To Everything There is a Season

Dear Followers:

There is change in the air, "to everything there is a season," and I am not just writing about the move from summer to autumn. 

In fact, the season has changed on the Lovebug Creations' Creative Team, and I have tendered my resignation.  This is the last post that I will exclusively feature ribbons by LBC, after terms of more than a year. 

It boils down to a difference of opinion -- I have one (actually many) and I am not afraid to express it or them. I did so in a Facebook posting in the "Lovebug Lounge," and stepped on the feelings of a few Lovebugs. One Bug called me out on my opinion in private Facebook messages that became aggressive and attacking me personally. The Bug was relentless and I ended up blocking her messages and "defriending" her on Facebook. The drama was intolerable, and I offered to leave the Team. Offer accepted.

Chevron Fun Footz under the trailer

So what was the flurry about? 

It was about "Fun Footz," an LBC product that featured truly fun patterns -- chevrons, dots and animal prints -- but unfun (at least for me) because they were only available in what I considered snips of 12". That's right -- you couldn't buy it by the yard, I believe due to production issues, but only in three pieces of 12" each.

I found that when I used "Fun Footz", I had to piece together the snips or use them creatively rather than wrap my cards or make my bows with abandon. Here's one such card:

For this card at right,  I used all three 12" Footz of a very pretty green and magenta chevron that matched my Close To My Heart paper perfectly. I used 10" inside the card for the two horizontal stripes, and two of the 12" snips to make the vertical wrap around the left side of the card. All I had left was used to make a knotted "bow" on the center when I would have liked a full sassy real bow. Grrrr.  And I couldn't buy more of this color because it only came sold in a set of Chevrons of other Fun Footz colors.  The size/set limitation really frustrated me creatively.

So when Kimi (LBC's head Lovebug/owner) posted on the public Facebook  "Lovebug Lounge" that Fun Footz were being discontinued -- get 'em quick -- I resisted the urge to say "Good riddance."  (They are no  longer available on the LBC store.)

Instead, I complimented the colors and patterns, but expressed my frustration in the size limitations. According to the one Lovebug, my comments were "tactless" and "in poor taste."  She reminded me that by being on the Creative Team, I was essentially "hired" to express nothing but "love" in a public forum. In truth, I purchased far more Rumple Ribbon than I ever got for free -- yes, at a small discount -- so I really didn't consider myself a hired lackey. I honestly love Rumple Ribbons -- just not Fun Footz.

Well, my friends, you might know me better than that, I am not sure. If I love a product without reservation, I tell you. If there are cons, I am going to tell you too.  Yes, I am loyal, but at the same time, I am honest -- hopefully not brutally or "tactlessly" honest.

I had a lot of fun on the Lovebug Creations Creative Team and worked with some of the very, very best people. I served on the Team since its inception. I posted 61 projects on this blog with its 1339+ followers ... and I am still proud of each of the projects, and also my followers!  In fact, I've added a page to the top of this blog (link HERE) where you can see all my projects that feature LBC's Rumple Ribbons, Mama's Mesh and yes, Fun Footz. 

I admit, I am a feeling a bit stung at how my end happened and how quickly I was snuffed. When I worked full-time and some employees (including me!) suddenly left the office mysteriously, we referred to them as "DNPs" -- Departed, No Party.  A leaving in a "Don't Let the Door Hit You On The Backside On Your Way Out" kinda way. 

When I left the LBC Creative Team, I had made and pre-planned and scheduled many of my Monday posts for the months ahead. This includes the card at the top of this post, that features Olive Rumple Ribbon sewn inside some Sunset Mama's Mesh.

The cards I featured here throughout the post are those you would have been seeing in the weeks ahead, if my term continued. As you might suspect, I put a lot of time and commitment into serving on this Team -- and I want you to be able to enjoy the cards and ideas on the cards that I've made.

So this post is my way of giving myself a pat on the back and saying, "Well done!"  (see left). 


