The Rat's Nest

Cows and Pigs and So Many More!

2012-01-26T02:49:00.000-05:00

This week's For Fun Challenges theme is Farmed Animals--a bit of a favorite of we, vegans in our own, not-eating-them way. :) If you need a little inspiration, why not visit with the animals here:

United Poultry Concerns : Check out cute pics of rescued birds who call their sanctuary home!

and

Farm Sanctuary : A sanctuary for cows, sheep, turkeys, and more.

and we can't forget our porcine pals:

Pigs, A Sanctuary

Our sponsor this week is Bugaboo Stamps. I'm not quite sure how it happens, but they've always got something new that I simply *must* have. This week, I decided to go with a cow from the Make It Snappy collection. Who knew mad cows could be so darn cute? Why not give it a try...play along with us this week!

Dearie Dolls Digis and Digi My World (and perhaps a puppy break, too!)

2012-01-20T04:30:00.000-05:00

This week at For Fun Challenges, the challenge theme is "Get Well" --a handy card to have on hand this time of year. Our sponsor is Dearie Dolls Digi Stamps, one that's totally new to me, so I was pretty excited to find that she has like a bajillion mice and some cute cute cute dogs and cats too! Did I mention birds? No? She has them, too. Yes, I have already caved to temptation and bought more of her stamps. How could I resist when she not only tempted me with a vast array of animals (for you non-animal people, if there are any who read my blog, she has loads of people, snowmen, etc. so you'll want to head over there, too!) she has a whole section of $1.00 digital stamps! Don't miss out!

Anyway, back to the challenge at hand. I chose a cute little mouse napping inside a teacup for my Get Well project, which includes a card (pompoms!!!) and a mini paint can filled with some of my favorite teas. I know I'd go nuts if something like this showed up in my mailbox when I was feeling less than spiffy.

So start creating a Get Well project of your own and enter it in this week's For Fun Challenge. You could win some Dearie Dolls Digis!

(BTW, stop by the Dearie Dolls Facebook page and give her a Like! There's lots of fun to be had there!)

PUPPYBREAKPUPPYBREAKPUPPYBREAKPUPPYBREAK!

Revco, flopped over the couch cushion on a sleepy afternoon. I'm extra-thankful that my animals are safe indoors today, since we had a tragic loss in the neighborhood this week. One of the neighbor's cats was killed by a car yesterday. He was a stand-offish kitty, but a welcome visitor to our yard nonetheless. We knew he belonged to a neighbor since he always wore a collar and tag, but we couldn't get close enough to read his address. Having spent enough time in rescue to see the results of outdoor living, I'm a strong advocate of keeping kitties indoors unless they are out under direct supervision on a leash, or are safely contained behind a cat fence. I hoped for the best for this little guy, despite knowing how dangerous our neighborhood is, in particular. All I can do now is wish him good karma and an auspicious rebirth and try to forget the heartbreaking sight of his human washing blood off of the pavement today. What an awful way to say goodbye. It may have been better to have kept their cat indoors, but they didn't deserve having to learn this way.

Sorry to be so maudlin. Let's cheer up with some darn cute chihuahuas from the fabulous design fairy at Digi My World! I looove her take on dog breeds, so I jumped at the chance to use these apple-headed pups for this week's challenge theme: Together Forever.

I love the expression of admiration on the face of the dog on the left. And the totally oblivious look of the dog on the right. Awww! Their matching heart-tagged collars are pretty cute, too. I didn't go too elaborate with this card simply beause these guys don't need much to enhance their eye-popping personality. A little highlighting with copics, some cute cherry photo paper, and some ribbon I've been holding onto for just the right project for three years now were all they needed!
You can win a gift certificate to Digi My World by entering your Together Forever themed card this week. They've been very kind to invite me along as a guest designer, I hope some of you will find the time to support their challenge (and hopefully win, while you're at it!)

Two Cute Puppies

2012-01-11T05:12:00.000-05:00

I'm sure you've been chomping at the bit, anxiously awaiting the next challenge at For Fun Challenges. This was the first time they've ever (well, since I've been on their design team, but that's close enough), ever had a two week long challenge, and I appreciate your patience and maturity when it came down to waiting twice as long as usual to find out what the next challenge will be. Ready?

This week's challenge is Anything Goes! Huzzah!

Okay, so it's not the most exciting challenge idea of all time, but since you decide what kind of project to me, if you're bored you have no one to blame but yourself. I have faith in you and your ability to wow yourself.

Here's what I came up with. I had just picked up my Stampin' Up order from the magnificent Teresa Buchholz, so I was itching to play with my newest acquisitions. The stamp is one I purchased from MelJens. It only takes the flimsiest of excuses to send me running over to her store. It's killing me that she hasn't come out with any new stamps in a few weeks. She's extremely prolific, so I've been spoiled.

Anyway, back to the card. I used the pale Copics Scott got me for xmas to color him in, and I'm really pleased with the results. I love how the subtle colors that look so much like various shades of white when used alone, appear so vibrant next to each other. Neato Frito!

Since I promised Two Cute Puppies, here's Usagi, peeking out from under her blanket on a chilly evening. When her ears are hidden like that, her head reminds me of a baby seal.

So, make something you like and head over to For Fun Challenges to show off your mad papercrafting skillz.

Two Challenges You Need To Know About

2012-01-04T20:12:00.000-05:00

First, a little reminder to visit For Fun Challenges for week 2 of their "New Things" challenge. You could win 7 (seven!!!) Bugaboo stamps if your entry is randomly chosen. Don't miss out!

Today begins a new challenge at Digi My World titled, "Light Up My Life". The fabulous people there have invited me to be a guest designer (thank you!)) and let me tell you, you are going to love the new stamp sets they have coming out. I chose to use Pip with a letter from the brand-spankin'-new Pip Squeak digi stamp set because getting letters in the mail lightens my life (thanks to all my far-away friends who make my day on a regular basis.)

Is he not adorable?! I wanted to do something a little bit different, so I adapted a mini album design I found in a book to make it a Valentine design. I used lots of ribbon from various months' selections from the Really Reasonable Ribbons' ribbon club (I'm entering this card into their "ribbon and sparkle challenge"). I love how the lace looks layered over a red satin ribbon base in the first panel. For extra sparkle, I added these wonderful glitter charms I found at one of the big box crafting stores. There's also a bit of clear tinsel ribbon from Stampin' Up. I think whoever I end up sending this to will feel pretty special. Right now, it's decorating my living room. I can't get enough of Valentine crafts!

So, you have two assignments this week. Run over for For Fun Challenges for their "New Things" challenge, and visit Digi My World for their "Light Up My Life" challenge.

Now, doggie break!
For some reason, Makers Mark seems to think I'm their target audience so they send me little gifts in the mail every xmas. One year it was wrapping paper and ribbon--score! Every kid on our list had a present wrapped in the stuff (they didn't get it, but their parents did. :)) This year they sent a teeny tiny sweater, presumably for the bottle itself to wear. In an attempt to make the useless less so, we tried to see if Rev could wear it. It was a little...uh...petite for him.

Poor Revvy. I love how you can see Weezee looking on in the background. You know she's thinking, "Well, at least they know better than to try that crap with me." Oh well. Anyone have a use for a very tiny sweater?

Bugaboos and Kittyhawks

2011-12-29T02:31:00.000-05:00

In honor of the new year, For Fun Challenges has challenged us to create projects with the theme of "something new"! Recently, a friend of mine adopted a new puppy, so I jumped at the chance to make her a card!

Our sponsor this week is one of our fabulous regulars, Bugaboo Stamps. They seriously have something for everybody. They have so many different stamps, I can't even pick just a single favorite. I adore these little rotties, though. Sure my friend's new dog is a lab, but who couldn't love this soft little guy with his floppy ears and too-big "dog suit". Big dog puppies always seem to go through that period where their skin is too big, then they're all knees and elbows, all feet, then their head is too big for the rest of them. They get knocked over by their own tails, and then they start all over again with the "dog suit" being too big...and through the whole list again till they're a year or two old. It almost makes all the chewed furniture and puddles worth it. Almost. I'll stick with adopting adult dogs, thanks, but I love *other* people's puppies!

I've been itching to do a cut-out card, so as they say, two birds one stone. (Not that I advocate throwing anything at birds, let alone rocks. ;)) Below is a view of the inside:

And here's a view of my card in action. I hope she likes it! Now, take a minute to stop by For Fun Challenges and enter your own card design. Don't miss your chance to win this one...the person randomly selected from all valid entries gets 7...yes seven!...free digitals stamps from the Bugaboo shop. That's pretty darn excellent!

And, while I'm talking dogs (like I ever stop. Wait, I guess I do sometimes, long enough to talk about cats, rats, gerbils, hamsters, degus, turtles, bison, crocodiles, turkeys, chickens, et al.) here's Revco test driving a "Kittyhawk" a bought for a friend's cat for xmas this year. I've been dying to share the pictures I took a couple weeks ago, but I didn't want to ruin the surprise for Jen, Teresa, Cassie and Mikey's kitties. I mean, how could I not go nuts for these and want every kitty I know to have one?

Does your kitty/dog need one? You bet they do! Check out the Etsy shop where I got them, hand made, custom made to your color specifications:

Radical Fringe X

And a front view:

How did I get so lucky to have a dog who puts up with this kind of thing from me? He's such a good sport.

No Snow Outside, But It's a Winter Wonderland in Here

2011-12-20T23:12:00.001-05:00

I *should* be finishing up all the handmade presents that need to go out the door tomorrow, but nothing's more fun than goofing off, right? It almost doesn't matter what it is that you're doing to goof off, as long as you're supposed to be doing something else. Tonight, for example, to procrastinate when I should be crafting, I'm...crafting! Oh the naughy joy!

The first 12 days of this month, Digi My World had a daily giveaway on their Facebook page. Lucky me, I won this festive little postman carrying a suspiciously Santa-esque bag full of letters. Now, I'm an avid letter writer, both to old friends and pen pals, so seeing the mailman drive up is nearly as exciting for me as it is for the dogs. I love to text and email, but neither can hold a candle to a letter (which is a good thing, since paper is flammable and all.)

Here he is, ready to be entered in this week's Winter Wonderland Challenge at Digi My World. The background paper is blue with white flecks to look like it's snowing out (one of my favorite lines by Heidi Grace that came out a few years ago) but it seemed too blank to just have the postal carrier standing in a snowdrift at the bottom, so I added ribbons. I love that one on the end with the embossed snowflakes. I've been hanging onto that one for a while waiting for the right project.

Here's a closeup, so you can see how I pop dotted the image for some dimension and so he looks a little more like he's standing on top of the snowdrift, which is made of Polar White Flowersoft with some silver Flowersoft mixed in to mimic that magnificent glitter that fresh snow has.

And before I go, here's a cozy little kitty, hugging his teddy. The other day Toulouse decided that this somewhat dog-mangled bear is his new pal. He's been hugging it for several hours a day ever since. What a sweet kitty. He's been recovering from having one of his lower monster-sized fangs pulled, poor little guy. He was not fond of having to visit the vet, but I'm sure he feels much better without that nasty abcess. Poor little guy!

I'm Mad for MelJen's!

2011-12-15T03:14:00.001-05:00

I love all kinds of stamps, from wood-mounted classic rubber to clear sticky ones to digital stamps. I have a collection that's what many would likely consider out of control, so when I say a stamp company is one of my top five favorites of all time, that company rules over an impressive number of really fabulous stamp companies. MelJen's is one of those top 5. Maybe it's that her style is hard to forget and definitively hers, or that she draws some of the most a-freaking-dorable animals ever. All I know is that I could own every last stamp she makes and still want more.

(Entering this card into MelJen's Challenge this week.)

So, lucky for us on the For Fun Challenges design team, and lucky for you, MelJen's Designs is our sponsor of the week! That means if you enter this week's challenge and you are chosen as the winner, you can win some of her stamps. Trust me, you want this prize!

Here's the card I made for the challenge which, for this week, is anything goes as long as it's got a Christmassy theme. I made this one for a friend of mine whose birthday is on Boxing Day, which is practically Christmas (you know, she's still the poor kid who doesn't get a real birthday because it all kind of blends in with the nearest holiday). I thought I'd give her an actual blended holiday card this year with this cute mousie jumping out of a peppermint Christmas cake. Again, this is one of those subjects that would be horrifying in real life, but is somehow awww-worthy when made into a stamp. I love the candy cane paper shown here, too, which I got at Alpha Stamps. Together I think the whole theme came together nicely.

One more thing before I send you off to craft...here's a huge hint if you want to win the For Fun Challenge: Follow the rules. I'm not pointing that out to sound snarky. It's genuinely going to put you way ahead of the majority of participants lately. It seems like we've had to disqualify so many participants lately, there's no reason to be intimidated if it appears that loads of people have signed up before you. There are probably only a handful who even count. It's a drag. The most common rule broken is people using *one* card to enter *like forty* different challenges, which seems kind of rude to me. Sure, it's okay to enter the same card in 3 or even 5 challenges you made it with in mind, but anything beyond that is edging on playing the system. Just my opinion. The rule for For Fun Challenges is no more than 10, and there are a lot of crafters who are entering their card in many more than that. If they want to do that, it's their choice, but please don't enter those cards into our challenge if that's the case.

Okay, I'm done being a drag. I'll be looking forward to seeing what you come up with this week. With the holidays upon us, all the best crafts are surfacing. Show me yours!

Before I forget, there's another opportunity to win stuff from one of my other favorite digi designers. Stop by and check out the blog candy at Digi My World by clicking here, or on the button to your right (scroll down a little). Good luck!

Really Reasonable Ribbons' Recipe Swap/Food Packaging Week

2011-12-11T22:37:00.000-05:00

Since I love both crafting and baking, especially around the holidays, I jumped at the chance to participate in this event. I even pulled out a new recipe I've been wanting to try for a while.

When I was in kindergarten, my best friend's mom made these yummylicious butter mints. Granted hers were prettier than mine (yeah, I know, mine look a little like wads of used bubblegum, but they taste pretty fabulous.) I was excited to find this recipe last year, but never got around to making them. I tweaked the recipe, added mini chocolate chips and used peppermint oil instead of extract, and they came out perfectly! Yum! Here's a pic of them, in the box:

And, here's the box, all decorated up, including ribbons from the Really Reasonable Ribbons' Monthly Ribbon Club, some faux clear crystals, and a glittered dove that matches the glitter used in the paper.

So, here's the recipe...it doesn't take long to make them at all and they're darn tasty.

Vegan "Butter" Mints

2 tbsp vegan margarine, softened

(I use Earth Balance since it's also free of trans-fats)

2 tbsp light corn syrup

4-5 drops peppermint oil

1/4 tsp salt

2 cups confectioners sugar

food coloring of choice

1/2 c vegan mini chocolate chips

In a stand mixer or by hand, combine margarine, corn syrup, peppermint oil, and salt. Gradually stir in confectioners sugar. Knead in the mixer or by hand, 1-2 minutes or until smooth and doughy. Add food coloring, if desired, and stir till colored throughout. Pull off small, nickel sized pieces and smush a few chocolate chips into the dough, then roll into a ball. Flatten and set aside. Do this with remaining dough. Bo up the mints and allow to sit until firm on the outside.

Yummy!

Glittery Enough For Ya?

2011-12-07T01:45:00.000-05:00

This week at For Fun Challenges, we've got a sparkling new challenge for you--do what you like, but make it Christmas and make it shine! The winner gets digital stamps from Di's Digi Downloads.

I used glitter, gems, some glittery embellishents I'm totally in love with, some more glitter, and some glitter in another color. Trust me, you cannot see all the sparkle on this card in the photo, and you can see quite a bit.

Plus, the recipient of this card gets to experience all of that shimmering by candlelight (I'm totally psyched about making these for xmas.) because there are votives in that dang card! Seriously, I'm in love with this design. I can't take credit for it, but it's really fun to make. There are schematics for it on various sites, if you want to try it, too.

And, because I just can't go without showing off one of my little guys, here's Usagi, modeling one of the necklaces for my Etsy shop. She's such a patient girl, especially considering she's not really into having her picture taken. She isn't into being picked up or hugged, either. Poor girl is cursed with cuteness!

Hooray, the holiday season has officially begun!

2011-11-30T16:55:00.000-05:00

My mom always said that the Christmas season starts when you see Santa go by in the Macy's parade. Now that that's happened, I can start listening to carols without feeling like a complete weirdo, candy canes are plentiful, and the cable company has started broadcasting the video fireplace 24/7. Rock on!

Another reason to feel festive? Michelle Perkett is sponsoring For Fun Challenges this week, where you can win several of her holiday digistamps. I've had my eye on one in particular for a long time and finaly I caved. Here goes:

Speaking of slobber, wags, and wiggles, here's your much anticipated dorky dog photo of the day.

I love it when dogs don't seem to realize they've got their tongue sticking out. Cat's too, actually. Though non-human animals haven't got the market cornered, because I recently caught Scott sleeping with his tongue sticking out, too. What is it they say about people becoming more like their dogs? Hrm. I shouldn't make fun, though. I have parasomnia which makes me do all kinds of weird things in my sleep, like type, sew, give speeches (yes, apparently I gave a very cohesive oratory while sound asleep in bed. I'm so lucky Scott hasn't thought to video tape these things), etc. I've even written *and* sent emails in my sleep. They didn't make any sense, but it went out anyway and thoroughly confused everyone on the yahoo group I sent it to. Definitely not as cute as watching the dogs wake up when you (gently) grab their tongue that's lolling out. And now you know what that looks like. :)

Get your lab gear on, For Fun Challenges has a card formula this week!

2011-11-16T01:21:00.000-05:00

So, what is this highly scientific formula that, if followed, not only *guarantees* you a fabulous card, but could also win you a fabulous prize from this week's sponsor, Clear Dollar Stamps?

1 foodstuff + 2 patterned papers + 3 brads or buttons. Follow these instructions carefully (remember, no more than 3 buttons or brads!), and you too could end up with a card as magnificent as this one:

Okay, its magnificence may be up for debate, but you gotta love those stamps! Yes, stamps with an "S". I mean 2 "S"'s (one at the beginning and one at the end). I couldn't decide between Clear Dollar Stamps' candy cane digi and cute mice perched on cheese stamp. As a rodent rescue volunteer, the myth of mice being prolific cheese eaters has always been a pet peeve of mine since, while they'll eat most anything if they are hungry enough, it's not really a favorite. Nonetheless, I was stuck in a dilemma because the stamp with the cheese loving mice on it was soooo cute. So, I took the mice and the candy cane and put them togetther with all the required bits, plus a ribbon and a lot of glitter. I don't know if you can see it very well in the photo, but the card base, itself, is massively glittery and I only added more from there. Festive!

So, drop by For Fun Challenges and give the formula a try. You don't even have to wear eye protection!

Super!

