Red's Opening Day!

I am off to see the Red's Opening Day game!!! Here is a card I made last week since I won't have time to make anything new today. Again, it uses the Bohemia designer paper from My Mind's Eye. I can't tell you how much I love that paper. For the photo corners, I used my square punch and and cut it on a diagonal to get the two triangles. Hopefully I will have some pictures to share with you from the game tomorrow. Have a wonderful day! Go Red's!!!

Stamps: Peaceful Wishes

Paper: DP from My Mind's Eye (Bohemia Collection) front and back, chocolate chip, whisper white

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Paper Piercer, White Gelly Pen, Brown Satin Ribbon (Offray), square punch

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SFYTT, Happy Sunday!

I hope you all are having a nice and relaxing Sunday, because I'm not! Since we are going to the Red's Opening Day (yahoo!) tomorrow, I have to do all my Monday stuff today. I've been doing laundry, clipping coupons, planning meals, and getting the grocery list ready. Not to mention filling out a zillion forms for Halle's kindergarten registration tomorrow morning.

I did take a little time between loads of laundry and before dinner to make this card for Jen del Muro's SFYTT (sketch for you to try). My card is above and the sketch below. I used my favorite background stamp (Paisley) and stamped it on Naturals Ivory with Close to Cocoa and then I took a piece of Creamy Caramel and used the Paisley stamp again with Versamark. It didn't show up too well, so I used some clear embossing powder.

On another note, I'm using a different camera today. If I think this one is better, I may go back retake some of my previous cards. I made a cupcake birthday card yesterday that didn't photograph anything like what it really looks like. If it works out, I'll repost the new and improved pictures. Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Paisley Background (SU!)
Paper: Naturals Ivory, Creamy Caramel (SU!)
Ink: Close to Cocoa (SU!), Versamark
Accessories: Jumbo Brad & Flower (Making Memories), Buttons, Brown Ribbon (Offray), Clear Embossing Powder (SU!)

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WSC41, Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge!

I'm back with a card I just threw together for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. I bought some "Distressing Ink" last week and used it on this page from a novel. The page has been just sitting here for a week waiting for me to use it. I think it makes a really masculine looking card. All I did for the distressing is crumble the paper up, flatten it back out, and then pressed the ink pad lightly all over the page. The inked picked up more on the creases. I then tore it to the size I wanted. I have at least one more challenge I want to finish up this weekend, so I'll be back again tomorrow! Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Peaceful Wishes (SU!)

Paper: Naturals Ivory, Creamy Caramel, Mellow Moss, Chocolate Chip (all SU!)page from novel

Ink: Close to Cocoa (Craft Pad) (SU!), Tea Dye Distress Ink (Ranger)

Accessories: Jumbo Brads (Making Memories), Clear Embossing Powder

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TECC9- Cupcake Challenge!

This is a weekend challenge I stumbled across at Taylor VanBruggen site. It's a sketch challenge. I promise this card looks so much better in real life. The glitter icing looks silver in my picture, but it really looks purpley. I stamped the cupcake on green designer paper (you can see the green in the cupcake liner) and colored the icing with a purple marker. I then used a two-way glue pen (ZIG Memory System) to go over the purple and applied white iridescent glitter. I turned out really cute. All the stamps I used are Michael's $1 stamps. The cupcake is a rubber stamp and the "happy" and "birthday" are separate acrylic stamps. Thanks for stopping by and taking a look at what I've been doing! I'm going to start on Beate's challenge next.

Stamps: $1 Michaels Stamps, Cupcake (rubber stamp), Happy and Birthday (acrylic)

Paper: Orchid Opulence (SU!), Whisper White (SU!), Pink w/ White Polka Dots and light green patterned paper (unknown),

Ink: Basic Black, Lovely Lilac Marker (SU!)

