The Month of August!

  Wow! August has been wicked fun so far.  My brother, Hal and his wife, Charlotte, and their daughter, Cindy , came up from New Jersey for a short visit. We had fun. It started out with giving Hal his birthday card. I loved making it 'cause I used punch art. I cased a card I found on Pinterest.

Love the bird!

Wacky Bird!  Here is the link to the blog that gives you more info on how to make it. I did a little change here and there 'cause I didn't have all the same punches and dies. I think he came out pretty good.
   I love making my own cards to fit the size of my card. The envelope punch board is great for that.
 

Looks yummy...

   I also made Hal a birthday cupcake box and bought him a yummy cupcake at Hannafords.I wanted to take a lick wicked bad, but I held myself back. The box was so easy to make. I got the directions from a blog I found, guess where? Pinterest: Surprise, surprise!
 Here is a link to that blog. Her video is quite good. Cupcake Box  I decided to glue my corners inside the box and for some reason the top did not fit. It was too small, so I scored the top a little smaller than an inch and it worked fine.

Side view

I borrowed some glass beads from my sister, Chris, and put one in each corner for the legs. I had seen that done on a box at Stamped Designs in New Hampshire. It looked great. Here is a picture of the legs on this box.

You can just see the glass legs.

  Well, we decided to take everyone to Shaw's Wharf in New Harbor. What a gorgeous day to go eat at a wharf. It was a beautiful drive down on a wonderful summer day. We ate lobster rolls, seafood casserole, and  lobster and fish chowder. We were full of the bounty of the ocean. Yum!

Great food...

 We got some great pictures of  a working wharf. It was a very busy place with lobstermen, and tourists everywhere.

Selling their lobsters...

Here is a picture of Cindy acting like a typical tourist. Love this picture of her.

Now that is a lobster...

Pemaquid Lighthouse

 

See ya soon!

  We headed to Pemaquid Lighthouse after lunch 'cause they had never been there. Again it was gorgeous. We checked out the gift shop and the locals...

Friendy locals...

 What a great time with family ... The next few days we took them to Ken's in Old Orchard, and  a Sea Dogs game. The time went way too fast. We hope to see them this fall.
  I have just finished my brother-in-law's birthday card. Yes, another birthday in August. He is an avid golfer, so this card was perfect for him. I really loved making this one 'cause it was so easy. I used a scrapbooking pair of scissors for the grass. I also cut out the circle with my  Big Kick and a Spellbinders die. The dotted swiss embossing folder gave the golf ball its dimpling.

Wicked cute!

 I used a Sizzix die for the tag that says "enjoy". That sentiment comes from Tim Holtz. I really like the colors that make this card stand out. I cased this card from another great card I found on Pinterest. Here is the link to that card: Golf Card
  Well, Russ and I are headed to Denver, Colorado to visit with his daughter, Kristin. We are looking forward to seeing her for a few days. When we come back  August will be more than half over. Where has the summer gone?
  Here are a few more pictures of my brother's visit.

View from Shaw's Wharf

Great picture

Good day for a boat ride.

Pemaquid scene

Sea Dog's Game

Summer Fun!

   I have been having alot of fun doing the things I love to do in the summer time: going to the Yarmouth Clam Festival, working in our garden, canning, and paper crafting; just to name a few things.
   My sister-in-law, Bette, is so thoughtful. She was working at the Unity Fair Circle in Sebasco when she spied a table with a number of stamps on it.. She thought of me immediately.. What a sister-in-law. She bought all of them. And what a find it was for me.  Most of the  stamps were from Stampin Up and they were stamp sets where most of them had never been used. Whoopie!  Love 'em.
   There were four angel stamps that I absolutely love. I used one on my altered cigar box ( Check an older post.) inside cover. I used my copic markers to color the cherub and he looks so cute.

One of the stamps Bette found for me

I used a Spellbinders die for the corner embellishment and glittered everything in sight. Love that glitter....
  The sentiment is a stamp from Inkadinkadoo. I have used it before on other projects.

Inside my altered cigar box

   Thanks, Bette, for thinking of me. I am going to enjoy using these stamps on future paper projects.
   I also finished my sister, Rochelle's birthday card. I gave it to  her early 'cause I wanted her to see how clever I was in finding a new type of card I had not made before. When she came to the house to show me her new card, it was the same waterfall card. We had a good laugh about how great minds think alike and all that. She actually made her squares a little bigger, which I liked. She gave me some tips, so I am going to try another one.

