MyGrafico Challenge 60

Hi peeps! Notice something different?? I decided to update my blog header. I actually made 2 version. One with the letters in blue grey, which I currently used, and the other one in green. What do you think? I think this new design has cleaner look than my previous one. Kind of loving this new look.

It's Wednesday, so it's time for another MyGrafico challenge. This week the DT get to work with the Mel Brushes "Wild flower set". And the challenge is to create vintage or distressed card. This truly is a challenge for me. If you have followed me for awhile, you know I don't do vintage card. Totally not my style.

Making distressed looking card stressed me out. Here's my card. The closest I came in making vintage looking card.

I keep feeling like I need to clean up those edges. LOL. What do you think peeps? Yay or nay? And I decided to add some buttons, so I can enter this card for EBTKS Challenge 20 as well.

I hope you will join us for MyGrafico challenge. You can find all  the details here and you can win free digital stamp, too! Here's a peek of what's included in  the Wildflower set.

After all  the stress of trying to make vintage card, I tried to get my mojo back by making my typical cute stuff. :) On my previous post I metioned I found this cute ducky stamp at CHA. Well, here he is. I think he's a cutie pie!

I made this card using Maren's sketch for Skipping Stones Design Challenge 36 (my 1st time entering their challenge). I met Maren at CHA and she's just the cutest girl with bundles of energy. She entertained the crowd at Paper Crafts booth with her enthusiasm and she's just so nice and adorable.

Thank you for stopping by here. I really appreciate all your wonderful comments & encouragemet. Have a great Wednesday!

CHA - Day 2 Continue

Let's continue the report on my amazing CHA advnture, shall we? I didn't get to talk about the make and take. There were lots of them. And have to say that most of them were pretty cute make & take. I didn't bother with any of the sewing related or t-shirt dye make & take like that. I stick to paper craft related. Except, I did make a super cute button ring. Although, I forgot to include it in this pic that show some of the make & take that I did.

At Splitcoast Stamper booth I made the grunge bracelet (upper left corner, below the bird card). I think that's the most grungey thingy I ever made. LOL, you know me, I usually do clean looking stuff. We were using Tim Holtz products and that bracelet does look pretty cool. In person, you could see some shimmer on it as we layered some pearly dabber.

I love the card we made at Taylored Expression booth (pink one with the bird). And Taylor herself is so cute. I didn't get a chance to take picture with her though. I also really love the card and mini book I made at Kaiser Kraft booth. They're  very generous with their make & take, and they have awesome customer service.

To my surprise, they weren't that many vendor selling papers. Only a few. But I did manage to get some super cute American Crafts, Pebbles In My Pocket, & My Mind Eyes papers. But, there were tons of them that sell stamps and card making related stuff.

I was delighted to check out Crafters's Companion, a UK based company. When I was in UK, I loved going to their stationery stores and bought a bunch of card that has cutest animals, that's so UK style for me. Usually you don't see their product here in the US. So, I was browsing at their booth and saw this Popcorn bear image with his ducky companion. I immediately recognized it as the images from 1 of my favorite card that I purchased in London. Me.., cute ducky..., oh, there's no way to deny it, instant attraction!

I want to cuddle the duckie because it's sooo darn cute! Even better the whole set was only $6.95 and there were lots of stamps in 1 set. The power of asking question. I asked the lady is there's any special, she saw that I have 3 sets already on my hand and she said you can get 4 for $20. I was like, done! I'll have 4 sets, thank you very much. And LOL, talking with her I easily get influenced by her accents, I started talking with that accent for a bit. Heh... :) Here's pic of some of the goodies I got at CHA. Not all of them. :)

See that tape on the bottom left corner. I got a whole box of 12 for only $10 (it was $20 before). They are "Love My Tapes" adhesive. I was featured on their blog back in April and I truly love their adhesive. Best adhesive, especially for sheer or thin ribbon. And they're refillable. I chatted with Jong, the owner, as Shemaine who's their designer already left, and he also offered me great deal on  the washi tape. Yay! Go check out their web-site for some yummy washi tapes. You'll love them!

