feel of where shading should be.  My papers are older from my stash called " and I used this past week's Friday Sketchers sketch for my layout--loved it!  I cut my image out and popped it up on my mat that was created with SB's "Beaded Ovals" and then run thru my CB embossing folder.  The rhinestone swirls are by Zva that I cut into parts and added to my card.  The double bow was created with my Bow Easy and then topped with layered Prima flowers.

Isn't she a cutie?  I used Copic Colors B99,B95,B91 and my Colorless Blender for the blues (E11,E00/E25,E50,E31/C3,C1/R24,R22,R20 for the rest of the colors).  Diamond Glaze was used on her eyes, shoes & apple for some realistic shine.  Then stickles were added to her dress trim and hair bow for some bling---gotta have stickles, hee hee!

Hope you enjoyed this post today and stop on over at the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see the DT projects & how to play along!  Also don't forget to stop by the  Color Me Creative Classroom for a list of fun Birthday Events!!

Ladybug Love!

Happy Monday friends!  Hope you are enjoying your weekend!  I am actually finishing typing this post (yes it's late, lol) on the airplane in route to Atlanta and then on towards home.  I had an absolute blast in Florida teaching and visiting with old and new friends--it was one of the best times I've had!  I have laughed, giggled & talked so much that my ribs and face are KILLING me, LOL!  The weather was absolutely beautiful while I was in Port St. Lucie and I got to visit the beach (see Man-of-wars or metaphors as my pal Dana says, hee hee), eat lunch outside at the harbor, enjoy soft-shell crabs and teach some awesome ladies how to love their Copics too.  I roomed with my good friend Pat Jaynes and Dana Shaw and not only did we laugh until we almost died but we closed down restaurants each night too---not enough sleep for me but it was totally worth it.  If you get a chance to head down to south FL make sure to visit my friend Paula Beeten's Store "Scrapbook Store & More" while you are there.  She was such a lovely host and I'm so happy to call her my friend.  I have some pictures in a slideshow below of my visit to Florida.  If you need me for something I will be catching up on all emails tomorrow as my flight lands later this evening and not only do I need some major sleep but I want to enjoy my family for a few hours as well.  Lucky for them (and me, lol) I'll be home for a couple of weeks before I head off to Phoenix and Connecticut to teach some more copic classes (want to know where I'll be?  head over to www.cmcroad.com for all the details).

Florida Slideshow:

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Ladybug Love

I know I'm late with this but the internet was poor in our hotel (that's an understatement, as it took me an hour to load 4 pictures, lol).  This card is for our Copic Creations Challenge and we were to use Complimentary Colors (color that are across the color wheel from each other).  I chose red and green--but used the softer versions of them in pinks & light greens to compliment this beautiful digi image.  Our fabulous sponsor for this challenge is a company called "Crafts & Me".  They have some awesome crafting goodies but also beautiful digi stamps including this one called "Ladybug Love"--isn't she gorgeous?

I used Basic Grey papers for this project--I loved the mix of pinks and greens with this image.  The scrolls are from one of my favorite Marianne Designs dies and the center trim is done with a MS border punch.  Pearls finish the card off---I didn't use too many accessories as I thought the paper provided enough busy-ness/trim to complement the image nicely.

And of course she is colored with Copics (R89,R85,R83,R81,RV10/YG25,YG03,G20/E25,E31,E50/E11,E00).  I left lines in her hair instead of blending them out because I wanted the hair to look very textural and its always fun to mix it up just a bit.  If you visit the challenge blog you'll see that my DT sister colored this image very differently (but beautifully) and she made her have a halter top--I thought it was a jersey t-shirt (LOL) so I colored her some sleeves, hee hee.  Some stickles make her shirt glittery and that is diamond glaze on her eyes for shine.

Now make sure to hop on over to the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see all the beautiful projects and learn how you can join in on the fun too!  See ya!

Live With Zest!

