ABC ATCs

Today's swapping day for Q, R, S, T, and U. Q is for quinacradone. R is for Rub ons. S is for stencil. T is for tape. U is for Ultra thick embossing enamel.



While I was working on U I remembered why I don't like using embossing powder. :) It's like I'm walking on sand in my studio.

I have a new found fondness for dog racing. Jim took me for the fist time a couple weeks ago and I asked him to take me again last night. We had the best time. We started with dinner at Pappadeaux, (we never go there so it was extra fun) and then headed to the dog track. I love reading the program and trying to decide which dog will win, I love hearing the little horn and then watching the dogs parade out, and I love cheering for the dogs who are falling behind too. It's also great people watching and nothing is more exciting than when everyone runs forward when it's a close race. It's probably a good thing that I don't like to loose money or I could have a problem. :)

Can You Handle The Cuteness?

I hope I didn't jump the gun or anything but yesterday my bird graffiti canvas was literally begging me to turn it into a purse! I was following the directions I found on the web to make a lunch sack but it worked its way into the cutest purse ever! Did you notice the polka Dot handles? (I admit I am biased.)

Now of course I couldn't have a purse without buttons, and especially not a graffiti purse without buttons, so the cuteness continued! Most of the buttons I made in one of Rosie's Button Palooza classes. I love being funky!

I Heart Spray Paint!

I can pretty much guarantee that I was the only person in my neighborhood out spray painting at 5 o'clock this morning. I was working on my Grafitti Chic class projects. I left the canvases I showed earlier at school on Friday when I left in a hurry so I started new ones.



I fell in LOVE with these two books! They both have great stencils ...



And that's where the spray paint come in. I also finally tried out my Preval Spray Guns after owning them for a year! They are so much fun, you can make any color of paint you want spray, and the glass bottle are cute too. I ordered three more this morning!



Here's what my canvases look like now.

A Crazy Number Of Journal Pages

Between Babies and cars this week I have been working in my art journal. I finally got to journal for two hours this morning. I was having fun, I was on a roll, and I was getting caught up! Kelly posted this weekends prompts early because she is traveling to teach and I kept working on them. When I was finished with everything I could possibly do I realized I have 15 pages to show you! I though about just picking my favorite to show but then I could hear my mom yelling NO! all the way from her house so...

Good By Money Pit (AKA VW Beetle)

Don't get me wrong, there were plenty of good times in both of my VW Beetles. Like the time we crammed Morganna into my hard top beetle in her wedding dress.


Or the time, again with Morganna, that we were driving to California with the top down on the convertible Beetle and it suddenly started raining fairly heavy and we had to quickly pull to the side of the highway and put the top up. But mostly what I remember about the Beetles is how I had to take them in to be serviced every 4 months! I can honestly only remember one time in the past 9 years that my car made it past the 4 month point and that was only to 6 months. Yes, really! Why did I buy a second VW with so many problems? It's the difference between being 26 and 32. I bought the second VW because the first ones warranty ran out and the convertibles were released. DUH! But, I wanted a cute car, and I got it.

Sarah said to me at work the other day, "But Jeane what would you drive? I can only see you in a Beetle." It's true, most of my friends have only ever known me to drive a Beetle and truthfully I couldn't imagine driving anything else. That is until I opened Kia's web page and saw the Soul.



You see, Now at 32, I am looking for a dependable car that is unique looking. One that has cup holders and sun visors that really block out the sun. And this way of thinking is really much different than just wanting a cute car. So yesterday, I said goodbye to the Beetle and hello to my new Soul. It didn't hurt that I could get it in olive green either.

I was feeling a little sad about the whole situation and even left the flower in the bud vase as a memorial. But then, as I was showing the car salesman how to work the convertible top and the top ripped off at 5" x 6" part leaving a gaping hole in the car I remembered why the Beetle and I could no longer be friends! Well that and the fact that it's windows had started rolling in the opposite direction of the buttons that I pushed, the car died when I pushed the all windows up button, and the gas pedal pushed itself while driving on the freeway-all this week.

