Play & Fun with Family

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Just a quickie card I made for my niece and nephew in Arizona. We usually spend our Thanksgiving together but couldn't this year.

Used a bunch of my scraps and kept it in an Autumn palette.

Have a great Tuesday!

Rin & Snowman

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Hi, hi, hi!!

It's time for another Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Challenge! Challenge # 69 is a sketch!





Remember that you have to use a SCRS image. You have two weeks to play. For more details, visit the blog. And for more inspiration, visit the Design team members for Week A (Week B will be showcasing the sketch next week):

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog
Alice Wertz
Corinne Mercado <--You are Here
Jen Shults, November Guest Designer
Kadie Ensley
Kim Yu
Shaela Odd

Supplies Used:
CS- Bazzill. Neenah Solar White.
DP- Echo Park. (obtained from PWCO's November PaperCard Kit).
Stickers- American Crafts (Dear Lizzy).
Misc.- Brads, Viva Pearl Pen.
Stamp- SCRS' Rin and Snowman.

Sorry, it's so short. It's back to work for me. I'll see you later on this week!

Hare's to Being the Beary Best of Friends!

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Hi everyone!

It's my last post featuring the November PaperCard Kit from PaperWorks Company. Today, I decided to use the Beary Best of Friends stamp.

Now, you're probably wondering how they could have a picnic in the middle of winter? Well, for people like me who live in California, we never get snow. That may or may not be a good thing...it depends on how you look at it, LOL!

Let's pretend that they live in Southern California :). The holidays are about celebrating family and friends, and that is what the Bear and Hare are doing. They are having a grand ole celebration right in the forest! I decided to color the image as colorful as the papers from the kit. To balance it out, I kept the elements pretty simple.

Supplies:
CS- Bazzill. Neenah Solar White.
DP- Echo Park (from the November PaperCard Kit).
Ribbon- from the November PaperCard Kit.
Brads- Basic Grey (from the November PaperCard Kit).
Stamp- PWCO/ RAM's Beary Best of Friends

Hope you all have a fabulous Monday!

And so the weekend comes to an end...

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Good morning, everyone!

Well, it's the last day of the Holiday weekend, and I'm a bit sad.

I always love this weekend because it's a time to be thankful, to be with family. It's not usually a big sit-down, formal dinner for our family so I never really feel stressed on Thanksgiving. I love that it also encompasses shopping for presents and putting up the Christmas tree (if I haven't already done so). Why, the local radio station even starts playing Xmas songs. I know that some people find that annoying, but I don't. LOL!

I also got some crafting done this weekend as my hubbster was off. Yippee!

I'm playing along with the Farm Fresh Blog's Monday Fun-Day: A Simple Sketch. It's done by my new bloggy friend, the wonderful Margie. I actually made it more CAS (I know, I know...so unlike me!!!).

I used Amelia from the TGF Ahoy set. I used up some stash for the DP- the black with polka dots is from KI Memories (Love, Elsie) and the main one is from Imagination Project.

I really like how I got to practice coloring pleats here :).

Hope you enjoy the rest of the day! I'll see you back here tomorrow!

CCC Announcement and Blog Hop

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Happy Saturday morning, everyone! I've got some cool news today!

I can finally announce that:



Yup! I made it to Sparkle's Christmas Card Challenges Design Team! I start on the 4th of December, along with some other new ladies & some returning ones!

From our DT coordinator, Stephanie Castro:


"Now, we're doing this DT announcement a bit different. We have never had a blog hop at the CCC, and decided that we're going to announce everyone via blog hop. Almost like a scavenger hunt to find out who the new designers are. Fun, huh? What does that mean exactly? Well, it starts at the CCC blog, and then you're directed to the next blog, which happens to be all of the new, and some returning, designers blogs. Along the way, you'll get to know each of the new designers, as they share a project and tell you a bit about themselves. We have a few returning designers, and six new designers, along with 6 new guest designers. Don't forget to leave some blog love for each of them, as there will be one lucky winner of some cool Christmas goodies. I mean, what's a blog hop without some candy, right? :)"

Here's my blurb:

Hi everyone! I'm Corinne Mercado aka Corinne Reyes and aka Rinne in the blog world. I'm very excited & honored to be a DT member here. I started stamping back in the summer of 2009, but was a scrapbooker first, and have always been crafting for as long as I can remember!!