2011-11-09T21:25:00.000-05:00

It's an unusual week at For Fun Challenges, because we don't have a sponsor. Instead, we got to choose our stamp of choice to make something with a Veteran's Day theme. I chose a soft red, white, and blue palette and this adorable Super Dog image from a Day for Daisies. I love her drawing style, in which everything looks like it comes from a softer, slightly magical world.

As a Zen Buddhist, I always feel a little awkward and strange when it comes to all things military and war related. We are forbidden to work in the military, to encourage violence, and the like, but at the same time, we should be conscious of the difficulty of the path those who do go to war have chosen in an effort to protect others, whether we necessarily believe in their methods or not. Though acheiving pacifism is not as easy as it sounds, the people who go on to experience the horrors of war, whether by choice or by force of draft, is so much harder. I abhor violence. I do not believe that war is anything but tragedy, but I guess ultimately, I approach Veterans Day not as a celebration or glorification of war and violence, but as a rememberance and recognition of the suffering of others who've experienced war first hand.

So, I made this card. The inside? "Thanks for saving the day!"

(This card is being entered in the Day for Daisies Challenge...the metallic element being the little blue and red metal roses above the sentiment.)

Well, now, that was a bit depressing. How about a doggie break:

Yup! It's sweater time again. Revco gets chilly, even indoors, so he sports sweaters, hoodies, or pajamas most of the fall/winter months. He's surprisingly tolerant of my picture taking during silly moments like the one featured here. He looks very dashing in this sweater when it's put on correctly, but this is more fun. :)

Shakedown!

2011-11-03T03:20:00.000-04:00

The suspect: Weezee von Sparklebutt. The crime: Sitting in the wet glitter on the card I made for my For Fun Challenges design team conribution this week, destroying it, and causing me to miss the deadline. Sure, I started over and remade it, but that's not the point. The point is that I had a lovely card design until some fuzzy meyow-y criminal I believe to be Weezee. So, what have you got to say in your defense, Weezee?

Stop! This interview is *not* over. Get back over here, cat!

Unfortunately, I think this is all we're going to get out of her, for the time being.

So, here is the second incarnation of the card she destroyed. It's a special birthday card made for this week's For Fun Challenge, sponsored by Bugaboo Stamps. I'd been saving this orange and purple furniture paper for some sort of occassion, and finally decided that this was it. I don't know why I buy paper only to squirrel it away for years on end, but I do. I can't even recall what project I had in mind when I did buy it, but in the end, it was a cool excuse to make a cute purple and orange turtle (actually, he appears to be a tortoise) using this cute Bugaboo birthday stamp, so it went well in the end.

So, let's check in with Weezee one last time to see if she's wracked with guilt over the destruction of such an adorable wee turtle. I detect...none. No guilt whatsover. Look at her. Sigh. I suppose that's what makes her a cat. If she did feel remorse, she'd be a dog or human or something.

Stuff Yourself, Not a Turkey!

2011-11-01T03:10:00.001-04:00

Halloween ended like 10 minutes ago which means it's time for Thanksgiving projects! Here's a gilded turkey for the CDAC progressive challenge. Mmm...I can already taste the Tofurkey!

Creepy is my middle name. Okay, it's not, but it would be freaking cool if it was.

2011-10-27T20:08:00.000-04:00

This week at For Fun Challenges, we're psyched to have a great name in creepy horror digi stamps (and cute ones, and clever ones, and so on) as our sponsor. Rick St. Dennis! I certainly don't keep my eerie stamps packed away all year, sad and loney, waiting for October to roll around. A little scary fun is an important part of year round crafting. It's chock full of 8 essential vitamins and minerals including vitamin H (for horror), and the minerals creeponium and hauntitine.

As you can see below, I've got a green and black glittered skeleton raising the roof, and the walls bleeding all in honor of Rick St. Dennis' vicious snail. He's hanging out in his slime-trail web just waiting for someone to point their finger just a little too close. Chomp!

Stop by For Fun Challenges so you can see the whole array of dangerous-looking critters you can win if you play along with our challenge. Make something supremely Halloweeny and you could win!

I've also been finishing off my own Halloween cards I intend to send out shortly. Here's one that's a little bit (no, actually a lot) on the cute side. I love this little kitty witch by The Angel Company (RIP)! Aww! I'm entering this one in the Really Reasonable Ribbon Challenge, because yes, that's their ribbon (love the black on black checks!) and yes, their ribbon club from which I got it, rocks!

Oh my, oh my...did I almost forget the kitty break? Nope! This time you get a little dog, too! Here's Toulouse (the kitty) and Usagi (the dog) demonstrating the vast power of the Magic Blanket that allows them to sit back to back despite being fairly terrified of each other normally. The blanket's power appears to be growing because this time it's not even forming a barrier between them. Notice how it's just sort of flung over the back of the couch behind them, yet still exhibits full powers. Wow!

Bat-infested Wreath: Love it!

2011-10-24T19:59:00.000-04:00

Okay, so this bat infested wreath gets extra points for being more cute than rabid, but I'm not so sure about that angry kitty leering at me from the center.

I made this card for a challenge by the maker of this creepy/cute bat wreath digi, Doodle Pantry, for challenge DPDC17.

I heart Halloween!

2011-10-24T07:10:00.000-04:00

Digi My World, a digistamp proprietor I love for their growing collection of dog digis, has a Trick or Treat challenge using one of their stamps. I didn't have any halloweeny ones, so I improvised with some witchy accessories by Sassy Studio in conjunction with Digi My World's adorable Italian greyhound. I'm rather pleased with the results.

While I'm on the subject of Digi My World, I also thought I'd mention their blog candy page, which you can check out by clicking here or clicking on the badge dealie on the side of my blog.

Wish my luck! I hope they like my witch dog as much as I do. Why should cats have all the Halloween fun, right?

Festive Fun with Bugaboo

2011-10-19T10:48:00.000-04:00

This week's challenge at For Fun Challenges is a favorite of mine and not just because the prizes are provided by Bugaboo Stamps. This week, participants are asked to make a Halloween card without using the colors orange, black, or purple. I've always been a fan of using non-traditional colors with very traditional holiday images. I'm not sure why I love playing with color this way. Maybe it's because of that old flag optical illustion? Or the issue of Sesame Street Magazine I adored as a kid because all the characters were different colors than they should be? Chicken? Egg?

So, I took the opportunity to make a trick or treat goodiebag, trading in the usual colors for greens, yellows, and browns. Check out the cute little cemetery at the top! It's one of Martha Stewart's badass edge punches. She definitely knows how to do halloween!

I'm entering this project into these challenges:

Ginger Loft

Dream Valley

TIME OUT FOR KITTIES!

Kitty break! Kitty break! Here's Weezee, completely fascinated by a squirrel on the Video DogSitter DVD. The dogs weren't all that impressed by the video, but Weezee couldn't take her eyes off of it. She was completely transfixed for the entire video, moving only to get into a better attack position so the animals on the screen wouldn't see her coming.

Working on goodie bags this week. I finally gave up on ever finding ones small enough for the cuteness level I desired and just went ahead and ordered them online.

Entering this party favor goodie bag (I'd love these for my birthday party...I'm a goth geek year round!) in the Outlines Challenge (they're the company that made the fabulous stamp I used.) It may not look like I did much coloring, but I blacked in the blank parts and darkened the lines using colored pencils to make the image as vibrant and clear as possible.
Also entering this in the Quirky Crafts challenge.

I'm totally in a Halloweenie mood this week. Check out this adorabl kitty by Pollycraft:

I'm entering my halloween cat and candy card into these challenges:
Repeat Impressions DCC1012 Designer’s Choice Challenge
Sparkles Forum Challenges

I love this sneaky little bulldog by Mo's Digital Pencil. Usagi loves to grab plastic pumpkins and run. We thought it was the candy until we caught her stealing them just as often when they're empty. Silly dog!

I'm entering this naughty little puppy card into these challenges:
Wags and Whiskers Challenge #65
Stampavie Halloween Challenge

I picked up some really nice, barely used, Lyra Polycolor colored pencils off of ebay and now I can't get enough of coloring with them.

I'm entering these sweet halloween kitties here:
Hanna and Friends
Crafting for all Seasons
Paper Sundaes

CDAC Progressive Freebie Challenge Part 4: Big Ol' Box O Fun

2011-10-14T22:48:00.001-04:00

Annnnnnnnd here's my entry for part four of the CDAC Progressive Challenge. Again, I thought I'd try something other than a card and made...

a handy box to keep cards *in*!

I used the digi stamp offered by Designed 2 Delight, since I can never resist a kitty. I also used some of the ribbon I got from the Really Reasonable Ribbon Monthy Ribbon Club to decorate the sides.

Here's a top view...I unfortunately ran out of orange stickles, but I think the clear worked out just fine on the outside edges after all.

One of my top ten favorite digi shops EVER!

2011-10-12T02:30:00.000-04:00

It's time for this week's For Fun Challenge to be announced and I'm especially happy to report that this week's sponsor totally rocks my world. It's MelJen's Designs, home to more adorable animal (and other) digi stamps than you can shake a stick at!

This week's challenge involves using pumpkins (not Jack o' Lanterns, unfortunately, but hey, we could all probably stand to have some fall cards we can still use once the 31st is over.) The winner will get some goodies from our sponsor, so don't miss this one.

I decided to use this yummy pumpkin pie as the central image, then added a second MelJen's pumpkin/leaf design on pop dots to fill it out. I cut out and layered the pie and the leaf to add dimension, then traced the edges with Stickles.

Here's another angle so you can see the popped up parts more clearly. I couldn't resist adding a few tiny bat brads to keep it Halloweenie!

And to wind it up, how about a pic of my adorable foster mice, Sookie and Tara. They're big fans of pasta shells, and I'm a big fan of their ginormous ears!

A Little Something Different for CDAC Progressive Challenge Part 3

2011-09-30T18:24:00.000-04:00

When we got the images to use for the 3rd segment of the CDAC Progressive Challenge, I knew immediately that I wanted to use this cute smoking duck by Nicecrane Designs, and that I wanted to do something other than a card for a change, so I made this neat little notecard box.

I got the paper from Websters Pages via a Groupon of all things! It was a total steal and I just love the vintage look. It worked out perfectly with the duck's coat and boots.

Inside added a touch of decoration to avoid having a blank lid, and filled the other side with a bunch of pretty stamped cards for jotting down phone numbers, to do lists, stuff you need to pick up at the store, or whatever ideas come to you.

Here you can see the three different card designs. I wanted them to be pretty enough to give away in case you need to give a friend or business contact your contacts.

I'm so pleased with this little project, I think I'm going to have to make a few more for gifts.

SCREEEEEEEEE! Sliding in at the last minute at CDAC!

2011-09-15T01:06:00.000-04:00

Sometimes it really disturbs me how getting sick turned me from Ms. Shocks the World With How Much She Gets Done, and into Ms. Careening in at the Last Minute. I still hold out hope that I will be able to split the difference and end up as Ms. On Time, but until then, here's my 2-hours-before-deadline entry into the Crafters' Digital Art Center Progressive Challenge Part 2.

Yay for Yorkies!

2011-09-14T02:33:00.001-04:00

Remember these sweet sighthounds from Digi My World?

Well, Digi My World has sponsored For Fun Challenges this week, which is pretty cool of them (thank you thank you thank you), but what's even cooler is the stamp I chose from the ones they so generously gave our design team to work with. Yep, it's a yorkie!

Plus he's got that foo foo show hairdo *and* he's in a purse. I always hoped Revco, the prissier of my dogs, would take to being a purse dog, but he said no. That's probably a good thing, actually, since my crumby (crummy? Not sure how that's spelled. Why don't we go with crumbling, since it's doing that, too.) spine probably wouldn't like me lugging around 12 pounds of dog slung over my shoulder. Still, I think it would have been neat since he enjoys being taken along everywhere I go. I think he'd like to relate to humans on eye level (or nearly so), too. I think he'd find it far more dignified.

Things I love about this card: the yorkie (of course! I don't have any other yorkie stamps so it was about time!), the phone peeking out of the center pocket, the resin flowers and tiny metal key in the center of the upper flower. What I don't like: the colors! I think this was the most difficult challenge I've done yet, because I really dislike all 3 of these colors unless they are tempered by the presence of a color I really love. On the other hand, this makes me really curious to see the entries in our challenge this week. I'm looking forward to seeing projects in these 3 colors that can really dazzle me.

Speaking of challenges, I'm entering this card into the current challenge at Creative Inspirations.

Puppy break! Puppy break! Puppy break!

I love this pic because normally both ears are "button" style a.k.a. kind of floppy (some call them "bat ears"), so I love that the left ear is sticking straight up. Her huge, bulgy eyes give the impression that she just heard something surprising, too.

See you at For Fun Challenges!

Challenge-o-rama!

2011-09-10T02:12:00.000-04:00

This week I got the itch to make some challenge cards, so here we go!

This one I made using an image by Phindy, one of my favorite digi stamp artists. I pop dotted the sweet dog and kitty image to give the card some extra dimension. I wish my kitties and dogs were this hooked on each other, but for now, they deserve credit for being curious and indifferent to each other all at the same time, which is a lot better than things could be. Not infreuently, one of the cats will attempt to give a dog a friendly headbutt (so far, always dodged) or one of the dogs will do a play bow or one of those excited canine tap dances for one of the cats, but the cats always seem to find this terrifying (or just stupid) and disdainfully escape as soon as there's an opening. So, until their overtures of friendship become synchronized, I'd better be happy with the fact that they can share the couch without incident.
I am entering this card in the Phindy's Challenge (Stripes Somewhere) and the Really Reasonable Ribbons "I Got You Babe" challenge (aww...luv luv luv!)
Speaking of Really Reasonable Ribbons, I just recently signed up for their really cool monthly ribbon club. Not only do you get lots of cool ribbons, you get them for under $10 a month, delivered.

Next, we have a super cute kitty I picked up at Whimsy Stamps the other day. It comes with 5 other cute animal quotes, and 5 out of 6 are embellished with cute little animal illustrations. Go take a look!

So...this one is being entered in the Whimsy Stamps Green Challenge, using mostly green. I slipped in some orange since I didn't think a green cat would look natural. :)

This card features a digi stamp from A Day for Daisies, which is a company that's fairly new to me. I really love their squirrels and other cute little animals, like this snowy squirrel I used for their black, white, and just a drop of red Christmas challenge. I'm really pleased with how this one turned out. I might have to make more for the holidays. :)

Now we move on to something a bit different...rubber stamps instead of digis! Here's one of my favorite, very distinctive companies. You can always recognize stamps by Outlines because of the incredible detail they always include. The current challenge not only requires one of their stamps, but also a photograph incorporated into a card. This one I made specifically for Darcy, who was here just a little over a week ago, to let her know that Toulouse and the rest of us miss her lots already.

I adore greyhounds and for some reason they are not easy to find in stamp form, so I was psyched to find this little guy by Digi My World. Next on my wishlist is there Chinese Crested Dog set. If you're not sure which type I'm talking about, they are those adorable little dogs who resemble Andy Warhol. Anyway, their challenge this week is anything goes as long as it's a Digi My World image. Not a problem!

Now for one of my favorite kinds of challenge...the sketch kind! This little polar bear is a digi stamp from Stamp Fairy. I love these little polar bears especially (though I've got some of their bunnies and other little guys, too, in my ever growing collection.)

Wish me luck! I've got a couple more challlenges I'm hoping to complete this weekend provided today's nasty migrane doesn't invite its friends over. Thanks for taking a look at my cards this week!

Fussy Cutting with Di's Digi Downloads

2011-09-07T12:41:00.000-04:00

It's time for another For Fun Challenge! The theme? Kids at play. I know. Kids. Not my forte' but luckily Di's Digi Downloads has some super cute images of kids and animals being adorable together. :)

So, here's my card sample. I used one of my favorite paper lines, DeLovely! Those colors just jump off the page with vibrant pinks and greens that really work for any season. In spring, it's the color of new growth. In summer, bright pool toys and beach towels. In fall, it reminds me of brand new book covers and back to school clothes (yeah, I know. I'm in my 30's and yet you never seem to forget that back-to-school excited feeling. The OCD in me just eats up that delicious brand-new school year clean feeling that makes autumn feel so fresh, like anything can happen. You have a whole new chance to start over. Moving on, these colors also remind me of ultra-bright Christmas lights that are so very red, they glow pink and so very green, they glow a bit bluish.

I colored several copies of the image I used, then cut out the dog, flowers, butterfly, teddybear, and bow, layering over the original copy of the stamp with pop dots. I took this photo at an angle so you can see the dimension more clearly. The brads were from my stash. I was lucky to find ones that matched so nicely.

I'm entering this card in the Stitchybear Use-any-digi challenge. Wish me luck!

Kitty Break! Kitty Break! Okay, it's more of a finale than a break this time since Toulouse is winding up this week's post. And yes, he is our Mega Scratcher. He doesn't seem to know that his claws retract so he has a habit of accidentallly causing bleeding in his overenthusiasm. He doesn't mean it though. He just wants to play.

So, stop by For Fun Challenges and play along with the "Kids at Play" challenge and win some fabulous digi stamps of your own. She has a slew of stamps too choose from. I dare you to visit her store without falling for at least one. :)

Revisiting Xmas with Michelle Perkett Studio

2011-09-02T06:21:00.000-04:00

For Fun Challenges is having another winter holiday challenge! I'm loving designing for these challenges because they help me get a head start on the somewhat daunting task of making enough xmas cards for my always growing mailing list. I'm a letter writer year-round, and have been pen pal-ing since I was a kid, so I never have a problem using up my cards, but add to that the large number of online friends and others who I use the holidays as an excuse to touch base with via postal mail once a year and it's a wonder I haven't been crushed beneath a xmas card avalanche yet!

I chose Peppermint the Bear as my digistamp for this challenge. I just love how he's sitting with his back paws in the air, since Revco (pictured below) sits just the same way. He didn't require a ton of coloring--just a bit of shading and some festive red touches, both done in copics. The blue parts (aside from shading) are actually blue flocking I adhered using a Creative Memories glue pen. I usually enjoy adding a ton of color to my stamped images, so I was surprised at how much I loved working with this one. I can't wait to see what Michelle comes up with next. I definitely hope to see more animals and more wintry digis. We'll just have to keep an eye on her shop. In the mean time, why not make a card for our challenge this week at For Fun Challenges? That way, you can win some free digis to get you started!

Revco, keeping an eye on the neighbors. Note the sitting position--butt down, back legs up, just like Peppermint! :)

CDAC Progressive Freebie Challenge...Project #1

2011-09-01T01:17:00.000-04:00

cdacpc1--CDAC Progressive Freebie Challenge for August. My favorite part of this image was using liquid pearls to make the teeny tiny stamen on bleeding hearts. http://priscillastyles.ning.com/
Thanks to Sandi Sample's Digital Stamps for the teapot digital stamp.

How I got carried away by the E.A.D. color challenge.

