Lily and Billy Winter

Merry Christmas Eve! I hope that everyone is enjoying time with their family. Santa will soon be on his way!!!!

I participated in this week's sketch challenge on SCS. Here's my card...



This set is from The Pink Cat Studio and can be purchased from allthatscraps.com. It's such a fun set to color with Copics. Plus the images are totally cute too!!!



RECIPE:
Stamps: Lily and Billy Winter
Ink: Momento Black, Bashful Blue
Paper: White, Bashful Blue, Frosty Day DP (SU)
Accessories: Copic Markers, Spica Glitter Pen, 1 inch and 1 1/4 inch circle punches, soft subtles button, silver cording, dimentionals

I shaded the snow around Lily and Billy with my Copic markers and then went over it with a silver Spica glitter pen to make the snow sparkle. It's really subtle, but pretty.

Thanks for stopping by today! Have a wonderful Christmas Eve! I hope Santa is good to you this year!!! :)

Crawling out from underneath Christmas!

I'm back! The last few weeks were really hectic and I've had very little time to stamp or blog. I'm sure that everyone can relate to the hectic-ness!

I finally had time to participate in one of the challenges on SCS today. This week's color challenge was to use So Saffron, Orchid Opulence, and Cameo Coral. Blech!!!! I'm so not a fan of So Saffron, but I gave the challenge a shot anyways.

I always need birthday cards for co-workers at school, so I used these colors to create one.

Here's my card...


It turned out much better than I thought! Kind of cute, actually!









RECIPE:
Stamps: Crazy for Cupcakes
Ink: Black Momento
Paper: So Saffron, Orchid Opulence, Cameo Coral, White
Accessories: Oval Nestabilities, White Satin Ribbon (PTI), Cuttlebug embossing folders, Stardust Glitter Pen, SU Markers in Cameo Coral, Orchid Opulence, Going Gray, Rose Red

That's all for today!!! I hope you are all enjoying time with your families this week! Merry Christmas!!! :)

Classy Wedding Card

I didn't really need a wedding card, but it never hurts to have some on hand, right? Today's color challenge on SCS was to use Sahara Sand, Very Vanilla, and Basic Black. This is a classy combination, so I decided to create a wedding card.





Pretty, isn't it? Those tiny rhinestones on the flowers took me FOR-EVA!!! But it was worth it... check out that sparkle!

RECIPE:
Stamps: Piece of Cake & Wedding Day (both Papertreyink sets)
Ink: Sahara Sand (SU), Black (Palette), Vintage Cream (Palette)
Paper: Vintage Cream (PTI), Basic Black, & Sahara Sand (SU)
Accessories: Vintage Cream satin ribbon (PTI), rhinestone stickies, Love Language Cuttlebug Embossing Folder

That's all for today! Thanks so much for stopping by and looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Turkey-rific time!

I hope that all of you had a Turkey-rific time during Thanksgiving. I spent a lot of time with family and friends over the past few days. My family traditionally goes out for our Thanksgiving dinner. We always go to a really nice restaurant and that way no one has to worry about cooking and cleaning and getting all stressed out. After dinner, we went to my parents house and played a few games of "Scene It", a movie clip trivia game.

On Friday, I cooked my first ever turkey! My husband was given a fresh turkey as a gift from one of the contractors he works with... it was 20 pounds!!!! Jeff cut it in half, so I actually only cooked half of it... the other half is in our freezer. I made the traditional Thanksgiving feast with stuffing, mashed pototoes, rolls, cranberry relish, etc.! Busy! Busy! My parents and Jeff's parent's came over for the feast!

We spent Saturday with friends from out of town. We met them at the Hard Rock Cafe in Cleveland for lunch and ended up spending the afternoon at the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame. Personally, I found the museum kind of boring.... yawn! I guess if you are REALLY into music history, then it would probably be interesting. I did enjoy seeing the stage clothing of many artists, Elvis Presley's purple Cadillac, and a letter that Madonna wrote to a girlfriend while attending the University of Michigan (who knew?).

I finally got in some stamping today!!!! I had 5 days off from school, but only got in 1 day of stamping!!! Something is definitely WRONG with that picture! I participated in today's Featured Stamper challenge on SCS and chose to case THIS CARD. As you can see, I changed a lot.

Here's my card...


RECIPE:
Stamps: A Cardinal Christmas (SU)
Ink: Black Momento
Paper: Always Artichoke, Ridinghood Red, Very Vanilla, Basic Gray Wassail dp
Accessories: Prismacolor Pencils, Gamsol, Labels Nestabilities, Pretties kit, Rhinestone brad, Ridinghood Red tafetta ribbon, Janome Sew Mini

Yes.... that is sewing on my card! I purchased my first EVER sewing machine! Right now it's all jammed up... so I'll be spending my evening fixing the big mess I made. But so far, I LOVE IT!!!

Anyways, to give you a laugh, I LOVE to dress up my kitty! She isn't so fond of it, but has MANY different outfits. To put you in the Christmas spirit....


Mia says.... "Christmas is right around the corner!"










Thanks for stopping by today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Exciting News!!!

This totally isn't stamping news, but I passed my National Boards! I am now a National Board Certified Teacher! For those of you who aren't teachers, this is a BIG deal!!! I'm so excited!!! I passed on my first try too! I was totally thinking that I'd have to reapply and resubmit and then wait another whole year, but I didn't have to! Hooray!!!

Plus, a local TV channel came to my school today to do two different stories on our school.... one on severe allergies and another on community service in the schools. They filmed in my classroom and I was on the news tonight!!! I'm famous!!! Well... for about seven seconds anyways! :)

Now... on to the stamping!

This week's Techique Lover's Challenge was to create a pop-up gift card. This was such a fun project! HERE'S THE LINK to the video tutorial.

I made two different versions of this project....