I'm a full time working mommy as a registered nurse - luckily, I'm able to do 12 hour shifts per day so I have many days off left in the week for crafting!! I've been married to the love of my life for three & a half years, and we've been blessed with two sons (ages 2 1/2 & almost 5 months). When I'm not cuddling with my boys, I love to sneak into my craft room and escape to the world of Copics, stamps and patterned paper!

I'm so very excited to be here! It's been a dream of mine to give out Christmas cards to all my friends & families! Now with CCC, I get to make them for our mailman, preschool teachers, and pediatrician too... all while having lots of fun, inspiration, and encouragement!! I hope you join us and I can't wait to see the Holiday cards you make throughout the year! :)

Ok, enough talking already! I made a card for this post and to play along with the CCC current challenge # 51 (Color Combo: Black & White).



I know you've been seeing a lot of black and white coloring from me! It's so much fun to do! I used Hula Girl Lucy and Santa, the palm tree, stocking and sentiment are from Stampin' Up! Don't they go perfectly together? :)

If you've arrived here from Candace's blog, then you're on the right path! If not, start here at the CCC blog. Check back every Sunday, that's when the new challenges are posted. Now, head on over to Katie's blog to continue!

Here are blog sites of all the DTs:

Alanna
Anita
Brigitte
Candace
Corinne <-- You Are Here!
Katie
Margo
Pat
Peggy
Sparkle -
Steph

It's so very nice to meet all of you!



P.S. It's so funny how in all of my Design Teams, the DT coordinators are named Stephanie!!!! Isn't that weird and cool?!! Stephanie Castro for CCC, Stephanie Kraft for SCRS, and Stephanie Jones for PWCO!

Happy Birthday & Black Friday

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Hello everyone!

Hope everyone is full and warm and y'all had a nice Thanksgiving (at least for my American friends!).

I'm featuring a card I made for Amy (hope she already got it in the mail). Amy has been a great bloggy friend of mine, I met her shortly after I started stamping. I simply followed her amazing work and commented, and she started commenting on mine as well. She always encouraged me, gave tips, and shared her techniques. And when she got super HUGE in the blogging/ stamping world, she never forgot the little peeps, LOL! She always sent me cards/ gifts on special occassions! Thanks for being a wonderful friend, Amy!

I wanted to use a stamp that she didn't already own - Karber Bubble Millie from Sparkle Creations. Of course, I had to alter her hair to make it look like hers. :)

I paired her with some Cosmo Cricket (love that bubbles paper) & an old ribbon from my stash. The sentiment is from Paper Smooches. Love how this card is super happy!

I'm entering it for two challenges:

1. The Deconstructed Sketch # 28.
2. Birthday Sundaes Challenge # 36 - use old stash (that love ribbon).

Have a wonderful day, everyone!

I'm not braving the crowds for my usual Black Friday tradition but I'll be checking out stuff online! Anthropologie is 50% off their sale items up until 11 am, local time, online!

And speaking of Black Friday sales--




Hugs!

Becky the Bunny.

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Hi everyone!

Happy Monday! It's time to show you all another way to feature a PWCO stamp in a Christmas card!

I do not yet own any of the beautiful Winter-themed stamps from PWCO, such as the RAM Xmas, but a lot of the stamps can be altered to fit in with the November PaperCard Kit!

The kit itself is just $11.99 and features lot of goodies from Echo Park! Such a great deal!

I dunno what possessed me into coloring Becky the Bunny Pepto-Bismol-ish, but she is super cute anyway, isn't she? I've been on a pink kick lately (no, I am not preggo with a baby girl! Although I do wish that but for much later on).

