I love candles!

Hi!

This is a quick post.........just wanted to share a photo I found of a candle that I made........not the actual candle rather the flowers that I molded from sheets of wax. These sheets come in different colours. I haven't made one in a few years now..........kids keep me really busy!!

(here's a close up of the flowers)

Have a great day! Bye!

Bags, bags and BAGS!

I got an Accessorize update email today and I saw some gorgeous bags! I don't know where my fascination for weekend bags come from (or overnight bags) because Lord knows I go no where for the weekend!! ;) And I notice that I'm always drooling over the ones with pattern........and anyone that knows me knows that I'm pretty plain.......I like my purses one colour, not too many zippers and buckles and bling bling but WEEKEND BAGS.........the more colour the better?!! I don't get it!

This is my weekend bag that I bought to use as an over night bag for the hospital (when I gave birth to my youngest).

And here are some bags that caught my eye!

This one makes me want to do the happy dance!

Bye!

Garden Update

Yummy is right! Let me tell you........the strawberries can't grow fast enough where my kids are concerned! My garden is coming along nicely.........lots of work involved......planting the seeds was the easy part, it's maintaining the garden that's a lot of work. But I love it and seeing my kids gobble up those strawberries can't bring me more satisfaction!

Have a great day!

Fimo Buttons Giveaway 2!

Hi!

I've decided to have another Fimo buttons giveaway before my summer madness starts! I don't think I'll have much time for card challenges during the summer. We've got a plane load of relatives coming from Canada, I've got a few personal craft projects to finish and I'm still not finished my spring cleaning which has turned into summer cleaning (where does the time go!!!).

The giveaway ends next friday (June 5th) and I'll pick 2 winners. As far as the colours.....even I don't know. I have to pop on over to the craft store and check out the fimo selection (I was told that they were getting some more colours).....my colour selection will be a surprise!

Once again......they are handmade by me which means they are not perfect and I can not tell you how frustrating that is when you are a PERFECTIONIST!! ;) I welcome anyone to play along.....the more the merrier!

(these buttons are from my first giveaway)

Bye for now!

It's a Good Thing!

Just wanted to share a cute project I saw on the Martha Stewart website.

I just might try this!

Yummy Spinach Roll Ups!

Hi!

Just writing about this is making me hungry!! I made this on Sunday for dinner. Our best friends came over for a visit.......a first visit for their little baby girl Klara! I got this recipe from one of my Family Circle magazines........I'll post the actual recipe when I find it..........it's super easy and very yummy!


Here's the recipe!

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup diced onion
2 10-ounce packages frozen spinach (thawed and squeezed)
1 clove garlic (minced)
15 ounces part-skim ricotta
1 cup mozzarella
1/3 cup parmesan plus extra for sprinkling
1 egg
no-boil lasagna pasta (I use Barilla brand)
1 1/2-2 cups of tomatoe sauce (homemade or if in a hurry a store bought jar of tomatoe sauce. I use about 1 1/5 cups of sauce)

1. Heat the oven to 375 (190) and bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Heat a tablespoon of the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Saute one cup diced onion in oil until soft, about 3 minutes. Add two thawed and squeezed 10-ounce packages of frozen spinach and a clove of minced garlic to the pan and cook until the ingredients are well blended, about 3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.
3. Mix the ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper with the bowl of the spinach mixture.
4. Add tablespoon of salt to the boiling water, then drop in the lasagna pasta. Boil for 1 minute, stirring every few seconds to keep it from sticking. Drain the pasta and rinse under cold running water until it's cool enough to handle. Separate pasta sheets and lay them out on a clean, dry kitchen towel.
5. Cover the bottom of a 9-by 13-inch pan with 1 cup of the sauce. Spread a dollop of the filling (about 1/3 cup) across a short end of the pasta sheet and roll it up. Put the roll in the prepared pan. (you should have around 12 rolls).
6. Top the rolls with the rest of the sauce and bake them until heated through, about 30 to 40 minutes. Serve hot, with a small bowl of parmesan for sprinkling.

Bye!

Hero Arts 'Manly' Challenge.

Hi Again!

Here's my card for the Hero Arts challenge this week which is 'MANLY'......so I decided to make a father's day card for my man! ;) I'll have my kids put the finishing touches inside the card......some of my yummy homemade brownies and we're set!


Bye!

Color Inspiration #53

Hi!

All I have to say is that I STRUGGLED with this one!!! I don't know if it's because I'm a little under the weather or what but I'm just happy that I finished it!

I added my crotchet flower to add a little texutre. My grandmother taught me how to crotchet flowers when I was 10 (she came to Canada for Christmas) and I forgot how to do it but luckily my mother-in-law is a pro so she refreshed my memory! (click on photo for a closer look).

Have a great day!

Fimo Button Winners!

Hi!

