Stampingbella Gifts from Birgit

Hello friends.  Not playing with any challenges today, but just wanted to show you a few cards I made with images that my dear friend BIRGIT sent me.  Birgit had made an adorable card with a STAMPINGBELLA image awhile back, and I fell totally in love with it and HAD to go shopping!  When I mentioned to Birgit that I had been forced to go shopping, she said she would sent me some stamped images if I would send her some of the images I had bought...so we traded and here are a few cards I made with the images she sent to me:

All of my coloring was done with Copics and then I just added scraps of various DSP to each card.  This first card also uses the Poppystamps Butterfly Buttons dies (another gift from Birgit!!) and a little white embroidery floss.

Don't you just love the sentiments that come with these stamps?!  I wish you could see the sparkle on the flowers too, but just heard on the news last night that Grand Rapids Michigan has been the cloudiest place in the WORLD for the past 8 days as we have had 0% sunshine and the trend is continuing...grrrrrrr!!

These little piggies just crack me up and I love the sentiment for this one too!  If you like to color and like cute images, you really need to check STAMPINGBELLA out!  Although I do need to tell you to look at your own risk...I can't be held responsible if you start filling up your cart!!  :0)

Thanks so much for stopping by today and thank you to BIRGIT too...you're the best!!  :0)

Merry Monday #233 - Five is the Magic Number!

Hello friends.  Debbie is hosting this weeks challenge at Merry Monday and she would like to see you use "5" of something on your Christmas card.  Five ornaments, five bells, five trees, five snowmen, etc. 

I chose to work with MFT's Pure Innocence Season's Tweetings and added 5 little red cardinals to my card:

I've seen so many people use this darling stamp set (including a couple of my teammates!) and just had to have it for myself!  I started by blending Smokey Slate ink to my background layer and then added a few water splatters.  My next layer is the Cover Plate: Winter Woods die (PTI) that I also did a little stamping on with Smokey Slate ink.  The little girl and the Cardinals were embossed in black and then colored with Copics. 

So what "5" of something will you choose to put on your card?  We can't wait to see!  You can check out the inspiration from the rest of my teammates and then play along right HERE.

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

                                                                               

Darnell's NBUS Challenge #9

Hello friends.  Playing along with Darnell's 9th challenge in her NBUS series, and this week she is giving us the optional challenge to make a "hidden word" card.  (otherwise known as Steganography...don't ya just love learning new things from Darnell?!!)  Anyway, I hadn't made a hidden word card in quite a loooong time, and I really liked Darnell's card and thought it would work well for my hubby's Valentine's Day card too, so I CASE'd it and came up with this:

CAS and perfect for a masculine card!  I used a couple new NBUS items for this card.  The "love" die cut and sentiment is from SSS Love set (Kristina Werner) and my DSP is from SU!'s Sending Love 6 x 6 pad.  The heart die cut is from PTI's Limitless Layers: Stitched Hearts.  Easy peasy and I love how it looks!  Thanks for the inspiration Darnell!!

You can check out Darnell's fabulous card and all the rules for playing along with this challenge right HERE.

I'd also like to enter this card into Simon Says Stamp's ANYTHING GOES Wednesday Challenge.

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

Make It Monday #273 - Spinner Cards

Hello friends.  What a FUN challenge this week with Lizzie at Papertrey Ink's Make It Monday challenge.  Lizzie made a really cool Valentine spinner card (HERE), but since I didn't want to copy her, I used one of my new sets to make my spinner card.

 
I used the Boho Rounds set and embossed them in white on water color paper, and then filled in the area's using my Aqua Painter and Hawaiian Shores, Amethyst Allure, & Green Parakeet inks.  It seemed kind of plain to me after adding just one of each of the "rounds", so I added some splattering with Hawaiian Shores ink and a few sequins.  Definitely a learning curve for me using this set, but I still like the looks of it, and the spinner part is just too cool!  Had to play with it a bit before I put in in an envelope to send it off to a friend!  :0)

I can't believe I've been stamping for this many years and have never made a spinner card, but it's something I will definitely make again, so thank you, thank you Lizzie...loved this challenge!!  You can see Lizzie's great video and FABULOUS card all right HERE and then play along too!

