Looking forward to Christmas!

Hello everyone!  I know it has been a while since my last post and I have no excuses - hehe.  I had a wonderful month of November.  I had some great weekends with some of my best friends and had a good Thanksgiving.  We did, however, have a scare with my Mom's health, but she is doing better now and everything seems to be under control.  Thank you to everyone who kept us in your thoughts and prayers during that time.

Kaylee and Zach are doing great and growing so fast!  Kaylee is learning to play the recorder at school, and was selected as one of the top 20 out of all of the 4th and 5th graders at her school to be a part of a group that will perform for the EMS ISD administration in a couple of weeks.  I am so proud of her and she really seems to enjoy it.  She's even talking about being in band when she gets to middle school.

I have some upcoming classes that I will be teaching at the Scrapper's Boutique in December.  I'm very excited about them and they are using some hot products - grunge paper and metal!!  Below is the information and photos:

We will be having the Junior Scrapper's Club class for ages 8 and up on Saturday, November 12th from 10:15 AM to 12:15 PM.  We will be doing a 2 page layout for Thanksgiving with a paper pieced turkey, and a 2 page layout about family.  The cost is $20 and students need to bring their basic supplies.  I will have photos of the page layouts very soon.  :)

Grunge Paper Flower class
Thursday, December 3rd from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Cost:  $20
We will be making 3 flowers using grunge paper, distress inks, embossing folders, and more.  You will receive patterns for each of these flowers when you take the class.  The patterns can be reduced or enlarged to make different size flowers.  These flowers are great for decorating baskets, packages, and a lot of other fun stuff!

Students need to bring to class:
* Medium Glue Dots/Zots
* Fast dry liquid glue such as Tombo or Scotch
* Sanding block or sanding tool
* Scissors
* Pencil and eraser
* Craft sheet or mat (for inking)
If you have a Tim Holtz mini fastner stapler, paper piercing tool, and/or a heat tool, bring those to class as well.

December Crazy Daisies Class
Poinsettia Metal Covered Frame
Saturday, December 12th from 1:30 to 3:30 PM AND Tuesday, December 15th from 6:30 to 8:30 PM
Cost:  $25
In this month's Crazy Daisy class, we will be making an embossed metal covered 5" x 7" frame and learning to make the poinsettia flower that goes in the lower corner.  We will have so much fun using the Ten Seconds Studio metal sheets to cover the frame and you will be amazed at how simple the gorgeous poinsettia flower is to make!  In the upper left corner, we will have ribbons available for you to attach if you'd like and they are a great place to use Thickers to put the year or a name.  :)  You will have your choice of making either the blue or red frame and you will need to specify which one you'd like when you call to sign up. 

The punches for this months class are:
Mega Giant Dahlia Petals      $24.50
Small Sun                             $  5.50
Medium Big Sky Flake         $  7.50
That is a total of $37.50 for the 3 great punches we will use, but if you pre-order your punches from Cherie by Saturday, December 5th, you will receive a 20% discount, making the total for all the punches only $30.

Students will need to bring to class:
* Scissors (ones that are ok for cutting thin metal sheets)
* 1/8" Red line tape
* 1/2" Red line tape
* Embossing tools
* Quick drying liquid glue such as Tombo or Scotch
* Tweezers
* Mousepad
* Pencil

I am also a part of a Stampin' Up Stocking Stuffer Workshop that will be at Joni's house this Saturday, December 5th from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM.  It will be a lot of fun and you can make some great little gifts for teachers, friends, co-workers, etc.  If you are interested, send me an e-mail and I will get you more info.  I'd love to see you there!

Lastly, tomorrow night, Scrapper's Boutique is having a "Boutique Night" starting at 6:00PM where you can see all the December classes and the new products she has in.  She is even having a drawing for everyone who signs up for a class tomorrow night and one lucky winner will get their class FREE!!!  Be sure to drop by and see us!

Well, I'd better get some sleep.  I have a ton of stuff to do tomorrow to get ready for the Boutique Night.  I hope you all have a fabulous week!

~til next time,
Paula

Are you ready for Halloween?

