confetti

carving a peep...

a few of you asked how i carved the peep, so i took some pics tonight so i could show you.  this picture shows what i used: tracing paper, speedball small v-shaped carving blade, and a speedy stamp block.  all of this was in a small kit i bought a while back at michael's when my stamp club had a day devoted to carving our own stamps and it's been nice to have on hand for occasions like this.

i wanted an exact image without too much effort, so instead of trying to draw it myself, i found a coloring sheet in the fan club section of the official peeps website (there's some fun stuff there--my girls loved the peepsicles recipe!!) and traced over the bunny peep with the tracing paper.  you could do a chick one, too if he's your fave.

i placed that upside down on the carving block and traced over the back to transfer the image where i wanted it.  i cut that section off of the block, leaving some space to hold it--i trimmed it more later.

using the carving tool, i first carved around the edge of the bunny, trying to keep my strokes as long and smooth as possible.  the point of the tool was especially handy for between the ears.  once i had my basic shape, i carved more of the block away and smoothed any bumpy lines.  during this part of the carving it's good to test stamp it periodically to make sure the image is coming out how you want it.  i used my piercing tool to poke small holes for the eyes and nose.  then i trimmed the edges a bit and added ez-mount to the back so i could use it on an acrylic block.  and voila!  a peep!  the finished size of the stamp is just over an inch and it's pictured on a 1.5 inch block.  i stamped it multiple times for the quick card the other day, but you could carve a row if that's how you always want it.  and of course, the a muse sentiment, to one of my favorite peeps, is just perfect!

let me know if you have any other questions!
:) lexi

paper trimming buddy ~ craft critique

 

i have an article up at craft critique today--a review of the marvy uchida paper trimming buddy.  while it is not my main trimmer, it's a pretty handy buddy to have around!  i used the pinking blade on this card to add a quick detail to the green panel on this baby card, creating a field perfect for the leaping sheep from the saltbox studio.  i think it adds just enough visual interest, while still allowing the simplicity of the design to shine.

need a buddy?  go check it out!
:) lexi

oh happy day!

 

sorry, no stamping today--i was distracted by a little sickie home from school *and* my new laptop is here--isn't she pretty?!  so i've been busy setting it up, transferring software, figuring out new features, etc. while hanging out with mignon.  since there was never a solid diagnosis on my problems, i was advised not to completely transfer my user settings from the old computer, so it's taking a little more time than it could have.  but that's okay because, finally, no more shut-downs!  and my adobe software seems to be working properly again.  seriously, that was taking so much time these last few weeks, especially with the saltbox studio release.  i was using the sick laptop, a slow desktop and my iphone to keep up--and a lot of restarting, waiting and a little retyping, too.  i will be even more excited when i finally get caught up on *everything* again...

:) lexi

 
p.s.  i keep forgetting to say a big thank you to tracy clemente at eat, sleep, stamp for giving me this sweet award!  so many blogs make my day that i just can't pick ten, especially now that the award has traveled a bunch--pick a few from my "people to read" list and you'll have your day made, too!  :)

why didn't i buy this sooner?

 

still organizing and today, i have a purchase!  for some reason, i had resisted buying this stack & store caddy from stampin' up!  but i finally gave in and it is awesome--i had lots of random little storage pieces on and near my desk and now i've unloaded them all and then some into this wonderful, spinning embellishment hoarder's dream!   now, i just need to stop hoarding and start using all my organized loot!

:) lexi

a great attic find!

 

once i get on a roll, i just can't stop!  and my studio is slowly getting cleaner because of it.  i say slowly because i did take a break for new years, but i'm back.  and look what i found in the attic!  i went up there for something else and not only did i find that (always good to actually find what your looking for!), but i found this little bonus too.  our cd collection grew out of it long ago and we eventually graduated to a binder for ease and space.  so there it sat in my attic, forgotten, while i've been searching for the perfect holder for my clear stamp sets off and on for weeks!  i love that i can have it close to my desk and turn it easily to find the set i'm looking for.  and when i do have more stamps than slots, i can always rotate seasonal picks in one section and keep permanent favorites in the other three.  i'm sure i will grow out of it soon, but it's a perfect start--and i love the price!

