the creative closet by cindy lawrence

Eggstra Special

Hey friends!

Oh my gosh, did you see over there on the side bar???  Today is my blogaversary....yes, TODAY!  How on earth did that happen?!  Well, in honor of a FABULOUS year of blogging, I am going to give away some yummmaLICIOUS blog candy!  I will post the candy tomorrow...so stay tuned! 

Today's sample is from Whipper Snapper.  Isn't that a sweeeet little egg image?

Here's the recipe:

Stamps:  Egg-stra Special & Egg-stra Special Words

Papers:  Pure Luxury White, Tangerine Tango

Inks:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Copic Markers, Tangerine Tango (swiped on background)

Accessories:  Circle Nestabilities, White Organza Ribbon (dyed orange with my YR09 Copic marker), White Brads, Corner Rounder, Sponge, Dimensionals

I can hardly believe that today's the last day of March.  Bring on APRIL...WOOT WOOT!!! :)  I do so love the spring! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

See y'all tomorrow!

Hugs~
C

Watercolor Class

Happy Monday, friends!

How was your weekend?  Mine was fantabulous!  Saturday was crazy, but fun.  Abbi had a sleep-over on Friday night...well, if you want to call it that.  No one slept...esp not Mom & Dad.  So, it's remarkable that we made it through our busy Saturday...gettin' old ya know.  We attended a welcome home reception for a local soldier who's been in Iraq for the last 3 years.  Then in the evening we went to see Leahy perform.  They are a group of brother and sister Celtic step dancers and fiddle players (among many other musical talents).  It was a fabulous show, and neither of us fell asleep during it; so all is well. :)

Today I thought I'd share with you the cards I created for a watercolor class I did this past Thursday evening.  I really enjoyed creating them, and I think the ladies enjoyed making them as well.  It's a group that I haven't seen in quite a while; so it was a joy to see them all again. :)

Here's the first one:

Stamps:  Echoes of Kindness

Papers:  Whisper White, Pacific Point Textured, Watercolor, Rockabilly Designer Series Paper

Inks:  Black Staz-On, Pacific Point, Kiwi Kiss

Accessories:  Kiwi Satin Ribbon, Water Brush, Dimensionals

I should mention that the watercoloring was all done with re-inkers and water brushes. 

Here's card #2:

This was my favorite one to watercolor...love the different colors in this one.

Stamps:  Soft Summer

Papers:  Whisper White, Tangerine Tango Textured, Watercolor, Walk in the Park Designer Series Paper

Inks:  Black Staz-On, Kiwi Kiss, Old Olive, Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Soft Sky

Accessories:  White Satin Ribbon, Water Brush, Ticket Corner Punch, Sponge Dauber, White Gel Pen, White Brads, Dimensionals

The third card is one that I posted on my blog back on Sept 11th last year.  Since you may not remember it, I'll post it here again.

This one was watercolored on regular Very Vanilla card stock.  I wanted to show them that it is possible to get good results on regular card stock...although I really do prefer to use watercolor paper.

Stamps:  Eastern Influences, Bella Toile

Inks:  Black Staz-On, Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla Craft

Papers:  Very Vanilla, Baja Breeze, Muirfield Designer Series Paper

Accessories:  Blender Pen, 2-Way Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, 1/4" Circle Punch, Crystal Effects, Coluzzle, Baja Breeze Double-Stitched Grosgrain, Vanilla Taffeta, Dimensionals

That's all for today, folks!  I have a busy day ahead of me...shopping for some summer clothes for our FL vacation, which begins on Saturday (WootWoot!), typing up some quotes in hubby's office, and working at the book fair at my daughter's school.  Oh...and the most important thing of all.... Today's my hubby's & my anniversary!!!  We're going out to dinner tonight ALONE to celebrate. {grin}  Happy anniversary, Babe! LOVE U!!!

Have a super-duper awesome day, everyone!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs~
C

World Record Inspirational Blog Hop!

 

Welcome to the weekend, friends!  Today, I'm excited to be participating in Unity's Inspirational Blog Hop.  If you haven't already, you'll want to start your hopping at Unity Stamp Co.

Here are my projects:

Okay, okay...I couldn't decide which stamp set to get inky; so I made three cards. :)

Below are close-ups of each card.  The designs are simple and similar, which is the only reason I was able to finish three of them in one evening. :)

Stamps:  Feel the Joy, Tiny Trinity, Butterfly Beauty (all Unity of course!)