2011-08-20T01:48:00.000-04:00

Well, I was supposed to make one card for the E.A.D. Challenge, but between their cute stickers, the new Stampin' Up colors, and a searing headache, once I got started, I just kept going.

It's rare that I make a card without coloring a stamped image, but I was sucked in by these wee forest animals.

And I felt too ill to do much else today.

Still, it was nice to take solace in doing something productive today.

Anyway, here's the actual challenge card, rendered in the three requisite colors. Check out their site. Not only are their stickers cute, they have free shipping for their small stickers like these. Rock on.

Just One Sparkly Card

2011-08-19T01:13:00.000-04:00

I couldn't resist an excuse to make this sparkly dog card for the Outlines Summer-themed challenge. It's been stupidly hot here so I focused on cool swimming pool colors. It's a bit hard to see, but I pop dotted the "dogs rule"" section so it's raised up above all the others. I even colored *and* glittered the layer below it despite it being totally unnecessary. Now that's attention to detail!

Mondo Cuteness from Wee Stamps

2011-08-17T04:00:00.001-04:00

This week's For Fun Challenge is a layout instead of a card. So, Julie, if you're reading this, thank you for the photo you enclosed in your Christmas card a couple of years ago. You'll be glad to know that I finally got it scrapped. Check out her adorable menagerie. She's almost as hopeless as I am when it comes to animals:

Wee Stamps is new to me, so I was really excited to check out their shop. Check out the adorable snow bunny in his cute sled. And they have squirrels, too. Squirrels! It's a little hard to tell in the photo, but I had a blast with the digistamp I used in my layout. The best thing about holiday crafting is the excuse to use glitter to the extreme and I didn't fail to do so. One of my happiest memories is being in elementary school, decorating Christmas projects with fat pearls of white glue, doused in a thick crust of multicolor glitter. The sheer excessive use of my craft supplies was a deep rush of happy, but the best part came a few hours later when I'd cave to the impulse to pop those half-dried beads of glue, luxuriating in the crunch of the dried glitter layer on the outside, breaking away to the smush of the still-liquid glue inside. That feeling will always be Christmas to me. Yum.

Before ending with an Orange Pretty Kitty moment, I want to take one more moment to encourage you to stop by For Fun Challenges and submit your own layout to the challenge. You could be randomly chosen to win 3 images of your choice from Wee Stamps!

And here he is...your reward for making it through another of my bloggity blah blah blog entries. Don't worry, I know you only put up with me for the cute animal pics. I love this particular photo. Toulouse is easily one of the goofiest cats ever and yet he photographs so well. Not bad for such a dink! :)

A Taste of Summer with MelJen's

2011-08-10T15:59:00.000-04:00

Okay, it's For Fun Challenges time again. Last week's challenge was HUGE! 181 entries kept us busy checking out your cards and visiting your blogs. It's one of the things I love about being on a design team. I get to see so many different blogs each week where I find out about new stamp companies, techniques and gather ideas for new craft projects to work on (though I think by now my idea notebook has enough craft ideas to keep me busy well into 2025.)

So, let's talk about this week's challenge! MelJen's designs is our sponsor this week. I am a long time fan of her digital stamps, and if you take a moment to visit her site, you'll know why. Animals! Adorable happy little animals! How could I possibly resist? She's got dog breeds, kitties, mice, bunnies, even rats. I want every last stamp in her shop.

Now, the big reveal...this week's challenge theme is...watermelon! Yes, that cold, delicious, juicy symbol of all things summery. Some people put salt on it, but between you and me, I'm sure you can agree, they are weirdos. Why add one more step between cutting and eating? I can hardly stand to wait till it's in slices as it is. I'm tempted to just dive in with a spoon the minute I see a flash of red flesh. (Did that sound too zombie-like?)

"Watermelon? Did somebody say there's watermelon around? Gimmie gimmie gimmie!"

Please excuse the interruption. That's Howard. He's a big fan of watermelon. Actually he's a fan of food of pretty much any kind. His physique kind of shows it, though I try to keep it from getting out of control. Male rats have a tendency to turn into big squishy boys, though it's not good to let them get *too* squishy. Anyway, let's get to my card this week:

Could this mousey be any cuter? And he's happily chowing down on watermelon ice cream (yeah, okay, I stretched it a little, but I *would* love some watermelon sorbet and so would most of the mice I know.) I've also entered this card into the challenge at Really Reasonable Ribbon (summer theme). I've been hoarding that gorgeous pink and purple flowered ribbon for quite a while and finally decided that *this* was the card that called for it.

So, join us in our challenge this week. Don't forget to take a look at MelJen's shop at Whimsie Stamps. There are also some really great freebies you can use. You get extra chances to win if you use a stamp by MelJens. With four of her digital stamps as the prize, you don't miss out this week!

Digi My World's Adorable Dogs!

2011-08-03T06:31:00.000-04:00

Well, I've found a new digi shop to start sending my money to. Digi My World is this week's sponsor at For Fun Challenges, and while they were totally generous and gave us several of their stamps to create with, I foresee my Paypal balance depleting now that their stamp shop is in my life. :)

Here's my card for this week. The theme is "anything goes" so I jumped at the chance to play with some papers that have been calling my name lately. They just feel so summery, yet not sunbaked. I like this particular card layout because it reminds me of wainscotting. Very formal for this delicate Italian Greyhound.

Kitty break--kitty break--kitty break!

Kitty break--kitty break--kitty break!

Ahem. Back to our regularly scheduled post.

Here are just a few of the stamps I simply must have. Check out all those little dog breeds. I'm in love!

I love all the little extras like the dog in the carrier, the italian greyhound sleeping nose to tail. You can tell the artist knows their dogs!

While you're checking out their site and doing a little shopping, don't miss their Blog Candy! You can win a $15 gift certificate if you follow a few simple steps and get picked in the drawing. And don't forget, there'sa $10 gift certificate at stake at For Fun Challenges. Don't miss your chance to start your Digi My World stamp collection! Get started by picking up their Freebie Friday stamp. It's easy!

Not just cards!

2011-08-01T13:50:00.000-04:00

It may be hard to believe, looking at most of my posts, but I actually enjoy a lot of different kinds of crafts, not just card making. So in this post, you will see absolutely no cards. I may need to breathe into a paper bag as I post it, but here it is!

Let's begin with a collage I made for the Big Picture class with Claudine Hellmuth (yes, *the* Claudine Hellmuth. ). I'm actually still working my way through the assignments, running late as usual. Somehow my body knows that it's broken, but my brain still desperately wants to do everything. Thus, I'm perpetually embarassed to be behind on everything, always. Someday I will reign my brain in, but until then, forgive me if it runs wild.

And speaking of running wild, above is my collage of a wolf arguing with the moon, sitting atop a large pile of heads. I like how the wolf is pointing one of his fingers at the hyper-adorned moon I made, as if he's mid-discussion. I gave him tiny leaf wings to indicate that he's a charmed wolf, and I painted the heads to blend into the background because, while I wanted to show that he's eaten all these brains (maybe that's why he waxes so philisophical?) I didn't want the gore to take away from the central image. I have to mention how excited I was to even find disembodied head chipboard pieces at Archivers! I know that the manufactuerer intended them to be painted black and used in silhouettes, but they immediately struck me as something that needed to be used in the creepiest way possible. I hope I have succeeded.

Next, here's my first collage I did for the class mentioned above. It could stand to have a clearer central image, but I still like it. Crabs totally creep me out btw, so I decided I had to add one to the flower arrangement so sap some of the sugar sweetness out, or I was afraid I'd give the viewer a tummyache.

How about a layout now? These are ones I made for the Club Scrap PSL Summer Camp going on right now. And that's Sharkey, the deceptively dangerous hamster. He's a little toasted marshmallow of cuteness who will bite and not let go. Ow! I gave him little white wings in this layout. Luckily he doesn't have them in real life or he might get a taste for human ears or noses. He can be a real cuddlebug when he's in the mood, but when he decides to chomp, he's tenacious!

I am so sick of summer, I can't see straight. I don't like hot weather anyway, so this nasty mess of sweaty brightness and buggy overgrowth is too much. So, I did a few Christmas layouts to remind myself that summer isn't forever. I love these pics of Rev in his capelet. He knows hearing the camera turning on means, "don't move" so he's super easy to photograph.

If you have a moment to spare, please visit my Etsy treasuries I put together last night and this morning. I was on a bit of a kick. Anyone can make one up, if you've got some favorite products and the inclination. Just saying. ;)

Take it to the Office.

Halloween Treats

Black Cats Bring Love

On the Beach...really?

2011-07-27T00:45:00.000-04:00

It's no secret that I'm not a sun worshipper. It only takes one look at my creepy pallor (or my alabaster beauty, depending on your opinion on skin that matches standard white cardstock. :)) to figure that I don't spend a lot of time in the outdoors, so these week's challenge was a bit of a...challenge. We're doing beach themed projects at For Fun Challenges.

The Paper Shelter is this week's sponsor, with the winner receiving the generous prize of a $15 gift certificate from their store. Chosing one of their stamps for the challenge was the easy part. They have the cutest cat and mouse stamps ever!

And, here's my card! Check out how happy that cat is! I even made the sun look flattering by going for my favorite...glitter. Even my friend Jen's husband, Alex, who suffers from glitterphobia would approve of this card because in this case I used self-stick glitter "paper" (it's actually a plastic sheet that's got a generous amount of the sparkly stuff smooshed between the sheet and a thick layer of adhesive. It's really handy for punching or die cutting. It's not the cheapest, but it goes a long way if you're careful to line up your cuts. The papers and glitter fishies are from an SEI kit club selection. I love their stuff! The crab was a wild card item...something that's been sitting on my work counter for quite a while, waiting for the right project to come along. Ahoy! Here it is.

Stop by this week annd play with us!

For Fun Challenge of the Week With Di's Digi Downloads

2011-07-20T01:03:00.000-04:00

The challenge this week over at For Fun Challenges (where I'm a superstar. Well, okay, just a member of the design team, but that's kind of the same thing, isn't it?) is to use two different ribbons. I chose an adorable holiday image from our sponsor this week--Di's Digi Downloads, so I used some super sparkly ultra shiny ribbon I've been hoarding in my stash for just such an occasion. Could it *be* more festive? I doubt it! Ha!

Di's Digi Dowloads will be awarding this week's winner 5--count 'em!--5 digital stamps of your choice. Trust me, it's not easy to pick from all the images she has because they're all so adorable! Here are a few of my favorites.

Aww...kitty...butterfly...tiny tiny mouse... smothering...in...cuteness!

Okay, this one is so cute, I had to go purchase it just now. I couldn't go another day without setting my copics to these sleepy little animals.

And a favorite that isn't from the new releases...a classic, I suppose...I just get all fuzzy giggly seeing that adorable little hedgehog begging to be picked up and given a ride in the wheelbarrow with his little pal. Why don't hedgehogs come up to me like that when I'm in the yard? Okay, perhaps it's because they aren't native to the U.S.

Speaking of wee little guys, how about I end this post with a pic of one of my foster hamsters? Those are Scott's hands, by the way. Mine are significantly less hairy. The little fuzzy girl pictured is Jane. She looks like a little toasted marshmallow when she curls up to sleep, she loves treats, running in her wheel (she loves it so much she falls asleep in it sometimes!) and all sorts of little chew toys she can tear apart. She's a bitey girl, so she needs a home that's very understanding and enjoys interacting with her in a more hands-off way--enjoying her reaction to new cage setups, toys, treats, and talking with her, etc. If you think you might be interested in this girl with a few special needs, visit http://www.cpr-nc.org/

I heart Bugaboo Stamps.

2011-07-13T11:03:00.000-04:00

I'm totally psyched that this week's sponsor over at For Fun Challenges is Bugaboo stamps, since I own an obscene number of their digital stamps and could easily stuff my hard drive full of even more. If you take a sec to visit their shop, you'll see that they have an absolutely obscene number of stamps available to keep you coloring ad infinitum.

First, let's check out my card for this week. The challenge is to use one additional fold beyond the usual single fold card.

I chose to use two of my favorite images of "Deacon", a recurring Bugaboo character. You'll definitely be seeing more of him on my blog. I am such a digi hog, I have several Deacon stamps I haven't even had time to use yet. I decided to put him in a cemetery since this gothy dreamboat *happy sigh* is presenting us with a sweet long-stemmed skull on the card front.

On the inside, say hello to a cute little Deacon with wings and a little heart. I left the middle panel blank since I like to write whole letters inside my cards, so I need a lot of space.

If you follow my blog, you've seen a lot of projects using Bugaboo Stamps already. Here are a few examples you may remember. I'm a big fan of their sweet little rottweilers:

And, of course, the Skelekins:

You can win some Bugaboo stamps of your own if you participate in this week's For Fun Challenge, and oh yes, you definitely want some. While you're clicking, don't miss this week's freebie stamp at the Bugaboo store! Be careful...if you're like me, you'll end up picking up a cartful of other stamps before you leave!

My card class homework and something really cool for the animals!

2011-07-09T06:49:00.001-04:00

(I'm entering this card in the Clearly iStamp punch/die cut challenge this week. :))

I've been participating in Summer Card Camp 2011 (click the link for more info). Each week we're given a new color palette to work with. This week was not the easiest for me. It's a margarita green with oranges and peaches and bright pink and purple. So...I ran a little fast and loose with it and threw in some blue in an attempt to calm things down a bit. I wasn't sure what the heck I was going to do with these colors until I remembered the new colors of Stampin' Up embossing powder and some SEI paper I recently came into.

OMG! I was actually working with these colors and liking it. I would not have guessed.

Naturally, I had to sidestep peach, since it is my least favorite color by FAR, but orange on the other hand, I can handle!

And when it comes to orange kitties, well, who doesn't love a ginger cat?

Okay, I promised something really cool for the animals and that would be a new digi stamp set from one of my all-time favorite digi artists, Mo's Digital Pencil. She's selling this adorable dog set for just $1 *and* she's giving all the proceeds to Pet Orphans of Southern California. How great is that? Don't forget to check out Mo's other stamps while you're there. She does fabulous work!

And now, for no reason, a gratuitous dog butt:

Revco, caught in a moment of extreme laziness. Why sit on *top* of the couch, when you can just let your back end hang while you watch the neighbors across the street?

Let's Go British with Little Claire

2011-07-08T16:41:00.000-04:00

It's challenge time at For Fun again, and this week it's all about using those cute little crochet flower embellishments. Our sponsor this week is our friend from across the pond (the Atlantic ocean is a hell of a pond!) is Little Claire who provided us with these wildly cute images. I chose to use her sweet elephant for my card.

Isn't he just...awwww? :) Be sure to run down to For Fun Challenges to join in their crocheted flower challenge this week.

Xmas with Michelle Perkett Studio

2011-06-29T16:33:00.001-04:00

It's time for this week's For Fun Challenge and, of course, my featured Design Team assignment. Whoo hooo! Or perhaps "Ho ho ho" this time?

(This card is being entered into the Craft Your Passion "red" challenge, and Top Tip Tuesday, "T is for..." (Tea!) challenge. :))

Can't you just see the snow sparkling already? I love the silence of snow and the cozy feeling of a cup of hot tea while reading under a blanket, wearing my fuzzy slippers. I put on my favorite video firelog and hum along to the Christmas carols...and then I open the front door and I'm blasted with hot air and dank humidity. Oh yeah, it's June. Oh well. I can still enjoy the festive fairies cavorting in this digi stamp by Michelle Perkett.

Here's a tip: while this stamp came with a sweet friendship sentiment, don't feel like you're caged in thematically when choosing holiday themed stamps. In this case I chose to use a holiday cling stamp by Stampin' Up as the sentiment matched with the Perkett image, and a lot of red, green and icy blue to take an everyday image and make it appropriate for a special occasion. When you look at your stamp collection this way, you can likely find ones that will work for all sorts of holidays and occasions that you'd never thought of using them for before. It's like having loads of new stamps! (Well, sort of. It's an exaggeration, but it's still pretty cool.)

This week, For Fun Challenges takes us back to December for winter fun cards with help from one of my favorite digital stamp shops, and fellow Etsy shop, Michelle Perkett Studio. She has some adorable images, like the ones I'm interspersing here. These are all available for purchase at her shop, and most are darn cheap at around $3 each.

Cute, aren't they? Take a look, then enter our challenge this week. You can get a head start on your holiday cards and win free digi stamps from her shop!

Scrap Room Pics and A Couple of Challenge Entries

2011-06-28T03:07:00.000-04:00

Well, I'm not done figuring out exactly where I want all my scrap supplies to live, but Scott's finished the majority of the build! I'm so psyched to get to play in there for real, with comfy places to sit and other creature-comforts, but I have to say, it's pretty great to use in the mean time.

Scott surprised me with this tree he pained using magnetic paint so I can hang things on it or just admire its swirlyness.

I love seeing pics of other people's work spaces, so I'm really excited to finally have some pics to share of my own. Once it gets a bit more settled, I can take more detailed photos. It always seems like every time you move something in the house, everything else has to shift to accommodate it, so it takes time for everything to find its proper location. Maybe it's some kind of larger truth I've stumbled upon, or maybe it's my OCD. Duno.

And now, for some card challenges I made. First, here's one from Whimsie Doodles' site. The challenge? To include fruits or veggies. So, here's a tipsy sheep (the inside says "Wishing ewe a happy new year!") and of course, those are olives from the martini she's just consumed. Olives, my friends, are a fruit!

Next, the challenge below is a sketch challenge via Card Patterns. The image here is also from Whimsie Doodles. I've been needing more get well cards and this cat and mouse are perfect! Aww!

Yes, actually I was abducted by aliens.

2011-06-12T17:08:00.001-04:00

But look at the cute cards they had me make while enslaved!

A cute little birthday moose! I'm in love with Doodlebug's paper colors. So vibrant and happy. Look at that cute cupcake button, too. Anyone know a good source for cute buttons like these? I picked them up at Archivers, but their selection has shrunk quite a bit lately.

I love this stamp by Outlines. *Both* cats and mice? It's so like my house! (Okay, I don't have any mice right now, but colored in brown, they look a little like my degus. :)) I made this for the Outlines challenge this week. It was an easy one since I love working in aqua and brown anyway.

Now look at this cute little bunny fairy I made for the SCACD sketch challenge. It's super shimmery (oh so appropriate for a little bunny pixie) since I used both copics and Sakura shimmery Star pens. I love these pens! I happened upon a little trick when using them, too. If the pen is not being generous with its ink, hold it at a 45 degree angle to your surface. It's simple physics when dealing with a gel like these, but for some reason it never occurred to me till now.

I love these stamps by Pink Cat Studio. It's impossible to look at them without saying," Aww!" Since the challenge requires that you use a stamp set available in SCACD's shop, you know where you can get them if you decide you need them too!

