Make your own foam stamps

You have to check out the Magic Boxes Blog not only for the beautiful boxes but this great idea on how to make a stamp out of foam!!

And HOW ADORABLE!!!

Livie & Luca ~ Shoe Giveaway

I want a pair, they are adorable!!

My challenge, let this Pink Holland shoe inspire YOUU to make something creative

... let's see what you've got!!

Character is the Key

"Character Is The Key: How To Unlock The Best In Our Children and Ourselves' is a book written by Canadian author Sara Dimerman and she talks about helping kids become caring, courageous, positive and principled people. People who take initiative at in and outside the home, have empathy for others and take responsibility for their actions. After all, don't we want our children to value family, respect those around them, and be courageous enough to stand up for what they believe in? I know I sure do!"

I couldn't help but notice this book, and already put it in my draft email to Santa... and now there's a contest to win it. Isn't a chance to get it FREE just awesome :)

The top ten character traits which Character is the Key will help your family develop: Respect , Responsibility, Honesty, Empathy, Fairness, Initiative, Courage, Perseverance, Optimism and Integrity.

How many monkeys ??

One of the joys of having an 18 month old is that she's starting to speak more inteligably so you'll hear a mis-mash of Baa Baa Ba ' zeep and No mor e monkeys dadu dau daaa daaa deee (type thing) - I don't even need a radio in the car anymore :) So this is my ONE little monkey who jumps on my bed and hits MY head while singing amd jumping - who needs TV!!

The Monkey image is a FREE one from Doodle Dragon's Blog

Challenges: 365 Cards Day 209 and MMSC21 from Priscilla Styles

I'm also going to start experimenting on how to show Copic techniques so once I am certified and excited to show you EVERYTHINGGGG, I'll know what to do and take pics of ;)

So here's my Monkeying around:

After coloring the base colors, I started shading with a darker color on the monkey

And did the same, shaded with a darker color on the leaves and vine

And then went back with the original base color and blended the dark in like this

And here are all the copics I used to do the job.

I also have this awesome white gel pen that I used to give a glint off of his teeth with a bit of shine.

Have a beauuutiful day :)

Nikki

Hi ho hi ho it's off tho Montreal I go....

HOLEY SMOKES BATWOMAN!!! I'm so excited, I'm doin' the happy dance!! I just got confirmation that my application to be included in the Copic Certification class was accepted!!!

hi ho hi ho it's off to Montreal I go hi ho hi ho hi ho hi ho hi hooooo - hi ho hi ho hi ho :)

By any chance are there any other people coming from the Toronto area or along the 401 from Toronto to Montreal? I'd love to carpool ...pass it on :)

Annndd.... If you are wondering what all the fuss is about, check out CopicMarkers.com and I Like Markers and this video of the Copic airbrush system that I am just droooling over, and cannot wait for formal instruction on using these COOL markers/tools :)

Copic's ABS DVD Series Promo from Pushplay Productions on Vimeo.

Tips & Tricks: Side Step Card

This is such a wonderful template - thanks Bonnie!!

New free dingbat font for die cutters

Clever Someday has some gret tips for digital cutting.

The 09KutUps is a shapes font made especially for SCAL and other cutting machines that can cut truetype fonts. Every shape has been optimized for cutting. CLICK HERE and in the middle of the second paragraph it says "download font here" with the "here" in green

Just awesome!

So So So Blessed we are

After last night's events, I was drawn to this image of Michael by Mo's Digital Pencil and 365 cards Day 226 challenge but I didn't have much time to facy it up so here's what I created WITH the baby in my lap, resting on my chest ;)

I've taken three challenges for today's card, the 365 Cards "so so so" in triplicate

and the Color Throwdown Challenge

and the Card Patterns Sketch

First to Emerg and then WHAM! The car is hit!

Yesterday, I went to work and left her home with Daddy... they were both fighting a cold, hers farther along than his. He was so kind not to share with me what his day held, and the HE didn't get a minutes rest at all... until I got home and she'd gotten a fat lip from a fall, and after finally being exhausted enough to give up the fight and sleep even though she couldn't breathe without wheezing, when she fell asleep she wouldn't breath for 5 seconds and then when she did she would forget she was stuffed up and gasp when she couldn't inhale through her nose and then scream in pain because her ears were blocked. We took her to emergency as the walk-in clinics don't have Pediatricians and I was afraid of the not breathing part...

In Emerg, she was prescribed antibiotics to prevent pneumonia from setting in - MAN! That happened so fast :( The ear and throat infection are causing the fevers and chills and THAT is causing the "drunk" behavior and her falling and acting weird. The sinus congestion from the cold probably caused the infection, and lack of appetite. So we leave the hospital, get her meds from the pharmacy, give them to her in the car because it's 2 hours past bedtime and she's exhausted and traumatized and we drive slowly because the roads are slick from the rain and she FINALLY was resting and breathing through her mouth and we get PLOWED in an intersection!


