Thanks to Joyclynn!

My sweet friend Joyclynn nominated me for a Kreativ Blogger award! Thank you Joyclynn, that was so kind of you! Joyclynn is a very talented stamper and another recipient of this award. You can check her work out on her blog: Paper ... Scissors ... ROCK!
I know I am supposed to pass this award on, but I think this one has reached most of my blogging friends. Anyone who hasn't received it, please consider yourself awarded! There is so much inspiration on the Internet and I love blog browsing through everyone's work!

Sketch + inspiration + tag

It's been a long and exhausting week here, so I didn't get much stamping in. By last night, I was itching to get back to my table, and I have a growing list of cards that need to be made. Fortunately for me, the inspiration challenge had been posted on SCS. It was a lovely bedroom ensemble, with lots of soft color and a splash of bright pink. The bedroom inspired the colors and the panels of this card, and the remainder of the sketch was inspired by Taylored Expressions' weekly sketch challenge.
Supplies:
Stamps: Embrace life, lots of thoughts
Ink: basic gray
Paper: Soft sky, going gray, pixie pink, neenah classic crest solar white
Accessories: May Arts ribbon, scallop punch, CM circle cutter, CB swiss dots

* * * * *

This morning I was also greeted by the news that my friend Patty of http://www.paperpatty.blogspot.com had tagged me in a round of blogger tag. This was a tag I hadn't done before, so here goes:
1) Life 10 years ago: I either have a bad memory, or maybe this just wasn't that memorable of a year! All I can think is that I was living and working in Bend, Oregon, I was broke and looking for a better job and I'm pretty sure I attended my first Stampin Up party that year, which didn't help my budget :)
2) 5 things on today's 'to-do' list: Laundry, vacuuming, finding a birthday present for my soon-to-be 10-year-old niece, a Target run, and stamping!
3) Snacks that I enjoy: I like both sweet and salty snacks. For salty, almonds or cashews, popcorn or some kind of chips. For sweet, anything chocolate! And since it's warm right now I'm eating a lot of ice cream and other frozen treats.
4) Things I would do if I were a millionaire: Depends on if it was just a $1 million or multiple millions! I think I would move back to the Pacific Northwest, take my mom and sister on a trip to Hawaii, travel to Europe again and spend some time giving back to my community through volunteer work and financial contributions.
5) Places I have lived: Oregon (three different cities); Indiana (two cities), California (three cities) and Salzburg, Austria, during a 10-month study abroad program in college.

Belated tagging.

Things have been crazy for me the last couple of weeks, getting ready for VSN (It's Friday and Saturday! Please join us for some fabulous challenges. Find out more HERE! ) Not to mention getting ready to move. Oh, and getting ready for SoCal StampMania on April 19. I am way, way behind on pretty much all of it! So my blog has gotten neglected, too.
But tonight I'm catching up a little. My friend Katherine of Blame it on the Mojo tagged me a few days ago, and I'm finally getting around to playing. I won't be tagging anyone else specifically right now, but if you want to play along, please do so and post a link in the comments.
The tag is Seven Random Facts About Me! Here you go:
1) I love irises. They are one of my favorite flowers. It's hard for me to pick just one favorite flower, but I really, really like irises. I grew up near the iris growing capital of the world and visited one of the test gardens last year and took some photos, including the one above. I love the colors of the flowers - those vibrant shades of purple, lavender and blue are so pretty.
2) I love Red Vines. Fresh, soft delicious and chewy, they are a wonderful treat - and fat free!
3) I spoil myself with really expensive haircuts. My stylist is a quasi-celebrity stylist -she's appeared on some makeover shows on cable and even on Dr. Phil once. I don't color my hair or have any other special treatments, just the haircuts. They are about $100 but so worth it. And I usually stretch them out for 3-4 months before going back.
4) I hate doing laundry at the laundromat or the apartment laundry room. Knowing that other people's dirty clothes have been in the same washer as mine gives me the ick. So I am super excited that my new apartment will have its own washer and dryer. Yay!
5) I love Duran Duran, and have since the early 80s, when I was in elementary school and plastered my walls with Tiger Beat magazine pictures of Nick, John and Simon.
6) I like baseball. Today was opening day and my team won! I'm a loyal fan of the Seattle Mariners, even though I'll soon be moving to Anaheim Angels country.
7) I have an eclectic coin collection that includes everything from pennies dating to the late 1800s to the current state quarters, as well as a bunch of different coins and bills from my time in Europe. Someday I want to use the foreign coins - which predate the Euro - to make a charm bracelet.
That's all for tonight. I promise to have some new stamped stuff this weekend, when I can finally share some VSN projects!

