Does anyone have any interest...

...in making the "Honey Do" corkboard project (see pictures a few entries down)? I had kind of just done it for myself, but since posting I've had a few inqueries about it as a class. If anyone is interested, please post in the comments or email me (cnhird@shaw.ca). The cost of such a class would be $25. I will pre-paint the frame of the board, as this takes a bit of time. In order to have it ready as a Valentine's Day present for your Honey, we'd have to do it pretty quick. I'm thinking a weeknight would work best, probably Tuesday, the 9th of February at 7 p.m. If you're interested, could you please let me know asap as I'll need to go pick up supplies. Thanks so much!

And the winner is...???

So, we didn't have many ideas submitted for the naming of our crazy little club. The Saturday night crew did, however, come up with these ideas: The Inklings, Two Old Ladies and the Legally Blind, The Stampettes, and finally, The Blind Mice. Personally, I'm liking TOL & the LB. I can't help but laugh every time I think of it. The only problem is I'm not so sure the TOLs like it!!! If there are any more suggestions, send them in quickly, or post a comment with your favourite. We can't remain nameless forever! And don't forget, there is a prize involved!!!

I just wanted to thank the Club Ladies for a wonderful first meeting. I had a great time, and I really hope you did too. I do have to apologize to the Monday-nighters, though. Yes, you were the guinea pig round, as I told you, but I was a little absent-minded. Not that I'm trying to come up with excuses, but here's my excuse - I've been down and out with a bad cold this week, I think Monday was the beginning, so I do apologize. I recognized where I was lacking, and thanks to you, the weekenders had a perfect class!!! LOL! Anyways, you're all locked in for eight more months (haha!), so that's plenty of time for me to make it up to you, I hope!! {{Hugs}} to the Monday crew! You know I love ya!

All in all, both groups had fun. Look at my Little Laura, showin' me da love!! You rock, sista! There were lots of laughs, yummy treats (thanks Mom Hird, Lujza and my Jamie, for providing satisfying snacks for our dear preggie! Next month - ice cream out of the tub and pickles!) and great projects that all turned out a little different as you put your own spin on them, which I LOVE! I've already got ideas brewing for the next two months and I'm really excited about them. The good news is, I don't think they'll take you all night either! You can go home to your cozy beds before midnight! Or maybe I should set up cots in the living room. Hmmmm...

The weekenders did the door prize draw (thanks Lujza), and your wishful thinking did the trick, Christina, you're the big winner!! I'll include your prize with you order - you're going to love it!

Finally, here's the full on pics of the projects, for those of you who got too sleepy to finish. LOL!

Thanks again, my dear friends. You have no idea how much you enrich my life, and I'm so happy I can share my love of crafting with you.

XOXO,

Chriss

Happy Heart-day to my main cog...

So what do you give your Sweetie when he's already got it all (he has you after all, doesn't he?) You give him work to do, little jobs around the house. This is a pricless gift; a stroking of the ego, if you will. Letting him know how valuable he is to you, is, in a word, invaluable. Reminding him that he's the main cog in the machine that is your home is worth your weight in gold (which, in my case, wouldn't be such a bad deal!!). Plus, its nice to put your feet up and watch him push the vacuum around once in awhile, right?! So here's what I'm giving my other half for the big day. I know, I know, its not really that romantic...from my perspective, that is. But think about it from his. Here's a sample "Honey-Do" list, complete with translations:

1. Unclog drain in bathroom

My Point of View - Gross, disgusting, YUCK!

His Point of View - I'm a man; I can fix anything = Hero

2. Cut the Grass

My Point of View - Boooring!

His Point of View - I'm a man; I'm the only one who can nurse these emerald blades to their ever deserving glory = Hero

3. Chop firewood

My Point of View - I want to be toasty, cozy warm, not sweaty!

His Point of View - I'm not only a man, I'm a stong man = Hero

So for Valentine's Day this year, I'm going to make my guy feel like a hero, by giving him as many jobs as I can think of! Just think of the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment he'll feel everytime he can cross one off the list. And don't worry, you're not limited to stereotypical "man" jobs either. Check it out:

Men LOVE to do housework - its the whole "anything you can do, I can do better" syndrome. I say, go to it! He probably can do it better! And faster! No kidding, he'll have the house spotless and be back out there, beer in hand, admiring his lush, green masterpiece and patting himself on the back in no time flat! My hero!!!

**Disclaimer** All above content intended for comic relief. What...you don't think I'm funny? I think I'm funny. Maybe that's the problem, I'm the only one who thinks I'm funny.

"That's NOT appropriate, Mom!"

So here's the Valentine's I thought the kids and I could make together for them to give to their classmates. I figured it was a cute idea, but I guess Chloe's getting to that age - you know what I'm talking about. She says its alright to give these to the girls, but they're not "appropriate" for the boys. Why? Because it says "fishes, wishes and KISSES"! Ha! So I guess its back to the drawing board for a more appropriate design! I should be happy she feels this way, and I am - after all, I'm always telling myself she's growing up way to fast. But along with this, why can't she still have tea parties, play with dollies and want to hang out with her Mommy all the time?! {{sigh!}}

This is sooo sweet and EASY!

