Punk Lolly

I have a great niece turning 7 today. She requested a very specific birthday card. She wanted purple and pink hair, shiny stuff, flowers and a rocker look. She had WAY more info but she made the request late last week and I've been studying so the old info was replaced with new info. I hope I got it right! :) lol

The image is from The Paper Shelter and is called Punk Lolly. I didn't plan to show it on here but I liked the final product so much, I. Had. To! :)

These are the Copic markers I used to color the image:

Purples: V05, V06

Pinks: RV04, R32, R43, R20, R01

Blacks: N06, N08

Skin tone: E00, E11, R20

I used a silver gel pen for the laces on the boots and the spikes I imagine are on the belt and bracelet. All paper, card stock, ribbon, twine and buttons are from my stash. The rhinestones are from Hobby Lobby. I made the label from HOTP's Design Tool Kit #4. The sentiment is from Raisin Boat's Gals on Masterpiece Place clear stamp set. I added some shimmer to the hair with Stickles in Tropical Tangerine.

I think this turned out to be such a fun card! I hope my niece likes it. Thanks for stopping by! Please, as always, leave a comment so I'll know you were here. :)

For a Friend

Geez... I can't help but feel a little naked. :) lol No challenges... no DT image to share... this time... it was all about someone else. :)

I made this card for no other reason than to send it to a specific person. I have a friend who has a MIL with Alzheimer's Disease... a mutual friend offered to send the MIL a card to lift her spirits and let her know someone was thinking of her. I thought it was a great idea too and here I am. :)

I should also mention... I was paying a LOT of attention to detail on this card... I may have gotten carried away by the idea! :-\ 

I used two images for this card... as I wrote... I may have gotten carried away with the detail. lol This first image is from Beccy's Place and it's called ever so appropriately, Birdhouse with Heart and Bow. :)

These are the Copic markers I used to color the image:

Browns: E35, E33, E31, E18, E15, E13

Blues: B23, B24

Reds: R37, R47, RV69

Blacks: N008

This is the front of the card...

The background card stock is from The Storyteller's Club and flowers are from Michael's $1 bins. The ribbon, two blue card stocks and printed paper are from my stash.

I forgot to take a picture of the second image. It is from Meljen's Design Studios. It's actually two images layered together... both from Meljen's. I layered Love Bird on top of Garden Flower Frame. Recently, I had actually purchased two of the most adorable bird images, Little Bird's Song and Little Bird's Shower, to use for this card. I then remembered I had already arranged this image to use on the card. lol I guess I should STOP buying everything I like! I also inserted a sentiment using Microsoft Word. This is the inside of the card...

The flower is from my stash and the rhinestone is from Hobby Lobby. I added sparkle to both images with Stickles in Aqua. On the image inside of the card I also used Stickles in Tropical Tangerine, Yellow and Firefly and Liquid Pearls in Buttercup for the centers of the flowers. I used the same colors as listed above in addition to the following Copic markers:

Greens: YG41, YG45

Pinks: R32, R43

Yellows: Y02, Y04, Y16

Grays: N02

Thanks for stopping by! Please leave a comment so I'll know you were here. :)

It's Got to be Red!

I've posted a card to Scrapbook Stamp Society featuring Mitzi Sato-Wiuff's Las Calaveras. I find this to be a very powerful image. You can read all about this project here. 

Here is my card:

Thanks for stopping by!

Karber - Coffee Denny

Another card I put together after spending all afternoon studying anatomy. My brain needed a rest and I thought what better way to relax than to sit a spell and color and glue paper together. :) Always makes me happy! :)

This is Coffee Denny from Karber Digital Images. These are the Copic colors I used to color the image:

Blues: B23, B24, B00, B04

Browns: E18, E15

Grays: N00, N02

Skin tone: E00, E11, R20

Here is the card:

The coffee bean paper is from Hot Off the Press. The card stock and printed paper is from my stash. I used some Robin's Nest dew drops to add some glitz to the card. I originally added a sentiment using Word but as I was putting her together I realized the saying did not go "Let's talk java" but instead "Let's talk a latte" because on the inside it reads "I like coffee a latte and I love you a latte." That's what made me realize I used the wrong coffee term on the front. haha... I was kinda tired when I was printing this out... lesson learned! :)

Thanks for stopping by! Please leave a comment so I'll know you were here. :)

Karber - Cupcake Denny

No challenge today. I could try to find one... but I've been studying anatomy all day and I am tuckered out. I did want to share an image I colored and turned into a card. I used a Karber Digital Image called Cupcake Denny. 

These are the Copic markers I used to color the image:

Blues: B23, B24

Blacks: N08, N06

Red: R42

Pinks: R20

Grays: N00

Skin tone: E00, E11 and R20

Inkssentials Glossy Accents give dimension to her eyes and Stickles in Diamonds was added to the lace trimming of her apron. I used Liquid Applique in pink on the cupcakes and sprinkled neon pink Art Glitter to add more shimmer. I inserted the sentiment "Got milk?" with Word and on the inside it reads "Never mind... I ate the cupcakes on the way over." It's a card for my sister and it's based on an inside joke. :)

Here is the card:

I used card stock, printed paper and ribbon from my stash. The doily is from Michael's and the rhinestones are from Hobby Lobby. 

