Thanks Jessie!!

German Phrase of the Day: Geben Sie mir Bescheid. = Let me know. Thankfully my husband just came up from his "dungeon" i.e. office in the basement so I was able to ask him for a phrase of the day. I think he came up with a good one for me!

Look at this gorgeous card I got in the mail! Isn't it just wonderful? Jessie Rone (our newly appointed DT Coordinator for the Prettie Girls...hmmm...if Christie is our Prettie Mama, does that make Jessie our Prettie Big Sis?) made this gorgeous card for me to congratulate me on my pregnancy.

I love this SU! set but just couldn't justify buying it. Of course now, I kinda wish I had. Guess I still have time, don't I? And I'm so out of it, I don't even recognize the patterned paper...but I love how she used her Nesties - and the covered chipboard blowr is just gorgeous!!

Thanks so much Jessie, you totally made my day! :-)

TFL!

BRAK from Marlene

German Phrase of the Day: Ich mag zum Strand gehen. = I love going to the beach. And by now, I should have been to 1 or 2 here in Spain. Maybe I'll even get a little tan. :-)

Today I'm sharing with you a beautiful birthday card my good PSF Marlene sent to me. I know Marlene through an online group called Stamping Diva's, and she's a real sweetheart! She used a carousel note for the card, but attached a folded circular card underneath so it's still a full card. Cool, huh??

Thanks so much for thinking of me Marlene!!

And, thanks to you for stopping by. Hope you have a great day!

TFL!

Happy Mail Week!

German Phrase of the Day: Hast du auch gute Schuhe? Do you have good shoes? Now in general, auch means also. So...I'm really not sure why they added it here - any German experts out there want to help me out on this one??

So sorry I've been MIA all weekend. Things around here have gotten totally insane!! Travel is catching up with me and I got sick again...and I'm just trying to keep my head above water here. I think my posting will be a little sporadic over the next few months...but I"ll try to get ahead of myself before trips so you don't miss out on too much! ;-)

I've had a really good mail week here. I got this lovely package from my good stamping friend Yvette. Remember the Pay it Forward challenge back here? Well, Yvette payed hers forward with this AWESOME bag!! Don't you just love it? Inside there are pockets galore for scissors, punches, markers, etc. It's totally awesome, and I can't wait to use it!

She also sent me 4 cards. Three of them were for our Diva Sister Swap, and the fourth came with the bag. My cards back to her are a little late...but I'll be showing them too you this week - so Yvette...don't look at my blog for a few days, ok?? ;-)

I also got a package from my very good friend and downline Michelle back in California. She sent some fun craft stuff for Julia, a package of 4 Cadburry Creme eggs for me, and this ADORABLE Easter card that Julia covets! Isn't it just the cutest?? I sure am a lucky girl to have such wonderful friends!

Hope you all are having a wonderful Sunday!

TFL!

I feel loved!!!

Here are a couple of RAK's I've gotten recently. The first is from Rhonda of Quilt Nut Creations. This is actually a RAK-Back! (and I've been a very bad blogger for not posting it sooner, sorry Rhonda!!) I love the colors she used, and this textured white paper is just fabulous!! If you haven't checked out her blog, you should. She makes some of the most amazing quilts I"ve ever seen, and her stamping is awesome too!!
This second card is from a Paper Pretties Swap that Melissa Norris hosted. She sent all the +1 cards out as RAK's to the Paper Pretties RAK group. This gorgeous card was created by Rachel Douglas. I just love the coloring on her Bella, and the background paper is gorgeous!! If you haven't joined Paper Pretties forum yet, you really must. We have such a blast over there...and with the changes coming soon it's going to be better than ever! And hey...I'm getting ready to send out a WHOLE BUNCH of RAK's, so please join our RAK group and maybe you'll get one! ;-)

Thank you ladies!

Huggs,

A month late and a Euro short?

I am a bad blogger!! I recieved this beautiful Christmas RAK from Allison when my in-laws got here right before Christmas and I never posted it. I did at least remember to send Allison a note letting her know I had received it...but Thank You Allison! I really loved it!! It was one of only 4 handmade Christmas cards I got this year!

Happy Halloween, almost!

