We meet today to thank thee for the era done, and thee for the opening one. John Greenleaf Whittier

Well we are all back home safe and sound. It was nice getting to see the family over the holidays but it sure does feel good sleeping in your own bed. Since it is New Year’s Eve and I cannot help but reflect on all the things that happened in 2009 I thought it would be fun to post all my favorite blog posts over the past year. So below you will find a list of my favorites. I hope they are some of your favorites too.

A Little Valentine Tutorial

Be Mine

One Little Text

100 Completed

Fabric Flower

Love You Tag

Vintage Button Bouquet

Photo Holder using Sewing Pattern Flower

Book Page Flower

Faux Vintage Millinery Pin

Tissue Paper Flower

Sewing Pattern Flower

Scallop Paper Lace

In Anticipation

Simple Leaf Pick

Lottie’s Dress

No Trick here just a Great BIG TREAT

Got a pair of plain gloves

Noel

Mittens and Snowflakes

Silver Foil Cupcake Liner Flower

Snow Day Tag

12 Day Advent Pocket Calendar

Crepe Paper Ornament and Bottle Brush Trees

Let it Snow

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year. I hope 2010 is the best year yet. And I am going to remind myself it is all about acceptance for me this year. Have you all picked your word for the year yet?

Happy New Year!

It is a white Christmas for us this year. I love the snow so getting to watch it fall all day yesterday and through the night made it an extra special Christmas for me and my family.

Wishing you and yours a wonderful day filled with holiday cheer.

And here’s to a great New Year.

First I must say WOW… thank you all so much for all the wonderful comments and emails you have sent me regarding this post. I have decided to keep it real on my blog this year. I certainly do not want to give the false impression that everyday is a holiday for me. Most days are really great don’t get me wrong. But I think we woman sometimes get caught in a trap and feel it sets us up for unrealistic expectations on ourselves when we read that everything is always peachy or things always seem so perfect at all times on other blogs. Really life is not that way and I certainly do not want to portray that mine is. Yes I do have so many things to be thankful for and I am but I too have to worry about paying mortgage and juggling everyday expenses, cleaning the house, getting the mounds of clothes washed, tote Ansley here and there, work and try to stay sane. I’m just like every other person trying to make the best of each day and not let the not so fun stuff get in the way of what truly is important. It really is amazing how I feel more connected to you all after reading all your comments. They are all such a wonderful gift and I thank you for taking the time to comment and email me.

Okay so now for this finished project well sorta finished I guess. These are all the finished pockets I created over the past month. I just added some tinsel and chenille stems around the edge of a cranberry painted 7″ x 9″ canvas. I have not yet attached the pockets to the canvas as I cannot make up my mind if I want to make this bigger buy placing them onto larger altered tags and then a larger canvas. And I am torn on whether I want to have it sit on an easel or hang. So many minor details to think about. Lol, this just might end up being used next year. How are you going to finish yours? I would love to know.

So this morning I finally got all the Christmas cookies baked and have given Alan and Ansley strict instructions to please leave some for Christmas. I think they know I am serious. Have all my gifts wrapped thanks to a sweet 15 year old neighbor. I have all the food needed to cook for Christmas Eve so I guess I am pretty much ready for the holidays. Just need to do a bit more cleaning and washing. I hope everything is falling into place for you all and remember, whatever you don’t get finished your family and guests will never know if you don’t tell them.

I have been thinking a lot lately about what word I plan to really embrace for myself this year. After a lot of thought and reading these two blog posts Katie’s and Karen’s I can really relate to some of what they are saying. I decided my word needs to be acceptance. I have a very hard time being happy with anything I create or do. I always feel I can or need to be better. This issue involves my art, family life etc. It carries over into everything. I have always had a hard time living just in the moment. I have a very type A personality and suffer from panic attacks that at times can be paralyzing. I worry about everything… am I a good mom, wife, artist, daughter, aunt, friend etc. What can I do to be better. I realize I need to accept that there are going to be days when I just flat out screw up. Not intentionally by any means but I just screw up and it is okay. Life is not perfect, I am not perfect and I must accept it, refocus and move on. I’m not sure if this is mainly a female issue because as I see it men are much better at just accepting things and are able to move on faster.