Howdy Friends and Happy Friday!  Yay its the weekend--hurrah hurrah!  It was a balmy 70 degrees here in VA the past couple of days--just beautiful!  I spent yesterday out on the patio working in the sun and then we cooked out and enjoyed our outdoor fireplace for a few hours, it was splendid!  Today Riley, hubby and 5 other boys are spending the day at a local Paintball Farm, yay!  They decided against skiing since its been so warm and it would be slushy and they like to play war, LOL--boys will be boys right.  Then they'll all be sleeping over tonight (egads)!  Alexa and I are getting mani/pedis and going shopping for some spring clothes---a total girl outing for us thankfully.  Then we'll all come home to the chaos of boys playing video games, eating pizza and running thru the house shooting Nerf guns---give me lots of caffeine and Advil please, LOL!  But they'll have fun---all in the name of fun right!?  Hope you all are having a fabulous weekend!

NewsBitz:

-I still have a few spots open in my San Diego Copic class next week on Feb.23rd--it will be small and FUN! I also put up new info about copic classes in Phoenix, AZ hosted by my pal Tab (owner of 7 Kids College Fund).  You can find all the details on my website www.cmcroad.com --just scroll down to see registration info on both!

-Don't forget that I'm looking for entries for my NEW CMC Challenge DT!  You can find all details right HERE!  Its for all levels to use your Copics creatively and spread the word thru your beautiful work!

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Live With Zest!!

Today I'm sharing my Copic Creations Challenge project with you---I know I'm a few days late but better late than never right? LOL The challenge this time was to use warm colors and our fabulous sponsor is Bugaboo Stamps--they have some really cute digi stamps in their store!  I was thrilled to use one of their stamps called "Dottie Celebrate", there are lots of fabulous versions of Dottie for you to choose from!

Isn't she just fah-bu-lous!  I love her cuz' she's got some 'tude, LOL!  I cheated a bit but I did color her mostly in the "warm" color of red, hee hee---she called to be a raven haired beauty to me so I couldn't resist.  I used a CB embossing folder on the black cs and then cut various circles with my Spellbinders dies and layered them.  I had to add some fun bling with my Zva rhinestones swirls--this girl wanted BLING!  The sentiment is from an older Hero Arts set--fun sayings in that one!

I colored her up with Copics of course (R29,R24,R22,R20/C9,C7,C5,C3/E11,E00) and then got busy with some fun products.  She got Stickles on her dress because in my mind it was a sequined evening gown (lol) and the diamond glaze to her shoes and martini glass.  While the Diamond Glaze on the martini glass was still wet I sprinkled Glamour Dust on it so the sparkles were suspended in liquid.  Her pearl earrings were done with a Viva Decor Pearl Pen in Ice White--love those pearl pens, great dimension.

Hope this party girl cheered you up a bit today and make sure to visit the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to join in on the fun and see the rest of the DT samples.  Also stop by Bugaboo Stamps and see their fabulous digis---some might want to come home & party with ya, hee hee!

Have a great weekend!

Girly Fun!

Well hello everyone and a wintry Tuesday Night to you!  I hope that by the time you read this tomorrow I will have made my way to Nashville via LA and then onto Baltimore as my other flight was cancelled.  This winter weather has really been too much for me this year and I'm soooooo over it!  There are hundreds of us stranded here in LA due to the weather, but I figure if I get stranded in Nashville I'll just rent a car and drive home again.  I mean HEY I just did that drive a week ago right, LOL!  No biggie!  CHA has been both a blast (love meeting up with everyone, all the laughs and good times) but some of the other stuff's have been not so good.  I'm looking forward to CHA being back in Anaheim next year :)  At least its sunny here not like the rest of the country--you'd never know by being in LA that there is blizzard conditions across 33 states, ugh!  I need to write about this trip soon because there are parts you would NEVER believe!  Hubby is cranky with the kids, kids are cranky and home from school and mom is cranky---should be a FABULOUS weekend in the Dean household KWIM, hee hee!  When I get home I will load up all my pics for you so you can see everyone & everything!

My CHA Highlites/Must Haves:

-La La Land Stamps (illustrated by a very sweet pal of mine, Irina Blount)
-We R Memory Keepers new papers and embellies---loved them all
-Tsukineko's Goose Bumps Spray---very cool
-NEW Provocraft Expression E2 (will be wi-fi enabled, screen, no overlays and takes both Imagine & Cricut cartridges)--- also the NEW Provocraft Craft Room website which will be free!
-Sew Easy and Lucky Eight punches
-SB Nestability Bling by Want 2 Scrap

NewsBitz:

-7 Kids has some of the NEW CHA goodies for pre-order that you MUST'NT MISS!  New LaLa Land Stamps (love, love, love them and the owner/illustrator is a pal of mine), Stampavie Stamps, and NEW Spellbinders!  More to come as well!

