HAPPY HOLIDAY!!!

Hello, everyone!!!  OMG, I would have just been too disappointed with myself if I had not gotten here before Christmas to wish  a happy holiday!!! With really no time to spare, I just made it!!!

I was headed here the other day when I had a moment but the mood I was in I would have only vented.  Of course that never does any good and I didn't want to do anything to interfere with making you feel bad or sad for me during such a joyous time -- that would have been selfish of me and not fair to you.  Now I'm really glad I didn't  because it was just a fleeting moment where I was feeling sorry for myself -- didn't take me long to get myself up, dust off, and go about doing what I had to do.  (Although I hope there isn't a next time I feel that way but if there is you may not be so lucky... lol!!!)

Same ole story -- I'm still quite busy with family matters and so very tired, however, Leonard is doing much better.  We're hoping his therapy will be coming to an end soon -- which will free up a bit more time for me.  I hate being away like this and I truly miss my  crafting but I know my prayers will be answered soon.

Thank you for your prayers, well wishes, and cards.  I never got the opportunity this Christmas  to make any cards and I'm still trying to find time to do a few family/friend gifts as I haven't had time to do any shopping either.  Of course, I'm more than grateful for all the love I feel and that's enough for me.  I hope everyone feels my love too as I'm definitely reaching out.  Unfortunately, it's the only gift I have right now to give.

Until...  I hope you have a very merry, happy, and magic holiday!!!  Love you all!!!

I'll be seeing you!

A "SHOW AND TELL" PROJECT

Hello, everyone!  I told you I'd be back with my little project I was working on the other night and, ironically, Sheila allowed me to use this in lieu of my tutorial project today (which I'd totally lost track of).  I'm so glad I finished it in time to be able to share with everyone as a "Show and Tell" over at She's A Sassy Lady as well as with you!

Unfortunately, I'm still pressed for time and so I've got to speed away again when I've finished.

Being that my circumstances hadn't allowed me to craft for the last 2 months I hurriedly delved into doing this simple little project as soon as I found I had some spare time.  I had soooo much fun with this.  This project began with some Christmas ornaments  I'd purchased several years ago and never did anything with.  Knowing I'd need a few quick and easy Christmas presents, and not knowing when I'd have extra time for sure, I came up with an idea -- I'll tell you what the idea is after the presentation as it won't be just to exactly hang on a tree... lol!

Now I'll "SHOW" you what the ornament I began with looks like:

Just an ordinary glass ornaments (the flat-round ones you get from Michaels -- cheap!).  Now here's what I did with them (click on the pictures for a larger and more detailed view):

 

Here's a side view:

 

Aren't they pretty?!!!  Of course they are!!!  Okay, let me "TELL" you how I embellished them.  I glued pretty trim around each of the ornaments and then glued a row of bling mesh to the trim, next I glued on some paper flowers and leaves that I highlighted with Stickles, and lastly I just attached some assorted complementary ribbon bows to the ring on the cap of the ornament along with another paper flower to cover the knots in the bows.  That's it!!!

 

Soooo, what's my idea for them?  Well, I'm going to fill them with bath salts!!!  Yep..., then I'm going to tuck them into organdy bags with matching tags -- which I haven't made yet... lol!!!   I think the quick and easy bath salt ornaments are going to be fabulous Christmas gifts!!!

 

Well, I certainly hope to be back on schedule soon and not be away from you as I've been!!!  Keep the prayers coming!!!  My thoughts and prayers are with you all always!!!

 

I'll be seeing you!

FINALLY!!! KITCHEN-REMODEL PICS POST!

Hello, everyone!  Hope all's well in blogland.

I've still got my hands full but, at least, hubby's coming along.  Although I still have some burdens to bear within my family, everything else that's now no longer of immediate importance is coming under some control but I'm still busy, very worried, and doing a lot praying.

