Goodbye 2010

Goodbye 2010

2010 was a rough year for our family. Hubby and I couldn't wait to see it end.  But isn't that just like "us, humans" to focus on the negative?

Hubby gave me one of those digital frames for Christmas - lots of internal memory so this week I started putting photos into it.  What an amazing gift he gave me!  As I looked back through our 2010 photos I realized it wasn't such a bad year.  Sure, we had some severe rough patches with the oldies health and losing two of them to death but there were many many many good things that happened this year and some great fun memories - a college graduation, a couple of great vacations, and many fun family moments.

As we turn the page to 2011, my wish for you is that no matter what the new year brings, I hope that you do things to create great fun memories.  And I hope you create a few cute paper projects too!

Happy Punchin' and Happy New Year!!!

In the beginning...

In the beginning...

No, not THAT beginning.  In the beginning days of this blog, I shared the tutorial for a punched crow that had been very popular - which you can find HERE.

Today I have another crow inspired by some clip-art I saw - it was just too fun not to try in punches.

Beak - large oval, opening trimmed with scissors and colored in a bit with black marker
Body - large oval - snipped in with scissors to make choppyish (is that a word?) feathers
Eyes - circle from itty bitty punch pack and black marker
Glasses - 1/2 inch circle around itty bitty punch pack circle hole - 3 times - 2 for circles, 1 for nose piece - 2 bits of word window for ear pieces
Legs - thin strip from trimmer
Feet - narrow heart to heart next to the same hole - then I folded it over on itself to make the toes closer together (making the V shape narrower - just try it and it should make sense)

I will be using this for a thank you card I need to make - maybe something like "just had to crow about it"
Any better suggestions for a sentiment?

Snoozin' Santa

I borrowed HEAVILY from last year's Checkin' His List Santa to create this year's Snoozzzzzzin' Santa.

This is what he is doing today, since tomorrow he has a full schedule of deliveries.

I'm guessing he will look like this again on Christmas Day.

Hope you are wide awake on Christmas and having a marvelous time unless of course you are like me and think takin' a midday nap IS a having a marvelous time in which case I wish you merry zzzzzzzzzz's!

I'll be with family the next few days so no posting for a bit. See you some time next week.

Merry Christmas!  and/or Happy Whatever You Celebrate!

Biker Santa

At our house we are NOT "bike" people -------BUT

I realize that many many MANY people get great joy from their bikes and for them I share today's BIKER SANTA

Greg M. - this one's for you!

Switch the color of the pants and the beard and you have any old big belly biker you'd like to make. (Yes, Greg - that would be for you too, hee hee hee)

Here is some how to for Biker Santa:

Head and bandanna - 1.25 circle

Bandanna tails - wing from two step bird near a circle hole

Eyes - standard hole punch white and black - adhered offset - add gel pen highlight

Nose - small circle trimmed on each side

Beard - scallop oval repunched with "end" of wide oval (could use a circle)

Mustache - small heart cut in half

Eyebrows - small circle near an oval hole

Belly - 2.5 circle - trimmed at back and bottom so you are using approx 3/4 of the punch - cut notch with scissors

Belt - strip from trimmer - (word window wasn't long enough)

Pants - large ovals - thin strip of grey from word window on edge of paper

Boots - full heart - trimmed at "base" of boot and "heel side" - rounded at leg opening

Gloves - modern label - repunched with 1/2 inch circle

Helmet  - 1 3/8 circle (use that again to make striped part)

Goggles - scrap into the small holes of the owl punch - toss the circle put the "hole" scrap into the word window (use the sticky of a post it note so you can hold on to it) - repunch again with word window to get the round ends - strap is just a strip

Buckles - tiny tiny scraps (good luck)

In the meantime...

I have two Santas in work - and they will be posted this week.  Too late for you card-makers (sorry) but ahead of schedule for you scrapbookers (Way to go, Ellen!)

In the meantime, while I'm fine tuning their awesomeness, please RUN (or quickly click on THIS link) and check out the owls that Barbara Diane has created for the 12 Days of Christmas.  My fave so far is the 6th day HERE but they are all darling so check the previous days and the ones that follow for some great idea to dress the Stampin' Up! Owl.

Gift Bearing Bear

with or without hat, he is still a gift bearing bear...

