Category Archives: personal

a gift bag and my travels

Posted on May 23, 2010 | 3 comments

The other day I thought it would be fun to decorate a gift bag. I’ve done this a few times in the past but it was a long, long time ago. Decorating a gift bag is super easy to do, it was fun to personalize it and this project also used up some scraps I had on my desk.

This project uses the On Holiday line from The Girls’ Paperie. Love the colors combo, the banners and the fun travel theme.

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What might not be apparent in the above picture is a couple fun little details I added to the project. Because this gift bag was for an American friend, I thought it would be fun to cut out some of the Canadian postage stamps, ink them and then pop them up on pop dots. Just to highlight where the gift was from. 🙂

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Quick Tip: Stitch the layers before adhering them to your gift bag otherwise you won’t be able to.

And I hope you don’t mind my sharing a few photos from the Creating Keepsakes Convention in Buffalo. As I rarely get anywhere it was huge for me and I had the best time meeting friends I’d made on-line

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Becky Olsen, Megan Hoeppner and I. I had so much fun meeting and hanging out with these uber-talented and sweet ladies.

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I was excited to help out the fabulous Susan Opel with the Paper Crafts magazine Make ‘n Take

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Melissa Frances was there with a booth and I was excited to meet this talented & lovely lady.

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So much stunning architecture to see in Buffalo

Thanks for letting me share!

Have a beautiful day!

3 Comments

Posted in Card Designs, Papercraft projects, personal, Photos

Getting Creative

Posted on May 20, 2010 | 6 comments

I love creativity. Love, love, love it! Finding a little time each day to do something creative just makes me happy.

A few exciting creative things are happening for me today and I’m seriously bouncing.

First…I’m off to CKC Buffalo! (check out the link…there may be one in your area) With a large family I don’t often get away and I can’t wait to have some creative fun. CKC is the Creating Keepsakes Convention with lots of fun classes and shopping and friendship. The best thing about this short little trip is getting to meet my very talented and wonderful friend Becky Olsen. I can’t believe that after all the countless hours on the phone I’ll finally meet her in person. Something tells me I’m not going to get much sleep tonight. 🙂

The other  exciting thing for me is I get to announce that starting June 1st I’ll be designing for the Creative Scrappers sketch blog. I’m really looking forward to it as I’m a huge fan of their sketches and love using them each week. I get to do what I’m already doing only as part of the team. How cool is that? I’m loving being back at scrapbooking in addition to creating cards, having some creative fun and preserving beautiful memories for my family. Congrats to the other designers! I’m looking forward to working with you.

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You can see my Creative Scrappers layouts here.

Now if you’ve come here looking for the Ways to Use it Challenge…yes, it is Thursday and no, I haven’t forgotten about it. Because of my super busy adventure today, I’ve asked a guest hostess to host the challenge for me. Thanks so much Beverly! She’ll be posting the challenge here.

Lastly…if you’re looking to get a hold of me, with the long weekend etc. I’ll catch up on emails Tuesday.

Happy creating!

6 Comments

Posted in creative scrappers, personal

I always knew…

Posted on December 14, 2009 | 4 comments

I always knew I was a princess.

Here’s my latest portrait…

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lol

At least my 4yo thinks I am. And who wouldn’t love that? 🙂

That flower on my head is really a crown. His creative interpretation.

As Christmas gets closer I’m feeling more like the Queen of Chaos.

Back to the list!

Have a great day,

4 Comments

Posted in personal

Good Things Come

Posted on November 16, 2009 | 5 comments

Good things come… to those who wait. And wait. And wait. But I’m so excited that my waiting is ALMOST over! Here’s a photo of things in progress on Saturday. I’m hoping by the beginning of December, I’ll be all moved in. What a great present this year!

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And just in case you haven’t heard…

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Ellen is having a fabulous Anniversary Sale! Be sure to check out the store here for more details.

As for me…no headache this week but I do have the nastiest cold. I now have no voice whatsoever. I’m hoping to get back to creating soon!

Take care and stay healthy!

5 Comments

Posted in personal, Photos

Excuse Me While I Charge My Batteries

Posted on November 4, 2009 | 15 comments

Yes…you are on the right blog! Grin. Major facelift here. I just wish I looked so good! If you’re reading this on google reader or other feed, please come visit. I have a beautiful new blog template. Sara Williams rocks! She worked so hard to get it ready in time for World Card Making Day…October 3rd. Unfortunately some server issues made us wait until now but I’m just thrilled that it is working! No more grey!

Sara from Tweaks and Designs has just done an incredible job. She worked so hard to make the template “me”. The colors, the images, the feel is just so perfect. I love beautiful things and this new blog template is inspiring me to get creative. I need a bit of that right now!

