A Littlle Inspiration to Kick Off National Scrapbooking Day

With Mother's Day just around the corner and today being National Scrapbooking Day, I wanted to share with you these projects that will soon be featured in a video demo on Glue Arts’ website. I hope it will inspire you to do a little scrapbooking today.

This is a closeup view of the scrapbook page featuring some handcut paper flowers from the K&Company McKenna collection. These “Shabby Chic” layered circle flowers are so fun and easy to make! Using patterned papers and a series of circles you can make these distressed flowers in no time to enhance your layouts and projects. Below are some close up views of the flowers. And be sure to check out the folded ribbon - new sewing involved! I used Glue Arts micro adhesive squares and some gold mini brads to secure in place.

The matching trinket box, shown below, is so easy to make and no painting required! It showcases the new lace border punch from Stampin’ Up! available for purchase on my SU website as well as the button bouquet designer buttons.  I accented the buttons with gold embroidery thread or ribbons on these projects. Have fun creating your gift for mom!

Dipped in happiness

As I approach tomorrow's surgery, I tried to think of a project that fits my mindset at the moment and this “Dipped in Happiness” card seemed so appropriate. Come on now, my fellow perimenopausal sisters, who has the willpower to resist anything chocolate? Now, I am not fan of eating chocolate covered strawberries, but boy do they look and smell yummy. It is a sensory delight! 

This card sample, featuring the Tart & Tangy and Warm Words stamp sets from Stampin’ Up! along with Bella Rose Designer Papers & Crystal Effects, represents the mindset I have adopted for tomorrow. So as I slowly drift off into the la la land of anesthesia, I am going to imagine that I am dipped in happiness for all the wonderful things in my life, such as a wonderful, caring family, two talented and beautiful daughters, a hunky husband (even though the girls and I give him grief about his grey hair), so many amazing friendships, a lifetime filled with challenges, creative possibilities, countless, scrap-worthy memories and too many blessings to count. So maybe it is not what you would expect to hear from a gal facing surgery, but I have always approach life with a creative and  unique way of thinking. Hope your day is dipped in happiness, too!

Take 3, 4, 5, 6....!

Just wanted to share some photos from my quick trip to Atlanta. Monday's flight was delayed 5 hours due to high winds in Atlanta. I was beginning to wonder if someone was trying to send me a message. My new friend, Josephine, and I survived the layover and turbulent flight chatting away. I finally arrived around 7:30 pm to meet up with my design friend, Marlis. She was so gracious and flexible about getting together and working around delay after delay. Here we are at Outback. It was so wonderful to catch up with her. She is a super talented designer and illustrator! 

Next, I headed to the best kept secret, 5-star accommodations (in my book!) in Atlanta...Chateau M, the home of our great friends Maureen, Michael, Marley and Mallory who gladly welcomed me in at almost 11 pm. Whenever Dan and I get to town, they always have a bedroom ready and waiting along with a warm welcome. Their dogs Mimi and Maisy (my bed buddy, shown in the adorable picture) gave me daily kisses to help keep me from missing my Bella. 

The day I arrived, their Make A Wish experience was posted to O Magazine's site so I was in the company of some real celebrities. Here is a link to Maureen & Marley’s mother/daughter makeover. They look so beautiful--in person, too! Click on one of the links to view a video of their Wish Granted, an O-so-spectacular experience!

The great staff at Glue Arts made me feel like family and were patient with me as we sometimes shot take after take before my brain and lips could coordinate. I am far better at coordinating colors than I am at thinking of the words I want to say! LOL. I will be sure to let you all know when the videos are posted to their website. Laura was so kind to shoot some pictures of me during one of the taping sessions so I could post these to my blog for you to see. It was great fun, exhausting and exhilarating at the same time. It has inspired me to keep that creative groove going! Enjoy the pics.

Ashley’s Smilin' for Votes! She is Still a Finalist!!!

Well they experienced issues with the videos and views so everyone who submitted their digital pics and videos advances to the next round of the Wet Seal 2009 Model Search. Ashley finished in the top 30 videos so thanks for your hard work. To make it through the next round, they are only taking the top 25 vote getters, based on 1 vote per day, per email address. Voting ends April 26th.

Here is the link to Wet Seal to cast your vote. There is one vote per day, per registered email. Please convince your friends and family to do this to help a sweet girl realize her dream. When I got the entry form it was two days before the contest ended and she was headed out of town for a weekend volleyball tournament. We didn't have time to take professional pics and most of the girls have modeling head shots. So, she really needs your help to advance to top 25. She was 27th in video views. You can continue to watch that, too, to help her out. It may make a difference in the finals! Here is a special thank you message from Ash...

"Thank you so much all of you who viewed my video!!! Modeling has always been a dream of mine and getting this far in the competition wouldn't have been possible without all of your help and support! This is such an amazing opportunity. Please help me continue on to the finals and make top 25! Thanks again!" — Ashley

See these Published Projects in Your Favorite Magazines!