Holiday tag

My friend and brand-new blogger Kimme (check her out at The Life of a Princess!) tagged me with the 7 Random Things tag. I've done this one a couple of times before, so I thought this time I would share seven of my favorite things about the holidays! I'd love to hear some of your holiday favorites, too! So here goes:

1) Decorating the tree. My ornament collection consists almost entirely of ornaments I've made, been given, or collected from all over the world over the years. I have very few store-bought ornaments. I love pulling them out each year; it's like looking at a scrapbook. It's also fun to look at the ornaments I've made. Even before I got serious about card-making, I was kind of crafty. The picture above is one of the first ornaments I made as an adult crafter. I lived in an area where pine cones were plentiful, so I gathered a bunch up, painted them with acrylic paint, and got to gluing. I attached one to each of the holiday packages I gave out that year, and a few others to friends and coworkers. It was fun! This year I made paper pine cone balls and tag snowbursts, but I don't think I'll have enough for me to keep any.

2) Mint M&Ms. I love chocolate, that's no secret. But chocolate and mint is not my favorite combination, unless it's a Starbucks peppermint mocha or mint M&Ms at the holidays! I love those red, white and green candies and have to buy a bag every year. They do not last long! I'm not even sure why I put them in the candy dish.

3) White Christmas. This is my favorite Christmas movie ever. I just love the music, the dancing, the romance, and the cheesiness! I watch it at least a couple of times each holiday season. It was also the first Christmas movie I ever bought to own.

4) The scent of the holidays. I love the smells of Christmas - the vanilla, cinnamon and cloves from baking; the citrus from the oranges and other fruits that are finally in season, the smell of fresh evergreen bows. One way I get into the Christmas spirit when I'm decorating or crafting for the holidays is to fill a saucepan with some cut-up apple or orange, a couple of whole cinnamon sticks, a handful of cloves and water to cover. I simmer it on very low heat and the steam filters through the house making everything smell yummy!

5) Real Christmas trees. Now that I live in California, I can't afford a real Christmas tree -something that wasn't even a question when I was growing up in Oregon. Besides the cost, Christmas trees in California don't last very long because of the warm, dry air. And since I'm usually gone for at least part of the holidays, it doesn't make sense to get a real tree. But I still miss them, and long for the day when I can once again have a real tree! Douglas firs are my favorite type.

6) Ginger ale. The only times I ever drink ginger ale are when I fly on planes and at Christmas time. I love it with a twist of lime, or mixed with cranberry juice. It's a fun, festive beverage and it always puts me in the holiday spirit.

7) Christmas music. I only listen to Christmas music (no other kinds) from the day after Thanksgiving until Christmas. I have 30 or 40 CDs of holiday music, and put some in the car and some next to the stereo. My favorite albums include the James Taylor Hallmark album, Garth Brooks' Beyond the Season, John Denver and the Muppets (don't laugh until you've heard it!), and Kenny Loggins' December. Some of my favorite songs are Dido's Christmas Day, Sarah McLachlan's Winter Song, Do They Know It's Christmastime (remember Band-Aid? I'm such an 80s girl!), Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney, and the Christmas songs from the Love Actually soundtrack.

Thanks for indulging me! If you'd like to share seven of your Christmas favorites, or seven other random things, please do, and post a link back here. I won't tag anyone else specifically.

Catching up!

It's been a super busy, long week here, and I've had no time for crafting or blogging, it seems. But tomorrow is going to change all that, I hope! It's time for another mini-Virtual Stamp Night on Splitcoast. The mini VSNs were designed to tide us VSN junkies over until the real thing comes in January. Four challenges will be posted at 7 p.m. EST/4 p.m. PST and you will have two weeks to complete and upload your card. And unlike regular VSN, which has a 45-minute time limit per challenge, there are no time limits for these cards. I'm hosting one of tomorrow's challenges, and would love it if you could stop by and play. You can find all the details HERE.

