It’s that time of year! The air is getting colder, the decorations are going up, there’s music in the air and it’s time to star in another ELF YOURSELF.

It’s only the BESTEST new holiday tradition ever and THIS year, I get to post one with my real face. Woot! Check it out!!

The Mint’s Go Country

The Mint’s Do Disco

So what are you waiting for?
GO ELF YOURSELF!

Scrapbooking can be fun, but at times it can be down right frustrating. Even hobbies have their ‘grrrrr’ moments.

What are YOUR top 5 Scrapbooking Pet Peeves?

That’s the Question of the Week over in the PC forum. Every Monday, Mint Chickie Claire Skeps posts a new QOTW (Question of the Week).

So here is my list:

1. Having NO Mojo and lots of time, or too much Mojo and NO time.

2. Misplacing my FILES!! ARGH. When I’m working fast and aren’t sure about a design, I sometimes just save drafts somewhere that I guess makes sense to me at the time and then the next day CANNOT find the damn thing and in my rush saved it as something stupid like ‘asasdgg.psd’ which of course I would never remember so I can’t search.

3. MY CAT. She likes to sit on my notebook and pace back and forth in front of my keyboard when I’m working. So annoying.

4. PHOTOSHOP! It ALWAYS freezes and shuts down RIGHT in the middle of something awesome that of course I didn’t save. Then it gives you that irritating ‘sorry, Photoshop is ‘not responding’. All your hard work will be lost. Sorry for SCREWING up your night and wasting your time cause now you have to start all over sucker.’

That’s not word for word…I’m paraphrasing.

5. The munchies. Stressful scrapping (deadlines, no mojo etc.) make me want to snack.

And to prove my point regarding #3….here is some photographic evidence.

So what’s in YOUR top 5?
Click here to share your list and read what others had to say!

Plumberry Harvest Stamps Hybrid Tutorial
Mary Jo Johnston

Stamps (the altered postage kind!) are such a great scrapbook embellishment. They are unique, classic and a great addition to your hybrid projects such as cards, layouts or gifts.

The Plumberry Harvest Elements kit has two adorable stamps that are perfect for printing.

You’ve printed the stamps for your hybrid project. So, how do you get that realistic stamp edge? It’s very simple! You could use a pair of decorative scissors like these:

Be careful to adjust your printing size to match the spacing of your scissors ;)

But, not everyone has a pair of those scissors, so here’s a great trick for creating that unique look:

You’ll need a small hole punch and a scrapbook hammer, like these:

After printing your stamp, cut it into a rectangular shape very close to the stamp edge. Using the hole punch, align half of the setting onto the stamp and punch a series of holes following the stamp design. Ink the edges of your stamp for a more dramatic effect.

Voila! Hybrid stamps!

Here’s an example of a card I created recently using this technique.

Be sure to upload your creations into the Peppermint Creative Idea Gallery!
And do not enter a URL in the comments section so the spam filters don’t get ya!

Well it’s been a while since my last actual personal non-tutorial post. To be honest, I kind of thought you wouldn’t notice but from the emails, it’s clear that you did notice and you’re none too pleased about it. Apparently my cynical, sarcastic commentary about life, Hollywood, reality TV and general nonsense is exactly what want. Well good news for all; I have PLENTY to go around. P-L-E-N-T-Y.

I was out shopping for clothes today (insert dreaded ‘duh duh duh’ music). Yes, I know it seems like I shop a lot (truthfully I just blog about it a lot) but I usually don’t come away with much. If it’s a great shopping day, I walk away with a rockin’ new outfit (never happened). If it’s a good day, I get one thing I really like (woohoo, that happened today!) If it’s a decent day, I find a few things I need but don’t particularly love (like ‘Oh I need a dress, and this ugly thing is the only one that fits! Grrrr…I loathe you dress. I can’t believe I spent $110 on you. I could have bought shoes, or two nice sweaters or FOUR bags at H&M! Damn you dress!!!!’) And if it’s a bad day, I find myself in Old Navy buying pajamas and sweatpants and then I drown my sorrows in an Oreo Yogen Fruz.

So today was a combo day because I was in Old Navy and I did buy sweats but I also found a cute jacket and top at Buffalo. So I feel encouraged. Sometimes I walk through the mall feeling like a human ‘Before’ picture. You know when you catch a glimpse of your reflection in the store window and wonder ‘why is that homeless person who looks just like me following me around the mall?’…and then you realize…..

So that was me today. Actually that is me MOST days unless I specifically make a conscious effort to put on my big girl clothes and masquerade as a real person. But let’s be honest – that’s a lot of effort. And there in lies one of the major pitfalls of working at home. No office + no need for real clothes = lazy dresser. So I spend most days in my gym pants, running shoes and whatever t-shirt was on the top of the pile.

I actually came to blog about my TV night (24 two-hour special and the AMA’s) but I got all wrapped up in shopping talk so I’ll give you the Cliff Notes (Canada, that’s Cole’s Notes to you.)

Finally 24 is coming back. After a year off, Jack Bauer is back in action ready to save the world! It started off slow and I was pretty confused for the first 15 minutes but MAN what a season it could be. After a full summer of Dancing with the Stars and all those light hearted reality TV shows, this was some HEAVY sh*t. I was not prepared!

I taped the American Music Awards and fast forwarded through that afterwards. More performances than awards so if you’re going to watch one award show a year, that should be it. Overall the performances were amazing.

Among the ‘Let’s Rewind and Watch that Again’ Category were Beyonce, Pink, a Pink & Sarah McLaughlin duet, Natasha Bedingfield, Miley Cyrus (she rocked that stage – don’t deny it.), Alicia Keys, Annie Lenox and Christina Aguilera. Taylor Swift, Leona Lewis & Rihanna were pretty good too.

In the ‘What the Heck was THAT?’ Category are the Jonas Brothers (are you serious? I don’t get it. I feel SO sorry for the parents of kids who like them and therefore have to listen to them in the car) and New Kids on the Block. Oh man. Don’t mean to knock the New Kids but……oh no, no, no. What I really want to know is HOW in the world did they talk Donnie Wahlberg (now an established and very talented actor) into that? And the award for pompous jerk of the night award goes to, as always, Mr. Kanye West. I seriously dislike him. But overall it was a great show!

And that’s all she wrote!
Have a happy Monday..scrap something!

Get a jump start on Christmas and get started on your albums and gifts now! Calendar grids and stamps and pre-made calendars are coming soon! But for right now I have two new AWESOME hybrid templates and 2 new albums from Cindy.

Check it out!