Here's the first version.
















Here's the second version...

I totally like the second version better. I think I like the designer paper better than the first one, but it's really just a matter of preference. They both totally work the same and are usable!



Here's a shot of what it looks like open. The gift card "pops" up when it's open.. that was hard to photograph laying down.




Before I give the gift card and holder I would embellish the inside a little more, but I was running short on time tonight.

RECIPE: (for both gift card holders)
Stamps: Best Yet (SU)
Ink: Ridinghood Red
Paper: Ridinghood Red, Always Artichoke, Very Vanilla, Basic Gray Wassail designer paper
Accessories: Ridinghood Red Tafetta Ribbon, Rhinestone brad, Key Tag Punch, Designer Label Punch, Circle Punch, Word Window Punch (used on the inside to create the card slot), SU Snowflake Die

That's all for today!!! Thanks so much for stopping by and looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Snow! Snow! Snow!

Well, it snowed here this week! A LOT!!! We get what's called "Lake Effect" snow off of Lake Erie. You see, Lake Erie's water is still pretty warm. The cold air from Canada blows over it and the moisture floating in the air over Lake Erie condenses into snow flakes because of the temperature difference. We get a TON of snow because of this. But I love snow... just not on the roads! I was driving home from work today and a car slid off the road into somebody's front yard right in front of me! Eeek! Needless to say, I drove home at a snail's pace!

Here's a shot of my backyard...

Isn't it pretty??! We got about 4 inches total... not too shabby!

This week's color challenge was a repeat... Real Red, Basic Black, and Kraft. I wanted to make a Christmas card with these colors and when I got going, Santa's belt worked it's way into my layout. I think the band across the middle reminds me of Santa's belt... maybe it's a stretch!


This is a newly released set from C.C. Designs called "Christmas Around the World". I just can't get enough of the little monkey! The set includes different ways to say "Merry Christmas" in different languages. I chose the traditional route, but I could have used the sentiment in Hawaiian, German, French, etc.

I colored the monkey with my Copic Markers and then I added Spica Glitter Pens to his hat and he ornaments. I used the Classic Square and Labels 1 Nestabilities to frame the main image. The bow on the card took me FOREVER to tie. Arghhh! I can't stand it when I can't get the ribbon to do what I want. But I finally won that battle! :)

RECIPE:
Stamps: Christmas Around the World (C.C. Designs)
Ink: Momento Black
Paper: Real Red, Basic Black, Kraft, White
Accessories: Copic Markers, Spica Glitter Pens, Classic Square and Labels 1 Nestabilities, 1/4 inch black grosgrain ribbon, dimentionals

That's all for today! Thanks so much for stopping by and looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Chrismas Teabag Fold

This week's technique lover's challenge on SCS was to create a card using the teabag fold. Directions and pictures for this technique can be found HERE. The folding part is really easy... it's the figuring out how it is glued together that's a little more challenging. Once I figured out that the edges are glued 90 degress at the fold, that made it go a lot faster. It's really quite an easy and eye-catching technique.


RECIPE:
Stamps: Sentiment from A Cardinal Christmas
Ink: Ridinghood Red
Paper: Old Olive, Ridinghood Red, White, Ski Slope designer paper
Accessories: SU Top Note die, Corner rounder punch, Nestabilities tag, Ridinghood Red Tafetta ribbon, Metallic Rub-on paste, rhinestone brad

I cut the sentiment tag using my Spellbinder's ribbon tag dies. I then embossed it in my cuttlebug and lightly rubbed red metallic rub-on paste on it to emphasize the embossing.

Thanks so much for looking today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

Anyone out there? It's been a while since I've had any comments. This is my shameless plea to please let me know you are lurking around out there. :)

I didn't get in any stamping yesterday. I was a total lazy bum! I've been fighting off a cold for about 2 weeks now and I think it caught up with me yesterday. I slept in until noon! Not kidding! I woke up and looked at my alarm clock and about died! Noon! Who does that?!? Well, after I went downstairs and ate breakfast, I stayed in my pj's until about 2:00, just chillin' on the couch, watching tv. After that, my hubby and I went out the Kohl's and did some shopping and then out to dinner. That was it! I was totally a bum yesterday!

Today I hit the grocery store. I HATE the grocery store! I would much rather spend my money on fun stamping stuff than spend it on uber-expensive food. If we totally didn't need it for survival, that would definitely be one expense that I'd forgo.

This week's featured stamper challenge on SCS was from Kendra's gallery. She has a lot of neato cards in her gallery, but I finally settled on casing this one. As you can see, I kept the layout the same, but changed the colors, stamps, and designer paper. It's been a few weeks since I've inked up my cutie-patootie turkey from InkyAntics... and with Thanksgiving right around the corner, I couldn't resist!








Isn't he cute?!?!










Here's a shot of the inside.



I used SU's newest designer paper, Frosty Day, from the Holiday mini catalog. I wanted to use Thanksgiving colors and thought this did the job pretty well. The turkey is colored with Copic Markers. I'm pretty much addicted to them, even though I have a TON of other coloring options to choose from. I really needto challenge myself to pull out the gamsol and prismas or my watercolor crayons more often.

RECIPE:
Stamps: Turkey and sentiments from InkyAntics
Ink: Basic Brown (SU), Momento black
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss, Close to Cocoa, Very Vanilla, Frosty Day designer paper (SU)
Accessories: Copic Markers, clear button, kiwi kiss button, linen thread

Thanks so much for looking today! Have a wonderful week!!!! :)

Warm Happiness

Friday's Limited Supply Challenge on SCS was to use only acrylic stamps on your project. I have many, many acrylic stamps that have sadly, never seen ink! I pulled out my Papertreyink set, Warm Happiness, that was released last month. Tonight is Papertrey's newest release... I haven't even inked up all the sets that I ordered last month yet!







