BLOG CANDY!!!

This post will remain at the top until July 31st. For newest posts, please scroll down.

Earlier this month, I published my 250th post - WOOT!!!

To celebrate, leave me a comment under THIS post and tell me which post was your favourite this month.

At the end of the month, I'll draw a winner and the winner will receive this:

Level 1 hostess set called: It's the thought.

Want bonus entries? Place a $50 order before July 31st (Canadian Orders ONLY) and I'll give you two more chances at winning the prize!

Happy Stampin'!

Simple Saturday Thank You

One of my favourite relaxing things to do is check out the SUO gallery on SplitCoast Stampers. SUO stands for Stampin' UP! Only and that means all the products used to create the card are available through Stampin' UP!

Last week, I was doing just that and came across this card by Beedubya. I immediately stopped what I was doing, set the computer aside and got to work CASEing it - just had to!

Here's my version:

Everything except the Naturals White Cardstock is retired and no longer available. I don't normally use retired product to showcase cards on my blog, but these papers and stamped image were just PERFECT for the card. To make sure there was enough room for the library clip, I had to stack my Stampin' Dimensionals two high. This is DEFINITELY a card that will have to be hand delivered!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Happy Moments (a Sale-a-Bration set)

INK: Old Olive

PAPERS: Taken with Teal (retired) and Naturals White Cardstock; DSP from Sweet Pea Paper Pack (retired)

ACCESSORIES: Black Marker and 1/2" library clip (you can still get the mini clips, item # 109857)

Happy Stampin'!

Fabulous Finds Friday!

OK, so I've got it all now!!! Seven challenges/specialty days, present and accounted for!

DD suggested perhaps I should do "Freaky Friday", but then, I already had Manic Monday and I didn't want people running scared from my blog! She then suggested "Fifteen Minute Friday" which meant I had to make a card in 15 minutes. Are you kidding me? I tried, really I did, but it just WASN'T happening!

So...I decided on Fabulous Find Fridays. This way, I can either make something FABULOUS or if I'm in a creating slump (heaven help us all because I get NASTY when that happens!) I can just find some FABULOUS stuff in "internet land" to share with you.

Today's Fabulous Finds Friday brings you a FABULOUS web site which I just recently discovered and you can check it out here. While I was there, I decided to catch up on the colour lab challenges and completed three (yes, THREE) cards!!!

This is the first one:

The colours were Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze and Pear Pizzazz. The Pear Pizzazz is represented in the Itty Bitty Buttons, because I haven't ordered any yet and my Caroline was awesome enough to give me a little bit of it. Those little pieces are all I have left - EEK!!!!!

STAMPS: It's the Thought (Hostess, Level 1)

INK: Chocolate Chip

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip and Pear Pizzazz Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Itty Bitty Buttons, Stampin' Dimensionals

The second card:

is a complete and total case of the card in this post by Jen. It WOULD HAVE BEEN an exact CASE, except that I stamped the Birthday Wishes sentiment a little bit off kilter and had to remedy the situation. I just loved this when I first saw it and had to duplicate it!

STAMPS: Tropical Party (available till August 31st), Occasional Quotes (Hostess, Level 3)

INK: Regal Rose, Melon Mambo, Old Olive

PAPERS: Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise and Pacific Point Cardstock; Island Oasis DSP

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Brads, Stampin' Dimensionals

And the last card:

featured FIVE Colour Lab Colours. I had a little bit of trouble with mixing Night of Navy and Not Quite Navy, but I think I managed OK.

STAMPS: Stem Silhouettes, Hello Again

INK: Baja Breeze, Night of Navy, Not Quite Navy

PAPERS: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy, Pumpkin Pie, Crumb Cake

ACCESSORIES: None

Happy Stampin'!

3-D Thursday - Vintage Box

Welcome to another 3-D Thursday!

This week, I've created another box for you, as well as a card to go inside!

For the box, I followed the tutorial you can find here on Makeesha's blog. You HAVE to listen to/watch the video - her voice is just DARLING!

There is a bit of tweaking that needs to be done with her measurements though. When she says that you need to measure 4 1/2 inches from the first score line - DON'T! The actual measurement is 3 3/4" from the first score line, then 1 1/2" from there. If you score at 4 1/2" you won't get a box.

Also, with some additional tweaking of the instructions, you could EASILY turn this into a box that will hold A2 cards. With these dimensions, it will easily hold quite a few 3 X 6 cards and envies.

Here's the card I made:

I PROMISE you, it's not crooked IRL. The way the newsprint DSP was printed makes it look that way.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Elements of Style and Cute by the Inch

INK: Cherry Cobbler

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Basic Black and Cherry Cobbler Cardstock; Newsprint DSP

ACCESSORIES: Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware, Ribbon, Punches

Happy Stampin'!

Whimsical Wednesday Fairy

Wednesdays are WHIMSICAL thanks to my DD's suggestion! So...on Wednesdays look for something cute and charming and well...WHIMSICAL!