Amyway I've promised you long enough to get pictures of my kitchen-remodel posted, so I'm taking a few minutes to get it done.  My kitchen is small so I've tried to scan around the entire kitchen (because of the lighting the cabinets may look brown but they're actually black).  It may be better if you zoom in to see clearer:
 

 

 

All the cabinets are handmade, so they're one unit and there's another cabinet unit above the refrigerator on the other side of the room.  The picture below is a pantry they built for me that not only has shelves inside but one side also has room to store my mop, broom,  bucket, etc., so now I have plenty of cabinet space:

 

 

 

I LOVE this back door!  I selected it over some which were probably prettier to some, but I picked this one especially because the blind is between 2 panes of glass built into the door panel, so I'll never have to take down the blind to wash it (I absolutely hate cleaning window blinds):

 

 

I've added a few touches of red in the kitchen to compliment the red on the knobs of the stove:

 

 

Still haven't had time to really enjoy or finish embellishing my kitchen yet; I've only had time to cook a few meals  but I definitely enjoyed the dishwasher... lol!!!  Anyway, all the work is done and all that's left is for me to add my finishing touches when I get a chance.  Soon it'll looked "lived in".

 

Haven't done any crafting in 2 months now but did start a small project before sitting down to to this post and now I'm to finish it.  I even plan on taking some time tomorrow for more crafting and getting in some time to do some visiting.. YEEEAAA!!!  I can hardly wait!!!  I'll post my project as soon as it's done!

 

Love you, miss you, and...

 

I'll be seeing you!

 

 

 

ALMOST...!!!

Hello to all of you... my wonderful family friends!

Thank you for your kind comments and concerns, I appreciate it.  I too have missed you all considerably and I've sent up "knee mails" that all's been going well with you during my absence.  I hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving holiday, and apologize for being late in my holiday greeting to you.  For all else that I've missed, I apologize for that too; but, unfortunately, it's been a fairly horrific time for me and I had no choice but to deal the hand that was dealt me.

I see I have a few new blog family members and I do plan on getting around to visiting with you as well as all my blogland family very soon, although it's going to take me some time -- just please bare with me a little longer.  AND..., welcome to my beautiful family!!!

I'm happy to report my hubby is doing much better and on the mend, and my family situation is a bit better right now; everything is less hectic than it's been, and I'm certainly hoping all continues to get much better as time goes on.

I haven't forgotten about posting pictures of my new kitchen (which I've finally had an opportunity to use), and I'll prepare to post those pics for you when I post next.

As of now I've got some things to tend to but I'm hoping to be back again very soon, hopefully and pending no other unforeseeable circumstances  I should be back here within the next few days or so.  Please just keep me in your prayers!  I'm keeping you in mine!

I'll be seeing you!!!  Love and hugs!!!

PLEASE EXCUSE MY ABSENCE...

Hello everyone.  I've prayed, and hope, all's been well in blogland; and although I sincerely hope it not to be so but to anyone, the families and/or friends who might have possibly been affected by Hurricane Sandy, my thoughts and prayers have went out to you and are with you yet.

I apologize for my absence without an explanation until now.  However, my family is going through a very trying and troubling time which has left me with no time for anything other than dealing with first things first priorities  Unfortunately, although things are looking ahead, we still have a way to go.  Because of this, I haven't been nor am I  able to do any crafting at this time and/or the probability to give much attention to my blog for at least the next several weeks to come -- I'll just have to see how things go from this point on.  I trust you'll all understand and know I'll be back to you just as soon as time/situation allows.

Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to read/respond to post comments or emails but will, again, time permitting.  With regard to my kitchen, it is now complete and I'll post pictures when I can.

Please know I love you all and keep you in my thoughts, and I'll be back with you once things have settled.

I appreciate all the prayers and they are returned tri-fold.  I miss you much and look forward to being back with you all very soon.

Love you, hugs, and...

I'll be seeing you.

DT PROJECT AND KITCHEN REMODEL SNEAK PEEK

Hello, everyone!  Hope all's well with everyone!

