Ready, Set, Swim!

With the weather being so hot today (a high of 94 f with a humidity in the high 60%) it would have been a perfect day to hit the beach!  Since I had to go to work instead, I decided to make a beach themed card tonight.  (Next best thing, right?  At least I have air conditioning...lol)   I decided to use Sweet Sketch Wednesday's current sketch:

So, here's my card!

The girl image is from Some Odd Girl and was colored with Copics.  The tropical beach scene I found online and was also colored with Copics.  The sentiment is from TLC Creations. (Isn't it fab?! Paulette has a ton of awesome word art sentiments and images...you should definitely check her out.  Plus, her blog has a freebie EVERY DAY!!  She's so generous, and such a sweetie.)  The flowers I made with my new Sizzix flower die.  (I'm still fairly new to the whole quilling idea...but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it!)

Ok, well once again it's almost midnight before I'm finally getting the card posted.  LOL  Thank goodness tomorrow's Friday and it's a holiday weekend here in the US.  I can catch up on some sleep!  (Or, you know...make more cards. LOL)  I'm off to bed, so thanks so much for stopping by, and we'll see you soon!

Challenges:

Some Odd Girl: Bright and Blinding

My Partner in Crafting Crime: Beach Themed

Pollycraft: Make a Splash

My Time to Craft: Yes, Here Comes Summer

Digi's With Attitude!: Anything Goes

Scrapbook Sisters: Summer Fun

The Paper Shelter: Anything Goes

Sweet Sketch Wednesday: Sketch #108

Sparkles Forum: At the Beach

The Corrosive Challenge Blog: Slippery When Wet

Oooh....Pretty!

The lovely Cheryl over at She Stamps is giving away some blog candy.  Everybody ready?  Say it with me now....Oooooooh, pretty!!!!!

Doesn't that just look fabulous!!  If you are a Copic freak like me, you will DEFINITELY want to get in on this one.  The blog candy goes until 7/31/11, so hurry and sign up!  See the details here.  (Plus, she is one talented lady, so while you're there take a look around!) 

Good luck, my dears!



Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue

Hey y'all!  I've been feeling better, so I decided to sit down and play with some new toys tonight.  Last weekend hubby bought me a new Sizzix flower die, and I was very excited to try it.  I had this fabulous sketch from Creatalicious, and I just had to create something with it.

This is what I came up with:

Besides my brand new Sizzix die, I also had a brand new digi image from Kenny K  Isn't she wonderful?!  So tough and sassy...just like me. (Well, like me after a little nip or two. LOL!)  She was colored with Copics and a clear glaze pen for the white.  The paper is from We R Memory Keepers' Yankee Doodles.  (Don't you just love that bunting paper?!) The ribbon I've had since I started crafting and had never actually used before.  It just happened to be a perfect match for her hair.

Ok, once again it's getting late (someday I will finish a card before 11pm), so I'm going to keep it short.  Thanks so much for stopping by and for all of your support.  Mwah!

Challenges:

Creatalicious Challenges: Sketch 

Fab 'n' Funky: Bermuda Triangle

Amber's Crafts and Stuff: Red, White and Blue

Sweet Stampin': Something Old, Something New

Craft Your Passion: Seeing Red

Kenny K's Krafty Girlz: Hooray for the Red, White and Blue

Rainbow Lady's Challenge Blog: Digi Day

Digi's With Attitude! #32: Anything Goes

Great News!

If you haven't heard yet, I am one of the proud new members of the digistamps 4 joy design team!  I am just so thrilled to have been accepted, and am having a BLAST working with all of these wonderful ladies!

On that note, we have a new challenge for you!  This fortnight's challenge is a color challenge...Red, White and Blue!  Now, being from the USA when I hear that color combo I immediately start thinking flags, fireworks, and the 4th of July.  However, since digistamps 4 joy is based in South Africa, I really wanted to go somewhere different with this challenge.  So, here's my card, using the adorable Summer Ice Cream:

The image was colored using Copics and Glaze Pens.  The papers are from We R Memory Keepers' Yankee Doodle line.  I've been listening to Me First and the Gimme Gimmes a lot over the past few weeks, and they have a fabulous cover of this song.  When I decided to use this image, the song lyrics seemed just perfect.

Now go on over to the digistamps 4 joy challenge blog to meet the new Design Team and see their fabulous creations.  Remember, you can use any image to enter the challenge, but we would LOVE to see you use a digistamps for joy image.  You can visit the store here.

Thanks so much for visiting, and I hope to see you again soon!

Red, White and Blue

I haven't been feeling so hot the past few days, so I haven't been crafting all that much.  However, I did have time to make this card the other day.

Not as many embellies as usual...I wanted to keep it nice and clean.  The cute little girl is a digi stamp called Patriotic Kasey from Happileigh Scrappin', and was colored using Spica markers and Copics (for the skin and hair). The papers are from Yankee Doodle.

I was inspired by this week's Cute Card Thursday sketch:

Sorry for the short post today.  I have to go get some sleep.  Thanks for stopping by, and we'll see you tomorrow!