On a sort of related note, my friend Ann of Ann's Creative Nook, said some nice things about me, then tagged me! Ann is a sweetheart - in more ways than one! We were VSN "sweethearts" or hostesses together a few VSNs back, and have managed to stay virtual friends ever since. She's a beautiful cardmaker, so stop and visit her blog if you get the chance. She also sent me a RAK-back the other day which I will have to photograph and post soon!

So just for you, Ann, here are seven random things about me:

1) I love Thai food. My favorite dish right now is Pad Kee Moa, which is spicy noodles with veggies and meat (I usually get chicken.)

2) I've always loved the water - walking in or near the ocean, swimming in the pool or soaking in a tub are some of my favorite ways to relax.

3) My astrological sign is Pisces, and while I don't take a lot of stock in that kind of stuff, I think my love of water is connected to my star sign.

4) I've lived in Southern California for seven years and I've never spotted a celebrity. My friend and I did drive to what we thought was Rob Lowe's house one time, but all you could see was the gate.

5) I always buy a new book before I fly anywhere, even if I'm in the middle of something at home.

6) I don't consider myself a reality TV junkie, but two of my favorite shows are reality shows: the Amazing Race, which started Sunday, and Project Runway, which starts Wednesday! Woohoo!

7) I heart George Clooney. I just saw his latest movie, Michael Clayton, and highly recommend it. He's in nearly every scene!

I don't think I'll tag anyone else this time, but if you've shared seven things about yourself on your blog already, I'd love it if you'd post a link here so I can check them out!

A box and a tag

I made this cute 2-5-7-10 box, aka a Jenn box for Jenn Balcer, for today's Technique Lovers challenge on SCS. It's a quick and easy, one-sheet box. I used the Heartfelt thanks for the flowers and Small script for the sentiment. Cardstock is perfect plum, sage shadow, shimmery white and designer paper from My Mind's Eye's Tres Jolie collection. I finished the box with some silver brads from Making Memories, my ticket corner punch and some white organdy ribbon. Fast and fun!

*******

Now, for the tag. My friend Kim tagged me with this one going around blogland right now. Thanks a lot Kim! I don't use my last name on the 'net or for any craft-related stuff, so where that is required, I subbed my middle name.

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car) Harry Honda

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fav ice cream flavor, favorite cookie) Chocolate Gingersnap

3. YOUR "FLY Guy/Girl" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name) M-LAN.

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal) Red Kitty

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born) Lane Salem (I like this one!)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first) Lanmi

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink put "The") Blue Cosmo

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers) Telmer Orville

9. STRIPPER NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne, favorite candy) This one's terrible - 24 Fabourge Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother's & father's middle names ) Sylvia Charles

I hate to single out anyone for a tag - so tag to all of you who haven't gotten this one! It's fun to read what everyone comes up with!

I'm Rockin!!!

Heather at {WittyTitleHere} nominated me as a Rockin' Girl Blogger! Thanks Heather. I tried to pass the torch along, but a quick perusal of my blogroll indicates all the Rockin Girl bloggers I know have already been tagged! If I think of any to add, I'll update later!

In the meantime, tomorrow is a day from H*** at work, and also the first day of the Dare to Get Dirty challenge week at SCS. That's a bad combo for me, since I probably won't be able to stamp tomorrow and that makes me sad! I hope to stamp some of the challenges Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Sunday-Tuesday I'll be in Capistrano Beach visiting friends who are coming to So. Cal. for a quick vacation. I'm looking forward to the long weekend and a great visit.

Have a great Wednesday - it's Hump Day, woohoo!

Tagged again!

