Day 2: Christmas Banners for Special Needs Kids Blog Hop (November 10-12)

...the day even the Grinch made a banner.

Welcome to Day 2 of the "Christmas Banners for Special Needs Kids" Blog Hop!  It's no fun for children who must spend Christmas in the hospital ... no fun for their families, not for their friends, not even for the Grinch. 

Our paper crafting volunteers realize this, and now for the second year in a row, have come together from across the world to make and donate fantastic holiday banners, to help lift their spirits in the hospital.

Last year when I hosted this Hop, I served as Admissions Coordinator at a group home for medically-fragile children. They loved getting our banners!  This year, I am out on disability myself (and I miss "my kids" terribly!!), so I looked for another worthy recipient of our great banners. 

I didn't have to look far -- in fact, I looked back, to the young, wonderful woman named Madison Womack who partnered with me on the very first banner hop in 2011!  Madison's perfect cause is her "I Feel The Love Project."   

 

By teaming up with Madison Womack's I FEEL THE LOVE PROJECT, the banners our crafters have handmade will be going to the hospitalized children at Children's Hospital Central California! 

Here is the banner I made for Day #2 of this Hop. I'll be sending this to Madison and the children at CHCC who are benefiting from the I Feel the Love project in December:

  Now, have I inspired you to make and donate your own banner or a Christmas card or two to the I Feel the Love Project?  I hope so!  Because if you will, you'll be entered into a drawing to win my:

CARDMONKEY's SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS
Super-Fantastic Gift Basket

Throughout the month of December, I'll be adding crafty goodness to this basket so that it will be over-flowing and ripe and ready for under your tree. I'll be picking the winner on Christmas Eve, announcing the winner on Christmas Day, and if you win, you'll have the basket in your hands by New Year's Day!! 

Stay tuned to the CardMonkey blog over the next few weeks leading up to the drawing, as I'll be posting the contents of the basket as they mount. 

 OK, so to win the GRAND PRIZE (all continents are welcome!), here's what you must do:

1.  Be a follower of the CardMonkey blog and tell me in your comment how I can contact you.

2.  Leave a comment telling me what you plan to make and send to the IFTL project by their deadline, December 10.  Then do it!  Go to www.ifeeltheloveproject.blogspot.com for mailing information for your card or banner.  Your card or banner MUST be received by Madison by the deadline to be eligible to win the GRAND prize!  

NOT READY FOR PRIME TIME??  You can still win great blog candy just by being here and commenting on as many banner makers' blogs over the course of the next three days.  

Since we have more than 50 banner makers today, tomorrow and Monday, I'll be picking 5 blogs at random, and then one random comment from that Blog site, for that commenter to win one of five great prizes, which are:

1. Susan Bermudez, Independent Consultant for Creative Memories, donating a $20 gift certificate for Creative Memories products from her catalog (http://www.mycmsite.com/sites/susanbermudez/).
   
2. Scrappin' Madge: $25 Gift Certificate to The Scrappin Lounge Shoppe (http://madgesscrappinlounge.storenvy.com/)
3. Fresh Brewed Designs: Two prizes - One prize is a rubber stamp, Item #497 "Cutie Pie Ice Skating" (http://www.freshbreweddesigns.com/item_497/Cutie-Pie-Ice-Skating.htm), and the other is a $15 Digital Stamp gift card.
4. The Paper Temptress (www.papertemptress.com) - Owner Patricia Dunbar will donate a $25 Gift Certificate to her online store, the Paper Temptress.
5. The Pinque Peacock (www.pinquepeacock.com) - Owners Jessica Shelton will donate a gift certificate to her NEW store (products are being added daily -- watch as she grows!)
6. In addition, Close to My Heart Independent Consultant Lucy Kelleher will award a $20 gift certificate to a randomly-selected hopper who visits her blog (http://love2createitall.com) and/or Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/LucyK.CTMH) and posts a comment about the banner blog hop!

P.S. -- Be sure to check out as many blogs as you can, as several will be providing their own blog candy with their own requirements.  If I catch them along the way, I'll add them to this list, as a shout out of gratitude, and also so you don't miss out on some sweet candy(canes!)... 

Here is the Hop line up for Sunday, November 11:

1. Ellen ♥ CardMonkey - http://cardmonkey-business.blogspot.com/
2. Jessica S - http://jessicascraftshaque.blogspot.com/
3. Lezlye - http://lezlyes.blogspot.com/
4. Lori - http://www.scrappinmystressaway.blogspot.com/
5. Jenny D - http://www.yogimemories.blogspot.com/
6. Lissa Marie - http://somanycrafts.com/
7. Robin - http://scrapandchat.blogspot.com/
8. Jenny - http://crazyaboutcricut.blogspot.com/
9. Scrappin Madge - http://thescrappinlounge.com/
10. Jeannie - http://polkacabana.wordpress.com/
11. Rebecca T. - http://craftingwithrebecca.blogspot.com/
12. Lisa T. - http://bitbythecricutbug.blogspot.com
13. Kimi ~ http://lovebugcreations3.blogspot.com

  YOUR NEXT STOP is:  JESSICA

 

 

Thank you again for visiting us here for a beautiful and worthwhile endeavor.  God bless all the little children wherever they spend their holidays!!