Waterfall card for Rochelle!

  You pull the ribbon at the bottom and the squares move up and away. Love it !  I found the tutorial on Pinterest. ( Boy, if you are not on Pinterest, you are missing out on some great ideas and  inspirations!) The tutorial is for a Halloween card, but Dawn really does a great job explaining each step. Here is a link to her video: Dawn's Waterfall card

   I used Graphic 45 paper, which is my new favorite paper. I used brads from Stampin Up. I also used SU stamps from Loads of Love, Flower of the Month, So Many Scallops, and Love Ya Bunches. They all worked well here for a birthday card.
    I really had fun making this waterfall card. Check out Dawn's tutorial, if you are interested in making one of your own. My sister's blog at Creative Corner Studio has more examples of this type of card, too.

Voila! There is the message!

Pull the ribbon!

Keep pulling...

   Well, in between my paper crafting fun, my husband, Russ and I , have been picking cucumbers from our garden like mad. We found a recipe in a canning book Bette and Tommy gave us for Christmas a few years ago. We still have some relish we made last summer to use up this summer.
I don't know what it is about gardening, but we are into it.  Check out these pictures of our canning fun.

All clean and ready to be filled.

Funnel thingie comes in handy.

Good eating this winter!

    Well, tomorrow we are going to have some rain. That's okay 'cause I will continue to work on my paper crafting projects. I hope to be done with my Disney album and get ready to make some more mini albums.

Playing with Dolls!

  I recently bought one of Julie Nutting's new doll stamps from Absolutely Everything's online store. They are only $7.00. I love them. It reminds me of playing with paper dolls when we were kids. I love choosing the patterned paper to cut out her dress.
  I made a tag for my sister, Adrianne's upcoming birthday. (Don't look Adrianne , if you are seeing this post.) I chose pink and red for the color combo. I stamped leaves in the background and then used Tim Holtz's distress ink pad to soften the edges.

Love this tag!!

  I put the flowers together from my stash of prima flowers and some ribbon like flowers I got from Tate's in Bath.
   I forgot to take a picture of the back of the tag, but I typed in a message that I think works really well for birthdays:

"By  living fully,

recognizing that all we do is by

His power,

we honor God;

He is turn blesses us."

I hope Adrianne has a wonderful birthday. Happy Birthday, Adrianne!

   I was able to use my new favorite tool for this tag to be sent to Adrianne, since she won't be with us on her birthday. She lives in Massachusetts.

 

Envelope Maker

  This Envelope Maker is fabulous and so easy to use. It only costs around $20.00. The dimensions for cutting the sized envelope you want are right on the board, as you can see in the picture. 
  I needed a larger envelope than the dimensions showed, so I added an inch to each dimension and got the perfect fit.
  I also purchased the "Lick and Stick" glue for envelopes that let's you roll on the glue around the flap. You wait til it dries and then you can lick the flap and it will stick like a bought envelope. Neat, huh?

Perfect fit.

 

This is the tip of the envelope glue.

Well, I am off to the post office 'cause I think this card will need more stamps.
  I am on to finishing up my Disney trip mini album. I think I have said that for the last few days. The heat here just wears you down and all you think about it taking a nap. Whew... tomorrow the heat is suppose to break and we will have mid 70's weather. Hurrah!!!

Altered Cigar Box and other projects....

Altered Cigar Box

  It has been so hot here recently that I have been working on projects in my craftroom ( It has air conditioning.) that I have been putting off finishing up. Great time to do it... I have wanted to get started on the cigar box that I bought at "Absolutely Everything " a few  months ago.  I purchased a paper pad of Graphic 45 paper called "Secret Garden".  I knew this would be perfect for my cigar box.
  I am not sure what I am going to put into this box, but I just love the way it came out.
  I used Tim Holtz's legs and knob to make it practical and pretty. The sunflowers are a nice splash of color.

This is one of my favorite pages from Graphic 45.

   I love the top of the box with the little girl in a garden. I added some prima flowers and a little key and bow.

The back of the box

   I didn't add much to the back of the box because the fence with flowers seemed just perfect.
   I might add a pocket or two to the inside of  the box and maybe a few more embellishments, but for now I am happy with what I've done so far.