This coming year I am going to accept myself for who and what I am. I am going to accept the fact that yes I will screw up. I am going to accept the fact that not every single piece of glitter or ribbon has to be in this very exact spot. That it is okay if it is just a tad bit too much to the right. I am going to accept that the house is not going to be 100% clean 24 hours a day and that there are going to be days that I have panic attacks that paralyze me. All of this just means that I am living life and at times life is just not 100% of anything but breathing. I am going to remember to breathe, some days will require deeper breaths than others but I am going to breathe. I am going to live in the moment and accept the day that I have been given. I am going to be happy that I have the opportunity to breathe another day as not everyone is given this opportunity. I am going to accept the gift of watching the birds outside my kitchen window as they give me great joy. I am going to accept the gift of vacuuming up enough dog hair from my golden retrievers to knit 1,000 pairs of socks as they do not live nearly as long as I wish they did and I love these dogs. I am going to accept me for me… yes, I’m going to accept the fact that I have gray hairs coming in faster than I can count, that I have some pounds to drop and will when I am ready as I know they will hang out with me until I do, I am going to accept that yes 44 yr. olds do have wrinkles and embrace them as at least I am here to see them. I am going to accept that not everyone sees things as I do and does things the way I do. Yes this is a biggie for me back to that type A personality. I am going to accept that not everyone is going to like what I create and that is okay. I am going to accept that not everyone is nice and that you will get nasty grams from people that feel they invented every single thing in the art community and that is okay as that is their problem not mine as I know I have integrity. I am going to accept that I have not had one second to create a project to post this week as I have taken care of three sick dogs, one sick kid, Christmas shopped, cleaned, washed etc and it is okay and my blog readers will certainly understand. And I am going to accept that I cannot find a photo to add to this blog post and that the dryer buzzing non-stop at this very moment is making me crazy. I am living life.

So with all that said, what word do you plan on living by for 2010?
Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Here is a super simple flower you can create using silver foil cupcake liners. I think this would make a wonderful flower/bow attached to a gift bag or present, or create several and place them as a decoration on the branches of your Christmas tree. You could create a garland buy attaching them to string or baker’s twine to hang in a window or drape along a mantel. You could even create ornaments to hang on your tree or place them in a wreath… I could go on and on with ideas for this simple flower.

To create one flower all you need are three silver foil cupcake liners, one gold jingle bell, scissors and glue dots. Cut three foil cupcake liners as I did here… just don’t cut the hole in the center of the liner. Stack them on top of each other using a glue dot to secure each layer in place. Using a glue dot attach a medium sized gold jingle bell in the center of the top flower. Bend the petals into shape by curling some up and down to give your flower dimension and that is it! Super simple and something I think kids would love to make too.

With all the snow lots of my friends seem to be having as of late I thought this might be a fun project to document their snow days. This tag can be used as an ornament for the tree or for an accent in any room of your house.

I have always loved this photo of my Mom back in 1957. Salem, West Virginia, where my mom grew up had a snow storm that winter that left her little town looking like a winter wonderland. Her dog poochie loved playing outside with her in the snow as you can see from the photo. I find it kind of amusing that Mom and Dad had the same knickname growing up of “Dickie” and their dogs had the same name of “Poochie”.

