Refreshing {Raine}

It's a VERY HOT summer we are experiencing here!
But guess what's VERY COOL that's making me smile?
My youngest sister finally has a blog!
After constant prodding she finally took the plunge and
launched her paper creations for all to view & enjoy in web world.
Her blog is aptly titled raine.with.love.
Click on the link to see for yourself how crafty and creative she is.

{I love} Raine's Gift

Hello everyone! Yes! It's been ages since I made a post here and I missed it. However, before I go on I'd just like to mention that there were plenty of new visitors who dropped by while I was away. Well, whether it's intentional or by chance, I do hope you enjoyed what you saw and was entertained with what you read. Please visit me again and maybe you can drop me a line.

Now to continue...

I am excited to share with all of you a gift I recently received from my youngest sister Lorraine who resides in New Jersey. Like me, she is also an avid paper crafter.

Am sure many of you scrapbookers/cardmakers are familiar with it, but for those of you who are not, it's The Martha Stewart's Stewart Scoring Board.

I've no complaints against my scoring board and SU! bone folder. I've scored and folded dozens and dozens of all sorts of paper with them and they work just fine. However, after using my new toy I can say, "I ain't ever going back!" (Hahahaha! Ok, I'm exaggerating a bit.)

Reasons why I prefer thee:

1. The grooves on the scoring board occur every 1/8" which makes them closer together.
2. It comes with a triangular ruler that is very useful in making envelopes.
3. The bone folder that comes with it is much thinner resulting into crisper and more pronounced score lines.
4. The bone folder and the triangular ruler can be neatly tucked in their compartments within the score board which makes for easy storage.
5. It's from my baby sister!!!
 

{Always} Thinking of You

Hello everyone! My high schooler & grade schooler are officially on their summer vacation. That's two months of no homework, projects, quizzes & exams which means more crafting time for me. Woot! Woot!

Now, to jumpstart my summer projects, I made a couple of pink daisies made of soft felt. They turned out really pretty.

I placed them right smack in the middle of my "Thinking of You" cards. Yes, I've been making a lot of these cards lately as you might have noticed. I suppose it's because I've been missing my sister so much that my longing has manifested itself in my work.

Hope you enjoyed my share today. Come back and visit again soon.

Mother Earth | Major Catastrophe

Since Friday, March 11, 2011, my mind has been filled with nothing, but the horrifying images of the wreck and havoc the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan left behind.

Waves of tsunami hit residences after a powerful earthquake in Natori, Miyagi prefecture (state), Japan.

It is heartbreaking to see and hear the cries of survivors in the news as they bravely search for missing love ones under the rubble and debris.

Broken home in what was once a suburb in Minami Sanriku in Miyagi Prefecture.

Imagine being greeted to this scene coming home from work?

Nothing left.

Unimaginable?
Unbelievable?
Wrong.
It happened.
And the Japanese are now struggling to survive in the aftermath.

Let us all do our share in helping our brothers and sisters in Japan. Check the parishes, schools and other socio-civic organizations in your area to see how you can best extend your love across the miles.

S.O.S. | What Went Down

Hi everyone! Take a look at what went down during Alexis' SleepOver Spa Party.

First, the girls were treated to a home cooked meal for dinner in our formal dining room. My cousin Jek helped me dress up the table. She has a knack for table setting.

The birthday girl.

The balloon towers were from the party of my friend's daughter the night before.

The Menu: My Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta & Salpicao, Manang Marlyn's Chicken Ala King with my buttered bread cups and Monsee's breadsticks.

For dessert, the girls had French macarons from Bizu and the cupcakes I baked. In lieu of a cake, I used the cupcake tier my sister Teena sent all the way from New Jersey to make a cupcake tower. In keeping with the spa theme, I added a nail polish bottle in between each cupcake to liven it up.

Afterwards the girls headed on to....

where they were greeted with this scene.

More goodies for the girls to bring home.

Hair & Facial Masks Station

Now, here's the best part of the night...

Each girl was treated to a "Pampered Hands and Feet Treatment" by Spaworks Mobilespa owned and operated by another good friend.

The girls were all smiles and felt simply divine the whole evening, but most importantly my sweet Alexis was very very happy.

S.O.S | In The Bag

In keeping with Alexis' spa themed party her guests beauty got to bring home some beauty essentials that were tucked inside these tumbler bags I made.

Check out the pampering goodies they got...
 

nail polish in bright bold colors

travel-size nail files

mini hand sanitizers & holders

and grooming kits

Seeing the girls' pretty smiles made putting these favors together truly worthwhile.

Edit: Thank you so much to my sister, Teena, 

for providing the Bath and Body products

and all the other goodies. Love ya!

 

{Happy} Sweet Sixteen

Guys, look at the invites I made for my daughter's sleepover spa party.

Alexis, a Pisces, was born on February 22, 1995. Her birthstone is Amethyst. It is associated with spirituality, wisdom, sobriety, and security. It is purple in color which happens to be my sweetie's favorite.

I decided to use Stampin' Up's Elegant Eggplant and Green Galore cardstocks as the base for these crisscross invitations. And the hearts from the coordinating designer papers add just the right amount of cuteness for both the invites and favor bags befitting a young lady's sweet sixteen party.

Drop by again later this week to see more of Alexis' S.O.S. party.