You're a Star

A cute little astronaut from Gourmet Rubber Stamps and Lizzy Ann Designs. What a great way to say Happy Birthday or Great Job.

Picnic Time

I had a minute to play around with sketch challenge 390 over at Splitcoast Stampers last week, but never got to upload it.  This is a fun little summer card.  I love the little ants in this set and the paper makes a perfect picnic background.

Details 
Stamps: Gourmet Rubber Stamps-Chillin' and Grillin'
Paper: Real Red, My Minds Eye-Everyday Flair
Ink: Memento Ink-Tuxedo Black, Copic Markers
Accessories: Circle Nestabilities, Cuttlebug folder -Tiny Mosaic, Word Window Punch, Fancy Labels Punch

I'm BACK!

Wow, really?  I have a blog?  I think I forgot about that.  After taking a year off from posting and paper crafting I have decided it's time to get back at it.  Thank you to those of you who have checked up on me and for those of you who are still out there following me.  I have a few projects to show off so I will be scheduling some posts over the next couple of days and by then I hope to have more new things to show you too.  I am very excited to rejoin you all.

Teacher Gifts

It's the end of the year and time to start thinking of ways to thank those who have taken care of our kids over the past 9 months and helped them to learn and grow.  My girls took lavender plants to their teachers for Teacher's Appreciation Day.

This was a good way to use up some scraps of material I had sitting around.  It was fast and easy to wrap the material around the plant base and then just do a little stitch with some bakers twine from The Twinery, and tied it off.  It dressed up the plastic pots and then I used the mini clothes pins to attach the cards.

Inside the cards I wrote:

Thank You for Planting the seeds of knowledge,

Cultivating my love of learning

And helping me to Grow and Blossom this year.

It was a quick and easy project which was good since this year I had 9 teachers between the 3 kids.

Supplies:
Bakers Twine from The Twinery
Memento Ink
Copic Markers
Herbal Expressions stamp set from Stampin' Up!
Card Stock
Scrap Material

Etsy Inspired Challenge

I am doing a little catching up and combined the InStyle Stamps Color Challenge with this weeks Etsy Inspired Challenge. 

Shop: Creating is Fun
http://www.etsy.com/shop/Creatingisfun
Winner Prize
any ONE item of winner's choice

There are some really cool vintage items in the shop.  I was inspired by these pear buttons

 

And all the different flowered trim

and the colors in this set are how I was able to combine the two challenges

 

Sponsor:
Robyn's Fetish Digital Stamps
http://robynsfetish.com/shop/
About Robyn’s Fetish
Robyn's Fetish Digital Stamps And More is proud to sponsor this challenge.
Robyn's Fetish Digital Stamps And More, a division of I Did It Creations, was created and is owned by Robyn Weinrib. Robyn offers a wonderful variety of digital stamps and digital papers, designed to meet the needs of all digital paper crafting addicts for every occasion.

Winner prize -
Robyn's Fetish Digital Stamps And More will award either 5 digital stamps or 4 digital stamps and 1 paper set of the winner's choice to the winner of this challenge.

Be sure to check out the awesome Etsy Inspired Challenge design team to see what they have created.

Ashley
Carole
Angie
De
Emily B.
Jackie
Joy
Kerry
Kimme Leach {April Guest DT} – You are Here :)
Ruby
Savannah
Sherry
Virginia

Have a great weekend

InStyle Stamps Sneak Peak & a Sketch

It’s Sneak Week over at the InStyle Stamps Blog.  I used this month’s sketch to make a card for you.

 

Here is the sketch so that you can play along:

And with the scraps of the Green at Heart from BasicGrey I made another card.

The stamp set is called Patty’s Appreciation and has several adorable stamps to help you say Thank You.  Be sure to stop by and put it in your basket on Friday. 

Faux Friday Fun

Happy April Fools Day!  Are you doing anything tricky today?  I don’t think my kids would enjoy being tricked yet, so I guess I’m out this year…….except for this challenge.  Sherry is our April host and has challenged us to use a faux technique today in honor of April Fools Day.  I got really stumped on this one, so I went with the Faux Tile technique, but just did one big tile rather than break it up, so I guess it’s not really the same thing, haha.  I tried.

I used BasicGrey’s Curio paper with some white and kraft card stock.  I think I did a pretty good job at making the image panel look like a sepia photo.  I colored with my Copic markers and then used the air brush to add a bit of color and aging.  I had a lot of fun pulling out all my vintage accessories and piecing them together on this card.
Now go see what the other Friday Fun Chicks have done.
Jimmi
Sherry
Christi
Sara
Have a great day!

