Responses from last year's Contest -I hope you'll find inspiration in some of these! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi Charlene, I've got too much time on my hands tonight, so I was thinking of some names; Geezer, Flasher, Butterball, Gabby, (all good resons to be grounder...lol) A: ~giggle~ You must be as addicted as I am, Christy! I took my clipboard and sketchpad to the pool tonight during my son's swimming lesson. What was I doodling? MORE CRITTERs!! LOL!! EVERYTHING boils down to whether I can take its picture...glue it down or apply it somehow to this obsession. LOL!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: I registered today to enter your contest so here goes Snoop Deer, Chocolate Ice,D UNit, Black Eyed Deer.and Destenys Deer,and Iwana Winn. A: EGAD!! THAT is a wonderful compliment...Thank you!! Welcome to the PARTY!! ~grin~ Thank you for participating...The last suggestion is genius...Ivanna Winn! HAHahaa!! Good luck in the draw!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: 1st picture: Twister (doesn't seem to know which way to look, and his partner in the snow, Cozy, who is laying down on the job. Second picture: SlickDicky, his hoofs obviously can't handle snow and ice. Third: Fumblefoot, obviously can't fly without injury! 5th: Scrooge, He definitely doesn't want to take presents in an open sleigh to kids, good or bad! 6th: Dozer, He sleeps through most major events, even Santa's ride on Christmas Eve! And the final one after your description. The one on the left is Lady-in-Waiting, looks too pregnant to fly! Very cute auction! Good luck! A Thank you for lurking-- (I can't believe I missed SCROOGE! Egad!) hehee! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi, I would like to throw my hat into the ring. My suggestions are Ima Ditz, Belcher, Flat U. Lence, Jack Daniels, Jose Cuervo, the the Walker brothers, Johnny Red and Johnny Black! This is AWESOME! A: ...LMAO!! Welcome to the virtual rubber room, Betty Anne! hehehee!! These are GREAT! (I particularly like the Walker Brothers...those two reindeer heading in opposite directions probably ARE related!) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi Girls, I would name the two raindeers scrappy 1 and scrappy 2. The one who looks surprised reminds me of the look that I give my husband (after a long day of scrapping) when he says - whats for dinner? and I give him the deer in headlights look - dinner, what dinner? The second would be named Scrappy 2 because that is the look I have given my husband after he says - Are you almost done scrapbooking yet? A: MWAHhaahaha! Hi Dawn! You're not alone...the dinner question has surprised me a few times in the past, too! There's something compulsive about this addiction that I haven't quite been able to squash...(not that I'm really trying. heh!!) I actually leapt out of bed at 4AM one morning last week to write an idea down so I wouldn't forget...When the alarm went off at 7AM, I thought I must have imagined the whole thing, but...apparently I really AM this obsessed. The paper was exactly where I 'dreamed' that I'd left it on the table. EEK!! (Thank GOD my husband is working out of town. He probably would have been tempted to smother me with a pillow. LOL!!) If my obsessive scrapbook addiction could be managed while I'm sleeping, I'd probably NEVER put the scissors down! ooo...Maybe that isn't such a good idea. Perhaps you remember the Horse layout I scrapped several weeks ago?? I retired one night thinking: 'Must cut out horses'...'Must cut out horses'. I made more than one copy, and even though I was too tired to stay awake, I reluctantly crawled off to bed wishing that I could work on the layout. I woke --slightly disoriented--a few hours later...standing in the bathroom, holding a pair of scissors in one hand... and found the shower curtain clutched in the other. There are little SEAhorses all over the shower curtain. I'm still not sure what I was thinking (or dreaming!)...but if I hadn't come to my senses and rose later to discover all of the 'horses' cut from the shower curtain...I probably would have had to confess to having a PROBLEM!! (Fortunately...this OBVIOUSLY isn't the case!!) grin~ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi, Some names I came up with are Shakes, Miss B. Haven, Ima Sotired, and Grumpus Mcguilacutty. I love these little misfits!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: On dinky on stinky, on sleepy and creepy on talker and stalker (he hangs out w/creepy) A: LMAO! OK...here goes: ----> On Boozer, On Snoozer! On Hiccup and Dizzy... That deer had better not be drinking again, IS he? On Fruitcake and Eggnog and the deer in the vat...(He's probably the one that's fallen down SPLAT!) Whatever on earth will residents think if the deer on the roof are snockered with drink?! If you're wakened at all by the din on the roof, And rush to the window to glimpse deer on the hoof... Look down and not up as you grope for your glasses. The lawn may be tangled with deer on their...er... (I'm sure they'll just be wandering around looking for GRASSES!) Good luck in the draw!