Here is a super cute project that came from Splitcoast Stampers last week. (Scroll down the page a bit till you see, under "Latest News", Wednesday Tutorial - Faux Leather Wallet). Its an adorable mini wallet that's the perfect size for a gift card, plus an extra little treat! Chloe's going to a party today and they're now at the age where they enjoy receiving a gift card so they can go to the mall and shop for themselves. So I went and picked up a giftcard from Claire's, plus a bottle of sassy nail polish and tucked them inside this cute wallet. The wallet itself is made of cardstock, which is dry embossed, then wet embossed. The result? It almost feels like patent leather! The original was dry embossed with a snakeskin type embossing folder, but I didn't have one like that, plus I liked flowers - after all, they are still little girls! Check out the link, it really is a quick, easy and sweet project!

Heeeere's the layouts!

Okay, I'm finally finished. Many of you already know this about me - I'm a slow scrapper, but I'm usually pleased with what I turn out! Well, here are the two layouts for the class on...oh, right,I haven't set a date yet!! How about Saturday, February 13th @ 7:00p.m.? If you're interested in this class but can't make that date, let me know, we'll work something out!

Here are the pics:

For the first layout, you'll need a 4x6 portrait (up and down orientation) picture, and two 2x6 photos (cropped down from a 4x6). Layout number two requires a 5x7 landscape (across from side to side in orientation) photo. Also, please bring the regular stuff - a trimmer, scissors, adhesives, etc. If you have any of the following, please bring as well, to cut down on wait time: Chocolate Chip ink pad, Chocolate Chip journaling pen, Whisper White ink pad and Taken With Teal inkpad. No worries if you don't have these, you most certainly can use mine!

So far, the following awesomites (yeah, I just made up that word!) have signed up for the class:

Lujza
Laura
Kelly
Mary Lou
Shelley (Sorry Shelley, I've been spelling your name wrong all this time...oops!)

If you're interested, email me at cnhird@shaw.ca (sorry, I haven't figured out how to link it up yet, but you know I will!)

Thanks for checking it out everyone! Hope you all have a fab evening!!

Chriss <3 :)

Here I am!

Hey everyone! So here I am trying my hand at blogging! This is relatively new to me, so please bear with me and any mistakes I make! Just don't laugh at me too hard, or if you do, don't tell me, okay!! First of all, a special thanks to my BFF, Erica, for helping me set up this blog. She was only here about a month and a half ago helping me and its taken me this long to do something with it! So anyways, here goes!

Stampmates Club (somebody PLEASE help come up with a cooler name for our club!)

So, there's been some conflict as to what dates will work for everyone for the club. Some wanted a weekday, others, a weekend. So here's what I propose. I'll try this month running it two days. We'll go with the original Monday night, January the 18th, at 7:00 p.m., and then again on Saturday, January 23rd, same time. If everyone could please email me to let me know which night you'll be attending, I would appreciate it.

Here's our updated member list:

Erica - January
Lujza - February
Mary Lou - March
Rosemarie - April
Laura - May
Karen - June
Lori - July
Christina - August
Christine - September

This is the order in which you all signed up, and I thought this would be the best way to determine the order in which you will receive your Hostess Benefits. So whatever month is beside your name, that is the month that its your turn to play "hostess". I'm more than happy to host all the club meetings at my house. This saves you from tidying, etc. for company, and I do have the room, after all. But I do ask that as hostess, you bring a little snack to share with the group. Nothing fancy, homemade or store-bought, doesn't matter, it'll just help out. We'll also complete a project at each meeting, which I'll supply at no cost to you. Here's a sneak peek at January's projects:


Please be sure to bring with you your bag-o-basics - adhesives, pop dots, scissors, emery board, etc. If you happen to have a SU Chocolate Chip ink pad, any SU Stamp-n-Write markers and/or a crop-a-dile, that would be helpful in cutting down wait time for supplies. I'm so excited about our first get-together! See you all on either the 18th or the 23rd!

Valentine Card Class - February 6th, 7:00p.m.
$10.00

These cards are quick and cute! We'll be using a couple of new Valentine's stamp sets, Stampin' Write markers, and one of Stampin' Up's new punches. We'll make two of each card, so you'll go home with eight sweet Valentines for Cupid to deliver to your little loves, plus a small bonus project!

And here's our class list so far:
Lujza
Mary Lou
Rosmarie
Erica
Karen
Christina
Renee
Lori
Laura

Double 12x12 Layout Class - February 13, 7:00p.m.
I've had a few requests for Layout classes, and I'm MORE than happy to do this! I'm currently working on a couple layouts, and as soon as they're complete, I'll post them (in the next couple of days). I'm estimating that the class would probably be in the $15 - $20 range, definitely no more. If you're interested in this, please email me. This is not a commitment, I'm just curious to see how many would be interested in doing layouts.

So that's it for my first post! Thanks for taking the time to check it out! I'll talk to you all again soon!

Chriss : )