FFC-Bookmark

**For the InStyle Stamps Blog Hop please scroll down to the next post :)**

Hiya.  I know, 2 posts in one day.  WOW!  Today we were to make a bookmark.  I happened to make a bookmark as a sample at CHA, so I cheated a little and am showing you that.  :)

The name of the stamp set is Tia and Cuddles from InStyle Stamps.  I made the ribbon extra long so that you can find your page easily.  The bookmarks actually fold over your page and I have thin magnets on the inside so that even if your book gets dropped the bookmark will stay put. 

Check out what the other Friday Fun Chicks have done:

Sara is back with us :)
Sherry
Christi
and Jimmi has a brand new stamping blog and a separate shopping blog.  HOW COOL IS THAT?

March ISS Blog Hop

Hippity Hoppity Spring is in the air with the InStyle Stamps Chicks today.  You should have hopped here from Axa’s Blog, if not you want to go back to the InStyle Stamps Blog to start at the beginning so you don’t miss any of the loveliness these ladies have created today.

Here is my simple little card:

I used the last of my sample pack of Bazzil’s Grandma’s Feather Bed pack.  Bummer!!!  But I also used the first of my bakers twine from The Twinery  YAY!  The flowers are from Tia and Cuddles He Has Risen set. 

Next you should go to Sherry to see what she has for you. 

InStyle Stamps March Color Challenge

The weather has become much more mild here and the skies have turned from grey to blue, SPRING is almost here!!!!  Today over at the InStyle Stamps blog we have a great springy color challenge.

Here is my take on this.  I used BasicGrey’s Hopschotch paper which has all the colors in it.

The image is from Tia and Cuddles He Has Risen. 

This card uses the following additional challenges:
Pile It On- Up Up and Away-Inspired by things in the sky
Tuesday Throwdown – Using Scraps (Only the Pink Pirouette was cut from a full sheet of cs)
My Time to Craft Challenge- Use Jewels
Crop Stop Challenge-Sketch and use Spellbinders products

Let’s see what you’ve got!  Be sure to share a link to your challenge card on the InStyle Stamps blog.

Operation Write Home Bunny Hop

Nana nana nana-nana nana NA, Na na nana-na-na HOP HOP HOP!  Ok that’s my best attempt at singing the Bunny Hop.  I hope you are enjoying the Operation Write Home Bunny Hop so far.  You should have hopped here from the InStyle Stamps Blog, if not you will want to go back to the Operation Write Home Stars and Stamps Blog to get the full list of hop stops.

Remember if you would like to donate any Easter cards the deadline is March 18 and Mother's Day cards must be to the shippers by March 31.  This helps insure that the cards can make it to their destinations in plenty of time for our troops to send home to their loved ones.  If you have never sent cards to OWH before the list of their shippers and all the information you need to know can be found here.

I am a sucker for sketches.  Did you know that you can find a new sketch for inspiration every Sunday on the Operation Write Home Stars and Stamps Blog?  They have an index of all their sketches here.

I used last weeks sketch #54 for this card using Honey Bunny the freebie from the InStyle Stamps Blog:

And here is a Spring/Easter card using InStyle Stamps Tia and Cuddles He is Risen:

 

A few of my personal tips for sending in cards to Operation Write Home:
*Generic is a good thing.  ~I tend to leave off sentiments so that cards can be used for any occasion.  The second card here can really be used for Easter, Mother’s Day or any other time depending on the needs of the shippers.
*Use good quality adhesive around the outside edges of the panels.  ~I have collected cards in the past to send in and seen many people use a lot of adhesive in the center of the layer but none on the edges.  In the shipping and sorting process cards can get stacked and edges that are not stuck down well get caught and the layer will pop right off.
*Keep it simple.  ~Embellishments can come off causing cards to go to the card hospital, and too much bulk on a card means fewer cards can be mailed in a box. 

Now make sure you hop on over to Barb at http://papertherapyponderings.blogspot.com/

InStyle Stamps Blog Hop

Hi all!  It’s the last Friday of the month so we are going to hop along with the InStyle Stamps design team today.  You should have hopped here directly from the InStyle Stamps Blog, if not you will want to start there so you don’t miss anything. Also, I am combining my efforts and my project doubles for this week’s Friday Fun Challenge, and since I didn’t get a post up last week, I decided to incorporate that challenge in too. 

The theme for this month’s hop is celebrating friends.  I decided to make a little seed packet pouch because friends are like flowers, they each add a special bit of beauty and joy to your life. 

The image is on a belly band which slides off and reveals the sentiment and the seed packet inside.  This was a fast and fun project, but I hope you enjoy it. 

 

Now you should hop over to Karin’s blog to see what she has created.

Also, be sure to stop by and see what the other Friday Fun Chicks have done with this week’s challenge to use PLAID on a card.  Last week the challenge was to use at least 3 circles on your creation, the BasicGrey paper I chose for this project took care of both of those challenges.  See what Jimmi, Sherry, and Christi have done.

InStyle Stamps February InSpiration Challenge

It’s Wednesday, that means it’s challenge time at the InStyle Stamps blog. 

