Obviously, I am resolution challenged...

Clearly, I cannot be trusted to accomplish any of my New Home Resolutions! Have I posted pics? Not yet. Have I posted daily? Not even close. In fact, it's been many, many moons! But have I given up hope? Never!!!

I do have to say I think blogging is so much fun. It's like a little anonymous diary (that is, unless anyone reads it!). Everyone should blog! So one more goal is to share a funny story every day (or at least every time I post).

Today, I must discuss the skill involved in accomplishing any single task. I think every mom will attest to the tremendous patience and mastery of multi-tasking required to accomplish something during a normal day at home with a child. I'm not talking about writing a chapter in your latest epic, but simple things, like getting dressed. Or typing a blog post. But when we complain about discuss these challenges, we are usually talking about interruptions from our children. But today, I must point out that interruptions from well-meaning spouses are fraught with much more drama. I mean, I can't just snap at hubby dear to go away, go to bed, brush your teeth or empty the dishwasher (all well-worn phrases with my children, I admit). I've tried, it just doesn't work. No, tonight, my darling children have gone off to bed, and with a sigh I'm ready to sit down and get to work. I'm ready to wallow in the luxury of single minded focus. But no. My love is now done with his tasks for the day and is ready to talk. Or fold laundry. Both of which seem to require my input or assistance RIGHT NOW. Do you think if I sat down and started peppering him with questions about when he'll be done with whatever the heck it is he is doing on the computer all day he'd happily pause, make eye contact, and, with love in his eye, tell me exactly when he plans to be done? No. What would really happen is he would ignore me for as long as he possibly could, then eventually answer me, but in a tone that would clearly show how irritated he is for being interrupted. Perhaps there would be a look in his eye, but it surely wouldn't be love. But when I snap one measly, "Leave me ALONE!", I'm being grumpy. Go figure. However, being the ever patient man he is, he just chuckles and wanders into the kitchen. After offering me (a.k.a., Miss Fussy) a glass of wine (I'm not too proud to admit I took it), he then continues to carry on a discussion with me. UGH! Didn't I say leave me alone?!! Luckily, he seems not to notice that my side of the conversation includes only "Uh huh" and "really?", and then only when he seems to pause. Truly, this is a skill I (and I believe all wives) should list on my resume.

Love. Ahhh...

Stamping will happen in my life soon! In the meantime, check out my website for some of my favorite samples with the new set, Inspired by Nature, available Monday, August 11!

On the road again...

Well, we're on the road again. I know, it's been 6 months since I last posted. I can only beg your pardon, it's been a busy time! But one thing I love about moving as often as we do is that each time, it's a fresh start. I even think it's a little bit like every new year, and I usually start with resolutions. So here are mine for this move.

My New Home Resolutions

1. Keep up with my blog by posting daily!
2. Jump right into the neighborhood by a)introducing myself to my immediate neighbors; b)inviting at least one of them over for a playdate, regardless of how many boxes I have unpacked; c)volunteer for at least one activity at the school or on post.
3. Don't get overwhelmed by volunteering for too many things - spend more time playing with the kids.
4. Walk the dog and play at least once every day.
5. Host a stamp party by mid-July (and make sure everything is unpacked by then!)
6. Take the kids on outdoor adventures (even just hiking the woods near our house) at least once a week.
7. Get family pictures taken (I've been meaning to do this for 2 years!)
8. Be smart about purchases for the new house.
9. Start shopping the flea markets and antique shops for deals - never pay retail again!
10. Set a schedule each day and stick to it! I need to organize my days better to get the most out of every moment...

This will be fun. But before we can get to the new start, we have to survive the road trip. Have you ever tried road tripping with 3 kids over 2,000 miles? How about while driving two cars? What about while your husband tows a boat, and is concerned about his ability to stay away while driving, so he insists at least one child ride with him to keep himself awake? And mom is along for the trip? Oh, and the dog is neurotic about traveling, and may have a nervous breakdown on the road.

