I have mentioned that I have been visiting scrapbook stores as we trek across Canada. It's almost like a quest. We will arrive in a new city at night, I will sit down with my computer and type: Scrapbook store *Quebec City (or wherever I am..) and I will usually get a bunch of hits. Today's discovery was unexpected. I was shopping in Quebec City in "Upper Town" and I came across this cute jewelery store where I immediately noticed  she had some Ketto magnets and a few other things and I gasped! I was like, "is Ketto in Quebec City??" and the girl said yes, it's just down the road!! I had my new quest, and these are my findings.. (If you are wondering "Who is Ketto??" it is a line of t-shirts, jewelery, mugs, dishes etc etc that are hand painted, and the images were recently transformed into rubber stamps in conjuction with Stamping Bella. I have a bunch of Kettos and I love them.)

Thought I would share some highlights with you! It's been a good trip so far, EXCEPT for all those dang thunderstorms that keep following us through the mid-west and into Canada. We're done with the rain, thanx!

So I'm on my honeymoon driving across Canada/US and OFCOURSE I have to hit as many stamp/scrapbook stores as I can. A friend was joking that I should put a cross-Canada tour together of all my favourite spots to shop.. That would be fun, eh?! So while in Calgary I picked up a couple of Unity stamp sets, and let me tell you, I'm in love! They were a little expensive, but I was impressed by how many stamps I got in a set and the quality of the stamps/foam. So here are a couple cards I made for this week's challenge to use Pink Paislee or October Afternoon paper for our Jacksonbelle DT challenge (I used october afternoon papers):

Well here's my last post as an Elzybells DT member.. I saved my favourite card for last. I'm not gonna lie, it took me a long time to colour. Like the surfboard card the other day I took some liberties with the background to create a scene.



Go to the shop to check out THE NEW STAMPS and you'll see how they are in their original form, and how easy it is to take a simple black pen and completely transform how the two stamps look together. Here's the finished card:

• Angel Rivera
  
• Charlene Austin
  
• Deborah Southard
  
• Frances Byrne
  
• Jeanne Streiff
  
• Kim Fee
  
• Maria Adams
  
• Michelle Short
  
• Rachel Hope Baird
  
• Stephanie Mayne

This is a Clean and Simple card using a Wave image in the background. I stamped it in Versamark. It works really well on kraft cardstock..

• Stephanie Mayne
• Rachel Hope Baird
• Michelle Short
• Maria Adams
• Kim Fee
• Jeanne Streiff
• Frances Byrne
• Debi Southard
• Charlene Austin
• Angel Rivera 
• Elzybells Blog

I am really excited about this card. I just wanted to show you the process I went through to get to the final result.

I don't really have a fear of drawing on my stamped area and adding a little "this or that." I'm not a great artist, by any stretch of the imagination, but I think adding a line here or there can really give your images context. For example:

• Stephanie Mayne
• Rachel Hope Baird
• Michelle Short
• Maria Adams
• Kim Fee
• Jeanne Streiff
• Frances Byrne
• Debi Southard
• Charlene Austin
• Angel Rivera 
• Elzybells Blog

As part of the welcome package for the Jacksonbelle DT I got this super cute Stampavie image. Isn't she cute?? I love colouring images like this because it almost makes you feel like an artist or a painter. I paired here with some vinategey Pink Paislee papers.

I spent a longer-than-usual time on her skin trying to make her look as human as possible by using a combo of E00, E02 and R02 to create that ruddy look on her face and body..

This week's challenge is a sketch which you can check out at the Jacksonbelle blog, and here's the finished product:

Other products used: "Happy Birthday" stamp by Amuse; Bazzill and Papertrey papers.

This is the first day of my last sneak peek with Elzybells. :( It's been a really fun year and I've learned so much from the other DT gals. 5 girls will be continuing their assignment, and I will be enjoying the Elzybells as a customer now! Elizabeth has been a great "boss" and I hope her company continues to flourish. (I'm especially hoping it will flourish in North America VERY soon, haha...)

Here's my first card:


He's really pasty-white, but I don't have a tan skin colour that isn't brown-looking. So white he is. It's his first day out boarding, ok?? I used Koh-I-Noor and Derwent pencils with Gamsol. Here's how I store the Gamsol for use with my crafting:


I found the container I bought the Gamsol in was very messy when I tried to pour it in my tea-light holder which I use as my "dish" so I found an extra M.A.C. (makeup) bottle hanging around and voila! They have a flip-top and small hole on the top so now I have no more messy, stinky spills. Most M.A.C. stores have the bottles shown and they're fairly inexpensive, but any travel-size bottle would do.

