Baby bootie love....and some cards too!

Hello Crafty Friends,
We have some dear friends due to have babies in the coming months and I have been busy making some baby boy and girl cards and some sweet baby "booties" using the new Baby Bootie Die Collection  from Papertrey Ink.  I thought I would post a few pictures to share.

 

 We have attended quite a few baby showers with more to come and my Mom was totally out of baby cards so I whipped up quite a few cards using the new "Welcome to the world little Angel" die also.  Love how easy it is to pull a card together in just a couple minutes with the die and some card stock and patterned papers!

Some baby girl cards:

 And some baby boy cards:

 By far my favorite thing is the sweet booties!  I added pink gingham ribbon bows to the little girl pair!  I just love how sweet they are!!!!  

Thanks for taking a look!  I am going to link this post to Darnell's NBUS (Never Before Used Schtuff) challenge over at djkardkreations. 

Darnell is such an inspiration and she has definitely inspired me to shop and use my stash!  Thanks Darnell!   I truly am always trying to use the schtuff that is sitting in my craft room lonely and gathering dust - but lately time has not been on my side as life has been a wee bit BUSY!

The challenge theme is "Anything Goes" with a theme of "Friendship".  The cards and booties above are for new babies that are entering the world and these cards and gifts will be opened by some very dear girl friends and that is what friendship is all about!  What a blessing it is to welcome new life into the world!

I hope you will join in Darnell's first challenge that also celebrates her reaching 500 followers on her blog!
Congratulations Darnell!  And thanks for the inspiration!
:) Jill

Hello....and Happy Father's Day Weekend!

Hello Friends,
Wow!!!! It has been a LONG time since I put a blog post up!!!!  My sister's wedding was a wonderful event all the way back at the end of March!

My brother and I took the pictures for the happy couple and here is my favorite photo of the new Mr. and Mrs Paull from the outdoor shots:

 Aren't they a sweet couple!!!!!!

Here is a candid shot of Tim and his Aunt Beth before the ceremony.  We were in the hotel room hiding before the big event because the guests had begun to arrive...I forget what song they were singing now....

It was a lovely event and we all had a wonderful time!  I was busy processing photos and then some other things came up including touring and selecting a new school for Tim to go to next year.  To be honest I cannot believe it is already June!  School gets out here in Seattle on June 19th!  We cannot wait!  Summer is on its way to the Pacific Northwest!

Father's Day is this weekend and I found zero cards in my stash so this afternoon Tim and I came downstairs to our little art studio in the basement and tried to remember how to make cards!  LOL!  I made a very basic card and felt very rusty while doing so!  Tim however did a WONDERFUL job using my copics and stamps!  Here is what he made for his Grandpa Wendell, Stuart's Father, who we are off to visit this weekend:

The sweet puppy dog and sentiment are from a Sweet N Sassy Stamp set from 2012 called - you guessed it - "Gone Fishin".   Tim wanted the sentiment to look like it was caught on the hook at the end of the line.  I love the way he colored the background and made a sun and cloud as well as a fishing pond and ground.  He worked really hard on this card and I am so proud of him for finishing it!  He has some fine motor and processing skill issues which we go to therapy for each week and he has made great strides this year!  I know that his Grandpa will enjoy receiving it!


Here is the very basic card I made for my Dad using some Lil Inker dies:

 On the inside I added a wonderful sentiment from a Waltzing Mouse Stamp Set called "Man of the Hour"
The sentiment says:  "The Greatest Gift I ever had Came from God I call him DAD".   I love the sentiments in this set!!!  Sorry I did not take a photo of it!  I love the graphic feel of it!

I hope you all enjoy time with the special men in your lives this weekend! And if you, like Tim and I, are missing that special someone I hope that warm memories bring peace to your heart.  I know that we will be sending big hugs to Papa Stuart up in heaven and remembering some wonderful times that we were blessed to have shared with him!

