3rd Birthday Card with Copics & * Process Video *

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Ok, this is my first Copic coloring video and I am still really learning 
but I had my video camera on, so I figured I might as well post it!  

The main image is a stamp from Stamping Bella called, appropriately, 
"The Birthday Boy" and the 'No. 3' stamp is from Glitz.
Patterned papers from American Crafts Dear Lizzy & Studio Calico.

Copic Process Video


I have a long way to go, but practice makes...well, the need for more practice & markers! :)
Thanks for watching!!

Elle's Studio March * SNEAKS *

Thursday, February 28, 2013

A couple sneakies from the March DT Gallery at Elle's Studio!
A little behind this month since I just realized a couple days ago 
that February is in fact the shortest month!!  oops...
Check out the website HERE for new Gallery projects from myself 
and the rest of the DT in the morning and back here for more!
Have a great day!


Slurp! * and process VIDEO *

Saturday, February 23, 2013


I wanted to scrap these cute photos of my niece from lunch one day...
More importantly, at the KID'S table...love the kid's table, it is awesome
that all our kids are old enough now to be on their own and even
MORE importantly, that the adults can be on their own! ;)
Or at least for the 4 minutes that occur between someone asking for a
refill, or a napkin, or their dropped something, etc.

Anyway, I also did a Start to Finish video seen here or on my YouTube Channel:


I was inspired by the colors of my niece's shirt and some of the new products
in the Scrapbook Circle kit for February...love the papers!  I feel like I have
been using lots of chevron papers like this, but in tiny amount, or cutting out just a
strip as an arrow or accent.  So, I decided to use the whole piece as the
background, and instead of using vellum as an overlay to tone it down,
I was inspired to use a thin coating of gesso from the 213 Video series at 
Two Peas in a Bucket that Celine Navarro did last week...



I abandoned my go to white/neutral background with patterns in the
middle and tried to use the gesso to create a white space in the middle
and have the pattern as the border.  There are so many wonderful colors
in that background piece from My Mind's Eye and I love the contrast
of the aqua, chartreuse and black with splashes of pink!


I had just made a trip to Michael's and got lots of fun new things to play with...
These fun black shimmery doilies, some gold thread and some Heidi Swapp stuff!
They carry the color shine mists and a lot of other new products from her line.
Since the thriving metropolis that is Birmingham has NO local scrapbook stores
(the closest one is 20 minutes away) I either order things online or get things from HL,
JoAnn's or Michaels'...And they have all been stepping up their game...I was so pleased
to see something current on the shelf!  They also have a line of their brand "Recollections"
wood veneer shapes that are uncannily like Studio Calico!  And these cute
clothes pins that look like the ones from Pebbles and other manufacturer's
(No, I don't work for Michael's)  


Thanks for checking it out!

Quick cards & Copic practice...

Friday, February 22, 2013


These were a couple last minute cards I threw together for my kids for Valentine's...
I hate that I spent a week making Valentine's for grandparents, teachers, classmates,
everyone on the plant except for the little people I brought into this world...

I colored these at about mindnight and you can tell, I am by NO means good at 
Copic coloring, and don't pretend to be, but these were done half asleep and 
with minimal lighting while my husband slept...and catching up on recorded shows 
whole trying to color using Copics, (not a good idea, pretty sure I wrote that before!)




Quick b'day card for an dear friend's 8 year old kid's birthday!





Super quick, trying to use what was on my desk, or immediately handy....!
Thanks for looking!

BOY'S NigHt and new VIDEO!!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013


I did this LO with the colors and sketch in the Color-Me-Scrappy
Challenge #29 that was lots of Spring grass greens and yellow...obviously!
You can check out their blog post and sketch HERE.

I also did a process video of this page that you can see here.


This was a really fast page considering I spent a lot of time misting,
and waiting for it to dry, part of the title in a faded ombre gradation
and thought it was going to be really cool...nope.  It was a mess.
I got frustrated and ended up trashing them...oh well! 