Inspired by wrapping paper

Head - owl with ears and feet cut off
Body - 1.75 inch circle
Arms - medium oval
Legs - small oval
Feet - medium oval flattened on bottom
You can figure out the rest cause I'm bored typing this

Guest Puncher - Joan Hargrove

The Blink Blog is PROUD to present another fabulous punch creation by Joan Hargrove:

She was inspired by the card on the left and so... she recreated it with punches.  I LOVE IT!!!

To see other "Joan" work look here and here and here.

Night on the Little Town...

Santa's Harem?

I think not.

My friend Liz (in red), her sis-in-law (blond in blue), another friend and friend's granddaughter and me - front row right side - the chubby one with the glasses (I have that in common with Santa).

Girls' night out at our local little town theater production of Willy Wonka.

I wish I could show you the scenery because my very talented upline made most of it - but photography was not allowed.  (crummy old rules)

I can, however, show you my favorite ooompa-loompas...

No punch art today but the smaller ooopma loompa was in a play last year that inspired this - gave it to his mom and she was so thrilled I guess I better get busy punching ooompa loompas for this years page

I don't know why...

This is another one of those punch art things where I don't really know why the Inspiration Fairy led me down this path.

Remember the polar bear idea I got from Mary's gift tag?  Well, she had another tag with a cute reindeer face and the antlers reminded me of hearts, so I had to copy that.  THEN "we" decided to add a body and I couldn't decide on the legs and before I knew it... I had a skating reindeer.

And if you should need something a little wilder you can rearrange the legs like this:

And this reminds me of a family story.

Oldest was 7.  Youngest was 2.  Youngest decided to do an "impression" of her sister skating.  Dead serious and with NO malice in her heart, she stood on one leg throwing her arms and legs in a crazy windmill fashion.  Honestly, it was a perfect imitation of her sister skating down our front sidewalk. 

Oldest didn't think this was funny (Hubby and I were rolling on the floor) so she decided to to an impression of her sister.  But what do 2 year-olds do that would embarrass them?  Well, lets just leave it with the info that youngest wasn't potty trained and we ALWAYS knew when she did number two.  And oldest did a perfect imitation of that.  (More rolling on the floor)

Children are entertaining.  I love them.

Head - owl punch with feet and ears cut off
Antlers - small heart put on post it and repunched with a smallish circle
Ears - small heart cut in half
Nose - 3/4 circle put on post it and repunched with same
Body - 1 3/8 inch circle
Legs - word window cut in half lengthwise
Tail - wide heart to heart cut in half
Skates - small heart to heart rounded on one hump with some small circle
Wheels - small circle from owl punch, tiny circle from owl punch for center
Scarf - circle near circle hole and long scraps

Eskimo Kisses

I like the one with just the nose peeking out - but I thought I'd show you both looks for your kissers.

Hood - 1.75 circle repunched with small oval at "top"
Face - small oval
Nose - circle from itty bitty punch pack
Fur trims - large oval near small oval hole
Body - wide oval
Arm - wide heart to heart
Mitten - small heart trimmed with scissors
Leg - small oval - adjust your "height" by how much leg you show
Boot - Full heart - trimmed bottom, back, punched at top with medium oval (or some circle if you like)

Time to Chill

Honestly, my friend Pam does NOT have a thing for polar bears and I KNOW that.  So why is this the second polar bear birthday card in a row?  She is the victim of timing - I'm thinking holiday characters but I don't want to do anything too "christmasy" for her birthday card so it winds up being polar bears...  Last year she got the Coke Bear and this year she gets Chill Bear.

When I gave her the card, she said we could make the polar bears a birthday tradition.

Inspiration came from a tiny gift tag another friend, Mary, had on a package she was about to mail.  Spied it and quickly pulled out my camera and snapped a photo just so I could copy it. 

Head - wide oval
Body - wide oval turned the other way - seam of the two ovals hidden by scarf
Arms - wide heart to heart
Legs - small oval
Feet - medium oval (is that what they are calling it? - the new one)
Soles of feet - 3/4 inch circle put on a post it note so I could repunch and get kinda an oval
Scarf - wide oval punched next to wide oval hole (3 times to get pieces of scarf)
Nose - like soles of feet - add white gel pen highlight
Ears - word window ends

Draw on eyes and ear markings.

Elf

Something to entertain you while I'm gone...

Not too hard Christmas Card

OK, most of my friends and relations should have their card by now, so I'll show you what I made for this year.

