WHAT?

I don't know how I managed to get two of the same post up on the new blog, but they have different posting dates, so I must have done it in my sleep!  Ha, ha! 
It's possible we may have a new member in the family before the weekend is over -- baby Patton may make her appearance OR she may wait until next week.  But one thing is for certain, without human intervention those little ones will make their appearance when they are darn good and ready.  Momma is ready that's for sure.  And if Patton decides Sunday is the day, it will be on my son's birthday so you can imagine we are all rooting for that!
I haven't been doing many cards lately, actually haven't been doing much crafting at all, but I have had this vinyl project in mind ever since I found out my DIL is pregnant and last weekend while I had her other two here for the day Deserae and I spent some time working on these.  I was kind of wanting to do a "my heart belongs to daddy", but she really wanted the Baby Girl thing, in red, and I suggested adding the little pink heart with the new baby's name.  So here you have it.  Clothes is the last thing this new addition needs, but I couldn't resist.  Thank you for stopping by!  Hugs, Shawna

 

Onward....

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving.  It was quiet around here, but I got the grandkid fix on Sunday by watching two of the grands while the parents travelled to meet-half-way to pick up my middle grandson and bring him back home from his visit with his mother.  They wore me and the dogs completely out, but we had a great time.  While Anthony played outside with dogs, my
granddaughter and I worked on a project for the new baby, due in two weeks, and I will post that next Sunday.
When the son and DIL arrived back safe and sound with middle grandson in tow and we had a bite to eat then said our goodbyes so my sweet DIL could get some rest after that 700 mile round trip, I sat down at the computer to play with  My Memories v5 --- which is now my new favorite computer program --- to make a  new banner for the blog.   Using this program is going to make banners and backgrounds a blast to work on!  I may make a new banner for each month, but definitely a new one for each season.  I am astonished at the amount of content available for use with this program and how inexpensive it is.  And a lot of it is free. 

So now it is onward towards Christmas.  I wish for all of you a stress free holiday season; let's all remember what Christmas is truly about.  I leave you with post from the old blog.  Hugs, Shawna

I buy a rocking horse ornament for a special young lady every Christmas but wasn't able to find one for her this year or last year.  Seems ornaments have a cycle of popular or trendy themes and rocking horses were not in the mix the last few years.  Here's where the Silhouette Store and my Cameo came to the rescue. I bought two different cut files and cut several of each and glued the layers together to give them some heft.  I thought of trying some chipboard but with a few more things to make for Christmas I didn't want to push the envelope.  Several ladies in the Silhouette Plus Forum have cut chipboard successfully, but I am not ready to try it yet.  Not until I have an extra cutting blade on hand.  (Since this post was done I have cut chipboard, successfully, with the Cameo.  The company came up with a chipboard setting in a newer version of the software and they also now sell chipboard).

 

Thanksgiving and Thank You's Revisited

PLEASE NOTE:  This post was taken from my former Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes blog.  I am able to get to them, one page at a time.  And although it will only display one page at a time it will allow me to do a search.  Slow going wading through 365 posts looking for the good stuff!

Is everyone recovering from the big feast? I had a fabulous time with friends on Thursday and again on Friday to help clean up the leftovers and then we gathered for a game of Mexican Train which was more fun than watching a raccoon eat spaghetti.  I think I am still on a sugar high from all the salads---you know, those sweet salads most of the estrogen group is so fond of.  I celebrated with my family a week ago today so I ended up with two Thanksgiving celebrations.  How blessed is that!
I wanted to post one more Fall project before everyone gets too involved in Christmas--- I am still in denial that it is less than a month away, but it's true.  It must be true.  I am beginning to have Jingle Bells playing over and over in my mind.........
Today's Silhouette Sunday project is a set of thank you cards.  Truth of the matter is, I have already used all but two of these to send to some very sweet people who were on my list and are deserving of so much more than a measly thank you card. THANK YOU sweet people!

This set was done entirely with files cut with the Silhouette Cameo.  I added "Thank You" stamped on the leaves and then used a black Copic marker to give a little definition to the edges.  I LOVE lattice and the beaded-edged lattice file was a cinch to cut in multiples as was the pumpkin with those lovely swirls and leaves.  I added a bit of sparkle to the stem with some green Stickles.  I am fascinated with this digital cutting machine and the intricate things it can cut ---- fascinated now that I am not having problems with
 it :-).  Actually the love affair started with the Silhouette SD and having the larger platform just makes it sweeter.  They do have blade design issues but being the company with the best customer support around, they are working on it.
Thanks for stopping by.  You might want to check out the Two Dogs blog tomorrow.  I have a post coming up on freezing eggs.  Hugs, Shawna