In the rain... 12 minutes after impact he's still left skid marks from the oil on the road! What was he thinking "gunning" it into the intersection making a left turn, cutting us off and trying to make it through the intersection before we made it through the intersection going "straight"on a yellow light, in the first rain we've had in weeks???!!!

The police, fire and ambulance arrive - the ambulance attendant eventually assesses us and the driver of the other car gets charged criminally - all like a bad dream! I can't believe how VAGUE people are when telling you what to look for in a baby - I mean the child just started heavy duty antibiotics and those side effects are the SAME as the concussion effects the ambulance attendant said to look out for. My hands are still trembling, it's all so crazy and scary! We're all okay though and both cars drove away from the scene.

I didn't sleep much last night between the two of them and spent most of the night in the Lazy-Boy chair with her resting on my chest crying in her sleep - gosh - heart wrenching!

Today, the antibiotics are already working, and she's taken 7 sips of water and that's all since 11AM yesterday - groooan! But she's fighting her Daddy for the remote control and enjoying banging her cookie-tin drum, so we are making progress !!! LOL :)

Kunik aka Eskimo Kisses

I've used this gorgeous Siku & Shiya digi stamp from Mo's Digital Pencil, my copic markers, some Stickles - Diamond and some crazy paper I thought I would never use and I love it! I've printed (in 6s) and then paper-pieced their coats, boots & hat and used the 365 card Day 204 challenge for today to make something I could never have imagined. I am making a habit of doing things in multiples so I can grow my stash a little faster, good thing because I have been caught one too many times without a card and HATE buying them ;) This one's an original though - those circles and the card are all cut by hand, thanks to a small bottle, a CD and some hand-eye coordination - yeesh!! What's the point if having a digital craft cutter if I don't use it?! Well, that's what happens when you are an insomniac-crafter with an almost 18 month old baby with a cold ;)

Now the best part is that this card wasn't made for my stash, it was made fro my new BBFF !! If she's lurking, she'll see it before receiving it in Aussie Land, but hey! That's what technology is for, right :) So, without further adieu, here's my card that will be sent to Jessica with her stamp called:

Kunik

Kissey Kissey

And a little bit of Canada on the inside

Now, you totally know that I started writing
before taking my pic so I put a paper band-aid on tee hee ;)

(From Wikipedia)

The act known as Eskimo kissing

in modern western culture is loosely based on a

traditional Inuit greeting called a kunik.

A kunik is a form of expressing affection, usually between family members and loved ones, that involves pressing the nose and upper lip against the skin (commonly the cheeks or forehead) and breathing in, causing the loved one's skin or hair to be suctioned against the nose and upper lip A common misconception is that the practice arose so that Inuit could kiss without their mouths freezing together. In fact, it is a non-erotic form of greeting that serves as an intimate way of greeting one another for people who, when they meet, often have little except their nose and eyes exposed.

When early explorers of the Arctic first witnessed this behavior they dubbed it Eskimo kissing. In its western form it consists of two people rubbing noses together.

Speaking of western, I thought this would be the most appropriate greeting to send accross the Oceans from Canada to Australia, and the teacher in me cannot help but mention that there's not one Eskimo people; there's the Kalaallit in Greenland, the Inuvialuit in Canada, and the Inupiaq, Yuplit, and Alutiiq in Alaska -- just to name a few. Some Alaskan indigenous people accept the term Eskimo. Other peoples consider it offensive, because it was a label applied by Europeans and others and simply translated means "meat eater". The arctic peoples of Canada and Greenland in general prefer the term Inuit - so I couldn't call my card Eskimo Kisses although so sweet... I called it "Kunik" instead. (This excerpy was also extracted in parts from Wikipedia)

BEST FRIENDS FOREVAH !!

Jessica, from Victoria, Australia YOU WON!

I've got to go get me some international postage to send your birthday present/prize to the land of the Koala :) YAYYY!!!!

Jessica was my #16 following/friend, and she's got my blog candy in her sidebar and commented on September 9, 2009 12:13 AM on my post "Easier than I thought...": "Back again lol this card is stunning! love the clean, crisp look you have created xx" YIPPIEE!!! I hope your housework can wait while you stamp up a storm with this sweet best friends forevah stamp that I was lucky enough to buy in-person from the real-live Stamping Bella - I met EmmaBella in her store just 30 minutes from my home just outside of Toronto, Ontario Canada and oh how fun it is to send such a cute stamp to one of my new, prize winning BestBlogFriendsForevah or as Paris Hilton would say, my new B.B.F.F. :)

My new shoes!!