As you can see, I used the same set to create two cards. I pulled sketches from a sketch book I found this summer at Hobby Lobby. When I see coffee mugs, I automatically think of the color brown. I should really try to challenge myself and use colors that are "out of my box", but this just felt right today.






















RECIPE: (Card #1)
Stamps: Warm Happiness (PTI)
Ink: Dark Chocolate, Sahara Sand
Paper: Dark Chocolate, Kraft, Vintage Cream (all PTI)
Accessories: Classic Rectangle and Circle Nestabilities, flower from the SU Pretties kit (dyed with Dark Chocolate Pallete ink and heat set, vanilla pearl from Pretties kit


RECIPE: (Card #2)
Stamps: Warm Happiness (PTI)
Ink: Dark Chocolate, Sahara Sand
Paper: Dark Chocolate, Kraft, Vintage Cream (all PTI)
Accessories: Classic Rectangle Nestabilities, dimentionals, Dark Chocolate twill ribbon (PTI), corner rounder punch

Dying the flower was really easy. All you need is an ink pad, a sponge dauber, and a silk flower. I used Palette ink, because I knew it could be heat set and is permenant on fabric. If you ever stamp on clothing, Palette ink is the way to go because it won't wash out once it is heat set. All I did to dye the flower was to smoosh it into my Dark Chocolate ink pad. I used the sponge dauber to really smoosh it in and spread the ink. Then I heat set the flower with my heat gun. I held the flower on my heat resistant stamping surface with my paper piercer so it wouldn't blow away and I wouldn't burn my fingers. Ta-Da! A perfectly coordinating dyed flower!

Thanks so much for looking today! I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!! :)

Snowflake Serenade Batik

The "Ways to Use It" challenge on SCS this week was to incorporate watercolor paper into our creations. I wanted to do something different than the traditional watercoloring of an image, so I went back to a technique I described a few weeks ago... Colorwash Batik.

This technique is really easy, but a little time consuming. First, you stamp your images in Versamark all over the watercolor paper and emboss with clear embossing powder. Then you mix up a few drops of reinkers with water in a spray bottle and spray it all over your watercolor paper. On my card, I used Soft Sky and Night of Navy reinkers in two separate spray bottles. After you spray on your color, let the watercolor paper dry. This can take a while because your watercolor paper is saturated. Once dry, sandwich your watercolor paper between two sheets of computer paper and iron on high (no steam), until the embossing is melted away onto the computer paper. Waa-laa! You have created colorwash batik!

Here's my card...








Pretty! Sparkley too! I spritzed the watercolor paper with Perfect Pearls shimmer spray before I ironed the embossing powder away.





RECIPE:
Stamps: Snowflake Serenade (PTI), sentiment from Merry & Bright Additions (PTI)
Ink: Night of Navy, Versamark, Reinkers in Night of Navy and Soft Sky
Paper: Night of Navy, White, Watercolor
Accessories: Night of Navy 1/4 inch grosgrain ribbon, silver edge sheer ribbon (PTI), Perfect Pearls, spritzer bottles, iron, clear embossing powder

The layout is very simple, but I didn't want the card to be too busy with all the shimmer and colorwashing. I like the simplicity!

Thanks so much for stopping by and looking today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Happiness is a Journey

This week's sketch challenge on SCS can be found HERE. I really like this sketch! I wanted to make a masculine card and pulled out some of my OLD retired SU cardstock and designer papers. YES! I am still hoarding this stuff! I wanted a rustic, manly feel so I reached for SU's retired Sentimental Journey designer paper and then designed the rest of the colors for my card around that.

Here's my card...


RECIPE:
Stamps: Happiness is a Journey
Ink: True Thyme, Sahara Sand
Paper: Very Vanilla, Sahara Sand, True Thyme, Chocolate Chip, Sentimenal Journey Designer Paper (SU retired)
Accessories: Jumbo Pewter Eyelets, Classic Square Nestabilities, Pewter brads, Photo corner punch, dimentionals
Technique: sponging

Believe it or not, this card is 100% SU, with the tiny exception of the Nestabilities. The way I see it though, anyone can cut squares of cardstock... which makes it SU only. The nesties just make that step a little easier! Right? The True Thyme and designer paper are retired (for about 2 years now!) from SU and I pulled them from my sick collection. I really need to use up this stuff and quit hoarding it! Using it up=more space=more room for new stuff!

I stamped the train image in True Thyme ink onto a Very Vanilla panel. I then sponged Sahara Sand ink all over the cardstock and the edges. The card base is Sahara Sand, which I sponged more Sahara Sand ink over top of to make it look smokey... like smoke from the train. I also hoard those jumbo eyelets... but I sucked it up and put them to use on this card.

That's all for today! Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Out of this World

This week's color challenge was to use Pacific Point, Certainly Celery, and Basic Gray on a project. Here's what I came up with...


RECIPE:
Stamps: Out of this World from Lizzie Anne Designs
Ink: Black Momento
Paper: Pacific Point, Basic Gray, Certainly Celery, white
Accessories: star eyelets, Copic Markers, Labels and Classic Squares Nestabilities, Spots and Dots Cuttlebug embossing folder, dimentionals

I thought this would make a perfect boy birthday card. I stamped the inside to say, "Hope your Birthday is a Blast!". I also stamped a little alien-dude on the inside.

The main image is colored with Copic markers. I framed the image with the Labels 2 Nestabilities that were recently released. The background was cuttlebugged... doesn't it look like the surface of the moon? I've had the little star eyelets for FOREVER, but never pull them out and use them. Enough hoarding!!! I've got to use the stuff I have!

Thank you so much for looking! I hope you have a wonderful day!!! :)

Christmas Tree Box

This week's technique challenge on SCS was to create a Christmas Tree box. The pattern and directions can be found HERE. It was soooo easy-peasy to create and look how cute it is! I'll definitely be creating more of these in the future.