Accessories: Silver Brads, Flower Punch, Glitter, Scallop Punch, 2-Way Glue, Pink Ribbon (Michaels)

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LSC161, Using Unloved Embellishments

Okay, for today's challenge we had to use embellishments that have been sitting around for a while and use them in a card with a flower. I have three unloved elements in my card. The pink polka dotted paper is really old, the bling bling flowers came from JoAnn's and were part of a gift, and the flower centers are brads that I've had for quite some time (they just look cheesy). I took the brads and dotted them with my white Gelly Roll pen; an idea I saw in PaperCrafts Magazine with the same brads. Also the bling bling flowers are a pretty pink and purple. The pink ones look a little orangey in my picture, but they really do coordinate in real life. Have a wonderful weekend guys! I have the house to myself tonight so I will definitely have some new cards to show you tomorrow including Beate's weekend sketch challenge.



Stamps: None
Paper: Orchid Opulance (SU!), pink paper with white polka dots
Ink: Green Galore Marker
Embellishments: Flower Brads (Making Memories), Rhinestone Flowers (JoAnn's), Lavender Ribbon (Spool O' Ribbon)

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Another WT159

Here's another stab at WT159. This time I think you can really see the colors muddling together. I combined Brilliant Blue and Passion Pink to get the purple effect on the hydrangeas. I think it's pretty close to what they look like in real life. First, I dotted the blooms with blue and then inked it with the pink ink pad. Then inked the stem with green. I sprayed a mist of water on the stamp. You have to be very careful so you don't get too much water on it. I probably stamped this image about 10 times and cut out the best three. A lot of trial and error, but it was worth it. This was a quick 4x4 card. Each flower strip is 1x3 and the purple and white mats are sewn together with a zig zag stitch. Here's a close up so you can see the two colors on the bloom. Thanks for looking!!!

Stamps: Both Way Blossoms (SU!)

Paper: Whisper White, Orchid Opulence (SU!)

Ink: Pink Passion and Green Galore Ink Pad, Brilliant Blue Marker

Accessories: Thread, Sheer Lavender Ribbon

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WT159

I am totally in love with this paper from My Mind's Eye. I LOVE everything in the Bohemia Collection. I wonder if they have a mat pack? I would totally be in heaven! I made this card this morning for the Ways To Use It challenge where you had to "spray it". It was a very open ended challenge where the sky's the limit. For more details click here. I played around for a little while until I figured out what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to use this Bohemia paper. It is patterned on one side and has a not quite solid backside. I used both sides. The stamped image is stamped on the backside of the patterned paper. See what I mean by not quite solid? For the "spray it" part of the challenge, I misted my stamp with water, colored it with an only orange marker, then pressed it in Chocolate Chip ink then Close to Cocoa. I then pressed it on the paper. All the colors are sorta muddled together. I really like the end result. You really can't go wrong with this gorgeous paper! If I have time, I'm going to try this challenge again today. I already have an idea for a cool background. Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Peaceful Wishes (SU!)

Paper: Chocolate Chip (SU!), DP by My Mind's Eye (Bohemia, Backyard "Just Be You" Paisley Teal)

Ink: Only Orange Marker, Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Corner Rounder, Brown Ribbon (Michaels), Paper Piercer, White Pen

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SC169

Hello! Here's my card for today's sketch challenge at Splitcoast. Click here to see the sketch. I've been playing a lot with my sewing machine and am getting much better at controlling things. I just wish I could get a whole card done without the bobbin thread getting stuck! I have found that this "extra strong button thread" works the best. It is thick, so it shows up great on cards. Thanks for visiting today!

Stamps: Both Way Blossoms (SU!)

Paper: DP from Doodlebug Designs (solid color behind stamped image is from a coordinating striped sheet), Cameo Coral (SU!)

Ink: Black Stazon

Accessories: Silver Brads, White Thread, Water Color Pencils

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Easter Pictures & SFYTT

I hope you all had a great Easter! I'll post the card I made this morning first and then I just have to be a Mom and share some Easter pictures of my kids with you.

I made this card this morning for a challenge on I{heart}2stamp called SFYTT (sketch for you to try). This is my first time participating and I love Jen's unique layouts. Jen has this challenge every Saturday. Here's the sketch followed by my card.

SU! Jumbo Wheel Stamp: Wash Day

Paper: Whisper White, Mellow Moss, Brocade Blue (SU!)

