Just a Little Saturday Afternoon..

Just a little Saturday afternoon thought on one of a kind-ness.

Stamps: Vintage Vogue, One of a Kind Paper: Whisper White
Ink: Basic Black, Going Grey, Tempting Turquoise
All supplies Stampin' Up!

I hand drew the tree with my Basic Black marker. The leaves (Vintage Vogue) are stamped in Going Grey. Except for you, you little Tempting Turquoise treasure. You, my friend, are One of a Kind.

I love Saturday afternoon.

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

I'm not Lion..

Life Happens. Love Helps.Stamps: Fox & Friends, Vintage Vogue, Solid Stripes Ink: Bordering Blue, Chocolate Chip
Paper: Whisper White Accessories: Dimensionals (All supplies Stampin' Up!)

Life happens, as bad kitty shows unsuspecting kitty
Love (washing bad kitty while secretly sticking out tongue) helps.

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Wedgewood Press

It should come as no surprise to you that I think the absolute tip top extra super beautifuliciousest china in the world is.. Wedgewood.
My mom had little plates and boxes and pieces of this heavenly blue stuff that just made my eyes feel like they were singing. Later, she gave me these little heart boxes - every year, Wedgewood makes a heart box that's slightly different - different color and a different pattern. The pale yellow one I have looks so beautiful next to the blue. This is a company that loves blue, which is not unusual, but they did something with it.

I was looking at my heart box the other day and thought I could do a simple Valentine that was at least a partial tribute to this gorgeous stuff. Texture is half the charm, so I used that sassy Scalloped Heart of Hearts embosslit, some ribbon and the Well Scripted greeting.

Too simple to do the Wedgewood justice, but I get part of the way there, yes? Untraditional Valentine #2...

Stamps: Well Scripted Paper: Brocade Blue, Watercolor Paper Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: Scalloped Heart to Heart Embosslit, Big Shot, Vanilla Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals (All Supplies Stampin' Up!)
What are you guys up to? Do you want a funny Valentine story to prep you for cranking out your kids' treats? Check out my beloved little Paperbat's stroll back through time..

Tell me what you're doing for Valentine's Day - or, even better, link to some of your creations so we can all see.

Loveyameanitbye.

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Foofy Flowers

Want a different kind of flower? Sure you do.

How about a foofy one like this, made from the sassy, glittery Sending Love paper?Or... how about one made from an old phone book?

Maybe you should click here.

Google Reader Webinar is this Friday - you can still sign up in my sidebar!

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Love is Not...

Now how does that verse go?

Love is black, love is white. It does not ruffle, it does not glitter, it is not pink. It is not red, it is not covered with ribbon, it is not covered with lace, it has no evidence of rhinestones. Love does not have ruffles, but rejoices in the simplicity of contrast. It always appears crisp, always clean, always typographic.
Stamps: Love and Joy, Musical Score Ink: Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black Accessories: GlueDots, Dimensionals, Full Heart Punch, Heart to Heart Punch. (All supplies Stampin' Up!)

I promise to bring you some more non-traditional Valentiney stuff, cuz that's how I roll!

I will be holding a Google Reader Webinar in the next few weeks, so if you'd like to learn how to organize all the blogs you read into one place and be able to pull up their content FOREVER by keyword without saving anything to your computer, then register with the paypal link in my sidebar - it's only $5.

Also, I wanted to show you the last two blog headers I did. First - for my friend Dana - this one completely cracks me up. Read her post about the name.

Second, I did one for my Twitter friend Andrea for her Etsy Shop.
She let me use some of my art in the design.

If you need a blog header, you can purchase one of those in my sidebar too!

Have a great Sunday!

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

We Just Do What We Know

Since we can't be doctors or write songs, we just do what we know. We stamp. So if you need to make some valentines, why not help Stampin' Up! help the people of Haiti while you do it?

From now until February 28, $2 from the sale of each of the I Heart Hearts stamp sets will go to the Red Cross' Haiti relief efforts. Every person that purchases this set from me will also get a handmade valentine from yours truly as a thank you. You can order from me online by clicking here. Just click "shop now"


Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Art is a Labor that Uplifts Humanity

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Feel Better Soon, Little Cowboy!

First of all, I'm so glad to see from your comments that you knew I would never kill a baby bear on my blog :) I just thought that video had a wonderful lesson about courage at the end. He did turn around and roar. You gotta do that sometimes. So sweet. And it was skillful special effects - he wasn't really being chased by a mountain lion - but that filmmaker sure did a good job with it.

