The Netherlands

The command gave permission for family members to accompany their spouses to the unit's quarterly conference in The Netherlands. Thanks to a good friend who kept our kids, I was given the opportunity to go with Joe for a week. This is the view from our hotel window in Sittard, The Netherlands. One Thursday a month this entire square is filled with vendors selling local fabric, fish, fruits and vegetables, and more. Joe was terribly excited to find out that the market was open the week we were there. Guess who went shopping?

I'm a happy camper, relaxing in our hotel room.

This beautiful cathedral was right next to our hotel. Unfortunately, we weren't able to go inside and look around.

Throughout the marketplace in Sittard were numerous very unusual statues. Joe loved this one, which shows a rather saucy little boy sticking his tongue out while bent over.

We had a terrific time on our trip, although it was probably more fun for me since I was able to hook up with some of the command group ladies and do some shopping while Joe sat in the conference each day. One of the wives even took me to a Scrapbooking store! The country was beautiful and the Dutch are extremely friendly to Americans. Maybe I can talk Joe into getting stationed there after we're done in Germany!

Waterfall Technique

Two posts in one day...it's a miracle! Here's the latest project from my August Paper Junkies Club held at the Ramstein Arts & Crafts Center: a Waterfall card, so named for the "waterfall" effect when pulling the tab to reveal multiple images. Many of you recognize this technique, as it has been around for years, but this is actually my first Waterfall Technique card! One advantage of teaching is forcing myself to expand my creative abilities so that I can challenge the wonderful crafters who take my classes. This project was CASE'd from Linda Heller off of Stamping School. Owls/birds are very popular in crafting this year and I couldn't resist buying this very affordable mini clear stamp set from Hero Arts. The Garden Green, Very Vanilla, and Close To Cocoa cardstock and inks/markers are from Stampin'Up! Enjoy!

Meet George

For about five years now, there has been a fifth member of our family that no one has known about. He's very friendly, low maintenance, and first joined our family when someone left him at our house while living in Hawaii. Meet George. George has been the source of practical jokes between Joe and I all these years. He's been in the shower, inside Joe's shaving kit, hidden in my underwear drawer, and inside Joe's running shoes. George lurks in mysterious places until found, causing the finder to laugh and then plot where to hide George next.


Here's a recent photo of Joe, snuggled up with George after discovering him inside his pillow.

George has also gotten quite creative in the last year, thinking outside the box to find new hiding spots such as inside the coffee pot where the filter sits, Joe's coffee cup full of coffee, the box of waffles in the freezer, and in a bag of sugar. He is also a world traveler, having been snuck into suitcases going to Portugal, Poland, London, Hawaii, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, and even an occasional ladies retreat. As I type, George is staring at me, waiting to find an exotic new locale. Hmmmm, where to hide George this time?

More altered stuff...

I recently taught another Trash to Treasure course, still using a recycled Pringles can but also adding a recycled baby formula can. The formula can, given to me by a good friend, actually looks alot like a paint can when completed and is certainly much cheaper than buying ones that are available on the crafting market. You'll recognize the K&Company paper, which I also used on the altered biscuit tin (getting my money's worth out of this paper!). I thought I'd do something with a fun 4th of July theme and realized that my German sparklers are the perfect size to fit into the Pringles can. What a fun party favor that would make! Both projects used SU! stamps; Friendly Flowers from the current mini catalog on the formula can and All About U on the Pringles can. Prima flowers, Oriental Trading rhinestone brads, retired SU! wire, Fiskars and Marvy Uchida punches, SU! ribbon and metallic brads are among the embellishments. I also did a fun twist for the top of the Pringles can, using strips of curled designer paper. I realize I've posted alot of altered projects lately and come to realize that there's something especially gratuitous about creating beautiful gifts affordably. Enjoy!

Altered Biscuit Tin

I'm sorry it has been so long since I posted so I'll make this a good one :) The featured project here is an altered biscuit tin and the tin turned out rather well if I do say so myself! I absolutely loved putting this tin together and was delighted to make it as a "Secret Santa" gift for a demo group gathering. The tin is from Tchibo, which those living overseas should check out. Tchibo is actually a European coffee company that features different items for sale based on a theme and which are usually available in German grocery stores. I always browse the Tchibo section of every store I know that has one because they always have such fun stuff and this beautiful tin was a result of a Tchibo treasure hunt. I used K & Company papers and fabric brads, as well as a set in the current SU! mini catalog called Friendly Flowers. You can't tell in the picture but there's added bling from CTMH and Oriental Trading Company. I wish I could say the original idea was mine but alas, I have once again stamp-lifted someone else's idea. Papertrey Ink featured a small heart-shaped tin a few months ago so I just adjusted the design for a larger-scale project. I traced a template using the tin lid for the designer paper circle inside the lid and used the Creative Memories cropping system to cut the inner circle out. The leaves for the flowers were cut free hand and scored with my latest favorite toy, the Scor-Pal. The stationery set inside the tin was also an idea copied from Papertrey Ink. The designers for Papertrey have such classy, quality designs, which is a bit more my style: simple but elegant. The paper strip on the base of the tin was created quilt style by zigzag stitching different designer strips together. I know there are more details I'm leaving out but if someone has a question about the design, contact me and I'll fill in the blanks. Also a big thanks to Polly Raffetto who took a picture of my tin and shared it with me since I forgot to take a picture of the tin before giving it away. Enjoy!

Bind-It-All

So here's my latest toy, on it's way to my house as I type. I'm so excited! I've been wanting to expand the types of projects I do and this baby is part of that goal. The Bind-It-All uses wires to bind the edges of your projects to make scrapbooks, journals, purses; pretty much whatever you want to bind together. I've already scheduled a class for this in June, so for those of you in the area, stop by and sign up to learn how to use this amazing tool! You can purchase this tool at http://bonniesbest.com/ The site is APO friendly and you can purchase a bundle with all sorts of goodies. If you're interested in seeing how it works, check out http://binditall.com/ to see an informative, but cheesy tutorial. Keep on the lookout for projects on my blog using the Bind-It-All!

Chipboard Flower Card

We decided to focus on using chipboard during Paper Junkies club this month and for me, it was an educational experience. Other than altering chipboard coasters, I've not played much with it and it's amazing the options out there of either purchasing pre-embellished chipboard or embellishing your own pieces. The sky really is the limit with this, to coin a phrase. I kept the class simple and will probably expand on it as I gain more experience with it. The card featured here shows a Heidi Swapp chipboard flower that has been distressed using a sanding block. Not terribly original but a simple way to get some chipboard experience. I used the Creative Memories curvy cutter to layer the designer paper and cardstock. The designer paper, which I purchased at the Heidelberg Arts & Crafts Center (I'm a traitor!), was part of a bulk set by Daisy D's that came out to about 12 cents a sheet. What a steal! The stamp sets are SU! Curvy Verses and Doodle This and were colored with Bashful Blue, Wild Wasabi, Certainly Celery, and Pixie Pink ink and markers. I seem to be into flowery, girlie paper lately and am determined to make more "manly" projects, especially with Father's Day coming up! I'll probably use this card for Mother's Day but it also makes a nice birthday card as well. Enjoy!