Simply Tailored

Last week I featured the cards I made my history Professor. Today I'll show you the ones for my math Professor. With these cards I went a lot simpler. Men in general don't like all the glitter and lace. I focused on simple, tailored designs. I also tried to choose holidays I was certain my professor participated in.

Mother's Day or Birthday:

I just love the MME Stella and Rose collection. I knew right away I wanted to use this paper for a Mom card. I added some inking and finger crimping on the edges. I also stamped a border around the edge of the card using the MME clear stamp Remember from the same collection. The sentiment is stamped on vintage paper/velvet ribbon I uncovered at a second hand store.

Father's Day or Birthday:



The patterned paper for this card is from the MME 6x6 pad , All Spice. The tag, ribbon, ink and stamps are Close to My Heart. 

Thank You:

This card features a flocked velvet medallion cut from the MME Lush collection. The patterned paper is from the MME 6x6 pad Paris and Co. Ink and border stamp are CTMH. The sentiment stamp is Hampton Arts.

I used Scrapbook Steals card sketch #58 for the first two cards. You can see it here: http://scrapbooksteals.stealnetwork.com/wp/2011/11/14/american-crafts-hollyday-monday-card-madness-58/

~charity becker~

Fall in a Skillet

My favorite fall food is squash. Just love the solid goodness of it, especially when topped with melted butter and brown sugar! So many meals I sat at Grandma's table, asking for ANOTHER helping of baked squash. Good times. There are, however, many more ways to serve this wholesome food. Here's a dish that warms you all the way through, try it out after your next leaf raking party.

Fall Skillet

1 lb Maple Sausage

2 cups apple, chopped

1 cup butternut squash

 (baked and cubed or mashed)

2 teaspoons Cardamon

2 teaspoons Cinnamon

2 tablespoons Powdered Sugar

Brown sausage over medium heat. Add squash, apple, cinnamon, and cardamom. Simmer 10-15 minutes. Top with powdered sugar.

This dish is fabulous with flakey crescent rolls. And makes a wonderful main dish at a brunch.

Enjoy the last few days of fall!!!

~charity becker~

Golden Afternoon

Webster's Pages products are fabulous, high quality papers with intricate hand drawn accents. My favorite use of WP scraps is fussy cutting. I have envelopes of fussy cut flowers, leaves, and other motifs from my favorite pages. Creative Scrappers sketch # 182 left plenty of room for fussy cut designs. I rifled through my pics and found these adorable images of my sweet girl, picking cherries.

The sketch called for a rectangular shape behind the photos. I choose Pacifica blue ink and blocked out the aproximate shape with a peacock feather stamp (CTMH). The die cut from WP Country Estates fit the sketch perfectly. I traced it onto the base paper (Dream Street Papers) and used my gold paint dabber (Ranger) to smudge out the pencil marks.

The lovely house on this die cut seemed the perfect place to add fussy cut flowers. After inking the edges of the die cut I cut around the top edge of the house with a craft knife. I inked the newly cut edges and  adhered the pictures (matted with vellum) behind the roof line. Then I fussy cut, inked, and finger crimped several roses. After adhering them in a tightly packed line I used Stickles to outline their edges. 

My Lori reminds me of Alice in Wonderland in her dress and blond hair. The title was a play on that feeling. I used Thickers for the title. Those crazy alphas never stay on long enough so I stitched them down. Having a thing for twine, I used some blue Jillibean Soup twine to wrap my photos and tie around the title. For the final touch I inked the edges of my LO and called it good.

Here's the sketch I used:

http://www.creativescrappers.blogspot.com/

Thanks for looking!!!

~charity becker~

Still Catching Up

I had hours and hours of scrapbooking planned for this long weekend. Didn't get quite enough in (is that really possible) but did catch up on my Mid-Week Mojos. Here's Opal #7 completely soaked in MME Lime Twist!!!

The original sketch had 11 photos, I however did NOT. So I ignored some parts of the sketch and substituted others. And by the way, those curvy pieces on the bottom, yep, they are hand drawn. BOOYAH!!!
Here's the sketch by the fabulous Kristy Lee:

Check out the original post here:
http://scrapbooksteals.stealnetwork.com/wp/2011/11/16/echo-park-splash-mid-week-mojo/

~charity becker~

Back to Scrapping

School has been crazy the last two weeks with 3 exams. I've been just WAITING for the long weekend to get here so I could scrap my self to PIECES!!! My first project was to get to the lastest Scrapbook Steals Sketch, Opal #8. I dug through my stash and pulled out some "veterans of the hoard". Poor things have been waiting their turn MUCH too long. Anyway, I used some Kand Company, Sandy Lion, Jolees Boutique, and just a tad of Glitz Design. The unlisted manufacturers? well, some of this I've had so long I don't even remember buying it!!! So hear it is:

The Best Day Ever~

The fabulous sketch from Kristy Lee can be found here: http://scrapbooksteals.stealnetwork.com/wp/2011/11/23/american-crafts-margarita-mid-week-mojo/
Now, back to the scrap room, to revell in my paper goods!!!

