Crop and Shop!

There is nothing better than a fully packed day of scrapping! I have mounds of pictures and lots of ideas floating in my head. Archiver's is great and the shopping is even better. So, off I go to the land of scrap and enjoy the chatter and laughter of paper cutting divas. Heather is still in town and she will pop in for a few hours to crop with Sue and I. So, we should have a good time.

The garden is just about finished producing yumminess and I have frozen all I can freeze for winter stews. Leaving you with this Natural Goodness layout. Catch ya on the SCRAP SIDE.

Just playing...

I am all about the fall and decorating for the Harvest Season and with that comes some Halloween decorations. I love the smell of spiced candles and the warmth that the colors of the season brings to our home. So, this week I have been playing around with some of my Making Memories Spellbound goodies. I altered this cigar box and will display it somewhere when it is time to break out the orange and black for Halloween.

This box can have candy in it or nothing at all. But I decided to put a picture of myself and put the word..."BOO!" So, when you open it...you see me!

However, I will spare you the inside picture. It is just a picture of me from last Halloween with a green face and a witch hat. I love fun fun themes. I guess I am still a kid at heart.

Creating daily allows me to not only release stress but get excited about Fall Festivals and the pumpkin patch picking. I cannot wait to line my deck with colorful mums and daisy mums that bring so much fun as one comes to our front door for their goody on all Hallows Eve.

I mean, it is ALL ABOUT THE CANDY, right?

The endearing "THANK YOU!"

My "scrap" bend is full and I am trying to use as much product for "Thank You" cards as I can. I look through my scrappy supply and I am not sure why I am actually holding onto so much that seems to be older product. But I do. I think we as scrappers tend to hold on to our goodies and not use them. But I am "freeing" myself from this and it is quite revealing to me what I have held onto and then I remind myself...I bought it to create and release energy. I am not a great card maker. It is hard for me to go back and forth from large layouts to card making. I envy those that have this talent for sure. Thank you cards are always in need. I think we as a society have forgotten the good feeling we get when we receive one via snail mail. I have been sending many these days out to family and friends that for whatever reason needed me to say, "Thank You." Sometimes, just a thank you for a friendship or smile is a good enough reason to send one. We always send thank you cards for condolences or celebration. That is almost a given. But we need to send the "Thank You" to those that affect our lives on a daily basis. So, my pledge to myself and to reduce the "scrappy bulge" in my scraps drawer is more than freeing it is a must thing to do. So here are some cards I have been "scrapping" together just to give to that special someone.

Hand Delivered Directly from China

USA USA USA USA USA USA

How cool is this? About a week before the Olympics started my husband received a call from a co-worker who was in China on business and asked him what event would he like in the form of a souvenir. He of course, chose "Archery" because of our last name. I just think that is is kinda cool that a co-worker would think of us enough to hand deliver a special event Saki Cup from China that commemorates the 2008 Summer Olympics.

USA USA USA USA USA

We have a massive collection of apparel and pens from the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. My husband worked for a company that made the items and we have accumulated quite the collection.

USA USA USA USA USA

I really like the mascot for the Olympics in China. I never quite got the "IZZY" for the Olympics in 1996. The Panda Symbol is just perfect!

USA USA USA USA USA USA

GO TEAM USA!

USA USA USA USA USA

Yepper, I am SPELLBOUND!

Well, it is no secret that I am a huge fan of Making Memories products. Last year the Halloween themed items blew my socks off and this year is not different! Spellbound is so much fun and I have been scrapping away. However, this morning I got a wild hair to take a 10 x 10 canvas frame and layer with Making Memories Acrylic Paints and some stamping as well. I just kept layering until I liked the result. However, my finished canvas needed something to give it that Halloween flair. Well, the Glitter Foam Stickers from the Making Memories Spellbound Collection was the added touch that completed my canvas. I started making this canvas for a friend who loves to really decorate for Halloween and the Fall. But, I am thinking I may keep this canvas for myself.

Just a lot of Making Memories Going On!

Canvas Painting Created by Kimberly Archer

Full Circle!

Well, I have recently celebrated another birthday. My wonderful husband surprised me and took me to Chastain Amphitheatre to see Cheap Trick, Heart, and Journey in concert. It was a hot humid evening but the atmosphere just could not be beat! So, I have been going through old photos and came across a photo that was damaged by time and light. I scanned the photo and cropped it to the best of my ability and tried to enhance the color. I am thinking it was too damaged to really show the fun and funkiness of a homemade outfit that my mother made for me. But I find it interesting that in 40 years this fashion of prints has come full circle and is once again in the world of fashion and it finds it way onto scrapbooking papers as well. Fun, Funky, and Full of Color!

I often wonder what happened to these outfits that my mother sewed with great detail and affection. Oh well, that is a story that will not have an ending. So, this brings me back to Chastain Amphitheatre Park. They will be having a "HIPPIE DAY" with the music from the late 1960's and early 1970's when the Age of Aquarius was in full bloom and ideas as well as music was stretching the envelope of reserved parents. I remember my mother was quite the BEATNIK and loved out of the box fun things. Beads, Flowers, Colors, and Art filled our home and my mother was on the cutting edge of women's rights and completing her law degree. Funny, I do not remember her wearing these funky colors to court. But then again, I am sure she only let me see and know limited things from this time. But I do remember being the center of her attention during a time when our country and the youth had much to say.

