Giant beautiful mug love!

* plus *

The perfect combo!!!

This time of year.....actually pretty much all year, I honestly feel as though I am always busy, and can't seem to catch up with life. But there is something special about Christmas time. There are so many extra little treats to enjoy. Snacking on scrumptious Christmas cookies from friends, laughing with my girlfriends in a restaurant decorated with a thousand twinkle lights, happy Christmas music playing in my living room while I create.....I have learned that if I take the time to enjoy the little things, like sit back with a cup of delicious hot tea, and just breathe, everything seems easier. The urgent matters don't really seem as important as I thought, I still get everything mostly done, and I enjoy the process so much more. I have been a very go, go, go person, most of my life, and recently have had to change. For me, life is just sweeter because of it, and I am very grateful.....grateful for all the little things, grateful for this time in my life, grateful to just live. My dear friend Gloria gave me this lovely mug as a Christmas present, and I am in heaven right now.....I breathe in the sweet aroma of the tea, and when I am done drinking every drop, I look forward to waking up in the morning and doing it all over again :)

Yay!!! Proudly presenting this original Christmas song just for you!

Here is "Christmas So Far Away"......

• Christmas So Far Away

Christmas So Far Away on iLike - Get updates inside iTunes

Yep....that's me singing to a Christmas song that Ryan wrote!!!....Ryan's Dad and friend Bob Lee (blues band) are on rhythm guitars, with friend Cory (1220 band) playing the solo....Ryan wrote the music and lyrics, and played everything else.

You can download the MP3 here :)

Pure Goodness!!!

AND....one of the sweetest girls I know gave me this.....

Thanks, Nely!!!

1. Where is your cell phone? - Next to me
2. Your hair? - Dark for now
3. Your Mother? - Beautiful, patient, and loving
4. Your Father? - The most understanding person I know
5. Your favorite food? - Steak, 1,000 Island dressing, and Hershey Candy Cane Kisses
6. Your dream last night? - Colorful
7. Your favorite drink? - Mulled Apple Cider, and Good Earth Sweet & Spicy Tea (It's a tie)
8. Your dream / goal? - To live a happy full life with Ryan
   
9. What room are you in? - Living room
10. Your hobby? - Scrapbooking, Photography, Singing, Exercise
11. Your fear? - Not having my own home
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? - Enjoying life with Ryan, 2 kids, working from home, and visiting my family in WA LOTS!!!
13. Where were you last night? - With Ryan's family in Temecula :)
14. Something you aren't? - Fast
15. Muffins? - Oatmeal....yummy!!!
16. Wish list item? - Kenner Road Kit
17. Where did you grow up? - Sequim, WA (it's sooo green!!!)
18. Last thing you did? - Make barrettes
19. What are you wearing? - Really soft cotton
20. Your TV? - Watching "Angel of Death" (Zoe Bell ROCKS!!!)
21. Your pets? - A red and white basenji named Gatsby
22. Friends? - They are all so wonderful!!!
23. Your life? - Full
24. Your mood? - Peaceful
25. Missing someone? - I miss my family in WA and Utah everyday...
26. Vehicle? - Charcoal Grey Ford F-150
27. Something your not wearing? - Shoes
28. Your favorite store? - I love Dick Blick!
29. Your favorite color? - Green
30. The last time you laughed? - Last night to the "Penguins of Madagascar Christmas Caper" :)
31. The last time you cried? - From a dream a couple nights ago
32. Your best friend? - Ryan....but I also consider my girlfriends my family, so I guess they are all kind of the best of friends!
33. One place that I go to over and over? - Target
34. Facebook? - No...Thinking about Twitter, though....
35. Favorite place to eat? - It depends on what kind of food I want....my favorite pizza is "Oggies"....love the crust!!!

OK....so, I'm not tagging any of the following blogs....I just think they will be really inspiring for YOU right now:

1. Elsie (has some really fun gift ideas and DIY Projects for the holidays)
2. Mibo (has print at home projects that are adorable)
3. How About Orange (has lots of simple, fun holiday projects to try)
4. Skunkboy Creatures (a really cute Etsy shop....and check out her blog HERE....there is a really fun photo shoot HERE )
5. Red Velvet Art (some of the best handmade gifts)

Enjoy!!!

"Elsie Inspired" Layout for The Pink Ninjas!!!

The Pink Ninjas have done it again! I think this has to be my favorite challenge yet.....you totally have to love any layout that is inspired by the amazing Elsie!!! You can check them all out HERE, on The Pink Ninja Blog. Each layout has its own special "Elsie like" charm.....

