It might be New Year's Eve, but it's still Aloha Friday!

No work till Monday? ...doo dee doo doo dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo.  President Obama can't be the ONLY one having fun in Hawaii.  We can play too you know!

So tonight is the big one!

Do you have those funny glasses?

Okay then, it is out with the old, in with the new. 

What new? 

What's gonna be new with you?

Show us!

#1.  Connect us to a websight that will help you with a New Year's resolution

#2.  What guilty pleasure will you keep?

#3.  What is one thing that you will cross off your bucket list this year?

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It's best to save an image to your computer file first.

Make sure you put the category # (1,2,3) and your name.

(No need to put your email addy.)

That's it! See...easy peasy.

Enter once, twice or thrice.

Keep your fingers crossed and Amber may reward a random winner,

otherwise just chalk it up to a fun start to your holiday weekend.

Hauoli Makahiki HOU!!!!

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The Countdown begins...

Look closely.

There is no big apple drop here.

There is a chance for something amazing though.

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT!

Our Challenging Workdesk

Our world here on the East Coast. It's a wonderland.  Here is me attempting to get to my workdesk last night. Hahaha. I have spent the last 3 days learning what it officially means to be 'snowed in'.


My great friend, Jen and her husband and baby and I all .had a long impromptu slumber party. We had such fun. We would only break the party for moments of hysteria where we wondered if you could die from clostrophobia?  My snowdays really interfered with normalcy here at Amber Ink.

Tonight my workdesk is covered with an attempt to get back on track.
Our 21-Day Amber Ink. INK-redible challenge was supposed to launch today. Instead we are launching TONIGHT! I would be sore remiss to fail to mention the brilliance and hard work of our amazing torch bearers. These girls ran during the holiday! They sprinted over St.Nick's path and they arrived huffing and puffing and we are so glad they did. Our challenge this month calls you to organize with Amber Ink!

Without further ado, look at our workdesks!

Alyssa's organizing her life with a holiday planner!


Cheryl is comanding her kitchen with a recipe holder of delight.

 

Jane is showing her buttons who's boss.


Laurel is ready for a spring of seeds. Her journal is ideal for all the planning that goes with a growing garden.

 

Lindsey is ready for anything with her sticky-note holder. It is class meets utility.

Aren't our workdesks lovely? We hope you join us with your own organizing bits of brilliance. Please leave some love on our torch bearers blogs. They really are a wow-worthy group. We gasp at their smartness all the time.

As always our winner wins a custom designed set with me.This month, the winner of our 21-day Wrap it Your Way Challenge,the accomplished Emily L.  and I will be composing a set to be entitled "European Chic!"  Isn't that the greatest name for an Amber Girl you ever heard?

So that's our snowy workdesk here at Amber Ink.  What's on yours? Hop over to our pal and yours, Julia Dunnit's genius blog to show and to tell. xoxo

Top 10 from 2010

Our one and only original Mrs. Weyremaster (a.k.a. inaugural blue AmberInk torchbearer Suzi Mckenzie)

has created a blog hop to showcase YOUR favorite cards from 2010. 

It's easy. 

1.  Create a post on your blog entitled "My Top Ten Cards of 2010".

2.  Link that post to the Linky tool HERE on Suzi's Blog.
 
3.  If you have an AmberInk project in your top 10 , then  link your blogpost a second time to the Linky tool below. You must have at least one card using an AmberInk product to qualify (please use your AmberInk card for the image on our link).  You can win prizes on Suzi's blog AND we will have a give-away as well.

4.  You can link your blog post up until 7AM GMT on Wednesday, December 29th. 

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

NOT!

It is being called a "snowpocalypse" and "Snowmaggedon" and there was THUNDER and overnight campouts w/o toothbrushes or jammies at friends' houses.  But guess what?  There were also new socks for Christmas

So all is well.

Did you have a wonderful Christmas???

Are you snowed in too???

We'll be back tomorrow w/a new

AmberInk's InKredible 21 Day Challenge!

1...It Might be Christmas Eve but it's still Aloha Friday!!!

No work till I don't know...when? ...doo dee doo doo dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE EVERYONE!!!  We hope that yours is wonderful, merry and bright, just like the big day tomorrow. We are just wanting a bit of a snoop today so we'll make this short and sweet.  Afterall, Santa is on his way and you don't want to get caught with your hands in the cookie jar! Soooo...

#1.  What's in your Christmas Stocking?

(Tradition! Tradition! as sung in my best Tevia voice)

#2.  What is a sentimental decoration in your house?

(There's a story that melts me about my little guy here)

#3.  What's baking in your oven?

(Christmas Eve is always Mexican at our house)

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It's best to save an image to your computer file first.

Make sure you put the category # (1,2,3) and your name.

(No need to put your email addy.)

That's it! See...easy peasy.

Enter once, twice or thrice.

Keep your fingers crossed and Amber may reward a random winner,

otherwise just chalk it up to a fun start to your holiday weekend.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

3...2...

