Hello my crafty Friends! I have really been enjoying the Top 12 of 2012 posts a lot of you have been making! I decided that I too wanted to do a top 12 too! I think I have done it for at least the past 2 years! To make it easier on myself I will share my top card for each month! :> I've also shared the link for each post that the card comes from in case you would like the info.
I also want to say a BIG THANK YOU for all your super sweet and kind comments on my last post! Your kind words really touched me!
January:
My favorite is the tooth fairy card and box that I made for a challenge! I was happy to make them and I quickly hid them in my drawer for when Ariel would lose her tooth. 11 months later just a week after Ariel's 7th birthday I pulled out the box (or rather the tooth fairy delivered the box!) I was so happy that she never saw the box before and that I actually had it made already!
February:
I love the colors of this luscious birthday card!
March:
In March I received the Floral Blossoms stamp set by Hero Arts (and Basic Grey) and well that is my FAVORITE stamp set by Hero Arts for 2012! I loved this set and went quite crazy with it! Here is one of my favorite cards that got me into the Top 20 for Gallery Idol!
April
My favorite card for April is this Tulip one:
May
My favorite card for May isn't a favorite card it's a set! This set later won me Moxie Fab's Card Creations week's Doilies and Lace contest! (Yay!)
June
June was the hardest month for me to choose from and also my most challenging month as I competed in Gallery Idol and made it all the way to Top 5. Each weekend was spent with the focus being on my card for the challenge at hand. Each Friday all day I thought about what to make. No other cards all year got that much attention or time spent on it! After a lot of thought (as I only want 1 card from each month) I am picking this one
July
July I didn't share too many cards ( must have been burnt out from June) but I did share this fun sail boat shaped card:
August
In the summer I finally got some Memory Box dies and fell in love! So great to work with and this card is one of my favorites:
September
Not only love this stamp set by Sweet Stamp Shop but also love the colors of this card!
October
October's favorite card is also a Thank you card, I notice that I made a lot of thank you cards in 2012!
November:
I think for November my favorite card is this one that uses Taylored Expressions Nativity Die, I love this die and am slightly bummed I only used it for 2 card styles (6 cards total)
December
December's card is easy to pick, it's the one we made on Breakfast Television on my birthday! I later taught this card in the inner city classes too!
And there you go! It's been amazing 2012! Hope you enjoyed it!
Hello my Crafty Friends! With the end of 2012 looming near I wanted to write a post celebrating 2012's crafty achievements! Lately it all keeps coming to me how amazing 2012 has been creatively! To say that 2012 has been an amazing creative year for me is a major understatement! It has been an unbelievable, fantastic, blessing, dreams not only coming true but being surpassed! It has proved to me that following your passion is the way to live! And I am passionate about creating! I love creating, I love making different things, I don't mind the work involved! :> (hint: maybe at the bottom there is something worth reading?)
Cover of Paper Crafts Stamp It:
One of the first joyful creative moments on 2012 is when in February my first published card by Paper Crafts was picked up for there Stamp It issue! I had made 5 cards for that issue and of course the last card I created the day of the deadline was picked up! Later a dream that I hadn't even dreamed of yet came true when in April (i think) an editor of the magazine (Susan Opel, we all love her!) emailed me and shared that my ONE card my FIRST card in a PC magazine was going to be on the cover! The cover? Wow God you amaze me! I still remember the feeling as I sat at my kitchen island, it was surreal and my whole body was tingling!
(my card is the tulip one on the bottom!!!!!)
Stamping Royalty:
Another dream came true when I was one of the winners of Paper Crafts Stamping Royalty 2012! I entered a few cards (I think 4) and mailed it on the last possible day after completing the winning card that day! I had of course hoped, dreamed, crossed my fingers that would be a winner but they do get so many cards....I couldn't believe it when I did win! The prize was amazing! And the published card is in the November/December issue of Paper Crafts magazine! :>
Not sure if I can share the card here, and not sure if I ever shared a photo of me in the crown:
Top 5 Gallery Idol 2012:
I think one of the biggest shocks for me was the morning of Friday June 1st. Let me paint a picture of the morning, when I woke up I couldn't open my eye and it really hurt as it was all swollen and I had pink eye! I looked horrible! Than I discovered my monthly friend was visiting. I thought to myself what a day and it's not even 8 am yet! When I went onto facebook I saw I was tagged in a photo and a lot of comments made on that photo and my facebook wall. Saw a photo of me with 19 other ladies put on by Paper Crafts and thought oh yes must be Stamping Royalty, oh wait there are other faces on there.... Top 20 Gallery Idol....WHAT? Why is my face in that photo? I think I even made a comment like why am I in this photo not realizing what it meant! Oh boy! In my defense when I entered I really didn't know I stood a chance! To have made it to the Top 5 was amazing! All the support I received truly touched me! You all celebrated with me!