Papers:  Pure Luxury White (Gina K), Co'ordinations, Lemon Tart (PTI), Mimosa Patterned Paper (SEI)

Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black, Cameo Coral, Old Olive, Soft Sky, Antique Linen Distress Ink (Tim Holtz), Copic Markers (E44, E49, Y21, Y38, RV11, RV13, G40, G82, YG63, YG67)

Accessories:  Melon Berry, New Leaf & Lemon Tart Stitched Grosgrain Ribbons (PTI), White Brads (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts), Oval & Circle Nestabilities, Scallop Edge Punch (SU), Sponge Dauber, Dimensionals

***One of my all-time favorite quotes is this one from Helen Keller:

When one door closes another opens. But often we look so long so regretfully upon the closed door that we fail to see the one that has opened for us.

Your next stop on the hop is Jen over at Fstop Memories.

Happy Hopping! :)

~Cindy 

Flourishes Friday

 
Happy Friday, Friends! :)

Today's sample is made with Flourishes Easter Blessings stamp set.  I could watercolor this image all day long.  It's just so lovely, don't you think?  I used my ink refills and a water brush to color it on some gorgeous European Watercolor Paper that you can get yourself now from the Flourishes store!

Here's the full recipe:

Stamps:  Easter Blessings

Papers:  Pure Luxury White, European Watercolor Paper

Inks:  Palette Hybrid Noir Black, Soft Sky, Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Kiwi Kiss, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip

Accessories:  Swiss Dots CuttleBug Folder, Sponge Dauber, H2O Brush, White Gel Pen, White Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals

This week Latisha issued a two-part challenge to the dt:  1) Make a clean and simple card.  2) Use ribbon.  Well, #1 was a bit of a challenge for me; but I think I accomplished it...and #2 was a no-brainer.  I'm not sure I can make a card withOUT ribbon on it. :)  Stop by the Flourishes Newsletter to see Latisha's bow-tying video and gorgeous artwork. 

Stop by the rest of the design team blogs to see their gorgeous samples:

• Christine Okken
• Faith Hofrichter
• Julie Koerber
  
• Latisha Yoast
• Laura Fredrickson
• Leslie Miller
• Stacy Morgan

Well, we've got internet connection again..thanks to a little detective work on my part.  Gosh, I've been through this so many times that I can fix my own connectivity issues now.  If I ever move to India, I'll have no trouble finding a job! haha

I've got a sick 11-year old today, poor kiddo.  It's not serious...just needs to be close to a bathroom.  Good times!  In addition, Shin-ho (our son's Korean friend) is coming back to spend the next week with us beginning tomorrow; so I need to get the guest room all gussied up for him.  My weekend is going to be jam-packed; so I need to get all of my house-cleaning done today as well.  All I really wanna do is STAMP...cuz I have some fabulous new goodies to play with.  Maybe if I'm a really good girl I'll have a little stamping time later. :)

Hope your day is fabulous!  Aren't you glad the weekend is here?

See you back here tomorrow!

Hugs~
C

When Life Has You Down

Hey everyone~

Sorry for the late post this morning...internet connection problems AGAIN!  I am, once again, sitting in a parking lot to get a connection.  I swear I'm going to move just to have another internet option!  Our one and only provider, well, BITES!  That is about as polite as I can handle for them right now.

Anyway... Today's sample was made with Sweet 'n Sassy's Elegant Blessings set.  I went with more of a cheerful look, than an elegant one with this one...kind of a stretch for me; but I like it pretty okay. :)  The sketch is from yesterday's sketch challenge over on SCS.

Here's the recipe:

Stamps: Elegant Blessings

Paper: Pure Luxury White (Gina K), Marrakech Designer Papers from Basic Grey

Ink: Rich Cocoa Memento, Soft Sky, Always Artichoke Craft

Accessories: Piercing Tools, Prima Flowers, Baja Corduroy Brad, Artichoke, Saffron & Ruby Red Brads, Sponge Dauber, Clear Rhinestones, Clear Embossing Powder, Horizontal Slot Punch, Linen Thread, White Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals

I'm teaching a watercolor class tonight with some wonderful old friends...can't wait to see 'em!  Hope you have a superduperfabuLICIOUS day! :)

See y'all tomorrow!  (maybe from a parking lot...but I'll be here..)

Hugs~
C

Sweet Ms Anna Mae

Happy Wednesday, Friends!

Have you seen Anna Mae?  Isn't she a cutie?  Today she has on her Easter bunny ears, cuz she's just soooo flippin' excited about Easter coming!  She has been hop-hop-hopping around the house and hiding stuff everywhere...  She's wearing her poor mommy right out! ;)

The images in this set are from Our Craft Lounge, and is one of their twenty eight newly released sets!  The sketch is this week's Cupcake Challenge from Taylored Expressions.  The colors are from yesterday's Color Challenge over on SCS.

