Yes, this is my second post for today, but Paolo Nutini is just fun music! Enjoy my last post....

OK, now a few things, I sent my "stuffed to the gills" USPS flat rate box with my cards made for Operation Write Home - if you have any extra cards, card fronts, etc. consider sending them to this great group! They will make sure your cards get to our troops, so they can send handmade cards back home to family & friends! What a great idea! Love this!!! Here is what their recent blog post had said about my contribution:

Michelle P, Montgomery IL - thank you sooooo much, your cards are just beautiful!

Yipee!! Isn't it really nice to lend a helping hand? I think so! Thanks to everyone and I will be making more cards & sending them soon! It's just something I ***love*** to do and believe that one handmade creation can touch so many hearts!!!

Now on to my card for today!

{{{Recipe}}}

This is one of those stamps that I simply love - and yes, it's an oldie [discontinued :( ] but a goodie! The Angel Company's "Libby Border" bee stamp is sooo cute! I coupled that with Inky Antics sentiment: "I'm glad to bee your friend" on the inside - making sure to see it through the vinyl screening. My Screen Door template (click here to purchase) was used, along with the yellow brad & CS from misc. sources.

My best tip for dark cardstock is this: I LOVE Gelly Roll pens by Sakura. It gave Libby the black'n'yellow shiny-ness & her (yep, she's a girl cuz' I says so) cute little buzzing white lines. Those pens give the card the pop it needed! I highly recommend them! Just MHO!

Quote for today: "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~Dr. Seuss

Toille Gift Card Holder Tutorial for the DIYers

Isn't it fun to give? I just recieved the best email! My box of over 170+ handmade cards was received by Operation Write Home! Sandy I am so glad you received the box! Now I am just thrilled that I am able to make a family & soldiers happy even for a moment!

Thanks soooo much for the great package of cards, Michelle! Beautiful
work!! Sandy
Sandy Allnock, PresidentSandy@operationwritehome.org

http://facebook.com/opwritehome

http://twitter.com/opwritehome

http://myspace.com/opwritehome

Operation Write Home http://operationwritehome.org

Helping heroes keep in touch with home
Sign up for our email list:http://operationwritehome.org/email

So, I'm on a gift card holder kick! I have made so many of these I cannot remember where I found idea but you can surely Google it and find TONS on it! I want to share this with all of you! They are fast. They are easy. The possibilities are endless! OK, I've already said that, but here is my quick tutorial. My choice of stamps was easy, I'm totally in love with B&W toille! It is such a clean & sophisticated look!

Start with a 4 1/4 X 11" piece of carstock or heavy weight scrapbook paper. An 8 1/2 x 11 sheet with make 2 gift card holders. So talk about economical!!!

After you've made your mountain & valley folds. Turn your cardstock over. Decorate or stamp your cardstock before you glue or tape your folds together. It will be much easier to do this first!

Then, glue or my preferred method is double sided tape to adhere the 2 valley folds together. You will be gluing your decorated sides together. It seems weird, I know. Just do this part, because what comes next is a blast! Get your punches out....

Stamp your sentiments, punch your scalloped & regluarvcircles & layer. Add your embellies, ribbon & you're done!! Hope my Mom likes her gift, but I know she will ***LOVE*** her toille GC holder even more than the $$$ to Panera Bread!

{{{Sources}}}

Stamps: The Angel Company Vintage Vine Background, Stampin'Up

Ink: Momento Tuxedo Black

Punches: EK Success & Marvy Uchida

Cardstock: Georgia Pacific & Stampin' Up

Ribbon: Walmart

No one has ever become poor by giving. Anne Frank - wisdomquotes.com

Yippee, I was featured on Card of the Week.com!!!

Hi Everyone!!! I'm blog hopping during Sunday night football....uh, er, "watching with my DH while the Bears play the Packers....." :)

As I was flipping through some of my favorite blog places, my eyes just about bugged out of my head as I saw my blog name under Cardof theWeek.com by Susanna Boyd's blog as a featured project under Scrapbook Mini-Book for my Altered Journal post, the Abundance Journal. I am in such great company with so many other talented people. I am so completely honored!

Thank you Card of the Week so very much!!!

All art is the expression of one and the same thing - the relation of the spirit of man to the spirit of other men and to the world. Ansel Adams, via The Painter's Key

Altered Journal

Hi everyone, I am first going to give a shout-out to Laurel's Place, a blog I follow, who is giving away some great blog candy....Check it out for yourself!