German Phrase of the Day: Guten Appetit! = Enjoy your meal! This is what is set by every waitperson when you are served a meal...so it is a phrase I learned pretty early (and you can use this phrase tonight when getting dinner for your husband Adelina!)

Today's card was sent to my by my stamping friend Yvette. I LOVE this card. I have a little black cat...so I was really tempted to buy this set. Somehow, I refrained! But I just love the colors she used, and the whole layout of the card. It's one of my favorite Halloween cards!

Yvette is my Swap Sister this month for our Diva's group. I love doing our monthly "Sister Swap" with Diva's because it's a way to get mail over here :-) and a fun way to stay in touch with this awesome group of ladies! And they don't even mind paying the extra postage to ship stuff all the way over to me! They're all awesome!!! In the next few days I'll be showing you the projects I made for Yvette...as hopefully they will have finally arrived!

Here on the detail photo you can see how Yvette didn't adhere the tail down on the kitty, so it stands out a little bit. I just love that!!!

Have a wonderful Day Before Halloween everyone!

TFL!
-Jana

Birthday card from Sher

German Phrase of the Day: Bedien' dich! = Help yourself! Like, help yourself to some cake!! :-)

Isn't this the coolest card?? I love how it came inside this cute little sleeve. My friend Sherri Retton made this for me. We were Diva Swap Sisters this last month, and she sent me 4 amazing creations which I'll show you while I'm traveling. This first she claimed is because she's sure she forgot my birthday (since she was a little busy in April having a new baby!) and I'm so glad she did. I just LOVE it!!! Definitely an idea I will have to CASE. And there's some sparkle on there...it's just really hard to see. I've included 2 photos...one inside the sleeve and one out so you can see just how cool it really is.

Julia and I are headed to the airport in another 30 minutes. California here we come! Right back where we started from. Which is true. We're going "home" to the area we lived in and haven't been to in a whole year! We're so excited to see so many of our friends that we've been missing!

Hope you all have a great Monday. Oh yeah...I already ordered my new MFT stamps this morning...LOVE that new jungle set. If you haven't checked them out yet, you must!!!

TFL!
-Jana

RAK from Mo!

Look at this beautiful card I got in the mail today!!! Thank you so much Mo...I just love it! The coloring on this card is exquisite, with beautiful shading and everything. I am in awe! It even came in a handmade envelope!! I mean, wow!!

Mo is also from Maine, although she doesn't live there any longer. My mom emailed her after reading a comment of hers on my blog and they have now discovered they have much in common. Although, I think it would be tough to find someone with nothing in common with my mom - she's a true jack-of-all-trades, and master of many!

Mo, I don't know if you have a blog...I couldn't find one in your profile...but if you do please let me know so I can link to it!

Thanks again for your thoughtfulness,
Huggs,
Jana

Some recent RAK's

Ok...here are those promised RAK's. This first is from Allison who stamps when she can! Seems to me she does a gosh darn good job of it too!
Isn't this beautiful?? The red paper is velvety, and SOOO wonderful to touch! I just love it!!

This second card is from my fellow Mainiac (even if she is a transplant!) Julie Masse. I love all of Julie's work, and she just got on the Paper Pretties Design Team!! Whoo Hoo Julie!!! Thanks girl!
I love the stickles on the little bee...he just sparkles!! Totally made my day. :-)

Ok, we're off to The Netherlands to hang at the beach for the weekend. Wish me clear skies and sunshine, because the current forecasts are calling for rain!! I'll try to post when I return home on Monday!

Huggs to all, and Happy Labor Day Weekend to those who are stateside! Have a hamburger (or better yet, BBQ Rib!) for me!!

TFL!
-Jana

Adorable little card...

German Phrase of the Day: Sie hat ein shoen Lacheln. - She has a beautiful smile. I liked this phrase for today, because it fits the giver of this card. Yup...it's a Beate creation! She included this card with the spool of ribbon she recently sent me for winning one of her weekly weekend sketch challenges. Isn't it adorable???

She used the textured Wild Wasabi, some sky blue patterned paper, and I think that's the Priceless stamp set (which I finally broke down and ordered, mostly thanks to gorgeous samples like this one made by Beate!!)

