I'm having a Lawn Party..... my May Studio Calico projects

It's that time again!  The May kit is live and the shopping carts are at the door at Studio Calico.  Lawn Party, it's called.

I picked up Pink Lemonade and Clear Skies, but the add-on you definitely need to add to your cart this month is definitely More SC Paper.  Miss Kelly Purkey designed them for the first time and I do believe they are my favorite to date.  Then again, I'm partial to spring colors, doilies, butterflies, polkadots, and chicken wire.  But that's just me.  ;)

If More SC paper sells out, there's always the More Patterned Paper add-on. 

This month we decided to do member lifts, so I dug my way through the gallery, looking for inspiration, and came across this layout from Stila.  I later learned that this dear lady lives in Japan.  Her family is doing fine, but obviously there is a lot going on over there, so I was honored she let me lift her layout, and happy to be able to give her a shoutout.  She has some fun things in her gallery so check her out. 

This is what I came up with, based on her work:

I adore this photo.  I want to hang this photo on my wall.  The only bummer about it is that it doesn't include my youngest neice, otherwise, all the Cooper cousins would be together.  I took this photo of them just before Payton opened all her presents on her birthday.

As you can see, I am a bit obsessed with the number stamp from the main kit.  It's such a great size and such a crisp image.  I love that you could stamp it on patterned paper and would still be able to see both the image and the paper underneath. 

And you guessed it.  That's white zing.  On kraft!  White on Kraft!  I am in heaven. 

I really enjoyed the process and the art that went into this layout.  I used the Epiphany products together for buttons, (you can purchase the button accessories and use them without the tool).  I enjoyed the stamping and layering with the corrugated frames and the krafty base and the pop of color with the photo against the border of the base paper.....  ::sigh::

Check out this other fun technique with the stamp:

That's the main kit stamp plus Zing plus the Zig embossing pen.  I could have spent more time heating the powder for a smooth and even 5, but in general, I'm a huge fan of the embossing possibilities.

I love this next one, a majority of which came from the Main kit. 

I trimmed the doilies out of the SC paper.  That was the first thing I did when the kit arrived on my doorstep.  It was fun to layer them with patterned paper and filters from the main, mist them a bit, and stitch all over them.

These photos slay me.  I can't believe how much she's changed, and how obvious her personality is conveyed in the pictures. 

This last layout was made on the same day I took the photos.  I never do that, but was inspired.  It came together really fast and was fun to mix various products from the kits. 

I told you to get More SC paper, right?!  Chicken wire and easter photos and 5 and Dime tickets and ephemera.  Fun!

Lastly, a card, and SC paper again! :

SC paper and those alphas from BG were made exclusively for Studio Calico, and can only be found in the main kit. 

And that's it! 

Another fun shop item that would work with this kit?  Countryside tags.   They are springy too, which is nice.  That egg tag will be fun on an Easter layout!!!!  There are a ton of different tags in different sizes in this pack so it's a good deal and a fun embellishment to add to the stash.

Lastly, while supplies last, there is a BOGO offer (buy one, get one free) on the American Crafts precision pen sets in Brown and Black.  This is a great offer if you are into stocking up on basic supplies.  10 pens for $10.  NOT bad.  Just had to share.

Have a great night!  Davinie

Easter recap and SNEEEEEAKS

Anyone else on board with requesting an extra day for each week?  I am starting a petition.  I could really use a few these days.  I'd settle for a couple hours each day spread throughout the week.  I'm just sayin'......

I had family here last weekend to celebrate the Easter holiday.  Every year we host brunch because we have property for a proper egg hunt and it's a nice time of year to gather family we haven't seen since Christmas.  We had a lot of fun and the weather even held out one more day so that the girls could enjoy the outdoors with their cousins and friends.

The Easter bunny brought them sparkly Converse shoes and hoola hoops. They also got nets and little containers for catching polliwogs and other fun creatures now that the irrigation water has been turned on for the year. 

Good times!

