Scrapbookers Inc in White Lake---Going Out of Business

After 8 years in two locations-both out of the way-another store is closing. Scrapbookers Inc in White Lake, Michigan is closing. The going out of business sale starts Jan 2 at 40% off.  I really liked this store when it was in it's former location  in Commerce Township (even if it was hard to get there) because it's so pretty in the fall in the overly treed area and twisting roads up and down hills. It was neat.

I tried to go once to the new location after hubby was golfing and I dropped him off at Camp Dearborn. Sadly they were closed on a day that should have been a business day, so I never got to visit the new place. It's again, an hour's drive if not more for me. I don't get to the area much anymore since daughter moved away. I don't know if I want to try and make a trip as honestly, what I want just doesn't seem to make it to the local stores, so I either buy online or go without. 

 5951 Highland Road {M-59} * White Lake, MI *248-714-9441

Live Laugh Love Scrap in Oxford Closing

This little out of the way store just east of the Palace of Auburn Hills has been around for a while. It's been a couple of years since I visited it, but there was no reason to go there with hubby not working anymore down that way. It will be gone Thursday.

So if you are in the area, stop and get a deal or two of 50% off or more as there are only two days left-I heard  storage and store fixtures remain  available, too. Look HERE for directions and hours. Sad to see another local business go, and I think another will be listed here very soon. Support your local happy places, whether retail or eatery.

Old St.Nick

This is another in the style of vintage nostalgia similar to my last posting. I did this about a year ago, too. As before, these are printed on an ink jet printer.

This close up is to show you where the icy glitter is placed. You will also see the puffy snow-like paint around the sign St Nick is holding.

If you want vintage images, try Googling for them. Many are free. There are also a few companies that sell discs full of them by themes such as Twisted Papers. I even found some in the embroidery aisle a few years ago at Joann's.  Whatever works. Scraps were used for layering and some cheesy old edge punch (really badly punched) from Fiskars completed the card.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

I am not much into Christmas anymore. Long story but the greed turned me off so bad, I just said no more. I have not put up a tree in 13 years and it's just as well as my animals have no clue to decorum. One cat actually tried to fry himself by biting a wire one year. He was never right in the head again. 

I put this card together over a year ago. It is not stamped but instead it is a vintage image printed on card stock. I had originally wanted to take a class for this type of card but when the weather got bad and I could not drive, I asked the proprietor of the stamp shop to save me a kit. She did but there were many items missing one of which was the class instructions. So I did it my way.

Here is a close up of the icy glitter that resembles snowflakes on the little girl. I always wanted a muff when I was younger. Not real fur, however and I think that is all that was sold at Smith Bridgeman's in downtown Flint when I was shopping with my gramma. We always looked at the cute dresses and shoes but somehow I ended up with jammies and socks.  I am going to visit the lone kiddie shop left in the area this weekend to see if I can find a perfect Christmas dress for grandkidlet Avanelle. I used to shop at Laurie's in Grand Blanc for my own kids for special occasions. I don't think I could afford to clothe a teenager these days with all the designer labels that are must haves . Me, I look for BOGO deals.

With Age Comes Wisdom (At Least I Am Hoping)

This is another oldie but goodie. I originally made a graduation card from this with a sprig of fresh rosemary tucked in the ribbon at the bottom.  It smelled great but sorta dried out. Still smelled good but sorta fell apart. Guess I wasn't so wise after all.

These are Great Impression stamps from about two years ago?  I took a punch and cut the punchie in half to give it a "quote" balloon look for the stamped phrase. The owls were colored with Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol. Some of the other pieces were from my Iris cart but I didn't like the original base card which was the dark blue bits that I ended up cutting up. So I swapped out a textured yellow piece.  I did NOT intentionally make this U of M colors. Everyone knows I bleed green and white and Tom Izzo is my hero. 

Special Note

A card from a long time ago. I wanted to reshoot it but I sent it away, I think. Oh well.

The images are from Great Impression and were part of a class at Jane's/Sandee's.  Since  I can't take the classes, they often save class kits for me. Whatever works. I never make the cards the way the class instructor says anyway.

This card is a teacher card.  At least that is what I think.

One Crazy Dog

If my dog Jackson were a rubber stamp, this would be it. Right down to the wide eyed google eyeball, he is a configuration of crazy and nuts. 

 

Here, a close up.

I believe this stamp is from Inkadinkado.

woof.