I used a bunch of those lonely papers I was loving but not touching ;)
and a couple new Glitz stamps that are REALLY cool...
I stamped them as a background on the journaling tag so you 
can't really see the detail and just how cool they really are...
They'll resurface soon!


Like I said this page was fast and frustrating....but most importantly, it is documented!
It was an important night, since I took my daughter to her first concert
that night and Shawn stayed home with Sam...he was determined to make 
it a super fun boy's night in to make up for his disappointment in not getting 
to go see the Biebs...They did 2 or 3 of Sam's crafty gifts from his birthday 
including making this volcano erupt!  He loved it and they had a ball...

SWEET pair!

Tuesday, February 19, 2013


Ok, I know Valentine's is over and I scrapped an unusually large amount
of Valentine-ish pages this year, but I can't help doing one more!
I still haven't really gotten to play with all the fun stuff in the Scrapbook Circle
kit from February and now the box with all the fun March products,
including that super cool roller stamp from Glitz is just sitting on my
desk feeling lonely and left out...I hate making products feel left out :(

Soooo, here is one more, not really Valentine's considering it is about
my 6 year old son and his friend, who just happens to be a girl.
He was on a play date and they were playing with a new iPad.
I loved this photo because her room is so girly and feminine and her
headboard is this beautiful antique patinae blue color that looked
great with the peachy pinks & teals of the that February kit.


I love all the big word die cut cards from Fancy Pants and misted this one
with a gold metallic mist and doily mask from Christy Tomlinson.


I have a basket full of pieces of business cards, candle wrappers, clothing tags,
anything I think could be used in a future LO in some repurposed and unique way.

(My husband was making fun of me the other day for saving the tissue 
paper from inside a box of sneakers I ordered...but they were a really cool, 
almost cloth-like tissue that had black polka dots on it...
it will resurface soon...in a new home...without shoes)

Anyway, I saved the insert piece from our Christmas cards this year that
were from PearTree and misted it...the text still showed thru a bit so I punched
some pieces of patterned paper and layered them with clear buttons on top.
I had just received these metal filigree leaves, from Freckled Fawn,
 that I thought would be perfect for the pear and the bed in the photo and
sanded it a bit to make it a shinier copper color...


So the idea is that the title is SWEET and 'pair' instead of 'pear'...
but you probably already guessed that with that whole blog title thing!

Thanks for checking it out!

** Elle's Studio: Retiring Tag & Grab Bag sale starts now! **

Monday, February 18, 2013

Elle's Studio: Retiring Tag & Grab Bag sale starts now!: Our big sale has started! Stock up and save BIG with our 40% off coupon code on all our retiring tags ! Use coupon code save40 during ch...

homeWORK? Again?? & VIDEO! * MME February Challenge *

Thursday, February 14, 2013


I took this photo with my phone one afternoon to email my husband,
in frustration at the ordeal we seem to go thru every weekday we sit down
to do homework.  I have tried doing it the minute we get home from school,
I have tried letting her have a snack and a break and then sitting down to
do homework, it is always the same...Sometimes, I let Daddy deal
with it when he gets home, but I know that isn't what he wasn't to do and
by then, her brain is fried!

I made a Start to Finish video and be WARNED, I talk thru some
of it, and I am from Alabama...don't say I didn't warn you!

Check it out here!


When I saw the My Mind's Eye February Challenge, (found HERE)
I knew I had to get this photo off my phone.  
I embossed this jar onto vellum and layered a piece of patterned
paper from last year's MME Valentine line that has the word
 "love" repeated over and over...
as in there is NO love in that jar for homework, NOT filled with joy!


I remember the first week of Kindergarten, trying to get her (my oldest)
to get adjusted to longer days at school and away from Mommy...
I woke her up to get ready for school on the 3rd or 4th day and she said
"We are going back there again???"
And so it began...