I realize I'm getting further and further behind in keeping this blog from getting old and moldy, but I'm just still having a hard time getting organized.  Instead of working at home part-time as I have been for the last 8 years, I've been working in the office instead, and it's been taking some adjustment.  I'll get it sorted out eventually!  At least, I hope!  :)

That said, I came, I saw, I played, and have some Studio Calico sneaks to share:

Things to note:

You want MORE SC PAPER.  You do.  There are some nice shots of it in my last two peeks.  Really delicious stuff, my favorite SC paper to date.

White Zing.  That stamp in the main kit requires it.  You will want some.  Don't forget the ink pad!

Epiphany Crafts.  The vintage settings in #4, Clear Skies was made for the tools but you don't have to use them.  I used the smaller 14mm buttons and the punch for my sneak above, but you can also use other embellies in the kit, as shown in my other sneak. 

And that's it!  Reveal is on the 27th, and shop items will be loaded in the store at 12pm EST (that's 9am my time, woot!).  I'll be back with my projects on Wednesday night!

Have a great day!  Davinie

a winner and a sneak

Good Monday morning!
The sun is out, a great weekend was had, and now it's time for another week. 
I was blown away by the comments for the Studio Calico blog hop, and pleasantly surprised by the number of new misters who landed here.  I am SO glad you did!  Thank you for all your encouraging words!  Here's my winner:

Sarah said...



I love misting and I can't wait to go try that technique! I just LOVE how you stitched around the white butterfly for dimension! Thanks for the inspiration, and the chance to win!
12:27 PM

Congratulations Sarah!  Email me at cooperdees (at) yahoo (dot) com and I'll get you in touch with Christine for your 2 bottles of mist. 

Thank you so much for playing along!

Now I've got to get back to my to do list, but first I wanted to share a wee peek of what I've been working on:

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This was made entirely with the May main kit from Studio Calico (plus a little bit of lemonade Mister Huey on my filter - FYI - the new mists are not in the Mister Huey section of the shop.  They are in with the collection they were created for, Countryside or State Fair.  Lemonade is a State Fair mist). 
 
Have a great day!  I'll see you back here soon.
 
Davinie

It's Friday

(Studio Calico blog hop in the last post).

Payton had her Spring Tea yesterday.  I've gone to Spring teas every year the last three years and this was my fourth.  It was the same things... a program, a flower in a vase, a print, a self-portrait, but this one was more special than the rest. 

It's the last one.

No more preschool Spring teas after this.

Is it odd to break out into tears during a school wide singalong of "you are my sunshine?"  Because after they sang the song with sign language, sang "You are my Mommy" and "You are my Daddy" versions, and then the parents were asked to chime in on one last run through, my waterproof mascara almost gave out. 

And then her teacher asked if she could skip Kindergarten and spend another year at preschool, and I wanted to go home and make a baby right then just to drag it out.  heeee. 

Oh my. 

I'm just wondering if this feeling is totally normal?  We are done having kids.  If I had another one there would be more than a 6 year gap!  I can't do that!  We are trying to renovate!  We don't have a bedroom for any more babies!  I don't want to be an old lady before the kids are in public school.  Right?  I just want to know if these feelings are totally normal.  Tell me it is.  :)

Of course *my* kid had the best self-portrait in the class.  Every mama thinks that about their kid, right?  And look at Payton.  She drew herself with the former class pet rat Marshmallow on her shoulder (Marshmallow, may he rest in peace). 

Even Daddy was able to come to this tea.  He came last year too which was wonderful.  I'm so glad he was there to share this with me one last time. 

::sigh:: 

OH.  A couple of things.  What do you do when you have a recycled bottle decorated with washable paint as a faux vase?  I have had 3 of these and they have never lasted, because inevitably, a small child decides to use it as a REAL vase and the artwork washes off.

You use....  are you ready?  Wait for it, wait for it.....  SUPER SEAL.  Voila!  For Pete's Sake!  A miracle!