Here's my first Whimsical Wednesday Card:

I think I've mentioned before that when I first saw the Fairy Set in the Summer Mini that it wasn't on my "gotta have it" list. Since I got it, I kind of like it. It's not my "go to" set, but it's kinda fun to play with every once in a while. There's a smaller image too...I might make that one into an ATC. Of course, then I'd have a dilemma. ATC Tuesdays? Or Whimsical Wednesdays?

I used my Copic Markers to colour the image and followed the Colour Coach to use Sahara Sand, Pink Pirouette and Bravo Burgundy. The image is stamped on Whisper White, not that you can tell since it's pretty much covered in Copic.

What do you think?

STAMPS: A Little Bit of Magic (available in wood and clear mount, but only till Aug. 31st)

INK: Memento Tuxedo Black

PAPERS: Whisper White, Sahara Sand, Pink Pirouette and Bravo Burgundy Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Copic Markers

Happy Stampin'!

ATC Tuesday - Define Your Life

Hooray! I came up with another "day of the week challenge". I think if I'm counting right, I have 5 out of 7 now - not bad!

So, Tuesdays are going to be ATC days. Who would have thought I'd fall in love with these things? When I was scrapbooking (which I hardly ever do anymore), I used to ALWAYS scrapbook on 12 X 12 pages because there just wasn't enough room on the smaller size pages - I mean, I have three kids and about 20 years worth of pictures. Who has time for single photo pages on 6 X 6. Of course, now I keep plotting these great 6 X 6 pages in my head - LOL!

The first time I saw an ATC, all I could think was "What possible use can anyone have for these tiny things?" Now, I just can't seem to stay away from them!

Today's ATC's are pretty simple and feature the stamp set "Define Your Life" - thank you Caroline!

I used some of the excess retired Sweet Pea DSP that I still have as well as Taken with Teal (retired) and Old Olive Cardstock.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Define Your Life

INK: Taken with Teal, Old Olive

PAPERS: Whisper White, Old Olive and Taken with Teal Cardstock; Sweet Pea DSP

ACCESSORIES: Spiral Punch, Rhinestones

Happy Stampin'!

Manic Monday with There She Goes!

Ok, really...it's no secret. I'm a rubber whore. There, I said it - PHEW!!!

So, even though Stampin' UP! is my first love (and always will be), sometimes I like to dabble. It's OK to look at the menu as long as you eat at home, right? BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Manic Mondays are going to be just that...my day to dabble!

Today's card features There She Goes Clear Stamps:

I'm participating in a "humour" swap over at SplitCoast Stampers and I figured, "What humour is better than the "sick and twisted" variety? Plus, those "in the know" in my real world know that I've been dealing with some serious GARBAGE lately and one of my friends recommended a card like this might make me feel better. Truth be told, she also recommended I put a nasty note on the inside and then burn it...I thought about it, but decided not to waste all that colouring on burning the card. Those Copic inks are pricey you know!

So, I stamped the image in Memento Ink and coloured it using my Copic Markers. Don't you just love that floor design? Jessica over at There She Goes has some AMAZING tip sheets that will help you recreate it.

If the sentiment is too small for you to read, it says, "I would like to cancel my subscription. I'm tired of your issues." MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I just love it and it's PERFECT for the stuff with which I'm dealing right now.

Have a great Manic Monday and Happy Stampin'!

Sunny Sunday Sketch - Week 10

WOW! It's week 10 of my Sunny Sunday Sketch - how fun!

Here's my sketch for this week:

And here's my take on it:

This one is pretty simple, but I like it!

I used the Favourite Thoughts set for the sentiment and used Elements of Style to stamp a background of sorts on the panel beneath the sentiment. I also used me Rose Red marker to add some doodle lines to the edges.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Favourite Thoughts, Elements of Style

INK: Rose Red

PAPERS: Certainly Celery, Rose Red and Naturals White Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Marker

Happy Stampin!

Simple Saturday Wedding

I've been trying to come up with clever "challenge" names for days of the week. You know, like "3-D Thursday", "Sunny Sunday Sketch", etc.

For Saturday, I decided to go "simple". So, each Saturday look for something relatively simple, something that should be easy to duplicate, no distressing, no funny stuff!

This week, I used the Stamping 411 Sketch as my jumping off point. You can find the sketch here.

And here is my interpretation of the sketch:

I used the Colour Coach to help me choose the colours, starting off with Blushing Bride. The Colour Coach said that Early Espresso and Pear Pizzaz were good options to go with this colour. I added some Rose Red to the mix as well.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Occasional Quotes (Level 3 Hostess Set)

INK: Early Espresso

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Blushing Bride, Early Espresso Pear Pizzazz and Rose Red Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Wasabi Mist Season of Friendship

Earlier this week, my MOJO seemed to have taken a leave of absence and this was the result - YIKES!

Definitely NOT up to my regular standards, but if you're a demonstrator this fits right in the demonstrable category. I do like the cards though.