In the months ahead, I'll be looking at other options for ribbons and seam binding on my projects. I have already gotten in an order from 3 Girl Jam, and have other delicious colors to share with you from other ribbon vendors too. 

Thank you, Lovebug Creations, for allowing me the opportunity to explore how nice ribbons can look on my cards. I value you, my readers -- and always welcome your honesty even if I don't always agree with your opinion. That's why there's vanilla and chocolate (and many more flavors) of ice cream! 

Did someone say ice cream??  I  have Tin Roof Sundae in my freezer. What's your favorite flavor?

Dream Big ... and SUNSHINE! :)

Oh my gosh, what a beautiful day it is here in Southeastern Pennsylvania!!  Cool breezes, temperature moderate (in the 70's) and no humidity!  After yesterday's soaking rains when we got more than 4" of rain, I am sitting at my window -- actually, I'm sitting at the computer, which is right in front of the window -- breeze ruffling my papers, and feeling great!

I'm able to color with my Copics today ... quite the therapy for me -- and make some cards without any pressure. No deadlines, no worries.... 

With that in mind, here's one I made just playing around. I used a background from a paper pack by Kathy Davis Studios (from the local Joann Store), and two cuts from Silhouette America, for the whimsical dragonfly and the "dream big". Dropped in behind the cuts is a new product from Lovebug Creations ... it is called "Mama's Mesh" and is available in all of the colors of my favorite Rumple Ribbon. 

Good golly, isn't it amazing what WEATHER does to affect your mood!? 

Clean colors, design in Kathy Davis papers

Have I told you about one of the newer ventures I've undertaken?  I've signed on to become a Papercrafting Instructor at our local Joann Store (in Warrington, PA). 

I'm set and ready to go, but so far, no one has signed up for the classes that Joann Corporate thinks their customers in this area wants to learn.

It's frustrating -- I only need ONE customer to teach the class -- but so far, no go. 

Frankly, I think it is that the classes aren't ones that seasoned crafters might want. My frustrations echo that of the store's Education Coordinator; unfortunately, there's nothing she can do to override the Corporate decisions -- she is but a cog in the wheel. So, oh no!, she quit!!  

This is what I'd like to teach: using a favorite paper pack to make a set of cards from that single pack. For this pack, I went to my Joann Store and bought one super paper pack by Kathy Davis. Actually, I bought both of the 12x12" pack, and the 6x6" pack. I also bought a package of Kathy Davis glitter epoxy dot stickers and inspiration cards. 

For this collection of eight cards, I used a few sheets of the 6x6" pack, 4 pieces of white 12x12" paper, and some of the dots and inspiration cards:

  
Aren't they pretty?  They are all 4x6", and I plan to make a gift box for them to give them to the "retiring" Joanne Store Education Coordinator.  

Here they are individually:

Featuring white Lovebug Creations Rumple Ribbon

I also used white gel pen and a Martha Stewart Edge Punch

Foam dots also used

Lovebug Creations Caddy Blue Rumple Ribbon, and CTMH stamps
(for the "Shower of" and butterfly); foam tape also used

Lovebug Creations Green Leaves Rumple Ribbon,
Martha Stewart Edge Punch; foam dots also used

I love this beautiful set of cards with the fresh colors and clean design. 

When I purchased the Kathy Davis paper at Joanne, the cashier told me that Kathy Davis was once a teacher at Hatboro-Horsham High School, a local school ... and has since become quite an enterprise selling a whole line of goods, including inspirational posters, giftware, tableware, linens, books, etc.  AND her studio is local ... about 5 minutes from my home ... as is her only retail store!!  OMG!  I WILL be visiting soon!!

Jaded Blossom/Lovebug Creations Wedding Hop - May 31

Did you know that the most popular month for weddings -- still, after 75 years of record-keeping -- is June?