We used to sell Super Seal at Studio Calico, but I don't know where you can find it now.  If you have it, though, I found another great use for it.  Preserve kiddo projects!  I am so happy to have figured this out before this gift was damaged.  It's an aerosol protectant sealant spray.  I hope it lasts a long long time.  We still have paper face daffodils here and there around the house. 

And what do you think of Payton's dress?  I got my order from Zulily and am totally happy with the quality of the goods.  This dress has a curdoroy feel to it.  Just love it.  I'm still a weeee bit obsessed with the site.  I think I've ordered 3 times since that first order?  Earlier this week I bought something for ME even.  Board shorts to cover up my lily white tush in the hot summer sun.  heee.  $13.99!  I think there are some great deals and it's nice to have something besides Old Navy and the Children's Place, and Target, and JC Penney, etc., so if you are like me and have limited places to shop, OR are like me and love to browse from home, check out Zulily.  They have daily deals. 

Ooh.  Another great place to shop?  Down East Basics.  I'm sorry, but my small children took any mammary my glands possessed, so I was really excited to get the Spring catalog with some swimming suit options that actually looked like my body type.  I got this top.  I also got this dress, because it's super cute! 

Anyway.....  believe it or not, but with the arctic winds and occasional hailstorm during this Oregon spring, the Fiero clan is headed to the hills to camp our lives away.  Lucky for me, I have a trailer with a generator, so I may or may not be inside it, heater on, music blaring (or maybe it'll just be kids yelling), and a fruity beverage in hand.  All weekend.  Hopefully the sun comes out so I can kick the kids out though.  ha! 

Note to self:  You have two children, but one of them spends a lot of time at this place called school.  Get some photos of Morgan this weekend. 

Enjoy your day!  Davinie

Countryside and State Fair Blog Hop with Studio Calico!

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Hello Friends!  It's that time again!  State Fair and Countryside are available at Studio Calico, and to celebrate, we are having a blog hop to share some of the fun things you can do with these products.  You may have landed here from Celine's blog.  Maybe you came from the Studio Calico blog.  Maybe you were googling DaVinci.....  either way, Hello there! 

I made a layout for the hop and mainly used the Countryside line:

If you are able to get to any of the CKC events this summer, one of the classes being taught is a misting class offering several different fun misting techniques to try.  One of them is masking and I've done so in a couple of ways on this layout.

First I placed a butterfly shape on white cardstock and misted with Lemonade Mister Huey.  Then I hand stitched around the perimeter to help it stand out.  Doesn't that look fun?  I've used this technique before and need to do it more often because it's such an easy way to make a big impact.

After misting with Lemonade, I took Bonny blue and the negative chipboard piece from the butterfly, arranged cardstock to keep blue off the rest of the layout, and misted the inside of the shape.

This layout also has pink fabrips, label stickers, some State Fair, and some Studio Calico chipboard alphas. 

Because it's a blog hop it means I can give away some Studio Calico goodies.  It was tough to decide, but in the spirit of my layout and the recent CKC event in Portland, I'm going to give away two bottles of mist.  I used Lemonade and Bonny Blue on this layout, but if you leave a comment on this post and are a lucky winner, you can choose any two Mister Huey's you'd like to add to your stash.  Sound good?  White always sells out first at the CKC events, if you are new to misting and am not sure what to try.  My other suggestion would be light colors like Lemonade, until you are more comfortable with misting. 

I'll be drawing a winner on Monday the 18th.  Good luck!

Okay, head on down the list, next stop, Emily Pitts, for more Studio Calico inspiration and an opportunity to win more SC goodies.

Have a great day!  Up next....  SNEAKS.  Oh, and make sure you leave a comment on the SC blog for the Sneak night giveaway....  it's Crate Paper!  


Davinie

Crate Love - Baby All Gone

My poor little neglected blog needed a little Crate paper love.

On the days leading up to Payton's 5th birthday, I asked her several times what gift she thought she'd like to have.  She mentioned DRUMS  (hahahahaha, NO WAY), and she kept asking for Baby All Gone, one of the Baby Alive dolls.  Oh my.