I stamped the tree in Early Espresso and then stamped the leaves and flowers using Wild Wasabi, Garden Green and Marina Mist. The sentiment was stamped in Marina Mist on Whisper White and I outlined the sentiment using my Garden Green marker. It was matted on Garden Green Cardstock and adhered to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Season of Friendship

INKS: Early Espresso, Garden Green, Marina Mist, Wild Wasabi

PAPERS: Whisper White, Wild Wasabi, Garden Green

ACCESSORIES: Markers

Happy Stampin'!

3-D Thursday

It seems that whenever I post something on my blog, I jinx myself and then whatever I've said, doesn't happen. *sigh*

Well, I'm going to cross all my parts and hope that I can continue with the plan I've started. So far, I've managed to post every day (and then some!) in July and have kept up with my Sunny Sunday Sketch, so maybe this is a sign of things to come - like every day posting, ALL THE TIME!

With that said, welcome to what I hope is the first of many "3-D Thursday" posts. My hope is that I can continue to bring you a cute little 3-D project every Thursday. I hope you'll come visit every week!

This week, I'm bringing you a little project that I found while surfing around one day. The original box was made to hold the individual packets of M&M's and the designer was kind enough to provide the dimensions to adapt the box to hold 3 X 3 note cards and envies. Of course, I can't for the life of me remember WHERE I saw the box, so if you know, PLEASE let me know so I can give proper credit. Thanks!

So, I used the template to create these adorable little boxes for my SCS girls when we went out to dinner on Monday night.

SERIOUSLY? How cute are these? I used Prima Flowers for the front because I didn't have any appropriate sized flowers for the little closure. In the post where I found these little gems, the creator used a ribbon closure by punching holes in the box and the flap, threading the ribbon through the holes and tying a bow. Equally as cute as my flowers! Since I wasn't using the ribbon, I used 1/2 of a velcro dot to close my little boxes.

Inside the boxes, I included three little 3 X 3 note cards:

I started off with a Whisper White Base and added a piece of retired Rose Red DSP. I stamped the three images from Priceless in Rose Red (note to self: order Rose Red Re-inker) on Whisper White and punched them out using my 1 3/8" square punch.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Priceless

INK: Rose Red

PAPERS: Whisper White and Rose Red Cardstock; Rose Red DSP (retired)

ACCESSORIES: Prima Flowers, Chocolate Chip Brads (retired)

Happy Stampin'!

And now for a little more vintage

As previously mentioned in other posts, I just can't seem to put this set away! I sure hope you're not getting tired of seeing it over and over again. Hopefully, each of the projects I've made with it are different enough that you don't run screaming from my blog - LOL!

For this card, I used a Crumb Cake (formerly Kraft) base and Crumb Cake Ink (previously unavailable!) to stamp the large image from Elements of Style on the front of the card. Tone on tone stamping is one of my favourite ways to add that extra little touch to my cards.

Then, out came the markers! I used Peach Parfait, Cajun Craze, Certainly Celery and Garden Green to colour my main image and stamped it on Whisper White. Then, out came the scissors! I hand cut the image (yes, I KNOW you all think I'm NUTS!) and adhered it to the front of the card. I stamped the hummingbird in Cajun Craze and hand cut him too. He was adhered to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

I stamped the sentiment on Whisper White and punched it out using the Designer Label Punch. I added a little doodle detail around the edges and then punched out a 1 3/8" circle to layer behind it. I then added some rhinestones before adhering it to the front of the card again using Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Elements of Style

INK: Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze, Peach Parfait, Certainly Celery, Garden Green

PAPERS: Crumb Cake and Whisper White Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Markers, Rhinestones, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Teapot Tuesday

This is my SECOND post for today, so please scroll down to see what else I've been up to today! If you haven't yet picked a post in order to win some BLOG CANDY, please go to the post that is "sticky" at the top of this page.

So, today as I was looking for another challenge with which to play along, I discovered Teapot Tuesday and oh what fun!!! You can read all about Teapot Tuesdays here on SplitCoast Stampers.

Today's card was supposed to feature hearts:

I only used a few hearts, but I've been told that there aren't really any rules on Teapot Tuesdays and if there are that no one really minds if you break them...so I'm OK with that!

I started off with Pink Pirouette Base and added a layer of Very Vanilla between the base and the Newsprint DSP which was distressed and inked in Pink Pirouette, Rose Red and Cherry Cobbler as well as run through the Big Shot with the Vintage Wallpaper Textured Impressions Embossing Folder.

I stamped the triple heart in Cherry Cobbler and punched it out using the Heart to Heart Punch. I also used the Big Shot Beautiful Butterflies Die and then stamped and distressed a couple those. Finally, I used the Butterfly Embosslit and added a couple of those to the front of the card.

Here's a close up of the large butterfly detail:

I stamped a portion of the large image from Elements of Style in Cherry Cobbler onto the largest butterfly and then I used my blender pen to add some highlights/detail to the image.

