happy birthday...TSTR #152

This week's challenge at The Shabby Tea Room is a BIRTHDAY themed one, set by the lovely Lenet! She asks that we create a card/project that is:

                                                        *BIRTHDAY themed
                                                        * COLOURS: PINK, BLUE, CREAM/WHITE

Paper Sweeties is our sponsor this week. Play along and you can win 2 stamp sets of your choice. This week I used Pennant Party. It's so perfect for my birthday card.

We hope you will play along with our fun challenge this week. I'm off to visit the rest of the DT to see what they all created.
                          Debbie- Deb's Simple Treasures

                          Lenet- To Scrap or Not to Scrap

                          Rebecca- Paper Primrose

                          Tracey- Trace Elementz

                          Starr- The Paper Chase
Happy Crafting!
~Becks

birthday bash...TSTR #109

Hey sweets!
Its time again for our challenge at The Shabby Tea Room. This week I'm your hostess and the theme is 'Birthday Bash" Use the photo as inspiration and create a BIRTHDAY CARD/PROJECT using a CUPCAKE IMAGE/SHAPE on or as your project. Simple right? Let's get started.

Our fabby shabby sponsor this week is Digital Delights and this week you can win a $5 GIFT CERTIFICATE.. Are you ready to play?

I've said before I'm obsessed with cupcakes..all sorts.edible and paper ones. I'm using one of my fave go-to dies from PTI. This is an all girly version (I did an all boy version). Once again I had to add some frilly streamers.. what's a party without them?

More is more when it comes to layers...as I've shown here. Love adding dimension with papers and frilly trims.. Yummy seam binding from Etsy and of course a tiny tag! K&Company and The Girls Paperie papers. YUM!

I could make these cards all day long.. SO, won't you join our party and play along? The Shabby Girls have some fab inspiration. Don't forget to visit and be inspired!

                          Debbie- Deb's Simple Treasures

                          Lenet- To Scrap or Not to Scrap

                          Tammy- Paperie Sweetness

                          Fran- Purple Peanut's Crafty Blog

                          Starr- The Paper Chase

Stay sweet!
~Becks

oh boy...

Ok, ladies (and gents),

I have a confession. I'm *slightly* obsessed with cupcakes. Both the kind you eat(I love decorating them) and the paper kind. There's nothing easier than making a birthday card and sticking a cute glittery cupcake on top. Some of my first cards I ever made were of a single cupcake image. I'll have to try and find some pics...

So when Papertrey Ink came out with their shape up series-Cupcake I was over the moon.. that die paired with Melissa Philips sweet style is a match made in paperie heaven. I held off as long as I could - really, I did. But as usual I gave into temptation, with visions of Melissa's cupcake cards floating in my head, hoping to create something half as magical on my own.. and bought the die in my last PTI order.

Be warned. You will see these as much as you've seen my handmade cameos. To say I'm in love is an understatement. I tried my hand at an all boy version.. I tried to make it the least frilly and pretty as I could...but this girl has to add a bow or two..or a flower..a little lady bug button that was too cute to pass up...

A new found love of ric rak...used here as the icing on the cupcake..just peeking out. I need to find it in every colour imaginable.

So it's a little bit girly. A little fussy. But it's L-O-V-E... Melissa Frances goodies(flashcard as a flag) and papers...seam binding from 5dollarfrench market. Some old trim from my stash.. upcycling an old tag from an online order...a handmade mini doily.. its the first of many cupcake cards to come..
Stick with me, it's gonna be sweet :P
Night night my friends!
~Becks

TSTR #106...Pennant Party!

Hey there!

Today marks my first DT post with the Shabby Girls over at The Shabby Tea Room! Feast your eyes on this pretty picture:

This week Debbie is our hostess and her challenge to us is to use the COLOURS FROM THE INSPIRATION PHOTO, and to INCLUDE A BANNER OR PENNANT(FLAG) Easy peasy!

Our generous sponsor this week is Bugaboo Stamps. I got to play with the Present image.  I printed the image twice on two different patterned papers then paper pieced it together to make it more 3D.

I played around with the size a bit before printing to make it the right size for my card. Since it's a celebration I just had to add some streamers too!

