Wild Cards 21 Techniques Craftsy Class review

I am always impressed with Craftsy, and of course this class didn't disappoint. As a seasoned and self taught stamper I thought I knew enough to make some nice cards, This class took my knowledge to the next level This class was a breath of fresh air for me, In a nut shell I saw new light from my older stamps and from supplies I have had for years!  So here is a small rundown of how the class worked and some of my projects.

Stencils, are very trendy right now, and Catherine Pooler from Stamp Nation focused enough for me to feel like I could make any card with a stencil, She also showed ways to use texture in our cards, including embossing paste, heat embossing, and heat embossing with die cuts. Her class taught me a lot about ink and the different ways you can utilize your ink, Ink is not just for stamping!  During her class I couldn't stop taking notes from all the great insights she had given along the way. I do feel like my cards have gotten a more professional feel to them because I have taken this class Thank you Catherine Pooler for the great content!

Here are some of the cards from this class. There are so many cards that I still want to do but for now this is a preview of what inspired me.

At the end of this post I would love to hear your ideas about the cards I made, do you like the color, and the stamp and the die cut choice? Still learning and would love some comments!

Cheek out this class, it's still on sale for a little longer for $14.99

Feel free to find me and follow me on Craftsy to see more details about these cards I have made!

Free Live Photography and scrapbook classes this weekend! Something for everyone!

Watch live photography classes for free this weekend! Creative Live also has a bunch of marketingclasses to watch for free.

Check Out CreativeLive's Free On-Air Courses

 I found a really cool new website. As a stay at home mom I always find myself with thoughts of instead of watching netflix, I should see if I couldn't feed my "art" addiction that I totally have! So enter CreativeLive.

They are an online class website that has wonderful classes to help you become a better "artist."

This weekend is the weekend to pick up a new or dust of a passion you once had, as they are broadcasting or showing some classes live! Cheek it out, you will be sorry you didn't, there are some really good photography classes you can watch!

Also they have a free paper craft class that seems full of great ideas... perfect for the upcoming christmas season! Close to My Heart paper crafts, scrapbooking and stamping

Save hundreds of dollars, Learn to save money and coupon class!

That's right I am hosting my coveted couponing class! Where I have inspired so many to save hundreds!  I want to share my knowledge about how to save thousands of dollars every year by couponing and saving money.  I am not talking about the extreme coupon show, but it will feel that way when you star to track how much you saved. Here is a Taste of what I will cover (each section is one workshop... there's a lot to cover!)

Saving money and couponing  workshop

Intro, what money means to us… how do we spend it

1. Grocery store layout. How it helps to save money, guidelines for buying produce, meat, dairy, deli, grocery, health, and beauty, pharmacy,
2. Strategic Marketing tactics. Placement of products, size’s of the product, make it cheaper, circulars (grocery adds) and planning a shopping trip.
3. Sale cycles
4. Finding coupons
5. Organizing coupons and use of coupons
6. Price points and using coupons
7. Utilizing your kitchen and talents to help save money
8. Hy-Vee, Target, Walmart, store policies. Store coupons and other store deals to be aware of.
9. Menu planning and implementing it

Starting Friday, September 16th we will meet in the morning 9:30-11:00 (Ankeny area) with a $5 cover charge to talk and worksheets about how to save money.

Leave a comment bellow if you are interested in attending and I will message you with more info. 

This weekend Craftsy Classes 50% off

Craftsy is having it's 50% off all classes sale this weekend! 

Calling all makers! Get 50% off every class. All of Craftsy's online classes are $19.99 or less — now through Sunday. *Select classes are not eligible, including those from Craftsy partner The Great Courses®.

The ones on my wish list are that I want to do this season while the kids are in school are:
The Art of Caramel Techniques Treats (Christmas is coming sooner that we think, and home made chocolate is always a good choice.)

Make the most of your food processor I am always looking for a good way to use my appliances, and the food processor has so many great ways to utilize a lot of gadgets.... which I need to weed through my gadgets Anyways this looks like a way fun class! I have heard really good things about this class!

Sketching landscapes in pen and ink with Sheri Blaukopf Because my artist's child needs to learn how to sketch and gesture paint, and I would have lots of fun painting with this class!

Food Photography, from plate to photo Hello, food and photography, yes please! This class sounds like a really good class to get your feet wet if you are curious about photography. It looks like the teacher gives good feed back to the work you submit to craftsy, so you get professional feed back to help you get better. That to me is worth the cost of the class!

The Perfect Cupcake, I like to bake, This seems like a good class to watch and get ideas on how to improve your baking skills.

Lovely Layered Cards a card making class that the teacher actually gives you comments about the project: The ones I have done none of the instructors have commented on my card projects,the paper crafting classes I have taken are really good, but it's nice to see a teacher's comment here and there.

What classes are you interested in?  I always like to know what other's are taking!