Hugs,
Jill and Tim and our Angel Papa Stuart! :)   

Grow old along with me the best is yet to be.....

Nothing like a little Robert Browning poem to start of my post today.  So beautiful!

I am here with a super fast post....some of you may know that my little sister Beth is getting married very soon....and between wedding preparations, school tours for my son and some other things that are going on in my extended family my crafting time is very limited at the moment.  AND I miss it!!!!  But family always comes first so I am only crafting for the wedding currently with the hope of getting everything done in time!
Cross your fingers for me!!!!

So....thought I would share really quickly some photos of what I have been working on:

Table Reserves for the reception:

 I used some of the lovely gold tape from the first Papertrey Ink "Make it Market Kit" along the bottom of the tent. 

I also used some of the kit items to create a wedding card:

 Betsy had some lovely ideas on her blog for using the kit and I tried adding some gold embossing powder to the two feathers that I added to this card for my sister and new brother-in-law.  There wedding theme and colors are all about nature with greens, copper, gold, and cream along with sedums and various flowers and ferns. 

I think I need to do something more to make the sentiment pop more.  But if I run out of time this card will do just fine for them as I know they will love it and to be honest I am so busy I may not have time to make another!

Here are some of the many pictures I took at Beth's Bridal Shower.  I am trying to finish an album for her as part of her wedding gift:

This is my beautiful Mother Jackie with my sister Beth - the beautiful Bride-to-Be: 

She had just opened her gifts from my Mom and Dad which included this handkerchief that comes from my Great Grandmother who emigrated from Italy through Ellis Island.  We all choked up and I was so happy I got this photo! 

 My sisters Natalie and Diana did an incredible job with the decorations and the food!!!

 One of my favorite things that they did were these hanging sedum planters on fishing line coming down from the sky light!!!!  GORGEOUS!!!

 Veggies in dip inside baguette sections: 

 This is just one of the desserts that were served:

 My youngest sister Diana created this incredible tea bar because my sister Beth loves her herbal teas!:

 

The picture below is from left to right:  My mother Jackie, my youngest sister Diana, the bride-to-be Beth Ann and my older sister Natalie:

 And since I was doing all of the photography one of my sister's snapped this picture of Natalie and I.  We were born on January 12th and January 14th almost Irish twins - we missed it by 2 days.  We are often mistaken for each other though I think we look so different!   But what fun!!!

 And here are some of the girls gathered around our sweet Beth as the party was getting under way.   On the left is my oldest brother Tony's sweet girlfriend Gillian!  We are hoping she will be the next one to be a bride!!!!  :)

 My little sister Joanna and our friend Heidi are on the right side of Diana.  Joanna is Beth's wedding coordinator!  She is incredible!!!!

It was a beautiful day!!!!  My sisters are all so wonderfully artisitic and talented!!!!  I can't wait until we all bring everything we are creating for Beth and Jimmy together at the wedding!  It should be an incredibly beautiful event for them and all of us.  Not to mention a TON OF FUN! 

Well I really have to run now.....thanks for taking a look!  Marybeth I am still praying!!!!  GREAT BIG HUGS!!!!!!! 

Jill

Sending Springtime Hugs....The Shabby Tea Room - week #209

Good Monday Morning to you friends!
I am here today with my design team post for The Shabby Tea Room - week #209.  This week's host is Aneta with the theme of "Spring is Near" and this lovely inspiration photo:

Aneta asks that you create a card or project inspired by the photo and INCLUDE BABY BLUE, BIRDS AND SPRING FLOWERS.  

Here is my card:

  The "baby blue" and "flower" elements are obvious but I thought I would add a detail shot to show the "birds" which are from an embossing folder.  I embossed a piece of vellum with the birds and butterflies folder and then added some color with some aqua blue ink on the birds and some kraft ink around the edge of the vellum. 