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Sweet

Old Basic Grey cardstocks, a rub on and some dollar acrylic stickers.

Close up of stickers/rub on combo. The sweet crystals were also a dollar find, however it said sweetheart. I cut it up. Someday the heart will appear.

XOXO

While everyone else is gearing up for Christmas, I am going backwards. I present you with a love card. Supposedly, I can't work current. Is there a place in the working world that pays dinero that will let me do that? Too bad, but I ain't gonna do it any different.  I already have laid out items for 4th of July and something really cool for sailors/ship people. Do they have a holiday or not? Oh, and I am working on the graduation card I owe from last May. 

When I found this plain canvas to print with Inkjet in the clearance aisle at Joann's, I fell in love with the idea of shabby chic and how to use up scraps and dollar store finds to make something very unique. The last two years at the local stamp shows there have been a couple of companies that sell vintage photos or old images on CD or DVD and I have gobbled them up. There are also many free vintage images online and if you google free vintage clip art, you will have an all day feast!

An example of a dollar store find is this acrylic circle with XOXO. The entire sheet held at least a dozen circles with various words or images. I bought it several years ago and the color just matched this card so well.

Multiple layers make up this card from the printed image of an old valentine (all die cut using Spellbinders) , the green and black paper embossed and sanded (this is black with green interior) , two layers of die cut and embossed textured card stock in matching colors to the image and then three layers of designer card stock punched and off set. You would think this card was heavy but it's not. Each layer on top is pop-dotted and the lower layers just rest on each other. The base card is pitch black and textured.

I tied the top with organza ribbon and applied the acrylic circle as I didn't like the knot in the ribbon.  I noticed it was upside down, but I too am off kilter, so it works. Can you find the other mess up on the card? I double dog dare ya!  All items are from the infamous Iris cart.

No Ifs Butts or Ands.....

Testing the Networked Blog Feed.

Get a whiff of speed.

ETA: I saw these on a shelf at an antique/collectible show.  I about fell over laughing and snorting. Just me being weird but sheep smelling a pig butt just cracks me up.

Doggie Dad

Well over a year ago I made THIS card for Father's Day. I also made the one below, but it got lost in my draft file because I wanted to re-shoot the photograph.  Ya know what? It ain't gonna happen. So here it is.

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Roadside Flower

I fussy cut the stamped edge to enhance it against the brown cardstock. Layered flower stamp is from Great Impressions. An easy idea to use up scraps .

The sun was going down when I took this so its a bit grey looking. Hopefully when my new macro gets here (I finally saved up enough points!), I won't run into this problem anymore.

ETA   the cardstock with the fussy cut stamped swirls is dark chocolate brown. It matches the dots in the ribbon.

Song For Linda

I never met Linda. We lived hundreds of miles apart and even tho I plotted to get out East, I never made it. We "met" after I spotted a letter to the Editor in    Comic Buyers Guide back in  1986. I responded to her letter as back then, many "fan type" publications gave actual addresses when printing a letter.  We found we were both big fans of DC Comics, and shared a love of the Green Lantern Corps/Justice League, especially the character  Guy Gardener . I mentioned to her that my perfect condition issue of GL #59 (first series) was half the price she paid for her copy in the same condition. This was before people began to  SLAB their comics.  We were fans of the comics to be read, not to be hermetically sealed and then sold for upgraded pricing.

Linda had promised me years ago she would have a place for me to bunk or would be my tour guide if I got out that way-she knew of my "bucket list" item to run a few laps thru Central Park.   It might have happened if not for me getting sick and losing contact with her and all my fellow comic book friends.  10 years later-give or take a few months, I am reading a comic editorial blog and come across Mike Gold's byline. Hmmm, I wondered.

So to make a long story shorter, I found Linda on Facebook. Still the same Linda only now long married  to Mike for about 17-18 years.I was so pleased when she originally shared with me that she had met a special guy, who also loved comics as much as she did. In fact it was his career! Her daughter had grown up as had mine. She still lived in the same place, so I could not understand why my hand written letters never got to her. I still have every letter she wrote to me-including the envelopes. Understand that we didn't have emails back in 1986 and I didn't have a computer until 1995.  But it was like we never had that break. She still loved jazz and was consumed by Bix and old radio. I never wavered from my wanting to trip back to the late 1890's to live (I would give up a lot for that).