But I am determined...it will be fun! Hotels are reserved, route is planned, the trip is budgeted for...it will be fun! I mean it!

I miss my stamping friends, I can't wait to get that started again. Taking a couple of months off has been difficult, but probably a good thing to refresh my creativity and ambitions.

Have a great summer folks, and watch for new posts! I'll try to upload pictures from the road...

How Time Flies

I know you all know how time flies. Can you believe it's December already? This is the time of year that I start checking all my lists and stressing about how to get everything done. Why is that? The season would be so much more enjoyable if we could all just relax. But enough self delusion. This year is shaping up to be just as hectic as usual, and to be honest, I'd probably be bored if it was too quiet!

So we spent the Friday after Thanksgiving braving the stores and trying to get our Christmas presents done in one big rush. I know, we're crazy. But you know, it brings back the days when we were first married. My dh is in the army, and our first assignment was Germany. If any of you have lived in Germany, you know that while it's lovely, and there's an abundance of great local gifts for family in the states, they just don't have shopping malls! And after the first full year, we'd pretty much exhausted the beer steins, woodburned plaques, smokers and ornaments. We were very blessed, and were able to come home our 2nd and 3rd Christmases to visit the family. So we would fly home a week before Christmas and spend one frantic day roaming the malls and electronics stores, participating in the last minute craziness, but somehow managing to purchase gifts for every one of our family members in that single day.

That's what Black Friday is like for us now. The kiddos stay with Grandma and the dh and I hit the stores dark and early. As usual, we got most of our shopping done that one day. We also got a leisurely lunch and dinner while out, and not once during the entire day did we have to shout at a child to stop racing around the store, or hit the bathroom 5 times in a single hour. Yes it was crowded, but for us, it was a date!

So I think we're done shopping for the kids, and then, lo and behold, Sydney decides she must have that stupid dang bird. You know which one. That parrot. That sings. And talks. And dances. And laughs a creepy little laugh. And talks. I've been trying to convince her for days that it is totally not a cool gift. It's lame, I say. It'll just break. It'll keep you awake all night talking and singing. And dancing. And talking. Now I have to say, Sydney is usually my most malleable child. If I talk about something long enough, she always caves (I know, I'm a bad mom). But this time, she held out. She listened to everything I had to say and then calmly said it's okay if I don't like it, but she does. It's the only thing she really wants. This is over a period of a week, and still she hasn't budged. I'm kinda proud. But it means I have to get that stupid dang bird. So I hit the store today, quickly snagging a few other craft items (some really neat eyelash trim from the fabric department that looks FABULOUS on cards and boxes, pics later). And I got the bird. And you know what? It doesn't SHUT UP! I have no idea how I'm going to get a screwdriver into the 2 inch space at the back of the box, around that heavy duty twist tie to prevent anyone from stealing the stupid dang bird (as if), and get the stinkin' batteries out. Because otherwise, it talks ALL THE TIME. While I was standing in the checkout line, it kept laughing at me. I can't imagine wrapping it - we'll all have nightmares listing to it sing and laugh and watching the box shake. Right now it's locked in the trunk of dh's car. But we got the bird, all will be well on Christmas.

Pics of the box tomorrow, and new info on Virtual Stamp and Scrap Clubs!

Is it January yet?

Is anyone else tired of making Christmas cards yet? I love Christmas, don't get me wrong, but I am so tired of making Christmas cards! And it's not even December yet! You know it's time to stop when you think you're making a masterpiece, then you discover it's actually butt ugly. Ugly! I got to that point yesterday, so now, I am totally done with Christmas cards.



So I got my new Cards magazine - this is totally the best card making magazine out there, I really love it. Anyway, I'm flipping through and there are tons of Christmas samples of course! It makes sense. It is November. Normal people are making their cards now. It's only crazy people like me who've been making Christmas cards since July that are getting tired of Christmas cards!


