HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I wish you a safe, healthy and happy 2010. I can't believe it's been 10 years since Y2K !

Card Recipe:

Stamps: Vintage Labels (Sale-a-bration 2010)

Paper: Brushed Gold, Whisper White, Bride Specialty Paper

Ink: Encore Gold

Acc.: Scallop Circle Punch, Scallop Trim Punch, Gold Embossing Powder, Flat Back Pearls from the Pretties Kit, Silver ribbon (Non SU)

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Where's Eeyore

Today's CAS challenge is to make a card inspired by Disney. Basing a card on these catalog items is really a CHALLENGE for me! Since I don't own any Disney stamps, I used the Eeyore Cookie Jar for my inspiration. I based my card on the colors in the cookie jar. I'm not sure whether Eeyore is blue or gray, but my blues didn't work so I'm going with the gray. Can you see Eeyore in there?

The base card is Whisper White with a layer of Going Gray over that. I used a corner rounder punch (not Stampin' Up!, ssh!) to round off the corners. I used a strip of Basic Black Textured card stock across the top and rounded those corners. The flowers are punched from Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, Barely Banana & So Saffron card stock with the Boho Blossoms Punch and put together with Earth Elements brads. The sentiment is stamped in Basic Black on Whisper White with the soon to be available Well Scripted (clear mount) Stamp set. (Watch for your Occasions Mini Catalog in the mail.) The sentiment is punched with the Wide Oval Punch. Then I tied some Pretty in Pink Taffeta Ribbon to finish it off.

Look at the cookie jar in the link and see if this card comes anywhere close to dear Eeyore.

Smile,
Bonnie

Red Birds of Happiness

Remember those birds that didn't work for the last card? They flew over here. I'm not sure if they're fighting over the string or sharing a worm.

This works for the Color Challenge last week to use Crushed Curry, Real Red & Sahara Sand. It's another 5 1/2" x 5 1/2" card this time out of Naturals White. I love using it for a card base because it has more body than the Whisper White. I used the Big Shot for the birds & leaves. The new Extra Large Two-Step Bird Punch in the upcoming Occassions catalog would work well for this too. I stamped the Sahara Sand card stock with the Sanded Stamp before cutting the leaves to give them some texture. I really love the Scallop Trim Border punch and have been using it on everything! It will be available FREE with a $50.00 Stampin' Up! purchase during Sale-A-Bration January 5 - March 31st.

Card Recipe
Stamps: Heard from the Heart, Sanded
Paper: Naturals White, Crushed Curry, Sahara Sand, DSP from Prints Pack (past hostess gift)
Ink: Sahara Sand, Soft Suede
Acc: Big Shot, Birds & Blooms & Little Leaves Sizzlit dies, Scallop Trim Border Punch, Crushed Curry Polka Dot Ribbon, Linen Thread

Big Red Flower

I wasn't even going to look at the challenges this week but I was weak. I just had to take a peek. That got my mind to running and before I knew it I had an idea that I couldn't shake. Fortunately I had all the shopping, wrapping and baking done. This was originally going to have a bird on it. The bird flew to a different card. I'll post that later.


This was for 2 challenges. The CAS challenge was a sketch inspiration by "Itecler". The second challenge was to make a card using Sahara Sand, Crushed Curry & Real Red. These challenges are good for showing me different color combos that I would probably never come up with on my own. I really like the Crushed Curry & Real Red together and Sahara Sand is a great neutral. I was going to try to make a ladybug with punches, but this was in my box of treasures and just waiting to "crawl" onto the card. I used a stamp set and the border punch from the Sale-A-Bration catty that you should be receiving any day. We are going to be having lots of fun with this stuff!

Recipe:

Stamps: Vintage Labels (Sale-A-Bration p. 4)

Paper: Sahara Sand, Real Red, Crushed Curry

Ink: Crushed Curry

Acc: Scallop Trim Border Punch (Sale-A-Bration p.9), Crushed Curry Polka Dot Ribbon, Big Shot, Flowers Daisies 2 & Punched Scallop Circle dies, Buttons & Ladybug brad from who knows where?

First I punched the daisies with the Big Shot out of Real Red. I used 2 large & 2 medium flowers. Still using the Big Shot, I punched the Scallop Circle from the Birds & Blooms Sizzlit set using Crushed Curry card stock. I stamped the Vintage Label Circle (it's a new clear mount stamp and just wait to you see these!) on the Scallop Circle. I didn't even use the Stamp-a-ma-jig! It's easier to see where you are stamping with the clear mount or maybe it was just a lucky guess. LOL. It makes a lovely center for the daisy. I punched the edge of the Sahara Sand with the Scallop Border punch and cut a 1 1/8 " x 5 1/2" piece of real red. I punched that on one end too and adhered it behind the scallops on the front of the card. Be careful where you put the adhesive. I learned that the hard way! The card in 5 1/2 x 5 1/2. I haven't made many square cards because they take extra postage but they can be sent in extra large envelopes for regular postage. You may want to line the envelope with some decorative paper. It will make it real klassy, I mean classy.

