2019 Occasions Product Share!

Hello, Hello, Hello my friends!!! How are you this fine day?

It has been gloomy, doomy and WET here all day! :-( You know what that's good for?  SLEEPING ALL DAY! But, alas, I can not!  I have things to do!!  Like, come here and chat with you fine folks! ;-) hehe.

Today's post is going to be kinda short and sweet.  I hope that's ok!  I want to tell you about the new product share I've got going on right now.  I know you're going to want in on it because, well, it's pretty amazing!  I wanted to make sure that you could get a good sampling of ALL of the papers, ribbons and most of the embellishments.  I think it worked out nicely.  You will get to see first hand, how GORGEOUS our papers, ribbons and embellishments are! That's pretty awesome right?

This FABULOUS pack of goodies includes 102 - 6x6" sheets of designer series paper! That includes ALL of the papers in the new Occasions AND Sale-a-Bration catalogs!  The pack also includes nearly 64 yards of ribbon!!  You'll get a sampling of each ribbon in both catalogs (at LEAST a yard of each one)!!  And then to top it off, you'll also receive the embellishments pictured here:

As you can see, this product share is pretty spectacular!  So, you might be asking how you can get in on it.  It's pretty simple.  You can comment here below and leave your email address, or you can email me and let me know.

Cost of the package is $55 (SHIPPED in the USA).  I will start ordering products on January 3rd, as I fill up each share group.


If you'd like to order whole packages of everything you see here, I can help you with that too AND get you some FREE merchandise!!  These items will be available for purchase on the 3rd. :-)

OF COURSE, if you just can't STAND the idea of waiting for products, you can also become a demonstrator!  Call it a "discount club" if you will.  ;-)  You can shop, ahead of the pack, AND receive a fabulous discount on all your retail purchases! INCLUDING clearance and sale items!! Hobby Lobby doesn't do that! 

Would you like to know more? I would LOVE to have you on my team!!  Check it out here:

Well, I 'spect I'd better close this up or it's not gonna be a "short post"! HAHAHAHA

Anywhoo, I just had to tell you about the Product Share AND the opportunity to get a FABULOUS discount, incentives, bonuses, GOODIES, and more by joining my team! :-)  

Thank you so so much for stopping by today!

And as always,
Happy Crafting!

Kylie's Top 10 DECEMBER Blog Hop!

Hello again, my friends! I hope you're doing well on this fine December day.  I am so happy to be a part of this blog hop today.  To be chosen in the top 10 from the International Highlights blog was quite exciting!  I'm glad you all enjoyed that one, and I hope you will like today's post as well. :-) 

Today's card is a fantastic boost of encouragement for anyone in your life.  Do you have to have a reason? No way! Of course not!

Don't you just LOVE the colors?! The moment I saw this suite in the new Annual Catalog, I knew it had to be mine! You are not limited to "travel" as the name might imply.  This card, case in point, proves that. I love that big bold sentiment, and the map background gives it just the right touch! Perfect!

Not only are the colors vibrant and appealing, but all the texture is fabulous too!  I can't get over that embossing folder.  Do you see the embossing on the Mango Melody strip of paper?  *Squeee!!!*  So cute!

The designer series paper really helps bring this card together. It dresses the front waaaaay up without any real effort.  I like that!  Truly, this project is super easy. And it has everything to do with how fabulous the products are! :-D

Well, I'm ready to give this card to a special someone, just to remind them to stay awesome!  I think it's great to be uplifting towards each other.  And I can't think of a better way to do that, than with a card.  Just for no reason. JUST BECAUSE! Isn't that wonderful?  I think so too!

Thank you so much for stopping by my little corner of the world today. I enjoyed our time together.  I hope you'll also enjoy visiting the other blogs along the hop.  You can find them here:

If you like the products you see here today, you can just click on the pictures to be taken to my online shop where you can get your own Best Route supplies! Go make something fabulous!!