Here is what I came up with:





I almost immediately decided to use this photo of my sister, Sarah. We were on a hike, out in the middle of nowhere, in the beautiful state of WA, chatting, laughing, exploring.....and my sister's boyfriend decided her beanie needed some embellishment. He then proceeded to stick leaves, and flowers into the backside, making her the cutest headdress!!! Of course, I had to take a photo, and now it has found its home.....on a layout that holds a fond memory of an adventure with my sister :)

It took forever, but I sewed ALL the buttons on this layout. I was inspired by a layout from the Love, Elsie Recipe Box , called "Dreamer".....the buttons are layered with Prima pebbles and flowers, and I cut the little pink trim out of paper. This was such a fun project to do!!! I highly recommend finding your "Inner Elsie", and playing along with this challenge!

Happy Christmas Cards!

I love how happy my Christmas Cards are this year!!! I used my favorite Christmas paper by Cosmo Cricket:





I also am really loving the pink and white plaid tape I used.....it was perfect for these cards! I layered it with a sheer pink ribbon, and sewed it all together. Since I was limited with the amount of paper I had purchased for this project, each card is two 4x4 inch pieces sewn together...it adds just a little bit of that warmth to all the bright color ;)



Yesterday I was so inspired by all the gorgeous decorations at my beautiful friend, Jane's, home! She had a wonderful Christmas party, and everything was perfect! Thank you so much, Jane!!! You truly are beautiful inside and out!

Happy Birthday Elena!!!

My lovely friend Elena, celebrated her birthday last night. I made this barrette for her birthday present:



I used a vintage broach, glimmer misted some Prima flowers purple (her favorite color), and added a bit of gold, with Hambly transparency and a gold leaf. Also, made the little origami box to match :)



We had a really great time chatting, dancing, laughing!!! Elena has been going through a lot lately, and she seemed very peaceful and happy.....Happy Birthday Sweet Friend!!!!!

Hair Accessory Swap Photos!!!

Everyone did an amazing job with making their hair accessories for the Swap I hosted at Pink Pineapple Scrapbooks, back in November.....some headbands, barrettes, and a hair comb.....I love them all!!!



Each participant received two of these homemade boxes (they are perfect for a small gift). Plus, I showed them how to fold paper to make the little origami boxes. We had a lot of fun!



I also wanted to participate in the Best of 2009 Challenge (It's really important to me to remember great times in life):

"Best Trip"


Washington State to visit family....a picture of me and my Grandpa....Heaven :)

"Best Restaurant Moment"


I wouldn't say it's necessarily the best, but definitely memorable.....I was at a restaurant and found out that some of my scrapbooking was highlighted on the Sassafras Lass Blog.....Gloria took a photo of the moment.....I LOVE Sassafras, so I am still really excited about it!!!

Next Layout Kit Sneak Peak

UPDATE: SOLD OUT


My next layout kit for Pink Pineapple Scrapbooks will be at their store on Wednesday, December 2nd. They will be for sale as long as supplies last, for only $7.00 each. This kit comes with a strip of letter paper, so you can make your title spell whatever you like (plus a strip of chipboard to mount the letter paper with). There are also two adorable tags that fit into a pocket for more photos and /or journaling.

I really enjoyed putting this layout together. The photos I used were from camping with my family up in WA state. My little sister was so scared of what was in the forest at night....I don't think she slept very well. However, that didn't keep her from sneaking a werewolf mask into her backpack, and scaring the boys that night!!! Hence my title "Braving The Wild".

Have a great Monday everyone!!!

Happy Turkey Day!!!

Thanksgiving 2007 with family.

The balcony of The Cliff Club at Snowbird, Utah.

Wonderful, exciting snow!!!

Thank You, Gloria!!!

I love my blogger award!!! Gloria is a bright eyed, beautiful girl who recently opened up her very own Etsy Shop. She crochets the softest, warmest scarves and hats.....check her out HERE.

To accept this award do the following:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
2. Copy the logo and place in on your blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 Kreative Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated.

O.K. 7 random things about me are:

1. I started out scrapbooking by taking old cards, cutting them up, adding a photo, and then making new cards out of it all.
2. I grew up on 120 acre farm in WA State (in a tiny town very close to Forks). I'm a country girl living in the city.
   
3. Guinness is one of my FAVORITE beers. I LOVE beer :)
   
4. My parents owned a video store (and I love movies).
5. I'll be married 14 yrs. this December.....my sweetie is a musician, and makes beautiful art.
   