This is a picture of the closed box. You can easily hang it on a Christmas tree and use it as just an ornament, or fill it up with chocolate goodies! I stamped the entire box with one of the pattern stamps from Papertreyink's Merry & Bright stamp set. I then folded the box up and decorated the outside.


















I used Ridinghood Red and Always Artichoke cardstock and ink to decorate the outside of the boxes. I then also stamped some Hershey's Nuggets for the boxes.














I could fit 4 Hershey's Nuggets inside each Christmas Tree box. It was a tight fit, but they do squeeze in there.

Here's the recipe:

RECIPE:
Stamps: Merry & Bright and Merry & Bright Additions from Papertreyink
Ink: Ridinghood Red, Always Artichoke
Paper: Kraft, Very Vanilla, Ridinghood Red, Always Artichoke
Accessories: Ridinghood Red tafetta ribbon, Snow Blossom punch, small star punch, word window punch, petite oval Nestabilities, rhinestone brads from the Pretties kit, dimentionals, Hershey nuggets, address labels

That's all for today! Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

A Piece of Cake!

This weekend's featured stamper on SCS was Wendy Bell. I had a really tough time choosing a card to case from her gallery because they were all so awesome! I ended up settling on THIS one. As you can see, I changed the colors, ribbon design, cuttlebug folder, and used my Labels Nesties on the main image panel. It was such a great card to begin with that I had a tough time changing anything!

RECIPE:
Stamps: Piece of Cake from Papertreyink
Ink: River Rock, Blue Bayou, Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Blue Bayou, White
Accessories: Labels Nestabilities, Blue Bayou double stitched ribbon, paper piercer, cuttlebug embossing folders (Happy Birthday & Spots and Dots)

I love that I can use this card for a male birthday. I always have such a hard time creating masculine cards... but these colors are perfect!

Thanks so much for looking today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Country Dress

Happy Weekend!!! Boy, was I ever ready for some time to relax! I didn't get to any stamping today, but I do have a project to share with you.


This card was made for an Inspiration Challenge on SCS. I actually made it REALLY early in the morning after I had driven my parents to the airport. I am NOT a morning person and I hardly ever do any stamping in the morning. I am totally a night owl and tend to do my best work late at night... that includes stamping! So this card was unusual for me in that aspect.

RECIPE:
Stamps: Retro Boutique (Gina K), Linen (SU)
Ink: Black
Paper: Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Basic Gray designer paper--Cupcake pack
Accessories: brads, ticket corner punch, Chocolate Chip satin ribbon, SU markers (Ruby Red & Chocolate Chip)

I stamped the dress 3 times... on the Very Vanilla layer, on the red designer paper, and on the blue designer paper. I then paper pieced the dress together onto the white layer. I used SU markers to color in some details on the dress. The edges were sponged with chocolate chip ink. The designer paper is from the Basic Gray pack called "Cupcake". I totally love the patterns in this pack and am totally hoarding it!

Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Soft, Sparkley Baby

Another short post today. I made this card a while back after I saw Debbie Olson create a similar card. This card is definitely CASED from her amazing artwork. I absolutely love this image from Flourishes and would one day like to paint it on the nursery wall for a baby daughter. Wouldn't that be perfect?!?












RECIPE:
Stamps: Rock-a-bye from Flourishes
Ink: Black Stazon
Paper: White, Lavender Moon, Plum Pudding (PTI), Watercolor paper
Accessories: Twinkling H2O's, Oval classic and scalloped Nestabilities, Plum Pudding double stitched grosgrain ribbon (PTI), ScorePal, corner rounder punch

The image was stamped in Stazon ink onto watercolor paper and then watercolored with Twinkling H2O's. The sparkle and sheen is just gorgeous! The main image was cut out with my nesties.

I scored the checkerboard pattern into the background paper with my ScorePal. It really gave the card a "quilted" effect. Overall, the card is very basic, so the scored lines really add a lot.

That's all for today! Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful night!!! :)

Whoot! Whoot!

I didn't get any stamping in today. Tonight was massage night. I'll definitely sleep well tonight, now that all the knots in my neck and shoulders are worked out. Stamping is one type of therapy for me... massages are another! :)

I made this card a while ago and sent it to my brother for his birthday. He is definitely the "Wise Guy" of the family, but I'm very proud of him. This card suits him!













RECIPE:
Stamps: You are a Hoot from Cornish Heritage Farms, Paisley
Ink: Black Momento
Paper: Creamy Caramel, Chocolate Chip, Sage Shadow, Cranberry Crisp, White (all SU)
Accessories: Copic Markers, circle punches, pewter hodgepodge hardware (clip & brads), Cranberry Crisp stitched ribbon, dimentionals

Quickie post for today! Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Monkey Love!

Here's my card for this week's sketch challenge on SCS. I needed a sympathy card to give to a co-worker. Her 28 year old cousin passed away suddenly this week from an unknown heart condition. Sympathy cards are always hard to do... but this adorable little monkey should do the trick to help bring a little sunshine.












RECIPE:
Stamps: Monkey Love by C.C. Designs
Ink: Momento Black, Lemon Tart (PTI), Dark Chocolate (PTI)
Paper: Lemon Tart, Dark Chocolate, White, Dark Chocolate dp (all from Papertreyink)
Accessories: Labels Nestabilities, Copic Markers, Ticket corner punch, Pretties (SU), faux Dew Drops (from Michaels), dimentionals

I colored the cute little monkey with my Copic Markers. I then used my new Labels Nestabilities to cut out the image and framed it using Lemon Tart and Dark Chocolate cardstock, also cut with the Labels Nesties. I used SU's ticket corner punch on all the other corners to make the card more uniform. I pulled out my much neglected Pretties kit and used the smalled flowers. I centered a "faux" dew drop (found in the clearance bin at Michaels) in each flower to give them a yellow, 3-D center. The main monkey image panels are popped up on dimentionals. It's hard to see in the picture, but I stamped bananas on all the Lemon Tart panels with Lemon Tart ink. The sentiment was stamped in Dark Chocolate ink.