I also got some more Copic markers. Now here, the vendor was sooo nice compared to the one at CKC Houston. They let us checked out the color & the price was great as well. So happy I get to expand my Copic collection. I waited over a year here to expand my collection. And they offer free shipping on Copic markers!! No minimum purchase necessary. For the life of me, I can't remember the vendor name, but if you want their information, email me. I have their information in my pile that  need to be organized. :)

I got other misc. stuff here and there. I am a responsible shopper. I guess that's why my husband never worried when I went on shopping spree. He knows my shopping spree is never outrageous one. LOL. I bought stuff that I know I can't get easily or from company that usually have high shipping cost. The rest, I save it for later.

Earlier I mentioned how Kaiser Kraft have awesome customer service. I couldn't find their ink cube to buy, so I ask them about it. She said hold on a second and came back with this box full of ink cubes. I was like can I buy it from you? She said no and gave me some ink cubes and a stamp set to try. By the time I left, practically they gave away bunch of cardstock, glue, etc., not just to me but lots of the other customers. Now, is that not great service? Below is pic of the goodies from them.

All in all, the CHA experience is awesome. Meeting all the fabulous blog friends was exiciting and fun. Have to admit the card making community is a pretty tight knit community that filled with wonderful peeps. I told hubby I'd like to go at least once. Now, I am thinking I should do it every year. LOL.

OK, here's a card for you. I made this card for Play Date Cafe Challenge 40, which is to use black and white with a hint of green. I loved the way this card  turned out. I think it's my first elegant card! Can't remember if I ever made one that look like this. Usually, not a fan of black & white for cards, I think I am converted now. It's quick, easy to make with awesome result (at least I think so, heh...). Also made this for Hero Arts August challenge.

Wow, three days in a row of long post. I hope you enjoy reading the posts. Thank you so much for stopping by and I sure hope I can meet many of you who visits my blog in person one of this day. Have a great Tuesday peeps! Ciaoo..! :)

CHA - Day 2 Report

Happy Monday, peeps! Are you ready for my CHA - day 2 report? Gonna be a long one!! I'll split it & save some story for tomorrow's post as well. :)  My day start at 1.05am. Yep, as in 1 in the morning!! My MIL, her sister, and me shared the room. Well, they both snore = me... no sleep. I kept tossing & turning, by 3am, I started to text hubby. Of course, he didn't get them till he woke up much later.

Thank goodness for iphone! I ended up browsing online, played game, and around 4 something I finally fell asleep. Then 5.20am, my MIL woke up. I woke up with her and she told me to go back to sleep, and I just pointed my finger to their bed, where her sister still blisfully asleep & snoring (love ya, Aunt Flo!!). She laughed & we decided to look for coffee downstairs, while her sister stayed in. It was nice though, I get to catch up with  my MIL.

When the show started. I shopped around, chatted with the Paper Crafts peeps again and they all signed my Gallery Idol card, except for Cath (Moxie Fab) as she wasn't around and later, I kept on missing her. At one point, Susan told me Cath was in while I was waiting at a make & take. The Paper Crafts gals are the best! They're so warm, funny, and just plain fun to talk to. Loved them!!

Anyway, I was going to see Cath after my make & take, except when I stood up, I feel like I am going to pass out. I think that's what 3 hours of sleep & empty stomach do to your body. LOL. Needless to say, I missed Cath, as I rushed back to the hotel to get some food in me. :)

After some rest, I got my second wind. Went back for more shopping. Heh... Loved shopping. Highlight of day 2??? See this pic??

Debbie, Mish, Heather, me, Nichole, Jennifer, & Dawn.

Me lovey Papertrey Ink!!!

Yep, me and all the Papertrey Ink gals! I wanted to jump up and down! It started with me saying hi to Jennifer Ellefson. We went way back. We were on the DT together for Simply Sentiments magazine in 2003-2004. We started to chat and then she said let me introduce you to the whole group. Eeekkkk....

And when I asked if we could take picture, Jennifer lined everybody up! Thank you Jennifer! I get to chatted with Dawn for awhile. Loved Dawn! She's sooo pretty and so sweet. And then, Nichole offered some stamp cleaners. She told me to get as many as I want, but since I only bring carry on and doesn't want to get stop by homeland security, I told her I just have 1. :) This company has the best peeps!

With Jennifer (Papertrey Ink)

Oh yes, they all signed my Papertrey notepad as well. And they gave the sweetest message & encouragement. Simply love them!! The kind of company t hat I would love to work for. I'll post about the make & take & all the goodies on tomorrow post.