Ink: Black Stazon

Accessories: Brads and Flower (Making Memories), Mellow Moss Gingham Ribbon (SU!), watercolor pencils, corner rounder, paper piercer, white pen

We spent the whole day of Easter at my in-laws and we all had so much fun. We colored eggs the night before. Here are my two kiddies. The first pic is of Colin and the second is of Halle. It's not a great picture of Halle, but I wanted to show how she just had to wear her princess dress while coloring eggs.

Here's their Easter baskets. They each got a Webkinz.The Easter Bunny hides their baskets and this is a picture of Halle finding her basket with her new white poodle Webkinz. This just melts my heart...

Have great day and thanks so much for visiting my site!

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WSC#40

I made this quick card for Beate's weekend sketch challenge. I've been dying to sew on some cards, so I spent part of my afternoon playing around with my sewing machine. I finally found the right tension and thread combo. Now I'm out of thread! I feel like I cheated on this challenge because I bought the tag as is and just added a few stickers. After making this card, it dawned on me that is also qualifies for the ways to use it challenge on Thursday where you needed to use a tag on your card. Thanks for stopping by! If I don't post anything tomorrow, have a great Easter!

Paper: DP by American Traditional Designs, Buckaroo Blue, Old Olive

Accessories: tag and stickers from American Traditional Designs, Sewing

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SC168 & WT158

I went shopping at Michaels yesterday and had a blast. I was by myself and had a big cup of coffee to drink while I browsed. I can never really BROWSE when I have the kiddies with me. I bought a lot of cool stuff that you will be seeing in future cards and some supplies to make my sister-in-law's sister's bridal shower invitations (Amber's sister Holly).

I'm playing catch up today. I combined yesterday's sketch challenge with today's ways to use it challenge which was to use a tag however you wish. I used a mat stack for the designer paper. I've had the stack for years. It's all pastel patterned paper and card stock. I originally bought it to make baby cards, but it seems that all the colors are kinda off. Not what you would call true baby colors. This card can be used for any happy occasion. It came together pretty fast since all my dp coordinated. Also, this is my very first card using a prima (big flower) and jumbo brad. I bought a pack of both at Michaels. The ribbon is also from Michaels. I can't believe you can get 4 yards of this gorgeous ribbon for $1! Thanks for stopping by today!

Stamps: Small Scripts (SU!)

Paper: Whisper White for card base (SU!), dp from Mat Stack

Ink: Chocolate Chip (SU!)

Accessories: Flower & Brad (Making Memories), Tag, Hemp Twine (SU!), Paper Piercer, White Gel Pen, Brown Ribbon

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New Card! Finally!

I finally have a new card to post! I have been able to participate in Monday and Tuesday challenges due to lack of supplies. You needed to have a Cuttle Bug for the first one and specific SU! colors for the second one. Here is a card I made last night, just for fun. If you can't tell, the pig nose is 3-D! Hope you like it. Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Very Punny

Paper: Cool Caribbean?, DP by Bo Bunny

Ink: Black Staz-on

Accessories: Pink Ribbon (Offray), Paper Piercer, Black Fine Tip Sharpie, Scallop Punch, Dimensionals, Scissors

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WSC#39 Weekend Sketch Challenge

I'm so sad to see this weekend come to an end. I know the kids had a great one filled with a birthday party and going to see "Horton Hears a Who" with Aunt Patty. I managed to squeeze in a little time to make this little card today. It's for Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge. You can click here to see the sketch. Once again I used the Miss Elizabeth's $1 store designer paper. I love this set called "Butterfly Gardens". I also used a stamp that I found at Michael's in the $1 bin. I only used the "for you" part of the stamp. There is a flower that is also on the stamp. If you can't tell from the picture, the "for you" is embossed in gold. Thanks for looking!

Stamps: $1 stamp from Michael's

Paper: Lavender from Bazzill, Dp from Miss Elizabeth's (Dollar Tree), Cream Base

Accessories: Gold Brads, Yellow Ribbon, Versamark, Gold Embossing Powder, Corner Punch

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IC119 Candy Toss

Happy Weekend! Here is the card I made for the Saturday Inspiration Challenge at Splitcoast. You are supposed to use these pictures as your inspiration. I used the lollipops and all the bright colors in my card. My card took a lot of time, but I think it turned out pretty good in the end. There's a lot of dimension in the layers, but I'm not sure that shows up in the picture. There's also Crystal Effects on the lollipops to make them look real. Thanks for looking and have a great weekend!