Voila. There she is in all her glory. Won't you join in on the fun and play along with us. You could win 7 free digi images from Bugaboo Stamps! Be sure to visit the other girls for some more great inspiration:

                          Debbie- Deb's Simple Treasures

                          Lenet- To Scrap or Not to Scrap

                          Tammy- Paperie Sweetness

                          Fran- Purple Peanut's Crafty Blog

                          Starr- The Paper Chase
Happy Monday!
~Becks

miles to go...

Who's woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening, Robert Frost

It sure seems like I have miles to go before I sleep. So much to do, so little time. I'm popping in today with the birthday card that I made for my aunt- the aunt who always brings such great goodies with her; for my mom and me. Just a short post today, sharing another of my favourite poems as a child. I haven't been around lately due to being asked to do a trade show about 13 days ago. It is this weekend and I've been scrambling to make some stock. I am excited..nervous.. skeptical that I will sell anything. It is for a good cause(the animal rescue group out here) and I was tickled that my guys co-worker asked me to do this(Hi Kristy!). I will have lots of pics to show you once its all said and done. So this might be my only post until after the weekend. SO looking forward to decorating the house for the holidays and getting holiday shopping over and done with.
Have a great week!
~Becks

mama...

Mother is a little girl who trod my path before me;
Just a bigger, wiser little girl who ran ahead-
Bigger, wiser, stronger girl who always watches o'er me,
One who knows the pitfalls in the rugged road I tread.

Mother is a playmate who will always treat me kindly-
Playmate who will  yield me what true happiness demands.
She will never let my feet stray into brambles blindly-
Mother's just a bigger little girl that understands.

Mother is an older little playmate who'll befriend me-
Yesteryear she traveled in the path that's mine today.
Never need I fear a foe from which she might defend me-

Faithful little pal who ran ahead and learned the way.
-Author unknown.

Such a beautiful little poem... it speaks to my heart. It is of course for my mama..who's birthday is today. Whom I miss so much..wishing I could tell her in person Happy Birthday.

 

I hope she likes this card...I made it with her in mind. Had such a great time coaxing it into existence...

Lots of lovely layers...a handmade stick pin upturned; made by my talented blog buddy Stella..such a sweet gift that she sent to me.

It is soft and sweet just like my mama...and of course one of a kind.

Happy Birthday mom, wish I were with you all to celebrate.

Sending love, as always, across the miles.

All my love,

Becks XO

the witching hour...

All the ghouls, goblins, witches and monsters have come and gone for the night. It was such a treat to see all of the costumes; hear the excited chatter as they clambered up the stairs and rang the doorbell...

Even I got in the Halloween spirit this year again..dressing up as a firefighter. My FIL was a firefighter for 30 years and my guy inherited one of his helmets from when he was Captain.(he retired as a Platoon Chief) So, upstairs it came and along with a jacket of my guy's and one of my FIL's Fire Dept badges, and I became a firefighter for the night. The kids certainly got a kick out of it.

I love Halloween time of the year.. we carved our pumpkins again this year(you can see them here..) with my family-long distance via webcam.. always so much fun. We all get better and better with each passing year. There are plans in the works for all of us to be together next year for pumpkin picking in the fields(one of my favourite activities) and a carving marathon.

Along with Halloween, October and November bring with it many birthdays.. some of my most favourite people were born this time of the year. I love that all the birthdays are grouped together; April-June and October November. This card was made for my best friend.. and I love how it turned out.

So many dainty layers of paper and fabric trims...an organza rose with one of my handmade cameos. I'm still having a love affair with them.. Lacy goodness peeks out...another handmade goodie- the little key; all painted and glittered up.. and a little personal touch- The stamped 'C' in the corner banner...in honour of my besties first name. I love personalizing cards for the recipient...makes all the more special.
I am off now, going to try and relax after being on my feet for all 171 kids that popped by.
How was your Halloween night?
Thanks for visiting,
~Becks

thankful for...

We just celebrated Thanksgiving here at the beginning of the week.. it is one of my favourite times of year. A chance to look back at all we have accomplished, looking forward to what's yet to come.. being thankful for all we have.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I am so thankful for technology..to keep me in touch with friends and family..It keeps me sane, knowing I can just reach out and talk to people all over the globe.