~charity becker~

Confession Time

Thanksgiving has always been the most important holiday for my family. I have so many happy memories of driving to Grandma's for dinner. The cousins would already be there and the house smelled DELICIOUS!!! But the work to get things ready for that day was almost TOO much for Mama. By Thanksgiving morning she was pretty frazzled. Who wants to make breakfast for 6 kids when you've been up since 4am?



 So she fed us pie for breakfast...that's right, pie!!! We baked the pies the day before and always made an extra of each flavor. Thursday morning we filled our bellies with the best part of the feast, then loaded up the car to drive to Grandma's.

We live to far to drive to Grandma's for Thanksgiving now, but we haven't let go of family tradition. Bright and early thanksgiving morning we were slicing into our favorite pies and chasing every last crumb. So, that was my admission of guilt, what did you have for breakfast Thanksgiving morning?

~charity becker~

Happy Thanksgiving

pipe cleaner turkey by Annalys

~charity becker~

Roaring 20's Inspired

This term I am taking a Roaring 20's History class. We are just getting into the fun stuff this week, Flappers, Gangsters, and Jazz!!! I am making cards as a Christmas gift for my Professor. The Webster's Pages Hollywood Vogue line is all about glamour, movie stars and following your dreams. It seemed the perfect medium to show my appreciation. Here's what I came up with:

love yourself~

live your dreams~

Dream~

For this last card I added vintage trim:

Love~

Hope she likes 'em!!!

~charity becker~



Joy...coming to a mailbox near you!

Although it may be a little late to participate in a Christmas Card swap, it's certainly not to late to make a few of your own to give to those privileged friends.  But where to start? To make a beautiful card begin with gorgeous paper and throw in a dash of love. It's that simple!

Okay, so maybe you need some inspiration and adhesive to go along with the love. This year try something new. Hot air balloons are traditionally a summer theme, why not take them into December?  Here are some samples to get the creative juices flowing.

Much to my delight the following card has been featured on the Practical Scrappers blog! Check out their blog for more Christmas card inspiration. http://www.practicalscrappers.com/2011/11/christmas-card-inspiration.html

These cards were made with papers from Webster's Pages.

~charity becker~

Christmas Card Swap

What is the best way to come up with several different styles of Christmas cards to send out? By participating in a card swap, of course. Simply make 10 or so of any style, ship them off, and get 10 alternate cards of varying styles in return. My favorite card swap site is Scrapbook Steals. I received my most recent shipment of swap cards last week and let me tell you, they are delightful. See for yourself:

So many wonderful people participated in this swap. As you can see the cards are high-quality, handmade creations. Check out Scrapbooksteals blog for participation info. I could be receiving a card from YOU at their next swap!!!
http://scrapbooksteals.stealnetwork.com/wp/

~charity becker~

50 sounds good right about now!

My dear friend Sonja is turning 50 and we had a fabulous over the hill party for her. The tables were decorated with strings of mardi-gras beads and lots of shiny rhinestone rings. Naturally we took the night out from the kids and talked about...our children. Although she received the prerequisite depends and metamucil from her loving friends, I opted for a card with cash. Here's the one I made for her: 

A little Pink Paislee, a little Theresa Colins and a WHOLE LOT of Webster's Pages!
Happy 50th Sonja. Just SEE if you can live long enough to throw a 50th party for me!

~charity becker~

classic paper lines and a winner

Every week the Webster's Pages Blog has a question of the week. A winner is chosen from the comments and a prize package shipped out. Imagine my delight to check in on the WP blog this week and discover that I was the featured winner!!! SO VERY!

