Original Intent

It's been a while and my oldest daughter has been nagging me to post something new, as apparently she is bored by what's been up. When she turned 16, she also turned very bossy. It's OK; I think she gets it from her mother. I have lots of things to blog about and they are all swirling around and making a mess in my head. Let's hope that I can get them cleaned up and into a few interesting posts before they all flitter away.


One of the main reasons I wanted to do a blog was to share my favorite hobby with you. I love to stamp! I got hooked on it when I was 16 and a dear, dear friend and I stopped at a little kiosk and the kind lady there showed us how to heat emboss. We were hooked and bought our first stamp that day-it was a carousel horse-along with a tub of bronze embossing powder that we would heat up over a burner in our kitchen. We've come a long way baby!


I still play with paper and ink as often as possible, though not as much as I would like.  Last year another dear friend of mine, who also shares my obsession with paper and all things crafty, invited me on a Ladies Crafting Weekend where I got to meet 14 other amazing crafting maniacs, just like me. We laughed, we ate and we stayed up late. We even did some crafting. I thought I was pretty up on what's happening in the paper, marker, stamp world, but these ladies showed me a few things. Two things I fell in love with--PRISMACOLOR Markers and Bella Stamps! I had the chance to play with them both for an entire weekend.


Here are a few cards I created last year using Prisma Markers and the adorable Bella Stamps. Not too shabby for my first attempt!

The markers give rich color and blend beautifully!  You also don't get the stroke marks like you do with other markers.  It's a little hard to see in this photo, but I took my Stardust Glitter Pen and added some accents to the mirror.  Love the Stardust Glitter Pen!

I love the color combination on this card.  This card makes me want to steal one of my daughters retro-bikes and go for a summer ride.  Thankfully it's too cold for that kind of nonsense right now.  Is it wrong to be jealous of stamp's hair?

Again, with the Stardust Glitter Pen on Bella's cool, green bike!

Here's a confession; I actually made this card for a new friend who takes FABULOUS photos, but I never mailed it.  What can I say?  I'm a card horder. 

I generally never write my own sentament on a card, my handwriting has it's ups and downs, but this one turned out pretty cute and it was exactly what I wanted to say.  Maybe someday I'll put it in the mail.  Maybe not, but you still make me smile, Jenn!

The next card isn't a Bella, it's a stamp I bought for something like $2 just because I loved the cute birdie.  This was the first time I used it also and I did use the PRISMACOLOR markers on it and it was from the weekend last year, so it fits in with this post as well.

Well, now that's irritating.  The picture is the right direction on my computer, so why not here?  I will have to look into that, but you get the idea, right?

Can't get enough of that glitter pen.  The kids put two more in my Christmas stocking last year!  They know what Mama likes.  I also love the look of that gathered up, wrinkled ribbon, but let me tell you, it's kind of a lot of work to get it glued down like that.  maybe there is a trick I don't know about.

All in all, I was very much in envy of both the stamps and the markers.  I left the retreat last year, determined to begin purchasing at least the markers.  I never did and then began to wonder if they were really as wonderful as I first imagined.  Well, I got invited back again this year and returned home even more determined than ever to begin my collection.  The cute cards I made with them this year?  That will have to be another post.

Happy crafting, friends!