Supplies Used:
Maya Road Oval Scallop Coaster Album
Maya Road Bethany Mini Chipboard Alphabet
Maya Road Mini Snowflakes Chipboard Set
Maya Road Hanging Chandelier Beads
Patterned Paper
Matching Solid Cardstock
Platinum and Diamond Stickles
Fine German Glass Glitter – Silver
Glitter
Rhinestones
Adirondack Metallic Paint Dabber – Silver
Adirondack Metallic Paint Dabber – Pearl
White Crepe Paper Streamer
White Seam Binding
Embroidery Floss (any color)
Jump Ring
Clear Drying Liquid Adhesive
Glue Stick

Tools Used:
Craft Knife/Craft Mat
Sewing Needle
Pinking Shears
Small Scallop Scissors
Scissors
Sanding Block
Paintbrush

Instructions:

• Using a glue stick apply adhesive to the front of two oval scallop pages and attach to your patterned paper.
• Using a craft knife and craft mat carefully cut around the oval scallop pages, sand the edges using a sanding block.
• Apply a clear drying liquid adhesive along the edges of the scallop coaster and generously apply glitter, let dry.
• Accent around the inside portion of the scallop with Platinum Stickles dots, let dry.
• Attach rhinestones to the center of some snowflakes on the patterned paper
• Gather a piece of white crepe paper streamers cut to approximately 18″ in lenght, thread a sewing needle with three strands of embroidery floss (any color will be fine as it will not show) begin gathering at one end and continue to the opposite end. Once finished gathering space the crepe paper evenly so it fits onto the chipboard piece as shown above. Attach it to the back of the front oval scallop.
• Cut a piece of white seam binding to create your hanger. Using a strong liquid adhesive attach the hanger to the back of the chipboard page.
• Using a strong liquid adhesive attach the second oval scallop page to the back. Basically you are sandwiching the gathered crepe paper in between the two chipboard pages.
• Trim the edges using pinking shears then accent the edges using Platinum Stickles.

• Paint a mini chipboard snowflake with silver metallic paint, let dry.
• Cover the painted snowflake with a clear drying liquid adhesive, generously apply fine German silver glass glitter, tap off excess, let dry. Attach a rhinestone to the center of the glittered snowflake.

• Paint mini chipboard letters white, let dry.
• Apply a clear drying liquid adhesive on top of each letter, generously apply glitter, tap off excess, let dry.
• Create a hanger and bow using white seam binding.
• Create a mat for your photo using a solid piece of cardstock, accent the edges using scallop scissors, attach your photo to the mat.
• Now attach the photo, glittered snowflake, glittered letters, seam binding and hanging chandelier piece as shown.
• Create your journaling strips, accent the edges using Diamond Stickles, let dry. Once dry attach to the scallop tag.

I am thrilled to be able to teach a workshop at CHA this year. F & W Media asked me to create a project using techniques taught in my book “Delight In The Details” which will be released at the show. Of course I was thrilled to have been asked and certainly accepted the opportunity. I will only be teaching this workshop once and I kept it small… only 50 people as I really like to be able to interact with as many people one on one as possible. I will also share a few make n takes that you can easily recreate in your store. Just a little added bonus in the class. I will have instructions available via email in PDF form for those stores that are present.

Below is a sneak peek of the project. F & W Media asked that I create a project that could be completed in 90 min. as it is fun to leave with a finished project in hand. Not sure about you but if I don’t finish something during class I usually don’t get it completed and it sits in a pile among all the other non-completed projects.

Registration is now open.

Monday, January 25, 2010
7:00 AM – 9:00 AM
Room: 211B
Difficulty: All Levels

Supplies: Paper trimmer, crop-o-dile, sanding block

Join Lisa M. Pace, author of Delight in the Details, as she leads you through the creation of a “You R 2 Tweet” mini banner. In this project, you will be using products by Clearsnap, Fiskars, iLoveToCreate, a Duncan Enterprises Co., Jenni Bowlin, Maya Road, and Ranger. During this workshop, you will learn a variety of techniques that can be applied to future scrapbooking and papercrafting projects. Plus, you get to take home all the products provided and get a copy of Lisa’s new book.

Instructor: Lisa Pace
Sponsor: F&W Media Inc.

