Handmade Christmas update

So, got my 8 calendars done. I always end by saying never again, but in October of the next year it will seem like a good idea. Plus it’s such a hit with the family that I have to do it. Tried to keep the layouts simple and use what I had on hand!
Here’s a couple of the pages.

From Christmas 08

From Christmas 08

I made 4 mini albums out of some cute albums I’d picked up a year ago. I made a few decorations, but kept it pretty simple. Tried to do the photo a day for a mini book like Ali but it got to be a hassle and I decided to let it go. There were other things I wanted to make that I just didn’t get to and that’s okay. With working a lot of nights and weekends I really didn’t have a lot of extra time so I made the choice to let a few things go, not put as many decorations out, and not feel guilty for my choices. The kids did get non-handmade items and that’s okay. I got an iphone for my hubby which I shouldn’t have let him do but I love it so I’m keeping it. He had a med. size box as the starting point of my scavenger hunt to find what my real gift was.

From Christmas 08

He saw the tags I’d cut out w/the cricut and asked for a dozen of them. Then he asked me to show him my stamp stuff so he could make a few cards. He was seriously adorable trying out the inks and stamps, and punches. He made a card for each of the twins and one for me. So very sweet. No wonder I love him!
The tags he used as clues on my hunt. They took me all over the house, upstairs and downstairs.

From Christmas 08

And ended at his desk in our shared office where my iphone sat. It was so sweet that I cried. This was even better than jewelry!

In the end we had a pretty good Christmas, the twins could have had one gift each and been happy. I know I’m incredibly blessed with the sweet family I’ve been given!

From Christmas 08

Should post a few pics soon. Am finishing a few mini albums for gifts and that’s about it. Time got away from me and other things took priority. As for my twins? It’s not really handmade, it’s more like china made. I caved, got some things for them, but tried to restrain myself a bit. The Disney princess collection might be over the top, but I’m sticking with it!

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Using Pacific Point

As soon as I saw all of the new in-colors from Stampin Up I knew I would be using them in a lot of projects so I bought all of the ink pads and cardstock last summer. And then for some reason I also bought the Pacific Point double stripped ribbon. So far I’ve used about 12 inches of the ribbon and just a little bit of the cardstock. It’s a hard color to work with, especially since I rarely use bold/bright colors in my projects. Today while putting ribbon away I decided I really needed to make something with this color. (I need to use the things I have on hand so I can buy some of the new things coming in the new catalog
I also have a nearly full pack of DSP, Murfield with Pacific Point and Kwii Kiss that I used as a starting point for my cards.

From 2009 cards

The specs: (all Stampin Up)
-Murfield DSP with Pacific Point and Kwii Kiss cardstock
-stamps: Pun Fun and Holidays and Wishes
-ink: Black Staz On (main image), colored in with/ Appricot Appeal, Baja Breeze, and Pacific Point
-accessories: pacific point ribbon, blender pens, glue dots, dimensionals, and ticket corner punch
-card size: large cards are standard size, smaller cards are 3×3

A few thoughts I had while working with these colors. (btw I love kiwi kiss and have used it lots!)
1st: I tend to do girly/feminine projects, color combos, stamps, cards, etc.
2nd: I need to have a few boy cards on hands. My nephew’s birthday is coming up I think he’d love the rocket ship card!
3rd: Got the set Pun Fun w/my demo sign up and have only used a couple of the stamps a couple of times. So I had to ink these up. Am I the only one who feels guilty when they have a pristine stamp they haven’t used?
4th: This stamp set and color combo seemed like a good boy alternative to frilly valentines.
5th: I notice I tend to gravitate to the same general layout on most of my cards. I tweak it and twist it a bit, but I’ve decided it’s okay to repeat myself.

Thanks for looking!

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