Challenges:

Paper Playtime: Red, White and Blue

Catch the Bug: Red, White and Blue with Ribbon

Tuesday Throwdown: Red, White and Blue

Stamp Insanity: Stars and Stripes

Stamp Something: Red, White and Blue

Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge: Red, White and Blue

Cute Card Thursday: Sketch

Wild Thing...

**Post #2 for the day.  Please scroll down to see my Happileigh Scrappin' post.**

You make my heart sing.  You make EVERYTHING....groooovy...  lol Ok, sorry, I'm done now.  I just love starting the morning with a song!  This song has been stuck in my head ever since I created my card for this week's StampN-Doodle challenge.  This week we want to see a theme of animals and/or nature.

The DT got to play with this FABULOUS image called Hi Pops. I just love it!  I colored the image using Distress Inks in Peeled Paint, Vintage Photo, Tea Dye and Broken China.  (It's been a while since I colored with Distress Inks...I was pretty happy with how it turned out!)  The papers and embellishment are from the new Bo Bunny Zoology collection.  I just love how much the lion on the little metal embellishment looks almost exactly like the daddy lion in the image!

Now that you've seen my card, why don't you stop by the Stamp-N-Doodle blog to see what the other DT members designed.  (Trust me...fabulous!)  Remember, you can use any image to enter, but of course we'd love to see what you can do with a Stamp-N-Doodle image! If you don't have any, you can visit the store here. 

Thanks for stopping by, and we'll be seeing you soon!

Stars and/or Stripes

Good morning!  Happi Monday!  You know what that means...another Happileigh Scrappin' challenge.  Woot!  This week was Happi Sister Sue's turn to pick the challenge, and she decided on "Stars and/or Stripes".  So, we want to see stars, stripes, or both on your card.  Easy peasy!  =D

I used the adorable Uncle Sam set that was released a couple of weeks ago.  As soon as I saw him, I just knew I would have to use him...he's so adorable!  Now, you can't see it, but I have the Las Vegas version of Uncle Sam.... I colored him with Spica markers, so he's SUPER sparkly! 

Now, head on over to the Happileigh Scrappin' Challenge Blog to check out the other Happi Sister projects. We're still having a DT call, so if you love working with these adorable images, be sure to contact Leigh. (Details are on the Challenge Blog.)  Remember, you can use any image to enter the challenge, but if you use a Happileigh Scrappin' image your project will be entered TWICE! If you don't have any images yet, you can find some adorable freebies here, or visit the store here.  As always, it's buy three get one free, and for a limited time, you get this set free with every purchase:

Cute, yes?  Makes an awesome background!

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope to see your creations!

Circles!

Hey y'all!  It's challenge time again over at Anita Be Stampin'!  This fortnight's challenge was to create a shaped card, with the option of adding buttons.  Unfortunately there's no buttons on mine because I forgot about that part of the challenge until after I had already taken the pictures.  Whoops!  At least it was optional.  The main challenge for me....was to NOT use one of Anita's fairy images!  I just love those fairies so much I've been using them for every challenge since they were released. All of my other fabulous ABS images were feeling neglected, so I decided to show some love to the Victorian ladies.

Now, unfortunately I don't have any fun dies big enough to make a fun shaped card, so I had to stick with circles.  However, continuing the circle theme helped me pick the embossing folder, sentiment and spinning wheel embellishment.  The background paper is actually a pale purple, shaded with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

Quick post tonight since it's getting kind of late.  Thanks for stopping by, and we'll be seeing you soon!

Sugar and Spice and....Not Very Nice

So, it's time for a new Tiddly Inks challenge.  Woo and two hoos!  These are always some of my favorite challenges...if you couldn't already tell.  =D  They're always so different...it really makes them fun!

This week is: Sugar and Spice with a Twist.  The twist is to make a sarcastic or humorous card.  Sarcasm?  What's that?  Oh, no, I NEVER use sarcasm....  **evil grin**

Of course, to put together this card, I had to use a sketch from one of my OTHER favorite challenges...Sweet Sketch Wednesday!  Here's the sketch, isn't it fab?!?

I know you're all just chomping at the bit to see my card (right?  RIGHT?  Just say yes, it's ok.  lol) so here it is!

And now for the funny part...

Hee!  At least *I* think it's funny.  My hubby...not so much.  Just kidding, he likes it too.

As soon as I saw this challenge I knew exactly what I was going to do.  I had bought the digi Briar quite a while ago, and if you can't tell because my silver pen was a little goopy, she has barbed wire wrapped around her, her boots and her hair.  Well, when I was at a stamping expo a month or two ago I picked up this fabulous set that had two barbed wire stamps!  I just knew I had to use them together.  Everything else kind of grew from there....the sentiment (because barbed wire HURTS!)...the paper dripping blood.  Then I had to use the black and creme decorative paper from the same line (I know you can't tell 'cause it's on the computer...but the black damask is all fuzzy!  Yay!), and then the ribbon in almost the same pattern but with reversed colors.  Y'all, I'm telling you this card practically made itself!

