Moments

Hi guys, as you're reading this I'll be on my way to El Paso for the holidays.  I have to admit, Christmas is my favorite time of the year.  I love all the cheesy Christmas songs on the radio and I love to wrap gifts!  So, right now, I'm probably wrapping gifts while singing some cheesy song, lol.  Okay, so here's today's card:

This card has lots of my favorite elements: embossed metal, a die cut flower, a pearl pin, velvet, and jumbo scallops.  I cut a piece of my favorite Ten Seconds metal and embossed it with a Tim Holtz embossing folder.  My flower was made using Tim's tattered florals die and aida cloth, with a pearl brad to finish it off.  My hat pin was made using extra pearls and spacers from my bead box.  The scallops were made from Graphic 45 paper using MFT's jumbo scallop border die.  Can you see how I lined up the pearls so they look continuous from one layer to another?  I love that!

If I don't make it back here before Christmas, I wish you all a safe and wonderful holiday season.  Merry Christmas!!

Warm Chocolate

We had a bit of a cold spell last week and it really made me crave some hot chocolate by the fireplace.  So, when I was stamping, I naturally gravitated towards this image.  It's my favorite from Whiff of Joy. 

I used Mercy's sketch from last week to make the card.  I must've had another card in mind when I colored this image because it was already sponged in blue.  I decided that it didn't bother me enough to stamp a new image and decided to add a bit of red to the edges to make it coordinate a bit more with the patterned paper.  I used some crinkly ribbon to make my ruffles and aged the doily with a bit of distress ink.

That's all I've got for today.  Enjoy a cup of hot chocolate for me :)

Holiday Cookin'

Good morning sunshines!!  I've got a cute card to share today that reminds me of all the holiday cooking I will NOT be doing this year!!  Lol! 

As you can tell, I'm still totally in love with my new a la mode stamps from MFT.  I stamped this card a while back but forgot to edit it until earlier this week. The picture doesn't show it well, but I added crystal glaze to the bowl with a brush to give it a glazed ceramic look that's wonderful in person.

Thanks for stopping by!

A Christmas SFYTT

Howdy bloggers, how's the holiday season treating you?  Surprisingly, I'm more than halfway done with my Christmas list and I already know what I'm getting for the rest of the people on my list.  Yay, me!!  So with a little bit of extra time on my hands, I decided to participate in this week's SFYTT.  Luckily, this week's challenge was to use one of their older sketches so I was able to pick the one that suits my pre-stamped image.

This cute little bear is from The Cat's Pajamas and he's colored with my copics.  I added stardust to both bows and crystal glaze to his honey jar and this candy cane.  I stamped my background with red barn distress ink on kraft paper using PTI's Polka Dots background stamp.  I die cut the snowflakes using an MFT die out of red cardstock and vellum.

Here's to a wonderful season with plenty of elves to help you complete your Christmas shopping!  Thanks for stopping by!

Merry Christmas

Most of my cards I've made these past few weeks are quite festive and today's card is no exception. 

I made this card using last week's Mojo Monday sketch.  I made it last Monday but due the earlier sunsets I couldn't photograph it until Saturday morning.  I was surprised once I finished the card to realize it has no stamping on it.  I also finished it in about 10 minutes.  I used several long neglected stickers, some new crinkly ribbon, a pearl strip, and bells to create this card.  Easy peasy.  How do you create 10 minute cards?

Thanks for stopping by!

It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Ack!!  Christmas is just around the corner and, as usual, I've left holiday shopping until the last minute.  It's time to start getting organized and making my To Do lists.  So to help me out, I decided to make a little notepad holder.

I made the cover just a smidge longer and wider than the notepad so the edges won't get yucky on the notepad.  I also added a small pocket to the inside for tucking in receipts, cards, etc.

I used my new Graphic 45 and Pink Paislee Christmas papers for my front panel.  My snowflakes were made with MFT's Let It Snowflake die-namic using red felt and white cardstock.  A pair of tiny bells finished out my bow.  The girl's boots and earmuffs are covered in chocolate flock and I added liquid applique to her hat.

Now I'm ready to do some Christmas shopping!  Thanks for stopping by!

Birthday Girl

Hi guys!!  Did you have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday?  We had a great time celebrating with my family!  A few weeks before going home, my aunt celebrated her birthday.  So I made a card for her, but I didn't post it here because I know she likes to stop by every once in a while.

