Annual Dirty Santa

What a wonderful way to spend a Saturday!  The Ink Demos annual Dirty Santa gift exchange was this past Saturday.  This is my favorite event of the year.  Not only do I get to visit with a fabulous group of creative women, but I also get to see their talents!  This year our gift exchange ended up being exclusively Christmas decorations - which were ALL beautiful. 

My contribution was  this Christmas tree made out of an old Stampin' Up catalog.  A little glue, a little spray paint, A LOT of giltter, some ribbon........And I even figured out how to use our Heat and Stick powder to adhere the glitter to the center of my star.......I feel very accomplished having done this.

 

Happy Stamping!  Have a wonderful week!

Joyfully & Stampfully, 

Angi Lay

#12 - Ornamental Greens

This week Color Me Beautiful! has a combination of green hues to inspire and challenge every stamper.  I started to do a Christmas theme, but decided that I wanted to use the Postage Due (item # 126397) stamp set since I hadn't used it more than once. 

I have fallen in love with this color combination - which caught me by surprise.  I have a hard time with green's most days, but this particular combination of Lucky Limeade, Certainly Celery, and Old Olive really work well together.  Adding the Soft Suede and Sahara Sand really gave the final layout a sense of balance. 

I used the One in a Million (#126382) stamp set for the greeting on the inside, and the Memorable Moments (#126682) stamp set for the birthday/anniversary wish on the front of the card.  The Memorable Moments stamp set works well with the clear mount because the "Happy" stamp can be mounted on the same block with the "Birthday" or "Anniversary" stamp.  This allows you to line up the greeting and stamp it together, which greatly increases your chances of stamping it straight! Well, at least for me.  I normally use my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig® when stamping greetings, because I am a natural "crooked" stamper.  I actually didn't have to use it this time because I was able to line the text up on the block.

What do you think about this color combination?  I would love to see your own creation, so be sure to post your project to the Color Me Beautiful! Challenge blog by next Thursday.

Thank you to everyone who came to class today!  I am having fun with my new bow maker, and I hope you are too!

 

 If you missed out on class and want to know more about this fun tool that will change your perspective on tying bows, stay tuned for a video following Thanksgiving.

Give Thanks, for the day is good and our God is in control.  May your week be filled with blessings and gratitude fill your heart.

Joyfully,

Angi

Black Friday Shopper?

Admittedly, I am not a "shopper".  I do enjoy spending time with friends browsing stores, but only because of the company and the time spent together. 

I'm going to try something a little different this year with my stamping friends!  Stampin' Up! has an Online Extravaganza this year offering discounts up to 50% off!  But, if you're like me, sometimes shopping online can be a BORING event......it's much better to shop with friends.  And how about throwing in a little project and free gift with purchase? 

Join me on November 27th for a come and go event from 5 - 8 pm to celebrate the start of the Christmas season, and to take advantage of the Online Extravaganza!

Ink-Redible!

What a wonderful way to kick off November and December!  A free collection of ink pads (that's 10 colors), when you host a qualifying workshop or join my team.  That's a deal!

And, I'm also excited to announce the new Stampin' Trimmer is available to order! I've been using this trimmer for 2 weeks now, and I love it! It's not too big, and not too small!  It's also more stable and allows me to keep my scoring and cutting blades on at the same time.

Not enough excitement for you?  Then try this on for size!  FREE DIGITAL Downloads this week!  I've become a big fan of the digital scrapbooking world....and I was thrilled when I found out there were free downloads!  Haven't tried this yet?  Just go to my website ( Blue Gale Studios )and download the free trial!

A Little Love

This time of year is full of birthdays and anniversaries for our family.   I will be celbrating my own 5 year anniversary this year with my wonderful husband, Nate, in November.  It always makes me relfect on how blessed I feel, how glad I am that he challenges me, and how very thankful that I get to spend my life with him.

Inspired by my overwhelming feeling of greatfulness and love during this time of year, I just couldn't help but make a simple but sweet card for a newly married couple (or even for an anniversary).  Of course, I'm in the process of coming up with something extra special for Nate - but I'll have to wait and share that after I give it to him.