Ok, that's about enough for now.  I really, really hope you liked it, and I'm sure I'll be seeing you soon.  Thanks for stopping by, and have a great rest of the weekend!

Happy Birthday, fella!

As I was choosing the pictures for the card I finished a half hour or so ago, I found pictures of a card I made weeks ago that I forgot to post!  Ooops!  =D  I made this card for one of my hubby's best friends.  We were having a birthday party for him at our local karaoke bar, so I had just taken a few quick photos before we left.  Turns out...I never took the photos off my camera.  LOL!  Here it is:

The inside says "Merry Christmas!"  Hee!  Hubby's friend has an odd sense of humor (kinda like someone else you may know........) so I knew it was a sentiment he would love.  I was right...he started cracking up when he opened it and had to show everyone in the bar.  =D  It's always nice to see your work appreciated, you know?

Anyway, the image is from Bugaboo and is one of their sassy ladies.  I just love that line.  =D  Colored by Copics (gasp!) and edged with chalk ink.  I made the buttons with the striped dp...I just love my little button maker!  When it comes to guy cards, I don't know what I would do without it!

I'd like to enter this into the following challenges;

Tuesday Throwdown: Masculine Card

The Sisterhood of Crafters: Male Themed Anniversary or Birthday

Thanks for stopping by!  We'll see you soon, 'cause I have another card to post!  =D

Let's Go Racing!

I'm not a huge race fan.  I like to watch it (or rather, I like to watch the crashes...as long as everyone is ok... and the last 5 minutes) and I have a small team of favorite drivers (go Denny!), but I do NOT make sure every Sunday for the summer months is clear so I can sit in front of the TV for 8 hours to watch the whole thing.  However...my hubby does. He's huge into NASCAR, so when I saw Kenny K's Krafty Girlz challenge today I just knew I had to join in.  I love Kenny's images, and I love to join in their challenges.  My problem is they're due on Saturdays and I'm just not around on the weekends.  Somehow I always end up missing the deadline, or since they're posted on Sunday, miss the challenge altogether.  To make sure I got in this time, I came straight home to get to work!

This week's challenge is Check It Out.  Now, if you've visited Kenny's shop you know he has some sassy little racing hotties. (If you haven't visited...what are you waiting for?!  Go now!  No, wait.  Finish reading my post, THEN go. lol)  After spending almost an hour on the site I finally decided on Racy Roxie. (That's right.  I bought an image today, specifically for this challenge.  I know I'll use it again, though.  We have lots of NASCAR fan buddies.)

I used Copics for her skin and hair, and Glaze pens for her outfit, hat and sunglasses.  (I just want to know....WHERE can I get a pair of shoes like that?!?)  The car was colored using Glaze pens.  The tire tread was tiled and printed on the cardstock to create the background.

That's about it for tonight.  I can't wait for some kind of occasion to give this to my hubby.  He saw it tonight...but I'm sure he'll forget about it in a week or so. =D

Challenges:

Kenny K Krafty Girlz: Check it Out

Sisters...

I always wanted a sister.  Well...ok.  Not really.  I had (short) periods in my life where I would have liked to have a sister or brother, but most of the time I was extremely happy being an only child.  But I have a few friends that I consider sisters of my heart, so those are the ones I was thinking of when I created tonight's card.

Before I show you my creations, you should know that I was inspired by the Midnight Madness sketch #109.  I just love their sketches, and am so happy to have fit one in on time. =)  Here are the sketches.  You could choose either the fancy, the simple, or somewhere in between.  (Guess which one I chose! lol)

Ok, so here's my creation.

A straight on shot of the front:

And a shot of the inside:

This was my first attempt at a twisted easel card, and I'm pretty happy with the results!  I figured out about half way through that I probably should have made the card larger to fit everything I wanted on there....but it still turned out alright. =)

Both the fairy image and the flower corner image are from digistamps 4 joy.  I just love them!  I've been itching to use the fairy friends stamp since I got it.  The fairy image was colored with Copics, and then Stickles were added to the wings.  The flower corner images were colored with Spica markers.  The sentiment was printed out in word, then colored with Distress Ink in Milled Lavender. DPs are from DCWV's Once Upon a Time stack.  The lace with pearls was also colored with Milled Lavender. Flowers are from Hero Arts and were covered with Stickles, then spritzed with shimmer spray in silver.

I think it's funny how many of my cards end up pink or purple (or both). I loved pink and purple growing up, and dressed in those colors all of the time.  Then I got so sick of them, I refused to wear either of them for YEARS.  In the past few years I've moved to a happy medium where I can still wear my black or dark clothes, but I'm not afraid to add a little bit of girly flair. =D 

Anyway, I hope you like my card.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Challenges:

Midnight Madness Sketch 109

Crafty Catz: Fancy Folds

Paper Sundaes: Easel or Twisted Easel

Sweet Stampin' : Things With Wings

Polka Doodles: All of a Flutter

CES Challenges: Lots of Sparkly Flowers

Scrapbook Sisters: Anything Goes

First Day of Summer

Happy first day of summer, everyone!  Well, actually....as I'm posting this it's one minute to midnight, so the first day is almost over.  So, I hope it was fabulous for everyone!  I've been working on a card in bits and pieces since Saturday, and I finally finished it tonight. Whew!  Here we go!

