Friday, May 30, 2014

Joining the "21" Club!

Today I am sharing a birthday card I made for a special young man.  Austin is someone who I have known a number of years, and I was touched to be asked to make his 21st birthday card by my friend Ruth.  She asked for a coming of age type of card, and so I dug around my stash and found some fun images that I would use.  The large "21" is heat embossed using Ranger Gold embossing powder.


I decided to only add touches of color to keep the focus on the 21 and keep it feeling masculine.

Wishing Austin a very Happy 21st Birthday!!

Until next time!

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

WOYWW #260 - No, She isn't writing the Declaration of Independence!

Hi! I have really come to enjoy Wednesdays for it is the day we all share what is on our work desks.  Last week I was away on vacation and unable to hop around and check out what each of you was up to, and so I am anxious to do that this week.

My husband and I were in Colonial Williamsburg, VA for 5 days.  It is one of my favorite places to visit. The beauty, the history, yummy food and wonderful people.  I also love the slower pace compared to NYC. I love to recharge my battery, so to speak.

My desk is covered with my bounty that I picked up in Virginia. You may even spot a quill pen and ink well my husband picked me up after we attended a demonstration of how they were used.  Lots of penmanship books, packs of amazing linen paper, and I even kept the wrapping off a book as it was a copy of an old newspaper.  Too cool to toss.  Not sure what I will do with it.



Thank you to Julia for this wonderful desk hopping fun.  If you haven't joined in yet, why not visit Julia's blog and see what this is all about. I can tell you that you will have a blast!

Until next time!

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Tea Time Tuesday - Afternoon Royal Tea

I have been rather quiet lately as I was away on vacation with my husband in Colonial Williamsburg, VA. It is a magical place to me, as this is my eighth visit and I never tire of it.  Currently, I am counting the days until I can return there!

One year my mom took me for tea at The Williamsburg Inn, and I loved it.  Now, my husband and I make it a point to plan an afternoon visit there for their Afternoon Royal Tea.  It is such a beautiful inn, and even Queen Elizabeth has had tea there when she visited.


The setting was lovely and the view of their gardens amazing.  The food was delicious and the tea was very nice.  I went for the Earl Grey as that is my favorite.




The weather in Virginia was very hot, and the slowing down in mid-afternoon for tea was just what I needed.  There is very little in life that is better that a leisurely tea with your sweetie.  I am very glad mine likes to join me in this ritual.

These yummy treats really bolstered me up for what was to come that evening.  My husband and I took part in an evening program called In Defense of Our Liberty in which we joined George Washington's militia! Yep, it must have been a sight to see me try and march and follow orders.  I was very clumsy and off count in my marching, and nearly fainted when the officers came at me with bayonets (I am short so I was in the front row!). It was a real eye opener for me and I can't tell you how much I thanked our soldiers past, present and future that night.

I am sharing tea today at:

Tea Time Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

If you are ever in Virginia, I highly recommend you pay a visit to Colonial Williamsburg, and of course have tea at the Inn!






Monday, May 26, 2014

May 2014 Tim Holtz Tag of 2014

Today I am sharing the tag I made for the Tim Holtz monthly challenge for May 2014.  Tim encouraged us take out our trinkets that we have in our stash and use them (what a novel thought!). It was a lot of fun digging through my collection of goodies to narrow down my choices.  Believe it or not, that took me a long time in itself!

This tag was fun as I got to use grungeboard, Distress Inks, an embossing folder and, of course, various ephemera.   If you know me personally, you would know I have a Diet Pepsi habit (some say addiction ...), so I love Tim's bottle cap embossing folder. I used one cap that I sanded using his Core-dinations paper.  I came across a fun piece of ephemera that said Serve ICE and knew I had to use it along with it.



The composed look is something I normally never do, so this really gave me something new to try.

I have some news to share with you today.  I will be taking a couple of classes given by Tim soon!  I cannot wait!  I have been waiting a long time, and the countdown has begun!  Okay, that is a lot of exclamation points, but that is only because I am truly excited.

Until next time!

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Keep Calm And Turn 29 Again (and again)

As many of you know, I am a big fan of the Blueprint Stamps by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous.  For today's card, I used the balloon image and stamped a fun sentiment inside the balloon for someone who is having a birthday, but has stopped counting the years!  The sentiment is by Technique Tuesday.