Here is a project alert! Look for these 3 projects in upcoming issues of CardMaker and Crafts 'n Things as well as an online bonus project.

You can find the instructions for creating this “Butterflies and Lace” Mother’s Day Card along with a matching envelope in the May 2009 issue of CardMaker magazine on page 53.

My “Ready to Soar” pull-up graduation card is being featured as a special May 2009 Web Bonus project with a downloadable pdf file. Click on this link to go to CardMakermagazine.com so you can download the instructions. Additional photos are posted in my published projects gallery.

This whimsical mini album completed entirely with Glue Arts adhesives is featured in the June 2009 issue of Crafts 'n Things magazine with instructions for the cover and a couple inside pages. (There is a pair of decorative yellow boots on the cover!) You can see additional pages of my mini album by clicking on my gallery and selecting Cheri's mini albums. 

Hope these inspire you to start creating projects for the upcoming months!

15 Minutes of Fame

Wow! Lately there seems to be this “15 minutes of fame”theme running in my circle of friends and family. First, our good friends and neighbors, The Kornowas had their daughter Marley's wish granted by none other than Oprah Winfrey. Marley was diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma shortly before her 16 birthday. After several surgeries and treatment she has scanned clear and on a very good track. Positive proof of having great trust in God and prayers being answered. They are in the May issue of O Magazine, were featured on ET the other night and will be also featured on the Oprah show in May. How exciting to see our friends getting to experience some joy and pampering over the last year of really rough times. Plus, they look fabulous in their photos. 

Next, our daughter Ashley was selected as a finalist in the Wet Seal Model Search 2009. Still time to view her video until the 15th and help her advance to the next round. Don't worry if the view count doesn't change. It is on a delay! Be sure to give her a high rating, too so she can realize her dream.

Now, it is my turn for those brief shining moments in the spotlight. I will be teaching a class at CHA consumer show in Atlanta this July for Glue Arts and leave in a couple hours to head to Atlanta to do some videotaping of projects for their website. Above is a sneak peek at the flip flap purse project that I will teach at CHA Craft Super Show. 

And if that isn't exciting enough,  just the other week, I was asked by Warren Gruenig to be his feature interview in the July issue of Scrap & Stamp Arts. I had to do the projects in a bit of a hurry, while finishing up on my Dive into Birthday Party Planning article and preparing for this big video debut! Kinda crazy how sometimes everything happens at once. So maybe you can understand why I wasn't able to squeeze in a Stampin' Up workshop before leaving town. I plan to have one when I get back. Wish me luck as I continue to share my love of crafting to a broader scope of people. I will update you later on registering for the CHA Super Show class.

One other person in the spotlight is a dear friend and fellow stamp enthusiast, Ree Nathan, who just signed up as a Stampin' Up demonstrator. We had our first training session and soon Ree will be doing her own workshops. I know you share my excitement and wish her great luck. She has great talents in cardmaking and scrapbooking to share with everyone.

Life is Music...Play it Louder!

Isn’t it so cool when you are working on a project and find an embellishment that has just the right sentiment or feeling you want to convey? When working on this Birthday gift for my friend, Heather, I wanted to make a cover that would bring a smile to her face and give her some inspiration. I found in my stash this wonderful deck of journaling cards from Fancy Pants Designs that have the coolest art and sayings. This stack of Designer Trading Cards “Creative Cards” was Simple Sentiments. I knew immediately the Life is Music...Play it Louder card was perfect to use on the cover. Everything else clicked from there. Most of the inside papers are from K&Company. Just love their stuff!

This is the second accordian-fold mini album I have made with one of these Martha Stewart Collection albums. I love how they fold flat, have the strap to hold them closed, and can even be taken with you. The other album was made for my husband for Father’s Day a few years ago. It is still his favorite gift to this day cause the girls and I worked on it together. 

The album and the card feature products from some of my favorite companies: K&Company, Basic Grey, Fancy Pants Designs, Glue Arts and Stampin’ Up! To see this album in entirety, click on this link to see it in my photo Gallery. Hopefully, Heather won’t see this before I get to give it to her. It has only been a couple months that we have been trying to get together. Life is kooky like that. You sometimes have the best intentions, but schedules get in the way!

So today, as Easter Sunday draws near, hopefully you have a little free time to play your “music” a little louder!

Lemonade Stand Award (thank you, Diana!)

What a cool award to receive! I thank my very talented friend Diana Foster for this great honor. You must check out her brand new blog that is packed with awesome inspiration. Now, I get to share this award with some other very deserving bloggers so that you can see their talent for yourself!

Here are my choices for the Lemonade Stand Award given for their great attitude and gratitude...