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Girly Girl Fun!

Today I have a fun girly project to share with you for the Copic Creations Challenge Blog!  This week our fabulous sponsor is Lili of the Valley Stamps and we were to use a combo of cool Copic colors!  If you haven't seen these stamps yet you are missing out, they are super adorable and you will love them all!  The DT has used a mix of fun and cute images for you today so make sure to check out the challenge HERE to see them all and how to join in on the fun!

I used this very sweet girly image called "New Hat" and I think she's utterly adorable!  Reminds me of my daughter at a much younger age--so cute!  The fun mix of papers I used are from Kaisercraft "Candy Lane" and the fun colors and patterns, perfect with this image!  The flowers are from Michaels (wedding section) layered and topped with a hot pink Prima rose!  The matting circle was made with SB's Lacey Circles and the scroll dies are by Marianne Designs.  Ribbon, rhinestones and sentiment by PTI!

I used Copic Colors YR12,YR01,RV13,RV10,YG25,YG03,YG000,C3,C1,C00!  Her shoes and purse got a nice coat of stardust Stickles---my fave!  Gotta have lots of bling! 

Now make sure to stop by the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to get more details 'kay?  See you in a few days if I EVER LEAVE LA, LOL! 

 

Snow Dancing!!

Happy Friday my friends!  As you read this I will be driving the 10.5 hour drive to Nashville today--here's praying for an uneventful drive, lol!  I enjoy the quiet but this will be my longest trip to date so we'll see how I do.  They are calling for snow in the morning but it should be gone and out of here by the time I hit the highways.  On Sunday I am on a mission to find Mr. Tim McGraw, LOL, I know he's just dying to meet me, hee hee!  Although my mom has given me strict orders to search out Brad Paisley for her, hee hee!  But I'll keep it short and sweet for you today as I have lots to do and need to get to bed a bit earlier than my usual 1 am :)  Hope you all have a great weekend!

NewsBitz:

-Want to see where I'll be next?  Visit www.cmcroad.com to see the next upcoming copic classes!

-7 Kids College Fund has LOTS of new & yummy products in the store!  Pre-order all the NEW Spellbinders dies HERE (30 of them, yikes, lol), NEW Bildmalarna cuties HERE, and fab NEW Sizzix Embossing Folders HERE!

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Snow Dancing!!

Yes, yes, yes---I am very late with my Copic Creations Challenge project & I apologize!  But here is this cutie for you all!  Our sponsor this week is the lovely Prairie Fairy and they have sooooooooooo many cute digi images for you to choose from.  They gifted each of the DT gals 1 image and I chose this fun and whimsical "Morley Dancing" image--isn't he cute!  They have lots of images with him in funny poses, lol!  Since for most of us it's still winter (bah humbug, lol) I wanted to do a more masculine birthday card as I don't make many of those. (course this would work well for a gal too)  The challenge was to do something different & fun on our cards/images---I chose to paint with my copic inks.

These papers are by Memory Box (older) and the brown decorative border was done with a MS border punch.   The large snowflakes are punches that I coated with MS Glitter Snow and then added a bow treatment to one of them.  The sentiment and twill ribbon are from a PTI and the image was cut with SB Nesties Labels 15--I love that shape.  As usual I softly blended the outside of the image with my fave Inkssentials Blending tool (with foam)--love, love that lil tool!

So most of this image was colored with Copics EXCEPT his boots and antlers--those I painted with the Copic Refill Inks.  How?  I used a plastic artist's palette and put 1 drop of C7 and 1 drop of E53 into separate areas.  Then I wet my paint brush with rubbing alcohol (you could use Colorless Blender too) and very lightly started making strokes onto my image, keeping the area wet with the rubbing alcohol to blend it nicely--it took a lil' while to get the look I wanted.  I dabbed off a lot of ink each time on a paper towel and slowly added a bit of color layer by layer slowly until I was happy with it.  It is a much longer process than just coloring with copics, lol, but it was fun.  I finished off the antlers and boots with a coat of Diamond Glaze for shine.  The ends of his scarf got some Sparkly Fluff and his boot cuffs got white Doodlebug Flock and then more MS Glitter Snow around him.  Cute isn't he?  He looks like he's having wayyyyyyyyy more fun in the cold snow than I would, LOL!

