Merry Monday #194 - Tropical Theme

Hello friends.  SO excited and honored to be the Guest Designer over at Merry Monday today!  Lori chose the challenge this week and has asked us to design a Tropical Themed Christmas card.  Because I live in Michigan where it's cold and snowy, I don't have a lot of tropical themed stamps, but I grabbed a couple Palm trees from WPlus9's Drummer Boy and a Santa stamp from MFT's Jingle All The Way set, and came up with this:

I started by sponging on my background using distress inks Antique Linen and Tumbled Glass to resemble sand and sky.  Next I stamped and colored the Palm trees and Santa using Copic markers.  I deliberately didn't color the top of Santa's suit in red, but instead used flesh tones to make him look like he was enjoying the sun...like maybe in Hawaii?????  I fussy cut my trees and added them to the background circle that I attached to the inside of the card.  I also fussy cut my Santa and attached just his bottom half to the outside of the card to give him a little dimension.  The sentiment is also from the Jingle All The Way set. 

This weeks challenge is a great way to get started on those Christmas cards and also have fun doing it with the tropical theme!  See all the great inspiration from the fabulous Design Team, and info on how to play right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!! 

February 12 Kits of Occasions

Hello friends.  SOOOO excited to share with you today as a guest designer of the 12 Kits of Occasions.  What is the 12 Kits of Occasions you ask??  It's a group of 12 very talented ladies who each take a month as hostess, and prepare 12 kits of stamping goodies to send out to each of the 12.  On the last day of the month they all reveal the 4 or 5 cards that they each made using the same kit that was mailed to them by the hostess...and how fun to see what each of them came up with using the same materials!  This month, the fabulously talented and oh so kind Nancy Penir, asked me to be a special guest designer for the 12 Kits of Occasions, and I was beyond delighted to accept!!  Color me happy!!!

Nancy's theme for this month was water coloring, and I was overwhelmed by ALL the goodies that arrived at my door to create with this month!  These are just a few of the cards I've made with this kit, and I still have leftover supplies to create more with later!  Take a look:

And lastly, a little shaker tag, using the tag that Nancy had all the ribbon and gold thread wrapped around on:

Thank you so much Nancy for asking me to join along this month...I had an absolute blast playing with all the supplies you sent, and can't wait to see what you and all the other ladies came up with!  :0) 

You can check out all the inspiration from this months kit right HERE.  Have fun hopping along to all the different blogs...you won't be disappointed...LOTS of talent from all 12 of these wonderful ladies!! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Birgit & Marcia's February 2016 Challenge

 

For those of you who follow our little mini challenges each month, my dear friend BIRGIT and I decided to use the beautiful color combinations that MFT used in their very first kit that they offered in January.


The kit sold out very quickly, which was probably a good thing for me, since I couldn't really afford it at the time.  Birgit was in the same boat as I was financially, but we both agreed that the colors they used in this kit were just stunning together.  So anyway, we decided to try and come up with colors as close to those used in this kit, and make some cards of our own.  Here's what I came up with:

 

 

 

I had SO much fun playing with these colors!  The purples, greens, and blues are just so pretty together, and really make me think SPRING!!  And after almost a foot of snow on Wednesday this week, I'm really, really looking forward to Spring! 

 

I'm being really lazy as I type this up about writing down the recipes for each card, so if you want to know stamp sets and dies that I used, please just contact me!

 

Make sure you stop by BIRGIT'S blog and see all the beauties she created with these lovely colors too...I know you won't be disappointed!! 

 

Thank you so much for stopping by and checking out what my dear friend Birgit and I have been up to (besides enabling each other...hey, what are friends for?!!) this month...we really do love it when you visit us!!  Have a great weekend!!  :0) 

 

February 2016 Papertrey Ink Blog Hop

Hello friends.  It's the 25th and that means blog hop time over at Papertrey Ink!  The inspiration photo this month was absolutely beautiful, and I took my inspiration from the colors (pinks and greens), and a few of the different images in the photo (fern, cup, and butterfly).  Here's what I came up with:

I kept this card very CAS, and started by adding a very light "smooshing" of Hibiscus Burst ink to my background.  Next I inked up one of the ferns from Meadow Greens with Simply Chartreuse and Ripe Avocado inks, and then spritzed with water quite liberally before stamping over my smooshed background.  A little hard to see, but I used some Mint Julep ink on the back layer of the Fancy Tea Cup die, and then did a little bit of gold embossing on the top layer of the cup.  I used 3 of the Bitty Butterflies from the cover plate die and stamped them with the coordinating stamp set and Hibiscus Burst ink.  I finished by adding the sentiment from the Winter Woods stamp set.  Very simple, but I'm thrilled with the way this card came out!