The DP is from Jillibean Soup. Pls ignore the crooked placements. I apologize as this isn't my best work. But I did this when my cold was full-blown, & didn't have a chance to re-do it. I cut out a beanie and a scarf from one of the penguins and gave them to Becky for her Holiday outfit :).

For the sketch, I followed Card Patterns Sketch 142.

Have a wonderful day!

Colorful Elf Tia

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Whew...I made it!



Cutting it close, but I wanted another entry for the SOG Guest DT challenge.

The patterned papers are from Dear Lizzy (grey, American Crafts) and My Mind's Eye (colorful). I added some Viva pearl drops and a wide mesh-y ribbon from my stash. Since my other entry was black and white, I wanted this to be really full of color!

My BFF'ers, Jo, teased me the other day. She said that sometimes my stuff doesn't match when it comes to crafting. Well, sorry Jo, but phooey to that! For me, art doesn't have to be matchy-matchy all the time. Why, look at couture fashion. And Sarah Jessica Parker in Sex & the City.

So, in response, I think I sub-consciously colored Warm Wishes Tia in all these colors! Nothing matches, but she is bright and happy, and makes me smile nonetheless!

In fact, it wasn't too long ago that I learned that you add blue to make black hair even brighter. Or gray to make brown hair deeper. And caucasian skin has a purple tinge to it so add violet when coloring. See... these may not make sense to the lay person, but just opening up to different techniques allow you to learn lots of new tips!! Right, Jo? :)

And guess what, I was so worried that my card wouldn't show very well without sunlight but I kinda like how this turned out.

Hugs to all!

Sneak Peek of our fam session

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Hello all!

Well, lots of happs over here in my neck of the woods.

But first, gotta tell you that the mojo is waaaaaaayy down... & i haven't really created much! That, plus I caught the nasty cold/ cough combo that's running around. I am actually home from work today, and have been very grateful for my DH who has let me nap for the past three hours.

Just a quickie post now to tell you about a recent family photo session that was done by the wonderful Maria Grace Abuzman. Here's a sneak peek:

Grace and I know each other from having gone to the same high school. She's also a good friend of my sister's. I've always admired her scrapbooking work, and for those of you who don't know her, she's pretty up there amongst the 'celebrity scrappers'! LOL! But what I really love about her is her photography! It's been a longtime dream of mine to have a session with her, and that dream finally came true last weekend!

What I love about her photography is her ability to capture the details! As a fellow scrapper, she knows how important a stolen glance is as well as the decor in the room. For example, I didn't have to ask her if she could take pics of the beloved prints I had up in my sons' room (I loved the whimsical style- they reminded me of the innocence of childhood). And without being told, she was snapping away at my collection of earrings that were delicately hanging from a jewelry stand I have cherished since I first saw it in a magazine!

Anyway, I can't speak of her talent enough, but the qualities of her photography are through the roof! Am very excited to see the rest of the pics!!!

Long Time, No Talk!

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Hi all! Long time, no talk!

Am still trying to find my groove in the blog world so pardon me if I'm late commenting on your posts! :)

But I have a couple of days off and am hoping to catch up!

I never posted a Sunday FlashBack this week so I'm posting this lay-out that I never showcased on my blog (I did on SIS TV).

It was from 2006, the first time my then-bf-now-hubby and I went to Hawaii. This was scanned ....pardon the line you see going across!

Most of the supplies used were from Love, Elsie (KI Memories). Hope you're having a great day! I'm hoping to craft tomorrow!

Tonight, I'm planning to see Breaking Dawn with some of my besties and we're also having an early Holiday get2gether! Anybody else watching the midnight showing?

Hugs,

Team Oliver vs. Team Josh.

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*Please scroll down for my PWCO post!*

Hello, hello, hello!

It's time for another Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Challenge (#68). Today marks the first week of this challenge, and I'm part of the first group to showcase it.




Since Twilight's Breaking Dawn will be coming out this week in theaters, we thought we'd do our own version of Team Edward versus Team Jacob. That is, it'll be Team Oliver vs. Team Josh.

You can use your imagination to do whatever you wish provided that you use an Oliver or a Josh image.