I can't believe that this weekend is Halloween!  It snuck up on me.  I still have to pick up some candy for trick or treaters, get teacher's gifts done, and make sure my kids have everything for their costumes - ugh - hehe.  I know it will all be worth it though.  My kids always have such a good time and we enjoy getting to spend Halloween together as a family.  We usually go to one of more of the local church festivals, and they are always nice and have tons of things for the kids to do as well as lots of candy. 

I will be having the Haunted House book class tomorrow night at Scrapper's Boutique.  There are still a few spots, so if you are interested, just give Cherie a call.  I can't wait - this is going to be a run class.  I'm also going to the Halloween crop that Cherie is having on Friday night.  I know it will be lots of fun and I hope that Nita will be making some super delicious cupcakes for us.  They are always a treat!!

I made another card this weekend to post on the Cat's Pajamas blog.  I'm hoping that one day, maybe I'll get chosen as the "Swanky Stamper" for the month.  But either way - it's fun trying!!  Here's my latest card:

Well - I have to run and pick up Kaylee from school.  If I don't get to post again before Saturday - everyone have a fun and safe Halloween!!!
~til next time,
Paula

November Crazy Daisies Class

Hey everyone!  I hope you are enjoying this cooler weather.  I'm just glad that the sun came out finally.  It's starting to feel like fall and I love it!  After I pick up Kaylee today, I'm thinking about taking the kids to a park or something to play for a while.  It's just so nice outside. 

I have all the info and photos now for the November Crazy Daisies class.  It will be held twice.  Once on Saturday, November 14th from 1:30 PM to 4:30 PM and again on Tuesday, November 17th from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  The class is $28 and that will include the project plus a bottle of distress stickles and a package of foam thickers letters.  In this class we will learn to make paper leaves that look realistic, as well as pinecones - all from paper and punches.  The punches we will use in class are available for pre-order at a 20% discount.  In order to receive the discount, you must contact Cherie at Scrapper's Boutique to place your order no later than Saturday, November 7th.  (Punch details and prices are listed below.)  There will be a set of punches available for class use for anyone who needs them. 

Class punch bundle includes:
Small pear punch
Small maple leaf punch
Medium maple leaf punch
Large oak leaf punch
Large fern punch

This class bundle retail price is $39.30.  If you pre-order the bundle, the price is $31.44.  If you purchased the punches from the October class, then you already have the Large oak leaf punch, so your retail bundle price would be $28.90 - or if pre-ordered, then the price would be $23.12.

Here is the list of what you will  need to bring with you to the class:
12" paper trimmer
Liquid glue (preferrably Tombo Mono Multi)
Tape runner or your favorite adhesive
Distressing tools (sanding block or any sanding tools)
Dry embossing tools
Mousepad
Tweezers
Needlenose pliers (if you have them)
Paper Piercing  Tool (if you have one)
Chestnut Roan Catseye Chalk inpad (if you have one)
If you already purchased the Large oak leaf punch, be sure to bring it with you. 

Space is limited, so be sure to sign up today.  :) 
I'm off now to go enjoy this great weather.  I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
~til next time,
Paula

Great Weekend!

Hello and Happy Monday!

I have to start by telling you how much fun I had this weekend.  Lori, my friend from Abilene came to visit and take my Crazy Daisies class on Saturday.  She drove in on Friday night and stayed until Sunday.  We had a blast.  The class was so much fun and I enjoyed getting to know the wonderful ladies that took the class.  After the class, Lori and I went back to my house. (Hubby was in Mexico fishing, so we had to relieve the babysitter - hehe.)  Cindy came over and we just talked and scrapped the night away.    We ordered pizza and had super yummy cupcakes that I ordered from Nita, Cherie's Mom.  We were celebrating Lori's birthday.  Cindy and I went together to buy Lori the punches that were used in the class for her birthday gift.  I made some flowers and put them on the package instead of a bow.  I thought it turned out pretty cute.  I took some photos to show you.  Robby came home Saturday night, so Sunday Lori and I got to go run around the town for the day.  It was a great weekend and I can't wait until we can do it again!

Last week I finished some more cards for the blog contests at The Cat's Pajamas.  She has some fun challenges.  Here are the cards that I entered:

For anyone who might still be interested in taking the Crazy Daisies class at the Scrapper's Boutique, there is another one this Tuesday evening, October 20th, from 6:00 to 9:00 PM.  There are some spots still available - just give Cherie a call to sign up.  :)  I also still have some spaces available for the Haunted House Halloween Book Class on October 27th from 6:30 to 9:00 PM. 

