What I've been up to...

A whole lot! That's what!! It's been a crazy few months! In addition to my full time job, my little one turned 3 (Whahhhh!!), trained for a 5k and completed the race last weekend, training for another 5k in a couple of weeks, traveled to PA for work, older daughter graduated pre-school, swimming lessons for both kiddos this week and also preparing for a garage sale this weekend and a wedding. Pure craziness!! I don't think I have enough things going on right now!

Anyway, through all of that ciaos I have been able to do a few projects, I'm working on finishing up a baby book for a friend of mine and I did a special mother's day book for my mother-in-law. Thought I'd share the pics before I delete them for more important footage! With this little album I used a clear acrylic circle album and decorated it with pics, sticker, ribbons, jewels and rub-ons! So much fun and a perfect present for the grandma's that don't live very close!

Busy, Busy, Busy

It's been a crazy month around here! I've been busy with my day job which is a very good thing, but it leaves no time for fun and creating!! I did pick up some fabulous finds lately though at the local thrift shop~ I found an American Crafts idea book called Color your Memories, it has some perfect ideas for pages! Love it and only $.79 cents, can't beat that!! I've also signed up again for Weight Watchers, trying to get healthy and fit, and found a WW cookbook, again only $.79. I love this time of year, there are always great deals at the thrift shops, people are spring cleaning getting rid of their old junk (treasures to me)!! I should also be clearing out some stuff, I've decided to hold a garage sale in June again along with some neighbors, as we have done the past 2 years. Pretty successful sales in the past, so hopefully this year we'll be just as lucky!

I'm busy working on a baby album that will hopefully be wrapped up this weekend. I'll post the final pics once I'm done! It's so weird working on baby boy stuff! But there is such cute paper and baubles for boys also!

Anyway, trying to find some inspiration for Mother's Day gifts. What are you giving your mother's for Mother's Day?

Nicki

Happy Easter!

I'm spending Easter with my family today! Watching the "old" Alice and Wonderland the kiddos got from the Easter Bunny! Trying to stay away from the chocolate eggs!

Hope you're having a fabulous day!

Scrap it Swanky Sister~
Nicki

For the love of oldies but goodies!

So last weekend, I hunkered down and completed some pages for a lady I scrapbook for. It's funny how I always seem to gravitate to newer things out on the market. I tend to do some more traditional scrapping for her, that's what she likes. Since I hadn't stamped in awhile, I was able to get some stamps out for a Halloween layout I did and I also used my beloved Souffle markers~ I love these so much! Not sure why I don't use these more often, there's so much you can do! On the Birthday layout I did, I just cut out some letters from the Cricut machine and used the markers to dress them up with some dots! I also used these recently on one of my own layouts to create faux stitching around the edge of my pages. So simple and it adds great dimension to the pages. Lastly on the other birthday layout, I used my new Sweet Treats Cricut cartridge for the Title and #3, it has some adorable images!

Product of the week for me!~ Souffle 3-D Opaque Puffy Ink

Here's what I used to create these pages:


My Minds Eye Patterned Cardstock Paper
Title: "Halloween Time" Cricut- Alphalicious Font
Bazzill- Orange Cardstock
Pumpkins & Boo- Little Yellow Bicycle- Trick or Treat Clear Cuts
Stamps: Stampendous & Studio G




Bazzill: Gold Cardstock
Words: Cricut- Alphalicious Font with Souffle Dots
Stickers: Making Memories
Yellow Leather Buttons: American Crafts
Rub-ons: Top Line Creations


Bazzill Cardstock: Cream
Patterned Paper: Close to My Heart
Title: Cricut- Sweet Treats Cartridge
Brads: Basic Grey


Hope you're creating something fun this week!

Scrap it Swanky Sister~ Nicki

Weekend Recap

Memory Bound Crop Weekend Recap:
I had a great time at the crop over the weekend at our local scrapbook store, Memory Bound. It was a very inspiring day. We started the day off with a speaker, a sweet girl named Valerie, she was working on a special project. She’s a case worker at a local hospice here and she was finishing books for one of her patients. The patient was diagnosed with Lymphoma, a Mother, 40 years of age who has 3 children, and is now to the point where she’s lost the use of her hands. Her children, a 12 yr old who is a quadriplegic, a 7 yr old and a 5 yr old. She wanted to have her children’s books finished before she passes on. Valerie had 58 pages on Friday completed from ladies at the crop and on Saturday the rest of the pages were completed, a total of 150 pages! It was so sad to hear the story and to think that these children will have to go on with life without their mother, but it was soooo amazing how everyone jumped in, including myself to grab some photos to help complete these memories for this woman who we don’t even know. My heart goes out to her and her family! I cannot even imaging what this mother is feeling and going through right now, but I can tell you that there wasn't a dry eye in the place thinking about her situation and even more the support of the women that wanted to help her! Just speechless!

It was also bitter sweet looking at old pictures and reminiscing with my sister. It’s always so much fun when we’re able to get together for some scrapping time! Crazy thing, I also was able to spend some time with my neighbor who we ended up sitting next to at the crop and her friend Carisa, such lovely ladies! I was so busy I forgot to take lots of pics. But I got a couple in while I could.

Rebecca & Carisa

Carisa, Christi (my sis) & Rebecca

I was able to accomplish one 2-page layout, pathetic I know. I put a lot of thought and time into my layouts and after the emotions of the morning, it took me awhile to get back into the swing of my own scrapping project! OR it could have been that my sister and I were gabbing a lot and I wasn't paying attention therefore I kept goofing up on my pages! (hee hee)

Then I went shopping! I bought a few items that I'm in LOVE with right now!!