You can check out all the great cards using this beautiful inspiration photo right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have fun hopping!!  :0)

Make It Monday #240 - Watercolor Resist

Hello again!  Back with another post today...this time I'm playing along with Lexi Daly and Papertrey Ink's Make It Monday challenge.  Lexi shows in her video how to do a fun watercolor resist technique using rubber cement...of which I have none.  After thinking about it for awhile though, I thought why couldn't I use clear embossing powder as the resist...just like Jennifer McGuire showed in a video a few days ago??  So I tried it and really liked the results!  I used a red, pink, orange, and yellow Zig Clean Brush marker to color a sheet of watercolor paper, and then ran water across the whole paper to blend the colors.  After drying, I used Versamark and the leaf stamp from Songbirds, along with clear embossing powder to create a background.  Next I used clear water to wash over the whole layer, and then used a paper towel to blot up the excess water, and as a result, a lot of the bold color....except for the color that was still trapped under the clear embossing powder!  Take a look:

So technically I know this isn't the same as making cool squiggly lines like Lexi showed with the rubber cement brush, but I still think it turned out neat looking!  I pop dotted the new Splits: Just A Note stamp and die cut over part of my background and then added a few enamel dots to finish off this kinda CAS card.

Make sure you check out Lexi's fun video and great cards right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by again!!  :0)

Merry Monday #193 - Bells

Hello friends.  Playing along with the challenge at Merry Monday, where Linda has chosen for us to use bells on our Christmas cards.  Back in December I received the sweetest little stamp set from Deepti (Stamplorations) called Christmas Bell Medley, and it worked out perfectly for this challenge!  Take a look:

I started with an older Darice embossing folder and sponged on Blueberry Sky ink to make the words pop a bit more.  Next I embossed and fussy cut the bells, pine boughs, and bow and attached to the to the embossed layer.  I used a piece of speckled navy blue cs and die cut a stitched circle to layer over the embossed layer, and then attached that to a white card base.  Very simple, but I think the silver embossing along with the embossed words, really make this an elegant card! 

There's still plenty of time to play along, so go check out all the great inspiration and play along right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Sending Sunshine and Smiles

Hello friends.  Just a quick post today, but wanted to share a CASE I did over the weekend of a card from Kay Miller...you can see her beauty right HERE.  I didn't use the exact same stamps as Kay, and I changed up my colors just a bit, but kept her same layout.  Take a look:

I absolutely adore Kay Miller's style!  Her cards are always so pretty, fun, and colorful!  I used a bunch of different stamp sets to create my version:  Flowering Flourishes (SU!), En Francais (SU!), Doodlie Do (PTI), Songbirds (PTI), and Color Layering Butterflies (Hero Arts).  My ink colors are:  Pool Party, Lovely Lilac, and Almost Amethyst.  I also used a Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pen (like Wink of Stella but even more sparkly!!) on the butterfly and flower, and then finished the card with a few sequins and some baker's twine.

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look today...I love it when you do!!  :0)  

Make It Monday #239 - Customizing Patterned Paper

Hello friends.  This week Lizzie Jones has a fun tutorial over at the Make It Monday site...taking a piece of patterned paper and dressing it up a bit.  I started with a piece of Harvest Gold patterned paper, some Classic Kraft ink, and the Polka Dot Basics stamp set and came up with this:

After randomly stamping some of the small dots and open circles on the patterned paper I added the flower from Rosie Posie and Rosie Posie Step 2 with Harvest Gold, Summer Sunrise, Simply Chartreuse, and Ripe Avocado inks.  The sentiment is from Think Big Favorites: #22.  A little bit of jute and an enamel dot finished up my card.  Easy, and a lot of fun!  I will definitely be looking at patterned paper in a whole new way now...thanks Lizzie!!  :0)

There's still a little bit of time to play along with this challenge....just head over to Nichole's site right HERE. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!  :0)

Merry Monday #192 - Berries

Hello friends.  The challenge over at Merry Monday this week is to use berries on your card, and once again I have 2 cards to share with you.  (I can be so indecisive at times!!)  My first card uses a larger than normal Spellbinders embossing folder, hence the 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 size.  Take a look:

After embossing, I used an ink blending tool and Spring Moss, Simply Chartreuse, New Leaf, & Ripe Avocado inks and blended over the raised areas.  I used a Copic (R39) marker for my berries, and then added a wooden snowflake (SU!) and Cherry Cobbler Baker's Twine (also SU!) to finish off the card.