Second, you may have heard this story, but for the Manager's Reception at Leadership, Stampin' Up! had a little private rodeo. During this rodeo, one of the cowboys broke his leg, right there in front of all the stampers! Poor guy. But cowboys are tough, and soon he will be Yipee Kiyay-in' it up again in no time.

But you know what we gotta do now, right? We gotta make him a card. It's just what we do. :)
So here's the card I will be sending...

Stamps: Yippee Kiyay Holiday Ink: Stazon, Brilliant Blue, Summer Sun, Soft Suede, Tangerine Tango, Real Red
Paper: Watercolor, Basic Black, Sweet Pea DSP Accessories: Aqua Painter, Scallop Border Corner Punch

On another note, check this out - I'm nominated in the Austin Social Media Awards! Feel free to leave me a comment!

This weekend I will announce my prize winners from Leadership if I get caught up.

Now I'm off to take a workshop with Golden Products - I can't wait to learn some fun stuff!

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

It's really nice...

When someone has your back...



If you dont' see a video player, click here.


Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Art is a Guaranty of Sanity

It's true. At least for those of us crazy people who have an artistic streak. I thought this piece of art in the Phoenix convention center was really interesting. A nearly three story mirror with this wonderful little message projected onto the bottom of it in red. (PS - note me and the cool pattern my flash made in the mirror.)

I have very vivid dreams nearly every night. I remember most of them, and they are ODD. Last night I dreamed I was on an art game show where I had to paint underwater. I didn't feel like I was holding my breath, but I kept floating away from my canvas - I woke up tired from the effort.

A Twitter friend - @mattiedog - told me that children typically have more of the protein in their brains that produces REM sleep and dreaming, but that some creative adults continue to have it, which led me to wonder if these creative adults sleep better than people with no creative outlet. I'm definitely more sane when I get some sleep, so maybe art really does guarantee sanity! Things that make you go hmmm. If only someone would give me a grant to study all these things!!

Anyway, I have one more picture for you from the boards at Leadership, speaking of creative. You know I love using trash to make art, and this card is made from trash! The large colored circles were made from the discarded piece you get when you use the Circles #2 die from the Big Shot. Just take the piece that's left and use it as a stencil to make the colored circles. Then she used Circle Circus to finish it off. Cool, eh?
Now, are you hungry from all this artistic effort?

As you know, my farm girl sensibilities dictate eating dairy products at every meal. So when I got the chance to test a recipe for Philadelphia cream cheese, I JUMPED on it! What's crazy is that the recipe called for putting that cream cheese in spaghetti. I was not opposed :)

Here's what you need, along with a pound of ground beef if you are so inclined.

All you have to do is add 4 oz of cream cheese to your spaghetti sauce while you're cooking it. It melts into the sauce and makes it all creamy and delicious, without that heavier feeling that cream adds to a pasta sauce. Never in a million years would I have thought of it, and it was insanely tasty! It also makes the sauce go a little farther. I was thinking this would make a super fabby pizza sauce.

You hungry? You know you want some.
Here's the recipe:

24 oz. spaghetti sauce
12 oz. pasta
1 lb. ground beef (optional)
4 oz. cream cheese
Parmesan cheese
Red pepper flakes (optional)
Salt and pepper

Cook pasta, and cook, season and drain beef. Return beef to pan and add sauce and cream cheese. Cook until blended. Add pasta and cook for a few minutes. Serve with cheese & peppers.

Now, why did I leave my leftovers at home today, darn it? :)

Loveyameanitbye.

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

The Last Day in Pictures

Well, it's our last day, so here's less than 1,000 words :)

First - the 3 amigas - Dana, Monique and me. A real life Tweet-up. Then me and a beloved blog reader & frequent commenter - Georgann Ganas!! She sat with us today, even though I got a case of incurable giggles!A cute valentine from the tag dieBEAUTIFUL flowers made with the eyelet border punch.A peek at samples from an upcoming set that we can win if we have a $400 workshop before January 24thHere's what happens when a former pitcher for the Yankees wanders into your photo session.One of Shelli's vintage cards..
Shelli teaching us how to ruffle ribbon by pulling the threads
Yet another beautiful bird with the On Board Bird Book
Adorable chocolate bunny card w/glassine envelope
One day, in the glass elevator, while going up, I saw this and snapped a pic. Is there a bunny out there???I couldn't resist trying to find him, and find him I did. Wascally Wabbit.
Thank GOD I didn't have to be out of town without seeing naked bunny men
Or ginormous wire tornadoes
Or amazingly delicious breakfast at Matt's Big Breakfast, as seen on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
During which I sat next to this adorable art
And these, at Starbucks, I thought were beautiful
Now, I gotta go to sleep so I can go home tomorrow. Thanks for hanging in with me. Back to regular programming now :)





Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Who Doesn't Love Free Stamps?

