Fall Tag Swap & Paper Doll Cards to Share

I joined my first creative swap recently - the theme of this one was "Fall tags using Catherine Moore stamps." This one was organized by Cathy Arnold and there were 10 people in my group. I made 10 tags and in return I got back 10 tags. I was so excited to open the package tonight...

My tag is the one in the center of the top row (black & white again)

I love them all - such creative people! I like how they all coordinate together. Catherine makes such wonderful stamps (http://www.characterconstructions.com/) - they're just so fun to use and so much you can do with them.

I also wanted to share some recent cards I made. Below is a birthday card I made for my friend Ruby - again using Catherine Moore stamps. The background was the stationary I recently bought in Japan Town.

The card and envelope below is the thank you note I made for my bday party a month ago. The theme of my party was black and white - so of course I had to make black and white thank you notes. The actual thank you note is written on a tag that's inserted in the envelope. The envelope is a large image of a clock in which I sewed the edges closed to create a pocket. Yep - I used more Catherine Moore stamps for the doll.

The two cards below are birthday cards I made for my sister Lana and my friend Diana G. I decided to stay with the black and white theme again. The skirts are made from cupcake liners that I bought at Michael's.

I've also been busy with my Christmas cards - here's a sneak peak at them in progress...

I hope to send these out next week and have my xmas decorations up! It's going to rain here all weekend - so perfect projects for staying indoors.

Advent Christmas Tags

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We spent the day at my sister, Pat's house. I was in charge of bringing the craft project for the evening. Inspired by a project I saw on Jenni Bowlin's site - Advent Christmas tags. I brought over a variety of punches and Christmas paper. Loved how it all turned out!

My sister Frances made the advent tag page below. The tags are pretty small, all 25 fit on an 8 1/2 x 11" sheet of paper.

Pat made the tags below. Her's are a bit larger and she punched holes at the top to hang along a string.

My nephew's wife, Joanne made the following tags - she was the first to finish all 25 - she's a crafter like the rest us sisters.

My sister Maryl decided to make larger tags - these would definitely look great on a xmas package. 

I made the mini advent tags below. As you can see, some are very simple, as I was busy assisting others with their projects, but I think as a whole it still works.

I think next year I like to host a class during November to do this same project - it was lots of fun and another great way to use up small scraps of paper.

I also like to thank Stampington & Co. for their continued support, as today I received another complimentary issue - Somserset Studio Gallery. I'm still thrilled every time I see one of my pieces published. This issue has several items of mine.

Below is a piece I made at a class I took from Kristen Robinson and Ruth Rae this summer.

 The page below are a couple paper dolls I made earlier in the year.

 The project below is a mini book I made with Pam Garrison wrapping paper for the cover.

Thanks to all of you for all your support throughout the year. It means so much to me! I appreciate all your comments and kind words. Happy Thanksgiving! 

Sister Lana Bday Celebration - Making Marionettes

This past Sunday we celebrated my sister, Lana's birthday. Ulla Milbrath (http://www.ullam.typepad.com/), from Castle in the Air in Berkeley taught us a magical class on Marionettes.

Ulla was a wonderful teacher, so helpful, patient, creative and generous with her supplies!

  The following pictures show us hard at work.

Lana's house was the perfect setting, as she has so many wonderful pieces displayed around her home.The following pictures are just a few of the beautiful areas in her home. Get ready for some eye candy!

 Lana received some fun and creative gifts...below are just a few of the items she received.

Below are close-ups of our finished marionettes.

This one is mine

Diana G.'s creation

Pat's creation

Vivian's creation

Irene's creation

Maryl's creation

Frances's creation

Lana's creation

We had such a wonderful day celebrating her birthday, creating, eating and laughing! Thank you Ulla and Happy Birthday Lana.

Holiday Workshop with Anna Corba

This past Saturday, we spent a wonderful day at Anna Corba's home in Santa Rosa. A bunch of us signed up for her all-day Holiday workshop. It was also a celebration for our friend, Ruby's birthday. Below are the sample projects we are making:

Anna has a beautiful studio with lots of vignettes...

 It's the perfect space for creating.

 She has lovely pieces and beautiful supplies to inspire your creative spirit.

 Below is a picture of Anna giving us some of her trade secrets.

A few pictures of us at work...

The day also included a beautiful and delicious lunch in her home.

Below are shots of our finished projects...

Ruby's creations

Fran's creations

Maryl's creations

Lois's creations

My creations - front

and back

Sorry Pat, I missed shooting your finished projects. (>_<) - If you send them to me, I'll update my post .

It was a wonderful day, the home was beautiful, the teacher was so creative & organized, the was food delicious, the company was fun & inspiring to be with - a perfect day!