That's all the news I have for now.  I hope everyone has a wonderful week!
~til next time,

Paula

Happy Columbus Day!

Hello again!

I hope you all had a wonderful Columbus Day.  The kiddos were out of school today and we went to pick up some Nestabilities that were on sale at Hobby Lobby, then we went to McDonald's to eat.  Zachary was looking forward to playing in the playplace, but as soon as he went to play, several older kids came in and started rough housing in the play structure.  I'm going to sound off now -hehe.  It just really aggravates me that parents will allow kids (such as these kids) that were probably between 10 and 14 years old to go into playplaces that are obviously made for younger children, especially when there are little kids trying to play.  There were even a set of rules posted with age requirements and these kids were much older than the allowed ages.  It was just so disappointing to Zachary, so then we went to the park, and he and Kaylee played for a while.  They had fun, it was just starting to rain and so humid, so they didn't get to play long.  All in all though, we had a good day. 

I also had the privilege today of voting for the Super Scrappers contest at Daisy Trail.  There were so many fabulous entries and it was so hard.  I can't wait to see who the final winner will be.   

After I got the kids to bed, I took photographs for you of the purse that I made.  This is the one I was mentioning in the previous posts, and the one that Tim Holtz signed.  :)  It uses a lot of grunge paper with alchol inks and distress inks as well as rock candy and stickles.  On the wings, I painted the pieces with white acrylic paint, then put them through the cuttlebug embossing folder.  Then I rubbed metallic gold paint over the whole piece with my finger making sure to get it into the grooves.  I used my finger so the metallic paint would be thin.  Once the paint dried, I sanded the raised embossed parts and painted the entire piece with rock candy distress crackle paint.  Then I painted over the raised embossed parts with star dust stickles.  Once it all dries, you get this fabulous effect.

I have also entered a card contest at The Cat's Pajamas.  They are another fabulous company that I was able to take classes from at the trade show.  I was able to meet Alma, the owner, as well as her friend, Kim, from My Favorite Things.  They are such nice ladies and they both are fabulous artists.  On my card I used one of the word stamps to make the background paper, "Let's Eat" and I used the 3D glue dots to make the hat and food "pop" off the page.  The other papers are Bazzil cardstock and Cosmo Cricket's fall line.  Here is my card that I entered:

That's all I have for today.  Have a wonderful evening!
~til next time,
Paula

Fun, Fun, Fun

Hello!

I am so excited to tell you about my wonderful weekend at the trade show in Houston, TX.  Over the course of 2 days, I took 10 classes, 1 workshop, went to a Product Lightning Round and a sample making frenzy.  I was so tired when I got back, it took me 2 days to recover - lol.  Seriously though, I have so many ideas swimming around in my head for classes that I want to teach and projects that I want to share.  I'm just going to have to write them all down and tackle one at a time, so be watching because I'll be sharing them here as I get them done. 

At the trade show, I wasn't able to take a Tim Holtz class afterall.  I was so disappointed.  I had made a notebook and even a purse using tons of his products and was so wanting to have the opportunity to show them to him, but it all worked out in the end - keep reading - hehe.  At the end of the first day, I was finishing a workshop, and in true Paula fashion, I was one of the very last ones finishing up.  Well, the next thing I know, someone next to me said "There's Tim".  The owner of the Collins Group was also named Tim, so I just thought that's who they were talking about.  Next thing I know - I turn and see Tim Holtz.  He had a class the next morning in that room, so he was there to set up.  The sweet lady next to me had commented on liking my notebook and purse and I had told her my saga.  So - when we saw Tim, she said "Now's your chance", but I was frozen.  I told her "What do I do?  I can't just go up there and say - hey look what I made" - rofl!!  So she yelled for him to come over and told him that he had to look at my things I had made.  I was so excited and embarrased all at the same time.  He was soo nice and took several minutes looking at everything and talking with me.  He even ended up signing my notebook AND my purse!!  I'll have to post a photo of the purse later so you can see.  Anyway, it's funny how things work out.  Even though I would have loved to be in one of his classes, I was so thankful for that chance meeting.