First of all, I thought she was a bit old to be asking for dolls.  My kids don't really play with dolls anyway.  5 seems old to start.  But then I reminded myself it was her birthday, and she wants what she wants when she wants it......  so when Grandma and Grandpa called and asked for suggestions, that's what I gave them.  They delivered.

Payton was really excited to get her baby girl.  In the end, though, I think she was fooled by the "magic" of disappearing bananas more than the idea of motherhood.  What cracks me up is the amount of talking this baby does.  The poor thing is starving to death!  What's also funny is Payton's reaction to her baby.  When she's done feeding her, she will hide her away so she doesn't have to listen to her anymore.  Oh, the luxury.  heeee.

I decided to mix a few of my favorite Crate products for this layout, and this is what I came up with:

Supplies: 

Crate Paper's Toy Box paper   (the woodgrain, alpha paper as base)

Crate Paper's Neighborhood paper, (blue dot, yellow stripe) border stickers, chipboard house, brad

Pink Paislee's Hometown Summer (pink gingham paper)

American Crafts thicker alphas

Basic Grey sticker alphas

Studio Calico bee stamp

Fiskars tag punch

Versamark watermark ink  (2peas - Studio Calico)

American Crafts white zing  (2peas - Studio Calico)

Uniball Signo pen um-153  (Jetpens)

Order a zillion of those pens, will you?  Jet Pens is located in Japan.

I just adore white.  My favorite Mister Huey is white, and my favorite Zing is white.  I'm also a fan of the white Uniball Signo pen.  A girl needs quality basics in her crafting wardrobe don't you know.

I also think that bee stamp is delicious.

I had fun with the design on this layout, thinking some big clouds would be neat to trim and pair with my little chipboard house and that picket fence border sticker, and that a feeling of home would go with my girl and her baby doll who she named....  Baby All Gone. 

Have a great day!  I'll be back TOMORROW with something exciting to share!  Be sure to check in for some fun!  ;)

Davinie

Babble

I'm a wee bit obsessed with barns, and have been wanting a print for my living room, but just haven't stumbled upon what I was looking for until I came across this print while pinning the other day.  Oh my word, I am in heaven with this woman's work.  I am going to have to think long and hard about what to purchase and may or may not purchase more than one print.  I think these are just heavenly.  Mystical and serene, a touch of whimsy, a bit country.  LOVE.  Love the birds on the wire.  Love the post processing.  I'm a huge fan.  I hope I can get it in super size because 11x17 will not be big enough!  :)

When I was in Portland for CKC a few weeks ago, a trip to Ikea was also on the list ( in addition to Pier 1, and the dreaded Chuck. E. Cheese.  bleck).  While there I purchased a 4x4 Expedit in white for my living room.  I chose white because it really brightened up the place.  The plan is to open up our kitchen/ living area upstairs to one big common room, and I want my kitchen to have white cabinets and granite countertops, so they will all match.  I didn't care for the baskets at Ikea, so I'm going to keep shopping, maybe at Target, but think I made the right move, getting the shelving.  I had a heck of a time fitting the packages in my car, though.  Good thing I have an SUV!  And I had to laugh when KP got in the car and said, "I thought it smelled like Ikea in here".   ha!

Other than some home improvements we've got going on at the house, it's been work, work, work.  Oh, we did surprise the girls with a great big trampoline for our backyard last weekend, and they practically moved in.  I can already tell that it was worth the purchase.  It's going to be such a great addition to the backyard for the summertime.  I don't foresee a lot of "I'm bored!" comments now that we have this! 

This weekend we are going camping for the first time in 2011 (well, except the night we had to sleep in our trailer when the power went out for 26 hours, anyway).  We are going to load up our 4wheeler and head to the hills with friends.  I've never camped like this before, but I'm sure my girls will love it.  It's actually nice to get away from the house for a while, so I'm actually looking forward to it.  Something must have happened to me this year because in years past, while I'm always glad to go, I also have a bit of dread when we camp.  Not this time though.  Maybe it's because I see the girls losing their baby faces, and want to make sure they have a lot of fun family experiences to cherish, times when electronics and distractions like the television don't interfere.  That might be it.

