Love Blooms In Me

One Year Check Up

Barry had his first one year check up yesterday and everything was good. Well, they did find he has a hernia, but that's not a problem unless it becomes something bigger. Right now everything is fine. All the blood work and the CAT scan showed all functions normal. OK, as normal as can be for a guy! It's a real weight lifted off me. Now if we could only get all the other weights off my heart...but that's a whole other story! I've been creating less card lately, but I think the one's I've done are pretty good. Take a look.

Mr Tool Guy. I love that face. This is a new stamp set from CC Designs. Everything but the star and verse. The star is from Verve Visual and the little verse is one of many I have from Amuse. This set does come with a little saying, but it's My Sexy Handyman and somehow I didn't think that fit the theme I was going for. I'm sorry I only bought one sheet of this paper on Saturday. It's from Treehouse. The plaid is really fun and I like the fact that it has the orange on the backside. I stamped the "nails" on a piece of the orange to break up so much plaid. Don't you love the hardware?

The second picture is from a set of cards I made using the new SU set Tart & Tangy. My GF said I had to make at least 12 cards with this set in order to justify owning it. I think I'm right at 12 and have a few more sets planned. I thought they would make cute Mother's Day gifts or even Teacher's gifts. I've been selling them in boxed sets. I bought some clear boxes and they are just perfect for them. The envelopes have also been stamped with the Cherries. 

Well, that's about it for now. My list of to-do's is long and off I must go. Come back and visit soon.

STARS IN MY EYES

I got a little carried away this morning stamping stars out from the two Verve Visual star sets I have. I don't know why, but the stars just made me feel happy to ink up and cut out. I wanted to feel alot of happy since I did about 20 different ones! I made these cards using the stars and 2 different sets of paper from Stampin Up. I'm really liking the way they turned out!

Aren't they all fun and colorful? Don't they make you feel happy too? I sure hope I'm made your day!!

Enjoy and hurry back!

Sweet Mother's Day

I think the nicest time to make cards is for Mother's Day. Since I only have Barry's Mom to send a Mother's Day card to, I like to send cards to my sisters as well. They are Mothers too and I want them to know how special they are. I made this new card over the weekend using the newest My Favorite Things stamps. I know I've said it before, but there is something special about these headless wonders! They can be whom ever you want them to be. They can be old, young, or somewhere in-between. I used scraps from my desk to make this one. The flower pot was cut out of card stock, but there is really three layers on the flowers. I never think anything is complete without glitter, so glitter covers the leaves and flowers. One of the stamps in the set is the border flowers. I stamped the whole image out first in the soft sky paper and then again on the white. I glued the cut out white image over the center and then just started layering.

Barry just came home from work! He worked all night and now it's sleepy time until around 3PM. Then he'll go back to finish up the job he was running last night, or should I say this morning. I'm just thinking of all the overtime!!

Not much else is new in our lives. We bought our tickets for Florida in May, but we haven't started any other planning. We were suppose to take Madelyn for the week with us, but it appears her Mother doesn't want her to go with us for a week away. Silly girl. I always jumped at the chance to have time without the kids. Our families always took the boys places with them when they were little. It was a treat for everyone to have a little break. I know Barry & I enjoyed it and so did the Grandparents.

Did you finish your taxes yet? I have to write a check this weekend and mail it out. I could have done so much with that money. It's not like Uncle Sam is going to help me out with the money I send them. It either goes to make war or down the drain as far as I can see. You know the old story---Good money after Bad money!!

Have a good day. I'm off to finish up a special order that I was suppose to finish last week, but I ran out of the paper. Now I have it and now excuses are left!

Paula

Another New Sink

Oh yea baby, another new Kitchen Sink Stamp release is today! Check them out. You will fall in love all over again!

A funny thing happened on the way to this post. I got another "one" of those comments about how my blog title is spelled. It seems that rude people just can't help themselves again and again! Now don't start to feel sorry for them, they just can't help wanting the world to be seen through their eyes! My name is Paula Bloom. It's been Paula Bloom for over 37 years. When I was looking for a title for my blog a year ago, I wanted to have the word Bloom in it, but couldn't figure out how to just have it by itself. Since it is my work that appears in this blog and since I'm the one who takes the time to pay my blog bill every month, I thought I had to right to spell my title anyway I want. Who knew I could be so wrong! I'm begging anyone who doesn't like what they read, skip reading. Just look  at the pictures. Enjoy the artwork for what it is. I create everyday. I have a wonderful VERY messy studio with lots of toys to play with and I get great joy in creating. Last week alone I made 3 Sympathy cards and 1 birthday card for Barry's office. That's not even counting any design work I did. So please don't feel sorry for me cause I can't spell or don't know perfect grammar. At least I know which up of a Copic Marker is UP!

Have a wonderful day. I've got to get back to playing in my happy room! Coloring is so much more important then learning how to spell! Sit back and enjoy the world today!