I also recently got another get well card from my friend Julie Masse who lives in Maine. I can't wait for February! I'm going to Florida for 2 weeks, and will somehow figure out how to get from Lakeland (down near Tampa) up to Niceville to finally meet Beate in Person, then I'm going up to Maine for a week to visit my brother and his family, and will plan on stopping off to meet Julie in person! And it will even be Sell-A-Bration, I mean...could there BE a better month?!?!

Ok...I'm FINALLY getting back to my old self, so I'll try to get some photos taken today or tomorrow, and maybe I'll even STAMP tomorrow. I've been cutting out stamps this afternoon from all my new stuff, and I can't wait to start using them!!

TFL!
-Jana

Viewmaster from April

German Phrase of the Day: Kannst du bitte etwas lauter reden? = Could you please talk a little louder? Usually I'm asking people to speak more slowly since that is the problem I usually have!!

Here is a card I got from one of my Diva pals, April. She did such a great job with the viewmaster card for our one on one swap. I love the images she stamped in the opening, and the paper and everything! Thanks so much April...I love it!!

So, tomorrow is the big day. When I type to you all again on Saturday I will be minus one gallbladder. So, think happy thoughts for me Tuesday night/Wednesday morning US time!

Thanks,
-Jana

Another card from a friend

German Phrase of the Day: Sie redet zu viel. = She is talking too much. That is something folks could say about me at times, and more recently, about my daughter! I swear there are times she talks just to hear herself! And, when she's speaking in German, I don't even know what she's saying half the time.

This beautiful card was from my great friend and downline Michelle. She makes such beautiful cards. And always lots of work! I love this little ladybug made with the pick a petal set...she's just so darned cute! And the little trail...adorable! She sent me this card along with some fun stuff...tabs for me to attach to my catalog to separate the sections, and some retired rubber from last year's hostess section. Thank you Michelle!! You are the bestest! Mwah!

TFL,
Jana

PS Yesterday, and some today I have been cleaning my stamping space. I just have to finish clearing off my desk, and I'll be done. If/when I finish, I'll take a photo to share with you all! Till then, no more stamping!! :( Gotta get this place cleaned up!!!

Thank you Yvette...

Here is a beautiful card sent by my wonderful online stamping friend Yvette (be sure to check her blog...she's got some great cards and scrapbook pages that she's been working on since getting home from Australia!) I can't believe how quick she was in getting this mailed!!! Looks like she used Cranberry Crisp, Ruby Red and Very Vanilla cardstocks along with the Cranberry Crisp ink and stitched ribbon. I love the fall look of this card...although I have to admit I can't quite place the stamp set. Maybe it's the one from the Southern Living special last fall? Yvette, can you help me out with this??

Thank you Yvette for the wonderful card! I love it!! And I'm SOOO impressed with your promptness...I never get cards out on time!

TFL!
-Jana

Another card from Michelle

German Phrase of the Day: Kase isst man immer am Schluss. = You always eat the cheese at the end (of the meal). In our house, the cheese often is the meal, at least at dinner time. We follow the German custom of having our main meal for lunch (since dh is usually home and not on the phone then) and just have bread, meat, cheese and fruit for dinner. Oh...and Kase (supposed to have the 2 dots over the a) is pronounced KAY -zeh. Another of my favorites! :-)

I think I'll have to have Michelle be an official guest designer for my blog since she sends me so many beautiful cards! Here's another she sent as a thank you recently...and I can't even remember what it was for! (I could go back upstairs and get the card to read it, but that would take energy and I'm trying to get these all ready before we leave tomorow...and I still need to clean!!)

Anyhow, she used some of the little mini rhinestones I sent to her in her flower centers...aren't they cute?? And I really like the ribbon! This is actually one of Michelle's simpler designs, and I'm very proud of her!! Thanks as always Michelle!! Miss you!

TFL!
-Jana

Thanks Karin!!

German Phrase of the Day: Die Melone duftet herrlich. = The smell of the melon is wonderful.

I got this adorable card from my friend (and former customer) Karin who lives in London now. I haven't been over to visit hr yet, but I'm hopeful I'll get to see her soon.