Now, you can't see it, but the white part of the waves is covered with diamond Stickles.  The green and brown shells also have stickles along the lines, and the hermit crab has stickles in the bubbles on his shell.  (Yes, mom, a hermit crab.  You and your hermies inspired me to put one on this card.)  The main image you've seen me use before...but it's one of my favorites!  It's a Simply Betty Stamps summer emo stamp...Betty, of course.  =)  I just love her cute little net skirt and the little skulls hanging from her parasol! The shells (and crab) are from Copic Marker Scrapbooking. All images were colored by Copics (and Glaze pens were also used on Betty's umbrella and eyes.) The surf board was cut from We R Memory Keepers' Sunsplashed line.  It's called Surf's Up, and it's a page full of surf boards.  The wave DP is from BoBunny, Barefoot & Bliss.  The sentiment I printed out and colored using Distress Ink in Tumbled Glass.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I'd chat some more....but it's now ten after midnight and I'm exhausted.  =D  

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Simply Betty Birthday Challenge

AiFactory: Summer Fun

PaperPlay: At the Beach

Guylou's Inimitability: Sweet Summertime

Southern Girls: Anything Goes

Bee Crafty: Summer's Here

Awww!

That silly Cely over at Hawaii Paper Party... That girl got bombarded with awards!  LOL  It's true though, she deserves it.  Since she's such a sweetie...she passed them all on to me!  Awww....mwah! 

So, here are the new awards and rules:

1. Post on your blog about it and thank the person who gave it to you.

2. Pass it on to those who regularly leave comments.

1. Tell (5) things about yourself....one of which must be about crafting!

2. Pass on to (5) bloggers.

1. Thank the person who sent it to you.

2.  Tell (7) things about yourself.

3. Send to (5) versatile bloggers.

I've decided to combine them all (thanks for the idea, Cely) so here are (7) more things about me:

1. I LOVE to make cards.  I know that's kind of a "DUH!", but I've tried so many different ways of crafting.  Painting, design, jewelry...they were fun for a while, but jut weren't my thing.  Card making, though...I'm in love!  I can't get enough of it!  I'd rather make cards than READ (and if you know me, that's saying a LOT).  I am so grateful to my mom's friend Micky for introducing us to this, and to my mom for getting me to take my first class at our LSS.  I have a feeling I'm going to be doing this for the rest of my life. =D

2. I really, REALLY don't like snow.  I don't like cold, I am terrified to drive in it.  I can't stand it, and would be completely happy if it never snowed again.  Seeing as how I live in Minnesota....I won't be holding my breath.  =D

3. I love tatoos.  I currently have 2, but plan on adding at least a few more throughout the years.  I love seeing people who have tattoos all over.  I think they say so much about a person, and most tatoos really are a work of art!  The body is a temple...and I'm just decorating it!  =D  (Or should I say...adding embellishments? lol)

4. I miss the confidence of childhood.  When you're a little tot, you don't care what anyone thinks.  You do what you want.  You want a purple horse?  You color your horse purple.  You want to wear a tutu and rain boots...go ahead and do it.  I think we all need a little bit of that mentality back.  (Although...don't expect me in a tutu and galoshes any time soon.)

5. I love music.  I love singing it (as noted previously) and listening to it.  All of my friends know...when we go to one of our local bars and I put money in the jukebox...don't talk to me.  I came there to play music, I paid for it, and I'm going to listen to it.  I'll talk to you when it's done, but for now I'm busy.  =D

6. Almost done....!  I don't like people touching me.  Of course my friends and my family, it's ok, but definitely not strangers.  Don't pat my shoulder, don't tug on my hair.  If we're in a really crowded area, I don't even want my friends to touch me because I'm already freaked out enough.

7. On top of not liking being touched, I'm a bit claustrophobic. I don't like small spaces or really crowded spaces....hence the afore mentioned freaking out in a crowd.   Somehow, with all of that....I still love going to concerts and to the fair.  Go figure.  LOL

Ok, that's enough about me.  Here are (5) wonderful women I've decided should receive these awards. Of course the ladies from yesterday would be prime candidates, but I want to spread the love around to some of my other favorite bloggers.  If you don't know these women, go visit their blogs!  They are lovely people!

Rosie at Rosie's Life

Chris at Chris' Crafty Creations from the Corner

Lori at Reflections from Granny

Jen at ABC - Art, Bellydancing and Crafting

Lynn at Polka Dot Greetings

Now, I know these awards can seem like chain letters.  Do not feel you have to pass them on...I won't be offended!  I just want to make sure that you know we in blogland are listening to you and you are appreciated.  =D

Incredibly Sweet

**3rd post of the day.  Scroll down to see my Stamp-n-Doodle and Happileigh Scrappin' posts**

I got to work this morning and found a lovely surpirse.  The adorable Cely over at Hawaiian Paper Party (don't you just LOVE that name?!?) gifted me with this fabulous blog award!