No punch art.

I made 80 so they had to be easy to mass produce.
Stamped the tree from Season of Friendship
THEN embossed using the Big Shot and an embossing folder I borrowed from Eileen the Glitter Queen.
Then inked the edges, added the ribbon and bird, layered on cherry cobbler paper and the card base.

Wrote some witty banter about next year's migration to various locations by the girls and an empty nest for us.  And I enclosed this photo

Of course I wished them all a Happy Holiday and I wish the same for each of you!

Now I'm heading out of town for a few days to see a girlfriend I've known since I was 17.  Want to guess how many hours we can talk without a break?

Pier I Penguin

I know, I've punched a bunch of penguins, and you've seen them from other punchers too but I saw the CUTEST penguin in a Pier I advertisement peeking around a clock - well, I had to try him in punches.

The unique part of this one is the feet.  Punch the scallop circle - toss the circle keep the hole - insert your 1/2 inch circle punch from the "open circle" and punch so that the POINT is almost at the inner edge of the punch.  Sounds so weird to type but TRY IT and you'll see what I mean.

Other thing to note on this project is the eyes.  Punch the two small (not tiny) circles of the owl punch - using the "remains" as a template, DRAW the glasses with a thin black maker - shift template slightly to draw nose bridge piece.

Other thing to note is I had 3 glasses of wine while decorating a friend's Christmas tree tonight and have had to type each sentence 3 times - so follow my directions at your own risk.

Not a rear view...

NOT a rear view of a snowman (that would be kinda dull) but rather a top down view.

NOT my original idea (wish it was).  I first saw this done by Lynda Fraiser HERE.  But I hear that Sharon Field was the first to do it.  And I seriously copied the face from a card by Doris Denman that I saw on a Stampin' Up Demonstrator site.

So, since so many ladies have done these, you have probably already seen one - but this is one from me.  I used it on a tag for a swap with my upline/sideline/downline.

Base - 1.75 circle
Mid-section - 1 3/8 circle
Head  - 1 inch circle
Arms - snowflake punch - with twigs trimmed
Nose - freehand triangle using "deckle" edge scissors (remember all those fancy scissors from the late 90's scrapbooking?)
Hat - half  of a one inch circle in green - small oval near small oval hole in blue - 1/2 inch circle in blue

Face drawn on - cheeks are my finger print in pink ink.

Santa 2010 Version

By this time last year I had shown y'all about 12 different Santas and this year - not even one! 

Well something had to be done to correct that.

So...since this year has been the year for Rear View Characters....

I give you....

Santa - Buns of Steel

But before he did his workout tapes he was Santa - Buns of Blubber.

Hee hee - we had great fun as a family arguing the superiority of the two versions.  There was a third version that hubby said looked like he was wearing a diaper.  And while that does happen to some men as old as Santa, I won't show it out of my deep respect for the Magical Man of Christmas.

Head - 1 inch circle
Hair - scallop oval repunched
Shirt - 1.75 circle
Suspenders - word window
Buns - 3/4 or 1 inch circles
Thigh and Upper Arms - small oval
Calves - word window
Boots - modern label and 3/4 circle

Here is the pictorial "how to"

Just Yammering Today

I thought I had the Inspiration Fairy lured back to my desk when I created Edna the other day - but she has flown off again.  Did she show up at your house?

I have had to strain my own little brain this week to come up with our 2010 Christmas Card.  I sat down the day after Thanksgiving to relax and...

BAM!

It hit me like a ton of bricks - if Thanksgiving is over that means Christmas is about 45 minutes away and I hadn't even thought about Christmas Cards! 

Yep, that's right, I panicked.

I'm NOT a "last minute - work best under pressure" girl - I am a "show up early for everything - love to check things off my list" gal.

It took a lot of focus and a lot of  "Honey is this OK?" and "does this look better" and "No, I don't like it - I need to start over" and "what about THIS one" but I finally came up with a card, got a photo of the girls, made 80 of those rascals, addressed the envelopes and they are DONE.  And they will be mailed off this first week of December - 'cause that is what I do.  I have friends that place bets about my card being the first one they receive each year.  It's part of their holiday tradition.

And that is why you have had no punch art from me to entertain you.

I do have a couple of ideas in work but I need the Fairy to come help me finish them up.

So if you see her, PLEASE send her back my way. 