I made this card CASEing THIS gorgeous card by Melody Rupple.  She has the most amazing, romantic style ever!  I love her use of layers, lace, and sponging.  These cute a la mode girls are currently some of my favorite stamps! 

Thanks for stopping by!

What's Cookin'

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!  I decided to post this card in honor of today's cooking and eating frenzy! Lol.  Although I won't be cooking up a storm today, since we'll be driving into El Paso, I WILL be indulging in the eating frenzy part of it. :) 

I made this cute card using MFT's a la mode girl, called What's Cooking.  Aren't these a la mode girls just the cutest!!  I've been stamping and coloring up a storm with them, so you can expect to see lots of a la modes for a while.

I pulled out my long neglected Prismacolors and OMS to color her in.  Her apron is paper pieced using some patterned paper from my new Circa 1934 paper pad.  I added some liquid applique to her ruffle and used Paula's glitter technique for her bowl.  I added a  few cream pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty to the patterned paper for some interest.  The vanilla and red stripped ribbon in from Stampin Up and the hat pins are from Maya Road.

I hope everyone has a wonderfully blessed day!  Thanks for stopping by!

Fall Bird

When I first posted about this beautiful stamp from Prickley Pear, I mentioned that with the right colored bling, you could transform this card to fit any season.  This one is my interpretation of fall.

I used some beautiful Webster's patterned paper for my background and added some burlap in the form of an accent strip and flower for a more rustic feel.  I stamped my image onto cream cardstock using brown ink and blinged it up with several goodies from Pizzazz Aplenty.  I pulled out some peridot rhinestones, orange frosted pearls, and pearls in peridot, brown, and orange. 

Pizzazz Aplenty sells a gel stick that is perfect for picking up these small embellishments and helping you position them right where you want them.  To get them to stick, I squeeze out a dab of crystal effects onto some scrap paper and add the glue got the back of my rhinestones with a toothpick.  Just a tiny dab provides the right amount of hold for my rhinestones and pearls.

Thanks for stopping by!

SFYTT Birthday Card

Good morning sunshines!!  It's a beautiful Saturday morning here in North Texas.  I've got plans to do some Christmas shopping and then hang out with Aldo's cousins in the evening, I'm looking forward to a great day!  Last night I stayed up until 2 in the morning playing in my scrappy room and then suddenly remembered Jen's SFYTT and decided to use it to make my dad's birthday card.  Here's this week's sketch:

And here's what I came up with:

As you can tell, I changed it a bit, but that's the beauty of a sketch, it's just a guideline for your imagination!  I rotated the sketch onto it's side, changed the layering and the shape of the rectangle to a circle and changed the square into a rectangle.  I pulled out some Graphic 45 and MME paper that I've been hoarding and gladly cut into it.  Originally, I had envisioned the card with a bluer motif, but I'm really happy with the results.  I stamped my image using vintage photo distress ink and die cut it with a nestie.

That's all I've got today, I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Hi there, it's me again.  I've got a Prickley Pear card to share with you today.  I've had this stamp in my stash since the summer just waiting for the perfect chance to use it. 

Since the image is so large, I decided to keep the card simple and let the image be the main focus.  The snowflake in the corner was made using the new MFT snowflake dies.  Each layer was die cut and then brushed with Tattered Angels Glam for the perfect amount of shimmer.

Thanks for stopping by!

Two Sketch Cards

Howdy, ya'll!  I'm enjoying a wonderful lazy day at home this beautiful Saturday.  It feels great after the nonstop action of the last few weeks! :)  I have a couple of cards to show you today.  I had meant to post them sooner and then forgot. :)

This first cards is for Jen's Sketch for you To Try.  I actually made it last Saturday and forgot all about it! The image is from Whiff of Joy.  I colored her with copics and added some sparkle to her pot and the steam using my stardust pen.  Can you believe that the yellow ribbon is the only yellow ribbon I have!?!  Note to self: buy more yellow ribbon! 

