Thank You Berry Much!

Today is day 2 of the Sweet n' Sassy Stamps blog hop, and here is my fun summery contribution! This card uses two super cute (not to mention versatile) stamp sets. The strawberry image is from Summer Fun, and the sentiment is from Summer Sentiments.

I used some dazzling diamonds to highlight the "seeds" on the berries, and my Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder on the base. I love strawberries... they are easily my favorite berry (pretty much the only one I eat, for the most part), and also my kitchen theme! :o)

I'm the last stop on the hop for today, but be sure to pick up with us again tomorrow, starting with Korin's blog:

Friday, May 1
Korin
Deb
Tami
Deedee
Ceal
and back on the SNSS Blog to wrap it up!

Trim The Tree

I have been trying to get my Christmas cards done and mailed, and have been having a heck of a time with them. Everything that could go wrong, has. I was complaining about it on a thread a chat on over at SCS and one of the gals said I reminded her of that disgruntled 12 Days of Christmas song (if you've never heard it, click the link and listen - it's hilarious...).

Anyhow, that made me laugh, and it also reminded of this stamp, so I had to dust it off and use it! Today is a Belli Challenge day, and this week's challenge is to make something with a Christmas theme Yesterday was a CBC Challenge day, and this week's challenge is dots, so I combined the two to come up with this! Here's a close up of Ziggy, isn't he ca-ute?



Here's the whole card:

The colors are Garden Green, Ruby Red, Not Quite Navy, and Summer Sun. I colored him with my copics, and tried to get as many dots in as possible. I used the Swiss Dots Cuttlebug embossing folder, doodled dots around the sentiment, and used 5 brads (they look like dots, right?). The dot in the star is from SU's fire brads collection. The stamps is called Tree Lighting and is made by Stampendous. The sentiment is by PSX. The little paperclip on the side is from the office supply aisle at Target, and I have some of SU's (retired) narrow white organdy ribbon and IHP's metallic silver string tied around it.

So are you all ready for Christmas? I have the decorating done, but I need to make some candy this week for a treat exchange I participate in each year. I also want to get some cut out cookies made. If anyone has a recipe for a cut out cookie that holds its shape when cooked, and comes out soft like what you get in the bakery, I would love to try it! I also need to finish up some Christmas shopping... There's always something to do! Once that's all done, I can start to think about what I'll serve for Christmas breakfast. We're hosting Christmas Eve here for the entire family, and Christmas breakfast for my immediate family. I love having people over, so I'm looking forward to it!

Oh, and in case you didn't read to the bottom of yesterday's post, you can see some pictures of my tree and other decorations on my family blog.

Enjoy the day!

You're Fabulous

Remember, you still have time to enter my i {heart} papers blog candy! There's a set of 11 stamps, stickles, and silver string up for grabs, so be sure to get your comment in two posts below this one!

Today is another Bellaholics Anonymous Sketch Challenge day, and here is the sketch I drew for this week:


I've been thinking lately that my sketches are too particular, so I tried to keep this one simple and allow for some creative interpretation. You'll have to let me know what you think. Do you like more detail in the sketches, or less?

Here is my version of the sketch, using bikerbabeabella:

This is actually a bi-fold card, with the opening in the middle. Here's a shot of the card when it's open:

The sentiment is by Verve Stamps, and the scalloped punch used at the bottom is Fiskars threading water punch. Colors are Cameo Coral and Certainly Celery.

I would normally be offering a little prize for people if they played along with the sketch, but have decided not to this week since I have the blog candy running (which is even BETTER than any little prize I would come up with!). If you do happen to play along with the sketch, be sure to link your creation here. I'd love to see what you come up with!

Enjoy the day,

Much Love

I made this card for my hubby last night in honor of our 9 year anniversary, which happens to be today! Isn't that just the cutest image?

When I first started stamping, most of my stamps were House Mouse, and hubby was so into it. He was always looking for stamp stores when he traveled for work and asking if they sold Stampa Rosa (which was the company that owned them at that time). He was always coming home with one or two new "meece" for me to stamp with.