The other thing that may have you wondering if you’re on the right blog is the photos. No paper crafts today. Over the past few weeks I’ve felt a need to do some fall nesting and just recharge my creative batteries by doing so home-related projects.  Here’s a little peek at some of the things I’ve been working on…

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Another thing I’ve been working on is a new blog. I know. I think I’m a little crazy to be starting that as well but I really wanted to be able to go a different creative direction now and then and didn’t want to bore you here if it’s not your thing. It’s called finding beauty @ home and it’s a whole melting pot of things. Creative home projects, recipes, ramblings on being a stay at home mom, a few inspirational thoughts and whatever else I may think of! LOL If that’s something you’re interested in, stop by and say hello. And if not… Don’t worry! I’ll still be paper crafting and posting here. I just need to find the right balance in my life.

Quick Tip: If you need to charge your creative batteries, switch creative gears for a project or two. You’ll be glad you did!

Thanks for your support!

15 Comments

Posted in personal, Photos

change is good.

Posted on August 14, 2009 | 40 comments

Change is good. Change is everywhere these days. Sometimes it’s not so fun. There’s been some companies folding and those that want to stay in business are doing some serious restructuring. The entire crafting industry is changing and it’s interesting to see how things will be. Seriously, I don’t think it’s entirely a bad thing. We may not like the transition but I do know that hard times do make us stronger. It makes us think of new ways to do things.

So. Where am I going with this? Changes are coming for me as well. I’m sure most of you know that I’ve been on staff with Cornish Heritage Farms for almost two years now. It’s been a fabulous job. I’ve grown, learned and stretched my abilities and gave it my all. Unfortunately due to the present economic climate, both Becky and I have been laid off. And that’s OK. While most companies are carrying massive debt, CHF’s policy is to not run with a deficit. And I  respect that immensely. What does that mean for me? A lot of things actually. I’ll have a little more time on my hands. I’m going to spend more time with my family. Lots more. Yay! I’m looking to explore new creative outlets and possibilities. I’m excited because although the transition can be tough, I know God has something special in store for me.

I’ll be with CHF until next Friday, the 21st of August. I know this sounds quick but I’ve had lots of notice. Thanks so much Richard and Liz for the wonderful opportunity of working for CHF. It was always a joy, a challenge and a great experience.

So what will you be seeing here on my blog?

  • You’ll still be seeing some CHF designs and stamping. I’m STILL designing stamps each month for release and I’m excited about that. Thanks Richard and Liz for this awesome opportunity. I love it. And yes…I’ll still be sharing some of that rubber with you. 🙂
  • I’m going to have some fun with other paper crafting products and explore some different ideas and see where it leads
  • I’m going to be part of a new team….you’ll have to wait for the details 😉
  • I’ll still be writing for Craft Critique and sharing those reviews with you
  • I’m still going to be designing freelance for publications
  • I’ve been wanting to get back to scrapbooking. Becky has been nagging 😉 me for months and I’m really going to do it
  • I’m going to finish off a couple Jessica Sprague courses and do some digital projects
  • I’m going to practice my photography
  • I’m going to blog a little less. Probably the same amount of projects…just blogged together instead of daily.
  • ? Who knows!

I hope you’ll stay with me as I journey along.

Change is good.


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40 Comments

Posted in personal

A New Addition…

Posted on July 27, 2009 | 23 comments

We have a new addition here at the Stainton household. We thought five kids were enough so don’t worry…not another one of those. We have a new puppy.  We lost our 13yo German Shepherd in June and we wanted another so Friday night we got a new puppy. So much for my stress-free weekend! 😉 Seriously…I think a new puppy is more work than a new baby. At least human babies stay where you put them and will wear a diaper! It’s been a long time since we had those 13 puppies born Christmas Day. Fourteen years to be precise and at that time we had their mom to help look after them. I knew it was going to be busy but by Saturday morning I was thinking, what HAVE I done?! Actually he’s really starting to settle in already and is such a smart little guy. He really is little as he’s not quite 7 weeks old. After MUCH debate, we named him Maximus. The kids are loving him and it’s been great for getting them outdoors more.

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Here he is with my 6yo. That should give you a little idea of the size. I’ll get some better pics to share soon. He’s just been a busy little guy and hard to catch a photo of!

***** It’s time for summer CHA again and I’m once again staying home. That’s a good thing with the new puppy! It’s been fun seeing the new sneak peeks so far and what I’m really looking forward to is keeping an eye on what’s going on with Craft Critique. Many of the reporters are off to check it out and they always provide great coverage. Keep your eye on Craft Critique as there will be updates there throughout the day once the fun begins!

Life is Beautiful

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Here’s a quick card I put together. I’m loving this dotted Bazzil cardstock…so pretty and I still love those Jenni Bowlin 4×4 mini papers. I bought some more that arrived while I was on vacation and I can’t wait to get into them!

Stamps: Ornamental Beauty (The Rummage Bin line) by CHF

Ink: Black Memento by Tsukineko

Paper: cardstock by Bazzill Basics, 4×4 paper by Jenni Bowlin, Simply Smooth white cardstock by Cornish Heritage Farms

Other: voila trim by Prima, ribbon, circle punch, Copic markers

Have a beautiful day!

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23 Comments

Posted in Card Designs, Copics, Cornish Heritage Farms, personal, Photos