Just a quick heads up to let y'all know that I was featured today on Amy's Stocking Stuffer blog. She had seen the post I did a while ago showing the Anya puppets I made for my girls and wanted to feature them so I said go right ahead!
Just a quick FYI to y'all that I was featured on the Inspirational blog today! How cool is that??
You can check out the post HERE <----click!
Apparently with everything I've had going on lately I've lost my mojo. I've been working on the SAME card for I don't know how many days now and nothing is working. So instead of continuing to attampt to MAKE it work (sometimes that works for me - but right now it's not!) I'm gonna go do other things and pray I get some creative inspiration SOON!
On another note - I've been reading all the comments and e-mails regarding my videos - I am really glad that you guys are liking them! They're simple I know - and not the greatest quality (I just use my little Casio digi camera as I don't have an actual video camera), but I like doing them to be able to share and show things that are more difficult to show and explain with a post and pictures! So yes I definitely plan on continuing to post videos as I have time :o)
Lemme know if there's anything you'd like for me to do a video on, or something you'd like to see "in real life" - I have all kinds of punches, papers, stamps, ribbons etc etc etc and was planning on doing videos every once in a while that show JUST different products and whatnot as I know for me when I see something I like online and order it it can be totally different than what I thought when it arrives on the doorstep!
K I'll be back hopefully really soon with somethin' creative to share!
Hey all you peeps out there in blogland! Just an FYI that Craft Critique is doing a HUGE Valentine's Day Blog Carnival right now.
You can check out their first post HERE<-----click!
A bunch of my posts are included (the third one from the top!) so be sure to check them all out for TONS of inspiration!!
So I just got an e-mail - my Altering a Paint Can tutorial was nominated for the Best Gift Idea Awards over on the Tip Junkie website!! How cool is that?
You can see my original post HERE <-----click!
And if you'd like to vote you can go HERE <------click! The poll for voting is at the end of the post!
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I will be back later on to post the winner of the Ribbon Blog Candy(once I get the number form Random.org it may take me a while to count to the right one!) - that will be later on tonight.
I also still plan on making a sample or two for today's ATS challenge (see post below).
AND I'm in the middle of uploading a short video tutorial onto YouTube (*hint* - it involves ribbon) that is taking FOREVER - I've tried several times and have been at this for hours now and it's driving me mad! Once I get it working I'll post it here.
Later peeps!! :o)
You all should notice something new with the comments on here. It's not a major change and shouldn't disrupt anything on here - they just look a teeny bit different and I can now actually reply TO a specific comment (something I've wanted on here for forever!! Will make things a lot easier for me I'm hoping!!).
This should be a really GOOD thing - and will hopefully make commenting here on my blog more interesting and interactive for all of us.
I do read every comment I get, and hopefully this new little feature will enable me to be able to answer most questions quickly and directly under the question so that it all is in one place (which is perfect for my OCD LOL!!).
**Don't forget to leave me any suggestions for tutorials and/or tool/product reviews in the comments of the post below this one! I look forward to hearing from you!!**
I'm getting my Friday Sketch post typed up - but before I post it I wanted to link to these posts about Hot Linking.
Let me first say tho that I am in no way computer literate - I bumble around on here and figure things out by sheer accident. I do know that I have never hot-linked though - if I share images for inspiration at any time I first save the image onto my computer (right click, save to my computer, then upload along with a link to the original creator (and at all times if possible getting permission BEFORE I post!!) to credit them). I didn't even really know what hot-linking was until I read these bloggers accounts - and I'm sharing them here as I found them SO useful and they said it much better than I ever could.
Julie's Just Say "No" post (part 1 of 3)
Julie's More on Hot Linking post (part 2 of 3)
Julie's Paper Trufflez: Just Say "No" Part III (part 3 of 3)
Kristina's On Hot-linking and Stealing Images post (part 1 of 2)
Kristina's Hot-linking - more info & answering questions post (part 2 of 2)
If you read these in the order I've posted them you should be able to "get" what this is all about (I know I learned a lot through them!).
Does that mean that I don't want people taking images off my blog? YES. The ONLY exception to this is my Friday Sketch posts - the actual sketch (not the card) that I make for everyone is totally fine with me to save it on to your computer then upload it onto YOUR blog post with your creation and a link back to my post with credit. That I am happy with! Anything other than that I would prefer that you e-mail me to ask for permission.
I have had images and more stolen from my blog in the past (and used for personal gain) and it really sucks to be honest. I put a LOT of work into posting on here - making my cards/projects, taking the pictures, editing, posting, upkeep with this blog (which isn't free - I pay quite a bit to keep this blog going!!) and I do it because I love it. I love sharing my creations with all of you and love hearing from you. I read all the comments and appreciate every one (and try to answer all the questions as I have time as well!!).
So far I haven't really come across any instances of people hot-linking my images from here - but I wanted to post this just so that other's can be aware - b/c if you're anything like me stuff like this doesn't always make a lot of sense!! I'm just glad that Julie stood up and posted about this issue and Kristina did an excellent job of explaining more of what hot-linking IS and how to NOT do it.