That's it for today! Don't forget to head over to the allthatscraps blog to check out more sneak peaks before their big release on Monday, November 10th at 10:00pm est.

Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Turtle Birthday

This week's color challenge on SCS was to use Pretty in Pink, Kiwi Kiss, and Ridinghood Red on our projects. I've really been on a roll lately using my stamps from C.C. Designs.. so of course I had to do yet another! On Monday at 10:00pm, allthatscraps is releasing some more C.C. Designs stamps--and I'm positive that they will be absolutely adorable and "must-haves" for your stamp collection. There's more information and some sneak peaks over on their blog HERE.
Here's my card...

Isn't it cute? At first I wasn't too sure about these colors, but now I think it has grown on me. Here's the recipe:

RECIPE:
Stamps: Froggie and Friends by C.C. Designs, sentimet from Birthday Basics (PTI)
Ink: black Momento
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Pretty in Pink, Ridinghood Red, White, Bella Rose dp
Accessories: Copic Markers, Nestabilities (classic square, labels, and tags), hodgepodge hardware, Ridinghood Red striped grosgrain ribbon, Swiss dots cuttlebug embossing folder, dimentionals

I colored the main image with my Copic markers and then cut out the cutie-patootie turtle with my classic square Nestabilities. I cut a second layer with the classic square nesties to frame the image and then framed the whole thing with a ridinghood red layer cut with my new labels Nestabilities. This is all popped up on dimentionals.... which is hard to see in the picture.

Do you notice anything new about my picture? YES!!!! I finally got a new photo-editing program! I finally gave up on my hubby and just went and got my own. It was surprisingly easy to add the watermark... but I'm soooooo excited about it.

Anyways... thanks so much for visiting today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Wintertime Fun!

Yesterday's technique challenge was to create a medallion using a corner punch. The technique tutorial can be found HERE. It's really easy to make and lots of fun to do!

I pulled out more C.C. Design's stamps for this card. They're just too cute!! The medallion made me think of snow, so I went with a winter themed card.


RECIPE:
Stamps: Wintertime Fun by C.C. Designs
Ink: black Momento
Paper: White, Aqua Mist, Ocean Tides, Silver (all Papertreyink)
Accessories: Copic Markers, Large Circle Nestabilities, EK Success Heart Corner punch, Snowflakes Cuttlebug embossing folder, white tafetta ribbon (SU), silver metallic rub-on paste, clear Spica glitter pen

Isn't it cute!?!?

I colored the image with Copic markers and then colored the white on the coat and a little bit of the snowman with a clear Spica glitter pen to give it a subtle shimmer. I also used silver metallic rub-on paste on the cuttlebugged snowflakes to make them standout a little more in the background. The entire card has a soft subtle shimmer to it.

Thanks so much for looking! Again, I apologize for the crummy pictures. I am STILL waiting for my husband to bring home the photo-editing computer program that I need from his work. It was on my computer before it crashed a few weeks ago, but I lost the program in the big crash. Anyday now, I'm hoping that he'll remember to bring it home. There's only so many reminders a girl can give, right?

See you soon! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Totally Tubular!

Here's a quick blog post for today! I sort of messed up a little on this card, but I still think it turned out cute. I intended on using Really Rust on this card... and I did on the background layer. I accidentally left out some Tangerine Tango from yesterday's card and ended up using that on this card behind the main image. Ooooops! Can you tell the difference? It's really subtle... more subtle than I ever thought! You have to look really close to tell the difference.

Anyhoo... Here's my card...

RECIPE:
Stamps: Summertime Fun by C.C. Designs
Ink: Momento black
Paper: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, Tangerine Tango (ooops!), White, Bo Bunny dp
Accessories: Copic Markers, Rectangle Classic Nestabilities, Spellbinders ribbon tag, Chocolate Chip taffeta ribbon, metallic rub-on paste

Cute, huh? This was a really fun image to color.

Thanks so much for looking today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Froggie Flies Away!

I finally got to some stamping today. Friday and Saturday are a complete blur! Running from my husband's great aunt's funeral across town to my mother's birthday dinner... crazy!

Now I'm not feeling well. Isn't that the way it always goes?? I think it's because I'm so totally run down from running here, there, and everywhere. I'm hopeful that my illness passes quickly.... especially since it's starting to resemble the stomach flu and I have one more day of parent-teacher conferences to get through tomorrow.

Today's featured stamper on SCS was Becca Stamps. I chose to case THIS card from her gallery. I changed quite a bit. First, I chose to use this ADORABLE stamp set from C.C. Designs, called "Froggie and Friends". I'm always in need of birthday cards, since I recognize everyone's birthday at work. I chose to ink up the cutie frog and made him flying away by the balloons. I colored the image with my Copic markers. I cut out the image with the classic circle Nestabilities and then framed the image with another layer of classic circle Nestabilities in Pixie Pink, and my brand new pinking circle Nestabilities in tangerine tango. It was killing me this week that I couldn't play with my new Nesties that arrived on Thursday!!!

I used SU's Bella Rose designer paper as my top layer behind the image panel and then layered more kiwi kiss, pixie pink, and tangerine tango cardstock. I matched up some of Papertreyink's new Ripe Avacado polka dotted ribbon with the kiwi kiss. It's not an exact match, but I do think th kiwi kiss and ripe avacado are in the same color family. I finally stamped the sentiment across the bottom of the card.