Make sure to hop by the Copic Creations Blog to see the rest of the DT's projects and join in on the challenge with us too!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Trim the Tree!

Hello & a Happy Wednesday to you!  The winds are still blowing outside and it's STILL freezing here in VA, lol (sadly)!  Thankfully I don't have anywhere to go today, I'm just working on projects and waiting for the carpet cleaners to come.  Cuz you know they give you a 4 hour window and they'll show up the 4th hour, lol, but I have to have the cats all put in my bedroom before they get here which is a pain in the rear!  Sometimes I can just crack a can of cat food and they'll come running, but I SWEAR they know when I want to coop them up cuz they RESIST the food offerings, LMBO!  Little devils that they are!  Then we're off again this evening to see Riley's last band concert--he's playing the solo drum for Little Drummer Boy and I cannot wait to see him perform!


If you wanted to see my Christmas decorations and 11 trees, I put up a slideshow on yesterday's post below!  Yes, I've been called CRAZY but I do love Christmas and I have 2 adorable shots of my pups with their FAVE Santa hat on (ha ha-not)! Yes I do like to torture the animals by dressing them up!

My big girl "Casey"--she's so thrilled can't you tell!

Baylee--immobilized by the Santa hat, LOL! Look at those puppy eyes :)

NewsBitz:

-Charity Blog Candy ends on Dec. 17th (Friday)--we've raised over $1600 so far and I'm just thrilled for the Fisher House Charity!  You can read more about it HERE!

-Holiday Special on my Online Copic Classes until Jan.4th!  Check out the deals on at the Color Me Creative Classroom HERE!  Makes great gifts too ;)

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Trim the Tree!!

Today is the 15th so that means it's another Copic Creations Challenge for you all!  This challenge is all about SPARKLE--perfect for the season & my favorite thing to add too!  Our fabulous sponsor this week is Just Rite Stamps and they so generously donated stamps to all of the DT for us to use!  I got to use the beautiful "Christmas Ornaments" from their Holiday 2010 Collection--and you know how I love my tree decorations, LOL! 

My papers are from Pink Paislee's "Father Christmas" pack--I love the vintage colors and patterns, perfect with this image from Just Rite.  I matted the ornament with Spellbinder's Nesties (circles and Labels 3).  The scrolls are by Marianne Designs dies and then I covered them with a NEW Glitter product (shhhh I cannot tell you yet)--but it rocks!  The triple bow was done with my Bow Easy and then I added some faux pine boughs using another die by Marianne Designs.

Of course the image was colored with Copics (YG97,YG95,YG93/R29,R24,R22,R20/YR24,YR23,Y15,Y11).  To add sparkle I used a lot of things, lol!  On top of the gold I colored I added Gold Spica pen to it--that's a very subtle sparkle and hard to photograph but so pretty IRL.  I also traced the outside of the ornament with a Gold Spica pen to make it pop even more!  Then I added Diamond Glaze to the bottom and top sections of the ornament AND while wet I sprinkled Glamour Dust (15% off) in it--super shimmery!  The small beads/pearls on the ornaments were done with the NEW & IMPROVED Ranger Liquid Pearls in platinum--they now don't leave a point after you use them, a perfect pearl each time!  A sparkly and elegant holiday card!

Now make sure to hop on over to the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see the rest of the DT's fabulous projects and join in the contest as well for a great prize for Just Rite Stamps!

A Warm Cuppa!!