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q Here's what my kids came up with: Senor Grumpy Pants, Moody, Dozer and Klepto. A: Hi Jennifer (and reindeer-petting crew!!) I knew you'd be able to identify a few of those critters! Senor Grumpy Pants....BWHAhahaaa!! (Could this be a land-locked distant relative to Senor Square Pants...?!) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: These are definitely over the top!!!! I saw your contest to name the grounded reindeer and it reminded me of Christmas many (well lets just say a few) years ago. Along with milk and cookies that we would leave for Santa, my father always thought we should leave Santa a little whiskey - he said it would warm his old bones on his long cold ride. Mom always joked the reindeer might get a little tipsy - Dasher would get "Smashed" and Blitzen would get "Blitzed". Now that I have kids of my own, my father teases me about leaving a little shot for Santa - but I tell him that "Smashed and Blitzed" are retired. Maybe they aren't retired, maybe they were grounded!!!! Anyway....thanks for the chuckles and the rekindling of memories!!! Theresa A: ...Hi Theresa! Santa's preference for something 'warm' extended to our household too... Dad always said that leaving Eggnog for the bearded old fellow would be pointless without adding a dram of RUM! (The nog explained Santa's high cholesterol count and the reason he developed magical abilities squeezing down chimneys. I'm told that he began his career as a thin man--not much food up there at the north pole!--and developed a terrible dependency on rum and eggnog to survive the rest of the year. HAHaha!) NOW I know where the reindeer acquired their names! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: 1. Chance (doesn't have a snowball's chance of arriving on time...only has a fifty-fifty chance...) 2. Friction (always rubs other reindeer the wrong way) A: ...OH Deer! When I eventually get started scrapping our own album with my own copy of these critters, I'm going to have a very difficult time deciding what to name the remaining reindeer...There are SO many great suggestions!! 'A snowballs' CHANCE' seems particularly fitting for one of the grounded herd! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q A few more: Quirky, Clutsy, Oopsy, Droopsy, Boots of Loot, Sir Narc O. Leptic, and Bell E. Flop... A ...These are GREAT! Sir Narc O. Leptic and Bell E. Flop...BWHAahahaha!! Brilliant! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: HI There My names for 3 of them would be Burpy Scuseme and Psycho Angerissues and Ouch Myknee. Love your piecings ....I always look forward to them! Thanks Tana A: ...Hi Tana! I love these suggestions!! Who in their right mind would ride in a sleigh pulled by PSYCHO the reindeer?!! HAHaa!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Love reading these great ideas and the deer are to FLY for! For the two opposing critters, CommanDEER and JohnDEERE, both could be trying to muscle the team. Then there's PeeWee, the elve's favorite deer who probably isn't yet big enough while Fluffy may be tipping the scales. Fianlly, KaraBoo, the scared reindeer, is a bit scared to fly. A ...Hi Lisa! JohnDEERE and KaraBOO...OH MY! These are keepers! BWHAHahahaha!!! GREAT ideas!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q My 6 year old daughter suggested Snoozy and Tripsy. Thanks for the fun! Melanie A ... Hi Melanie! Thank you for two more fun contributions! Good luck in the draw Tuesday night! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: The one reindeer looks like the cold weather is causing his hemorrhoids to act up (Feliz Unger forgot his tube of prep. H) the other one with his hands over his mouth looks like he keeps getting in trouble for not keeping a secret, he keeps giving too many hints about what's in the gifts.(loose lips Harry) A: OMG!! LOL! Do you mean the 'Odd Couple' reindeer...the neurotic, neat-freak hypochondriac Felix and his perpetually slovenly partner Oscar Madison in reindeer form?! HAHhhahaa! (Yep, I'm a virtual fountain of useless trivia. I love old movies!) Loose Lips Harry could also be lurking over a photo with tiny snowflakes drifting nearby: 'Is it snowing, or does he have dandruff?!' I'd ground that reindeer too...or give him a bottle of Head and Shoulders! hehee! Good luck in the draw, Debbie! Smiles, Charlene ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: BOOZER and KLUMSY.....I think the one laying down should be boozer and the one in bandages should be klumsy. :) This is fun, can I submit more than just 2? Thanks, Jackie A: ...Hi Jackie! These are great suggestions for the grounded critters...we all know that it's not safe to drink and fly! LOL! You're welcome to enter again if you can think of additional names...thank you for contributing! