Windows Live Writer, I love you...Well, not so much.

I wrote this post in Windows Live Writer a total of 4 times. All went well until I tried to add photos. CRASH.

That happened twice. Then it was onto a different problem:: When I tried to tag anything, it froze. And it froze. So then I stopped, so I apologize in advance for the issues and the rather rushed nature of this post.

I've been really impressed with the entries thus far into the minibook challenge. And I'm happy to say that we're extending the deadline to the end of the month to give everyone a little more time to sign up and create. Yay! And I'm also delighted to let you know about a new site for If It's Groovy...

You can now go to the If It's Groovy Ning group, sign up and partake in as many or as few challenges as you want. The Ning group is really easy to navigate, it's free AND you can let your creative personality shine through--yes, it's customizable. It's fantastic and very easy to navigate around. And, once you get on there, either let me know in the comments of this post, or shoot me a PM there. I will love to interact with you.

Okay, so Thursday I got stuck on the freeway in all of the snow. CRAZINESS! And Friday, I was exhausted and not feeling well, so I stayed home (I'd gotten in after midnight on Wednesday, went to work thursday and was just not feeling it). Then I did some things this weekend:

• Saw 'The Fantastic Mr. Fox' (LOVED IT!) and 'Where the Wild Things Are' (Great, but not necessarily kid-friendly) with a great friend at the discount theatre. Red Robin for dinner and a visit to Borders (where I actually read 'Where the Wild Things Are' for the very first time!
• Went out dancing with the girls. Only stayed under 2 hours, but it was awesome to see my friends.
• Went to a Stitch n' Brunch Sunday at Panera. Started a capelet. Met amazing people. Definitely going back.

And, I spent too much money this weekend, but I got some really awesome things... So it's back to the budget, but I feel like I did okay.

1. Kraftin Kimmie's Moonlight Whispers stamps (the Steampunk ones: Lavinia and Chester).
2. A Printer. A wifi Printer, so I can print out my Ildi Co. Digi Stamps stamps (project for this week might be a two-fer, FYI). I love it, and got it for under $100. It feels so amazing to have a printer again, very cool to be able to print and copy and scan and even use a memory card to print! :-)
   It got great reviews, but people were pretty much saying the drawbacks were the lack of a creative suite (not concerned, I have photoshop and other things) and the expense of ink. Personally, I had a Lexmark all in one before this, and their inks were too expensive for my taste compared to the inks for this Epson. I love that it has 4 separate ink compartments--one for black and then the three colors in print ink formulation (magenta, cyan and yellow). And I really didn't like the scanning of the Lexmark. And, the connectivity to my computer was dodgy. That's sort of why I like the idea of wifi printing. I can set it up on the secretariat downstairs, plug it in and just print when need be. Or, I can set it up in the spare room/workshop.
3. Went to Archiver's intending to get a score-pal. Could not reconcile the purchase, oddly enough. So I bought something else entirely. Something I could definitely use, but wasn't sure it would be a good buy.
   
   I have a Clip it Up! Got the base, upper tier, extra clips AND 4 pairs of different sized bags for under $90 at Archiver's. Yay! Let me just tell you now, the thing is HUGE. It is larger than the dog (Black Lab) when he is walking around (height-wise). I have a rack from Simply Renee, the company that makes the Clip it Up and I love it. But I'm really happy I got this, too. Started assembling and putting things on it (the finished product video coming soon). In fact, here are my assembly videos:
   Base Unit Assembly
   Upper Tier Assembly
   The Clip it up is really easy to set up and a lot of fun to use so far. I think seeing what I have is going to make a big difference in how I use things.
   
   
   Oh, and 1 thing before I go. I'm doing project 365, sort of. Not sure what I'll do with the finished product (am taking another Shimelle class on UK Scrappers that might have this nailed down), but my photo feed is located at 365Project.org. I would love for you to share your journey with me...

Happy Scrapping. I will be on later to comment on your lovely minibooks--I am floored that so many of you have accepted the challenge. It's amazing to see your work!

Oh, and one other really quick thing... I ordered from the Greeting Farm on 1 Jan. Still haven't received my order. Can I just expect to get it soon? Does anyone know if there were any issues with weather or something?

And Another Goes into the Mix!

Last week was Farmer's Market at the Greeting Farm and I picked up a stamp... It's another Wild Sprout! Annika is her name and I'm thinking of a couple of back to school projects for this cutie as well as possibly some Book Group related stuff.

Will post some projects later. Don't forget, tomorrow is my day to feature some awesome Ildi Co. designs.