We had the same political leanings, were both dealing with insomnia , worried about the economy and health care reform, and had a farm. Yes, that stupid FarmVille on Facebook. The last night I had her as part of my life, I sent her some silly thing for the farm, made a post of which she gave it thumbs up for a like and  told her good night and knew she would be there the next evening to farm, plow, or plant some virtual crop. Only she wasn't. Sometime in the middle of the night, she died. Only 60. Only too too young. Only leaving broken hearts behind.

I made this card for her and was getting ready to post it ( I am so slow and weirded out by my PO at times) so she could give it to her beloved Mike. It was exactly the style she would have loved. Very 1930's with an image printed on fabric of two stars of cinema that enthralled those from the era but kept a population occupied with fluff stories as the Depression took its toll on hearts and souls. We were two who think we belonged in other eras.

I found this  piano piece the other night and it made me think of  her . I hope you will listen to it and then remember to let others know you treasure them as I did her.

I have finally reached a point where I know she won't be logging on to Facebook, but I still wish she were. Facebook keeps reminding me to poke her or get in touch with her. I don't farm anymore but left our farms intact just as they were in late May of this past spring. It's been hard to say the least, having lost my mom, sister and someone I would have picked for a sister all within a year. I never got to tell her I have a grand child on the way. She would have been delighted especially with the due date being  near Halloween.

Remember not to procrastinate if you have something you want to do or say to someone. I never got the chance this time. So wherever Linda is these days, hugs. This one is for you.

Take Care

Please click HERE and read . Then come back for a sec.

As you can see, my smile is hiding something. So I am taking a break, a long one maybe.

I may come back and post more cards but maybe not. If I do, I won't be writing much, just posting photos. I have a ton to show you but the sunshine isn't here right now. Be well and happy.

Seize The Cupcake!

It better be carrot cake under that frosting!

ETA: Tejal wants to know what carrot cake tastes like! Since it's the only cake I will eat (unless I can get some Thai Mango Cake), gotta tell ya---it's the bestest cake on earth!!! Yum yum yum.

You Make Me Smile

Want to make me smile? Come over and trim my bushes and trees, and bring me a Popsicle. I like cantaloupe or lime ones only. I was trying to trim some very unruly bushes today and the bugs are so god awful I was inhaling them. It was about 92F and we had a down pour of about 5 minutes which is just enough to create a very nasty swarm of gnats and humidity. Then it got dark. I can't see anymore tonight to work.

I made this card a while back with images from Hero Arts. A quick and easy design, I especially like that lily flower in the lower left corner. Don't really remember where I got them from but it was just a small bunch of them in a flat container. I would love to try and make my own from crepe paper sometime.

Just to give you a close up of the little lady, my coloring was done with Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol. The lighting on this is a bit off, but I was working using the stove light again. Someday I will actually get outside and photograph the others I have to present, but there is work to do first. Enjoy the summer as it is fleeting.....and so am I.

Found Yum!

I sure could use a cupcake right about now. But the cupcake queen probably needs one more. (Hi Jennifer). To celebrate the half baking of Baby Love, I give you a fat free but sugar filled delite.

Enjoy the tastiness.

Scraps, rub ons, ribbon and glitter courtesy of the Iris Cart. Enjoy.

Santa's Helper

I wanted to title this post Christmas Creep in honor of Hobby Lobby. Maybe a lot of you don't understand that phrase. Maybe you don't care. Honestly, there are still people in my area with wreaths and lights up, and if I ruled the world, there would be a fine if the stuff ain't down by January 6th. For more on this creep that has gone creepy, click HERE

So I decided to add to the creep since this card is next in my queue. I used stickers, die cuts, cheapie gems and a piece of ric rac paddy whack along with some odd papers and card stock. There was a little distressing on some pieces but really, it took about 5 minutes even with cutting and punching.

A couple of things-for some reason my blog is not posting to Facebook like it should. It takes over a week while others I read take only a couple of minutes. I may delete the networked blogs thingie over there. And I do have lots more stamped and otherwise cards, I just am slow, depressed, tired, discombobulated and constipated so it will be a while for them to get here. I still haven't finished my updated new blog, so it will be awhile before that gets here, if ever.

Classic

Here is another card from the files. For some reason, I was on a car kick at the time. I think I wanted to make retirement cards but somehow this one ended up a birthday phrase. The punches have been getting a workout on some of my cards lately. When I work with scraps, it's much easier to punch them for more depth than tear or distress.