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

     

Papertrey Ink January 2017 Blog Hop

Hello friends.  It's the 25th and Nichole picked out a BEAUTIFUL inspiration photo for this months Blog Hop:

Who would have ever thought that black would look so elegant on a cookie?!  I took my inspiration definitely from the colors, the flowers, and the heart shape, and came up with this:

I am still head over heels in love with the Noted: Scalloped A2 Vertical Die and used that for my card base and black layer.  I also used a part of the Cover Plate: Pretty Frame Die, and then added my stamped flowers from the Make It Market: Don't Forget to Write kit.  I also added the heart that I had laying on my desk from last weeks MIM challenge and stitched it up with some red embroidery floss and added it to the center of my card, along with the embossed sentiment from Heart Squared.  A few sequins and my Valentine's card for my mom is finished!  :0)

Can't wait to see how everyone else was inspired this month!  You can check it all out right HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and a BIG thank you to all who comment...it really does make my day!

Merry Monday #232 - Sweet Inspiration.

Hello friends.  Deanne is our host this week at Merry Monday, and she would like you to use the following photo as inspiration for your Christmas cards this week.

I tend to take everything quite literally when I see inspiration photos, so can you guess what I chose for my card?  Yup, hot cocoa (sorry, I do NOT like coffee...tastes like hot dirt!) and cookies! 

I had fun playing with a brand new (to me) stamp set from PTI called Sweet Holiday Wishes, and also What the Doodle: Tea Time and What the Doodle: Piece of Cake (both PTI).  I started with a Cherry Cobbler card base that I die cut with PTI's Noted: Scalloped A2 Die, and then layered a smaller piece of Kraft Bitty Dot DSP (PTI) on top.  My plates, tea cup, and cookies were all cut from Gina K's Ivory cardstock...the plates and tea cup were embossed in white and the cookies were sponged and decorated with white die cuts that I really piled the glitter on!  The sentiment was die cut and stamped from the Sweet Holiday Wishes set, and the little wooden stars are from a PTI kit. 

So what will inspire you from the above photo this week?  We can't wait to see, so check out all the fabulous inspiration from the rest of my teammates, and then play along with us right HERE.

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

CAS Mix Up January - #2

Hello friends.  I have a few more cards to share with you for the CAS Mix Up challenge, where this month we are being asked to use some sort of liquid color on our cards.  I still had some backgrounds left over from playing with my Al inks a couple weeks ago, and finally made them up into cards.

Here's what I came up with:

I think this one turned out to be my favorite!  I used Botanical and Pool Alcohol inks on the Yupo paper one drop at a time, and used a straw to blow the ink before each drop formed a circle on the paper.  I love the look of all the lines shooting out!  (Click on the photo to see even closer up)  My dear friend Birgit gave me the set of Butterfly Buttons dies (Poppystamps) for Christmas and I just cut them out of white and wound gold thread through each one before placing them on the Yupo paper.  I thought the sentiment from Mama Elephant's Butterfly Kisses set was absolutely perfect for this card!  :0)

This card uses the other half of the Yupo paper that I used for my first card HERE.  For this card I used Memory Box's Prim Poppy die and a sentiment from Altenew's Painted Poppy.  CAS and bright and cheerful!  :0)

My last card doesn't really fit for this challenge since I didn't do any stamping on it, but I used a larger piece of background for it and there just wasn't really any space for stamping without ruining the card.

I really liked the simplicity of just the background (Butterscotch & Sunset Orange Alcohol inks) and the white die cuts (Gina Marie Designs), so decided to leave as is.  Figured I can put the sentiment inside and use it for a masculine birthday or thank you card.