Here's the full recipe:

Stamps: Hoppy Anna Mae

Paper: Pure Luxury White (Gina K), Baja Breeze Textured, Kiwi Kiss Textured, Tea Party Designer Series Paper (SU)

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Soft Sky, Copic Markers (E000, E00, E02, E31, E49, E59, R14, R20, R21, BG10, BG72, Y21)

Accessories: Oval Nestabilities, White Brads (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts), Sponge Dauber, Crocheted Flower (SU), Leaf Punch (Martha Stewart), Lacy Border Punch (Martha Stewart), Piercing Tools, Quickie Glue Pen, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, White Gel Pen, White Ric Rac, Dimensionals

Hope your day is full of JOY!  I am determined to make mine a GREAT one! :)

See y'all back here tomorrow!

Hugs~
C

Sweet Candy Favor

Happy Tuesday, Stampers! :)

Today I have a fun candy favor to share with you.  This was one of the projects I designed for a recent class.  I found some great test tube ideas on Splitcoaststampers, and played around a bit until I came up with my own template.  I used three test tubes, some textured cardstock, and 1/2 of a Gina K Large Clear Box.  I found the test tubes at SKS Bottle Company.  You need to buy them in bulk from this site; but the price is fantastic!

The top half of this photo is darker that it should be; but the bottom half shows the real color...soft and pretty. :)  I used some new goodies from SU's new Occasions Mini Catalog.  I made a cardstock insert to hold the tubes in place.

Here's the recipe:

Stamps:  Forest Friends

Papers:  Pink Pirouette Textured, Whisper White, Walk in the Park Designer Series Paper

Inks:  Baja Breeze, Pink Pirouette

Accessories:  White Organza Ribbon, 1/2 Large Clear Box (Gina K), White Jumbo Grommet, Scallop Edge Punch,3/4" Circle Punch (to hold tubes in place), Taffeta Ribbon - Pink, White & Blue, 6" Test Tubes, Pastel M&M's, Sticky Strip, Paper Shred

That's it!  Wouldn't it be fun filled with cupcake sprinkles, bath salts, jelly beans...you name it!  I'm looking forward to making these again!

Have a very happy stamping day, friends!

Thanks for stopping by! :)

Hugs~
Cindy

What a wonderful weekend!

Hey everyone~

I had an amazing time with my girlfriends at Stamp New England this weekend!  The picture above shows the six of us at dinner.  From left to right is me, Meg, Avril, Kylah, Kirsten, and Ann.  We ate at a rustic little Italian restaurant called Bella Luna, at the suggestion of Meg who had eaten there before.  Not only was the food deLISH, but we laughed so hard I nearly PIMPED (that's pee'd in my pants for those of you scratching your heads right now...).  I {heart} each one of these wonderful women...couldn't have asked for a more perfect group of friends! :)

I got to meet and spend more time with some of my cyber buddies as well...or PSF's ("pretend stamping friends") as Lauren likes to call them.

Above is a shot of the event organizers and instructors (minus Kim Schofield).  From left to right is Karen Motz, Lauren Meader, Julie Masse, me, and Joanne Basile.  What an awesome group of ladies they are!  I know that Julie, Joanne, and Kim put a LOT of time into the behind-the-scenes of making this event such a huge success!  THANK YOU SO MUCH, ladies!  You pulled it off FABULOUSLY!!!!!!

That's me with my fabulous friend, Jodi Collins (aka Kharmagirl).  She is completely adorable and a HOOT!  I had so much fun with her, as well as her friend, Ann Kranitz.  I am soooo glad they made the trek to NH for this weekend.  What a thrill and a privilege to get to hang with them!  Oh, and Jodi....I win the double-chin contest in this photo! haha

Here's one with just Lauren and I.  She is super-sweet, and incredibly talented (as you all well know!).  Lauren had a terrible gall bladder attack just before the trip; so we were very fortunate that she was able to make it!  We made the CUTEST little box in her class, which I will share with you on another day....along with all of the other awesome projects.

Those are all the pictures I have.  Several of the other girls have have promised to share their photos with me; so if there's anything else that I think you might be interested in, I will be happy to share it with you.  I am sure you can get your fill of photos from the retreat just by clicking on all of those blog links up there in my post!  If you haven't already, you will surely discover some fabulous blogs as well. :)

Now on to some stamping samples!

The above photos are of the card set I had the ladies make in my class.  The top two photos are the cards, and the bottom photo is the clear box they decorated to put the cards in.  The images are from Whipper Snapper and drawn by the fabulous Anna Wight.  I love, love, LOVE the flowers in the Blossoms and Butterflies stamp set, as well as the sentiments in the Friendly Expressions set.  The awesome clear boxes are from Gina K Designs.  I have a couple of other projects to share with you using those clear boxes...later this week.