Anywho...she sent me this adorable Stamping Bella card, and enclosed some GORGEOUS silk flowers for me to play wtih (you'll see the results tomorow!) And the had the incredible idea of spritzing the flower using the Color Spritzer tool. How brilliant is she???

We're heading up to Berlin today...it was Julia's last day of Kindergarten before a 3-week break. I'm hopeful I'll survive and still get some time during these three weeks to blog for you all! If she hasn't run me completely out of energy. And this time, I do have posts already to go...so maybe I'll even get a blog baby-sitter to publish them for me if I can't.

Thanks...and I'll write more when I can!

-Jana

Thanks Michelle!!

German Phrase of the Day: Du musst das Fleisch noch salzen. = You have to put salt on the meat. Fleisch is pronounced fliesh. My daily calendar seems to be on a cooking theme this week, so I figured I'd stick with it.

Today's card was a beautiful thank you card from my friend Michelle. She always send me beautiful cards, and they always make me smile. We used to stamp together every week practically, since her older boy is about the same age as Julia, and I miss our stamping sessions. The kids would go off and play (most likely making a HUGE mess) and we wouldn't worry about it because we were having fun.

One of Michelle's favorite techniques is shaving cream...and I think her second favorite might be the faux shaving cream she used here. She sent this card back with dh as a thanks for the German wine and chocolate I sent for her. She doesn't have a blog yet, but I've been bugging her that she needs one! She does have a Stampin' Up! site though, so go see more of her work there!

Beautiful RAK from Michelle

German Phrase of the Day: Ich liebe Spargel! = I like Asparagus! It is asparagus season over here, and everywhere you go restaurants advertise their Spargel specials. So, Spargel is the first word my sisters learned of German after arriving.

This beautiful card was sent to me by my good friend Michelle. I love the paper (I use it all the time myself, and am still holding out hope that it makes the new catty!) and I'm very proud of Michelle for keeping this card relatively simple and clean. Michelle loves to make very complicated, technique heavy cards that are gorgeous...but not always easy to replicate. And she does that for swaps where she needs to make over 30 cards!! So, I think this card is absolutely perfect!! This was a thank you card for some chocolates and bling I sent to her from my trip to Spain. Thank you Michelle!! And I'm glad to see you've already started using your new bling!

Speaking of chocolates, I think I'll have to post some more Blog Bon-Bons soon...I'm getting close to 25k hits, and you've all been very patient through my recent downtimes as I'm traveling. I'll look for something fun this weekend down in Trier and over in Luxembourg. If anyone has any requests let me know!! :-)

Thanks for visiting today!

-Jana

More Birthday Fun.

German phrase of the day: Ist das Leben nicht schoen! = Isn't life wonderful! (literally, isn't life pretty!. (Sidenote: oe can be used in place of an o with an umlaut - because I'm too lazy to look up the code to do that one!)

Yesterday I got this beautiful card from my online stamping buddy Kyla (otherwise known as Vitality!) She does some of the most beautiful cards! And it's funny, because I know when I"m browsing around SCS, I can pick out her cards because she has such a distinctive style...lots of layers, lots of ribbon, and drop-dead gorgeous!! Be sure to visit her blog...you won't regret it!! Also, she's having a Cards for Troops contest right now...so you can go read all about it!

For this card she used the stamp set demonstrators got at Regionals this year, Double Line Doodles. It will be in the new Fall/Winter 2007 catalog coming out in July. I just can't wait to see the new catalog. People who went on cruise got a sneak peak at all kinds of special goodies, and some are sharing those peaks with those of us not fortunate enough to go (THANK YOU!) Guess I better start saving my money now, because I already have a half dozen things on my wish list just from the little peak I've gotten!

I have so many things to look forward to in July... the new Harry Potter Movie (ok, I guess that's in June) The new Catalog, the new (and last!) Harry Potter book, and a week long vacation with my daughter and hubby (we're thinking England and Scotland, but haven't finalized it yet) So, overall, July will be a good month! :-)

We leave for Tuscany tomorrow...so you all can think of me "Under the Tuscan Sun" I'm going to upload some photos of projects I did LAST April to post while I'm in Italy (and not stamping) so that you all won't miss me too much (Internet connection willing!)