:) lexi

i love organization!

i keep coming into my little studio and it's just too messy to create much after the last few weeks, so i figured i'd clean up a bit instead of walking back out again!  i often organize by color, but i have several collections that i prefer to keep together. up until today, my a muse ribbon (love the stuff!) has been tossed into a basket near my feet along with other ribbon scraps and random extras.  the other scraps went into the jars on my window sill and i reorganized the random, but i really wanted my a muse collection to be together and easy to use.  i found this little white lunch box in my stash, punched a few holes with my crop-a-dile and voila!

 

i have extra strands of a few colors, so those are tucked into the box, too, ready to be pulled through the proper hole when the first one runs out!  i used a label from one of the little ribbon bags and a glittered punch sitting on my desk to label the tin--the sheer glitter reminded me of the sheer ribbon and it was one more thing off my desk!  i know this has totally been done before, but i figured it was worth a share anyway--especially for those of you who participated in rhonda's recent amuseaddicts ribbon share.  now, maybe i can actually stamp something.  and put ribbon on it!

enjoy!
:) lexi

i have the best husband...

 
look what he gave me for christmas--an iphone!!!  i have been dying to get my hands on this sweet little piece of technology since they came out and now i've been playing with my own since yesterday morning--it is sooo cool!  we actually got a few very hi-tech toys this year.  santa brought a wii and my dad gave the girls nintendo ds lites.  even the board game santa left is hi-tech--life's twists & turns, lots of fun!  the girls also got dolls from their wish lists and a couple of other things, too, but overall it was a very 21st century christmas!

just had to share...
:) lexi

more nest'ing = a scalloped card!

 

today, i have another quick card from my first play with nestabilities.  actually, it was after seeing that you could make shaped cards with the largest scalloped shapes that i was truly hooked on the idea of these dies.  here i used an a muse note card and the die cut right through both layers perfectly.  the outcome is not quite a true square because you have to keep the folded edge from getting cut, but it's close enough and oh so cute!  i really love the look of these scallops, especially the deep corners.  holiday treats by papertrey ink was sitting on my desk, so that became my subject.  i'm really loving su! in color wild wasabi for christmas, adding it here with ribbon and ink, and red a muse mini dot twinkle stickers are a great finishing touch to the embossed square.  my gingerbread man smudged a little, so stamping him again and punching with a small circle to cover the original turned out to be a perfect solution--didn't want to waste my die cut square!  hopefully i can squeeze in some more play time soon, but i'm off to finish a spa girl cake for a cake walk tonight...

tgif!
:) lexi

laptop issues continue...

 

this is what my laptop keeps telling me and it's not good.  i have it out for official diagnosis right now, which is why i haven't been around so much in the last few days.  hopefully, i'll hear something soon and five months of trouble will come to an end one way or another!  meanwhile, we have a desktop too, but it's older and doesn't know all of my favorites or have my updated programs.  plus, i have to share it with everyone else!  i did some stamping and baking last week that i have yet to share, so i'll be back with one of those projects shortly...

:) lexi

scalloped, embossed & perfectly nested!

 

okay, so this is a very simple card.  and i do love simple, but here my main goal was to play with my new nestabilities--so easy & oh so cool!  i chose to enter this new world with the square sets since i only have one of the marvy square punches.  i have the sizzix bigkick, so i followed the compatability chart for that along with other recommendations shared in the splitcoast forums.  i had some cracking sounds and embossed lines even when just cutting, so i need to play a little more, since i don't want embossing every time.  but i definitely see more nestabilities in my future, shape by shape!  in addition to the embossing, my favorite thing about these is the variety of matting sizes--gotta love options!