  I plan on buying another box 'cause they are only three dollars. These would make a great for someone who collects things.     

    I have been working on making birthday cards to have them ahead of time cause July and August are busy months in my family for birthdays.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The inside 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   I use Pinterest alot for inspiration and design ideas. The two birthday cards I made came from my boards on Pinterest.  Here are the links to the cards that I used .Pinterest Card  The second card is at this link: Second Card 

 from Pinterest    

   I loved using the new stamp I got on ebay called "Just Believe" from Stampin Up. It's a great stamp set. I've seen many cards using this set. I cased this card with just a few changes. I used a different color of green and I didn't use pearls on my flowers. I love the embossing folder 'cause it works well here. 

   The second card was fun to make, too. I made a few changes to this card, too. I distressed the background paper and used my scissors to make it look very worn

 and vintage looking. The stamp was from the same Stampin Up set "Just Believe". The sentiments on both cards was from Stampin Up's "Well Scripted" set.

Second birthday card

   I used pearls on the ribbon that I added. I wanted a little more color for this card. I used my punch to make the flower and added a pearl in the middle.
  When the weather was a little cooler we went to Gurnet which is the road to Harpswell at Cooks Corner. My sister and her husband found this great little place called Gurnet Trading Co. It has really good seafood. It also will cook lobsters for you. It was a really quaint place.

Good eats.

 

Out door seating area

  Russ and I had the fried shrimp dinner with fries. It was our splurge for the week and well worth it. I couldn't eat it all.  

Loved the shrimp

                                           I would recommend this place if you like seafood. It's just on the side of the road on the way to Gurnet. My mom had the crab meat roll that she said was good, too.               

         Well, I am working on another birthday card using the new doll stamp I got from Julie Nutting's collection. It is a really cool stamp.
I also plan on finishing my Disney mini album. If the hot weather holds on, I will get alot of projects done.
   Next time I will have pics from our trip to Brimfield, Mass. Great place for antiques and collectibles.

Russ is holding the mini lobsters that will light up to tell us our order is ready...Cute, huh?

                                           

Heat Wave in July!

Wow.. it has been wicked humid here in Maine these last few days.. We have been staying in doors with a few moments outside weeding the gardens or watering our plants.. It should break here in a few days.. Yeah!!
   My last post we were going to Topsfield, Mass. to a yard sale at one of our favorite craft stores: Absolutely Everything. It was a fabulous sale. Items were mostly a dollar or fifty cents with a few things a bit more. We had a ball. The picture below shows you the items I purchased. The paper was Graphic 45. I also got some chipboard cut outs for a dollar. Loved everything. My sisters came away with good stuff, too.

The "goodies" I bought at Absolutely Everything.

Clematis

     I am so proud of this blossom on our climbing clematis vine. I am having a wicked hard time growing these babies. I am hoping that now they are established that they will grown bigger and have more blossoms.

Hydrangea Plant

 This hydrangea bush is doing real well, too. The yard has so many pine needles around that the flower is turning blue without me adding anything to the soil. That is kinda cool; except I don't like the pine needles.

The peas are ready for eating.

 A Saltwater Farm

 



  We had a lobster feed at my sister-in-law, Bette's and her husband. Tom's home. Tommy and Bette have a wonderful garden out in back of their home. It is huge with many of the plants growing sky high. The peas are delicious eating them right out of the pods. This hot humid weather with an afternoon rain shower helps the gardens to really shoot up.

  

Thomas loves those garden peas, too.

   We went to the lake yesterday to our friend, Cindy and Dave's camp in Limington, Maine. The weather was perfect there. The food was yummy and the water was warm. We all had a great time.  Cindy's friend, Nancy, gave us all a ride around the lake. It was great fun.

Slow smoked ribs...yummy!

Beautiful day at the Lake.

Ribs afterwards

Good eating...

Boat ride on the lake

  We were so tired on the way home. A day at the lake can really sap your strength especially when you go swimming in the lake to boot. We can't wait until next year. Cindy and Dave might have us back for the Fall. We will have to rest up for that fun, too.
  I will leave you with a picture of a moose that Dave and Cindy have inside their camp. I always jump when I come into the sun porch 'cause I think someone is standing there. Spooky..

Mr Moose...