I'm still going through a pretty rough time with my kitchen remodel.  To name a few things, we made a change in our initial oven selection purchase from the double-oven to deciding on the full-size oven with a bottom warming drawer and someone at the store forgot to make the change on paper, so the double-oven was delivered and had to be returned -- and replaced; the contractors are in competition with each blaming the other for mistakes, i.e., the plumber blames the cabinet maker for not placing the cabinets in the correct position for the dishwasher to fit properly and the cabinet maker says it's the plumber's fault for installing the pipes the wrong way -- UGHHHH!  I don't care who's to blame, I just want it corrected and done!!!  Then there's dust EVERYWHERE that I've been unsucessfully trying to clean up nightly to avoid inhaling all night; I'm tired of all the kitchen utilities packed up and relocated throughout my home where they don't belong, and in my way; and daily eating out and/or microwave meals, and having to wash dishes in the laundry room sink (in a new dishwash basket of course)!!!  This is just a preview of things; at this point and overall, I want all of these folks out of my house and everything back to normal!!!  I'm not liking neither my situation or myself right now!  Anyway, I decided to give you a before and "how it looks now' sneek peek and I'll share that at the end of my project post.

With no time to give to do a tutorial for my today's DT project over at Sheila's, I'm only able to share a quick project I put together and provide a brief explanation of how it was done.  It's simple enough  to copy should you choose to do so.

My project is a clipboard note-holder and magnet (sorry the pictures didn't turn out as clear as I would have liked):

 

The colored cardstock in the middle of the board is an example of a note clipped to the board and the picture below shows the "note" removed from the clip clearly revealing a notes pad attached (I think I'm going to add a matching pen and make this a gift set):

 

 

This picture below shows the back of the board where the back of the clip and magnet are attached:

 

 

This clipboard began from a set of discarded cardboard coasters shown below and a large paper clip :

 

 

What I did was painted the board with a cream color acrylic paint, sprayed it with a clear gloss, glued lace around the edges, attached the clip with E6000 glue, and embellished with gold bling ribbon, flowers edged with gold Stickles, and topped it off with a cream bow at the bottom -- SIMPLE!  This will be a quick gift when as occasion arises for one.

 

Now, as promised, the before and "to-date" sneak peaks of a corner of my ugly old kitchen's remodel:

 

 

 

 

 

Still waiting for the counter tops to be measured and installed, the new ceiling fan to be put up, the cabinets to be corrected so that the dishwasher can fit in between correctly, the electrical fixtures and plumbing to be completed, and a few other adjustments and installations.  I'll have pictures of all the completed work to share with you when it's done -- whenever that happens!!!

 

Well, I haven't been sleeping well these last few nights so I'm off to try to get some rest.  I'll be back when I can, and will catch up on visiting also as soon as I can.  Because this is such a trying and stressful time for me, I'd like to thank you in advance for your patience.  I truly do miss you but for now, this is my life and it's no fun!

 

As always, thanks for stopping by, love you all and...,

 

I'll be seeing you!

Hello, family!  I hope all's well in blogland!  OMG, do I have a bit to say so I'm going to try to make it as short as possible!

Being busy with my kitchen remodel, I have squeezed in some blogland visiting and have been so impressed with your projects!  I apologize for not reaching all of you yet but I'm trying to get to as many as fast as I can with everything going on -- thanks so much for your patience and support!

I've got new followers!!!  Every now and then I glance over at all the beautiful faces of my followers, and I noticed I have several more!  Thank you ladies for becoming members of my family circle and welcome!  I know we all love having you!  Google Friends hasn't noted where I can find you so please comment letting me know where I can visit or email you.

I also noticed I'm only 32 away from 500 followers -- WOW!  My time here has flown, doesn't seem I've been around for a couple of years now!  Anyway, to kind of scoot things along to getting to the 500 followers mark, I'm preparing a giveaway as incentive  to reaching that goal!  I'll  have all the info ready to post by the time things begin to settle down with the family and work going on around here in another week or so. Be on the lookout for that ! I'll have something I think you'll be very pleased with!  In the meantime, thank you so much for being here for me, I appreciate it, love you all, and I've enjoyed every minute!!!  I don't plan on going anywhere, so the more family-friends, the merrier!!!