YAYYY!!! My birthday wish came true!

I now have MORE THAN 44 friends to follow me around ;)

Stay tuned for the winner in tomorrow's post, and if you haven't done so already make sure you've left a comment (from 8/7 to today) and a link on your blog to mine that I can find for you to get

the BEST FRIENDS FOREVAH prize - woot woot...

gonna go buy my mailing envelope at lunch today,

I wonder if I'll need Canadian, US or International postage... hmmmm.... :)

... now on to some FUN FUN FUN challenges ...

The 365 Cards Day 201 and the SSS's IC196, challenge was totally awesome!!
SHOES - HOW FUN!!!

I couldn't choose which purse would match my shoes!!! So I chose three... good thing I didn't have to choose only one bag to wear to ball ;) My digi stamp is from sketching stamper and... if the paper don't match copic-cize... The mat is simply coloured with my copic marker and the Bling is Stickles Diamond - I love that stuff :)

A gentleman's card

How darned perfect is this!!

Here's the tutorial

Tips & Tricks: Stop and smell the roses... or make your own!!

Over at Funky Fairy's challenge I saw this awesome rose box... which took me to Ann's blog and from there, the tutorial by susanbluerobot on how to make them :)

Tips & Tricks: Making Bows

OOOhhh I love tutorials and even more than that - I love RIBBONS!!! Remember my Tying Perfect Bows post? Well, here's an actual tool and tutorial by Jami that I am sure will be well used :)

Tips & Tricks: Double CD Holder

Pretty Pressings has this awesome tutorial on making a double CD holder. This is the original tutorial, and although in German, it's pretty self-explanatory. This is her most recent one double-CD holder - and it is adorable!! All you need is Ihr werdet 2 12x12 Papier brauchen (eines gemustert und eines unifarben) Scoring Tool, Bonefolder fuer gute Faltungen, starkes doppelseitiges Klebeband, Embellishments, Band, Stanzer (Kreis oder was euch gefaellt) - HAHAH... that means 2 - 12X12 papers, one plain and one patterened), something about your scoring tool, ribbon and embellishments of course and a punch to allow you to pull out the CD on the left side. I didn't even use a translator, the tutorial is that self-explanatory!

Thanks Claudia!

Easier than I thought...

I used the Mojo Monday Week 102's template for the first time and I have to admit, my plan was to incorporate the 365 cards challenge: Feeling Blue to use three shades of blue and it the situation was looking rather "blue" when I started trying to coordinate shades of blue from my paper stash. Then I remembered this Stamping Bella Wedding Circle stamp and got to doing some paper peicing in scraps of blue paper so eventually this card just evolved from a bunch of ideas and blue things to total FIVE shades of blue - yippiee!!!

HAVING PROBLEMS WITH UPLOADING MY PIC, STAY TUNED!

FINALLY! WE'RE BACK IN BUSINESS !!

Copic Marker BG01 Aqua Blue was used to help the stamp and the pima flowers match a little nicer, the papers that I stamped on are just scraps from who knows where and the forever heart charm is a from allmymemories.com item #EXPHR-F FOREVER that I traded many years ago at an all night scrapbook event. I can't find it on their website, but as I said, it was many mannnnyyy moons ago :) The wedding paper background was also from my stash and there's nothing on the back so I don't know where that is from either :( The ribbon, was a snippit from my stash and I've got some pop dots int ehre for dimension as well. Those flowers down the left are weddign confetti stuff from Michaels and I cannot believe how long that purchase has lasted me, I've been using them forever!!

And I thought she made it ....

For my brithday last week I recevied a hand made card from my Auntie who was recently laid off and I was so excited becasue to me... it was obviously hand made. I have never recevied a hand made card before so being on the receiving end sure felt special :) I poured over the pencil-crayon colouring of the flower, the inked edges, the stamped coordinating textured background, the hand-dotted curvy cropped border that had too many dots in one area and the fact that the torn paper was the 'other' side, not the side that showed the tear. I was so touched, I had to call her and thank her not only for the lovely words inside but the time it must've taken her to make this card. And... she told me she bought it at a local fair. WHAT? I am no expert, but I've been paper crafting going on 10 years now and this is not exactly rocket science and ... I really want to know how much she bought this "one of a kind" for - and why didn't I think of that????? Ah well, here's my lovely hand made birthday card made by a stranger who is WAYYYY smarter and more entrepreneurial than moi!!

...but that's not all... here's anohter cutie-patootie custom stamp from sassydesignsbysusie

and last but not least... 2 day blog candy over at crafts international - yayyy!!!