Link to South Park Characters

I am soooooooooooooo behind on my blog reading, I may never catch up - but I did sneak in a few minutes of drooling last night.  I found some cute little guys from South Park.  Not a show I watch often but boy, did Clare nail these. Even if you don't need these characters you might get some ideas of ways to punch kids in coats and hats.  Check them out HERE at Crafty Cow Creations.  Very very cute!

Ask me now before I again become sane...

"You can't! It's impossible! I'm far too busy, so ask me now before I again become sane." 

--Edna Mode in the Incredibles.

Raise your hand if this quote is applicable to you.

I knew it!  I knew I'd get some of you "volunteer types" to relate.

I'm back working in my scrapbooks and I'll use Edna's quote as I scrap about my over volunteering days. 

Not that I was a fashion designer for superheroes (puh-lease, the seams would come undone before the the first villain showed his face!)  But  "I'll do it" was my theme song for many years - accompanied by a raised hand and an eager grin.  (I assure you, those days are gone) 

Now I offer free seminars where I have ladies stand in front of the mirror and practice saying "No, I can't help you this time".   I have an entire pep talk ready to roll at a moments notice.  I'm pretty sure it has brought a few ladies back from the edge of insanity.

Of course with Edna's quote - we MUST have the darling lady herself...

Just like the fashion designers in movies (and maybe real life, who knows?) Edna is dressed in all black - which might make seeing her "parts" a little difficult.  Sorry.  Hopefully between the picture and the parts list you can figure it out.

Head - ornament - rounded the chin just a little bit with scissors

Hair - wide oval parts and word window for bangs - if part of your oval sticks out above the bangs just trim it off straight

Nose - circle itty bitty punch pack

Eyes - circle itty bitty punch pack trimmed on bottom, marker for black parts

Glasses - 3/4 inch circle around 1/2 inch circle hole - make a spare and use just a tiny snip for the nose bridge

Lips - circle itty bitty punch pact at the end of a modern label HOLE  - I did her lips in perfect plum and used my finger to apply just a little perfect plum ink on her check

Neck - word window

Body - large oval snipped with a circle at neckline

Skirt - word windows  - 1 full size -3 progressively shortened by re-punching

Pink part - narrow heart to heart next to same hole

Arms - word window folded over at elbow

Legs - modern label trimmed from middle bump on an angle (both sides) - folded over at ankle to make feet
Hands - small heart cut in half - then I cut a little notch to distinguish her thumbs

You could emboss black on the black of her dress to make it more "visible".  The Disney character Edna has lots of texture on her sleeves - I left that off since I think her "face" makes the character and the clothes are secondary (plus I'm a bit on the lazy side)



I am Thanksgiving

This poem was written by The Richards Group for Thanks-Giving Square in Dallas.  I read it this morning in the Dallas Morning News and felt it was the perfect thing to share with you today.  Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Americans and Happy Thursday to everyone else.

I am Thanksgiving.

A respite from worries.
A recognition of well-being.
A reflection on what's truly important in life.

I am Thanksgiving.

I am a proud history remembered.
The courage of our founders.
The foresight of our fathers.
The spirit of our families.
I am a reminder that we owe our present to our past.
And I am a commitment to repay that debt with gratitude.

I am Thanksgiving.

I am more than a holiday.
I am a gathering of memories.
A reunion of reasons to celebrate.
I am stories passed around a table.
Extra helpings of contentment.
A feast for the soul.

I am Thanksgiving.

I am perspective.
A moment to take stock.
To look back with genuine appreciation.
And look forward with bountiful optimism.
I am trouble forgotten.
Blessings counted.
Life cherished.
I am freedom celebrated.
I am love shared.
I am thanks given.

I am Thanksgiving.

Midway Rides

Is anyone still out there?

I THINK I am finally off the berserk Roller Coaster of Emotion I have been riding.

Currently I'm waiting in line for the Ferris Wheel of "Time to Get Over Yourself".

If I'm lucky, I will soon be back on my usual ride - the Monorail of "Pretty Darn Happy". It may not be the wildest most thrilling ride, but I like it best- far away from the drama of the other choices.

While on the roller coaster I thought it was going to stop at the Tunnel of Depression a couple of times - whoa, I got a tiny peek into that and it is one ride I don't want to go on. Just the little bit I saw made my heart a lot more tender for those that walk into that darkness. Maybe that is the lesson I can take away from all this - a lot more empathy for those in a dark place.