I thought the use of the twine for the string was a nice little touch, and I distressed the edge of the paper and added some Distress Ink.

This is a simple card, and it got a lot of chuckles from the recipient!

Until next time!

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Tea Time Tuesday - Diamond Jubilee Celebration

While thinking about what my next Tea Time Tuesday post would be, I received a lovely tea bag gift from my Canadian pen pal Heather.  Along with her lovely letter, she enclosed a Twinings The Queen's Diamond Jubilee tea bag!  Well, I knew then that I would be sharing my Diamond Jubilee Bone China mug that my friend Steve gave me for my birthday!



Tonight I will be enjoying this yummy tea in my mug along with a good book!  Thank you, Heather, for the tea surprise!



I am sharing tea today at:

Tea Time Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

May you have a tea-riffic day!

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Slow Cooking with the Crockin' Girls

The nice weather makes me want to run around outside, and enjoy it finally.  Last week I decided to make a dinner using my trusty slow cooker.  My good friend Amy gave me a cookbook for my birthday one year called The Crockin' Girls Slow Cookin' Companion that I had my eye on.  Well, it is a fun one and the recipes are easy and tasty.  Here is some pulled chicken I whipped up and served on buns for dinner:


Since the meat was taken directly from the freezer and put in the pot, it made for an easy preparation. I made variations of this meal by serving it over yellow rice with peas, and a few days later I took some of it out of my freezer and served it with nachos.  

I thought I would share this with you in case you are looking for easy crockpot ideas.  I know when the temperature climbs this summer, my crockpot and I will be spending a lot of time together.

Here is where you can find the girls and their website.  Glad I have discovered them!

Thank you, Amy, for this book!  It definitely will be making my summer cooking a cinch!

Until next time!

Friday, May 16, 2014

She Said "Yes!"

Making cards for happy occasions can't help but bring a smile to my face! I was asked to make a card for a friend whose daughter just got engaged.  I love to hear these types of stories and they always bring back such happy memories to me as I recall my engagement.  I know the sheer joy the couple must be feeling.  To be asked to share in this happy time in a small way is an honor.

This is the card I made for Courtney and Paul.  I used a lovely engagement ring stamp by Renaissance Art Stamps, and, to make it a sparkler, I added Dazzling Diamonds glitter to the stone.


I really love this sheet of heart paper that looks almost watercolored that I used for the background.  It was from one of my older Simon Says Stamp card kits.  I rounded opposite edges on the card and the background paper for a bit of a twist from my usual straight lines.

Wishing Courtney and Paul every happiness as they begin their life together!

Until next time!

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

WOYWW #258 - Bookmark Making Under Way

Happy Wednesday!  Today I am sharing what is on my work desk with you.  You may remember when I shared my desk last week my pen pal letters were under way.  Well, this week I decided to start working on bookmarks for my fountain pen pen pals. I thought they would be fun to tuck into letters as a surprise.

Stampers Anonymous has a great stamp set with fountain pen related images and old cursive handwriting images, etc.  I thought they would be perfect for this gang of letter writers.  I used my archival black ink and plenty of Distress Inks.  Only one is done so far, but it was a lot of fun to make.



Close up of stamping:


Finished bookmark:



The metal nib is from Tim Holtz and I think it was a fun embellishment.  The seam binding was stamped with a fun swirl image from the set as well.

Thank you, Julia, for the desk hopping fun!  If you haven't joined in,  you might give it a go as the sharing of desks is fun, you learn a lot and the friendships made are priceless.

I am looking forward to visiting with you today!

Until next time!


Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Tea Time Tuesday - Strawberries, Anyone?

Happy tea day! Today I am sharing a sweet tea cup that I love!  It is Lyndale Royal Albert.  This time of year, the gardens are starting to come to life, and what better fruit to illustrate springtime than strawberries?




The spoon I paired with this cup is sweet, isn't it?  The little tea pot has a lovely rose motif on it.

I tried growing strawberries in my garden for a few years.  They would grow until they were almost ready to eat, and birds and squirrels would eat them before I did.  I gave up trying to grow them myself, and use my tea cup instead!

I am sharing tea today at:

Tea Time Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea


Until next time!

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Happy Mother's Day - You're The Best Mom!