I also want to put a big shout out to Craftsy, I love it! there is an artist community that is positive and lively. Most of the teachers are really good replying back to your questions, and your projects, so you get professional critics from well known professionals in the area you are learning about. I really enjoy spending nap time learning about making cards, watercolor, utilizing my kitchen to it's fullest (aka cooking for my family.) 

Best way to save money.... The real secret

Ok ready for the biggest ahh haa moment I came to this year as we "worked out" a budget? you got it... Don't spend money... the less money you spend the more money you save. in theory that works wonderful, even saying out loud or seeing it "works."  So how do you get to the point that you don't spend money..... hummm that is the question?

Although I don't have everything figured out, and usually it takes a lot of mojo to "save money" This is what I have learned

First start small, I have a stock pile that right now my family is eating out off,  because I know food sales are going to be going on in the month of November and December, and I want to save my grocery money for when the Sales are really good. So I only buy what we need for food, like milk and fresh produce. I then replace the food when prices are at a good price and stock up. (small things that really make a big difference.)

2. The Dave Ramsey envelope system does work, we use to do that in college and I hated it, but it got me in the habit of deciding just how much I wanted something, and stretching my dollar as far as it could go.  basically it's a system that let's say we have $500 a month for groceries, $200 for Gas, $50 for clothes and so on, and you put that money in an envelope and use that money for when you need cash from that category. (this means you don't use your credit/debit card.) I have done the same thing with a gift card from the grocery store, I would load up x amount we have to spend that month on groceries and then when the money was out... you guessed it I was done grocery shopping for the month.

3. Don't window shop. I use to love to "window" shop but $200 later I was like opps I did it again right? so I don't window shop. That temptation is gone when you don't window shop.

4 What motivates you to save money. Remember that I don't like to save money with out some serious mojo... yup... so find out what you really want. For me I started couponning/saving money because I really love being an Artist, but I can't be a starving artist with a family to raise. So I wanted money for my art addiction, that was enough for me to figure out how couponning really worked.  Now that I have most of the Art stuff that I "need" not want, I want to save for a family vacation to Disney. I think it's a lot more do able then just saying I need to save money, get some mojo behind it and you can do it!

Those are my tidbit of knowledge on saving money. I would love to hear your comments about how you "save money by not spending money"

Mary Murphy's watercolor class on Craftsy

This summer it was my goal to learn and develop my watercolor skills, I believe I have achieved that goal in the fact that I *did* it, I am not a professional water-colorist, but when I paint I love it, I am in that zone where all my doubts, and time just goes away, I am in the moment and that I love!

With the help from Craftsy and Mary Murphy, I now have a ton of little skills to help me paint better, or at lest not have the fear of a blank canvas to get me started. I love that watercolor is a very unpredictable medium, and that it's fun to just play around with.

Mary did an excellent job of working through her Simple watercolor technique class. Her content was really remarkable, her responses to my work that I posted in our class projects were a huge help, including ADDING MORE COLOR, and watching my values in my painting, she met me where I was as a artist and built onto that, which I respected a lot. Mary Your awesome, I do feel like I got to know Mary as an instructor while working on her class at my pace.

Here is the link to the Stunning Tecn
Here are some of my projects

Heartland Landscape (expressionist style)

Sky study on canvas paper

Value study from a black and white photograph, with a lose style

miniature inspired  painting of a tulip

Here is a video of what the class entails, it's a good one! If you are thinking about starting watercolor, or even if you are more advanced, and want to boast your skills this class is worth it! 

Let me know in the comments if you take this class so I can follow you on Craftsy!

And to keep it real here is a picture of my work space, Mary I took your advice and had my water colors out all summer so I could paint when I needed too, even at 5 am!

Hy-Vee Sale item of the week to make Chocolate Muffins

Hy-Vee has Cake mix on sale this week, and I thought this was a great recipe to post.

 I do this all the time and cake mix is on sale this week at Hy-vee, it's a favorite at my house my Price point is usually $1.00 for cake mix .So this got me thinking about Chocolate muffins, I love when pumpkin goes on sale in about 6 weeks from now, makes for a cheap and yummy breakfast!
Please note:  My favorite recipes are ones where I don't have to measure anything. Btw to get kids really excited for this, add chocolate chips to the top of the muffin.  The batter is thick, make sure you blend / mix the batter up really well I sue a kitchenaid mixer for the job. You can also do this recipe  with spice cake mix and apple sauce or pumpkin, it works the same way! 

Happy Saving and Baking!

Water Cards Made Simple class review

Hello, I wanted to take a moment to review a class that I took as a fun spur of the moment judgement call. I am glad that I did! I have enjoyed the techniques, the advice and the skills that Deepti has to pass along to her students. She was very down to earth, made the content easy to follow, and made it intriguing to watch her do techniques. Each one of her class segment was filled with other ideas on how to use a technique in different ways to get different effects for different card types. I thoroughly have enjoyed her class and have some really nice cards to use for all occasions. It was defiantly worth the time and money I spent on this class.

Not only that My 7 year old Daughter was also mesmerized by the class, we watched it together, and my daughter also hopes to make some cards with what she learned as well! So thank you Craftsy for providing content that my daughter and I can watch together and bond too!