 

 

 

DeFiaNtLy DiFfeReNt & CreAtiVeLy Yours,

Look What I Made from Scraps: The Scraps to Treasures Blog Hop, Day 2

Welcome to Day 2 (Team B) of the Scraps To Treasures Blog Hop. 

If you have arrived here from Paula's Precious Pages, you are where you should be. If you found your way here on your own, you may want to start at Lissa Marie's blog today, to make sure you don't miss a thing. Other team members posted yesterday too ... you can start at ROBIN's blog  to see how they handled this month's challenge.

This weekend, the members of the Scraps to Treasures Team will be showing you their interpretation of this sketch (at right):

The rules are that we can use only scraps, keeping the project frugal and fun.

Now on to my project!

If you're a CardMonkey follower, you will have noticed that I am a big fan (and subscriber) of the Jillibean Soup "The Card Kitchen" kits.  This month's kit features Jillibean Soup's great "Game Time" line of papers; using it, I made the 8 cards ... and had plenty of scraps leftover for today's sketch challenge. This is one of the great things I love about The Card Kitchen -- inspiration and leftovers!

I followed the sketch to a "t" to make this 6x6" card. I was a little out of my comfort zone with layering so many images, but I think it turned out pretty well!

(True confession here: I panicked a bit when the Hop featured a sketch challenge, thinking it had to be a layout. I only scrapbook when I have to ... and love making cards!)

All of the papers and embellishments I used here are leftover from The Card Kitchen kit. I lined the inside with complimenting green writing (text weight) paper from my scraps drawer, and trimmed it in twine from my cut-pieces stash.

I'll be sending this card to Olivia, August's featured child on the "I Feel The Love" project, sponsored by Madison Womack. Last year, Olivia lost her Mom to colon cancer, and within weeks of her passing, this strong champion started an organization (KICR - Kids Involved In Cancer Research) to raise funds to help find a cure for colon and lung cancers specifically. 

If you care to help honor Olivia's strength and fortitude, be sure to make/send a card to Olivia, too.  Click on the IFTL link above for more information.

Back to the Hop formalities:

Thank you for hopping along with us. If you're interested in BLOG CANDY, our Hop hostess ROBIN announced it yesterday on her blog called "Scrap and Chat". Click on the name of Robin's Blog (above) to jump over to enter the contest for candy. 

NATURALLY, I have some blog candy of my own -- and in this case, it's a terrific lot of CardMonkey hand-me-downs. (Yes, staying frugal!)  I've been lucky to have won a few bits of blog candy myself recently, and I'm sharing the wealth! GREAT STUFF and I'll have more to add by the time you win it!  

  

To enter, follow my blog, and leave a comment here, which includes the answer to these two questions:

A) What's the smallest bit of scrapbook paper you'll save for use on another project? and,

B) How can I contact you when you win?

OK now, ready? Set?  HOP over to my friend JEARISE in Lorby's World for your next stop. 

Just in case you need it, here is the full line up for Team B's Sunday posts: 

Lissa - So Many Crafts, So little Time.

Paula - Precious pages by Paula

Ellen in CardMonkey's Paper Jungle  (YOU ARE HERE)

Jearise in Lorby's World

Lucy -Love 2 Create it all

Zenita - Scrappin With Z

Liz -Tryin' 2 Craft

Thank you again for visiting ... happy scrappin'!

DeFiaNtLy DiFfeReNt & CreAtiVeLy Yours,

IFTL Madison Womack wins "Top Banana"!

I've got a lot of catching up to do in naming my "Top Bananas" so this is my second one this week. 

In case you missed my announcement, "Top Bananas" are fellow bloggers whose work is a-peel-ing to me ... or who do good deeds to help others through their craft ... as well as some papercrafting vendors who have products I endorse, at fair prices, with excellent customer service. 

You can find all of my "Top Bananas" listed on the page by clicking the link at the top of my blog.

So without further ado ...

The second winner of a CardMonkey Top Banana is MADISON WOMACK, owner/artist behind the Funky Cards blog.  Madison is a fabulous 17-year old in California, who is wiser and more generous than her years.

Madison initiated and runs a community service project she calls "I Feel the Love".  Through the project, she calls on fellow crafters to join with her in making and sending cards for children and/or their families who are facing serious health trials or loss. 

Through her project, Madison has received and given more than 500 cards, reaching her goal a year before she expected! 

Each month, Madison makes a difficult choice of which child to feature as that month's IFTL Child.  This month, it's BRANDON, a beautiful boy who receives his care at the facility where I work: Pediatric Specialty Care. 

Here is the card I made for Brandon, as part of Madison's IFTL effort:

Brandon's Mom Linda calls Brandon "Li'l Man", so I thought this image that
I found on Silhouette America's online store would be fun and personal.
I scaled it large enough to fit onto a 5"x7" card, cut in primary colors, and
mounted it using an Action Wobble, for fun. 

Please hop over to Madison's site to read more about Brandon, IFTL, and to see how you can make/send a card for this adorable young boy, just 5 years old and facing a lifetime of therapy as a result of a tragic car accident.

Thank you for all you do, Madison ... and congratulations on being named a "Top Banana!"

Creatively Yours,