Please see the SCRS blog for more details! Here's my take:



I had quite a ball doing this challenge as I am a BIG Twilight fan! I chose images that look as close to the characters of Edward and Jacob as possible -- Valentine Oliver and Street Corner Josh. Valentine Oliver is romantic so I thought he'd be a perfect Edward, although Edward would never wear that kind of hat, LOL! And Street Corner Josh is kinda cool, just like Jacob. I tried coloring them like the characters as well.

Lastly, I added these sentiments I got from Unity Stamps. They're perfect, don't ya think?

For more inspiration, please visit the blog and other DTs for Team A (the first group to do the challenge):

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog
Alice Wertz
Corinne Mercado
Jen Shults, November Guest Designer
Kadie Ensley
Kim Yu
Shaela Odd

Hope you get to play along!!! And who's watching the movie at midnight on Friday??? I am!! :)

Missing Ewe.

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Good Monday mornin' to all!



Did you know that the November PWCO Paper Card Kit is chock full of Christmas-themed goodies?!! For just $11.99, you get lots and lots of DP, CS, brads, and ribbons? The primary brand is Echo Park's Holly Jolly Christmas!

I wanted to make a card that was bright and cutesy as the line. The papers I used are quite similar to the kit's, although I think the kit's is even more adorable!!

I also wanted to show how versatile the Barnyard Buddies are. Shelly the Sheep here depicts missing someone special at Christmas. I'm sure we can all relate to having at least one friend or family member away during the Holidays.

As most of my cards are 6x6, I wanted to try something a little bit different. This card is measured 3x3. It's also more CAS (clean and simple), at least from 'my' definition :). Both were a challenge for me!

And le sigh... (French because PWCO is based in Canada, LOL!!!!!).

I am a natural light kind of gal. I love to take pictures of my cards during the day, using sunlight as my source of light. But now, if I want to make my deadlines, I have to be able to craft and take pics any time of the day. The above pic was taken with my camera and its flash, as well as the fluorescent bulbs up above. I think I do need one of those bright LED lamps though. Does anybody have a recommendation as to which lamp I should buy?

BTW, I apologize if the above pic is a bit blurry!

Supplies-
DP- Jillibean Soup.
Stamp- PWCO's Barnyard Buddies & Sentiment.

Hugs!

I Just Called To Say "I Love You"

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I am a Glutton for Punishment.

Here's my card entry for the December Guest DT over at the TGF Facebook page. It didn't make it but it was fun participating anyway.

Used Cheeky Chat as I haven't inked her up yet.

Ever been on a long-distanced relationship? My first two were. This card makes me wanna sing, "I just called to say I love You...." :)

Supplies Used:

CS- Bazzill. Neenah Solar White.
DP- Pink Paislee (house scene). American Crafts (city scene). Studio Calico tag (top part with lamp).
Sticker Sentiment- Bella Blvd.
Stickers- Echo Park (guy).
Rub-Ons- Love, Elsie (hearts, couch).

Eleven Eleven Eleven (at) Eleven Eleven.

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Decided to play at Dear Lizzy's 11 11 11 @ 11:11 challenge:



I ran around the house like a mad woman!!! :)



I was on the computer and Mattie was nearby.



Ran to the family room where the babe was happily cooing to himself!



It's a dreary, rainy day.



My current project on the craft desk.



Eleven. Eleven. Eleven. at eleven:eleven.

November SCRS Karber Release

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Hello everyone!!

It's Release Day over at Sparkle Creations, and I've got the newest clear stamps set from Karber to show you!!!

Oh, she is my favorite Karber yet!!! I just love Hawaii... it holds such a special place in my heart!

You get all five stamps shown (Karber Millie, sentiment, sun, pineapple, butterfly) plus a hibuscus flower image and another sentiment! Such a great deal!

I went all out and went 'cuteness overboard'!!! I think I may have just made up a term...I'll call it C.O.! :)

And you know what's even cooler? Some of the supplies were even bought in Hawaii!! The DP with the sunset and the rikrak. WoWoWoW! I bought said items three years ago during our honeymoon in Maui. I forgot the name of the scrapbook store though.