Winner of a Moxie Fab World Challenge!
I think for all of us card makers it's a dream to winner one of the Moxie Fab World Contests! In July that dream came true for me when I was one of the winners of the Card Creations Lace and Doilies challenge! Yay! You can see it here.
My Etsy Shop:
In September I opened up my etsy shop AnitaRexDesigns! I do have to say the encouragement I received from you my crafty friends really helped me actually do it! At first I wondered if I would ever get my first sale and it came three weeks later! And in November all of a sudden the sales started happening! I am so happy with the success of my shop this Holiday season! :> Wow! What a blessing!
Breakfast Televsion:
This October I was given the amazing opportunity to be on Breakfast Television which is a local show on CityTv here in Winnipeg. It's on every morning from 6 am to 9 am! And most city's in Canada have there own show! The first time Ariel and I were both on sharing Thanksgiving crafts in October, a second time we were on sharing Halloween Crafts, in December I was on and shared a handmade Holiday Card and gift bag and also some of my wreaths! This is beyond a dream come true! I am happy to share that Ariel and I will be on next week again January 3 2013!
Creative Classes:
In December I was asked by a friend if I would be interested in teaching classes in high school in the inner city! I said yes and taught 3 classes in December! Excited to see where that is going to take me! And looking forward to what else I can share with the kids!
Design Teams!
This year I've also been blessed to have been on design teams for Gelatins Stamps, Scrapbooking Cafe Online, an international designer for Sweet Stamp Shop and on the personal design team for Freckled and Fun by Beth Sialka! :>
As I mention before this year has really showed me that following my passion, creating, following my dreams is more than worth it! God has more than blessed me and it makes me SO EXCITED for what next year has in store! I have plans and dreams and look forward to what 2013 holds! Thank you for reading this! Please leave a comment as I will be drawing a winner from this to receive something a prize from me! (it's a suprise!) I will draw on New Years Day!
Happy Boxing Day!! It's Boxing Day here in Canada and a Holiday! It's a day of huge and crazy good sales so I do hope to go shopping at some point! Otherwise today is a relaxing day here, everyone will have naps and the kids are enjoying relaxing and playing with all there new toys!
We had an amazing Christmas! On Christmas Eve we got together with my immediate family at my parents house and had a meatless dinner, fish, shrimp, perogies and all that! On Christmas day we enjoyed a morning opening presents and a yummy breakfast (like we do each year) Last year the kids slept in till 9 am on Christmas day. This year we
weren't so lucky, they woke up at 6 am went downstairs saw there
stockings full and got so excited they went and found my scissors and
cut the ribbon holding it to the railing! We told them it was much too
early (they went to bed late) and told them to go back to sleep! Got
another hour out of them! We went for lunch at my aunts house who is a chef with all of my moms family. It was wonderful to get together with everyone! My aunt made such an amazing meal of turkey, two salads, stuffing, beef with veggies, oriental rice, fetticine alfredo with chicken, and perogies! We enjoyed the afternoon with them and than went to Chad's parents and got together with the immediate family and celebrated with all his siblings! And another amazing dinner of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and all that! Had a fun night with his family! :>
Before I forget funny Christmas moments:
Me- Carter you have to get dressed up because it's a Christmas party! Carter- Good I will dress up like a fireman! Me- No Carter I mean you need to wear your suit! Carter- No I don't want to be handsome! It seems to always be an argument to get Carter to wear his suit and style his hair! Because we are trying to grow his hair out to a cute shag we have to style it now and he does not like that! I want to be cool not handsome is something we hear a lot of!