They gave us this from the NEXT mini catalog - it's beautiful!!!

I'm off to regionals now - pics from that tonight!

Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?

Jan 12th Stampinup unveils an online community!

On Jan 12th Stampin up will unveil an online Stamping Community for demonstrators, with galleries, forums, etc!

Lydia B. Fiedler
lbfiedler@gmail.com

Whoa! They gave us HANDMADE quilt blocks!! #fb

Jill Olsen got the Bright Idea award for what she's done with the Big Shot and Quilting and they made us these Quilt blocks!! Wow!! A handmade gift!!!!!! I'm so touched!

The employees brought their own sewing machines to work to make these for us.. *misty*!

Wow.

I'm amazed. Thank you Stampin' Up!!

Xo
Lydia B. Fiedler
lbfiedler@gmail.com

Toy, Joy, and Blue Travel Tips - Day 2

Day two is here! I have just enough time before dinner to summarize things for you.

First, some blue travel tips, since people ask me travel questions a lot. I will give you my list of things I always do when I go on these trips.

• Always bring a small bar of soap. While most hotel soap is fine, sometimes, like this trip, hotels bring in a team of hookers to choose the scent of the soap they provide. As I do not relish smelling like a hooker, I'm always super stoked and smug about my brilliant soap idea. Soap is cheap. Smelling like a hooker - bad cheap.
• I research restaurants thoroughly before leaving home, usually on zagat.com. I try to eat local and NEVER at a chain so that I can fully experience the town I'm in. I also do not want to get Ebola, so the research is critical. Do not rely on user generated content site - usually just angry people add comments to those. Go with an objective rating service. Also, did you know that concierges are treated to all sorts of goodies by local restaurants? Maybe this doesn't influence some, but I'm pretty sure it influences most recommendations. I've not had too many good experiences at concierge recommended joints, but Zagat rarely fails me.
• I leave the Do not Disturb sign on my door the whole time I'm in it. I don't have to worry about my stuff, and I can make my own bed. I've never run out of towels, but that's easy to fix if you do.
  

That's my best advice for today, other than to just talk to people. Every city is so different and it's fun to find out the personality of a place.

Phoenix is such a warm, friendly place. I'd say (always excluding the Great Republic of Texas, which occupies the top spot) that it's second only to Memphis in friendliness.

Wanna see some pics? Of course you do. You probably skipped all this. In which case you'll miss the million dollar prize. How sad for you. :)

So here you go.

A beautiful baby shower table setting. To the left, notice the bird on a nest. That is the bird on-board chipboard, that you stick down to the table cloth with a pop up glue dot! Brilliant! Then pile raffia around.

A board or two that really caught my eye. I'm sorry about the board photos - the railings were so far away from the boards that even my digital SLR and zoom took horrible pics.


Pam Morgan made these ADORABLE wrist corsages out of the felties from the Occasions Mini. Her demonstration was filled with amazingness.



EEEEK - Shannon West - sweetness personified - took the Heart On Board Book pieces and made a heart candy box. SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Then lookie - she made an old fashioned closure with the little heart punch for a glassine envelope!
She turned a big heart into an envelope holding this sassy card.
This is what it looks like closed!
I thought the stage today was stunning. It looked like a beautiful parlor. Shelli's outfit was typically sasseriffic!
Updates from today include:

• A recruiting challenge, where the prize is Shelli demo'ing at your workshop
• An electronic customizable upline handbook you can give to your group
• DBWS that allows a blog, or RSS feed from an existing blog, as well as your live Twitter feed, and access to the HTML.

You've heard "He who dies with the most toys wins" right?

Today we heard "She who dies with the most JOY wins." < I prefer this :)

Hello to Sam and Andra and Candy and the other readers I've met here! xoxoxoxo - so cool to meet you guys!!!


Have you signed up for the UBlue Cyber Club? Attended one of my Webinars?? Come on - get your geek on! :)

Want to see my other blog?