"E" For Extraordinary

Welcome to another edition of Silhouette Sunday.  (This is a repost from Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes).
Today I wanted to share with you a card I made for my "E"xtraordinary granddaughter whose birthday was one of the three this month.  I picked a chunky font, enlarged it to card size, duplicated it, flipped it, and then welded it.  Presto-chango, an alphabet card.  Easy peasy with the Cameo!  If you have a Silhouette Cameo, SD, or Craft Robo and need any kind of assistance please come join the Silhouette Plus forum HERE.  Tons of information and a wealth of generous, friendly people to help out.  We also have card challenges, 3d challenges, and a scrapbook challenge.  Come join the fun!

I made this box from a cut file by Lori Whitlock (3d bookplate box)  that I purchased from the Silhouette Store to put Emma's card in.  I wanted something she could use for other things later on so I chose this bright, happy cardstock and purposely made it different from the card.  Lori made the little tab holder on the front so the label actually comes out which I thought was so neat.  I reinforced the box from the inside with a few pieces of chip board covered with white cardstock and this cutie is actually quite sturdy.
Thanks for stopping by today!  Enjoy your holiday weekend.  Hugs, Shawna

The Three Little Buttons

PLEASE NOTE:  This post is from last year and the Squigglefly challenge mentioned is not taking place.  But do go to their site for the CURRENT challenge.

on this card reminded me of a tip I want to share with you, but first things first.  Today's card is one I made for this week's challenge at Squigglefly to make a monochromatic card, and since I am making cards this week for Card Care Connections (see [and press] the badge on the right hand side of the screen to get to their site) I chose the sentiment from Squigglefly "Thinking of You" and made one for my stash and two for CCC using shades of brown; perfect for the male cancer patient who may need a bit of cheering up.  That's what Card Care Connections is all about ------ helping someone facing a battle with cancer to have a bright spot in their day.  If you haven't checked out CCC's site, I encourage you to do so. So on to today's TIP:  How to evenly space a set of three elements without doing any measuring.
My example will be my Squigglefly challenge card with the three buttons along the bottom.  The trick to doing this without measuring is to decide how much space you want your elements, in this case the buttons, to take up on your card.  In this example I decided to put the buttons on the lower right-hand side of my card and wanted them to take up about 1 3/4 inches total.  Mind you, I did not measure this until AFTER I placed the buttons and did it only to find out exactly how much space I used. You don't measure at all, you just eyeball the distance and work with what looks good to you.  Once you have decided where and how much space you want to use glue down your element, in this case the first button, on the right-hand side.  Next glue down the button that goes on the left-hand side of the space you want to use. The third button (or other element) goes in the center between the two already placed buttons.  Just eyeball it ---- you will get it just about perfect every time.  If you want the elements to be on the left side, place the first element  there and work towards to right.  This also works if you were going to use, say, five elements.  You  would still place your elements on the right and left side, then one in the center, then the other two between the left/right element and the middle element.  
Here's the card with the the right and left buttons glued down where I wanted them to be. Below is the card after I placed the middle button.

And here's the finished card.  Thank you for stopping by (More) Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes. And thank you for bearing with me while I recreate my blog.   Have a wonderful day!  Hugs, Shawna

Halloween Treats and a Sticky Tip

Good day to ya!  You must read that with an Australian accent :-)  I've been watching McCleod's Daughters on Hulu using my ROKU......  

October is coming to a close, Halloween is almost upon us, and there's only 9 more Friday's until Christmas. YIKES!!!!
Today I want to share with you the Halloween treats I have put together for my family using two Silhouette cutting files,  Bat Candy Bar Wrapper and Trick or Treat Tags.  I went a little batty as you can see.

The file was a little to plain and just needed "something" so I used a Fiskars Texture Plate to add a little more interest to the wings.  

These cute tags were placed inside the bats so there would be a little extra treat for the receiver to find 

I added googly eyes

Then two fun-sized candy bars were adhered to the inside with DAP StikARounds, positioning them at strategic spots so when the candy is removed the Trick or Treat tag won't be torn.   

TIP:  DAP StikARounds are industrial strength glue dots and I only needed 1/2 of one to adhere each candy bar.  One-quarter of one for each candy bar probably would have done the trick, but they are very sticky and I didn't want to take the time to manipulate them.  These can be found in most hardware stores and are very inexpensive compared to glue dots made for our paper hobbies. They are very sticky!! I use them to adhere almost all my 3-d embellishments with great success.

