I'm SO excited!

I just got the most exciting email I've ever received-I'm going to be published for the first time ever! One of my cards is going to be published in the January 2010 issue of Cards magazine! I can't stop smiling! :D

This is perfect timing, as my daughter Jordan pointed out, since today is my last day working at A Time to Remember. The store has been sold and I have decided not to continue teaching classes there.

More exciting news, though-my classes and kits will still be available through my new business, ShareCroppers. I will be offering kits (complete with all materials and instructions, along with photos of the finished projects here on my blog.) New kits will be available on the 1st and 15th of each month, beginning on Monday with our Charter Member Kit. I will also be hosting a monthly crop at the end of each month where scrappers and cardmakers can get together. (More info on the crops will be available soon. The first crop will be at the end of September.) Please tune in on Monday for full details and to check out the first kit.

So lots of exciting things are happening here today. I'll keep you all posted (as long as my laptop cooperates!)

Sorry for the lack of projects posted here lately-my laptop died, was repaired, then died again this morning. Unfortunately, that's where all of my photos and photo-editing programs are. Hopefully she'll be healthy again soon! :)

It's my anniversary today...

so I'm sharing a little card I made for my hubby. Before I tell you about the card, let me tell you about the recipient. My husband Donny is seriously the absolute best husband there is. I honestly don't know where I would be without him, and I definitely wouldn't be as happy as I am. We always tell eachother about little coincidences that happen and make us think about eachother. Then we joke about how we were just made for eachother.

Which brings me to the card. When I saw this line of paper come in at the store on Friday, I knew I would be using it for his anniversary card. This line is called Early Bird, and it is from Cosmo Cricket. The embellishment on the front is simply patterned paper, which I trimmed and adhered to my card with foam squares. I added some stitching, inked the edges and tied a little button on the front for dimension. The button is actually a clear button with a circle punched from patterned paper behind it. I also added a little felt "&" from American Crafts, which I machine-stitched it in between the Salt and Pepper.

Thanks for looking!

Oh, and congratulations to all of the winners from the Anniversary Celebration held Saturday at A Time to Remember! Our grand prize winner was Carma Stevens, and class winners were Barb Welch and Donna Patten. Thanks for another great year!

Pop-up Card

I made this pop-up card yesterday with my new Club SEI kit. The papers were just beautiful-nice heavy quality, double sided and glittered! I love that the kit also included the coordinating embellishments. Lots of transparencies, ribbon, silk flowers and adhesive pearls, which I love. This line is called Kalia. I think it's a Club SEI exclusive. You can check out their site HERE.

This card lays flat so that it will fit in a regular envelope. But the great part is that when you slide it open, the sleeve folds into a box shape which allows the card to stand alone. What a great way to showcase your handmade card. Everyone I know saves their handmade cards-wouldn't you love to know they keep them on display, too? You could even make this a photo card by replacing the sentiment die-cut with a small photo. Perfect for grandparents!

Thanks for looking! Remember, if you're in our area on Saturday, please stop in to A Time to Remember! It's our 2nd Anniversary Celebration tomorrow from 10-4. We have some great new stuff that just arrived, and will have some great make-and-takes and prizes. Have a great weekend!

Just cardstock...

and a little bit of ribbon on this card, but I think it's one of my favorites. I started with 2 Cricut shapes (the scalloped square from the Celebrations cartridge) and adhered the tops together to form a card. The back shape is scored after the first scallop so that the front of the card stays flat. Then I layered on square die cuts (also from the Celebrations cartridge), one of which was embossed and sanded. The sanding revealed the ivory core (this was Core'dinations cardstock.) The Queen Anne's Lace is from the Home Accents cartridge, and the butterflies were punched using a Martha Stewart punch. I folded one of the butterflies in half to give it a bit of dimension. A bit of ribbon and voila!

Cardstock is one of my favorite papercrafting supplies because it is so cheap and it comes in just about any color imaginable. So if you're looking for a budget-friendly handmade card, look to your cardstock. Even some scraps can turn into an elegant card with a few little details. This is a pretty generic card, too, so it could be personalized with just about any sentiment. I think it would actually be perfect for a sympathy card or a "thinking of you" card.

Thanks for looking!

New from Pebbles Inc.

Pebbles, Inc. has been one of my favorite companies for many years. We carry several of their lines at A Time to Remember. This is a layout that I made using one of Pebbles Inc.'s brand new lines, Lil' Miss. I was fortunate enough to receive this entire line as a gift from Pebbles after winning it on their blog.

These pictures are of Jordan on our trip to Walt Disney World. I just loved these ones of her getting stage makeup at MGM Studios. She chose a butterfly design-so pretty. It was amazing to watch these makeup artists from start to finish-so talented.

This layout was made using a sketch from http://www.mysketchworld.blogspot.com/. I rotated the sketch to better suit my photos, and I substituted three photos for the two shown in the original sketch.

Thanks for checking it out! I'll be back later with a sneak peek of my next card class at A Time to Remember, called "Cricut Die-Cut Cards." We will be making six shaped cards, which are some of my favorite kinds of cards-so personalized. Off now to enjoy the weather-NO RAIN! :)

It's a Shore Thing...

I just love this line from Imaginisce. It's called "A Shore Thing"-isn't this little hula-dancing penguin just the cutest? This is a sneak peek of the card that we will be making from our layout scraps in next Tuesday's class. The class will also include two 12 X 12 layouts that would be perfect for summer, beach or pool party photos. (if we ever get some sun to actually go to the beach or pool!)

Can you believe it's raining AGAIN? The other day on the news, the weatherman said that it had rained here for 20 out of the past 28 days. Well, it's rained every day since then, so those numbers are even larger now. He said this morning it has been the rainiest June on record here in Maine, beating the old record by over an inch. Not a record I'm interested in beating. :(

Hopefully this summery card will inspire you to create a warm-weather project, even if you aren't having warm weather right now. If you need more inspiration, join us next Tuesday, July 7th, for our "Shore Thing" class! There are still spots available-call A Time to Remember at 474-2380 to register.

Off to make birthday plans-Jordan turns 14 later this week, and we are planning our "special day" together. Looks like a girls-only trip to the mall and to Olive Garden for lunch so far. Can't go wrong with shopping and iced cappuccinos!

A Sneak Peek...

at Tuesday night's paper-piecing class at A Time to Remember. Our theme is "Summer in Maine" and we have a variety of projects planned. This sneak peek is an oversized die-cut tag in the popular label holder shape. The front of the tag is embossed with Swiss Dots and features three lupine flowers, a familiar sight here in Maine. This tag can be used on a scrapbook page or as a wallhanging (simply back it with chipboard for extra stability) or you can do what I did and turn it into a die-cut card. I'll be sharing this technique in class, too.
Our other two projects are 12 X 12 scrapbook pages. One is of the Maine coast, featuring a lighthouse, whale, and possibly the cutest lobster I've ever seen (if I do say so myself!) Our second layout has an amusement park theme, making it perfect for your pages about Funtown or one of the local fairs.
We still have four spots available for this class, so if you're interested, please call A Time to Remember at 474-2380 or email us at atimetoremember@rocketmail.com to reserve your space. See you tomorrow night!