Kimberly Schofield of Colorful World - who provided me with my great blog candy win last week - tagged me in the latest round of tag! So now I have to think up seven random facts about me to share with all of you. Here goes:
1) We had a book-reading contest in first grade and I won by reading the most books and earning circles on the class bookworm that we built throughout the year. My mom saved at least a dozen of the worm segments and put them in my baby trunk to save for me. I found them a couple of years ago when I was going through the trunk, and someday I imagine they'll be in a scrapbook somewhere. The book that won me the contest was one of the books in the Little House on the Prairie series, though I can't remember now which one!
2) I was on the swim team during high school, lettering three of four years not because I was very good, but because I was willing to swim the long distance events that not a lot of other people wanted to. I won a race once, and the local weekly paper happened to be there and put my picture on the front of the sports section. My mom saved that, too!
3) I was in a Masonic youth group call Rainbow when I was growing up. I met two of my best friends in the group, and we are still friends today.
4) I'm half Norwegian. My mom is from a long line of Norwegians who came to the U.S. and settled in Minnesota and North Dakota before her branch of the family headed further west to Oregon. I love lefse (think tortillas made with potatoes), a Norwegian tradition. The other half of my ethnic background is a mix of Northern European stuff, mostly German, I think, but I don't know for sure.
5) I was 17 the first time I flew on a plane. I went to Phoenix with the youth group mentioned above. It was July and hotter than heck! My friend and I spent most of one day in the pool at her grandparents' house and even though I had put on sunscreen, I fried. That is the sunburn I will blame when I develop skin cancer. I know better now - this pale Norwegian skin needs lots and lots of sunscreen, and frequently!
6) I spent my sophomore year of college living in Salzburg, Austria, and travelling all over Europe on weekends and holidays. It was truly one of the best experiences of my life, and I discovered several places in Europe that I love! My favorite spots are probably Venice, Italy, Brugges, Belgium, and Salzburg, of course. Sadly, I have not made it back to Europe since then.
7) I've eaten at the Big Texan steakhouse in Amarillo, Texas. It's definitely a tacky tourist stop but worth it if you're passing through. And if you can eat a 72 oz. steak (plus salad, baked potato and other trimmings) in an hour, they'll give it to you free. I didn't even try!

Now you know a few random things about me. But I don't know who else to tag - maybe Melinda, Denise, Jen, or any of the rest of you listed in my blogroll?

Playing Tag!

My friend Jen of Inking Along tagged me in the latest game going through the SCS blogs! Thanks Jen - or maybe I should blame your alter-ego, Nej???? Jen and I met while serving as hostesses for February's Virtual Stamp Night. She is a lot of fun and her blog is a riot. And she creates really beautiful work, with lots of techniques I am too intimidated to try. She has great tutorials on things like pergamano and encaustic art. So go check her out!
So now, since Jen tagged me, I have to list (and tag) five of my favorite blogs! Most of my favorites have been tagged already, but I am going to offer you a few anyway (and hopefully I don't become the kid who always has to be "It" because they can't tag anyone else, LOL! Why do I have visions of middle school all over again?)
1) Handmade by ME! is a blog by my friend Denise, another former February VSN hostess. Denise has gorgeous cards on her site, and a funny penguin video! And if you're in the New York area where Denise lives, you might be able to find her stuff for sale at a local craft fair.
2) Endless Embellishments is another former February VSN hostess blog by my friend Melinda. Melinda always had the coolest ideas for folds and layouts. She taught me the quarter-fold card recently. She is also a new Stampin UP! demo.
3) Fresh and Fun is the blog of the great Beate from SCS. I check her blog every day. She often posts more than one new post a day, offers up the best blog candy and always, always, has great ideas and fun samples to look at!
4) Sassy & Sweet Notes by Anna, also known as Sweet Miss Daisy. I love the cards she's been making with Rosie's Roadshow stamps, and I love, love, love the stories and photos she shares from life on the Texas farm. The farm animal photos are simply beautiful!
5) I{heart} to stamp! is probably the first blog I started stalking regularly. A few months ago I discovered Jen, or Genie1314 on SCS, and have become a huge fan! I used her idea for turning brown paper lunch sacks into pretty gifts bags, also known as genie bags, as my challenge during February VSN. I love the clean style of her stamping and now I check her site every day. I also love the posts by her hubby, Tony, who has been filling in for Jen this week. He makes me laugh!

Hope you enjoy these blogs - they are just a few I have discovered in the last few months. I have others in my blogroll on the left side of the screen. Now I'm off to check out the challenges for SCS's Virtual Scrapbook Night preview party. I need to get some scrapping done and the challenges are a great kick start.