This weeks question is which of the older collections is your favorite. That's a difficult question to answer. Brandin O'Neil of Webster's Pages has a classic yet lavish style when it comes to designing paper. My favorite of all her collections to date is Hollywood Vogue. The colors, the artsy designs, the sheer elegance of this line continually inspires me. Here is Hollywood Vogue as I see it, modeled by my delightful eldest daughter.

so this is LOVE~

Don't Blink...she'll be gone~

Her Champion~

Dream Live Grow~ 

Try out the weekly give away for yourself...after all, someone has to win!!!

http://www.websterspages.typepad.com/

charity becker

Card Social

Thanks to the 69 RG Spouses group I got to snatch a little crafty time in the middle of a crazy week at school!!! We had an all around wonderful night out from the kids / chat session which we called a card making social. A wonderfully organized lady, Jennifer, had supplies set up at three stations. Thanksgiving and Christmas ideas were everywhere. I had time to make some cards for myself and some extras to throw into the "morale" bucket. Here's what I came up with:

These two are my favorites:

Thanks for the inspiration Jennifer!!!

Now it's back to the grind, History exam today and Biology on Monday. With plenty of Algebra homework in between. **sigh**

charity becker

Little Bit-O' Sunshine

Our local Savers (2nd-hand store) had a 50% off sale for Veterans day. We stopped in for a little while and I found this delightful ORANGE sweater.

The perfect bit of sunshine to brighten up a dreary winters day. I especially liked the slits in the cuffs and hem.

They fairly SCREAMED...."alter me!" So I did.

Amazing what a little leather lacing will do for a bright sweater! Hubby says it looks very piraty :)
If North Dakota shines a little brighter this winter, just tell the Weather Man...it's that Little Bit O' Sunshine she calls a sweater!

~charity becker~

For more ideas visit this blog http://abeautifulmess.typepad.com/my_weblog/projects-a-beautiful-mess-diy-index.html .



Stash it!

I find it so enjoyable when a paper line lends itself to layouts that encourage stash usage. My current fav is Daily Junque by Pink Paislee. This line is all about ephemera and bits and pieces. Here it is displayed using a simple sketch from Creative Scrappers and all kinds of goodies from my stash.

And here's a second look at some Junque, this time with a Sketchy Thursdays Sketch!

I got crazy with the embellies and crocheted twine, added beads and even brass butterflies. Even so, the page is holding up well.

If you get a chance to grab some papers from this line do so quickly. They are beautiful and timeless! 

To enhace these already gorgeous papers I used the following supplies:

Tags, Diecuts: 7 Gypsies

Rub ons: TPS, Michael's, Making Memories, 7 Gypsies
Flower: Prima
Dimensional Embelishment: Close to My Heart
Foil Ephemera: making Memories
Stickles

chase away those Migrain blues

Seems I never know WHAT will set off a migrain. Now that I'm in school I can't just stay home all day with a warm blanket in a dark room. I can't just run a hot shower or take a nap when I feel one coming on. But what I can do is reach for a little remedy my friend and I stumbled on by accident. It has been through a few transformations and even has a new name. In Europe it is called Museli. Simply defined as raw granola. In it's altered state we call it Brain Happy.

This is what it looks like:

The ingredients include:

1/2 cup raw oatmeal (old faashioned not quick oats)

1/4 cup slivered almonds or walnuts

1/8 cup of shredded coconut

1 Tablespoon Chocolate chips (preferably Hershey's Special Dark)

2 Teaspoons Flaxseed milled (I left it whole for the photo)

Serve with yogurt or almond milk and give your brain a boost!

Why it works...the ingredients are choc full of anti-oxidants, and B-vitamins.

How it works...that's the easy part, measure it into a bowl and eat it like cold cereal. If you feel a migrain coming on or are feeling down for no definable reason, give this recipe a try! Here's to happy brains all over the world!!!

Mid-Week Mojo Opal #6

Here's my take on this weeks sketch over at Scrapbook Steals. Take a little trip over to there blog then join in the fun! http://scrapbooksteals.stealnetwork.com/wp/2011/11/09/3-bugs-in-a-rug-dawson-mid-week-mojo/



Still working on those wedding photos. Ruby's wedding was a grand event for my daughter as well as for me. It marked the 4th wedding she has been in as a Flower Girl. She has it down to a science by now!!! Interestingly enough, her first wedding was for Ruby's daughter Eve. She began her profession at the ripe old age of 2, and never looked back, as they say. For this wedding Annalys got to pick whatever shoes she wanted to wear. We spent HOURS searching. Getting the right shoes seemed a hopeless goal. When she finally found "the ONES" I was curious to know why they were so much better than all the others she'd tried on. Her answer? "The other ones didn't make the right cloppy sound, Mom." Ah, the shoe preferences of a 9yr old!  Anyway, this page is about those shoes, but the above story is TOO long to put onto the page so I needed some hidden journaling.