As far as the remodel, all I want to say is  I promise I'll never-ever take on another task like this again in my life -- nor can I remember ever shedding so many tears!!!  I'm not a cry-baby but this has all been more than I bargained for taking on.  Had I known this would be such a stress involved project, I would have lived with my ugly-old kitchen!!!  I'll have pictures soon for you to see.

Finally, my share project!  A couple of years ago when I visited the CHA craftshow portion of the JFA here in Chicago, I found and purchased several dichronic and other assorted pendant pieces to use for making jewelry.  Later I found some beads at Walmart which matched these pendants perfectly to do matching earrings.  So, while just sitting here watching/monitoring the workmen, I worked on some jewelry sets for Christmas presents.   I wanted the jewelry to be incorporated into Christmas cards as I thought it would be a nice way of presenting them -- as present and card in one neat package.  Here're the unfinished gatefold card covers for my jewelry sets:

 

 

 

Here are the pendants and earrings on the inside of the cards:

 

 

 

Don't the earring beads match those pendants just perfectly?!!!  Because I don't yet know who will be getting these sets of jewelry, I haven't yet completed the card fronts, and I'll later add a Christmas saying to one of the inside panels of the cards.  So, if the cards look a bit plain this is the reason for that.  I plan on doing several sets of jewelry for family and friends, and here are some other beads I had around I'll be using for jewelry sets -- all purchased at Walmart:

Aren't these pretty?!   Soon I'll have more sets to share with you.  My sets came together really quick.  I started and completed both sets yesterday in a couple of hours.  It was such fun and just the break I needed!!!

Well, I've got to go for now.  Got some dusting and vacuuming to do so this stuff doesn't overwhelm me with the continuous work going on; it goes and settles everywhere, and just makes me sick having to breathe it all in.  I'll be back though as soon as I can, and keep those wonderful projects going!  Whether I've visited you or not, I have seen everyone's projects on my Reading List!  Thank god for that...lol!!!

Hugs, and I'll be seeing you!

A PRETTY LITTLE SOAP POCKET

Happy Friday, everyone!!!  Hope all's well in blogland!

Being so caught up in my kitchen-remodel, I'd actually forgotten until last night that it's my turn as DT designer over at Pam's today.  But first let me give you an update on the remodel -- THE WORK BEGINS TODAY!!!   We finally purchased everything needed, cleared out the kitchen, and now the real work starts!!!  YEAH!!!  I've survived so far although it hasn't been easy -- and it ain't over yet!!!  LOL!  Soon now I'll have before and after pictures to post for you to see.

Realizing at the last minute I had to have a project today, I had to come up with something really fast and easy, so I decided on a little ribbon pocket to hold a bar of soap. This one came out so cute I think I'm going to make a bunch of these to have around for unexpected Christmas presents.  Here are pictures of the pocket closed and open:

 

 

 

 

The ribbon I used for this project was 4 inches wide (to accommodate the soap bar).  I purchased it at Cosco's and it's a wired ribbon.  It is a beige and creme color ribbon with a suede texture, and the back side is like a gold satin -- very pretty.  I embellished it with a satin leaf, creme bow, flowers, accented around the edges of the pocket with bling mesh, and I added a polymer clay cherubs embellie that I molded some time ago and found in my stash to add to the cover-flap.  I painted the cherubs gold, and accented it and the flowers with gold Stickles.  The pretty soap bar comes in a pack of 3 and  I purchased them from a Tuesday Morning store -- they smell marvelous!

This pocket is certainly nothing new, is very simple, and probably doesn't require a tutorial but I'm going to explain and show you how I did it anyway -- just in case!

Without cutting the ribbon, I started by measuring out enough ribbon from the spool to cover the soap forming a pocket , leaving about a 1/4" allowance to fold a hem into the bottom; this will hide the raw edge opening of the pocket when folded over to encase the soap bar.  Pictures below are side and top views of pocket fold:

 Next I measured and cut off enough ribbon from the spool  to form the cover-flap, this time leaving a 1/2" allowance to fold 1/4th inch and double-fold another 1/4th inch to form a hem -- again to hide the raw edge.  Here are pictures of the first and then double fold:

 

Last, I hot glued down the hem folds and the side-edge folds forming the pockets, and cleaned up the pocket by cutting away any loose glue and/or ribbon strings:

 

 

NOTE: I do not remove the wire from this ribbon as it helps to maintain closure of the top flap; however, you can remove the wire and use your own desire closure.