I managed to escape my captors when the sentry fell asleep. I apologize to anyone who has been wondering where I went. I seem to have popped a new disk this week, so that's been slowing me down. My foster hamsters find my fingers delicious all of the sudden (ow), I'm trying to get my scrap room in order, sorting through my stuff to decide what's going to the Cary Scrappers yard sale in July and what needs to be labeled and put away, prepping for my Creative Memories party (local readers, let me know if you want an invite! :)), sorting through writing grants and whatnot, and, of course, there was the alien thing.

She may be my evil overlord, but she sure is cute!

Wrapped up in a blanket with my Kindle.

2011-05-20T16:01:00.001-04:00

If you've been emailing, calling, or sending messages via bicycle courier, I apologize for the lack of response. My spine has been very angry with me for some reason and I can't seem to get it to settle down. I'll be huddled here in pain until further notice. Let's hope further notice comes soon.

P.S. Still trying to keep this little infant rattie alive. Wish me luck. It's exhausting...he's a little chow hound. :) It's stressful because there's always that fear that he won't make it, but having experience in rehab, I also know that survival is the exception, not the rule, for these little ones. Send good mojo his way for me. If he makes it a few more days, I might take a photo. We'll see.

Clearly, I Have No Concept of a Deadline

2011-05-16T03:03:00.000-04:00

You'll understand my lamentation shortly, but first, I would like to show off a few cards that *aren't* late. :) Dustin Pike, the artist who draws these adorable dragon digi stamps (such as the little gothy girl you see here) is asking for cards to be sent to a friend of his who is quite ill. You can read more about the card drive here. Check out his digis while you are there. He has created hundreds (maybe thousands) of them. This first card is actually for a friend of mine who's also got a bit o' the gothic in her, and being the challenge nut I am, I decided to do the two-birds-one-stone thing and make it fit the requirements for this week's add-a-tag challenge at Do You Stack Up. I love all metal edged tags, but the one I used here is especially delightful with it's rusty edges and delicate golden shimmer. I wish I could say I distressed it myself, but it came that way from Stampin' Up, if you want your own.

I liked these little tags so much, I used them again on the card I made for Dylan, the recipient of Dustin Pike's call for cards. Since it's going to a teenage male, I tried not to go all out with the foo foo goodness, but hey, the dragon is a goth *girl* so it seemed fair enough to go a little dainty. Plus, I try not to get too obsessed with traditional gender roles anyway. Everyone can enjoy some fluff from time to time.

Aaaaaand, finally, here it is...late by several hours (simply because I didn't pay close enough attention to the deadline when reading the site. D'oh!) my contribution to the Haunted Design House Mark-of-the-Beast challenge (must have 6 of 3 different things). I copiced a cute little lucifer, and surrounded him with 6 vellum tombstones, 6 metal bats, and 6 wee skulls. SO cute! I have like six kajillion of these degu food (degus are chilean squirrels, for anyone who's thinking, "what food?") containers awaiting altering, so I thought I'd go ahead and cover one. I think I'm going to use it to store black ribbons inside. Black ribbons of the damned, I mean.

Forgive me for being so late yet again. Today I was doing well until I got a call from the wildlife rehab group, looking desperately for someone (read: a sucker like me) to try to save a tiny little infant rat. Naturally, because he lacks fur on his tail, most squirrel rehabbers aren't interested in helping him and while my health prevents me from doing this kind of thing regularly, I'm the sucker who's doing feedings every 3 hours 'round the clock and risking heartbreak if he doesn't make it (it's sadly common for rehab animals to die, even with all the help in the world.) I have to say, the person who called me was a pretty darn wonderful rescuer to have cared for this wee one all weekend. I'm surprised this little animal is as strong as he is. Wish us all luck.

Weddings, Paper Flowers, and Delayed Cards

2011-05-13T15:02:00.000-04:00

First, I simply must show off my adorable brother, Mikey, (If you're reading this, I think you're adorable too, Nick!) and his so very fabulous bride, Cassie. I wish I had better pics, but there were incidents of cameras left in cards, lighting issues, etc. Cassie promised me a CD of pics, which I can't wait to get my filthy mitts on so I can scrapbook the hell out of them. :) I've already bought a half-ton of papers and other supplies I found that totally match their invitations.
Anyway, this pic was taken at the rehersal dinner. Unfortunately I didn't get any really good ones of the wedding, but hopefully that cd will rectify the situation.

And here's one of Mikey and me at the reception. Don't you love my dorky pose? I was a bit giddy.

I got to make all the bouquets for the wedding, which was incredibly trusting of Cassie. :) These pics aren't the greatest (I'll post some of the actual wedding later), but hopefully you can see the basic design. This one was Cassie's. I used unicorn lollies for the center, then made pinwheels out of book pages and when the pages proved a bit too dusty to hold together very well (the adhestive was slipping on the dust and page rot) I added some Stampin' Up simulated book page papers, too. There are tiny satin ribbon flowers with rhinestone centers in the middle of each pinwheel and I made leaves from black chenille stems. The white flowers are actually made from cupcake liners (3 per flower) and there are tiny pearly pips for stamen in the center of each one. There are black and white jellybean stamen floating around as well (could I be more freudian?) The colored flowers aren't showing well in this photo, but they are made of red, blue, and yellow polka dot vellum. Again, different colored pearly pips are stamen inside each one. They matched her nails and shoes perfectly!

This is one of the bridesmaids' bouquets, made with one unicorn lolly and pinwheels. I put different types of centers inside each pinwheel, from black heart gems to clusters of googly eyes.

Okay, okay, let's get back to the subject of cards. Here's one I'm entering into the Buttons and Bows Challenge at Fab and Funky Challenges. I love those wee little carrot buttons! Check out that french fry brad in the middle of the bow. I'm also entering it in Sparkle's Forum's "recipe" challenge--2 papers, 2 embellishments (er..a little extra never hurt!), and a bow. Plus, you know, I liked the "recipe" pun. :)

This is one I made for the Phindy's embossing challenge, but the Blogspot debacle made it impossible to enter in time.

The swirls are embossed using this neat peppermint scented embossing powder I had in my stash. It's red and white mixed together so it comes out really cool.

Even though I'm too late for the challenge at Phindy's, it's not a total loss. This is one of the cards I made to send in my next package to Card Cupids.

Speaking of Card Cupids, their current challenge is cards with flowers...ta da! Card Cupids is an organization that sends handmade cards and care packages to kids in hospital. If you're inclined to contribute, they have a special need right now from a Title I school. They need donations of journals, cool pens or pencils for the kids to write in the journals with, a card wishing them a happy summer, and handmade book marks to keep kids reading and writing till school starts again. In addition to being a really nice thing to do, you can also win some neat prizes with every item you send. For more info and guidelines, visit this post.

Just one more, and this one has cupcake flowers! This one's being entered in Craft Your Passion's "check" it out challenge. I'm so digging this mouse stamp!

Sorry to cram so much into one post, but I was knocked off kilter by the Blogger breakdown. Have a happy weekend everyone!

Wendy's Gone

2011-05-06T18:48:00.000-04:00

When you love little animals, you say goodbye a lot. Wendy was my little girl who was escorted to my home a few years ago by a wildlife removal service. Some people in an apartment complex thought they had squirrels in their attic, but what they had was a scared little white rat who had been living feral, taking care of herself as best she could. The removal worker said he thought she had escaped from an apartment nearby where rats like her were being fed to a snake, so she may have been up there for a while since she was full grown (most people who still cling to the arcane and inhumane practice of feeding live rats instead of frozen will feed young rats since adults can (and do) kill snakes.)

She was so frightened the first day she arrived, we put her in the cage I'd set up for her, travel box and all. When she finally ventured out and saw one of my cats walk by, she froze and didn't move a whisker for a full half hour, despite my efforts to console her. Over time she came to accept me as a friend and loved being talked to and petted. I would scratch her little ears and under her arms and she would brux with contentment. She never took to being held, so she was always invited to crawl onto me instead. She was very timid and only actually crawled onto my arms a couple of times, but I considered it quite the compliment when she did. She had a tumor early on, which we had removed. She was spayed at the same time in hopes that it would reduce her risk of mammary tumors and increase the chance that she might be able to join forces with my neutered males who you've seen on this blog before. She remained pretty skittish, so we decided, in the end, to put them in a split ferret nation (read: huge) cage so the rats could see each other, but not get into squabbles or anything. The boys are so rough and tumble, I was afraid they'd overwhelm her and scare the crap out of her.

Anyway, Wendy seemed fine when I sat with her and gave her her afternoon scritches. She was very happy to have her neck scratched and stretched out for all over pets. That night, when Scott went to feed her, she was having severe convulsions. One of her eyes was clearly bulging in a bizarre way, something I have, unfortunately seen in a previous rat--my first one, actually--when he died. Though we didn't have a necropsy done on him, the vet I asked at the time said it was likely a brain tumor that had grown very suddenly, causing massive pressure on the brain. Wendy didn't seem conscious after that, though I tried to get her to take water from a syringe periodically while she was still breathing quietly. She didn't seem to be able to swalllow, so all I could do was wet her lips I was afraid to move her to get help from a vet or even to cuddle her for fear I'd cause her to die in terror, rather than letting her go quietly. Still, I can't think of a worse feeling than watching someone struggle and to be completely helpless to do anything.

On a happier note, I made several of the memorial cards you see at the top of this post, since I was in that sort of mood. They'll be posted in my Etsy shop shortly. Incidentally, all proceeds from the sale of "charity items" in my shop will be going to Carolina Pet Rescue this month. They've had a lot of special needs dogs arrive and can really use the funds.

Also, take a sec and visit For Fun Challenges this week. My smiley flower card (which you need after this depressing post) is featured *and* you can win some nifty prizes if you join in.

And speaking of challenges, I decided to cheer myself up with one that celebrates my favorite color: purple! I used one of my favorite digi stamps by Phindy to make this card. I'm actually quite pleased with the outcome, but then, you can never go wrong with purple and blue together. The challenge I'm entering is at one I visit a lot, the Do You Stack Up challenge. And nothing quite cheers me up like doing challenges. :)

Puppy Mill Action Week

2011-05-03T06:56:00.000-04:00

Sorry I've been neglecting you lately. I was in San Francisco, then Fort Walton (where I grew up in Florida) to see my brother Mikey get married to my new ubercool sister-in-law, Cassie. Photos will follow.

In the mean time, it's Puppy Mill Action Week, which is a darn fine opportunity to do a little something to help out exploited and abused dogs. It's all easy stuff, I promise.

Puppy Mills are mass breeding facilities for the pet trade. Though puppy mills are the most talked about, there are similar mass production companies for other animals as well. Think about all those cute little fuzzy guys you've seen for sale--hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, rabbits, ferrets, etc., they are often bred in little drawers stacked on hundreds of shelves. They're pretty dreadful places for any species. Breeding bitches spend their lives in little cages where they are kept in a near constant state of preganacy and lactation, producing litter after litter only to have their pups taken away, typically very young--long before they should be separated from their mother. Puppies should be given time to finish being weaned, to be taught some important life lessons that will make them well-adjusted dogs. There's how to have a "soft mouth" instead of biting hard during play and how to relate to other dogs so they can be taken to dog parks or live in harmony with others of their own species, just to name a couple of the vital skills mom would teach her little ones if the mill workers didn't take them away so early. I've even known of some puppies being sold still requiring puppy formula feedings to survive. Why do the mills do this? Pet shops, internet brokers, and others want their puppies to have the longest "shelf life" possible in their stores. The public tends to think "the younger the better" when it comes to buying a dog. Many buyers don't understand the behavioral problems that arise when a pup is torn away from his litter too young and think that a younger dog will bond to them better. Pet stores and other outlets know this. They don't want to be stuck with a 6 month old puppy who's "too old" to sell. They know what the custiomer will buy, and once that dog is out of their shop, they know that dog is the customer's problem now. These dogs are merchandise to them, not individuals with a life ahead of them.

And what happens to the adult dogs? When they can no longer be bred, they are either killed or dumped on the streets, in shelters, etc. The result of years of constant breeding, the small dog mothers may be recognizable by the wasting away of their lower jaw. These dogs never get to recover from their pregnancies before becoming pregnant again, and they rarely have a proper pre-natal diet offered, so their bodies resort to leeching calcium from their teeth. When their teeth have gone, the lower jaw begins to waste away to nothing.

Puppy Mill Action Week provides an opportunity for animal lovers arround the country to work together to help put an end to the abuses that go on in the name of profitting from puppies. Please visit the Humane Society of the United States' website for easy actions you can take every day this week. Today's assignment is super easy--just sign the pledge to never purchase a puppy mill dog. Want to do more? Hit puppy mills in the pocketbook an additional way by refusing to shop at any pet store that sells animals. There are plenty of pet supply stores that responsibly choose to stop treating animals like merchandise, both in brick and mortar locations and online. When puppy mills stop getting our money, they'll stop the mass production of puppies.

Card Cupids Challenge: Something Silly This Week

2011-04-03T21:37:00.000-04:00

*If you're looking for the Alpha Stamps Blog Hop post and/or the giveaway post, it's the one just before this one, so scroll down. :)

Card Cupids collects handmade cards for kids in hospital. They also host fun weekly challenges to keep making the cards interesting. Here's mine for this week's silly card challenge. My cats never boogie. Heck, if they could get as close together as these two without having a swat fight, I'd be shocked.

And while we're on the topic of silliness, here's Usagi looking very guilty as she takes a taste of the couch for some reason. I caught her on film, right in the act. What is wrong with our couch that dogs want to lick it?!

Happy World Rat Day, Everyone! How about a giveaway drawing?

2011-04-03T02:11:00.000-04:00

Happy World Rat Day! Okay, I'm a little early, but in my house, we celebrate rats everyday! This (above) is one of the cards I created for this year's celebration. It's not easy to find stamps with globes and rodents (hint hint all you digi stamp artists who regularly get paypaled by me. :))

Recognize this picture? Some of you might...it's Vincent, one of my boys, and it's also the photo on my business cards for my Etsy.com shop. Love that twitchy nose and those magnificent wiskers.

While you continue to marvel at his cuteness, let me tell you about my little giveaway. I accidentally put two of the same item in my "cart" and paid without noticing until the box arrived at my door. Oops! Well, my dorky mistake is YOUR gain...someone who leaves me some world rat day wishes in my comment box will be chosen at random to win this book and cd of Wild and Domestic Animals clip art. Lots of possibilites await inside...use them as digi stamps, to collage stuff, to make your own embellishments and stickers, or for whatever sort of project you think needs more animals on it. Don't thank me, thank the ratties of the world, for without them, we wouldn't be celebrating their holiday!

Here's one taken with my old pal, Paxil, who I miss very much. She and her best pal, Ether, pictured below, were the rats who got me started in rodent rescue. I'm assaulting her with a tiny pair of antlers in the above photo. She refused to wear them, but managed to make me look plenty silly in the photos, so all's well that ends well. :)

Ether uses her glowing eyes to contact the mothership. "Come," they say, "we have infiltrated the oatmeal!"

A very special girl of mine, these two pics are of Drucilla, a special needs rat with a heart 10 times her body size. She had a facial deformity that caused most of her teeth to fall out, while the remaining few would grow rapidly into tusks her vet dremmelled down regularly. She was cuddly and playful and quite the shoulder surfer. She loved to play in the bathroom sinks, so if she looks a little damp, that's why.

The winky girl trying to squirm out of Scott's hand, below, is Twinkle, who arrived at our rescue pregnant along with her sister, Kitty. I ended up adopting most of their female offspring and enjoyed their company till they all passed on over the years. They were a wonderful mischief (for those who aren't rat folk, that's indeed the term for a group of rats. Could anything be more appropriate?)

And this last photo was taken at an adoption event at Ed McKay Books and More. I'm sorry to say I can't remember who is in the photo. I'm thinking it's Glitter, one of my own girls, just there to greet people who were new to rats, but I may be wrong and that could possibly be a foster rat. No matter who it is, I love this photo. I love that inquisitve look as she checks out a new hand. :)

Celebrate the rats you know this week!

If a picture's worth a thousand words, this post is an entire master's thesis.

2011-03-02T14:50:00.002-05:00

It's PSL time at Club Scrap, which means hardcore cardmaking. Teams compete to see who can produce the most cards over a week, fulfilling various requirements along the way. Between that, and my animals being particularly cute this week, this is a looooong post. Be not afraid, it's almost all photos, though, so you can fly through the whole thing in just a few minutes. So don't give up on me. We can survive this long and grueling journey together. Let's begin.

I adore this bunny image! It not only has a wonderful, realistic rabbit, it has violets, my very favorite flower. For some reason, images of violets are harder to find than most. Anyway, this is my design team card for For Fun Challenges this week. Check us out over there and play along with our color challenge this week--the colors of Mardi Gras--purple, gold, and green. I'm also entering this in the critter challenge at Gingerloft Challenges.

Kleenex on my cat! Seriously, he looks proud, doesn't he? I think he's imagining that he's the flying nun. If the flying nun chased birds.

Such a tolerant kitty. You know why you don't see Weezee with a Kleenex on her head? Because she would slaughter me in my sleep if I dared try.

Usagi is still showing off her winter wear: any blanket she can find.

This little bunny is blowing sweet little heart shaped bubbles for the Sparkles Forum Challenge which calls for Pink, Blue, and Brown.

Paper Players gets this feisty little chihuahua for this week's challenge. I got that nifty lace from a vintage lot on Ebay and have been going nuts with the stuff. I love the aged look it has from being stored god knows where for so many years.

Craft Your Passions challenge this week is Girly Cards, and this one is about as girly as it comes. I love those antennae on the bear. Too cute. It's an image from Just Some Lines. This one's also representin' in the 2 Sisters teddy bear challenge this week.

I Did It challenge is to use punches...so many hearts!

Well, that's all for now. It's time to give my sad little spine a break. It's angry about the vast weather changes lately and, of course, it's taking it out on me. Ergh. On the upside, I'm busy with orders from my etsy shop and several writing projects, which are good things. Happy Wednesday!

Boioioinnnng...

2011-02-27T23:54:00.000-05:00

Just a very quick post with a happy frog card for the Really Reasonable Ribbons challenge. Boing!

Colds and Cards

2011-02-19T15:10:00.001-05:00

Sooo...they put me on a temporary round of steroids for my spine, which seems to have worked nicely, except that the immune suppressing nature of steroids made me super-prone to cold/flu things one of which, I seem to be hosting now. Don't get too close to this post. You might catch it too.

I've been using my convalescence to goof off and make cards, so I have a number of them to show off today. :) First, one I made for my nephew Drew.