OK I'm done blabbing about this :o) I'm going to get my Friday Sketch posted ASAP!! :)
Wow thanks everyone for all the responses to my previous post!! I am not quite done reading all of them yet but I will!! And big (((HUGS)))) to everyone for all the compliments and whatnot - it feels SO good to hear that my cards and whatnot are appreciated!!!
OK so here are a few tidbits that came up that I wanted to address:
I don't see the whole card and this is why: I don't subscribe to blogs. I list them in my favorites and check them all when I have time. Yours is the only blog that, for some reason, 'squishes'the photo to compensate for the favorites column on the left. So....if I CLOSE my favorites, I can see everything! HTH! (Wendi)
Wendi wasn't the only one to say this - and yes it happens for me too when I check my own blog (I like to see how the posts look and whatnot as they format a little differently on the actual blog from when I'm typing them up).
So if you have a favorites bar it needs to be closed in order for the whole blog to show properly. This is also the same is you are viewing and your window is NOT maximized - you won't see everything - click to make it full screen and it should look a LOT better!!
I don't know why my blog "compensates" and then squishes itself when the screen isn't maximized - there is no setting that I know of to change that!! I always view other blogs full screen (or through Google Reader) so I wouldn't know if it's JUST me or if it's all TypePad blogs or what???
When I get an email message, there are no pictures attached. I must go to your blog to see the pics. I haven't a clue why but I figured it was how your site was set up.
THAT I did on purpose - when you get an e-mail notifying you that I've posted to my blog I purposely made it so that it's just a tiny snippet and not a full post. I didn't do it so that I would get more hits but b/c it would seriously start to overload people's in-boxes b/c of the file sizes and whatnot. Way back in the beginning I was having the e-mails sent out with full posts and it was causing a lot of issues and tons would get bounced back as people's in-boxes were too full.
So that won't be changing - the e-mails will have to stay as just little snippets (sorry!) and I hope that those of you that subscribe via e-mail don't mind the extra step of having to click to visit the blog -
which reminds me - when you DO click via the e-mail it opens in a small screen which again you need to maximize to full-screen in order to see everything!!
I am an unfortunate viewer that doesn't get to see the right side of your cards either. No idea as to why, but always assumed it was your way of protecting your work?? Anyway, I really enjoy seeing most of your cards! LOL I appreciate all your hard work to share with us!
For those of you that are like this (only seeing part b/c the right side is cut off) I THINK it's because of the size of your monitor? Obviously ya'll aren't going to go out and buy a larger monitor (I still have my old computer that has a 15" monitor (seemed SO big at the time!) and the blog shows everything fine on it...so that may not be the issue at all) but FYI all my pics can be clicked on to get a pop-up with a full view.
EDITED TO ADD: Yes I know that was a totally clueless bit above (from me) - I have NO clue about computers, monitors anything like that (as y'all can now fully tell!! *wink*) - but here's a good comment I cut and pasted:
I was just going to make the same comment as the person above me did :) I mentioned in the last post under comments that it had to do with your display settings...that is what the commenter above is talking about. The viewer needs to right click on their desktop and click on properties...when in properties they need to check their display settings. If their resolution is set to lower numbers...800x600 then they would have larger icons on their desktop then if they were at 1280X800 (this is what I have) What all this means is...things are bigger and they have to scroll left to right to view the entire screen...like you would up and down to read and entire post...does that make sense? Is the person that can't see the right side of the card able to see the right side of your blog...the second column? If not...then then need to look at the bottom of their screen for a scroll bar to scroll to the right...or just change their resolution settings as described above. HTH!!!
i can't see the whole thing...haven't been able to since you went to a three column blog. i have heard that with three column blogs you have to set it up some how so every computer can see your entire post but i don't know how to set it up....sorry :(
Hmmmmmm I will hafta look into that - mebbe there is a setting or something that I need to change so that it will format properly?? I have NO clue (if any other TypePad users DO know tho I'd appreciate any and all advice!!).
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I appreciate everyone's input on this - I'll be fiddling and looking through my settings to see if there is anything on MY end that can be tweaked to make the blog better for everyone :o)
Also another FYI but all the pics on here can be clicked on to get a pop-up window with a full view - so if no matter what you are doing you can't see the whole thing you can click on it and see them that way!
As for the inside of my cards I rarely show that. It's only been recently that I actually started putting something in the insides (usually just a strip or two of matching patterned paper or maybe a stamped sentiment or similar image.....) and I keep it pretty simple. When I do add little "extra's" to the inside of my cards I add the extra pics so y'all can see it too!
OK that's enough of my blabbing for today - hopefully I can get something stamped soon so I can share a card later!!
I got a comment asking why I don't post pictures showing the entire card - which I DO - so I was wondering if this was just on one person's computer or are there a lot of you that can't see the whole card when you come here?
All my pics show the whole card, and then on some I'll add close-up pics to show some of the dimension/detail/etc etc that are only part of the card.
All I can think of is that her computer is only loading part of the pictures?? I have NO clue, and if it's happening to more than one person then I'm really up a creek LOL!! I'll figure something out tho......
I'd be pleased to hear from several of you so I can see if this is a wide-spread issue or if it's only happening to one or two people!