RECIPE:
Stamps: Froggie and Friends from C.C.Designs
Ink: black Momento
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Tangerine Tango, Pixie Pink, White, Bella Rose dp
Accessories: Copic Markers, Classic and Pinking Circles Nestabilities, Ripe Avacado polka dotted ribbon (PTI)


Thanks so much for looking!!!


Here's a few pictures from my grandmother's 90th birthday party last weekend. My brother flew back to Nevada today. It's always sad when he goes back. I enjoy having him around. Anyways....


This is a grainy picture... but here's my grandmother blowing out the candles on her birthday cake. She's an amazing woman! She's 90 years old, still lives on her own in a retirement village, and only recently gave up driving. She's since sold her car...all on her own!







This is my brother with my cousin's son, Grayson.








This is my cousin's other son, Harrison visiting with baby Ben. Isn't fun to have a baby around to play with?
















Finally, here's a family picture. It's a crazy group!

Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Busy! Busy!

Sorry for not posting for a week! I haven't gotten in ANY stamping! This past weekend was my grandmother's 90th birthday party. We had family fly in from Nevada, California, and Wisconsin. Last Friday I spent the evening eating out with my California family and then driving to the airport in the pouring rain to pick up my Wisconsin family. Saturday and Sunday was spent doing family things. My Grandmother was thrilled to have her 4 children, 4 grandchildren, and 3 great-grandchildren there to spend the weekend with her, plus all the other family and friends that came in to town to celebrate. I'll try to post some pictures next week. Even though my grandmother is 90 years old, she is still VERY with it. She's amazing!

My brother is still in town from Nevada this week so I've pretty much been doing family stuff after I get home from work. Throw in report cards that I had to finish up, and parent-teacher conferences which started tonight, and I've had absolutely no time to stamp! I was hoping to get in some stamping this weekend, however my husband's great aunt passed away (at the age of 95) late Wednesday night, so now I'll be with his family for funeral stuff this weekend. If I'm really lucky, I'll get some time on Sunday to get back into the groove of things.

Thanks for being patient! I promise that I'll be back with some stamping next week! Have a terrific day!!! :)

Summertime Fun... well, not really!

Brrrrr! Still cold here! We're supposed to get flurries this weekend. Blech! I'm going to have to imagine it's still summer and nice weather. So in honor of pretending that the weather outside is toasty warm and pleasant, I made a card today that's more suited for summer weather.

Today's "Ways to Use It" challenge on SCS was to use a single word on your card. I chose to use the word "Happy" and pair it with an adorable summery image from C.C. Designs. This set is called "Summertime Fun" and is just the cutest!!! I love all the images! They make such bright, cheery, summery cards.


I paired the image with some new paper that just arrived today on my doorstep from Papertreyink. I chose the polka dotted paper from the newest designer paper pack and then matched my colors from there. I tried to tie in pink also, for the Breast Cancer Awareness month challenge on SCS... but my pink is more like a light lavendar today.

The monkey is colored with Copic markers and the image panel is popped up on dimentionals. I stamped the word "Happy" from SU's Happy Everything set with Ripe Avacado Palette ink. Here's the complete recipe:

RECIPE:
Stamps: Summertime Fun from C.C. Designs, Happy Everything from SU
Ink: Black Momento, Ripe Avacado (PTI)
Paper: Ripe Avacado, Lavendar Moon, Plum Pudding, White, Polka dot Parade dp (all PTI)
Accessories: Copic markers, Classic and Scalloped Rectangle Nestabilities, Ripe Avacado twill ribbon (PTI), green button threaded with linen thread, dimentionals

Thanks so much for looking today! Again, sorry for the poorly lit photos. I'm still working on getting a new photo editing program. Hopefully soon!!!

Have a terrific day!!! :)

Wintertime Fun

Hello! Today's sketch challenge was a fun one on SCS. In addition to the sketch, we had to incorporate pink into our design. It's so cold here right now that I was picturing a light pink color with some sort of blue to combine into a wintery scene. I'm so addicted to my C.C. Designs stamps lately, so of course I pulled out one of my faves. This set is called "Wintertime Fun" and has the most adorable sentiment... "There's no day like a snow day". This is definitely a teacher's mantra, and a must-have stamp for my collection! I'm definitely not wishing for snow, but it's supposed to snow this weekend!

Here's an example of just how cold it is...











This is my fur baby, Mia. She is totally wrapped up in a down blanket. She buries herself in blankets when it's cold. Normally you can't see her head, but she was curious about what I was doing. She was just too cute not to snap a picture!

Anyways... back to stamping. Here's my wintery card...

I didn't get to use my favorite sentiment from this set, but I still love this card! I colored the image with my Copic markers. The image is framed with classic and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities. I also used the ribbon label Nestabilities to cut out and emboss the sentiment. I rubbed blue metallic rub-on paste onto the sentiment label to make the embossing stand out a little more. Silver ribbon from Papertreyink is threaded through the ribbon label. I used the Cuttlebug Snow Dots embossing folder on the elongated panel in the back. The main image and sentiment is popped up on dimentionals.

RECIPE:
Stamps: Wintertime Fun by C.C. Designs
Ink: Momento Black
Paper: Aqua Mist, Sweet Blush, White (all PTI)
Accessories: Copic markers, classic and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities, Cuttlebug Snow Dots embossing folder, Spellbinders ribbon tag, silver ribbon (PTI), corner rounder punch, metallic rub-on paste, dimentionals

That's all for today! Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Hey Chicky!

Greetings! I'm back again with more C.C. Designs stamps. I've had this set for a little while now, and it hasn't yet seen ink! Can you believe that?!? I think that these little chicks are just too cute not to use. I decided to use these stamps and incorporate them into today's color challenge on SCS. The colors were Pink Pirouette, Kiwi Kiss, and Chocolate Chip... I immediately thought this was going to be tough challenge. But once I got going, it flowed quite easily! SCS is promoting Breast Cancer Awareness month through using the color pink in all of their challenges this week. I thought the "Hey Chicky" stamp set would work with these colors and theme.