This final pic is SUPER-DUPER close up of the sentiment:

I just LOVE the little butterfly addition, don't you? Of course, once I re-read the Teapot Tuesday challenge and Destination Station, I realized that the card was supposed to be a Get Well card and not a Birthday card. So...after I took the pics, I removed the Birthday sentiment and added the Get Well sentiment from the same set instead.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Elements of Style, Sincere Salutations

INK: Pink Pirouette, Rose Red, Cherry Cobbler

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Pink Pirouette and Rose Red Cardstock; Newsprint DSP

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Big Shot, Dies, Embosslits, Embossing Folder, Blender Pen

Happy Stampin'!

Love Begins in a Moment

Today's card features two of my favourite stamp sets: Elements of Style and Vintage Vogue. I used both Elements of Style and Vintage Vogue to create the background on my card. Vintage Vogue was used for the flowers which were stamped in Peach Parfait and Cajun Craze.

The flowers are on a strip of Certainly Celery which was punched using the Scallop Trim Border Punch. On top of that I added a strip of Old Olive Cardstock and a piece of Certainly Celery Satin Ribbon. The second and fourth flowers were mounted using Stampin' Dimensionals.

I stamped the sentiment in Cajun Craze on Whisper White and matted it on a piece of Cajun Craze before adhering it to the front of the card.

The inside is finished as well.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Vintage Vogue and Elements of Style

INK: Crumb Cake (formerly Kraft), Cajun Craze, Peach Parfait

PAPERS: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Crumb Cake, Old Olive

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Punches, Pearls, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

A Note of Cherry Marina Craze Thanks

Yesterday's card was quick and easy, so I NEEDED to do some distressing again! For today's card, I used yesterday's challenge on SplitCoast Stampers. Sunday's challenge is the "Featured Stamper" challenge and the idea is to CASE a card or use a card for inspiration from the Featured Stamper's gallery.

For my CASE, I chose this card in 1busymomof2's gallery and came up with this:

I was drawn to the squares in her card and based my design on those.

I used my Pocket Silhouettes set and stamped the images in Cherry Cobbler, Marina Mist and Cajun Craze. The images are punched from 1 1/4" Very Vanilla and matted on matching colours. The "thanks so much" are stamped in the same colour order.

To do my distressing, I sponged all over the Very Vanilla and Newsprint DSP using the same colours as I used to stamp the images. I sponged the same colours on the Very Vanilla Taffeta Ribbon as well.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Pocket Silhouettes

INKS: Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler and Marina Mist

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Cajun Craze, Cherry Cobbler and Marina Mist Cardstock; Newsprint DSP

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Sponges, Punches

Happy Stampin'!

Sunny Sunday Sketch - Week 9

It's another Sunday which means it's Sunny Sunday Sketch time! Is the sun shining where you are???

Here's my sketch for this week:

And here's my take on it:

It's definitely simpler than what you've seen on here lately, that's for sure! I decided that every once in a while, you might just need a break from the awesome distressed creations I've been producing. As JanTink would say YILM! (yes, I love myself).

So, for today's card, I used a piece of Rose Red Cardstock that was cut to 6" X 5 1/2" and scored it at 4 1/4". Then I used my Scallop Trim Border Punch to add some detail to the edge before adhering a 4 1/4" X 5 1/2" piece of Whisper White Cardstock to the inside fold.

Not one to go COMPLETELY distress free (since I now love it more than I ever thought I would!), I added some sponged Rose Red Ink to the edges of the Whisper White Cardstock.

My main image is from the Level 2 Hostess Set Apple Blossoms (which you can earn by hosting a $395 show - ask me how!) and I stamped it in Rose Red Ink on Whisper White Cardstock which was also sponged with Rose Red Ink around the edge. My next layers is a 1 3/4" circle punched from Rose Red Cardstock and the last layer is a 2 3/8" scallop circle punched from Pink Pirouette. I adhered the image panel to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

The finishing touch was the little sentiment stamped in Rose Red Ink.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Apple Blossoms

INK: Rose Red

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pink Pirouette and Rose Red Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Punches

Happy Stampin'!

Old Vanilla Get Together

Earlier this week, I participated in a Chat and Challenge over on SUDSOL (if you're a demonstrator, you can join too! Just check out the two week trial over there to the left) and Pam was hosting.

I didn't have time to play on Wednesday as I was going over to my Caroline's studio to play with her - YAY!! She had a class going on, so I got to make 5 Thank You cards - GORGEOUS!!!

Anyway, I promised Pam I'd try and get a card made up to participate in the challenge and here it is:

Her challenge was a sketch (which I sort of followed) and also that we should distress our card and make it look "vintage". Now...I KNOW I said I wasn't a big fan of distressing and I'll bet you're all starting to think I'm a big fat LIAR! I think I've changed my mind since I can't seem to NOT distress a card these days! Talk about a total 180!

Here's a close-up of the stamped flower:

Would you believe I didn't use my Stamp-a-Majig? And this isn't even a clear-mount set.

Here's a close up of the sentiment at the top of the card:

For the sentiment, I used the direct to rubber technique and coloured the "get" in Night of Navy and the rest of the word in Old Olive.

