Happy New Years!

Just posting this for my readers and those just "passing by". I wish you the best for 2008! May it be prosperous and filled with love and happiness! Now be good and stay safe! I'll be back to posting on the 2nd! Until then! HUGS!!!

Gamsol Magic

Wow...I haven't worked with gamsol in quite some time now. So after signing up for a swap on SCS, I thought, what the heck, let me breake out the gamsol once again. I can't tell you how happy I was to use it again. From the looks of too...I've gotten better! My first try didn't come out exactly as I had envisioned it. I guess I hadn't thought of using an eraser to lighten up darker spots...something I had skipped on the SCS tutorial. What do you think?

Supplies:

CS: CChip, CCaribbean, & WWhite

Ink: Jet Black StazOn, CChip, CCaribbean

Stamps: Sassy Stems, Small Sayings, & Cheesecloth BG

Embellishments: Rich Chocolate satin ribbon (non SU)

Others: Gamsol, blending stumps, & pom poms to shade

I'm such a tease!

I'm sitting here unwrapping some Cordial Cherry Hershey's kisses and I'm LOL because I know some of you would LOVE to see some of the new stuff in the new SU catty! Well, I got my catty about 3 weeks ago or so...and here is a sneaky peak of the cover!! HA HA HA!!! It's the best cover I've seen in the history of SU catties I must say! That coral color and "watermark" embossing is just perfect!! I've thumbed thru it like a gazillion times already and my wish list is ever longer as they've come out with stamps right down my alley of like! Anywho...droll over it little peoples!!! HA HA HA HA HA!!! And just to be extra mean...*evil laugh*, here is the cover of the Sell-A-Bration mini!


Notice how big catty is holding mini catty? Awwww!

Stuff I made during my away time

Ok, so I told a white lie...I guess I wasn't really tired of Christmas stuff. Here are some things I made while I was away.

I made these paint cans for the boys who were receiving gifts from us. Inside I added a baggie of Snowman Soup and some $$$! We found it hard to just buy toys that were gonna be used once and then thrown to the pile, so hubby decided we'd let them chose what THEY wanted and just gave $$$ instead. It was more time consuming, but well worth it.

Supplies:

CS: BBlue & WWhite

Ink: BBlue, SSky, & BBlack

Stamps: It's Snow Time, Scribbles Alpha, & Giving & Receiving

Embellishments: Snowflake brad, satin ribbon, & fibers

Others: ModPodge, glitter, giga scalloped punch, & glue gun

These were made for the girls...same stuff inside! I made these different from each other because I was running out of basic black in!!! Yikes!!! Then when I was done I found my new pad I had ordered...lol.

Supplies:
CS: Dashing DP & Neutral (beige)
Ink: BBlack & RRed
Stamps: Scribbles Alpha, & Giving & Receiving
Embellishments: Satin ribbon, & fibers

Others: ModPodge, giga scalloped punch, & glue gun

This baggie was made for my mail carrier who is just a sweet heart and never gives me dirty looks when I receive heavy packages! YIKES! Well, if he does, he never does it in front of my face...lol. The grubby tag smells so god I wish we all had smell-a-vision!!!

Supplies:
CS: WWasabi, WWhite, & Dashing DP
Ink: OOlive, CChip, RRed, & SSun
Stamps: Lovely As A Tree, & Christmas Cards (by Autumn Leaves)

Embellishments: Satin ribbon, & double stitched ribbon
Others: Slot punch & grubby tag

This is a gift I wrapped for my mom using this great DP from SU called Dashing! I also used some Primas I hadn't used in a while. The tag was punched from a larger grubby tag. I had to make something to the size of the package!

Now this gable box was made for my little nephew Jude. He's only 8 months old, so we didn't want to get him any toys...so Oscar and I chose these CUTE T's we saw at Target that had some funny saying in the front. 1 said "Ladies Man", the other "I Do My Own Stunts", and the last one, and MY fave..."I Still Live With My Parents!" Isn't that a riot!!!??? I got the ribbon idea on SCS of course!

Supplies:

CS: OOlive, CChip, VVanilla, & Dashing DP

Ink: OOlive, CChip, & Prismacolor markers

Stamps: Giving & Receiving

Embellishments: Wired ribbon

Others: Gable box

This card was made for SCS challenges SC155 & CC145. I wanted to combine 2 challenges in 1

since I hadn't done neither in a while.

