Thursday, February 27, 2014

Wall of Fame

I'm so excited!!!

Addicted to Stamps and More challenge blog has given me a spot on their Wall of Fame!




Thank you ladies!  And thank you for putting out this fabulous challenge!


Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Rudolph Day Fun with DSP

Our friend Sarn has opened her Rudolph Challenge.

The challenge lasts until the last day of the month.

We have to post 2 Christmas cards to be eligible for a prize.


I used the Bigz  Perfect Pennants die for this first one.
(I think it's still available on the Clearance Rack)

The paper was a gift from a friend and I wish you could see the glitter on it.

The sequins don't show much sparkle either.


The 2nd card was made from a snippet of DP left in my snippet box.

I have no idea where it came from, but I love the bright colors.

will let me in again since I used some snippets on this.

Thanks for the visit.

Enjoy!


Monday, February 24, 2014

Merry Monday Color Challenge

When I saw this inspiration photo that Lesley chose for the Merry Monday challenge this week, I oohed and aahed!

Take a peek


I went more toward the turquoise because that's how it looked on my computer.

It's funny how the picture sticks with me much longer than the words!

Here's my card.


Then I did this one.

I can't decide which one I like best so I'll share both.


The little tags are a CASE from Kristie.  She had added some little tags on my Christmas card.  Loved that little detail that made a beautiful card extra special.

The tree was stamped with Encore Silver and heat embossed with silver embossing powder.
I inked the "balls" with VersaMark then the Tempting Turquoise and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

A little hint.  No matter whether I embossed the tree or the balls first, the balls kind of drifted to the background.  I found the I could scrape off the silver embossing on top of the balls to let them shine through a bit more.  I actually found that out quite by accident.  That's a whole 'nother story!

is in the midst of a HOLIDAY CHALLENGE.

is always a fun place to visit and I have a few snippets on my card.

is to have a sentiment on a Christmas Card.

is Anything Goes.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
just create a Christmas card


I'm so glad you could stop by today.

Enjoy!

Card Recipe
Stamps:  Warmth and Wonder, Teeny, Tiny Wishes
Ink:  Encore Silver, VersaMark, Tempting Turquoise
Paper: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Silver Foil
Other:  (Card 1) Silver EP, Clear EP, Snowflake EF (Darice), Oval Frame (Spellbinders), Crystal Effects, (Card 2) Stitched Mats Rectangles (Lil Inker), Silver Taffeta Ribbon, Jewelry Tag Punch (retired)

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted




Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Cozy Quilt for the Curtain Call

With all this snow and cold, what could be a better challenge than a cozy quilt.



Here's the sweet inspiration photo


I didn't use those sweet colors, but I did "quilt" my card.

The sponsor this week is Lil Inker Designs.

I used their stitched mats rectangles on the edges of this card.

The circles were made by first punching with a 1" circle punch from DSP then punching around the hole with a 1 1/4" circle punch.

I used the last snippet of this piece of DSP so off I go to 
where the ground is wet but the atmosphere is warm.

Since this quilt pattern is called Wedding Ring I'm entering it in the
WEDDING/ANNIVERSARY.


The CCEE Stamper's challenge (which is about ready to close)
is PUNCH ART.
Since I used punches for my "quilt squares", I'm entering this over there.

Thanks for stopping by.

Enjoy!

Card Recipe
Paper:  Whisper White, DSP snippets
Other:  1" Circle Punch, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Square Lattice EF, Stitched Mats Rectangles (Lil Inker)

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted


Monday, February 17, 2014

Merry Monday Add some Holly

Here we are back to Merry Monday again.


Nina chose the challenge this week.


Isn't that a pretty picture?

I went super quick and easy with this.

I hope you'll put some holly on a card and join us.


Some other challenges I'm playing this week.

Pixie's Snippet Playground is pretty wet and soggy, but nobody really minds.  I'll put on my high boots and grab my holly snippet and go for a visit.

Jingle Belles is looking for Christmas cards that feature predominately red. I think there might be enough red to qualify!

Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra is anything goes.

Cuttlebug Mania asks for a TOUCH OF RED.  It may be a bit more than a touch.  I used my Big Shot to cut the Merry Christmas die and holly.

Thanks so much for the visit.

Enjoy!

Card Recipe
Stamps:  None
Ink:  None
Paper:  Real Red, Whisper White, Garden Green (all Stampin' Up!)
Other:  Merry Christmas Die (Memory Box), Holly Sizzlit (Sizzix), White Gel Pen (Signo Uniball), Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug)


Saturday, February 15, 2014

Butterfly

There's a new challenge on the block.  Our Mrs. A has started a Butterfly Challenge.

The first challenge is butterflies and flowers.  A perfect combination!



I need some warm colors today.

And since this challenge closes very soon, I'm not going to add the details.  If you want to know something, you can email me or leave a comment with a link back to you.