Hooray for bunnies! I pulled out some of my dresden, too for that shiny border at the bottom. I adore these vintage-style foil scraps. They're part of what makes those crumbling victorian period cards so charming. Though mass produced, they weren't flat printed plain things that seem to be in style now. Almost all commercial cards then had at least some sort of extra on it...embossed foil, layered scrap, a little lace, etc. One of my biggest pet peeves is people perpetuating the notion that "things were better in the old days" (after all, while they had nice cards then, they also had four year old chimney sweeps and lead-based makeup) but the cards back then deserve some sort of props. :)
I'm entering this card in the Cute Card Thursday Challenge, since I feel it is sufficiently adorable. :)

I had a request for black and tan doxies in my etsy shop, so I made this card to practice my canine marking skills. I think he turned out to be pretty cute. :) The image is by a digi artist called Sandy, and the challenge at Totally Paper Crafts was to use a digi stamp. So, this should do nicely.

You've seen this stamp in previous posts, but tis time I used Liquid Pearls and some floral paper from Club Scrap's My Funny Valentine line. I'm entering this one in one of my favorite challenges, the Digi Doodle Challenge.

Here's one from a set that I'm uploading to my Etsy shop today. Edcob? Jakward? You needn't choose werewolf or vampire with this guy. He's going into the Pattie's Creations pet challenge.

And here's my card for my design team at For Fun Challenges this week:

Isn't she cute? We used Michelle Perkett's images to say happy birthday to For Fun Challenges, so I'm entering my card in her challenge this week.
That's all for today...more to come!

A Little Love, A Little Late

2011-02-13T19:18:00.001-05:00

So...my Valentines this year will be mailed out *on* Valentine's Day. Sorry, recipients, I've had a dreadful cold for the last week that's rendered me behind on just about everything life can hand a person. So, do forgive me for my belated tokens of love.

Here's a cute scottie card I made using Club Scrap papers, inks, ribbon and stencils. I inked the heart through a harelquin patterned stencil to get that cool diamond look. The gem dogs were a lucky find at a clearance sale. I immediately thought of the Stampin' Up set with the Westie dogs (white version of a Scottie for all practical purposes), hence the little guy stamped on the heart. This card is one I'm entering in the Really Reasonable Ribbon challenge. Check them out! Their ribbon selection rules!

But that's not all...I have a lot of Valentines to send cards to this year, so here is another card I made several of to send on their merry (late) way.

I'm in love with this stamp set by There She Goes, so you may recognize it from a card I made a week or so ago. Don't you just adore the little motion lines by his waggy tail? Anyway, this one is for another of my addictions, the Do You Stack Up challenge.

So, don't dispair if your Valentine doesn't show up with any goodies today...they may just be really late, like me. :)

Happy Lunar New Year!

2011-02-03T14:01:00.001-05:00

Losar, or Lunar New Year is colloquially called Chinese New Year though it's celebrated by Buddhists worldwide. It's one of my favorite holidays, especially since it's actually a whole week long. My cards today are a little behind, still celebrating Groundhog Day. Really, all rodents should have their own appreciation day, shouldn't they? While we're at it, why not all species...we could be celebrating every single day and then some. We'd have to have a new holiday every few hours, which I think is a darn fine idea! Anyway, don't worry, I plan to stuff you full of holiday goodness over the next week, but for now, here are some adorable little groundhogs from Little Scraps of Heaven Designs, who generously sponsored this week's challenge at my design team's home: For Fun Challenges. The prize? A $25 gift certificate, so get over there and submit your card!

I love a good challenge, too, so I created my groundhog card with the Really Reasonable Ribbons Challenge in mind. I used some of my favorite ribbon (love the layers!) from Club Scrap, and added a little silver heart to counterbalance the nifty butterfly paperclip adorning the springtime scene.

Next, a little something I made for the Clean and Simple Sunday Challenge using their sketch and these freaking adorable stamps I got for Xmas from my ubercool friend, Jen K, who seems to always be on top of the coolest and newest crafting toys. It's like she has Scrap-dar. Amazing!

And finally, here's one I made for the Tip Top Tuesday this week, requiring "something girly". I was psyched to find this Hero Arts stamp on sale recently, since I've had my eye on it for about a year. And what good timing because it features violets which besides being my favorite flowers, are also February's flower (and, of course, my birth flower!) I added some sparkle with Doodlebug gems and offset those with some faux grey pearls. I'm very pleased with this card and will likely be sending it to someone else who also enjoys having a birthday this month.

That's all for today. I've got to get ready for the accupuncturist. The last month has been really dreadful for my spine. I've got to get it back in order or I'm going to go insane from being cooped up for so long.

Major Cuteness: 2 and 4 Legged

2011-01-31T00:02:00.000-05:00

Just a quick post today. I've been feeling icky lately, so I have to apologise for my absence. So, in an effort to win you back, I bring you a big honking load of adorability, beginning with Henri Marie Raymond Toulouse Lautrec Monfa, better known as Toulousey Goosey, Goosey Goo, or just plain Goo.

Next up, a layout I made for Elizabeth Goodson's Creative Memories January Challenge. It's my completely charming neice, Vivienne. As the journalling states, she is a big fan of Stephen Colbert (talk about good taste!) and the word, "butt-nut", a favorite term of endearment my husband made up for my dog, Revco, who Vivi is slightly less fond of because Rev can't seem to curb his habit of barking in her face. They made up, though, by the end of their most recent visit, over a good (and gentle) rhythmic head bonking with a stuffed stingray, right between the ears. Somewhere between petting and the world's softest bludgeoning.

Next, a big smile from Ms. Usagi, floppity tongue and all.

And finally, here she is with her new, blue toupee courtesy a cat toy we had to take away from her before it could be completely eviscerated. It's hard to teach the dogs the difference between a dog toy and a cat toy.
Love the wink here!

Have a great week! It's almost the Fabulous and Festive Month of February! Losar! Valentine's Day! My Birthday! Scott's Birthday! President's Day! And I'm sure I must be forgetting something, but the point is, February is Fun! Whoot!

Something Nice and Something Extra Nice

2011-01-17T04:30:00.001-05:00

Rough weekend all around. I was in a half ton of pain and had to miss my friend Teresa's open house event that I had been salivating over since I first heard about it (new Stampin' Up Catalogs, some kind of game involving ribbon and quarters, eensie weensie shopping bags, etc.) I loathed being stuck at home, missing out on cool crafts and games, but the pain was so evil, it made my skin feel like it was humming a full inch deep (which wouldn't actually be skin, but the endodermis or something like that, but please humor me anyway). The worst part is how the pain makes me feel like I'm teeny tiny, wrapped in roll upon roll of scratchy insulation, then stuffed deep inside my own head. Please forgive me, Teresa. I promise I would have been there if I had any choice.

Now, that wasn't so nice, I know, so let's move on to something that is...a challenge!

This challenge is one you can enter in several different ways...all of which you can read about here, at Card Cupid's Blog! You can earn entries by posting about the challenge, making cards for the Card Cupid Program and posting about them, and you can also enter by mailing cards in (marked with the appropriate information so you get credit for sending them). And, if you send in links/messages completing one or more of these different challenge entry tasks, you can be put into the drawing to win this!

What, you may be wondering, is the Card Cupid program? It's a really easy and fun way to do something kind for a sick kid. You create happy cards for holidays, birthdays, or just to wish someone a great day, then send it in to the organizers. There are a few rules you need to follow, but they're not complicated, and I like thinking about who might open the card I'm making while I'm putting it together.

This is my first time making cards for this program. I had a lot of fun, though, so I'm quite certain I'll be making more soon. I made a group of five Valentines, it being that time of year and all. Plus Valentines are just all-around exciting. Hearts, bright pink and red, ribbons and the like are the kinds of things that I can get seriously enthusiastic about. I'm a holiday dork in general because they let you stop, relax, and be tacky. Like a snow day collided with a Big Lots. Glitter, plastic decorations, shiny banners, paper hearts, chalky candy, crepe paper whatnots, colored lights, centerpieces featuring wire covered in whatever that thin metallic plastic stuff is that tinsel is made of...oh yeah, I remember exactly what that stuff is made of: pure joy.

So, interspersed throughout this post are photos of my cards.I hope I did everything right and that the hosts of the challenge like what I've created.

So...consider making cards for some minors who aren't feeling so great--it's an extra nice thing to do! I plan to make more soon, so if your cards want to hitch a ride with mine through the postal system, just ask. I'd be happy to help more cards get to this happy destination.

Revco, Exposed and more challenges. Huzzah!

2011-01-14T22:54:00.000-05:00

Working on rattie cards the last few days. Look at this cute little hairless. I think she (we'd know if she was a he, even from this angle) looks a little less naked in tiny dots. I used the sketch from this week's challenge at Pricillastyles' Midnight Madness Sketch Challenge. I adore card sketches, so when you combine them with a challenge, I'm hooked. Those with a keen eye might have caught a distinct resemblance to last week's sketch in the post just before this one. Could it be that I just barely missed the deadline? Perhaps. Darn. Well, it's not going to happen this week. Or next. I'm hooked on this one.

Now here's an interesting little conundrum. I made this card for Scott (who hasn't seen it yet. Shhh!) (Yeah, I know, even *he* doesn't read my blog!) using a sketch for one challenge and the "man card" theme from another. Then, for some unknown reason, my computer rebooted without my permission and I couldn't remember the sites I got the challenge assignments from. Noooooooooo! Oh well. Sometimes a card is just a card. I love that cute PS3 sticker from E.A.D. Designs.

Ever been sniffed by a blog? That's my little Revvy's nose and I guarantee he can't *wait* for blog assisted sniffing technology to be common and affordable for all dogs. Want to know more about my little canine pal? OF COURSE YOU DO! And it's your lucky day because he's the Pet of the Week at the Etsy for Animals Blog. Be sure to let them know what a cutie patootie you, naturally, think he is.

Thanks for paying attention to me! :)

Helpful Kitty, Yet Another Challenge, and This Week's DT Card

2011-01-12T17:28:00.010-05:00

Isn't Weezee helpful? She's very good at helping me select the right paper. Of course, she shreds it and/or drools on it shortly afterward, but she does have very good taste.

Here's what Weezee and I put together for the CES Challenge Blog's All Creatures Great and Small Challenge and the Stamp Something Digital Stamp Challenge. I know I generally go for the "small" when it comes to creatures, but this time I went for the "great" in size. I chose an adorable Rottweiler from Bugaboo Stamps. Isn't he just adorable?

Rotties are one of those breeds who have been demonized by the media and some very irresponsible and abusive people who take a sweet, gentle giant and use cruelty to turn them into a fearful, reactive dog. In general, when I think of a rotweiler the first words that come to mind are "big lug". :) I love the way they lean into you to ask for petting and their cute, lumbering walk. It's unfortunate that they've become the victim of breed descrimination, with some places refusing to rent to people with this breed, insurance companies charging unfairly high penalties for having one, etc. We need to crack down, not on the innocent dogs, but on the jerks who go out and buy a large dog from a store or breeder who doesn't screen buyers carefully, and then bully the dog into behaving aggressively. These people don't want a dog to love and raise responsibly. They want a large, aggressive dog to selfishly satisfy their ego. They like to think that they look tough because they can mistreat a large animal any way they want. It's they who need to be stopped, through the passage and enforcement of humane laws and by careful screening, including vet references and followup, of anyone who is to be trusted with a dog. These adorable, loving dogs deserve this.

Okay, no more ranting. Onto a cute card with one of my favorite digis ever! Look at that sweet waggy tail. :)

And...here's my design team contribution for this week's challenge over at For Fun Challenges. This week's challenge is to use the colors black, olive, and purple in the same card. Come give it a try!

Happy Wednesday!

Happy 14th, Revco!

2011-01-11T17:28:00.006-05:00

Yes, it's true! One year from now, Revco will be old enough to get his learner's permit. Then he can drive me around since I never really learned how. That'll be so handy!
I've got another challenge entry! I've been itching to use this neat green paper since I love hearts, but you usually only see them in reds and pinks. So, here's a new (to me), adorable image of a cat and mouse by the Digi Doodle Shop for a challenge on their blog.

That's all for now. Happy Revco's Birthday!

Do I Stack Up?

2011-01-09T18:25:00.004-05:00

I recently learned that Revco will break into a hearty howl at the words, "Whoot whoot" or "Peep boop boop". I think he is afraid that the robots are going to take over and enslave us all, so he's aiming to rally the dogs to stop the uprising. Maybe he knows something I don't. Hmm.

In the mean time, I have been working on some projects for the inaugural challenge at the Do You Stack Up blog. The theme this week is buttons, so you'll see a lot of them today. First project is this ATC Valentine I made using an image from Pricilla Styles. I love the old timey valentine look to this image, so I ran with that in designing the card. I'm rather pleased with it.

And this one counts double because I used a sponsor's digital stamp...this adorable birthday rat (mouse?) from Stretch-n-Bubbles. I'm a big fan of buttons so I went to town on these, picking out all kinds of neat ones from my stash. I actually had to go to my backstock and re-fill my button tin after making a few of these. Oh and check out that border punch from Fiskars. Itty bitty cupcakes! Aww!

Wish me luck! The Do I Stack Up blog has already been generous...check out the horse stamp set in the right sidebar here...I won it! Once it arrives, I'll make some neat equine themed projects to show them off. I had recently been thinking my collection is deficient in horses. If I wanted a horse image in the past, I basically had to amputate a unicorn horn or a carousel pole.

Sleepy dog, Wolves, and Week Two on the Design Team

2011-01-07T02:30:00.006-05:00

I love it when the dogs or cats get so relaxed, they forget that a teensy bit of their tongue is sticking out. It's awfully cute for a body part that looks so much like a slice of processed ham. I made a set of wolf cards for my design team assignment this week. It was only supposed to be one card, but I'm big on overkill. I like the cute little wolf pups in this realistic digital stamp image by the Digi Doodle Shop. Since we didn't have any color limitations so I went with one of my favorites--red and ice blue--using some SEI papers I had been saving for something I couldn't remember. That makes it fair game.

I was inspired to make this card by a humane issue that's been on my mind a lot lately: the arial gunning of wolves. In the state of Alaska, it is currently legal to harass wolves with small aircraft, flying low to the ground, terrifying and tiring the animal to the point of exhaustion before shooting the wolf from the plane while still in the air (often resulting in wounded animals escaping to sustain a long, painful death) or landing and shooting him or her at point blank range. Nationally, this inhumane pasttime was outlawed by the federal government in 1972, but the Alaskan government continues to sidestep the law to keep killing canines in this fashion. They call it "wildlife management" despite studies showing numbers that are quite contrary to their assertation that this is necessary. Predator species are vital to the environmental balance and deserve humane treatment like any other animal. Excuses are made to hunt them to low levels, then the overpopulation and clustered killing of prey species causes a sudden increase in births, resulting in an endless imbalance. We need to let nature balance itself. Our interference only makes the situation worse.

If you are as uncomfortable with this practice as I am, please visit the Defenders of Wildlife website and send a quick letter to the governer of Alaska, asking him to adjust state law to coincide with the current Federal law and end this brutality against animals. Thanks for checking this out. It's been weighing heavily on my mind lately.

A Disclaimer, Phabulous Phindy, and a Design Team Queen

2011-01-01T21:08:00.002-05:00

Hope you're having a happy start to 2011. I just got back from a trip to Atlanta to see Scott's family. It was 3 days of driving, hard matresses, and fun. My spine really hates the first two (and seems to hate the third, if you consider how often it gets in the way of anything fun.) so I'm still recovering. I apologize to everyone who has been in any way trying to contact me, get information from me, come to see me, is owed an xmas card or gift from me, etc. I've been in so much pain it feels like my skin is humming.

Now, on a happier note, a Mouse-tini! It was going to be a sour-apple one, but the other day Scott brought some of those bright green candied cherries home and I had to immortalize them here. Though some may remember a long-ago poem I wrote, bashing the unnaturally bright and sticky fruit, I've come to love them, especially when they're smooshed into the top of cookies.

The image I used on this card is by one of my absolute-favorite stamp artists, Phindy! Check out her site and web store and just you see if I'm wrong about her brilliance. :)

I have some happy news though, that I've been anxiously awaiting the "okay" from HQ to share with you.

Ready?

I have been invited to be on the For Fun Challenges design team! For the next six months I will be officially creating projects for their website on the first and third weeks of every month (I'm on the "A-Team". I hope they let me fly the helicopter!) Unofficially, I will be creating projects other weeks as well, so subscribe to their web feed and keep up with their posts. Their challenges are neat and you can win prizes that rock from their weekly sponsors. Please take a look! I'm totally psyched to be on their team. Whoooooo!

P.S. Speaking of following blogs, at the request of one of my highly esteemed readers, I've added one of those Google "Follow" dealies to my blog. Go ahead. Click it. Amazing things will happen*!

*Amazing things may not happen.

Best Present Ever and A Shirley's 2 Girls Challenge

2010-12-21T18:49:00.009-05:00

Ta da! It's my workspace. I think this may be the first and only photo I've ever taken of it while working on a project. Please note the orange-handled scissors which were sent to me a few years ago by one of the lead Fiskateers. They're still sharp and highly functional. The scissors, I mean. Not the lead Fiskateers, though I suppose it could be said about them also. :)

And what was I working on? Lo! It is a card I made for this week's Shirley's 2 Girls Challenge.
I love their digital stamps, especially the ones with this Airdale Terrier guy. It's neat to see some dog stamps that aren't poodles or doxies. Nothing against poodles and dauchunds, but they always steal the show. The challenge theme this time was flocking, so on this card I used some light blue flocking on the shopping bag and wreath. I used some red glitter on the opposing lines on the bag just for contract. I actually printed the wreath in green which I was totally psyched about because I know nothing about how to do that kind of thing. I essentially stumbled arount Paint until I got it to turn green. I doubt I could tell you *how* I did it, but the point is, I did. So there! :)

Sooo, I was having fun with the challenge and decided to make a second card, same rules. The image is, again, a Shirley's 2 Girls one. I can never resist a mouse. This time I used Doodlebug red flocking, which, incidently is the darn finest flocking I have yet found. No, I'm not being reimbursed for saying so in any way shape or form (though I'm totally open to it, Doodlebug ;)). It's less clumpy than other brands which affords a lot more control and makes it stick a whole lot better. The other kind had to be coaxed into sticking and despite re-applying 3 or so times, never did give the nice opaque look that Doodlebug did. As far as your standard fuzzy flock goes, this stuff rocks my world.

So, what is the BEST present ever? Apparently it's this sheet of wrapping paper. My friend Jen, her daughter Vivi, and Pete the husband/dad brought over a slew of neat presents that were big hits with Scott and I, but if you go by the numbers, this got more immediate use by more members of our family than any other gift. Here, Usagi uses it as a tent, which she hung out in the whole time they were there. Later she left it, briefly to inspect something in the kitchen, then hopped right back on the couch and into her tent again.

When I got tired of sharing the couch with a tent, along came Weezee, who decided to camp out beside the coffee table.

And later, the tent proved to be magnificently fun to destroy. So very versatile! If you don't have a wrapping paper tent under your tree this year, your pets could be missing out.