6. One of my favorite things to do is listen to music (I do it when I am at home, when I jog, when I drive, and sometimes to fall asleep).
7. I took voice lessons when I was young, have an OK voice, and am currently working on a Christmas album with my husband (hope to have some MP3s to share in a few weeks).

For my nominations, there are so many blogs I love, and find inspiring! Some of them have been nominated already, so that helps a little with a few less choices.....here are 7 that are awesome:

1. Beth Perry
2. Christina Rayevich
3. Asa Danielson
4. Ruby Claire
5. Kris (aka. Inkster)
6. Michelle Clement
7. Nely Barger

Enjoy checking out their blogs! Have a wonderful day!!!

Midnight Showing of "New Moon"

On Thursday, November 19th at 3:30pm we were ready. We were wearing our New Moon tee shirts, (I actually had put on some makeup), we had a cooler packed with vitamin water and coke zeros, and a bag packed with lunch and lots of goodies. Before we knew it we were there, unloading everything out of the truck, and finding our spots in line for theater 3. I had lunch, and shortly after we played the Twilight Scene It game with a sweet girl in the line next to us. It was really fun.....kinda easy, but of course I came in last because every time I rolled the dice I would land on the 1.....tell me, how is that even possible??? Giggle.....memories..... By the time we were finished with the game, it was too dark to play another, and starting to get a little chilly. For the rest of our time in line, we walked to a nearby coffee shop (twice), Miss P. listened to her ipod, I read magazines I had brought with articles on Kristen & Robert (photo below), took random pics with my phone and sent them to my friends with updates (you know who you are), and then it got really cold. Miss P. said there was an invisible blizzard, and called Gloria, who kindly brought her a blanket and scarf (photo below).....and I was just thankful I wore leggings instead of stockings with holes. At this time, our chatting had become increasingly sporadic, more intense, and even more excited. It was the craziest kind of high.....there was so much excitement in the air that had built up over the past 6 hours, you could feel it seeping into your body. In no time, we were taking our folding chairs, magazines, and food back to the truck, and it instantaneously warmed up with everyone standing in line instead of sitting. The theater was kind enough to let us find our seats at 10pm (probably because it was so cold outside), and before we knew it the movie was starting!!! I have never heard so many ooohs, and awwwees, and young girls squealing in my life!!! The boys in the movie were gorgeous, and the movie started with the image of a new moon that had the most beautiful golden hue. It set the tone for the rest of the movie very well. One of my favorite parts of the movie was when the song "Possibilities" started.....the song and images on the screen are sooooo captivating together. It is my new favorite scene and song :)

Here is a collage of Miss P. and I waiting patiently in line (you can kind of see my tee shirt....there is a Quileute symbol for the moon, Bella's truck with Edward's name written in a heart with an arrow through it on the windshield, the moonlight shining down in purple, blue and green, and the forest surrounding it all):



.....And a photo of our happy, tired faces after the movie:



Thank you soooo much Miss P.!!! It would have not been the same with anyone else!!! It was a blast!!!

The "New Moon" Madness Has Begun!

This past weekend I made a rare trip to the Nordstroms in Fashion Valley. My sweet friend, Miss P. and I wanted to buy tee shirts to wear to this Thursdays midnight showing of New Moon! We showed up just in time for Nordstroms' "Twilight Takeover Party", and had a blast!!! There were New Moon temporary tattoos (and we are so excited to wear them to the movie), we signed up to win a Life Size Jacob Cutout (which I promised to give Miss P. if I won), they had music playing from the movies, I had a makeover with some of the Twilight Makeup from a really nice makeup artist (Miss P. bought some of the Lip Venom), and of course we took lots of pictures with our phones of all the tee shirts :) Next, we needed some nourishment, and decided to get lunch. We chatted about how awesome the commentary is on the Twilight DVD, how when I was in high school everyone wore peacoats (I grew up a couple towns away from Forks), and other randoms stuff. Once our food was almost gone, we decided to do a recap of all the tee shirts. We had a plan. We were going to pick out which ones to try on, and then go from there.....there were so many fun choices!!! Back at Nordstroms we each found the perfect tee shirt, and left the store glowing with happiness.

Before we strolled back to my truck, we were ecstatic to find these New Moon themed drinks at Nordstroms' Cafe:



.....And here is a necklace that I think is absolutely adorable!!!



I didn't get a good photo of the tee shirt I bought, but here are a couple of our favorites. The one on the far right is Miss. P.'s purchase.



You can click HERE to see all the others I didn't photograph.

I can't believe that it's almost Thursday!!! Whoooooohoooo!!! I really love all this fun stuff.....it's nice to have things to look forward to.

