Thankful Thoughts

Hello friends. Wow, can't believe Thanksgiving is but a mere week away! The hustle and bustle of the holidays is most definitely alive in my house. I was looking through my collection of Thanksgiving stamps and came upon this lovely set from Stampin' Up! (I believe from 2006) and was drawn to it today. I felt the desire to color, which I often find theraputic, bringing me a sense of peace and quiet. I used several SU! inkpads and a blender pen for the main images and added crystal laquer and gold stickles to certain areas. I used Cosmo Cricket dp and a lot of rub-on stitching, which is great for those times when ya just don't feel like sewing hehe :)

Thanks so much for poppin' in! Have a wonderful and creative day!

A Bushel Of Berries

Strawberries, that is, hehe! Ok, I have been in a creative slump for the past few days, but when I thought of this card, I was like, "oh, this is gonna be a fun one!" And it was! I created this little weaved basket-or *bushel* if you will-card and the strawberries from tart-n-tangy SU! set, although keep in mind that lots of fruits could work for this. This is a simple project, but a bit time consuming for 2 reasons: 1- you have to cut about 8 individual strawberries out and 2- the weave prep take a few extra min.

The card measures 5"l, scored in half to be 2 1/2" tall and 3" wide at the top; each side tapers 1/2" in toward the bottom. My strips of neutral cardstock were cut to about 3/8" each,then distressed and sponged with brown ink. I then weaved the paper beginning with 2 strips crossed at the lower left corner (think back to the first grade), then build the weave going over and under repeatedly until there is enough of a weave to cover the front of the card base. Adhere the entire weave piece on top of the card, then trim around the edges.

The strawberries were stamped repeatedly overlapping each other to form a small *cluster*. I stamped about 6-8 individual berries and cut each of them out. I adhered the berry cluster to the card, then glued down individual berries over any overlapping stamped images. I popped a few berries for added dimension.

Loop 2 small pieces of ribbon to either side with mini brads to create *handles*. That's it! I added the so many scallops circle sentiment and stuck a big HPH brad in the center. You can add a tag or greeting or whatever you want. I'm pretty tickled over this one--it turned out so cute irl! TFL, hope you like it and want to try one too! ~happy Sunday and happy Stamping!~

Blue Enamal Camping Mug- Giftcard Holder!

Hehe, this was fun! I actually made this last week and posted it on SCS, but I just think it's darn cute, so I'm sharing it here too! I found this mug pattern back in Dec and made them into holiday cocoa holders--here, I used the same pattern to create a blue and white speckled camping mug--you know the ones, right? My brother's birthday is coming up and he loves to hunt, fish, camp, etc...so this is perfect to hold his REI giftcard in! And it just tickled the heck outta me when I realized that the splatter/speckle stamp from Stampin' Up!'s *Itty Bitty Backgrounds* would be what I needed to achieve the look on the mug---CooL! So, if you want to get this fun mug pattern too, click HERE. Thanks for popping in!

Sugared Fruit Double Pocket Card

Hello friends! Hope you had a great weekend--now, back to the grind. Today's "Try A New Technique" challenge at SplitCoast was to make a "double pocket card", which was new to me. The tutorial provided by Judy was easy to understand and simple too, cool! You can find the tutorial at Judy's blog, Joy In A Jar. I *sugared* my lemons and limes from SU! Tart-n-Tangy stamp set with diamond stickles. Those flowers and the big yellow brads were pre-sugared (they came that way). This designer patterned paper was sent by my super sweet Mom, who totally goes overboard when buying papercrafting supplies and embellishies for me! What can I say, she's the bestest mommy ever!!! Thanks so much for visiting me today! ~hugs and happy stamping~

Underwear Inspiration!

Yep, those are my "unmentionables" which are no longer unmentionable--snort! I love my comfy VS boy shorts and the cherries inside my Tart & Tangy set were just screaming to be let out. I thought the colors on the shorts were so cute and might make for an equally cute card. I cuttlebugged the white panel with tiny bubbles folder, then covered it in Versamark and clear embossed the surface sprinkling dazzling diamond glitter along the way. The cherries have fruit punch stickles on them for extra sparkle! This card is going to a wonderful friend who always makes my day sweeter, even when I'm feeling like the pits! I know, don't quit my day job, ha! Thanks for looking! hugs!