Today we celebrate mothers for all they do for us.  The word mother is not one to take lightly or for granted.  They are the foundation of the family and guide us along the way and help to make us who we are.  I am blessed to have a wonderful mom.  She raised 6 children and even now (I am no spring chicken), she is someone who I go to for advice and comfort or, when things are going great, someone who I need to share the good news with.

I thought I would share a card I made for mom for Mother's Day.  A bit of background: my parents have a dog named Chester who my sister found abandoned and abused in a park.  My parents took him in and my mom cares for him like he was her 7th child.  He has become a vital part of our family and so when I saw this image (in a Father's Day set no less!), I knew it would be perfect for my mom.

Supplies:
Stamps: Sweet N Sassy, Simon Says Stamp (bone)
Ink: Memento Black
Paper: Gina K (White, Kraft)
Misc: Uni-ball Signo White, Copic Makers, Spellbinders Square Dies

I wanted the card to be quirky and fun (just like Chester) so the bones were stamped randomly around the card.  I received a call from mom to let me know she loved the card!

Hope your Mother's Day was a lovely one!

Until next time!

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

WOYWW #257 - Pen Pal Letter Writing

Since today is Wednesday, I am sharing what is on my work desk with you!  Today you will not see much crafting going on, but rather something a bit different.  I am working on answering many pen pal letters I have received this week.  Many of you know that I love fountain pens, but you may not know that I LOVE writing letters as well as receiving them.  On my desk you will see a stack of letters I am answering, plenty of ink (wouldn't be Winnie's Inky Fingers without ink!) and plenty of pens.  You may also spot sealing wax, a blotter and even a metal seal.


Also on the desk are two of my latest additions to my massive stamp collection.  I came across these stamps made by Ana of The Well Appointed Desk and they are perfect for my letter writing!


Thank you to Julia for this fun desk hopping!  I look forward to seeing what others are working on today.

Do you enjoy letter writing?  Many are not writing any more with the electronic age as it is, but let me tell you, there is nothing like coming home to find a letter waiting for you from a lovely friend who you get to know a little at a time.  Why not pick up a pen and give it a go?

Until next time!

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Tea Time Tuesday - Tea With Pooh Bear

Today is Tea Time Tuesday, and I decided to share one of the tea pots I have had for many years.  I picked it up in Disney World on my first vacation there.  With my name being Winnie, I bet you wouldn't be surprised to see this guy in my tea pot collection:


Yep, Winnie the Pooh!  I remember carrying this guy in my luggage on the flight home.  I love how the tea flows out of the honey pot!

I am sharing tea today at:

Tea Time Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

May you have a tea-riffic day!

Sunday, May 4, 2014

Congratulations On Your New Alarm Clock!

My husband came home and asked if I could make a card for his co-worker friend James.  James and his wife had a little baby girl and he wanted a funny card for him.  I decided to use my alarm clock stamp from the Stampers Anonymous Blueprint series.  The image is heat embossed with Ranger silver embossing powder.  The card was distressed using Antique Linen Distress Inks.  If you look close enough you may notice a tiny pink safety pin!


I thought it would be fun to use computerized "crying" sounds coming from the alarm clock.  For the inside I used a fun sentiment from Raisin Boat congratulating the couple on their new alarm clock!  I really love Raisin Boat's "Innies & Outies" as the sentiments are perfect for card making and cut to fit the A2 size without trimming, etc.  

Congratulations to James and Kristin on the birth of their daughter, Charlotte! 

Until next time!


Friday, May 2, 2014

March 2014 - Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2014 - Spring Has Sprung

Today I am sharing with you my long overdue March Tim Holtz Tag of 2014! As I mentioned in an earlier post, March seemed to fly by and I never got to my monthly tag challenge.  Well, I was finally able to get to it and had fun!  I was very happy to see Tim used a stamp set this month that I owned so I inked it up and here is my finished product:


On this tag I used Distress Inks, and Distress Markers.  The Distress Markers were used with a Spritzer tool to add color to the background using one of Tim's stencils.  It is a fun way to lay down color!

I am very excited today, as I was able to register to be in a class given by Tim Holtz at our local scrapbooking shop Scrapper's Playground here on Long Island!  My husband was a trouper, as we both got up very early on a Sunday to start calling, and after an hour I got through.  My sister and I will be taking the class in June.  This is a big deal to me, as I have always wanted to take a class of Tim's and now I will be taking classes with him in Ohio, and here on LI.  I look forward to sharing the experience with you!

Until next time!