On a Challenge Kick

2010-12-16T05:18:00.003-05:00

This last week or so, I can't seem to get enough of doing challenges, so when I saw a Winter themed one at one of my very very super favorite digital stamp creators' blogs...Phindy's Place. She has some excellent mouse images, but this time I decided to use one featuring a slew of painfully cute puppies. After assembling the card, I thought it still needed something, so I made a snowdrift of ultrafine Flower Soft, which has a neat sparkly sheen to it just like fluffy snow.

Hamsters, Mailbox Surprises, and a Little Ho Ho Ho

2010-12-15T14:32:00.005-05:00

Let's begin this time, with my entry in the MelJen's Digital Stamp Challenge. The theme is Red, Gold, and Green, which has inspired me to have Karma Chameleon stuck in my head for days. I went for a non-holiday specific stamp just for fun, letting the colors take over the job of being festive.

Surprise! I got this unexpected package in the mail about a week or so ago. It's from Big Picture, so I'm guessing they chose to send swag to me in particular because I'm like always taking classes from them. There's a free class you can sign up for now, so you may want to go over there to check it out. My favorite thing in the package is that excessively huge rubber band. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but I'm pretty sure it's eventually going to involve someone (me) getting seriously injured by a flying rubber band. I mean, how am I supposed to resist flinging that thing all over the place?

As promised, here is your holiday ho ho ho. Scott was inspired to pose in the Home Depot parking lot with our new kitchy wreath I fell in love with. It's blinding during the day. I love me some sparkle.

Happy Wednesday!

Xmas Xcellence at Teresa's and Another Rat Card

2010-12-14T14:09:00.009-05:00

For those who don't know already, Teresa is one of my best pals as well as my intensely creative Stampin' Up demonstrator. She's always got some kind of clever class going on, so if you're like me and you like to frequent these kind of things, check out her site here. Here's Teresa, showing outstanding patience as she winds ribbons into little spools. She actually looks like she's having fun doing it, so I think I'll do her a big favor and bring my mondo huge basket of ribbon chaos over and generously allow her to wind them up for me. No need to thank me. I'm just that giving this time of year. I'll be back to pick up the ribbons tomorrow, okay? That should give you *plenty* of time to spool up about 400 scraps, certainly.

Another happy crafter sits daringly under the dart board, apparently ready for a round of the ol' William Tell routine. No? Maybe another time. Instead, she's making some cards shaped like Santa's middle. (If you see this, I'm very sorry to have to admit that I've forgotten your name. Could someone remind me? It's embarassing, but it takes me longer than most to learn names despite all efforts to do better. If anyone out there has suggestions or tricks for remembering names better, I'd be so happy to hear them, I'd pick one of you to send a surprise gift in the mail to.)

Gina, coloring some cardinal images. This one was my favorite card of the class, since the cardinal is our state bird and there is little prettier than seeing a vibrant red bird against the snow. Buddhist creation legend states that the universe began with the collision of red and white, and sometimes when I see that drop of red against a white sparkling snow that covers everything and makes the whole world look as if it's been wiped clean, it almost seems plausible.

Sorry, I got distracted. Back to the photos. :)

It's me, glitterfying snowflakes. Does my nose really look that angular? Wow, I really need to dye my hair.

Yay! It's me and my new pal, Gina. She's got rat terriers too, and a husband with degenerative disk disease like me. We attended Elizabeth's Creative Memories Open House, too, but I forgot my camera so I'm photoless, which is unfortunate because it was awfully festive. Lots of decorations, craft ideas and yummy things. Elizabeth is such a nice hostess, she didn't even seem horrified when I melted a plastic cup by filling it with holy-crap-that's-hot cider. Oops.

I've been a slave to challenges lately. I love being made to work within a framework like that. It forces me to be more creative with my projects instead of just doing whatever comes to mind. This card was made for the For Fun Challenges sketch challenge. I used some Club Scrap card blanks I'd been saving up for a Christmas project. Those giganto glittery brads are from one of their kits, too. I think they really work with the corner dealies.

I included this pic so you can see how it opens. I'm keeping this set to send out myself, so some of you may be looking at these up close and in person very soon. Ho ho ho!

Thanks for making it through all those pics. :) Don't forget about my little goodie giveaway. Leave me a tip for remembering names and I'll put your name in the drawing for a craftsy prize you can use to make your own cards.

Rats, Real and Faux

2010-12-12T23:16:00.011-05:00

Oh. Were you watching me? This whole time?

Seriously? Me?

Vince! There's someone looking at us! On the other side of the glass! They're watching you take a bath.

You're imagining things, Howard. Other side of the glass. Pfsh.

No! It can't be! You're right Howard. There is someone out there.

Whew. Are they gone now?

Sit tight, Howie. Now that they can't see us, they're bound to go away.

_________

And now, the faux...a couple of rattie cards I made for the E.A.D. color challenge...

Keep an eye on my Etsy site! You'll see these and more making their appearance just in time for the holiday card and thank you note season. Whoo hoo!

Have a rat-tastic day from me, Vince, and Howard!

Some Holiday Craft Challenges and Whatnot.

2010-12-09T15:07:00.007-05:00

Yet again, I let things pile up till I have way too much for one post, so you'll be getting several over the next few days. For today, I wanted to take the opportunity to show off some things I made for the Digi Day Challenges at The Stamping Boutique. I even won some free images from their shop with these, so I extra-highly recommend that you check them out and give it a try!

If you look closely at the image above, you can read my mom's superfantabulous Vegan "Sausage" Puffs recipe. And you *so* want to, because you will not regret making them. They're super easy and way yummy. She veganized an ancient recipe she found in an old 60's cook book and they will not disappoint.

Aww! Doxies! I'm partial to those hard-headed little hounds, even if they are always the dog training class problem children. They're always the ones who say, "Hmm...you have a treat in that hand? No? Well then screw that. I'm not sitting for you or anyone else." They're also really cute, clever little buggers as well, though.

And an attempt I made at trying to create an interesting gift wrap for a present for my brother Mikey, but when I finished, I realized that the gift didn't fit inside. I'm thinking Teresa's present might fit in this. Stay tuned. :)

And finally, this year's tree! Well, it's actually the same tree as the year before and the year before that, but this year the lights are green since I thought it would be neat to make a silver tree look like a green one (sort of). Ta da!

More to come. Happy Wednesday!

Yule Log HD 2010

2010-11-30T17:04:00.003-05:00

I consider myself quite the conneseur of video fireplace DVD's, so I was very pleased to discover that Time-Warner Cable has generously provided its subscribers with a free-on-demand yule log this year.

Believe it or not, these videos vary quite a bit. In particular, it's always an interesting surprise to see exactly how much of the fireplace itself is shown. This one, titled "Yule Log HD 2010" goes for the classic tv-set-as-fireplace look, clipping the image close so it is as if the inside of your television is actually on fire (and made of brick). The soundtrack is festive holiday music, sans voices, heavy on the french horns. I'm content, and will likely view it frequently over the next month (if it lasts that long. Being a "Yule Log" it should, thoretically, be removed after Yule, aka Winter Solstice, when the Yule Log is to be burned down to nothing. I somehow doubt that it will be taken down till post Dec. 25, however.) (When is Yule this year, anyway?)

I'm a bit disappointed that I lack the necessary equipment to enjoy "Yule Log 3D 2010", so if you have a 3D tv and the funky glasses needed, would you tell me about your experience please? A word of warning, before watching...the creators zoom in dramatically at various points throughout the production, which in 3D, I can only imagine, is terrifying as you suddenly are plunged deep within the flames, as if you yourself have caught fire. Beware.

This is the first fireplace video I've seen that includes a full set of credits at the end, including executive producers and whatnot. I suppose so you know who to thank for this festive (and in 3D sometimes heart-stopping) log. Thanks Time-Warner!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

2010-10-31T22:14:00.008-04:00

Behold! Halloween cards! Here's one for those who can't choose between Edward and Jacob... (I made this one for the Shirley's 2 Girls challenge blog's #80 Trick or Treat Challenge) And I love the impending doom in this image:

And this digi stamp nearly killed me with its cuteness. (And worked well for my card made for the Valentines Monthly Star-spangled themed challenge. I couldn't resist checking out a site with that name--I luuuuuuv Valentine's Day!)

And I wasn't alone making stuff for the holiday this weekend. Here's Scott working on his own project. No, it wasn't an airplane made out of sugar and a knife...

It's a Dexter-style slide case! He even made the wooden box, himself. He saw the slide project on Forkable (a very cool site in general. Check it out!)

And just for fun, here's me and Max, my friend Jen K's cat. I love his "What are *you* looking at?!" expression.

Enjoy what's left of this spooky evening. I've got a few more projects to show off, but they'll have to wait till November. That's okay, it's halloween all year in our house!

Vegan Cupcake Thursday...mmmm!

2010-10-21T01:29:00.006-04:00

Check it out, Vegan Cupcake Thursday has featured my recipe for Birthday/Gotcha Day Cake for dogs! It's a site I love anyway, but I love it doubly when they feature my Yummy for Dogs Cookbook. :) More exposure equals more donation funds for rescue, since that's what I do with all of the sales of my cook book, and I'd love to have enough money to make all the shelter and rescue animals so wealthy they can each afford to *hire* someone to take care of their every whim until they find a permanent home. Much better than putting these animals down, don't you agree?

So...here's another sample recipe from my book to tempt you (well, your dogs) further...

Carrot Potato Sunflower Biscuits

2 c whole wheat flour

1/2 c corn meal (if your dog is allergic to corn, quick oats may be substituted)

1 small potato

1 lg carrot

1-2 cloves minced garlic

1/2 c sunflower seeds

1 1/4 c water

3 tbsp veg oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a lg bowl combine flour and cornmeal. Use a food processor to shred potato and carrot, then stir in garlic with the shredded mixture. Pour vegetables and seeds into the flour mixture. Stir to combine. Add water and vegetable oil and stir well. If the dough is too dry, add a bit more water, one tsp. at a time. Dough should resemble dense bread dough. Place dough onto a floured surface and knead well, adding flour if your dough is too sticky. Roll out to 1/2" thickness and cut out with cookie cutters of your choice (bone shapes are easy for dogs to grip as they chew, which is why I often use them though I suppose it might seem odd for vegan treats to be shaped like bones. :)) Bake for 50 minutes, checking around 35 just to ensure that they're not cooking too rapidly. Cool and serve.

Rats enjoy this type of treat too. You may want to use itty bitty cookie cutters to keep the serving size appropriate so your ratties don't get *too* squishy!

Happy cooking!

Ribbon Winner, Treasuries, and Wee Puppies

2010-10-02T17:03:00.009-04:00

I made my very first Etsy treasuries this week! I was always bemused regarding how one puts these together, and then the other day a button just appeared in front of me. Yay! Now, treasuries are temporary, so these links won't work forever. Click 'em now!

Stuff for you and your pet: Petsy!

Rats and Hamsters and Chinchillas and more: Wee Fuzzies!

Hooray! I'm finally over the Beach Plague! Here I am, pictured outside of Chubby's Tacos (yeah, I hate the name, too, but their tacos rule.) after taking the dogs to Unleashed, the adorable little dog boutique in the same shopping center.

Here's Usagi, enjoying a beverage. Yes, water *is* a beverage. Yeesh. So picky.

Here's Revco, peeing on the trash can outside of Unleashed. He was good enough to pull me outside so he could do this, yet pooped in the middle of the organic dog treat section five minutes later. Naughty puppy!

Now we're travelling back in time. Here is Scott enjoying one of Alex's soooper doooper yummy grilled pizzas. Ever so tasty and brimming with an avalanche of vegan toppings. Hence Scott's enthusiasm.

And here is Alex, the teensy weensy guy who looks kind of like he's waving his arms and cheering. What he's actually doing is flying one of those crazy 2 handled kites. He's extremely good at it. Meanwhile, I can barely handle the single-stringed black triangle looking one with the giant staring sticker eyes leering at you from above. I have to get Scott to do the running around holding it over his head part since that would bang up my spine, so mostly I stand there holding it till it falls down or I get bored and make it fall so I don't have to hold it anymore. Alex's style of kiting is a lot more fun. I'm guessing, though, since I've never actually tried it. But if I were him I wouldn't let me try it either. Broken kites are sad and expensive.

Aaaannnd...here's a wee little royal greyhound. Greyhounds are by far the most popular breed of dog in my Etsy shop. Maybe it's because they're such beautiful dogs, maybe it's because greyhound people are just more devoted than most. What? You're not a greyhound person, and you'd like to contest the statement that greyhound lovers are the most proud of their dogs? Well get on over to my etsy shop. :) Chances are, you can find an homage to your favorite dog type there. (Of course this isn't just a shameless self-promotion! How could you say that?!)

And it's time for a winner! The recipient of 10 yards of cool ribbons handpicked from my stash is...Beth of the second comment on my post. Contact me with your mailing address!

Didn't win this time? Don't worry. I've already got another giveaway in the works. :)

Duh duh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh duh nuh nuh nuh...News Update: From the Coast

2010-09-15T20:01:00.007-04:00

Okay, the above photos are actually from Myrtle Beach, not Topsail, but it would be awfully strange for me to be scrapbooking photos from the same trip I'm on, anyway. This layout is one of several I have been working on for the "Use Your Stash" class I'm taking. Thus far, it's been pretty effective and encouraging. It's hard to break some of the habits that cause people like me to avoid actually using the cool stuff we pick up to use, then feel intimidated by. Mind you, I still haven't broken into the High Holy Hoarde box, still sitting where it was carried in from the car, unopened this trip. It contains my absolute favorite, often pricey, generally sought after like pirates' treasure then hidden away in said box, items that I adore yet rarely allow myself to actually use. Even when I do use it, I am usually making a gift I really want to wow the recipient with, so I spend hours paralyzed with fear, staring at the object to be altered as if it were an oncoming vehicle. Will I crack this box before heading home? Before the end of the class? Stay tuned.

Now, onto this week's challenges. Unfortunately, I am doing this upload at the last minute, thanks to the irresistable power of The Vacation Nap Fairy. So I'll make this quick. This card is my entry into this week's polka-dot themed challenge at Shirley's 2 Girls. Wish me luck!

And, here's one for the challenge at Mo's Digital Challenge. In case you haven't guessed...special folds is the challenge theme, and I think this one is pretty special.

That's it for this post. I'll be announcing the winner of the ribbon giveaway in the next post, so if you haven't yet entered, now's the time. Good luck! :)

A Winner, an Entry, a Giveaway, and Two Kitties

2010-09-08T16:59:00.008-04:00

Toulouse (aka Goosey Goo) decided to give me a hand taking photos of my cards for my etsy site. Check out the nose lick! Cat tongues are so funny. They look like weird little strips of deli ham. He looks a bit like he's thinking about how tasty those guinea pigs on the cards might be. Naughty kitty! Don't eat the pets, please!

I've been working hard on card orders, both for clients and (mostly) for rescue groups who request items for their fund raisers. Ferrets and greyhounds have dominated my workboard, pit bulls are up next, then shelties, then more ferrets, followed by opossums and other wildlife--rescues are quick to find my shop, it seems. :) It's cool to be able to contribute this way, though, since I can't do as much hands-on rescue work due to my physical limitations. It's hard to clean cages, train rescue dogs, or keep up with the administrative needs of a rescue when you're hurting and easily fatigued. Hence: adaptation.

Anyway, this card with the cute Airedale Terrier is one I made just for fun, for a challenge at the Shirley's 2 Girls blog. I'm a fan of her adorable animal stamps, so when I saw that she was looking for Flocked or Feathered cards, a-flocking I did go! It's a bit hard to tell in the photo, but I used black flocking on this little guy's black spots, from tail to that one black ear. Wish me luck!

Continuing on the subject of fun, Saturday was my Stampin' Up party! It's been ages since I've been well enough to have any sort of get together, let alone a party for 12. Teresa, one of my best friends and my Stampin' Up demonstrator, totally made it happen. She was an amazing showman, entertaining the masses with her mad crafting skills, while I hung out with the group upstairs, awaiting their turn in the craft room. She even helped me put my scrap room back together before the party...as you may recall, it was a complete disaster since everything had been pushed to the center of the room so Scott could build cabinets and counters along the walls. I'll post pics in my next blog installment. Scott still has to finish the cabinets at the back of the room and put in the glass fronts in all of the doors, but it's still a kajillion times better than it was and if the amount of time he's spending working in the shed is any indication, he's either going to be done soon, or he's got a second wife living in there.

I forgot to take many pics at the party, but in the one, above, patiently waiting their turns and being adorable are my friends Kitty, Laura, Revco (he's the short one), and Eileen.

If you're looking for a Stampin' Up demo, Teresa is freaking amazing. She hooked me up with loads of free stuff for hostessing and she's a FABULOUS person in general. :) I can't *wait* for the UPS man to come to my door, and not just because he's kinda cute in that little brown uniform.

This little mousie is adorning a project I made for a Fiskateer challenge Angela announced during her tutorial video. Below, you can see the complete project, an envelope for toting around my mail that's in need of answering. My attempt at making the sides expand didn't go so well. I was a couple folds short of making it work, but so it goes. It was a prototype...the next one, hopefully, will actually have expanding capabilities. As for this one, it still does its job and I love that old Pizzazill cardstock I made it out of. Sadly, that line seems to have disappeared so I'm super careful about using up my precious stash. I think we all have something hidden away like that, that we like too much to use.

Relevant to that, I am taking May Flaum's class at Big Picture Scrapbooking, Adventures in Scrapbooking: Use Your Stash. I'm working on homework tonight, which includes picking out a box of stuff you've had on hand for a while and want to use during the class. Among the items are: rub ons galore, a box of ribbons I got free at an Archivers' event, a big tin of buttons in all sorts of shapes, a set of the old Stampin' Up copper Hodgepodge Hardware, and plenty more. Wish me luck!

In celebration of this class theme, I'm going to get some of my ribbon stash moving by sending one lucky reader 10 yards of ribbons from my private stash! These aren't ribbons I don't like or want to get rid of, but gorgeous ribbons I really like that I want to share with someone who is kind enough to read my yapping here.

Here's what you have to do...leave me a comment telling me about something you have in your stash that you've been holding onto for too long, just because you love it too much to use it. Don't forget to include some way for me to reach you, either via a Fiskateer number, an email address, or a link to your blog or whatever. I never received a response from my Martha Stewart winner despite my efforts to reach them, and if I don't hear from them by my next post, I'm going to have to pick someone else to win those supercool stamps.

Speaking of winners, Donna (comment #7), you are the winner of the book giveaway in my previous post! Contact me with your mailing address so I can send it your way!

Whew! Long post! Thanks for reading all the way to the end. :)

Cute Rats, Rescue Cats, and a Craftsy Giveaway!

2010-07-30T16:00:00.007-04:00

I began this post last week and somehow got distracted, so I may need to update things a little. Bear with me.