First of all........I don't think I'm cut out for giveaways.........I feel bad for everyone who didn't win and that's why I added 2 bonus winners (who unfortunately won't get the cute little container (only have two) but will get around 25 buttons each).
Second of all..........I almost handed over this computer to the garbage man this morning!!! You have NO IDEA how long it took me to COPY AND BLOODY PASTE these Random.org thingys!! And if that wasn't enough.....after I published it and viewed it did I see that the bloody numbers in these gadgets disappeared!! Thank God I copy/pasted your comments. After this blog I need to take a break from this computer! ;) I am so not a computer person! :)

Anyways, here are the winners!!

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
20
Timestamp: 2009-05-22 09:18:27 UTC
#20 Lucy, England said...
Wow they look amazing. You are so kind to do a giveaway. Thank you :)


Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
27
Timestamp: 2009-05-22 09:19:37 UTC
#27 Ashley M said...
I just LOVE your buttons! Thanks for the chance to win!



And the Bonus Winners are :

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
31
Timestamp: 2009-05-22 09:17:44 UTC
#31 Lysa said...
Great buttons-I love buttons & put them on almost every card! Thanks for the tutorial and for the chance to win! I may just have to go buy some fimo to try this now :)



Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
16
Timestamp: 2009-05-22 09:16:50 UTC
#16 moccavanila said...
Aw....looks so yummy Jane!!Thanks for the chance to win.Vera Rhuhay


So WINNERS please email me your addresses so I can send these fimo buttons. Thanks so much for playing along and I can't wait to see how you'll incorporate my buttons in your work!!

Caardvarks Challenge

Hi!

When I saw this challenge I knew exactly what I was going to do! By the way this is my very first Caardvarks Challenge! I did this dress shape card for my daughter's baptism invitations (4 years ago) and my Making Memories Flower Patch paper is perfect for this dress! I crotchet the flower myself. My daughter insists we keep the card in her room!

I'll be posting my Fimo Button Giveaway winners shortly!

Bye for now!

Hi!

Finally I get around to this.......I've been busy lately and it's only going to get busier! Monika nominated me for this Renee Award and I thank her very much for that. Because I'm new at this and don't really know anybody that well but one person came to mind right away and that is Tiffany........she's the reason I joined the Flickr Hero Arts group.

Now to pass it on....The Renee Award was created by Bella and Ces in honor of their friend Renee. In Bella's own words: "this is a brand new award and I have the pleasure and honor of spreading the seed, watching it grow. I hope it finds it's way to those who are like Renee: the acorn, a small package becoming a tall and sturdy oak, giving more acorns, becoming tall and sturdy oaks, giving acorns..."There are no "rules" for claiming this award, but I would suggest the following:Thank the person who nominated you for the Renee Award.Click on the picture above to see it larger, then download it and post it on your blog.Mention the person who nominated you and link back to their blog.Nominate others to receive the award.Comment on their blogs to let them know you nominated them.Visit Bella, Ces, and Renee and let them know you received the award and passed it on. Consider linking your blog post to them, too.

Packages galore!

Hi!

Packages galore people! Wow! Take a look at what Mr. Postman brought me this morning! And he told me there's another package at the post office that I have to go pick up! Can't wait to see what it is!!

Check out this gorgeous paper I found in town! I can't wait to use it!

Bye for now!

Hero Arts Challenge

GO GREEN!

That's this week's challenge at the Hero Arts Blog! It's all about recycling and here's my card. I hand cut the butterflies out of........are you ready......a toilet paper roll!! I took a page out of my OLD.....and I'm talking OLD dictionary and applied it with a decoupage varnish and softened it up a bit by painting over it with white acrylic paint. The string came off a tag (from a shirt that I bought my husband) and last but not least my hand made Fimo button.

If that's not recycling people then I don't know what is!!

Bye!

Color Inspiration #52

Hi!

Let me tell you I really rushed through this card (I do always have precut flowers and stamped PP that I made on hand which saves a lot of time). For some reason I decided to make the card about 30 min before my kids got home from preschool! I just love these colours! I used My Cute Stamps, Hero Arts and Making Memories stamps and the buttons are my very own Fimo buttons!

Bye!

Fimo Buttons Giveaway!

Hi!

Here are my Fimo buttons! I just want to mention that they are handmade by me which means they aren't perfectly round and the holes exactly the same size etc. but I think that's what makes them cute. I will pack them up for two winners in these cute containers. There are around 50 buttons in each container (click on the picture to get a closer look). The giveaway ends Friday (which is the 22nd)......it'll give me enough time to make the buttons.

Bye!

Some more blog candy!

Check out Cats Whiskers for some yummy blog candy!

Bye!

Fimo Buttons

Hi!

Well here it is! How to make Fimo buttons. As you will see it is very easy. www.fimo.com

Here is a picture of the tools and materials I use. Those are the caps I used to make my buttons. I can't remember where I got them but you can use anything.....the cap from a marker...lipstick...