I do have a couple cards to share with you, using my new DeNami stamp. Loved Paulina & Nami, amazing mother daughter duo. I love turtle. Kind of collecting things that turtle realted actually. So, as soon as I saw this stamp, there's no thinking required, I have to have it!! I used their sketch from their last challenge and since this is cute as can be, I have to enter this for Moxie Fab Fun & Cute challenge as well and the CAS-tastic Bling It Up challenge.

Close-up view to show the glittery outline

And, I can't stop using this cutie. Made another 1 using CPS 178 sketch. Again as this cute this go to Moxie Fab Fun & Cute and also Clean & Graphic challenge.

Are you still here?? If yes, thank you for reading all the way to the bottom. LOL. I know it's a super long post. Will share more tomorrow. Thank you all for stopping by. Any comments, thought, question about CHA, just let me know. Happy Monday!!

CHA - Day 1 Report

Hi peeps! Happy Sunday! Wow, my CHA trip was AMAZING!! I get to meet so many people. I just love the friendship that's formed through this creative outlet of card making.

Today I want to share my 1st day experience at CHA. I arrived Friday morning around 11. My flight arrived a bit early, which is good. Head straight to Hyatt O'Hare, checked-in, stored my carry-on luggage & off I went to CHA! First girlI noticed was cute Paulina (Pretty Pink Posh) from DeNami Design. I learned that her mom, Nami designed all their stamps and all  the cards at their booth were all made by Paulina. Her designs rock! Their booth definitely has the most cards sample.

After saying hi to her, I looked for Paper Crafts booth & said hi real quick to Maren Benedict, one of PC Go To Gals. She's so adorable & very energetic. Since she had line of people waiting, I told her I'll come back later on the day to take picture with her. :) And I met Shemaine from Love My Tapes, who's also HA Flickr girl.

Kelly Marie, me, and Paulina. Amazing gals. Love them!!

Went back to shop at DeNami booth, guess who else stopped by, but the super cute Kelly Marie owner of Lawn Fawn stamps! She's so friendly, down to earth, simply amazing girl! So happy I get to meet and hang out with her a bit. I even get to share my Gallery Idol card with her and she also signed it for me! Heh... Yes, I am that nerdy. But she designed amazing stamps, that are so much fun to work with.

A few of the hundreds of card samples at Denami booth, all by Paulina.

Next stop, Splitcoast Stampers booth! Made the coolest grunge bracelet with Diana from Eclectic Paperie. Meet with Lynette Kauffman, another talented card maker. I tried to go in toPapertrey Ink booth. You wouldn't believe the line to get in to this booth. So, I only made their make & take instead and came back for shopping later on the day. I did get a pic with the super sweet Dawn from PTI. Loved, loved her! She's so nice & friendly. Her designs always one of my favorite at PTI line.

With Dawn, she's just the sweetest!

Then, I met Belinda Chang & her friend Ren-Yi.  And what a small world, when Ren-Yi shared that her dad was born in Medan, where I was born, too. The 3 of us hanged out for a while. While shopping at My Favorite Things (Belinda was such an enabler, she showed me the cutest banner die from them, that I just have to buy!), I saw Rae Barthel, last year Gallery Idol winner.

And, she's soooo cool & so sweet! She introduced me to the rest of Paper Crafts gals. Cath (Moxie Fab - yay... I have Moxie Fab badge now!), Susan, and Jennifer. They're all so nice & friendly. Meeting them truly made my day.

With the super energetic & cute Maren.

Cath (Moxie Fab!), me, & Jennifer

My first day went by so quick. Oh yes, not to forget, I also met Latrice, one of the HA Flickr girl. Not only she's a card maker, she makes awesome jewelry, too!

Me, Belinda (Gallery Idol 2010), & Latrice. 

Phew... that's a long post! There's just so many wonderful  things I can say about CHA. Thank you hubby for making me go! Tomorrow I'll be back with report of my 2nd day at CHA! Have a great super duper Sunday! Hugs!!!!

Wee Memories Challenge

Hi all. Today my awesome SIL, Gina is celebrating her birthday. So, I want to do a birthday shout out to her. I simply think of Gina as my sister. She's simply the sweetest and I am so lucky to have her in our family. When she was dating my brother, lots of people actually think I was her sister because they think we're more look alike than me and my  brother. And she always let people think that way. :) Simply adore & love her. Wish you all  the very best, Ci!!

