Boy Loves Dog: Breaking All the Rules

(click to enlarge)

Just call me a rule breaker. I made a boy page in hot pink using Christmas paper... yep, Christmas Paper!!! on a layout that has nothing to do with the holidays. Did you see the jewels? Threw some of those in too because when  living life on the edge, pushing the envelope is as easy as breathing.

ROFLMBO

First of all, when looking at the color wheel, the best color to match those awesome jammies was hot pink. And I love Echo Park's Everybody Loves Christmas line and hate the thought of hiding it away most of the year. The rest as they say is history.

This LO reminds me so much of Brayden, he's unconventional, bright (sometimes bordering on loud), sparkly, energetic, a frenzy of fun - it just fit.

I used the current sketch from the always awesome Sketchy Thursdays:

This is also my entry for the Scrapbooker's Anonymous November Challenge to use holiday paper on a non-holiday LO:

Speaking of Christmas, are you ready for Thanksgiving or the holidays ahead?

Personally, I'm feeling a little ambivalent about the whole thing. I know, bad mama. Bad blogger. It's just not exciting me like other years have.

Sketchy Thursdays

When I saw this sketch at Sketchy Thursdays I immediately thought I am not near clever enough to swing it. It just looked so darn hard. Like a really intricate quilt block... Dresden Plate perhaps.

Then the part of my that gets my back up at the very thought of, "too hard" decided I had to drop everything and give it a try. No surprises there.

Since I was still basking in the glow of a truly awesome visit with Tiffany and family I decided to take my very imperfect photos (it's been SO DARK here) of their stay and make a LO.

The rules were:

1. Be based on the sketch above (done!)

2. Include at least 5 pictures (got it!)

3. Include a bit of sparkle (red sparklies!)

(click to see it full size)

Again, sorry for the dark and angled picture. It's the best I could swing with no sun and heavy winds. Oy! How much fun is the new Circa 1934 paper from Cosmo Cricket? 

Here's a few close-ups:

Thanks for popping by :-)

Don't forget to pop by Tiff's blog, you could win some of my wrinkle ribbon, a $100 GC to Two Peas and a lot more from the different guest bloggers.

Chocolate Pecan Pie - Pie Week

Just popping in to say hello. We're having a wonderful time with the Johnson family. I've been trying to tempt them to stay in Utah with pie. Pie is good, right?

Chocolate Pecan Tart

1 piecrust

1 C chocolate chips

1 C chopped pecans

¼ C margarine

½ C packed light brown sugar

¾ C dark corn syrup

3 eggs

1 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Fit the piecrust in your pan.

Sprinkle choc chips & nuts over bottom.

Melt butter.

Beat in brown sugar, corn syrup, eggs & vanilla until smooth.

Bake on lower 1/3 of oven for 30 min.

Cool on rack. Serve with whip cream.

Don't forget to pop by Tiff's blog, you could win some of my wrinkle ribbon, a $100 GC to Two Peas and a lot more from the different guest bloggers.

Guest Blogging at I Heart Art

I'm blogging today over at Tiff's I Heart Art. It's all about avoiding packaging panic.

Go check it out.

Tiff is so sweet, she's offering a $100 GC to Two Peas! Wow! To have a chance to win you need to comment on each of the guest posts. Easy as pie :-)

To get to my post directly CLICK HERE.

For Veteran's Day

(click on photo to see it up close)

Today I stand with people all over the world in silent thanks and to pay my respects to the brave men and women who sacrifice their time, their families and their lives to keep us all safe from harm.

This piece is dedicated to each and every one of them. 

You can see how this calaca was made on my post here.

Two dishes, but to one table: that's the end.

Your worm is your only emperor for diet: we fat all
creatures else to fat us, and we fat ourselves for
maggots: your fat king and your lean beggar is but
variable service, two dishes, but to one table:
that's the end.
                                            Hamlet IV.ii.19-

Check out these super-fun jello blood worms:

Serving Time:

3D Skull Cake Pan by Wilton

Blood Worms Tutorial from The Idea Room

Dia de los Muertos Ofrenda (Alter)

(Please click for larger pictures)

Yesterday I set up our Day of the Dead shrine. Last year it fit on our printer table; this year it's about eight feet tall. Wow. And we all love it. Madly and passionately love it.

My regular readers should recognize a lot of the projects included. It's such a special time for our family to reminisce about loved ones, tell their stories, laugh together. 

I wanted to make a shrine for Grandma Maki and my Auntie Myrtle but wasn't able to. Hopefully they'll be added by next year. 

Left Side (Note the traditional Tequila... it's missing a snort or two *grin*)

Center:

Right Side:

One of my favorite parts of this shrine is the flower garland I hung around it.

They are all made with water bottles. My DH hosts a large meeting each month and I asked him to bring home all the used water bottles. I bet he didn't expect me to make this. LOL.

In case you haven't seen these before, they were popularized by Anthropologie and everyone was making them back at the start of 2010. Mine got all the way through painting and then hid in the basement for six months.

Here's how you do it:

1. Wash

2. Cut in Half

3. Dry Thoroughly

4. Cut Petals using scissors

You do this by cutting out a piece like this

5. Bend the petals down. Some won't stay down, don't worry.

Side View

6. Do this to all your tops and bottoms

7. Spray Paint. I like mixing colors but I also prefer my projects to be very imperfect.

Assemble. I hot-glued a top into a bottom piece and then used a bottle cap for the centers. You can then further embellish them with Sharpies and paint pens if you like.

All that was left from a huge box of "trash" was this:

Not bad!

Most of the items in my ofrenda were made using Bombshell Stamps and supplies by Gauche Alchemy. My inspiration came from the lovely Crafty Chica.

Have a great weekend, everyone.