I came home...

from sunny California to this...

I was smart enough to check the forecast for California but failed to worry about what the weather would be like when I returned to Oklahoma! I didn't even have a sweater let alone a jacket. It is pretty darn cold. It took over a half hour just for the car to warm up enough that I could use an ice scraper to knock some of the ice off my car windows. The 20 mile drive home from the airport took well over an hour. But, I made it home safely and that's all I can ask for. It is nice to be home!

I had soooooo much fun at CHA. I met so many wonderful people including (and in no particular order!):

John and Phyllis Parkins from Boss Kut
Vicki Boutin
Michelle Granger and the rest of the Quick Quotes team
Stacey and Jeff Caron with Spellbinders
Layle Koncar
Sande Kreiger
Teresa Collins
and I caught a glimpse of Tim Holtz (as I'm sure you can imagine, there was a line to meet him!)
Carolyn King
Diana Crick with Scor-Pal


I can't tell you how amazing it was to be in the company of these amazing and talented designers. Layle, Vicki and Sande are soooooo sweet...and rather hilarious might I add. I hope I get to see them again...and soon!

There was so much to see and it was rather overwhelming for a first timer. I assisted in setting up the Boss Kut booth and let me tell you, these companies put forth a TON of effort to make sure everything is just right. It's alot of work. I can't wait to begin sharing all the photos. I'm exhausted and ready for bed. I'll be back soon with some great stuff to share. You can see some of the pics and products on the Scrap-Mart blog also.

I had a LUCKY streak on Sunday. We stopped by the Making Memories booth for a drawing and I won a Slice! That was totally exciting. I know, I already have one but it was exciting nonetheless. Then, we stepped over the the Quickutz booth for their drawing and I won 3, yes 3 brand new CHA release alphabets! I got Honey Bee (which was the one I REALLY wanted), Oatmeal and Marigold. Then, we stopped by the Quick Quotes booth and I won a set of 12 new release ink pads! Can you say SCORE?! A huge thank you to those companies!

Before I leave, my friend Rae photo tagged me so I'll share. Here's the rules:

Go to your Picture Folder on your computer or wherever you store your pictures.

1. Pick the 6th Folder, then select the the 6th picture in that folder.

2. Post that picture on your blog and the story that goes along with the picture.

3. Tag 6 other people that you know or don’t know to do the same thing and leave a comment on their blog or an e-mail letting them know you chose them.

And, here's my pic:

This is my son, Seth. He had a school project to do recently where he had to cook something. We had to take pictures of him and he had to write down the recipe and take it along with the pics to school and create a display board and share it with the class. This was the sixth picture in that folder. He did a great job on his project!

Now, I tag Heidi, Jennie, Patti, Lindsay, Carolyn King, and Kristen.

I'm off to bed. See you next post! Thanks for stoppin' by!

Katie

This is it...

Today is the day! I'm heading out shortly to the airport to board my flight to sunny Anaheim, CA. I can't wait to bring you all the great details straight from the show floor! You can see all the pics and videos on the Scrap-Mart blog. And, who knows there may even be a contest! If there's something specific you want to see leave me a comment and I'll do my best to find it for you! See you when I get back!

Katie

CHA is in the air....

There's a TON of buzz on the blogs about CHA. If you're not familiar with it, CHA is the Craft and Hobby Association. Twice a year there's a show and all the manufacturers get together to release their upcoming product for the next few months. It's a fun time of year! This year, I'm excited to say I'll be attending CHA with Scrap-Mart. I'm super excited! I've been blog hopping trying to find sneak peeks from some of my favorite manufacturers. Here's what I found today:

The Queen Goes Green.

Queen & Co. that is. They are shedding their signature packing and trying something new! They have some cute new Buckets full of embellishments. The bucket, in my opinion, is a much better way 'cause you can store it in the bucket and refill it with other items when it's empty! I'm super excited about these. I'm gonna clear some room on my shelves 'cause these are a must have. There are 7 to choose from so there's sure to be one for everyone!

The next thing Queen & Co. announced is the new lengths of Felt Fusion Borders. I LOVE this stuff and have a nice variety of it. Now, it will be available in 12" strips! Perfect size for a scrapbook layout and you won't have a bunch left over that you may not use again! Love it! And the best part is the retail price is only $1.29! Yep, you read it right! Does it get any better?

Yes, it does! The Queen also has rhinestones for $1.29 and foam letter stickers for only $2.99! I can't wait to get my hands on some of this stuff!

You can read more about it on the Queen & Co. blog. Hop on over and when you're done checking it out, leave 'em a comment. They're giving away 7 Bucket Kits to some lucky readers!

Thanks for stoppin' by!

Katie

Copic Airbrush

Hello everyone! I hope you've had a good weekend! I'm back today with another Copic project. This time, I used my airbrush system. One of my favorite new things to play with is acrylic! I purchased some acrylic sheets online and I've made boxes, used them to make die cuts, and even embossed them like I did with the faux stitching strip on this card.

This time, I made a die cut with the acrylic but I didn't want to leave it clear for the card.