I thought it was only fitting to use one of those early stamps to make his card with. The sentiment on this card is actually from a foam mounted set (remember those?!) that was probably the first thing I bought when I started stamping. I have no idea what brand it is, but I think it was purchased at Ben Franklin.

Click on over to my family blog if you'd like to take a trip down memory lane with me and see some wedding pictures. :)

And before I go, I have to alert you to some more blog candy from the i {heart} papers team. Amber is hosting this time, and there is a fun cupcake stamp set up for grabs, along with some ribbon and stickles. How cool is that?! All you have to do is leave her a comment with party ideas for an 8 year old boy. Easy peasy! Go check it out!

Simple Thanks

Today is another CBC Challenge day, and this week's challenge is the following sketch. I drew this one up eons ago, long before circles were all the rage in sketches. I feel like such a trendsetter. ;o) lol.

And here is my take on the sketch:

I had so many ideas for this sketch, but in the end I wound up doing a simple thanksgiving card. We are back to fighting with our little one every night to get him to sleep and stay asleep, so my crafting time was limited last night. Thankfully, the pediatrician changed our meds again (for reflux, if you haven't been following the drama), so hopefully we'll have smooth sailing from here on out. Think happy thoughts for us!

The embossed area on the card is a Cuttlebug embossing folder, and the leaves are from Sweet n' Sassy Stamps Autumn Blessing set. I stamped them in Bravo Burgundy (same color as base of card) and then used my aquapainter and watercolor crayons to color them in.

Thanks so much to everyone who gave their congrats on my exciting news yesterday! I can't wait to get started. :)

For Mimi

I made this card for the Bellaholics Anonymous weekly challenge. This week is a color challenge, given to us by Queen Christi. Christi based her color choices - purple, black, and cream - on some favorite colors of her grandma (called Mimi) who passed away recently. You can read more about Christi's inspiration for the challenge and see the adorable card she made on her blog here.

I used white instead of cream on my card, but only because it was a gifted image. Her apron looks more purple in person. For some reason it seems more blue in my picture. About that apron... note how she is not wearing any kind of shirt underneath it. lol. Let's just pretend she bakes in halter tops, mmmk? Because otherwise that would just be wrong. ;)

All of the dots on the card are punched and glued down. I got a little spot-happy. hee hee. I love dots. When I was in middle school, I remember filling out these little quiz things to show how much you knew about your best friend. My best friend was Pam, and Pam listed my favorite color as "polka dots". LOL. :) So true. My favorite color actually is purple, so this was a fun card for me.

In other news, I've been chatting it up a bit with my blogger friend Sue about how she has this cool little comment form on her blog, and how I can get it too. She was kind enough to send me some info she found tonight, and I thought I'd share it with you. If you like the way my comment form is set up (effective today) you can do the same on your (Blogger) blog by following these simple instructions:

To enable the embedded comment form for your blog, go to the Settings > Comments page and look for the Comment Form Placement setting. Change it to Embedded below post, save your settings, and go check out a post to see the new form in action.

Enjoy the day!

Birds Of A Feather

Well, the good news is that Henry is feeling better. The bad news is, I still haven't had time to stamp anything. BUT, I do have a new card to show you that I made last week and never got posted! I just love these Inkadinkado birds, and my blogger friend Denise was kind enough to send some to me. And by "some", I mean "about a hundred". LOL! I was so surprised when I got her envie! Holy man! It really was happy mail in its truest form. :)

The paper is more of Stampin' Up!'s Washington Apple line. I don't have a sentiment on this one, because I couldn't find one that fit right. I had one sentiment that said, "Friends come in all shapes and sizes."... at first I thought I'd use that, but then I decided against it because if I got that card, I'd be wondering what the sender was trying to tell me about my shape and size. LOL. So, for now it's a blank card. hee hee.