OK, now for more of the details. The first thing I did was cut out a Very Vanilla Top Note using my Big Shot. Let me tell you, this is the best thing out there! I used to have a QK Revolution but sold it to get the Big Shot. I don't know how I ever lived without it!

After it was cut, I stamped two large and one small flower from the Flower Fancy Set using Marina Mist and Night of Navy Inks. I could have used my Stamp-a-Majig for perfect placement, but since I was going for vintage/distressed, I figured that freehand was a better bet. I used Night of Navy chalk in the middle of the flowers and gave it a sort of watercolour effect.

Next, I took my scissors to the edges of the Top Note and sponged on some ink to add to the distressed look.

The first layer on the card is the Newsprint DSP which again, I didn't think I'd like but was my only option other than Greenhouse Gala (which I REALLY didn't like) in the pre-order. Let's just say I need to order MORE!!! I took my scissors to the edges again and then added Old Olive and Certainly Celery Inks to it. I tore a corner off and ripped it up a bit before adhering it to the front of the card. The Old Olive piece at the top right is only a 2" X 2" square.

I cut and adhered the portion of the Top Note that I wanted to use and then attached Old Olive Satin Ribbon in 5/8".

My image panel is (are you sitting down?), yet ANOTHER ATC sized panel. I stamped the flower and outline using the direct to rubber technique again. Scissors and ink for distressing and then I matted it in Old Olive and Basic Black. I tied a knot in another piece of Old Olive Ribbon and wrapped it around the panel. It was adheres to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

Onto the sentiment: I used the direct to rubber technique again as I wanted the word "get" in a different colour. Originally, I punched it out using the Designer Label Punch, but because the word "get" isn't quite in the middle of the whole word, it just didn't look right. So, I ended up going with the Large Oval, Scalloped Oval and Wide Oval. The sentiment was also adhered with Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Flower Fancy, In a Word

INKS: Marina Mist, Night Of Navy Certainly Celery, Old Olive

PAPERS: Very Vanilla, Basic Black and Old Olive Cardstock; Newsprint DSP

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon, Punches, Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Playing with Paper Challenge

Earlier this week, one of the ladies on a Yahoo list to which I belong posed a question about challenges. One of the sites was recommended was "Always Playing with Paper". What a fun site! It's not always challenges, but the ones that are posted seem to be fun!

One of the first challenges that was posted was a colour challenge, using Bashful Blue, Old Olive and Pacific Point. When I saw the first card in this post, I couldn't help myself, I HAD to CASE it!!!

The only change I made was to add Basic Rhinestones instead of pearls.

I stamped the main image in Pacific Point on Whisper White Cardstock and then hand cut the image (WOW! That was time-consuming!). It was adhered to a piece of Whisper White Cardstock matted on Bashful Blue Cardstock that was slightly smaller than the main image.

The bottom panel is a piece of Bashful Blue, stamped with Bashful Blue ink, matted on a piece for Whisper White which was punched using the Scallop Trim Border Punch.

The finishing touch is the Old Olive Ribbon in the bottom right corner.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Elements of Style

INK: Bashful Blue and Pacific Point

PAPERS: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Old Olive and Pacific Point Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Ribbon

Happy Stampin'!

Must Have Product - Crochet Trim

If you like vintage, you're going to LOVE this new addition to the Idea Book and Catalog!

Add vintage charm to your projects with this beautiful, high-quality crochet trim. Tie it, dye it, knot it, gather it, or stitch it--with 5 yards in each package, you’ll have enough for many projects.

■ Approximately 5 yards per package
■ 100% cotton
■ Can be dyed using Classic Stampin' Ink
■ 5/8" wide

Be sure to place your order to get this wonderful addition to you vintage collection!

Happy Stampin'!

Monochromatic Sketch For You

This is my second post for today! To see what else I've been up to, scroll down. To enter the draw for BLOG CANDY, scroll up!

I've made this card for my friend Heather, who recently came into my life as our sons have similar cardiac conditions. I'm thrilled to have met her and am SO happy that she has come into my life. The cardiac world is a strange one and it's nice to know that there are so many other heart moms out there to lean on when we need them. Heather will see this card on Facebook before she gets in the mail, but I'm sure she'll think it's even more awesome IRL than online!

Today, over on SplitCoast Stampers the challenge is a sketch - I LOVE sketches! I always figure it's one part of the equation that I don't have to think about. With all the paper, stamp and embellishment choices I have a sketch makes things just a little bit easier!

Then, I went looking for another challenge, because, hey...why not? And I'm always one for getting two challenges in on one card!

So, I found this challenge over on the All That Scraps Blog. The name of the blog sent me to my scrap bag so I used up a bunch of little pieces of paper - LOVE when that happens! And this is the card I created:

I decided that since Chocolate Chip was a neutral colour, this still counted as a monochromatic card. You agree with me, right?