Close Your Eyes, Now Look Quick

Did I get your attention? Gee I hope so. I want to share a really pretty new card I made using the stamps from Kitchen Sink Stamps that will be rolling out tomorrow. The most beautiful 3-Step flower and a great selection of Family words! I wanted something soft and pretty for a Mother's Day card and so I stamped the vase in soft sky and then an off Grey color. The flower was stamped in the soft sky and then certainly celery and old olive. What would any of my cards we without glitter and ribbon? Don't answer that questions. Please chick on the picture to get a large view of the card!

I'll be making some more samples for the roll out tomorrow so please come back and visit and then we can chat about how the last year has flown by. Barry's surgery was just a year ago and that's how long I've blogged. I've met so many dear friends on this journey and would like to be able to thank each and everyone for their friendship and caring words. So Thanks to you all. As soon as I get some work done for my DT team I'll be putting together some blog candy. Let me know what you'd like and I'll see what I can do!!

Blessing on this Sunday!

Paula

What's It Worth?

There has been some big discussions lately over at SCS about what cards are selling for on Ebay. Being an interested party to this question, I thought I'd give you my two cents. The talk started off OK, but then as usual on SCS it became, a blame game! That's not what the whole thing was about! Someone started by putting a link on the thread to check out a card that was being sold on Eba for over $30!! I know, unbelievable...yes...that's what most of the gals started saying! Why would anyone pay that amount for a piece of paper was beyond me yesterday and still is today! I'm not being a pig about it. I just don't see that this person's cards are any better then alot I see over at SCS or other girls blogs. Some people said maybe she was having someone bid up her cards and then another gal had to get her two cents in about how nice the person really was and we are wrong. OK! That should have ended the thread, but NO, now it's taking sides. Are we being mean to the person to question her selling? Or what!! The whole point of this is that I don't really care what someone is selling their cards for...I just want to have her client list! And don't you think my cards are worth every bit of $15?

This first card I call Hello Girlfriend. Funny that the stamp says the same thing! When I used the spellbinder die, it moved during the cutting process, so I had a little extra room on the left side. I filled it with this Hero Arts hello. I really like the way this turned out. I stamped the boots out three times and cut two. There are now three layers of boots on the card. Looks great in person. The cream flower was the perfect size, just a bit to "plain" so I rolled it into my SU French Script back round stamp that still needed cleaning from the day before. Inside the card there is also a Girlfriend verse. What card would be complete with a prima or two!

The second card is from one of the images I got in a swap. I just love these gals. I took the layout from one I saw on a blog sometime in the not too distant past and used the paper I had. Doesn't she make a perfect Mother's Day card? I colored her with Copics and lots of glitter!

Barry is busy working today and so I have a little time to myself. I've been feeling sick for the last few days and at least today I'm able to hold my head up without feeling like a hammer is hitting me. I think it was the weather or something going around. Either way, I feel about 80% better then before. Yesterday I napped alot and that seemed to help. The only thing I ate for the last two days was toast and soup. At least I lost two pounds. Now I'm waiting to see if the mail brings my new Kitchen Sink Stamps. The new releases are rolling out early. Monday. So check back then and see something fun and new!

Have a great weekend and hurry back!

Paula

Busy As A Bee

That's me, busy as a bee! It seems like the more time I have the more I have to get done and don't you know, I don't want to anything! Finally my headache seems to be leaving me for long periods of time. Maybe when the weather clears up, all the headaches will go away. Well, I mean the kind that I can take a Bayer for!

I'm suppose to be doing the wash today, but Barry just called to say he might work late! Yea, that means overtime. Always a good thing since he's only working a half day on Monday. He's got to go and get all the one year tests done for his check-up. He wanted to take the whole day off and I flatly said "no way"! I was pretty clear about that and he got the message. Funny how sometimes Men just don't see things the say way as women! But that's a whole other story!

I've been playing most of the day in my studio trying to get some cards done. The new release date for Kitchen Sink Stamps is April 6. I have two new sets winging their way to Dallas as I write this. I can't wait to play with new toys and hopefully I'll have some samples done by then. That's my plan.

I have a few cards that I have pictures of that I'd like to share today. I made a third card, but it went to Barry's office this morning for a birthday person. I told him to bring it home if they already had a card or sell it. His company doesn't like that sort-of-thing he said, so who knows. I re-made the card this morning but I still don't have a picture of it.

I like this idea so much that I made another card but this time used some brand new Prima flowers. They are so pretty and lots of them have printing on them. I guess everyone knows what a sucker I am for Prima flowers. I found several gingham brads in my stash and thought they added something special.

Another card similar to one I've made already but this time I stamped the flowers twice and cut them out for a 3-D effect. I gave the butterfly a "brad" tail also. I stamped the envelope to match and on the inside of the card I've got the stamp thing. Makes a very elegant card. The flowers are Stamp In The Hand that I got several years ago at a stamp show. I love to see the ladies from that company at the shows. They are always the kindness, sweetest people and make great samples. Kate always makes a card for Barry's Mom with her name on it. It's a nice thing that she always remembers us!

Have a good day friends and stay warm and dry! Hurry back!

Paula