Thank you for all the supportive, touching, and sweet emails that you sent. They did touch my heart - the sheer number of them and the honest words that you shared about your own losses and recovery.  I haven't responded to every one of you individually yet but I will try to answer you all.

Now let's set grief and grumbling off to the side and get back to having some fun -'cause that is what the blink blog is about - entertainment.

To clarify:
I cannot/will not do research before I put a few shapes together  (this is not a textbook- it is a silly blog)

I cannot/will not get everything right. (I'm lucky if I get anything right)

I cannot/will not worry that someone may dislike what I share. (that is sure to happen again sometime)

And now I will:
1) Don thicker skin so I can weather negative feedback better
2) Attempt to locate the Inspiration Fairy.  I must have scared her away with my emotional extremes - poor little thing.  I will leave out some chocolate and see if I can lure her back to the punch drawer. 

If the chocolate works and the I Fairy returns, I'll be back after Thanksgiving with something new to share.

I am so sorry to offend

Yesterday's post has been removed because I have been informed that several found it offensive.

My sincere apologies to anyone it offended.  It never crossed my mind that what I thought was a cute punch character would cause someone to be hurt.

I am so sorry.

I am so emotionally fragile right now - I have fallen to pieces because I offended someone. I hope to be back someday but right now I can't handle worrying about offending people if I design an item incorrectly or get a cultural detail incorrect.


I will leave the blog up for you to find past posts but I will not be posting for awhile. Thank you for understanding.

Daddy's Little Girl

Thank you for you kind words of support and love.  Daddy died Tuesday morning.  His struggles are over.

My dad was a suit-wearing banker and he loved to buy me red dresses so....

Thoughts and memories and ideas that spring to mind as Daddy's little girl deals with the loss of his physical presence will be recorded and kept in the pocket on this page.

There may be other men who love their families as much as Dad loved us, but there is not one that loves them more - because that is just not possible. 

The following words are from an article sent by one of his friends to Dad in 1978 with the comment "This sounds like you" and he was so right - it is the way my daddy lived.

One Minute’s Time May Mean Much

It only takes a minute to stop and say a few words to the newcomer you have been passing by with a quick “Hello.” To turn and draw a person who is obviously feeling like an outsider into a chattering group. To make the introduction, that may not be necessary but is a mark of friendliness. To approach public servants as human beings, and not just machines placed there for your convenience. To slow down when you are driving to give a pedestrian a chance to get across the street without scurrying. To write a note to a person who is ill or who has lost a member of the family. To give another person a lift when you have means of transportation and he doesn’t, even though it means going a few blocks out of your way. To send a clipping to someone you know would enjoy seeing it but might have missed it. To turn away a discouraged looking door to door salesman with a kindly refusal rather than a curt “No.” To really listen to what a child is earnestly telling you. To answer a letter from a friend soon after you receive it, instead of putting it off for months. To take the trouble to pass along the good things that you know about others. To build up the person who is feeling low or seems worried or discouraged. To let other finish talking about themselves instead of hurriedly interrupting – so that you can talk about yourself. It only takes a minute to do the kind, the gracious, the friendly things that may mean more than you will ever know.

I love you Daddy.   You live on in my heart.

Excused Absence

I have been missing in action for awhile and I can't get my mind into punching.

My dad was in the hospital all last week and now he is under hospice care at a nursing home so I've been on the road - to and fro - across Dallas once or twice a day.  And this will continue for awhile - who knows how long?

Daddy has been lucid a few times and one night told me that all you could ask is to live a live filled with love and that he had certainly had that - he felt he had been very blessed.  Good thing he can't see well anymore cause the tears were rolling down my face.  He knows we love him and leaving that dear old worn out body will be a good thing but it is hard to watch him struggle as he leaves us.  We are very grateful that the wonderful folks from Hospice will help ease any pain.

Thanks for waiting for me.  I'm hoping the Inspiration Fairy will be back - but right now I have no interest in listening for her.  I know you will understand.  Thanks for all your kind words and positive thoughts.

Baseball

World Series here we come!

Woo Hoo

Go Rangers!

Owl and Butterfly

I had a flashback and remembered a post from about this time last year when I gave y'all a lesson on eyes.  I remembered one of them screamed "owl eyes" so I wanted to test it to see if it would work on the owl from SU's owl punch.