Here is the InSpiration piece:

Let’s take a look at my card:

If you look closely you can see the microbeads I added coming from the watering can which makes it look a little like water. 

I took inspiration from the window in the picture to create the layout.  The decorative paper is from Bazzill’s new Grandma’s Feather Bed line and matches the wallpaper in the piece pretty well.

Please play along with us and you can win a prize.  See the InStyle Stamps Blog for more details.

Think Spring

The sun is out!! The sun is out!!!  The snow is starting to melt and today we may even be able to go outside without bundling up from head to toe.  In honor of this wonderful spring day I have a little something to share.

I used a stamp from Patty’s Pretty Posies available at InStyle Stamps Store.  I also used the new  Bazzill Grandma’s Featherbed decorative paper.  Isn’t it YUMMY? 

I hope you enjoy your day and I hope the weather is as delightful for you as it is for me.

Friday Fun Color Me Happy

Happy Friday.  I know that we are seeing a lot of pink and red around town this week preparing for Valentine’s Day, so this should be a welcomed change.  One of my friends posted that she loved this outfit for her daughter and she was going to be inspired and try to knit something like it, I took that challenge by making a card instead :) 

And here is my card:

I mimicked the stripes and the texture and then the hair ribbon is represented by the bow, while the necklace is represented by the rhinestones on the moon.  I love this stamp and the saying.  “I love the Crescent Moon…” ;)  

 

Now go see what Jimmi, Sherry and Christi have done with this inspiration. 

InStyle Stamps February Color Challenge

Hi all.  It’s the second Wednesday and that means that it is time for the Color Challenge over at the InStyle Stamps Blog. 

Here is my project:

I actually used the colors and the layout from the inspiration piece:

Wont you please play along with us?  Show us what you have created using these colors and be sure to leave a link on the InStyle Stamps blog post. 

InStyle Stamps January Blog Hop

Hippity Hoppity.  It is the last Friday of January which means that it is time to Hop along with the InStyle Stamps Design Team.  You should have hopped here from Angelique’s blog, if not, you will want to go back to the InStyle Stamps Blog and start at the beginning so you don’t miss a thing.  This month our theme is Valentines Day.  I came up with this sweet card fit for a Princess ;)

I love this ballet set Gracie and Twirla.  You know that these sweet images are being released at CHA this week and I cannot wait to show them off.  If you are going to the trade show, be sure to stop by our booth #5023.  I hope to see you there.

Now hop on over to see what Jacquie has made and keep hopping all the way back to the InStyle Stamps Blog.  If you leave a comment you can be eligible to win a $25 goodie bag from InStyle Stamps.  Commenting will be open until Sunday, January 30th at 6:00 PM PST

 

**Note: Because I was getting ready for CHA I totally flaked on the FFC this week.  I made a card, but I can’t show it to you until next week, I hope it’s worth waiting ;)  Make sure to check out what Jimmi, Sherry and Christi have prepared to get you in the mood for spring.

InStyle Stamps January InSpiration Challenge

Here is a great little InSpiration picture from the InStyle Stamps Blog to get you ready for Valentine’s day! 

I liked all the squares in this piece and found a cute little frame at Target in the $pot to make this project:

There is one blank space to put a picture or a little girl’s name. 

I hope you get a chance to play along with this month’s challenge. 

InStyle InSpiration Challenge

Hey all!  I know I have been a very bad blogger.  Life has gotten away from me lately and I haven’t had much time.  I apologize. 

Now, are your ready for some love?  Valentine’s day is really just around the corner.  Today on the InStyle Stamps Blog we were to make a gift holder and a card for someone special.

I used the Date Night image available in the InStyle Stamps Store now.  I’m so glad that I have a couple of these little red mailboxes stashed away.  They are cute for Valentine’s Day or maybe for a house warming gift too. 

They Called It Puppy Love

I have had puppy envy for a while now.  I so miss my dear German Shepherd Maggie who passed last year, and it seems everyone I know has gotten a puppy this year, so maybe once I get Peanut potty trained I will be ready to start over with a puppy.  This card could be used as a welcome new puppy card or a Valentine or just for anyone who loves dogs.

This is my last card for November for InStyle Stamps (just under the wire ;) )   

Supplies
Copic Markers, Neenah white CS, Offray Satin Ribbon, Dog Bone Brads from Eyelet Outlet, BasicGrey Olivia DP

Paper Cupcakes-Anything Goes

This is my last week with the Paper Cupcakes team.  This month has flown bye and I have had fun coloring and playing with these adorable images.  This week our challenge was anything goes. 

I used “Oh Deer, It’s Christmas” as my image and paired it with some BasicGrey Eskimo Kisses dsp, Bravo Burgundy and Pear Pizzaz card stock compliment the dsp with layers.  I colored my image using Copic Markers. 

Now go to the Paper Cupcakes Blog to see what the Design Team has done.