This card is for Mojo Monday's sketch.  I stamped my background using Fresh Snow ink on Pure Poppy cardstock and the snowflakes from Technique Tuesdays Flurry stamp set, the sentiment is from the same set.  I colored this girl from SCACD using copics and added some sparkle to the gift and her patch with Tattered Angel's Glam in hay ride using a small brush, I really like the chunkiness of the glitter and the shiny finish the glam adds.  I also brushed cotton candy stickles to her hat with a paint brush.  I embellished the bow with a black felt and red snowflake I die cut with my MFT die-namic.

Thanks for stopping by!  Enjoy your weekend!

A Vintage Card

Hi, I'm back today with a card for Embellish Magazine's current challenge.

I must admit, I was rather surprised when I finished my card and discovered that I hadn't used a single stamped image!  Now, that's something that doesn't happen often!  I love the color combination that was chosen for this challenge. It's so perfect for the fall.

To make my card, I started with Webster's Pages paper and I distressed it with Tea Dye Distress ink.  Next, I cut two rows of burlap scallops using MFT's Jumbo Scallop die and adhered them in two layers.  I took a small paper doily and aged it with Vintage Photo Distress ink and then sprayed it with Tattered Angels Apple glimmer mist.  While wet, I slightly crumpled it and flattened it out again and let it dry before attaching it to the card.  I used some rust ribbon that I purchased from Stamp Simply and finished it out with a crystal swirl. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Supply and Demand...

That's the theme of this month's MFT Guest Designer challenge.  We were challenged to base our project around a office/school supply theme.  Here's what I came up with:

I stocked up on several pencil cases during back to school time earlier this year.  I plan on using them to make gift holders for the holiday season.  I thought this pink one would be perfect for my project!  I cut a piece of black cardstock, punched the edges with my MS star border punch and layered some Bazzill swiss dot paper.  I tied a large bow with some wide stripped ribbon.  I added some doodles to my Maya Road library card pocket with my white gel pen.  It still seemed a bit plain so I added some pink stamped stars around the library card.  My main image is from MFT's I{heart} books stamp set and her book is paper pieced with some of my favorite SEI paper.  I die cut my image and ran a copic around the edge to add some dimension.  Our little bookworm's glasses were glossed with a Sakura glaze pen and her headband was blinged out with the help of a stardust pen.  A couple of paperclips and a library clip finish out my project. 

I love using pencil cases as gift holders, they're the right size to hold small items such a mittens, a tie, candy, beauty supplies, or you can fill the case with some tissue paper and nestle a gift card in there.  And, the container can be used again and again by the recipient.  They're perfect for those last minute small gifts for teachers, neighbors, co-workers, etc.

Thanks for stopping by!

Organize It: Unmounting Rubber Stamps

As my rubber stamp collection grew, I made the decision to unmount my wooden stamps in order to save space.  Splitcoast Stampers’ forums were especially helpful with this.  There are several ways to proceed when unmounting rubber stamps: ez-mount, tack and peel, aileen’s tack it over and over, etc and each option having it’s pros and cons.  I’ll review each of them briefly in this post.

When I first unmounted my stamps, I chose to use EZ mount as my method for adding cling to the back of my stamps.  EZ mount comes in two options, regular and thin, with each 8 ½ x 11 sheet costing anywhere from 3-6 dollars.  The benefits of EZ mount is that it’s permanent, there’s no sticky residue to contend with, and it works very well with acrylic blocks.  However, if you have a large collection of stamps, the cost can add up quickly.  In addition to this, the best way to cut the foam mount is with a hot knife, which can cost around 10-20 dollars and has quite a limited use in the scrapbooking hobby.  The entire process of mounting on EZ mount can also be time consuming depending on the amount of stamps you have.

Tack and Peel is a clear sheet that you add to your acrylic block that allows you to attach bare rubber stamps.  Each package of Tack and Peel by Tsukineko averages $8-10 and contains one 4” x 6 ½” sheet.  I have personally not used this method so I cannot attest to its pros and cons.  

Aleene’s Tack It Over and Over is a flexible adhesive that creates a temporary bond.  A thin coat of the liquid glue is brushed onto the back of bare rubber stamps and allowed to dry.  Once dry, the glue becomes tacky and the stamps can then be adhered to the acrylic block.  TIO&O can be readily found at local hobby stores; averages 3-6 dollars for a 4 oz bottle and one bottle can last forever as a little goes a long way.  This has become my method of choice for my rubber stamps since it’s easy to use, easy to find, and very economical.  However, I have noticed that on certain types of rubbers, the glue will peel off.  Also, if there’s any residue on your stamps can cause the glue to not adhere properly.  So it’s important to apply to very clean stamps. 

