It’s me again! And I’m back with a vengeance! LOL I’m doing a silly little happy dance because I’m having so much fun doing challenges again – it’s something I just haven’t had time to do lately, and now I’ve done four in two days!! So fun!!
For this card, I used a stamp set that I adore – like seriously am in love with. It’s called Mehndi Medallions from WPlus9 Designs. The images are like a cross between snowflakes and doilies – and you all KNOW how obsessed I am with doilies!! I stamped the medallions in Versamark on Soft Suede CS, and then heat embossed them with Brown Sugar embossing powder from Zing. The card base is Sahara Sand – I really need to use that CS more often – I just love it!! There’s a Real Red layer in between the main panel and the card base. The top strip is Basic Black, and the ribbon is Very Vanilla Seam Binding.
I made this card for a color challenge that I’ve been stalking for months and months!! It’s the Curtain Call Color Challenge #49 – this color combo is awesome!! I think you still have a few more days if you want to play along, too! The layout was inspired by the current card sketch over at Get Sketchy – it’s GS57. This layout was MADE for these images, don’t you think?!! Delish!
Okay, kids – I have lots more crafting I want to do, and many, many more challenges I need to tackle. I hope you’re having as much fun today as I am! Thanks for stopping by!
Popping in today to share with you my very first EVER published card. Getting published was a goal that I set for myself when I started this blog in December, 2008. A very sweet friend of mine has been instrumental in mentoring me and sharing her expertise and critical eye. Her guidance has been so incredibly helpful. So after a few tries with no luck, I was finally successful in having a card picked up for publication by CARDS Magazine. This card appeared in the July, 2010 issue. I don’t think I can even articulate the enormous thrill I felt when I found out that I was finally going to be published. Since that lucky day, I’ve submitted several other cards. Some have been picked up (September 2010 CARDS, and January, 2011 CARDS), and others have not. But with every card that I create for submission is a great learning experience.
This is a card that I submitted last month for a CARDS Magazine call for New Arrival cards. It didn’t get picked up, but it was super fun to make!! New My Mind’s Eye DP and a sweet onesie template designed by the talented friend mentioned above and I’ve got myself a pretty darned cute New Arrival card. Honestly, when this one didn’t get picked up, I wasn’t sad at all because it meant that I could give it away. My daughters’ friends are having a baby every day, it seems!! LOL
That’s it for me today. Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you have a great day, and that you’ll stop by again real soon.
Happy Tuesday!! I’m so excited because today for the first time in a long time, I got to play along with some of my favorite challenges!! My mojo had disappeared for a bit, and I was so busy with other stuff that I just couldn’t bring myself to play along. But I’m happy to report that I’m BACK!! LOL
Today’s card uses a stamp set that I’ve been dying to use and just haven’t had a chance to – Woodgrain Silhouettes Additions by W Plus 9 Design. The leaf image is from that set – isn’t it delicious?!! The woodgrain background was created using a new Hero Arts wood stamp that I picked up called Woodgrain Circle. The sentiment is from A Muse Artstamps.
Here are the three challenges that I created this card for:
I hope you had as wonderful a weekend as I did. I got to spend all day Saturday stamping, so that made me feel as though I was in heaven. Also, the sun was out all day on Saturday, too – I had the windows open in my craft room. Mmmmm . . . fall in the Northwest is always so glorious!! Sadly we were back to usual rainy nastiness on Sunday. Boooo! LOL
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So, my sweet friends on the ABC Toys & Crafts Design Team have cooked up a fun little challenge for you all. It’s this amazing photo collage – isn’t it awesome?!! The colors and content just took my breath away!! This is what I came up with:
Fun, huh? I never have enough birthday cards, so that was a no brainer. And I love, love, love these colors. They just make me swoon. The cake image is from a sweet set from My Cute Stamps called Tea Party. The sentiment is from the Hero Arts clear set called Big Hugs. I also love the doily effect that the new Lacey Circle Nestabilities create – awesome, right?!!
We’d all love for you to play along with us! All you have to do is get your inspiration from the above photo collage – the colors, the content, really anything at all! Then add your creation to Mr. Linky located HERE on the ABC Toys & Crafts Design Team Blog. You have until Saturday, October 2nd at midnight (CST).
You still have a few more days to get in on the 20% Off Your Entire Order deal, as well as get a chance to win my enormous basket full of blog candy (pictured in my upper right hand sidebar)! Just click on the blinkie and place an order, using the indicated discount code, between now and September 30th. There are so many goodies to be found there, so what the heck are you waiting for?!! Now get!! LOL
That’s it for me today, folks. Thanks so much for stopping by. I so appreciate the time you spend here, and hope that you’ll come by often. Have a great day!