If you have a moment, click over to my family blog and check out the cute halloween goodies I made tonight!

And in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness month, I'll leave you with this fun piece of flair I found on Facebook today...


Enjoy the day!

Just A Note

Today is another CBC Challenge day! This week's challenge is a sketch challenge, and I actually drew this one. Did I mention I love drawing up these sketches? I think it's fun. Weird, I know. Anyhow, here is the sketch for this week:



The sketch is actually taken from the Witchybella card I made and posted a month or so back. I thought it was a fun layout, and wanted to see what other people could do with it.

For this card, I decided to use one of the Magnolia images my blogger friend Kimmie sent me. I have been contemplating the purchase of Ms. Magnolia for some time, and was on the fence. In all honesty I really wanted some in the worst way until another blogger friend who shall remain nameless pointed out to me that they are faceless little girls. You know me and my drawbacks with stamps. As if I need one more thing to be bothered by. lol!

But now that I've played with one image, I think I'm ready to buy... faces or not. ;o) And can I just say how much I love the coloring job on this little chica? I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I really thing it's my best blending to date. This paper is AMAZING for blending. The best ever - hands down. I emailed Kimmie right away to find out what it was, and she couldn't remember (grrr! hee hee... just kidding, Kimmie... sort of). All she knows is that she bought it at Michael's. I'm still investigating that one.

Anyhow, I ended up flipping the sketch a little bit, but here is my card for today:


The blue is Soft Sky with white clouds sponged on using my Craft White pad. I couldn't get a good picture of the clouds but you can see them a little bit. The "grass" is embossed with a Cuttlebug folder, and then snipped at the top. I cut some of the main image out with my exacto knife so her arms could go over the grass. And in my head, the wide brown ribbon is kinda like a tree.

So, there you have it! Be sure to click on the other CBC Chick's links in my sidebar to see more fun cards. And if you play along, link your card to Courtney's post for this week and maybe you'll win a little prize!

Thank Ewe!

I recently placed an order with Sweet n' Sassy Stamps for two Rachelle Anne Miller stamps, and they came the other day. This is the first card I've made with either of them, and I just love the way it turned out. Rachelle's illustrations and stamps are just adorable. Be sure to click on the link to her blog and view them all. Did you know she let's you use her images in your blog banner? I made a header for my family blog with one of them! You can get more details about her requirements here, if you think you might be interested in doing the same.

As I mentioned yesterday, my friend Sara is hosting a card swap, and I am debating whether or not to sign up. The last few times I've signed up I have procrastinated on the cards to the last minute and then feel pressured to get them done and mailed on time. So I decided that if I was going to participate this time, I was going to have all of the cards DONE before the sign-up deadline even passed. The swap is for thank you cards, so this is the first prototype I've worked up. I'm still not sure whether or not I'll sign up, because I *should* be getting started on my halloween, thanksgiving, and Christmas cards... but you never know. I still have time to think about it, so I can waffle a little longer. ;o)

The image is colored with a combination of prismacolors with gamsol, and copic markers. The faces and hooves of the sheep are colored with prismas, as are the hearts. The bodies of the sheep, shading around them, and ground, are all copics. I drew the ground line in by hand. Remember how I need my bellas to be grounded? Same goes for farm animals. The sentiment is hand written.

Isn't this such a cute image by Rachelle? I'm tellin' ya, you NEED to check out her stuff! You won't be sorry! SNSS also has some of Rachelle's new Christmas line on pre-order right now too. There's always something to buy! You know how it goes!

Before I close, I want to also thank my blogger friend Kristine over at Ink Something for giving me this blog award:

I really appreciate it! It makes me happy to know that someone thought of me today. Thanks, Kristine!