"Enjoy The Little Things" Minibook Kit

UPDATE : SOLD OUT.....Next kit coming soon :)



This Minibook Kit is now for sale at Pink Pineapple Scrapbooks for only $27.00 while supplies lasst! It includes the fabric pocket, that I have pre-made, so all you have to do is embellish it :) You can customize this mini for any of your photos, with the Making Memories sticker sheet to spell whatever fits! There are written and color photo instructions, and please feel free to email me if you have any other questions. Also, there are photos of my completed minibook on the sidebar, if you have not seen the sample yet. If you are interested in having a kit mailed to you, please email me at: carrieelias@yahoo.com

Have a GREAT Monday!

Origami Boxes for Sunday

I have been busy prepping for my Hair Accessory Swap this weekend, and am so excited!!! Here are some of the little gift boxes I made. Aren't they so cute! Each participant gets two, AND will learn how to make one.



If you are getting a Christmas present from me this year.....you just might find it tucked away in one of these pretties :)

New Fall Layouts

As I mentioned in my last post, our Creators' Circle group recently had our November meeting.....it was great.....we ate yummy sweets, made an awesome make and take, shared lots of art, and all the positive creative vibes in the air made everything exciting....plus, I am very happy to say that everyone shared the most amazing layouts, made with the kits I had provided them in October!!! Their projects should be up on our Creators' Circle blog very soon.....I can't wait for you to see them!!! Here is what I made:









I used photos from our recent trip to the pumpkin patch with Ryan's family.....it feels so good to do a set of layouts with recent photos. The memories are so fresh in my mind. I love looking at a layout and can't help but smile :)

Happy Fall!!!

Christmas tags for my friends.....

Once a month I meet with a group of friends. We call ourselves the Creators' Circle, and our leader is the very entertaining, very sweet April C. For our festive meeting in November, our group wanted to exchange something homemade with each other.....so, we decided to make Christmas Tags! It is fun to make things for my friends, but I really like the idea of giving them something that they can use. When I give gifts this year, I love that they will be adorned with little pieces of art made by my friends, and people I admire!!! Here is what I decided for my tags:





Products: Basic Grey paper, Hambly black frames, light blue vellum, snowflake ornaments (they are Ike 10 years old, so some of them are a little discolored...kinda adds a vintage feel), bakers twine, typewriter alpha stamp set, and woodgrain contact paper (for the fawn).

I wanted to make sure the tags were sturdy, so I added a thin piece of chipboard in between the two papers, and sewed them together. As a final touch, I used a small circle punch with the woodgrain contact paper, and then my crop-a-dile to punch a whole in the circle.....so there is a homemade binder ring on each side of the tag.....just makes it look nicer, I think :)

There is an extra tag sitting on my desk, just waiting to be placed in my art journal.....can't wait!!! You can see some of the other projects made by our Creators' Circle group here, and I would also recommend visiting their individual blogs for inspiration (well, two of them have blogs): Jane and Melanie.

Thanks for an awesome meeting girls! I heart the tags you made!!!

Today is my little sister's birthday!!!

She loves the Twilight books. This photo is from when we went on the Twilight Tour in Forks, WA this past summer. She put on Dr. Cullen's jacket, and blushed.....so precious!!! Isn't she beautiful?

She is growing up so fast!!! She also has "skills". Frisbee throwing skills. Wood widdleing skills. Short story writing skills. Drawing skills.....just to name a few :)

Here is a drawing she made for me this past summer, entitled "Daddy's Girl".



My sister Amber called me today, and told me she picked out some flowers to make a bouquet for our little sister's birthday. She dropped the bouquet off at her school!!! How great is that!!! I always loved picking up a bouquet of flowers from the school office, and carrying them around with me from class to class.....I know it will make her day special...

Happy Birthday Little Sis!!!

What's My Age Again?

The NEW challenge is up at The Pink Ninjas Challenge Blog, and there are some amazing layouts.....their girls create the coolest art!!!

I tried to think of what reminds me of my age the most, and I would have to say having a sister and brother that is so much younger than me does it.....I LOVE them so much!!! Here is my layout (and one of my favorite pics right now):





This was a really fun layout to put together.....It just "flowed" out of me.....I love it when that happens :)

For the background paper, I used the new Sassafras Lass (yummy). The waves I cut out of a sheet of Bo Bunny paper.....I added mica flake glitter to the top of some of the waves to make them look "frothy". To add a little texture, I folded the background paper in a few places, and sanded them, so the paper looked like it had been folded in my pocket for a while. Also, the photo is matted with an old sheet of music paper I tore out of a book, and I sewed strips of Hambly between it and the photo. The process is simple, but a little time consuming.....worth it, though.