Well, if you ever tried to book a wedding in June, you might know.  I was once a June bride -- Marriage #1 -- and I can tell you that it's a beautiful time of year, but in my area (the Northeast), it can be hot and stormy. LOL, kind of describes my first marriage, especially the stormy part! 

My Marriage #2 was at the end of March -- "in like a lion, out like a lamb."  And that too describes my second (current/last!) marriage.  Yup, I tamed that lion, LOL -- and he's a lovely lambie! :)

So anyway, let's get to the point of why you're here as we head into June: the Wedding Blog Hop, hosted by Jaded Blossom and Lovebug Creations, and featuring their respective creative team members. 

We'll be showing you Jaded Blossom's fun Wedding stamps (Wedding Wishes and Wedding Candies), while also showcasing Lovebug Creations Rumple Ribbons. Here are the two Jaded Blossom stamps, available in their store:

Lovebug Creations is featuring the release of their newest color, a luscious soft beige called "Buttercream."  

Now, when I think "Buttercream," I think yummy icing. When I think icing, I think cake. And of course, if it's a wedding hop, I think wedding cake. There's my thinking behind this project I made for this Hop, a beautiful paper wedding cake, filled with treats for the bride. I envision this as a gift to take to the bride at a pink/green themed wedding shower ...

The "cake" is a three-tiered octagonal box which is a pattern available from the Silhouette Online store. I decorated each panel with different but complementing pink/green papers cut and embellished on each panel. 

For the bottom layer, I decorated the panels with a paper from my stash, accented by LBC Rumple Ribbons in Panther Pink On the Edge. At the lower edge, I tipped the panel with a piece of white cardstock cut with a Martha Stewart eyelet lace punch.

On the middle layer, I again used the MS eyelet lace at the bottom, with a paper from my stash; LBC Rumple Ribbons in Green Leaves laced through a ribbon punch cut, topped with a half pearl. 

On the top layer, I used pink roses from Wild Orchid glued in a serpentine pattern on each panel, trimmed with leaves punched using a Punch Bunch leaf punch. The top is capped by a rolled rose from Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge, along with more roses from Wild Orchid. Adhesive pearls dot the top as well. 

The top tier is unfillable, as I made it. I filled the center tier with Hershey's Kisses adorned by punched sentiments from the Wedding Kisses stamps from Jaded Blossom. The bottom tier I left empty for now, thinking I may make circular thank you cards for the bride to use after her shower. 

Once it was filled, I tied the entire "cake" using Lovebug Creations' newest product, "Mama's Mesh" in Ballet Slippers, tied with another piece of LBC Rumple Ribbons.  

I hope you enjoyed my project, and that you'll leave a little love in my COMMENTS section. If you do and your comment is chosen at random by RANDOM.ORG, you could win my personal blog candy, which is a beautiful Stamp of the Month 16-piece stamp set from Close To My Heart featuring roses called "Floral Happiness" ... I love this set, and plan to feature it on the thank you cards I'll be making (soon!) to enclose in the bottom of this box. Here it is:

And our hostesses are offering Hop-wide blog candy, too!
To be eligible for these host-sponsored prizes, you must comment on EVERY PARTICIPATING BLOG, so get hopping if you'd like to win one of these two prizes that will be awarded:

A $15 Gift Certificate from Jaded Blossom

A $15 Gift Certificate from Lovebug Creations

So get hopping!  Your next stop is: 
ASHLEY 

Here is the entire line-up in case you get lost along the way:

Candace

 Kim and Pamela 

Michelle 

Martha 

Kate 

Dawn Mercedes 

Jamie

 Tanya 

Crystal 

Dorcas

 Julie 

Christine

 Jenny

 Dawn Rene 

Trixie

 Ellen (CardMonkey) - You are HERE

 Ashley 

Stephanie

 Jaymie

 Zeni

Thank you again for Hopping By!!

Rumple Ribbons Thursday: Lemonade Love

Bright sunny skies, butterflies, daisies, lemonade and love -- doesn't this just scream Summer to you?  