Details:
Stamps: Cuddle Up (Rachelle Anne Miller)
Ink: Adirondak Pitch Black
Paper: Pretty In Pink, Georgia Pacific White Cardstock, Grey (Unknown)
Other: Grey Taffeta Ribbon (Stampin Up!), Prismacolor Pencils, Gamsol, Copic Markers, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

Swirls and Pearls

Do you remember my Pearlicious card? You know, the one with Clickabella and my obsession with the fact that she has no chair to sit on? Well, on that card I used ten sticky pearls, and I was afraid it was too many. I asked what you thought, and my friend Dani left this pithy comment that totally had me rolling:
I hate to say it, but the pearly flood gates have been opened, and there is no turning back! Example A:

21 PEARLS!!! And that's only counting the ones you can see! There are a few more hidden under the right side of that sentiment! Sorry, Dani! ;)

So this is wedding card 2 of 4. I have two weddings coming up, and am making 1 card for each of them for us to send and another for my Mom to send. The inside of this card will read "A lifetime of happiness is our wish for you," when I'm done with it. Cute, eh? I should write for Hallmark. Sometimes I just impress myself. lol.

Here is the open view of the card. Note the different colored text on the sentiment. This was draft number one. I ended up ripping the sentiment off after taking the photo and replacing it with one stamped in the darker color. I just wish I had a darker/wider/heavier ribbon to go with it, but alas, I do not. Such is life.



So, NOW what do you think? Is 21 pearls too many? I thought they added a nice touch to the Cuttlebug embossing (which, by the way, is on Shimmer white paper - another "nice touch").

Before I go, I have to give a quick shout out to my blogger friend ScrappyDoo2U, who recently awarded me with the "I Love Your Blog" award. Thanks so much!

Details:
Stamps: Sentiment (Rubber Stampede)
Ink: Not Quite Navy
Paper: Not Quite Navy, Bashful Blue, Shimmer White
Other: Light Blue Narrow Organdy Ribbon (SU!), Scallop Edge Punch (SU!), 1/16" Circle Punch, Sticky Pearls, More Sticky Pearls, and yes, a few more Sticky Pearls, oh...and a Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

A Few Of My Favorite Things

And no, I'm not talking about the stamp company!

First, I'll share my card for today. My husband and I visited the next town over to do a little shopping today and I noticed a ton of cars in the new Michael's store parking lot. It turned out today was their grand opening. Woot! Hubby TOTALLY didn't believe that I didn't know that when I said I wanted to go up there, but it was true! Anyhow, the place was PACKED with people. I did manage to beat a few of them back to score this Santa stamp that I am absolutely in love with. I think this is going to be one of my Christmas card designs for this year.

It's a very simple design (my favorite kind), but it still packs a nice punch. It's hard to see in the photo, but I used my 2-way glue pen to follow some of the lines of his beard and then sprinkled it with dazzling diamonds. It gives just the right amount of sparkle. I love it!



The sentiment is from Warm Words. I wish one of those word stamps said "believe", but sadly it does not. I thought about using the "Holiday Greetings" stamp from Sincere Salutations, but I try realllly hard to keep the words "Happy" and "Holiday(s)" off of my Christmas cards. It is a major pet peeve of mine that so many companies will no longer say, "Merry Christmas" when they answer the phone mid-December. Instead they have to say, "Happy Holidays". And we no longer have a Christmas parade in town. Now it is in November, and it is the holiday parade. *grumble* I could say more, but I won't. I'll just leave it at that! My point though, was that I'm not 100% sold on that sentiment, but it's my favorite of the options I had available!

Second, I have to share a picture of another of my favorite things... Cherry Cheesecake! I made this tonight for a cookout we are having tomorrow evening at my Mom's house. This is hands down one of my favorite recipes of all time. It's soooo easy to make, and is to. die. for. TASTY! YUM! I could honestly polish off this little 8x8 pan all on my own, but that would just be wrong. lol!