Thanks Deepti for your Class it was well worth it, and I have had compliments from the cards that I have made from your class from the person(s) I sent the card too.

I have posted my cards here, And she is on Pintrest here is her board

Happy Creating!

Watercolor cards made simple from Deepti at Craftsy

I really love the watercolor card class, I bought it as a splurge, and I am glad that I did, it really took my cards to the next level. all these cards are inspired from this class, I really like the techniques used, and the good advice Deepti gave as we were developing the class.

First easy card, with brush stokes and then I stamped

I made this with masking fluid, and my Japanese paint that I love

I sketched this flower from my silhouette, and then added watercolor to it. 

impressionist style roses in watercolor with a mop brush 

a gradient of green for the background, then I water colored die cut roses, with gem in the middle

Mixed media background with stencils, and hand painted die cut flowers

Mixed Media background with stencils, then hand painted die cut flowers. 

wet into wet watercolor stamped image, with embossed background

impressionist roses used a size 4 mop brush with crimson red, medium yellow, and veridian green. 

impressionist roses used a size 4 mop brush with crimson red, medium yellow, and veridian green. 

I sketched this dog on my silhouette, then added some brown watercolor to the dog, My hand writing for the sentiment.

impressionist roses used a size 4 mop brush with crimson red, medium yellow, and veridian green.

a Textured background, with a silhouette file as the top. 

watercolored stamped the tulip, with a gradient wash, and stamped sentiment. 

a gradient wash, with black embossed stamping

an impressionist flower painted with a flat brush

stamped sentiment

water colored pencils an stamped image

my impressionist painting of wild flowers, used Quin yellow, and Quin red with turquoise paint. I used a exacto knife to cut into the paper for the texture of the stems

Silhouette sketch pen did most of the work, then I added watercolor to it.

Craftsy

I was talking to a friend, Sarah Day, and she recommended that I should just take a class on Craftsy and see if you like watercolor, because they have watercolor classes. So I did, and then I took more, and realized that I LOVE WATERCOLOR! Mary Murphy is a fantastic teacher, and so is the Frugal Crafter.

Craftsy has many free classes too, that I am in love with, want to learn how to make really yummy pizza, or cake pops, you can and it's a free class.


I will be posting more about individual classes soon, so look for those reviews.

cards that I have been working on

I have been busy making and giving cards out, I wanted to share what I have been doing, most of them are easy to do and all you need is a bit of time and tools and you can make some really cute cards. 

Birthday cake, pink textured card stock and glitter paper from Micheals 

Silhouette file :46992

 pink textured cardstock and glitter paper from Micheals 

Silhouette file: 38893

Cuttlebug christmas embossing folder, inked pressed onto white cardstock. tied up with holly ribbon from Hobby Lobby.

Cuttlebug inked pressed embossing folder, Sizzex Christmas Tree cut out on iridescent coated card stock with red gems adhered to the Christmas tree, with ornament ribbon for accent.

Silhouette Design ID #42687

Cut base of card onto cream card stock

cut out accent pieces from DCWV Pet Stack paper (I chose the paw print, print) 

cut out the circles in coordinating colors, then add a cute dog sticker, adhere the circle embellishment to the card using pop dots.

Fall Wreath Card

to cut the wreaths at 2"

Silhouette Design ID #11151 cut on red paper ( I used DCWV harvest memories paper stack, red paper) then embellish the berries with red stickles

Silhouette Design ID #14465  cut on green paper ( I used DCWV harvest memories paper stack, green paper.)

 Christmas holly embossing folder onto cream card stock. spray with gold glimmer mist

use a gold glitter ribbon for accent, add a strip of red to card to add to the composition to the card. 

A close up to see the detail of the card, this card to easily be made into square card.

Pumpkin harvest gate fold card:

emboss Tim Holtz pumpkin embossing folder onto orange card stock.  

Holly leaf embossing folder, print and cut Mrs Kate Cuttables file (not on the website any more tis the season to be jolly.) green card stock, i red gem and three green gems.

Sizzix Minnie and Mickey mouse under the mistletoe cut in lime green glitter card stock. glued onto pink patterned paper, add sentiment backed on the same green glitter card stock. embellish with 2 pink gems. 

layer three different paper, embellish with sequence, add pink satin ribbon, Print and Cut the sentiment: file Design ID #45712 add a pink hue to the file, cut it at 1.75x 1.75  adhere it with pop dots.

make a hot glue stencil  out of heart, I used this file : doodle hearts  and printed in on copy paper and traced it with my hot glue gun onto my silicon mat. (here is a video tutorial) 

Then spray your water color paper with red ink, before it drys blot off the ink so you have a pink back ground water color paper. then put on your heart hot glue stencil and spray with the same red spray with a couple of coats, you want it nice and red. let it dry, remove the stencil.  add velum, sentiment, and heart.  it seems really involved but once you have the stencil you can use it for so many projects. I really am pleased how it turned out.