I know, I know . . . holiday cards in September. It makes me crazy, too!! But you all are going to be so happy that you started your holiday cards early!! I know I will be! This is the last of the holiday cards from me for now . . . until World Card Making Day next weekend. Are you playing along, too?!! You should – it’ll be a blast!
I made another holiday card for the ABC Toys & Crafts Design Team. I am so in love with these new Hero Arts holiday stamps . . . the images are amazingly beautiful and so very versatile. Don’t you think?!! I stamped these gorgeous trees and the sentiment using the Merry Christmas Trees clear set from Hero Arts. The red strip at the bottom was stamped using the Music Background Cling and the green strip on the bottom was stamped using the Dots Cling, both from Hero Arts. This card could so easily be mass produced for your holiday cards. And don’t you adore the unique color combo? Delish!! You so need these stamps for World Card Making Day!!
Just so you know, you’re running out of time to be entered for a chance to win my blog candy – all you have to do is place an order between now and September 30th, and use my discount code upon checkout (click on the blinkie below and enter the indicated code), and your name will be thrown into a hat. One lucky winner will win the contents of the basket shown HERE. Seriously people, I took an inventory of the items in this basket, and the value FAR EXCEEDS $200 in new product!! It’s all stuff that I’ve purchased that I just haven’t had a chance to use or have duplicated (accidentally). My dorkiness is your gain!! AND your odds are pretty good right now – there are only THREE lucky names in that hat right now!! Ummmm . . . some lucky duck is going to be so happy when I draw his or her name, I tell ya!!
That’s it for me today, kids! Please join the ABC Toys & Crafts Design Team tomorrow for our monthly challenge – it’s gonna be a fun one that you’re not going to want to miss!! Thanks so much for stopping by – have a great Saturday!
I hope you had an enjoyable weekend. I had a great weekend, and got lots of crafting done, so that always makes me happy.
This week, the sweet ladies on the ABC Toys & Crafts DT are sharing Christmas/Holiday themed cards with you. I have been dying to show you all this card because it features THE SINGLE most amazing cling stamp from Hero Arts called Circle Design. Isn’t it amazing?!! You all know I have a doily obsession these days, so when I saw this cling stamp, I swooned. *sigh* LOL Anyway, I paired this amazing cling stamp with a real paper doily that I picked up at my LSS – they’re made by Little Yellow Bicycle. The designer paper is some of the new holiday stuff from My Mind’s Eye – DELISH, right?!! The sentiment and snowflake are also from another new clear stamp set from Hero Arts called Wishes Come True.
STAMPS:Circle Design Cling (Hero Arts), Wishes Come True (Hero Arts) INK:Rich Cocoa (Memento), Versamark (Tsukineko) PAPER: Kraft CS (Papertrey Ink), Holly Jolly and I Believe DP (My Mind’s Eye) ACCESSORIES: Classic Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), 3D Dots (EK Success), Upper Crest Border Punch (Fiskars), Janome Sew Mini, Corner Rounder, Chalk White Seam Binding (Hug Snug), White Embossing Powder (ZING/American Crafts), Self-Adhesive Pearls (Kaiser Craft)
I also wanted to take this chance to thank those of you that have used my discount code to order from ABC Toys & Crafts! You all are so amazing, and I can’t thank you enough. I can’t wait to see which one of you lucky ducks wins my blog candy. There’s still time to take advantage of that 20% off your entire purchase discount code and be entered to win my blog candy – just click on the blinkie below and enter the discount code at check out. Easy peasy!!
Thanks so much for stopping by today. Have a great day!!
Just popping in really quick to let you know that ABC Toys & Crafts has all Shirley’s 2 Girls clear stamps on sale for 40% Off. I had a few samples that I made when I was on their design team that I thought you might enjoy and that might inspire you to check this great sale out! You can find all of the Shirley’s 2 Girls Stamps HERE. And remember – free shipping on all clear stamps!!
I’ll be back tomorrow with a Christmas themed project for you, so I hope you’ll stop by again. Have a great day!
Just popping in really quick to share another Halloween card with you today. I really love Halloween in terms of card making. The images and fun spirit just make me smile. Dressing my kids up was probably the most fun ever for me, though!! Good times, good times. LOL
So, I decided I wanted to do a spinner card – I love fun moving techniques, don’t you? The card base is 5” x 5”. I cut the circle (through the two layers of cardstock and the one layer of DP – all at the same time!) using my Classic Circle Nestabilities and my Cuttlebug. I stitched the orange panel and designer paper together with my sewing machine. The clear beading wire is taped on the back of the designer paper panel. I then stamped the ghost from the Ooga Booga stamp set from My Cute Stamps twice. I cut them out, ran them through my Xyron Sticker Maker and stuck them together, encasing the beading wire between the two images. I then punched out four bats using my Martha StewartBat Punch, ran them through my Sticker Maker again, and attached them to the bead wire as I did with the ghosts. I love how they look like they’re really flying!! The Boo sentiment was from the Happy Halloween clear set from Hero Arts – this set has just about every single sentiment you could ever imagine needing for Halloween projects. It’s a must have for every collection IMHO. So fun, huh?!!