I can't wait to share the next card that I made with the cast offs from this one. I really like it better but you'll have to wait until tomorrow for it.

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Merry Christmas

It's Christmas night and I am feeling very blessed. We have spent the day with all of our daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren and talked to family that live far away. I have had Christmas cards from family and friends far & wide and loved hearing from all of them. The kids have left and the house is sort of straight and my ears are still ringing with the laughter and fun that we had. Below you can see our dear Emme on "cookie day". She is almost 1 yr. old and such a joy and our best gift of the year.

I hope that you had a wonderful day and that the gift of the very first Christmas fills your heart and soul with love and peace.

Hugs,
Bonnie

Silver & Gold Decorations

I can just hear Burl Ives singing "Silver & Gold". That was one of my mom's favorite Christmas songs. I've always liked silver and especially gold ornaments on my Christmas tree so I was delighted with the Limited Supplies challenge this week to make a card with a silver and/or gold ornament. I used 2 items that will be available in the Sale-A-Bration catalog. Each items will be free with a $50.00 order between January 5 & March 31, 2010.

I used the new Scallop Trim Border Punch on the edge. Isn't it adorable? It's hard to believe that it will be free! I used the Sale-A-Bration Vintage Labels stamp for the ornament. It's stamped in gold and embossed. Then I punched it out with the Ornament Punch that is available until January 4th from the Holiday Mini Catalog. Keep a look out in your mailbox for the Sale-A-Bration brochure and the Occasions Mini Catalog. They should be arriving soon. Let me know if you don't get one and I will mail one to you.

Recipe for card

Stamps: Vintage Labels, Baroque Motifs

Paper: Whisper White, Brushed Gold

Ink: Encore Gold

Accessories: Scallop Trim Border Punch, Ornament Punch, Filigree Brad, Rhinestone SquareBrad, Silver Elastic Cord, Ribbon from my wrapping box, Paper-Piercing Tool, Mat Pack

Madonna & Child

Did you ever wonder what to do with that leftover piece on the stamp sheet? I've been tempted to put it on a letter and see if it would get the same results as a stamp but I doubt that the Postal Service would allow that. Instead I trimmed it and used it as a focal point for a card. I've done this before with the little stickers that come with the return address labels. I think this is the prettiest Christmas stamp the post office has come up with in quite a few years. Anybody remember those scary nutcrackers last year? I have the left over from that but haven't needed a card to scare anyone so it sits in the envelope of "might use later" pieces. Hope your holiday preparations are coming together and that you are enjoying the season.

Card Recipe:

Stamps: Small Script (Old hostess gift. You'll have to borrow mine.)

Paper: Very Vanilla, Brushed Gold

Ink: Encore Gold

Accessories: Paper Piercer, Mat Pack

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Curvaceous

This week's CAS challenge is to make a card with curves. I stamped the whimsey from the Wings of Friendship Hostess set overlapping a little and going up and down, then cut aroung the curves freehand. The sentiment is from a new set in the Occasions Mini Catalog (Occasions sets go on sale January 5) I stamped it in white and embossed it. This is a clear stamp and you won't believe how nice they are! The flower is the smallest daisy from the Bigz Flower Dasies 2 die with a Summer Sun Corduroy Button in the center. I thought it could use a little more yellow so I glued a strip of YoYo Yellow on the bottom.

Card Recipe:
Stamps: Wings of Friendship, Well Scripted
Paper: Basic Black, Whisper White, YoYo Yellow
Ink: Basic Black, Whisper White
Accessories: White embossing powder, Big Shot, Flowers Daisies 2 Bigz die,
Summer Sun Corduroy Brad.

Dancer & Prancer

I was experimenting with sponging and using the leftover piece from the Top Note cut with the Big Shot. Those jaunty little deer always make me smile. They look so proud of themselves. This is a one layer card with no embellishments. A good card to mail.

