Checkmate!

TGIF!! My goodness - what a week! All 3 kids were in swimming lessons this past week and let me tell you - that is crazy times having to get them all warmed up and dressed at the same time! Thankfully we had a wonderfully warm week with lots of sunshine and they all seem to like the water (at least enough that they'll return the next day) so it makes my life WAY easier in that regard!

I'm soooo proud of each and every one of them.  This was Eden't first time ever in a pool and let me tell you, the trust factor is a major part of swimming.  To let a total stranger take you into the water and make you feel comfortable enough to relax and put your head back on them, knowing that they could let you go at any moment (eventhough they won't - but tell that to a little kid!) is a huge deal!

Okay, let's dive into today's scrappy goodies! I have a very easy and very quick altered project to share with you using another one of my thrift store finds. This project is so simple to do and can be completed with any contrasting papers!

I came across this plain, wooden board at a local thrift store not too long ago and knew that I could use it for something down the road. What a perfect square - perfect for my son's chess game I thought.

The old cardboard mat we had was in pretty rough condition so I decided to alter this board into a sturdy checker board. I simply cut a bunch of squares from Graphic 45's The Magic of Oz collection and adhered as you would see on a checker board.   The board was originally pine coloured but I painted it cream to coordinate with the papers.

I finished using some Mod Podge to seal and protect as well as offer a nice glossy finish.

Thanks so much for your visit today!! Be back tomorrow with some photos from my son's birthday - he turned 7 yesterday!!!
Graphic 45 Supplies:
Patterned Paper: The Magic of Oz, Parcel Post & The Magic of Oz

Other Supplies:
Mod Podge by Plaid
Acrylic Paint by DecoArt
Distress Ink by Ranger

And The Winners Are...

Can I get a drum roll please?

Firstly, I just want to say how very appreciative I am for having so many amazing and wonderful followers and fans!  It is your sweet words and supportive comments that keep me going so strongly and I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your continued support for what I do and what I love!

I have a FEW winners to announce today!

The winner of my August Blog Giveaway was chosen by my eldest son, Owen.  He chose the number 1 because it is the first number and he is the oldest so he is like the number one too... (the mind of an almost 7 year old...)

So... based on this logic, the first person to make a comment and winner of my August Giveaway is....

Astrid Maclean  (August 2, 12:35am)

I let my youngest son pick the winner of my Bo Bunny Blog post that I had yesterday.   "Well, if Owen is going to pick the first person, then I'm going to pick the last person!"  And there you have it...

The last person to comment before the 12pm PST deadline and the winner of my Bo Bunny Prize pack is...

Jan Garber (August 17, 11:39am)

Congratulations Astrid and Jan!!! If you ladies could please send me off an email (torrjorr[at]shaw[dot]ca) with your mailing address, I'll ship those goodies off to you ASAP!

Now... that brings me to the next issue.  Anyone happen to check the sidebar on the right of my blog lately? 

WELL I HAVE!
FREAKING OUT HERE!!!

One second I am in the 980 followers range, the next second that number has surpassed 1000!! SAY WHAT?!  I am sooooo excited and proud and thankful and grateful and humbled and...blown away!

I vaguely remember mentioning something about if I reached 1000 followers I'd do some kind of HUGE, GIGANTIC, ENORMOUS, '1000 Followers Celebration Giveaway' or something like that?  Anyone remember?

Working on it.... trying to see how much 'stuff' I can cram into my chosen package... might have to use the panoramic setting on my camera for the shot - just sayin'.  Stay tuned.

Teacher's Gift Set

Well hello! Happy Wednesday to you!  I'm so excited to finally be able to share this project that I created as a thank you gift for my kids' teachers on the last day of school this past June. 

While searching for "school ideas and themes" for Graphic 45's NEW An ABC Primer collection, I came across the idea of a pencil holder adorned with those yellow school pencils (Pinterest, Google have lots of examples) and thought - hey, I could do that!

I took it one step further and decided to alter each pencil with some beautiful Curtain Call Papers from Graphic 45 (I didn't have my CHA Releases yet!!).  I decided because it looked so elegant, rather than having the teachers use it as a pencil holder, that they could use it as a vase for their desks!

I also created a matching giftbag with the same collection. The tags found on the giftbag and Pencil Vase were created using Spellbinders' Dies.

So glad you could stop by today!! I'll be back a little later today with the WINNERS of my August Blog Giveaway AND the Bo Bunny Spotlight Winner!!!

Graphic 45 Supplies:
Curtain Call Collection: Top Billing, Tour de France, Applause, Moulin Rouge, 8x8 Paper Pad

Other Supplies:
Ribbon by May Arts
Spellbinders Die: Labels Eleven
Adhesive Dots by ZVA Creative
Tacky Glue by Alleen's
Scor-tape by Scor-Pal Products
Glass
Pencils