Supplies:
CS: EEggplant, WWasabi, SSaffron, & VVanilla

Ink: EEggplant & SSaffron
Stamps: Priceless
Embellishments: brads & hardware
Others: D'vine Swirls CBF, CB, scalloped punch, & circle punch

P.S. Like the new "studio" set up? I was a bit bored of just buttons, so I threw in one of my acrylic blocks and a clear bracelet...lol.

I'm back and Paying It Forward!!!

So sometime back Maria tagged me for this Pay It Forward thing and I was more than happy to join the PIF tag! So, as soon as I found out I was tagged, I tagged 3 more peeps! I tagged Joani, Kathleen, & Meg! Now that I got my PIF-RAK, I am gonna go shopping for my girls and work on something handmade as well! Maria sure made BEAUTIFUL work on the gift bag she sent me!!! Thanks Maria!!! I loved everything!!! Here are some pics!

The card is beautiful and the attention to detail is beyond!!! She made a cracked glass look on it.

This is the RAK for the PIF tag...she gave me the Brocade Basics set from SU I had on my wish list! She also sent me boxed coffee from Starbucks, 3 cocoa packets for my little ones, a gorgeous notebook with the monogram G, a yummy recipe, & a Starbucks gift card!!! THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH MARIA!!! I don't know how my act is gonna follow hers! LOL!

Now, look at the cracked glass!! Gorgeous!!!



Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!


POST EDIT: FYI...just because I want to show off by popping my collar...lol...Maria is my SU Upline!!! Ok, now that I showed off...lol...

So tired of Christmas stuff! So I'm going on vacation!

Ok, things have gotten super crazy here, so I have no serious time to update my blog...so I'll be taking a break until things are low and slow. Thanks to you all who have visited my blog and I'll be back soon! In the meanwhile, here are 2 cards I made that are NON Christmas! I'm so sick of Christmas stuff right now...lol. The first card is a masking technique I found at SCS and the next card is a "Buckle" card also a technique I found at SCS. Thanks for stopping by and have yourself a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! HUGS~

Supplies:

Get Well~

CS: CCaramel & VVanilla

Ink: C2Cocoa

Stamps: Garden Silhouettes & Sincere Salutations

Embellishements: Stitched ribbon

Others: Mega Cirlce punch & pom-pom for sponging

Buckle~

CS: WWasabi, VVanilla, & Figgy Pudding DP

Ink: Basic Black & Prismacolor markers

Stamps: Both Way Blossoms & Vases In Vogue

Embellishments: Chocolate ribbon

Others: corner rounder punch, slit punch, Giga Scalloped punch, & Mega circle punch

WE HAVE A BLOG CANDY WINNER!!!

So I did this early because I may be scarce with Christmas everything going on...so I went to http://www.random.org/ and got a winner this morning!!! Our lucky winning entry is:

ENTRY #7!! Jennifer of De-Stressing With Paper!! Congrats Jennifer! Please contact me with your snail mail addy so I can send off your candy! Enjoy!!

Thanks to everyone who participated! I'm glad you did and I wish I can prezzie everyone. You're all still winners with such great work!

Want Some Candy? Blog Candy That Is!!!~CLOSED!!!

Candy:

Autumn Leaves Winter Garden Designer Paper

Autumn Leaves Scribbles Alphabet Lower

Autumn Leaves Acrylic Block

Me & My Big Ideas FABULOUS Bling Words

Target 2 Pack Top Bound Notebooks (3 X 5)

SECRET PACKAGE OF EXTRA GOODIES!!!

So I decided once I get 1,000 hits I would start a blog candy challenge, so here it is! All you have to do is create a card (you can enter as many times you like) with the basics I'm challenging you with. Ok, so here goes!

NOTE: PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU SUBMIT CARDS THAT MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA. IT'S THE PURPOSE OF THE BLOG CANDY CHALLENGE. THANKS!

Make your card with~
1. a color scheme that consists of BABY BLUE & BROWN

2. in a WINTER theme
3. with 5 layers OR MORE
4. using the sketch provided (feel free to tweak it just a bit BUT KEEP THE COLORS AND THEME AS IS)

Ok, ready? Get set! CREATE!