Secondly, drum roll please...........I will be featuring my first page by page layout on this Abundance Journal post. I made this for a dear friend. She has been so sweet and {{{real}}}}!!! Don't you just love it when someone is real and not phony or stuffy? I surely appreciate the great words of encouragement she's given me and the great connection we've made since our kiddies have been friends! Today is her birthday and I wanted to show you what I made for her...you rock!!!

It's more than a Prayer Journal or Gratitude Journal, BUT Abundance Journal. All the great things about our lives, our homes, our kids (she has 7!!! Mwahhh-love 'em all) - our creativity, our passion for this great art form, family, food, (yes, I've even fed hers and my family=16 total for a great Italian dinner this summer, we can still smell the basil in the air and taste the salt of the Lupini beans on our fingertips - Mama Polizzi @ her best!) - OK, get it? Am I getting the point across? We are more than just blessed, we are all living in the Abundance God has given all of us! I think its this attitude could help so many of those suffering in our current economy...I know it's more than atttitude, but maybe it helps with the mindset primarily!

Here's my journal....I altered a tabbed chipboard book measuring approx. 5 X 7 - it's only $4.95 (The Angel Company), so it's economical for a handmade gift. Of course, the book needs to be painted to allow a nicer backdrop to your pages you create....I used acrylic paint from Americana, Anita's & Delta - Lt. Ivory & Moon Yellow mixed and painted, make sure to get all your edges, too!! (Here's a Go Green moment: I like to use empty & cleaned applesauce or fruit & pudding cups to mix my paint and use it for a palette).

Each page that I made to adhere to the book's pages measures 4 x6 1/2 and to keep my pages in a uniform color theme, I used an 8 X 8 paper pack from Daisy D's Paper & Die Cuts called, Chasing Butterflies. Such awesome papers! Love them!!!!

Here's a close up of the front cover, the title is punched paper & stamped words. Look at your stamps differently, too! Have a fancier letter, replace it over the regular "A" for the fancier one, and it gives almost a drop cap feature like as in your MS Word documents, etc.

Here's a close up of the bottom tag of the subtitle embellished with coordinated die cuts & a punched heart w/foam pop up tape.

The Pages

Each page features stamped images, journalling lined blocks, unwritten decorated reference tabs, and stamped with flourishes. I keep my flourishes consistent throughout the book - again, goes back to that uniform look....

After all the pages are adhered down, I used my Crop-A-Dile to punch a hole into the front & back pages to add the large grommet (The Angel Company), making sure to catch the ribbon (source unknown) for a good closing medium. I like ribbon, it's more feminine! :)

Then, I will use an alphabet set to write the journal name on the spine. I like this touch, it's a quick reference thing again! Always sign your work (I used a stamp on the back cover, then signed my John Hancock in my artistic way...doesn't everyone do this?

Thanks for looking at my Abundance Journal, this is a great idea for a personalized, handmade but also a gift from the heart!

Thanks for looking!

Supplies used:

Inks: Palette Hybrid Ink, L'Amore Red, Landscape, Burnt Umber, Cognac; Tim Holtz Distressing Ink Tea Dye; VersaMagic Chalk Ink, Spanish Olive, Aegean Blue.

Embossing Folders: Provo Craft.

Stamp Sets from The Angel Company: More Abundance, Girlz & Boyz, Pray Hard, Be Authentic, F is for Family, He Loves Me GWP, Journalling Lines, He Said She Said, Trust in the Lord, Fruit of the Spirit, My Story, Spring Dream, It's the Little Things, Life is Short, Express Yourself, Peaceful Hearts, Autumn Memories, Everything Nice.

Stamps: Pineapple from Darcie's LLC, Matryoshka Dolls from My Cute Stamps, Enjoy Every Moment from SU, Foursquare & Primitive Beginnings from CHF, Hand-in-Hand from Gina K, Boards & Beams from PTI, Pointy Pencil from Whipper Snapper, Clothesline from Inky Antics, New Mom Bunny w/Baby Bunny from Art Gone Wild; Prayer Journal set from Clear Dollar Stamps.

Embellies: Brads & Large Grommets The Angel Company, Ribbon source unknown, button source unknown, Antique medium sized brads by Making Memories.

Punches: small heart by Martha Stewart, scallopped circle by Marvy.

Coloring Mediums: Spica Markers, Copic Markers, Prismacolor Pencils w/Blending Pencil.