That’s it for me today. I hope you enjoy the rest of your Saturday. Thanks so much for stopping by today – it warms my little heart that you take the time to stop in.
I hope you’re enjoying a beautiful Tuesday – I know I am! I wanted to share a card with you all that I made for the last Paper Crafts Magazine/Stamp It! call. They wanted cards featuring heat embossing. Well, I think you all know about my love affair with ZING/American Crafts embossing powder, so I figured that challenge was right up my alley. Apparently, I was the only one that thought so since it was a REJECT! LOL But I’m over it now . . . I doubled up on my meds and I’ve moved on. Hahahaha
The center doilies were stamped using some brand spankin’ new Maya Road stamps called Doilies – duh! LOL I stamped the large doilies in Versamark on the Kraft squares and then heat embossed with White ZING EP. I then stamped the same doily image again on white cardstock in Versamark, and heat embossed with Black ZING EP. I punched the center of the black doily out with a 7/8” Circle Punch and adhered it to the center of the white doilies using dimensionals. I then adhered a turquoise rhinestone to the center of the black doily circle.
I stitched a horizontal and vertical line through the center of the Hawaiian Shores square. The four Kraft squares were then adhered to the Hawaiian Shores panel with more dimensionals. The sentiment came from a new clear set of stamps that I received from Practicing Creativity called Chatterbox. Isn’t that font amazing?!! I stamped it in Versamark in the bottom right corner of the card base, and heat embossed with the black ZING EP.
This was the only card I submitted for the Stamp It! call – the other two possibilities were thrown into the trash by the time I got done working and reworking them. Even though this wasn’t picked up, it hasn’t completely discouraged me from continuing to play the publication game. You can’t win if you don’t play, right?!
That’s it for me today. Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope to be by tomorrow (or maybe later today) with a picture of my blog candy that you’ll have a chance to win with every order placed at ABC Toys & Crafts using the discount code listed on the blinkie below. Just click on it, and it’ll take you directly to the store – enter the discount code at checkout and receive 20% off your entire order as well as a chance to win my blog candy. It’s guaranteed to be in excess of $100!! You can use this code as many times as you like between now and September 30th. You’ll get one chance to win for every order you place using that code.
Please forgive my recent absence. I’ve had some family issues that needed my immediate attention. Sadly my father in law is not well, so if you’re the praying sort, I’d be ever so grateful if you’d put in a good word with the Big Guy for him. Thank you in advance for that.
This week, the amazing ladies of the ABC Toys & Crafts are sharing some super fun Halloween goodies with you all, and I’m the lucky stiff that gets to start off all the fun!! Today’s card features a spooky haunted house image that I cut out using my beloved Pink Slice and the Spellbound Design Card. Oh My Spookiness!! Isn’t it just the creepiest?!! I adore my Pink Slice, but can I tell you that the Slice is NOTHING without the design cards. The design cards are BOMB.COM when it comes to card making. I have two design cards with Halloween designs on them – Spellbound and Spook Alley. Both have images that can be used in so many fun ways – the possibilities are really endless. It occurred to me late last night as I was throwing this card together that I could cut two of these creepy haunted houses out and attach them to a simple box to hold all kinds of spooky treats. Party favors, banners, home decor – really, my mind just swims with ideas for these two cards. Once you own your Pink Slice, the sooner you can add design cards to your collection, the happier you’ll be and the more fun you’ll have playing along with me!! LOL
So I cut the haunted house out of black card stock. It’s a 4” image. Next, I trimmed the orange piece of card stock and stamped the background using all of the words and images from the Hero Arts clear stamp set called Happy Halloween. I didn’t even peel the clear stamps off of the acetate backing – I just inked them up and stamped them on the orange cardstock. How easy is that?!! (I learned that little trick from my sweet stamping friend - *waving HI, Kim!*) The purple fence is a border punch from Martha Stewart Crafts called Spooky Fence. I adore it! The bats are another Martha Stewart Crafts punch.
Check out that orange polka dot button – do you not just LOVE it?!! I do, too!! I received the button on this card, as well as the others pictured here from a new crafty friend – Kristy from Kuttin’ Cards. OMG – this girl just oozes with talent, and her buttons are to die for!! I won the Halloween buttons, and she’s so sweet, she sent me another set, too. I plan to use these babies very, very soon, so keep your eyes peeled. If you must have some for yourself, Kristy has an Etsy store, and I know she’d love to make some for you, too. Tell her I sent you!!