Jenni Bowlin products: Mini Springtime Bingo Cards- I don't have a pic of these, but they're little mini bingo cards that are sooooo adorable. I love Jenni Bowlin, tons of cute little vintage items she creates. Stinkin cute! Here's some of her mini birthday bingo cards that she has on her website that are similar to the ones I purchased. I want these ones too!



My Minds Eye Paper: Quite Contrary Line, cute little "Sweetie Pie" title card and adorable Strawberry Paper


That's all for now! Have a great rest of the week!

Scrap it Swanky Sister~
Nicki

Scrapbook Weekend!!

I'm so excited, this weekend my sister and I get to scrap the day away at the local scrapbook store, Memory Bound. I so need a day away to get some stuff done! It feels like forever since I've done a layout~ well actually it has been forever in my book! I don't think I've ever went this long without scrapping! Should be a fun time! My sis and I have been scrapping for quite some time together and we usually try to get out together once a month but this winter has just been brutal! I'm looking forward to it! I'm gathering the latest pics that I want to incorporate into some pages right now. I'm trying to decide if I do the latest Birthday party and try out my new Cricut Cartridge "Sweet Treats" or if I finish up some of the Christmas pictures from a couple of years ago that I also have a Cricut Cartridge for "Winter Wonderland", that I started on the last retreat. Hmmm... decisions, decisions!! Either way I'll definitely have something to work on, I always do! Here's a pic of my sis and I at Scrapfest in September, I swear that's the last time I did any scrapping~ not true but it feels like it!! I miss you sis~it's been a busy few months and can't wait to spend time with you!



Other news... back to the office remodel front, so I've finally got my dream desk! The one that was in the Scrapbooks Etc. magazine as the best scrapping desk eva! That would be the Trestle Desk from Target. Well I've been looking at this desk for over a year now and just haven't bitten the bullet and purchased it. I was so lucky today, I happened to find someone selling this desk in excellent condition on Craigslist. I got it for a steal!!!! I can't wait, I pick it up on Friday! I love Craigslist!! Between that and Etsy I'm not sure which one gets more of my moolah!! Ha!

Sooooo... now I've got to decide on my office paint color. The desk is black which originally I wanted the chocolate brown to stick with the brown and pink decor that the room already had. I've taken down the nursery curtains- the pink and brown gingham will be missed (secretly dying inside knowing my baby is an official toddler now!) but I also found another steal this weekend at Target, some white colored tab top curtains for $3.74!!!!! I couldn't believe it, so I purchased those and thought I could dress them up by adding some ribbon and floral to the tabs and maybe even some adorable scrapping jewels. Definitely going to have to think about what will happen with those! Back to the wall color, it's so hard, I can accent black with any color, so I could still go with the antique pink, but I've also thought about a pale yellow or tiffany blue but a really light version! What should I do?

Well, I'll take any suggestions! Just leave me a comment and let me know what you think.

So far, looking at the color scale at Benjamin Moore Paint the colors I've narrowed it down to are:

Pink Dynasty
Picture Perfect (light blue) Imagine that for a scrappers room! ;0)
Lemon Souffle (Always thinking dessert!)

Anyway, I'll be happy with any of these I think as long as there is color on the wall. I'm so excited to get this space moving into functional direction!

Here's a pic of my new desk! Isn't it so adorable!! I love the space underneath to store lots o' baskets and other scraps!! I'm dreaming of my new space and it looks so good with this desk in it!! I'll post pics next week once I get it and everything is back in it's rightful place!
Hopefully I'll have some fun scrapping posts to come once I have a space to finally be productive in! Sooooo looking forward to that!!

Have a great rest of the week!

Scrap it Swanky Sister~
Nicki

Happy Valentine's Weekend!

Hope you all have something fabulous planned for the big weekend! I do have a little surprise for my hubby, but he's been sick all weekend so I'm hoping he'll be awake enough to enjoy it!!

My daughters and I will be making some yummy heart-shaped sugar cookies here when they wake up from their nap! Can't wait!

The last few days I've been working on rearranging my office and crafting room, I moved my daughter out of her nursery into a big girl room now and I've taken over the nursery space, which I admit is much smaller! I have weeded through a bunch of stuff though. It feels good to purge the old stuff to make room for new! (oh whoops did I say that, nothing more can fit in this room!!) Anyway, I am trying to decide what paint colors to do in this room, my favorite color is pink so I thought about doing an antique pink with Espresso accents, after all I still have the nursery curtains that would match they're pink with brown plaid soooo cute~ not to mention I paid an arm and a leg for them! OR I thought about a really light yellow or possibly a tiffany blue but bring down the shade about 4 notches. Decisions, decisions! Maybe I'll post the colors on here for a vote! I'm in the middle of organizing and then my new desk should be here in a couple of weeks just in time to paint and put things in order. It's so much fun getting organized in a new space! I have some before pictures and when it's all done I'll take some after pictures, I think you'll be shocked on the before pics (I was!).

Switching gears now, I worked on some very simple treat bags for my daughters pre-school Valentine party and I've posted them here. For the kids, I just took the store bought valentines that my daughter had to have (LPS) and a bag of sweet-tarts and put them in a small jewelry bag that has a zip lock, I took some Bo Bunny Paper and cut it 2x3 and folded it over the top of the bag and added a "Happy Valentine's Day" note to the paper. Easy and cute! For the Teachers, I just put 4 Dove chocolates in a bag and did the same thing with the note. Simple and didn't cost me a thing, I used up stock I already had!

Friends Treat Sack (sorry the picture is sideways, not sure why it keeps doing that!):

Teacher's Treat Sack:

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! I'll be finishing up the organization and putting things back in order!

Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow!

Scrap it Swanky Sister- Nicki