My 2nd card uses A Wreath For All Seasons (PTI).

After inking up the stamp for the greenery with Old Olive ink, I spritzed the stamp with water to give a bit of the water colored look to the wreath.  I used Cherry Cobbler ink for the berries and the little tag.  The DSP was all scraps from my stash.  The snowflake die cut behind the wreath is from PTI's Fancy Flakes, and I cut it in half so that the majority of it wouldn't be hidden by the wreath.  I used PTI's Filigree Border Die at the top, along with a few sequins, and some cotton lace towards the bottom.  I like this card because of the scrap of "berry" DSP at the bottom, and all the other little details, but I think overall, my favorite card is the first one.  Which one do you like best???

There's still plenty of time to play along this week, and you can find all the details and lovely inspiration right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Day 10: Paper Crafting Alphabet

Hello friends.  The last day of the anniversary challenges over at Papertrey Ink has us using the alphabet and the first 3 letters of our first or last names to make a card.  Mix together 2 different stamp sets, Add a border, & Round some or all corners were what I came up with using the first 3 letters of my first name.  And here's what I came up with:

The 2 stamp sets I used were Twig Wreath and Reasons To Smile, my border came by using a stitched rectangle die on my piece of white linen cs, and I rounded the two bottom corners of my card.  I stamped the wreath, fillers, and sentiment in Classic Kraft ink, and then used Harvest Gold and Spring Moss for the flowers (they remind me of Forsythia's) and leaves.  Oh and there's a bit of Fine Linen ink for a few of the sprigs too.  A small jute bow and a few rainstones finished off my card.  Very simple but I kinda like the way it turned out...it reminds me of the Forsythia bush my mom had outside our dining room window in the house where I grew up.  :0)

It's been another great anniversary celebration over at PTI, and I have thoroughly enjoyed playing in all the fun challenges!  You can check them all out over on Nichole's blog right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Day 9: Saturday Snail Mail

Hello again friends.  WOW...2 posts in one day!  But hey, it's my birthday, and it's too COLD to go outside, so I'm spending my day doing what I love: stamping and blogging!  :0)  Today's challenge over at Papertrey Ink is to make a thank you card and send it to all the great people who work in the warehouse at PTI. 

I did make one slight goof on my card...I've been in birthday card mode trying to ramp up my stash, and instead of reaching for the "thank" stamp, I grabbed the "happy" and stamped it before I realized what I'd done...grrr!  So anyway, like any self respecting stamper, instead of finishing the sentiment with the "you" stamp, I completed the sentiment by using the "anniversary" stamp, since it is their 9th anniversary!  And I'll put the "thank you" on the inside!! :0)

I used Tropical Teal ink on an embossing folder (the raised side), and then spritzed it with water before smooshing my card stock into it.  Next I die cut a couple butterflies from Life Is Beautiful and inked up the white one by adding Aqua Mist, Hawaiian Shores, & Tropical Teal to the stamp and then spritzing it with water before stamping.  I also WOS'd the colored parts, so it really shimmers IRL!  Adding the sentiment and a few iridescent sequins finished off this CAS card.

I'd like to take a moment and THANK everyone at Papertrey Ink for all the beautiful and fun products, the wonderful customer service, the Fabulous Design Team, and all the dedicated and wonderful workers in the warehouse who make sure I get my orders each month!  Thank you, thank you...you are all the best!!

You can play along too right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today again...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Day 8: Color Pop Fortune Teller

Hello friends.  What a fun little challenge Papertrey Ink had yesterday using a "Fortune Teller", or as we used to call it when I was younger, a "Cootie Catcher"!  I didn't even need the instructions on how to fold it up...guess I made a few too many of these growing up!!  Anyway, the colors that I came up with using the "Fortune Teller" were: Wisteria Wonder, Orange Zest, & Pure Poppy.  And using the Daydreamer set, this is the card I came up with:

I stamped and masked using 3 of the flower images from the set, and then added the greenery using Simply Chartreuse ink.  I added a black die cut using Wet Paint for my sentiment, a few iridescent sequins, some bakers twine, and then mounted to a neutral gray card base.  I'd forgotten how much I love using this stamp set, and think I need to leave it sitting out so I can give it some more love!!

