Reading Challenges Catch UP

I want to share with you the books I have read for January and February for the various challenges I have signed up for:

Off the Shelf &Finishing the Series - Sea Swept (Chesapeake Bay) Book 1.  This was a good book setting the stage for the stories of Ian, Ethan, Phillip and Seth after the death of the father who adopted them all to keep them out of trouble. This is the first book in the series and it centers on the life of Ian and how his life changes when his father dies in a car crash just after he takes in a troubled kid named Seth.  Ian lives a pretty selfish, single, rich guy, kind of life and has to learn to make changes for Seth's sake. He has a romantic interest in Seth's social worker and struggles with his brothers to get her approval of their life style as caregivers to Seth.

Glad Tidings by Macomber also 50 Harbor Street. The Cedar Cove series always makes me want to go to Seattle and especially to see Port Orchard and meet the folks that these stories are about. The stories always hold my interest with plenty of feel good and twists and turns.

Fearless Fourteen and Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Evanovich. These books are good for nothing but laughs. They are funny because the main character,
Stephanie Plum is always getting dirty or getting her car blown up, but she always brings in the bad guys.

Off the Shelf:  Lost Dogs and Lonely Hearts (see review below)

European Reading - Lost Dogs and Lonely Hearts by Dillon was a wonderful book which I gave a 5/5.  Rachel (the main character) inherits her Aunt's home in England.  The estate includes a rescue kennel that has several dogs needing to be re=homed. Rachel is not a dog person so when her aunt also willed her Gem a boder collie she a bit irritated. Of course Gem wins her heart and helps her adjust to her new life. There are folks helping in the kennels and friends she meets who adopt the dogs.  There's a little romance too which gets very complicated and adds the serious part to this delightful book. This is the perfect book for dog lovers.      

Goodreads 2012 - A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick. It is without a doubt the weirdest book I have ever read. There is SO much talk about sex, not necessarily the act but what is on the minds of the characters. That could wear one out. But what kept me turning the pages was to see whether the characters gained a concience and what dirty deeds they plotted against each other and whether they would be successful. It is written in the dark style of Wuthering Heights and Leave Her to Heaven but was not as good as these classics. This was a good book in an odd way but I probably won't read this author again. Probably won't read this author again.

I love doing these challenges and I'm on to my next book: The Waiting Time by Eugenia Price for the Southern Literature challenge!

Show and Tell

I have been busy making cards and planning card classes (oh my). It has been so fun to share what I love with others and so I thought I would share some of the cards with you.

I  made this card for a class for the ladies in my church. We made cards to share with our military men and women. I am so honored to be a part of this project.  The men and women who are serving our country need to know that we are proud of them and pleased to give them our support. There was much love that went into making these cards. The scripture used here is from Stamp Camp and the sentiment is from Heartfelt Creations. This is a perfect card to make with all our scraps!

This card is also made with stamps from Heartfelt Creations. The paper on this card is My Mind's Eye. I used water color pencils to color in the cross. I think I'm addicted to coloring again :). My friend Melissa came over yesterday and taught me some things about the color wheel (wow, I really need to pay attention to that?? Yes, she said). She also shared coloring techniques and lows and highs and lots more. Thank you so much, Mel.

Finally, I have been working on cards using Creative Memories "Shine" stickers for my class at Anna's on Saturday, March 3rd at 10:00 am. These colors have been lots of fun to work with (didn't check my color wheel before I started, hmmm). They are super cute though!

Blessings for the day,

Lorelei

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I have a new job!!  I'm working with Penny Black making cards for display boards that the company gives to customers who buy the stamps used in the cards on that board.  (Read that sentence again slower and maybe it'll make sense.  haha)

Angela is the designer of the cards and I make duplicates for as many orders as are received at CHA (Craft and Hobby Association convention) held in January. My friend, Peggy got the position for me and I love her for it! I'm getting paid for doing what I love and I get LOTS of free stuff!! The stamps I use to make the samples, the ink pads, coloring chalk and more are all free to me. It doesn't get any better than this!

The card above is my favorite of the cards I made this time around. Everything used on this card is new from Penny Black and will be available in stores soon. The background is a paisley stamp that I love! The coloring on the flower image is done with Pebbles chalk.

This is a Valentine I made for my love (of course it's my hubby!!) The paper is from My Mind's Eye. There is a Tim Holtz ticket and the felt flower and red brads are from American Crafts. The clock is from Vintaj I believe, the sticker on the bottom is Creative Memories and the twine is Jenni Bowlin's. I put some Glossy Acents over the true red hearts on top.

This card is made using a technique I learned from a class with Jennifer Maguire. The long strip is a background stamp stamped with Versamark ink and then stamped with a reverse image stamp with Distress Ink in Peeled Paint. This was then stamped onto glossy cardstock and left to dry. Once dry I inked the entire image with Tumbled Glass Distress Ink and wiped it off. Such a pretty effect.

Well that's all for today!! I have added a new page to this blog for the book challenges so check that out if you have a reading addiction also ;-).

Blessings on you and your Valentine!

Lorelei