Here's a tip for you too. You know how you put toothpicks in something like this before you put tin foil (etc.) over the top to transport it? Well, you know those little plastic do-hickeys they put in the center of a Pizza Hut pizza to stop the box from collapsing? The next 3-4 times you get a pizza from there, save those and wash them and use them in place of your toothpicks. They won't poke through the foil, and they sit nicely on top of the desserts. I think my grandma thought of that one. ;o)

No Bake Cherry Cheesecake

2 c. Graham Cracker Crumbs
1 Stick Butter (Melted)
8 oz. Cream Cheese
8 oz. Cool Whip
1 c. Sugar
1 can Cherry Pie Filling

Mix graham cracker crumbs with butter, and press into bottom of 8x8 pan. Whip cream cheese, cool whip, and sugar with beater and spread over graham cracker base. Cover with cherry pie filling. Refrigerate overnight to set.

Card Details:
Stamps: Warm Words (Stampin' Up!), Santa (Michaels)
Ink: Always Artichoke, Bravo Burgandy
Paper: Always Artichoke, Bravo Burgandy, Very Vanilla
Other: Vanilla Grosgrain Ribbon, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

So & So Loves...

Have you seen this single stamp from the Unity Stamp Co.? It's called "So & So Loves..." and it's just perfect for any sort of romantic card you might need. In this case, I'm using it for an engagement card, but it could easily work for an anniversary, valentine, random hook up (<--ha, just seeing if you're paying attention!), etc. I lovvve birch trees. And I lovvve this stamp! But do I own it? No. I will though, just give me time! My new blogger friend Jessica Russell over at Kindred Arts was kind enough to do an image swap with me so I could get my hands on some of these and other Unity images. Kind of a "try it before you buy it" thing, ya know? Be sure to take a minute to check out her blog. She is super creative, and loves her some Unity Stamps! And honestly, who can blame her? I have only just recently found that company (well, I've known about it for awhile, but only recently decided to really check it out) and I'm in love with just about everything I see! Oye. Not good for the ol' pocketbook.

Anyhow, as I said earlier, I made this card for my friend Jenn who announced her engagement a few weeks ago. I'm late, I know, but I was waiting for the perfect stamp (or image in this case) and this was it! I wrote their initials in one heart, and the wedding date in another. Did I mention I love it? Because I do. A lot. As for coloring, I just used two shades of brown copics (E31 and E33) to go over the lines. I used E31 on every line, and then E33 at random. I sponged the edges of the main image with chocolate chip ink, and that was that. I really wanted to get some pink buttons on there somewhere, but no matter what size I grabbed or where I put them it didn't look right, so I just went without. I still love it though, so it's all good!

Oh, and I have to tell you I've found a way to sleep at night. Here's what I've decided. The one shorter leg in the rear is bolted to the floor, and has a small platform at the top to sit on. Bella sits, and then two Fella's carry the desk to her. The desk is then balanced on those two front legs and her two tiny thighs. ;o) And don't even get me started on a power source. lol. Ok, I'm done with this topic for good now. I promise!

Details:
Stamps: So & So Loves... (Unity Stamp Co.), Warm Words (Stamping Up!)
Ink: Memento Black, Chocolate Chip
Paper: Whisper White, Rose Romance, Chocolate chip, Close to Cocoa
Other: Cuttlebug Embossing Folder (edging), Brown Grosgrain Ribbon, Copic Markers, Doodling

I've Been A Crab...

I won't go into a whole lot of details as to why, but I will tell you I made this card for my dh tonight. lol. Everything is fine, it has just been "one of those days" for about three days now. He actually thinks my cards are pretty cool, so I thought I'd make one for him to express myself rather than try to put it into words.

I bought this stamp when I visited the Creative Pals store in Milwaukee, which I believe (correct me if I'm wrong) is owned by the gal who owns Whipper Snapper stamps. I love these stamps, and I love her store! I only wish I'd had more time to spend there, but the whole family (including dh, baby, toddler, Grandma and Great-Grandma) was waiting in the car so I had to be quick.