She's such a doll, and so much fun!  If you haven't met her yet, head on over to her blog and say hi!

So, here are the rules to this award:

1. Send a thank you to the person who nominated you and link to their blog.

2. Provide (7) facts about yourself.

3. Pass on the award to (8) other blogland buddies.

So, (7) facts about myself.  Here we go!

1. I love cats, but I'm highly allergic to them.  I tell myself that I don't like cats so I'm not tempted to play with them...but they're just so darn cute!

2. I LOVE to sing.  I'm in a band and I do karaoke at least once a week...more if I can get it.

3. I'm incredibly shy.  You wouldn't be able to tell if you saw me in one of my "safe" places (at my bar singing karaoke, in blogworld, at my LSS) but put me somewhere new and I'm a wallflower.  I'm really working on getting over that, though!

4. I have the best mother in the world.  If you talk to me at all, you know how much I love my mom and how much we do together.  I'm a total mommy's girl.  She's my best friend, and one of the only people I can actually stand for long periods of time. LOL

5. I love to read.  I read about a book a day.  However, with all the crafting and singing, it's been more like every two days.

6. I'm an incredibly picky eater, especially when I'm trying to lose weight.  I try not to be...but there are just some rules that I always seem to follow.  I'm really sensitive to the texture of food (lobster and shrimp are too dense, canned peaches are too slimy).  Also, I always eat one thing at a time, and usually I eat clockwise on my plate.  I'm not sure why...I've just been doing it that way for as long as I can remember.

7. I want kids more than anything.  Hubby and I have been trying to get pregnant, and I'm really hoping it will happen soon.  I would love to get a job where I could be a stay at home mom, but for right now, I would just settle for being any kind of mom.  =D

Ok, that's about it for me.  If you're a follower, I'm sure you already knew most of that already.  I'm pretty open on my blog.  =D

Now for the fun part...passing on the award!  It was hard to narrow it down to (8), but I think I've got it.  All of these ladies are fantastic, whether they're blogs I've recently started following or girls from Guylou's CDAC group that I've been missing recently.  (I know I haven't been able to stop by for a while.  Just remember that I'm always thinking about you guys!  I heart you!)

1. Vicki over at Songbird's Nest

2. Lau over at Lau W's Creations

3. Lyn over at Spyder's Corner

4. Guylou over at Guylou's Oh La La

5. Gina over at Gina Speak

6. Charlene over at Charlene's Card Creations

7. Sara over at Sara's Sugar and Spice

and last, but not least

8. Tracy over at Present Scraps

Ok, I'm going to cheat.  I know we're supposed to narrow it down to (8)...but there's one special lady I just can't leave out.  She wasn't on my original list because I know a couple of her other followers received the award and I thought she would be getting it from them.  Turns out no one's given it to her yet, but trust me...if anyone deserves it, she does!  So, I hope you'll forgive me for bending the rules...but they're made to be bent (if not broken), right?!?  =D

9. Stef over at Glitterbabe Greetings  

Not only is she an absolute sweetheart...she's hilarious.  You definitely want to check out her words of wisdom at the end of the posts....they always brighten my day!

There are many more fabulous blogs out there (as I'm SURE you all know) and I wish I could have given this award to all of them.  You know I adore you all!  Thanks so much for blessing me with your presence in my life.  I am a better person for knowing all of you!  Hugs!!





Monday, Monday....

**Post #2 for the day.  Please scroll down to see my Stamp-n-Doodle blog post.**

Good morning!!  It's another lovely Monday, and you know what that means....Happileigh Scrappin' challenge time!  Woo hoo!

This week's challenge was set by Mandy, and she wants to see some bright colors.  Reds, oranges, yellows...nice and warm (like the weather should be this time of year).  

I used a couple of Leigh's images.  The little girl is called Jenny Bunches.  Isn't she adorable?!  I just love that cute little hat and her fabulous wavy hair.  (I always wanted hair that would do that. LOL)  Jenny needed something to sit on, so I used the log from the Terry Toad set.  I thought the daisy border punch matched the flower in her hat...and the triangles on the orange dp match Jenny's shirt. =D  I lucked out when I found that dp in my stash.

Well, now that you've seen my card, head on over to Happileigh Scrappin' to see the rest of the Happi Sisters' projects.  I've got a surprise for you.....we have another new Happi Sister!  I know she'd love to hear from you, so don't forget to say hi.  =D

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous week, and we'll talk to you soon!

It's a Man's World...