Stamps: Very Punny

Paper: Only Orange, Pink Passion, Brilliant Blue, Yo Yo Yellow, Real Red

Ink: Only Orange, Pink Passion, Brilliant Blue, Yo Yo Yellow, Real Red

Accessories: Orange and Pink Ribbon (Offray), Crystal Effects, font by www.scrapnfonts.com (LDSweaterShirt), aqua painter

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LSC159 I hate this card...

I read the Limited Supply Challenge first thing this morning, but was away from the house most of the day. I had a chance to sketch what I wanted the card to look like, but finally had a chance to play just before dinner. My sketch looked totally cute. The only thing that is in the card from the sketch is the ribbon. I'm only posting this hideous card because I am sorta proud of the ribbon technique. I don't know what I was thinking using all solid card stock. The ribbon is attached with only adhesive. I had to apply it under the ribbon and between the ripples. Here's the card. Thanks for looking and I promise a much better card tomorrow!

Stamps: Birthday Greetings (SU!)

Paper: Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, Pink Passion (all SU!)

Ink: Brilliant Blue (SU!)

Accessories: Silver Brads, Ribbon (Offray)

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WT157, Love this card!

Yesterday's "ways to use it" challenge was to only use designer or pattered paper in your card. It took me all day to figure out what I wanted to do, but I finally made this great little card while watching Survivor. I actually did a rough sketch of this card before I started on it. It really helped, even though I didn't use all the elements I planned. The part about this card that I'm most excited about is that the flower and leaf are 3-D!! This is the first time I've tried this technique, but I love the result. Another cool thing is that the designer paper came from the $1 store! 5 coordinating sheets for a buck! What a deal! Here's my card! Thanks for looking!

Stamps: NONE

Paper: Garden Butterflies DP by Miss Elizabeth's & Lavender Pattern paper by Bazzill

Ink: NONE

Accessories: Foam Tape

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Sketch Challenge #167

I had so much fun with today's sketch challenge and I was able to enjoy a quiet house at the same time. Believe me, I really needed some time to myself. Here is the sketch for today's challenge and here is my card, complete with dimensions.

• Base- Only Orange cut to 8 1/2 x 5 1/2, folded in half
• Layer 1- Striped DP cut to 5 1/4 x 4, adhere
• Layer 2 Only Orange rectangle cut to 4 3/4 x 3 1/2
• Layer 3- Flowered DP, 2 rectangles cut to 3 1/4 x 2 1/8
• Stamp on striped DP with YoYo Yellow and then Only Orange around edges, punch out with scallop stamp
• Stamp again on striped paper only inking the center with markers, YoYo Yellow for flame, Only Orange for candles, Greeen Galore for "Happy Birthday"
• Cut out center of stamp and adhere with dimensionals to center of punched stamp
• Tie green ribbon around card and adhere stamped punch over the criss cross of ribbon with a double layer of dimensional
• Apply crystal effects to candle flames

Stamps: So Many Scallops (SU!)

Paper: Only Orange (SU!), DP by Doodlebug Designs

Ink: Yo Yo Yellow, Only Orange, Green Galore (SU!)

Accessories: Scallop Punch, Dimensionals, Green Ribbon (Offray), Crystal Effects (SU!)

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New Scallop Punch!

I just had to play with my new scallop punch! Haley (my SU! demo and friend) dropped it off first thing this morning and I was able to hold off until about an hour ago to play. I made these two cards while watching American Idol. It's two hours long tonight, so it's not over yet. I'm just waiting for David Archuleta. Anyway-here are my cards. They both use the same supplies, just used a bit differently. The thread in the buttons is really purple. I dyed white thread with Lovely Lilac ink. It shows up black in the picture. Thanks for looking!!!