But I digress. So I'm flipping through the pages and seeing all those cards, I couldn't help but be inspired (in spite of the fact they are Christmas cards!). So I had to sit down and play. I'm also a little tired of traditional colors and designs. And since all of my Christmas stacks are over, no one is probably going to see these cards anyway, so I felt free to make funky, non-traditional cards.

You can't see it, but the "very merry" sentiment is embossed in Iridescent Ice, and the Soft Sky strip near the top is completely embossed with the Iridescent Ice as well. The recipe for this card is: River Rock card stock base, Purely Pomengranate top layer, River Rock ribbon strips, Wild Wasabi ribbon strip, white grosgrain ribbon strip, Soft Sky paper strips, Certainly Celery Prints strip, and Purely Pomengranate ribbon strip. The star is stamped with White Craft Ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice.

This card is also based on a layout from the November issue of Cards magazine. It's hard to see, but I embossed the tree and the word "joy" with iridescent ice as well. The recipe here is: Sage Shadow base, Always Artichoke top layer, Wintergreen DSP layer, rounded with corner rounder, stitched Always Artichoke ribbon from retired Ribbon Originals, tree from Season of Joy stamped with Always Artichoke on glossy white and embossed with Iridescent Ice, and "Joy" from retired Small Script stamped with White Craft ink, embossed, and punched with small oval punch. I also added a clear rhinestone brad from the Pretties kit.

Whew! I hope you enjoyed these! They're probably the last Christmas cards from me this year. Just to suit my need for a non Christmas card, I also did this one - lots of Thank Yous to go out in January...

This one is on a 5x5" white square base, 4x4" chocolate chip layer stamped with Baroque Motifs in Bashful Blue Craft Ink. The belly band is paper ribbon made from scrap strips of Pupmkin Pie and Bashful Blue. The top layer is another square of chocolate chip. I stamped the "Cherish" word that you can hardly see with Versamark, then stamped the Thank You from Short and Sweet over the top in White Craft ink. Punch the flowers with the Three Flower punch in Pumpkin Pie, stamp the dotted line in White Craft ink from the In the Spotlight hostess set, adhere with dimensionals, and all done.

What is paper ribbon you may ask? This is now my favorite thing. All you do is take any strip of paper, use a metal ruler (or any other very hard surface) and pull the paper across it, like you're curling ribbon for a present. Do this a couple of times on each side and you'll feel the paper soften. You'll also see it start to separate at the end. When that happens, gently pull the two layers apart and you're left with a very thin, very soft, fuzzy strip of paper. I like to draw on it with my white gel pen to make stitching or stripes. It's very cool, adds texture, and the best part - costs nothing more!! Use the paper you've already got on hand! LOVE this!

Okay, now for the ugly card. When I got to this one, I knew it was time to stop. This is God's way of telling me I have made enough Christmas cards. Don't laugh.

I refuse to give the recipe, because it is an affront to nature. Trust me, it's even uglier in person.

Good luck with your Christmas cards - remember, keep stamping until you get to the ugly one!

Altered Clip Board

You are so going to love this! Jaron created this lovely design at SU convention this year, and my next class will be to teach my stampers how they can create their very own piece of art!

This will make a lovely addition to your holiday home (or be the perfect gift for those grandparents that don't need anything!) You can thank me later for saving you hours of head scratching, followed by days of searching through boutiques, followed by more days of hunting through every store at the mall, followed by endless hours and eyestrain wading through all those computer sites with the "perfect gift" - those hard-to-find-gifts-for people in your life will love this example of your undying love and will forever cherish your beautiful family. At least, for the next year or so!

Enough chit chat! Here are the deets...

The number one question I've been asked about this clipboard is HOW DO YOU GET THE PAPER UNDER THE CLIPS?! I have to say, I really feel that SU! should include instructions, if not a template, with all of their chipboard products. I mean, we all want to cover them, right? No one wants a plain cardboard clipboard! But no, we all have to reinvent the wheel. Let me do my best to share the joy of this clipboard with you!

