Quick-like.

Dudes I need your help quick-like.

I created some cards today that are similar to each other:

THIS IS MY FIRST CARD WITH STITCHING!
I FOUND OUT THAT I HATE STITCHING!

And I also made these cute suns from a stamp set:

The un-edited photo... you can kind of see how hard it is to see (haha! I'm so funny)  in this photo.

I love the individual suns, but I don't feel like they're card material. I feel like the ink is too light (the yellow on these is a shade lighter than the finished card up above), and if I put it on a card base then it'll just be blah. You know? Maybe I can just put a sentiment inside? Or maybe, because the sun ink is so light, I can just stamp the sentiment right on top of the sun. But then I'm not sure that you'd be able to see the sun at all.

Keep in mind I don't have to use the same sentiment "sending sunny thoughts". I also have a sentiment that says "sending you sunshine and laughter". I have others of course, but they don't mention the sun.

Any suggestions??

Hello.

Hello once again.

For several months, I've either gotten home from work if it was a weekday, or gotten up on a weekend, and gone straight to my Craftination Station. I've been crafting so much and have enjoyed every minute of it. Obviously I haven't posted anything, so you wouldn't ever know. I haven't even taken pictures of my products (what else would you call them? works? but it's not work, it's fun?) in weeks.

This is my stack of cards that I created in just the last week. Yesterday I created probably 15 cards. I was on a streak!

Above my work area is a window where I put some of my recent cards that I think are super spectacular. Some of them inspire me to be better. Others remind me to cheat when I want to. My brother Scott says "if your'e not cheating, you're not trying". (Actually, the first person that said that was Mark Grace).

That second to last card on the window is just printed off of the computer. I guess you could say I didn't quite cheat on it because it took a long time for me to find the exact center after a 8.5"x11" paper was split into two cards.  Then I just used fonts that I already had that I .l.o.v.e.d. and printed a bunch off. All I did to finish that one off was colored part of the letters. Maybe you'll get to see the silly detail of that card someday.

This is my photo area and my smash book that's just one page from complete.

I'm smash happy. Get it? hah.

For the record, smash books are freaking AWESOME.  I've gotten nearly every one of my friends to buy one, and not every one has gotten necessarily "into" it, but they've each tried it! I think the problem is that they think of it like a scrapbook... when it's more like a random art book and a place where you can put random mementos like ticket stubs and cards you received, and can just paint a page bright orange because you feel like it.

Last bit of update I have is this inspiration board I made of Pinterest pieces Erin and I found for a wedding reception we threw for her sister at their parent's house. It was SO much fun and such a huge adventure that I've started (and I AM going to finish) a scrapbook about it.

I haven't been on Blogger at all, so I haven't even been following your creations, Michelle. I intend to fix that immediately!

Pink.

I don't like this card.  I like the letters, but it's just boring.  It needs something else, but I'm not sure what.

Other than just putting the stickers on the card stock, I inked the entire front of the card with embossing ink, Super Fine Detail embossing powder all over it, then heated it.

So, it's kind of interesting because it's slick and shiny which gives it a cool texture, but it's still too bland for me.

Suggestions on how to make it better?

Word Search.

Look at the AWESOME stamp I found at my thrift store!!

I think this is the coolest stamp I have ever seen. Talk about versatile! 

Polka Dots.

When I said that Priscella takes AMAZING photos, I was exaggerating. They're not stellar, but they are much better (IMO) than my digital camera.

This isn't a great photo of this card, but I don't think a great picture is needed.  It's a simple card, initially made for my mom.  She asked me to make her 12 thank you cards that she would buy from me.

I don't think it's quite the quality that I want to "sell" to anyone.  It's just washi tape at an angle with a strip of "thank you"s that I made on the computer and printed out.

What do you think?  Too simple?

Valentine.

It's a running joke that I get Adam flowers for every Valentine's day.  

The first year we were together, I called the flower shop that we always use (The Flower Gallery), and asked what kind of plant they could deliver to him.  I was hoping they had a cactus, but they sent a plant in a white basket that had white fuzzy balls on it.  Adam called it a popcorn plant because they kind of looked like popcorn.  He was confused about why I sent it to him... lol

The second year ... uhh... I can't remember. But I bet it was awesome.

The third year (last year), I got him an 8-bit bouquet (from Think Geek) that he still has in his office.

I told him the joke that I've been giving him flowers every year, because I'm sure he didn't see the trend.  And he definitely didn't!  

Women always get them, but men get nothing (usually).  This year I decided to make him flowers from Hershey kisses.  I'm so happy with how it turned out!

I was ecstatic with my idea to use Reese's Pieces (his favorite) as the vase filler!  I may or may not have patted myself on the back for my pure genius idea. ;)  I bought 6 boxes of the candy, which I thought was going to be WAY too much, but I used all of them! That's a lot of candy!

Close up!

They were very simple to make.  I used this tutorial.  I got everything from the dollar store and the total came to about $20.00.

He loved it.  Everyone at the office that saw them thought it was so cool.  He shares an office with the other two IT guys: his brother, Jerrod, and his friend, Alex.  They were jealous because they didn't get anything for Valentine's Day (see what I mean!? Men always get shafted).  Alex was staring at them for a long time, apparently trying to figure out how I made them.

Adam, of course, had flowers delivered to my office:

Tulips! Roses are overrated IMO

The note that came with the flowers that Adam wrote was hilarious.  I was cracking up at it all day long!