• Stephanie Mayne
• Rachel Hope Baird
• Michelle Short
• Maria Adams
• Kim Fee
• Jeanne Streiff
• Frances Byrne
• Debi Southard
• Charlene Austin
• Angel Rivera 
• Elzybells Blog
  

Here are some pictures of a mini book I made for our trip across Canada (and some of the US). We left on the 17th and right now we are outside of Calgary, Alberta. Tomorrow we are driving the longest drive of the trip, 13 hours to Winnipeg, Manitoba. Yikes!!! We are going all the way to the east coast of Canada, with the ultimate destination being Cape Breton Island! Did you know they have a special menu item at the McDonalds there called the McLobster!! MADE WITH REAL LOBSTER!!! Hello! I am SO there.. anyway.. on to the mini book:


Everything in this book is made with Little Yellow Bicycle papers and stickers except: some Bazzill papers, American Craft Thickers, Basic Grey Chipboard (tabs) and a little help from my Bind-it-all..

Here's the story:

Everyone assumed I would do something musical for the wedding and all along I was like, "I don't think so" mostly because if I had to sing at my own wedding it would be a blubber-fest, so I brushed the idea off. The music we had planned for the wedding was by no means generic, we had a bagpiper walk the wedding party in, and the choir I directed last year sang during the signing of the register and the recessional, but we did not have a song for me and my father to walk down the aisle to..

I brainstormed ideas and sang through hundreds of songs until one day I was thumbing through my "Book" (the book of songs I regularly perform all organized by set and in my key etc...) and I came across a song by Jann Arden called, "Ode To a Friend" that I have sung many times. I sang it again, this time with Ian as my 'motivation' and voila! By the end of the song I was in tears exclaiming I FOUND THE SONG!! I decided right then and there that this would be a secret. I would record it in secret at my friend's studio, play a mock song during the rehearsal dinner, and the first time he would hear it was going to be at the ceremony.

Let's just say there was not a dry eye in the house, including mine. How stupid of me to record a song that is so dear to my heart and make me cry all the way to the altar. I was supposed to be beautiful, and instead I was trying to wipe away the tears without totally screwing up my makeup.. I don't think I smiled ONCE walking with my father. haha.. oh well.

So you want to hear it? ok. Ode To a Friend.

p.s. If you have a Myspace account you can download it..

This week it's a sketch challenge (everybody's favourite!). We would love for you to play along, and if you do please link it here (the Jacksonbelle Blog..) Here's the sketch:

If you're going to upload to SCS or your other favourite site, please include the keyword JBE062 (not 61 as listed...) so we can all see!

This is such an easy sketch to incorporate into any project, so I decided to make my Guest Book for the wedding using this sketch. I love how it turned out, and the guests loved it too!

Here's my favourite element:







And here's the inside of the back cover. Times like these I don't regret buying the Bind-it-All!


Supplies: Stamps: October Afternoon, heidi swapp date stamp; Paper: Bazzill, Prism, Making Memories Transpareny, other patterned paper that I've cut up and can no longer remember.....; Ink: Versamagic (Charcoal); May Arts Ribbon; Bind-it-all machine and coils, American Crafts Thickers, Slice.

**Remember to check out the Daisy D sale items at the Jacksonbelle store
**Check out the rest of the design team's challenge stuff on my sidebar --------------------------------> 

Today's Clean and Simple challenge was to choose a piece of art from www.art.com and use it as an inspiration piece.

I just bought an elephant baby stamp from the AMuse store, so I went looking in the Elephant category and found this adorable scene. I copied it! haha..

















I got most of my collection in the bucket, and when I counted there were about 160 markers in there. None of my browns and blenders made it in, but I was pretty happy that all of my colours fit EXACTLY, as in, I don't have more room for new markers, so I guess that means I'm set! haha..

Take care!

So you all remember the Martha Stewart cover that inspired this card, and then inspired my student to make that card for me etc etc etc...  Well we got that exact wedding cake!!! And I'm not saying this just because it was my cake, it was the best cake I've ever had. Chocolate cake with mint icing on the bottom, carrot cake with cream cheese buttercream in the middle, and creme brule cake with hazelnut buttercream on top.