Take a small piece of Fimo and work it with your fingers (to make it soft) and roll it into a ball. then flatten it out and use a roller or something similar to flatten it to the thickness you want. I do this on my cutting mat or the table and once I get it to the thickness I want I gently place it on a piece of aluminum foil which I will bake it on. Then take your 'cap' and press it into the Fimo.

Gently peel away the Fimo and place any left over fimo in an airtight container for further use. Then use your toothpick to make the holes etc.

Preheat oven to 110C/230F and place your buttons in the oven. I bake my buttons only for 10 minutes because they are small and thin (on the package it says to bake for 30min but through experience I think you should adjust the time according to how big and thick your object is). Don't worry about little bits that are stuck on etc.

Take out of the oven and let cool. Take very soft sand paper (I have my sponge here that I also use to sand down paper) and sand off the little bits off until nice and smooth. And for your last step (if you want) Put a coat of Gloss Varnish on. It gives it a nice shine. Fimo has their own Gloss Varnish.

And there you have it!

Bye for now!

Good Morning!

Wouldn't this be the perfect way to start your mornings!!! This almost never happens here....it's more like a bowl of cornflakes! But it's cornflakes with my family and I wouldn't change that for anything!I've been nominated for the Renee Award by Monika and I'll post more about that later on. Gotta get my day started (hopefully I'll pop over to the craft store) and on that note I wish you all have a great day!

Debbie's Blog Candy!

Hi!

Check out Debbie's blog candy from
passionforcrafts

Have a great day!

Buttons

Hi again!

Here are those buttons I mentioned this morning. The colour is Flesh Pink. Next time I'm at the craft store I'm going to pick up a few Fimo packs in some yummy colours and make 'bake' myself some buttons! Hhmmm.......maybe I could even make a few batches for a fun giveaway!

Bye!

My strawberry turned RED!

Good Morning!

No cards today but I am baking a batch of buttons!! Hhmm...buttons?!? I'm making my own buttons using Fimo clay and as soon as possible I'll post a picture of them here! But for now here's a picture of my first RED strawberry!

What's my plan for today! MAJOR cleaning, organizing.....I have some projects to do...some baby announcements and I'm making goody bags for my son's preschool class. A little something to say.......have a great summer and good luck in grade ONE!!! My baby is growing up! sniff sniff! I'm going to fill them up with candies, erasers, pencil crayons......some fun stuff! I'll post it on my blog when they are all done!

Have a great day!

My tree card

Hi!

I made this card late last night.......wasn't planning on making it. It's very simple (I like simple) but I think it's cute! This card was inspired by Jenn Biederman (she's listed under My Blog list). She's got amazing cards, I just love her style!

Have a great day!

thanks!

Good Morning!

Here's the card I made for the Hero Arts challenge! I had fun making this card, my daughter is just thrilled that the lady bug is PINK!!

Have a good day!

And the winners are!

True Random Number Service
Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
2
7
5
Timestamp: 2009-05-11 23:12:32 UTC

And there you have it! The winners! I copied and paste the numbers from Random.Org (above) for you to see. I want to thank everyone who stopped by and played along! I believe the winners are:

2-Susan (stampstudio1)
7- Karen from MI (karenmp56)
5-Monika Reeck

Please email me (janebeljo@yahoo.ca) and leave me your address so I can send you your magnet!

Bye!

Hi!

Did the weekend ever fly by! I'm still 'Spring Cleaning' and no where near being done! Anyways I just wanted to share my new storage desktop carousel that I got last month (can't wait to fill it up). I got it on sale for only $28!! (original price $40) I then wanted to get one for Mia (for her desk, it would be great for her school supplies etc.) but of coarse they were all sold out! I'm expecting a few more packages in the mail...ordered lots of stamps!

Bye for now!

GIVEAWAY!

Hi!

Yes a GIVEAWAY! This is too funny. I can already see it........0 comments! ha ha But I was at the stationary store the other day and saw these cute magnets ( bought some for my mom who lives in Canada) and I thought why not give a few away to the Hero Arts group who have been so friendly! So here it is! You all have until Sunday midnight and I'll use the Random.org to pick out my 3 winners! So hopefully someone will leave a message so I don't look like a nut! :)

Bye!

Color Inspiration #51

Hi!

I just got Making Memories Paperie Rouge & Mocha paper pad in the mail. So here's my card for this weeks challenge! With Mia's Folklor performances and dentist appointments, etc. I didn't have much time.

Basically I cut the flowers and word 'for' with the Making Memories Slice machine, I used Paperie Rouge & Mocha and Basic Grey paper (two of my favourites). Hand stamped 'you' with Hero Arts stamps and hand cut the owl and branch......oh yeah I crocheted the 'circle' part on the big flower.
Have a great day!

Hi!

Hope everyone has a great day!