There are still a few more days to play along with this challenge (closes on the 24th), so check out all the amazing inspiration from the DT and play along right HERE.

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

Darnell's NBUS Challenge #8

Hello friends.  Darnell is back at it again, helping us poor stampers make a dent in our mountains of NBUS!  What would we do without our Darnell?!!  I think she knows all of us too well!  For this challenge (#8), Darnell is encouraging us to not only use NBUS, but also to try the technique of using colored pencils on kraft cs.  Never done it, but was more than willing to give it a try, and this is what I came up with:

 
I actually used 2 different NBUS items for this card.  The stamp set is PTI's What The Doodle: Piece of Cake, and while it isn't that old (a month or two?), I hadn't had a chance to use it yet, and thought it might work well with the coloring.  I embossed the piece of cake in white, and then masked it so I could also emboss the plate.  The candle and fork I also embossed in white, and then die cut.  I don't know what it is about that fork, but I love it!  :0)  The other item I used for the 1st time is MFT's Die-namics Blueprints #1.  I think I've had this die set for well over a year now...loved the large scalloped rectangle and thought I would use it a LOT...NOT!!  After having used it on this card though, I have to admit that I love the way all three layers fit together so well!  A few sequins and some bakers twine finished off this card.

Make sure you check out Darnell's blog for all the details, and then make a dent in that NBUS pile!  You can find all the info to play along right HERE.  Darnell is also giving away some awesome prizes for 5 lucky winners, so a little incentive to play along!   And Darnell, you don't need to put my entry into the drawing, as I was lucky enough to win one of your past challenges (a gift certificate to The Twinery!).

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

Make It Monday #272 - Masked Heart Wreaths

Hello friends.  Super fun technique for this weeks Make It Monday challenge by Melissa Phillips!  I always get excited when I see her name come up because I know it's going to be something flowery and beautiful, and it definitely was!  I used the same Limitless Layers: Stitched Hearts die to create my mask, and also the same Inspired: Love die for my center, but then went my own way and came up with this:

I used the Basic Bookmark #3 die to stamp my masked heart on, and used flowers, leaves, hearts, and dots from the following sets:  Birds & Blooms, Choose Joy, & Polka Dot Basics.  My sentiment is from the Book Club stamp set.  I used a bit of Hawaiian Shores striped DSP and the Hearts Border Die in Pure Poppy for the side treatment of my card.  Not real happy with the color my seam binding ribbon came out...used my Hawaiian Shores re-inker to die it and it seems more on the green side than blue-green, but I like the way the rest of the card came out, so I'm not going to complain too much!  :0) 

You can check out Melissa's lovely cards and video, and all the beautiful cards in the gallery right HERE and then play along!

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

Merry Monday #231 - Reindeer

Hello friends.  Colleen is our hostess this week at Merry Monday and she would like to see a Reindeer on your Christmas cards this week.

I have a brand new stamp from Stampingbella - Rudolph the Skating Reindeer - that I had to try out for this challenge!

Isn't he a cutie?!!  I colored him with my Copics and then die cut (Gina Marie Designs) and layered him with Real Red cs and DSP from Echo Park's I Love Winter paper pad.  And because he was so cute, I just had to stamp a 2nd one:

The DSP on this one is SU!'s Warmth & Cheer paper pad.

There are SO many wonderful Reindeer stamps out there!  Hope you'll go digging through your stash and then play along with us!  You can check out all the great inspiration from my teammates and then add your card right HERE.

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

CAS Watercolour Jan. 2017 - Snowflake

Hello friends.  Playing along with the ladies over at the CAS Watercolour Challenge today, where the focus is on Snowflakes.

Having lived in Michigan all my life, I've seen plenty of snowflakes!  I really do love the look of them, and I like the snow when it first falls and is very clean and white, however my love of it ends right about there!  Now making a card with snowflakes...totally different matter!  I hadn't used my Quilted: Winter set (PTI) in quite awhile, and I love the simple lines of the die cut snowflake...made a perfect overlay for my watercoloured background! 