Slowly but surely... I am dwindling away at my long-hoarded stash. :)

Thanks for stopping by and please leave a comment so I'll know you were here. :)

Alicia's Craft Blog

Alicia Alva of Alicia's Craft Blog asked me to make a card for her blog! Can you believe it? Of course... I said YES! lol I don't have enough to do what with going to school full time and all but I love her images. You can find these images at her shop, Alicia's Little Shop.

So here's the image she sent me...

These are the Copic markers I used to color her with:

Browns: E18, E15, E13, E31, E33, E35

Blues: B04, B23, B24

Grays: N00, N02, N04

Blacks: N06, N08

Greens: YG41, YG45

Skin tone and eyes: E00, E11, E13 and E15, E18

Pinks: R20, R32, R01

Yellows: Y02, Y06, Y13, Y19, YR15, YR23

Red: RV29

The sentiment is from Ginger's House. I love Ginger's blog! Besides the great, free sentiments she offers... she also writes some great posts. When I grow up... I want to write like her! :) lol

Here's the card all put together:

I used Storyteller's card stock, pink bead swirls are Basic Grey, large pink beads are Studio 112 from Joann's, flowers are from Hobby Lobby, printed paper is from Hot Off the Press and pink card stock and ribbon are from my stash. I applied some Inkssentials Glossy Accents on the blue in her earrings and necklace to make the turquoise stone pop more... because... yes... she wears turquoise jewelry. :)

I also took a picture of it open and here it is...

I had fun with this card and I really like this image! I like the versatility of the image! I can use it for school girl images, keeping in touch with friends far away... even for sending birthday greetings across town! :)

Thanks for stopping by! As always, please leave a comment so I'll know you were here. :)

Cupcakes for my Sweet!

I wrote before about participating in the awesome monthly digi stamp club I found here. Well, here I am with this month's digi image, Cupcake Lineup, and how appropriate! Just in time for Valentine's Day! I normally do not partake in the whole retail hype for this day. I am one who thinks if I love someone... I can show them my love any day of the year... but my daughter recently moved back home and regardless of how anxious I am to send her back out to live on her own again... ;) lol ... I did want to gift her something special for Valentine's Day... I get these vibes maybe she needs extra loving from mom this year...

Here is the colored image...

These are the Copic markers I used to color the image:

Browns: E11, E13, E15, E18

Reds: R32, R46

Pinks: R01, R20

Here is a close up of the "special effects" ... ;) lol ... with Inkssentials Glossy Accents for the "cherries" and Liquid Applique for the "white frosting"...

I really like how the frosting came out too! I added Crystal Snow from Stampendous to add shimmer to the frosting. Here is the card...

I used card stock and rhinestones from my stash. I added Crystal Snow in a squiggle line of glue around the edges of the mat just to add some shimmer. I love shimmer! ;) The rhinestones are from this HUGE tub of rhinestones I purchased at Hobby Lobby. 

Faith Skrdla changed the name of her store from Designed2Delight to From the Heart but it's still the same awesome place! ;) 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Here I Am!

Ssooo... I've been gone for two weeks! Did you notice? Did anyone notice? :-\ I hope someone noticed! I'll tell you and SHOW you where I've been.

Before I do... I should also share with you how incredibly discouraged I was last Friday when I got out of the hospital... actually... that's not true... I was discouraged up until this morning. :-\

If you've followed me since the beginning, you would have been with me through many ups and downs... particularly my near fatal automobile accident back on November 7, 2009. I walked away from an accident many people don't. My daughter was told the first night was a turning point. If I survived the night.... I could make it. I was left with many scars from that accident. I have a small scar on my right shoulder area between my shoulder and breast. I'm sure there's a technical anatomical word for it but I barely started anatomy and I am not sure what it is and I don't want to look it up right now. I have a story to tell! So I have that scar... it's from where a tube was inserted so I could breath because the right lung was punctured during the accident. I like to show it off and I tell people I had a third nipple removed if they don't know I was in an accident. lol :) Yes! I sometimes DO show it to complete strangers! I also have a scar on my temple along the hair line on the right as well and this scar causes pain when temperatures are extreme... YES! Extreme heat and extreme cold... imagine my surprise when it pained me during the summer... I just assumed it would do that during the winter... and I had surgery on my right eye to correct the tosis of the eye and this left me with what I affectionately call my wild cock-eyed look. Makes my sisters laugh... not sure why... but it is a wild cock-eyed look. :-\