It worked.

So I did another.

And one more just for fun.

I love the butterfly punch AND the owl punch so you know I love being able to use them together!

Yawning again

Another late night at the ER...  I'm just getting home at 2:30 AM and am exhausted but too wound up to fall asleep.  Different "oldie" this time.  And we don't have a diagnosis yet.  

Let me repeat a line my FIL loves to say...  "Growing old is not for wimps"

On the plus side there was a TV (no sound) in the room in the ER.  No sound required - I got to see most of the game as the Rangers whooped up on the Yankees EIGHT to nada.  That was the only bright spot of the evening but it was a very bright spot - it kept us distracted as we sat FOREVER waiting on test results and FOREVER again waiting for a room when they decided to admit him. 

I have some new stuff punched but not photographed or documented.  Give me a day or two to get the old folks under control again and I'll be back.

Mad Scientist

For today I made a Mad Scientist.

NOT mad as in angry, you broke an expensive test tube.

This is a MAD (as in crazy, about to create a monster with a head even bigger his own) Scientist!

Head - 1.25 inch circle, small oval

Eyes - small Heart to Heart and 1/8 hole punch (retired - use a black marker)

Nose - small circle (don't remember which one) trimmed flat on sides

Moustache - modern label punched at end of modern label hole to get just a bumpy sliver

Eyebrows - same as moustache - just snipped off the ends of the sliver to get two small parts

Hair - scrap cut like grass

Body - modern label - trimmed flat at "feet" - drew dots all the way down

Feet - small Heart to Heart

Sleeves - ends of word window

Hands - small circle from itty bitty punch pack at ends of modern label

Test tube - part of word window in vellum - retired slot for end (use a tiny scrap and try to round the ends)

Total Height - 3.5 inches of crazy!

The Ballpark in Arlington in OCTOBER

Friday night - my first time to be at THE BALLPARK IN ARLINGTON IN OCTOBER!!!!

We lost that night after having the lead for seven innings- so sad.  But we beat the Yankees on Saturday afternoon.  The first time our Texas Rangers have won a playoff game at home.  Long time coming.  I hope to one day be at one of the home victories!  The young guys we had drinks with after the game are from Houston and said if the Rangers make it to the World Series they will be at the game even if it means listening to it on the radio from the parking lot. 

Not really the Ranger uniform but I just HAD to make something baseball related today to celebrate.

I'll be glued to the games this week.  GO RANGERS!!!!

Petal Punch Ideas

Liam Pucher has some great ideas using the Petal Card Punch (which I have neglected)

Look HERE and scroll down a few days.

 

Ebenezer

Someone (can't remember who) did a great Scrooge last year but since I can't remember who - I also can't link you to it (amazing how that works).  But this is my Scrooge using tag punches which I rarely grab (need to work on that).

EDIT:  Thanks to Ruby (who is evidently WAY more organized than I can imagine) - THIS is the link to the "other" Scrooge which was created by Carrie Gaskin.

Here's the details in case you NEED to make this Ebenezer

Hat – 1.25 circle trimmed on each side, modern label on edge of paper so you just get one bump width

Face – small oval

Chin – circle itty bitty punch pack

Nose – wing from two step bird

Eye white – small heart

Eye black – tiny owl or marker

Hair – large oval – cut in like grass

Coat – small tag, tag, ½ small oval for pocket, modern label trimmed for sleeve

Pants – modern label stamped with solid stripes stamp – trim flat at bottom

Shoes – narrow heart to heart cut in half to get 2 shoes

Draw on mouth and cleft in chin

Add ribbon for scarf

What is it with me and old men lately?

Darling Halloween Owls

The owl punch is so much fun - even if you don't use it for really weird stuff.  Just dressing him(her) up is a blast. 

Today I'm sending you to see what Barbara Diane has done for Halloween.  This is her blog - you need to check out all this week (and maybe a whole lot more) cause she does such great stuff (in addition to being a super sweet lady)!   The owl has so many Halloween costumes on her blog I've lost count.

Super cute so don't miss them.

Seasonal Recipe Cards

Yesterday I shared my Cheeseball Season recipe.  Today you get to see what I got from my Upline, Sidelines, and Downline friends.  These are all recipes they make during the Holiday Season.

This is a jello salad that Jenifer's mom made - the cherries are the 3/4 inch circle and the stems are the branch from the Two Step Bird punch.