I seem to be on a button kick lately. I found a "Bag of Buttons" at Hobby Lobby yesterday by The Paper Studio and these buttons are from that bag (of about 200 buttons in varying sizes for $5). The crab is colored with my copics (YR65, R05, R08), and I popped his eyes and pincers up on dimensionals. I also added stickles to the sand - I love the grainy look that gives. The dotted paper is from Stampin' Up's Summer Fun pack, and it matches their Tart n' Tangy set that I used on yesterday's tin.

I drew the wavy black lines around the main image, then paper pierced over the top of each line to give the look of faux stitching in a random pattern. It's cute, but it would have been a better effect if I'd used a pen with a narrower tip so that the piercings showed up better.

Finally, I wanted to take a minute to answer some of the questions I got via comments on yesterday's post.

Holly was curious as to why I didn't like the SU! Rub-Ons... They were driving me crazy because the patterns were HUGE, and I only needed small pieces for those corners. The rub-ons themselves are very well made... to the point where it is very difficult to break the design into smaller bits if you need them for smaller projects. When you pull away from the paper to cut off the design, the rub on keeps pulling away from its backing which is kind of wasteful and messy. If they were smaller designs, I think I would have been happier. I'll use them again, but it might not be the first thing I reach for if I have another small project.

Kristine wondered about what was inside the tin... It was filled with Lemonheads (they came with the tin).

Courtney asked where I got the tart-y stamp set.... The lemon stamp that I used on the tin is from Stampin' Up!'s Tart n' Tangy set. The sentiment is a single stamp that was sold by Stampa Rosa, the company that created House Mouse before it was sold off to Stampabilities. I believe Stampa Rosa went out of business a few years ago, but the stamp may now be available through Stampabilities - I'm not sure.

And finally, my new SU! catalogs came today! Woot! I noticed that the Arachnophobia wheel I used on my Witchybella card is in there! I had some questions about where I got those spiders, and I thought the wheel was retired but it was not! Yay! Now you can make your own creepy crawlers! :)

Details:
Stamps: Crab (Whipper Snapper)
Ink: Adirondak Pitch Black
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Riding Hood Red, Summer Fun DP
Other: Buttons (The Paper Studio), Black Grosgrain Ribbon (Stampin' Up!), Copic Markers, Stickles, Stampin' Dimensionals, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

Come Over for a Spell!

Here is a fun little card I made last night for this week's 3 Little Dreams Yahoo Group Challenge. My fellow design team member Dani Marcus is in charge of this month's challenges, and her first choice was to do something embossed. It didn't matter if it was heat embossed or dry embossed, so I put my Cuttlebug to use and made a dry embossed background for this card using their paisley flower embossing folder . It's hard to see in the photo, but trust me - it's there.

You don't need a kit to participate in the challenge, but if you have one you might as well use it (I don't have mine yet, hence the witchybella). We'd love to see your creations too, so please post it in the August Challenges folder in the 3LD Yahoo group or, if you'd rather add it to your Splitcoast gallery, just use the keyword "3LDAUG" so we can ogle over all of them in one place! Everyone who participates in any of the August challenges will be eligible to win a mystery prize from Katie! Same deal for future months as well, but for now let's just focus on August!

Are you familiar with 3 Little Dreams? Here's the skinny: Each month Katie (owner, queen bee, mama dreamer extraordinaire, etc. :) ) puts together TWO fabulous kits - one using a Stamping Bella and one using Sweet n' Sassy Stamps. The kits include the stamp(s), paper, and random embellishments. Basically all you need (except for ink) to make some seriously cute cards. The August kits are sold out (!!!) already, but she is taking pre-orders for the September kits now, and both can be seen HERE!

The Bella kit for September features the Teachabella stamp, and the SnSS kit for September features the GORGEOUS My Lil' Chickadee set. Seriously, how great would either (or both!) of those kits be for fall cards? I'm tellin' ya, you need to check it out. It's a super deal (and Lord knows I'm all about a deal), and a super company, with a KILLER design team *wink*!

So go on! Show me what you're made of!