Thank you for stopping by More Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes today!  Hugs, Shawna

A Little Getaway

Hello!  So glad you stopped by today.  I have a new project to share with you that was inspired by a trip to the Oregon Coast last weekend.  The dogs and I traveled north and spent the weekend with a long-time friend.  It was wonderful to see her and catch up, in person, on what has been happening in our lives.  The original plan was to camp on the coast, but this time of the year is the best possible weather for the area and there were no openings in any of the pet-friendly yurts (year-round  universal recreational tent) so we opted to stay at her place and just make a day trip to Bandon on Saturday.  The weather was drop-dead gorgeous ---- sun shine and no wind!!!  The dogs had a ball, we indulged in the best cream puffs on earth from the Bandon Bakery, had fish and chips for lunch, cruised the beach looking for "stuff", caught some photos of the setting sun , then headed back to Roseburg.  Sunday morning was spent on one of the rivers east of Roseburg doing road cleanup with Francesca's rafting club.  Then it was homeward bound, tired but refreshed.

The card I have to show you is super simple, but I love the melding of the DP and the stamped grass.  I didn't stamp a greeting on the tag as I am not sure what I will use this card for.  I may even change out the tag before I decide to send it.  Who knows?

Burger LOVES the beach

Fries, ever the active puppy, found something in the sand

He didn't get what he was digging for, but he did get a sandy nose!

The fog bank rolling in didn't do much for the setting sun, but we got out our cameras anyway.


Thank you so much for stopping by More Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes.  Hugs, Shawna

BOO revisited

PLEASE NOTE, the Squigglefly challenge mentioned in the post below is from LAST YEAR, it is not a current challenge.  

I've missed coloring. I love to color.  Coloring is soothing. Coloring is an anti-stress remedy for me.  Today was a day I needed some stress relief so I clicked through my Squigglefly digi stamp folders and chose Triple Jacks to make a card for this week's Squigglefly challenge, HALLOWEEN.  This is such a fun image and while printing the image, choosing what Letreset markers to use, and then doing the actual coloring, I just kind of moved into a better place psychologically and the tension that I always seem to hold in my neck and shoulders when I get stressed out just melted away.  That's all the excuse I need to get into the studio and work with some cool Squigglefly images.  Hope you can join the challenge this week!  PPSSST!  A little birdie told me the prize for this week's challenge is TWO digital images.  Come play!

Inside I used a Darice embossing folder to show what scared those poor Jacks!  Well, actually it doesn't show what scared them.  Can you guess?

Silhouette Sunday Revisted --- Etching

I LOVE etching on glass and the Cameo makes this so easy.  Below is a post I did last year (or has it been longer...??).  Since fall is officially here and I just pulled this plate out of my autumn decorations bin I thought it good enough for another visit.  I hope you agree.

 I found this adorable apple plate at the local second hand store and thought it would be perfect for a little fall etching project. Cutting stencils is easy peasy with the Silhouette.  The only real 'trick' is to make sure you leave enough of a border so the etching cream doesn't get on any part of the glass that you do not want etched.  The leaf in the upper left corner was an after thought because I wasn't paying enough attention and a bit of the cream got up there where I didn't want it.  Not really a problem because I just cut another stencil and etched that part, but if you are working on something that wouldn't lend itself to any additions, then you must be careful.  

I am making a note to myself to check back with the thrift store tomorrow and get the other three plates they had.  *I did check back, and they still had those plates.  I just haven't gotten around to doing anything with them.*    I hope you have a fabulous week and I thank you for stopping by.

Hugs, Shawna                                                                  

You asked for it..............

Good morning!
I have had several requests to post a photo of "The Cutest Little Chiweenie Ever" so I thought that would be a good thing to do this clear, bright, crisp morning in the mountains. The leaves are turning and the air has a taste of autumn and the promise of winter in it. Lovely days, lovely weather.......   Sorry, I am getting off track.  Back to the business at hand.
Small Fry, AKA Fries, is a rescue, and I took him on a trial basis.  Had to make sure Burger would accept him, and although it was a bit touch and go there for awhile, it's worked out. The old Burger Meister does have his boundaries, and Fries has learned to back off when Burger has reached his limit of patience with the feisty pup. It truly has been good for old guy.
The youngest grand kids love him to pieces, and it's so much fun to watch the boys and the dogs play.  It's been a win-win situation for all concerned.   So, let me introduce you to Fries.

Thank you for stopping by!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend.  Hugs, Shawna

Fall Table Art Revisited

Fall is here. It's official, according to the calendar a week ago, and with temps in the low 30s and even a bit of frost, it's feeling like it!