Players In The Blog Candy:

Entry #1: Bobbie Yankovich

Entry #2: Lori J. "Urgent Cookie"

Entry #3: Gerriann "Scrapbooking & Stamping"

Entry #4: Kathleen "My Happy Place"

Entry #5: Nicola Weaver

Entry #6: Allison Stampin' When I Can

Entry #7: Jennifer De-stressing With Paper

Entry #8: Joani McDonald

Entry #9: Joani McDonald (second entry)

Entry #10: Lori J. "Urgent Cookie" (second entry)

Entry #11: Mommy Scraps

Entry #12: Marilyn (card) of Stamp With Marilyn (blog)

Entry #13: Mommy Scraps (second entry)

Entry 14#: Jen Marie

Entry #15: Jen Marie (second entry)

Entry #16: Gina P. Crafts

Entry #17: Jen Marie (third entry)

Entry #18: Corner Of Enchantment

Entry #19: Nicola Weaver (second entry)

Entry #20: Sonya

Email me your entries NO LATER THAN December 15th!

OR

post a comment with a link to your entry! Easy as that!

I'll let Random.Org select a winner by entry # & by December 16th. we'll have a winner!

To email: GabrielaArriaza@msn.com ~ Titled - Winter Challenge Blog Candy!

Here is the sketch and my sample!

GOOD LUCK!!

Hey...drop me a gift! It won't cost ya anything!

So browsing thru other bloggers, I came across one of my sisters (SBS Sisters) Gina P. and found this CUTE widget! So...I just had to make one of my own! SO, if ya love me, drop me a gift! :) Scroll all the way down and you'll find it! Also, if you get one or have one, I would love to drop by and gift you...just let me know and I will send you a Christmas good! Thanks for dropping by! Merry Christmas!

Post "post": Hmmm...looks like the Grinch is going around stealing gifts!

I've been absent...I'M SORRY!

Hey ya'll! I've been absent (and I have an absence slip too) because I've been making not only the paint cans, but my DD wanted snowman soup totes...so yes, I made her 6 for her closest friends. Kids...you can't disappoint them! So here is a picture of the finished products. All that stamping and folding has my hands going into cramp land! YOUCH! I love how they turned out though and that I was able to make all 6 in under 4 hours. Since I had already made the Ding Dong treat holders, I just threw them in to go perfect with the snowman soup...YUMMY! Lucky girlies! I'll post the paint cans when I finish them off. I found the template on SCS and I can't remember from who...but if you would like to make one, I'll post the template next time around (when I have some breathing time).

Supplies:

CS: OOlive & WWhite, Dashing DP & Grubby Tags

Ink: C2Cocoa, CChip, CCaramel, RRed, & GGray

Stamps: Like It A Latte

Embellishments: Satin ribbon in Olive

Others: hemp cord & round tab punch

I've been TAGGED!!!

Well...at least I wasn't marked for death! LOL! Ok, so the tag consists of telling 7 random and/or weird things about myself...well, aint I just a weird one already...lol But seriously, thanks Marilyn for tagging me! Ok, so here we go:

1. I love chili cheese fries for breakfast.

2. I sometimes just order things so I can see my HANDSOME mail carrier who makes my knees buckle. He's my eye candy everyday...except for Sundays or when I miss him...lol. *rolls eyes*

3. Sometimes, when I'm making cards or just crafting, I stick my tongue out...especially when trying to get anything straight or adding adhesive.

4. I have a sick and twisted, and sometimes ;) naughty mind...and those of you who know me, KNOW ME!!!

5. I fantasize about being a Harry Potter character. Her name is Tabitha Alabaster and she's a Slytherin girl who's crazy over Draco Malfoy. (I told ya I was weird) Tabitha though is not a true at heart Slytherin, she actually has "muggle born" friends and "half-bloods" and doesn't boast about her pure bloodness.

6. I'm working on a Harry Potter "fan fiction" story and I'm still on Chapter 3. (looking to go to 22 chapters!)

7. I am secretly in love with Matt Hasslebeck of the Seattle Seahawks (well, that aint a secret no more)! *blush*

Ok...now you know 7 random weird things about me...now let's see...TAG YOU'RE IT:

1. Joani~Cards Made By Hand
2. Kimberly~Crafty Me
3. Kathleen~My Happy Place
4. Meg~Peacock Paperie
5. Gina P.~Gina P. Crafts
6. Meredith~Stampin' 4 My Sanity
7. Rosella~Corner Of Enchantment (Mi Rincon del Encanto)

HA HA! :P ~This is me running away now!