best witches!
:) lexi

a messy desk + name games

 

i've been saving this picture until the cards sitting in it were posted on linda's blog, which is today in part two of my guest designer series.  be sure to go there and find out how to win my favorite stamp.  gee, i wonder what that would be?! 

anyway, when i was stampin' away for the guest designer gig, my desk got a bit messy and i just had to take a few pics!  ott light on; a muse stamps to the left in empty su! boxes; finished cards and copic markers to the right; more stamps, cards, pretty little papers & twinkle stickers in front (and ribbon at my feet!).  always present of course is caffeine, here in the form of diet coke, and silly tv over on the far right + bits and pieces of clutter everywhere!  i really love my stamping spot.  of course i'd love a bigger version of this one linda posted from a martha stewart email last month--including the photo stylist to clean up after me!  i got that email, too, and thought the same thing.  but it's fun to look and dream!

you're probably overloaded on me today, but i feel bad that i haven't been able to follow through on the name game tagging yet--sorry and thank you nancy!  so here goes and hopefully some will be good for a giggle...

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car)  fritz volvo 
2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fav ice cream flavor, favorite cookie)  coffee tollhouse
3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name)  ldal
4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)  yellow monkey
5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)  anne new orleans 
6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first)  dalle 
7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink put “The”)  the pink margarita
8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers) joseph prosper 
9. STRIPPER NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne, favorite candy)  green tea chocolate 
10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names)  edna joseph

some worked, some not so much!  if you feel like playing, copy, paste, fill in your answers and leave a link for me.  and thanks also for the sweet comments on the a muse blog today--it was lots of fun to come home to them after teaching computer lab this morning!

:) lexi

p.s.  i thought i'd point out that yes, my su! grid pad is upside down.  i love working on it, stamping off, testing layouts, spacing, etc.  but i used to hate when the pages curled up from my arm rubbing against it.  the solution was to turn it around so that the padded edge was near my arms.  so simple and now i love my scratch pad again!

addictions

 

i love ribbon!  if there's one thing that multiplies as fast as stamps in my studio, it's ribbon.  i buy rolls of it, i buy it by the yard, i save it from gifts--it's crazy how much i have.  a collection like mine needs to be contained!  some of my containers include a glass cookie jar (with a decorated lid, of course!) that sits near my desk for bobbin ribbon and other small favorites, a wicker wall shelf hanging in my craft closet that is the perfect size for ribbon rolls and a basket for ribbons on cards, duplicates and overflow. 

but one of my favorite ribbon storage solutions is my scrap ribbon storage for smaller pieces, ribbon i've cut but decided not to use, some by-the-yard choices that i can't find a spool for, etc.  which brings me to another addiction: pom tea.  who knew that these two addictions would be a perfect match?  there are lots of really cool jars out there that you can buy which i was considering, but when these glasses with lids started multiplying in my kitchen, a lightbulb went off.  they were a good size, had a wide mouth and were clear glass--perfect!  when i started playing around with them, i also realized that i could pop out the logo part of the lid and replace it with my own chipboard and card stock--even better!  it's hard to see in the picture, but i swiped ink pads in matching colors on white card stock, simple and quick, letting the ribbon take front stage.  it's a storage solution that's both functional and decorative.  and the chopsticks?  they're perfect for digging to the bottom of the jar or mixing them around to see what's there!

you might be thinking that ribbon stored this way would get quite wrinkled and yes, some of it does.  but no matter how i stored scraps, i had that problem.  ribbons on cards often have creases which bugs me too.  i used to iron those that were particularly bad, but that meant a lot of extra work.  recently i discovered an even better solution--at least i'd never seen this idea before, but maybe i'm just behind the times.  anyway, i saw an ad for a ribbon iron that looked like a smaller version of a flat iron for hair.  i happened to have an extra flat iron, so i thought i'd just try it out.  i'm happy to report that it worked perfectly and now that has a place near my desk too and i'm a better organized and much happier ribbon addict!

if you love ribbon too, be sure to stop by craft critique this week for more ribbon tips and reviews...

:) lexi