One of the other classes that I was able to take was a BoBunny word book class.  I haven't finished it yet, but I'll post it when it's complete.  It was so interesting.  They told us all sorts of fun facts like where Bo Bunny got it's name.  Matthew's Mom is the one who started the company, and at the time, she was into making stuffed bunnies and one of the ones she made was named "Bo" -so when she took some papers to stores to see if they would carry them, they asked her about the name of her company, and so she just said "Bo Bunny".  One of the paper lines was even named after Matthew's daughter.  Again, I was one of the last to leave, and Sharon and Cherie had come in to help me pack up, when we got this photo op.

Hopefully I'm getting my energy back now because I have so much I want to do.  Today I completed the "actual" class sample for the October Flower class.  Since the flower classes will be monthly, I wanted to have a fun name for the group, so I'm calling it the "Crazy Daisies".  In this class we will learn to make the Mums and Leaf shown on the sample.  We will be using a paper from the new Indian Summer collection by Basic Grey.  If you are interested in taking the class, be sure to call Cherie at the shop very soon to sign up.  The Saturday class is already almost 1/2 full and we just opened it up for registrations today.  Here is the info and the photo of the sample.  **Be sure to check out the supply list if you are coming to the class.  You will need to bring some things that are different from the normal supplies.**

Crazy Daisies - Mum Canvas Class   $25
Saturday, October 17th    10:15 AM to 1:15 PM
Tuesday, October 20th     6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
This class will be packed with techniques and fun flower making.  We will distress an 8 x 10 canvas, which is provided, grunge a photo, learn basics of flower making and much more.  You will also be able to pre-order the punches that we will be using in the class when you sign up at a 20% discount.  The discount is for pre-orders only.  There are 4 punches that we will be using; 1 giant, 2 large, and 1 small.  The retail price for all 4 is $42.70, but with the pre-order discount, it is only $34.16.  Pre-orders MUST be in by this Saturday so that we can have them in time for the classes.  If you choose not to pre-order, you can still order the punches from Cherie at any time, but it will be at retail price.  I will have a set of the punches available at the class to share with anyone who does not have the punches.
Supplies you need to bring with you:
A mousepad
Dry embossing tools (the ones used with metal embossing templates)
Tweezers
Liquid Glue (such as Tombo Multi liquid glue or the Scotch liquid glue - Cherie carries both)
Mini dimensional dots (aka - pop dots)
Tape runner or favorite adhesive for photos
12" paper trimmer
Sanding tool
Chestnut Roan Chalk Catseye inkpad (if you have one)
1 vertical 4" x 6" photo or 2 horizontal wallet photos
** Be sure to bring photo(s) that you don't mind grunging up and I would advise wearing clothing that you don't mind getting dirty.  :)  You might also want to bring a snack.  This class will take the full 3 hours. **    

I hope to get to see you at one of the classes!!
~til next time,
Paula     

Whirlwind Week

Hello everyone!  Sorry for the delay in posting.  When I got back from my super fun weekend at Lori's, I was exhausted and I've had so much to do to prepare for leaving tomorrow, when I'm going to a scrapbook trade show for the Scrapper's Boutique.  I did have a wonderful time though!  We spent a lot of time in Abilene and had a blast shopping, looking at silly cards, and eating at some wonderful restaurants.  If you are ever in Abilene, you have to check out the Beehive!  Not only was the food fabulous, the owners were so much fun!  They told us jokes, and just made it such a fun experience.

Then, Monday night, I was able to go to the Cowboy's football game in the new stadium!!!!!  It was awesome!  Robby had tickets given to him by a company he works with and we were on around the 20 yard line about 12 or so rows up from the field.  I just can't even begin to tell you how fabulous the stadium is!  You just can't fathom it until you see it for yourself.  While we were there, the big screens in the stadium received the record from Guiness - that was super cool!!  I felt like we were a part of history.  I was there for the first Monday night game in the new stadium, the first win, and when they were inducted into the Guiness record book.  I took over 200 pictures and once they are downloaded, I'll have to share some of them with you.  With my zoom, it was like I was on the field with them - it was so fantastic!  Added bonus - they won - rofl!  Whoo hoo - Go Cowboys!!

Well - I have to run now.  I still have a lot to do to get ready to leave tomorrow.  I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!  I should have lots for you next week.  :)
~til next time,
Paula