And, today I have my first post for Wee Memories Challenge. This week it's all about "CHIPBOARD" and we are sponsored by Cosmo Cricket. One of my favorite company! Create any project using chipboard. The prize will be 2 packs of Cosmo Cricket Paper (Garden Variety and Core Impressions) and 2 packs of alphabet chipboard.

Here's my card for this challenge. Seriously... note to self, need to get  more Cosmo chipboard.

The patterned paper is is from Cosmo Crickets Material Girl set. Actually, I used the cover paper that comes with the set. Hey, why waste it if it's pretty? Recycle, reuse is my motto. :) I stitched all around the strip of paper first before gluing it to the card.  Added some rhinestone. The label stamp is from Papertrey Ink.

So, what'cha waiting for? Come join the fun and check out all the DT cool cards at Wee Memories! Thank you for stopping by. I'll be back home tonight and can't wait to see hubby and the kids (doggies)!! Have a super dyper great weekend! Ciaoo.....

CHA & Wee Memories

Hi peeps!! As this post goes up this morning, I'll be on my way to CHA! It's going to be a long, but fun day for me. I start at 5am, leave home by 5.30am to head out to the airport. Have my coffee & audio book to keep  me company. I can't do long drive (anything more than 30 minutes I considered as long drive) without coffee. Thanks hubby, for getting the coffee & breakfast ready for me. :) Hubby does spoiled me. Heh... so lucky.

Here's a quick card that I made this week. I actually have these type writer alphabet stamps for hmm.... about 2-3 years?? And it's still rand spanking new. Guilty as charge for hoarding. LOL. Finally decide to use it. This card is inspired by the typewriter challenge from Paper Craft.

And I have another exciting news to say. I've been an admire of Jenny's Wee Memories blog. Her card style is sooo me. Fun & cute! I am delighted to say that Jenny has chosen me to be part of her DT. Her DT coordinator is Kim, who I also been following for awhile. How fortunate am I to be working with these 2 ladies along with 6 other talented ladies? You can see the announcement here. Eekk.... so happy. Please come back tomorrow for our Wee Memories Challenge.

Have a wonderful Friday and I am going to spend my day meeting some peeps and maybe if I am nerdy enough, maybe I'll even ask them to give me some signature. :) Happy Friday!!

Paper Play & DDSB Challenge

Hi peeps!! Eeekk..., one more day till CHA Super Show! I got my stuff packed (not that there's many to pack since I am only going to be gone for 2 days), my list ready, and list of phone numbers on hand. I am guessing I probably will have a hard time sleeping tonight as I am so  giddy. Although I really need the sleep, considering the next 2 days going to be a long day with lots of walking. I hope it's going to  be as good as I expected.

On to today's card. Today is the rare occasion where my card fit my two DT assignments. Love when this happens. Hah... I made this card for the challenges on both, Paper Play Challenge & Digi Doodle Shop's Best (DDSB) challenge. This week Paper Play Challenges theme is "EVERYTHING GOES" and Digi Doodle Shop's Best challenge theme is "PUNCH IT OUT" (which create a project using punch or die-cut).

Now , you know I love die-cuts. Would never have thought I'd say that. If you asked me this question 10 years ago, I would said that's one of my least favorite item to use in scrapbook. But, with all the current stylish design, convenience, and quality of the tools, now I love using die-cut.

The dies that I used for this card is the new Spiral Note Die from Papertrey Ink and the clouds cut with Silhouette. The hot air balloon is from Digi Doodle Shop's Summer set. I printed it twice, once on the patterned paper and second one on white cardstock. Cut the balloon part from the patterned paper and the basket part from the white cardstock (I colored the basket with Copic markers). The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink also.

I have to say that my collection of Papertrey Ink grows the fastest. I found them back in Febuary 2010 and by now I already have 15 sets, some inkpads, several dies, cardstock, etc.?! My digi stamps growing pretty fast, too. At least they don't take extra storage space. Nice thing about digi stuff! :) Who's your current favorite company? Let's enabling each other here. :)

You all have a great Thursday and hopefully Sunday, if I am not whooped, I can post about my CHA trip! Hugs, Vera.