Just kidding!  I don't really think that.....but it's a good title for this post.  We have a new challenge at Stamp-n-Doodle today.  Guess what it is!  That's right....male inspired!   We want to see those masculine cards and embellishments.  One twist, though: NO FLOWERS!  I know that's kind of hard to do, but I believe in you!  =D

Here's my card for inspiration:

I got to play with this fabulous Stamp-n-Doodle image called Father's Love.  Isn't it fabulous?!  It was a blast creating this card.  It took me FOREVER to find the right paper....but I just love that cattail dp.

Ok, you've seen my card.  Head on over to Stamp-n-Doodle's challenge blog to check out the details of the challenge and see the fabulous cards from the rest of the DT.

See you soon!  =D

ATC Holder

As I posted a couple of days ago, I joined an ATC swap group.  We meet once a month.  Everyone at the swap had these cute little coffee/cafe tins that they had decorated, and they use them to pass their group of cards around the table.  One of the ladies is the source of the tins...whenever she finishes the coffee, she brings them to the meeting in case anyone wants them.  Luckily she had a couple at the meeting I attended and was kind enough to give me one.  I was so excited to decorate it!  I have another one, but I haven't gotten around to decorating it yet.

I used paper from DCWV's Immortal Love stack.  The image is from Tiddly Inks and was colored with Copics.  Flowers were punched out, then outlined with a black sharpie or a silver uniball pen.  Gems in the center of the flowers were originally clear, but I colored them with light blue or black Copics.

I really like this tin.  I like how it's simple, but still pretty.  =D  Thanks for stopping by to take a look!

Challenges:

Crafty Cardmakers: Altered Food Containers

The Emerald Faerie Garden: Petals

QUITE a Challenge!

You never realize how much you rely on something until it's gone.  I always feel a little insecure about my cards, as I'm sure we all do.  Are there enough embellishments?  Are there enough DPs?  Do they go well together?  Is it the right sketch?

Well, this week's Tiddly Inks challenge is harder than normal for me.  The challenge? Simplify!  Create a one-layered card.  Yeah, yeah, easy for them to say!  How can I create a card with out any of the many pretty papers I've spent TONS of money on?  I decided to give it a shot.  Not only did I not use any DPs...I only used 8 gems.  That's it.  No other embellies.  I had to keep stopping myself from adding more embellishments, but I did it.  =)

Starting in Word, I placed my Tiddly Inks image (Party Time), and then I typed "birthday" under the banner to match the size.   I took an image from Digistamps 4 Joy called Flower Corner, sized it, then copied and pasted it four times (once in each corner).  When I had the layout right, I printed the entire thing.  After printing, I cut the unused edge off the cardstock and scored the card.  I colored the images using Copics (except for the leaves, which were colored with a light green Spica marker).  I edged the card using Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Tumbled Glass, and added the gems.

Well, that's it!  There's still a LOT of white on that card that, to be honest, is driving me a little nuts.  However, I think if I add anything more I will probably ruin the card.  I'm actually kind of happy how this turned out.

Thanks to the Tiddly Inkers for making me push my boundaries once again.  =D

And thanks to all of you for your always sweet comments and encouragement.  I don't know where I'd be without you!  =D  Thanks for stopping by, and I'll see you soon!

Challenges: 

Tiddly Inks: Simplify!

My Time To Craft: Xtra Images

Scrapbook Sisters: Bunting and Banners

Craft Your Passion: It's Magical!

Dad Tags!

Hey y'all! This week I am so honored to be a Guest Designer over at Digistamps 4 Joy!  The challenge this week is: TAG it for DAD.  With Father's Day coming up, what better time to show the special men in your life how important they are with a little tag handmade especially for them?

The important men in my life all think they can grill.  (Then again, doesn't every man think he can grill?)  Luckily, a couple of them are even right!  Nothing says "summer" to me like sitting in the back yard, grilling up some steak or some corn on the cob.  

When I saw this Digistamps 4 Joy image named BBQ, I just knew it was perfect.    I paper-pieced the shorts with some denim paper, colored the rest of the image with Copics and a Glaze pen for the grill.  The sentiment I printed using Word and a font I found online named "Flames".  The tongs and spatula embellishments are from Recollections.

So, now that you've seen my tag, head on over to the Digistamps 4 Joy blog to check out the inspiration from their amazing DT! Keep in mind you do not have to use a Digistamps 4 Joy image to be the random-picked winner....BUT if you DO use a Digistamps 4 Joy image you have an additional chance to win: the DT's Choice Award (which awards a $6 gift voucher to the store)!  If you don't have any Digistamps 4 Joy images, you can find some here...there's even a monthly freebie if you create an account at the store.

Ok, that's it!  I hope to see your fabulous creations in the challenge!

Happy Tuesday!

Well, folks, I have some exciting news.....I have been asked to join the Stamp-n-Doodle Design Team!  I am just honored to become part of such a wonderful group of gals.  I really look forward to getting to know all of them!

With that being said, it's time for a Stamp-n-Doodle challenge!  Woot woot!  Since Father's Day is coming up soon here in the US (June 19th!) we want to see some Father's Day Cards.  Any image is allowed...but you know we'd love to see you use a Stamp-n-Doodle stamp!  (Visit the shop here.) You have until Sunday, June 19th at

11:59 pm EST to enter.