Eileen swears that EVEN I can make these squares.  I'll let you know when I do.  The lesson here is in the border.

Not a Stampin' Up! punch but this idea may come in handy for you - she had us punch the border - then punch the leaves and put them back in the leaf holes - but we left the acorns spots empty so the brown would show through - and if the leaf didn't get "fit" into the hole perfectly - you get a great shadow effect.

Here is Becky's Pumpkin Roll - I've never made one of these either.  I used to have a neighbor who made me one each year.  Gosh I hate it when the good cooks move away....

This is Samantha's stuffing recipe - it sounds yum.  Notice how she mixed different stamp sets on this page - looks great huh?

This recipes sounds fabulous too.  I love Madeline's idea with the YUM tags.  I wish I had threaded the cord through the buttons instead of "tying" behind.  I think I can use this idea many times for different recipes - way to go Madeline!

Football? No, it's CHEESEBALL Season...

There is baseball season, football season, basketball season and CHEESEBALL season. 

I have a cheeseball recipe that we make EVERY year for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  We limit it to that time for 2 reasons

1) to keep it "special"
2) the Roka cheese it called for was only in the local grocery store seasonally.

Last Fall there was a CRISIS!  Kraft totally quit making Roka blue in the little jar. 

OH NO! 

I had a kid coming home from school expecting her favorite cheeseball and I really didn't want to disappoint.  I emailed Kraft and they suggested a substitute recipe to replace the Roka so I cut it in half and merged it into the original cheeseball recipe.  Four ingredients to replace one little jar of cheese - but you do what you gotta do for TRADITION and for your kids.

And now, I can make the cheeseball in the "off season" since I don't have to hunt down the jar of Roka.  Which makes this little story another example of "every dark cloud has a silver lining...."

Cheeseball - So Saffron 1.25 circle repunched with small circle punches - sponged edges with so saffron ink
Baseball - Whisper White 1.25 circle - use "hole" as a template to draw the curved lines - add tiny dashes
Basketball -Whisper white paper, pumpkin pie ink, retired Just Basketball stamp - you could punch a pumpkin pie circle and add white lines with gel pen - sponge edges with pumpkin pie ink
Football - soft suede 1.75 circle repunched with same - sponge edges with chocolate chip ink - draw laces with white gel pen.

Easy Shark

Inspiration is everywhere!

This idea was from a t-shirt one of my sidelines had on. 

Body – wide oval cut in half

Teeth – large oval punched over and over with retired small star (you can nip in with scissors)

Eyes – standard hole punch, white gel pen highlight

Lower fins – small oval cut in half

Top Fin – 1.25 inch circle next to same hole (to get curves on both sides)

Tail – Full heart – repunched on both sides with a large oval. (put on a post it note so you can hold on to it)

Mixed Up Holiday

I know, I know... I'm supposed to be working on Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas punch art but you know how fickle the Inspiration Fairy can be - she gives what she gives...

And she showed me ground hog clip art. 

So this is either really early or really late. 

You decide.

Owl Pizza

No - this is not some weird recipe page for pizza using owl meat.

Remember "Man of Mystery"?

When I made the little detective using nothing but the Owl Punch?

Oops, I did it again

(sing along with me and Britney now)

This time I did a little chef makin' his pizza pie.

This is the title element for a page on our favorite family pizza - (not Mom's fave but the one the family has eaten for a zillion years)
Seriously, the ONLY punch needed to make this chef is the Stampin' Up! Owl punch. 
 
You'll also need a black marker, a post it note and scissors to make a couple of snips. (And adhesive, of course)

Hat - breast turned upside down - drew on the scallops and colored above them with a black marker (no trimming required)  The little "v" notch will be covered by his "hair"

Hair - feet  - three of them - two are 'toes down' on each side - then the middle one is 'toes up' to hide the notch

Head - breast

Nose - small circle

Eyes - tiny circles

Moustache - large circle punched around small circle hole - cut in half to get both sides of his moustache

Coat/Shirt/whatever you call it - breast - draw line and buttons

Pants - breast upside down (you will need to trim a little at the fattest part or it will stick out past his coat

Shoes - heart  (1 for each shoe)

Arm - heart

Pizza - breast - put on sticky part of post it note and repunch with breast

Pepperoni - tiny circles

Here are the "in process" photos for you visual ladies:

Punch parts shown here

 Now assembly in process - when I outlined the nose I didn't go all the way around - I left the top flesh toned

 On the next photo you can see that I slimmed his waistline to fit under his coat and started the pizza - this is the owl breast on a post it note

 This shows the owl breast (on post it) reinserted in the punch to get the pizza

 Here he is again

******

Thank you for your kind thoughts and words about our health situation.  FIL is out of CCU and possibly going home today.  He has minimal damage to his heart and is in great shape for 89 years old.  Of course if he lived in a rural area and hadn't gotten such fast response from 911, the situation might have been very different.  Cities have their downside but they have their advantages too. 