Don't forget to check The Pink Ninjas Challenge Blog. Have a great day!!!

Ally's Circle Journal "Inspire Me"

Another circle journal for the Pink Pineapple Design Team. This page is for the amazing Ally, and her theme is "Inspire Me". What a great theme, right???

I find that there are so many things that inspire me.....but one of the biggest is nature, so I created this page with some of my favorite nature photos from the past summer. Honestly, how amazing are the pink Japanese Maple leaves! And how awesome is it to be walking through a thick forest, and see a single beam of sunlight streaming down into the branch of a tree!

I always try to add some texture to my creations, so for this project I splattered some magenta ink, layered some silver mesh behind the photos, used my sewing machine in a few places, and layered some white lace behind the Sassafras Lass trim. I also decided to made a homemade embellishment, so I used embroidery thread on white glittered felt to create an owl.....owls belong in trees.....and they are so beautiful!!!

Ally's art is always inspiring to me.....there is just something about the way she makes things.....you always find yourself excited!!! I hope my page for her is inspiring too!!!

Halloween Cards with Chocolate!

Early this week I spent the evening with my beautiful friend, Melanie, and made these lovelies:





It was a great night!!! We listened to Pandora, Melanie made a delicious dinner, we melted chocolate and made the cutest little ghosts and ghouls, ate chocolate and peanut butter ice cream, and created some fun Halloween cards.....I think we stayed up really late.....I highly recommend it!

As I am writing this it is Halloween night, and I can hear a party from across the road.....there is lots of loud music and laughing.....it sounds like they are having so much fun!!!.....I am loving it! Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

Gloria's Circle Journal & 50 Things I Love

Another fun circle journal for the Pink Pineapple Design Team Members....this is my page in Gloria's book:





This page was super easy to put together using the Sassafras Lass "Amplify" products......I added a little paint splatter, sewing, and decided to print my photo on regular printer paper to match! Gloria's theme is "50 things i love". I love sweets, so the felties were the perfect embellishment!!! I really enjoyed thinking about my list.....wonder how much it will change over time???

Enjoy The Little Things Minibook

This is a new minibook I made to hold some of the memories from my summer trip to WA.....I wanted something that could hold photos I took of all the moments, and little things that I wouldn't normally remember:



Since it is such a chunky minibook, I sewed this pouch to keep it safe...



...and here are some of the pages inside.....I used Sassafras Lass products, fabric, sewing, lots of stickels, and liquid pears, ribbon, and mixed my own handwriting with some sticker letters:



I decided to teach it as a class in November at Pink Pineapple Scrapbooks. Here are the details:

"Enjoy The Little Things Minibook"
Sunday, November 15th
1:30pm-4:30pm
$27.00

Please bring to class: scissors (that can cut through thick chipboard), fast drying craft glue (I used "The Ultimate Glue"), glue dots (mini & regular), pop-up foam squares, black fine tip sharpee, crop-a-dile, zyron 150 (or adhesive for ribbon), tape runner (or adhesive for paper), stickels (I used spiced marmalade, yellow, turquoise, & lime green), liquid pearls (I used ruby red), sanding block, and if you have it: a sewing machine, and 7 photos 2 inches wide or smaller, (so you can sew directly onto the photos).

Hair Accessory Swap & Green Grass

Ryan and I spent Saturday afternoon here:



.....on a patch of green grass at the La Jolla Cove...it was great...we read, chatted, ate some red vines...and even though the sun was pretty hot, there was a light mist, kinda like a thin fog, that you could feel in the air...and it kept us cool.....I like cool...

Today I finished these barretts:



The next swap I am hosting is a Hair Accessory Swap at Pink Pineapple Scrapbooks.

Sunday, November 15th
12:00pm-1:00pm
$15.00

You make 12 of the same hair accessories, embellished with at least one scrapbook item (barretts, ponytail holders, headbands, etc...) We will meet on Sunday, November 15th, and trade our projects with 11 other people, so you will leave with 12 different hair accessories!!! I plan on keeping some for myself, and saving the others for stocking stuffers! As a bonus, you will receive 2 gift boxes that will fit the smaller items, plus an extra hair accessory (one of the barretts shown above), both made by me. Plus, when we meet, I will take photos of everyones projects, and submit them to a magazine.

I am really excited for this swap...accessories add so much to an outfit, and make a great Christmas gift!!!

Here is another photo of ideas I found on Etsy:

There are so many talented people in this world, and Etsy is the perfect place to buy items handmade by them.....I can't wait to see what you come up with! See you in November!!!