Becky

Today I feel a bit bummed for my sweet sister-in-law & my brother who lives in Jakarta. Early this morning their time (last evening our time here in the US), they had to put their beloved dog, Becky to sleep. Beacky has been with them for almost 15 years. She came into their live soon after they got married along with her sibling, Barney.

She's been sick a lot and blind, too. Letting go of a beloved family member always heartbreaking. I just want to wish them both comfort during this sad time. At least now, Beacky is free from any pain and hopefully she's having a blast in heaven!

OK, on to today's card for MyGrafico challenge. This week we're featuring the work of Zenwaredesigns, called Slumber Party. The challenge is to "Glitz Up" your project. Add glitters, rhinestone, etc., to your project and then upload your card at MyGrafico Challenge Blog.

And here's what come in the Slumber Party set:

Plenty of cuteness. Would be fun to use this to make invitation for a slumber party! I also make another card last night using CPS Sketch 177. This one is using the Hero Arts design for Silhouette. I loved, loved my Silhouette and it's great that slowly many manufacturer have their design available to Silhouette.

Going to Paris is one of the item on my bucket list! So want to go there. I love travelling, especially to Europe. I just love the history they have and the mix of old and modern together. Isn't this Eiffel Tower die-cut so awesome & detailed?

Well, for now, travelling to Chicago is on  the list. 2 more days!! LOL, I already get excited that I can barely sleep last night thinking of all the goodies I am going to see, the people I am going to meet, etc. :) Hope you will join us on this week MyGrafico challenge. Let those glitters out!! Hugs, Vera.

2S4Y Sketch 57

Hi there! How are you all doing? Just a quick post for today. Here's a card that I made last night for Wee Memories Stamping challenge, following 2S4Y Sketch 57.

Stamps: Hero Arts, Papertrey Ink

Butterfly punch: Martha Stewart

Patterned Paper: Bo Bunny

I actually added glitters to all the flowers, but with my lighting and all, the camera didn't quite capture the glitters. This week I feel really good in terms that I finished all my DT works for this week and one of them isn't even due till Aug. 13. Hah... this one actually happen by accident as I thought it was due this week. LOL.

I am also working on a couple layouts & some cards right now for one of the manufacturer. They will spotlight my works in August. So excited about this opportunity. Hopefully I can come up with some good stuff! :)

That's it for today's folks. I am going to check around and see all the CHA sneak peeks from my favorite companies. Thank you for stopping by. Hope you have a fantastic day!

FTL 100 Blog Hop

I am so excited. This week the CHA start and that means sneak peek of new products from all  the manufacturer! Do you have particular brand that you're looking for? I have tons. So far, some of the sneak peek I saw are totally YUMM....IE!!! :) Plenty of gorgeous papers, embellishments, etc.

I, for one cannot wait for Friday! I'll be leaving Friday morning to the CHA Super Show in Chicago and going to meet up with some crafty blog friends. So happy that I finally will get to meet them in person. I am looking forward to meeting Belinda, Tiffany, and Shemaine from Gallery Idol. Looking forward to say hi to the Papertrey Ink peeps, Cath from Moxie Fab, the Paper Craft gang, some Hero Arts gals, etc.

Will definitely give you all full report of my trip, next week, here. :) For today, I have this CAS card for Clean & Simple Stamping FTL 100 Blog Hop. And since this card is CAS it's going for Moxie Fab Clean & Graphic challenge as well.

Been wanting to use this stamp from Papertrey Ink Round & Around set. That image is so adorable. I loved it!

I have to mention this awesome movie real quick. Last night hubby and I watched the movie "Hachi". Oh my gosh, I cried my eyes out. It based on true story of this dog Hachi, who always meet his owner at the train station. Then the owner passed away and years after years till he dies, every day he'd waited at his spot by the train station for his owner. You know, I always appreciate the joy and love that my doggies brings me. But watching that movie, made me appreciate the loyalty and the huge, huge love that an animal can feel. The real Hachi did that for 9 years of waiting at the train station. My heart was breaking just thinking about it.

I like to think all dogs go to heaven and  that they always looking forward to that time to meet with their loved ones again. Go see that movie. Even if you're not a dog lover, I am sure you can appreciate the story about love and loyalty. Still get teary eyes thinking about it. I am such a cry baby when it comes to animals. Love them. :)

 If this is your first time on my blog, please take the time  to look around and I hope you can find some inspirations! Thank you for stopping by here. May your week started beautifully!