 

 

Now how easy is that!!!

I hope my little project inspires you to do quick presents when needed too!  It can be sized to fit and hold any size gift as long as the ribbon is long and/or wide enough.  I'm also going to do several of these to hold hand sanitizers too!  We all need them, right?

Well, gotta run -- still really busy (and watchful!  The workers are still strangers in my home).  But thanks so much for stopping by and, I hope to get around to visiting with you all soon!

Love ya, and I'll be seeing you!

REACHING OUT TO TOUCH... (A PROJECT TOO)

Good day, family-friends.  I hope all is well in blogland.

Considering how things are going, I haven't had time to get around to visiting all of you and/or visit with any consistency; therefore, this post is mainly to  reach out to each and everyone of you saying hello, and to let you know I'm thinking of you; particularly those of you I haven't reached yet.

Update, the kitchen-remodel is one I wish we hadn't began!  We've had to move up the work date and delivery dates by a couple of days because I did not anticipate how much preparation time it would take before the work could start.  I am still packing and trying to find places to store things I'm determining to keep, and I still have to decide on and purchase flooring and wall tiles.  Between praying, crying, and expelling a few choice words I wouldn't normally use, I'm a wreck!!!  Disregarding my bathrooms, my kitchen is one of the smallest rooms in my home and I can't imagine I've packed sooooo much stuff in one teeny-tiny space  and causing me so much frustration!

An example of how bad things are going, the other night I was so tired I broke down and literally threw a tantrum accusing my hubby of this all being his fault.  Thank GOD he laughed at and overlooked me.  What a great stress-reliever that was because I ended up laughing at myself too.  Unfortunately, my son didn't think it was so funny when he came to help and I got "snippy" with him; but, of course, he understood and has forgiven me.  Seriously, this is turning me into a maniac!!!  I'm not liking myself very much right now.

In the meantime -- and between --  I completed a project to share (aaaah, my crafting -- another stress reliever).  This project came about when I saw my aunt's address/phonebook  which was small, so worn she could hardly read it, and was held together by rubber bands.  Of course to me that meant making her a new one.  Here it is:

I added a page on the inside that shows all her emergency numbers (I did not picture this page as, understandably, it's completed with the names and numbers), and alpha-tab pages for her to add her own additional information, and a page to write notes.  Here are pictures of the inside pages:

 

 

 

I even made the last back page to match:

I did all the pages in WordPerfect.  As quick and easy as it was, I'm so pleased with how it turned out -- but a problem is that she'll be as pleased and won't want to use it!!!  LOL!!!  Knowing her, she'll want to wrap it in tissue and only pull it out for "show"!!!  Maybe I should start on a plain and ordinary one she'll actually use, huh?  LOL!

Again, I know I'm behind on visiting and commenting but, unfortunately, it's not going to be any better until my work is done. So, please hang in here with me as you've always done -- oh yea, say a little prayer for me too... LOL!!!

Well, I'm off  again.  Still got packing and shopping to do, so I'll be back when I can.  Hugs and love to you all, and...

Thanks for stopping by.  I'll be seeing you!

SWAN GIFT BOX TUTORIAL (WITH CUT FILES)

Hello, family!  I am doing well -- just haven't been around the last few days because I'm really busy getting everything in order for my kitchen remodel.  I can honestly say this isn't  fun! I'm still searching for/deciding on the right accessories and trying to determine what to get rid of (when I  want to keep everything I don't need or have room for).  Then there's trying to find additional space to place kitchen items outside the kitchen before work begins next week.  However tiring this is, it's the excitement of the outcome that's keeping me going... lol!!!

Before I get started I want to say hi, and welcome, to Misty and Angie for becoming new members of our family by following me.  We're glad to have you both and look forward to getting acquainted!