Oh... and tell me what you think of my card. :o)

Details:
Stamps: Witchybella (Stamping Bella), Arachnophobia Wheel (Stampin' Up!), Happy Fright Night (Stampin' Up! - sentiment)
Ink: Elegant Eggplant (sponged), Basic Black
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, Eggplant Envy, Tangerine Tango
Other: Black Stickles, Pumpkin Pie Grosgrain Ribbon (SU!), Clementine Dotted Organdy Ribbon (Stamping Bella), Signo White Gel Pen (SU!), Scallop Punch (SU!), 1/16" Circle Punch (Fiskars), Cuttlebug Embossing Folder, Copic Markers, Prismacolors, Gamsol

God's Little Miracle

This is one card from the set of baptismal thank you's I made the other night. I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out. I used the baby-themed Cuttlebug embossing folder, and layered it over SU's Natural White and Not Quite Navy. I wrapped SU's (retired) copper cord around the first two layers. After I had it wrapped, I noticed that the pattern bore a striking resemblance to the religious symbol that stands by the lake at the Imago Dei Waypost camp I attended as a teen and young adult. Check out this link, and click on the first or fourth pic on the left to see what I mean. Man, I loved that place *sigh*. I think once the kids are a little older, I might start volunteering up there in the summer. Ahhhh, those were the days!

ANYHOW! I did the cord in such a way that it (hopefully) framed the "God's Little Miracle" wording in the top left corner. I was just going to leave it at that, but then at the last minute decided to add the scalloped circle at the bottom with the baby shoes. The inside of the card has a version of Proverbs 22:6 stamped at the top, which reads, "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it."

If you are reading this and know one of these will be coming your way, hang tight! We're waiting to get the boys 2 yr and 3 mo pics back before sending so we can include some for you!

Details:
Stamps: Steppin' Style (Stampin' Up!), Scripture (Stampabilities)
Ink: Not Quite Navy
Paper: Baja Breeze, Natural White, Not Quite Navy
Other: Copper Cord, Scalloped Punch (SU), 1 1/2" Circle Punch (SU!), 1 1/4" Circle Punch (SU!), Copic Markers (on shoes)

Serene Spring

Here is a card made from the one stamp set I liked enough to buy from the SU pre-sale. The set is called Serene Spring, and I love the images (the other one is a cute bunny in a basket in this same sketchy style), but I'm not real crazy about the sentiments that go with them so I didn't add one here. I figure it's generic enough that I can personalize the inside when I decide what kind of card I need it to be.

I colored the image with my Copics. Did you know Copics are on sale at Hobby Lobby this week? I think they're 25% off. I picked two of them up when we were there on Monday - one of which I used on the butterfly. I think it's called Atoll. I love it. It's such a pretty, soft, color. Kind of a sherberty orange.

One of my favorite things about this card is the little bird. I colored it in blue, then used the colorless blender to get the tummy lighter and colored it with a pale lavendar. I like how it turned out.

Finally, be sure to check out the Magnolia blog candy over at Artfully Ila. I love those Magnolia stamps, but I really am trying to cool my heels with spending for awhile (honest!) so for now I'm just going to have to try to win them!

Details:
Stamps: Serene Spring (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black
Paper: Very Vanilla, Old Olive, Eggplant Envy
Other: Elegant Eggplant Grosgrain Ribbon, tarnished brad, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder, Copic Markers

Love That Smile!

Here is one of the three cards I made for my design team application. It's also one of the two cards I made for my recent Bella swap on SCS (kinda makes ya wish you'd signed up, doesn't it? lol!). I just love this card! It was inspired a creation Lauren Meader made for her Mom with about a dozen bella's punched out like this. Unfortunately, I can't find the link to that card on her blog at the moment so, you'll have to take my word for it!

I thought those big toothy grins went perfectly with this sentiment! What do you think?