Join in the fun...you can check out all the other entries and play along over on Nichole's blog right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Merry Monday #191 - Chalkboard Technique

Hello friends.  This week, the ladies over at Merry Monday's are asking us to make a Christmas card using the chalkboard technique.  These really are fun to do, so I'm not sure why I don't do more of them!  This weeks card I kept very simple using DSP from LOTV (Classic Christmas) and a couple PTI stamp sets: O Holy Night, Enclosed: Bell, & Choose Joy.  Take a look:

The DSP really is not faded towards the bottom of the card...more than likely just my poor photography skills!  I used Hero Arts Unicorn pigment ink to stamp everything on the black chalkboard paper (Hobby Lobby), and then I went over the holly leaves and the small leaves at the bottom with a couple Copic markers (YG63 & YG97).  I used a white chalk marker to go around the edges (SU!) and also added a couple white glittery enamel dots for the holly berries.

You can check out all the DT's awesome cards and all the other entries right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Papertrey Ink 9th Anniversary - Day 5 Sampler Square Challenge

Hello friends.  The day 5 challenge over at Papertrey Ink was posted a few days back, but I have really struggled with this challenge.  When I read the directions, it said to make a sampler out of 9  one and a half inch squares and to use a different technique in each of the 9 squares.  Well I tried.  And tried.  But each time it just didn't look good when I put it all together.  My natural instinct is to make everything coordinate and be matchy matchy, if that makes sense?  So anyway, I've never known PTI to throw a card out of a challenge for not following the directions (they're just way too nice!!!), but we'll see.......

 
Because of my frustration level, this card is just a really, really simple 9 patch card!  I started with a 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" square and sponged it with Lavender Moon, Aqua Mist, & Mint Julep inks, and then cut it into 9 - 1 1/2" squares.  I layered them on to a 5" square of black cs, and then layered that onto a 5 1/2" square white card base.  All my images were die cut, sponged, and stamped using Songbirds. 

You can check out all the other entries over on Nichole's site right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Create Along With Us - February 2016

Hello friends.  LOTS to be inspired by over at Papertrey Ink this month, and I was especially taken by Heather Nichols sweet and simple little card using her new set coming out this month called BE.  I made my card horizontal instead of vertical, and this is what I came up with:

I used In The Meadow Die Collection to create the curve, and then stamped a couple small flower images from Bitty Bouquets in Orange Zest, Tropical Teal, Hibiscus Burst, and Pink Lady inks.  The "be" is part of the word "believe" from a TH die and the HAPPY is from the Keep it Simple: Happy Birthday set.  I hand drew in the stitching lines and added a bakers twine bow at the top.  A quick and simple card, and I'm very excited to see the rest of this new set by Heather when it comes out!

You can check out what all the other players have been inspired by this month right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!  :0)

HLS February CAS Challenge - Embossing Folder Stamping

Hello friends.  Today I'm playing along with Happy Little Stampers.  The challenge this month is to use a embossing folder that you've inked up (on the raised side) and sprayed water on to create a watercolored background with the design of the embossing folder on it.  I had just learned about this technique a short time ago from Loll Thompson and fell in love with it!  This seemed like a good opportunity to play with my new Recipe for Happiness stamp set (MFT) and a brick Darice embossing folder.  Take a look:

Isn't that chef just the cutest?!!  I started my background with inking up the raised side of the brick embossing folder with Scarlet Jewel and Canyon Clay inks, and then misting it before pressing my cardstock down onto it.  LOVE the way this came out!!  After letting it dry, I simply attached my colored and fussy cut chef (Copics: C1, E00, E02, E99, C7, R29 & R39) and banner that I die cut using PTI's Just A Little Something.  I debated with adding the sequins, as I know this challenge is a CAS one, but just couldn't help myself...gotta have a little bling!! 

I encourage you to try this technique out...it is so much fun!  And when you're done, add it to the gallery over at Happy Little Stampers!  Lots of great inspiration over there too, and all the info you need to play along can be found right HERE. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

PTI 9th Anniversary Day 3 - Grab & Craft Challenge

One more post today to play catch up with Papertrey Ink's 9th Anniversary Day 3 challenge, which is to grab everything you need to make a card in 5 minutes.  Not too hard as I already had the Butterfly Cover Plate die sitting on my desk from the last release so that I would remember to use it!  Wish my watercoloring would have shown up a bit more, but again, not much sunshine in Michigan in the Winter months...grrrrr!!