Card Recipe

Stamps: Lovely as a Tree, Winter Post, Many Merry Messages

Paper: Naturals White

Ink: Handsome Hunter, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Chocolate Chip Stampin' Marker, Big Shot, Top Note Die , sponge dauber,

Stampin' Pastels

Did you know that Stampin' Up! is going to offer clear-mount stamps in 2010? The stamps are still the high quality rubber but cling to an acrylic block so we can see exactly where we are stamping. They store in a flat container, about the size of a cd case so we can get more in less storage space. There is also a new design for punches that will store more compactly. I can't wait for you to see these products. They will be available starting January 5. Sale-A-Bration starts January 5th too. You should be getting your mini catalogs in the mail soon. If you don't let me know and I will mail you one. I can't wait for you to see the new products that are in these catalogs!

Enjoy,

Bonnie

A Special Day

Today our youngest daughter, Kelli, graduated Magna Cum Laude from NC Wesleyan College. We are so proud of her! Not only is she a college graduate but she is a wonderful, loving, hard working, caring, fun woman.

She is a wonderful wife and mother.

And her sisters, mom & dad are so proud of her. (That's her dad trying to get away in the background).

We love you Kelli.

Momma

You Go Rudolph!

The CAS challenge this week is to do a card with Brown & Red. I'm more partial to red so mine is more Red & Brown. I've been trying to clean up some of my "mistakes" and odd pieces that are laying around. It's nice when what is already stamped is the right colors.



The base card is Whisper White with a layer of Real Red just a touch smaller than the base card. I had run the red through the Big Shot with the Backgrounds 1 Texturz Plate.

Rudolf is stamped in Chocolate Chip and spritzed around him with the Color Spritzer Tool and a Close to Cocoa Stampin' Marker. He looks really proud of his red nose doesn't he? I punched him and the Chocolate Chip scrap with the Square Scallop Punch. Rudolf is popped out with dimensionals.

I glued a piece Chocolate Chip 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon across the front of the card leaving a glueless space to slip another piece through and loop. The loop is held with a 5/16" Jumbo White Brad.

Do Not Open was stamped with Real Red on Whisper White and punched with the Designer Label Punch.

This was a good challenge for me. I would never have thought of adding brown ribbon to a Christmas card. It's good to think out of the box sometimes. It keeps me on my toes!

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Skater's Waltz

As many of you know, I grew up in Vermont so this stamp brought back memories. Don't get me wrong, I don't remember anybody skating this beautifully. We loved to skate anywhere we could find some ice. My most memorable skating expeditions were at a tennis court that had been flooded. We would pick up our skates and walk the half mile from our house to join the fun. When we got there we were about frozen but eagerly anticipating how beautifully we would skate. After tying my skates with frozen fingers I got on the ice thinking I would glide in a lovely figure eight. Then reality hit! I'd be grabbed by the hand and become the last person on the whiplash! I'd last about 30 seconds, with my heart in my throat, and then be sent flying across the ice....on my bottom! It was fun but I would really rather remember skating like this.


I'm not good at figuring out folding. I do well to fold a regular size card! You can find the directions for folding here. I used Night of Navy Textured Card stock for the base. (You will need a 12" x 12" piece of card stock to do this.) I used the Winter Post Stamp set and stamped the skaters in Night of Navy on Whisper White card stock, then colored with my Stampin' Markers. I used Garden Green, Real Red and Brocade Blue. I stamped the end of the snowflake with Night of Navy in the corners and then used my Color Spritzer Tool to spritz Night of Navy over the whole thing.




I stamped the snowflake with Whisper White and embossed it with White Embossing Powder and added some Dazzling Diamonds for a bit of shimmer. When they were dry, I cut them out and added a Clear Rhinestone Brad to the center and stuck them on with dimensionals. Because I had made a mistake in the folding, and I needed to cover it up, I stamped the snowflakes with Brocade Blue on some Whisper White scraps then cut & adhered them to the inside pieces. That mistake worked out well!

I'll be sharing this folding technique in a class early next year, after I practice and perfect it!

Enjoy,
Bonnie

Oh! Oh! Christmas Tree

Our Christmas tree is up and decorated but let me tell you it wasn't easy! You know that we moved a few months ago. I was really pleased with how the decorating was going. The house feels more like home all the time and the Christmas decorations made it even homier. We were all set to put up the tree on Sunday. A few years ago we decided that to preserve our marriage we would get a tree with the lights already strung on it. I no longer dread the Christmas Tree part of decorating! We got the box down from the attic and began pulling it out of the box, which I commented had closed so nicely this time. Well, there was a good reason for it. Only 2 of the 3 pieces were in the box! The top was in a bag in the attic of the old house in Roanoke Rapids. My design savvy husband thought that we could manage with what we had but then he was the one that brought the tree to Cary without the top. I really, really wanted the top section. Soooo, we spent Sunday afternoon and evening going up and down the Interstate so that our tree parts could be reunited.

I just finished decorating it. I'd take a picture to show you but I'm way too tired so, here's a Christmas tree card.