Links to products discussed on this post:

EZ Mount

Hot Knife

Tack and Peel

Aleene’s Tack It Over and Over

Links to tutorials on each method:

EZ Mount using scissors

EZ Mount using hot knife

Tack and Peel

Aleene’s Tack It Over and Over

Thanks for stopping by!

A Dandelion SFYTT

Although I love Jen's Sketch For You To Try sketches, I rarely ever play along with that week's sketch.  Usually I find myself using her sketches several weeks later.  This time, however, I actually created a card for this week's sketch! Lol.  Here's this week's sketch:

And, here's my very literal interpretation:

I stamped the large dandelion from Prickley Pear onto kraft cardstock using Fresh Snow ink.  I die cut the image using my circle nestabilities and matted it on a scalloped circle cut from hot fudge cardstock.  I attached the circle to a ripe avocado scalloped square using dimensionals.  The four corners of the square are embellished with gold nailheads from Pizzazz Aplenty.  The bottom layer is strips of hot fudge cardstock punched with my Martha Stewart double loop punch.  I used some green satin ribbon from Stamp Simply for my bow.  I layered all this onto designer paper from Webster's Pages matted on some more craft cardstock. 

The sketch was so pretty as is that I found myself creating my card using a very true to the sketch interpretation.  I just love when a card comes together so effortlessly!  Thanks for stopping by!

Organize It: Stamps

One of the aspects I’ve struggled with the most throughout my paper crafting foray has been how to organize my ever expanding collection of paper, stamps, and tools.  When I first started scrapbooking several years ago, my collection fit in a tiny handheld crop bag.  Overtime, my storage and organization has evolved as my collection has grown.  So, I thought I would share my storage and organization methods in a weekly blog post over the next few months.  Perhaps I can help someone else get their collection neatly stored and organized.

Now, before I start, I want to make the following disclaimer: the majority of the storage and organization solutions that I’ve implemented have been based on ideas found on Splitcoast Stampers forum and tips fellow bloggers have posted on their blogs.  One such blogger, Patter, has been particularly instrumental in my organizing experience.  As I post each week’s different blog, I will try my best to include links to products and other sites that can perhaps help you along.  That being said, here we go!

This week I’ve decided to cover stamps!  Out of all my supplies, my stamp collection was the hardest to tame. Since I started, I’ve used several storage methods before I found the one I was happiest with.  Right now, I’m currently storing both my rubber and acrylic stamps in enclosed mini binders from Univenture. 

 All of my stamp sets are organized by brand.  If a particular stamp collection spans several binders, then the name of the stamp lines are also on the binder spine.

On the front of each binder is a table of contents with the names of the stamp sets that it holds.  Under the name of each stamp set is a line list of all the saying that can be found within that stamp set.  This helps me find a particular saying at a glance.

On the back of each binder is a picture of each of the stamp sets found inside.  This helps me search for any given image by scanning the back of the cover.

To create the panels that hold my stamps, I have taken several Scraponizer file folders and cut them down to fit inside the binders.  Each pack of file folders will yield 8 panels.  I like how the sturdiness of these file folders allow me to store stamps on both sides.  

The reason I’m so happy with these binders is that I can store both my acrylic and rubber stamps using one method so I can keep my storage uniform.  Also, this method is quite cost and space effective compared to other storage solutions. 

Links to products used in this post: 

Univenture mini binders

Scraponizer file folders

Links to other storage solutions: 

Carousel storage method

Envelope storage method

Thanks for staying with me through this long post! J  If you have any questions, please post them in the comments section and I will try to answer them.  Have a great day!

Case Study

This week's CASE Study is a gorgeous card by Bar.  When I saw this card in her blog a while back, I was smitten with the color palette, teal and black create a wonderful, striking combination.