Christmas Organizer checklist...check

Ornaments on the tree...check

Invitations sent out...check

Snow has arrived...check

Presents are wrapped...check

check...

and check...

Ready for Santa...check

Lookin' pretty...check

Mistletoe hung?  Better go and do that now!

WOYWW!?

This is my post-it tree.

This is my workdesk for it:

It was mostly made by the passionate yet introverted Tess Nelson and her venerable Doctor cohort, Zach. Regardless, it was made under my dictatorship gentle suggestion. It is in my apartment. Win.
The pink ones are this iPaper

I think everyone should have a post-it tree. Mom told me to make one and boy am I glad we did. It's such a fun spot to write at now. Everyone who comes over can make a holiday note on it. True perfection.

This year I am making all of my gifts. I wish I could say this was the last one, but it's on my workdesk tonight at any rate.


I am creating a grand project. It'll probably take all 2011. This is one of the 'A's in my 'alphabet of happiness'. This one is going to my queen of all joy, Tomomi. She keeps me on pins and needles, in more ways than one.

What letters are in your alphabet of happiness?

Happy Wednesday, and if this is the last time we see you before the holiday, MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! XOXO

Now scurry on over to our gal Julias!

We Meet today...

To thank Thee for the era done,

And Thee for the opening one.

~John Greenleaf Whittier

With the busy holiday season upon us - a time of family, friends, joy and happiness, we have decided to do something just a little out of the norm.  Of course with AmberInk  there is no "norm" right?  Ah, the advantages of having a start up! 

Our December Torchbearers have amazed us already - can you imagine taking on such a task of running with flaming hot torches in the ice and snow during such a festive time of year?  These girls did not hesitate. They did not balk.  And so we have said...RUN!  Find your own path!  Run willy-nilly, helter-skelter, shilly-shally.  Just meet us round the bend on January 19th for the next pass off!  And can you believe it? 

They said ,"YES!!!  We will do it!".

We are speechless.

They have been given a key to the shop.  We don't know what they'll do, but we do know that we'll be amazed and you will be too. 

Share the journey and when you can, give a cheer  to :

JANE

ALYSSA

CHERYL

LINDSEY

LAUREL

Because you know what?  They are absolutely InKredible!!!

Meet Our Newest Babes!

Jane lives in Bracknell which is in Berkshire which is in England, and for the love of all things magical wouldn't you know that she crafts in a space under the stairs? She isn't afraid of spiders, but she is afraid of frogs! Jane is surrounded by some wizardly boys named Jack and Ryan (who can run 3000 metres on a broken toe!), DH Darren who is also her best friend and Charley, the mad terrier pup. Oh, and then there is Patch, a mostly absent cat, due to the mad terrier pup of course.

Jane was so used to the firebolt, that a car with four wheels and an engine seemed just so rudimentary. Perhaps that is why she failed her driving test seven times. She may have been luckier if the test had been given in French (she's fluent) and the driving was done on the other side of the street (she grew up in France). Still, our girl can whip up a storm when she wants to -she works at the European Weather Centre, so fly over and take a peek at her marvelous craft magic@ http://milliesmarvels.blogspot.com/

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Alyssa describes herself in one word as "quiet" but she is no shrinking violet. Actually, she seems much more like Atom girl to us. She's a tattooed hard rocker with a snake named Houdini (he was lost in the house for 8 months), a Rotty named Rikki, a couple of Betta fish , her own Bouncing Boy, Zaniac and a Super Hero Hubs who actually built her a stamping cave! Can we say SHAZAM!!WOW!!BAM!!POW!!??

Growing up Lyss wanted to investigate serial killers for the FBI, so daddy invited a few FBI agents and psychiatric nurses over for dinner. Although this had nothing to do with Alyssa's choice, she started looking at the healthy food they were eating and chose to be a Human Nutritionist instead. Tempted? Ya, we thought so. Go and serve yourself up a serious helping of Alyssa @ http://critterlyss.blogspot.com/

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A visit to cafexpressions is like snuggling up to a table at your favorite corner bistro. Cheryl Ann First brings her down home skills (she lived in Michigan for forever!) to a new country spot in West Virginia. She is mixing up the menu a bit. Cheryl worked for a wholesale company for fifteen years, but has recently decided to stick to the basics - the kind you can only get from cooking at home. Her new digs are a little cozier (from a 20 x 12 craft space to a re-purposed porch) but the classy staff remains the same - Her high school senior son, Kyle, her Bff and hubster Chris, and the three pups Peter Pan, Mia and Prince Riley.