Hubby is thinking our retirement home should be on some secluded golf course in the Texas Hill Country and I'm thinking it should be next door to a major hospital.  (I bet we could learn to sleep through ambulance sirens)

Yawn...

It is 2 AM and I'm just home from the hospital - FIL had a heart attack tonight - HE IS FINE.

He had the sense to dial 911 and they were there in a flash.  The doctor put in a stint and FIL was laughing and joking when I left the hospital - with a list of things he needs and social events to cancel.

Some new punch art in work but you may not see it for a couple of days - I'm not sure how much I'll be home this week and it is not "finished".  I'm sure I'll be at the hospital most of the week and the other oldies have doctor appointments too.  I think even I have a check up scheduled.  Health care is the theme of the week around here, I guess...

So when I'm caught up on my beauty rest AND off medical duty, I'll be back.

Sorry to disrupt your (almost) daily punch fix but that's life!

Old Days

Toga Man

Long Explanation Below

After several posts admitting how old and gray I am, I decided it is time to share a layout I did with photos from 25 years ago - pre gray days.

Let's do the math  (And even you gals that flunked algebra can follow this.....)

Ready?

Here is the equation:

Bad Photos + Good Memory = X

X = Scrapbook Layout

Therefore
Bad photos that bring back good memories should be used in your scrapbooks!!!

Here is my example

March 16 1985

We were newlyweds and renting a great house with horrid carpet

This gives us another good equation:  Large House + Bad Carpet = PARTY

March 16  fell on a weekend and was exactly half way between the Ides of March and St. Patrick's Day - What could we do except have an Irish-Toga Party? (this was the 80s ya know? - check out the leg warmers!)

Too busy partying to take many photos but someone got this shot of me in my "Irish" outfit and the really bad photo is a Polaroid of some of the guests raising their togas.  Other photos existed but I believe they were borrowed and destroyed by some of the attendees in the interest of career advancement.  It WAS a very fun night. 

Lessons:

The paper folded back is hiding a huge white blur on the polaroid photo - bringing your attention to those "sexy" legs (file that idea away if you have old photos - and be grateful that we have moved to the digital age where you don't have to mess with crummy photos like these)

Be careful cropping - I nearly cropped this photo closer to "me" but then I noticed that I am talking to a guy that is about 11 feet tall - I have no clue who he is but I decided I shouldn't crop him out - I might find out he is famous or infamous! (I told you it was a FUN party)

And the lesson you might really care about is How to Make Toga Man (just in case you decide to throw a toga party yourself)

Head – Owl – feet and ears cut off – (I guess the ears would be hidden by the hair)

Hair – Bat – upside down – head and feet snipped off with circle from itty bitty punch pack (or other small circle)

Eyes – small heart in white, tiny circle from owl in black

Nose – circle from itty bitty punch pack

Toga – wide oval – flat on bottom – shoulder snipped off with large circle (I think I grabbed the 1.75)

Chest – wide oval (just a piece)

Neck – word window

Arms and Legs – oval rings (large oval around small oval hole) snip off pieces you need

Hand – circle from itty bitty punch pack around tips of modern label

Feet – large circle from owl

Sandals – retired slot (can substitute thin strips from your trimmer)

I sponged some soft suede on his five o’clock shadow (no underage boys at this party)
Outlined pieces in black
Drew on mouth and a few lines on his toga to indicate folds in the “fabric”

This is certainly not one of my best scrapbook layouts, but I share it to show you that not everything has to be a masterpiece - you can make so-so layouts using bad photos and if it records a good memory you were a smart girl to record it. 

My girls got such a kick seeing this photo of me.  This layout has generated more joy than any of my "fancy" layouts that I'm so proud of.  Don't think every layout has to be "pretty".