I cut the bird from my Quickutz Revolution Birds Die. I have to tell you that the die will not cut all the way through the acrylic...and you may damage your die so be careful if you try this! I trimmed the bird from the sheet and turned it upside down (from the way I wanted it to face...since it's clear it doesn't have a right or wrong side!) and airbrushed it with my Sketch BG09 (Blue Green). I applied one layer at a time and allowed it time to dry then applied two more layers to give the color the depth that I desired. I love the airbrushed look on the acrylic.

There are many uses for the airbrush system. And you can get the compressed cans of air so you don't have to have an air compressor. But, if you do have one, you can get the cans with the adapter on it. Either way, it's great. Scrap-Mart carries a variety of the Copic Sketch Markers as well as the airbrush system(s). If you try them out, I'd love to see your projects! Email them to me at Katie@scrap-mart.com and we may even showcase your project on the Scrap-Mart Blog.

Materials used: Patterned paper: Sassafrass Lass; Cardstock: American Crafts; Dies: Quickutz Revolution Label and Birds; Copic BG 09 and airbrush system; Acrylic sheet: Accucut: Spellbinders Double End Tags

Thanks for stoppin' by! See you soon! Don't forget to check out the Scrap-Mart Blog this weekend for updates from CHA!

Katie

Coloring with Copics

Sorry I've been MIA. Last week Cody, Shelby and I had strep throat and this week I had the flu! Geez! This has been the worst winter for us, by far. And the crazy thing is we've had some unseasonably warm weather. Perhaps that's why I've been so sick?!

Anywho, I have been building up my stash of Copic markers. I have a few of the Ciao's and a few of the Sketch markers. Like them both. I also have the airbrush system which is totally cool! I purchased some Gina K. stamps a while back and haven't really been able to play with them much. I made one card when I first got them and then nothing.

So, I'll start by showing you the card:

I used my a combination of the Sketch and Ciao markers to achieve the colors I wanted. For the giraffe's spots, I colored with Sketch marker R20 (Flesh) then added Ciao E37 (Sepia) and colored yet again with R20 to lighten to the desired color. For the rest of the giraffe, I colored with Sketch E00 (Skin White). I wanted a softer, non-yellow look for her and I'm happy with the results. I'm new to coloring with Copics...for that matter, I'm pretty new to stamping! I've learned alot from Carolyn King and I also read the Copic Blog then of course, there's always trial and error. I think I colored this giraffe 3 times before I got it right!

I LOVE these markers. And, even for a non-stamper, there's uses for them. You can use them for shading and coloring in your die cuts as well. There's no better way to get a custom embellishment! They retail for roughly $6 each. I know it sounds like a lot but I promise you they're worth every cent! If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them for you and if I don't know the answer, I'll find out! If you're looking for a place that carries them, hop on over to Scrap-Mart. They have a wide variety of the Sketch markers in stock.

Thanks for stoppin' by today! Next Friday I'm heading out to CHA with my friend Laura at Scrap-Mart. It's my first CHA so I'm super excited! I going to be on celeb-watch too! You can check out the Scrap-Mart Blog while we're gone to see all the great new stuff! We'll be bringing regular updates straight from CHA! I will be back Monday with another Copic project!

Materials used: Patterned Paper: Sassafrass Lass; Cardstock and ribbon: American Crafts; Stamps: Gina K. Desings, Just So Hippy; Spellbinders Long Scallop and Regular Rectangles and Double End Tags; Copics; other: rhinestone, Diamond Glaze, string.

Katie

Okay, so Monday came...

and went and I failed to post. I'm sorry! I have no real excuses other than life. My retreat was awesome! I love hanging out at The Scrappin' Pad. Christi goes out of her way to create a relaxing atmosphere with great food and all the ammenities. Thanks Chrisit for a great weekend!

Now, I have to admit that I didn't get nearly as much done as I had hoped or planned but I do have projects to share. First up is my niece, Rylee's, birthday card. She just turned 1! Happy Birthday Baby Rylee!

I added lots of layers to this card. The patterned paper is Pink Paislee and the cardstock is the new AC Cardstock. I used the Quickutz Revolution Label, the 12" Scallop Border and the 2x2 Crown. The Crown was cut from Making Memories Shimmer Paper. I LOVE this stuff! Notice the zig zag faux stitching? I cut a small strip from an acrylic sheet and ran it through my Cuttlebug with the zig zag from the Cuttlebug Embossing Borders. Then I turned it over and filled the indention in with pink Perfect Pearls. I love the look! The title was cut with the Quickutz Moolight 4x8 font. As you can see I added some cardstock inside to complete it. I don't always do this to every card but I decided it would be a nice touch with this one.

The next thing I have to share is actually kind of a sneak peak. It's a closeup of another card I made.

You can see the full card and read the details on the Scrap-Mart blog.

Thanks for stoppin' by today! Cody, Shelby and I all have Strep Throat so I will not make any promises on when I'll post again...but I plan on soon! I have more projects to share with you!

Katie

Happy New Year!

I like to wish you all a Happy New Year! I hope your 2009 is filled with family, friends, love and happiness! I'm off to spend the day with my family. Tomorrow I'm heading off for a weekend retreat at The Scrappin' Pad so I'll be back next Monday with some great projects for you. I'm also picking up my Quickutz December release tomorrow so I'll have tons of projects with brand new toys! Have a great weekend!

Thanks for stoppin' by!
Katie