For this challenge we got to use the adorable Stamp-n-Doodle image "Father and Daughter".

Isn't it cute?  This always happened when I was growing up....Daddy would come home from work and fall asleep in his old recliner.  =D  The image was colored with Copics, papers are from Making Memories Just Chillin' boy stack.  The sentiment was handwritten with a Souffle Pen. 

Now, I know many of you are in the process of making Father's Day cards, so this should be a pretty easy challenge.  =D  Head on over to the Stamp-n-Doodle Challenge Blog to check out the inspiration from all of the other DT members! 

Thanks for stopping by, and we'll be seeing you!

Girls Don't Just Break Hearts

***Post 3 of the day...scroll down to see my Happileigh Scrappin' and Anita Be Stampin' posts.***

Well, once again I'm running down to the wire...45 minutes until the end of a challenge.  Between classes, work and birthdays, the past week/weekend has just gotten away from me.  I hurried home today because the Tiddly Inks challenge this week is something I've been planning since I first heard of it.  The challenge is Going Goth, and I bought the cutest little Tiddly Inks image to use: Lillie Lolita!  Before I show my card, I want to show the sketch that inspired me.  Here is this week's Sketch N Stash sketch:

Isn't it fabulous?  As for the stash part, I used old, neglected bat embellishments, a Tiddly Inks sentiment, and a skull tag embellishment from DCWV's Rock Queen collection.  My new stash is, of course, the image, and also the black flowers.  Here is my card:

Lilli was colored with Copics.  I created the skull and lips background using some old stamps from a stamp expo.  Papers are a mix of DCWV's Rockstar Stack, the Breathless Collection by Marah Johnson, and a lace transparency by Teresa Collins.

I hope you enjoyed my little goth cutie!  Thanks for stopping by, and I'll see you soon!

Challenges: 

Tiddly Inks: Going Goth

Sketch N Stash: #63

Paper Playtime: Show us You Z Fold Cards

Ecstatically Embossing!

**Post #2 for the day, please scroll down to see my Anita Be Stampin'/Cheerful Stamp Pad post**

Happi Monday, everyone!  It's time for another challenge over at the Happileigh Scrappin' Challenge Blog.  Woo hoo!!  This week was Happi Sister Stef's pick, and she chose Embossing!  Unfortunately, Stef had to leave the DT, but we are still thinking about her and miss her dearly.  We were thrilled to use her challenge, and here is my card:

Isn't that image just FABULOUS?!?  It's a new one, Splish Splash, and I just HAD to use it.  It was very intense cutting it out (especially around the water lines) but was SO worth it.  The image was colored with Copics, and Stickles were added in strategic places.  The flowers I punched out with a new punch.  Embossing folders (the sun and the purple paper) are both from Sizzix.  The butterfly I learned from a lovely tutorial over on Amy Ely's blog.

Ok, well you've seen what I've done...head on over to the Happileigh Scrappin' Challenge Blog to see the fantastic cards by the other Happi Sisters.  Also, we have a new Happi Sister, so you'll definitely want to head over and meet her!  Don't forget, you can use any image to enter the Happileigh Scrappin' challenge, but if you use a Happileigh Scrappin' image your entry is counted twice!  Also, you can enter the challenge as many times as you want, but you can only win one prize per challenge.  If you don't have any Happileigh Scrappin' images, you can find some beautiful freebies here, or you can visit the store here.  See you soon!

Say it with Layers!

Hello, my lovelies!  It's Anita Be Stampin' challenge time!  Yay! =) 

This challenge, I decided to use another of Anita's lovely fairy images.  I know, shocking, right?  I just can't help it....these ladies are just so pretty, and I do believe in fairies, I DO!  I used Ariana, and I paired her with a fun little log that was a freebie on the Tiddly Inks blog a few months ago.  I thought these images worked so well together...and I love playing with my Paint.net program.  =)

Without further ado, here she is!

The dragonfly stamp in the background is from Our Daily Bread.  The image was colored with Copics, and Stickles were added to the wings.  I just love how the Stickles make the fairy wings pop, and you KNOW fairies need to have sparkly wings!  =)

I am also entering this card at The Cheerful Stamp Pad's Things with Wings challenge.

Ok, that's it for right now.  Thanks for stopping by, and we'll see you soon!!

Frustration!!

Is anyone else getting super frustrated with Blogger?  I love this site, I love my blog, and I love being able to follow so many wonderful friends out there.  What I DON'T love is the fact that I cannot comment on certain blogs!  If you have a blog where the comments are embedded (instead of a pop-up window or a seperate URL) I cannot comment on your blog.  My google address doesn't recognize me as being signed in...it just makes me sign in, then goes back to the post and my comment is previewed as annonymous, which prompts it to make me sign in again.  It's a vicious circle with no end.  So, a few weeks ago I created  LiveJournal account, just so I could comment.  Now when I try to use that it says my "open ID cannot be verified" even though I am logged into LiveJournal and have it open in another tab.  So today I created a WordPress blog, just so I could comment.  When i tried that, my work computer blocked it saying I was directed to a hacking website.  I am just so frustrated! 