A Color Challenge--A Sketch Challenge and Gina K Designs!

Hello friends! Today I combined 2 challenges--this week's sketch challenge at Card Positioning Systems sponsored by Gina K. Designs and SplitCoast's color challenge, using Apricot Appeal, Mellow Moss, Cream Caramel and Coral (I improvised on caramel and coral). Everyone is using Gina K.'s latest *free with three* set for the CPS challenge, so I also had to join in the fun! It's called "Spring Blooms" and it's just lovely! I used my Ginger Blossom designer paper by Stampin' Up! to compensate for the coral and the tan/white gingham ribbon is from my SCS friend *Kharmagirl*. I liked inking the stamps in colors other than black, it made for a really nice look. Thanks for visiting and I hope you are inspired to try these super fun challenges yourself! ~hugs and happy stamping~

Tart-n-Tangy Margaritas!

Hello! I have been in a creative slump this week, but when I got the idea for margarita glasses and SU! Tart-n-Tangy, I felt happy and inspired again. I made 6 of these summer party invitations--now I guess I have to plan a summer party! The glass I drew fits perfectly on a standard size 4 1/4 x 5 1/2" card or they could be used alone, with details on the backside. I used all SU! cardstock: wild wasabi, apricot appeal and pretty in pink--then I matched the ink as best I could using SU! green galore, groovy guava and regal rose. Those are Gina K bling and dazzle plastic flowers with sugarcoated brad centers. I like the pink cards the best and wouldn't it be nice for a champagne brunch invitation too? I think a stripe of dp would look great where I put ribbon and ric rac too and these could be varied to non-alcoholic drinks or different occasions such as congratulations (cheers), thank you (so sweet of you; you're sweet), or lets get together for drinks! Lots of possibilities! I am happy to email anyone who's interested the margarita glass pattern or I'll try to find a way to provide it here. Thanks so much for visiting--Have a bright and beautiful day! p.s.- I did change my avatar--was tired of the knitted winter hat, lol!

A Special Card

I'm involved with a wonderful organization called Women For Women, Int. and I have an honorary "sister" in Rwanda whom I communicate with and encourage as she expands her education, grows her small business and raises her family of 4. She regularly sends me letters and recently even sent me this very special card...I wanted to share it with all my friends who enjoy the beauty of a card. If you look closely you'll see the incredible skill it took to cut the intricate pieces of this woman and the continent of Africa surrounding her. The small circle off the the lower side is Madagascar (had to look on the map to make sure). Isn't it neat? It fills me with joy to know that she created this just for me!
I will send her this card in return. I used almost all Stampin' Up! products on this, but I couldn't resist playing with some of the fabulous paper that Donna sent me too! The pattern is perfect for what I had in mind for this card. I used Embrace Life stamps; pomegranate, rose red and regal rose inks; rose red, regal rose and whisper white cardstock. I added a bit of ribbon and a few pink gems for some sparkle.
I think it's so awesome that my Rwanda sister is a fellow papercrafter and cardmaker--who woulda thought?! Thanks for allowing me to share this little tidbit of my life today, friends. I hope you've been inspired!

Eggplant Silhouettes

I would love to say that I came up with this sketch, but alas...it was cased from the super talented Allison. I used my Stampin' Up! *Stem Silhouettes stamped in *Eggplant Envy* once, then repeated several times without re-inking and sponged around the image with the same color. The sentiment is from Verve Visual *Starlight Starbright* collection. The paper is from Memory Box *Sprout* collection, which I also got from Verve Visual (yep, they have awesome paper too!) I added the three floral and butterfly rub-on's from Webster's Pages *Classical Garden* collection with diamond stickles for sparkle! The ribbon is from SU!'s *Theater* collection. Thanks for visiting and I hoped you are inspired by this sketch too!