 The sweet wheelbarrow is a digital cut file from our sponsor this week:  - The Cutting Cafe!  
I used the pdf version and hand cut the wheelbarrow for my card.   I love how sweet it looks filled with flowers!  The sentiment on my card is from a Paper Sweeties stamp set called:  Sending Springtime.

The Cutting Cafe is your one stop shop for affordable cutting files and printable stamps. They offer a huge selection of products for just about any occasion. 

Thanks for taking a look at my project for this week. I hope you will hop on over to The Shabby Tea Room to see all of the inspiration for this week's challenge and to hopefully join in the fun!
 Have a great week everyone!
:) Jill

Egg-stra Sweet Easter Wishes! Week #208 at The Shabby Tea Room

Hello my friends and Happy Monday!
I am here with my design team post for week #208 at The Shabby Tea Room!  This week Debbie is our host and she has chosen the theme of "Pretty Polka-dots" along with this beautiful photo for inspiration:

 Debbie asks that we create a card or project inspired by the photo and include polka dots!

Our sponsor this week is Debbie's lovely company "Paper Sweeties"!   The winner of this week's challenge will receive a $20.00 gift certificate to the Paper Sweeties boutique!  A lovely prize indeed!!!!

Here is my design team project for this week:

I used the sweet "Abigail stamp and die bundle" along with the stamp set called "Jelly Bean Time" to create my card.  After stamping and die cutting Abigail I also snipped along the edge of her arms so that I could have her hold an Easter egg.  I placed some pop dots under the egg to create lots of dimension!

Here is a close-up view of her arms and the Easter eggs. I added some glossy accents to the eggs to make them shine!  For my polka dots I used an embossed mat as well as this lovely pink and cream polka dot paper.  All of the patterned papers on this card are from a 2011 Crate paper 6x6 pad called "Pretty Party".  I love the papers in this collection!  So sweet!

Thanks for taking a look at my card.  I hope you will head over to The Shabby Tea Room to see what the entire team and guest designers have created to inspire you this week.  I look forward to seeing your take on this week's inspiration.   And a great big thank you to everyone that participated last week!  Gorgeous projects my friends!  GORGEOUS!!!!!  Congratulations to the winners too!
Hugs,
Jill

Spring is Sprung!!!! SSCB#28 - Sheet Music or Newsprint

 
Hello Friends,
Are we all ready to be able to say those words - "Spring has Sprung!"  I am!  But they are predicting some snow in Seattle this weekend again so we may not be quite there yet.  But as it is March 1st today we can at least begin looking forward to it for sure!!!!  We actually had a wee bit of sun on a couple of days this week which was very welcome!  Here in Seattle the chances to soak up some vitamin D in the winter can be few and far between.  It always brings a smile when the sun shines down!

I am here with a card for the Serendipity Stamps Challenge Blog.  This month's challenge is to use either sheet music or newsprint on your card.  I used a lovely digital paper with some newsprint on it from Iralamija Shop on ETSY and started creating.  I chose to make this sweet new bunny die from Serendipity Stamps the focal point of my card along with their lovely "Spring is Sprung" sentiment!  So perfect as we get ready for spring! 

Thanks for taking a look at my card!  Happy Weekend everyone! 
:) Jill

Showering my sister Beth with love...Week #207 at The Shabby Tea Room:

Hello Friends,
Happy Monday everyone!  I am here with two cards created for The Shabby Tea Room - week #207.  This week Tina is our creative host and she has chosen the theme of 'Wishy Washi' along with this beautiful photo for inspiration!   Tina asks that you create a card or project inspired by the photo and INCLUDE WASHI TAPE!

I was inspired by the cream, greens, and pinks at the bottom of the photo.  Are you wondering where I used my washi tape on my designs above.  Here is a process photo:

 I layered strips of Washi tape onto white cardstock and then die-cut my mats with the taped pieces.  I love that putti colored polka dotted one!  So sweet! 

 Both of these cards were given to my sweet younger sister Beth at her bridal shower this past weekend.  She loves nature and earth tones as well as the color green.  I tried to incorporate her colors into the cards.

