Liebster Blog Award and Sharing the Blog Love...

A huge and heartfelt thank you to Cheryl Ann Robinson at Cheryl Ann's Stamping Spot for giving me the Liebster Blog Award. It's so awesome to be bestowed with an award from another artist and I am happy to continue this tradition. 

What is the Liebster Award?

Well. . .the origins of the Liebster Blog award are somewhat unclear and this seems to be blog folklore but it goes like this: 

"Some time (in the recent past), somewhere (rumor has it that it might be Germany), someone (I guessing he/she was named Liebster) decided to do something nice for a whole lot of bloggers and started the Liebster Blog Award. It’s an award you receive, but it is also an award that you give."

Liebster is a German word so I translated it from a few sources - it means favorite, sweetheart, beloved, darling.

If you receive a Liebster Blog Award you are asked to choose 3-5 other bloggers and send them one as well. It is an award meant to highlight smaller blogs - less than 200 followers. Let them know that we care and are reading. The idea is that the blogger receiving the award links back to the blogger who awarded him/her, and then chooses 3-5 people to send the award to. There is no obligation to continue this award. It is a lovely way to share the love and also a way of introducing other bloggers to the blogs you enjoy.

Here are the blogs I would like

to pass the love on to:

Aimee Fleck -  Aimee's Art and Scraps

Barbara Rankin - Black Hole Art Studio

Becky Garrison - Camellia Cottage Designs

Fabrizio Martellucci - Steampunk Cardmaking

Lea Cioci - CreativeLea's Infinite Journey

These are just a few of my creative friends that I have met along my blogging travels! I encourage everyone to visit these blogs and let these talented artists know how very special they are! 

Happy Tuesday : ) Sb

Cindy Lou Who wishes you a Merry Christmas! Unscripted Sketches #160

It's been a busy three-day weekend...but I haven't forgotten!!! Here's my creation using this week's Sketch-It Saturday with Unscripted Sketches #160! I have taken a Challenge to do Christmas all Year with Unscripted Sketches and this is week #21. I'm still jingling my Christmas bells... Fa-la-la-la...la-la-la-la!!!


This card is made with leftover scraps of holiday paper with a die cut sentiment and ornament of Cindy Lou Who from my Grinch Paper Crafting Kit. The bow in the top is a handmade ribbon bow that I received in a flower swap I participated in last month. I received 17 handmade flowers of all different colors and styles. I feel sort of bad I cut this one up - but I only needed a section of it. I accented the section with a swirly button. This is so girly and fabulous!

What is Sketch it Saturdays at Unscripted Sketches? Every Saturday morning a new sketch is posted for the week. Flip the sketch, rotate it… create a card, a scrapbook page, a wall hanging, digital, paper, fabric, paint, anything your imagination comes up with! There is no right or wrong way, as long as you are using the Unscripted sketch as the inspiration for your creation! And everyone is invited to join in the fun...and post your creation on their page for all the world to see!

Thanks for dropping by...I hope you have had a wonderful holiday weekend spending time with your loved ones : ) Sb 

Celebrating and Remembering our Heroes on this Memorial Day

On this Memorial Day Weekend - My thoughts and Prayers go out to all Service Men and Women...past and present and to their families and loved ones. I also take this time to remember my Grandfather who served in the Coast Guard, my Father, the Navy, and my youngest sister Andrea, PFC Harden, who currently serves in the Army National Guard with the 29th BSB and is scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan in 2013. Her husband is SSG with the 25th ID and just returned from his deployment to Afghanistan. 

This photo from their Welcome Home Ball at the end of April. 

They are such a charming couple, aren't they.

This quote is pertinent today as is describes not only our service men and women, but their families, too. "Great works are performed, not by strength, but by perserverance". This quote was typed on a piece of white paper and taped to a column in my sisters' barracks when I attended her boot camp at Fort Jackson, S.C. several years ago. This describes so simply how we meet our many challenges in life. As artists - we preservere in creating...it's an ongoing process.

That being said I hope you are enjoying your holiday weekend. I've been getting some crafting done and today I have a "Star Spangled" project featured over at the Amazing Mold Putty Blog using Amazing Crafting Products by Alumilite Corp. 

I have created some star shaped magnets that were super easy to make using a star shaped ice cube tray and Amazing Casting Resin colored with various Alumilite Metallic Powders. And I also have a  special Amazing Crafting Products coupon for you too! CLICK HERE to view this fun project! Have a wonderful day : ) Sb

OWH Sketch #101 Quirky Bird for Operation Write Home Memorial Day Bloghop 2012

WELCOME to the HOP of all BLOGHOP's!

Welcome to my stop on Operation Write Home's Memorial Day Bloghop 2012 . This is my fourth year participating...my lil' sister and her hubby are in the Army National Guard. My sister has transferred from FL to the Hawaii National Guard. Her husband just returned from deployment in Afghanistan at the end of April. Our family is so proud and grateful to them and for all of our men and women serving in the armed forces and I love doing my part by using my creativity to support such an awesome cause...Operation Write Home!!!

My card design is following Operation Write Home's Sketch #101. I am using a quirky bird from my new plate of Mary Vogel Lozinak Stamps from Viva Las Vegastamps! I stamped this with black ink on white cardstock, then hand colored with Ranger Distress Markers and Glaze Pens. The background is a scrap of Basic Grey Patterned Paper on a purple card base. The stripes are metallic gift ribbon adhered with Miracle Tape. I finished off this "Quirky Bird" with some colorful feathers and he's ready for the party!!! I will be entering this in the VLVS Mary Vogel Lozniak Link Up Bloghop which is going on this weekend as well which will feature creations using Mary's hand-drawn images pressed to rubber. CLICK HERE to visit that hop!

Wishing you and your family a Happy Memorial Day!!! I hope you are enjoying the festivities! Thanks so much for dropping by. You can CLICK HERE to get back to Operation Write Home at the top of the HOP!

Wishing you a Merry Little Christmas for this Festive Friday Number Ten!

Greetings!!! Welcome to the tenth installment of Terri Sproul's 2012 Festive Friday Bloghop! It's the end of May and Memorial Day Weekend is here! Are you working on your holiday craft projects yet??? You should have arrived here from Laura's Page. To get back to the beginning of the bloghop CLICK HERE.

Happy Festive Friday! Here's a sweet little card made with a mossy green cardstock base layered with a scrap of Basic Grey Holiday Paper {I have a secret stash of this stuff} and a few Sandy Lion Holiday stickers leftover from other Christmassy projects. I matted the word "Christmas" and put "merry little" on a torn piece of red patterned paper. This is all finished off with a couple creme photo corners. The presents have some glittery shimmery goodness on them, too! So Sweet!

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Thanks for visiting!!!

The next stop on the Festive Friday Bloghop

is Laura at Scrappin' Daphne - CLICK HERE.

It's a holiday weekend...YAY!!! With an extra day to play. There's some fantastic events online happening too. This is what I'll be participating in these this weekend...

AND

Please hop on over to check out what I've created for both of these bloghops on SATURDAY AM. Just CLICK the images above to take you there {OWH will not be live until Saturday morning}. I hope you have a great Memorial Day Weekend!!! I'm on the hunt for some BBQ and some fresh sliced watermelon : ) Sb