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi, We thought Mr. Smooth and The Tramp probably wouldn't be the best for Santa's team. My husband, the deer hunter, thought of Supper & Left Overs!!! Wanted to get my name in the hat for a chance to win these adorable guys! Love your contests! Thanks! A .. Supper and Leftovers! LMAO! No WONDER Santa left them behind! Good luck in the draw! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi Charlene, Considering that the reindeer (for the time in the season) are probably female, my suggestions are Eve (a play on Christmas Eve) and Glo (as females do "glow" in their glory. Keeping my fingers crossed. ~E A: ~grin~ Hi Elisa! I think you're right about the gender. In fact...male reindeer shed their antlers before the holiday, so there's a bit of speculation about gender confusion and Santa's ability to name reindeer. Fortunately... (~wink~wink~)... We're gonna make up MORE confusing details to obscure the issue. MWHAHahahahaa!!! .............................................. (Hey...if we name one of these critters EVE and evolution 40 years from now people have the story of Adam and Eve tangled up with flying reindeer, Santa and Boxing Day sales, I'm going to DENY EVERYTHING!!) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Here are our my sons' suggestions to name the Reindeer -- Antlers and Cosmo. A: These are great---and Cosmo seems like a perfect name for a flying critter! (In fact, I think he's more likely to end up on Santa's team instead of left behind on the ground! LOL!) Good luck in the draw! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: I asked my 2 year old daughter to name the reindeer. The one that is permanently grounded - she named HIPPO and my 3 year old son named the angry looking one - RICK. Miranda A: ~laughing~! OMG...I can just imagine how you must have received this. 'Rick?! Who's Rick? Is there a RICK living next door...? At daycare...? Do you know someone named RICK?!' (Someone angry for that matter?!) BWHAHahahaa!! As a parent, I remember spending an entire day getting to the bottom of the mystery surrounding the namesake of the snarling plastic dinosaur that my son named 'BOB'...(which had nothing to do with anyone he knew, and everything to do with what the critter did when he threw it in the bath!! hehee!!) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Dizzy and Ditzy, Unclear and Uncured, Shaken and Shapely, Comic and Cured, Pension and Penitent, Warts and Waltz, Tremor or Tremble and Trench, Short-sighted and Near-sighted, Weepy and Weary, Vexed and Veto...my favorite is Vertigo. A: Hi Brenda! What a great list!! Dizzy and Vertigo have a lot in common...and WEARY should probably be the one sleeping in the snowbank! ~grin~ I think my favorite is the Klutz...I'm not sure if that's a sign of anything freudian...~giggle~...but it's probably a reasonable depiction of what I could expect if I spent any time on a roof hanging around with Vertigo, so...ya never know!! MWAhahaha!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Good Morning Charlene, How about GREASE LIGHTING (could have a false hairpiece shaped like the guys from the movie, GREASE & too much hair-goop dripping off his slippery body) How about STUDDLEY (He's a good looking manly guy, doesn't every family have one that thinks he's all that?...lol. Also you have to have a POSH (a female deer that just have her hoofs done & the polish is not dry with a lot of gold jewlery on her. A real PRIMA DONNA)...I'll keep thinking of more, CHRISTY A: BWAhahahaa!! Studley!! Yes, there's one of these in every family...even if it's just a hilarious temporary pose for the camera! ~grin!~ (All I have to do to get that picture is ask for more 'James Bond' and less OCC...hahaa!) Great suggestions Christy! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: My suggestions for the missing reindeers: ICESTORM and HURRICANE..... Hugz Nicole/zwillinge97 A: Good morning Nicole!! These are both great suggestions---if Santa has a superstitious bone in his body, he definitely wouldn't fly with these conditions!! I was thinking that some of the reindeer with unique names could easily be accessorized with things that complement their character...small icicles, for example (crystal lacquer?)...a tiny tree 'air freshener' to hang from the antler of the stinky critter...heheheh (I was beginning to think I'd NEVER find a use for that tree punch!!) ~grin~ Good luck in the draw!! Smiles, Charlene ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: My guess is KLUTZY (for the ultimate clutz of a deer)AND BOMBA"DEER" (for the "toot"ing reindeer)! Thanks, Kathy A: BombaDeer...HAhahaaHA! If Santa considered upgrading his sled to this brand.... the exhaust would be a little difficult to tolerate, wouldn't it? EWWWW!!!! Well done, Kathy! Good luck in the draw!!! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Hi there Charlene, I have a couple names; CocoPuffs, Blotted, Busty, Zippo, Grouchy, Spiced, CinnamonStick, Clover, Nutmeg, Radko, VanillaSpice, Lighting, Blitzed, Snockered, Fruitcake.....That's it for now, CHRISTY A: Christy...OH!!! OH!! FRUITCAKE and Snockered!! BWahahaha!! Could the holiday be complete without these?! I think some of us might even have PICTURES that fit the description over the holiday!! ~grin!~ (Whenever fireball whiskey is substituted for Bailey's in coffee, I suppose we should EXPECT unusual results. LOL!) These are GREAT suggestions, Christy! Good luck in the draw! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: HI, Those are great works of art. Where is the crystal lacquer used? My suggestions are: End Dear pronounced endear Stinker thanks for the fun A: These are GREAT! I'm almost certain that Santa would have grounded any reindeer named Stinker! heheheh Crystal lacquer is used on all of the reindeer...the 'bells' on their collars are metallic lacquer...the boots on the kleptomaniac critter are coated to make them shiny, and although the white areas in the scans are a bit light, there's also lacquer on the eyes. (The light blue didn't scan well this week for some reason.) Smiles, Charlene ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: Since so many traditions at Christmas are based on stories, this seems like a great opportunity to invoke our own! I made a copy of these critters to add to our own album, and with each character, I'll include the name of each reindeer as a title and a short humorous description to accompany the page. Eight of the Reindeer are named after the ones in the original poem 'Twas the Night Before Christmas', which appears on the opening page. The remaining seven reindeer will appear on the final pages and their names represent the LEAST likely candidates that one would expect to find trotting on the roof on Christmas eve...for obvious reasons! ('Klepto' has a hard time lifting off. 'A Blinkin' is responsible for all the burned out light bulbs we find on the tree each year. Did 'Crasher' dislodge the shingles on the roof this year?!) 7 rejected reindeer have silly stories to share..but they're no stranger than the story about a fat man in a red suit coming down the chimney! HAha! Charlene ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Background from the original collection: (if it's useful) We're all familiar with the story of Santa's sleigh being pulled through the sky by a team of reindeer... But this essential part of our Christmas tradition was first devised by Clement Clarke Moore in his famous 1822 poem "A Visit From Saint Nicholas" (better known today as "The Night Before Christmas".) According to Moore's original poem the eight reindeer were named: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen. The most famous reindeer of all wasn't part of the original team of eight. Rudolph was created in 1939 by Robert L. May, who worked for the Montgomery Ward chain of department stores. The stores distributed free coloring books and other gifts to children over Christmas, and they wanted a story specially written for them. May's story was a great success and Rudolph became an instant hit. The original poem was turned into the famous song by May's brother-in-law Johnny Marks. The collection was intended to assist with "speed scrapping" in the respect that it would compliment a huge variety of holiday photos regardless of age or gender, and could be used to complete multiple pages based on a potentially humorous and continuous theme. There are a HUGE number of ways to utilize the pieces, either incorporating the traditional reindeer names in addition to the "rejected" candidates or by including the pieces in a number of smaller projects. Simply by mounting pictures on bright red cardstock and adding a white (imitation snow!) base to each page, this collection could be used to complete an entire album with relatively little effort. Tips that might be useful with these pieces: Different elements can be used to create the same effect of "snow" along the bottom of the page. Cotton batting can be spread across the bottom of the page and secured with glue or double-sided tape....handmade or textured paper can be torn to create a "snow" border, or regular white cardstock which has been crumpled and inked can be equally striking. The blue displayed in the background scan is DARK SKY from Bazzill-it is very similar to "PACIFIC", as well, and one of the white-core blue cardstock by Die Cuts with a View (this one came in a multi-pack, so I'm not certain which color it was). In my own album, I scrapped these with Lava Red cardstock mats, and the candy-cane-patterned paper came from last years' release from Sassafras Lass: it was from the "Winter Wonder" collection and called "Candy Cane". (Item number 11052 on the cut-off strip). I also made EXTENSIVE use of Holiday rub-on collections that included titles and scrolls, etc, a holly punch and 2 snowflake punches. All of my journaling appears on white cardstock, as well as some titles that I printed to add to the pages. Have fun with your critters!