Thanks for stopping by.

Enjoy!




Friday, February 14, 2014

Monochrome for Card Concept

This card went out to a special friend. 


I'm entering this in the CARD CONCEPT CHALLENGE

My style is Clean and Simple.

The hearts have been die cut and punched from some "smoosh" paper done in Pink Pirouette, Blushing Bride and Raspberry Ripple with White Frost paint.

Thanks for the visit.  Hope you have a sweet Valentin'e Day!

Enjoy!

Card Recipe

Stamps:  Watercolor Trio (retired)
Ink:  Raspberry Ripple
Paper:  Blushing Bride, Whisper White
Other:  Re-inkers (Pink Pirouette, Blushing Bride, Raspberry Ripple), Square Lattice EF, Precious Hearts Die (Memory Box), Heart to Heart Punch (retired), Blushing Bride ribbon (retired), Basic Rhinestone

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted


Thursday, February 13, 2014

Winter Views

We had lots of visitors yesterday.  It was so much fun watching all the birds. 










A special thank you to Jim at Love the Details for inspiring me to put the big lens on the camera and get these photos.

I hope you are warm and cozy wherever you are.

Thanks for stopping by.


Enjoy!









Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Smoosh Bird for Queen Michelle

I've been playing with that smoosh technique again and used it to punch out a sweet bird for Queen Michelle (aka tygerpaws11), at splitcoaststampers.  See what you think.



Once the "smooshing" was done and dried, it didn't take long to put this together.  This is Michelle's card that I CASEd.

I left off a sentiment because I couldn't decide what I wanted to put on there.  I'm thinking it would make a good Thinking of You or Get Well card. 

You can see some other smooshed cards and directions here  and here.

Card Recipe

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted

Stamps: None
Ink:  Daffodil Delight marker (for beak)
Paper: Baja Breeze, Whisper White
Other: Re-Inkers (Certainly Celery, Baja Breeze, Marina Mist), Bird Builder Punch, Baja Breeze Seam Binding,  Basic Pearl (colored with Sharpie Pen), Embossing Folder (Sizzix),

The snow has come in and it's a winter wonderland out there.  It started about 12:30 and we have about 4" now and it's still snowing hard. The roads are really bad and you're probably going to see pictures on the news of the Raleigh traffic snafu.  It looks like Atlanta 3 weeks ago.  Thankfully, school was cancelled so there are no kids stuck out there in buses.

We're safe and snug and all our family have arrived home safely except for DSIL.  He's stuck at work preparing for a party that's not going to happen this evening.  The client was insistent that she didn't want to cancel.  At least if they have to spend the night there, they'll have lots of good food!

Thanks for the visit.

Enjoy!


Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Evergreen in Gold

The challenge at Festive Friday has a beautiful image



Isn't this gorgeous?

I focused on the shine, the gold and the bit of Orchid.


I wish the bird would photograph as pretty as it is IRL.  It was die cut from a piece of foil Origami paper that was a gift from a lovely lady that joined us for Papercrafting for a while. She's since moved but I always think of her when I use her paper. 

Which isn't often.

I'm a paper hoarder.

Simon Says Monday Challenge says WE LOVE STAMPS. I love stamps too and this Evergreen stamp is so pretty when it's heat embossed with gold.

Shopping Our Stash is OH, SHINY!  I think the embossed trees are shiny and the bird is certainly shiny.

We're waiting for a winter storm.  Some of our state had quite a bit of snow today.  We only saw a quick flurry.  Tomorrow looks like a lot more snow with sleet and freezing rain.  For any of you in the path of this storm, stay safe.

Hubby just came from the grocery store and said they had plenty of bread!

North Carolinians are notorious for hitting the grocery store for milk and bread at the mention of snow.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Enjoy!

Card Recipe

Stamps: Evergreen, Many Merry Messages (retired)
Ink:  Encore Gold
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Brushed Gold
Other:  Gold EP, Square Lattice EF, Birch Tree Die (Impression Obsession)

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted


Monday, February 10, 2014

Merry Little Cardinal

It's Merry Monday time again!  Take a peek and see if you can guess what the challenge is this week.



The challenge is

I used a stamp that I found in the dollar bin at Michaels last Christmas season.  I  was so happy to have an excuse to ink it up.

I stamped it on Very Vanilla and colored it with a blender pen dipped in ink.  The paper pilled on me.  I hate it when that happens!  I put the card together anyway but the more I looked at it, the less I liked it.  So, I stamped the bird again on a scrap piece and colored it directly with my Real Red SU marker.  It looked a lot better so I fussy cut him out and put him atop the mangy bird with dimensionals.  I like the added dimension.


I used Martha Stewart Sparkle Texture Effect for the snow on the tree. It sparkles IRL.  I couldn't seem to catch that with the camera.

This works for a few other challenges too.