The photo, below is of the gift box I made for Second Chance Pet Adoptions' silent auction. When I got their call for auction items, I knew I wanted to make them something special because they are the rescue that adopted Toulouse to us. Note the many orange kitties representing in this box. Had to give mad props to the ginger cats! :)

Speaking of cats, here's a pic of Weezee, our other kitty. She hates Toulouse, and pretty much any of her fellow felines, but she loves humans. She's the welcoming committee at our house, rushing to the door whenever anyone arrives. She's hard to get a decent picture of because a) black furred animals are more challenging to photograph since their features often disappear in a two dimentional image and b) she is very persnickety about when she will and will not tolerate being photographed.

While I'm showing off my babies, here are my most recent acquisitions, Vince and Howard. Or actually, I should say Howard and Vince, since that's Howard on the left. I adopted them from Carolina Pet Rescue and now that they are neutered, they can be introduced to Wendy. Well...they can as soon as her persistent mites are gone--a leftover from her life as a stray.

Where have I been? San Francisco! This visit we went to Top of the Mark, made a dent in their 100 Martini menu and watched the city disappear.

Here we are! That's Sandy, Carolyn, Darcy and me! Oh yeah, and the fog creeping in behind us.

I've got another giveaway! It's a copy of Crafty Superstar for those of you with Etsy dreams and craft sale intentions. It's not brand spanking new since I read it once, but it's darn close. Besides, it's FREE if you leave a comment and you're picked randomly from all the other commenters.

Some stuff for one of my pen pals and the Mousey Punch Winner.

2010-07-13T03:57:00.004-04:00

I'm actually in San Francisco at the moment, but I felt bad about being late with announcing the winner of the Martha Stewart Mouse Border Punch, so I thought I'd better take a moment to make the announcement. And the winner is...

Laura! (Rosegarden) Fiskateer 5939!

Hooray! Please send me your mailing address, Laura, so I can send your punch as soon as I'm home again. :)

I didn't want to post without a photo, so here's a pic of some goodies I'm sending one of my pen pals. I'm a letter writing maniac who loves swapping ATC's, cards, inchies and whatnot, because I love making all of those kinds of little treasures. The thing on the left is a bookmark based on one I saw in an old issue of the Stampin' Up demonstrator magazine my lovely friend Teresa passed on to me because she rules.

I ended up changing the colors, the stamps, the punches, the embellishments, but the basic sketch is the same. It folds over the top of the page you're reading. I'm pleased with how it turned out and might make some more. My favorite part are the little clear buttons lined up down the side. It's neat that the buttons, stamps, and punches all layer on top of each other. The one problem I encountered was deciding which adhesive to use, especially when it came to attaching the clear button. I used a wet glue to attach the punched paper part to the background and a clear mini glue dot to glue the clear button to the punch. If you do it a different way, please leave a comment and let me know about it. I didn't want to use glue dots on both because I was afraid it would be thick and wobbly. I was concerned that clear wet glue would dry with streaks on the clear buttons. Solutions?

The other item pictured is an ATC. I recently picked up this stamp because it was both very inexpected and looked like myself and my cat, Toulouse! Awww! I wanted to use some Flower Soft after poking around the Flower Soft/Stamps of Life blog hop, so I made wee little dandelion puffs. I know dandelion puffs aren't pink, but for the sake of my ATC, let's pretend they are.

Quick! I'm on a deadline!

2010-06-30T23:14:00.005-04:00

This will be a quick post because I have a midnight deadline and no glass slippers! I'm rushing over to the Tiffany Doodles website to turn in my card for this month's sketch challenge. She's got a bunch of free sample digi stamps, something I seem to suddenly have a rampant addiction to since I bought a few off of etsy. Then, I found the Free Digi Stamps Website, which then led me to Paper Craft Planet and finally to Tiffany Doodles, where I then found this challenge. It's all very Rube Goldberg, I know.She has a nice selection of sample digis, but this old-timey duck toy was my favorite by far. I love the sort of dingy nostalgia it has.

What are all these other pictures about? Well, I just finished a slew of swaps before today's deadline, including a mail art postcard swap via Club Scrap. Have I ever mentioned how much I adore mail art? If not, I really should have. Anyway, this is my contribution. My main concern is will they hold up in the mail or shred when they hit the mail sorter outer machine.

And finally, here is my contribution to the Fiskateers Ribbon/Cupcake ATC swap. And what do you know? It has one of those first few digi stamps I purchased featured. Funny how things come full circle.

Now it's your turn! Leave me your favorite stamp or digi stamp company's name in your comment and you will be entered to win a Martha Stewart mouse-edge punch! I love mine, and I hope the winner will love this one!

Upside-down Lampshades, Hedgehogs, and Assorted Spaniels

2010-06-29T19:43:00.005-04:00

I've been awfully busy over the last week or perhaps a little more, trying to keep up and shake the pain that hangs on like stressed out caiman (one of my favorite reptiles, actually. No offense to any crocodillans intended, of course, but they do have rather tensile jaws.) Accupuncture helps, but sometimes the pain is so deep it takes a lot of things helping before I can compose myself and think straight, much less contribute to society in any type of meaningful way.

So in the time between being struck dumb with pain and just being stranded on Couch Island with the pain, it seemed like a good time to make a set of Get Well cards!
When I saw this stamp at Rubber Hedgehog, I knew I had to make it mine. There's very little more sweetly pitiful than a dog running around with a lampshade on his head. (It's okay to let out a sympathetic giggle provided they're up and about and not too ill, right? :)) Poor little guy! I know, they're not really called lampshades. They're Elizabethan Collars or E-Collars. I don't like to use the latter because it's easy to confuse E-C0llar with Electronic Shock Collars, which I loathe. They will screw up your dog. But I'm wandering off course. I'll try to stay on topic. :)

Speaking of Rubber Hedgehog, if you have a cute pet (and if you have a pet, you of course have a cute one!) Rubber Hedgehog runs a contest every year to pick a new pet to be a model for one of their stamps! Check out the rules and regulations on their website. I'm thinking of sending in pics of a few of my pets, maybe. Whoever wins, it's always really cool to see the stamps they end up making. I've bought several stamps featuring their winners because they always pick adorable ones.

Also keeping me busy is making cards for charity. A Cocker Spaniel rescue group asked for some card sets and samples for their auction and goodiebags. I know this one's a springer spaniel, but hey, they're both spaniels. I'm particularly fond of the Bond-girl Silhouetted Dog style paper. I'm pretty sure I got it out of the take-n-leave basket at Jen K's so someone reading this may have been the one who tossed it out. If so, thanks!

Yeah, and I know this one's a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, not a cocker, but I figure I like other dogs who look kind of like mine--Parson Russels, certain Chihuahuas, Toy Fox Terriers, etc. So I'm hoping the people at the Cocker fund raiser are the same way.

This one came out oddly Fourth of July-ish. Those are not colors I tend use much, but sometimes you don't know what you're going to do until it's made.

So, hang in there with me till I'm back upright again. There are pictures and links and other things to share next post.

Giving a Customer the Bird

2010-06-16T18:38:00.013-04:00

Warning, this is a very picture-heavy post. Keep scrolling and reading to see all of these gorgeous birds! OMG I love it when one of my customers asks me to use photos of their pet to make them a set of cards. I know people joke about how boring it is when someone pulls out 500 pictures of their kids, but make it 500 pictures of their pets and I'll ask if they have 500 more to show me. Maybe it's all the animal rescue work that's made me soft and gushy this way. Maybe it's spending way too much time at Cute Overload that's oversensitized me and makes me emit "Awwww" noises whenever a photo of an animal is near. I'm addicted to cute pets like some are addicted to crystal meth. Oh, is it 4 a.m.? Just a few more pages of LOL Cats, pleeeeease?

So, I start with the customer's .jpgs and mess around a bit with the color, cropping, and whatever else I can do to enhance the appearance of the subject. It was neat getting to play around with birds for the first time. Their colors are so important, but occasionally, I like to draw the eye to the patterns on their bodies, the expressiveness of their faces and stance, as in the case of this guy below. I love how he's climbing a hiking boot! Such a delicate animal against a rough-and-tumble shoe. There's a trust there.This guy's name is Not Sure, and could there be a more appropriate photo to reflect his name? I think not! He totally looks like he's had just about enough of your shenanigans. You can see the dots fading away just like his patience. I know. I know. He's a bird, he already has wings, but who can't use an extra pair? I love the look in his eye. He's such a proud looking bird, he knows he looks good. His chest looks so soft and smooth. Seeing too many sickly animals in rescue, I love seeing healthy birds! I had to use this pic again, but this time, I had it reduced to 2.5x3.5 inches, then snipped him out paper doll style. His expression looks so different here. It's neat how you can bring out different aspects of an expression. Surrounded by a garden of flowers, I think he looks thoughtful, a little pensive.

Check out how freaking adorable these birds are. I have a few avian friends (Hello Monte, if you somehow broke out of your mondo huge cage and are reading this while pulling the keys off of your mom's computer.) like Monte, for example, who is a blue and gold macaw, and female. Apparently, sexing birds isn't like sexing rats where you can tell if they're boys or girls from all the way across the room. Very often birds names don't reflect their gender, but they don't seem to mind.

I love this little love bird! His expression is beyond adorable and check out those colors. I think photos of animals looking quizzically into the camera are precious anyway, but this guy is so focused, he appears to be looking so deeply into the lens, he may be watching the SLR movement. It's a pose that shows off that magnificent beak so well, too. I just want to reach out and touch it!

The client asked specifically for one card to have all her birds on it together. Not easy with so many birds and plumes all over the place! So, I decided to go with a "family portrait" style. I imagine it's even harder to get a group photo in real life, so I hope she likes this one. This guy is totally my favorite. I love all of these birds, but I swear this guy managed to twist his beak into a smile! Here he is, clearly enjoying his bath, so I surrounded him with button "bubbles". I want to grab this guy and give him a huge hug, but I don't think birds like that much, so it's probably a good thing that it's just a photo. That's all! I hope you enjoyed these birds as much as I did. I like making all sorts of cards, but the ones using clients' pet photos are my favorite. I feel like I get to know the animals in the pictures between working with the jpgs and collaging the images afterward. I hope these get the approval of their subjects.

Swapping with my Teammates

2010-06-12T13:44:00.011-04:00

First things first...for those of you waiting for a winner to be announce, the name I drew for the Martha Stewart bird stamps is...Billie Jo! If you're reading this, Billie Jo, I have sent you a message via your link, but haven't heard from you yet...please contact me so I can send you your prize! Yay!

One of the great things about having an etsy shop is getting to commune with other shop owners via teams. I'm proud to be a member of three: Vegan Etsy, Etsy for Animals, and EtsyVeg. We get together to support each other's shops, promote our crafts, and do good for animals. One of the added bonuses is getting to know other craftsy people who care about animal protection, and another is finding other creative people who are interested in swapping their goods for yours.

I just completed my first Etsy store-to-store swap ever and it was super cool. My first swap parter was the very talented Laurel of Straw House Books.

Check out the detail on this handbound book. The paper inside is gorgeous. It's so soft. It's so lovely I'm having a hard time deciding what I should use it for. I'm leaning toward using it as an art journal.

The spine is actually a whole separate piece bound to the covers via some nifty stitchery. I've done some bookbinding using Club Scrap kits so I know how much work goes into stitch binding like this. I've never gone so far as to make a fabric covered book, but I imagine that takes some time and extremely good control of your adhesive to prevent wrinkling.

Is this fabric not adorable? Wee little rat-sized paw prints! Yeah, I know, they're more like dog or kitty prints, rat prints would look a whole lot more like human hand and foot prints than dog and cat ones. Nonetheless, tiny pawprints = oh so darn adorable!

I love this book! Thanks so much Laurel!

So, what did she get in exchange? First, a copy of my Yummy for Dogs Cookbook (grab one now to help out the Berkely shelter post-fire.)

And also a set of my custom photo cards. I love making these. I work with the photos electronically, then hand collage the cards after the prints arrive. One of the things that makes these so fun is sitting with the images and getting to know each person's pet via the .jpgs they send me. I try to get a feel for their personality, then show off who that animal is via the finished cards. Laurels dog is just too loveable! Check her out:

Aww! I love a happy, silly dog! Below is a more thoughtful portrait.

You can see the rest here, if you like. What a fantastic model she is!

(Are you an etsy seller who'd like to swap with me? Contact me via http://scrappyrat.etsy.com!)

Help Etsy for Animals Help the Berkeley Shelter's Fire Recovery

2010-05-28T16:30:00.006-04:00

Last week, the Berkeley East Bay Animal Shelter caught fire, killing twelve cats and destroying their facility. The cause of the fire is unkown, and the surviving animals are searching for foster homes.

Being on the East Coast, (and already having a house full of adopted pets and foster animals) fostering isn't really an option, but I had to do something other than sitting here feeling helpless.

Luckily, I belong to Team Etsy For Animals, an organization of Etsy shop owners who work together to promote and donate to animal causes. Many of us got together and decided that we would donate some of the proceeds from the sales of our stores to the Berkeley shelter's recovery. Some stores, like mine, have special items earmarked for the cause, with 100% of the money from the sale of these particular selections going to the shelter. Other stores are contributing by offering a percentage of their month's overall take. Either way, what this means for you, dear reader, is that you can help the Berkeley shelter recover while raking in some excellent handcrafted goodies.

Among the items in my shop that benefit the shelter are cardsets and copies of my Yummy for Dogs cookbook for dogs. The more of these benefit items sold, the more I will make and put out for sale, so keep checking back throughout the month of June.

I'm happy to say I'm not alone in this cause, and I hope you'll visit the shops of my teammates who are also devoted to helping the Berkeley shelter recover. Click here for a full listing of participating stores and links to them.

Thanks for clicking. Have fun shopping for the animals!

Ollie Ollie Oxen Free (or significantly reduced anyway)

2010-05-24T15:48:00.006-04:00

Scott hates closeout stores, to begin with. There is no doubt about that. You must remember this or nothing that follows will seem wonderous...

(Photo: Scott toting my treasures to the car. Aww!)

Yes! I finally made it to Ollie's, a Big Lotsyish store filled with near-expireds and overruns. I adore these places, because I love a good treasure hunt, and you have to sort through a lot of horrible crap to find the nearly-free diamonds in the rough.

Scott hates these places because he sees these finds as something akin to blood diamonds--the gems found tempered by the knowledge that someone worked long hours making the useless junk we dug through to find them. I can definitely see his point, but hey, Martha Stewart Stamp Sets $1.49! It's Martha, people!

Purty bird stamps are not to be scoffed at, and as I mentioned on the Fiskateer message board, I'm sharing some of my treasures with my loyal fans. I picked up an extra set of these wee little avians and will be giving them away to someone who takes the time to leave me a comment on this post. Don't worry, I'm not going to force anyone to push my blog all over hillanddale, foisting links on your friends, message boards or blog followers. I just want to know what species of bird is your favorite (I'd love to know why, too, but that's not mandatory). Mine is the cormorant, thanks to a freaking fabulous poem by Richard Brautigan:

The Castle of the Cormorants

Hamlet with

a cormorant

under his arm

married Ophelia.

She was still

wet from drowning.

She looked like

a white flower

that had been

left in the

rain too long.

I love you,

said Ophelia,

and I love

that dark

bird you

hold in

your arms.

(Ha ha, I got you to read poetry!)

If you have loved and read Hamlet as many times as I have, and you have seen cormorants with their awkward, teenage bodies and their near suicidal drop into frigid, black waters, you can probably also understand what I love about this poem. Anyway, I was going somewhere with this. Oh yeah, free stuff. Name a bird you like. I will draw a name in a week and one of you with win these stamps* and a lifetime supply of Turtle Wax**.

There is one thing Scott does enjoy about these stores and that is playing a game I like to call. "I can see why this was so popular." in which we find the least appealing item in the store. The winner this time?

3-C Cranberry Sauce: The Industrial Strength Cranberry Sauce

I made up the slogan, but not the name. And look at that photo. Food always looks great when you photograph it with an instamatic! Mmm.

So that's it for now. Give me your birds, and if luck is with you when I pick a number next week, I'll let you know.

*Really!

**Not really.

Socks and Pajamas

2010-05-14T14:24:00.001-04:00

Nope we didn't adopt a pair of new cats with these names. Keep reading.

I had a feeling things weren't going to proceed very smoothly last Saturday, when I woke up at 8, blinked at the clock and realized I should have been at the airport ten minutes ago.

Scott has a learning disability that cripples the part of his brain that's in charge of boarding and takeoff times. I know this. I've known this for more than 15 years now, and yet I listened to him the night before when he said, "oh, we'll have plenty of time if we leave the house by 8:30" (to leave the Earth's surface at 9:20). In a lineless, security-wandless fairyland, sure. At RDU, it's right on time to shoot Ms. OCD into crisis mode.

But wait...there's more. As we dive into the car and sail toward the airport, my phone makes the dreaded dee-dee-dee sound I know so well. Battery is dead. I hear this sound at least once a day because of the age of my phone and my reluctance to stand around the AT&T store. Sure, I can amuse myself, poking at different phones and flipping through the various photos people have taken of themselves in line, but it's something I seem to forget about doing until something like this happens, when I don't have time to charge my phone, let alone trade it in.

And more? Oh yes. The minute I watch Scott drive away into the sunrise, I realize I have no photo i.d. None. It's in my jacket pocket. The jacket I didn't wear on this balmy May morning. And my now dead phone won't allow me to call to see if Scott can get it here before the plane takes off. Sigh.

The woman at the counter is so nice, it's almost scary. Do I have a Sam's card? Nope. Anything with my photo? A credit card? Nope. I put a photo of my dog on it instead (how was I supposed to know it was supposed to be used for i.d? I thought the picture was akin to having kittens on your checks.) I wasn't sure if I should be made nervous by the fact that they let me through with a social security card and an expired health insurance card, but I decided to just be glad I wasn't grounded and slipped through the line.

Now, I thrive on routine and organization. I know it doesn't look like it from a distance, but it's something I not only thrive upon, but require to survive. All of this rapid-fire chaos was making my brain rattle around in its casing. I thought I was being halfway normal, but even the wheelchair driver zooming me around was like, "Breathe, it'll be okay." Until she looked at the time. Then, she started running, making the world a rollercoaster of flickering butts from my point of view.

Well, I did make it, and though the trip was sprinkled with broken airconditioners, sweaty seat-mates and non-existant flights. Really. I was informed by my mom upon my arrival that the flight I had just exited did not exist. (If I had a spookier effect than itallics that I could use right now, I would.) It wasn't listed on the boards. The airline, when asked, knew nothing about it. My luggage even arrived on the carousel marked for some flight from Philadelphia. (Yes, I will sell my story to you, Twilight Zone 2000 producers. Email me.)