The two pieces of DSP are retired, but I'm also one to use up what I've got, so I'm OK with that. Plus...I didn't get new DSP from the new catty yet.

My stamped image was stamped in Whisper White Craft Ink and embossed with White Embossing Powder. I then sponged on Rose Red Classic Ink and wiped the excess off the embossed image.

From there, it was just LOTS of layers and some brads!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Watercolour Trio, Great Friend

INKS: Whisper White Craft and Rose Red Classic

PAPERS: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Pink Pirouette, Regal Rose and Rose Red Cardstock; Rose Red and Sending Love Specialty DSP (both retired)

ACCESSORIES: Brads, Embossing Powder, Heat Tool

Happy Stampin'!

Is it an ATC? Or not?

Today's card is sort of ATC, but it's a little bigger. So, technically, it doesn't actually qualify as an ATC, but I still like it:

This card is another one I created using the Colour Coach. I'm not sure that I like it as much as this one, but it's till a pretty awesome card!

My base is More Mustard and the layers are Whisper White, Cajun Craze and Pear Pizzazz. I used the direct to rubber technique and coloured directly on the stamp before stamping it on my Whisper White cardstock. I used my Cajun Craze marker to doodle around the outside edge.

The sentiment was stamped in Cajun Craze on Whisper White and punched out using the Large Oval Punch. I matted it on a piece of Cajun Craze punched out with the Scalloped Oval Punch and then adhered it to the card front using Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Watercolour Trio

INK: Cajun Craze, More Mustard, Pear Pizzazz

PAPERS: Whisper White, Cajun Craze, Pear Pizzazz and More Mustard

ACCESSORIES: Punches

Happy Stampin'!

WIld Cherry Mist Charming

This is my THIRD post for today - I know, you're shocked! Scroll down to see what else I've been up to and don't forget to submit your comment for the BLOG CANDY above!

So...I decided over the weekend that I would do my best to attempt a challenge each day. Of course, now that I said that, it'll probably all go to hell in a handbasket, but let's go with the every day challenge for now. Humour me...

Today over at SplitCoast Stampers is the colour challenge and the colour choices today were Wild Wasabi, Marina Mist and Cherry Cobbler.

Here's my card:

I started off with a 2" X 3" piece of Whisper White, but ended up trimming it down to make it a better "fit" for the small background stamp from the "Charming" stamp set, which I stamped in Marina Mist after stamping off for a lighter colour. On the same panel, I stamped the flower from Charming in Cherry Cobbler, which just happens to be my new FAVOURITE red!

I figured I'd do some distressing and scraped my scissors (the distressing kit pictured below is on it's way!) along the edge of the panel and then used my sponge to smudge some Marina Mist around the edges.

I matted the stamped panel on a 2 1/4" X 3 1/4" piece of Marina Mist and then onto a 2 1/2" X 3 1/2" piece of Cherry Cobbler, making it ATC size. My finishing touch was the three half-back pearls.

I don't have any DSP yet (except for the Newsprint), so I had to wing it today! I used Wild Wasabi, Cherry Cobbler and Marina Mist Inks with various stamps from the Charming set to make my own DSP.

I added some flowers and the "Create" sentiment to finish it all off!

What do you think?

STAMPS: Charming

INKS: Cherry Cobbler, Marina Mist, Wild Wasabi

PAPERS: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Marina Mist, Wild Wasabi

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Flowers, Pearls

Happy Stampin'!

This is all HEATHER'S fault!!!

This is my second post for today! Please scroll down for more goodness!

OK, so the other day, I posted about ATC's and how it was kinda cool to use them as a focal point on a card. Not a bad concept.

Then, yesterday, my friend Heather (in her infinite wisdom) says, "You should try inchies! They're so cute and tiny...you're gonna love them!" And THEN, she pretty much made it a challenge, so I HAD TO!

So, here's what I came up with.

First, I made three inchies using images from There She Goes "A Woman's Place". I was kind of so-so on the whole idea. I used Copics and because the inchie squares are VERY absorbent, they kinda bled all over the place - NOT impressed. Cute, but not my best work.

Then, I messed around with the cupcake from Short and Sweet and was a bit happier with the results. Since it's one of my first inchies, I think I did pretty good. I can't see me doing too many of these as I don't have the teeny tiny stamp inventory to pull it off...plus, they're SO tiny!!!

This one is going to my friend Heather since she was kind enough to send me her snail mail addy.

I hope she likes it!

Must Have Product - Distressing Essentials

If you're into the new Vintage look that's popular right now, you're going to LOVE this!

Distressing Essentials includes tools that make it easier than ever for you to create a distressed, vintage appearance on your projects. Includes the following tools:

■ Sanding block and emery board for distressing Designer Series paper or smoothing the edges of paper that has been adhered to chipboard
■ Precision files for sanding intricate die cuts and sanding in tight areas
■ Blendable vintage ink and stamp for creating an aged appearance: Tea Stain, Charcoal, Mahogany, Navy ink
■ Because vintage ink contains alcohol, they are not recommended for scrapbooking

You're going to want to add this to your first order right away! And lucky for you, I'll be ordering on August 1st after the Blog Candy contest finishes. Be sure to let me know if you'd like to place an order (Canadians only, please)

Happy Stampin'!

