Birthday Fun Part One...SHOPPING!

I had such a great time shopping with my ever-so-patient husband and now it's time to share my bounty with you! I hardly know where to start, so I decided to go with the papers I am most excited about. I love vintage...retro...nostalgia...call it what you want. When Paul spotted these great papers from Graphic45 on the rack, he knew it would be ok to have me "drop everything to check these out!" (I love that he knows me THAT well!) They are fabulous, 2-sided patterned papers that harken 'back to the day', that's for sure. I cannot wait to start designing with these and I am SURE they will show up soon in a Friday Night Series.

Next up, the spookier, more macabre Halloween...'intellectual' Halloween. These papers are from the Spider's Web Collection for My Mind's Eye. I've already begun designing a card that I hope to share with you tomorrow. I love these upscale colors, don't you...something different, I think.

Of course with the spooky comes the cute and colorful. I found some great new Heidi Grace and Doodlebug Design for Halloween and then some really cute prints from Bo-Bunny for the general fall season. Vibrant colors are always a nice option when it comes to fall-color alternatives.

I had really been looking forward to seeing the new Eskimo Kisses Collection from Basic Grey and along the way, I found some terrific 'stuff' from Bo-Bunny, My Mind's Eye and one of my favorite companies, Fancy Pants Designs. I was definitely NOT disappointed! There are so many beautiful shades to work with for the holiday season, I really won't know where to start!
I think all in all, I bought around 75 new sheets of patterned papers and a variety of chipboard, die-cut and sticker sheets. What a great way to keep the birthday party going, huh!

I saved the stamps and accessories for last! My ribbon collection just went through the roof here! I just couldn't pass up alot of it, especially the Martha Stewart sets, as they were on clearance for $1.99 a set and the paper ribbons were .97 a package....Yeah, I know! Have you started working with Flower Soft yet? I bought 3 color varieties and some wire stems to make bouquets. This stuff is HUGE in the UK and much of Europe. I bought the English Cottage Peel-offs with a specific project in mind using the Flower Soft, so I will let you know how that works out. A great stamp set from October Afternoon and some much needed mushroom stamps from Hero Arts. I have been wanting to do some '70's-themed' cards and those will be perfect. A few $1 stamps thrown in there and some odds and ends and that's about it!

I have a few more photos to share with you of some 'crafty' gifts I received and a GIANT cupcake! But those will have to wait until tomorrow. In the meantime, I would love to know if you have indeed worked with Flower Soft....if so, what did you make? If not, is it something new to you?
Leave me a comment and let me know.

One more thing.....I can't thank you enough for the lovely birthday wishes I received over the course of the past week. It is so wonderful to be able to celebrate with this new community of friends that you have become.....it truly made me smile!