Cupcake Balls

I made a few pots of these babies for my son's Mother's Day Tea Luncheon at the pre-school yesterday. They were a big hit. You can thank this gal for the idea. She was on Martha's Cupcake week and when I saw how easy it was, I knew it would be something I'd try. They're yummy, too! You can check out her Bakerella Blog for detailed instructions along with photos. I got the pots from Michael's because they were weighty and ceramic--and the cupcakes are heavy when finished. Val also told me there were recipes posted on the NSBR board over at Peas for those of you who want to venture over. I went with boxed cake mix and canned icing and it worked just fine!

Have a super weekend all!

This just in...

Ironically enough, my friend Val stopped by yesterday just as I got this shipment and happened to be wearing this shirt...Here are some of the delish papers that arrived yesterday and will belong in a June WIP kit. They make me "Happy"...
And there's more. Much more....

You'll see.

I Hope...

{Buck up, people. This is going to be a long post.}

On occasion, I get asked if I have a favorite album. I usually respond by saying that it depends on the day. But hands down, my favorite album to make for someone else and give as a gift is the "I Hope..." album.

I can't tell you how many I've made. If I had to guess--somewhere between 20 and 30. When you see the photos below and the patterned paper that was used, you'll see for yourself. I started out doing them for nieces when they became teenagers--their 13th birthday. Now, it is my standard First Communion or Confirmation gift. No two have ever been alike, and they generally suit the person intended. I made the one below as a class sample a couple years ago. I saved it because it will be my son's when he makes his First Communion, and all I have to do is add pictures.

The concept came from way back when Rebecca Sower came out with her first book and she was it. She did a mini with the same topic, and anything she did, I did. So the concept grew. I took a few of her "I Hope..." statements and made them my own. I added and deleted and modified them all, and have quite a few in my repertoire now. You'll get the idea.

I almost always make these 8x8 albums. There is a dedication page. And after that, on every left page, an I Hope statement. On every opposing right page, a photograph(s) of the person. It is always better to make the photos snapshots, and random--over a span of time. You'll want to grab photos that capture the person's personality for this one. Next, come up with a color scheme, lots of patterned paper and a handful of embellies. Be sure you have either a cutting system or several coordinating alphas too--so you can spell out specific words.

So here goes...the dedication page (fill in the blank area with the person's name, of course.)

Now, every "I Hope" page begins with just that. Then, select a word in the statement to highlight and make it bigger than the others using stickers, die cuts, etc.

This is what the right side with the photo looks like...




And of course, I always take the last page and leave them on this note...
Okay, so that was more of a masculine version, using mostly KI Memories papers. Here is the same version using red, orange and yellows, using the exact same concept (4 layouts in one photograph).
I sometimes decorate the covers of the albums, and for the above album for my niece Taylor, here is what her cover looked like...
Now, I know many of you out there are celebrating First Communions and Confirmations here soon with friends and family members. Give this a shot. Come up with 10 "I Hope" statements and use what you have--and you'll be done in no time at all!! I promise you, once you make one you'll be hooked...

Now, as some of you know, my own daughter is getting ready to celebrate her First Communion soon. I had intentions of making one of these for her and I never got around to it. And then it hit me.

Why not use the 7Gypsies Photo Carousel? It doesn't have to be in the confines of a book.

So I uploaded about 200 photos of her to Costco and picked them up today. I will simply adhere the photos back to back, and place them on the photo carousel. And the "divider" sections will be 4x6 cards with "I Hope" statements on them. And to kick things up even more, I printed out 4x6 cards that all say "I Hope" on them and "Love," on the bottoms, and they will be available for people to write their own I Hope statements for her during her party. The carousel will be given to her as a gift, and it will be on display in her room after the party to hopefully inspire her whenever she feels the need.

I have to tell you, when the thought hit me, I couldn't sleep. I was so wired about the whole thing, I got up and started right in. And I've been surfing that wave for 3 days. I LOVE how it is turning out. I promise I'll post finished pics next week after the party...

And I know my daughter will be over the moon excited when she sees this. She's just as sappy as her dear ole mom...I can't wait til she sees it!

My apologies to Jen, Val and Tina who are sick of hearing about it already and want me to shut up about it, I'm sure...LOL!

Thanks for sticking around long enough to read this one, and have a super day all! :)

Tina's on a roll...

I know I tease her about her love of all things mini, but it's true. Tina popped this out in no time--along with 2 others this month--and I had to share. She used the May Project kit for this one, and there are still a few left here.

Check out the detail...I love how she highlighted with the doodling...and how she created little tabs...
...and the MM letters along with those punched flowers...YUM!
I have yet to start on mine for the newsletter, and this has prompted me to get started...
Thanks for always banging out a winner, Tina! Be sure to check out this one too...