I added more fun stuff to my etsy shop yesterday too! Take a look.

Pay It Forward

I saw this fun idea on Dawn's Blog! The first three people to comment on this post (and agree to follow the rules:) will receive a handmade surprise in their mailbox form me! The surprise will mysteriously appear some time within the next three months, without warning. See, I told you it would be fun!

Here are the rules:
1. You have to comment on this post.
2. You have to leave me a way to contact you if I don't already know how. :) (Like your email address)
3. You have to post a Pay It Forward Challenge on your blog too.

I am excited to mail out surprises! I hope you are too! :)

I'm planning on posting new goodies to my etsy shop super soon! Keep an eye out! ;)

Oh, and happy St. Pat's Day too!

Introducing....

Baby Q!

From here on out Baby Kakes will be known simply as Kakes because she's a big girl now. Kakes is the proud big sister of Baby Q as of yesterday morning. Baby Q joined the family at 10:16 a.m.weighing 7 lbs 10 oz. She is 19 1/2" long and has tons of blond hair. She smells like a sweet baby and we love her to pieces!

Grafiti Chic With Alisa Burke

Monday I started an online class with Alisa Burke called Grafiti Chic.. We get new instructions each Monday and can work on the class fat our own pace. This week we worked on backgrounds. Here's what I did. These are large sheets of canvas but we were able to work on anything.


I was using metallic paints so they made a little bit of a glare in the photos.

The hardest part of working on these is deciding when you are done. :)

The first piece of canvas is just begging to be my purse!

Friday The 13th Birthday Murder Mystery

Yesterday was Shannon's 33 birthday. It just happened to fall on Friday the 13th so it was the perfect time for a murder mystery. Shannon mailed all of us a character description prior to the event once we got their we got an envelope filled with more secrets about our characters. As we mingled during our "1950's class reunion" we had to get people to talk so that we could solve the mystery. We even had money to bribe people to give us information if necessary.

My character, Susan, a wealthy mother of 6, had actually paid an arsonist to burn down a shopping center just a few days before the reunion. Why you ask??? Well the owner of the shopping mall, Michael, had been in buisness with my father-in-law and led him to financial ruin. Shortly after this my father-in-law took his own life and I convinced my husband not to kill Michael because the family needed him. Then, I took matters into my own hands! :)

It was a fun night and a great start to SPRING BREAK! I'm so excited to be on break! I'm planning on making lots of art, blogging a lot, and doing lots of goofing around! My new neice will be arriving tommorrow if all goes well for Buffy & Seth tonight at the hospital stay tuned for pictures of cuteness!

You Won't Believe This...

Or maybe you will if you know me... I burnt my tongue on ice cream tonight! Well it was actually low fat frozen yogurt but still as ridiculous none the less!

Journal pages from tonight.

More Jewlery

One new necklace and braclet for me...




And one for Buffy too!

Jewlery, Jewlery, jewlery

I was hammering like crazy last night! One of my friends at school has a son who is getting married next Friday. She needed some wedding jewelery. :) A bracelet for herself. (It says one day at a time)


A bracelet for her sister with her grandchildren's names.



And a bracelet for her new daughter-in-law.


Speaking of getting married...This is the surprise bracelet for my cousin. We are going to her bridal shower today.



I also made this cute, but hard to photograph, necklace for myself! I thought the on love charm was cute but added a diamond and heart dangle and look very closely that is Jim's name stamped on that tiny circle. Thankfully Jim's name is short!

Metal Bits & Journal Pages

If you should ever decide to start stamping metal and are looking for a great place to buy your sterling disks You should use Monsterslayer! I know this is a little bit random but I have ordered from them four times now and every time I get my order in lightning speed and they have the best prices I have found! They amaze me!

Journaling, journaling. Yesterday and today I worked on journal pages. I was working on my Prompt A Day pages and journaling on some previously collaged pages as well. I took a live class with Kelly called what next and had the opportunity to have several pages ready to journal on so I filled in all the holes in my newly started journal. I am almost half way through it already! Wow!