Stamps: So Many Scallops

Paper: Lavender Lace, Mellow Moss, DP (unknown)

Ink: Lovely Lilac

Accessories: Rub-ons (Making Memories), White Grosgrain Ribbon (Offray), Button, Thread, Dimensionals, Scallop Punch

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Springing Forward & Faux Cloisonne

Well, we remembered to spring forward, but forgot one important clock. My alarm clock! The kids were exactly one hour late for school and I didn't even figure it out until I was dropping Colin off at preschool and was the only one there dropping their child off. I called Scott to see if we had an hour delay, no we didn't he said. Then he said "what time do you think it is?" I replied 8:15, "wrong, it's 9:15"!!!!!!!! Oh well, at least they got there.

The technique lovers challenge today was a to use a technique called "faux cloisonne". I still have no idea what it means but it sure did look interesting. Basically, you find a picture in a magazine, stamp over it with versamark, and then emboss it with gold embossing powder. You then cut around the image and use it in a card. Below is what I did, but there are a lot of increadible examples in the gallery at Splitcoast. Thanks for looking!

Here is the magazine picture I chose. It's from Wonder Time, a parenting magazine that I somehow got free and never read. It came in handy today, though. I sure wasn't going to tear up any of my papercrafting mags.
Stamps: Made from Scratch (SU!), Michael's $1 stamp (acrylic)
Paper: Magazine Page, Brilliant Blue, Whisper White, Ballet Blue (all SU!)
Ink: Versamark, Brillian Blue Marker
Embellishments: Gold Embossing Powder (SU!), White Grosgrain Ribbon (Offray), Paper Piercer

Here's a close-up of the flower.

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Snow Day, Fun Day!

We had a blast sled riding yesterday and watching movies last night. It's so much fun being snowed in. Here are some pictures of the kiddies.

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Featured Stamper Challenge #57

This is my first time participating in a Featured Stamper Challenge. Splitcoast picks a stamper to feature, we go to their gallery and pick a card to copy, but change a few things. This weeks featured stamper is Paris Otremba. Here is the card I chose from her gallery. I need to make a birthday card for my friend's daughter Madison. She just turned 1. I didn't use letter stamps, I used stickers. I changed the designer paper. I kept the button on top but wrapped the ribbon around the card. I used a "happy birthday" sentiment but put it on the left side and added 3 brads. Thanks for looking!

Stamps: "Happy Birthday" from Michael's $1 bin (acrylic)

Paper: Green and Pink Dp (unknown source)

Ink: Pixie Pink

Accessories: brads, yellow ribbon (offray), button, alphabet stickers

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WSC38 & IC118

Happy Saturday! My family and I had a great time playing in the snow today. We got about 8 inches! I'll try my best to post some sled riding pictures tomorrow. They are on another camera and not as easy to download.

There's no better time to craft than when you're snowed in. I thought I would tackle two challenges in one card. I combined Beate's weekend sketch challenge with today's inspiration challenge which was to be inspired by a picture of an irish quilt. I wanted to do a St. Patty's Day theme, but didn't have any paper, embellishments, or stamps with anything remotely Irish. I stuck with a green monochromatic scheme (from the quilt) and used some rub-ons I found on clearance at Meijer. This was my first time using rub-ons and I think I'm in LOVE. They are so easy! I wanted to tie the whole card together with some faux stitching around the perimeter, but my white gel pen has finally ran dry. I'm glad I checked before punching all those holes! Here's my card and thanks for looking!!!

Ink: Mellow Moss (used to ink edges of white paper) (SU!)

Paper: Whisper White, DP by Making Memories (stack, used front and back)

Accessories: Rub-ons (Making Memories), Ribbon (SU!), Silver Brads, Dimensionals, Hardware (?)

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LSC158, Elegant Easter Mini Cards

Todays challenge was to make a card that was less than 4.25x4.25, uses scraps, and limited embellishments. These cards were super easy once I figured out what I wanted to do. The blue and black paper is stamped with white and the white paper is stamped with blue or black. I made a template for the egg shape using an image I found on Microsoft Word and printed it on cardstock, cut it out and made a stencil. The finsihed card measures 3.5 x 3.5. Thanks for looking. I'll have to post some pictures tomorrow of all the snow we are getting.