Be sure to visit all rest of the SCRS designers for more peeks of Karber Hawaii Kawaii Millie. Sparkle will be giving away Karber Hawaii Kawaii Millie to one lucky person! For a chance to win, you need to comment on all of the designer's blogs (list below). Then head on over to the SCRS blog and comment on the Karber post. You have until midnight EST each day to comment. The lucky winner will be announced the following day!

Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Store
Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps Blog
Corinne Mercado
Kadie Ensley
Margie Cortina
Mary Johnson
Peggy Toole, Sponsorship Coordinator
Suzanne Bier, Newsletter Coordinator

Supplies:
CS- Bazzill Kraft. Neenah Solar White.
DP- Imaginisce (penguins). Wubie Prints (sunset). Misc (green).
Buri Tie RikRak- Makana's.
Stickers- Jolee's Boutique.
Sketch Used- The Deconstructed Sketch # 26

And this month's sale:



By the way, if you didn't know, "Mahalo" means "Thank You" in Hawaiian!

Mahalo for visiting :),

Nostalgic Momma.

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Hi everyone!

So, whenever I finish coloring up my SOG stamps, I just swooooooon!!! I get happy with my other stamps too but with Some Odd Girl-ies, it happens every time!

They just make me smile, and I just love, love, love them!!!

And so I am trying out (yet again) for SOG's Guest DT call . Cross your fingers and wish me luck!!! :)



I colored up Momma Mae black and white because I've been on a nostalgic mood lately. Call it hormones or that I'm sentimental because I started working again. But I kinda miss being 'just a mommy' (such an important role).

The DP are from Basic Grey, and those cool laser-cut embellies are from Karen-Marie. They are pretty old but still such a wonderful treasure I found when I was cleaning out the ole craft room!

Have a wonderful one!!

My Little Piece of Heaven

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After 10+ years of crafting outta those big tupperware storage boxes, I have my very own craft room!!!!

Granted, one corner will be my hubby's office and we're also trying to fit in a mini-home gym in there, but isn't she a beaut???



It's near the front of the house, so I wanted more of a clean look and not so much a scrapbooking room. Of course, I don't think the paper rack is helping much, haha! So that's why I got those white boxes to make them look more uniform.



The big shelf/ table combo is from Ikea. I like how during the daytime, I could put a chair and face out the window and then be able to switch it to the other side at night (maybe put a TV in there somewhere?).



My favorite parts are the two rolling cabinets in the corner. They fit a lot of paper. Most of my design paper are 12 x 12, and they're perfect for them! I sometimes put together a card or lay-out without actually adhering the elements down. I like how I could just open up one of the cabinets and slide them in to finish later on. In those cabinets, I sort my DP either by brand (Basic Grey, Hambly) or by theme (nature, baby/kids).



The supplies I have the most of are papers and embellishments. I'll get back to the embellies later. Here are the other storage places -- the rolling rack of folders and the paper rack (mostly cardstock). And you see the rectangular light green boxes with the oval windows? Those are where my Studio Calico kits or Taylored Expressions kits go. I don't think I'll be disassembling them anytime soon.



The white bins are labeled but things are just kind of thrown in there. I do like the look of apothecary so if I find nice clear bottles/ vases, I may throw in some of my ribbons or buttons in there.

Here's an example of what it looks like inside... these are my tins full of brads/ eyelets. I also have beads and paperclips.



Not quite done. I'd love to buy another cabinet or shelf for the middle part where the green seats are. In the above pic with Mattie, there's a kiddie table made out of cardboard that I'd love to incorporate so my sons can craft with me. :)

I still need to put up a bulletin board and my inspirational pics too. Maybe a rug and some curtains. And if you noticed the little white shelves hold no Copics.



That's because I put them in these little portable containers and lug them whichever room I'm in (usually the family room or kitchen). I ended up buying the new portable bag at the Copics website, and am very excited to get it!

So there it is... it took my so long to clean and sort stuff out. I'd love to see your craft room too!!!

Tata!!!