Finally settled into the hotel, and after a lovely mojito, mom decides it's pajama time while I parouse the hotel's instruction manual. I am probably the only person who reads these cover-to-cover upon arrival, but I like to know the layout of the place, what kind of things I can have sent to my room, where the pool and fitness center are in case I want to take a quick jog on the treadmill or do some bench presses, and what time my sleep will be interrupted by the cleaning crew in the a.m. since I'll forget to put the sign on the doorknob like I always do. There isn't a housekeeping employee out there who hasn't seen my look of confusion when I wake up in the midst of their keeping house. They usually don't notice I'm there till I sit up and say hell0, and I'm so used to this routine by now, I'm asleep before they can go "Oh my god I didn't see you there" and leave the room. Incidentally, this has contributed to my belief that I am invisible while asleep. Must plan more experiments. Anyway...

I notice that the included map does not highlight fire exits, and I am nerdy enough to demand knowledge of such things. I look at the door and think about getting up to check, but I decide to just ask mom if she noticed. Being used to my sky-high level of preparedness she says something about it being just a couple doors down. I decide if anything untoward happens I can just follow her and promptly forget about it. Not thirty minutes later, the fire alarm goes off. We both grab sweaters, I grab my shoes (high-tops as always, so there's no slipping them on quickly) and exit the room. Both of us have been in hotel fires (no, we don't start them, we just travel a lot), so a) we know the routine and b) we have a strong aversion to catching on fire.

In the hallway, lights are flashing and the fireproof doors are closing to encapsulate the hall into managable segments, should the fire be on our floor. We don't see smoke, and I have the worst sense of direction ever so I immediately dart in the opposite direction of the fire exit mom had seen. I'm darting down the hall, touching doorknobs carefully before opening (I think I learned that handy tip from Mr. T between Saturday morning cartoons. You can touch his jewelry the same way to acertain if he is on fire.) and for some reason, we can't find any stairs, just lots of people poking their heads out of their rooms asking what the alarm is about. Finally, waaaaaayyyy at the end of the hall, we find a thin little door and behind it, a very creepy stairwell. We take the stairs as fast as we can and finally there's a door leading outside, just four little steps away. Four of the freakin' cockroachiest stairs I've ever seen leading to the cockroachiest landing ever. Seriously, the floor is carpeted with dead roaches. Dead is better than live (Ow! My karma!) but I'm standing in my socks and for a few seconds I have to seriously consider whether my life is really worth having to walk across the cockroach valley of death in my socks. If my mom had not been standing behind me, I may not have done it, but I plow through, squealing all the way, out the door and...

into the middle of Royal Street. Seriously. There's no handle on the outside of the door and here are Socks and Pajamas standing in the middle of Friday night bar traffic, no less confused and out of place than if we'd been randomly teleported there. For several minutes we stand slackjawed and frozen. Then I see several black suited CIA looking guys with Hotel Omni Royal logos on their nametags shouting into walkie talkies that some drunk just broke the fire alarm box for the hotel. Which for some reason is located in the bar next door, apparently within brawling range.

The second we realize our lives aren't, and never were, in danger, we start feeling darn silly as people in eveningwear shove us aside, mom in her full-length romance-novel nightgown, me standing in my roachy-ass socks holding my shoes on the tips of my fingers like I'm trying to display them to the crowd. Mom, in particular, has a lot more dignity to lose than I do, and her expression rapidly changes from amusement to horror. I'm not a shy person, I can deal with a little public humiliation. She practically invented modesty, so for her sake, I try to escort her back to our room as quickly as possible knowing that the poor girl will likely be sleeping fully clothed from now on.
Did I say try? After hopscotching over the many wet spots and mysterious stains on the flagstones of Royal Street (I handled my socks with plastic bags over my hands when we got back that night.) and halfway up the steps leading into the hotel lobby, I notice that the Jazz band playing at the top of the stairs didn't seem to have bothered to evacuate when we did. Then I notice that they're coming toward us followed by a parade. I kid you not. Apparently, there was a huge wedding going on in the hotel and the alarm gave them an excuse to pack up and lead the bridal parade into the streets. There are trumpets and clarinets and hundreds (seriously) of people waving napkins and umbrellas and they all have us trapped in the middle of the stairs so we can't move in any direction at all while mom desperately tries to hide behind me. I hold up my shoes proudly and smile at the passing crowd because what else can you do?

Poor mom. She was blanched white (she's much darker skinned than I am, for those who know me and know that I would have to blanch clear) and embarassed beyond belief, worried that we'd ruined the girl's wedding. I assured her that we were hardly the weirdest thing they'd seen in New Orleans and even if they did notice, I'm sure they just leaned over to the person next to them and whispered, "Ol' Socks and Pajamas over there must be from his side of the family" and never gave it a second thought.

So, we didn't burn to ashes and had a bit of an adventure. Not a bad way to start a vacation. I don't know if mom will ever fully recover, but that's what red wine and hurricanes are for, and we were in the right place for it.

Fiskateers, Etsy, and Inlaws: Blend Well and Serve

2010-05-03T19:12:00.003-04:00

Very pleasant weekend. My Etsy sales have picked up again following the post-xmas slump and I'm kept quite busy filling orders and working on custom items. I love my customers because they never let me get bored. I've got custom projects featuring photos of a flock of birds (the love kind, the cockateil kind, and some others too), an adorable black lab mix who is fond of showing off his belly, and stamped images a raven or two. Not everyone gets to work with such a menagerie. Pretty nifty.

Birthday cards and doxies have been on my desk too. I love this rattie jumping out of a cake (though if it happened in real life, it would probably be downright horrific.) The stamp is by In 2 Stamps, which makes lots of uber cute rat stamps. I don't understand the name though. Am I missing something?

Just returned from New Orleans to discover this unfinished, unposted post. So, this is what you get today. Tomorrow, I've got a ton of nifty things you'll want to check out. Heck, I've got enough finds and pics to keep this blog busy all week. So tune in next time...same rat-time, same rat-channel. Duh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh RATGIRL!

Saw my shadow, went back into hibernation.

2010-04-19T14:54:00.003-04:00

But lo! It is spring! Time to crawl out from under the couch and see what's going on in the real world.
(Not the greatest pic of me ever, but Rev looks dashing. It was really sweaty out by that point and I think my face was melting. Everyone looks great squinting, too. Hubba hubba.)

Last Saturday was my favorite day of the year. That's because it's the day they held Bark Around the Park and the K9 3k! Hence, the pictures you see here. I live for this weekend every year, though I have to wonder why two of the biggest dog events of the year are held on the same day, with overlapping times. There has to be some kind of reason behind it or they'd have changed it by now, I'm sure. I find myself imagining a vicious rivalry between the two host organizations, a dogfight, if you will. Lots of snarling and fist shaking. Maybe the two organizers were in some illicit relationship that ended badly, or perhaps there was some kind of philosophical altercation over whether or not adopters should be allowed to juggle their pets provided they are otherwise excellent caretakers. Do remember, this is only speculation (read: a total figment of my overactive imagination), but why else would they stick to such a bizarre schedule?

Well, whatever the reason, it worked out nicely for us. We showed up at the park downtown (the one with the copper acorn by that guy I used to serve coffee to every day at 3rd Place. That park must have an actual name. Anyone know what it is?) While I'm asking questions about the park, does anyone know why they have a plaque with a fountain dedication on it, with no fountain in sight. Seems kind of insulting to the person it's dedicated to, though they're probably dead so in all likelihood they have no idea. But they could at least cross out the word "fountain" and write in "shrubbery" since that's what the plaque's in front of. Wow, this is a really long parenthetical statement. I've forgotten what I was saying, so I'll just start over and forget the end parenthesi. So, we showed up at the park downtown at around 10, then hit Bark Around the Park after the walk (and much tent browsing) at noon.
Poor Bark Around the Park. It was relatively desolate. Well, not desolate, but the crowds weren't like those of previous years, but d-a-n-g the giveaways were flowing. We left with a half-ton of swag, not to mention some vegan dog biscuits. I couldn't resist supporting the people sellling homemade dog biscuits after all that time I used to do that for 3rd Place. The dogs seem impressed by them and I feel slightly less guilty for letting their supply of homemade biscuits run out. After all, I wrote a whole book on cooking dog treats, you'd think I'd be on top of that. Stores like PetSmart, Pet Supermarket, and Petco were handing out whole bags of stuff. Crazy! The next most generous were the vet clinics who kindly provide us with new bag clips every year. Our potato chips thank the entire veterinary profession for preventing the onset of early staleness.

If you're looking for a cat who is good with dogs, Bark Around the Park is the place to go. This kitty, pictured below, was so casual among the dozens of dogs milling about, it was impressive. She was just lolling about in the afternoon breeze, stretching her arms as far outside the cage as she could manage, greeting everyone who stopped by with a volumous meow. Want an instant family? A nearby cage held a dog/cat duo, lounging in the shade.

I was so proud of Scott and Usagi! They did the Senior Walk (.5K) at the K9 3K along with the Triangle Game Developers to raise money for the SPCA of Wake Co. Are they not adorable?

Notice anything unusual? Yep, I wore out and was ready to go home at the same time Scott was. No kidding! I hurt pretty bad the next day, but was fine again on Monday. Wow. Usually doing half of a day like Saturday would have had me laid up for a week. Accupuncture, I love you! (And a shout out to my new meds, too!)

Rough Day/Rough Play

2010-02-16T00:58:00.002-05:00

Or perhaps I could have titled this Degenerate/Degenerate (one pronounced each way)?

Feeling quite ill today with my miserable Degenerative Disk Disease. Hence, I degenerate. This is by far the unfun type of dengeneration. I'm trying to do a kajillion things, among them, making rat and mouse cards for the next round of Vegan Sample Bags--a really neat project on Etsy.com that introduces buyers to lots of cool vegan crafters' products while donating all the proceeds to highly worthy animal causes. Check out the current one at: http://vegansamples.etsy.com/.

I have both contributed to the bags and bought them, so I can assure you, they are officially neat frito. Of course, pain has assaulted me today so I got absolutely nothing done. Often I can't decide which is worse: sustaining the pain itself, or the time eating black hole the pain creates.

So, I'm trying to cheer myself up with a rousing browse at Etsy and what do I find but a store of vegan delights that offers something I dare say we all need (or, at least I do, anyway): a little vegan discipline. Hence, I would like to introduce you to Deviant, a store that understands that cruelty should always be consensual. Whether you are looking for actual playthings or just a smidge of fashion, it's nice to be able to find a cruelty-free option that's intentionally so, made by a genuine craftsperson, not by machines. It's leatherless by choice, not because it's a cheapo knockoff.

A-freaking-dorable!

Happy Birthday, Revco!

2010-01-12T05:42:00.002-05:00

I have a teenager now! Revco just turned 13. That's him above, hopping up and down, trying to grab one of the treats I baked for him. It's a new recipe that seems to be a hit! Pain Faux Viende Avec Herbs de Provence...the recipe will be featured on the EtsyVeg team blog soon. They're very hearty, though low in fat. A nice soft and chewy treat. In the mean time, take a look at the team site: http://www.etsyveg.blogspot.com/ Basically, it's a group of people who run stores on Etsy.com who get together to support each other and do some good for animals. Etsy is a great place to shop. If you received a gift from me this holiday season, it's extremely likely that I bough it on Etsy.com!

Speaking of stuff I'm doing on the web, I wanted to show off the card I made for the Simon Says Stamp "Hot Chocolate" Challenge. The theme is pink/brown and of course, the beverage mentioned. I just got this house mouse stamp so I had to use it. Mmm. Donuts. Is there anything they can't do?

Aaaaannnd, I'm super busy and up really late working on cards for a couple of rescue fund raisers. One is a craft show in the UK and the other is the Vegan Sample Bag fund rasier I contributed to a few months ago. Basically Etsy.com stores donate free samples to be put together in pretty hand decorated totes and sold to raise money for an animal rescue. The previous one I was in raised money for a sanctuary for homeless pigs. I've heard that these totes are really cool and a genuine bargain. I know I always try to include a few nice goodies from my store for each buyer. Check it out! http://www.etsy.com/shop/vegansamples

And, ahem, my store: http://scrappyrat.etsy.com

Well, I'd best get back to work if I'm going to get these cards made, packaged, and on their way!

P.S. One week till my 4th poetry book is released! So soon!

Botanica Box

2009-12-21T05:34:00.005-05:00

It's 5:35 a.m. and I am still awake, packing up those tires-squealing, last second, do-I-maybe-still-stand-a-chance-to-get-these-things-somewhere-on-time gifts. Most of these are, of course, the ones I made by hand, so it's not just putting paper around a box, it's also making adjustments, putting this together with that, and I'll admit it, actually making a few of the items from scratch today. I'm relieved, at least, that my craftsiness only extends to side order gifts because if I had to come up with stuff worthy of being the main course, I would never get to sleep all year.

Well, that's not entirely true. This year Scott wanted his gift to his mom to be a floral arrangement I made. He picked the colors and I even managed to drag him slowly through the faux flora section of AC Moore to get him to pick out all of the flowers (or at least pick from amongst several I picked that weren't too absurd--I had to waft him away from the ginormous globular hydrangia puffs he kept picking out since two of them would have overflowed the container he wanted) so in my opinion, he genuinely deserves credit for the gift despite my assembly. And I did that assembly between 3:30 and now. And here I thought this kind of last minute frantic cramming ended when I graduated. I think it came out pretty well, though looking at it from here I see two flowers that are out of place. It's making me nuts to see those two flowers sticking out, but not quite nuts enough to make me get up and fix it just now, I'm so tired.

On to the photos. The pics I've uploaded depict a project I made for the Alphastamps matchbox shrine swap. Alphastamps is a fantastic store full of all sorts of beautiful trinkets, stamps, and collage supplies, quite possibly my favorite out there. The people in the swap group make the most amazing things. They're all quite talented to the point where I feel almost unworthy of being included. Every swap is a great learning experience, and I highly encourage anyone interested in honing their crafting skills to join.

The matchboxes in this swap are approximately 1.5x2.5 or thereabouts. Think of the kind of matchboxes you used to (and maybe still sometimes do, somewhere) find in gigantic fishbowls on the way out of restaurants. In this case, I ordered mine from...you guessed it...Alpha Stamps, where I also picked up the beautiful floral dresden, the momento mori scrap, and the nifty skull and rose (not shown, but used in some of the boxes I swapped away) cubichon that went into collaging this little "shrine").

Some of my readers may not be familiar with dresden and, oh my, you should be because it's one of my favorite things in the world. These are bits of german paper "scrap", generally dry embossed, often metallic, that were popular in the 1800's to embellish family albums, decorate greeting cards, etc. The other item that might not be immediately recognized is the momento mori scrap. A momento mori is any type of personal trinket intended to keep one's dead a little closer in one's memory. Some that are popular among collectors include hair jewelry (though it's not exclusively made from the hair of the dead, it often is considered funerary jewelry). Check it out online. While I'm hair-phobic (Hair is creepy once it's detached from its human. Seriously.) I have to admit, it is quite beautiful. In this case, however, our momento mori is a sheet of photos of taken after the death of a loved one. Because it wasn't common for families to have their own cameras until fairly recently, and because having one's picture made was both an expensive and tedious production (involving standing very still--this is why people's eye often look weird or blurry in old photos. Their eyes moved during the long exposure process), many people didn't have photos of their loved ones around. So, when someone died, more often than not, if the family wanted to ever see their lost one's face again, would need to have a picture made. To contemporary Americans, who don't really have much contact with their dead anymore, but in the past this was not unusal at all. I know if I lost someone and had no photos, I'd have it done rather than have no reminder of their appearance.

I was playing with the idea of the different ways we encounter flowers, how pretty, innocent, and lovely scented they can be, but also how they can be sad or even sinister. I wanted to have it be a bit of a surprise when you open it, like "eyeew" almost. Like once on the playground in elementary school, one of the girls thought she caught a hummingbird and was completely charmed...until the teacher told her what she was cradling in her hands was the biggest locust she'd ever seen. She shrieked and threw it down. It was interesting how fast her reaction changed, though it was the same thing she had been holding so dearly a second ago.

So, check out Alpha Stamps and give matchbox shrines a try. If you do, please send me a link to your photos. I'd love to see them!

Goodbye Baby Ween.

2009-11-18T17:10:00.007-05:00

Ween died yesterday afternoon. He was 17 and a half, but you always hope for a few more years, even when you see it coming.

Over the last year he'd grown thin, and more and more often he'd hit the side of the bathroom counter instead of making his usual satin slick landing when it was kitty treat time (the dogs are less pesky when you're on the counter instead of the floor, after all.)

Lately his back end seemed to be sinking and his knees were turning inward. We debated whether or not we should attempt wresling him into a carrier and sustain his surprisingly shrill howls on the drive over to the vets' office to see if they could offer some kind of medicine that might limber him up a little, but the last time we took him in, we couldn't get close enough to the suddenly armed and ferocious box in the back seat, so the vet had to immunize him like a feral, through the slits in the verikennel. Getting him to calm down enough to prance across the counter and show off his gams just wasn't going to happen.

The organic human-grade holistic joint supplement I ordered arrived on our doorstep today. Oh well.

When Scott brought Ween home, his name was Janice and his head was bigger than his body. We found out later (he wasn't always a threat to veterinarians everywhere) that Janice had an undescended testicle. Oh. So he came home a second time as Tofu-Kitty, but soon his habit of belting out a tune in his Siamese tenor each night (a behavior we came to refer to as "Weening Out"), and his tendency to get into fights with socks--and lose every time, earned him the moniker, Weeny. He was a year younger than my resident cat, Small Change, so we got in the habit of calling him Baby Ween. For some reason he also earned an article and became The Ween, sort of like on Leave it to Beaver. No one can remember why, but it stuck. T.S. Eliot would be proud of this cat.

It's hard. Toulouse, one of my other cats, the one who was best friends with Ween, has been searching all corners of the house and meowing so sadly. It's heartbreaking to hear him crying out and not receiving a response. He knows Ween died, but it probably feels as unreal to him as it does to me. Poor baby. He's going to miss having a friend of his own species that he can groom and tussle with. My other kitty, Weezee, sort of tolerates Toulouse, as cats often do with each other.

Scott took Ween to the crematory this afternoon. I guess I'll put his ashes on the "mantle" (there's no fireplace below it, so I don't know what you call it) next to his old friend Small Change who passed on about 8 years ago from liver failure. It's kind of weird, but Ween dying also stirs up a lot of memories of dad dying just a few years ago at this time of year. It feels like someone's always disappearing. Sigh.

I follow Zen, so I wish Weeny an auspicious rebirth and hope he enjoys shaking off his heavy body, trading it in for a bouncy new one. I hope he maybe finds Small Change again (aka, Mr. Big), his feline big "brother" who smacked him around mercilessly, a beating Ween took with the enthusiasm of the little cartoon terrier who always popped back up, right beside the bulldog announcing, "We's pals, ain't we Spike?"

I hope somewhere, someday soon, they'll be curled up purring like a chainsaw in the laundry of someone who loves them dearly.

Take good care of my boys, okay?