I believe this is a Great Impressions stamp. No longer can I get most of them as Stacey closed up and the only other vendor locally does not carry the full selection each month. If you know of someone who carries them and has free shipping with a decent order (meaning $40-50...not 175), let me know as I would love to fill in the gaps of my collection.

The three little embellies on the lower left are not scrapbooking items. They were in the plant department at Michael's. I bought several colors and these were bronzy. I guess they were made for pots-you fill up the glass pot and stick flower stems in the beads. They work for me in this capacity. Never pass a good deal by.

The Journey Begins

I found this card made quite a while ago in another file. It was sticker heaven for me at the time. With Father's Day approaching, this might make a nice card for a father to be. I personally see it as a retirement card.

Just pieces of card stock, some odd eyelets and a rub on. Nothing fancy and those Tim Holtz Distress Inks are always in fashion.

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Car Dreamin'

I grew up in a culture of cars. Never got sucked in and just don't get it at all. But I can't bite the hand that fed me too much. There was ONE car I loved even if I didn't know the brand/make. On my grandparents farm in mid Michigan, out in a field back behind the chicken coops, was an old, rusty, seen-better-days car. I assume it was from the 1940's based on the movies I have seen. My little brother Boo would always make a bee line to that car whenever we went to Maple Grove. My grandparents had lived on that farm since just after the turn of the century. It's still there (the farm) but in very bad condition and full of car parts and other junk.

Whenever it was time for dinner, we knew where Boo would be. He got to this car and imagined himself into another time, another country, maybe even into a life where he could walk and run just like the rest of us. I often became his partner in dreams as we wiled away the summer days and froze our rears off in the Michigan winters. Dinner could wait as it was usually something sorta gross from the pressure cooker. If we really got hungry, I would go back inside and make us sugar sammiches on Wonder Bread.

I ofter wonder if the car is buried behind the long abandoned coops, deep in mud like we were deep in dreams. I usually thought of the car as a space ship to some far away galaxy, while Boo tooled himself down dirt roads looking for a place to watch minnows in shallow rivers that were the lifelines for huge spreads of corn and sunflowers.

I miss my Boo, who left me behind as a newlywed, only a month after I eloped. He never got to know his new brother in law. I think they would have been great friends. Every time I see a car show at some diner or parking lot, I look for that one special old green car with the torn tan seats. I hope someone else found their daydreams of summer in an old rusty car and that they share its special ride to the places we all have tucked away in our hearts.

Hold My Heart

I raid the Iris cart whenever I can. One rule is never cut up a new sheet of designer paper unless you can take two from the cart. The striped middle piece was new but everything else is from the cart that no matter how much I use it, it never gets much emptier.

There is no stamping on this card. I used a rub on for the phrase on the heart and sticker letters (Thickers, I think) for the Love word. The punch is from Ek Success. Chipboard is from a drawer full of shapes that I long ago took the outer packaging from. I just can't stand all that extra stuff they put to make things look pretty on the shelf and I usually take it apart when I get home. The small red heart is a sticker I think from about 6 years ago. I don't usually like acrylic stickers as they get hard and then fall off or crack. I am hoping this one won't as it's backed with something substantial.

Here is a close up of the heart that I covered with some paper scrap then used a nail file to smooth the edges. I am pretty sure all the papers were Basic Grey but don't hold me to it. The ribbon scrap-can you believe it's a Christmas color? When did pink become Christmasy??? I got the roll for 10 cents in January. Love those clearance sales! Use up your scraps, people. Ya never know what might happen.

Hedgie 2

This is similar to the previous post from a few days ago. I used the same stamp, same papers and just switched it all around. Guess I am getting stale.

I have a few more items in my folders that I may put up. I want to redo my blog so eventually, many items will be gone, or sent to my other blogs. So if you come this way and find nothing, or something of nothing, PANIC!!!

ABC Easy as Blog Candy.

Goodies are to be had if you make the right choices. Visit ABC Toys And Crafts for a chance at this wonderful punch set.

Hedgie

I forgot about this little cutie. This was a card from about 2 years ago. As I am cleaning out my cupboards, fridge and pantries, I might as well clean out my folders, too.

This is Penny Black, right? I don't remember other than I was on a hedge hog kick for a while.

A close up of the little guy. In case you can't tell the dp has fuzzies on it.

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Candi from Heaven

ETA (May 17) -this blog candi is now decided and I won! I get the goodie Candi #3. Thank you Jen.