It's a MOJO Monday Colour Throwdown!

This is my second post for today, please scroll down to see what else I've been up to!

I can't even REMEMBER the last time I played with a MOJO Monday sketch. There just never seems to be enough hours in the day. And, since today is the last day for Colour Throwdown # 100, I knew I'd need a sketch to get my submission in on time. MOJO Monday to the rescue!

The colour throwdown seemed a little daunting at first...I mean, I could manage Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery and Regal Rose, that wasn't a problem. But then they threw in Real Red? It has a TOTALLY different colour value! What to do, what to do? I decided the MOJO Monday sketch would be perfect because of the little squares. That meant I could include the Real Red and not have it overwhelm the card by using it in one of the tiny squares. So, that's what I did!

I stamped all my little flowers using the Level 2 Hostess set Apple Blossoms onto Whisper White paper and then used a 3/4" square punch to punch them out. I layered them on matching cardstock and hand cut the small border.

Then I stamped my 3 1/2" X 5" piece of Baja Breeze using En Français and Baja Breeze Ink. This is SUCH a versatile background stamp! If it's not part of your collection, it should be! If you'd like to order one be sure to contact me!

I adhered all the layers together and then cut two short lengths of Whisper White Satin Ribbon and tucked them under the four little squares which I mounted to the front of the card on Stampin' Dimensionals.

I used my Circle Scissor to cut the half circles where I stamped my sentiment.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Apple Blossoms (Level 2 Hostess Set)

INKS: Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Real Red, Regal Rose

PAPERS: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Real Red and Regal Rose Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Punches, Ribbon, Circle Scissor

Happy Stampin'!

It's a bird, it's a plane...

OK, not really - LOL!

It is, however, an ATC turned into a card!

I was on a roll this weekend and had LOTS of fun creating! I'm not generally a big fan of ATC (Artist Trading Cards) - not enough creating space - but I've seen a few lately that inspired me to give them another try.

Here are two cards that I made using an ATC as my focal point:

This first card uses one of the new In Colours for 2010 - 2012. Yes, you read that right! In Colours are now going to be in the Idea Book for two whole years! The card base is Pear Pizzaz, but because I needed a piece of Pear Pizzaz for a card I showed you yesterday, I had to cut the front of the card (I only have 1/2 sheet of each right now). So, I cut a piece of Tempting Turquoise to 4 1/8" X 5 1/2" and affixed it to the inside (right up against the fold) of the Pear Pizzaz card base.

The next layer is from the Island Oasis DSP - which will retire at the end of August, so better get it quick! It measures 3 3/4" X 5".

Then we get to the ATC. There is only ONE rule for creating ATC's - they MUST be 2 1/2" X 3 1/2" in size. That's it. After that, anything goes. They can be as elaborate or as simple as you'd like them to be.

For the one above, I stamped the branches from Tropical Party - which is also retiring at the end of August - in Old Olive. Then I stamped and cut out the two flowers (in Pumpkin Pie and Tempting Turquoise) and figured out where I wanted them to go. I stamped the umbrella from the drink in Pumpkin Pie and stamped the rest of the drink in Early Espresso and hand cut it before adhering to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals. A little glitz was added using the Basic Rhinestones which I featured in this post.

Finally, I adhered the ATC to the front of the card.

This second card again features Island Oasis DSP, but this time I used the Priceless Stamp Set (thank you Karen!). The card base is Tempting Turquoise and the next layer up is Pacific Point.

My ATC for this card is stamped in So Saffron, Tempting Turquoise and Pumpkin Pie (butterfly antennae). I stamped the butterfly on a separate piece of Whisper White Cardstock and cut it out (minus the antennae) before adhering it to the front of the ATC.

The finishing touch was the two Basic Rhinestones in the bottom left corner of the ATC.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Tropical Party, Priceless

INKS: Early Espresson, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron Tempting Turquoise

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz, Pumpkin Pie and Tempting Turquoise Cardstock; Island Oasis DSP

ACCESSORIES: Basic Rhinestones

Happy Stampin'!

Sunny Sunday Sketch - Week 8

It's time for another Sunny Sunday Sketch!

This one features a small main panel the size of an ATC (Artist Trading Card) as the focal point on the front of the card:

And here's my take on it:

I stamped the image from Bouquet Bunch using the direct to rubber technique (using markers to colour directly on the stamp) on a 2" X 3" piece of Whisper White Cardstock and used my Mat Pack to pierce the holes in the bottom of the panel before tying the ribbon around it and adhering it to a piece of 2 1/8" X 3 1/8" piece of Rose Red Cardstock. The 2 1/2" X 3 1/2" piece of cardstock is Wild Wasabi.

The panel to the left of the card is a 2" X 5" piece of Rose Red.