Cheryl Ann monitors security all by herself since she had childhood dreams of being a Forensic Psychiatrist, a cop or a fireman. You will also want to make sure you pay the bill before you leave, since our sweetheart once broke someone's finger...on purpose! The stereo is playing Classic Rock, a tall cold glass of water w/lemon is sitting on your table and the vintage décor will delight and surprise you. Check it out for yourself @ http://cafexpressions.blogspot.com/

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As a former teacher-librarian, we see Lindsey M-P as a study - a study in true living color. She lives in the WHITE winter wonderland of Ontario, Canada. She is our ORANGE torchbearer with a calico cat named Cricket (aren't crickets green?) She doesn't like cucumbers, dill pickles or olives (aren't those all green too?) but she does like dark chocolate and Black Russians. She loves RED shoes and BLUE sunny skies and primacolor and watercolor in EVERY color.

Follow us over the rainbow (there has got to be a pot of GOLD in here somewhere!) as some fresh colors are being blended on Lindsey's new blog http://bashfulblogging.blogspot.com/

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Laurel Seabrook said that her dream growing up was to be rich. She lives in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, BC., so in our view rich she is! Laurel, a grade one teacher, lives with two beautiful daughters, her husband, a cat and a dog. We can't resist turning Laurel's bio into a little travelog here - it is just too perfect! Laurel's favorite food is seafood. Could this be because she lives in the SALMON CAPITAL OF THE WORLD?? (and yes, feel free to check out the links) She only has one strange thing that she can come up with about herself...she crafts standing up! Could it be an influence from the 800 year old Douglas Firs standing over 200 feet tall that live nearby? Her favorite drink is water. Duh! Could it be because she is surrounded by incredible waterfalls and rivers and lakes and streams? And her most recently read book? The Polar Express. Can you see the connection here?

Laurel's most embarrassing craft story is that when she first got new flooring in her scraproom (she used to have carpet) her rolling chair really rolled and when she went to sit down it rolled right out from under her and she fell smack on her head on the floor! We'll leave that one alone. Join the 500 who want to scrap @ http://want2scrap.blogspot.com//

It's Aloha Friday...

No work till Monday ...doo dee doo doo dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo.

I’ve been reading Gretchen Rubin for a long time – even before she had a Happiness Project.  So read this article when you get a chance, but in the meantime, this Aloha Friday we are going for i (instant) pretty!


Last Aloha Friday we  picked the dresses, the jewelry and the signature perfume.  We know the who (why us of course) and the what (a festive evening out in our best attire) and all we need is the where and the wear (for our tootsies).

Since I am running this show and my imagination looms LARGE I will show you my dress just one more time

and my jewelry

 

So what do you think about these shoes?

 

Too high?  Too funky?

How about these then?

I can't quite decide.

(you know you can click on the photo to get the link and help me decide. 

Of course price is no option. LMBO)

Pick yours. 

#1.  Your dream shoes to wear for a memorable evening out.

Now where are you going with your dream date? 

Oh for me there is no question...

#2.  Your dream destination for a night on the town

(You can catch me in the Amber Room at the Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong,

oh and thank goodness I won't have to walk very far in those heels since I'll be staying at the hotel)

#3.  That special little something for before, after or during.

(Guess I'll have to catch a cab to Kowloon side for this one oh shoot,

what am I thinking?  Forget about it, make it a limo!).

DHubs likes me to play this game.  It's like I actually get to go there w/o spending the money.

Want to play?

-------------------------------------------

It's best to save an image to your computer file first.

Link to a URL, not your blog!

Make sure you put the category # (1,2,3) and your name.

(No need to put your email addy.)

That's it! See...easy peasy.

Enter once, twice or thrice.

Keep your fingers crossed and Amber may reward a random winner,

otherwise just chalk it up to a fun start to your weekend.

See you on Monday!

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A story of some runners...

who never slowed down.  It was for a month, which may seem like a long time if you are a child waiting for a birthday, or a soldier waiting to go home.  This month for us at Amber Ink went InKredibly fast.  Our torchbearers never stopped running and never let their torches even slip a teensy bit.  They were bold and they were strong.  See for yourselves...

KERRI!

ANGELA!

JULIA!

JULIE!

STACIE!

We are just so proud. 

The hand off comes on Monday, so keep cheering! 

It's going to be great!!!

WOYWW - Christmas

Ladies, I'd like you to
meet my first tree.
She's up on my workdesk this Wednesday.
Here's what she looked like at 5:30 Before.

Here's what she looked like at 8:24 After.

My house smells like a forest. Here's what my desktop looked like earlier. I'm working on a blog post for my 'I'm an illustrator' blog, http://SheSureisSketchy

Here's a photo collage I'm working on. I hope I'll get it up tomorrow.


Here's the exciting part....

We've been looking and hoping and waiting for a way to do some video for our LOOK button. Tonight I made THIS

Decorate, wrap, scrap and stamp.

In case you missed Wendy's amazing post here  is a teaser:

Not only does Wendy decorate, but she shows us how!

And Karin shows us how to wrap a great little stocking stuffer gift:

And Angela shows us that you can actually scrap with AmberInk too!

And then you can always decorate, wrap and Stamp like Stacie did!

Oh, and the supplies? 

You can still get them in time for Christmas. 

Here

Here

Here

and

Here

Because you are brilliant, not patient!