I wanted to pop in and share the classes that I taught in an inner city high school this month! A friend of mine is a resource teacher at a inner city high vocational high school and asked me if I would be interested in teaching some creative classes a few times a month after school. I jumped at the chance! Even though they are paying me (not too much just enough to cover the expenses the time and travel) it's a great way to spread my creativity especially in a way that can make a difference! I am so grateful for the opportunity! I started with card classes as it's my most familiar and we made Christmas cards! They loved it! I did 3 classes in a week a half! Well 2 were classes than another teacher invited me to have a booth at the school Christmas party day and we had about 30 kids make cards that day! They loved stamping, and really liked die cutting and embossing with the big shot! :> I have some other creative ideas to make with them: paper bag all about me albums (I like the idea of using paper bags so they can make them themselves later); necklaces with glass rectangular squares and stamped papers underneath or photos.... If you have any good ideas please let me know! :> They don't have to be one week class we can work on something for a few weeks... Here are the cards we made (we did 2 at each class and did the snowman card for the table I had at the party)
(Yes same card as I made on Breakfast Television)
Well that's it from me! :> Off to enjoy lunch and go for a nap! We are all wiped from Christmas! :>
Hello my Crafty Friends we are just about at Christmas! Today I start my baking! Oh I know just starting right? LOL Oh well at least it will be fresh! I've been so busy making the wreaths, card sets, gifts that I haven't had a chance and I can't not bake! :> Oh and I think I have one more card set to make.... :>
I wanted to pop in and share the gift I made for Chad's grandmother! It's always hard to think what to give her as a gift and last year I gave her a wreath so this year I made her:
I loved making it! And I love how it turned out! :> She really liked it too! :> I've always wanted to make a tree but until I make it for someone else I didn't take the time to do it! :>
I also wanted to share this photo from yesterday's family gathering of Ariel and me:
Ariel really loves leopard and had to have this dress when she saw it! Well my mom had actually sewn me this dress so I figured we could match this Christmas! :> I can't convince Chad to wear a leopard shirt though!
Well I am off to bake! :>
Hello my Crafty Friends! Only a few days left until Christmas! How are you handling the hustle and bustle of the holiday season? I have been quite busy making gifts! I *think* I am done all my shopping at least! A few more gifts to make! This week I have been busy making card sets for teacher gifts! I made 4! I always find that the teachers always really enjoy the sets! Today I shared one of them on the Scrapbooking Cafe's Online Blog! This is one of the favorites that I made:
I stamped the Newspaper Background stamp by Hero Arts with wet cement onto white cardstock, I used paper from My Mind's Eye's The Sweetest Thing Bluebell collection, one 6 by 6 sheet for all 4 cards! I die cut Memory Box's Chloe's Stem with polka dot paper stamped a few sentiments from hero arts and there you go a set! :>
I have a few more wreaths that I've made for custom orders to share. Not sure if I shared here but I had a great first etsy Holiday season! With local sales since end of October I've sold 35 wreaths! :> Yay! What a blessing!
I often get comments on my blog and in life about how I do all that I do. I don't know either! I've been so busy creating and with life this past bit! BUT I am loving every moment of it! Following your passion mine is creating and you will love the work! :> I hope to be back tomorrow and share about the 3 classes I taught at a inner city school here in my city! :>
Hello my Crafty Friends! Today I have more tags that I shared on the Scrapbook Cafe Online's blog! These one are more simple, I noticed that the Happy Holidays set from Hero Arts and Basic Grey had a cute tag on it, I decided to heat emboss it with white powder onto pp from Very Merry Christmas by Echo Park:
I added a button and some twine and some easy but pretty tags! Are you almost done your wrapping? I have yet to start! I have to finish my shopping first! Almost there!
Today after we picked Ariel up from school we went to see Santa! Ariel and Carter did so well! Maybe it helps that I tell Carter that he has to sit nicely and smile for the picture if he wants Santa to come!
My kids keep getting cuter! :> After we shopped (they played in the play area with Chad while I got them some clothes for Christmas!) As a gift with purchase I got a stuffed penguin. I was unsure what to do with it as I got one, and another was $10 and I didn't really want to buy one! So I left it in the bag (and had the girl staple the bag shut so the kids couldn't see) An older boy who was playing the play area gave his penguin to Ariel (I guess he was too "old" for it) than I pulled out the free one to give to Carter! Ariel named her penguin Pink and Carter named his penguin......Justin Bieber! LOL! :> Beyond cute! We did a bit more shopping and came home and had a family movie and craft night! :>
Well I am off to spend some time with my hubby!