Product List

Best Route Designer Series Paper [146897]	Best Route 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock Pack [146898]	En Route Clear-Mount Stamp Set [146594]	Maps Etc. Textured Impressions Embossing Folder [146822]
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]	Pineapple Punch Classic Stampin' Pad [147141]	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430]

December's Top 10!! THANK YOU!

Hello everyone!!

Remember Kylie's International Blog Hop I participated in the other day?  Well, THANKS to you all, my blog made the top 10!!!  YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA!!!!

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am for that!  What an incredible honor (especially for being a brand new blog) to have made the top 10! I'm absolutely beside myself!   THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!

You can see all of the entries and their rankings here. How exciting to be voted #6 on my first go round! I'm over the moon! Thanks!!

Here's the card I did for it:

I will be posting TOMORROW with the winners' blog hop, so be on the lookout!  It's a new round of hopping involving the blogs voted in the top 10. :-)  So be sure to come back tomorrow and check it out!!

As always,
Happy Crafting!

T'was The Day After Christmas.....

Good Morning Friends! I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas! Ours was small and cozy, but filled with love and joy.

We kicked off the holiday with what's SURE to be a new annual tradition for us.  A fella, that Matt interacts with sometimes through work, is a conductor for a train line that does holiday rides at Christmas time.  The ride is similar to "The Polar Express" and lasts for about 2 hours total.  It's absolutely fabulous because it's a 1920's Steam Engine and they decorate the passenger cars with beautiful Christmas lights and garlands, etc.

They go all out too! There is hot cocoa and a Christmas cookie for everyone, along with storytelling and carols.  Santa himself even stops in for a visit to give kids a little gift (a bell from his sleigh).  Everyone has a fabulous time!

It's a fantastic little adventure and our family really enjoyed it!

Christmas time is a really busy time of year, for me especially.  Not only because I attend Matt and Hannah's Christmas dinners, parties and concerts, but because of my own involvements as well.

I am a part of our local FCE club, which is Family Community and Education.  Basically, it's Home Ec for grown ups.  We do a couple of fund raisers throughout the year to earn money that we use to purchase heaters for the cold, host dinners for the needy, sponsor families in need during the holidays, etc.  Wherever we see a need, we try to help.  It's a wonderful organization and is truly good for the soul to be a part of it.  I don't know if every state has it but, if they do, you should check it out and consider becoming a member. It's wonderful to help those in need!

Anywhoo, we had our annual Christmas dinner and a good time was had by all.  We did an ornament and card exchange.  Of course, I make cards.... It's what I DO! So naturally I had to make one for everybody! haha.  I just love it though!

I also host an annual cookie exchange among some friends.  We call ourselves the "HOLLY JOLLY CHRISTMAS COOKIE CLUB".  There are always only 12 of us.  Sometimes a person knows she can't make it, and we allow for someone else to take her place that year, but there are never more than 12.  The reason for this is that we bake a dozen cookies for EACH person in the club, plus 1 extra dozen to donate to whatever places we deem for that year.  We've donated to the police and fire depts, EMS and dispatch, nursing homes and this year, the local post offices.  We have a great time playing games and visiting about things that have happened throughout the year since our last party.  It's a lot of work getting the house ready and getting our activities and food set up, and then getting cookies baked and packaged! But we have so much fun too.  We're usually wore out by the time it's done though. This year, there were only 7 of us able to attend.  The year has been busy for everyone!

Then, just the other day, Matt & I attended my Red Hat Society Christmas dinner.  This group is just for fun.  I never knew how much I needed these ladies until I really got involved with them.  I have always been so consumed with volunteering for this outreach or that, or been in this charity organization or that program.  Between the FCE, Girl Scouts, Fire Dept, and Band Boosters (and the others in between), I keep busy.  But the Red Hat Society is the one thing where there are NO expectations, no demands, no needs, no tasks, no responsibilities whatsoever.......... It's just a great time SOCIALIZING with some of the most INCREDIBLE ladies I have ever had the pleasure of knowing!  And, while I'm "technically" too young to be a RED hatter, I'm able to be a PINK hat princess.  :-) I'll take it! hehe.  This is my first year with them But I just love these girls, and I'm thankful to Matt for going with me to the Christmas dinner.  On our way home he said, "Now I understand why you like being with them.  They are a lot of fun".  YES! Fun!!  And what a relief and breath of fresh air to just be able to BE THERE and not HAVE to do anything. 