 

I used Deep Blue and Sky Blue Peerless watercolours first, and when that dried, I added just a touch of Cobalt Blue and Purple Brusho's.  I added a little bit of water splattering, and I really like how it looked when I added the white die cut quilt block over it!  I also added a embossed layer using SU!'s Northern Flurry ef onto my card base, and then added the watercolour and die cut layer on top (with a few dimensionals).  My sentiment also came from the Quilted: Winter set.  Here's a closer up view of the watercolouring:

Lots of FABULOUS cards from the DT and in the gallery to inspire you, so if you love watercolouring and snowflakes, then come join the fun!  This challenge is open till the 24th, and you can find all the info you need to play along right HERE.

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

Make It Monday #271 - A La Carte

Hello friends.  For this weeks Make It Monday challenge, Papertrey Ink is inviting us to pick one of the challenges from this past year (2016) that we might not have had a chance to play in.  Up until right before Christmas, I had played in every challenge, but then ran out of time!  I would have loved to play in Ashley's picture challenge, but we just don't print pictures anymore...they are all on my phone or online.  Grrrr!  So anyway, I went back through all the challenges, and one that I really liked was from Dawn McVey, who showed us how to achieve more depth to our single stamps with sponging, and it's a technique I find myself using a LOT now!  You can check out Dawn's video HERE.  I was a little late to the party with the Christmas Critters set, but after seeing all the cute cards made with it, I just had to order it...and then of course ran out of time to use it before Christmas.  So I got to thinking...could I make it into a Valentine's card?  What do you think??

I used Dawn's sponging technique on the background circle with Lovely Lady, Hibiscus Burst, & Raspberry Fizz inks, and also on the die cut LOVE from Wonderful Words: Love.  For the mouse's sweater and cup, I used the same technique with Hawaiian Shores & Tropical Teal inks.  Doesn't look anything like Christmas to me and I think it makes a fabulous Valentine's Day card...love it!  :0)

As Darnell would say, I have a "twofer" for you today.  Another set that I just never got a chance to play with before Christmas was the Tiny Town: Gingerbread house.  Spent a few days working on it and just had FUN!  Take a look:

 

I even made a platform for it like my dear friend Birgit did for her Tiny Town buildings.  I wanted to have something to set the fences and tree's on, so the platform worked great!  I just cut a 6" square piece of cardstock and scored at 1/2" on all four sides...so easy to do and then I cut strips of DSP (1/2" X 5") for  all four sides to dress up the platform a bit.  I also used a Darice brick embossing folder for the outside of my house, but instead of actually embossing it, I inked up the inside of the folder and then pressed my two house pieces (one at a time) in it to give the inked look of bricks.  Betsy did such a fabulous job of adding all the little details to this set...the only thing I had to get from another set was the red bows for the fence (Catherine Pooler's Hip Holiday).  Like I said, it took me a few days to make it, working on it here and there, but it was so much fun and I love how it turned out.  I even put a little battery powered tea light in it, and it looks so warm and cozy when lit up!  :0)

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and make sure you check out what everyone else is adding to the gallery for this weeks challenge right HERE.

CAS Mix Up - January 2017

Hello friends.  Playing along with the January CAS Mix Up, where this month the challenge is to use something liquid.

I chose to work with Alcohol Inks as my liquid, and here's what I came up with:

I love pinks and reds together, and used Raspberry, Watermelon, & Red Pepper Alcohol inks on Yupo paper to create my liquid color piece.  I added a Fuchsia die cut (Memory Box) and left it white so it would pop against the colorful background.   I used a SSS Stacked Hearts die cut in white to keep my background CAS but yet still adding some dimension and interest.  For my sentiment I die cut the word Love from PTI's Inspired: Love set in black and then stamped the "you" in black at the bottom of the card. 

Lots of beautiful cards from the DT and in the gallery for inspiration in this months challenge...you can check it all out HERE.