I also wanted to mention that Juliann Marchant is going to be pubbed in ScrapStreet's May issue using the March WIP kit. How cool is that?

Back tomorrow for one of my all-time favorite projects, perfect for a First Communion or Confirmation gift. Dig out an empty 8x8 album and a bunch of coordinating papers and embellies for this one...

Have a terrific day!

Some eye candy this Monday morning...

I grabbed these at Archiver's yesterday. I love the look of these, and that they can be placed individually or as a strip...And this cool new velvet die cut ribbon is really awesome...
I loved the look of this paper line by Bo Bunny. Not their usual, and I like that...
I'm also currently obsessed with working on my blurb. If you blog and would love a hard copy of it to have and hold forever, check it out. I saw the concept on the Laura Vegas blog, and I knew as soon as I saw it I had to do it. I'm nearly halfway through and I LOVE it! When it arrives, I'll be sure to post pictures of the finished product...
What have you scored lately that you're in love with? I wanna know!

Hope your week starts off great!

Been busy...

Next to packing and shipping WIP kits, I've been busy planning a big party for my daughter's First Communion. Luckily, I have 3 other friends who are also planning big parties in the next few months...so we've merged forced in the decorating arena to help one another out. No one will know--we're all inviting different guests except each other!I used my 50% coupon at Michael's this week to get the above paper stars. It doesn't look like it, but one package took me nearly 2 hours to complete! I got two, and they're ready to be hung.

One friend had this job. Thank God she's good at details:

These flowers are two of dozens and dozens and dozens of flowers. Her event is today, and I can't wait to use these in huge arrangements on the tables as centerpieces! They are also Martha Stewart's, but she bought tissue paper in bulk and did her own. Not too shabby, huh? Good luck with your party, Margaret!

More on decorating ideas in the near future...

I also wanted to post this tip for the folks who took any one of the Grade School Album classes. Some of you mentioned the interest in including memorabilia in the book. I found these at Archiver's this past week, and they are perfect for just that. There are three in one package, and it cost under $5.00. I tend to photograph a lot of my children's artwork, but for the pieces you can't bear to discard, this should do well...
Oh, and the WIP May Add-on kit is officially SOLD OUT.

Enjoy this weekend!

Altered Photo Cube

This was sent in by Molly, who is still playing around with the April WIP Kit. She altered a photo cube and created a treasure. Isn't it lovely?



And I have to say, she's got some mad photoshop skills...

Thanks, Molly!

Enjoy your Friday people!

Did you happen to notice...

I posted a sneak of the JUNE kit on the website the other day...And the kit will also include at least 5 of the new Chatterbox papers that have just been released. They're on their way, and I can't wait to see them! And yes, those would be the brand new Scenic Route rub ons that have just been released...

A quick update on the kits...

The 7Gypsies kit is officially SOLD OUT.
There are 2 Main May kits left that are available.

The National Scrapbook Day crop is now officially SOLD OUT.

And yes, I will post photos of a few projects coming up as soon as I can, I promise! Bear with me, I've been a little swamped...thanks!

I'll be back later to post some pictures, promise!

Make it a great day!

Randomness...

Been doing a bit more damage over at etsy...man, I'm a junkie over there! Soooo much eye candy...

I found this one at twolefthands.In addition to packing kits like a mad woman, I've been gearing up for the big NSD crop at the Waterbury clubhouse! I have 15 registered people right now, so I can take up to 3 more people if you are on the fence. The cost for the full day is $25, and the theme is baseball!! You can email me at Turay413@gmail.com if you'd like to join us. Lots of goodies planned for the day...
My friend Jen scored the Threading Water punch at Archiver's, and not only did she hook me up, she also found another one I'm in love with now! It's called "Leave it to Weaver" and it is so cool! It is perfect for ribbon, and they both came in handy while I was finishing up 90 invitations this past weekend...
If you love Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream as much as I do, check this out. Free cone day is April 29th! Woohoo!
And last but not least...
The kits are officially live, and available in limited quantities on the website. There are a few subscribers who did not get back to me under the deadline, so I'm holding off a bit on selling all of the main kits just yet. If you are interested in obtaining one, please contact me and I'll put your name on the wait list!

Enjoy your evening!

May's Add-On Kit

This is by far, my favorite add-on kit ever...The SEI Dill Blossom die cuts and chipboard circles, the green textured brads, the etsy journaling tags, the 7Gypsies stickers...oh my...
And the best part? It comes with 2 Melissa Frances hangers for an extra special project. I can't wait to show it to you! I'll give you a hint...it has to do with babies!! Now, if you want to use it for something else, no worries. But one of my samples will involve drilling two holes in those hangers, threading the alligator clips through the holes, and using it to hang something...

Oh yeah, it's going to be a fun month...