Terrific Weekend...

I had a great weekend with my scrappy friends Heather and Sue. We met at Archiver's and shopped. Of course, we all spent obscene amounts of money in just a matter of 45 minutes or less. But you know...it was things I just had to have. While at Archiver's I saw a few of my Atlanta Pea gals starting their day of scrapbook fun. It was good to see them. I was jealous of course because heck fire, they were scrapping! In any case, Heather, Sue and myself went to a great cafe called MiMi's and had a wonderful brunch. We talked nearly two hours and it was great to just sit and chat over a wonderful meal and coffee. This was the official "send off" of Heather. She is headed to Jackson, Mississippi and she will be greatly missed.

Sue and I have decided to crop this coming weekend at Archiver's for the Create.Crop.Cure for Breast Cancer. It is a 12 hour crop and all proceeds (100%) go to benefit breast cancer research. I have decided to crop in the memory of my sister-in-law, Karen Archer. She lost her battle with Breast Cancer in November of 2006. I know Karen would have loved to be part of such a wonderful event. Karen was actually scrapbooking her memories when she lost her battle with the cancer that plagued her and her family for 2 years. My brother-in-law said all of her scrappy goodies were still on the dining room table when she passed. So, Karen has scrapbooks unfinished. One day, I will head to Boca Raton, Fl. and sit with Karen's daughter and help her complete the scrapbooks when the time is right. So, this coming Saturday is more than just a grand time of Cropping for a Cure...it will be a time for me to remember a bright light that was dimmed by such a terrible disease.

I love that the color for Breast Cancer is Pink. It is a baby soft pink and a few months ago I made a few cards with pink in them. I no longer have these cards as I have given them away...but here is a creative glance for you to gander at and be inspired.

Have a wonderful and creative week.

WOW, it is hot!

Yes, the heat index reached over 100 degrees yesterday. It was blistering for sure along with some serious humidity. I am gearing up this week to start school clothes shopping and then meeting up with a few scrappy friends this weekend. We are taking our friend Heather out to eat and give her a "scrappy" goodbye before she heads West of Georgia. Gosh, I am going to miss her greatly.

I have been looking at all of the CHA-Summer releases and I a can honestly say that I am so inspired to go BUY! School is around the corner for the new year session and then the holidays will soon follow. Where the heck did this year go let alone the summer? I have been scrapping and need to get some photos of things I have done recently and get them uploaded. One layout that I really enjoy is one that I did a few months ago that revolved around Christmas. It was the first time I really took an "event" and used a great deal of photos on it to display the day of happenings.

For me, this is relatively a simple layout. But I really enjoyed using up some of my Love Elsie goodies on this page.

That is all for now...have a great remaining SUMMER TIME!

Catching Up!

Well, the "skinny" is that I have taken on more mediums here as of late. When I was in college I used to paint portraits for extra money when I could. I love working with acrylic paints and dabble in oil. I have also been doing more flower pounding on canvas as well. It seems I never keep my flower pounding. Those creations are always given as gifts or close friends and relatives ask for them. One of my favorite things is do dabble in doodleart. They are always fun. I have been stretching some old canvas from a bolt that has been in its box for over 2 years and I never knew how much I enjoyed it. I plan on making odd sizes and incorporating my scrappy supplies within my painting. We shall see how committed I am to making all of this work within my already kinda crazy schedule. School will be starting soon and I will definitely have more time to play during the day.

I am already grieving for a scrappy friend. She is heading off to Mississippi in two weeks as a long term move with her family of 11 1/2....(baby #10 is on the way). She is a very clean scrapbooker and I just simply love talking to her. We share our ideas and beliefs just about on every single subject. However, this move is a positive move for their family and I wish them the best of luck. I am so happy my long distance is free!

CHA-Summer in Chicago is under full swing right now and I have been stalking the Making Memories Blog all day yesterday in hopes of possibly getting lucky enough to be chosen for some free product. Their papers are always a favorite of mine and the embellishments are just to die for! I always tend to buy their products in vast supply. This is one company that I just do not buy one of each...

Hard to believe last week this time was our last day on our vacation. We all have great tans and a week filled with incredible memories. The beach is definitely where we plan on retiring when it is the time. We love the water and yes, the heat! There is nothing like boating and the feel of salt water spray.

I hope to be uploading some eye candy soon. Until then...have a creative day!

Giving it a "GO!"

Well, here I am again. I stopped blogging my "creative stuff" this past December of 2007. I zapped my blog of over 2 years and now I am back at it again. My goal is to keep this blog strictly for creative meanderings and inspirations. So, we shall see how it goes. I am thinking the look will change from time to time as this is a representation of how I am. I love new looks and get bored with the old from time to time. So, please enjoy the reads, links, and I hope to be an inspiration for all who visit my blog.