Thanks for stopping by!
If anyone has any words of wisdom or advice for a way to make homework
a less painful ordeal for a 3rd grader...leave me a comment!! ;)

TELL THE STORY (& another one too) * Little Black Dress Kit Club February

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

One of the projects I did with the Little Black Dress Kit Club February kits...

I have had this idea for an album for years, a scrapbook that was basically
a family tree, a page for every member, or at least partially, that one day
I could give to my children, or at the very least, sit down and explain to them,
what they NEEDED to know about people who contributed to their heritage.  
A more in depth family tree...with pretty paper, and embellishments...
something to keep them interested long enough to realize that
they inherited that stubborn streak from their Father's side...heh! ;)


I loved this paper from Studio Calico with the cameras on it, in fact if it has
a camera (or bird) on it, I pretty much have to have it...I wanted to show it underneath
the other paper, like it was being pulled back and revealing all the cameras...
and 'telling the story', so to speak.  Even though I will have photo LO's of my
Dad, I wanted this one to be more about the story, the background and
the photos I have taken of the cameras I inherited...


My Father was the official photographer for his grade school with a little
Brownie camera...beginning his love of cameras and photography...
He was born in 1923, so it was about 80+ years ago!
I would love to get my hands on some of those photos...

When I was little, and not so little, I used to sit in the darkroom
(that he converted from a bathroom in our basement) and inhale all the
chemicals, learning about things from loading film in the developing tank
to all about the processing.  I think I actually might have stuck more
with traditional photography if everything hadn't turning digital...

After my Dad died, my mother let me pick a few of my favorite cameras
to keep, out the 1,000 or so he had in his collection.  The Rolle is by far my
favorite; in design, in function and I had to have one of those...

My Dad died from a brain tumor caused by a melanoma almost 9 years ago...
My daughter was 4 weeks old when he got sick and not quick 8 weeks when I dressed
her for his funeral...It was so difficult, stressful and unfair and not a day goes by that I
don't think about him in some way...In fact, I would swear there is a cardinal that
follows me around, that is him watching over us, watching a granddaughter he only held
a few times, watching the grandson he never met grow up and into an uncanny reflection
of himself, in looks and personality.

Soooooo, to make a long and non-intending to be so depressing story short,
that is why my blog is called paperCARDinal...

A couple Cards...LBD & Elle's Studio

Wednesday, February 13, 2013




A card I made using the Little Black Dress February kit...
Could be for Valentine's or another occasion!
Click HERE for a detailed list of the products included in the February kit!




A quick card I made using the new Elle's Studio collections!
My note was written on the tag and tucked in the pocket...
You can see the details on products used HERE.


Thanks for looking!!

Future SCRAPbooker

Monday, February 11, 2013



I love the February kit from Scrapbook Circle but haven't really had a
chance to get down and dirty with it! ;) And this LO gave me fits,
it literally sat to the side of my desk, then on it,  then almost in the garbage,
then back to my desk where I completely changed it...

I have given my daughter a big folder of older papers and scraps to play
with and she loves to come up with crafts of her own...
It is amazing how much children look at things differently and how creative they can be,
especially when they aren't influenced by anything other than their imagination!

Anyway, she was making a heart banner to hang above her door,
and one to hang above her bed and pretty much anywhere she could find a place!



I love all the new Crate Paper designs that have been coming out and I
loved that wide emerald green chevron...in fact I bought 3 pieces of it because
I knew I would want more...even a 2 page spread with the chevrons turning
outwards to form a diamond shape??  (Random thought)



 finally came up with cutting up one of the striped papers and creating my
chevron paper...And even though I hated to cut into that pretty piece of
paper with the hearts in all different patterns, it was way too much going on with
this photo...and I thought that the string idea would across with the garland
from Glitz that I LOVE!  I cannot get enough of their look right now...
The new stuff from CHA looks amazing!
 The Uncharted Waters collection totally makes me salivate... (heh)



I also finally broke down and bought some glittering glue and it does
make all the difference!  I hate it when Martha is right!! :)
I cannot use enough gold glitter right now and I like the texture of
real glitter more than embossing powder...at least for today!