TFL!
-Jana

2 Tall Bellas

***Edited to add credit and link for making my own stamp!!***

I got to stamp again! Yeah!!!

I knew I wanted to make a bella card, and I had these FlowahBella images on my desk that my mom stamped for me before she left. I bought her the FlowahBella stamp because she loves flowers, and she didn't have any Bellas yet!

Anyway...I decided I wanted to make another tall card, and I really wanted to use my new Big Blooms set that was sitting still uncut, etc. So quickly put on my cling vinyl and cut them out, then chose a color scheme from the SU! color wheel. Regal Rose, Almost Amethyst, Certainly Celery with a touch of Apricot Appeal.

I also managed to use my new May Arts polka dot ribbon from the Jody Morrow ribbon share I recently participated in. I added some SU! lavender grosgrain for some added color and depth. Lastly, I used my Marvy Uchida scalloped giga square punch for the first layer behind the bella. I punched two, trimmed a tiny bit off each, then adhered them to the back of Bella carefully lining them up. It really wasn't hard at all!

Oh, and I made myself a shadow stamp for my bellas. I followed the tutorial to make these cute little shadow stamps using the oval punch on Heather's blog here! Thanks so much to Peggy S. for helping me remember where I saw it! Guess I was having a "senior" moment last night!! Yikes!

I didn't have any water in either aquapainter, and was too lazy to walk down a flight of stairs to get some, so I used my blender pen in my watercolor crayons, and it worked pretty well. It's a pretty simple card, but I had fun. I'm hoping to stamp more this weekend.

My second tall Bella is my birthday card from Stephanie. She posted this to her blog last week, but it's so pretty, I had to post it again!! It's hard to see in the photo, but this Bella is wearing a sparkly top - too cute!!

Love the card Stephanie, thank you!!

TFL!
-Jana

Birthday Bonanza

I love my birthday...doesn't everyone?? And one of best things about having a birthday (since it most surely isn't getting older!) is getting fun mail! Over the past week I've gotten some wonderful cards from my online friends from blogging and splitcoast, so here are the latest.

First, this amazing notepad in a tin from my friend Yvette. It's just amazing, isn't it?? I recognize 2 stampin' Up! stamp sets (office accoutrement and Sincere Salutations) but don't recognize the rest. The flower on here is made of suede I think - it's quite interesting!! And Ilove the fact that it "locks" closed, and then you click the button to open the tin again! So very cool!!

Inside, there is a notepad for taking those daily notes, along with a pocket, and a pen. I think this will have to live downstairs so I can see it all the time and keep my grocery list in it!!

She also included this beautiful matching birthday card...isn't it just gorgeous?? I love the use of the cuttlebug - that is my favorite embossing folder!! It's just amazing. Thank you so much Yvette...I LOVE it!!

Next up is a birthday card from my stamping hero Beate. I remember seeing this card (or something like it) on her blog a while back and admiring the combination of stamps and designer paper....and now I get to admire it in person! She gets these amazing papers from Eclectic Paperie and claims to have an addiction. Don't we all??? :-)








I also got this wonderful card from another of my Diva buddies, Linda Schmitt. She designs such wonderful projects, I always love swapping with her! This card is no exception. I love the twill tape stapled on. I always forget to use my twill tape...I think I will challenge myself to pull it out and use it! Thanks for inspiring me again Linda!











And then I even have 2 non-birthday cards to share. The first is from my friend Stephanie. She sent a load of things to my mom to bring to me, and this card with Bellas inside was given to me when I got BACK from Barcelona! Mom had almost forgotten it! I remember when Stephanie posted this card, I instantly fell in love with it, and that stamp set! Such an amazing card. I love the embossing...the stamping...the coloring...everything! Also, Stephanie sent me this really cute candle in a pot which I love! Now I'll have to take a bath soon so I can light it! :-)





This last card was from an SCS RAK club member, and it's just gorgeous! I don't think you can get the full effect from the photo, but it is embossed with black ep, iwht just a hint of gold glitter in it! I'ts incredible!!! Ilove the coloring and shadingthat she did, and she even sent me one of my favorite flowers...pretty neat, huh?? Thanks so much Beverly!