After die cutting the cover plate, I watercolored the butterflies with Plum Pudding and Lavender Moon inks.  Next I splattered Egyptian Gold Twinkling H20's over the butterflies and then mounted them to a Plum Pudding card base.  I embossed my sentiment in gold on a strip of black cs (Keep it Simple: Thinking of You).  IRL the watercoloring shows up so much better, and it's really quite a pretty card for being so quick and simple!

Make sure you stop by Nichole's blog to check out all the festivities...lots of fun and celebrating going on!!  You can find it all right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by...love it when you do!!  :0)

PTI - 9th Anniversary Day 2 - Dress Up Inspiration

Hello friends.  For day 2 of Papertrey Ink's 9th Anniversary celebration, we are being asked to pick a favorite piece of clothing from our closets for inspiration. Please don't laugh, as I know I'm dating myself here, but I live in Michigan, and it's COLD here right now, so this is my favorite clothing to wear in the winter time:

In fact, I like my cable knit turtleneck sweater so much, I also have one in black, gray, and red!  They are getting quite old and thin, but they still work and I love them!  So anyway, I took my inspiration from the cables in these sweaters, and made a background for my card using one of the images from Round Repeats to mimic the cable pattern.

 

I used Soft Stone ink and stamped the image repeatedly over the top and bottom of the card to mimic the cable pattern, and then added my flowers from Vintage Linens.  I embossed the flowers in white and then used my Aqua Painter and Raspberry Fizz and Hibiscus Burst inks to color them in.  The leaves are Simply Chartreuse and Ripe Avocado inks.  The sentiment is from Keep it Simple: Thinking of You.

You can check out all the festivities and play along over on Nichole's blog right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!  :0)

PTI 9th Anniversary - Day 1: DT Favorites

Hello friends.  Papertrey Ink is celebrating their 9th Anniversary, and they are starting out the celebrations with the Design Teams favorite color combinations.  The color combo's are all beautiful, but I was especially drawn to Melissa Phillips color choices: Autumn Rose, Lavender Moon, Melon Berry, Summer Sunrise, & Spring Moss.  And since I hadn't had a chance to use the Mini Butterfly Cover Plate die yet, I combined the two and came up with two cards:

My first card is pretty simple - just inking up the butterflies in Melissa's color combo and then reattaching them by their centers and adding the sentiment.  I did use Wink of Stella on all the butterflies, so IRL this simple card really shimmers!  My 2nd card I used watercolor cs and "smooshed" all the colors except the Spring Moss, and then die cut with the cover plate.  After reattaching the butterflies in the center again, I added another layer of DSP vellum butterflies (hard to see in the photos, but the vellum had little white swirls on it) over the first ones.  My sentiment I embossed on a strip of Spring Moss cs and then added a couple black enamel dots.  I used a  card base of Autumn Rose that you can see peeking through behind the butterflies for a bit more intense color.

Make sure you check out all the Anniversary fun going on over at Nichole's blog for the next 10 days right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by today...I love it when you do!!  :0)

Make it Monday #238 - Valentine Ombre Stamping

Hello friends.  This weeks Make it Monday is all about Valentine Ombre stamping and Gelatos.  Melissa's card is absolutely beautiful as always and she has a great video on how to achieve this look.  I had a problem though...only one pink Gelato and no red Gelatos!  I thought I could make enough shades of pink with the one Gelato, and I really did try, but no luck!  So I went with distress inks...Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick, Festive Berries, & Fired Brick.  I'll show you my second card first, as my first card didn't come out like I saw it in my head!

I blended all the inks onto a piece of linen cs (PTI) and then cut the center out with the Framed Love die, and then cut it a 2nd time in black cs.  I did a "smooshed' background using Hibiscus Burst and Berry Sorbet inks, and then made a shaker card using mostly sequins from the Shakers + Sprinkles set.  Here's a close up:

And here is the first card I made:

While I don't hate this card, I don't love it either.  And I don't even know how to explain what went wrong...I had this idea in my head of in-laying the heart pieces from the Shakers + Sprinkles kit dies, but they didn't match up great, so I added the "Love" die cut, but I didn't like how that looked either after I glued it down.  Before I did glue it down I rubbed the edges in Versamark and then added a little gold embossing powder, thinking it would give the die cut a little more pizazz, but all it did was make it look "dirty" and lighten up the inked blending.  Oh well, it is what it is, and I guess you just have to play around sometimes to get the look you want!  :0)

You can check out Melissa's pretty card and great video right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by...I love it when you do!!  :0)