Bar's card inspired me in several ways: the color palette, of course, the use of Graphic 45 paper, the carnival theme, and the minimal embellishments for an elegant yet vintage look.  The top teal panel on my card is an embossed metal sheet from Ten Seconds Studios, I embossed the peacock metal sheet with my Tim Holtz damask folder and lightly sanded the embossed image to add contrast.  The bottom left panel is from Graphic 45's A Proper Gentleman collection.  The right hand panel is from Webster's HollyVogue collection.  The main image is from Prickley Pear's Collage ATC transparency collection.  I cut the transparency to size, ran it through my Zyron machine and added teal, blue, and chocolate glitters to the back of the transparency.  The ribbon on my card is satin instead of grosgrain and I really like the sheen it adds to the card.  The pretty turquoise rhinestones are from Pizzazz Aplenty.  Psst, if you haven't checked out Judy's bling, you are SOO missing out!! ;)

I apologize for the dark, blurry picture, it was taken at night time. :(  A new CASE card will be posted on Thursday, I hope you can play along too!

Thanks for stopping by!

More Christmas Tags

I am in love with Prickley Pear's new Christmas images and I just couldn't resist making a few more tags with them.

For this tag, I stamped out the snowflake with veramark ink and embossed it with clear detail powder.  Then I sprayed it with my glimmer mist and gently buffed away the excess from the embossed flakes.  I added a bit of sponging around the edges with pine needles distress ink, once it all dried I added a gold ribbon bow and attached the joy panel with dimensional stickers.  I stamped the Joy image with the same pine needle distress ink and added red pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty to the wreath.

To make this tag, I sponged black soot distress ink on the edges of the tag after sponging red ink all over it.  Of course, I couldn't resist adding silver glimmer mist to it as well. :)  I stamped my image from the Beautiful Cardinal set on black cardstock with versamark and embossed with silver embossing powder.  A bit of baker's twine and some silver pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty finished it off.  Easy peasy.

Thank you for hanging out with me today!  Have a great weekend!

New Toys

Hi guys, I'm back with a card made from some new toys that came in the mail earlier this week!  I just couldn't resist MFT's new a la mode's Candy Cane Kisses girl and their new snowflake die. 

I decided to play along with this week's Mojo Monday sketch.  I colored this cutie with my copics and added plenty of texture with red flock on her boots and ear muffs, liquid applique on her hat, and clear glaze on the candy cane.  Do you see the three frosted pearls at the top of the card?  They're new from Pizzazz Aplenty and they are so cute, I'm definitely going to have to order more of these gems! 

Even though I hate the cold weather, I LOVE the holidays and I've already embraced them in my crafting.  So expect more Christmasy stuff in the next few days.

Thanks for stopping by!

Embellish Felt Challenge

Embellish Magazine has a new challenge up on their blog and this time it involves felt.  I have a confession to make:  several months ago I went out and purchased several sheets of felt to use on my cards.  Well, that felt has sat at the bottom of my paper cart ever since.  This challenge was the perfect excuse to break it out and start using it. 

I used last week's Mojo Monday sketch for my layout.  The sentiment is a Plain Jane stamp from Verve and the border stamp is from SEI's Juliette line.  To make my felt flower, I die cut 5 scalloped circles.  I folded four of them into quarters and sewed them onto my fifth circle.  I used a large pearl to cover the where I stitched in the center.  Easy peasy.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hey Chica

This week's MFT Wednesday challenge is a wonderful sketch challenge hosted by Cindy and Frances.  And, since fall colors happen to be my favorite colors, I just couldn't resist using my Basic Grey indian summer paper pad.

I colored Chica with my copics, die cut the image with my new nestie labels and added some yellow and cream sponging.  The ribbon is from Stamp Simply, she's got THE most beautiful ribbons for a great price and Sharon's such a sweet person! Stop by the MFT forum on Splitcoast Stampers and play along!

Thanks for stopping by!

PPRS Hot Air Balloon Revisited

One of my favorite things about Prickley Pear's stamps and dies is their versatility.  The majority of their stamps can be used for many themes and are only limited by your creativity.  For instance, the hibiscus stamp and die can also be used to make embellishments as seen here and here.

Upon further inspection of my Hot Air Balloon die and stamp set, I realized that it could easily be used as a Christmas ornament simply by turning it upside down!  After playing around with it for a bit, here's what I came up with:

I decided to skip the stamping part completely and just use the die to cut patterned paper for my ornaments.  I simply colored the tops gold and added some thin ribbon as hanging string.  However, stamping and embossing the patterned paper in gold or silver would add a wonderful detail to the ornaments. There are so many possibilities!