Okay, I’ve blathered on enough for one day. Thanks so much for stopping by today – it warms my heart knowing that you all take precious time out of your day to visit.
I really love this time of year. There’s a crispness in the air that is so amazing. Warm days and cool evenings, and here in Washington, a dampness that speaks of leaves changing color, football games, and sooner than I like to think . . . Christmas. Yikes! LOL But let’s not think about that now.
This week, the ABC Toys & Crafts Design Team members are sharing projects with a Fall theme. Here in Washington, the trees are changing rapidly – the colors are absolutely stunning. So I grabbed my Pink Slice and the Fall Back to School Design Card. The tree trunk was cut out of real wood – yes, girls and boys – the Pink Slice will cut through thin sheets of wood like buttah! Creative Imaginations makes a super thin sheet of Cherry Wood. Isn’t that so cool? I then punched 3/4” and 7/8” circles out of some new Bella Blvd. designer paper that just happened to show up on my doorstep last week. The colors were perfect for this Fall project, don’t you think? The background was stamped with the Hero ArtsCling Dots. The coordinating hills were stitched with my Janome Sew Mini and the sentiment is from the Hero Arts clear set called Big Hugs. Get it? Tree hugger – big hugs? Hahaha – I crack myself up!!
All of these highlighted products can be found at ABC Toys & Crafts, and if you click on the blinkie below and enter the special discount code, you’ll get 20% off your entire order. You can use this code as many times as you like through the end of September. Oh, and don’t forget that for every order you place using this discount code entitles you to a chance to win my GINORMOUS Blog Candy stash (picture of which is to come later this week) – guaranteed to be worth over $100!!
That’s it for me today, girls. Thanks so much for stopping by. I’ll be back very, very soon with a picture of that blog candy as well as some challenge cards. Have a great Labor Day holiday!
How clever am I? LOL I created this punny little valentine this week and thought I’d share it with you all. I know that Valentine’s Day is a long way off . . . but I create when the mood strikes, so this is what I have for you! LOL
I stamped the Circle Woodgrain (Hero Arts) on red cardstock in Rich Cocoa ink (Memento). Then I cut out the image with my Classic Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders). Then I cut out the heart using my Classic Heart Nestabilities (Spellbinders). Kind of funky, but fun, huh? The turquoise panel is stamped with a new Hero Arts Graph background, and edge is punched with the Martha Stewart Scallop Dot Punch. Both the heart and the image panel are popped up with 3D-Dots for dimension. The sentiment was created using a clear alphabet and a sentiment from the Heart Prints (Papertrey Ink) clear set. The wood buttons are attached to the turquoise panel with Cherry Devine Twine - *swoon*! The highlighted products can be purchased at ABC Toys & Crafts by clicking on the blinkie below. If you enter the discount code, you’ll get 20% off your entire order. BONUS!
I’m enjoying a leisurely Saturday in my craft room since it’s pouring down rain here. Fall is certainly in the air. Which reminds me – the ABC Toys & Crafts DT is celebrating Fall starting this Monday. Be sure and stop by the DT Blog to check out the Fall inspiration – you won’t be sorry!
I wanted to pop in and let you all know that Julie Foote, the owner of ABC Toys & Crafts, has offered up a very special discount code for you, my amazing readers!! Isn't that awesome?!! When you order products from ABC Toys & Crafts and enter this special discount code, you'll get 20% OFF YOUR ENTIRE ORDER!! I know!! Right?!!
And to celebrate this fabulous event, I've decided to throw in some blog candy for those of you that order from ABC Toys & Crafts and use the above discount code. I'll get a list of peeps from Julie who use this code at the end of September, and you'll each be entered into a drawing for some A-MAZING blog candy!! Your name will be entered as many times as you order in the month of September.
What can you win? Well, I've been collecting a stash of new products that I've either duplicated (because I forget what I buy) or haven't used because I have sooooo much product. So I really want to share it with you all in the hopes that you'll love it more than I have time to. I don't have it all collected yet, but I'll do that and take a picture of what's up for grabs just as soon as I figure out what I'm giving away. Suffice it to say, you'll be blown away. I guarantee that the value of the blog candy will be in excess of $100!!
Thanks for stopping by today. Today is the day that I say goodbye to my bestest friend as she moves to New Orleans to be closer to her family. She's my road trip buddy, my movie buddy, my stamping buddy, my shoulder to cry on when my kids are rotten, my best friend in the whole wide world . . . please forgive me as I go hide in my closet and cry. Toodles!!
esome!! I think you still have a few more days if you want to play along, too! The layout was inspired by the current card sketch over at Get Sketchy – it’s GS57. This layout was MADE for these images, don’t you think?!! Delish!