Well it's that time of the month again where today I am the DT "Sassy" designer over at Sheila's.  So if you missed me there, I'm always here to share with you.  My DT project is a swan gift box:

 

I used my swan box as a towel holder and topper to a box of soap roses but, of course, it can be used separately for other small gifts.  I made the cutfile for this box using the Art Noveau and George cartridges (required for cutting files), and I've provided the .cut and gypsy file downloads at the end of this post below, if you're interested.

 

With that said, I began by cutting out the file:

 

 

Once cut, there is the box and 2 wings:

 

 

Please excuse my lines not being straight, however I wanted to provide you a picture schematic of the box folds which are indicated by the black lines:

 

 

These pictures show how the tabs (1) and swans (2) folds will look when bone folded:

 

                                                                                1

 

                                                                                 2

 

Now it's time to glue the box together by gluing the side tabs on each end to the inside body of the swans:

 

 

Once glued, the box will look like the first picture below and the next picture will show where to place the wings (I used pop dots on my box so that the wings would have a 3-D effect):

 

 

The box is now basically done -- just needs to be decorated and filled as desired!

 

For my box, I glued the heads on each side of the box together, and the tails, to give it the look of being one swan; for texture and to give the appearance of feathers, I added dimensional paint.  I finished the effects by adding eyes and highlighting the box with Stickles. Click on the picture for a close-up of these effects: 

 

 

 

My final embellishing was to add a ribbon bow and silk roses at the bottom of the box to complement the rose soaps

 

I hope you like my project, and that you'll have as much fun as I did putting yours together!!!  Now, don't forget to grab your cut file below!  LOL!!!

 

As always, thank you so much for stopping by, hugs, and...

 

I'll be seeing you!

 

 

Project Cut Files:

 

http://dc592.4shared.com/download/q6V8eS5L/swan_boxx.cut

 

http://dc592.4shared.com/download/sEM2FnO8/swan_boxx.gypsy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DARN GARLIC JAR!!!

Hello, and happy Labor Day!!!  Hope you're enjoying your holiday weekend!

I've had several things going on and must admit I fell behind in visiting; however, earlier this morning -- and later -- I've been working at catching up!  Between family matters and finally trying to get everything coordinated with getting my kitchen remodeled has taken up much of my time.  LOL... seems my life these days is one thing after another, but thank God it's all okay!!!

Of course the other day I spent an entire day trying to reach my families in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Alabama to make certain they were okay and not affected by Isaac; fortunately, everyone is fine and had little or no damage.  The hubby has family in Mississippi, so we were really busy on the phone.  What made it a bit difficult was that some of my elder family don't have cell phones and land lines were down; we finally got around to getting info on everyone.  I've also sent out many prayers to anyone/everyone affected by this horrible storm that's still travelling.

A while ago, we decided to re-do and update our ugly ole kitchen, so we've finally gotten 2 of the work groups together and have one more guy to  get in on schedule.  Finally made a decision on and purchased our appliances which I'm soooo excited about because I decided on a stove with double convection ovens and a convection overhead microwave!!!  The refrigerator is European style with pull-out drawers -- love it!!!  If we can get the guy scheduled who's putting in the counter tops on time, it should be all done in a little over a month -- it will take about 4 weeks for our cabinets to be made.  In that time, we still have to pick out our flooring, wall tile for the back splash, and a new back door.  Now what I'm not looking forward to is all the work getting rid of over 25 years worth of god knows what packed up and needless stuff thrown out before the guys come in to do the floors and walls.  So I'll probably be in and out the neighborhood less frequently the next few weeks -- but I will be checking in and as often as I can and I will be squeezing in a few projects (will be using crafting as a tension reliever...lol); probably will get more behind to but just bare with me, I'll get to you!  And in a month or so I'll have pictures to share of my beautiful new kitchen!!! 