Here's my card...

I thought this card would be great to send to a friend to remind them to go get a breast exam or to raise a girlfriend's spirits if they were down.



I colored the chick image with my Copic markers and then punched her out with my long rectangle Nestabilities. Once I assembled the layers, I lifted the image panel up over the ribbon and embossed panel with dimentionals. The embossed background was done with the "With Gratitude" cuttlebug embossing folder.


RECIPE:
Stamps: Hey Chicky by C.C. Designs
Ink: Black Momento
Paper: Kiwi Kiss, Pink Pirouette, Chocolate Chip, White
Accessories: Copic Markers, Sweet Blush polka dot ribbon (PTI), long rectangle Nestabilities, designer label punch, 1 3/8 circle punch, key tag punch, With Gratitude Cuttlebug embossing folder, pink rhinestone brads, dimentionals

That's all for today! I'm hopeful to get a new photo editing program soon. When my computer crashed a couple of weeks ago, I lost the one I was using. Thank you for putting up with the not-so-great photos lately. Soon I'll be able to have much better photos!!!

Thanks so much for looking! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Vampire Bear

I really can not seem to get enough of these adorable C.C.Designs Halloween stamps! I felt the urge to pull out my Sizzix shaker box die too and make some more fun treats!

Here's my cutie-patootie box!

This is what it looks like closed.








I used the Martha Stewart drippy goo punch around the edge to make it look like it's dripping vampire blood. The lid is held shut with a small piece of velcro. I colored the bear with my Copic markers and popped him up with dimentionals. I sponged the moon with a little pumpkin pie ink to give it an eerie appearance. I used a craft knife to cut out the fence... I'm not THAT good with scissors!

Here's what the box looks like opened. POOF! The vampire has turned into the cutest bat ever! And the box is filled with delicious Reese's Pieces. YUMM-O!

The bat is also popped up with dimentionals and the moon on the inside is also sponged.

What do ya think?

RECIPE:
Stamps: C.C. Designs--Spooky, Spooky, Spooky and Spooky Scenes

Ink: Momento Black, Pumpkin Pie

Paper: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Close to Cocoa, White
Accessories: Copic Markers, Martha Stewart drippy goo punch, velcro, Reese's Pieces, dimentionals, Sizzix shaker box die (used in the cuttlebug), acetate (for the shaker box window)

Thanks so much for looking! I hope you have a wonderful day!!! :)

Gobble 'til you Wobble

This card is for today's Featured Stamper challenge on SCS. I chose to be inspired by THIS card. As you can see, I changed A LOT! I kept the basic sketch but turned it on its side. I also kept the fall theme, but used new stamps that I purchased last weekend at the Inky Antics booth at the Adventures in Stamping Convention in Strongsville. I don't have any Thanksgiving stamps, so when I saw this adorable turkey and the great sentiment, I knew they must be mine!

Anyways... here's my card...

RECIPE:
Stamps: Turkey and sentiment from Inky Antics
Ink: Momento black
Paper: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, Very Vanilla
Accessories: 5/8 inch Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon, SU Naturals buttons, linen thread, 1 1/4 inch and 1 5/8 inch circle punches, Classic and Scalloped Rectangle Nestabilities, Autumn Type Cuttlebug embossing folder, Copic Markers, dimentionals

The inside of the card says, "Happy Gobbler Day!". Totally cute! This little guy was so much fun to color with my Copic markers too!

Thanks so much for looking today! I hope you have a wonderful day!!! :)

Spider Attack!!!

Blechhh! I hate spiders! I love fall but when the weather starts changing and getting cooler, spiders always seem to make their way inside. The other day, I opened up the front door to leave for work in the morning and a HUGE spider came running across the floor from under the door. He hid underneath one of my shoes that was next to the front door. I hate spiders, so of course I pushed down on the shoe with my foot and heard this disgusting crunching sound. You know a spider is big when it makes a "crunch" when you squish it!

Then a couple of days later I was getting ready in the morning when a spider lowered itself down right next to my head!!! I immediately made Jeff get up to kill it, but he would not get out of bed until I said, "What, are YOU afraid???". Then he got up and killed it. Come on! Did he think I was going to kill it?

Last night, there was a spider in the hallway! Did I mention that I HATE spiders!?!? I think read somewhere that humans EAT somewhere around 8 spiders in their lifetime. I think they crawl up your nose or into your mouth when you're sleeping! Yet another reason to kill every and ANY spider that finds its way into the house. Don't they know they're supposed to stay outside?

But these spider are pretty darn cute! They've been all over SCS lately so I had to make some. I made 27 spiders today! They are sooooo easy-peasy!














RECIPE:
Stamps & Ink: NONE!
Paper: Black & Orange (I used cheapo... from the days before I learned about good cardstock)
Accessories: SU punches... Scalloped circle & Photo corner; googlie eyes, glue dots

Even though he's a spider, he's still pretty cute!





It's a SPIDER ATTACK!!!










Did I mention that these little spiders are not only cute, but they are also DELICIOUS!?!?!? They have a peppermint patty sandwiched inside! What a fun Halloween treat!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Sweet Little Ice Cream Bear

Hiya! Well, I haven't gotten any stamping in yet, but Saturday is looking promising! I made this cute little ice cream bear card a little while ago. I just love those cute little C.C.Designs stamps! Totally adorable!














RECIPE:
Stamps: C.C.Designs "Sweet Treats"
Ink: Black Momento
Paper: White, Sweet Blush, Berry Sorbet, Pink Patterns dp (all PTI)
Accessories: Berry Sorbet double stitched grosgrain ribbon, SU flower brad, silver brads, Scalloped and Classic Square Nestabilities, dimentials

Thanks so much for looking today! Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with more! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Sorry!