I have also been desperately trying to use up some left overs from other kits...
I feel ashamed at all the pretties that are lonely in a drawer with no one
to show them love...I might just need to make several left over LO's!  (LOLo's)

Ok, enough...thanks for stopping by & Happy Monday!

MORE L O V E + Video!

Sunday, February 10, 2013


This is my entry for the My Mind's Eye/Gossamer Blue Guest DT Challenge.
I used mostly 'The Sweetest Thing' collection from MME, a little of the 
'Lost & Found Oliver' collection and a couple other tidbits from 
Freckled Fawn and American Crafts.
You can check out the link to the Challenge HERE.


This photo has been on my list to scrap, but my son's eyes looked really
demonic, freaky, so after multiple failed attempts at correction,
I finally gave in, decided it would look better in b&w and make it
pop with a palette of cool aqua blues and some gold...

I have said it before, I am not a blingy person...
I think if I say that 3 times while looking in the mirror, I will become a blingy person!!
Crazy!  (So...I like bling...and...?)


I also love to mix up manufacturer's, colors, old products with new,
but there is something to be said for working with a collection that is
designed to work together...as in it saves a lot of time but knowing everything
blends and matches and looks great, even crossing collections...


See how that worked out for me in my process VIDEO!


Well, unless you are a super anal retentive person who can sometimes
masquerade as "Indecisive Girl"...yeah, so all things considered I should 
have whipped thru this LO in 40 minutes...that was my goal!!
I told my husband that (as he left to take the kids for a scooter ride) 
and his response was "good luck with that"...ugh...hate it when he's right!!


I wasn't too terribly off time wise, considering I just drew up a sketch and went for it, 
the only thing already done really was that I had printed the photo and knew I wanted
to use my stack of My Mind's Eye The Sweetest Thing...

The mail person had JUST brought a pretty little package from Freckled Fawn
with those cool camera clips and the camera washi, I just had to use it!!  

DISNEY WORLD with an Architect * Little Black Dress Kit February

Sunday, February 10, 2013


Another page for the February kit from Little Black Dress Kit Club...
a varied kit with primary colors, seen here, as well as lots of
more subtle florals...check out the kit details HERE!

I really still am planning on doing a mini album for just Disney...
Actually, I was so inspired by Nancy Damiano's last video on Two Peas's.
She said everything I feel about Project Life and gave great ideas for
a Disney album or any vacation for that matter...
What she said, and I totally agree with, is that no matter how organized I
could pretend to be, the pressure I would put on myself to produce or even document 
Project Life would totally ruin it for me and spell disaster in every way; most of all,
in my self confidence to stay organized and on top of our "life" scrapbooking...

I have enough guilt about laundry and getting my kids to eat the rainbow 
every day, or every two days...I don't need to throw anything extra in there! :)

I scrapbook to record our lives...lots of it is everyday mundane activities, 
that turn out to be the most memorable, and then events that I can plan in
advance to document on a concurrent schedule.


So, Nancy's premise was that while she loved the idea of Project Life, and all that 
went with it, including (more importantly) the products that are now
flooding the market...she didn't feel the need to impose that kind of pressure
on herself.  However, those products, designed for Project Life are perfect for
mini albums, especially something like a vacation, like Disney. 


I haven't gotten around to deciding exactly what I want to do with our Disney 
photos/album just yet...but I enjoy documenting a few general things that
will eventually go into a 12x12 album dedicated completely to that trip. 
or maybe to family vacations...who knows?


I do know that looking thru our photos there was a very significant disconnect 
between the photos that we took as a family at Disney, or parents of young children, 
or even plain tourist photos, AND the photos that Shawn or I take as an Architect,
which is basically an inherent need to look at everything in a different way.
Not that we are always successful, having children is evidence enough of that,
but just that our Architectural photos usually don't include people, are more stylized, 
or try to be, and are focusing on...well, building and design in some sort or fashion.