My friend Jen over in paradise (otherwise known as Hawaii) is celebrating 250,000 hits on her blog. She does incredible paper crafting and if you haven't been to her BLOG , why not? Jen is giving away 5 different goodie bags of Candi but you have to work for them. Each photo below will be my entry. Wanna play? Go to THIS post and then you will find the others . Don't delay, as the contest is over tomorrow.

ENTRY 1 Something pink in my desk area. This one is tough because I hate pink anything. My first house was pink and it was the house from Hades. But that is a story for another day. This pink (actually it's more fuchsia, right?) book is something I have had for about 20 years. Inside it are pages and pages of restaurants I have been to along with a wish list of the ones I still want to go to. If the place is closed, I cross it off. Other wise, it lists the address, times of operation, type of food and my rating of the experience.

Entry 2 Something Round is the dogs' water dish on the deck. We basically had a monsoon today (and it was a cold one at that-the heat is on in the house) so the dish is filled with bugs and propeller thingies off the maple tree. The dogs refused to go out so it wasn't as gross as you think. They will get fresh in the morning.

Number 3 is something I ate. Sofa boy was out with his scouters at a pot luck, and I decided to make a pot of soup. I wanted veggie soup but threw in stuff from the freezer as I came across it. After I took this photo, I added some wild rice. My kitchen is trashed, but I have tons of stuff frozen for when I am too lazy to cook. Nothing died in the making of this soup unless the garlic kicks the heartburn in later.


Number 4 is a plant. This plant is special to me because it was made from a cutting off the spray that covered my dad's casket 15 years ago. Every few years I make more cuttings and give them away. I need to re-pot this soon as it's a bit droopy and probably root-bound a bit. I keep this hanging over my kitchen sink but we are getting new cabinets soon so I need to rethink where it will get its sun and moisture. I did stick some pinwheels in the pot a few weeks ago to perk up my mood a bit. Dollar stores rock!


Number 5 is dirty socks. Sorry, I didn't put shoes on today, I had no socks either. I wasn't gonna leave the house so I didn't even bother to brush my hair! Who would notice? The dogs??? Anyways, I give you hubby's socks but he wears dark ones, so the dirt won't show. Stink is another story, ha!

So get thee to Jen's blog before noon Hawaii time. I don't know what that time is, but I think it's like Mexican time. Right, Gloria? I know Shanghai time tho, for what it's worth. I never undid my clocks from when hubby was there. Maybe he should take his dirty socks back to China??

Cupcake For Jennifer Love

Somebody keeps whining over on Twitter that she wants cake. She whines even tho she knows she can't have cake until after Baby Love is born. So I decided to give her a "fix". She can't spike her sugar this way, and maybe oh maybe we can have an hour of rest already.

I know this is cheesy- hey Jennifer, can you eat cheese?? Or is that another thing you don't like? I already ate your potatoes today, but I am not big on cheese. But I only had a couple of minutes and wanted to shut her up for the night. So here's to Jennifer Love of Benicia, California (and that poor poor hubby of hers who suffers so much-Hi Doug) who just entered her 2nd trimester and is due on November 15. Maybe Baby Love and Baby Scholl will hook up someday...if mommy doesn't drive us all sugar nuts before that.

Blog Candy From Across The Pond

Passion For Crafts is giving away some incredible items to celebrate her birthday. Have some cyber cake and leave her a happy day message.

Masterpiece is Closing in Kzoo.

Another sad ending for a Michigan Business

Closing end of May.

Flying Thoughts

Stamp from Inkadinkado. Punch EK Success. Paper from Scraps. Corners by Chomper/We R Memory Keepers. Rub On from the Iris cart misc. drawer. Twine-i dunno.

Balloon Ride

As I am trying to figure out why my blog won't post to Facebook anymore, I have come across a bunch of cards I never posted to the blog. This card below is very similar to ANOTHER from last September. I sometimes make a couple of similar cards but play them differently. I loved adding the glitter on the edges of this image. I just like glitter, I guess.

I used the exact same papers and image from the card from last September, but I did change the coloring of the kitty to resemble my other cat at the time. I lost two cats very close together last year to old age and illnesses and am down to only one from a max of 5 so shortly ago. I think I will get another kitty later this year but want to get some painting and new flooring first.

This is an odd angle for a photo but I wanted to see how the glitter would show up. It was getting to be late in the day and the sun went behind my pine trees. Soon I will take my cards outside again to get some better shots. In the meantime, the bathroom lighting will have to do.