Have you used your Prickley Pear stamps in an unusual way?  If so, I'd love to hear about it!

Thanks for stopping by!

And Then I Said

Wow, it's been a while since I've used my MFT stamps and I still have several stamp sets that are unused. :(  So, I decided that this week's MFT Guest Designer challenge was the perfect excuse to pull out a new stamp set and get it inky.  And then I said, is on sale in the bubble bin at MFT, once it's gone, they will not be restocking it!

Susan and Jen decided to make this month's challenge a color challenge: raspberry, aqua, and lime!  Definitely bright!  The colors actually blended together a lot better than I thought they would.  Be sure to stop by the MFT forum on Splitcoast Stampers, they will be having their monthly release party this Thursday.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies: paper - SEI Bissette; cardstock - PTI simply chartreuse, hawaiian shores, kraft; Bazzill swiss dot; ribbon - PTI raspberry fizz saddle stitch; ink - Memento Tuxedo Black, VersaMagic - Aquatic Splash; copics; Nestabilities; EK Success - notebook edge punch; MFT - And Then I Said stamp set, jumbo scallop die-namic

Knowledge is Power

When I experimented with my PTI impression plates and letterpressing, I had a few panels left that I knew I couldn't let go to waste, so I put them to good use in a card.

I had intended on making this card rather masculine, but somehow a quite girlie flower managed to sneak onto the card! Lol.  The bottom panel was impressed one side of the PTI book print impression plate that was inked up with blue Encore ink.  The subtle shimmer in the ink make the impression pop beautifully.  I made the library card on my computer, printed it out on kraft cardstock and embellished it with a flourish from the PTI embellishments stamp set.  The tiny card pocket was made by die cutting another piece of impressed cardstock with the mat stack 4 die, folding it in half and securing it with some scor tape.  The sentiment is from My Favorite Things.

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Birthday to You!

Hello bloggers!  I've got a bright and fun card for you today. 

This cute Henry Mouse stamp by Whiff of Joy was colored with my copics, attached to a swiss dot scalloped circle mat and popped up on dimensionals.  Since I chose such a bright color scheme, I decided to keep the embellishments to a minimum, using only a large star brad to add some interest to the card. 

It seems like I just can't keep enough birthday cards in my stash.  This card can be given to either a boy or girl with makes it perfect to keep on hand.  Thanks for stopping by!

Holiday Bird

Prickley Pear's new Christmas stamps include a beautiful bird perched on a tree.  I love the versatility of this stamp set, traditional colors with render a lovely holiday card, soft pastels will yield a perfect spring card, earthy tones will make it perfect for fall.

I chose to go with traditional gold and red to make a festive card since the holiday season will be here before you know it and I'll need a head start making Christmas cards.

I stamped the image on white cardstock using rich cocoa ink from Memento.  I colored my bird in with copics, added some stardust pen and swirled the sparkles around using an aquapainter filled with alcohol (a technique I learned from Jen Del Muro), and added half back pearls in red and white from Pizzazz Aplenty.  The image was die cut using my new nestie labels set, I love the new sets that were recently released, they have an elegant feel to them!  I edged the panel with gold ink to finish it off.  The background panel is from Jillibean soup and I added a few more pearls to the side to add some interest.  The sparkly stripped panel is from DCWV and I just couldn't resist adding a soft bow to my card.

Prickley Pear has several holiday images that can help you make wonderful, homemade cards this season.  Thanks for stopping by!

New Stamps

I recently discovered this stamp set from Taylored Expressions and I instantly fell in love with it!  I love the beautiful, elegant images in this set.  And, I was pleasantly surprised to with TE's packaging.  My new set came premounted on ez-mount and attached to it's own storage panel.  A perfect fit with my storage system!

I stamped this beautiful butterfly with green Enore ink and colored it in with my copics.  I added some sparkle with my stardust pen and embellished it with white half back pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty.  Once I sponged around the image, I attached it to a scalloped mat and added liquid pearls around the edges.  The bottom panel is another stamp from the same set stamped in Brilliance coffee bean ink.

I can't wait to experiment some more with this stamp set!  Thanks for stopping by!

Case Study

Last week, a fellow design team member, Tesa, posted about a fairly new blog called CASE Study.  The blog features a guest designer each month that will inspire you with the beautiful cards.  I decided to play along and create a card of my own.