HI all! Sorry I haven't been around this week. I'm in crunch time right now at work and busy, busy, busy doing report cards and preparing for conferences. I haven't gotten to any stamping and I'm not sure I'll get to any this weekend either. I'll be sure to post if I get to any "me" time. I hope you're all having a great week! I'm off to a hair appointment! Yeah! I really needed a hair cut! Talk to you soon! :)

Spooky Spooky Stairs

This card is for today's technique challenge on SCS. The challenge was to create a card using the "Stair Step" fold. This type of fold is actually great for creating a little scene. I was whisked back to my diarama days of elementary school on this challenge and had a lot of fun creating my spooky scene.

It had been a few weeks since I had played with my C.C.Designs Halloween stamp set, so of course I had to get it out and play! Here's my card...













RECIPE:
Stamps: Spooky Spooky Spooky & Spooky Scenes from C.C.Designs
Ink: Momento Black
Paper: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Gray, Old Olive, Close to Cocoa, white
Accessories: dimentionals, Copic Markers

Isn't it a fun card? I had fun making it. I rarely make anything in under an hour (or two hours, usually!) and this was done in under an hour! Easy peasy!

The gravestones, dog, and eyes are all popped up on dimentionals. I cut the Old Olive layer with my papersnips to make it look like grass. I also sponged a little pumpkin pie ink onto the moon to give it a little "spooky" effect.

Thanks so much for looking today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Major Computer Issues

I'm back! My computer today died last week. I've spent the past week running back and forth to Best Buy and talking to the guys at Geek Squad. My hard drive bit the dust, but they were able to install a new one. So that's the reason for no posts. No computer=no blogging. So sad!

But now I'm back up and running so I can show you what I've been working on. My grandmother is turning 90 this month and we're throwing her a huge party. My mom asked if I was interested in making the invitations and I jumped at the chance. I wanted to make sure that I made something classy and beautiful. I flipped through the Stampin' Up! catalog for inspiration and found my inspiration on page 13. I modeled my card off of that sample, but made changes to that it would go through the mail easier. Here's my card...

RECIPE:
Stamps: A Rose is a Rose, Frames with a Flourish, Sincere Salutations

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Ridinghood Red, Old Olive
Paper: Old Olive,Very Vanilla, gold, Bella Rose dp
Accessories: Ridinghood Red tafetta ribbon, square punches, dimentionals

Didn't it turn out gorgeous? My grandmother hasn't seen them yet, but I'm sure she's going to love them!

I took her wedding picture to Target and cropped out my grandfather (sorry, Grandpa!). Then I used my square punch to punch out only her head for the invitations. I think this personalizes it a lot more.

Thanks so much for looking today! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Silly Monkey!

I didn't get to stamp AGAIN today!!! Arghhh! I really have to get back into a groove with my stamping. Every other day just is not cutting it for my creativity.

Today I'm posting a card I did this summer. I'm totally in love with this little Changito stamp. He's so cute and silly! I love him! Anyways, I did this card for an Inspiration Challenge on SCS this past summer and have just now gotten around to posting him. Even though the weather is changing here (50 degrees today! Brrr!), I can still dream of warm weather and swimming pools, right??? I'll really be dreaming when the weather REALLY gets cold and we have one of our good ol' Cleveland winters!

RECIPE:
Stamps: Changito (Stampendous), Sentiment from Smarty Pants (SU)
Ink: Black, Taken with Teal
Paper: Tempting Turquiose, So Saffron, Taken with Teal, White
Accessories: 1/4 inch Apricot grosgrain ribbon, flower brads, Nestabilities, SU markers

I just love this silly little monkey!



Here's another card that I did with the same Changito stamp. Too cute! I think I made this card for a Featured Stamper challenge this past summer too! I really like this one because it's a round, gatefold card. It was fun to make!


RECIPE:
Stamps: Changito (Stampendous)
Ink: Black (Palette)
Paper: White, Blue Bayou, Basic Gray Cupcake dp
Accessories: Scalloped and Classic Circle Nestabilities, star buttons, dimentionals, Copic Markers, Crystal Effects (on his goggles)

This card opens like a gatefold and is actually quite a small card. I used my largest circle Nestabilities to cut the card base. It took many runs through the cuttlebug, and I had to use my scissors a little on the folds, but it actually cut through pretty well. I used heavy PTI white cardstock too!

Okay... enough silly monkeys for today! Thanks so much for stopping by! Have a wonderful day!!! :)

Color Challenge & Sketch Challenge

I didn't get to stamp yesterday. My husband and I spent the evening gathering up clothing, coats, etc. for the AmVets. It is truly sinful how much stuff we had. In all honesty, I really hadn't gone through my clothing since I moved about 6 years ago. Since then I've been a few different sizes and have moved from my early-mid 20's into my late 20's... so my style's changed A LOT! I ended up getting rid of something like 20 sweaters, 50+ shirts, many, many pairs of pants and shorts... the list goes on and on. Again... truly sinful how much stuff we had! You would think that I have nothing left in my closet to wear now... but it doesn't even look like I made a dent!!! I did clean all of my clothing out of our spare bedroom and emptied out a few drawers... now I can actually see the clothing that I DO wear! So.. to make a long story short, we spent the evening bagging up our stuff so that it was ready to go this morning.

Since I didn't get to yesterday's color challenge, I decided to combine it with today's sketch challenge. I've really been into making fall cards lately, so of course this was going to be another fall card! Anyways, here it is...


RECIPE:
Stamps: Thoroughly Thankful
Ink: Momento Black
Paper: Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Really Rust, Very Vanilla, Autumn Vine dp
Accessories: Copic markers, Cowboy dew drops, Paisley cuttlebug embossing folder, dimentionals


That's all for today! Thank you so much for looking! Have a great day!!! :)