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

 

Merry Monday #230 - Noel

Hello friends.  So happy to be your hostess this week at Merry Monday!  I have a little bit of a Scandinavian blood in me from my maternal grandfather, and have always LOVED the Christmas designs and patterns they use in their decorating and also the word "Noel"!  (My mom had ceramic letters that spelled out "Noel" that she put out at Christmas, and my little brother always used to rearrange them to spell "Leon"... it was fun to see how long it would take before my mom noticed!)  So all that being said, I would love to see you use the word "Noel" and/or decorate your card with a Scandinavian feel.

 

I kept my card very simple with a kraft and white color theme.  I used a new to me embossing folder by RG - Lumberjack Days Collection - Knitted Pattern for my background on a piece of kraft cardstock, and lightly sponged on some kraft ink to make it pop a bit more.  I used a little Winter scene from PTI's Winter Hills for my main image and also the word "Noel" from Catherine Pooler's Hip Holiday stamp set embossed in white.  I also added a few stitched die cut stars (Gina Marie Designs) and a few wooden stars from PTI.  A little bit of Dazzling Diamonds glitter finished off my card!

 

The DT really made some awesome cards for inspiration this week, so check them out and play along with us...can't wait to see what you come up with!  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!

Snow Much Thanks

Hello friends.  Did you get lots of new crafty goodies for Christmas?  One of my gifts was the new Simon Says Stamp Snow Much Thanks kit...LOVE it!  And the SSS Wednesday challenge this week is to use something "new", so it couldn't have worked out anymore perfect that I had just finished this card using my new Snow Much Thanks kit:

OK, my sentiment is not a "Thank You", but I needed a birthday card...everything else though is from this new kit!  Well, almost everything!  I stamped my top layer with the Delicata White Shimmer pigment ink that came with the kit, using a bunch of the different snowflakes (Frozen Fractals) that also come with the kit.  I added some clear embossing powder and then heat set so I could blend my inks over them (Lovely Lilac & Pool Party - SU!).  I used PTI's Noted: Scalloped A2 Vertical Die set to cut my top layer and the scalloped base layer.  The top layer I added to a layer of Cornflower Blue cs that came with the kit.  I used a piece of the Blue Gray parchment paper that also came with the kit to die cut a banner and embossed that with the Delicata White Shimmer ink and a sentiment from PTI's Winter Hills set and a few more of the tiny snowflakes that came with the kit.  I tied some white twine around the top two layers and then added a few of the iridescent sequins that were also a part of the kit.  This kit is out of stock right now, but there is a link to be notified when it comes back in stock right HERE.  This kit is jam packed with goodies, and if you're a snowflake lover like me, you'll really want to check this kit out!

You can check out what everyone else is doing with all their "NEW" stuff and play along right HERE.

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

Merry Monday #229 - Angels

Hello friends.  Happy New Year and welcome back to Merry Monday where we'd love to help you complete all your Christmas cards by next December!  Sue is our hostess this week, and she'd love to see an Angel on your card.

I only have a few Angel stamps and dies, but this Impression Obsession Angel die is one of my favorites!

I still had a piece of leftover ink blended cardstock that I used for my background (Faded Jeans, Salty Ocean, Picked Raspberry, & Dusty Concord Distress Inks blended and then added water splatters and white acrylic paint splatters) and used a stitched oval die to cut it out.  I added the die cut Angel in black and then added the Penny Black Rejoice die cut in gold cardstock.  I used MFT's Blueprints #27 dies to cut my black scalloped rectangle and the white stitched rectangle is from Lil Inkers.  Because of the blended background piece already being done, this card was pretty QAS to put together and I have to admit I really like how it turned out!  Don't you just love it when a card comes together so quickly?!!

Please check out all the other Design Team members cards for inspiration, and then play along with us!  You will absolutely LOVE having all your cards done by early December if you start now, so hang out with us each week and we'll help you get there!  You can find all the info you need to play along right HERE.

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