Peaceful Winter

Hello! Thought I would show you what I made for SCS's Featured Stamper challenge today. *StampingPam* has an awesome gallery and I got my inspiration from her card here:

www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/353733?cat=500&ppuser=80431

I used a pre-folded glossy card from http://www.cornishheritagefarms.com/ for the base. I stamped the moon in craft white pigment ink, then embossed it with white embossing powder. I then rubbed purely pomegranate, pretty in pink and whisper white water-based dye inks by Stampin' Up across it to create a sky effect, then easily wiping excess ink from moon. I stamped the stamp set "Lovely As A Tree" from SU! in craft white again and repeated the same embossing technique as above. I sponged pomegranate very lightly sporadically on the trees for highlights, then matted them on two layers of cardstock. I popped the image on dimensionals, then stamped "Peace" from Stampendous on the bottom (I also embossed this in clear ep.) The stitched ribbon was placed behind the scene and I added diamond stickles to the moon, ground and trees.

If you haven't already, check out Pam's gallery over at SCS today and make your card case too! It's so inspiring! ~Hugs and Happy Stamping~

Shabby Roses

Hello! Sorry for not posting anything new since last week--busy busy busy! Here, I used my rose stamp from the "Wing It" set by Stampin' Up!. I have used this set several times in the past week since gettng it and I just love it! It's perfect for Valentine's day, of course, but the rose and heart are great for many occasions and the crown, wings and royal crest are totally awesome! I think teenagers would love this set too and I still feel like one most of the time anyway, so it's suits me so well! I stamped the roses in pink and black, then popped them on dimensionals and framed them, distressing and roughing up the edges. I sponged all edges too and added bits of dazzling diamond glitter from, also from SU! to the roses. I probably would do the "dangling" love you differently next time--maybe using a metal frame or something hardware'ish. I also need a sympathy/thinking of you card, so I'm going to do this again with the roses and use different paper and sentiments. Thanks for taking a peek and big hugs to you!

Cool Shape and Sketch!

Hi ya'll! I think this shape and basic card design is just too cool and very versatile to! I saw it at http://www.papercraftsmag.com/. It measures 5 1/2" x 3 1/2". Just round the bottom corners, choose 2-3 colors of cardstock and 1 coordinating designer/patterned paper and a fun stamp set--that's it! You can make the middle strip straight, tear it, or use shaped scissors like I did here with the scallops. I used my Coluzzle circle template for the main image bg or any cutting system will work great.

I stamped the heart, wings and crown in whisper white CRAFT pigment ink from SU!, then embossed the wings and crown in gold and the heart in red using fine embossing powders from SU! and Denami Design. I popped all images up on 3-d pop dots. That pretty cherub dp is from Basic Grey's "2 Scoops" line. I inked all edges in chestnut roan fluid chalk ink by ColorBox.

I hope that you're inspired to try this neat shape and sketch on one of your upcoming works of art! ~Hugs~

New Stampin' Up! Card Samples

Hi friends! Today, I'm showing some cards we made at my SU! demo's house yesterday to get us familiar with some brand new products for 2008! How fun it was! I think the Embrace Life stamp set is my favorite, it looks very versatile and has gorgeous results! The new Ginger Blossom designer paper is featured on this card too and is super pretty! Makes me anxious for Spring! The second card features soft sky cardstock, a current "in color" and the new stamp set called A Beautiful Thing. The third card uses elegant eggplant cardstock and the Time Well Spent stamp set.

With all the fabulous occassions we have to coming up--Valentine's Day, St. Patty's Day, Easter, Mother's Day--I have a feeling I'll be using many sets from the new Spring/Summer collection, yay! Hope these samples have gotten you all fired up too!

Groovy Silhouettes

Hello friends! I'm just watching my beloved Seahawks losing to those cheeseheads in GB, boo hiss! Hope, however, still exists as it's only the start of the 3rd quarter :)
Anyhoo, here's a really neat looking card that is super quick, easy and uses very few supplies. It's called a tall and thin card and it's 6 1/2" squared, folded, then cut to 3 1/4" down the side. Sharon (aka: notimetostamp on SCS) came up with this fun shape and I really like it! I used Groovy Guava from Stampin' Up's current "in color" palate for the card base and the ink. The image is from Stem Silhouettes, also from SU!. I used my coluzzle oval template for the title and popped the main image on dimensionals. Those are Gina K.'s brand new glitter dots in copper penny and they are much more sparkley irl! This is was super easy and has a quite striking result...gotta love that!
Choose 1 or 2 SU! colors from one color family in cardstock and ink along with white or vanilla (like I did here for Jan. 11 TLC on SCS) and get stampin! ~hugs~