This turned out to be a lot more of my perspective than I had planned!
SO, thanks for reading all the way to the bottom...
...or possibly skipping down to the end to see if I did, in fact, come to a conclusion! :)

be happy & VIDEO! * Little Black Dress Kit February

Saturday, February 9, 2013


First of all, I need to say that I LOVE the new products from Glitz, 
some of my favorites!!  For serious...the Uncharted Water line is gorgeous...
That is the background paper here included in the February kit from Little Black Dress
and you can see the rest of the cool things included in the kit HERE!


I had this piece I cut of a butterfly left over on yellow cardstock 
(not included in the kit) and I spritzed it with Mister Huey's Boss Lady.  
I tried to make an ombre effect and it turned it kind of orange, which I loved!  
A freaky, lovely accident! 
And this was about Easter, so green, orange, pink, turquoise, it's all good....

I made a process video, click below, and you can see how it came together!
Except that this was really sped up, so it was a LOT slower of a  process...

Start to Finish *Scrapbooking Process


These photos were from Easter, almost 2 years ago, and the first one tells the 
story that sadly, Sam had croup and woke up barking like a crazed Rottweiler 
at a burglar, so he had to stay home...which is why his is still in his pj's while my 
daughter is decked out in everything pink and linen...he took it so well...
of course, a bunch of Easter candy really helps bad coughs!


And Sofia did bring home all her candy and share it with her brother, 
well most of it, except for what she had already eaten, and what 
Mommy and Daddy hadn't nipped out already, which only included Reese's...honest!

what do you want from me? * Little Black Dress Kit Club February

Saturday, February 9, 2013


Another project for the February Little Black Dress Kit Club with a
picture that totally cracks me up every time I look at it...
Sam has such a skeptical look on his face it is so funny,
and expressive, especially for a 5 month old!!


I cut the 'hello...' bubble out of a kraft shipping tag to use it as
a negative title, but that looked odd, so I used the positive and the
put the tag scraps at the bottom of the page to add some more kraft in.

I thought the title would be funny, like he was totally thinking,
"hello...what do you want from me??"
I think he was not feeling the paparazzi vibe that was coming his way...
very unlike his big sister, who was ALL about the limelight...still is! :)


I cut this card catalog on the Silhouette over sized as the photo mat,
but it didn't quite come out as I had hoped...
Live and learn, or live and die cut again...in a different way...!

You can see a detailed list of the fun products included in the kit HERE!


you+me & VIDEO! * Little Black Dress Kit Club February 2013

Saturday, February 9, 2013


This was one of the pages I did with the February kit from 
The Little Black Dress Kit Club, appropriately called "A Trim in Time".  
You can see the detailed list of kit products used HERE.
The kit this month is a good mix of earthy distressed papers and cool trending graphics...
Seeing this quilt-ish paper from Authentique reminded me of a photo a friend of 
ours took a couple (ok, years ago!) on a little birthday retreat in the mountains!

I can't take credit for the photo, (obviously since I'm in it) but this
friend on ours was standing on a loft above us and snapped this 
photo real quick.  She was really into cool photography and colored just the
chevron quilt and rug...or made everything else in the photo 
black & white...Anyway, the effect was really cool and  I thought
perfect for this page!  Plus, it is February and love is in the air...

A Start to Finish video with music only...not sure how confident I 
am about hearing how Southern my accent really is!!


I cut the title out with my Silhouette and painted it with some gold paint
that is actually Metallic Spray Enamel paint is used for model cars, planes, etc.


I also painted it underneath the music sheet paper but it is hard to tell
from the photos...I actually used a pile of pieces from the kit for this, 
just in small amounts, which is a little different for me but I like the 
way it came together!  Check out the video to see how that happened!
  

Thanks for stopping by!  
I am trying to get caught up on all my LBD posts this weekend so I may
be bombarding my blog...or I may think of a good way to procrastinate!
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