So grateful for relationships, cherishing friends that just understand who am I and what I'm going through on a daily basis.. Nurturing 'new' relationships which have been such a blessing to me over the past year or so. So glad that people have come into my life when they did and feel like they have been there forever..

SO thankful for my family...for phone calls and text messages.. talking almost daily. It's like I never left home...very comforting.. Thankful for our two fur faced Thing 1 and Thing 2 for being in our lives and making it unpredictable and fun.
Building our own little 'family' with friends..  making the most of being away from our individual  families...making sure we included everyone for our little Thanksgiving dinner...lots of laughs and good food...surrounded by good people. A feeling of normal again..
I've had so much fun lately playing around with paper scraps and such...using some cool items from my aunt(the fluffy butterfly), making cameo's and mini keys.. in a very creative space of late, and I'm loving it.
Thankful for your visit, as always
Cheers!
~Becks

lovely layers...

I'll say it again.. I love fall. Layers upon layers to be found...
Leaves layered on the ground in all shapes, sizes and colours...

Celebrations, holidays, and birthdays this month, there are a few...

Cozy sweaters layered over long sleeve shirts...soft scarves to keep out the crispness in the air...legwarmers and boot socks peeking out over comfy boots. I love dressing for fall.

Hot drinks with great spices...Chai lattes(my favourite) and pumpkin spiced ones too...Mexican hot chocolates.. great layers of flavours.. yum oh yum.

One of my favourite holidays this month. Hosting our first Thanksgiving for some of our friends without family out here..learning to make best of the situation...
Fall marks the start of hockey season.. watching the first game for my team(go Canucks go) as I type..games will get me through the winter and keep me sane..Fall is just wonderful!

Building on the layered theme..I had such a creative mode going the other night, playing in my craft room..using my new love; hand made cameos... be forewarned.-you will be seeing them regularly. I love the layering here..paper doilies, a crocheted doily..some lace from my aunt..ribbons, cameo, pearl drops, bling...love oh love.. I do hope my photos do justice..I can't wait for the recipient to get this card.. she is one of my most favourite people in the whole world...
Happy to add I stumbled across another new to me challenge blog Paper Sundaes..Going to add this to the current challenge of Lots of Layers
Now, I'm off to watch my team play,
Thanks for stopping by!
~Becks

game on...

I always have such a hard time with guy cards.. I love my bows and ribbons, glitter and buttons-anything girlie. I love adding little embellishments like  tags; tucked away behind a flower; tied to a button, around a bow.. how can I possibly give up all those fun things and make them masculine???

My solution? A fun themed card for my sisters guy. I had so much fun with it. She gave me an idea to play with and I just ran with it. I'm so glad I did. Casey is such a gaming fanatic. This was the perfect card to wish him a Happy Birthday.

I loved the nights when we all would meet up online and her guy and my guy would game, and my sister and I would take over the mics and chat. Even though we were miles apart it was like we were in the same room together.

The front of the card...I went 'old school Xbox' for this card...The newer models are sleek and slim-lined...the older models have more elements to make a cooler looking card, in my opinion. For this one I used 3D foam dots to make the lines of the console stand out, kind of like they do in real life...

The game disc on the inside was pop up style.. to add some dimension to the inside as well.. I scanned in one of the games we played, shrunk it down to the size, and then hand cut a controller and decorated by using water colour pencil crayons. I incorporated all the elements that come to mind when I think of gaming My first inside and out decorated card.... I was thrilled with the end result and I know Casey appreciated the card:) Makes my heart feel good.

Before I go, I just want to announce the winner of the magazine giveaway I posted here. **drum roll please** Random.org selected:


True Random Number Generator Min: Max: Result: 2

Ros said... Your post makes a picture in my mind ... you sound more settled and happy now and I am happy for you ... your beautiful cards are a delight ... Enjoy your day Becks...

Congrats my friend! Feel free to email me your address if you'd like the magazine!! Look forward to hearing from you:)
That's all I have for tonight. I'm off to spend some well needed time with my guy and 'the kids'
Happy Weekend!
~Becks