Everyone needs something like that.  It has done wonders for my psyche and has really even boosted my energy and drive in those other more demanding and outreach areas of my life.  It's a chance to recharge my batteries for a little bit and regroup so that I'm more ready to tackle the other things. So, if you don't have a group of friends that you can just go to lunch or dinner with now and then, or catch a movie together or SOMETHING....... Gather one up and make it a thing!  It really is amazing to have!

Christmas day (yesterday) was just the three of us.  A nice quiet time.  We live more than 12 hours away from our families now, so we rarely get to spend holidays with them anymore.  Our two older girls were unable to come home this year too.  That was especially sad. :-(  Nevertheless, we had a nice relaxed day with good food, delicious hot cider and classic holiday films.  A good way to spend Christmas! And, since I'm so used to preparing holiday meals for large family, we have plenty of leftovers.  We'll be having Christmas feast for several days! LOL

Well, at least it's yummy! hehe. 

I hope that you and yours had a wonderful holiday and that you are refreshed and ready to take on the new year!  I will be back in the craft room today, so be on the lookout for new fabulous projects and ideas. :-)

Until next time,
Happy Crafting!

Merry Christmas!! Happy Holidays!!

I just wanted to pop in and say HAPPY HOLIDAYS to each and every one of you! 

I hope you have a season filled with joy and love.

Until Next Time,

Happy Crafting!

December 2018 Paper Pumpkin Alternatives!

Well hello there! We are T-minus 2 days and counting til Christmas.  Are you excited?  I THINK I have everything done, but won't fully know (of course) until Christmas morning when I realize that I forgot to do some thing that I thought was crucial.  Am I the only one this happens to? lol.  Ah well, in the meantime, I've been working on alternative projects for our fabulous December Paper Pumpkin kit. 

As it is, the kit is great!  I LOVE the adorable calendar project!  But, I really enjoy figuring out alternative projects as well.  I want to show you how you can get the absolute MOST out of your kit!  

One thing I noticed is that the stamp set is made up almost entirely of seemingly random geometric shapes.  At first, I was worried that I might not be able to come up with things.  This is really outside of my element. 

As you can see, they're "different" to say the least! lol.  But, once I started playing with the stamps, I realized something wonderful!  The more random you can get with the placement, the more fabulous the stamped image looks!  What a crazy concept!   They're also perfect for making background papers.  You can see that in the samples here: 

All of the cards have pretty simple designs that can easily be replicated. But notice that all of them are completely different too!  The stamps are AWESOME!!  I had so much fun coming up with different patterns too! It really was all about just trying something fun and new!

But then, I also wanted to make a couple of different 3D type projects as well......  

 

I have come to love making these little gift bags!  They come from a Standard A2 size card!  They're simple and easy to do and, as you can see, you can customize them to any occasion. :-) 

(SEE THE NOVEMBER PAPER PUMPKIN POST to find a video on how to make them)

This time, a little gift bag really wasn't enough.  I wanted to do a box too!  With the other half sheet of Pool Party Cardstock, I was able to make the outside of this fabulous coordinating Matchbox gift box! 

SO CUTE! You can see that I really had a great time using these unique stamps to create fantastic new backgrounds! 

I hope this inspires you to get creative with your December kit, if you have it.  And, if you aren't a Paper Pumpkin Subscriber yet, YOU SHOULD BE!!!  An awesome little box of fun delivered right to your door each month, what's not to love?!   You can find details and sign up here.