Melissa Bove at keepsakesbymelissa.blogspot.com

Susan Stringfellow at creativelysavvy.blogspot.com

Nancy Burke at nancyburke.typepad.com

   Lindsay Weirich at thefrugalcrafter.wordpress.com

   Olena Levchenko at olenasplace.blogspot.com

   Ingvild Bolme at ingvild-bolme.blogspot.com

To pick up your Lemonade Stand Award, comment on this blog. Cut and paste the award logo (or download the jpeg to your computer to add as a picture to your post).  Nominate 5 to 10 blogs you feel show great attitude and gratitude. Link to your nominees within your blog post. Comment on their blogs to let them know they received the award, and link back to the person who gave you the award to show your appreciation.

Enjoy a glass of fresh lemonade with a friend today!

One Proud Mom - Ashley's Modeling Contest News

I have to admit I am one proud momma. My 15 year old daughter, Ashley, got the news on Thursday that she was selected as one of the contestants chosen to move forward in the 2009 Wet Seal Model Search Contest. With that exciting news, she had to make a one minute or less video telling why she would like to be a Wet Seal Model. So this has become a total family project...new photos, shooting the video, blending the video and photos and posting to YouTube. They are basing part of the judging for this next round on how many people view the video by April 10th. We are a bit behind since it just went up tonight. So please follow this link and view the entire video (only a minute of your time- yes, I am begging...now you’d do the same if it was your child, too!) Below are some of her photos. In the video, they view so quickly. She has always had a love of the camera since she was little. We have many home videos with a large eyeball in the frame saying, “Close Up, Close Up!” ...definitely her destiny. Please help keep her modeling dreams alive and ask your friends and family for their help, too! She is such a sweet girl who deserves her big break!!

Dots & Flowers - a common spring theme

Have you ever noticed that dots and flowers are common combinations? In this card and matching envelope project, I will show you that you can pull this off without the help of any patterned cardstock...just the use of punches and stamps. Often, while creating projects, I will accidentally discover a good idea or technique. I just love when that happens and I am not even trying to make it happen! Well, that is how I came up with this cool punched border for my card. I was punching out a series of 1/2" circles for a workshop and as I was punching, I really liked the look I was creating as I made the consecutive punches. So I continued it down the other side of the strip to make a funky circle theme border out of the brown cardstock.

Here is a closer up view of the flower so you can see the details. To create the flower, I punched a scallop circle, folded and bent it. (The bending was sort of an after thought. Next time, I would score it for a cleaner look!) I added a white flower punched using the Boho Blossoms punch and added a 1/2" circle of Bella Rose designer paper (brown dot pattern) to the center. The verse is from the One of a Kind stamp set. All punches and stamps available for purchase on my Stampin’ Up!® website at www.cwartz1.stampinup.net.

Here is a side view of the card so you can check out the dimensionality of it! This set is a better idea when hand delivering a gift, not suitable for mailing! The color inks & cardstock used were Chocolate Chip and Pixie Pink along with Whisper White cardstock.

Spring Feeva!

O.K., I have to admit that this amazing weather we have had this week has given me a touch of Spring Fever! The sun has been shining and there’s been a pleasant breeze on my morning walks with Bella. What is not to love about days like this?!!! So, it made me want to post some Spring inspired projects. Check out this easy to make Flower Bucket project that can be made in 10 minutes or less. I did it using Glue Arts’ Crop & Glue™ Ribbon Adhesive and Adhesive Squares along with some ribbons, a button and large flower. Sign up for Glue Arts’ FREE craft club to receive project ideas and savings on their adhesive products. You will be able to see the project instructions for this FlowerBucket in an upcoming newsletter. Next week, I will share with you some exciting news so be sure and check back at my blog for the scoop!!!

Get a Hop on Easter Card Making!

Now don’t give me credit for having my Easter Decorations out yet! This project was one I did last year (pre-blog) and I just had to share it with you. I used the Paisley Background stamp (now retired from Stampin' Up!®...big sigh!) for tone on tone stamping in the background with So Saffron ink and paper. I also used the same stamp to create the patterned tie-dye egg. You can try this out with any background stamp you have. Using brush side of marker, color the stamp (rubber side up) in bands of color. Mist with spray bottle of water to give a fuzzy dyed look and stamp onto cardstock. Now stamp the outlined egg from the SU “A Good Egg” stamp set over top and trim out the egg shape. I used a pair of decorative edge scissors  to make the angled cracked edge across the egg. Stamp the chick in black ink also onto so saffron cardstock and trim out. Color beak in orange and set aside. Use scallop punch and Pretty in Pink cardstock to make small pink border and Gable green CS cut with a wavy edge line on top to make the grass panel. Run through paper crimper then use sharp pointed paper snips to make cuts closely together to create the blades of grass. Ruffle with fingers  for texture. Stamp happy easter verse in bashful blue on same colored cardstock, punch hole, tie pink gingham ribbon and attach all elements onto smaller white cardstock panel on card front.