I did manage to squeeze in a little project for today!  It's an altered minced garlic jar!  I don't think I'll ever do one again using a garlic jar because it was totally disasterous and time-consuming just trying to get rid of the smell!!!  After hours of working at it with several products -- alcohol, bleach, lemon juice, etc. -- I finally got rid of the odor and I'm very satisfied with how it turned out:

Click to enlarge

 

I spray painted the lid of the jar and a $1 store candlestick with gold metallic paint; added lace, flowers, and of course some bling to the jar, along with a  ploymer clay Nefertiti embellie I made a while ago using a mold.  Other than cleaning the jar, this was a fun and pretty fast project to complete.  Here is a picture with the lid removed:

 

 

I think I'm going to do a bunch of these for Christmas presents and fill them with different things like little soaps, bath powders and salts, candy and anything else I can think of.  I hope you like it!

 

Well, I'm off and running again!  Going out to look at some flooring, so I'll be back as time permits but...

 

I'll be seeing you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HAVE YOU EVER...?

Happy Tuesday, everyone!  I'm hoping this post will find you all well!  Those of you in the areas of the pending storms, I am praying for your safety and well-being.  Hopefully, the expected bad weather will take a turn to barren lands and/or just dissapate before hitting the ground.

Well..., have you ever planned an entire weekend to have it all go in another direction?!!!  That happened to me this weekend!  Not to say it was a bad weekend but disappointing in that I didn't get to do anything I anticipated.  I love-love my family and I hate to admit it but don't we all have those times when we wish we could get around our families and family-matters, wishing they'd all just disappear?!!!  Sometimes I really wish I could turn my back; but, of course, my heart, soul, and concern for them wouldn't allow that.   I only wish my shoulders were wider...

Fortunately, a friend happened to phone me yesterday and did an amazing job of lifting my spirits(just when I really needed it)!!!  Isn't having friends a blessing?!!!  Thanking her wasn't quite enough for how much better she made me feel so, finally having some time to myself and wanting to pay-it-forward, I sat down and made her this card before doing anything else:

I wanted the insidepanel to pop out and be a bit different so I added a deeper contrasting color:

I wanted to share my card with you today but haven't yet added the words; I want that to be very personal and private -- direct from my heart.

Thanks for taking the time to stop by and for lending an "ear";  coming here and being so well recieved is a reward I try not to ever take advantage of.  So every now and then expect to hear a heartfelt "thank you" from me.

Love you all, and...

I'll be seeing you!

APRON COOKIE BOX

Happy Saturday, everyone!!!  Ready for the weekend?  LOL!!!

Today when I went to visit with Sheila she'd made the most adorable little box and challenged any of us to make a liitle box and link to our project.  Of course, any of you who have been with me for any length of time knows I LOVE boxes and making them!!!  So, this was one challenge Sheila wouldn't have even had to twist my arm to do... lol!!!  I hurried to my Design Studio and came up with this little apron cookie box:

Unfortunately, I don't have any cookies to put in it at the moment, but what a cute gift it'll make for someone when I do!!!

I do have a cut.file I'll add to my list as soon as I've cleaned it up a bit... did it in such a hurry!!!  LOL!  If you care not to wait, you can always email me at audreyfrel@sbcglobal.net and I'll email it out to you as is.  The adjustment is only some slight cutting to the armhole and it's decorative cover.  Anyway, you can have it but it's up to you whether you want to wait or not.

Well, I'm off again to have as much fun as I can before I have work to do...

I'll be seeing you!

Hello, everyone!  Always I wish you wellness and happiness!

Yesterday I had such a busy day and I've errands to run today, so I'll be a bit behind in visiting.  Although things are considerably better, I still have an obligation to my aunt and family, and we do what we must.  But the up-side for me is I'll probably be able take some time to check in on what you've been up to later tonight!

My quick share today are the front and back pages I made for Rhonda's halloween min-book page swap.  I made two (2) pages -- one for a swap recipient and one for Rhonda -- so the opposites sides of the front and back pages below are identical to the other (to see some of the detail I added you can click on the picture to enlarge it):

 

These pages were really fast and easy to put together, from just some simple cricut cuts, and I had fun doing them. I hope whomever recieves my page in their mini likes it, and I hope Rhonda likes hers.

 

Sorry, I've got to run now but I'll be back...

 

I'll be seeing you!