Thank you so much for stopping by today and, as always,

Happy Crafting!

Santa's Workshop EXPLOSION Box!

Hello everyone!!  Today I get to share one of my absolute FAVORITE projects EVER!!! And the best part is that I got to use my absolute FAVORITE stamp set ever! ;-) hehe.  Do you remember what it is?  Of course you do!  It's the Signs of Santa set!  It will definitely be one of those sets that stay in my personal collection, long after retirement from the catalog. I truly love it! 

Yes, you read right..... It's about to retire. :'( Sad sad day!  So if you like it or LOVE it as much as I do, you definitely wanna get your hands on it right away!!  You can order it here!

I had so much fun putting this little box together for my Hostess Club! There are so many things to see!  It's got tags and cards and flaps and die cuts.  It also has the "official seal of the North Pole and the jolly elf himself! 

It looks like a lot of paper, but it was so worth it! The girls had a great time with it! This cute little box made the best Christmas gift for them and was a fabulous challenge for them to put together!!

The dimensions can be seen here. I hope you can see them ok anyways! :-) 

So, for the two "CROSSES", You'll cut squares to begin with.  Then score at the two measurements listed, on both sides. That will give you 9 boxes.  You'll cut the corner box off all four sides, on both squares. Be sure to note that they are two different sizes.   Then cut the lid square, and score it.  You'll simply cut on the marks shown in the photo.   Easy Peezy so far right?!  This is the whole foundation of your explosion box.  From here, you can decorate and embellish it however you like! :-) 

I hope you enjoyed taking a peek at this super fun and adorable explosion box! I really enjoyed putting it together! I am a sucker for little "nooks and crannies" to stick notes, tags, and things. hehe.  I love it!

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out my little explosion box! I hope you make one of your own! If you do, please consider visiting (and joining) my facebook group, and post a photo.  You can find the group HERE.

From our home to yours, we wish you a Very Happy Holidays and a safe and Happy New Year!!

And, as always,

Happy Crafting!

December Paper Pumpkin

Hello friends! It's a good thing you weren't counting on a post every single day, eh?  I'm sorry about that.  As it's getting closer to the holidays, my level of crazy and busy (and CRAZY BUSY) jumps up to a decibel that would make Santa himself cringe. hehe. Why do we do that to ourselves? Over-commit, over-extend, and wear ourselves out for what exactly?  Well, because we love our friends and family that's what for.  We've had Hannah's Christmas concert, a pageant, a couple parties, my annual HOLLY JOLLY CHRISTMAS COOKIE CLUB (which does a big cookie exchange each year), and the madness isn't over yet! Even my "MAKE IT MONDAY" video wasn't done and uploaded to Youtube until TUESDAY.  OOPS! Of course, you all understand because we're all dog paddling this same creek together aren't we? LOL!!  Anyway, I apologize for being MIA the last few days. I think the biggest share of it is behind us now.  Hello Christmas Day!  Only 6 days away! WOWZA!!! Where did this year go? 

Speaking of losing track of the year, Stampin' Up did a FABULOUS thing for us to wrap up this year and ring in the new one!  You remember me talking about Paper Pumpkin not too long ago? Well, It's Paper Pumpkin time this month. AND, the kit is just as cute as it can be!  It's an 18 month Calendar! Just what we need to kick of the new year, huh?

At first, I'm not gonna lie, I wasn't sure about all those little funny shaped stamps. 

I mean, LOOK at em! lol.  What are they?  Well, I didn't know.  But I remembered the words "geometric" and "contemporary" being used to describe this kit.  So, with that I got to work stamping on the little strips of adhesive cardstock.  Turns out, it's not so hard to make fun and fabulous backgrounds (and make them all different too).  

This was definitely a theme that was outside my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed putting the calendar together!  Now, I've just got to come up with (oh) six or seven alternative projects for my Paper Pumpkin Groupies! lol.  Stay tuned for that post! ;-)

Until next time,

Happy Crafting!