Happy Creating!
GothamGal

My First Wild Sprout!!!

I finally took the plunge and picked up my first Wild Sprout stamp from The Greeting Farm. I had such a hard time picking, but ended up with Edward, because he was just so adorable. Once I had nailed down that it was Edward, I had the hardest time finding him in stock at stores--so I ended up checking out Summer's shop, Roses on Paper.

Roses on Paper features a wide selection of Greeting Farm stamps, as well as Alota and Magnolia. Shipping is quick and affordable (ordered at the end of last week and got it last night!), through the US postal service--FROM HAWAII!

Seriously, check out Summer's shop and maybe you could snag one of these cuties:

Color Challenge Time

I read Scrapmaster's Paradise pretty often, and I even buy stuff from her from Stampin Up on Occasion. So when I saw this particular color challenge, I knew I HAD to do it!


Look at those lovely colors! Since I've never really participated in one, I figured there was no time like the present. So this is what I came up with:

The colors are all featured, but the picture doesn't do the Anya justice. She's got sparkly lilac and darker purple hair, colorful wings and the paper is really just the right color, too.

If you've never participated in a color challenge, I would suggest you try it out. This week's prize is some AMAZING copic markers. Good luck and Happy Creating!

You Asked, I am delivering

I've been playing around with techniques, and, as one awesome web friend (::cough:: Anne at Gaal Creative ::cough::) asked what I'd been doing lately. So, without further ado, I'm adding some pictures of some different techniques.... Will try and post some more of my layouts in a bit...

I wanted to make a simple card, and I was inspired right after I bought the DCWV Summer Glitter mat stack from JoAnn's. I used my Hero Arts stamps and used StazOn. The tree is stamped on a transparency, it was colored in with Copics. I added some paper flowers to give some dimension. The whole card is kraft, as I've been addicted to it ever since I bought the Stampin Up package.

Kraft paper again, but this time there's a Hero Arts owl, tree branch and sentiment. I colored this little guy with Prismacolor pencils, and added some K and Company rubons to the side. A very simple, quick card.

I don't know if I've shown this layout before. It features Max and Evie (Peeves), and I was inspired by a Jessica Sprague tutorial. I really liked her emphasis on the corner rounder--and I have had to buy 2 (okay, lost one and then found it after I'd used the second one) of these awesome babies. Bazzil cardstock (and Bazzil edge), DCWV cardstock, printed journalling from the computer (again, something from the Sprague hybrid class). I really like the idea of hybrid scrapping, may have to try some more!

Wow! This was another inspiration from the summer glitter mat stack. This time I took some of the images from one of the Greeting Farm 's sets and colored them in with markers. Then I added them to the card. I think it needs something, some sentiment, but then again, I kind of like how simple it is. I'm thinking I might leave this empty until the opportunity presents itself to give it.

Okay, so I should have a few more things to add to the blog tomorrow. Next time, prepare for the emphasis on layouts! Take care, and happy creating!

Market Day is Here Again!

Market Day at the Greeting Farm happened again today. Quick, if you hurry you can still get some really great deals on some fantastic stamps. I picked up:


This is called matey and it's normally $15. Today, while supplies last, it's $10.

And I also got:

It's called Wonderland and it's on clearance. I have a couple of projects in mind for this, especially a late birthday present for someone who really loves Alice in Wonderland.

The first set was on sale, and in order to get it at that price, you have to go here. And again, it's only while supplies last.

I like the stamps, but I haven't done my review from the first set, so that'll be forthcoming. The thing I like least about the stamps is that you have to cut them out (and I don't have those small rubber-cutting scissors). But the red rubber is really nice and provides a FANTASTIC print. They don't stain like the clear stamps do, either.

If I keep buying, I'm going to run out of room in my rubber stamp container, so I'm thinking of unmounting a few of the big wood blocks I rarely use. This way, I get a little more room, I think.

I've been looking at a few more of the stamps, but I think they'll wait a while. I'm set for a bit of time. Now it's onto work on my coloring and other fantastic things.

Oh, and speaking of awesome stampers, check out the contest at Gaal Creative. Aside from being a talented stamper, she's an awesome photographer. This week's giveaway is inspiring and made me think of a book I read this year called 'Into the Forest.'

'Into the Forest' is the story of 2 girls who have survived a global fever and war. They live in the forest, in their nice home that their father constructed, but soon he, too succumbs to death and the girls are left to become women. It's not 100% happy, and it WILL make you think, but it's a fantastic read.

Anyway, check out her site--Anne even has a link to her photo store and you can get some great deals.