I made the card using the Lovely as a Tree stamp with Always Artichoke & Whisper White card stock and Always Artichoke ink. I colored the pine sprigs with Always Artichoke and Close to Cocoa markers. I colored the trunk and some of the branches with the Cocoa marker too. The Merry Christmas was inked with Real Red and punched with the scallop oval punch. I inked the edges with Artichoke and used the Red marker to put a little dot in each scallop. It's popped up with dimensionals.

Happy Decorating!
Bonnie

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

I saw this delightful Santa on Splitcoast last year and printed the tutorial. It's a fun Santa. I meant to make lots but you know how it goes. What can I say. So many ideas, so little time!

The base card is Real Red embossed with the Big Shot and the Perfect Details Texturz Plate. Santa is mounted on a 2 3/4" x 2 3/4" piece from the Merry Moments set of DSP. The DSP has a piece of ribbon from the Mistletoe Ribbon in the Holiday Mini catalog. (You can order this ribbon until January 4 and then it's gone. All this is mounted on a 3" x 3" mini card made of Whisper White card Stock. I used my computer to print Ho! Ho! Ho! on the inside of the mini card.

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Elegant Thank You Remake

The Christmas craziness has begun! We've been shopping and decorating and I have been trying to get my Christmas cards signed, sealed and mailed. There just aren't enough hours in the day! Poor Luke has been sick this week. I was able to get the house decorated, except the tree, while he was home with his Mommy. Then the next day we went to his house. He's much better now, thank God. With so much flu around you can't help but worry.

I attended the Cary Newcomers Club meeting this week and I wish I could have stayed longer to chat with the lovely ladies I met there. They have a Creative Arts group that meets once a month and I am really excited about that. I'll be meeting with them next week to make Origami boxes. I'll let you know how that turns out.

This week's CAS challenge (Clean And Simple) is to remake a card we have already made. The Christmas Thank You got a make-over in Navy a while back so I am sharing that image with you. I think I will try to make it in some different colors too. It is quick and easy and a good card to have on hand.

The main card is made from Whisper White. I punched the front edge with the Eyelet Edge Punch and put a strip of Night of Navy on the inside of the card to give contrast. I added a 1/4" strip of Night of Navy just inside the eyelet and made 2 score lines with a stylus, using my paper cutter as a guide. The Elegant Thank You stamp was inked in Night of Navy and stamped on Whisper White then punched with the Scallop Square Punch. I used the Corner Rounder punch on the Night of Navy square. (I sure do love my punches.) I used dimensionals to pop the Thank You. It probably took longer to do this post than to make the card!

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Jenny's Birthday

This is Jenny's birthday card. I find myself remembering the day of her birth and that beautiful 6 lb. bundle of wonderful in a pink blanket. She was all we had hoped for and more and we didn't realize how much we would love her. I remember the day we came home from the hospital and her Daddy sitting on the edge of the bed just looking at her in awe. She led us a merry chase through the TERRIBLE twos and beyond. We survived the teenage years, barely, and proudly watched her graduate from college, marry and become a mother herself.


We are so proud of her and love the person she has become even more than that baby in the pink blanket. She has her own blog. Check it out. She is the most creative writer and often has me rolling with laughter or brings me to tears with the beauty of what she writes. I love the way she sees the world and the way she makes the world a better place.


Enjoy,

Bonnie

Happy Thanksgiving

I wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving. May you have time to count your blessings.




Recipe for card:

Stamps: Freshcut, Holidays & Wishes

Paper: Chocolate Chip, Crushed Curry, Whisper White

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Markers, Crushed Curry Ribbon, Mat Pack, Paper Piercer


Enjoy,


Bonnie

Second Challenge This Week

The card sketch challenge gave a layout to follow. I'd show you the diagram but I'm not sure how to get it on here. This was a little easier for me to do and, since I am in the Christmas mode, I did it as a Christmas card using my favorite stamp set, Lovely as a Tree. I used Handsome Hunter, Real Red and Very Vanilla Card Stock and the Merry Moments Decorative Paper. The tree is stamped in Always Artichoke. I used my Close to Cocoa marker to lightly do the trunk and branches. It looked a little bare so I used some red gems from my stash to dress it up.

This one was quick and easy. If you would like the dimensions for cutting, email me and I will be glad to send them to you.

Enjoy the day.

Bonnie

Challenges

I've just started participating in some of the challenges on Splitcoast Stampers and thought I would share the ones I did this week.