And, of course I really can't resist sharing a little picture of my helper.  Did you know the Big Shot doubles as a stool?  Kaia definitely loves to "ink" with me, and I enjoy sharing my space with her. Obviosuly, she is still learning the tricks of the trade.....but maybe in a month or two she'll learn to turn the "wheel" on the Big Shot instead of sitting on it! Henestly though, how can I not smile at her when she gives me this look........

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One-Step Watercolor

Just to prepare you - this is my first attempt at creating a technique video.  It's imperfect in every way, but I did enjoy the process and learned along the way!

This video focuses on a watercolor technique for the non-artist.  It's a simple way to create that watercolor effect without investing too much time. And for the busy mom, you'll hear in this video I had a little help along the way.

Thanks for joining, and I welcome your comments!

Happy Stamping!

A parade time

There may be times when I am weary - but the effort is always worth it for these little smiles.  Homecoming week for Choctaw High School included  a parade on Thursday night.  Since my oldest is in the marching band, I took Dorian and Kaia to see her march in the parade.

It was a fun, but tiring time.  We parked a 1/2 mile from the school to watch the parade, and then had to walk to the school to find Rene after it was over.  By the end of the evening, Dorian and Kaia had walked nearly a mile!  Their little legs held up well, and even though we didn't eat dinner until after the parade they were perfectly content with a few pieces of parade candy.  (As you can see in the picture, Kaia enjoyed the Tootsie Rolls the best! She thought they were gum......)

My beautiful children - I feel so blessed.  Some days may be challenging, but well worth the energy.

Color Me Beautiful Challenge #7

If you haven't had the opportunity to look at this challenge series, you are missing out!  Connie Stewart, a fellow demonstrator, is part of the design team for this challenge.  This week, I had a little extra time (amazing!), and was so inspired by this color combo, that I just had to participate!

This card uses a watercolor technique using markers, water color paper, and a light misting of water.  I love the effect this created......I'll be posting a technique video later in the week on how to create this card, so check back in a few days.

I hope you enjoy this card.  To see more bout the challenge, please visit the Color Me Beautiful blog at http://colormebeautifulchallenge.blogspot.com/

Thanks for sharing the challenge, Connie!

New Events!

Looking for something fun to do? 

Join me at my stamping table on October 23rd from 6 pm to 8 pm.  This class will feature Embellishing How To's to get your creative juices flowing.  Fast and Easy ways to step up that card that you just feel "Needs a little something more.....".

OR

Join me for the Annual Choctaw Early Learning Center Stamp-A-Stack Fundraiser on November 3rd.  This event will include 15 All-Purpose Greeting Cards.

Pre-K Already? A scrapbook day.

It is certainly a challenge to keep my scrapbooks updated, but I'm determined!  With my middle child, Dorian, starting Pre-K this year, I've made myself a promise that I would try to "pre-scrap" big events (like his first day of Pre-K).  Now when I take those precious photos, I have a place to put them.  In the digital age, it is so easy to leave them on my computer, but I do prefer having something to hold. 

A few tips and tricks

1. To create a photo mat, cut the mat 1/2 inch larger than the photo.  This gives a 1/4 inch border around the photo.  To create a double mat, cut the second mat 1 inch larger than the photo.  This method works nicely to create a 5 x 7 space for a 4 x 6 photo.

2.  Keep it simple.  When cutting your photo mats, use a stampin' write marker to indicate the size photograph that can be placed on the mat.  This allows you to create layouts with different size photos without having to remember or re-measure the space when you are ready to mount your photos.

Going, Going, Gone!!

This time of year with Stampin' Up is bitter-sweet!  I am excited about the new catalog that will come out in June, but I am also going to miss my favorite stamps that are retiring! 

If there is a stamp set you have had your eye on, don't miss out.  Give me a call to place your order, or simply order from my online store.  To see the full list of retiring stamps, follow this link:

Going, Going, GONE!


Happy Stamping!

Angi

Blessings

My pretty Kaia on Easter Sunday.  I can't believe she is already 18 months old.