Hello again and a Happy Thursday to you all! Let's start the day off with a question okay, lol! What's your opinion on spammers? Does anyone know what they do exactly and who employs them? Let me just say they are a BIG PAIN in my REAR-END I tell ya---BLECH! Why does anyone have that much time on their hands in the first place and what are they trying to do? Ridiculous I think and they need to find both a life and a REAL JOB--(hear that spammers, lol)!! I had to put my blog on moderated comment status a couple of months ago due to spam coming in thru the comments. And then yesterday I had one infiltrate my CMC Classroom and send out inappropriate messages to members--so I spent a good part of my day doing damage control because of a dumb spammer. But I've fixed that permanently so they can't get in anymore--if you decide to join the Main Classroom site HERE (everyone BUT spammers are WELCOME) you will have to be approved by me before given access to the site. I hated doing that but it was necessary to protect the site and the members and prevent that from happening again. So if you do decide to join that's why it says you must be approved! Sorry about that!

And talking about free time now--hee hee, of which I am in short supply of it seems!  But when I do have some free time I have been playing "Angry Birds" game on my Iphone or Ipad (its an app), lol!  Someone recommended it to me (unfortunately, lol) and it has become a "fun obsession for me"!!  I usually only get to play when I'm waiting for an appt or when hubby is driving, cuz he prefers I don't watch as I have a tendency to want to tell him how to drive (who me....LOL)!!  It is really fun and addictive and my hubby just rolls his eyes when I play, he even brought me home an article in Wall Street Journal that talked about adults playing this game, hee hee.  So IF you decide to get it and play it A LOT--DO NOT BLAME ME, okay!! LOL!  But it sure is fun and is a nice break from the stresses of the day---especially when the lil' piggies oiink, hee hee!

BIG GIVEAWAY TOMORROW--You do NOT WANT to miss the post on Friday! It's BIGGGGG!!

NewsBitz:

-Don't forget the Holiday Special Deals going on at the Color Me Creative Classroom for Online Copic classes!  It goes thru Jan. 4th and you can find all the details on the main page HERE!

-I have a mini-blog candy going on in yesterday's post below or click HERE!  It's very sweet ;)

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A Warm Cuppa!!

Sorry I'm a day late with this, but today I'm sharing my Copic Creations Challenge project with you!!  We have a new challenge starting this week and our fabulous sponsor is "Whimsy Stamps"--I love their designs and they have great rubber and digi stamps in the store (some fall in my cart, oopss, each time, lol)!! 

The challenge this time is to show "light sourcing"--I teach this lesson FIRST in all my copic classes as I feel it's very important for making flat images more dimensional and really POP off the pages! Once you get it, you can color ANYTHING!!  I used a fabulous new digi image by MelJen Designs called "Christmas Cocoa" and used an upper right-hand light source!

I have two favorite drinks during the holidays and winter that I CANNOT give up, lol (no not Cherry Coke although I still drink that too)!  I LOVE good hot cocoa with lots of whipped cream AND Starbucks Caramel Apple Spice drink--neither are coffee which I despise, hee hee!  So when I saw this digi by MelJen Designs called "Christmas Cocoa" I just had to use it!!  The snowman on the cup is too cute!!  The papers are by Cosmo Cricket's "Mitten Weather"(15% off now) collection and that FABULOUS embossed cs was done by the NEW Basic Grey Sizzix embossing folders (work like the cuttlebug ones) called "Powdered Sugar & Snowglobe Set" (see all of them here).  I love the designs, nice deep embossing--I think this one looks like a winter scarf print, very cool!

The fun sentiment is a tag stamp from PTI called "2008 Holiday Tag Collection" and this is how I made it--I liked the handle look of it--I stamped it out on cs and it stamps out in a circle with a center design.  Then I diecut the whole image out with a circle nestie and cut the center image (cup) out so it's more of a ring and added a button to the center.  The bow got the same button treatment with bakers twined knotted off on it!

The image was colored with Copics (green-YG67,YG03,G20/R29,R24,R22,R20/white-C1,C00/cocoa-E29,E25,E31).  Then I got to work adding lots of fun elements to the image as usual, hee hee!  The handle, berries and hot cocoa got diamond glaze for a nice shiny effect!  The star, holly and hat band got stickles for sparkle!  Then to top it all off I added some Liquid Applique in white for the puffy marshmallows.

Hope you enjoyed this holly, jolly Christmas card today and hope you come back tomorrow for the BIG POST!  Don't forget to stop by the Copic Creations Challenge Blog to see all the fab DT projects and to join in with us!!