I kept the general layout and color scheme of the card but changed a few of the details.  I used my text style stamp from PTI to stamp my background.  Instead of using copics on my butterfly, I stamped it out on acetate and colored it with PK Glitz glitters and added a crystal flourish trail.  Instead of a scalloped, pear trimmed border, I opted for a double loop border punch from Martha Stewart.  The sentiment is from Prickley Pear. 

I just love inspiration challenges, they provide a great starting point!  Thanks for stopping by!

Embellish Color Challenge

Ever since I discovered Ashley Newell's blog, I've been admiring the gorgeous work her and her design team colleagues produce for their color challenges on the Embellish blog.  Although I love their work, the color combos are not colors I would normally combine.  This time, even though I was unsure of the palette, I decided to jump in and play along.

When I showed the card to Aldo, he surprised me by telling me that he loved the color palette I had chosen. Hmm, maybe I've been playing it a bit too safe with my color combos!  Part of the challenge was to use your stamps to create a background so I used my new Juliette stamp set from SEI to stamp the medallion print on yellow cardstock using grey ink.  The die cut flourish is from PTI's embellishment stamp set.  I added black 3mm rhinestones from Pizzaz Aplenty to the center of each medallion.  A black rhinestone flourish and velvet ribbon complete the card. 

Christmas Tags

Last week I attended the Creating Keepsakes Convention in San Marcos and I had a blast!!  One of the make and takes being offered was hosted by Tattered Angels.  I got the opportunity to play with several of their products and I walked away from their booth with a few goodies I just couldn't resist!  I have a feeling that there will be plenty of shimmer in my future projects :)
When I got home, I was also greeted by some wonderful happy mail from Prickley Pear!  Their new Christmas images are being released tomorrow and, trust me, they are wonderful, as usual!  I decided to make a couple of tags using my new glimmer mists and stamps.

I sprayed a large manilla tag with jazz blue and apple glimmer mists, added some homemade gold shimmer spray and distressed the edges with vintage photo ink.  The Distress inks blend so well over the shimmer mists!  I added some ivory crochet lace, a crystal flourish, and a snowflake to the tag.  I stamped out the holiday frame on white cardstock using Encore copper ink and very lightly sponged it with vintage photo ink.  I added my sentiment and some beautiful peridot rhinestones from Pizzazz Aplenty. 

I loved this tag so much, I decided to make another one.

This time, I stamped snowflakes on the tag using versamark ink and embossed them with clear detail power.  Once I added the glimmer mist and let it dry, I gently buffed the snowflakes to remove the excess mist and ended up with a beautiful emboss resist background.  Some ribbon, topaz rhinestones from Pizzazz Aplenty, a sentiment from Technique Tuesday, and a large brad finish off the tag.

I wish you could see the beautiful shimmer on the tags, but I just can't figure out how to capture it with my camera...  Pizzazz Aplenty features a different offer every week, be sure to stop by and check out this week's offer.  Thanks for stopping by!

Little Loveasaurus

Hello!  I've got a new card to share with you today.  This card features the oh so adorable Little Loveasaurus from My Favorite Things. 

I paperpieced this cutie using my favorite green polka dot paper from October Afternoon's Fly a Kite collection.  His scales were colored in using copic markers and I added some Sakura stardust pen on top for some shimmer.  I used a Spellbinders impressabilities plate and sponged vintage photo distress ink on top of it to create the circle patter on my craft panel.  Strips of green ribbon and some white flat back pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty complete the card. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Reading Is Fun

Hi all, I'm back today with some cute bookmarks I put together.  Lately I've been making it a point to pull out all the items that I've had for a while but never used and this project features so many of them! :)

 

The bookmarks were die cut using my new PTI mat stack 4 die.  In order to make them double sided, I covered the back side of the polka dot paper with 1/2" double sided tape prior to die cutting the paper.  I letterpressed the brown cardstock using my PTI book print impression plate inked up with vintage cream ink.  The little boy, the bookworm, and the sentiments are from MFT's I {heart} books stamp set, a set I've had for about a year, but never used.  Oops. :) The glasses on the little boy and the worm were glazed using my clear sakura glaze pen. 

These cute little bookmarks came together so quickly and make the perfect little gift to pair with a giftcard from a bookstore.