Have a great weekend everyone!!!
Two of my recent tutorials were featured on Cardoftheweek.com - you can check out the post here. Thanks Susanna!
I was nominated 4 times! (how cool is that???) for the excellence award by Kelly , Jennifer, Kristine, and Niki - thanks girls!!
And I am pretty sure there were other nominations and tags of some sorts but for the life of me I can't find them (my e-mail inbox is seriously overflowing and it's going to take me a while to sift through them all!) when they were originally posted....
I was also tagged by Linda at A Muse (did you see they've released new A Muse stamps and notecards and RIBBON ------ AND that there are new Elzybells stamps too? (I am in LOVE with the new little "Mini Chick Bee" stamp - I HAVE to get that one ASAP!!)) so here's my answers:
Stamping Style - eclectic - I find my style is always changing and I am drawn to and inspired by so many different things. For the past several months I've been in a much more "simple" style of stamping - and I really like it!
Inspiration - EVERYWHERE! Magazines, websites, commercials, cataloges (Pier 1, Pottery Barn, IKEA etc etc etc - those ones have FABULOUS inspiration in them!), stamps, fabric, nature, etc etc etc!
Color - I LOVE anything pink, but I also love green (which is a color that I discovered looks great on me so I'm starting to lean more towards green lately...)
Work Space - a disaster right now
Perfect Day - One where I don't have to do ANY laundry, dishes, cooking or cleaning of any sort and can just veg out and relax (hey I can dream! *wink*)
First Job - volunteer at a local roller-skating rink - I rang up purchases and played the music and whatnot.
Wildest Dream - to someday build the home that I scribbled down on paper a couple of years ago. It's not HUGE but it's definitely got a gorgeous kitchen, BIG master bath and a studio that I could lock myself in and never come out of!! *grin*
Ink - I have a LOT of ink. All of Stampin' Up!'s Classic and Craft Ink Pads, all of Palette's Ink pads (the cube size), VersaMagic Tear Drops, Brilliance Tear Drops, ColorBox Cat's Eye's in Chalk and Pigment Inks, and now Papertrey's new inks.
Family - my hubby and 2 girls
Beverage - orange juice
Biggest Challenge - procrastinating - I still can't help putting everything off until the last minute!
'nuff said eh? 
My light tent finally arrived!! *claps hands*
Tim had ordered me one off e-bay for Christmas in the beginning of December and it never arrived (we're waiting on the refund through PayPal.....) - so he gave me a picture of it for Christmas and then when we found out we weren't getting that one I ordered this one from OBN instead.
I must say we had a MUCH better experience with OBN - they shipped it out the SAME day I ordered and now it's here!
I finally got done putting it together (the lights need to be assembled when it arrives - a little time consuming but not too bad) and will need to fiddle around with it and see what kinds of pics I get with it compared to my "propping up 2 pieces of card stock and using a couple of daylight lamps" method.
FYI the 24" tent is HUGE!!! I wanted to be sure to get one that I could take pics of 12x12 pages with and any larger items if I needed and this one will definitely fit the bill!
I love Christmas presents....(even if there are unforeseen circumstances that make them not arrive and replacements have to be ordered weeks later!! *wink*)....and I am so pleased with Tim for getting it for me (not that I hinted over and over again as to what I wanted................LOL!).
Do you have a stamping/scrapping/papercrafting blog? Does your blog link to mine? If so let me know!
I have a blogroll over on the right of my page (scroll down a bit - it's in the CHECK OUT: section - titled So Many Blogs....So Little Time!! *wink*) - and all the blogs (that I know of) that link to me along with all the ones I browse are listed there.
FYI they are all in alphabetical order.
If you link to me and you DON'T see yours listed - leave a comment on this post and when I come back to this I'll be sure to add it! I like to return the favor of posting links (plus it gives me a chance to check out blogs I haven't seen before!).
Also if you see your blog listed and DON'T want me to have it posted - let me know that too and I'll remove it - I used to always ask before I posted links - then blogging took off like crazy and now everyone's doing it and I stopped asking and now I haven't updated my list in a looonnnngggg time!
***There's been questions on "blog etiquette" as to whether or not you HAVE to ask a blogger whether or not it's OK to post a link to their blog. In my personal opinion I don't think it's necessary - I only like being asked b/c then I can return the favor and post a link to the asker's blog. But I in no means feel like anyone has to ask me (and I'd never ask anyone to remove a link to my blog unless it were posted on a site that was really inappropriate - if you know what I mean!)***
So anywho - post a comment on this post for the links (please don't e-mail them to me as I have a TON of e-mails to sift through right now and had a rather huge mess with my e-mail yesterday (long story!) and don't have the time to go through them all - if you post them here I can get to them MUCH faster!!)
Happy blogging!!
I was really honored when not too long ago Andrea of Crafts On A Whim contacted me asking if she could feature ME on her blog - every Friday she features a different crafty blogger - they tell a bit about themselves and answer a few questions and then she shares some favorite samples of their work.
The article about me went up on Friday - you can check it out here <----click!
Thank you so much Andrea - it was very sweet of you and I am honored! 
{{{{Hugs}}}}