This week our sponsor is:   Digital Papers by Janet Etsy!     I used a digital file from our sponsor called "Flower Strips".  I cut the strips from two sheets and layered three of the designs onto some copy weight paper with glue.  I then diecut my large mat and saved the outside or negative piece to create the second card:

 I was having a very difficult time getting my photos to show true colors outside as it was a very dark and overcast day when I took these here in Seattle.  Here are some indoor shots under artificial lighting:

I am not sure which photos are better but I thought I would share both.  The cards definitely look better in real life - as usual!  This card is kraft cardstock with a layer of embossed vellum over the top.  The "wedding couple" stamps I used are from two sets at Paper Sweeties:  Live, Laugh, Love and Wedding Day.  The sentiment "Celebrating You Today" is from a PTI set.  I was trying to find a Wedding Shower" sentiment but do not think I have one in my stash so I had to get creative!

Thanks so much for taking a look at my cards!  I hope you will hop over to The Shabby Tea Room to look at all of the projects from the design team and our guests!  We would love to have you join us in the Tea Room this week! 

:) Jill

Baby Shower Party Time at The Shabby Tea Room

Hello Friends,
Here for another week of creativity and inspiration at The Shabby Tea Room. 

This week Linda is our creative host and she has chosen the theme of 'Baby Shower Party' along with this beautiful photo for inspiration! 

    Linda asks that you create a BABY card or project inspired by the the photo!


  The Shabby Girls are pleased to welcome our sponsor - Creations by AR!

Creations by AR is all about paper crafting specializing in 3D templates, cutting files and digital images. Visit Creations by AR for inspiration!  And be sure to check out the discount code at The Shabby Tea Room post to save 10% this week!

I chose to work with Creations by AR's lovely template called "Baby Onesies Box and Card Set".  Here are some additional pictures of my project:

I first made a boy onesie and a girl onesie. I love the little ducklings on the tummy area of the toile pattern of the boy outfit.  And you know how I love my gingham!  So pink gingham and lace seemed perfect for the girl outfit with some rose cabochons.

 Here is the girl outfit with the coordinating favor box.  I used a Paper Sweeties stamp set called "Occasions" for the "Hello Baby" sentiment. 

 Here is a picture of the back of the little onsie favor box - I think this is my favortie part of my projects for this week....a sweet little pair of velvet angel wings with a twine bow and some pretty pink lace!

 Another view of the boy onesie:

Thanks for taking a look at my projects for The Shabby Tea Room - week 206.  Come and see all of the beautiful inspiration from our guest designers and Shabby Girl's Design Team!  We would love to have you join us in the Tea Room!  I sure enjoyed all of the beautiful projects uploaded this past week!  It is such a pleasure to visit your blogs and see what you are creating and how you are inspired by each week's inspiration photo or sketch!  Happy Monday Everyone!!!! Have a great week!

And one last thing before I go.  Seattle received some snow, our first of the winter this past weekend.  To say that my son was overjoyed is a VAST UNDERSTATEMENT!  I think he did a happy dance for over 10 minutes and I am sure that neighbors 5 blocks away could hear him!  LOL!  I know that many of you are suffering through bitter cold and bad weather over many weeks of this winter season.  Here in Seattle we are getting concerned for a drought as we have had unseasonably dry weather here.  Normally it just rains every single day - not this winter.  Anyway...I thought I would share a couple of photos of my little one enjoying the snow:

Sledding down the hill by our house:

 Rolling a giant snowball to add to the fort they were building:

 Posing with the Seahawk snowman that all the neighbors kids helped build:

So blissfully happy about that snowman - I was so thrilled I caught this moment on film!:

I got some wonderful shots of all of the neighbors enjoying the day!  We were outside from 9:00AM until almost 1:00PM playing as it was melting fast!  It was almost completely gone the next day!  

Thanks for looking! :)

Crafty Hugs,

Jill