Woo-Hoo! FMS129

                       

It has been a woo-hoo kind of week around here!  A big snowstorm snuck up the coast and actually missed us...... my son's girlfriend became a US citizen.....we booked a house for the whole family for a week in August at the Outer Banks......and I managed to get a ticket to Stampin' Up!'s new catalog sneak peek gathering the end of April................woo-hoo!

Celebrating with our new citizen!

I took a cue from the rounded squares on the Retro Fresh DSP to create my card this week at Freshly Made Sketches.  Jen Mitchell designed a great sketch - hope you join us!

Cheer Up Buttercup!

How could you not be cheerful when you see these happy colors and that fun Kaleidoscope paper? This card is 5 inches square and is sitting on a custom envelope made using the envelope punch board. Being able to make all sizes of envelopes with that nifty board definitely cheers me up!

March Plaidness Rolls On! PPA196

A plaid panel took center stage on my card yesterday and there was still a snippet or two of it hanging around my desk. I just couldn't bear to toss those scraps.  I turned one into a banner and stamped hello right over the design.  A smattering of embossing paste and a sprinkle of gold sequins give this card a totally different look from yesterday's design. This card is the perfect way to say hello to spring here in the northeast.  Notice there are no flowers on it.......just a lot of white stuff in the background!

Meanwhile it looks like my muse is making a break for it........probably headed south!

Pals Paper Arts has a sweet sketch this week!

March Plaidness - FMS128

When certain people I know gathered around the TV for a bit of March Madness I headed to my craft room to create some March Plaidness!.  I used washi tape to mask off lines then sponged colors on white cardstock to create that colorful plaid - one stripe at a time.  Sahara Sand, Rose Red and Marina Mist blended beautifully with black providing a sharp accent. Here's the work in progress:

And my inspiration?  Miss Emma's delightful spring coat!

                      Rita has a terrific sketch for us this week at Freshly Made Sketches!
                                        

Top o' the Morning!

We celebrate St.Patrick's Day in the Callahan household! How could we not with a name like Callahan?  St. Patrick's Day is also my husband's birthday - along with his twin sister! Callahan twins born on St. Patrick's Day - imagine that! This card was sent off to his sister earlier this week.  A bit of gold washi tape, gold twine, gold foil and a gold clothespin is all the gold I have around here.......those leprechauns hide their pots well!

An Inlaid Hi! FMS127

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I started my second card class and the very first session demonstrated "faux effects".  This card uses faux layered die cuts.  The two banners and the sentiment are actually inlaid creating a smooth single layer.  It's like cutting out and assembling your own jigsaw puzzle!  

              Jen designed a sweet sketch for us this week at Freshly Made Sketches!

                                

Pssst....It's the Pals Spring Hop!

                                                    


Welcome to the Pals March Blog Hop!  This month we are celebrating Spring - it should be here soon, right? If you arrived from Michelle's blog you are right on track!

I used several spring images along with springlike colors to send the message that spring is waiting in the wings!  So any day now Old Man Winter you may exit stage left!

Stamp Sets:  Petite Petals, Happy Watercolor, Happy Congratulations, Petal Parade, Hardwood

Cardstock:  Sahara Sand, Basic Black, Whisper White, Sweet Sorbet DSP

Ink:  Pistachio Pudding, Summer Starfruit, Crisp Cantaloupe, Coastal Cabana, Basic Black

                           Next stop is Michelle Gleeson's blog!  I know she has something fabulous to share!

                                       

The complete line up:

1. Jackie Diediker at Stampin' Jackie
2. Susan Itell at Simple Stampin
3. Peggy Noe at prettypapercards
4. Debra Simonis at Deb's Stampin' Grounds
5. Martie Pollard at Crafty Bandit
6. Goldie Shaul at Punch and Stamp with Goldie
7. Dawn Tidd at Tiddbits from Dawn
8. Debbie Mageed at Secret Stamper 
9. Natalie Bradley at Natalie Bradley Events
10. Lisa Ann Bernard at Queen B Creations
11. Debbie Crowley at expressivelydeb...
12. Christine Winslow at Grandma's Stamping Corner
13. Mary Fish at Stampin' Pretty
14. Michelle Quinno at Shell's Life
15. Linda Callahan at Stampin' Seasons
16. Michelle Gleeson at StampinMojo
17. Shannon Hokanson at Paper Works by Shannon
18. Diane Roberts at Score at Four and a Quarter
19. Kerry Willard Bray at Peonies and Paper Chains
20. Kalyn Shubnell at The Stamping Chronicles
21. Colleen Mollema at Uncanny Crafting
22. Amy Lazzell at Just A Thought...Cards by Amy
23. Maria Flores at Maria's Sandbox
24. Katy McGloin at Just Fun Stamping
25. Christie Crosby at Stampin' Creativity
26. Sue Becker at RnR Stamping
27. Rae Harper at Wild West Paper Arts
28. Lynn Kolcun at Stamping with Avery's Owlery
29. Maggie Mata at Maggie Made Cards
30. Nicole Watt  at Pixel Maven's Retreat
31. Sherrie Gross at Stampin' Sunshine

It's A Long Way To Tipperary.......

Another technique from my stencil class!  I created my own stencils using circle punches and used the colors from Watercolor Wonder DSP to create the design. The class suggested using colored pencils but I discovered the fine point of the SU Markers worked just fine and coordinated perfectly with the Watercolor Note Card!

We are celebrating today with a family luncheon because it is my parents' 69th wedding anniversary today.  My dad is no longer with us but my mom is so we still celebrate - grateful that they spent 59 years together.  My dad was a member of the Greatest Generation - drafted at 18 into the air force and trained to be an airplane mechanic. He spent most of the war stationed in England repairing planes that flew back from missions across the English channel.  And he must have spent some time in Yorkshire because he married my mother in Leeds, March 10, 1945.  He was 22 - she was 19....wow.....

Gray Skies are Gonna Clear Up! PPA194

Being an optimist by nature I couldn't let the blues overwhelm me so I decided to celebrate the grayness of these colors!  I stamped Off the Grid in Smoky Slate, backed it with Wisteria Wonder designer paper and made a frame from Wisteria Wonder card stock.  But what to put in that frame???  And then I realized the SAB set See Ya Later wasn't just all about alligators.  Out came Night of Navy ink and the perfect sentiment appeared!  I did sneak in a silver heart clip and cord just as a reminder that there's always a silver lining........

Hope you join us at Pals Paper Arts!

Thinking of You....FMS126

I am thinking that the Thinking of You sentiment here applies to that Sweet Sorbet Designer Series Paper! I just can't seem to put it away! When I started to make this card Sweet Sorbet was right there on the corner of my desk just daring me to ignore it.  Impossible!  

Amy has a fun sketch for us this week at Freshly Made Sketches....it is just slightly askew!

Two for the Price of One - PPA193

Who doesn't love a good deal?  Pals Paper Arts had a perfect sketch this week to showcase that beautiful Sweet Sorbet DSP and accessory kit.  Spotlighting a favorite DSP was also one of the challenges for the Creative Crew at Splitcoast this month. Two for the price of one~!  

But my favorite "two for the price of one" deal is my son's two pups. He and his girlfriend went to buy a silver toy poodle and came home with two dogs - the silver one and a white one who didn't exactly belong at "The Poodle Palace." (Seriously it's called The Poodle Palace)  Somehow Silas wasn't turning out to be a "real" poodle so he wasn't wanted in the palace.  Here they are one year later:

Seems like Silas is a member of the Dachshund family as well as the Poodle family............and we are all so glad that he is also a member of the Callahan family......sweetest dog ever!