Here's the full recipe:

Stamps:  Blossoms and Butterflies, Friendly Expressions from Whipper Snapper Designs

Papers:  Pure Luxury White Card Stock, Pink Pirouette Textured, Tangerine Tango Textured, Watercolor Paper, Mimosa Patterned Papers from SEI

Inks:  Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette, Regal Rose, Kiwi Kiss, Soft Sky, Black Staz-On, Copic Markers (RV00 &/or YR09)

Accessories:  White Organza Ribbon, White Brads from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts, Fleur de Lis Border Punch from EK Success, H2O Water Brush, Gold Glimmer Shimmerz, Petite Oval Nestabilities, Pretties Kit from SU (large & medium flowers and white large flat-backed pearl), Medium Clear Box from Gina K Designs, Medium White Envelopes from SU, Sponge Dauber, Dimensionals, Glue Dots

You'll notice that the smaller fabric flower and the organza ribbon have been dyed Tangerine.  Those were both dyed with the YR09 Copic Sketch Marker...easy and fabulous!  I also could have dyed the ribbon on my pink card using the RV00 Copic Sketch Marker, which is a perfect match to Pink Pirouette.  Copic markers are the perfect way to dye ribbons, fabric flowers, buttons...you name it...just another reason why we all need those markers!

Before I go, I want to personally thank each of the companies who sponsored Stamp New England!  There were MANY generous donors, and we are sooo grateful!  The girls who attended the event all said it felt like they were on Oprah's "My Favorite Things" show.  You can check out the list of sponsors on the Stamp NE blog.  I was the lucky recipient of some yummy Unity stamps, which I can't wait to get inky this week!  Thank you!  Thank you!  Thank you!!!

Have a super-fabulous Monday, everyone!

See you tomorrow!

Hugs~
C

 

A Boy and His Frog

Happy weekend, friends!

I am having a fabulous time with the girls on the stamping retreat!  We went to a fabulous Italian restaurant for dinner last night...got a little lost walking around looking for it; but we did get a nice walk in. ;)  Today we have several classes, including the one I'm teaching.  I'm really looking forward to a day of stamping and lots of laughter with friends!

Today's sample is made with Whipper Snapper's new Eli and Frogger image.  Isn't it CUTE?!  It reminds me of my son, Nicholas, who is always finding snakes and frogs and every imaginable creature you can think of.  He just has a sixth sense about these things.

Here's the full recipe:

Stamps:  Eli and Frogger

Papers:  Pure Luxury White, Cricket Designer Papers

Inks:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Copic Markers

Accessories:  Pacific Point Striped Ribbon, Circle Nestabilities, Curly Lable Punch, Build-a-Brads, 1/2" Punch, Dimensionals

Enjoy your weekend, everyone!  I will be back on Monday to share the projects that I am teaching in my class today...can't wait! :)

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Hugs~
Cindy

Flourishes Friday

Happy Friday, friends!

It's time for another Flourishes Friday Challenge!  This week Leslie challenged the dt members to make a card using three or more different patterns of designer paper.  Well, I {heart} designer paper; so this one was a no-brainer for me. :)

I used the Porcelain papers from Basic Grey...one for the main background, one for the wide strip panel, and one for the lacy border.  These papers are definitely my favorite papers from Basic Grey right now...so soft and pretty! 

Here's the full card recipe:

Stamps:  Signs of Spring

Papers:  Whisper White, So Saffron, Watercolor, Porcelain Designer Papers

Inks:  Palette Hybrid Noir Black, So Saffron, Certainly Celery, Old Olive, Soft Sky

Accessories:  Polka Dot Sheer White Ribbon, Circle Nestabilities, H2O Brush, Martha Stewart Lace Border Punch, Flat Back Pearls, Dimensionals

Check out Leslie's tutorial on the Flourishes Newsletter!  She is such an inspiration...incredibly talented and super-sweet too!

Stop by the rest of the design team blogs to see their gorgeous designer paper samples:

• Christine Okken
• Faith Hofrichter
• Julie Koerber
  
• Latisha Yoast
• Laura Fredrickson
• Leslie Miller
• Stacy Morgan

I'm off to the Stamp New England retreat at the Sise Inn in Porstmouth, NH today.  I am really looking forward to a fun weekend of stamping, laughing, socializing, and just general FUN!  I am teaching a class on Saturday morning, and will be sharing those projects with you on Monday morning.  I don't want to spoil the suprise for anyone at the retreat by showing the samples too early; so I'll have a different project on my blog tomorrow morning.

Hope your weekend is AWESOME!  Today is the first day of SPRING....WAHOOOOOO!!!  Those of us in the north particularly enjoy this moment...bye bye winter! :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs~
C