I'll be back before I go, though.  Sneaks are this week and I've already been playing with my Studio Calico May Kit.  I also have some Crate Paper to share. 

Davinie

Project 12 March in April

Hello ladies!

In an attempt to make things a wee bit easier, at least for a short while, I'm going to post the challenge without including some of my favorite layouts.

I LOVE looking through all the comments and will continue to do that, but I am getting overwhelmed with some of my to do lists in real life, and in an effort to keep on track with posting the challenge as well as my layout, until I have things organized, I'm changing it up a bit.  Focus was my word for 2011, and a to do list is in order in an effort to make things a little less hectic.

I hope you understand and I hope to be back on track soon! 

February was a stinker of a month because my birthday was looming at the end of it, lol, but I still managed to have many fun things to document.

As a reminder, here's what Becky's sketch for February looked like:

and this is what I came up with:

I needed a new headshot, so decided to include it on this layout in order to avoid the guilt from not doing an about me layout.  ha!  I actually do need to do more of those, but now is not the time.

See that cake?  Those cakes?  All the candles?  My kids felt I needed a double helping in order to reach the appropriate number.  sigh....  I changed the sketch a bit in order to better tell my story with an extra photo, and I shuffled embellishments a bit. 

This layout was made with the April kit from Studio Calico.  I still had it sitting out, and a monthly kit turned out to be a perfect idea for creating this layout, as the kit and the timeframe will be, at least for me, appropriately themed in colors and embellishments.  ish. 

I have no shame in admitting that I completely stole the journaling idea from ShellyJ, a frequent contributor, and plan to do that again.  I just love how it looks and it was a great way to do the choppy journaling that comes from highlighting unrelated events.  Because of these journaling spots, I turned up the edges outside my stitching around my whole layout, and I love how that looks.

I'm working through the comments from this sketch and love the different interpretations I've seen, the use of white space, filling it in with extra photos...  I love how a sketch can take you somewhere else.

With that in mind, check out the March sketch:

Embellishing this one shall be fun! 

As always, you have until the 28th of April to link your layouts to this post for a chance at a prize.  I hope you are checking the SCT blog to see if you have won on previous months.  If you are a winner, and haven't contacted SCT or received your prize yet, can you send me an email at cooperdees (at) yahoo.com ?  I just want to make sure all winners get their goodies.  You deserve it!  I appreciate you!

Take care!  I'll see you back here soon.  Off to comment in a more timely fashion.  ;)   Davinie

Five on Friday

I'm actually posting today.  No foolin'.  I've got a mixed bag of things to update and relate, so let's see if i can keep it at five, lol.

1.  Cardmaps!  Your enthusiasm is contagious.  I'm so happy you are excited about this publication.  It's card sketches, but the whole issue is so inspiring you'll feel like making layouts and altered projects with it too.  The winner of the Cardmaps publication is:

Carole Stirrat said...
Darling card and your grid of trims is genious, love it!!
8:16 AM

Congratulations Carole!  Email me at cooperdees (at) yahoo.com and I'll get you that issue plus a few goodies from me.  :)

You can pick up that issue of Cardmaps and download the Spring issue of Scrapbook and Cards Today here if you are still interested in checking it out. 

I did want to share one of my projects from the Spring issue on this post.  I used a bunch of Studio Calico goodies on this one:

 
 
 Hand cut butterflies.  Basket weaving.  Flowers.  ::sigh::  It just feels like spring. 

Speaking of SCT, I hope you've been landing on their blog this week to enter for prizes.  They are giving a prize away today that I'm really curious about.  It's called a Picture Keeper.  Have a jump drive sized photo storage is VERY appealing to me.  You can comment on the blog for one chance, and you can get a second chance at one of those via their Facebook page.  good luck!
 