Transparency to the rescue! I adhered the S and H from the title to a piece of blank tranparency and secured it to the page by sewing sibbon over the lower edge. The red and white trim sewn to the center of the page and the ribbon and transparency sewn lower down create a pocket for my journaling. The journaling card itself slips behind the picture and appears to be another design element on the page.
Here's the sketch I used, by the Fabuous Kristy Lee!

Hope you enjoyed!!!

Queen For a Day

Last year my dearest friend remarried after many years as a widow. My oldest daughter and I were blessed to be in the wedding as Matron of Honor and flower girl. Ruby chose red and gold as her wedding colors. What a beautiful combination for this months Stack-a-holic challenge at DCWV.


Here is my entry for the challenge:

The papers for this layout come from the DCWV stacks Nantucket, Taj-Mahal, and Mariposa. The Alpha and Ephemera are Making Memories.  The gorgeous foil on the Taj-Mahal stack is difficult to get a good pic of, so here's a cropped portion from another attempt.

If you haven't had a chance to participate in the sketch challenge at DCWV check out http://dcwvinc.blogspot.com/2011/11/november-stack-holic-template-challenge.html

the link above then give it a shot, and while you are at it 'like'DCWV on Facebook!!!

Here is the wonderful sketch from Sketch Savvy:

http://www.sketchsavvy.blogspot.com/

This is why...

This is why I support the military...just regular guys doing there job. They kept their promise to keep you safe, don't break your promise to let them keep their families safe!!!

Soup's on!

We had our first snow flurries yesterday and let me tell you, that wind was COLD!!! Had me dreaming of soup and a warm toasty fire. But no, I was out running around in it...more specifically walking to and from my car for a 7:30pm Biology class. Of course late classes mean no bedtime snuggles, but I outsmarted the College Ogre and got my snuggles in this morning. I crawled in bed with this little cutie and got some very sleepy smiles and lots of hugs and kisses.

Webster's Pages Scrapbooking supplies of all sorts
http://www.websterspages.typepad.com/
and a Creative Scrappers sketch!
http://creativescrappers.blogspot.com/

Enjoy...a Woodgrain Mustache/Authentique kind of day.

Yesterday the USPS dropped off a lovely packet of Authentique: Gathering. Naturally I've been itching to get my adhesive all over these goodies. But first I had to get the kids off to school, then there was that History exam followed by a stifling session on factoring rational expressions. But finally it was time to snatch a few moments of crafting.
Keeping in mind November's Color Theme challenge at http://woodgrainmustache.blogspot.com/2011/10/novembers-color-theme.html?showComment=1320788460622
and the card sketch challenge on Authentiques blog
http://authentiquepaper.blogspot.com/
I pulled together some supplies.

(Paper: Authentique, "flourish", and My Minds Eye 6x6 pad "Blink of an Eye"; Die cut phrases: Authentique, Noteables; Twine: Jillibeansoup; Ink: Close To My Heart, Sky; and stamps from Poly Clear and Recollections)

This summer I found these gorgeous card blanks at a yard sale, 50 cents a box! They are heavy weight, deeply textured, and a lovely ivory. It is definately time to start putting them to work!

In between the call to the pharmacy (sorry your prescription ran out) and the call to the Doc (oops, we wrote that scrip wrong) as well as steaming a batch of rice for the kids to eat when they got home from school I put together this sweet little card. Hope it makes you smile.

Where did the marshmallow want to work when she grew up?

What do these delicious ingredients have in common? A gooie goodness that my wheat free kids can indulge in without worry. Here's how to make something yummy from them.
Ingredients:
chocolate almond bark
shortening
marshmallows
ry-krisp crackers (check for wheat free)
layout a sheet of wax paper or parchment paper for your work surface.
Place almond bark in a bowl 2 squares at a time and add 1 teaspoon +/- of shortening. Melt in the microwave, 1 minute to start then stir and melt at 15 second intervals till smooth and "runny".
While the chocolate is melting cut the ry-krisps into 6-8 squares. Drop the cracker face down in the chocolate then place it on a non-stick surface, chocolate side up. Roll the marshmallow in the chocolate and place on top of the cracker. You can also use a spoon to dribble chocolate over the cracker then over the marshmallow on top of the cracker.
Let dry.
Yep that's it, and the marshmallow offerings are endless...now go get sticky!!!