One other really cool stamper that I should mention is Sandy, who is participating in NaBloPoMo, which is National Blog Posting Month. Every day, she's featuring a Hero on her blog. Sandy is busy with Cards for Heroes, but it's absolutely fantastic that she's devoting time to blogging every day this month.

So those are two of the very awesome people I know from the Internet, who continually challenge and devote time to wonderful things. And I apologize in advance, because I haven't done them justice. Check them out! Go, now!

Wow!

Got my The Greeting Farm stamps last night in the mail (boy, was that fast shipping) and I have SO MANY things to tell you.
You're going to have to wait, though. Because I'm playing with them before I let you see anything, LOL.

So the Greeting Farm is off my wishlist (but definitely going to order more soon), what should be my next stamp company review???

I think I might go with the Stampsmith.net, or perhaps Bombshell, but I'm interested in a few others. So what companies out there do you like? Let me know!

Making the leap!!!!

I did it! I finally did it!

What did I do?

I picked up some physical stamps from 'The Greeting Farm.' It's an online community and store that features cute stamps of girls (Anya), boys (Ian) and animals. Anyas and Ians are really hot right now--many people I follow seem to have the stamps, and there's a huge following on both the main 'The Greeting Farm' site and it's sister site, 'Club Anya.'

I bought a few of the company's digital stamps earlier this year, and while I love them, I never remember to have cardstock ready for when I want to print them out. And if I have the cardstock, forget about me remembering the file with the stamps. I just have no idea why I can't remember to bring both things with me.

But that's in the past, since I've bought some physical stamps from the company, thanks in part to their low shipping cost and their 'Farmer's Market day.' Farmer's Market Day happens on the blog, and it's the day stamps are offered at a lower price, but quantities are limited. Though I've been looking at the site and wondering which to get for a while, I knew I had to act fast. Almost before I realized it, I had these little cuties in my cart:


They looked so adorable and functional. I can see using a lot of these for different types of cards. And since the shipping for one more was only a dollar more, I had to pick up this little one:


The best part? I only spent $20. And now I'm all nervous about getting them and playing around with them, especially with the Copics. I think they'll make an awesome addition to my collection, and a great way for me to experiment with some really cute stamps. Looking through my collection, I've noticed I don't have a lot of human type stamps you can color. That's something I hope to change.

I will update you once I get the stamps, you can expect a full review. And remember,
in order to check out the Farmer's Market, you must check out their
blog

, but you can also check out the rest of their site here.

Has anyone else had any stamps from 'The Greeting Farm'? Let me know your thoughts.

Wishlist

I've been tagged on another journal, and I decided to post it here because I think it will help me stay good. In the next few weeks, I'm trying to abstain from buying anything scrap related except:

• Adhesive
• Photos
• Some crafty stuff purchased from a contact selling Stamping Up

Other than that, I'm really going to be cutting back and NOT getting a bunch of stuff that i don't need. However, if it's a good price, or I've been really good, I can buy things off my wishlist after next month.

My wishlist includes:

(aren't hero arts stamps awesome?)
(Repeat sentiment above)
(again, repeat!)
I've got a bit of a bird phobia, but I love the two below:




(I don't have one, but there are a lot of things I want to try, and apparently it's a good tool to have!)
(A bone folder is a great tool for cardmaking!)

I'm thinking I also need some sentiments (which I might get from stamping up) and some embossing powders (gold, silver) from there, too. Eventually I want more colors of ink, but that can wait...
And there's one other thing that's on my wishlist, which should not be a surprise to those of you who have read my blog as of late:

Yes, I've caught the Prisma bug, maybe I'd get some copics at some point, but I think at this point my money would be much better spent with the colored pencils. I've even got a little list of what I want to pick up the next time I'm in the store with some money. Which would also mean getting more stamps that I can color (because I have a lot of stamps that aren't open and blendable, I used to choose stamps I fell in love with to watercolor versus ones for blending... They have a lot of small detail areas, very closed space, KWIM?)...

Oh, and I have a new stamp company love--Anya by the Greeting Farm. Within minutes of discovering this company, I bought some digi-stamps and can't wait to buy more. Also hoping to buy some physical stamps, after this spending ban I have has been lifted--it's so HARD! Be prepared to fall in love.
I'm not posting all of the stamps here that I really love, because it would be the entire site! There's something adorable about all of the stamps, and the Anyas (the little girls) are so adorable!!!!! I love this company... And look forward to seeing new things from them.


So what's on your crafty wishlist??? This inquiring mind wants to know...