Snowman Soup!! MMMM

I just got done making 20 snowman soup packages for my DS's classmates. Man my hands are tired! I really like them though, nice and simple! My DS liked them too, so I guess that's all that matters! What do you think....do you think the kids will enjoy them?

Supplies:

CS: RRed & WWhite

Ink: BBlack, C2Cocoa, markers in RRed, OOrange, & GGreen

Stamps: It's Snow Time & Like It A Latte

Embellishments: Liquid Applique

Others: Cocoa packets, mini marshmallows, chocolate morsels, & candy canes

Post It Note Holder

I finally made one!!! Thanks to the great Joani who is also one of my good friends, I was able to finally kick one in! Check out her blog, her work is great! So anyways, I decided I would jump on it and make my own post-it note holder to test the waters and maybe make some for my kids teachers. You can find Joani's tutorial here!

Supplies:

CS: WWasabi, & Winter Garden DP from Autumn Leaves

Ink: NONE!

Stamps: NONE!

Embellishments: ribbon, silk flowers, Prima flower, & jeweled brad from $ spot at Target

Others: scorer

Ding Dong! No, it's not your doorbell!

So I just had to try the treat holder again, like the one I made before of the cookie holders because I wasn't too happy with them. This time though I used Ding Dong's that I had left over from a "cake" I made for my birth mother. This time also I used Maria's tutorial on making the actual "holders" on the sides and bottom. I like these much better! I also added little handles on them. Made 6 of these for my DD's closest friends.

Supplies:
CS: CCrisp, WWhite, & Figgy Pudding DP
Ink: CCrisp, AArtichoke, & Versamark
Stamps: Mixed Bouquet & Christmas Cards (non SU)
Embellishments: Hemp twine
Others: Giga Scalloped & Mega Scalloped punch, paper piercer, tag punch, & pom poms (for sponging)

Here's the cake!

Photo Corner Tutorial

Ok, so times are getting crazy now a days with the Christmas holy-day around the corner and I know everyone has been busy...and I am no exception! On top of family drama....ok, let me get out of that zone.....oooommmmm! Ok, so I said I would do a tutorial on how I make my photo corners since I don't want to buy the SU corner punch...I have too many punches now, and if I can do something frugal, then why not! So, here goes:

(details on this card is under Julian MacMahon didn't let me go to sleep!)

1. I started with a simple 1 1/2 X 1 1/2 square using kraft paper and cut it in half from corner to corner.

2. Next, if you have a punch square, this is what you will be using to make your inside corner. I used my 3/4 inch square punch (you can use any size depending on what size "indent" you want your corner).

3. With one piece of your triangles, align it with the punch to meet halfways as so.

4. This is what you should have now. (do that with all your other pieces if you have patience...or go to #5)

5. Since I just don't have patience, what I did with the rest of my pieces I was using for my project, I did all pieces left all together using my "snips" scissors.

6. Use the first photo corner made as a guide where to "snip".

7. You are done!!! Now you can "embellish" your corners any way you like. For the card at the top of the page, I distressed the sides and pierced some holes.

Hope you've enjoyed the tutorial!

Julian MacMahon didn't let me go to sleep!

This guy here makes me drool so I HAD to use him for a swap I'm in on SCS that calls using a HUNK or EYE CANDY on card...so this is one eye candy I wouldn't mind going to my thighs! ;) What do you think? This is what the "sentiment" reads:

Tee hee! *blush*

Supplies:

CS: BBayou, Shimmer Silver bought at Mike's, white to print on, & Kraft for corners

Ink: Watermark

Stamps: Sentiment from Stampo AKA Viva Las Vegastamps!

Embellishments: handmade photo corners

Others: Paper Piercer, Embossing powder in silver, & heat tool

Side note: I'll be posting a tutorial on how I made my own photo squares! Stay tuned!

About my music!

As much as I LOVE to listen to my music come on as soon as I hit my page, I've read many comments about how much blog readers HATE having to go to a page with music "scaring them out of their pants". SO, I've added my player to the bottom on my blog pages and are now clickable to those who DO want to listen to it. I did this not because I really wanted to, but because I read some of my readers DON'T like it. So here's to you silent readers! Hope to see you here commenting now that my music doesn't blare.

I'm listening! Are you?