Stamps: Peaceful Wishes

Paper: Whisper White, Ballet Blue, Basic Black

Ink: Whisper White, Basic Black, Night of Navy

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WT156

I was so excited about the "Ways to use it" challenge today because the challenge was to use the computer somewhere on your card. It could be an image, a background, or a sentiment (or all three). There are so many cool images out there on Microsoft Online Clip Art that are free to download. My problem was that my new laptop is not compatible with my printer. So I had to find the image, save it, email it to myself, get on the old computer and print it out. That was the other problem. My printer is black only. The flowery image you see in my card was downloaded from Microsoft and printed on a transparency sheet. The black showed up a lot more crisp on the transparency than on just white. I can't wait to try this again and I also really really want a computer that can print in color! Thanks for looking!!! Stamp: Warm Words (SU!), Butterfly (Rubber Stampede)
Image: Microsoft Word Online Clip Art
Paper: Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise (SU!)
Accessories: silver brads, transparency, dimensionals

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Sketch Challenge #166, Take Two & Three

Today sure has been productive for me on the card making front. I took another stab at the sketch challenge and feel much better about these two cards. They are made using the same supplies and stamp set. I just used the pine needle stamp on one and the tree limb one on the other. The way they are mounted are different also. The pine needle one uses dimensionals and I have inked the edges very sloppily (but on purpose!). The tree limb one is matted on chocolate chip card stock and I used a corner punch on the ivory paper. I am so sad that I am now completely out of the designer paper I used. Although I hear Michael's is having a sale. Hmmm... Thanks for looking!

Stamps: Birthday Greetings, Peaceful Wishes

Paper: DP by Bohemia, Naturals Ivory, Chocolate Chip

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Green Grosgrain Ribbon, Dimensionals

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Sketch Challenge #166

The challenge at Splitcoast today was to use this sketch for your cards layout. I love my "word search" background stamp, but always struggle with how to use it. I blew off the dust and used it twice in this card. I may play around with this a little more later to see if I can come up with something better. Thanks for stopping by!

Stamp: Word Search BG

Paper: Tempting Turquoise, DP by BoBunny

Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Real Red

Accessories: Mini Blossoms (Making Memories), silver brads

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Just had to play!

My Stampin' Up! demonstrator and good friend Haley just dropped off my order and I just had to play. I ordered some stuff for Christmas cards and earned a FREE stamp set from the sale-a-bration mini catalog. The set is called "So Many Scallops" and has an xmas stamp, happy bday stamp, thank you stamp, and baby stamp. I need to make a card for my cousin Heather who just had a baby last week. Welcome to the world baby Addison! I got the basic idea for this card from the "So Many Scallops" gallery at Splitcoast. Here's the card that inspired me by artsystamper. My picture is a little dark because it is so dreary here today. The stamp is 3-dimensional. It's one stamp, cut out three times and separated with dimensionals.

Stamps: So Many Scallops

Paper: DP by Making Memories, Whisper White, Gable Green

Ink: Pixie Pink, Green Galore

Accessories: light pink ribbon (offray), dimensionals

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Easter Circle Box

Wow! It's gorgeous today. High of 68 degrees! We had a great day yesterday and today taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather. Like I said yesterday, I've been working on a little project for Halle & Colin's teachers (7 of them!). I followed the tutorial and template from Andrea Walford's website. She has been posting tutorials for the past few days and has a few more to go. Thanks for all the hard work and beautiful projects Andrea!

These little "containers" are made from a big circle. I traced a mixing bowl I had for my template. It was pretty easy once I got the first one done. I didn't have the stamp set or paper that Andrea used, so I printed the "happy easter" and basket from Microsoft Word. This is the first time I have used digital images in my paper crafting. I even water colored the basket. I just know Halle & Colin's teachers will enjoy this little treat. Thanks for looking!


Basket image from Microsoft Word Online Clip art

"happy easter" from Microsoft Word

Paper: Pixie Pink, Chocolate Chip, Cream


Accessories: Mini Blossom (Making Memories), silver brad, corner punch for the scallops, pink ribbon, candy, sandwich bag, watercolor pencils, aqua painter





Here's the box from the side so you can see that it is about 1/2 inch deep. Perfect for a little treat!

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