Details:
Stamps: Bookwormabella, weightwatcherabella, rockabella, sentiment by Stampendous (#M109 - "Bright Smile" dated 2001)

Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black
Paper: Green Galore, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White
Other: Hobby Lobby dotted ribbon, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Copic Markers

She's All That

Here is my entry for Julee Tilman's Mojo Madness Contest. Julee is the owner of Verve Stamps (one of my favorite new companies), and the prize for this contest is the winner's choice of ANY Verve stamp set. HELLO! You can bet your booty I'm in on that gig! ;o)

I stayed pretty true to form with my interpretation of the sketch (you can see the original sketch by clicking Julee's name above). The only changes I made were to shift the sentiment to the right, rather than center it, and the three embellishment dots were moved up to the top of the image in the form of pearls on her flowers.

Funny (sort of) story about this card. I recently had to place a HUGE Stampin' Up! order to remain active as a demo. I haven't been doing any workshops lately, so it's totally my own fault. I decided to buy the things I wanted, and then round out the order with sets I thought would sell well on ebay after they retired. This was supposed to be one of those sets. Unfortunately though, I opened my box and FELL IN LOVE! I had to keep these all for myself. :)

We have a bridal shower to go to next weekend, and I've been "commissioned" to make cards for my Mom and Grandma to give, as well as the one I want to give myself, so this will be one of the three. Can I just say I love this card? LOVE IT. Like, to the point where I don't want to give it away EVER. LOL!

I love getting blog comments, so tell me what you think!

Details:
Stamps: She's All That (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Versamark, Basic Black
Paper: Pretty In Pink, Whisper White, Basic Black
Other: Cuttlebug Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, SU Narrow Black Organdy Ribbon, Corner Rounder Punch (for scalloped edge), Sticky Pearls, Black Embossing Powder

Have a Cool Birthday!

Have you seen the popsicle cards that have been floating around the stamping community? I was first introduced to the idea on Jen's Crazy Stamp Girl blog. I just love it! It's so nice and summer-y!

Although I was smart enough to bookmark her instructions, I didn't have them handy when I decided to make the card, and as a result I ended up making my popsicle much larger than hers. It still works, it just leaves less space for other card elements.



The lime is stamped in Gable Green, then rolled (using the Rock n' Roll technique) in Green Galore so the edges are a little darker than the middle. This is one of my favorite techniques. It's so easy and is so eye catching! I used the same technique to make 30 of these and 30 of these to send as Christmas cards in 2006. I also added Dazzling Diamonds to the center of the lime for a little added kick.

And here's the inside:

I thought this sentiment from SU!'s retired "Totally Cool" set was a perfect match. What do you think?

Details:

Stamps: Tart n' Tangy, Totally Cool
Paper: Green Galore, Gable Green, Whisper White, Creamy Caramel

Ink: Green Galore, Gable Green, Basic Black
Other: Dazzling Diamonds, Non-SU Gingham Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensional, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder, Corner Rounder Punch, SU Scallop Punch

Be Mine and Babies

Isn't that such a cute stamp? It's by Great Impressions, and I found it recently on ebay for such a great price ($2ish) that I couldn't resist! And of course as soon as it arrived I had to make a quick card with it to stash away for Valentine's day.

I did a partial Cuttlebug emboss on the background (which made me long for a Scor-Pal *sigh*). I also cut a second giraffe image out and adhered it over the original stamped image. The bottom of his neck is glued on flat, and his head is lifted with a Stampin' Dimensional. It helps to give it a little more dimension. Looking at it now, I wish I had put a layer of the darker plum behind the pink background... maybe next time.

Details:
Stamps: Great Impressions Giraffe

Ink: Basic Black

Paper: Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Positively Pink (?), Barely Banana, Whisper White

Other: Stampin' Dimensional, Copics, SU Marker (on hearts and letters), Cuttlebug Embossing Folder, Narrow White Organdy Ribbon

And for those of you who come here for family updates more so than my crafty musings, here are some recent pictures of my babies (one of which is fast becoming a "big boy" *sniff, sniff*).

Last but not least, there's an opportunity to win some blog candy over at Ella Bella's! Check it out!

Enjoy the day!