First, start with regular computer paper. No sense wasting your good paper until after you have the rough draft! You have to realize that you will need to cut your paper to go around your clips. It is just so much easier that way! Plus, this triple clip board is too long for even our 12x12 designer paper to cover (14" long, in fact). So I cut three sections - one larger one for the middle, and two narrow sections for the ends. The sketch looks something like this:



I have to tell you, I absolutely hate using scissors. It doesn't matter how carefully I cut, it always looks rough and uneven. Can't stand it! So I really rely on my punches. After laying out my computer paper, cutting on the vertical dotted lines to make my sections, and using my corner rounder on the edges, I used the word window punch to make slots for the clips. Yes, that's really all the space you need. Really. The trick is to VERY GENTLY pull the clipboard away from the hardware, creating a gap to slide the paper into. One final note, you'll need to snip the narrow top of the center hole to fit that paper around the center clip. This project takes only dsp (Designer Series Paper for you newbies or non-stampers), a corner rounder and a word window punch. Then cut your coordinating card stock to make backings for the pictures, embellish with ribbon and name labels, and voila! Perfect holiday gift.
Oh, the name labels. I have 3 kids, so I decided to put a pic of each on the clipboard. You may decide to do it differently (two kids and a family pic, 3 family pics, 1 kid and 2 parents, whatever floats your boat). If you decide to label, you could stamp the names, but I didn't have the patience to pull out my stamp-a-majig after battling with loving on this clipboard, so I just printed the names on my computer and cut out ovals with my Coluzzle. I then added brads and ribbon, and popped the name labels up with dimensionals.

You can do this!

Confession time...I am completely intimidated by projects like this. To be honest, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes at convention, I never would have tried it. Some of you brave souls out there may say, Why Nicole, there's nothing difficult about this! But to me, it's downright terrifying! I felt the same way about faux metal, about cracked glass, really about anything that isn't just a plain card! But the thing is, they look so cool! And as my dear friend Kendra has taught me, there's nothing to be scared of. I am gradually learning to just dive in, try it out in the privacy of my own home (so that no one can see my spectacular failures!), and then be empowered when it turns out right! So truly, if I can do it, you can do it!

To celebrate the season, I am offering this class by mail. If you would like to experiment in the privacy of your own home, email your request with the following information to stamp.fool@yahoo.com:

Your name
Your mailing address
Your color choices (brights from the Dashing DSP pack, subtles from the Wintergreen DSP pack, or brights from the Cutie Pie DSP pack, subtles from the Porcelain Prints DSP pack, or regals from the Brocade DSP pack).
Name Label information

I'll send you the clipboard, step by step instructions, PRE-CUT DSP ready to adhere to your clipboard (specific prints may vary, but I'll send you papers from the pack you choose), precut coordinating card stock for the picture backgrounds, precut name labels, coordinating ribbon and hardware, and dimensionals. You can assemble with the adhesive of your choice. All this for $35, which includes priority shipping. Orders must be placed by December 9 for delivery before Christmas. If you prefer I assemble your clipboard (WIMP!), add $5 and indicate so in your email. I accept paypal, checks, and credit cards by phone or email, your kit will ship after your payment clears.

Have a great holiday!

Welcome to Funky Rubber!

I'm so excited to share this new blog with you! I know I'm a little slow on the draw, but I hope you'll find yourself so hopelessly addicted to my charming wit and irresistible art that you'll be checking every day for new samples and information! I'm a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, and I truly love stamping and crafting. My problem - I'm no artist! Which is the true beauty of rubber stamps, they let us wanna be artists pretend that we're true artists! And more power to us!

So I'll post my experiences, thoughts on the new stuff out there, and lots and lots of samples! Get ideas, share with your friends, and get in on the joy. But make sure to keep it fun - stamp therapy is the best there is, especially when you can share and feed your ego spirit with lots of praise and adoration. So don't be stingy with the comments - let me know how you really feel!

Tutorials to some of my technique classes will also be posted, for those of you that aren't visual learners, so check often and feel free to send requests - I'll do my best to get out the good stuff!