First is for the Clean and Simple challenge CAS41 to do a card that is inspired by a Vera Bradley handbag. I had a lot of trouble with this. These handbags are beautiful but not what I would describe as Clean & Simple and my brain doesn't seem to want to move "out of the box" and just use the colors. So, I basically copied the handbag as closely as I could with the stamps and stuff I had. Here's what I came up with. By the way I chose the Peacock one.

I used the Playful Petals stamp set. It is on the dormant list this year but still available. I stamped the large flower and tiny flower in Basic Black and colored with the Summer Sun & Tempting Turquoise markers. Then I cut the big flowers out and adhered them to the card front which I made from, one of my favorites, Bermuda Bay card stock. I cut off the parts of the big flowers that were going to be under the middle strip to adhere to the corners. Then I punched with my Boho Blossoms punch and cut out the tiny stamped flowers to make the centers and stuck them on. For the center strip I used a pieces of Basic Black and Whisper White. The top black strip is punched with the Eyelet Border Punch. I layered the Boho Flowers and the tiny stamped flower and put them together with a More Mustard and Tempting Turquoise brads to finish the strip.

It turned not to be too simple but it is bright and pretty.

I hope you enjoy it.

Bonnie

Holy Family

Here's another Christmas card and yes I do dream about Christmas cards! What can I say. I am obsessed!

We used this stamp set for a recent Stamp A Stack and I wanted to try this set in gold. I had the elements stamped but couldn't figure out what to do with them until I saw a challenge on Splitcoast Stampers. It was what I was looking for!

The base card is out of Very Vanilla and stamped with the Sanded Background stamp and Gold Encore paint. The Holy Family is from the Holy Triptych set. I also stamped it in the Encore Gold on Vanilla, then embossed it with the Gold Stampin' Emboss powder. It was mounted on a piece of Brushed Gold and a Square Fire Rhinestone brad was inserted in the star. I cut 2 squares 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" out of the brushed gold and overlapped them a little behind the matted piece.

What do you think?

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Christmas Thank You

I thought this would work well for those Christmas thank you notes. I haven't used this Elegant Thank You often. I don't know why because it is so classy.

I used Real Red cardstock for the base card. The Whisper White layer was embossed with the Big Shot Machine and the dotted Texturz Plate then matted with Handsome Hunter. The stamp was inked with Handsome Hunter and Real Red markers and stamped on a scrap of Whisper White. I punched it with the Scallop Square Punch and punched a piece of Real Red with the same punch. A piece of Red 1/4" grosgrain ribbon finishes off the card.

Enjoy,

Bonnie

Season's Greetings

Another easy peasy card! Seems to be my favorite kind these days. I used the Many Merry Messages stamped in Handsome Hunter and matted in Real Red. Merry Moments DSP fills the background and Real Red grosgrain ribbon with a Vanilla Ribbon Slide from the Hodgepodge Hardware finishes it off. I'm really glad I bought the Many Merry Messages stamp set. It has 4 greetings for the fronts of cards and 4 sentiments to stamp on the inside.

Thanks for stopping by. Let me know what you think. I welcome your comments.

Bonnie

No Ink

I didn't use any ink on this card....honest! It's a great option for people who are afraid of ink! The background is from the Merry Moments Designer Paper pack. The ornaments are punched from Real Red cardstock with the new Ornament Punch and 3/4" Round Punch, then decorated with the Merry & Bright Rub-Ons from the Holiday Mini catalog. Quick and easy and all Stampin' Up!

Bonnie

It's Beginning to Look Like Christmas

There has been a flurry of Christmas cards being made around here!

I can't decide if this is mistletoe.....







or is it holly?









Both cards use A Cardinal Christmas stamp set. The mistletoe card is made with Whisper White and Old Olive cardstock and Old Olive ink. The berries are flatback pearls. The holly card is made with Whisper White and Real Red cardstock. The berries are inked with Real Red. The leaves are inked with Garden Green and "thumped" with Handsome Hunter. The sentiment is stamped in Handsome Hunter.



I'm not sure which I like the best.



Bonnie

My first blog!

One of my goals for this year was to start a blog. I think I'm finally there. It took 10 months to get my courage up! I have the book "Google Blogger for Dummies" by Susan Gunelius that has been helpful. My cyberfriend, Michele, whose blog inspired me to want to have one of my own, has been so helpful in helping me get started. Her blog is http://micheleforce.blogspot.com/. She has the most awesome blog. Michele thank you so much for your help as well as inspiration.



Instead of a card for my first blog, I wanted to share my wonderful family with you. They are my biggest fans and I love all of them dearly. This was the first time we had ever, and I mean ever, had everybody in the same place at the same time. It was a special day and I'm so glad we got a picture to commemorate it because it's a day that I hold dear to my heart.

Bonnie