This pretty card is made using a base from April's Card Kitchen kit by Jillibean Soup. I added a sweet yellow butterfly and complemented the card using Lovebug Creations' Rumple Ribbon in Lemonade.

I just love all of these fun, refreshing elements on this card -- how about you? 

Rumple Ribbon Thursday: Happy Memorial Day!

Have I told you lately how much I love Lovebug Creations' Rumple Ribbon? 

As I headed into making my patriotic cards for the summer holidays, I begged Kimi of LBC to please make red/white/blue ribbons -- and she responded in all glory!

She made two sets of R-W-B ... one that is called the Old Glory collection, and the other is the Star Spangled collection, both of which are now available from http://lovebugcreations.net. 
Old Glory has more vintage, subdued colors of Betsy Ross Blue, Washington White and Revere's Ride Red. In the Star Spangled collection, you'll find parts of the "Simply" colors -- Simply Red, Simply White, Simply Blue.  (Simply Black and Simply Grey are also now available.)  

For this card, I once again added Rumple Ribbons to a Jillibean Soup Card Kitchen card, to make it my own. I mixed up colors from the two patriotic collections, and used Simply Red, and Betsy Ross Blue. Aren't they perfect matches for the Jillibean Soup diecuts?  

Do you have plans for Memorial Day?  Our (private) community's pool opened earlier this month, and there's a pool party to welcome the summer.  In Warminster, there'll be the traditional parade sponsored by the VFW; when I served as Township Supervisor, I rode in the parade (sometimes in a convertible, more often in a golf cart) and threw candy to the kids lining the parade route. Honestly, it was about my favorite part of the job when I served. (And I'm glad I'm only a cardmaker now, not a politician!) 

Happy Memorial Day, and thank you to all veterans who have served our country, including my father (Army), uncle (Army), nephew (Army and Coast Guard), father-in-law (Marines), mother-in-law (Air Force), and ex-father-in-law (Navy). 

DeFiaNtLy DiFfeReNt & CreAtiVeLy Yours,

Trendy Color Combo: Green, Gray and Yellow

I'm loving this color combination: yellow, yellow green, white and light gray. And I found it in the Jillibean Soup Card Kitchen card kit for April, well, at least in part. 

The kit called for a cream-colored bow and a "Hello" sentiment in yellow that just didn't do it for me. Remember: You're always encouraged to change up these kits to make them your own!  

I swapped out the cream ribbon for Lovebug Creations' Rumple Ribbon in "Green Goddess." Yummy! Then, using one of the Pink By Designs stamps I recently received as part of my work on the Lovebug Creations Creative Team, I instead used the sentiment: "You really made my day."  A heart sticker from the kit was changed up for a sweet yellow butterfly that complemented the Jillibean Bite Sized Bit.  

New Nest card with Rumple Ribbon

It's time for another Rumple Ribbon Thursday!

I'm back with another card, this one for a friend who has just bought her first home. Long ago I printed out this digi-image and at the moment I can't for the life of me remember where I bought it. (Please, if you know or it's yours, let me know so I can give you credit.)  I colored the image using Copic markers , set the sentiment on my computer and folded it to look like a ribbon banner.

I used My Mind's Eye paper for the backing and mounted the finished art onto a pre-made Close To My Heart daisy white card.

I trimmed out the new home in Lovebug Creations Rumple Ribbon, in a beautiful brown color called Gentleman's Jacket.

Cheery Friendship Card with Rumple Ribbons

Welcome to another Rumple Ribbon Thursday! 

For this cheery friendship card, I used a splash of vibrant Rosebud Rumple Ribbon from Lovebug Creations for my border to hold the simple butterfly cut and to draw the eye down and into the card.

The base of the card design is from Jillibean Soup's Card Kitchen's March kit. I changed it up slightly by adding the red button and of course, the Rumple Ribbon. 

I think the red highlights really "make" the card. What do you think?

See you again next week with more Rumple Ribbons!