So, just to let you know...if you have an awesome/sad/touching post, I want to comment on it.  Really, I do.  I am just unable to.  =(

*****Edit!*****  Going through many forum posts on Blogger help, I have found a temporary solution to the log in/comment circle.  When you get redirected to "sign in" to blogger (even if you're already signed in) uncheck the "stay signed in" button.  When you get redirected to the post, your profile will appear.  (I did that, and apprently it still kept me signed in to blogger.) Apparently Blogger/Google engineers are working on the code issue or whatever is causing the problem, but this works for now.  I'm much happier!  =D

Birthday Boy!!

Next week is my cousin's 15th birthday, and we're having a party for him on Sunday.  I decided to suck it up and try to make a boy card.  Luckily, Tiddly Inks has this fabulous image named Geekatude, and it's just perfect for a teenage boy.  It's brand new to me...I just bought it a couple of days ago.  I was VERY excited to try it out!

I decided to use a sketch from Sweet Sketch Wednesday (number 105):

As I said, the image is from Tiddly Inks, and it was colored using Copics and Glaze Pens.  (The #15, laptop and MP3 player face are actually black...they just have a silver shine because of the camera flash.) The papers are from DCWV's Rockstar stack and Making Memories Just Chillin' stack (the boy version).  The ribbon is from Michael's.  The sentiment I printed out with this cool new font I found (it's called SF Comic Strip Shaded), colored with a blue Glaze pen, and then shaded the paper with chalk ink in Chestnut Roan (the same color used to edge all of the papers).

I don't really know my cousin very well (my mom married his uncle after I moved away to college) so I'm really hoping he'll like this.  Cross your fingers!  =)

Thanks for stopping by, and we'll "see" you tomorrow!

Challenges:

Charisma Cards: How Old

Do You Stack Up: Birthday

AiFactory: New Challenge

Crafts and Me: Stamp Something

Amber's Crafts and Stuff: Special Man

There's Magic in the Air: Masculine

Sweet Sketch Wednesday: 105

ATC Time!

One of our local scrapbook stores has a monthly ATC club.  Each month you get a theme and you make 20 ATCs.  Then we have a meeting where everyone gets together and swaps their cards.  My mom has done it a couple of times, but this month is my first.  The theme this month is "She Was Named for a Flower."  Originally I had wanted to use a photo of my mom (whose middle name is Rose) but she quickly vetoed that idea.  Then, I bought this GORGEOUS image of a lady with sunflowers all around her dress from A Day for Daisies.  I printed out 20, brought them to a crop on Sunday...and realized it just wouldn't work.  The image, while absolutely lovely, is WAY too detailed to color when sized for an ATC. 

So, there I was, sitting at a 7 hour crop with nothing to do.  I searched through all of the stamps at the LSS...couldn't find what I was looking for.  I walked to Michaels....and they had nothing.  (Has anyone else noticed that Michaels has really reduced their stamp section??)  Back to my LSS I went, head hanging low. What was I going to do?  As I trudged through the stamping section one more time, I saw something out of the corner of my eye.  What is this?  A fairly simple, adorable little girl with flowers?  Perfection!  An ATC was born....

This little cutie is from Stampendous.  I just LOVE the pigtails!  =)  

As I was creating the cards, I ran into a few other issues.  For attending the crop I had received this cute little flower QuicKutz die. I picked out a lovely background paper, and picked out two colored cardstocks to match.  I went to cut the flower out of the cardstock...and the machine didn't work.  No shim.  Oops!  Add a shim and it cuts....one flower.  Ok, this was taking faaaar too long considering I had 40 flowers to do.  So, I bought a punch.  As I sat at my desk with my punched flowers I realized....the flowers fade into the background paper!  So, up I went to find new background paper.  I got all the papers cut, the flowers made. Went to buy the ribbon, sat at my desk and opened it...just to realize it was too sheer to see on top of the dp.  Arg.  So, back into the store I went to find a thicker ribbon.  *Finally* all the pieces are set.  I stamp out 20 images and begin coloring with my Copics.  About 2/3 of the way through....the pink I used for my background ran out.  I didn't have any other light pinks even CLOSE to what I needed.  So, I went out to the store *again*.  I found a marker fairly close, and finished coloring.  By then, the crop was over and it was too late to finish the cards.  At home the next night, halfway through making the cards...I ran out of tape.  ARRRRGGGG!  This time I couldn't just get up to shop, so out came the glue dots.  THEN, I was FINALLY FINISHED!  Yaaaaaay!  LOL

In the end, I think they turned out pretty darn adorable.  I'm happy with my first ATCs for this group, and hope to participate in more swaps in the future.  Hopefully next time it will go a little smoother.  =)

Thanks for listening to my story.  I know, it was probably boring....but it sure was aggravating at the time!  At least I got a lot of steps in that day.  =)

See y'all next time!