It's That Time of Year Again...

Well, it's that time of year again where crafters a like start planning and creating their x-mas cards. I usually send my cards out first week of December so I like to have them completed before hand. Not to mention that it usually takes me a while to get motivated and I have excellent intentions of sending cards out to everyone, but the time, effort, and pain of hunting everyone's address usually equals me only making a handful of cards. Sorry to my family and friends who have not gotten cards and are reading this. I promise to make it up to you this year because I have gotten a huge head start on the card making. Plus, I'm keeping them simple this year and following the principle "less is more"; so far less really is more.

I was going to post a picture of my card so far, but I've changed my mind. I am going to keep it a secret until I mail them out :) I will leave you with this teaser for now...

Excuse the blurry picture. It's dark in my craft room and I was too lazy to get out my tripod :)

Happy Halloween and Picture Mayhem...

Well bloggers I want to wish you a very late Happy Halloween. I hope you had fun with whatever halloween "things" you took part in. We (DH and myself) did not do anything this year...no pumpkin carving, nothing. Kind of sad, but it is what it is. We live in an apartment so we don't get any kids. A house a block away from us was either having one awesome party or their house was on fire. No sirens yet, but lots of smoke! I can tell you what I am doing tomorrow. Ima gonna hit up the grocery store and stock up on some ridiculously reduced candy and chocolate and pig out. I'm pretty darn excited.

Now on for the second bit of my post..."Picture Mayhem". I haven't been blogging much lately because every time I try to upload pictures my internet browser/iphoto freezes. Turns out that I may have a few too many (like 10,000) photos in iphoto alone. Needless to say I have started on the daunting task of going through EVERY.SINGLE.PHOTO, organizing them into events (or folders for you none mac folk) and deleting poor quality or just not worth saving photos. I only got through a few hundred photos in the THREE HOURS I've sat in front of the computer, but it's been worth it. I've deleted a bunch and I've gotten inspired. I am sure this is going to be a VERY LONG process so I am going to make this my November project. I can stop and craft along the way so long as it's done before December 1, hah, just in time for me to take a thousand more photos!!!

Hope you all have a fabulous night!!!

*** A quick edit ***
10, 000 photos does not seem like a lot but thats only 2.5 years worth of pictures. I have a box (13*13) full of photos (before digital), CD's and memory cards full of photos not on this computer. I have a problem of not being able to put down a camera. Someone (DH) might have to call an intervention!!! Oh and we don't have any children yet, so what in the world am I taking photos of???!!! Seriously!

Layouts...

I was feeling in a crafty mood this afternoon (which is astonishing considering I have been bogged down with a stomach bug the last few days) but I wasn't much in the mood to work on some mini albums I have going, so I decided to do something a bit different. It's been a while since I've done a layout and I have NEVER down a layout for the sake of doing a layout. I  have always done them to go in an album or whatever. This layout however I plan on framing. I LOVE IT. For now, it hangs on my chicken wire frames (which I also LOVE).

A Boxer's Life

My dog is ridiculous but I love him anyways. I often find him sleeping or sitting in the most bizarre positions. Here's a few pictures to show what I mean. 

Second Day of Fall...

 Happy second day of fall everyone!! I am absolutely in love with this season. The days have cooled down, but have yet to get cold (with the exception of yesterday which was freezing), the leaves are changing colour and SOME are starting to fall. Not too many though. I like that about Nanaimo, this city actually has seasons :) Since my husband is glued to the TV watching football I thought I would get crafty and do something in honour of fall. I saw this cute little pumpkin ornament thing on line a while ago and thought I would re-create it, putting my own spin on it of course!! Hope you enjoy :)

In Over My Head...

Hello fellow bloggers. I went on a bit of a shopping trip last week (nervously biting lip). All I have to say is it's NOT my FAULT. My husband pushes me, forces me really, to buy things particularly things dear to my heart, such things like scrapbook materials. Sigh. I really need to start putting my foot down! Hehe. Does anyone else suffer from the same problem?!? :) LOL

So what did I get? Well Michaels (which I try to avoid) finally got some decent paper!!! By decent, I mean Michaels has these cute 6*6 pads of My Minds Eye (henceforth MME). I LOVE MME! So cute. The only down side is they are one sided. Actually scratch that. I am not sure if the little pads are one sided, they may in fact be double. The big pads of paper however, are only one sided. BUT that is a-okay!!

I also got some 12*12 sheets too add to my dogs album (I know, I know - but since we do not have children of the two legged type, our dog is therefore our baby and is treated as such :) ). I got a whole whack (word? don't know) of brads, pearls, and rhinestones. Mostly in blues and greens for the album I posted earlier on, but I also got some in pinks and oranges and browns. I got a ton of prima flowers, some twine, a couple of memory box dies. I have never used them, but Joy from Less is More uses them on her cards all the time and I just love the look. In fact, I really enjoy Joy's style of card making all together.

Let's see, what else did I get...Oh I got some Bella Blvd washi tape. It's a lot thicker then I thought it would be. I am not sure if I like it or not. I will let you know later on once I have used it a few times. I got some maya road chip board pieces, some teresa collins bling and a whole lot more. Needless to say I am a bit overwhelmed with my stuff and don't know where to begin using it.

And now for the project I am working on. It's a mini similar in style to what I just completed. The book has a very girly theme in all pink, lots of dress forms, birds and bird cages...bit of a french them. I will post more photos once I finish it. So far it's turning out great. You can see the cover of it and my messy work space (how I typically work) down below. 

Hope you are all having a terrific week!! :)

Potato Salad...

I've been on a bit of a health kick lately and by healthy I mean making my own food instead of buying food already made. Not only do I get satisfaction from making delicious menus, I feel better because I am in control of what goes into my meals. For example, I try to buy all natural. It's not always easy or cost effective, but it's so much better for you!!!

Today I'm going to share a simple recipe for potato salad. Now, potato salad usually ends up being one of those foods that gets picked up at whatever grocery store you shop at. Potato salad is one of those "things" that's always brought to pot luck dinners, camping, or really any kind of social gathering. What kills me is that no one ever brings homemade potato salad, it's ALWAYS store bought. Potato Salad is super easy too make and so much better tasting then the crap (sorry - that's what it is) that you buy at the grocers, so why do people still buy that icky paste like garbage?!?

Anyways, heres the recipe...

Ingredients:

Potatoes - Any kind will do
Fresh Oregano
Fresh Chives
Fresh Basil
Mayo
Seasoning Salt

Directions:

Boil potatoes until tender but not too soft (aka mush). Drain and let cool completely. If you overcooked your potatoes run them under cold water instantly. Potatoes will continue to cook after you have drained them!!! :) Set aside.

Chop the oregano, chives and Basil. Add to bowl of potatoes. Add Mayo. Mix until ingredients are evenly spread. Add seasoning salt. Not too much, a little goes a LONG ways. Mix it in right away or leave on top until chilled and ready to serve. Place salad in fridge, serve chilled.

If you want to spice up your salad add other ingredients to it. Sometimes I will cook up a few slices of bacon, cut it up and mix it in.

You will notice I did not tell you measurements, that's because I rarely cook with them and it really depends on how much salad you want to make. For one small bag of small potatoes I chop approximately a 1/3 cup of each herb and I add the mayo one scoop at a time until I get a nice even coating. If you are using dry herbs instead of fresh, use less!! Taste as you go, you can always add more if you want!