Craftyhazelnut's Christmas #163 is to use die cut or punched shape. I have the sentiment on a punched oval.  LOL, if you look closely you can see that it's covering up a badly stamped sentiment. I love my punches!

Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge Extra for February is anything goes as long as it's Christmas.

Cuttlebug Mania wants A TOUCH OF RED

Pixie's Snippet Playground only requires that we use snippets and play nice. 

Ways to Use It challenge at SCS is to color something.  I colored the cardinal.  Twice!

I've just seen all the beauties that the Design Team has come up with.  Be sure to check them out.  Then, I hope you'll add another Christmas card to your stash and join us over at Merry Monday!

Thanks for stopping by.

Enjoy!

Card Recipe

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted

Stamps: Petite Pairs, Cardinal (Michaels)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento), SU Markers (Real Red, Garden Green, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Basic Black)
Paper: Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla
Other: Stylish Stripes EF, Stitched Mats Rectangles (Lil Inkers), Small Oval Punch, Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine, Sparkle Texture Effect (Martha Stewart), Blender Pen




Saturday, February 8, 2014

Hot Pink with Heart

When I saw the Scallop Tag Topper Punch in the new Stampin' Up! Occasions catalog, I knew it would be on my next order!  I love this punch! 


This was a layout at last week's Stamp Stack and I switched up the design a bit using the same colors and elements.

To mat the tag, I cut a piece of the Melon Mambo 1/4" wider and a little longer.  By inserting that piece in the punch from the bottom, I could get a rounded top.  I used the little hole punch dies from the Chalk Talk Framelits set to get the hole in the pink tag to match the white tag.  I hope this makes some sense to those of you reading this.

Addicted to Stamps and More is having an ANYTHING GOES week.

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge says to Have a Heart . I've got that covered.

CAS-ual Fridays

Just what do we mean by that?
CFC127: Create a Clean And Simple project with some sort of element that extends past the edge.
My ribbon goes over the top edge.

Card Recipe

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted

Stamps:  Teeny, Tiny Wishes
Ink:  Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Paper:  Melon Mambo, Whisper White
Other: Tulip Frame EF, Tea Lace Paper Doilies, Scallop Tag Topper Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Full Heart Punch, Finial Press, EF (retired), Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Paper Piercing Tool, Chalk Talk Framelits Dies, Gingham Ribbon (retired), Basic Pearls (colored with black Sharpie)

Thanks for the visit.

Enjoy!







Tuesday, February 4, 2014

For Queen Robin

The Queen for the Day at SCS this week is Robin (aka Stamperrobin).  This is Robin's beautiful card that I CASEd.

And here is my CASE



I used my Serendipity heart die and the matching full heart die.  I love the open design!

I die cut 2 hearts and folded one to add dimension.  Here's a close up.


I used a snippet of Decorative paper to accentuate the separation between the embossing and plain card.  A piece of dollar bin ribbon and a row of basic pearls finish it off.

Addicted to CAS has a perfect challenge for this 2 weeks.  I think this heart says love without the words.

Pixies Snippet Playground gets a visit since I used some snippets on this card. And Di has given us all keys to the Playground.  Now isn't that brave?

Pixies Crafty Workshop

Shopping Our Stash #137 is LOVE ME TENDER.  Hope my heart says love to them.

I got to stamp with some special ladies over the weekend and it did my heart and soul good to have conversation with women!  I hope I didn't talk their ears off! They made a similar card to this one.  I think we all love this heart.

I'm so glad you stopped by.

Enjoy!

Card Recipe
Paper:  Blushing Bride, Whisper White, DSP
Other: Square Lattice EF, Heart Scroll Die and Full Heart Die (Serendipity), Ribbon ($ bin at Michaels), Basic Pearls

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted 





Monday, February 3, 2014

Merry Monday The Stockings Were Hung

It's Merry Monday time again.  I really enjoy making a Christmas card each week and love to see that stash of Christmas cards growing!



Did you guess this week's challenge?



Pixie's Snippet Playground is open for some wintertime fun so I'm taking my snippets over for a turn on the swings or a sip of hot chocolate if it's too cold to swing. (Actually I'm hoping for hot mulled wine.) And did I hear some whispers about a hot tub?

Pixies Crafty Workshop

All supplies are Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted

Card Recipe
Stamps:  Stitched Stockings (retired)
Ink:  Real Red, SU Markers (Real Red, Garden Green)
Paper:  Garden Green, Whisper White, Snippets of Brushed Gold and Real Red)
Other: Stocking Builder Punch (retired), 1/8" Circle Punch (retired), Cherry Cobbler Bakers Twine, Brick EF (Sizzix), Pine Needle Border Die (MB), Stitched Mats Rectangles (Lil Inker)

I hope you'll have time to put some stockings on a Christmas card and join us at Merry Monday for this challenge.

I'm so glad you stopped by.

Enjoy!