Hello my Crafty Friends! What is outside your window? For me it's snow snow and more snow! Snowing so much here the past couple of days! Driving is a nightmare and I am glad we stayed home today!
I wanted to share that the videos from my segment on Breakfast Television are up, you can check it out here and the second gift bag segment here. :>
Today on the Scrapbooking Cafe Online's blog I am sharing a Holiday Tag:
For more details please check out the Scrapbooking Cafe's Blog.
Well I've finished all my etsy and custom local wreath orders! I've calculated that I've made 35 wreaths since the end of October! YAY! That is such a blessing! And actually I got another one today! I have some other great new wreath plans for the new year (when I have a chance to make them!) Here are a few of the new wreaths that I made:
The gold one is 14 inches and the second one is the biggest one I've ever made, 16 inches!
Well that's it for me! I am off to work on teacher gifts, I am thinking card sets!
Hello my crafty Friends! What are you up to? Working on Holiday cards? Working on Holiday handmade gifts (if so please share what your making!) Or working on your shopping? Today I finished up a custom wreath order, I plan to finish all local custom orders this week! Meaning next week I can either take more orders or start working on my handmade Christmas gift ideas! I HAVE SO MANY IDEAS! So excited! Today I am also working on my class for tomorrow, teaching Holiday cards to inner city girls here in my city! :> Quite excited.
I really wanted to stop by and blog today. Sadly Breakfast Television is having problems with there site and have not posted the videos of my segments from last week yet. So I thought I would stop in with another gift bag that I shared on the show, super easy but super cute:
I just adhered strips from Basic Grey's Aspen Frost collection, love this collection! And added a Memory Box leaping deer die cut! I so love making my own gift bags!
If your looking for some tag inspiration Scrapbooking Cafe Online is having a tags week! I will post on Thursday and Friday but there will be inspiration all week long, go and check it out here.
Well that's it for me! Dinner is in the slowcooker so I am back to working on my class for tomorrow!
Hello my Crafty Friends! Today is my birthday! And it's been a great day so far! This morning I was on Breakfast Television sharing a handmade Holiday card and a Holiday Gift bag! I think it went really well! The videos hasn't been posted on the site (yet?) (boo!) But I do have a few photos to share, this one is my favorite: (all photos are from the btwinnipeg facebook page!)
The card we made:
Here is the gift bag:
I had a great time and think it went really well! I really enjoyed it! Great way to start my birthday! One of the other guests mother really liked one of my wreaths and bought one! :> So awesome! And 4 more etsy wreath sales this week!
Went for breakfast this morning with Chad, Carter and some friends! And spent the afternoon relaxing and catching up with ny fav shows! Tonight Chad and I are going on a date for dinner and movie! :>
Hello my Crafty Friends! Hope you've had a great weekend and a fabulous start to your week! I wanted to pop in and share two new wreaths that I put my shop last week. They both feature purple which is a new wreath color for me, and I love them!
Sparkly silver yarn with three different colored purples flowers! This wreath sold in less than a week (I did relist it if you love it too)
Sparkly purple yarn (It's hard to tell but the yarn has a bit or purple tinsel in it) with three felt flowers with lavender, purple, white and silver grey flowers!
We moved this weekend and we are busy settling in! Happy with our new place in actually a different area than we used to live, but the area we lived in as newlyweds! We live 2 minutes from the new Ikea (just came to our city opened last week and is the biggest in Canada!) So looking forward to checking that out! It's been a long time since I've been in Ikea, still remember driving from Germany to Switzerland in less than a day and passing 4 Ikeas, here in North America you would have to drive for days to see that many!
I have on my plate right now :> On Friday I will be on Breakfast Television again (so come back than to see links to the videos!) sharing handmade holiday cards and gift bags! And next Tuesday I am starting a new venture, teaching Creative Classes to inner city girls at a after school program! I am starting with holiday cards, doing it twice this month, quite excited! Plus I have a lot of wreath orders to get through. :> I love being creative and am so thankful for all these opportunities!