The finishing touch is the tiny tag stamped from the Tiny Tags set and punched with the Tag Punch.

I'll post more about ATC cards tomorrow.

Meanwhile, if you'd like to use the sketch and have everyone see your work, please use Mr. Linky below.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Bouquet Bunch, Tiny Tags

INKS: Rose Red and Wild Wasabi

PAPERS: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Rose Red and Wild Wasabi Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Mat Pack & Paper Piercer, Ribbon

Happy Stampin'!

Post # 250 - Glitz and Glam + BLOG CANDY!

See the post at the top of the blog, for BLOG CANDY information!!!

So...as I was surfing around earlier this week, I came across Gretchen Barron's Punched Posies cards and fell in love with them. And then the next day, Claudia posted challenge # 100 over on SUDSOL (check it out in my sidebar!) with some bright and cheery summer colours. And then, my friend Paola started harassing me asking me nicely to join her Glitz and Glam swap. Are you seeing this whole snowball effect here? And...since I was coming up on post 250 (how did THAT happen?), I figured, "WHY NOT?" and went to town!

So, this is the card I made (inspired by Gretchen!):

You can't really see it in the pic, but I used Shimmery White cardstock on which to stamp. I love making One Sheet Wonders (OSW), because even if you use the same stamps and the same colours to make two different sheets, they won't look the same. No two are alike - kind of like snowflakes!

So, after stamping the OSW, I cut it into 4 pieces measuring 4 1/4" X 5 1/2". Then, I took 3 of those pieces and cut them in half so they would measure 2 1/8" X 5 1/2". Normally, I would make all different cuts to my OSW, but because I was using it for a swap, I wanted them to be the same.

I adhered the OSW strips to the card base of Tempting Turquoise and added a strip of Melon Mambo ribbon (retired) to the right side of it.

The sentiment was also stamped on Shimmery White Cardstock and I did so using Tempting Turquoise ink (one of my new FAVE colours!). It was matted on a piece of Daffodil Delight Cardstock and adhered to the front of the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

The finishing touch was the two rhinestones at the top left of the card.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Punched Posies

INKS: Daffodil Delight, Melon Mambo, Tempting Turquoise

PAPERS: Shimmery White, Daffodil Delight and Tempting Turquoise Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Stampin' Dimensionals

Happy Stampin'!

Must Have Product - Jewels and Pearls

Jewels are just as magical in papercrafting as in fashion. Add a pearl here, a rhinestone there, and your projects take a subtle step up. With our pearl basic jewels, it’s easy to add a touch of class to your projects in an instant.

Basic Pearl Accents (Prod. # 119247, $6.50 CAD)

• Small, self-adhesive pearls
• 150 pearls per package; 50 each of 3 sizes (2 mm, 3 mm, and 5 mm)

• Each package also includes three 2-5/8" strips of connected pearls perfect for borders

Basic Rhinestone Accents (Prod. # 119246, $6.50 CAD)

• Small, self-adhesive rhinestones

• 150 rhinestones per package; 50 each of 3 sizes (3 mm, 4 mm, and 5 mm)
• Each package also includes three 2-5/8" strips of connected rhinestones, perfect for borders

Must Have Product - Colour Coach

The new Colour Coach is on my list of must have products!

Whether you want a quick reference of all colours in a collection, a card for every colour, or blank cards to record your own colour combinations, this swatch book is for you!

■ Includes 55 double-sided cards with removable metal post fastener
■ Includes colour theory cards and individual colour swatch cards
■ On individual colour cards, one side shows colour, the other side lists coordinating colours
■ Card size: 2-3/4" x 4-1/2"

You'll remember this card from a few days ago where the colours on the colour coach pleasantly surprised me! Without the colour coach, I never would have thought to put those three colours together and, IMO, this card turned out GREAT!

Make you add the Colour Coach to YOUR list of must have products when you place your next order. You WON'T be disappointed!

Happy Stampin'!

Sunny Sunday Sketch - Week 7

A little late in the day, but at least today I have a sample to go with it - LOL!

Here's the sketch:

And here's my take on it:

I used Pink Pirouette on the top of the card (stamped with the small floral image from Vintage Vogue in Pink Pirouette) and Certainly Celery on the bottom with the same treatment as the top piece on the card.

The ribbon is from a couple years ago during SAB, so it's retired, but I just can't stand not using stuff up!

I stamped the "F" on Whisper White in Pink Pirouette and cut it out. I then stamped it again in Certainly Celery and just cut out the word "friends". The word was adhered to the Large Scallop Circle using Stampin' Dimensionals and the Large Scallop Circle was then adhered to the front of the card also using Stampin' Dimensionals.

What do you think?

STAMPS: Vintage Vogue

INK: Pink Pirouette and Certainly Celery

PAPERS: Whisper White, Pink Pirouette, Certainly Celery and Early Espresso Cardstock

ACCESSORIES: Ribbon and Punches

If you'd like to use the sketch and play along, please use Mr. Linky to link to your blog so that others can see your work!

Happy Stampin'!