It reads:

"Roses are red,

WoW pandas are hacks,

You are OP in RL and

I love you for that!"

No one will get the humor unless you play World of Warcraft.  That's partially why I love it so much.

Love, happiness and sparkles,
Tessa

Wreath.

I'm going to start off with some Christmas cards that I made.  I made a ton of them (well, for me it was a ton).

I embossed the circle stamp in green , used a die to remove the enter, then spent about an hour trying to die that darn bow. 

This card I totally stole from Damask Love.  Amber is my #1 inspiration.  Also, she's a psychologist, married, and has time for her blog?  Really?  I'm convinced she is either getting help (like from her husband or from a friend) or she's bionic.  I'm leaning towards to latter.

This is her card from this post.

Huh?

** I was going somewhere with this post.  I started it weeks (months?) ago, but I didn't finish and now I have no idea how to finish it.  I'm just going to post it and maybe some day I'll remember what the purpose of this was **

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I'm not the type of person that can look at something in a store and say "oh my, this is absolutely PERFECT for the the ledge in my parlor on the north wall in the east corner near the peacock painting!"

Nope.  I'm horrible at estimations. Case in point: one time I decided I was going to try my hand at upholstering, so Erin and I went to Hobby Lobby to find some fabric. I found some I loved, and thought 2 yards would be enough, but I bought 3 yards instead. After we got home, I looked up directions and it said that you need like 8 yards. Oops! I changed my mind after I looked at how awfully complicated and time consuming it was, and once I added up the ridiculous price of additional fabric would be. I picked out a fabric that was $35 a yard. I justified it since I thought I only needed 3 yards. After figuring I needed 8 yards, there was no way that Adam would let me live! Plus, what if I messed up? What if I had to scrap the project? That money would be GONE.

I'm also not one that will have a room that looks like it came from a magazine. Not only am I too poor, but my mother taught me how to be frugal and it's stuck with me.

Whenever I'm at a store and I find something I love, I just buy it and hope that it works somewhere in my house. Unless it's expensive. Then I tell myself "wow, I love this so much, but WHERE am I going to put a 6 foot metal chicken dubbed Beyoncé?", then walk away. (Warning: link has cursing and crude humor.) I'm usually pretty good about walking away.

I always try to buy on sale. Majority of all of my supplies and organization were on sale or free. If they weren't on sale, they were cheap or a cheap solution to what could be an expensive problem or project.

Take my table, for example. The supplies were from Lowes and, while not on sale, was only $38, I think?

Here is the link to my original post about my table.

Priscella.

I'm so obsessed with my iPod.

<<checks to see if I even posted about my TOTALLY FREE iPOD>>

Nope. 

STORY TIME

Well, I got a free iPod almost a month ago to the day.  It was free.  100% totally free.

No, it wasn't from those ads that are on every-website-that-was-ever: 

*WIN A FREE iPAD* 

*OR LAPTOP*

*OR A ZILLION DOLLARS!*

Adam apparently racked up so many reward points on his credit card that he's had since before I came along, and he didn't know he had reward points.  I guess the points last like 5 years, and his company was nice enough to send us an invoice of his point balance and a brochure of some of the items that you can redeem your points for.  Small things were on the list, like workout DVDs and barbecue utensil sets, but there were also HUGE ticket items like 60" TVs, fancy schmancy laptops, iPads, etc.  Adam looked through the brochure and said he didn't want "any of that crap", and said that I could get use the points if I found anything I wanted.

So I went online and found that they had iPods. Which I've been wanting for like... ever.

And we could afford the 32GB one.

OMG, I ALMOST DIED.

Priscella

That's my baby.  Her name is Priscella.  You want to know how awesome she is??

1. She takes videos, two of which I made yesterday and sent to my mom so she could help me with a sewing project I'm having troubles on;
2. She has 578,915 apps.  And by 578,915, I mean about 31 apps;
3. One of those apps lets me call and text anyone;
          Anyone. For free.
          As long as I have WiFi, which is where I'm 99% of the time: at home or work;
4. She also is an enabler to my music and Pinterest habit; and
5. She takes magnificent photos.

I've been complaining about my crappy photos since before I was born.

I'm going to try to upload a bunch of pictures and create an auto-publish for all of the posts I'm going to put them on. 

I've been crafting like crazy. And it's fun. I would hope it's fun... otherwise that kind of defeats the purpose of a hobby.

I leave you with this unbearably humiliating photo:

If you haven't read the jumble of text above, you'll want to read this story.

It's our new Capital One credit card.  (what's in your wallet?)  It's an elephant, which I love, and which I've loved for years and years and years, way before they were cool to like.  The embarrassing part is that I was so excited when I got it that I immediately posted the picture on Facebook.  Unedited.  Meaning, no blur.  Meaning, I totally posted my credit card information, even with expiration date, all over the internets.  Totally.  For DAYS, my Facebook "friends" kept messaging me and telling me what I did, even though I took down the photo literally 100 seconds after I posted it.  I mean, these "friends" are people I haven't heard from since High School: no lie.  Days.  I was humiliated for days.  

I win the internets.

Finish.

Does anyone else start a project or a card and then stop mid-way because you lose the inspiration?

I do. All the time. This week I got the inspiration to finish a bunch of cards. What a great feeling!