2.  Studio Calico.  The newsletter went out last night, but just wanted to send and FYI that
Documentary is on it's final sale.  50% off and when it's gone, it's gone.  You can never have too many label stickers and journaling cards, can you?

Zing has been restocked too.  That darn Studio Calico and their enabling.  I used to emboss prior to scrapbooking and all the hype is inspiring me to break out my heating tool.  I'm all for white and clear to add dimension, I think.  I have the clear but white was sold out the last time I peeked.  hmmm.....

Epiphany Crafts and the WRMK Sew Easy tool.  Hard to find?  It's in the Supply section. 

Lastly, remember, if you are a subscriber at Studio Calico or have recently placed an order, you have till the 3rd to add to your cart for the flat rate shipping fee, and then the kits are on their way. :)

3.  Sketchbook 3 starts Monday!  I had a lot of fun with my layout.  I still can't believe KP asked me to be part of this class, especially when I go down the list of contributors.  Wow.  I hope you'll check out this inspiring class!  Here's a sneak peek of my work.  You'll only see the whole thing if you take the class:

 
 
 
 















For some reason, the straight stitch head on my Sew Easy tool has disappeared.  Luckily, I hand stitch anyway, so I took care of it freehand.  My stitches aren't perfectly spaced, but I'm not perfect either, so we are happy together.  lol.  That said, that tool would have made this layout come together much faster than what I did instead.  Also?  Note to self:  don't use a piercing tool and attempt to make straight lines while working on a layout and watching Black Swan On Demand.  Holy WOW.  That was not what I was expecting.  Did I mention Steve was on shift so I was downstairs watching it by myself at about 11pm?  Oh dear.

4.  Got Spring Fever???? 

If you check out the Crate Paper blog today you will see some fun Spring inspired projects.  You'll also have a chance to leave a comment and win some new product.  If you don't have the new Crate you are missing out, so jet on over there and leave your digits.  :)  I didn't have time to create a project for this hop, but will have something springy to post this weekend so be sure to check back. 

5. Lastly, it's number 5.  She's 5.  I have a 5 year old.  My youngest.....  is five.  It is almost too much to fathom, lol. 

She's almost finished with preschool, and then it will be public school and Kindergarten in the fall.  No more preschool playdates.  No more Mrs Rau and Mrs Wilber and the weather person and the pet feeder and the hungry caterpillar and Marshmallow the Rat.  She was antsy the night before and didn't sleep well, so woke up on her birthday morning with a room filled with balloons and her mama whispering the birthday song in her ear.  When her eye's opened I asked her how she felt and she responded with "taller".  So we had to get out the chart and sure enough, she may be taller at 5 than Morgan was at 5.  WAH. 

I'm terrible about uploading videos on YouTube, but I did find a couple:

Reading @2 - actually, she had this book memorized, and if dad had started at the beginning, she would have been able to tell the whole story:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8xT9gLKFTc

Payton's 2nd birthday.  This video slays me because of Morgan crying and throwing a fit.  Payton does that NOW.  It's comforting to know she'll eventually grow out of it because Morgan certainly has:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWfAYf4SvFY&NR=1


What do you get for a 5 year old girl on her birthday?  For some silly reason, she decided she wanted this:

Baby. All Gone.  Commit me now.  This baby spends all day saying "I'm thirsty", "I'm hungy", "I love bananas" and it just drives me nuts, but what cracks me up is that it also drives Payton nuts.  HA!  Now she knows what it feels like for Mom's to be harassed all day for snacks!  She'll stop mid-meal and say she's done with her, and then grabs her by the leg, drags her to her room, wraps her up and leaves her there.  oh my.  I can't wait for this kid to have kids of her own someday.  heeeeeee.  SWEET revenge.  love her.

I did ask her what she wanted to name her baby and she looked at me like I was crazy and said, a bit sarcastically, "um, Baby All Gone".  uh.  Okay.  :)

I hope you have a great day!  It's the first which means a new month for Project 12, and I'll be back with the new challenge in just a bit. 

Davinie