Ssooo... as I am recovering from the accident over the next year and collecting the insurance checks... total of $35K... I start exhibiting symptoms I assumed were "leftovers" from the accident... I lost almost 20 pounds in two months... WHAT woman wouldn't like that? I also had a job I loved become one that I dreaded. No ONE PERSON would like that! All it took was a change in management. :( So... some of these symptoms were attributed to stress and depression. Oh... I also had my heart broken... :'( So the fatigue, headaches and constant nauseated feeling I had were all due to depression... I told the doctor this and he didn't push the testing. My legs started hurting me. I kid you not! I was scared going up and down the three steps into my home. At times, my son had to support me. When I saw the doctor... he thought it might have to do something with the weight gain I was putting back on. He could run more tests but I didn't want to take time off from work. My new supervisor was a monster and insisted I be at the office Every. Single. Day! He went so far as to suggest I should only get sick on the weekends! Can you believe that? I started developing infections easily. I had pimples on my face... three to be exact... that became monstrous infections! One after another... for the next year I slowly became a hermit. Turning down dates because of the fatigue, headaches, nausea, skin infections, leg muscle and joint pain, unexplained fevers and pain in my abdomen. It all came to a head on August 18, 2011 when I went to the doctor absolutely positive I had worked myself up to high blood pressure. It runs in our family so I was positive this was the cause of the headaches and shortness of breath I was experiencing that day. Instead... it was something completely different and you can read about that here or here or even here... I was declared in remission September 19, 2012. One day after my 51st birthday. Yes! That is how I celebrated my 50th birthday... newly diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia... or CML... either way you spell it... scary words... or letters. :-\ 

After I was declared in remission... even after I was diagnosed... I never doubted I would be OK. The optimist in me maybe? I've always seen life with the glass as half full... nothing really bad has ever happened to me... I would survive whatever I had thrown at me. I did not EVER once doubt... God. Would. Heal. Me. EVER! I will admit I was often VERY impatient... I wanted to be healed right away... but God lead me along and healed me when I was ready... in time to return to college to finally become a nurse... I had decided I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. :)

Then two weeks ago... I developed symptoms I thought were related to a spider bite... turns out it was cellulitis! I'm forever meant to be susceptible to infections because of the leukemia... the gift that keeps on giving! The leukemia also brought out rosacea. :-\ Sure! Why not!?! A test to my vanity! Ugh! My one and only fault... vanity! lol ;) I always had someone act shocked that I would say that... they always questioned that because of my weight. :-\ Really? Fat people cannot be vain? Fat has NOTHING to do with that! Anyway... do you want to see something gross?? Let me show you...

Haha! Hospital food! I really thought I would lose weight after a week in the hospital because I went in Monday afternoon and left Friday afternoon and these are the ONLY meals I was able to eat... the rest of the time it was Jell-O gelatin and pudding and OceanSpray apple juice. I didn't think about the IV! Anyway... that really is NOT the gross part of the hospital stay... do you have a strong stomach? I hope you haven't eaten recently... here is the gross part...

the bright pink dot on the bottom of the thigh... it's not part of the cellulitis... it's the sun light peeking in from the blinds... just lighting...

I went back to school last week feeling ever so discouraged... questioning why I was in school and was this even something I was meant to do. But then... I had to weigh myself... I'll tell you why...


So I started school on January 16, 2013. I should also tell you I decided I needed to lose the 65 pounds I put back on over the past two years after I was diagnosed, taking all sorts of meds AND... lucky me... going through menopause on top of everything else!!! :-\ So I went back to school weighing 248... I weighed 265 when I left NH back in March 2008. In 2009 I cut out sodas, white flour and sugar from my diet and lost weight and you can read about that here at the bottom of the post. :) In May of 2010... I had gotten down to 180. I went from a size 26 to a size 16 and at times.... depending on the cut... could squeeze into a size 14. I was happy! :) So right before school started, on January 12th to be exact, I signed up for Weight Watchers online. I was not too happy about it... I didn't like the idea of tracking my food and activities... I knew I definitely did NOT want to do the weekly meetings... NO FREAKING WAY! Excuse my language... I was prepared to NOT like it. But I paid the almost $60 dollars for three months... I figured that's all I really needed to see if it would work... three months.... Today's weigh-in had me at 232.2 pounds! Yes! I can hardly believe it! :) There's no stopping me now!

All of a sudden... the doubts that had been peeking over my shoulder dissipated... I CAN do this! I might have to cut out my entire social life... I might have to completely do away with blogging and Facebooking... YES! That's a word! lol ;) But I CAN do this! I have to just buckle down and get to it. So this is the last post I will blog until spring break which is March 11 through the 15 if you are wondering how long you have to be without me... haha... as if anyone is really even reading this... I consider it more of an online journal. lol I hope my daughter finds it after I've passed on and reads and laughs at the stories and pictures I've shared over the years. For starters... how many people are posting pictures of their back end for all the world to see? OK... it's not really my back end but it may very well be! ;) lol 

If I were braver... I'd show you a picture of me full-length. lol Now that's a scary thought for me! I read a blog recently how we need to photograph ourselves more often. We are the only ones who see how imperfect we are... we are the only ones who critique our every move... others instead see what they love... or notice everything else but the faults we see when we photograph ourselves... except for my sisters... :-\ ... there is always someone who is MORE critical of ourselves and there is NOTHING we can do to change that! Instead... we focus on what we have and you can read how I feel about that here. :)

Thanks for stopping by! As always... I hope you leave a comment and let me know you were here. :)