Now let me just tell you right up front…. you will be leaving with a TON OF FREEBIES…. Clearsnap, Fiskars, F & W Media, iLoveToCreate, a Duncan Enterprises Co., Jenni Bowlin, Maya Road and Ranger have been VERY GENEROUS with product and I cannot thank them enough. You will be leaving with my new book “Delight In The Details”, tools, inks, Stickles, papers, adhesives, Chipboard etc.

Bring a bag… you are going to need it.

Well we did it… all 12 pockets are completed. Now to arrange them and onto my canvas and alter that up a bit. Will get to work on it and show you the finished project soon. This is going to be a fun thing to do with Ansley during her Christmas break. There’s nothing like having a little something fun to do each day.

• Stamp image onto heavy weight white cardstock, ink on top of stamped image using Distress Ink, lightly color image using jewel tone chalks.
• Place glossy accents onto the back of a Fragments Charm and attach to stamped image. Using Alcohol Ink, ink the top of the Fragments Charm, accent the Fragments Charm with Distress Stickles, let dry. Once the Distress Stickles is dry apply a clear drying adhesive to the edge of the Fragments Charm and apply Gold German Glass Glitter to the edge, let dry. Once dry tie a piece of white seam binding on top.
• Cover the front top half of a 1 3/8″ x 2 3/4″ office tag with patterned paper, fold the end up to create a pocket, cover the folded part of the pocket with patterned paper, stitch around the tag to secure the pocket, distress the edges, ink the edges using ColorBox Fluid Chalk Ink – Creamy Brown, apply Silver German Glass Glitter randomly to the edges of the pocket.
• Attach a vintage button to the top center of the tag.
• Accent the tag using a Red Dresden Border, a miniature gold angel and the altered Fragments Charm.
• Cut a piece of Kraft paper and create a strip to write one fun holiday thing to do that day, fold in half and place inside the pocket.

The White Seam Binding is in my “Holiday Sweet Treats” packet. When you purchase a “Holiday Sweet Treats” packet and my “Glistening Snow Glitter” Mixture (only one left) at the same time I include a few extra surprise embellishments.

Supplies Used: Tim Holtz idea-ology Fragments Charms, Gloss Accents, Heavy Weight White Cardstock, Archival Ink – Jet Black, Tim Holtz Distress Inks - Tea Dye, Adirondack Alcohol Ink – Latte, Tim Holtz Distress Stickles – Scattered Straw, Fired Brick, Reusable Non Stick Craft Sheet, Ink Blending Tool, Pebbles I kan’dee Chalks - Jewel Tones, Jenni Bowlin Old School Alpha Minis - Black, daisyd’s patterned paper, Vintage Button, White Seam Binding, Silver and Gold German Glass Glitter, ColorBox Fluid Chalk Ink – Creamy Brown, Red Dresden Border, Small Gold Angel

12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #1
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #2
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #3
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #4
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #5
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #6
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #7
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #9
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #10
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #11
12 Day Advent Calendar Pocket #12

While sitting in the Doctor’s office this morning with Ansley (poor girl has a terrible sore throat but a shot and antibiotics will fix her in no time) I saw this really neat idea in one of the magazines. I cannot remember which magazine I saw this in but find it rather amusing that I can remember how to make the entire project step for step… does not make sense at all. Anyway, these are super easy to make and will look so pretty attached to white lights wrapped around some garland. They remind me of the old aluminum foil reflectors used in the 60’s.

Supplies Used: Foil Cupcake Liners Tools Used: Scissors

Instructions:

• Fold cupcake liner in half four times.
• Using Scissors snip the top portion of the cupcake liner as shown in the photo below.

• Unfold the cupcake liner. It should look like the photo shown below. If you want the reflector to have less points  fold the cupcake liner three times instead.

• Cut a small hole in the center of the cupcake liner as shown below. Make sure the hole is smaller than you want as these are fragile and the hole will tear easily.

• Place the cupcake liner over a small white light. I love how the light reflects off the liner. These are so simple to make and really are so pretty. (Sorry for the bad photos… a tad bit gloomy here today for good photos) This would be something fun for kids to make too.