Hello, it's another Silhouette Sunday here on (the former) Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes and I thank you for stopping by.   Yep, Fall and all it's glorious colors, holidays, and excitement is here.  Love it!

I used nothing but cut files from my Silhouette library to make a little autumn themed table art except for a few embellishments that I thought would be more effective not made of paper but there aren't many of those.  .  Thanks for stopping by!  Hugs, Shawna

Photo angled to show off the foil paper used for the word FALL

SUPPLIES USED:
Paper:  DCWV Chateau Lavender, Coral Couture, The Naturals 8 x 8 pad of foil beauties, and
some bits and pieces of card stock in my stash for shirt, shoes, hat, and some of the foliage.
Silhouette Cut Files:  Scarecrow, Pumpkin Swirls, 8 Fall Leaves, Black Crow, Scalloped Squares (mat only, resized), leaf, leafy stem, 1 Piece Leaf Cluster.
Font:  Wizard's Magic
Addtional Products and Embellishments: Jute, buttons, brads (for eyes, colored with black Copic marker), 3-D foam dimensional squares.

Post edited to reflect current time frame.

Silhouette Sunday Revisited

Hello, good Sunday morning to you ---- I hope you are enjoying a beautiful beginning-of-autumn weekend.
I found that on my Blogger Dashboard the old Paper Kisses blog is still sitting there, unusable, but that I could pull up the really "recent" (as in the last few posted which isn't the typical definition of 'recent'!)  posts, one by one, so I am going to salvage some of them and do a few for a "blog in review".  365 posts, about 360 of them unavailable now and useless.  Not to worry, I am not going to repost every one of them. Some should never have had a first life, much less a second, but there are some that I would like to salvage and reposting some of the better projects will give me some time to get the new blog gussied up, my mind time to remember how to do it all, and time to get some new projects completed

I used   two files from the Silhouette store, A Little Hut 's Gift Box  cut file and the Circles cut file. The paper is from DCWV.

THANK YOU for stopping by my new blog.  Hugs, Shawna

Bloglovin'

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/10702437/?claim=xmrf77etxk7">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Claiming my blog in order to use Bloglovin'..............I guess this is the correct way to do it :-)

New Blog

This post started out as something entirely different, but apparently I have been out of the blogging world for so long that my Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes blog disappeared entirely!  So now, sadly, it looks like I have to start from scratch.  I didn't want to lose my name, but I couldn't use it again because even though it's no longer around, searches keep telling me the name is being used.  Soooooo
I went with More Paper Kisses and Inky Wishes.

And now I'll tell you why I haven't been around.............

Where to start?  I believe it all actually started with that big snow storm over last Christmas, and it was a roller coaster ride from there on out. 

Along with the job at the mortuary and my salon, I applied for a substitute secretarial position at one of the satellite campuses of our local community college here in town.  That turned out to be pretty regular work as there were some staffing changes, and it ended up having an opening for the permanent part-time evening secretary which I applied for and  --praise God – got!  So for awhile I was working three jobs not including my pet-sitting, the yard was a horrible mess from the wicked winter snow, and I basically had no extra time to call my own, much less get any paper crafting done.  The college job is working out well and I was able to quit the mortuary (don’t miss that one!), and with a heavy heart I decided to close the salon.  Being open only every other week devastated my business and closing it was really the only smart thing to do. 

With the closing of the salon I had to store the stuff from there somewhere and home was it.  I have been working diligently to get it sold, given away, stored, or taken to the dump.  There were boxes everywhere, but I have gotten to a point where it’s taken care of or stored in the garage for now.  Will be paying the piper for that one sometime down the line, but it’s out of my house and for now that’s all that matters.

Sunday afternoon I spent organizing the Sun Room Studio and it was a joyous moment when I was able to sit at my new craft table (my old nail table --- made of 100 year old barn wood.  It’s gorgeous) and do something creative.  No, the ceiling and window frames are not fixed from the water damage of last winter but I want to make darn good and sure it is all dry inside those places before I go sealing it up.  Do not want mold and would rather be overly cautious.

And you met the newest member of my household Small Fry AKA Fries.  Cutest little chiweenie ever!!!  At least I think so.  Burger’s nose was out of joint for a time, but he is getting to love Fries and I think it has actually been really good for the spoiled old guy.  You should see them run and play.  It’s pretty cute. 

So I am down two jobs, up one dog, and coasting along with actual time on my hands some days.  I have some paper projects in the works and will soon be back to posting some things.  

So if you are still with me at this point, I want to thank you so much for reading my blog and, hopefully, following along as I try to reconstruct the whole shebang.  Bear with me as I put it all together.  I know it will take time.  

Hugs, Shawna